Friday, January 25 2013 | Vol. 32, No. 4
Indo American erican News
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RAHAT & ADNAN TO ROCK HOUSTON
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ouston Celebrates Festival
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VHPA’s Festival at George Bush Park
Makar Sankranti Celebrations P5 at Sri. Meenakshi Temple Filmfare Awards 2013
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January 25, 2013
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
COMMUNITY
January 25, 2013
Kite Flying to Herald the End of Winter
BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA HOUSTON: You couldn’t have asked for better weather as the gloomy, foggy morning blossomed into a blazing sunny afternoon with not a cloud in the sky. This was exactly what the kite flying enthusiasts and their little children in town had ordered: a blue backdrop against which those little pieces of colored paper festooned with a long tail and anchored with a strong, thin string could fly in. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad did a great job of pulling together this event; once again, as they have done since the event was first put out there over a decade ago for the public to enjoy. And the crowds – they estimate over 4,000 attended this past Sunday, January 20 at George Bush Park on the west side (see main story) – came with their families for a picnic and camaraderie. And of course kite flying and teach the kids how to. The organizers gave it their all, with many volunteers and hiring 45 police officers to control the traffic which got snarled at the intersection of Westheimer Parkway and South Barker Cypress Road. They had school buses ferrying people from George Bush High School south of the Westpark Tollroad, a good quarter mile away.
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This festival is certainly one that shown that it can be sustained and shows promise to become another tradition in the colorful, diverse fabric of Houston. Here’s some ideas that could help that process evolve: • Solicit Harris County’s help in parking along the sides of the dual carriageways of Westheimer Parkway and then even the sides of Barker Cypress. There were hardly many cars that drove through there on that particular day.
VHPA Houston Team and Volunteers. From left: Nitigna Ji, Yogesh Naik, Jahnavi Ji, Bhagwan Bhutada, Dhaval Joshipura, Ajit Patel, Nisha Ji, Radhika, Girish Naik, Archit, Raj, Dilip Mehta, Rahul Chandra and Jayantilal Darji. Photo: VHPA
• Get more signs out to show directions to the park and ride facility • Use more volunteers to help collect trash and patrol the site • Get with the Greater Houston Partnership to see about funding and make this event grow like the Dragon Boat Races along Buffalo Bayou • Get the City of Houston to add Makar Sankranti to its tourist brochures on the list of things to do • Get the event more structure and see how it could become selfsustainable
Clockwise from top: Picnic goers at the Makr Sankranti; volunteers serving the snacks from giant pots; the crowds enjoying the get together in one of the pavilions; Asheesh Malhotra with Romil Shah who cut his finger on the manja (string) for the kite; what happens to kites that don’t make it – they get stuck in trees! Photos: Jawahar Malhotra Indo American News (ISSN 887-5936) is published weekly every Friday (for a subscription of $40 per year) by IndoAmerican News Inc., 7457 Harwin Dr., Suite 262, Houston, TX 77036, tel: 713-789-6397, fax:713-7896399, email: indoamericannews@yahoo.com. Periodical postage paid at Houston, Texas. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to Indo American News,7457 Harwin Dr., Suite 262, Houston, TX 77036
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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COMMUNITY
January 25, 2013
Timely Speed Networking for Busy Business People
BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA HOUSTON: The Indo American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston (IACCGH) has started out on its events calendar for 2013 with a bang, with two different programs spread out within days of each other. Last Saturday, January 19 it held a seminar explaining the aspects of the Affordable Healthcare Act and then followed it up this past Tuesday, January 22 with a Networking event at Bombay Brasserie restaurant In what must be the equivalent of speed dating, just over 80 people got a chance to speak for 60 seconds on themselves and their business, followed with a short description of the work that the Chamber has done since it was first started in 1999. The Chamber’s long term Executive Director Jagdip Ahluwalia, in his usual cheerful and casual style, explained some of the Chamber’s achievements and nudged on the new attendees to join and enjoy the benefits that come with it. Mahesh Shah of GOPIO and Madras Pavilion restaurant gave glowing testimony to how his association with IACCGH has enlightened him personally and benefitted his business. “Without them, I would never have gotten the chance to cater at the Convention Center when Microsoft held its meeting there,” he said by way of example. The new Chamber President Pankaj Dhume, who was instrumental in founding the organization, explained what his goals were for the year-long tenure he will have. He was excited at the prospect of expanding community outreach and helping businesses grow. Networking events will feature as a big part of that effort for the Chamber, and judging from the way this one went, several attendees made good connections and struck up deals to collaborate further. This form of speed dating certainly seemed to have made its mark! Photos: Bijay Dixit
The
Lutfi Hassan Attends Obama’s Inauguration Festivities
Lutfi Hassan, flanked by President Barak Obama and former President Bill Clinton at one of the events held during the Inauguration festivities in Washington, DC this past week.
BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA HOUSTON: The “Indiaspora 2013 Inaugural Ball” (see page 9) was the hottest ticket in town for the nation’s desi community as it highlighted their reach and strength amplified that their contributions to the American economy and political processes were finally being recognized in the highest levels of power. No one in the Bayou City exemplifies this zeal to reach the top as Lutfi Hassan who has been a major contributor to the Democratic Party in local, state and national races over the past two decades. His dedication to the political process has allowed him to develop strong bonds with the Democratic Congressional Delegation from Houston, notably Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee who counts
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on his advice and friendship when reaching out to the local desi community. But time and again, Hassan has shown his loyalty and allegiance to the Democratic Party’s platform and agenda and although he was disappointed by the George W. Bush wins, he held steady and was delighted when Barak Obama won the Presidency the first time and again this past November. He was on hand to personally attend all the festivities that went on in Washington, DC these past few days, including the “Indiaspora 2013 Inaugural Ball” and in other events attended by President Obama. “He saw me at one, came over to shake my hand and said, ‘Its great to see the Houston contingent here’,” beamed Hassan after he returned to Houston.
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COMMUNITY
January 25, 2013
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Joyous Sankranti Celebrations at Meenakshi Temple
BY MANU SHAH PEARLAND: For most of us, Makar Sankranti or Pongal as it is known in South India, conjures up images of blue skies dotted with colorful kites, popular chartbusters blaring from rooftops punctuated with periodic shouts of “kaata” from jubilant victors and little urchin boys zigzagging their way through lanes and by lanes hoping to add a downfallen kite to their kitty. Bright muggulus (floral designs drawn with fine rice and limestone powder) adorn entrances while the aroma of mouthwatering delicacies like Pongali wafts out of busy kitchens. It seems like yesterday and yet, to us in America, another world away! The 19th of this month saw the Telugu Cultural Association of Houston make a concerted effort to bring the community to-
TCA President Sarada (left), Consul General P. Harish and wife Nandita
Deeksha Madala, Vijeta Sreeram, Keerthi Madala
gether to mark this festival at the Meenakshi Temple. It also provided a platform for the youngsters to showcase their talents in classical singing and dancing as well as some peppy Tollywood style numbers. The evening was emceed by Krishna Keerty and Raghava Solipuram. It began
with the lighting of the lamp and an invocation to the Gods by President Sarada Akunuri and her group. Several keerthanas and Tollywood numbers were sung and little Lasya Dhulipala charmed the audiences with her rendition of Sri Ramuni Charithamunu from Lavakusa. Sirimalle Neeve by
siastically to the Hello Hello and Chengu Chengu medley but the biggest cheers from the audience were for the Gabbar Singh dance team. It was during the above number that Indian Consul General P Harish and his wife Nandita made a unobtrusive entrance. As soon as the dance ended, they were welcomed by President Sarada and her committee and felicitated with beautiful shawls. The Consul General wished the gathering a happy Sankranthi and congratulated the Telugu Association for involving the children in such cultural activities saying that it “was a difficult task” He once again reiterated the Indian Embassy’s endeavor to support the Indian community in any way it could – a statement that was greeted by appreciative applause. In keeping with the festival’s traditions, a Muggula competition was also organized. The winners were Suman Kondapalli and Aruna Maddulla. They were presented with beautiful silk sarees. The Bhogi Pallu ceremony was also performed on more than 100 children where the bhogi pallu (a special mixture of gooseberries, sugarcane and rice) is showered on the children. This is done to ward off the evil eye. Shortly after, a make believe cow was made to symbolically walk (gangireddu – haridasu) around the hall followed by a group of gleeful kids. Curiosity got the better of some of them and they tried peeking to find out who was inside! Ramesh Cherivirala, a community activist, presented two scholarships to Sriharsha Kambala and Srimahesh Vangavolu. These scholarships are funded by TANA and ATA. Roopa Balakrishnan worked very hard to organize the event. The entire area Winners of the Rangoli competition: Suman Kondapalli and Aruna Maddulla. was decorated with mango and banana leaves. This occasion also saw elections being Bhagavatula Moorthy was also pleasing to the ear. The classical dancers were a delight held to bring in the new TCA Committee to watch with their intricate footwork, grace- for 2013. The results of the elections were ful movements and subtle expressions. On announced at the end of the program. With the lighter side, Kranthi Tupakula and Rushi this the evening wrapped up and the gatherBirudala rocked the stage with their dance ing proceeded for dinner catered by Mayuri medleys, eight youngsters grooved enthu- Restaurant.
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COMMUNITY
January 25, 2013
Second Vedic Fair to Showcase Many Colors of Heritage KATY: The Second Ashirwad Vedic Fair will be held on Saturday February 23 from 4-10pm at Cinco Ranch High School in Katy. A free event for all, where participants will make heritage presentation on Gods, Leaders, Philosophy, Sports, Festivals, Places, Traditions including Inter-faith. Heritage presentations will be a part of competition in 3 age categories, below 10, above 10 and Adults. In each category winner will take home $350 and runner up $150. Other highlights of the Fair include visiting visa to Vaikunt, Vedic Walk with Mahabharat theme, Satwik cooking live competition, Arjun – The Chosen, a play by Kusum Sharma & Concept by Geetha Ravula & dance away in Neon Raas (First time in H-Town) with live band.
