The Indian Panorama

Month: March 2022

  • Shaheed Diwas: Remembering Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru

    Shaheed Diwas: Remembering Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru

    Shaheed Diwas or Martyrs’ Day is observed on March 23 every year throughout the country. It marks the death anniversary of young freedom fighters Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev Thapar and Shivaram Rajguru. On March 23 in 1931, the three were hanged to death by Britishers. The sons of India were sentenced to death in the Lahore conspiracy case and ordered to be hanged on March 24, 1931. However, the schedule was moved forward by 11 hours and they were hanged on March 23, 1931 at 7:30 pm.

    After Lala Lajpat Rai’s death in November 1928, Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev and others vowed to take revenge. Rai was a prominent leader of India’s freedom movement who had inspired many young Indians to join the quest for freedom.

    In order to teach the ruthless Britishers a lesson, the three planned to execute James A Scott. Scott was the Superintendent of Police during the British rule and was infamous for his cruelty.

    It was Scott who had ordered the police to lathi charge the protesters and personally assaulted Rai, causing life threatening injuries. The plan was to send a message to the British forces that we will not bow down anymore and are capable of taking action.

    However, it was John P Saunders, an Assistant Superintendent of Police, who was killed by mistake. The three freedom fighters were charged for murder of Saunders.

    Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev were only 23 years old when they were hanged for executing Saunders. Their contribution in the freedom struggle is immense and will continue to inspire generations to fight for their rights.

    Bhagat Singh

    Bhagat Singh was born on September 27, 1907, in the village of Banga near Lyallpur district in Punjab, British India. He was an Indian freedom fighter who is considered to be one of the most influential revolutionaries of the Indian independence movement. Bhagat Singh joined the Hindustan Republican Association (HRA) at a young age and became involved in revolutionary activities. He participated in several acts of sabotage against British institutions, including an attempt to bomb the Central Legislative Assembly in Delhi. In 1929, he and two other activists were convicted of assassinating John Saunders, a British police officer. Singh was executed by hanging on March 23, 1931, at Lahore jail at the age of 23. Despite his short life, Bhagat Singh left a lasting legacy in the struggle for Indian independence. He is revered by many as a martyr and symbol of resistance to British colonialism in India. His example continues to inspire new generations of activists worldwide.

    Bhagat Singh had a great impact on the Indian independence movement due to his participation in various activities that led India towards its freedom from colonial rule. His involvement with revolutionary groups resulted in him being jailed for various crimes, but he continued his activism even behind bars through writing and publishing newspapers aimed at spreading nationalist sentiments among people all over India. He was executed by hanging when he was 23 years old after leading an unsuccessful plot to kill a British police officer who ordered a lathi charge on Lala Lajpat Rai, who was protesting colonial policies at the time. This murder had a major impact on Indian society and brought Bhagat Singh to national attention as a revolutionary hero of India’s independence movement.

    Rajguru

    Shivaram Rajguru (1908-1931) was a great Indian freedom fighter who played a major role in the India’s struggle for Independence. He is amongst those great Indian revolutionaries who sacrificed their lives for the freedom of country. His full name was Hari Shivaram Rajguru and was born into a Deshastha Brahmin family. Since his childhood days, he had witnessed the brutal atrocities that the Imperial British Raj inflicted on India and her people. This instilled within him a strong urge to join hands with the revolutionaries in a bid for India’s freedom struggle.

    In the days of the Indian Freedom Movement, the Hindustan Socialist Republican Army (HSRA) was an active force working against the British. Their main motive was to strike fear into the heart of the British regime. They simultaneously spread awareness amongst the people. They made them take notice of the growing domestic uprising when they dealt crucial blows with attacks like in the Lahore Conspiracy Case (December 18, 1928) and the bombing of the Central Assembly Hall in New Delhi (April 8, 1929).

    The protest against the Simon Commission in October 1928 saw the British police lathi-charge the protestors, severely injuring veteran leader Lala Lajpat Rai. Owing to the excessive beating, Lala succumbed to his injuries, which thus instilled revenge in the hearts of the revolutionaries. On December 18, 1928, in Ferozepur, Lahore, a planned retaliation was enforced that led to the assassination of Deputy Superintendent of Police, J.P. Saunders. Shivaram Rajguru, along with Sukhdev Thapar, was accomplice of the legendary Bhagat Singh who spearheaded the attack. Rajguru then went into hiding in Nagpur. Whilst taking shelter in the house of an RSS worker, he even met Dr. K. B. Hedgewar. On his travel to Pune, however, Shivaram was finally arrested. Bhagat Singh, Shivaram Rajguru and Sukhdev Thapar were then convicted of their crime and sentenced to death.

    Sukhdev

    Sukhdev was a famous Indian revolutionary who played a major role in the India’s struggle for Independence. He is amongst those great Indian freedom fighters who sacrificed their lives for the freedom of their country. His full name is Sukhdev Thapar and he was born on 15th May, 1907.

    His ancestral house is in Naughara Mohalla of Ludhiana city, Punjab, India. His father’s name was Ram Lal. Since his childhood days, Sukhdev had witnessed the brutal atrocities that the Imperial British Raj had inflicted on India, which then led him to join the revolutionaries, vowing to set India free from the shackles of British dominion.

    Sukhdev Thapar was a member of the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA), and organized revolutionary cells in Punjab and other areas of North India. A devoted leader, he even went on to educate the youth at the National College in Lahore, greatly inspiring them about India’s glorious past. He along with other renowned revolutionaries started the ‘Naujawan Bharat Sabha’ at Lahore that was an organization involved in various activities, mainly gearing the youth for the freedom struggle and putting an end to communalism. Sukhdev himself took active part in several revolutionary activities like the ‘Prison hunger strike’ in 1929; however, he would always be remembered in the chronicles of the Indian Freedom Movement for his daring yet courageous attacks in the Lahore Conspiracy Case (18th December, 1928), that shook the very foundation of the British Government. Sukhdev was the accomplice of Bhagat Singh and Shivaram Rajguru, who were involved in the assassination of Deputy Superintendent of Police, J.P. Saunders in 1928, thus avenging the death of veteran leader, Lala Lajpat Rai, owing to excessive police beating in the Conspiracy case. After the Central Assembly Hall bombings in New Delhi (8th April, 1929), Sukhdev and his accomplices were arrested and convicted of their crime, facing the death sentence as verdict.

