Year: 2013

Mohammed Jaffer Renowned Photo Editor of SnapsIndia USA

Mohammed Jaffer Renowned Photo Editor of SnapsIndia USA was with Hillary Clinton when she greeted the newly elected New York City Mayor Bill de Blassio and his wife Chirlane McCray

Dec 13, 2013 – 6:23 am EST
Ambassador Manjeev Singh Puri bids adieu to PMI

NEW YORK (TIP): Deputy Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations for more than four years, Ambassador Manjeev Singh Puri has been appointed Ambassador to Belgium. Puri who belongs to the 1982 batch of the Indian Foreign Service will also hold the position of Indian Ambassador to the Council of the European Union and The European Commission.

Hordes of friends and colleagues attended his farewell party hosted by the PMI on December 12. Diplomats of various ranking and countries toasted to his successful innings and wished him an even brighter success. Speaking of his departure from PMI, Ambassador Asoke Mukerjee said, “His absence at the PMI will be a loss for us. He has been a pillar of strength and support for India at the UN. Having said that, I am extremely happy that he is going as the Indian Ambassador to the European Union in Brussels. We are also happy that Ambassador Bishnoi will take his place as DPR now. With his experience and understanding of the UN, I am confident he will fill the gap more than we can expect”.

Hardeep Singh Puri, the former Permanent Representative of India to the UN added, “Manjeev is leaving New York after what can only be described as an outstanding contribution during an eventful period. He was a part of us when we prepared for elections at the Security Council. He was a pillar of strength when we were on the Security Council. I wish him all the very best and I’m sure he will do an equally brilliant job at Brussels”. “Ambassador Manjeev Singh Puri has done India proud. It surely is a loss for us. But Brussels will gain immensely from a bilateral Ambassador like Mr. Puri,” said Manhattan attorney Ravi Batra. Ambassador Usmain Sarki, Deputy Permanent Representative of Nigeria also wished the departing Ambassador the very best. “Manjeev is a wonderful, friend, a colleague, a brother. We have worked very closely together. Above all, he was an excellent diplomat for India. So we will miss him very much.” Ambassador Puri replaces Ambassador Dinkar Khullar at India’s Mission in the European Union.

Dec 13, 2013 – 6:20 am EST
Pakistan’s ‘ghost schools’ threaten next generation

CHANCHER REDHAR , PAKISTAN (TIP): In a decrepit white-walled classroom in southern Pakistan, Bushra valiantly struggles to keep discipline as a dozen girls run and scream around her.With no teacher for the past eight months, the 10-year-old has been forced to step in. “I teach them lessons from the Koran, I teach them Sindhi, I teach them to count onetwo, I teach them the alphabet A-B-C-D,” said Bushra, wearing a traditional nose stud and a scarf around her head. She says she dreams of becoming a doctor and learning about computers. But her academic ambitions risk being scuppered after her own teacher fled. Authorities have not appointed a new one, making Bushra’s situation typical for a student at one of Pakistan’s 7,000 so-called “ghost schools”, where no formal classes can be taught.

These abandoned pupils are part of a growing education crisis in the country where, according to the United Nations, over five million children do not attend primary school. “The last teacher told us she would stop coming if we did not pay for her transportation to the village,” said Salim Samoon, who has seven granddaughters at the school catering for the roughly 600 residents of Chancher Redhar, a village two hours drive from Karachi in the south of Pakistan. “But we have no money and the authorities have not appointed a new teacher,” he said. The southern village is far from the notoriously conservative parts of northwest Pakistan near the Afghan border, where Taliban attacks against public schools are commonplace. Schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai become an international symbol of the right to education for all after surviving a 2012 Taliban attack in which she was shot in the head. But the damage caused by “ghost schools” across Pakistan, such as the one in Chancher Redhar, is self-inflicted and potentially greater: a new generation of children growing up without an education, either because the schools have been abandoned, destroyed, or because teachers are not turning up.

“Maybe the media highlights the bombings of schools more because it is visible. But this is a more dangerous problem,” said Rahmatullah Balal of the NGO Ailaan Alif, who has published a ranking of districts in terms of the quality of education available. According to his ranking, the district of Thatta, home to Bushra and her classmates, lies in 140th position out of a total of 144, behind Taliban hideouts in the northwest. Teachers paid to stay home Alerted last year to the problem of “ghost schools,” the Supreme Court of Pakistan asked provinces to scrutinise institutions that took students and were officially regarded as schools. The results, released in late November, where shocking. “In most of the basic teaching units of the district, the situation is very alarming,” the report said. “Most of these schools are teaching institutions only in name, but virtually no student is being admitted there to seek education and the teaching staff is taking salary at home.” Along with teachers who received salary but did not teach, other schools failed to appoint teachers, were appropriated by wealthy landowners, or had budget irregularities, such as “paid-for” computers which never arrived. “The government and bureaucrats have no willingness to solve the problem,” said Balal.

“The money that the government gives to the school is consumed by bureaucrats. The budget might tell you what the money has been used for in the schools, but you don’t see it get spent and then the money is gone.” He says school funds are split “50-50” between feudal lords and bureaucrats, partly to ensure that there is no threat to the feudal lords’ power base by seeing the poor receive education. ‘Admit to the problem’ Those politicians who are actively trying to raise the issue say that it is not a priority for the government. “We have to invest in our education because it is the only way to get progress,” said Humera Alwani of the Pakistan Peoples Party. “You have to admit to a problem before you can correct it,” she said. The existence of “ghost schools” also removes incentive for poor families to ensure their children get an education. Instead, many see more value in sending them to work in the fields or bazaars. “I do not like this school, this is why I do not go,” said Arbab, not yet a teenager. “I go to fetch and buy water, and then I sell it.” Local residents worry another generation will grow up without the skills they need. “These kids of ours, they don’t know anything. They don’t know the meaning of their names, they don’t know the basics, they know nothing,” said Kazoo Samoon, a villager in Chancher Redhar. “My other daughter grew up without an education and now these children will grow up without any education.”

Dec 13, 2013 – 6:15 am EST
Indian Diplomat arrested for Visa Fraud: a questionable arrest, say community leaders

NEW YORK (TIP): Devyani Khobragade, Deputy Consul General for political, economic, commercial and women’s affairs, Consulate General of India, New York, was arrested on Thursday, December 12 morning for allegedly presenting fraudulent documents to the United States State Department in support of a visa application for an Indian national employed as a babysitter and housekeeper at Khobragade’s home in Manhattan. Khobragade, who was produced on Thursday, December 12 afternoon before US Magistrate Judge Debra Freeman, was released on $250,000 personal recognizance bond co-signed by three people, prosecution sources said.

According to the prosecution sources, she has to surrender all travel documents and her travel will be restricted to the US with notice to pre-trial before interstate travel”. Khobragade’s arrest was announced by Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York on charges that KHOBRAGADE allegedly caused a materially false and fraudulent document to be presented, and materially false and fraudulent statements to be made, to the United States Department of State in support of a visa application for an Indian national employed as a babysitter and housekeeper at KHOBRAGADE’s home in New York, New York. Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Foreign nationals brought to the United States to serve as domestic workers are entitled to the same protections against exploitation as those afforded to United States citizens. The false statements and fraud alleged to have occurred here were designed to circumvent those protections so that a visa would issue for a domestic worker who was promised far less than a fair wage.

This type of fraud on the United States and exploitation of an individual will not be tolerated.” According to the allegations in the criminal complaint unsealed today in Manhattan federal court: Diplomats and consular officers may obtain A-3 visas for their personal employees, domestic workers, and servants if they meet the requirements set out in 9 Foreign Affairs Manual (“FAM”) 41.22. As part of the application process, an interview at the embassy or consulate is required. Proof is required that the applicant will receive a fair wage, sufficient to support himself financially, comparable to that being offered in the area of employment in the U.S. To apply for an A-3 visa, the visa applicant must submit an employment contract signed by both the employer and the employee which must include, among other things, a description of duties, hours of work, the hourly wage – which must be the greater of the minimum wage under U.S. federal and state law, or the prevailing wage – for all working hours, overtime work, and payment.

DEVYANI KHOBRAGADE prepared and electronically submitted an application for an A-3 visa (the “Visa Application”) through the website for the U.S. Department of State’s Consular Electronic Application Center for an Indian national (“Witness-1”), who was to be the personal employee of KHOBRAGADE beginning in November 2012 at an address in New York, New York. The Visa Application stated that Witness-1 was to be paid $4,500 per month in U.S. dollars. KHOBRAGADE and Witness-1 also signed an employment contract (the “First Employment Contract”) for Witness-1 to bring to Witness-1’s interview at the U.S. Embassy in India in connection with the Visa Application, which Witness-1 did at KHOBRAGADE’s direction. The First Employment Contract stated, among other things, that KHOBRAGADE would pay Witness-1 the prevailing or minimum wage, whichever is greater, resulting in an hourly salary of $9.75. KHOBRAGADE knew that the First Employment Contract that KHOBRAGADE caused Witness-1 to submit to the U.S. State Department in connection with Witness-1’s Visa Application contained materially false and fraudulent statements about, among other things, Witness-1’s hourly wage and hours worked. Prior to the signing of the First Employment Contract, KHOBRAGADE and Witness-1 had agreed that KHOBRAGADE would pay 30,000 rupees per month, which at the time was equivalent to $573.07 U.S. At 40 hours per week, with approximately 4.3 weeks in a month, $573.07 equates to a rate of $3.31 per hour.

