NEW YORK: In ground-breaking research, an Indian-American scientist has engineered T-cells — a type of immune cells — to break the pancreatic cancer’s physical and immunological walls using immunotherapy.
Dr Sunil Hingorani, member of the clinical research and public health sciences divisions at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and colleagues created T-cells with a high affinity to a relatively tumour-specific antigen.
Dr Hingorani looked for proteins — also found in the linings of the heart and lungs — that are expressed in unusually large amounts in the tumour cells and minimally expressed elsewhere.
The T-cells then were engineered to attack those. In the tests conducted on mice with pancreatic tumours, the engineered T-cells killed those cells over a 10-day period.
Additionally, Dr Hingorani and his team have worked to develop an enzyme that can help defeat the tumour’s high interstitial pressures and potentially open the door for greater penetration and effectiveness of T cells and other types of agents.
By the end of the year, Dr Hingorani hopes to have the human version of the T-cell in clinical trials.
The findings were recently presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2016 in New Orleans, US.
HOUSTON, TEXAS: At least six persons, including an Indian-American woman, were killed in “historic” flash flooding in Houston, submerging of scores of subdivisions and several major interstate highways and forcing the closure of schools.
Sunita Singh, 47, senior electrical engineer at Bechtel Oil & Gas was found dead in her car Monday during the flash floods that killed six people
She was going to work as usual at 6:30 am, her husband Rajiv Singh told the media. Since the exit was closed she drove to another one. Around 6:50 am she called her husband saying that the water was rising. She thought rescue workers were around, but there was none.
Rajiv Singh continued to call her with no reply.
She is survived by her husband and 15-year-old son.
One of the victims was found in a submerged 18-wheeler cab on the N Beltway 8 frontage road near the Hardy Toll Road. Two others were found in separate vehicles.
In Waller County, a 56-year-old Royal ISD teacher was found inside a submerged vehicle off Adams Flat Road.
More than 470 flights were cancelled at Bush Intercontinental and Hobby Airport in the morning hours.
An overnight storm dumped between 8 and 16 inches of water on the area. The heavy rainfall also closed local schools, knocked out power for more than 121,000 residents and made many roadways impassable.
More than 1,200 high water rescues have been reported by Houston and Harris County officials. Officials in Harris County have declared a disaster area and estimate at least 1,000 homes have already been flooded. More than half the watersheds in Harris County are experiencing significant flooding, with least one cresting above its estimated 500-year flood mark, a new all-time record.
The local National Weather Service (NWS) has warned residents not to travel “unless you are fleeing an area subject to flooding or under an evacuation order.”
About 120,000 homes are without power, and school and transit systems are shut down across the region.
“Houston is in the midst of an unbelievable deluge, with already more rainfall in a single day than any hurricane to ever hit the hurricane-prone city. The flooding is “historic”, NWS said in a statement.
The City of Houston closed city offices, including municipal courts, and has told non-essential employees to stay home for the day.
WASHINGTON: The US has told India it is bound by legislation on the recent visa fee hike – which has badly hit Indian IT companies, an issue that was strongly raised by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in his bilateral meeting.
“There are always two issues, one of course is the recent one, visa fee hike and the other is the old issue of totalisation charges for the IT professionals. The US response really is that we have a legislation which so states it,” Jaitley told Indian reporters during a media roundtable.
“So unless that legislation is changed (it is likely to remain),” he said.
Mr Jaitley was responding to a question on the kind of response he received from the US Trade Representative, Mike Froman, when he strongly raised the issue during a meeting early this week.
Noting that such a visa fee is impacting only Indian companies, Mr Jaitley had described it as a “discriminatory” practice.
Last year, the US Congress imposed a special fee of up to USD 4,500 on H-1B and L-1 visas – popular among Indian IT companies – to fund a 9/11 healthcare Act and biometric tracking system.
While agreeing on the USD 1.1 trillion spending Bill, Congressional leaders decided to impose a special fee of USD 4,000 on certain categories of H-1B visas and USD 4,500 on L-1 visas.
WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama has nominated Indian-American Geeta Pasi, a career foreign service officer, as the country’s next envoy to Chad.
Ms Pasi, who served as US Ambassador to Djibouti from 2011 to 2014, is a career member of the Foreign Service, Class of Minister-Counsellor. She is at present the Director of the Office of Career Development and Assignments in the Bureau of Human Resources at the Department of State.
Announcement for Ms Pasi’s nomination as the next US envoy to the central African nation of Chad came along with several other appointments to key administration post.
“I am pleased to announce that these experienced and committed individuals have decided to serve our country. I look forward to working with them,” US President Obama said in a statement issued by the White House yesterday.
Ms Pasi was also the Director of the Office of East African Affairs in the Bureau of African Affairs from 2009 to 2011, Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy in Dhaka, from 2006 to 2009, and Deputy Principal Officer at the US Consulate in Frankfurt, Germany from 2003 to 2006.
Since joining the Foreign Service in 1988, Pasi has also served at posts in Cameroon, Ghana, India and Romania.
Ms Pasi received her BA from Duke University and a MA in French Studies from New York University.
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=“”] An Indian American engineer, Rajan Jha, has recently been named as one of the 10 Best Civil Engineers across the world by American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) [/inlinetweet] – an engineering society that represents more than 150,000 members of the civil engineering profession in 177 countries.
Rajan Jha, 29 years old engineer from Chhattisgarh, earned his master’s degree from the Via Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering in 2013 and currently works as a Water Resources Civil Engineer for ARCADIS.
He currently serves as the first vice president of the Virginia Section and heads the website newsletter and the scholarship committee. In 2014 he founded the Richmond Branch of Environmental and Water Resources Group and started with an initiative called Water Allies. He’s also worked extensively with Engineers Without Borders, serving as the co-chair of the Central Virginia Chapter and also as a planning, monitoring and design lead for a water-supply project in Zambia.
Jha was recognized during Engineers Week and will be honored at ASCE’s annual Outstanding Projects and Leaders Gala in Arlington, Virginia.