  • Russia bogged down, blasting Ukrainian cities as war enters 4th week

    Russia bogged down, blasting Ukrainian cities as war enters 4th week

    Kyiv/Lviv, Ukraine (TIP): Russian forces in Ukraine are blasting cities and killing civilians but no longer making progress on the ground, Western countries said on March 17, as a war Moscow was thought to have hoped to win within days entered its fourth week.

    Ukraine said Russian forces had destroyed a theatre where women and children had been sheltering in the besieged southern port of Mariupol. An official in the Mariupol mayor’s office said a bomb shelter at the theatre had “withstood” and there were survivors, but details of casualties were still not known. Russia denied striking the theatre, which commercial satellite pictures showed had the word “children” marked out on the ground in front before it was blown up.

    ViacheslavChaus, governor of Chernihiv, a northern city that has been intensely bombarded, said 53 civilians had been killed there in the past 24 hours. The toll could not be independently verified.

    Although both sides have pointed to limited progress in peace talks this week, President Vladimir Putin, who ordered Russia’s invasion on Feb. 24, showed little sign of relenting. In a vituperative televised speech, he inveighed against “traitors and scum” at home who helped the West, and said the Russian people would spit them out like gnats.

    Kyiv and its Western allies believe Russia launched the unprovoked war to subjugate a neighbour that Putin calls an artificial state carved out of Russia. Moscow says it is carrying out a “special operation” to disarm it and “denazify”. Heavily outnumbered Ukrainian forces have prevented Moscow from capturing any of Ukraine’s biggest cities so far despite the largest assault on a European state since World War Two. More than 3 million Ukrainians have fled and thousands of civilians and combatants have died.

    ‘STALLED ON ALL FRONTS’

    Russia has assaulted Ukraine from four directions, sending two massive columns towards Kyiv from the northwest and northeast, pushing in from the east near the second biggest city Kharkiv, and spreading in from the south near Crimea.

    But British military intelligence said in an update on Thursday that the invasion had “largely stalled on all fronts”, and Russian forces were suffering heavy losses from a staunch and well-coordinated Ukrainian resistance.

    Northeastern and northwestern suburbs of Kyiv have been reduced to rubble by heavy fighting, but the capital itself has held firm, under a curfew and subjected to deadly nightly rocket attacks. At least one person was killed and three were wounded when a residential building was struck by a downed Russian missile, emergency services said on Thursday.

    Amid the unrelenting fighting, both sides have spoken of progress at talks. Ukrainian officials have said they think Russia is running out of troops to keep fighting and could soon come to terms with its failure to topple the Ukrainian government. Moscow has said it is close to agreeing a formula that would keep Ukraine neutral, long one of its demands. Moscow said peace talks resumed on Thursday by videolink for a fourth straight day, discussing military, political and humanitarian issues. (Reuters)

  • Powerful quake off north Japan kills 4, more than 90 injured

    Powerful quake off north Japan kills 4, more than 90 injured

    Tokyo (TIP): A powerful 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Fukushima in northern Japan on March 16 night, smashing furniture, knocking out power and killing four people. A small tsunami reached shore, but the low-risk advisory was lifted by Thursday morning. The region is part of northern Japan that was devastated by a deadly 9.0 quake and tsunami 11 years ago that caused nuclear reactor meltdowns, spewing massive radiation that still makes some parts uninhabitable.

    Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told a parliamentary session on Thursday morning that four people died during the quake and the cause of their deaths are being investigated, while 97 others were injured. A man in his 60s in Soma city died after falling from the second floor of his house while trying to evacuate, and a man in his 70s panicked and suffered a heart attack, Kyodo News reported earlier.

    The Japan Meteorological Agency early on Thursday lifted its low-risk advisory for a tsunami along the coasts of Fukushima and Miyagi prefectures. Tsunami waves of 30 centimetres (11 inches) reached shore in Ishinomaki, about 390 kilometres (242 miles) northeast of Tokyo. The agency upgraded the magnitude of the quake to 7.4 from the initial 7.3, and the depth from 60 kilometres (36 miles) below the sea to 56 kilometres (35 miles). NHK footage showed broken walls of a department store building fell to the ground and shards of windows scattered on the street near the main train station in the inland prefectural capital of Fukushima city. Roads were cracked and water poured out from pipes underground.

    Footage also showed furniture and appliances smashed to the floor at apartments in Fukushima. Cosmetics and other merchandise at convenience stores fell from shelves and scattered on the floor. In Yokohama, near Tokyo, an electric pole nearly fell.

    The Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, which operates the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant where the cooling systems failed after the 2011 disaster, said workers found no abnormalities at the site, which is being decommissioned.

    Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority said a fire alarm went off at the turbine building of No. 5 reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi but there was no actual fire. Water pumps for the spent fuel cooling pool at two of the four reactors at Fukushima Daini briefly stopped, but later resumed operation. Fukushima Daini, which survived the 2011 tsunami, is also set for decommissioning.

    More than 2.2 million homes were temporarily without electricity in 14 prefectures, including the Tokyo region, but power was restored at most places by the morning, except for about 37,000 homes in the hardest hit Fukushima and Miyagi prefectures, according to the Tohoku Electric Power Co. which services the region.

    The quake shook large parts of eastern Japan, including Tokyo, where buildings swayed violently. East Japan Railway Co. said most of its train services were suspended for safety checks. Some local trains later resumed service. Many people formed long lines outside of major stations while waiting for trains to resume operation late on Wednesday, but trains in Tokyo operated normally on Thursday morning.

    A Tohoku Shinkansen, express train partially derailed between Fukushima and Miyagi due to the quake, but nobody was injured, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said. He told reporters that the government was assessing the extent of damage and promised to do its utmost for rescue and relief operations. “Please first take action to save your life,” Kishida tweeted. (AP)

  • Russia says air defence systems for Ukraine would destabilise situation

    Kyiv/Lviv (TIP): Russia’s foreign ministry said on March 17 that giving Ukraine air defence systems, as requested by Ukraine’s president in the U.S. Congress a day earlier, would be a destabilising factor that would not bring peace to the country.

    Ukrainian President VolodymyrZelenskiy urged American lawmakers on Wednesday to do more to protect his country from Russia’s invasion, pushing for the imposition of a no-fly zone and asking for aircraft and defensive systems. “Such deliveries … would be a destabilising factor which will definitely not bring peace to Ukraine,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a news briefing.

    “In the long term, they could have much more dangerous consequences,” she added.

    The United States and its allies want to avoid NATO being drawn into the Ukraine conflict, but they have supplied Kyiv with military aid since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.