Left: Ananya Bhonsley presenting Puja and its Vidhanam; Right: Puja Satish presenting Mehendi
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Last year’s Vedic Fair runner up in below 10 years category, Ananya Bhonsley ( who presented “Puja and its Vidhanam”) shares her first Vedic Fair presentation experience in her own words. Puja is the most beautiful way to establish a connection with GOD. The word Puja is derived from Sanskrit word “Puj” which means to Honor or Respect. It is the basis of all Hindu samskaras. The body, mind and speech are all involved in the Puja. It is usually performed at a home or at a temple. The purpose of Puja is to feel the presence of God and receive blessings from the God. In puja, God is worshipped in a loving manner just as we would welcome our guest. The basic puja is called the Panchopachara puja with 5 offerings which represent the five elements (space, air, fire, water & earth). The five things that are offered to the GOD are: 1. Pushpam or Flowers, 2. Dhupam or Incense 3. Deepam or Light 4. Naivedyam or Food 5. Gandha or Sandlewood paste. Other two forms of Puja that are more elaborate are 16 Step Puja and 64 Step Puja. “I was very excited, when I heard about the first Vedic fair and I will be doing a presentation on “Puja and its Vidhanam”. I asked my mom and dad to help me research the topic. I wanted to explain my topic in a very simple manner so that everyone could easily understand. I saw puja being performed during the home-warming ceremony, homam at the temple and mom doing puja during the Ganesha festival. I observed the important steps done while performing the puja. This helped me while talking about Puja Vidhanam in my presentation. The first Vedic fair was really interesting as I got to see the topics on Lord Hanuman, Shiva, Vishnu & various famous temples in India.” said Ananya. One of the presenters at the first Vedic Fair, Puja Satish (10 yrs. old) who presented the topic on “Mehendi.” said “I chose Mehendi as my topic because you can make so many amazing patterns and designs with it. Another word for Mehendi is henna. Many brides in India during wedding ceremony apply Mehendi. I love attending Vedic Fair because I get to learn lot of interesting facts about my heritage and traditions and get tons of ideas from other presenters.”
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
COMMUNITY
January 25, 2013
Missing Indian Student in Britain Found Dead
LONDON (TOI): A 19-year-old Indian student in Britain who had been missing since New Year’s Eve, has been found dead after police recovered his body from a canal near Manchester United club’s football ground. Souvik Pal, from Kolkata, had vanished after being separated from friends while celebrating New Year’s Eve at a nightclub in Manchester city. Souvik was found dead by specialist officers in Bridgewater Canal, near Manchester United’s Old Trafford football ground, at 2pm (local time) yesterday. Souvik had enrolled for product design course at Manchester Metropolitan University. He disappeared on a night out at the Warehouse Project in Trafford, Greater Manchester. He was last seen at the event at about 11pm (local time) and was reported missing by a flatmate the following morning. Souvik lived in Cavendish halls of residence on Cambridge Street. A Greater Manchester Police spokesman said Souvik’s family had been informed and officers were in regular contact with them. Police which had pursued tracing Souvik offered condolences to the family and extended their support. “Our thoughts and condolences are with Souvik’s family at this devastating time and our officers are doing all they can to support them,” said Detective Chief Inspector Colin Larkin. “We do not believe there are any suspicious circumstances surrounding Souvik’s death and a file will be submitted to the coroner in due course,” he said. A post mortem examination is due to take place later.
18-year-old Pal was found dead by specialist officers in Bridgewater Canal, near Manchester United’s Old Trafford football ground. (AFP Photo)
Souvik’s father Santanu had travelled from his home in Bangalore to help with the search. A number of appeals were made to trace his son, including the use of digital advertising hoardings at Manchester United’s domestic Premier League of Football home game against Liverpool. Souvik had trained for a part-time job serving refreshments at the stadium and worked at Manchester United’s game against West Bromwich Albion on December 29. Santanu had earlier said his son was a “brilliant student” who had been awarded a Vice Chancellor’s Scholarship by the university. Souvik was offered places at universities in London and Singapore, but chose Manchester because of the “fantastic facilities”. “Everybody loved to have him as a friend and he was enjoying his life in Manchester.
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INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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January 25, 2013
Give A Gift Of Life to RISHI
RISHI 22, is a student in a business school, was looking forward to graduate
this year and start his life and get experience in real life. But all that changed before it even started when he was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (Blood disorder) in the summer. Last 6 months he has been fighting with it and all of a sudden again the disease has come back. The only available treatment for this dreaded disease is a bone marrow/stem cell transplant from a matching donor. His best chance of finding this donor is from his own racial and ethnic background (South Asian).
YOU MAY BE THE MATCH! YOU MAY GIVE HIM THE GIFT OF LIFE. Your precious gift of life can give him a chance to live out and fulfill his dreams. A Bone Marrow Drive is being held for Rishi on Sunday, 27th of January, 2013 between 10.30am to 1pm at the Gurdwara Sahib of Southwest Houston, located on 14811 Lindita Drive, Houston TX 77083 Donors between the ages of 18-44 are encouraged to attend and
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Announcement INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
COMMUNITY
January 25, 2013
Indian Americans Ring in Obama’s Presidency at Indiaspora Inaugural Ball
BY ABEEZAR TYEBJI WASHINGTON, DC: The ‘Indiaspora 2013 Inaugural Ball’ organized by the Indian-American community was held on Saturday, January 19, to celebrate the Second inauguration of President Barak Husain Obama. This was the first of its kind event organized and heralded the coming of age for the community From left: Sonal Shah, former Dir. of the White House’s Social Innovation which are estimated Initiative; Jean Case of The Case Foundation; Steve Case, Founder of AOL, to number over 3 Abeezar Tyebji of Shipcom Wireless and his wife at the Indian Inaugural Ball for million strong in President Obama at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, in Washington DC on Saturday, January 19. the US. As soon as one got off the escalator room, against a Hollywood style the same room as local, state and and entered the magnificent 8,300 backdrop more than 20 reporters national political officials, there is sq ft historic Mandarin Oriental from US and Indian media took be no better time to start a national Hotel Conference Center, it photos of the attendees. On a stage conversation,” he said. Houston’s was like entering a fairy land. in the elegantly appointed VIP own Sonal Shah who served in the There foyer was festooned with room elected officials including Obama Administration was also hundreds of flower bouquets and Gov. Martin O’Malley of a key organizer of this ‘sold out’ the decorations that hung on the Maryland, Virginia Senator Mark event. walls were a blend of red, white, Warner, California Congressman and blue and tasteful Indian Mike Honda, Indian Ambassador design. Several young Miss Indias to the US. Nirupama Rao, and greeted the guests with flowers others addressed the tightly knit and the traditional ‘Namaskar’ group. There were also many greeting. There was electricity in NGO’s and businessmen present the air as more than 1,300 guests including the founder of AOL and - both women in the bridal finery CaseFoundation.org Steve Case and men in smart black ties and and his lovely wife Jean. Guests Sherwanis rubbed shoulders with dined on exotic dishes including several governors, lawmakers, sweet potato chaat, yellow beet businessmen, ambassadors and coconut salad and navratan and government officials. In curry with lotus root fritters. They the ballroom there was much washed this down with strawberry commotion with desi performers lassi and chocolate truffles. “We want the Indiaspora ball on stage belting Bollywood songs, much backslapping and laughter to be more than a fantastic party. all accompanied by loud voices Many of Indiaspora’s leaders have called for us to raise our and popping camera flashes. There was a separate VIP voices together with the aim reception where guests got to spend of setting an Indian- American quality time with many senators, policy agenda,” California-based governors, mayors, ambassadors, M R Rangaswami of indiaspora. and prominent businessmen org which organized the ball told on a one-on-one basis. As you the group. “With hundreds of walked the red carpet to the VIP influential community members in
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INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
10 January 25, 2013
METABOLIC SYNDROME
HEART ATTACK, DIABETES, BLOOD PRESSURE, CHOLESTEROL AND
OBESITY
DEADLIEST SILENT KILLERS of SOUTH ASIANS A SYMPOSIUM jointly presented by BAYLOR COLLEGE of MEDICINE INDIA HOUSE TEXAS HEART INSTITUTE
FREE for PHYSICIANS (Earn CME Credit of 2.5 hours) as well as for GENERAL PUBLIC Speakers are National and International Authorities 1.00 PM to 4.00 PM (a) Scientific & Clinical aspects of Metabolic Syndrome (CME Credits) (b) Concurrent Workshops for Practical Aspects, allowing Interaction 4.00 PM to 4.45 PM Keynote Speaker: Karmeen Kulkarni, RD. CDE., Former President American Diabetes Association: Health Care Education
Followed by Light Refreshments
Join and Learn about Recognition, Prevention and Treatment SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2013, 1.00 PM to 4.45 PM at INDIA HOUSE, O. P. Jindal Center 8888 West Bellfort Avenue, Houston 77031
Registration is free but pre-registration recommended
www.indiahouseinc.org or www.texasheart.org or call 713-929-1905 or Register at http://www.texasheart.org/Education/CME/explore/events/eventdetail_6904.cfm INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
COMMUNITY
January 25, 2013
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Diabetes in Asian Indians in the United States
BY MANDEEP BAJAJ, MD HOUSTON: The American Diabetes Association reports that almost 25.8 million people in the United States, or 8.3 percent of the population, have diabetes. However, the estimated prevalence of type 2 (adult-onset) diabetes in Asian Indians in the United States is higher with estimates between 17% to 29% depending on the age group studied as the prevalence increases with age. While its cause is still unknown, researchers have found that genetics and environmental factors such as sedentary lifestyles play significant roles. Diabetes is a disease in which the body does not produce or properly use insulin, a hormone needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy. Obesity reduces the body’s ability to respond to insulin. When yoaur body makes insulin but can’t use it properly, the sugar level in your blood rises above the normal healthy range, resulting in diabetes. High blood sugar levels can cause serious damage to the heart, kidneys, eyes and nerves and increase the risk of a stroke. In addition to its strong link with type 2 or adult-onset diabetes, obesity itself is associated with a higher risk of high blood pressure, heart disease and cholesterol abnormalities as well as fatty liver disease. These conditions are widely prevalent in Asian Indians in the United States with a recent study showing this population to be specially susceptible to fatty liver disease. Knowing your risk of diabetes can help you prevent or delay onset of the disease.