However, KHOBRAGADE instructed Witness-1 to say that she would be paid $9.75 per hour, and not to say anything about being paid 30,000 rupees per month. KHOBRAGADE also instructed Witness-1 to say that Witness-1 would work 40 hours per week, and that Witness-1’s duty hours would be 7 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. She told Witness-1 that the First Employment Contract was a formality to get the visa. After the First Employment Contract was submitted to the United States Department of State, KHOBRAGADE told Witness-1 that Witness-1 needed to sign another employment contract (the “Second Employment Contract”). KHOBRAGADE and Witness-1 signed the Second Employment Contract, which provided that Witness-1’s maximum salary per month including overtime allowance will not exceed 30,000 rupees per month. The Second Employment Contract does not contain any provision about the normal number of working hours per week or month. Witness-1 worked for KHOBRAGADE as a household employee in New York, New York, from approximately November 2012 through approximately June 2013. Notwithstanding the terms of the First Employment Contract, Witness-1 worked far more than 40 hours per week, and Witness-1 was paid less than $9.75 per hour by KHOBRAGADE.

In fact, notwithstanding the terms of the oral agreement between KHOBRAGADE and Witness-1 and the terms of the Second Employment Contract, Witness-1 was paid less than 30,000 rupees per month, or $3.31 per hour. The charges contained in the complaint are merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. Meanwhile, the community as also the Indian Embassy in Washington have not taken kindly to the arrest. A visibly annoyed diplomat quipped this does not help making relationships. A veteran community leader wondered how a diplomat having diplomatic immunity can be hauled up the way Khobragade was. Another Indian American said it was an insult to India that while the country’s foreign secretary was having meetings with State Department officials in Washington, a member of the Indian Diplomatic community was arrested 250 miles away, in New York. Indian Embassy, replying to questions from media, sent out a note that read, inter alia, “Action was apparently taken against Dr Khobragade on the basis of allegations raised by the officer’s former India-based domestic assistant, Ms Sangeeta Richard, who has been absconding since June this year.

In this context the Delhi High Court had issued an-interim injunction in September to restrain Ms Richards from instituting any actions or proceedings against Dr Khobragade outside India on the terms or conditions of her employment. The US Government had subsequently been requested to locate Ms Richard and facilitate the service of an arrest warrant, issued by the Metropolitan Magistrate of the South District Court in New Delhi under Sections 387, 420 and 120B of the Indian Penal Code. The Embassy of India in Washington DC had immediately conveyed its strong concern to the U.S. Government over the action taken against Dr Khobragade. The US side have been urged to resolve the matter with due sensitivity, taking into account the existing Court case in India that has already been brought to their attention by the Government of India, and the Diplomatic status of the officer concerned.”

Dec 13, 2013 – 6:14 am EST
A Two-Year Deal on Spending Reached: Conservative Republicans not happy

WASHINGTON (TIP): A compromise federal budget plan that would remove the threat of a government shutdown for two years won easy approval Thursday, December 12, from the Republicancontrolled U.S. House. The deal worked out by House Budget Chairman Rep. Paul Ryan and Senate Budget Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray passed on a 332-94 vote and now goes to the Democratic-led Senate, which is expected to approve it next week in a very close vote. It represented rare convergence between the two parties on government spending after two years of bitter debate and political brinksmanship that included the 16-day shutdown in October. President Barack Obama hailed the agreement as a sign of rare bipartisan cooperation in the strife-filled US legislature.

“It’s a good sign that Democrats and Republicans in Congress were able to come together and break the cycle of shortsighted, crisis-driven decision-making to get this done,” the president said shortly after the deal was announced. The agreement’s main brokers, Democratic Senator Patty Murry and House Republican Paul Ryan, said it sets the new annual budget caps for 2014 and 2015 at just over $1 trillion — slightly higher than current levels — and at least partially repeals the automatic, widely loathed budget cuts known as “sequestration.” “I see this agreement as a step in the right direction,” Ryan, the 2012 Republican vice presidential nominee and chairman of the House Budget Committee, told reporters, noting that the deal does not raise taxes on Americans. “We have broken through the gridlock and reached a bipartisan budget compromise that will prevent a government shutdown in January,” added Murray, the Senate’s top budget chief, who said she and Ryan set aside their political differences to reach a compromise over weeks of negotiations.

“We agree that our country needs some certainty and we need to show that we can work together,” she added. House Speaker John Boehner acknowledged the measure amounted to only a small step toward the GOP goal of deficit reduction and balancing the budget, but he rejected opposition by some conservatives in his caucus as well as outside groups on the political right. “Is it perfect? Does it go far enough? No, not at all,” Boehner said in urging his colleagues to back the plan, noting it resulted from “doing what the American people expect us to do — coming together and finding common ground.” Ryan noted that Washington politicians have “been at each other’s throats for a long time” over budget issues, and Republicans must first win some elections in order to get all the deficit reduction and spending cuts they want. Democrats also hailed the budget proposal as a “small positive step forward,” in the words of Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland.

He and other Democrats called for Congress to also extend long-term unemployment benefits for more than 1 million Americans set to expire after Christmas, but their support for the budget plan showed they dropped any demand to link the issues in Thursday’s vote. In the House vote, 169 Republicans voted for the spending plan while 62 opposed it, with 163 Democrats in favor and 32 against. While most Republicans supported the plan, Boehner needed help from Democrats to get the 217-vote threshold needed for passage. Top GOP Senate aides said they expect the budget to pass the Senate but it could be by a razor thin margin. This could also change if momentum against the bill grows. GOP conservatives including Ted Cruz of Texas, Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, said they will oppose the measure, which would need some Republican support for Democrats to overcome an expected filibuster.

Dec 13, 2013 – 6:11 am EST
Elaborate ceremony to lay Mandela to rest

PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA (TIP): NELSON Mandela will be laid to rest on Sunday in an elaborate ceremony combining a state funeral and all its military pomp with the traditional burial rituals of his Xhosa clan to ensure he has an easy transition into the afterworld. Many South Africans will revere Mr Mandela, who during his life became a global symbol of peace and reconciliation, even more now that he has died, since ancestors are widely believed to have a guiding, protective role over the living. Around 46% of the population practises traditional African religions, according to a 2010 survey by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, a Washington-based research centre. Mr Mandela, of the abaThembu people and South Africa’s first black president, died a week ago at the age of 95. Thousands of people have filed passed his body as it lies in state in Pretoria this week. He will be buried by his family following their traditional burial rites on Sunday in Qunu, their ancestral home in the rural Eastern Cape province, 450 miles south of Johannesburg.

If the rites are not carried out, the abaThembu believe the dead will come back in spirit to demand they are performed. “We as Africans have rites of passage, whether it is a birth, marriage or funeral. Mandela will be sent off into the spiritual world so that he is welcomed in the world of ancestors. And also so that he doesn’t get angry,” said Nokuzola Mndende, a scholar of African religion. A man who for many embodied the Christian values of forgiveness, Mr Mandela was the product of Xhosa traditional upbringing and Methodist schooling. Mr Mandela spoke approvingly of the Xhosa rituals which his mother, a convert to the Methodist faith, resisted but his father followed. For the abaThembu, the ritual of accompanying Mr Mandela’s spirit will include the slaughtering of an ox in the early hours of tomorrow morning before receiving his body, flown in from Pretoria. In the early hours of Sunday morning, before the funeral officially begins, another ox will be slaughtered as part of the family ritual of saying goodbye. After that Mr Mandela’s body will be handed over to the church and then to President Jacob Zuma for the state funeral.

Dec 13, 2013 – 6:09 am EST
Navrang Drama Academy Launch Announced

METUCHEN, NJ (TIP): Varsha Naik and Mr. Subodh Naik Director of NAVRANG DANCE ACADEMY (NDA), located in South Plainfield, NJ announced the launch of NavrangDramaAcademy during the Diwali Party hosted by NDA, which was held on November 15th 2013 in Metuchen, NJ. Mrs. Varsha Naik, officially launched the DVD of the 90 min mythological stage play “RAMLEELA” which was choreographed and directed by herself, featuring more than 70 local artist, which included both adults and children of all ages. Ramleela was a big hit during Edison Dushera Mela and was watched over by 8000 people. She received appreciation from UN representatives for her months of hard work for and commitment in putting together this amazing mythological play. Pradip Gupta anchored the whole event.

The VIP guests who attended the event were, Community leader Atma Singh, Mrs. Chanchal Gupta (Chair Person of Edison Dusshera Festival), Raj Mittal( President of Edison Dusshera Festival), Ashok Ojha (CEO Asian Edison PR LLC), Mahesh Chitnis (Lions Vice Governor), Sanjiv Pandya (COO of Radio Zindagi), Kajol Bishnoi (Founder & CEO of IEI), Mukul Bishnoi (Founder Rudraksham Intl.). This event also included other business owners, personnel from Event and Media Industry and several others. The evening celebrations continued with an amazing dance performance by NavrangDanceAcademy current students. Alongside, there was a wide selection of Indian delicacies, both vegetarian and nonvegetarian dishes catered by Sunshine foods. All attendees were given a free copy of the Ramleela DVD. Everyone had fun at the event and enjoyed the evening. Like myself, I guess everyone is waiting to hear from NDA about their next project, one of them they disclosed at this event is Naach Revolution 2014.