    Moscow calls its offensive in Ukraine a “special operation” to destroy its southern neighbour’s military capabilities and capture what it regards as dangerous nationalists. Slovakia’s Prime Minister Eduard Heger on Sunday said NATO could discuss sending his country’s Soviet-made S-300 air defence system to Ukraine. Reuters

  • Ukraine legalisescryptocurrency to fight Russian invasion

    Kiev (TIP): Ukraine has legalisedcryptocurrency as the country received donations worth tens of millions of dollars from individuals and groups to help it fight the Russian invasion. Ukraine President VolodymyrZelensky has signed the law that creates conditions for further formation of the legal field in the market of virtual assets. The new market will be regulated by the National Commission on Securities and Stock Market. The signed law determines the legal status, classification and virtual assets ownership rights and determines the list of providers of virtual assets and conditions of their registration. Until now, the Ministry of Digital Transformation has been developing the legal framework in this area. “The Ministry of Digital Transformation is also actively working to amend the tax and civil codes of Ukraine to fully launch the virtual assets market,” the government said in a statement. The signing of the crypto law is an important step towards bringing the cryptocurrency sector out of the shadows and launching a legal market for virtual assets in Ukraine. (IANS)

  • Zelenskyy urges Germany to tear down wall dividing free and unfree Europe

    Berlin (TIP): Invoking the fall of the Berlin Wall, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on March 17 urged German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to tear down what he called a wall between “free and unfree” Europe and stop the war in Ukraine. Speaking to the Bundestag by video link, Zelenskyy appealed to Scholz to restore freedom to Ukraine, tapping Germany’s collective memory with reference to the historic 1948-1949 Berlin Airlift and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.

    Zelenskyy described a new wall “in the middle of Europe between freedom and unfreedom”, which he said Germany had helped build, isolating Ukraine with its business ties to Russia and its previous support for the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

    “And this wall is getting bigger with every bomb that falls on Ukraine, with every decision that is not taken,” he added. Germany last month halted the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea gas pipeline project, designed to double the flow of Russian gas directly to Germany. Recalling former U.S. president Ronald Reagan’s appeal to Mikhail Gorbachev, the last Soviet leader, to tear down the Berlin Wall, Zelenskyy told German lawmakers: “That’s what I say to you dear Chancellor Scholz: destroy this wall.” “Give Germany the leadership role that it has earned so that your descendants are proud of you. Support freedom, support Ukraine, stop this war, help us to stop this war,” he added.

    Lawmakers in the Bundestag welcomed Zelenskyy with a standing ovation and the chamber’s vice president, Katrin Goering-Eckardt, told him: “Your country has chosen democracy, and that’s what (Russian President) Vladimir Putin fears.” She said Putin was trying to deny Ukraine’s right to exist, adding: “But he has already failed with that.”  (Reuters)

  • UK to lift all remaining Covid international travel restrictions

    London (TIP): The UK government will lift all its remaining Covid-19 pandemic-related international travel restrictions from March 17, including the requirement for travellers to fill in a compulsory Passenger Locator Form prior to entering the country. From 4 am GMT on March 17, arrivals into the UK will no longer be required to submit travel details or take a PCR test even if they are unvaccinated. The change would remove the remaining rules in place for unvaccinated passengers to take a pre-departure test and another test two days after arrival. “The UK is leading the world in removing all remaining Covid-19 travel restrictions, and today’s announcement is a testament to the hard work everyone in this country has put in place to roll out the vaccine and protect each other”, said UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps on Monday evening. “I said we wouldn’t keep travel measures in place for any longer than necessary, which we’re delivering on today – providing more welcome news and greater freedom for travellers ahead of the Easter holidays.  (PTI)

  • North Korean missile explodes mid-air in failed launch

    Seoul (TIP): A North Korean missile fired from its capital region exploded in mid-air in an apparent failed launch on March 16, South Korea’s military said, amid speculation that the North could soon launch its biggest long-range missile in its most significant provocation in years. Details of the missile explosion weren’t immediately known. But the launch, the 10th of its kind this year, shows North Korea is determined to press ahead on its push to modernize its weapons arsenal and pressure its rivals into making concessions amid dormant denuclearization talks. The North Korean missile blew up while it was flying at an altitude of about 20 kilometres (12.4 miles), a South Korean military official said requesting anonymity because he wasn’t publicly authorized to speak to media on the issue. He said the cause of the explosion wasn’t known. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff earlier said in a statement that the launch made from the Pyongyang region around 9.30 am apparently failed. It said South Korean and US intelligence authorities were analyzing details of the launch.

    The US Indo-Pacific Command later said that North Korea fired a ballistic missile but didn’t say whether it was a failed launch. A command statement said the launch didn’t pose an immediate threat to US territory and its allies but called on North Korea to refrain from further destabilizing acts. Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary HirokazuMatsuno told reporters that a flight of a ballistic missile has not been confirmed and that Tokyo is working with Washington and Seoul to further analyze what happened.

    Experts say past failures still have moved North Korea closer to its goal of acquiring a viable nuclear arsenal that could threaten the American homeland. The US and South Korean militaries said last week that North Korea had tested an ICBM system in two recent launches, referring to the developmental Hwasong-17 missile that North Korea unveiled during a military parade in October 2020.

    In the two recent launches on February 27 and March 5, the North Korean missiles flew medium-range distances, and experts have said North Korea could eventually perform a full-range ICBM test.

    The North has said it tested cameras and other systems for a spy satellite and released what it said were photos taken from space during one of the two tests, but it didn’t confirm what rocket or missile it launched. Observers say North Korea aims to boost its ICBM capability while trying to place its first functioning spy satellite into orbit. North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has vowed to acquire an improved ICBM and a spy satellite among an array of sophisticated weapons systems.  (AP)

  • Myanmar eyes using rupee for border trade

    Bangkok (TIP): Myanmar’s military-led administration on March 15 agreed to accept Thai baht as an official currency in border trade dealings and plans a similar arrangement for use of India’s rupee, seeking to limit the country’s reliance on the US dollar in trade. The State Administration Council on Tuesday said that Settlements in Thai baht will be done online according to regulations set by Myanmar’s central bank. Thailand is Myanmar’s second largest trading partner after China, with border trade at five checkpoints — Tachileik, Myawady, Kawthoung, Myeik and Hteekhee — amounting to $4.3 billion in fiscal 2020-2021, up from $3.9 billion the year before, the statement said. Earlier this year, Myanmar had allowed direct currency settlements using Chinese yuan with its kyat. By expanding direct conversion of other currencies in border trade, Myanmar intends to reduce its dependence on the US dollar by up to 70%. — AP