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Screening can detect early diabetes as well as “prediabetes,” an early stage in the natural history of the disease where the high blood sugar levels can be reversed with lifestyle changes. Once a patient is diagnosed with diabetes, it is possible to prevent or reduce the complications of diabetes with proper control of glucose (blood sugar), blood pressure and cholesterol levels. Lifestyle strategies for the prevention and treatment of diabetes are centered around healthy eating and regular exercise. Diet plays a key role in controlling blood sugar levels, making good nutrition a crucial element in preventing diabetes, managing existing diabetes, and preventing or slowing the rate of development of chronic complications. While type 2 diabetes was once believed to be an adult “post-40 disease”, it is now being increasingly diagnosed in the young. The
rising prevalence of childhood obesity has contributed significantly to the early onset of diabetes as well as high blood pressure and heart disease in the youth. Screening for these disorders is specially important for Asian Indians specially those with a strong family history of diabetes, in women who have had diabetes during pregnancy, as well as in overweight or obese individuals or those with cholesterol abnormalities. Early detection and proper treatment can reduce the risk of complications associated with diabetes. Mandeep Bajaj, MD, is a Professor of Medicine, Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism at Baylor College of Medicine and St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital, Houston
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BY SETU SHAH On Saturday, January 12, 2013, the students of YLDP Houston attended their first session of the 2013 year. The students visited Houston TransStar, an Emergency Management Center. Upon arriving at TransStar, te students were given a tour of the facility. They learned that the building constantly monitors traffic on the highways and communicates with emergency response teams in case of an accident. Additionally, the place serves as an emergency center itself in the case of a hurricane, for example. Even if the city of Houston loses power, the building is able to run for four-
teen days, and its external air supply can even be cut off, essentially transforming the structure into a selfsustaining building. After the tour, the students were able to meet with Harris County Judge Ed Emmet, who has been a YLDP speaker for many years now. He taught many things about leadership and how one could improve on their own skills like a proper demeanor, they must have message clarity, must not “permanentize” and enemy, and many other things. Judge Emmet told the students of his inspiring story of how he became to where he is today and the lessons he learned in aspiring to become a leader. Overall, The students were able to gain a vast amount of knowledge, and the things he taught will remain them for life. All-in-all, the students of YLDP were truly blessed to meet with one of our county’s most distinguished leaders. His leadership serves as an inspiration to us all.
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INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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Raveesh Kumra’s Home Invasion Murder Connected to Oakland Gang (Indiawest) The murder of Monte Sereno, Calif., resident Raveesh Kumra in a November home invasion has been tied to a notorious Oakland gang, according to investigators. Although police reports and other documents related to the homicide case have been sealed at the request of Los Gatos-Monte Sereno police, law enforcement sources told the Mercury News that the millionaire tech investor was set up by an escort who tipped off two Oakland gang members who have been charged with his murder. DeAngelo J. Austin, 21, and Javier R. Garcia, 21, have been charged along with 26-year-old Lukis D. Anderson with the slaying of 66-year-old Ravi Kumra on Nov. 30. They are also accused of assault with a deadly weapon by using a metal object to strike Harinder Kumra, Kumra’s wife, threatening her with bodily harm and falsely imprisoning both her and husband during the attack in the couple’s home. The escort, Raven Dixon, 22, has been charged as an accessory to the killing along with gang enhancement. According to the Mercury News, sources said that Austin, with the alias “Sunny D,” is a member of the Money Team gang out of East Oakland, which recently formed an alliance with the West Oaklandbased Ghost Town gang of which Garcia is a member. The two gangs have been linked to robberies in Oakland and Fremont that targeted homes they believed had large amounts of cash and jewelry. The San Francisco Chronicle re-
Raveesh “Ravi” Kumra was killed in his Monte Sereno, Calif., home early morning Nov. 30, in a home invasion homicide.
ported that at a news conference Jan. 14, Oakland Police Chief Howard Jordan said the Money Team had been at war with a second batch of criminals from East Oakland since the slaying of a 16-year-old girl in August. Jordan said the rivalry was to blame for 90 percent of the city’s violent crime in recent months, though the Police Department later said that he had overstated the figure. The Chronicle report said that according to three law enforcement sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the court order sealing documents in the case, Kumra had hired Dixon many times. Investigators believe she passed along information about his home — including the layout — to people affiliated with the Money Team, who then
hatched a plan to invade the mansion, the report said. On Jan. 16, the Chronicle reported that Garcia’s mother, Maria Rodriguez of Oakland, denied her son was involved in the case. “Javier has nothing to do with it — they have the wrong guy,” she said. His brother, 25-year-old Cordell Rodriguez, added, “Of course, he ain’t killed nobody. They need to find the person who killed somebody. That’s what they need to do, their job.” He added that he had never heard of the other defendants and denied that his brother was affiliated with the Money Team or any other gang, said the Chronicle report. According to KCBS, prosecutors have said they intend to seek the death penalty or life imprisonment without parole in the case.
Indians Account for 22% of Britain’s Ultra-Rich Club BY DIPANKAR DE SARKAR (HT) Super-rich Indians account for more than 20% of the wealth of ultra-high net worth (UHNW) individuals in Britain, a new list showed on Tuesday. As a national group, they are second only to expat Russians. The list, published by the Singapore-based Wealth-X group, places steel magnate and ArcelorMittal chairman Lakshmi Mittal at second place with a fortune of $15.8 billion. Mittal was pushed to the second spot this year by Russian Alisher Burkhanovich Usmanov, who is part owner of the English football club Arsenal and is worth $16.4 billion. “Mittal has seen his net worth estimate decline along with the stock price of ArcelorMittal, losing at least $30 billion in recent years,” the report said. The two other Indians on the top 15 list are the Hinduja brothers — Srichand at number 9 with a net worth of $7.6 billion and Gopichand at 12th with $6 billion. Taken together, the wealth of the
three Indian-origin industrialists makes up 22% of the top 15 total of $133.3 billion. Apart from Usmanov, the two other Russians in the list include Roman Abramovich (at number 3, $12.1 billion) and Leonard Blavatnik (Number 5, $9.5 billion). According to Wealth-X estimates, there are 10,760 individuals residents in Britain worth $30 million or more, with at least 310 new individuals joining the ranks of the ultra wealthy. On an average, Britain has added one UHNW individual every day since 2011. The combined wealth of the UHNW in Britain stands at an estimated $1.3 trillion. “The wealth composition of the United Kingdom, London in particular, is diverse,” said David Lincoln, Director of Research at Wealth-X. “This is reflected in our data showing that 31% of the UHNW population in the United Kingdom is considered non-domiciled, with non-resident Indians and West AsianUHNWIs making up a significant proportion of these.”
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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14 January 25, 2013
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Monte Ahuja Gifts $3.5M to Ohio State, Creates Dean’s Chair
COLUMBUS, OHIO (Indiawest): Monte Ahuja, an alumnus of Ohio State University and founder of Transtar Industries in Cleveland, recently donated $3.5 million to Ohio State University Swar Maalika for Weddings, gatherings, religious events to support student success and create the Monte Ahuja Endowed *Bollywood Songs, Garba/Raas, Bhajans, Dean’s Chair, which will be used Ghazals, Bhangra, LAGNA Geet* for the benefit of the College of *Get Quality music by: Hemant Dave, Omkar Dave, Dipti Dave and Engineering. Ahuja, who earned his master’s team* (family of singer/actor and sa re ga ma pa fame Mauli Dave) degree in mechanical engineering Also learn Singing and Tabla from Ohio State in 1970, wanted to give back to his alma mater. “I began Ohio State as an inContact: Dipti Dave, (281) 461-4870, davehemant@hotmail.com ternational student with a dream, determination, and empty pockets,” Ahuja said in a press release. “What I learned through my studies and from the university comMonte and Usha Ahuja. munity played a significant role in my entrepreneurial journey ate degree programs through its number 57 in the nation for Online and accomplishments. My gift to 10 departments and the Knowlton Graduate Business Programs, said a press release from Cleveland the College of Engineering is an School of Architecture. Ahuja, currently chairman and State University this month. investment in students and sucLaunched in August 2012, the CEO of MURA Holdings, L.L.C., cess.” Born in India and educated at founded Transtar Industries in AACSB-accredited Mobile MBA Punjab Engineering College, the 1975. Transtar, now owned by is the newest addition to the Monte Indian American entrepreneur Friedman, Fleischer & Lowe, soon Ahuja College of Business’ procame to Columbus in December became the leading worldwide grams. Upon enrollment students 1968 for graduate school. While company in the distribution of receive Apple’s iPad 4G, where studying at Ohio State, he met his automotive transmission replace- all course materials including ement parts to the aftermarket, and textbooks can be accessed. They wife, Usha. He earned his master’s from the earned dozens of awards for its complete the accelerated program College of Engineering and she outstanding growth and commu- in one year. Course requirements, earned her Ph.D. from the College nity involvement under Ahuja’s such a quizzes and tests, are completed online through an e-learning of Math and Physical Sciences. leadership. 13100 Southwest Freeway, Sugar Land, TX 77478 Numerous awards are credited platform. Ahuja then went on to earn his “We are extremely excited about MBA at Cleveland State Univer- to Ahuja’s name, including a Disthis extraordinary achievement. tinguished Alumni Award from sity and establish his internationally successful automotive parts Cleveland State University in 1990; After its first year in existence, an Ellis Island Medal of Honor for our Mobile MBA program ranked business, Transtar. Always generous with his suc- Outstanding American Citizens higher than some which have been cess, Ahuja’s gift to the College of in 2001; and an International Ex- operating for many years,” said Dr. Engineering creates an endowed ecutive of the Year Award by the Elad Granot, director of the Exchair. David Williams, dean of the World Trade Center of Cleveland ecutive, Accelerated and Mobile MBA Programs and special ascollege, will be officially appoint- in 2002, among others. Indo sistant to the Provost – eLearning Ahuja and his wife Usha have ed the Monte Ahuja Endowed American erican Development. In June 2011, CSU been married for 40 years and have Dean’s Chair and will use the News alumnus Ahuja donated $10 milfunds to grow and develop the en- two daughters, Manisha and Ritu. In related news, the US News & lion to CSU to fund scholarships gineering programs at Ohio State. The College of Engineering has World Report has ranked the Mo- and an endowed professorship in ) more than 8500 undergraduate bile Accelerated MBA program business. At that time, CSU’s Col) and graduate students, and offers at Cleveland State University’s lege of Business was renamed the ExploreExplore the world the in world comfort in Ahuja comfort with... with... Monte Ahuja College of Business. College of Business 17 undergraduate and 20 gradu- Monte )
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Guruvayurappan Temple Construction Has an Auspicious, Joyous Beginning
HOUSTON: Ancient ceremonies and joyful celebrations will dominate the Guruvayurappan temple premises on Saturday, February 2, 2, when Thanthri Brahamasri Divakaran Nambuthiri gives permission to the artisans to place the first granite component at the center of the basement at the auspicious muhurtham between 9:30-10:30am. Construction of the sanctum sanctorum (Sreekovil) is the first step that will be seen in the initial stages of the building. This temple will be a replica of the original ancient Guruvayur Temple in Kerala. Intricate granite components were carved in the quarries in Kerala under the
supervision of the architect Sri Kanipayyur Krishnan Nambuthiripad. The main temple, when completed, will have several architectural features distinct from other Hindu Temples in the US. Ritualistic traditions practiced in Guruvayurappan Temple are known to be set by Adi Sankarachaya. Several ceremonies (poojas and homams (havan) will be performed in the current temporary building at 11620 Ormandy Street, Houston, TX 77035 from February 1-3. For more information, visit www. guruvayur. us.