Dec 6, 2013 – 6:24 am EST
SA TROUNCE INDIA IN HARSH WELCOME

JOHANNESBURG (TIP): South Africa brought Floyd-like edge to the word pink as they welcomed a clearly undercooked Indian side to the country with a 141-run hammering. Quinton de Kock, the baby face in baby pink, combined ferocity and cheek in his 135, and assisted by supporting fifties from Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers and JP Duminy, gave India 359 to chase. On a pitch made to look placid by their bowlers, the India batsmen were on a hiding to nothing against a six-man pace attack that was at them from the start, when it took them 16 balls to even touch a Dale Steyn delivery. During that first spell, Steyn caused India more trouble than the visiting bowlers did in the whole South African innings. On their first day of international cricket on this trip, the India bowlers were given the best of conditions: they won the toss, bowled when the pitch was at its freshest, and avoided the dew.

However, with the exception of Mohammed Shami, they didn’t test the batsmen for long enough, and when they did their fielders were off their game. Amla could have been run out on 7, and should have been caught on 8, but was let off by the India openers Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma. De Kock, too, survived a half chance early in the innings, but that was all impression the bowlers created. Amla started scratchily, he scored just 65 out of the 152-run opening stand, but de Kock looked in fine touch from the start. The third ball he faced was a leg-side half-volley from Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and he tucked into it. The last ball of that over was short and wide, and was cut away for four more. Mohit Sharma at the other end produced a fine fourth over, but he saw a top edge from de Kock fall short of the diving Shami at third man, and Rohit at cover did not come in to take a loopy leading edge from Amla. Two overs earlier Dhawan had missed the stumps from pretty close at mid-on. Amla would rub it in by soon taking 14 off three balls to reach 23 off 29: a punch through cover, a walk across the stumps to play the pick-up over midwicket, and then a cut past point. De Kock needed no such acceleration, and his 27 off 23 had taken South Africa to 53 in nine overs.

Shami began with a maiden, and it was about the time when Dhoni goes to his spinners for control back in India. At the Wanderers, however, the ball didn’t grip and the pitch didn’t slow down; R Ashwin bowled too short, and Ravindra Jadeja too fast. It was not all milking from the opening pair: they found boundaries in six of the seven overs between Nos. 22 and 28. After 11 overs of spin for 62, MS Dhoni had to go to pace, not least because South Africa had called for an early Powerplay in the 30th over. An offcutter from Shami, and a mistimed chip from Jacques Kallis gave India two wickets in that 32-run Powerplay. During that period de Kock smacked a Mohit slower ball for six, and then took two singles to bring up his century. It was just a sign of things to come. As Dhoni went back to spin in the 36th over, de Kock and AB de Villiers began to push into a higher gear. Without any violence – mainly through chips over mid-off, a late cut and one slog sweep – de Kock went from 101 off 102 to his eventual 135 off 121. When Virat Kohli, who took de Kock’s return catch, gave the batsman a send-off, little did he know the wrath that awaited India. De Villiers and Duminy hit the bowlers around at will.

Most of it was just clearing the front leg, and smacking length balls to all the stands. De Villiers even hooked a six from one knee. This was a statement of intent: we can do what we please. The yorkers were few, the slower balls easily picked and dispatched, and de Villiers and Duminy added 105 in the 7.4 overs they batted together. Between them the two hit nine sixes and eight fours. De Villiers had scored 77 off 47 when he fell, which looked sedate in comparison to Duminy’s unbeaten 59 off 29. An even hundred came off the last six overs. Then it was over to the other wing of the welcome committee. Conditions couldn’t have looked more different. The ball began to seam, swing and bounce. Dhawan looked comfortable during two Lonwabo Tsotsobe overs, but top-edged the first ball from Morne Morkel. Steyn softened Rohit up well and proper, but it was Virat Kohli who fell first to a shortish delivery from Ryan McLaren that seamed away to take the edge. In the next two balls, McLaren delivered the good-old one-two to Yuvraj Singh: a bouncer into the crash helmet followed by a fuller one that took the top of off stump. Suresh Raina came in, didn’t fancy the strike, called Rohit through for a poor run. Rohit should have said no. He now had a lot of time to go over his innings. The contest was finished well before it became 65 for 4 in the 16th over. Even as South Africa bowled their less-menacing bowlers, MS Dhoni’s 65 only delayed the inevitable.

Dec 6, 2013 – 6:21 am EST
SRI GURU GRANTH SAHIB

CONTD FROM Vol 7 ISSUE 45 || 3 || 2 || 24 || AASAA: I am bothered by my mother-in-law, Maya, and loved by my father-in-law, the Lord. I fear even the name of my husband’s elder brother, Death. O my mates and companions, my husband’s sister, misunderstanding has seized me, and I am burning with the pain of separation from my husband’s younger brother, divine knowledge. || 1 || My mind has gone insane, since I forgot the Lord. How can I lead a virtuous lifestyle? He rests in the bed of my mind, but I cannot see Him with my eyes. Unto whom should I tell my sufferings? || 1 || Pause || My stepfather, egotism, fights with me, and my mother, desire, is always intoxicated. When I stayed with my elder brother, meditation, then I was loved by my Husband Lord. || 2 || Says Kabeer, the five passions argue with me, and in these arguments, my life is wasting away. The false Maya has bound the whole world, but I have obtained peace, chanting the Name of the Lord.

|| 3 || 3 || 25 || AASAA: In my house, I constantly weave the thread, while you wear the thread around your neck, O Brahmin. You read the Vedas and sacred hymns, while I have enshrined the Lord of the Universe in my heart. || 1 || Upon my tongue, within my eyes, and within my heart, abides the Lord, the Lord of the Universe. When you are interrogated at Death’s door, O mad-man, what will you say then? || 1 || Pause || I am a cow, and You are the herdsman, the Sustainer of the World. You are my Saving Grace, lifetime after lifetime. You have never taken me across to graze there – what sort of a herdsman are You? || 2 || You are a Brahmin, and I am a weaver of Benares; can You understand my wisdom? You beg from emperors and kings, while I meditate on the Lord. || 3 || 4 || 26 || AASAA: The life of the world is only a dream; life is just a dream. Believing it to be true, I grasped at it, and abandoned the supreme treasure. || 1 || O Father, I have enshrined love and affection for Maya, which has taken the jewel of spiritual wisdom away from me.

|| 1 || Pause || The moth sees with its eyes, but it still becomes entangled; the insect does not see the fire. Attached to gold and woman, the fool does not think of the noose of Death. || 2 || Reflect upon this, and abandon sin; the Lord is a boat to carry you across. Says Kabeer, such is the Lord, the Life of the World; there is no one equal to Him. || 3 || 5 || 27 || AASAA: In the past, I have taken many forms, but I shall not take form again. The strings and wires of the musical instrument are worn out, and I am in the power of the Lord’s Name. || 1 || Now, I no longer dance to the tune. My mind no longer beats the drum. || 1 || Pause || I have burnt away sexual desire, anger and attachment to Maya, and the pitcher of my desires has burst. The gown of sensuous pleasures is worn out, and all my doubts have been dispelled. || 2 || I look upon all beings alike, and my conflict and strife are ended. Says Kabeer, when the Lord showed His Favor, I obtained Him, the Perfect One.

|| 3 || 6 || 28 || AASAA: You keep your fasts to please Allah, while you murder other beings for pleasure. You look after your own interests, and so not see the interests of others.What good is your word? || 1 || O Qazi, the One Lord is within you, but you do not behold Him by thought or contemplation. You do not care for others, you are a religious fanatic, and your life is of no account at all. || 1 || Pause || Your holy scriptures say that Allah is True, and that he is neither male nor female. But you gain nothing by reading and studying, O mad-man, if you do not gain the understanding in your heart. || 2 || Allah is hidden in every heart; reflect upon this in your mind. The One Lord is within both Hindu and Muslim; Kabeer proclaims this out loud. || 3 || 7 || 29 || AASAA, TIPADA, IK-TUKA: I have decorated myself to meet my Husband Lord. But the Lord, the Life of the Word, the Sustainer of the Universe, has not come to meet me. || 1 || The Lord is my Husband, and I am the Lord’s bride. The Lord is so great, and I am infinitesimally small. || 1 || Pause || The bride and the Groom dwell together.