Jha talks about his work and his motivation
Every year ASCE selects 10 best civil engineers (under 30) and recognizes them for their profession, achievements and community works. These 10 engineers are titled “New faces of Civil Engineering”. The ten new faces, represent professionals from Bangladesh, Cameroon, North America and India.
Before you start getting ideas from the heading, let me clarify that we will be discussing a totally different form of wild. Goa is more than just pristine beaches, feni, floating casinos and a happening nightlife. Being a place of immense natural beauty, the state is endowed with breathtaking wilderness and there are more places to visit in Goa, which are perfect for someone who wants to get out of a mundane week and get into something peaceful.
Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary is located in the eastern part of Goa. Spread in around 208 sq km, this sanctuary supports a wide variety of wildlife and is famous as a bird watcher’s paradise. It is considered as an International Bird Area, and is home to 255 bird species, including Nilgiri wood-pigeon and crimson-backed sunbird. Visitors can also see over 257-recorded species of butterflies flutter around. Owing to the presence of resident Bengal tigers, the sanctuary has been proposed as a tiger reserve. Along with the diverse fauna, it is also popular for its variety of flora that includes sacred grooves, creepers, evergreen species of Ashoka and colourful flowers, among others. Besides its unique biodiversity, Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary is also popular for its cascades, especially Vazra Sakla waterfalls and Virdi Falls.
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=””]SALIM ALI BIRD SANCTUARY[/inlinetweet]
Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary, named after the famous ornithologist, is located on the island of Chorao along the Mandovi River. Spread in an area of 440 acres, the sanctuary is covered with a thick mangrove forest, which is usually a natural nesting ground of birds. Different varieties of swallows, bulbuls, kingfishers, swans, woodpeckers, hornbills, etc. are found in plenty at this place.
The sanctuary has 1km-long pathway on which one can walk as close as possible to see the natural habitat of birds, without disturbing them. One can also choose to hire a boat and go around the place.
Located 60 km south of Panaji, Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary is the second largest in Goa. This sanctuary is notable for its dense forest cover with trees as high as 30m and is a haven for tree lovers. The Talpona River flows through the area and the major watering holes are located on its back. There are fewer big animals in this sanctuary than Mollem, however one can still expect to see bears, wild boars, deer and monkeys. Birds are plentiful in general and some species of eagles, which are not easily spotted elsewhere, can be seen here. Several tribal communities live inside these forests and one can get an insight into their fast fading lifestyle.
One of the important destinations within Bhagwan Mahaveer Sanctuary is the Dudhsagar Falls. Of the numerous waterfalls in the Western Ghats, this is one of the most impressive and is the second highest in India after the Jog Falls. The trip involves a short hike on the road and requires a minimum of fitness. The best season to see the falls is in the monsoons, soon after the rains.
With an area of more than 240 sq km, this park happens to be the largest wildlife sanctuary in Goa. It was earlier called Mollem Game Sanctuary and was renamed to the current one in 1969. However, the core area is still called Mollem National Park. Nestled in the Western Ghats, the sanctuary is home to pristine evergreen, semi evergreen and deciduous forests at different altitudes. The fauna includes the rare black panther, varieties of deer, bison, several members of the primate family, porcupines and a number of species of resident and migratory birds. It is also home to a great variety of butterflies.
The sanctuary contains several natural and historical attractions that make this the largest protected area. Some of them are Dudhsagar Falls, Tambdi Falls, Devil’s Canyon and ancient Kadamba Temples.
Bhagwan Mahaveer Sanctuary is 63 km from Panaji and can be reached by road or train from the capital or Margao. To go around, vehicles are provided by the Forest Department at economical rates. One can get more idea from Goa tourism.
MIAMI (TIP): After four failed bids SpaceX finally stuck the landing, powering the first stage of its Falcon 9 rocket onto an ocean platform where it touched down upright after launching cargo to space.
Images of the tall, narrow rocket standing on a platform that SpaceX calls a droneship sparked cheers and screams of joy at SpaceX mission control in Hawthorne, California.
“The first stage of the Falcon 9 just landed on our Of Course I Still Love You droneship,” SpaceX wrote on Twitter, after launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida at 4:43 pm (2043 GMT).
NASA spokesman George Diller confirmed that the rocket had
“successfully” landed, just minutes after the Falcon 9 propelled the unmanned Dragon cargo craft to orbit, carrying supplies for astronauts at the International Space Station.
SpaceX has once before managed to set the rocket down on land, but ocean attempts had failed, with the rocket coming close each time but either crashing or tipping over.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk says that being able to return costly rocket parts for repeated use, instead of jettisoning them into the ocean after each launch, will make spaceflight less expensive and less harmful to the environment.
“Landed! That is amazing! World-leading ability, proven,” wrote Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield on Twitter, offering his congratulations to SpaceX.
“Opens the imagination to what is possible.”
– Mice and lettuce –
Friday’s breakthrough came after a closely watched return-to-flight mission, SpaceX’s first cargo delivery since June 2015, when the Falcon 9 exploded just over two minutes after liftoff, destroying the rocket and the supply ship.
SpaceX blamed the blast on a faulty strut in the Falcon 9’s upper booster, which allowed a helium bottle to snap loose, causing the explosion of the rocket, cargo ship and all its contents just over two minutes into the flight.
It has since upgraded its Falcon 9 rocket and changed its protocol to avoid a repeat of the strut failure in the future.
This time, the gumdrop-shaped capsule was packed with nearly 7,000 pounds (3,100 kilos) of supplies for the astronauts living in orbit.
The Dragon’s cargo includes an inflatable space room astronauts will test in microgravity.
Known as the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module, the chamber will be temporarily attached to the space station.
Lab mice for experiments and lettuce seeds for growing at the orbiting outpost were also included in the spacecraft, which should arrive at the International Space Station early Sunday.
Last year, astronauts ate space-grown lettuce for the first time.
Being able to grow food in space would be a boon to NASA’s efforts to send people into space for long journeys, such as to an asteroid or Mars in the coming decades.