  • 21 students injured in Pakistan’s Punjab University campus clash over boy and girl sitting together

    Lahore (TIP): Twenty-one students of Pakistan’s Punjab University here were injured, some of them critically, when they clashed with members of a radical Islamic outfit who objected to a boy and a girl sitting together. A girl and a boy were seen sitting at a canteen outside the Gender Studies Department on March 15, when members of the IslamiJamiatTulaba (IJT) asked them to leave. When they objected, one of the IJT members slapped the boy, a university official said. Other students stepped in and they first tried to stop the IJT members from harassing the boy and the girl. But it soon escalated into a full-blown clash. Some of the students were armed with iron and wooden rods, the Dawn newspaper reported. Most of the students were admitted to a nearby hospital after suffering head injuries. So far, two students were arrested, police said. The Punjab University has more than 30,000 students in its rolls. (PTI)

  • In a first, Indian trader exports goods to Uzbekistan via Pak and Afghanistan

    Islamabad (TIP): In a first, a private trader in India has exported commercial goods to Uzbekistan through Pakistan and Afghanistan in a historic trade activity linking the four countries, according to a media report. Trucks carrying 140 tonnes of cargo, mostly sugar from India, departed Kabul on March 16 for the Uzbek capital Tashkent, the Voice of America reported on Wednesday.

    The shipment arrived in the Afghan capital a day earlier from Pakistan via the Torkham border crossing between the countries, a spokesperson of the Taliban’s Ministry of Industry and Commerce MaulanaZaheer was quoted as saying in the report.

    The ministry organised a special ceremony to facilitate the transit of the Indian goods, hailing it as a major step towards turning Afghanistan into a key trade link between Central and South Asia. The commercial cargo originated from Mumbai and travelled through the Karachi seaport in Pakistan earlier this month before being trucked to its Uzbek importer under a recently inked bilateral transit trade agreement between Pakistan and Uzbekistan, a Pakistani official told the state-owned American radio broadcaster.

    (PTI)

  • SBI to give $1-billion loan to Sri Lanka for food, medicine and other essential items

    SBI to give $1-billion loan to Sri Lanka for food, medicine and other essential items

    Colombo/New Delhi (TIP): The State Bank of India on March 17 signed an agreement for extending a credit line of $1 billion to Sri Lanka enabling it to buy food, medicine and other essential items. The agreement was signed after Union Ministers S Jaishankar and NirmalaSitharaman held discussions on economic cooperation and “issues of mutual interest’’ with Sri Lanka Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa, said an official news release. Basil Rajapaksa visited India for financial assistance which will temporarily enable the cash-strapped Sri Lanka to stave off an unprecedented economic crisis.

    On the eve of his visit, Colombo sent a positive signal by signing a joint venture with India three days back for a 100 mw solar power plant at Sampur in Trincomalee to compensate for the scrapping of an Indo-Japan coal power project on environmental grounds. On the security side, Colombo last week hosted another conference of NSAs of regional countries for a collective approach to maritime security.

    In January, India had bailed out Sri Lanka from its balance of payments difficulties by extending a $400 million swap facility and deferring the settlement of $515.2 million. Thus, the help extended by India is worth over $900 million and about $1.5 billion more is in the pipeline.

    Basil Rajapaksa had met PM NarendraModi for the assistance provided to Sri Lanka at this critical time. The two leaders discussed a wide range of issues pertaining to the bilateral relationship. These included agriculture, renewable energy, digitalisation, tourism and fisheries among others, said a release from the Sri Lanka High Commission.

    Basil Rajapaksa also held talks with Jaishankar the same evening, which were followed by a working dinner. Rajapaksa was accompanied to the meeting by Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to India MilindaMoragoda, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance S.R. Attygalle and Sri Lanka’s Deputy High Commissioner to India NilukaKadurugamuwa. (TNS)

  • Taliban says healthcare should be denied to female patients who do not observe hijab

    Taliban says healthcare should be denied to female patients who do not observe hijab

    Kabul (TIP): Since regaining power in August, the Taliban has gradually resurrected its discriminatory policies, enforcing strict segregation in universities, government offices, and on public transportation, RFE/RL reported. Right groups have accused the Taliban of imposing gender apartheid in Afghanistan, with fears that girls and women will be excluded from public life. The Taliban has dramatically rolled back women’s rights in recent months, including closing most girls’ secondary schools and banning women from most forms of employment. Women who have demonstrated for greater rights have been arrested and, in some cases, disappeared.

    The Taliban’s Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice earlier this month sent a letter to the Health Ministry ordering it to segregate male and female employees, RFE/RL reported.

    “The offices for men and women should be separate,” said the letter. The ministry, which is the enforcer of the Taliban’s radical interpretation of Islamic law, also warned that health care should be denied to female patients who do not observe the Islamic hijab.

    The Taliban initially ordered women not to return to work. But it later called female health workers back to clinics and hospitals, although many were too scared to resume their work. Rights groups say gender segregation has created barriers to women and girls accessing health care. At many facilities, patients are only treated by a health professional of the same sex, RFE/RL reported. –IANS

  • International group BAPS of Indian-origin volunteers helping refugees fleeing Ukraine

    International group BAPS of Indian-origin volunteers helping refugees fleeing Ukraine

    REZSZOW, POLAND (TIP): As a devastating humanitarian crisis unfolds in Ukraine, hundreds of thousands are fleeing the warzone seeking refuge in neighboring countries. This has included thousands of Indian nationals, mainly students, who have been left stranded amid the conflict. “Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally called BAPS to assist the government’s efforts for the safe passage of Indian nationals from Ukraine. Pujya Brahmaviharidas Swami reassured the Prime Minister: We have also been instructed by His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj to mobilize BAPS volunteers,” said a press release issued by BAPS.

    Volunteers from the USA, UK, Ireland, France, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, Austria and Poland swiftly sprang into action to support the emergency relief efforts on the ground. This has included setting up a mobile field kitchen in the south-eastern Polish city of Rzeszów, which has begun feeding around 1,000 hot vegetarian meals daily to refugees of all faiths and nationalities. BAPS is also arranging accommodation facilities and coordinating medical assistance and is working closely with the Indian government and local partners.

    Volunteers traveled from Robbinsville, NJ to Rezszow, Poland and to Budomierz, Poland, on the Ukrainian border to help distribute humanitarian supplies to and facilitate the transport of international students and others fleeing Ukraine.