They lie upon the one bed, but their union is difficult. || 2 || Blessed is the soulbride, who is pleasing to her Husband Lord. Says Kabeer, she shall not have to be reincarnated again. || 3 || 8 || 30 || AASAA OF KABEER JEE, DU-PADAS: ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD. BY THE GRACE OF THE TRUE GURU: When the Diamond of the Lord pierces the diamond of my mind, the fickle mind waving in the wind is easily absorbed into Him. This Diamond fills all with Divine Light; through the True Guru’s Teachings, I have found Him. || 1 || The sermon of the Lord is the unstruck, endless song. Becoming a swan, one recognizes the Diamond of the Lord. || 1 || Pause || Says Kabeer, I have seen such a Diamond, permeating and pervading the world. The hidden diamond became visible, when the Guru revealed it to me. || 2 || 1 || 31 || AASAA: My first wife, ignorance, was ugly, of low social status and bad character; she was evil in my home, and in her parents’ home. My present bride, divine understanding, is beautiful, wise and wellbehaved; I have taken her to my heart. || 1 || It has turned out so well, that my first wife has died. May she, whom I have now married, live throughout the ages. || 1 || Pause || Says Kabeer, when the younger bride came, the elder one lost her husband. The younger bride is with me now, and the elder one has taken another husband.

|| 2 || 2 || 32 || AASAA: My daughterin- law was first called Dhannia, the woman of wealth, but now she is called Raamjannia, the servant of the Lord. || 1 || These shaven-headed saints have ruined my house. They have caused my son to start chanting the Lord’s Name. || 1 || Pause || Says Kabeer, listen, O mother: these shavenheaded saints have done away with my low social status. || 2 || 3 || 33 || AASAA: Stay, stay, O daughter-in-law – do not cover your face with a veil. In the end, this shall not bring you even half a shell. || 1 || Pause || The one before you used to veil her face; do not follow in her footsteps. || 1 || The only merit in veiling your face is that for a few days, people will say, “What a noble bride has come”. || 2 || Your veil shall be true only if you skip, dance and sing the Glorious Praises of the Lord. || 3 || Says Kabeer, the soul-bride shall win, only if she passes her life singing the Lord’s Praises. || 4 || 1 || 34 || AASAA: I would rather be cut apart by a saw, than have You turn Your back on me. Hug me close, and listen to my prayer. || 1 || I am a sacrifice to You – please, turn Your face to me, O Beloved Lord. Why have You turned Your back to me? Why have You killed me? || 1 || Pause || Even if You cut my body apart, I shall not pull my limbs away from You. Even if my body falls, I shall not break my bonds of love with You.

|| 2 || Between You and I, there is no other. You are the Husband Lord, and I am the soulbride. || 3 || Says Kabeer, listen, O people: now, I place no reliance in you. || 4 || 2 || 35 || AASAA: No one knows the secret of God, the Cosmic Weaver. He has stretched out the fabric of the whole world. || 1 || Pause || When you listen to the Vedas and the Puraanas, you shall know that the whole world is only a small piece of His woven fabric. || 1 || He has made the earth and sky His loom. Upon it, He moves the two bobbins of the sun and the moon. || 2 || Placing my feet together, I have accomplished one thing – my mind is pleased with that Weaver. I have come to understand my own home, and recognize the Lord within my heart. || 3 || Says Kabeer, when my body workshop breaks, the Weaver shall blend my thread with His thread. || 4 || 3 || 36 || AASAA: With filth within the heart, even if one bathes at sacred places of pilgrimage, still, he shall not go to heaven. Nothing is gained by trying to please others – the Lord cannot be fooled. || 1 || Worship the One Divine Lord. The true cleansing bath is service to the Guru.

|| 1 || Pause || If salvation can be obtained by bathing in water, then what about the frog, which is always bathing in water? As is the frog, so is that mortal; he is reincarnated, over and over again. || 2 || If the hard-hearted sinner dies in Benaares, he cannot escape hell. And even if the Lord’s Saint dies in the cursed land of Haramba, still, he saves all his family. || 3 || Where there is neither day nor night, and neither Vedas nor Shaastras, there, the Formless Lord abides. Says Kabeer, meditate on Him, O mad-men of the world. || 4 || 4 || 37 || ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD. BY THE GRACE OF THE TRUE GURU: AASAA, THE WORD OF THE REVEREND NAAM DAYV JEE: In the one and in the many, He is pervading and permeating; wherever I look, there He is. The marvellous image of Maya is so fascinating; how few understand this. || 1 || God is everything, God is everything.Without God, there is nothing at all. As one thread holds hundreds and thousands of beads, He is woven into His creation. || 1 || Pause || The waves of the water, the foam and bubbles, are not distinct from the water. This manifested world is the playful game of the Supreme Lord God; reflecting upon it, we find that it is not different from Him. || 2 || False doubts and dream objects – man believes them to be true. The Guru has instructed me to try to do good deeds, and my awakened mind has accepted this.

|| 3 || Says Naam Dayv, see the Creation of the Lord, and reflect upon it in your heart. In each and every heart, and deep within the very nucleus of all, is the One Lord. || 4 || 1 || AASAA: Bringing the pitcher, I fill it with water, to bathe the Lord. But 4.2 million species of beings are in the water – how can I use it for the Lord, O Siblings of Destiny? || 1 || Wherever I go, the Lord is there. He continually plays in supreme bliss. || 1 || Pause || I bring flowers to weave a garland, in worshipful adoration of the Lord. But the bumble bee has already sucked out the fragrance – how can I use it for the Lord, O Siblings of Destiny? || 2 || I carry milk and cook it to make pudding, with which to feed the Lord. But the calf has already tasted the milk – how can I use it for the Lord, O Siblings of Destiny? || 3 || The Lord is here, the Lord is there; without the Lord, there is no world at all. Prays Naam Dayv, O Lord, You are totally permeating and pervading all places and interspaces. || 4 || 2 || AASAA: My mind is the yardstick, and my tongue is the scissors. I measure it out and cut off the noose of death. || 1 || What do I have to do with social status? What do I have to with ancestry? I meditate on the Name of the Lord, day and night. || 1 || Pause || I dye myself in the color of the Lord, and sew what has to be sewn.Without the Lord’s Name, I cannot live, even for a moment. || 2 || I perform devotional worship, and sing the Glorious Praises of the Lord. Twentyfour hours a day, I meditate on my Lord and Master. || 3 || My needle is gold, and my thread is silver. Naam Dayv’s mind is attached to the Lord. || 4 || 3 || AASAA: The snake sheds its skin, but does not lose its venom. The heron appears to be meditating, but it is concentrating on the water.

Dec 6, 2013 – 6:15 am EST
55 airlines accept China’s defence zone amid Biden’s visit

BEIJING (TIP): China on December 4 said 55 airlines from 19 countries have accepted its Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) over the East China Sea. Beijing’s announcement aims to demonstrate the success of its ADIZ in the face of resistance from Japan, South Korea and the US, and coincides with US Vice President Joe Biden’s visit to China. These airlines have agreed to submit their flight plans to Chinese authorities before flying into the zone, which includes the disputed Diaoyu Islands being claimed by both China and Japan. China had earlier scrambled its fighter jets after US and Japanese warplanes entered the zone. The announcement came soon after a meeting between Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing. Biden, during a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo on Tuesday, had expressed concern over China’s ADIZ.

Washington had earlier told US-based airlines to abide by China’s requirement that airlines flying into its zone submit flight plans. But it continued to express concern and also advised Beijing to exercise restraint. Japan reacted by establishing a National Security Council that will examine what it regards as a China threat. But Biden didn’t publicly protest against the zone in Beijing on Wednesday suggesting that the US resistance to it had softened further. Biden spoke in generalities at a reception in the Great Hall of the People and said, “Regional issues keep cropping up and there are more pronounced global challenges such as climate change and energy security. The world is not tranquil”. The official English-language China Daily, in a strongly worded editorial, said Biden “should not expect any substantial headway if he comes simply to repeat his government’s previous erroneous and onesided remarks.” “If the US is truly committed to lowering tensions in the region, it must first stop acquiescing to Tokyo’s dangerous brinkmanship. It must stop emboldening belligerent Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to constantly push the envelope of Japan’s encroachments and provocations,” the editorial said.

Dec 6, 2013 – 6:12 am EST
Britain calls for strong action against Syrian President Assad

LONDON (TIP): Britain has called for stern action against Syrian president Bashar al-Assad for the appalling human rights violations that have been carried out, with his consent. The United Nations for the first time on Monday directly named Syrian president Bashar al-Assad in being involved in serious war crimes, during the ongoing conflict in his country. UN human rights head Navi Pillay said that evidence had implicated the highest levels of the Syrian government in war crimes and crimes against humanity. Foreign Secretary William Hague reacted to the comments on Tuesday and said he endorses UN High Commissioner’s comments on Assad’s responsibility for regime’s appalling human rights record.

Mr Hague said “I fully endorse the comments made by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay on the Assad regime’s human rights record. She has pointed to evidence that senior members of Assad’s regime, up to and including Assad himself, bear primary responsibility for the appalling human rights situation. The UK will continue to press for action on human rights violations in Syria, and accountability for those who perpetrate them. And we will maintain our full support to the UN’s Commission of Inquiry.” Pillay said on Monday that the scale of viciousness of the abuses being perpetrated by elements on both sides almost defies belief. She said in Geneva “A UN commission of inquiry into human rights violations in Syria has produced massive evidence of very serious crimes, war crimes, crimes against humanity”. She then stressed “the evidence indicates responsibility at the highest level of government, including the head of state”.