Prior to Friday’s launch, SpaceX had successfully flown its newly upgraded Falcon 9 rocket twice since last year’s accident, both times to launch satellites.
Friday’s flight to the ISS marked the eighth in a series of resupply trips NASA has commissioned from SpaceX.
Google’s parent holding Alphabet has developed a new walking robot designed to interact with the world like a human.
The robot was showcased at the New Economic Summit in Tokyo and was created by Alphabet-owned Japanese robotics company Schaft. During the demonstration, it was shown how the robot can navigate its way through uneven terrain while carrying a load of upto 60 kgs.
Schaft explained during the summit that the robot is essentially designed to be more cost effective and power efficient so it can be used by normal civilians. A spokesperson from Schaft told Spectrum IEEE that the presentation was more about showcasing what the robot can do and not some kind of a product announcement.
“[The presentation] wasn’t a product announcement or indication of a specific product roadmap. The team was simply delighted to have a chance to show their latest progress,” the spokesperson said.
Schaft was acquired by Google in late 2013 and since acquisition has kept a low profile by shutting down its website and very few public appearances. it also bagged the inaugural US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency robotics challenge with a bipedal robot with arms.
It follows a very different design philosophy compared to Alphabet’s other robots made by Boston Dynamics, which has reportedly been put up for sale by Google.
Yahoo has announced updates to its revamped Messenger service, which include support for non-English languages and sync mobile contacts. The new Messenger service was launched in December last year.
The support for the Hindi language will only be available to Android users for now. Support for other non-English languages also has been added, which include Chinese, French, German, Indonesian and Spanish.
Other new features added include the ability to send or unsend any photo, message, or animated GIF. In addition, Yahoo Messenger also gets the ability to sync user’s mobile contacts, which allows them to easily find their friends and chat with them.The new Yahoo Messenger update is available on Google’s PlayStore, as well as the App Store.
NEW DELHI (TIP): There are few things as irritating as opening your email to find your inbox cluttered every morning when you reach your workplace.You scroll up and down, wondering how much time it’s going to take to reply to all the mails and organise your inbox. So we have prepared a list of Gmail hacks that will make you a Gmail expert and make your life super easy and organised.
Lazy man’s reply
Sometimes the content of our mail remains the same and it’s cumbersome to type the same message repeatedly. To save time, you can opt for the canned response feature in your Gmail.This feature allows you to create a response that can be used repeatedly without having to type it. Click on settings options in your mailbox. There you’ll find various options to select. Opt for the lab option and then scroll down where you’ll find canned response. Click on enable. When you’re composing a mail, click on more option and select canned response. Once you select it, your mail will be saved as a canned response.
Customised mail Id
Most of us have multiple email Ids for work and personal uses. Rather than logging on to different accounts and wasting time, you can create multiple accounts within Gmail itself and save time. Go to settings and select the option of adding another email address. Click on it to create the customised ID you want. While composing a mail, choose the preferred mail Id from ‘From’ line.
Get it back option
Once in a while, all of us accidentally send a mail which we don’t want to. Lucky for us, Gmail has the option of undo, which helps you to cancel and bring back the mail you’ve sent by mistake. Go to settings and select the general option, scroll below and you will notice the undo button. Enable undo option and keep the cancellation period up to 30 seconds. It means you have 30-second period to cancel the mail once you hit send option. The undo option will appear right after you send a mail.
Get super organised
If you like to keep your inbox organised, create separate folders to segregate the mails. Go to setting, select label option and scroll down to find the option of create a new label. Click on it and create your own personal folder to organise your mail. You can see your personal folder on the left hand side below the compose mail tab.
Star mark your mails
Some of the mails you receive are of high priority and therefore you don’t want them to get lost in your inbox. Use the star option to mark your mails to stand out. Go to settings and then go to general option, scroll down to star tab and enable all stars.Then in your inbox double click on the star box to mark your mail. If you need clarity on your mail, you can also use the question mark star option.
DABIQ (TIP): Somewhere, there is a digital archive containing the portraits of the Islamic State’s network of fighters in Europe. The image of each fighter was stored in this database months before last year’s attacks in Paris, and after each new terror strike, the group has reached into it and released the photographs. So it was on April 14.
The latest issue of Dabiq, the Islamic State’s slick online magazine, includes an image of Najim Laachraoui, the 24-year-old former Catholic school pupil who was last seen wheeling a suitcase bomb into the Brussels airport. He is wearing military fatigues and sadistically winking at the camera. Next to him is a man with a bloody knife, suggesting they had just beheaded a captive.
It is worth noting that the two men’s uniforms exactly match those worn by the Paris attackers last year, as shown in another set of photographs and an accompanying video, also pulled from the archive. Those were shot somewhere in Syria or Iraq before the attacks, and made public soon after. They have the same desert camouflage pattern, the same tan cap and tactical vest, the same cutoff gloves and grotesque scene of bloodshed.
Before returning to Europe, both the Brussels bomber and the Paris plotters posed for carefully choreographed scenes, showing the atrocities they committed in Syria and Iraq. The purpose is clear: to show the West that the attackers really were sent from the heart of the group’s terror machinery.
In a short biography of Laachraoui, who is also identified by the nom de guerre Abu Idris al-Baljiki, the Islamic State says he was the bomb-maker for both the Paris and Brussels attacks. The biography also says the future suicide bomber’s first foray in Syria was as a recruit in the battalion of Amr al-Absi, the leader of a group calling itself the Mujahedeen Shura Council.
In 2012, that group became a magnet for European jihadis, especially Belgians, who flocked to a walled villa in Kafr Hamra, just outside Aleppo, Syria, as Ben Taub reported in The New Yorker.
Later, al-Absi’s group pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. The biography says Laachraoui “was one of the first, along with the rest of his group, to pledge allegiance.”
Laachraoui spent months recovering from a bullet wound to the leg, the magazine said, before starting to train “in order to realize his dream of returning to Europe to avenge the Muslims.” After finishing his training, “he traveled the long road to France to execute his operation.”