    Darshan Patel, an attorney by profession serving at the refugee camp said, “Seeing the need to help students and refugees leaving Ukraine, I took a flight to Poland to serve them. The least we can do is make them comfortable during this stressful time by providing them food and basic necessities.” Shailesh Bhavsar, a lead BAPS volunteer from Paris, explained the process at the camp: “Once they arrive at the camp, we work on registering them, providing them with meals, giving them a place to stay and rest before processing them to go to the airport for a flight home.” “Helping others through selfless service — ‘seva’ is a fundamental principle of BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha,” Dharmik Sheth, a pharmaceutical professional, said. “I am following my faith – and my family tradition. My father also volunteered during humanitarian crises when I was young.”

    “Our volunteers are inspired by the ethos of HH Pramukh Swami Maharaj, who personified the motto ‘In the joy of others lies our own’, and there has perhaps never been a more opportune moment to embody this selfless spirit of public service by providing the basic needs for those severely impacted by the conflict,” said Pujya Nilkanthsevadas Swami, Head Swami at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Robbinsville, NJ. “We are working with local members of the Ukrainian community and our volunteer forces on the ground in Poland to send necessary humanitarian aid via our logistics partners. The volunteers who flew from New Jersey have been communicating information about supplies needed on the ground. We are trying our best to supply them.” Vijay Kumar Singh, former Army Chief of Staff and current Minister of State for Transport and Civil Aviation, observed the tireless efforts of the volunteers first-hand in Rzeszów and commented: “I would like to personally congratulate and commend BAPS volunteers. You are helping everyone with a sense of unity, without any expectations, and without worrying about yourselves. The people of India are indebted to your swift, selfless and organized action.”
    Robbinsville Mayor Dave Fried immediately commended Ravi Patni and his fellow volunteers: “On behalf of Robbinsville, we are very proud of BAPS and their efforts to help the Ukrainian people. Hopefully, we can find a way to have the Township work together to help those people who are going through an unimaginably difficult time.”

    His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj has also prayed for the welfare of those affected: “We offer our deepest gratitude to these volunteers. We also offer our prayers that peace prevails, and those who are suffering are provided support, strength and courage.”

    (Based on a Press Release)

  • Indian-origin Telangana student dies in road accident in Germany

    Indian-origin Telangana student dies in road accident in Germany

    HYDERABAD (TIP):  A student from Telangana has died in a road accident in Germany, according to information received by his family. Amar Singh, 27, died in an accident that occurred on March 13. Officials from Germany informed the family on Wednesday night. A car in which he was travelling with a few friends met with an accident. He died on the spot.

    The student hailed from Achampet village in Akkaram mandal of Nagarkurnool district. He had gone to Germany for higher studies a couple of years ago. His parents were anxious as he was not responding to calls made on his mobile phone. As they were trying to contact his friends in Germany, they received the shocking news. Telangana Rashtra Samithi MLA from Achampet, G Balaraju, called on the family, which has appealed to the state government to make arrangements for bringing the body home. The MLA said he spoke to Minister of Industries and Information Technology KT Rama Rao and requested him to help in bringing the mortal remains. 

  • Indian-origin political activist Shefali Razdan nominated as envoy to Netherlands

    Indian-origin political activist Shefali Razdan nominated as envoy to Netherlands

    WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): US President Joe Biden has announced his intent to nominate Indian origin political activist Shefali Razdan Duggal as his envoy to the Netherlands, according to the White House. An immigrant to the US from Kashmir, Duggal, 50, has been raised in Cincinnati, Chicago, New York and Boston. The White House made the announcement on Friday along with several other key administrative and diplomatic positions. Duggal, a mother of two, is an experienced political activist, women’s rights advocate and human rights campaigner, the White House said. She is a former Presidential Appointee to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Council and continues to serve as a Western Regional Advisor. Duggal is a San Francisco Committee member of Human Rights Watch, a member of the Wake Forest University Leadership and Character Council and served on the National Board of Directors for Emily’s List. She received an MA in Political Communication from New York University. She also studied Mass Communication at Miami University.

  • Indian-origin doctor run over by thieves fleeing in his car

    Indian-origin doctor run over by thieves fleeing in his car

    WASHINGTON (TIP): An Indian origin doctor has been killed by persons who allegedly stole his Mercedes Benz and hit him with the car, according to Washington police. Police said that the suspect entered Rakesh Patel’s car when he was outside it and hit him while fleeing in the vehicle on Tuesday, March 8. Police have announced a $25,000 reward for the capture of the person/s who were involved in the killing.

    While the car was recovered, the suspects had not been captured as of Thursday, March 10. WJLA TV said that when Patel, 33, stepped out of his car to give his girlfriend a package, the thieves entered the car started to drive away. “In a panic, he ran after them somehow getting in front of the car. The car thieves ran him down killing him” while his “girlfriend watched in horror”, the TV station reported. According to NBC4 Washington TV, Patel’s father and two siblings are also doctors. He was the youngest child, and his mother Charulatta Patel told the station: “I always used to call him my baby”. Calling the killing senseless, she asked: “For what? A car”?

    Washington, like places across the US, has seen a huge spike in carjackings, vehicle thefts and major crimes in the aftermath of anti-police protests that followed the killing of an African-American man by police two years ago in Minnesota.

    The Washington Post reported that carjackings in Washington “spiked 200 per cent from 2019 to 2021 and continue to rise this year”.

    Last March, a Pakistani food delivery person was killed by two girls, 13 and 15 years old, who carjacked his car.

  • Indian American documented dreamer tells lawmakers she would be forced to leave US without change in immigration system

    Indian American documented dreamer tells lawmakers she would be forced to leave US without change in immigration system

    WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): An Indian American documented dreamer has told lawmakers that she would be forced to leave the US, where she has spent her entire life since the age of four, in eight months in the absence of any meaningful legislative reforms in immigration system that addressed the major issue of aged-out kids.Dreamers are basically undocumented immigrants who enter the US as children with parents. There are nearly 11 million undocumented immigrants, including over half a million  from India, according to a policy document issued by the Biden campaign in November 2020.

    “Without a change in eight months, I will be forced to leave, not only my home of 20 years but also my mom who is my only family left,” Athulya Rajakumar, a 23-year-old recent graduate of the University of Texas at Austin from the Moody College of Communication, told members of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship and Border Safety on Tuesday, March 15. Testifying before the subcommittee during a hearing on “Removing Barriers to Legal Migration,” the Indian American told the Senators that over 5,000 documented dreamers face this every year. “Erin, a nursing graduate was forced to self-deport last summer in the midst of a pandemic…a data analyst student was forced to self-deport two months ago, Summer will be forced to self-deport in four months, even though her family has legally resided here since she was a baby,” she said. An aspiring journalist  shared the story of her family’s struggle through years of immigration limbo, which contributed to her brother’s tragic death. “I’m outraged by this broken system that you, your brother, and thousands of documented dreamers have had to face. We organized this hearing today because we cannot allow the inaction of Congress to continue to cause this suffering,” Senator Alex Padilla said in his remarks.