UN investigators have carried out more than 2,000 interviews and have for the first time put together a long list of suspected perpetrators. Pillay however added the names “remain sealed until I am requested to furnish them to credible investigation”. She reiterated her call the case be handed over to the International Criminal Court in the Hague to ensure accountability. UN investigators recently found definitive evidence that children were being used in Syria as fighters. Investigators who were part of the UN commission of inquiry on Syria reported that armed groups are recruiting and using children for active participation in hostilities. Investigations have confirmed that 86 children were killed in hostilities as combatants.

“Of those, nearly half died in 2013. These figures suggest the use of children in combat is increasing,” UN investigators have reported. Video footage has also emerged showing a child participating in the beheading of two kidnapped men. The UN has also confirmed 17 incidents which they term as “massacres.” They say summary executions and murders have been rife. Detained persons believed to be opposition sympathizers are the most frequent victims of such crimes. Killing civilians by sniper fire and killing of hostages and detainees when a detention centre comes under attack are noted patterns of violations by both pro and anti-government groups. There has been a dramatic rise in hostage-taking, said the report/

Dec 6, 2013 – 6:10 am EST
US to introduce technology to detect alcohol on drivers

NEW DELHI (TIP): Struggling to put a check on drunken driving, one of the three main reasons of road deaths, the US has fast tracked its plan to introduce an advanced technology in vehicles that can detect if the driver is in a drunken state. US Highway Traffic Safety Administration (USHTSA) chief David L Strickland said alcohol consumption could be detected as soon the driver touches the steering or takes breath inside and the vehicle won’t start. He added the technology can be adopted by automobile manufacturers in different countries including India to reduce cases of drunk driving.

In India, drunk driving claimed 7,835 lives in 2012 in comparison to 10,553 in 2011. But in the US, it’s the other way round. Deaths in crashes involving drunk drivers increased 4.6% in 2012, taking 10,322 lives compared to 9,865 in 2011. USHTSA report says that majority of those crashes involved drivers with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.15 or higher — nearly double the legal limit. “We have already spent five years in research and two prototypes are out. Large scale rollout will happen in the next five years. Now we are asking the vehicle manufacturers to provide this as a feature in their vehicles. But the cost is high. We are working out how prices of these technologies in vehicles and devices come cheap,” Strickland told TOI.

He is in Delhi to attend UN Europe-Asia road safety forum meeting at Institute of Road Traffic Education. The USHTSA administrator said technology intervention is the only way out to bring in behavioural change among road users. Like in India, drivers’ fault is responsible for around 80% traffic crashes, in United States 90% such accidents are due to “human error”. Strickland said, “Technology intervention is the only way out to bring in change in behaviour of drivers and to make vehicles safer. Our focus is also on to have a technology to avoid collusion even if a driver fails to apply brake,” he added. Strickland also said that drivers and co-passengers not wearing seatbelt is also a big problem in US as it is in the case of India. There is no specific data on how many lives could have been saved in India if there was 100% seat belt wearing compliance. But the USHTSA report that in nighttime crashes in 2012, almost two-thirds of the people who died were unrestrained.

Dec 6, 2013 – 6:08 am EST
Indian Government keen to support Hindi institutions in USA–SUGANDH RAJARAM

HATFIELD, PA (TIP): Dozens of Primary and Middle school Indian American students between the ages 8 to 12 years performed Indian dances and showcased their Hindi language skills at the annual day event organized by Yuva Hindi Sansthan in Hatfield, PA. The event was organized at Pennfield Middle School in Hatfield, PA on November 23, which coincided with a reunion of students who earlier participated in a federal summer language and culture camp called STARTALK, in which 60 students attended the ten-day language immersion program from August 5 to 16. Addressing the gathering as chief guest, Sugandh Rajaram, Consul-Culture, Consulate General of India in New York, advised USbased educational and cultural organizations to work together for promotion of Hindi. He said that Government of India was eager to support programs aimed at promoting Hindi learning abroad including the United States.

Teachers of YHS STARTALK 2013 at the Reunion Day on November 23, 2013. Ashok Ojha, program director of YHS STARTALK Hindi 2013 and president of Yuva Hindi Sansthan is third from left

The consulate was interested in helping organizations involved in language teaching in the heritage communities. We would like to work with them overcome their challenges”, he said. He complimented educational programs undertaken by Yuva Hindi Sansthan, a nonprofit educational institution, which is actively involved in implementing modern learning methodologies for Hindi teaching. “As a representative of the Indian Government I offer my assistance in fulfilling this great cause”, he told the audience that progress of Hindi was essential for ensuring the progress of other Indian languages. ” Dr. Surendra Gambhir, YHS Chairman in his message, congratulated YHS STARTALK students for their commitment to learning Hindi. Emphasizing that learning a language was the key to success in life he told the young learners: “Learning new languages and other cultures sharpens your mind and enhances your IQ. You will be so happy in your later life that you decided to become a bilingual, just the way your parents are.”

“Yuva Hindi Sansthan has developed a pool of trained teachers, most of whom are native speakers of Hindi, who managed classes during the camp”, said Ashok Ojha, program director of YHS STARTALK Hindi 2013 and president of Yuva Hindi Sansthan. “We engage our students in real life activities in which they speak Hindi in unrehearsed situations. For example, they learn how to express their likings in a restaurant, how to introduce themselves and ask questions about others. Our goal is to prepare heritage students to be proud of their heritage by speaking the language and practicing the culture. “We are negotiating with IT experts to help us develop useful online lessons for the three levels: Novice, Intermediate and Advanced”, Ojha informed. Mrs. Usha Mishra, YHS secretary, pointed out YHS activities went beyond holding SARTALK programs and needed generous contributions from community members and supporters for meeting organizational obligations. She thanked past and present supporters of YHS who contributed to YHS donation fund.

Mrs. Sanjyot Tatke, treasurer, presented the financial statement of Yuva Hindi Sansthan as of December 31, 2012. She played a 10 minute YHS STARTALK Hindi 2013 video highlighting major activities of the program held from August 5 to 17, 2013. She also showcased the website where students projects and videos were posted. She then invited students to showcase their continued learning activities. Alka Singhvi, instructor, showcased a web tool, which was helpful creating multimedia stories using photos and texts. She also presented a number of websites and tools that enable users practicing Hindi writing. Varsha Naik directed students to perform dances learned during the camp. Yagnesh Choksi, former director of Bensalem Township School Board, said that the Indian community in Bensalem was eager to help and support Yuva Hindi Sansthan in its endeavor to promote Hindi in Pennsylvania.

Dec 6, 2013 – 6:05 am EST
US charges 49 Russian diplomats with healthcare fraud

NEW YORK (TIP): US prosecutors have charged 49 current and former Russian diplomats and their family members with participating in a scheme to get health benefits intended for the poor by lying about their income. The charges come against a backdrop of tense exchanges between Russia and the United States over law enforcement actions in both countries. According to the charges, filed in November and unsealed on Thursday, the diplomats’ families got around $1.5 million in benefits from the Medicaid program for families with low monthly incomes – in many cases around $3,000 or less. The benefits covered costs related to pregnancies, births and infant care, the charges say. Meanwhile, according to the charges, the family members had their housing costs paid for by the Russian government and spent “tens of thousands of dollars” on vacations, jewelry and luxury goods from stores like Swarovski and Jimmy Choo.

Each of the 49 people was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud and one count of conspiracy to steal government funds and make false statements relating to healthcare matters, according to the charges. “We are puzzled by the stovepiping of information to the media about accusations against Russian diplomatic mission officials in the US,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told Interfax news agency. “One does not understand why the (US) institutions involved considered it possible to make these accusations public without discussing (them) through diplomatic channels.” A spokesman for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Peter Donald, said no one was arrested. US attorney Preet Bharara said at a Manhattan press conference that the US State Department would have had to request a waiver of immunity from Russia in order for US authorities to arrest the defendants.

If no waiver is granted, Bharara said the State Department can insist that the defendants leave the country. “Diplomacy should be about extending hands, not picking pockets in the host country,” he said. Bharara declined to say how the charges might affect US-Russia relations. He said his office has not been in contact with the White House. A spokeswoman for the State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Russian mission to the United Nations was not immediately available for comment on the case. The charges say the defendants obtained letters to prove their false incomes from officials at the Russian UN mission, including a former counselor and a former second secretary, as well as from former top officials at the Consulate General of the Russian Federation in New York and the Trade Representation of the Russian Federation in the USA.

Dec 6, 2013 – 6:02 am EST
HAB BANK Reaches Out to Indian-American Community of Long Island

GARDEN CITY, NY (TIP): HAB BANK, nation’s oldest and largest South Asian bank, hosted a dinner for Indian- American community of Long Island at Mint Restaurant in Garden City, November 14. The event was organized in honor of HAB’s board member, Mr. Navneet Singh Chugh. Mr. Chugh was on a visit from California. Over 100 invited guests joined the HAB’s management in welcoming Mr. Chugh to Long Island. Mr. Saleem Iqbal, President & CEO of HAB BANK welcomed invited guests and thanked them for taking the time out, during a weeknight, to be at the dinner. He renewed the Bank’s commitment to serve growing and vibrant South Asian community on Long Island. He further said that he is proud of successes and achievements that members of our community have been able to attain.