Even the pictures that the Islamic State seems to be missing can help answer some questions. Neither Ibrahim El Bakraoui, who blew himself up at 7.58am at the Brussels airport on March 22, nor his brother Khalid El Bakraoui, who detonated his explosives at 9.11am in a subway car in the Belgian capital, appears in the images of the fighters in Syria. Their biographies in Dabiq make no mention of travel to Syria, saying instead that the brothers were radicalized in jail in Europe.
That suggests that neither brother made it into Syria — something that has been in question since June, when the Turkish authorities detained Ibrahim El Bakraoui in Gaziantep, a city near the Syrian border.
The town is a well-known transit point for foreign fighters heading to join the Islamic State, so it justifiably led to speculation he had met with the Islamic State within Syria. But the Islamic State magazine article, along with the fact that neither brother appeared to pose for the now-standard publicity shot, seems to settle the matter.
File photo of Najim Laachraoui. (AFP photo)
Ibrahim El Bakraoui’s biography says that in jail — where he spent time for a series of violent robberies — he began reading about the atrocities committed against Muslims in Syria. “Something clicked,” the magazine says. “After he was released from prison, he quickly joined his brother Khalid, and they began buying weapons, searched for lodging and made plans.”
The Islamic State credits the November 13 Paris attacks to the brothers: “It is firstly due to Allah, then to Ibrahim and his brother that the raid in Paris took place.”
Though neither brother apparently went to Syria, the Islamic State magazine relates a convoluted series of dreams that Khalid El Bakraoui allegedly had inside his prison cell in Europe.
Dreams play an important role in jihadi ideology. They are seen as divinely inspired premonitions. In the first dream, El Bakraoui supposedly sees the Prophet Muhammad on a horse in battle. Then he sees himself as an archer shooting arrows at the enemy.
The writer walks through a second and a third dream by El Bakraoui, including one he allegedly had after the Paris attacks.
In that last one, he detonates his explosive belt and his head falls to the ground, where it is picked up by Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, the official spokesman of the Islamic State.
We now know that beyond being the group’s chief propagandist, al-Adnani has also commanded a branch inside the Islamic State dedicated to carrying out attacks in Europe.
The symbolism is clear: The Islamic State wants the world to know that al-Adnani’s external operations branch was directly responsible for the Brussels carnage.
“Paris was a warning,” says the forward to the magazine. “Brussels was a reminder. What is yet to come will be more devastating and more bitter.”
BEIJING (TIP): Responding to what it says are provocative plans for stepped-up US-Philippine military cooperation, China says it will “resolutely defend” its interests and accuses the two longstanding allies of militarizing the region and harboring a “Cold War mentality.”
The ministry’s comments came shortly after Thursday’s announcement that the US would send troops and planes to the Philippines for more frequent rotations and will increase joint sea and air patrols with Philippine forces in the South China Sea.
In a move likely to further anger Beijing, US Defense Secretary Ash Carter says he will be visiting an aircraft carrier — a potent symbol of US military might — in the South China Sea during his current visit to the region, which does not include a stop in China.
“The joint patrols between the United States and the Philippines in the South China Sea are militarizing the region and are non-beneficial to regional peace and stability,” said a statement posted to the ministry’s website late Thursday.
“The Chinese military will pay close attention to the situation, and resolutely defend China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime interests,” the statement said.
China claims virtually the entire South China Sea as its territory and is building manmade islands there topped with airstrips and other infrastructure. The Philippines, Vietnam and others also claim territory controlled or claimed by China and increased military and coast guard deployments by all sides could increase the potential for conflict.
The ministry’s statement also referenced China’s long-standing opposition to US military alliances in the region. It regards those as a form of unwelcome interference that stymies its desired status as the pre-eminent military power in the Asia-Pacific.
RIYADH/DUBAI (TIP): In late February, several hundred Saudi officials, company executives and foreign consultants gathered in a luxury Riyadh hotel to discuss how Saudi Arabia’s economy could survive an era of cheap oil.
One company manager at the event told Reuters that officials from about 30 Saudi government bodies manned booths in which they described their challenges. Corporate bosses were encouraged to “figure out ways to do partnerships to address those needs, to offer feedback, to complain, and to plan future ventures or even just future meetings,” the manager said. “It was like a private sector version of a national parliament.”
The workshop was part of Saudi government attempts to work out how to restructure the economy so it no longer relies on oil.
The National Transformation Plan (NTP), as Riyadh has dubbed the changes, is expected to be unveiled in the next few weeks. Much is still secret. Ministries have refused to discuss plans in detail and Western consultancies contacted by Reuters declined to confirm their involvement, let alone policy details.
Officials, consultants and executives, though, say the five-year programme is both ambitious and risky. It includes asset sales, tax increases, spending cuts, changes to the way the state manages its financial reserves, an efficiency drive, and a much bigger role for the private sector.
Such changes have been talked about for years but never put into action. One reason to think this time could be different is that policy-making has in the past year shifted away from conservative bodies such as the finance ministry and central bank. Power is now concentrated in a new 22-member Council of Economic and Development Affairs, formed after King Salman took the throne in January 2015.
The Council is chaired by his son, Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is about 30. In his role as defence minister, Prince Mohammed launched Saudi Arabia’s military intervention in Yemen in March 2015. Now, he wants to shake up economic policy.
“Since the foundation of the kingdom there has been no government-led programme that innovates in this way,” said Mohamed al-Afif, a veteran banker who now runs Cash Solutions, a boutique financial services firm.
CONSULTANTS AND WHATSAPP
People familiar with the NTP said it was born late last year in discussions between Prince Mohammed and a few other top officials. At the time, oil was sinking below $30 a barrel, about half the low point that had been expected. That saddled the kingdom with an annual budget deficit near $100 billion and strengthened the case for radical changes.
While Prince Mohammed is the ultimate decider, he has chosen Economy and Planning Minister Adel al-Fakieh, a former food industry executive and mayor of Jeddah, to help with the detail. As labour minister between 2010 and 2015, Fakieh overcame opposition from business to policies that pushed companies to hire more Saudis. People involved in the NTP say Fakieh, 57, uses WhatsApp on his mobile phone obsessively, conducting chats with dozens of groups until the small hours.