Letter to the Editor Barack Obama: A Rare Black Diamond
Dear Sir, As I was walking in the 19th. MLK Jr.Grande Parade on 21st, I missed watching Obama’s investiture speech as the elected black President of United States for the second term. Obama’s life story will go down in history books as an example of how one can succeed despite facing several oddities. Nothing came easy for Obama. Born in a broken family as a black child with an African name and a Muslim middle name that people hated, he was constantly questioned about his Christian faith and haunted about his birth certificate and nationality till the last day of his election. No other US president in US history faced such questions. Obama, an ordinary community organizer from Ohio rose to occupy the highest office of power in America only because of his immense passion and determination to change the lives of the ordinary people at grass roots level. He shared Martin Luther King Jr’s dream that all men are created equal and should be judged by the content of their character than the color of their skin. MLK Jr. had dreamed of social equality. Obama’s triumph sets the path towards that goal through political process. It was highly significant that Obama’s Inauguration took place on the 50th Anniversary of MLK Jr.’s march to the Capitol when he made the famous “I have a Dream” speech and more significantly Obama took the oath of office laying hands on MLK Jr.’s bible. Obama’s life story will be an inspiration for generations to come, particularly for children of biracial families. Obama is a rare Black Diamond only discovered in this great country called United States of America. - Krishna Vavilala
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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Barfi, Vidya and Ranbir Adjudged Best at 2013 Filmfare Awards
BY BHARATI DUBEY & BELLA JAISINGHANI MUMBAI (TOI): In a milestone year that marks the centenary of Indian cinema, Barfi! walked away with seven honors at the most awaited ceremony of the awards season. At the 58th Idea Filmfare Awards, organized at YRF Studio, Andheri, on Sunday evening, Ranbir Kapoor won the prized Black Lady for best actor for his performance as a deaf-mute person in the film. Vidya Balan was adjudged best actress for her performance in Kahaani. This was her fourth Filmfare award. In a black-and-white checked Sabyasachi sari and mangalsutra, with husband Siddharth Roy Kapur by her side, Vidya said her role in Kahaani was the couple’s favourite. Earlier in the evening, as she stepped onto the red carpet, she said she was optimistic about her chances, but also lavished praised on fellow nominee Priyanka Chopra, whose performance in Barfi!, Vidya said, left her spellbound. Both films featured prominently in the top categories: if Barfi! was declared best film, Kahaani’s maker Sujoy Ghosh got to wear the mantle of best director. Long the darling of the international circuit, Irrfan emerged as the new Khan on the block, bagging the critics’ award for best actor for Paan Singh Tomar. “I have always believed in choosing subjects that appeal to my intellect and any recognition or awards I win are incidental to the creative process,” he said, adding, “If an award can elevate my career to a higher level then it becomes meaningful.” Khan, who wore his arm in a smart blue sling, clarified that it was no fashion statement and he was indeed injured. Ramesh Sippy presented the award for best lyricist to Gulzar, recalling their early films together. “I am missing the one person who is here today and yet absent, Yash Chopra,” the writer said, prompting applause from the audience. The late filmmaker’s absence on his home turf was more keenly felt when Chopra was posthumously awarded for lifetime achievement, an award collected by his wife Pamela. It was a big night for Pritam, who won two awards for Barfi!, one for music and another for background score. Rajat Podar, who took home the Black Lady for best production design (Barfi!), showed quicksilver wit. “Main lakdi ka kaam karta hoon aur aapne mujhe ladki pakda di,” he said, laughing. Then he turned to director Anurag Basu and recalled how Basu would eat his food and drink his tea on the set. As Basu looked on nervously, Rajat said, “But this award is something I want to share with you, bro!” Basu smiled back. Pareshaan singer Shalmali Kholgade received the award for best playback (female). Ayushmann Khurrana won in the male category for Pani da Rang. “I wasn’t expecting this. I always thought of myself as an actor who can sing, not a singer who
Vidya Balan, Ranbir Kapoor and Ayushmann Khurrana bag top
can act,” he said. Hosts Shah Rukh Khan and Saif returned to the stage this year. SRK ribbed his friend about his marriage to Kareena Kapoor. “Saif is even wearing a mangalsutra, look! It is with great difficulty that I have got him to remove his sindoor!” he said, laughing. And as the long-haired Pritam, who won two awards, was leaving stage, SRK remarked, “Apna shampoo toh batata jata, yaar!” India’s cinematic journey that began with Dadasaheb Phalke’s Raja Harishchandra in 1913 earned a fitting tribute from Filmfare in its centenary year with each winner receiving a special gold-rimmed trophy. SRK led the centenary tribute to Indian cinema with a musical parody.
The light-hearted, irreverent act began with hero-heroine perched apart on a tree for fear of the censors’ scissor. Hindi cinema’s preoccupation with the NRI audience was spoofed as well. But it was a proud moment when the song Jai ho! lauded India’s win at the Oscars. Actor Katrina Kaif performed a medley of popular songs. Singer Usha Uthup, looking resplendent in a purple-and-gold sari, revisited her time as a crooner in Kolkata’s nightclubs. The audience loved her medley, which included Ajeeb Dastaan Hai Yeh, Gore Gore O Baanke Chhore and One Two Cha Cha Cha! The 58th Idea Filmfare Awards 2013 will be exclusively telecast on Sony Entertainment TV soon.
List of Winners: Best Film: Barfi!, Best Actor (Male): Ranbir Kapoor (Barfi!) Best Actress Female (Female): Vidya Balan (Kahaani) Best Director: Sujoy Ghosh (Kahaani) Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Female): Anushka Sharma (Jab Tak Hai Jaan) Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Male): Annu Kapoor (Vicky Donor) Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor (Female): Richa Chaddha (Gangs of Wasseypur) Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor (Male): Irrfan Khan (Paan Singh Tomar) Award for Best Film (Critics): Anurag Kashyap (Gangs of Wasseypur) Best Debut (Male): Ayushmann Khurrana (Vicky Donor) Best Debut (Female): Ileana D’Cruz (Barfi!) Best Debut (Director): Gauri Shinde (English Vinglish) Lifetime Achievement Award: Late Yash Chopra (posthumous) Best Background Score: Pritam (Barfi!) Best Music Director: Pritam (Barfi!) Best Playback Singer (Female): Shalmali Kholgade for the song Pareshaan (Ishaqzaade) Best Playback Singer (Male): Ayushmann Khurrana for the song Paani Da Rang (Vicky Donor), Best Writer: Juhi Chaturvedi (Vicky Donor) Best Screenplay: Sanjay Chouhan and Tigmanshu Dhulia (Paan Singh Tomar) Best Dialogue: Anurag Kashyap, Akhilesh Jaiswal, Sachin K Ladia and Zeishan Qadri (Gangs of Wasseypur) Best Sound Design: Sanjay Maurya and Allwin Rego (Kahaani), Best Production Design: Rajat Podar (Barfi!), Best Costume: Manoshi Nath and Rushi Sharma (Shanghai), Best Editing: Namrata Rao (Kahaani) Best Cinematography: Sethu (Kahaani) Best Action: Sham Kaushal (Gangs of Wasseypur) Best Choreography: Bosco-Caesar for the song Aunty Ji (Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu) RD Burman Award: Neeti Mohan for the song Jiya re (Jab Tak Hai Jaan) Best Lyrics: Gulzar for Challa (Jab Tak Hai Jaan) Sony Trendsetter of the Year award: Barfi!