Mr. Navneet Singh Chugh, Board Member of HAB BANK, told the guests that he was delighted to be among them and is proud to be part of the Bank. Mr. Chugh reiterated HAB’s mission to serve the financial needs of the community. He was particularly grateful to each one of the invited guests for being part of the event. HAB’s management that included Rizwan Qureshi, SEVP, Zilay Wahidy SVP, Nasir Khan, VP, Mehmood Syed, Senior Business Development Officer and HAB Hicksville Branch Manager, Ms. Rupal Sehgal accompanied Mr. Iqbal and Mr. Chugh. HAB BANK was founded in 1983 and since its inception, it has played a key role in nurturing and strengthening the South Asian community with branch network located in New York, New Jersey and California.

Through the years, the Bank has evolved in response to needs of its customers and maintains a close relationship with the community it serves. The Bank’s core products are Commercial Real Estate Mortgages, International Trade Services, US Small Business Loans and a well-designed commercial banking products and services for small to medium sized businesses. The Bank also has a wide range of consumer products and services including personal checking, savings, CDs, and full-service online banking. The Bank is fully committed to remain engaged and pro-active in meeting the banking requirements of its customer and, above all, continues to work towards “Building Relationships”.

Dec 6, 2013 – 5:51 am EST
Bollywood themed Authentic Indian Restaurant “DHOOM” opens in Secaucus, NJ

SECACUS, NJ (TIP): Dhoom, a Bollywood themed authentic Indian restaurant was officially inaugurated by Mayor Michael Gonnellion Oct 18th, 2013 in Secaucus, New Jersey. Co-owners Jimmy Patel and Vijay Rao, who currently operate the Michelin Star-rated Tulsi in New York City, had a vision to start a restaurant with filmy ambience. Their dream came true with opening of Dhoom (blast). Indian film memorabilia is all over this Michelin Star-rated restaurant, with delectable menu designed by chef Hemant Mathur and chef Dhandu Ram. Chefs Mathur and Ram have an impressive resume, having worked together at New Delhi’s celebrated Bukhara Restaurant, they joined hand to serve NY metropolitan area patron with two exotic locations.

Chef Mathur received critical appreciation from The New York Times, New York Magazine and Food & Wine app, when he led the culinary team of Devi for 6 years. Chef Ram attracted food enthusiasts at Yuva and Khyber Grill. Dhoom’s extensive menu features tandoori lamb chops, tandoori tiger shrimp, flambéed tandoori lobster as well as classic dishes such as tikki masala and saag paneer. A fivecourse Prix fixe menu offers several vegetarian and jain food options. Dhoom has a Full featured bar with liquors from around the world. Drinks like “Bollywood Dancer ” and “Sholay 75” take you into the dramatic world of Hindi Cinema. Besides a well-decorated restaurant, Dhoom provides private party space. Their future plans include a lounge for private or corporate events. Dhoom is conveniently located at Route 3 East, Secaucus, NJ07094

Dec 6, 2013 – 5:46 am EST
Consul General Mulay announces nationwide Indian Festive Food Week

NEWYORK (TIP): A unique nationwide celebration of Indian cuisine was announced at the Indian Consulate in New York Nov 22, targeting 7 US cities with a weeklong Indian Festive Food Week, initially scheduled from 12th December but now slated for mid January, 2014. While announcing the food week India’s Consul General in New York Dnyaneshwar Mulay said it will provide unprecedented gastronomical delight to the food connoisseurs. During the Indian Festive Food Week, an initiative of India Unlimited and Indya One, Indian food lovers can experience the complexity, yet subtly of Indian cuisine through the hands of celebrated Indian American chefs that call America their home.

Their food is a unique amalgamation of their Indian roots and American training, a fusion that has set new standards. Indian Festive Food Week is presented by ‘Etihad Airways’ and has ‘Kingfisher Beer’ as their official Indian Beer Partner. The rich flavors of India’s mainstream and regional cuisines, ranging from Punjabi, Awadhi, Mughlai, Rajasthani, Gujarati, Bengali and Udupi, will entice gourmands at select fine dining Indian restaurants in New York, New Jersey, Washington DC, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Austin and San Francisco. Participating restaurants will showcase their signature prix-fixe menu, including some that will bring out green and low-calorie options. The pricing of the prix-fixe menu will vary by city, ranging from $15 – $40, excluding taxes and gratuities. During the festive food week, various workshops and sessions will be organized with industry experts to create more awareness about Indian cuisine and various regional methods and styles adopted for cooking. Names of participating restaurants and the prix fixe menu and prices will be made available soon on the Indian Festive Food Week website at www.iffw.us Restaurant & Sponsor Contact: info@iffw.us

Dec 6, 2013 – 5:39 am EST
TIRLOK MALIK PLAYS BHARAT IN RAMAYANA AT MET

Tirlok Malik, a pioneer of films about Indian-American immigrant themes and a New York Emmy Award nominee, has done many roles in the movies, televisions, and theaters. Recently, he played the role of Bharat (Lord Rama’s brother) in Ramayana, staged at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City. The November 10th, 2013 presentation of Ramayana at the 708 seat state of the art theater packed with multicultural audiences enjoyed the performance of the epic.

To a standing ovation, the show was performed by the East-West School of Dance, choreographed and directed by Satya Narayana Charka. The performance in English language was backed by great music and dance. The cast was also multicultural, consisting of Americans and Indians. The show was hosted by Thomas P. Campbell, Director and Emly K. Rafferty, President, and the Multicultural Audience Development Initiative. In addition, Lal K. Motwani, the chairman of NFIA and Metropolitan Museum of Art Multicultural Advisory Committee Member, was an integral part of bringing the show to the audiences. The Ramayana show was done as a celebration of Diwali which conveys the message of victory over evil.

Dec 6, 2013 – 5:34 am EST
Diwali 2013 Celebrated at Indian Consulate

Ambassador Dnyaneshwar M. Mulay, Consul General of India in New York celebrated Diwali on November 17, 2013 with Ranju Batra, chair of the Diwali Stamp Project and president of Association of Indians in America-NY 2011 -2013, New York State Controller Tom DiNapoli, Ravi Batra, Ambassador Manjeev S. Puri, New York City Council Member Inez Dickens, many Supreme Court Justices, and distinguished members of the community.

Manjeev S. Puri, Deputy Permanent Representative of India to the UN (extreme right) also participated. Other in the picture, from L to R: Ranju Batra, Tom Di Napoli, Ravi Batra, Ambassador Mulay and Manjeev S. Puri

Dec 6, 2013 – 5:33 am EST
Biden warns China on air zone tensions

BEIJING (TIP): Visiting US Vice President Joe Biden warned China on Thursday, December 5, against escalating a dispute over an East China Sea air zone, adding that regional peace and stability were in Beijing’s interests. Biden who arrived in Beijing December 4, also criticized China’s tightening of controls on foreign journalists, stressing that the world’s second-largest economy could become more prosperous with American values such as human rights and freedom of speech. China’s controversial move last month to declare an “air defense identification zone” (ADIZ) — which includes islands disputed with Japan — has “caused significant apprehension in the region”, Biden told a group of 60 American business leaders Thursday morning.

“As China’s economy grows, its stake in regional peace and stability will continue to grow as well, because it has so much more to lose,” he added. “That’s why China will bear increasing responsibility to contribute positively to peace and security.” Biden reiterated in his meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping that the US does not recognize China’s newly-declared air zone, a senior White House official told reporters in Beijing late Wednesday. China says all aircraft within it must obey its instructions or risk unspecified “defensive emergency measures”. The move provoked anger in the region and prompted the US, Japan and South Korea all to defy Beijing by flying military and paramilitary aircraft — including two B- 52 bombers in Washington’s case — into the newly-declared zone. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei, meanwhile, said Thursday that the US “should respect” that the zone “is in line with international laws and conventions”. View galler Beijing sees Tokyo as the aggressor in the dispute over the islands, which are controlled by Japan but claimed by China. Biden went on to South Korea late Thursday for the final leg of his threecountry trip before returning to Washington.

Dec 6, 2013 – 5:18 am EST
NELSON MANDELA, FROM APARTHEID FIGHTER TO PRESIDENT AND UNIFIER

Nelson Mandela guided South Africa from the shackles of apartheid to multi-racial democracy, as an icon of peace and reconciliation who came to embody the struggle for justice around the world. Imprisoned for nearly three decades for his fight against white minority rule, Mandela emerged determined to use his prestige and charisma to bring down apartheid while avoiding a civil war. “The time for the healing of the wounds has come. The moment to bridge the chasms that divide us has come,” Mandela said in his acceptance speech on becoming South Africa’s first black president in 1994. “We have, at last, achieved our political emancipation.” In 1993, Mandela was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, an honour he shared with F.W. de Klerk, the white Afrikaner leader who freed him from prison three years earlier and negotiated the end of apartheid. Mandela went on to play a prominent role on the world stage as an advocate of human dignity in the face of challenges ranging from political repression to AIDS. He formally left public life in June 2004 before his 86th birthday, telling his adoring countrymen: “Don’t call me.