Riyadh is spending tens of millions of dollars on foreign consultants for the NTP. London-based Source Global Research estimated in March that total Saudi spending on consultancies – mostly by the government or state-linked bodies – grew over 10 percent in 2015, from $1.06 billion in 2014.
WASHINGTON (TIP): Europe’s five leading economies on April 14 called for a crackdown on tax havens, urging the G20 powers to end the secrecy of shell companies that enables tax evasion and money laundering.
In the strongest reaction yet to the leaked “Panama Papers,” the finance ministers of Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain also proposed a blacklist of havens like Panama if they do not share corporate registry data with others.
They proposed establishing transnational registries that identify the beneficial owners of companies, trusts, foundations and other entities that had been able to hide from tax administrators and law enforcement.
“We want to have lists which make it possible to place sanctions on countries which don’t respect the rules,” said French Finance Minister Michel Sapin.
The proposal of the five was to be submitted to the finance ministers of the G20 meeting in Washington on Thursday and Friday.
“The recent extensive leaks from Panama show the critical importance of the fight against tax evasion, aggressive tax planning and money laundering,” the five said.
Upon arrival for dinner at their residence, I found my friend Shridhar and his wife were havingone of their heated discussions.
We plan to name our child’Mumbai”she said”As U know even Jonty Rhodes named his baby daughter India and she has become instantly famous”.
“Congrats” I said
Shridhar intervened “Well that’s because he is Jonty Rhodes and he is famous”
The wife was insistent “We all love it when a foreigner,white skinned and famous would name their child after our great country India. That makes us proud and convinced that India is a Great country.”
Shridhar was disturbed “I am neither a foreigner nor White skinned. Also why should you feel proud if a foreigner would call their daughter India?? I would prefer his name be Sivaramakrishnan Sankareshwaran Murlidharan Aiyar, after my father”
The wife was not ready to give up “That’s old tradition. In these days people name their children after countries, events or great personalities. That gives them a head start in life”
Shridhar insisted “Well, this case attracted media attention because it was Jonty Rhodes child. Even if he had called his child ‘Bangladesh’, the media would have still made a hue and cry. Besides the Bangladesh Government would have granted Noble prize.”
The wife was sounding annoyed”I don’t know why U keep giving so much of importance to Jonty Rhodes. He is retired, 46 and a coach. No one cares anymore. He named his daughter India to draw some limelight.It’sthe name ‘India’that is drawing all the publicity and nothing else”
Shridhar defended “A lot of people, mostly Gujarati’s have named their sons ‘Bharat’ out of sheer love for India. Not a soul paid any attention. The only Bharat to become famous was film producer Bharat Shah and that wasnot for his movies but for his links with the underworld.”
The wife was relentless “I would like to insist that we should name our son ‘Mumbai’That way he will grab a lot of media attention from now on and most likely he will have an assured government job specially if the BJP stays in power oreven if the Shiv Sena comes to power. Also if ever the congress comes to power they will get him a job in a large private corporation owned by a minister, all because of his unique name.
Shridhar wasalarmed “Oh!! You are going too far now. That may not work at all. Besides only those who do not get jobs in large private corporations, apply for government jobs.
The Wife continued “Also for your information, David Beckham named his son Brooklyn, Tom cruise named his daughter Suri, Alicia Beats named her daughter Egypt and all those kids are doing well”
Shridhar “Why don’t u refer to those parents who had named their child Greece, Iceland, Panama or even worse Syria.? In India it would be very difficult to get married with a name like that.Political and socio-economic conditions change frequently and I am not sure if it’s a good idea to call him ‘Mumbai, especially if you consider the current traffic conditions, property market and business conditions.
Shridhar continued “Also for your information places like Bermuda, Philippineswere named after famous people and of course our own ‘Bharat’ after the son of King Dushyanta and Shakuntala. Darling don’t you think it would be a lot better if someone would name a city, state or nation after our son rather than the other way around??
The Wife sounded convinced and suddenly shifted her stance “of course. What if Jonty Rhode’s son India hoards drugs, or shoots his neighbors? It might appear in the media as “India, haven for drugs” or ‘India shoots neighbors”. I do not think we should be proud of this. In fact, we should ban anyone naming their children after our Country instead of feeling proud.
It was time to leave. It was an interesting dinner.
NEW DELHI (TIP): More than 100 intelligence alerts were allegedly ignored by the Haryana government since June last year, leading to large-scale violence in February during a fortnight-long agitation by Jats seeking reservation in government jobs, multiple sources said.
The fresh revelations come before a one-member commission of former IPS officer Prakash Singh submits its report — likely by April-end — on alleged lapses by police and civil officials during the Jat stir. Singh had said this week that police inaction during the initial days of the agitation was “deliberate”.
The violent quota agitation by the community that constitutes 26% of the state’s 2.64-crore population left at least 30 people dead and more than 320 injured. Besides, property worth crores of rupees was damaged in arson during the agitation that left the state paralysed for nearly two weeks.
The state government last month approved a bill for providing reservation to Jats by including them under a newly-created backward class category.
The government on Tuesday shunted out director general of police (DGP) Yashpal Singal for alleged failure to anticipate the violence despite intelligence inputs. Additional DGP of CID Shatrujeet Singh Kapur was transferred to crime branch. By the end of February, IGP (Rohtak range) Shrikant Jadhav, along with two DSPs posted in Rohtak, were suspended for alleged lapses.
UNITED NATIONS (TIP): Days after China blocked its bid at the UN to ban JeM chief Masood Azhar, India on April 15 slammed use of “hidden veto” and demanded accountability, saying the world body’s general members are never informed of the reason for not acceding to requests for sanctioning terrorists.
“The procedures of unanimity and anonymity of the Al Qaeda, Taliban and ISIS Sanctions Committees need to be revisited. The procedures of unanimity and anonymity result in a lack of accountability,” India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin told the UN Security Council in an open debate on ‘Threats to International Peace and Security Caused by Terrorist Acts’ here.