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
SPORTS
January 25, 2013
Taking Golf to a New League
BY PRABHDEV SINGH (Mint) Innovate or stagnate. That’s the new mantra.Auto firms are throwing in new and updated gadgetry at a breath-taking pace. Unfortunately, no autopilot yet. Aeroplane makers are dreaming big on innovations. TV has gone HD. You can actually see the dimples on the golf ball and the blades of grass flying off the clubface. Speaking of which, golfing products company TaylorMade says they have come up with the biggest thing in golf since woods ceased to be that. Apparently, this new development will send your golf ball 20 yards further with no compromise on direction. Attach a rocket to your ball, they say. Sport itself is churning out new formats. You may fault it, but Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket seems to have fired a few imaginations. Indian hockey has taken inspiration from it, and now golf. The first $400,000 (around Rs.2.2 crore) Golf Premier League (GPL) will be played in the second week of February at the Aamby Valley City golf course near Pune. “The idea is to make golf cool, edgy,” says conceptualizer Shiv Kapur. So 14 holes instead of 18, a maximum of 30 seconds to hit a shot and a combination of day and night play which will be telecast live on primetime TV. There’s reasoning behind these tweaks. The first two to quicken the pace of play (golf is thought of as dull and slow by some) and the third to catch golfers at the club bar over the weekend. The event will run from Friday to Sunday. Having played college golf in the US, Kapur, 30, has seen up close how sport is run as a means of recreation, and as a business, in that country. So when he sat down for a beer one evening during the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship in January 2011 with his friend-caddie-business partner Neeraj Sareen, who has a similar American experience, talk veered towards doing something fast-paced, IPL-like, in golf. Further discussion (and, I suspect, beers) had them looking at the US’National BasketballAssociation (NBA) and National Football League (NFL) for ideas. Hence the franchise-based, shot clock, team jersey model for the GPL. Among the eight teams are Delhi Darts, Gujarat Underdawgs, Tamil Nadu Pulis, Shubhkamna Eagles and Colombo Sixers, where cricketer
Shiv Kapur is the brain behind the Golf Premier League. Photo: Stuart Franklin/Getty Imageså
Mahela Jayawardene, also a keen golfer, is the team principal. Punjab, Maharashtra and Karnataka will complete the list and they are all getting together in Mumbai on Friday to pick up their four-member squads in a first-of-its-kind player auction in golf. It’s an impressive pool of talent, divided into four categories. The “international players” include major champions Darren Clarke, Angel Cabrera, Michael Campbell, Rich Beem and Shaun Micheel. Anirban Lahiri, Gaganjeet Bhullar, Rahil Gangjee and Kapur himself will be part of the “international Indian players”. Thaworn Wiratchant, Scott Hend and Chapchai Nirat will represent the Asian Tour. A player each from these three categories will team up with eight Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) golfers. Evening parties and celebrity appearances will complete the IPL touch. The team format as such is not new. Former tour player Rishi Narain, who runs Rishi Narain Golf Management, came up with the Rs.1.20 crore Louis Philippe Cup, an annual feature, last year. Groups of three Indian pros, among them Jeev Milkha Singh and Jyoti Randhawa, make up nine citybased teams like AVT Kolkata, Take Solutions Chennai, DLF Gurgaon and Dev Ellora Chandigarh. “The PGTI signed a contract with us and we paid a heavy sanction fee for exclusivity over the pro team golf format sanctioned by the PGTI in India.
So I am disappointed that this second event is happening,” says Narain. The PGTI clarifies that the GPL is neither sanctioned nor co-sanctioned by it. They have only “released” their players to play the tournament. In return, Kapur is putting up a full-field Rs.40 lakh event for the PGTI later this year. Narain has more to say. “You only have to ask whether the BCCI (The Board of Control for Cricket in India) would allow the ICL (Indian Cricket League) to coexist with the IPL or whether Hockey India would allow their new Hockey India League to tolerate World Series Hockey. What makes things more confusing for the public is the two golf events are scheduled only two days apart.” Kapur maintains that other than the fact that both are team events, the two have little in common.Also, he got his dates from the PGTI six months ago as he wanted to schedule his event just after the Dubai Desert Classic to make it convenient for overseas players to travel to Aamby Valley. Dilip Thomas, whose company, the AVT Group, has a team in each, thinks both the events are good for the game. “I feel both give exposure to my brand, whereas the GPL also has the potential to give me a return on my investment. If it works, I can make money from the GPL which I would then like to plough back into the game.” Again, both Kapur and Narain want to increase golf’s fan base with their innovations. They want to reach out to new audiences. Kapur talks about getting Tiger Woods to India in a few years. This is good for Indian golf. Let’s just play, I say.
Russian lander. But Murty said, “The Russian lander is being replaced by an indigenous lunar lander.” The decision comes after the failure of a Russian space mission, Phobos-Grunt in January 2012, which was supposed to test the lander. Murthy said that the replacement of the Russian lander with an indigenous one would call for a change in the mission profile as well. The lander is being designed and developed by the Space Applications Centre (SAC) in Ahmedabad. Its preliminary configuration study has been completed. The orbiter will have
five payloads, while the six-wheeled rover has two. The orbiter will operate from an altitude of 200 km above the moon’s surface. “Chandrayaan-2 will carry out an intensive investigation of a localized area of the moon having high scientific value,” he said. The rocket will be the three-stage Geo Synchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle powered by an indigenous cryogenic engine. All the payloads of Chandrayaan-2 are indigenous in contrast to Chandrayaan-1 which had six foreign payloads and five from India.
The new IPL-style golf tournament may make the sport cooler and edgier, but will it help increase golf’s fan base?
India to Go Solo on Second Lunar Mission
BY SRINIVAS LAXMAN AHMEDABAD (TOI): India has decided on its second journey to the moon—Chandrayaan-2—without Russian participation. The tentative date for lift-off is 2015 from the Sriharikota facility. This was announced by space scientist S V S Murty of the Ahmedabad-based Physical Research Laboratory’s (PRL) planetary exploration group during a conference. The original mission envisaged the nearly Rs 425-crore Chandrayaan-2 having an indigenous rocket and a rover with a
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EDITORIAL
January 25, 2013
Distant but Dangerous
The battle between an al-Qaeda affiliate and Algerian security forces over a natural gas facility is a reminder that the acolytes of Osama bin Laden are not limited to west and south Asia. The Algerian events were themselves a response to the Franco-African military attempt to avert a takeover of Mali by another coalition of Islamicist militants. On the other side of Africa, a multinational force has been fighting to dislodge another al-Qaeda affiliate, Al Shabab, from southern Somalia. This struggle, in turn, is linked to a long-standing al-Qaeda battle for control of Yemen, a country that has replaced Pakistan as the primary theatre of operations for US drones. How close these various groups are to the original al-Qaeda is a matter of debate. Such groups have existed before, but alQaeda’s model has made them a lot more dangerous than before. What differentiated Osama bin Laden from his predecessors was his vision of terrorism as both messianic and international. The Algerian terrorists seem to have had a range of nationalities in their ranks. All of this, put together, means that if these groups are able to hold territory they would automatically create havens for Islamicist terrorists of all shapes and colors. Many of these groups, like Bin Laden, list India as among their primary targets and would welcome terrorists who had India in their sights. Somalia and Yemen are on the Indian Ocean littoral. Mali and Algeria may seem far off, but the Bin Laden legacy means they are places whose conquest by terror cannot be ignored, least of all by India. Hindustan Times
Chintan about Rahul The outcome of the Congress’s three-day deliberations at Jaipur was more a battle cry than a stateme.nt of vision or soul-searching. Perhaps that should not come as a surprise. Lok Sabha elections are only 15 months away, the party has had little to celebrate electorally since 2009 and the UPA government has seemed continuously besieged, as it battles charges of policy paralysis and corruption, economic challenges and urban middle-class agitations. For the rest, this chintan shivir will be remembered for the formalisation of Rahul Gandhi’s status in the party as its vice president and official No 2. Not many would have doubted that he was already playing the role, or at any rate, that it was his for the taking. He no longer has the option of parachuting in and out of situations at will and evading questions about failure or followthrough. His anointment will be meaningful only if he responds to these imperatives — of greater openness and accountability — that come with his new job. The patchy outcomes of his work so far in the NSUI and Youth Congress, the electorally dismal results of his strategy of going it alone in UP and Bihar, and his cultivated reticence on important matters of public concern in Parliament and outside it, could suggest that the bursting of crackers in the Congress camp may be a little premature. Indian Express
Troubled by the Stubble BY ASHOK DESAI It is the longest thriller I have sat through; it has often stressed me unbearably. The suspense was overwhelming, but there was nothing I could do about it. No, I am not talking about when Rahul would take over the Congress; I am talking about his beard. Is he growing one? Or is he just too lazy to shave? Would he smarten up and start shaving every morning? Would he follow the lead of the prime minister and never shave? Or would he continue in his indecisive ways, growing one stubble after another without converting it into a beard? Well, he may have made up his mind and gone a notch up the Congress hierarchy, but that does not relieve my suspense. He makes or unmakes his mind about the stubble every morning; he may well do so about leading the Congress. He will have a famous exemplar in Manmohan Singh, who never had to change his mind because he seldom made up his mind; and no one can deny that his indecision — or shall we say antidecision? — has taken him far. That, I must admit, is unfair, for Manmohan Singh has some solid achievements to his credit. The most celebrated one has been bringing India out of nuclear untouchability into minor superpowership. This, actually, is not much of an achievement. India lost international caste because of Vajpayee’s nuclear ceremony; but given India’s burgeoning economy and strategic location, the Western world could not ignore it. India’s rehabilitation had already begun; Jaswant Singh would have accomplished it in a year if the Bharatiya Janata Party had not lost power. Manmohan Singh completed what Jaswant Singh started — and probably took twice as long as Jaswant Singh would have. Manmohan Singh’s biggest achievement has been to keep Congress in power for almost a decade; and he has done it by making just enough friends to achieve a bare majority in Parliament. Coalition politics or opportunism — it does not matter what it is called. It is the art of making political deals and not ruining them with ideology or pride. Manmohan Singh has practised it masterfully. This is the first art that Rahul will
I am talking about his beard. Is he growing one? Or is he just too lazy to shave? Would he smarten up and start shaving every morning? Would he follow the lead of the prime minister and never shave?
have to master. Manmohan Singh will hand over the reins to him at an opportune time — probably after the 2014 elections. It is most unlikely that the Congress will win a majority; it is equally unlikely that the BJP will emerge a serious rival. So the circumstances will be favourable. Rahul will have to work out his own equations; but he will take over a sound ship in still waters. Cabinet formation will be a challenge. There will have to be the same compromises with allies, and since the election will bring in quite a few youngsters (in their forties and fifties), keeping the Congress together may be a challenge. But it is likely to be doable. In the longer run, Rahul will have to worry about how to bring the Congress out of the corner it has painted itself into. It has acquired indispensable allies in the south and the north, and thereby undertaken not to compete with them. It has also thereby condemned itself to be a minority party. That is not compatible with its history as the dominant national party, and will not give Rahul the freedom of manoeuvre he would need to leave his mark on history.