I’ll call you”. But he remained one of the world’s most revered public figures, combining celebrity sparkle with an unwavering message of freedom, respect and human rights. Whether defending himself at his own treason trial in 1963 or addressing world leaders years later as a greying elder statesman, he radiated an image of moral rectitude expressed in measured tones, often leavened by a mischievous humour. “He is at the epicentre of our time, ours in South Africa, and yours, wherever you are,” Nadine Gordimer, the South African writer and Nobel Laureate for Literature, once remarked. Mandela’s years behind bars made him the world’s most celebrated political prisoner and a leader of mythic stature for millions of black South Africans and other oppressed people far beyond his country’s borders. Charged with capital offences in the 1963 Rivonia Trial, his statement from the dock was his political testimony. “During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. “I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities,” he told the court. “It is an ideal I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”

DESTINED TO LEAD
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born on July 18, 1918, destined to lead as the son of the chief councillor to the paramount chief of the Thembu people in Transkei. He chose to devote his life to the fight against white domination. He studied at Fort Hare University, an elite black college, but left in 1940 short of completing his studies and became involved with the African National Congress (ANC), founding its Youth League in 1944 with Oliver Tambo and Walter Sisulu. Mandela worked as a law clerk then became a lawyer who ran one of the few practices that served blacks. In 1952 he and others were charged for violating the Suppression of Communism Act but their nine-month sentence was suspended for two years. Mandela was among the first to advocate armed resistance to apartheid, going underground in 1961 to form the ANC’s armed wing, Umkhonto weSizwe, or ‘Spear of the Nation’ in Zulu. He left South Africa and travelled the continent and Europe, studying guerrilla warfare and building support for the ANC. After his return in 1962, Mandela was arrested and sentenced to five years for incitement and illegally leaving the country. \

While serving that sentence, he was charged with sabotage and plotting to overthrow the government along with other anti-apartheid leaders in the Rivonia Trial. Branded a terrorist by his enemies, Mandela was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1964, isolated from millions of his countrymen as they suffered oppression, violence and forced resettlement under the apartheid regime of racial segregation. He was incarcerated on Robben Island, a penal colony off Cape Town, where he would spend the next 18 years before being moved to mainland prisons. He was behind bars when an uprising broke out in the huge township of Soweto in 1976 and when others erupted in violence in the 1980s. But when the regime realised it was time to negotiate, it was Mandela to whom it turned. In his later years in prison, he met President P.W. Botha and his successor de Klerk. When he was released on February 11, 1990, walking away from the Victor Verster prison hand-in-hand with his wife Winnie, the event was watched live by television viewers across the world. “As I finally walked through those gates … I felt even at the age of 71 that my life was beginning anew. My 10,000 days of imprisonment were at last over,” Mandela wrote of that day.

ELECTIONS AND RECONCILATION
In the next four years, thousands of people died in political violence. Most were blacks killed in fighting between ANC supporters and Zulus loyal to Mangosuthu Buthelezi’s Inkatha Freedom Party, although right-wing whites also staged violent actions to upset the moves towards democracy. Mandela prevented a racial explosion after the murder of popular Communist Party leader Chris Hani by a white assassin in 1993, appealing for calm in a national television address. That same year, he and de Klerk were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Talks between the ANC and the government began in 1991, leading to South Africa’s first all-race elections on April 27, 1994. The run-up to the vote was marred by fighting, including gun battles in Johannesburg townships and virtual war in the Zulu stronghold of KwaZulu Natal.

But Mandela campaigned across the country, enthralling adoring crowds of blacks and wooing whites with assurances that there was a place for them in the new South Africa. The election result was never in doubt and his inauguration in Pretoria on May 10, 1994, was a celebration of a peoples’ freedom. Mandela made reconciliation the theme of his presidency. He took tea with his former jailers and won over many whites when he donned the jersey of South Africa’s national rugby team – once a symbol of white supremacy – at the final of the World Cup in 1995 at Johannesburg’s Ellis Park stadium. The hallmark of Mandela’s mission was the Truth and Reconciliation Commission which investigated apartheid crimes on both sides and tried to heal the wounds. It also provided a model for other countries torn by civil strife. In 1999, Mandela, often criticised for having a woolly grasp of economics, handed over to younger leaders – a voluntary departure from power cited as an example to long-ruling African leaders. A restful retirement was not on the cards as Mandela shifted his energies to fighting South Africa’s AIDS crisis.

He spoke against the stigma surrounding the infection, while successor Thabo Mbeki was accused of failing to comprehend the extent of the crisis. The fight became personal in early 2005 when Mandela lost his only surviving son to the disease. But the stress of his long struggle contributed to the breakup of his marriage to equally fierce anti-apartheid campaigner Winnie. The country shared the pain of their divorce in 1996 before watching his courtship of Graca Machel, widow of Mozambican President Samora Machel, whom he married on his 80th birthday in 1998. Friends adored “Madiba”, the clan name by which he is known. People lauded his humanity, kindness, attention and dignity. Unable to shake the habits of prison, Mandela rose daily between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m. to exercise and read. He drank little and was a fervent anti-smoker. An amateur boxer in his younger days, Mandela often said the discipline and tactics drawn from training helped him to endure prison and the political battles after his release.

RAINBOW NATION
But prison and old age took their toll on his health. Mandela was treated in the 1980s for tuberculosis and later required an operation to repair damage to his eyes as well as treatment for prostate cancer in 2001. His spirit, however, remained strong. “If cancer wins I will still be the better winner,” he told reporters in September of that year. “When I go to the next world, the first thing I will do is look for an ANC office to renew my membership.” Most South Africans are proud of their post-apartheid multi-racial ‘Rainbow Nation’. But Mandela’s legacy of tolerance and reconciliation has been threatened in recent years by squabbling between factions in the ANC and social tensions in a country that, despite its political liberation, still suffers great inequalities. Mandela’s last major appearance on the global stage came in 2010 when he donned a fur cap in the South African winter and rode on a golf cart, waving to an exuberant crowd of 90,000 at the soccer World Cup final, one of the biggest events in the country’s post-apartheid history. “I leave it to the public to decide how they should remember me,” he said on South African television before his retirement. “But I should like to be remembered as an ordinary South African who together with others has made his humble contribution.”

Dec 6, 2013 – 5:14 am EST
Nelson Mandela dies at 95

World Leaders pay Tribute to the Anti-apartheid Icon and Father of Modern South Africa

JOHANNESBURG (TIP): Nelson Mandela, the revered South African anti-apartheid icon who spent 27 years in prison, led his country to democracy and became its first black president, died Thursday at home. He was 95. “He is now resting,” said South African President Jacob Zuma. “He is now at peace.” “Our nation has lost its greatest son,” he continued. “Our people have lost their father.” A state funeral will be held, and Zuma called for mourners to conduct themselves with “the dignity and respect” that Mandela personified. “Wherever we are in the country, wherever we are in the world, let us reaffirm his vision of a society… in which none is exploited, oppressed or dispossessed by another,” he said as tributes began pouring in from across the world. President Obama said his first political action was an anti-apartheid protest inspired by Mandela, who “achieved more than could be expected of any man.”

“I cannot fully imagine my own life without the example Nelson Mandela set,” he said. Though he was in power for only five years, Mandela was a figure of enormous moral influence the world over – a symbol of revolution, resistance and triumph over racial segregation. He inspired a generation of activists, left celebrities and world leaders star-struck, won the Nobel Peace Prize and raised millions for humanitarian causes. British Prime Minister David Cameron said of Mandela, ‘A great light has gone out’. British flag at 10 Downing has been lowered in honor of the departed leader Mandela, a former president, battled health issues in recent months, including a recurring lung infection that led to numerous hospitalizations. With advancing age and bouts of illness, Mandela retreated to a quiet life at his boyhood home in the nation’s Eastern Cape Province, where he said he was most at peace. He was later moved to his home in the Johannesburg suburb of Houghton, where he died. Despite rare public appearances, he held a special place in the consciousness of the nation and the world.

Dec 6, 2013 – 5:10 am EST
Let us Know Texas – The State

Texas, the second most populous (after California) and the second -largest state (after Alaska) in the United States of America, has had a checkered history which all residents need to know. A state of immigrants, the state has made tremendous progress in the last few decades, and is growing. The Indian Panorama readers will get to know the state of Texas from a series of articles that will appear each week. – EDITOR

Texas is the second most populous (after California) and the secondlargest of the 50 states (after Alaska) in the United States of America, and the largest state in the 48 contiguous United States. Geographically located in the South Central part of the country, Texas shares an international border with the Mexican states of Chihunahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to the south and borders the U.S. states of New Mexico to the west, Oklahoma to the north, Arkansas to the northeast, and Louisiana to the east. Texas has an area of 268,820 square miles (696,200 km2) and a growing population of 26.1 million residents. Houston is the largest city in Texas and the fourth-largest in the United States, while San Antonio is the second largest in the state and seventh largest in the United States. Dallas- Fort Worth and Greater Houston are the fourth and fifth largest United States metropolitan areas, respectively. Other major cities include El Paso and Austin-the state capital.