    Padilla is chair of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, and Border Safety. Barriers to legal migration routinely separate families across international borders for years, he said.

    “Visa caps that keep employers from expanding their businesses and hold back the US economy, an arbitrary cut-off for legal status that forced children, visa holders, to leave the only country they’ve ever known when they age out of their parents’ visas. The gap between our country’s needs and the realities of our broken immigration system should come as no surprise,” Padilla said. “Employment-based visas allow participating immigrants to bring extraordinary skills to our workforce, start new businesses, create new jobs in rural areas, and to help address worker shortages in industries like healthcare,” he said.

    “But only 1,40,000 of these individuals can obtain visas every year. Because the spouses and children who accompany them count against the total, far fewer than 70,000 visas actually go to eligible workers. Hundreds of thousands of others are left in limbo, restricted by a temporary visa, or turned away from their dreams and they’re kept from realizing their potential,” he said.

    Ranking Member Senator John Cornyn said the Congressional Research Service recently estimated that without significant changes, the employment-based green card backlog could exceed 2 million by 2030.

    “Indian nationals have been hit especially hard because our system’s per-country caps do not allow them to receive more than seven per cent of the available employment-based visas in any given year,” he said.

    “To make matters worse due to processing inefficiencies attributable in part to USCIS’ paper-based system and to the closures of many of our consulates, we fail to issue as many as 92,000 employment-based visas in the height of the pandemic,” he said.

    Rajakumar told lawmakers that she got a full-time offer from a major news corporation in Houston, a top 10 market, but the same company who saw her potential withdrew their offer the second they heard about her visa status. “But worst of all, being considered an alien, an outsider in the only place you know to call home is a different kind of pain,” she said.

    Dip Patel, president of Improve the Dream, in a statement, said that Rajakumar’s moving testimony shows the urgent need to update the broken system, including the need to permanently end the problem of aging for children who are raised and educated in the United States. “For thousands of young people growing up with uncertainty, there is constant anxiety regarding one’s future in what we consider our home…We urge Congress to consider this and act fast to pass common-sense immigration reform,” he said.

    During the hearing, Padilla questioned Rajakumar about her experience as a documented dreamer and how a pathway to citizenship and the enactment of America’s Children Act would impact her life. Raja kumar pointed to the fact that it would mean that she wouldn’t have to be separated from her family and the country she’s called her home for the last twenty years.

  • Green Triangle’ named after Mahatma Gandhi inaugurated in Madagascar’s capital Antananarivo

    Green Triangle’ named after Mahatma Gandhi inaugurated in Madagascar’s capital Antananarivo

    ANTANANARIVO,MADAGASCAR (TIP): As part of the ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ to commemorate India’s 75th year of independence, a “Green Triangle” named after Mahatma Gandhi was inaugurated in Madagascar’s capital Antananarivo by Mayor of Antananarivo Naina Andriantsitohaina and India’s Ambassador to Madagascar Abhay Kumar on Wednesday, March16 at a special ceremony here. The ceremony was attended by members of local government, diplomatic corps, heads of international organizations and members of the Indian diaspora, to mark ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ celebrations. Speaking on the occasion, Andriantsitohaina voiced appreciation for efforts by the Embassy in greening the area, saying it meets the objective of the Urban Municipality of Antananarivo to create the maximum green space in the capital city of Madagascar, according to a press release by the Embassy. Kumar said Gandhi was the “greatest Pravasi” who returned to India from South Africa, led India’s freedom struggle and changed the lives of Indians forever. He added that Madagascar has a large diaspora from the Indian state of Gujarat, and it is fitting that a green triangle named after Gandhi, who hailed from Porbandar in the state, is being unveiled in the capital of Madagascar. 

  • 2 Democratic lawmakers urge India to condemn Russian invasion of Ukraine

    2 Democratic lawmakers urge India to condemn Russian invasion of Ukraine

    WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): Observing that India walks a difficult middle ground on the Ukraine crisis, two Democratic lawmakers Wednesday urged India to condemn Russian military operations against Ukraine which they said have no place in the 21st century.

    In a letter to India’s Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu, Congressman Ted W Lieu and Congressman Tom Malinowski said, ”Though we understand India’s relationship with Russia, we are disappointed with your government’s decision to abstain from the UN General Assembly’s March 2 vote.” They said Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine undermines the rules-based order, ”and by invading Ukraine, Russia is trying to destroy a set of rules that protect India as well”.

    ”India’s historic support for the UN Charter and the principles of territorial integrity gives us hope that India will join other democracies to support Ukrainian sovereignty in the face of Russian aggression,” the two Democratic lawmakers wrote.

    They said they ”deeply value” the relationship between the United States and India. ”Ät the same time, we are disappointed that India has taken this approach in response to Russia’s actions.”

    ”We understand that India walks a difficult middle ground, but Russia’s actions have no place in the 21st century. Many countries who have relationships with Russia did the right thing and condemned the Russian government – they chose the right side of history and so should India,” they said. “We hope that India will move away from its current position that places blame on both sides and acknowledge that Russia is the aggressor in this conflict,” Lieu and Malinowski wrote in the letter dated March 16. The two lawmakers wrote a separate letter to Pakistan Ambassador to the US, Majeed Khan urging Islamabad to condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine. ”We are disappointed with your government’s decision to abstain from the UN General Assembly’s March 2 vote. We are also disappointed that Prime Minister Imran Khan announced bilateral trade agreements with Russia following its invasion of Ukraine,” they said. ”The Prime Minister’s decision to proceed with his visit to Moscow, at a moment when the world was uniting in support of Ukraine, ran counter to the international community’s efforts to reaffirm Ukraine’s territorial integrity and call out Russia as the aggressor,” the two lawmakers wrote.

    (Source: PTI)

  • Booster For People 65 And Older

    Booster For People 65 And Older

    The boosters would bolster immunity among older Americans, officials say

    NEW YORK (TIP): New Yorkers , 65 and older,  may soon be able to get a second COVID-19 vaccine booster to increase the durability of their coronavirus vaccinations, a Patch report says. Pfizer and its coronavirus vaccine partner, BioNTech, have asked the Food and Drug Administration for emergency use authorization for the shots in an effort to bolster immunity among older Americans.