Against the backdrop of China last month again blocking India’s bid to ban the mastermind of the Pathankot terror attack Masood in the UN Sanctions Committee, Akbaruddin said each of the 15 members in the committee now have a veto.
Without naming China, he said none except these 15 members are told of who is it that has wielded the veto in a specific instance.
“The general membership of the UN is never ever formally informed of how and why requests for listing terrorists are not acceded to. Counter terror mechanisms such as the Sanctions Committees that act on behalf of the international community need to build trust not engender impunity by the use of this form of a ‘hidden veto’,” Akbaruddin said.
After the attack on the airbase in Pathankot in January, India had in February written to the UN calling for immediate action to list the chief of the Pakistan-based terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) under the UN Sanctions Committee.
The Indian submission was considered by the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate (CTED) for technical aspects of the evidence provided.
The technical team then with the support of the US, UK and France had sent it to all the members, sources had said.
All were told that if there are no objections, the designation will be announced after the expiry of the deadline but just hours before the deadline, China requested the UN committee to keep on hold the designation.
When asked at a briefing earlier this month as to why China had put a hold on the listing request by India against Azhar, Chinese envoy and President of the Security Council for the month Liu Jieyi had said that any listing would have to meet the requirements, stressing that it was the Council members’ responsibility to ensure that the criteria were followed.
ATLANTA, GA (TIP): The American India Foundation (AIF) held its Annual Atlanta Fundraising Gala on April 2, 2016 at the Atlanta Athletic Club in Johns Creek area of Greater Atlanta. About 240 guests attended the high profile event in order to support AIF’s Learning and Migration Program (LAMP). In total, over$297,000 was raised. $75,000 was raised during the pledge drive successfully conducted by George Franco, a BAS professional; these funds will go towards directly supporting LAMP.
This is the second year that AIF held its gala in Atlanta. Its inaugural gala in 2015 brought together over 200 guests and raised more than$100,000. The funds from that event’s pledge drive went towards supporting AIF’s programs that focus on Livelihood – skilling both disadvantaged youth, especially those struggling with disabilities.
Across India, approximately 72 million people migrate from their villages in remote rural areas every year in search of labor in hazardous work sites, uprooting entire families for up to eight months at a time. Their children are forced to migrate with the parents, leaving behind their schools, friends, and communities. LAMP has provided these children with resources to attend local schools, stable home and educational environments, as well as safe and structured care in seasonal residential hostels during migration season. To date, over 350,000 children have been educated over 9 states in India. The funds from the gala’s pledge drive will directly go towards supporting LAMP. It only takes $50 to educate one child per year.
Swathi Sekar, one of the beneficiaries of AIF’s Youth Leadership programs, gave opening remarks inviting Dr. Amitabh Sharma, Chair of AIF’s Atlanta Leadership Council. Dr. Sharma spoke eloquently about how as a youngster he was captivated by a BBC radio punch-line ‘when you see someone without a smile, give one of yours’. “Little did I know”, he said, “that I would 50 years later, one night, wake up restless with questions – epiphany -why am I born, what is the purpose of life and before late my inner voice echoed: dedicate the rest of my active life to giving. I can tell you I am having the best bliss of my life like never before”. He quoted “Sanatam Dharma professes Paropakaram Idam Shareeram (we are made by God for the benefit of others), the sooner we realize the happier we get. And American India Foundation facilitates and catalyzes social change through innovative programs making a difference at almost zero overhead and leveraged deployment to the extent of up 6.5 times”. An AIF video followed, showing how the organization has done this effectively with scientific impact measurement.
Dr. Sharma then welcomed the esteemed guests attending the gala on behalf of the Gala Host Committee Professors Jagdish Sheth, Jeffrey Rosensweig, Beheruz Sethna, Phil Bolton and Lani Wong and recognized the three Honorees David Abney, Chairman & CEO of UPS, Patrick Decker, President and CEO or Xylem, Inc (world leaders in water, water purification and water conservation) and NK Chaudhary (Founder of Jaipur Rugs) and illustrious speakers
Dennis Lockhart (President/CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta), Victor Menezes (retired Senior Vice Chairman of Citigroup & Chair Emeritus of AIF) and Nipun Mehta, Founder of ServiceSpace were the distinguished speakers for the evening.
Mr. Menezes spoke about how AIF had evolved into a strong pan American and pan Indian organization and how the LAMP (learning and migration Program), which was the theme of gala, was akin to all of us those who had migrated to the US and realized our dreams. His remarks were received with thunderous applause. Lockhart acknowledged the tremendous contribution of the Indian diaspora to the economic as well as socio-cultural and political growth of the US. He emphasized that India’s biggest strength over the US was its young population- with a large majority below 35 years of age, and in light of which “The United States needs to have a smart immigration policy especially in light of its aging population.” He also took the opportunity to share a few anecdotes with his longtime colleague and friend- Victor Menezes. Nipun Mehta reinforced the belief of being the change that we wish to see happen and ushered the idea of ‘giftivism’ as being above wealth generation. He talked about the power of ’emotional capital’.
During the event, AIF honored David Abney, President and CEO of UPS, Patrick K. Decker, President and CEO of Xylem Inc. and N. K. Chaudhary, Founder of Jaipur Rugs. AIF also recognized Dennis Lockhart, President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. Other notable personalities in attendance included Congressman Hank Johnson, President Pro-Tempore GA Senate David Shafer, Attorney General GA Sam Olens, the two-time winner of Marketing Educator of the year award Professor Jag Sheth, Ambassador Charles Shapiro, President of World Affairs Council of Atlanta and several other noted business leaders, academics, philanthropists, socialites etc.
Ed Martinez received the honor first on behalf of David Abney, Chairman & CEO of UPS (United Parcel Service) who could not attend the event due to his overseas travel. He expressed sadness over the Kolkatta flyover tragedy and reiterated that UPS was committed to upheaval of the disadvantaged in a vein similar to AIF and complimented AIF for its sterling track record in social change.