Texas is nicknamed the Lone Star State to signify Texas as a former independent republic and as a reminder of the state’s struggle for independence from Mexico. The “Lone Star” can be found on the Texas state flag and on the Texas state seal today. The origin of the state name, Texas, is from the word, “Tejas”, which means ‘friends’ in the Caddo language. Due to its size and geologic features such as the Balcones Fault, Texas contains diverse landscapes that resemble both the American South and Southwest. Although Texas is popularly associated with the Southwestern deserts, less than 10 percent of the land area is desert. Most of the population centers are located in areas of former prairies, grasslands, forests, and the coastline. Traveling from east to west, one can observe terrain that ranges from coastal swamps and piney woods, to rolling plains and rugged hills, and finally the desert and mountains of the Big Bend. The term “six flags over Texas”, as can be seen in the Grand Prairie-based large national and international amusement park operator Six Flags, came from the several nations that had ruled over the territory. Spain was the first European country to claim the area of Texas. France held a shortlived colony in Texas.

Mexico controlled the territory until 1836 when Texas won its independence, becoming an independent Republic. In 1845 it joined the United States as the 28th state. The state’s annexation set off a chain of events that caused the Mexican-American War in 1846. A slave state, Texas declared its secession from the United States in early 1861, joining the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. After the war and its restoration to the Union, Texas entered a long period of economic stagnation. One Texas industry that thrived after the Civil War was cattle. Due to its long history as a center of the industry, Texas is associated with the image of the cowboy. The state’s economic fortunes changed in the early 20th century, when oil discoveries initiated an economic boom in the state. With strong investments in universities, Texas developed a diversified economy and high tech industry in the mid-20th century. As of 2010 it shares the top of the list of the most Fortune 500 companies with California at 57. With a growing base of industry, the state leads in many industries, including agriculture, petrochemicals, energy, computers and electronics, aerospace, and biomedical sciences. Texas has led the nation in export revenue since 2002 and has the second-highest gross state product.

History
Texas lies between two major cultural spheres of Pre-Columbian North America: the Southwestern and the Plains areas. Archaeologists have found that three major indigenous cultures lived in this territory, and reached their developmental peak before the first European contact. These were: ● the Pueblo from the upper Rio Grande region, centered west of Texas; ● the Mississippian culture, also known as Mound Builder, which extended along the Mississippi River Valley east of Texas; and ● the civilizations of Mesoamerica, centered south of Texas. Influence of Teotihuacan in northern Mexico peaked around AD 500 and declined over the 8th to 10th centuries. No culture was dominant in the presentday Texas region, and many peoples inhabited the area. Native American tribes that lived inside the boundaries of presentday Texas include the Alabama, Apache, Atakapan, Bidai, Caddo, Coahuiltecan, Comanche, Choctaw, Coushatta,Hasinai, Jumano, Karankawa, Kickapoo, Kiowa, Tonkawa, and Wichita.

The name Texas derives from táysha?, a word in the Caddoan language of the Hasinai, which means “friends” or “allies”. Whether a Native American tribe was friendly or warlike was critical to the fates of European explorers and settlers in that land. Friendly tribes taught newcomers how to grow indigenous crops, prepare foods, and hunt wild game. Warlike tribes made life difficult and dangerous for Europeans through their attacks and resistance to the newcomers.[ The first historical document related to Texas was a map of the Gulf Coast, created in 1519 by Spanish explorer Alonso Álvarez de Pineda. Nine years later, shipwrecked Spanish explorer Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca and his cohort became the first Europeans in what is now Texas. Cabeza de Vaca reported that in 1528, when the Spanish landed in the area, “half the natives died from a disease of the bowels and blamed us.” Francisco Vasquez de Coronado describes his 1541 encounter with “Two kinds of people travel around these plains with the cows; one is called Querechos and the others Teyas; they are very well built, and painted, and are enemies of each other. They have no other settlement or location than comes from traveling around with the cows.

They kill all of these they wish, and tan the hides, with which they clothe themselves and make their tents, and they eat the flesh, sometimes even raw, and they also even drink the blood when thirsty. The tents they make are like field tents, and they set them up over some poles they have made for this purpose, which come together and are tied at the top, and when they go from one place to another they carry them on some dogs they have, of which they have many, and they load them with the tents and poles and other things, for the country is so level, as I said, that they can make use of these, because they carry the poles dragging along on the ground. The sun is what they worship most.” European powers ignored the area until accidentally settling there in 1685. Miscalculations by René Robert Cavelier de La Salle resulted in his establishing the colony of Fort Saint Louis at Matagorda Bay rather than along the Mississippi River. The colony lasted only four years before succumbing to harsh conditions and hostile natives. In 1690 Spanish authorities, concerned that France posed competitive threat, constructed several missions in East Texas. After Native American resistance, the Spanish missionaries returned to Mexico. When France began settling Louisiana, mostly in the southern part of the state, in 1716 Spanish authorities responded by founding a new series of missions in East Texas.

Two years later, they created San Antonio as the first Spanish civilian settlement in the area. Hostile native tribes and distance from nearby Spanish colonies discouraged settlers from moving to the area. It was one of New Spain’s least populated provinces. In 1749, the Spanish peace treaty with the Lipan Apache angered many tribes, including the Comanche, Tonkawa, and Hasinai. The Comanche signed a treaty with Spain in 1785 and later helped to defeat the Lipan Apache and Karankawa tribes. With more numerous missions being established, priests led a peaceful conversion of most tribes. By the end of the 18th century only a few nomadic tribes had not converted to Christianity. When the United States purchased Louisiana from France in 1803, American authorities insisted that the agreement also included Texas. The boundary between New Spain and the United States was finally set at the Sabine River in 1819, at what is now the border between Texas and Louisiana. Eager for new land, many United States settlers refused to recognize the agreement. Several filibusters raised armies to invade the area west of the Sabine River.

In 1821, the Mexican War of Independence included the Texas territory, which became part of Mexico. Due to its low population, Mexico made the area part of the state of Coahuila y Tejas. Hoping that more settlers would reduce the near-constant Comanche raids, Mexican Texas liberalized its immigration policies to permit immigrants from outside Mexico and Spain. Under the Mexican immigration system, large swathes of land were allotted to empresarios, who recruited settlers from the United States, Europe, and the Mexican interior. The first grant, to Moses Austin, was passed to his son Stephen F. Austin after his death. Austin’s settlers, the Old Three Hundred, made places along the Brazos River in 1822. Twenty-three other empresarios brought settlers to the state, the majority of whom were from the United States. The population of Texas grew rapidly. In 1825, Texas had a population of approximately 3,500, with most

Dec 5, 2013 – 6:42 am EST
Bullett Raja

STORY: Simple Raja Mishra turns into deadly Bullett Raja – who goes bang and who whimpers?

REVIEW: Straight up, Bullett Raja (BR) is zany and funny, an Uttar Pradesh take on Sholay’s Jai and Veeru, ‘twice-born’ in Lucknow as Raja Mishra (Khan) and Rudra Pratap (Shergill). Educated Raja and Rudra are reluctant gangsters, turned by violent, caste-ridden UP politics into what political advisor Srivastava (who Skypes from jail) calls “political commandos.” These ‘commandos’ work at the command of minister Ram Babu Shukla (Babbar), finishing his enemies and finessing his friends.

But there’s a big bang when Raja and Rudra meet Bajaj (Grover), powerful financier who’s rude to the dynamite duo – and gets kidnapped by them. Revenge follows with conspiracies, lots more bang-bang and some LOL jokes. Hence, opponents are shot during a ‘Bak the Talk’ shoot, gangster Sumer Yadav (Ravi Kishan, in good form) is told, “Aap jail ke superstar hain, fan following toh hogi”, Raja tells girlfriend Mitali (Sinha) how he prefers ‘noose’ and ‘jaanwaron ka channel’ to serials – and says ‘I love you’ in a precious scene.

All along, the bang-bang cascades and ace cop Arun Singh (Jamwal) is dispatched to kill Raja. BR scores with its tight performances, Saif terrific with his clenched-jaw comedy, Shergill intense and growlingly funny, Jamwal’s flying kicks and wavy hair making the landscape even hotter. Sonakshi’s pleasant if unsurprising while Babbar and Grover infuse their roles with oily, kachori-like spice. UP comes alive too as Bullett Raja leaps from Gomti to gaus, sex to sex pistols, Hollywood to Hazratganj, its imagery somewhere between Omkara and Dabangg.

Where the film misses a bulls-eye is an excess 20 minutes, music that, despite Tamanche Pe Disco, remains average and direction that sometimes – don’t miss the guy flagellating himself as Saif makes a momentous decision – wavers. Still, BR is a racy ride, cynical, yet sweet, dark, yet bright. Go watch – you’ll enjoy those bangs in the dark.

Dec 5, 2013 – 6:34 am EST
KAREENA KAPOOR KHAN TO PLAY AN ACTRESS AGAIN

Ever since Kareena Kapoor Khan greenlighted a project with Farhan Akhtar as her co-star for a film coproduced by Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan, speculation has been rife that the film, directed by Dev Benegal, is based on poet-lyricist Sahir Ludhianvi and Bebo would be playing Amrita Pritam, the late Sahir sahab’s love interest. However, Farhan categorically denied that his film with Bebo was a biopic on Sahir.

“I’m not doing any biopic at this point,” he said. Sources tell us that the film actually has Kareena playing an actress. She also played one in Madhur Bhandarkar’s Heroine. In her current assignment, she falls in love with Farhan, who reportedly plays a contract killer. Ritesh confirmed that Bebo is indeed playing an actress but refused to divulge more.

Dec 5, 2013 – 6:31 am EST

Year: 2013

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