    COVID-19 infection rates have declined significantly in the last month. The seven-day average of cases Wednesday was about 30,500 nationwide, compared with about 129,250 on Feb. 16, according to a database kept by The New York Times.

    Health officials are optimistic as the third year of the pandemic begins, couching that with concern about an increase in so-called stealth omicron cases around the country. The omicron subvariant BA.2 has grown more common in the two months since it was first detected in the United States in January, and now represents about a quarter of new cases, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC uses Nowcast, a model that estimates proportions of circling variants.

    “To identify and track SARS-CoV-2 variants, CDC uses genomic surveillance,” the CDC said. “CDC’s national genomic surveillance system collects SARS-CoV-2 specimens for sequencing through the National SARS-CoV-2 Strain Surveillance program, as well as SARS-CoV-2 sequences generated by commercial or academic laboratories contracted by CDC and state or local public health laboratories. Virus genetic sequences are analyzed and classified as a particular variant.”

    In New York, according to Nowcast, of 3,327 total sequences, 97.46 percent are identified as B.1.1.529, or the omicron variant; 2.09 percent are classified as BA.2, or the omicron subvariant; 0.45 percent are B.1.617.2, or delta; and 0.00 are classified as “other”.

    Gov. Kathy Hochul said Thursday, March 17,  that statewide, the seven-day average positivity rate had been below 2 percent for the past 13 days. On Long Island, the positivity rate stood at 1.67 percent. A total of 13 deaths were reported Wednesday, she said. On Thursday, Hochul also announced that more than 20 million COVID-19 over-the-counter tests would be distributed across the state through the spring to bolster New York State’s ongoing preparedness efforts.

    Pfizer-BioNTech said the request for FDA authorization of a second booster is based on “real-world” data from studies in Israel, which is among a handful of countries that offer the second boosters to older people.

    Those studies showed confirmed infections were two times lower and rates of severe illness were four times lower among people who received the second Pfizer booster, compared to people who received only one, according to a press release.

    Moderna, which also makes a two-shot mRNA vaccine and booster, hasn’t asked the FDA for approval of a fourth shot in the series, but Stephane Bancel, the company’s chief executive, said at a health care conference in January that he thinks more boosters will be necessary.

    Moderna is continuing its bivalent omicron-specific booster trial, which, uses an omicron-specific booster and the COVID-19 vaccine.

    “Our goal has been to remain ahead of the virus, and we are committed to generating and sharing data with public health authorities as they prepare for the fall booster season,” Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said in a news release.

    COVID-19 money was pulled from the $1.5 trillion omnibus spending bill approved last week, leaving President Joe Biden’s coronavirus road map in some doubt. Some Biden officials have said they believe all adults should get a second booster, regardless of age, as immunity wanes. The FDA will convene its outside advisory committee in April to discuss whether COVID-19 booster shots should be part of the annual influenza vaccine campaign encouraging all Americans to get their shots in the fall, ahead of cold-weather season when people are cooped up inside, The Washington Post reported.

  • US working towards global coalition far beyond G7, NATO partners: White House

    US working towards global coalition far beyond G7, NATO partners: White House

    WASHINGTON, D.C. (TIP): The Biden administration is working to build a global coalition far beyond G7 and NATO partners, the White House has said. Some of the biggest countries like China, India, Brazil and Mexico are not part of America’s economic warfare against Russia, but that does not undermine the efforts of the Biden administration against Moscow, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters on Monday, March 14. “Not just China, but some of the biggest countries in the world like India or Brazil, some countries in Latin America like Mexico, they are not part of this economic warfare against Russia. Is this something that undermines the effort from the White House and European countries?

    “I would say it doesn’t undermine our efforts. We have been working to build a global coalition far beyond the G7 and our NATO partners and had a great deal of success in that. And every country has to decide where they want to stand, where they want to be as we look and the history books are written,” Psaki said during her daily news conference.

    “As we have seen, the impact of the president’s leadership on the global stage and the economic consequences that have been put into place have led Russia and the Russian economy to be on the brink of collapse. And there’s no question that over time, that will have an impact,” she said in response to a question. China is unlikely to be very helpful to Russia during these economic sanctions, Psaki said.

    “I think what we are looking at here, one is if China were to decide to be an economic provider or to take additional steps there to Russia, they only make up 15 to 20 per cent of the world’s economy. The G7 countries make up more than 50 per cent. So, there are a range of tools at our disposal and coordination with our European partners should we need to use them,” she said.

    But this is an area that the United States is watching closely, Psaki said, asserting that there would be consequences for China if it provides military supply to Russia. At the Foggy Bottom headquarters of the State Department, its spokesperson Ned Price said the US was watching very closely the extent to which China or any country in the world provides materials, economic, financial, rhetorical or otherwise, to this war of choice that Russian President Vladimir Putin is waging against Ukraine and its people.

    “And we have been very clear, both privately and publicly, with Beijing that there would be consequences for any such support,” Price told reporters. “Russia and China, when you combine their GDPs, it’s something like 25 per cent of global GDP. When you combine the GDP, the economic might of the United States, the European Union, our allies in the Indo-Pacific, our other allies and partners that have joined us, well over 50 per cent,” he said. “So, there is not a country out there that would be able to fully extricate Moscow from this. The only thing that could relieve the pressure, which could extricate, in a meaningful way, Moscow from the morass it has created for itself, is for Putin to change course, to de-escalate and to end the violence,” Price said.

    (Source: PTI )

  • Nassau County Legislator Delia De Riggi-Whitton (D – Glen Cove) demands a formal briefing on Settlement with LIPA regarding Glenwood Landing

    Nassau County Legislator Delia De Riggi-Whitton (D – Glen Cove) demands a formal briefing on Settlement with LIPA regarding Glenwood Landing

    MINEOLA, NY (TIP): Delia DeRiggi-Whitton (D – Glen Cove), in a letter to Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, demanded that before a Settlement with LIPA regarding Glenwood Landing is finalized, the County Executive should meet the Legislator and  “the leaders of the North Shore School District for a full briefing on the terms of the proposed settlement and the anticipated impact upon taxpayers in the North Shore School District”. “As a fiduciary of Nassau County and the elected representative of the communities that will be most directly impacted by the terms of this settlement, I am deeply troubled by your administration’s lack of direct communication related to this matter. The residents of my district – and the North Shore School District in particular – are faced with a potentially dramatic increase in their property taxes, and they deserve ample time – and more importantly, adequate information – to prepare for this shift and ameliorate the impact wherever possible”, the Legislator wrote.