If he were ambitious, Rahul would want to remove the shadow of Hindu communalism that has hung on India since the demolition of Babri Masjid, and to make India a truly secular nation. He probably does not lack the passion for this, for he has been witness to the BJP’s vile attacks on Sonia Gandhi. At the same time, this should not be a personal vendetta. Buying votes is never a durable strategy; the way to create an impregnable fortress is to give people the feeling that India is safe under you. How to do it cannot be described in a few hundred words, but this is the challenge that will face Rahul. Apart from this, he will inherit the cloak of an international wise man from Manmohan Singh. He will have to go to meetings of G200, G20 and G2 and work with world leaders. More important, he will have to promote India’s international interests. Manmohan Singh did this well in the nuclear affair, but his economic performance has been undistinguished. This may sound shocking when it refers to the renowned reformer. But it is my view that the reforms could not have happened without Narasimha Rao, that many of those reforms were proposed by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, that most of them had to be made to deal with the payments crisis, and that the government did no reforms once the crisis passed. In the last decade, the economy soared because of the circumstances it found itself in at the end of BJP rule; now that that stimulus has exhausted itself, the economy is floundering, and the government has no clue about what needs next to be done. The economy needs a new set of initiatives if it is to get anywhere close to China in prosperity and size. Old-style liberalization is not irrelevant, but it will not be enough. Nor will the Congress dogma of redistribution in various forms do the trick. The present circumstances call for new thinking. I am not saying that Rahul should do it. I have no idea who can do it. But whoever it is, Rahul would have to find her, and find the political muscle to implement her ideas. After all, he is still unmarried. Calcutta Telegraph
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RECIPES/PUZZLES
January 25, 2013
SUDOKU
Mama’s Punjabi Recipes
ANDE KI CURRY (EGG CURRY) Ande (eggs) are very popular all over India, but especially so in the north during winter time. It is common to find cart vendors selling quick, hot boiled eggs, peeled and sliced if you want, with spices, to warm people up. During warm months, these vendors sell eggs any style for those who have to eat quickly. Eggs are also very popular at home, especially for the nashta (breakfast) which usually comes an hour or two after morning chai (tea), and the most popular way is an omelet with onions eaten with a crispy, hot parantha! Part of the reason eggs are so popular is that farming techniques have allowed for more and larger eggs to be sold on the streets in cardboard crates, even though they are not usually refrigerated. But the real reason, I think, is that eggs (as with most vegetables too) sold in India just taste better! Here is a quick, easy recipe to make for those unannounced guests or for when you don’t have anything else in the fridge and everyone is inpatient and hungry. It goes well with rice or roti. Ingredients: • 4 large ande (eggs) • 1 large pyaaz (onion)
Complete the grid so that every row, column and every three-by-three row contains the digits 1 to 9.
Send us the correct answer before January 30. Email us at indoamericannews@yahoo.com or mail to 7457 Harwin Drive, Suite 262, Houston, TX 77036. Send us your picture and we will publish it if you are a winner (for first three entrees only).
Solution Next Week • 1 medium tamater (tomato) – soft ones are best Spices: namak (salt), mirch (red pepper), haldi (turmeric) and sukha dhania powder (dried coriander seed powder) • 1 medium clump of adrak (gin ger root) • 1 medium kernel of lasan (gar lic) • 3 cups of water • 2 tablespoons of vegetable or olive oil • Tomato paste to taste Directions:
• Chop the ginger, onions and garlic and brown them in the oil in a saucepan . • Chop the tomato in chunks and add to the mixture and stir till the masala is soft and thick. Add the spices to your taste – if you have others you wish to use, add them too.Add half a tablespoon of tomato paste, to enhance the taste, texture and color. • Now add the water and let the gravy thicken up a bit and bring to a rapid boil. • Crack the eggs open over the gravy and drop them in and throw away the shells. Be careful no pieces of the shell fall in! It is best to drop the eggs in open gravy and not on top of each other. Wait till each egg sets a little before dropping the next one in. • Let the curry boil for 10 minutes and set for another 5 to 10 minutes to allow the flavor to seep through the egg yolk. • Serve with hot roti or rice. Shakuntla Malhotra is a skilled cook of Punjabi dishes made in the old-fashioned style that she learnt as a young woman in her ancestral home in Lyallpur, India before it became part of Pakistan after the Partition in 1947. People have often admired her cooking for its simplicity and taste that comes with each mouthful. Even in her mid-eighties, she continues to cook daily and agreed to share some of her delectable recipes.
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Attack on India’s Drinking Culture
BY FARAH RAHMAN (Mint)Against the backdrop of rage against the system and the mindsets that drive daily assaults on women, it is encouraging to see enforceable solutions emerging that will directly increase the safety and deliver speedy justice to women. However, the Delhi government’s order to close discos early is the kind of knee-jerk reaction that makes little practical sense in the absence of evidence linking hours of operation for discos to increased evidence of sexual assault. If anything, upscale clubs provide a safe environment to unwind, without worrying about what you are wearing, drinking or doing. For those who live and die by the “work hard and party harder” eh, these clubs are a necessary part of living in a metropolis. A must-have for sure. Still, India’s drinking culture is one thing that does bear examining at this time when the country is engaged in taking a hard look at itself and its problems. There is no denying that alcohol plays a part in many instances of violence, including sexual assault, toward women. Prohibition has been supported by many women who are daily victims to the drunken brutality inflicted on them and their children. It is easy to understand how you would want to ban a substance that wreaks havoc in your life and eats away all your income. Nonetheless, this scenario still has no bearing on early closure of discos, especially five-star discos that cater to a very small fraction of society. Attitudes toward alcohol vary widely in the country. Drinking is frowned upon generally in India. On the surface it seems to be about having too much or too little money. For those who have too much, drinking is part of the civilized life that states you have arrived and are comfortably ensconced in the court of the king of good times. For those who have very little money, drinking provides escape and respite. In the middle are most families who do not allow drinking at home and drinking is a subject that falls into the “don’t ask, don’t tell” kind of area occupying the same space as sex does. So men drink outside the house and kids party during the day time. Given these constraints, the purpose of drinking in India is generally aimed at getting as drunk as you can.
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When drinking is pushed into dark corners instead of well-lit areas, it morphs into more of a demon. Drinking can also drive men to engage in acts of astonishing depravity of a kind that may be imagined while sober but checked from implementation by a still functioning moral radar that distinguishes between what is right and that which is pure evil. Drinking by young men in groups has
the potential to cause incidents like the ghastly Delhi gang rape. During India’s new awakening to the poisonous mindsets that are the root of the most vicious violations of human rights, there also needs to be dialogue on the issue that drinking is very much a part of the country’s culture and also has an associated mindset problem. Andhra Pradesh earns most of its income from sales of alcohol. So in a sense it powers the economy of the state. Prohibition is out of the question for this reason. Alcohol and its relationship with Indians needs to be discussed in the same way that sexual violence and women’s safety and rights are being addressed at this time.
84% of Indian Amercians Voted for Barack Obama: Claims Study
WASHINGTON (TOI): A whopping 84 per cent Indian Americans voted for Barack Obama in November’s US presidential elections, according to a survey of Asian-Americans. About 77 per cent of all Asian-Americans voted for Obama for a second term at the White House, findings released the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) here on Thursday said. The multilingual exit poll of 9,096 Asian Americans in 14 states by the New York-based organization also said that 13 per cent of Asian-Americans who were registered Republicans had crossed over and voted for 51-year old Obama, a Democrat. The Bangladeshi Americans remained the highest group to have voted for Obama at 96 per cent followed by the Indian Americans at 84 per cent. However, Vietnamese-origin Americans were the only group to have gone against the trend as 54 per cent of them voted for Obama’s Republican rival Mitt Romney. Age-group also came to play as Asian Americans under 40 were more likely to have favoured Obama and a mere 10 per cent of Asian Americans under 30 voted for Romney, compared to 16 per cent aged between 30-39; 26 per cent aged between 40-49; 26 per cent between 50-59 per cent; and 27 per cent between 60-69, a press statement issued by the AALDEF said. Among Asian Americans overall, voting in the Congressional Elections mirrored the presidential elections. In 24 of the 28 Congressional districts where the exit poll was conducted, a majority of Asian Americans supported Democratic candidates. For the US Senate, 74 per cent of Asian Americans overall voted for Obama and 18 per cent voted for Romney. For the US House of Representatives, 73 per cent voted for the Democratic candidate and 17 per cent voted for the Republican candidate, the statement said.
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Drinking in India is aimed at getting as drunk as you can. When pushed into dark corners it morphs into a demon
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Ikea’s Plan for Stores in India Approved by Government Board
government last January passed regulations that allowed single-brand companies such as Ikea to open outlets without local partners. The government in September allowed foreign multi-brand retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) and Carrefour SA (CA) to own as much as 51 percent of retail outlets. A similar decision was suspended in 2011 due to political opposition that paralyzed parliament. “The government is committed to play a constructive role in encouraging foreign direct investment,
especially in areas which create jobs and provide technological advancement,” Sharma said in the statement. “Ikea has a business model which integrates” small- and medium-sized enterprises and the domestic industry, he said. Pavers Ltd., a British footwear retailer, was the first foreign singlebrand retailer to get government approval for full ownership. Large outlets constitute a small chunk of India’s retail market, which is dominated by small grocery stores. These shops, known as kirana, often sell goods on credit, and account for 68 percent of the total value of groceries sold in the country, according to the report by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India and Yes Bank. IKEA, controlled by Swedish billionaire Ingvar Kamprad, has 338 stores in 40 countries, operated by the company as well as its franchisees, according to the group’s website. More than half the retailer’s revenue comes from stores in Europe, its annual report shows. The company has 28 stores in Asia, according to the report. The company plans to invest as
much as 1.5 billion euros to open 25 stores in India, according to a government statement in June. India’s rules require foreign-owned retail companies to locally source at least 30 percent of the value of goods sold. India’s furniture market is dominated by small, unorganized players who could be the worst-affected when Ikea sets up its stores, Arun Kejriwal, director at Kejriwal Research & Investment Services Pvt., said in an interview ahead of the ministry’s decision. “Furniture in India is a fairly disorganized product, you hardly have any national players,” Kejriwal said. Ikea’s wide portfolio of relatively cheap products will pull customers from the smaller retail outlets in cities, he said. Foreign investors still face a maze of regulations in India’s retail market. They will also be required to invest a minimum of $100 million, with half being used to build facilities such as manufacturing, distribution and warehouses within the first three years of their foray, India’s Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion said in September.