Patrick Decker, CEO of Xylem the second honoree recognized AIF’s transformational work with the most disadvantaged communities in India. He also took a moment to discuss Xylem’s work in WASH projects through Xylem’s “Watermark” initiative in India, as well as all over the world.
“AIF and I have a lot in common. We both work from the heart and aim to create sustainable change in the lives of people, regardless of their class, caste, religion, etc” explained Honoree N. K. Chaudhary, the founder and chairman of Jaipur Rugs who was the third honoree. He explained that it was this heartfelt dedication that drove his success as well as that of 40,000 women weavers across 600 villages in India.
Venkatesh Raghavendra, Sr. Director Philanthropy & Development introduced two Honorees and articulated the vote of thanks in his astute style.
The event had a unique entertainment segment of Rajasthani folklore dance presented by 7 dancers, only one of who was from Indian origin. It was a true representation of bridge building and multicultural ethos at play. The entire evening had an enriched flavor with flawless presentations across the board.
NEW YORK (TIP): The abrasive and at times toxic rhetoric of the US election campaign is having a “profoundly negative impact” on children, a report has claimed. It says the campaign is producing fear and anxiety among minority pupils, and inflaming racial and ethnic tensions in the classroom.
The Southern Poverty Law Centre said teachers also reported an increase in the crease in the bullying, harassment and intimidation of students whose races, religions or nationalities have been the verbal targets of candidates. Many students feared being deported.
“We’re deeply concerned about the level of fear among minority children who feel threatened by both the incendiary campaign rhetoric and the bullying they’re encountering in school,” said Richard Cohen, the group’s president.
“We’ve seen Donald Trump behave like a 12-year-old, and now we’re seeing 12-year-olds behave like Donald Trump.”
The Trump Effect: The Impact of the Presidential Campaign on Our Nation’s Schools — involved the questioning of around 2,000 teachers across the US. The group said the survey cannot be considered scientific, but said it provided an insight into the impact of the unusually heated election campaign. The Republican primary campaign has been criticised for the anti-immigration rhetoric of many of the leading candidates, including Donald Trump and Ted Cruz. Trump has said he wants to build a wall along the US border with Mexico, deport Muslim immigrants to the US, and called Mexicans migrants “rapists and murderers”. More than two-thirds of the teachers reported that students — mainly immigrants, children of immigrants and Muslims -have expressed concerns or fears about what might happen to them or their families after the election. More than half have seen an increase in uncivil political discourse. More than third have observed an increase in anti-Muslim or anti-immigrant sentiment, the report said. More than 40% are hesitant to teach about the election. While the survey did not identify candidates, more than 1,000 comments mentioned Trump by name. More than 500 comments contained the words “fear,” “scared,” “afraid,” “anxious,” or “terrified” to describe the campaign’s impact on minority students.
“My students are terrified of Donald Trump,” wrote a teacher from a middle school with a large population of African Americans.
MANILA (TIP): US defence secretary Ash Carter will visit a US aircraft carrier transiting the disputed South China Sea on April 15, a move bound to anger China, which has been increasingly asserting its territorial claims.
Carter made a similar visit to another aircraft carrier in November as it was crossing the South China Sea.
Carter spoke at the closing ceremony of joint US-Philippines military exercises in Manila. Sailors and Marines from the USS John C Stennis carrier, the vessel Carter will visit, participated in the exercises.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea, believed to have huge deposits of oil and gas. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims to parts of the waters, through which about $5 trillion in trade is shipped every year.
WASHINGTON (TIP): Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has expressed concern over the hike in visa fee by the US, saying it is “discriminatory” and largely affects Indian IT professionals.
Mr. Jaitley, who is on an official visit to the US, shared the Indian government’s concern during a meeting with US Trade Representative Michael Froman.
Referring to the visa issue, Mr. Jaitley spoke about “India’s concern over the hike in the H-1B and L1 visa fee, which is discriminatory and in effect is largely targeted at Indian IT companies”.
Last year, the US Congress imposed a special fee of up to$4,500 on H-1B and L-1 visas – popular among Indian IT companies – to fund a US healthcare legislation for 9/11 victims and a biometric tracking system.
Mr. Jaitley expressed India’s keenness in early conclusion of a Totalization Agreement with the United States, a finance ministry statement quoting him said.
Under this, professionals of both the countries would be exempted from social security taxes when they go to work for a short period in the other country.
According to industry, Indian professionals contributed more than $25 billion to the US Social Security during the last decade, without being able to retrieve their contributions.
The US has entered into agreements called ‘Totalization Agreements’ with several nations for the purpose of avoiding double taxation of income with respect to social security taxes. The finance minister emphasized on sustained engagement and a rapidly increasing trade and investment partnership between India and the US as key elements, saying India looks forward to strengthening and deepening this economic engagement.
Mr. Jaitley is currently on an official visit to the US to attend the Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank and other sessions.
He is accompanied by RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das, and Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian and other officials.
GWADAR (TIP): Pakistan’s army chief accused longtime regional rival India of seeking to undermine his country’s $46 billion project to build an economic corridor to transport goods from China’s western regions through the Pakistani deepwater port of Gwadar.
Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif, speaking at a development conference on the impact of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), said the significance of a Pakistan-China economic alliance had “raised eyebrows” in the region.
“In this context, I must highlight that India, our immediate neighbour, has openly challenged this development initiative,” Sharif told the conference in Gwadar.
“I would like to make a special reference to Indian intelligence agency RAW that is blatantly involved in destabilising Pakistan. Let me make it clear that we will not allow anyone to create impediments and turbulence in any part of Pakistan. Therefore, it is important for all to leave behind confrontation and focus on cooperation.”
Indian officials could not be reached for comment late on Tuesday night.
RAW is India’s Research and Analysis Wing, its main external intelligence agency.
Last month, Pakistan said it had detained a suspected Indian spy for RAW in Baluchistan, the southwestern Pakistani province where most of the CPEC is taking shape.