    Here is the text of the letter.

    March 16, 2022

    Hon. Bruce Blakeman, Nassau County Executive

    1550 Franklin Avenue

    Mineola, N.Y. 11501

    RE: Settlement with LIPA regarding Glenwood Landing

    Dear County Executive Blakeman:

    I am writing regarding the status of settlement negotiations related to the LIPA lawsuits challenging the County’s tax assessments of the Glenwood Landing power station – a property situated in the 11th Legislative District.

    Based upon published reports, it is my understanding that Nassau County is in “the final stages of negotiating an agreement with LIPA to settle property-tax challenges over two National Grid-owned power stations.” Upon learning of the status of this settlement through the media, I have reached out to your administration with hopes of securing a status update. Thus far, those efforts have been unavailing. As a result, key community stakeholders, most notably the North Shore School District, have been left completely in the dark as to even the most basic terms of the proposed settlement.

    As a fiduciary of Nassau County and the elected representative of the communities that will be most directly impacted by the terms of this settlement, I am deeply troubled by your administration’s lack of direct communication related to this matter. The residents of my district – and the North Shore School District in particular – are faced with a potentially dramatic increase in their property taxes, and they deserve ample time – and more importantly, adequate information – to prepare for this shift and ameliorate the impact wherever possible.

    Before any agreement is finalized, I urge you to meet with me and the leaders of the North Shore School District for a full briefing on the terms of the proposed settlement and the anticipated impact upon taxpayers in the North Shore School District.

    Sincerely,

    Delia DeRiggi-Whitton

    Nassau County Legislator

    11th Legislative District

  • Tirlok Malik pays tribute to Academy Award winner William Hurt who passed away at 71

    Tirlok Malik pays tribute to Academy Award winner William Hurt who passed away at 71

    By Murtaza Ali Khan

    NEW YORK (TIP): William Hurt has passed away at the age of 71. After studying at Tufts University and transferring to Juilliard to study acting, Hurt started bagging roles on stage and screen. The 1980 film Altered States was his breakthrough film. While he won his first and only Oscar for ‘Kiss of a Spider Woman’ in 1986, he also got nominated in 1987 (Children of a Lesser God) as well as 1988 (Broadcast News)—3 consecutive nominations including one win. His 4th and final Oscar nomination was for his brief but remarkable turn in A History of Violence. New York-based Emmy-nominated filmmaker Tirlok Malik had known the charismatic Hollywood actor for many years. Hurt used to visit Tirlok Malik’s Ayurveda Cafe on the upper west side in Manhattan, New York whenever he was in the neighborhood. They both enjoyed food and conversation. They first met years ago and struck a great rapport, talking about spirituality, India, and Indian food. Fondly remembering the Altered States actor, Malik said, “In 2018, it was already known through the media that Mr. Hurt had cancer. Last time when he was in Ayurveda Cafe, I gave him a hug and said, ‘Love you Mr. Hurt.’ That was the last time I saw him.”  He further added, “The world of cinema has lost a great actor to cancer. Death is prewritten and the cause is just an excusable reason and so at the same time life should be lived to the fullest each and every day as you never know when it’s over.”

    (Murtaza Ali Khan is an award-winning critic and journalist who has been covering art, culture, and entertainment for the last 10 years. He tweets at @MurtazaCritic)

  • Puppet show on Lord Krishna, Indian dance workshops to be among highlights of special Holi celebration in New York City

    Puppet show on Lord Krishna, Indian dance workshops to be among highlights of special Holi celebration in New York City

    Beautiful moments from Krishna’s life and his unconditional love and friendship to be celebrated

    NEW YORK (TIP): A New York-based cultural organization is set to celebrate Holi with fervor through special festivities including a puppet show, art activities, and Indian dance workshops to commemorate the Indian festival of colors and spread awareness among communities here about Indian culture. The Culture Tree, which promotes cultural literacy about South Asia, in partnership with New York City’s cultural epicenter The Seaport, will host a special celebration on the occasion of Holi on March 19.

    The array of Holi festivities, aimed at not only celebrating the festival but also teaching the community about Indian culture, will feature a puppet show, art activities and an Indian dance workshop and performance. “As a cultural educator, I am always looking forward to providing children with authentic, immersive and inspiring experiences. In our Holi celebration, we will bring to life the festivities of one of the most fun festivals and bring the community together. Through events like this, we can offer cross-cultural exposure that can help shape knowledgeable, open-minded and respectful individuals, while also offering ways in which children and families from the diaspora can connect with and celebrate their heritage,” Founder and President of The Culture Tree Anu Sehgal told PTI.

    The Culture Tree, which is a Minority Women Business Enterprise (MWBE) certified organization, said that the puppet show, ‘Colors of Krishna’s Love’, highlights “one of the most beloved stories from Krishna’s childhood, that of engaging in games and antics with his friends and family, including his friends Radha and Sudama.” The puppet show will highlight “these beautiful moments from Krishna’s life and celebrate unconditional love and friendship.” The show will include dance, drama, puppetry, songs and a grand finale in which the children can play with the characters of Krishna, Sudama and Radha. The celebrations will also include a puppet-making workshop, giving the children an opportunity to make their own puppets based on the characters from the show.

    A colorful and vibrant dance performance inspired by a mix of Bollywood, folk and semi-classical choreography, paired with popular songs on Holi, an energetic and engaging Holi inspired Bollywood and Bhangra dance lesson for the children and parents are also in the line-up planned by The Culture Tree for the celebration, expected to be attended by hundreds of people.

    The organization said visitors will also be able to sample traditional Indian cuisine enjoyed during this annual festival and purchase Holi colors and books to continue the festivities at home.

    Children’s book author and communications director at The Culture Tree Mona Sehgal said in a blog post on the website of The Seaport that the Holi puppet show is written by Indian storytellers Madhuri Kale and Sampada Pawar.

    She said the puppet show also addresses the issue of colorism and aims to convey “the message that love and friendship prevail and can overcome socially-created barriers surrounding skin color.”

    She added that The Culture Tree partners with museums, galleries, schools and libraries to implement its classes and programming. It was invited by The Metropolitan Museum of Art to be a part of its World Culture Festival when the organization did three performances of ‘The Colours of Krishna’s Love’. The Culture Tree provides South Asian-themed educational and cultural programs for children and their families, using language, art, puppet shows, dance, food and the holidays to provide audiences here a detailed experience about the culture in the sub-continent. The Seaport is a maritime hub and is home to local residents, dining and cultural experiences.

    (Source: PTI)