BY SURABHI AGARWAL (Mint) New Delhi: In a filing to BSE , HCL Technologies Ltd has said that Anant Gupta has been elevated as the president and chief executive officer (CEO) of HCL Technologies. Vineet Nayar who was previously the CEO and vice-chairman of the company will continue as the vice-chairman and joint managing director till July 2013 and vice-chairman thereafter, the filing said quoting HCL Technologies’ chairman and chief strategy officer, Shiv Nadar. The Economic Times said on Thursday that HCL Technologies, India’s fourth largest software firm would promote its current president and chief operating officer Gupta to replace Anant Gupta, 44, was named HCL’s president Nayar, the vice-chairman and chief executive and also that last year and has since been considered a Nayar could be on his way out. The company reported a 68.5% likely successor to take over from Nayar. jump in net profit at Rs.965 crore for the three months ended Photo: Pradeep Gaur/Mint 31 December against the same period last year. The net profit
rose 9% against the preceding three months on the back of revenues of Rs.6,274 crore, up 19.6% against the same period last year and 3% compared with the September quarter. Gupta, 44, was named HCL’s president last year and has since been considered a likely successor to take over from Nayar. This will be the second CEO transition at HCLTechnologies, after the company’s billionaire founder Nadar handed over the baton to Nayar in 2007. There has been speculation about Nayar’s exit after he sold his entire stake in the company in June last year. Both HCL and Nayar
have, in the past, denied the news of his exit. The company could not be reached immediately for comment and Nayar did not respond to a text message sent early in the morning. The stake sale by Nayar was followed by elevation of Gupta in the company, who has been with HCL for almost two decades and built the company’s billion-dollar business of managing computer hardware and systems for customers including Reader’s Digest. At 10.35am, shares of HCL were up 5.51% to Rs.711.40 on BSE Ltd. The benchmark Sensex was up 0.19% at 19,855.34 points.
BY MALAVIKA SHARMA & TUSHAR DHARA India’s overseas investment board approved furniture retailer IKEA’s proposal to open outlets in the country, bringing the Swedish chain closer to becoming the first major foreign retailer to set up its own stores. The Foreign Investment Promotion Board cleared the Swedish furniture retailer’s proposal, Commerce Minister Anand Sharma said in a statement today. The revised approval comes after the board last year barred Ikea from operating cafes and restricted the kind of items it could sell at stores. The approval means Ikea may gain access to a retail market that the Associated Chambers of Commerce & Industry of India and Yes Bank Ltd. (YES) predict will double to 47 trillion rupees ($874 billion) in 2017. The world’s largest furniture maker still needs approval from the Indian Cabinet to proceed with its plan to invest as much as 1.5 billion euros ($2 billion) to set up stores. “We consider this as a very positive development,’’Juvencio Maeztu, Ikea’s manager for India, said in an emailed statement. ‘‘We are now wait-
ing for approval from the Cabinet and subsequently a notification so that we can initiate the process of establishing IKEA stores in the country.” The government’s approval for Ikea is “overall very good for the retail sector,” Bharat Chhoda, retail analyst at ICICI Direct, said before the decision was announced. “This kind of steadfastness showed by the government, probably it’ll be very positive for the entire sector, showing that the government is looking to fast-track” such proposals. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s
Anant Gupta Takes Over as CEO for High Flying Software Firm HCL Technology
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SPORTS
January 25, 2013
Raina Secures India ODI Series Win
BY DAVID HOPPS England fought hard to assemble a respectable total on a cold, wintry day in the Punjab, but when the fog cleared the view was a familiar one: another defeat in a one-day series in India. India’s pursuit of 258 was far from trouble free, but a winning margin of five wickets with 15 balls to spare was emphatic enough and left them 3-1 up one to play. Instead of a dead rubber in ODI in Dharamsala, in the foothills of the Himilayas, England would be forgiven for fancying a spot of skiing, but sadly for them the weather forecast is improving and only the cricket is going downhill. A record extended to 18 ODI defeats in their last 20 in India is proof of that. It might have been different had England not fallen again to the curse of Steven Finn’s knee. When Finn thought he had Suresh Raina caught byAlastair Cook at first slip, India still needed 80 from 89 balls with what would have been five wickets intact. But Finn’s recalcitrant right knee had collided with the stumps again and umpire Steve Davis invoked Law 23, ruling that Raina had been distracted. Cook’s protests that Finn was entitled to a warning went unheeded. But the story of this series has been one of growing India dominance. MS Dhoni has looked as impregnable in one-day cricket as he seemed flawed in the Test series. After England’s win in the opening game in Rajkot, fuelled by a late batting assault from Samit Patel, India’s batsmen dominated in Kochi and Ranchi and when they got the benefit of an influentiual toss in Mohali, their quiuck bowlers accepted it with alacrity. As for Ravindra Jadeja, India will be more convinced than ever that they have a player who can balance their one-day side. India’s run chase was a personal triumph for Rohit Sharma, whose selection ahead of Ajinkya Rahane as a replacement opener had not possessed obvious logic on a seam-friendly morning, but who took advantage of easing conditions to move on from a lean run of form which had brought eight single-figure scores in his last nine innings. Rohit burst ahead after reaching his fifty, addressing Tredwell’s threat in the process, and had 83 from 93 balls when Finn won a fortunate lbw decision for a delivery
etkeeper, Jos Buttler, and Bresnan at fine leg. Buttler was running backwards for a catch which could not have fallen more inconveniently had Kohli marked the spot with a cross, but he was a stand-in wicketkeeper for Craig Kieswetter, and an inexperienced one at that, and it was natural to wonder whether a more experienced keeper would have been more assertive. Rohit Sharma emerged from a form slump to England, for play a crucial innings © BCCI whom only Finn and James Tredslipping down the leg side. well possessed any real threat, never On another day of fallible umpir- rallied again after Finn’s unwitting ing, Gautam Gambhir was adjudged collision with the stumps. Jade Derncaught at the wicket, carving at a wide bach dismissed MS Dhoni with a one and left with a look of unfeigned short, wide one, but his bowling surprise that the umpire thought he circus has not troubled India. had hit it. India’s pace attack made impresVirat Kohli was gently removed by sive use of a good fast-bowling mornTredwell, not as much dismissed as ing after Dhoni had won the toss. quietly informed that he would take Bhuvneshwar Kumar conceded only no further part in the game. In the 30 runs in a probing 10-over allocacalming manner of a hospital con- tion delivered without interruption sultant, Tredwell’s entire demeanour and Ishant Sharma was as dangerous is designed to allay fears. “Good as at any time in either Test or onemorning, Mr Kohli, do relax, there day series. is nothing to worry about.” But there Alastair Cook’s methodical halfwas and by the end of his first over, century was an appropriate response, Kohli had chipped a gentle return but his demise, lbw to a ball from R catch as if half-anaesthetised. There Ashwin that pitched well outside leg must have been some dip, or subtle stump was another rum decision. change of pace, but you could study Umpires drawn from outside the innumerable replays and struggle to elite panel, plus the absence of DRS, discern it. equals a greater likelihood of error Tredwell claimed a second wicket wherever a game is played. when he defeated Yuvraj Singh’s There was 76, too, from Pietersen, sweep, dismissing him for the fourth but it was a more fretful innings delivtime in the series. ered by a batsman anxious for the first England could ill afford to allow shaft of sunlight. He was struck on the let-offs in the field, but both Kohli and elbow as Ishant cut one back and narRohit survived half chances. Rohit, rowly escaped an lbw decision in the on 12, drove Tim Bresnan high to same over when he just got outside mid-off where Kevin Pietersen leapt the line. He needed 13 balls to get off to palm the ball in the air with his right the mark; 33 to find the boundary, an hand but failed to locate it as it fell. authoritative straight drive against R Kohli was 2 when he pulled at Finn Ashwin. and the ball fell between the wickHe was illuminated only briefly,
Mixed Results for Indians in Australia MELBOURNE: Second seeds Leander Paes and Elena Vesnina made a shock second round exit from the mixed doubles event of the Australian Open even as Mahesh Bhupathi and Nadia Petrova entered the quarterfinals, here today. Paes and his Russian partner were outplayed by unseeded local pair of Matthew Ebden and Jarmila Gajdosova 3-6 2-6 in just 58 minutes. Had Paes and Vesnina won, they could have clashed with fifth seeds Bhupathi and Petrova, who recorded a come-from-behind 3-6 6-2 10-5 win over Katarina Srebotnik of Slovakia and Nenad Zimonjic of Serbia, earlier in the day. At the start, Paes and Vesnina immediately broke their rivals to open up a mini lead but the rivals broke back and it was soon 3-3. With a crushing forehand winner on the serve of Gajdosova, Paes earned a breakpoint for the team in the seventh game but he faltered on a volley to squander it. Vesnina was broken at love in the
next game and Ebden served out the set comfortably. Back-to-back breaks, in fifth and seventh games respectively, pushed Paes and Vesnina out of the match as it handed the Australian pair a 5-2 cushion. Ebden was terrific at the net and Gajdosova supported him well from the baseline. Gajdosova fired an ace to earn a match point and Ebden sealed the victory with an overhead volley. Earlier, Bhupathi and Petrova got their act together after surrendering the first set and dumped their unseeded opponents in 64 minutes. Bhupathi and Petrova hit 34 winners as compared to only 16 by their rivals. Besides, they also managed to convert three out of six break points they faced, while saved three off five to pocket the match. Other Indians in draw, Rohan Bopanna and Sania Mirza have already moved to the last-eight stage of the mixed doubles event with their respective partners.