India has confirmed that the man is a former Indian navy official but denied that he is a spy.
Majority Hindu India and mostly Muslim Pakistan, once part of a vast British colonial holding, have fought three wars since they were partitioned upon independence in 1947, leading to a violent separation that has fed decades of mutual suspicion.
Pakistan believes India is supporting a separatist insurgency in resource-rich Baluchistan. It also accuses India of fuelling strife in the city of Karachi. India denies any such meddling.
India has long accused Pakistan of backing militants fighting Indian security forces in its part of the divided Kashmir region, of helping militants launch attacks elsewhere in India and backing the Taliban in Afghanistan.
Pakistan says it only offers diplomatic support to the Muslim people of Kashmir living under what Pakistan says is heavy-handed Indian rule. It denies backing militant attacks in India.
NEW YORK (TIP): Calling for “fundamental change” in Albany, Micah Lasher announced that he would run in the Democratic Primary to succeed Adriano Espaillat and represent the 31st State Senate District, which runs from Chelsea and Hell’s Kitchen through the Upper West Side to Washington Heights, Inwood and Marble Hill. Leaders from across the Senate district endorsed Lasher’s candidacy, including Congress member Jerry Nadler, City Comptroller Scott Stringer, Assembly member Linda Rosenthal, and City Councilmembers Ydanis Rodriguez, Mark Levine and Corey Johnson.
Lasher, who has served in federal, state and city government, most recently as Chief of Staff to Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, said: “I’m running for State Senate to be part of a strong, truly progressive Democratic majority that will bring about the fundamental change we need. I want to put my experience and independence to work to strengthen our rent laws and protect tenants, invest in mass transit and clean energy, and end the State’s appalling failure to properly fund our public schools and public higher education. I’ll stand for comprehensive reform of our broken criminal justice system and of our broken campaign finance system, which serves the interests of special interests and lobbyists instead of average New Yorkers. And I will be an unwavering advocate of the Dream Act, and of legislation to provide undocumented immigrants with driver’s licenses, so that New York continues to be a place that supports and protects those from all over the world who come here to make their mark.”
QUEENS, NY (TIP): The Clinton Democratic Club introduced its members to the 2016-2017 Executive Board and Board of Trustees on Wednesday, April 6 at Trattoria 35 in Bayside, Queens. Queens Borough President Melinda Katz conducted the swearing-in ceremony and congratulated the newly elected officers who are: Executive Board: President -Chuck Apelian; Vice President – Marsha Kahn; Secretary – Christine Coniglio; Treasurer – Michael Serao; Media & Public Relations and Recording Secretary – Breeana Mulligan; Membership Chair – Malini Shah; Sergeant at Arms – Greg Farren; Board of Directors: Roxane Carrabis; Mary Conaty; Lauren Cornea; Joe Femenia; Laura Femenia; Gary Jacobowitz; Mackey Kahn; Bernie Karoff; Carolyn Karoff; Debra Markell; Lionel Morales; Richard Rapp; Warren Schreiber ;Vito Tautonico; Past Presidents: John Dorsa; Council Member Paul Vallone; District Leader and Executive Member: Mary Ann Dorsa.
In addition to hosting the swearing-in, Borough President Katz updated members on the happenings of Queens and urged members to contact her office if they experience any troubles. The Borough President also discussed her great working partnership with Council Member Vallone and how their work together shows if elected officials unite, great work can be done for their shared constituency.
Council Member Vallone thanked Borough President Katz for the kind words and for her leadership in Queens. The Council Member added a good example of government working together when the two stood together last Tuesday with the New York City Police Department as the NYPD officially unveiled the much anticipated neighborhood based policing program, which the 109th will expand as they increase the influx the number of officers to keep Northeast Queens even safer. Council Member Vallone also detailed the success of year two of participatory budgeting as his office received over 4,500 votes; he told all members to stay tuned for the results later in the month.
The Clinton Democratic Club also welcomed candidates for outgoing Congressman Steve Israel’s seat -Councilwoman Anna Kaplan of North Hempstead and Legislator Steve Stern of Suffolk County. Both candidates detailed their respective priorities of their campaigns and hoped to preserve Congressman Israel’s legacy by continuing issues important to his constituents such as issues concerning veterans and seniors. President Chuck Apelian and Council Member Vallone urged members to vote for any of the qualified candidates in this June’s primary to keep this seat blue.
The Clinton Democratic Club will hold its next meeting on Wednesday, May 4th at Vivaldi Ristorante (201-10 Cross Island Pkwy, Bayside, NY 11360). Queens Parks Commissioner Dorothy Lewandowski will be updating members on all summer events and ongoing capital projects in Northeast Queens and the newly created neighborhood community officers from the 109th Precinct will be explaining their new roles in the community.
NEW DELHI (TIP): To honor India’s oldest serving soldier, Marshal of the Air Force Arjan Singh – who turned 97 on Thursday, April 14, – the crucial Air Force base at Panagarh in West Bengal will now be called Air Force Station Arjan Singh.
Marshal of the Air Force Arjan Singh led the Indian Air Force in the 1965 India-Pakistan war.
The renaming of the Air Force Station was announced by Chief of Air Staff Arup Raha on Thursday evening at function to mark the birthday of the Marshal of the Air Force. Military installations aren’t generally named after individuals, especially when they are alive.
The function to facilitate the Marshal of Air Force in Delhi was attended by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Army Chief General Dalbir Singh Suhag and several other former chiefs.
The Air Force played a crucial role in the 1965 war by stealing the initiative and initial advantage of Pakistan. With careful planning, unmatched insight and wisdom, then Chief of Air Staff, Arjan Singh, out-foxed Pakistan Air Force which had top of line US jets as against India’s old Gnats and Vampire fighters. After few initial setbacks, the Indian Air Force out maneuvered and out did the Pakistan Air Force handing India air superiority to the ground forces.
US made heavy transporters C-130J capable of supporting special operations will be based at Air Force Station Arjan Singh. They will be flying with the newly raised Mountain Strike Corps.
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