Chowrasia Misses Top 10 Finish in Abu Dhabi ABU DHABI: SSP Chowrasia dropped back-to-back bogeys on the eighth and ninth holes to miss out on a chance of finishing in the top-10 at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship on Sunday. Chowrasia, tied 13th at the end of the third round, finished with a round of two-under 70 and a total of seven-
under 281 in tied 17th place. On a crowded leaderboard, Chowrasia was just one shot behind the bunch of eight players in tied ninth place at eight-under. At the top, Jamie Donaldson collected his second European Tour title after seeing Justin Rose hold the lead in second and third rounds.
muscling Ishant over midwicket for six, but he got an excellent yorker in response as Ishant ensured that for once his bowling figures were not damaged by bowling at the most pressing times. Cook, for all his frustration at his dismissal, had provided a solid layer, but England’s cause was not helped when they lost Eoin Morgan and Patel in quick succession. Morgan has had a poor series in a country in which, with IPL in mind, he was anxious to advance his reputation. He drove Ashwin weakly down the ground and only reached Yuvraj at mid-on. Patel was promoted to No. 5, presumably with the approaching batting Powerplay in mind, but he made a single in 10 balls when he chipped a return catch to Ravindra
Jadeja. Patel stalked off; he has done more stalking off recently than is good for him. England rallied with 100 from the last 10 overs, energised by Joe Root’s maiden ODI half-century, 57 not out from 45 balls, after he had been dropped off Ishant by Kohli at slip. Throughout the winter, in all three forms of the game, Root has proved more adaptable than perhaps even he had expected. His cricketing intelligence is one of his greatest assets. He should also have fallen on 42, a slog sweep against Jadeja bringing a comical drop by Raina at midwicket. Jadeja’s left-arm slows have disturbed England throughout the series. The dismissal of Buttler and Bresnan in his final over left him with 3 for 39.
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
January 25, 2013
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The Gandhi Scion Presents New Roadmap
Will Rahul’s Anointment Change Congress Fortunes?
IAN INDIA CORRESPONDENT BY RAJ KANWAR The three-day long “Chintan Shivir” (brainstorming session) by the Indian National Congress that ended last Sunday virtually turned out to be like a ‘coming out party’ for heir apparent Rahul Gandhi who was formally anointed as its vice president. The anointment, though expected, was received with loud applause by the goodly assemblage comprising both the old and the young faces that will now take up the Herculean challenge of returning the Party to power in the 2014 general elections. In many ways, it was a day of reckoning for India’s grand old party that was founded on 28 December 1885. The party’s image today stands greatly compromised, thanks to the many skeletons that kept on tumbling out of its cupboard over the past two years or so. It also faces credibilitygap that has been further buffeted by its many acts of commission and omission, some of its own making and others resulting from ‘communication gap’. The first was the anticorruption campaign launched by the likes of Anna Hazare, Ramdev et al. Arvind Kejriwal, who has launched his so-called ‘Aam Admi party’ with much fanfare, too would like to corner some of this credit. But only the time will tell how this party fares a year later at the hustings. Anna has accused Kejriwal of nursing political power ambitions but the so-called ‘Gandhian’ from Ralegan Siddhi in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra has himself been too ambivalent in his utterances, to be effective. The 16 December gang-rape and murder of a 23 year old Delhi student and the mass rage that followed it too caused a serious discomfiture to the UPA government at the Center and the Sheila Dikshit government in Delhi. The response of the two governments was spineless, to say the least. Worse, the governments continued to dither for days, and were clueless as how to respond to such a spontaneous eruption of mass demonstrations. Their spokespersons spoke in different languages thus making the confusion much worse confounded. It is a miracle that the two governments in-place in Delhi
nevertheless managed to retain some of their credibility, despite the antigovernment sentiments that had characterized these silent demonstrations. The principal opposition party BJP shouted hoarse and obviously put the blame on Congress for its gross incompetence, yet the Congress governments were able to retrieve some of its dented image. The Jaipur “Chintan Shivir” could perhaps become a turning point in the 128-year old party. I was among the tens of thousands of viewers who greatly admired Rahul Gandhi’s Acceptance speech live on news channels; by all consensus, it was a rousing performance and by far his best political address. More importantly, Rahul was his natural self and the words came from ‘Dil Se’; there was no awkwardness or unease. Both its contents and delivery were impeccable. He did not offer any excuses and called for drastic attitudinal changes. He boldly lambasted what he called ‘existing party system’ that tended to encourage mediocrity and factionalism. “Today a billion Indians want a greater say in government, in politics and in administration”. Their destiny could not possibly be decided by a handful of people sitting behind closed doors. These people were telling us that the government working and system is struck in the past and such a system robbed people of their due rights. The system did not
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empower the people; on the contrary it disempowered them. Rahul’s reasoning was logical and down to earth. He also deplored hypocrisy and added that the people who themselves were corrupt often talked about eradicating this evil. He bluntly told the gathering, “Let me tell you they are not going to watch silently. Our priorities are clear. The answer is not in running this system better, we have to transform it completely.” But the most emotional part of his 45-minute speech that brought tears to most eyes was his reference to his grandmother, mother and the late father, Rajiv. Recalling his younger days at the Prime Minister’s House, he said “how two policemen who had taught him how to play badminton at his late grandmother Indira Gandhi’s residence when he was a little boy and whom he considered his ‘friends’ were the ones who killed her and ‘took away the balance’ in his life. He further said, “last night every single one of you congratulated me. But last night my mother came to my room and she cried. Why did she cry? She cried because she understands that the power so many people seek is actually a poison. She can see what it does to the people around and to the people they love. She could see it but she is not attached to it. The only antidote to this poison is for all of us to see it for what it really is and not become attached to it. We
should not chase power. We should only use it to empower voices.” This touching narrative brought standing ovation not only from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh but also from all those who were part of this historic gathering. Even Sonia Gandhi could not remain unmoved. Rahul called his appointment as the vice president of the party as “a huge honor”. “For me, the Congress party is now my life, the people of India are my life, and I will fight for the people of India and for this party,” he promised. Despite all of this boisterous enthusiasm, there were many voices of sycophancy much of which came from his younger colleagues whom he had brought into the party and who are, in his scheme of things, would give a fresh impetus
to the old party. Some of the speakers promised to “shed their blood where Rahul’s sweat pours,” and called him “desh ke yuvaon ki dhadkan (the heart-throb of youth)”. It turned out to be a bidding war in sycophancy, each speaker tried to out bid the other by mouthing more bizarre a sycophancy. One worthy even went to the extent of promising “jawani loota denge” (sacrifice his youth). All this hysterical adulation was absolutely uncalled for and unwarranted and Rahul should have reprimanded all of his obsequious courtiers. Such a tendency must not only be curbed but be also censured. In its new mood, the Congress can ill afford this culture of sycophancy and cronyism that has been its Achilles’ heel for much of its post-independence existence.
NEW DELHI (The Hindu): India sought to downplay the reported remark of the Pakistan envoy here on the killing of Indian soldiers on the Line of Control, saying the two sides can move forward in a “sensible way” once the “dust settles’’. “I think it is important that we let little time go by so that the dust, as it was, settles. Then in a sensible and calibrated manner we can move forward,” External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid told reporters here. He was asked to comment on the reported statement of Pakistan High Commissioner Salman Bashir on the killing of soldiers on the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir. At present, Khurshid said the situation on the Line of Control was “a lot better than it was a few days back’’. “I would simply say, we should not react to every statement. I don’t think that every statement made in the domestic context should necessarily be treated as the last word,” Khurshid said. On Pakistan Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar’s reported offer for minister-level talks to reduce tensions, Khurshid said the media statement cannot be described as an offer. “Well clearly it can’t be described as an offer. I think there were sugges-
tions on how to move forward and the possibility that it could be done one way or the other. And of course the suggestion came through the media,” he said. Khar’s remark had come in the backdrop of Bashir’s suggestion for a UN probe into the killing of soldiers. Khurshid said these were matters where the entire atmospherics and entire context need to be carefully studied and analysed from time to time before taking any further steps. “We have already said that we believe moving from any attempt to suggest third party intervention to bilateral interface is a positive signal,” Khurshid said. “The fact is that things have been quiet on the Line of Control. The fact that our DGMOs (Directors-General of Military Operations) have been in touch in a meaningful way, I would think that this is a welcome shift in the right direction,” he said.
India Downplays Pak Envoy Remark on LoC Killings to “Move Forward”
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INDIA
January 25, 2013
In Pics: Maha Kumbh Mela 2013
An Indian Hindu boy is reluctantly guided by his parents as they go for a dip fully clothed at Sangam, in Allahabad (AP Photo/Kevin Frayer).
Naked Hindu holy men return to their camp after a dip at Sangam on one of the most auspicious days, Makar Sankranti, the first day of the Maha Kumbh Mela, in Allahabad, on January 14. Devotees wash themselves in the waters of the Ganges believing that it washes away their sins and ends the process of reincarnation. (AP Photo /Rajesh Kumar Singh) An ash smeared Hindu Sadhu or holy man poses beside a tent in Allahabad (Sanjay Kanojia/AFP/Getty Images).
An Indian Hindu is helped after being overcome while taking a bath at the confluence of the rivers Ganges, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati, ahead of the Maha Kumbh Mela in Allahabad (AP Photo/Kevin Frayer).
A sadhu prays as he sits on the banks of Sangam, the confluence of the holy rivers Ganges, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati (Daniel Berehulak / Getty Images).
Naga sadhus run in to bathe in the waters of the holy Ganges river during the auspicious bathing day of Makar Sankranti of the Maha Kumbh Mela in Allahabad, on January 14. (Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images)
A man, dressed as Hindu Goddess Kali, participates in a religious procession towards the Sangam, in Allahabad (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh).
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