Friday, January 10 2014 | Vol. 33, No. 02
$1
Indo American erican News
www.indoamerican-news.com Published weekly from Houston, TX
7457 Harwin Dr, Suite 262, Houston, TX 77036 713.789.NEWS (6397) • Fax: 713.789.6399 • indoamericannews@yahoo.com
New Board at MTS Partnered & Syndicated with Times of India, Sulekha.com, Google, Yahoo & Bing
How can Women Lose Weight on Hips and Thighs?
P19
Puzzles / Recipe P5
Transfer of Power at Sri Meenakshi Temple Society (MTS). From left : Srikanth Venugopalan (Incoming Secretary, P. Vaduganathan (Incoming Chairman) and Padma Golla ( Incoming Treasurer) , MTS priests, Tupil Narasiman (Outgoing Chairman), Raj Mikkelineni ( Outgoing Secreatry) and Parthiban Dhanabalan (Outgoing Treasurer).
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
P20
2
January 10, 2014
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
3 January 10, 2014 COMMUNITY India House : Dream to Reality BY DR. VIRENDRA MATHUR HOUSTON: India House was a dream of the first few Indian American immigrants to Houston which started taking shape in June 2000, when a 10 acre land was purchased by India Culture Center in Southwest Houston. After a few challenges, it became obvious that a separate entity will have to take charge if we were to succeed in building a true community center to serve our own Indian American community as well as the mainstream community. That is when India House Inc. was born in 2003 and the entire community got behind the project. Finally on January 28, 2006, ground breaking took place with lot of fanfare attended by several thousand people, including the Mayor, Consul General of India and several dignitaries and blessings of 8 leaders of different religions of India. The most important thing that happened as we were concluding the Havan ceremony, we got a pledge from Jindal family for the first Million Dollar donation for India House and the first building was named “O.P. Jindal Center.” Enthusiasm was at its peak throughout the community and most of the volunteers of India House got busy in presenting our case and soliciting donations from Indian American community as well as major charitable organizations, foundations, city of Houston, major banks as well as Houston Endowment. We would bring many people to our site, arrange meetings, visit different homes and offices, including one at 7.00 am on a real cold January morning as this was the only time we could get, to win their support. I remember vividly, it was February 16, 2007 and the Annual Gala of Asia Society was planned for the evening and our President Dr. Durga Agrawal invited many
From left: Dr. Durga Agrawal, Chowdary Yalamanchili, Dr. Virendra Mathur and Jugal Malani. of us to join him on his table. Our Ambassador Hon. Ronan Sen was one of the invited guests. Dr. Agrawal thought that it would be a great idea to get the huge 8 foot model of the planned India House there, to show our plan to a large gathering. The organizers refused to allow such a large model to be displayed there, but Durga was not going to accept a no for an answer. He talked to his friend Charles Foster, the President of Asia Society who was very nice and overruled the objection and we managed to transport the model to the
Hotel in time. Little did we know, what a blessing it would turn out to be. One of our friends Chowdary Yalamanchili and his wife Angela were also guests on our table. We requested Ambassador Sen and all our guests to see India House model and explained the plan. Everybody was very impressed and our Ambassador encouraged us to work hard to get the project completed. The Yalamanchilis were also impressed and seeing the enthusiasm and passion in all the volunteers, decided that they will make sure that our
project succeeds and pledged One Million Dollars on that fateful evening. We were so proud that a few days later, during the Foundation Stone laying ceremony on March 3 2007, Chowdary and Angela presented India House a Million Dollar check soon after the Havan. The Mayor in his prophetic remarks said that “If you have friends like this, you will not have any problem in completing this project” And so, it has been ! Their support continues at every step and whenever we need help, they come forward. As our Health
Clinic is expanding, they have supported India House again and they have donated another Quarter Million Dollars for its success. They have also agreed to become Trustees of India House. Yalamanchili, a very successful businessman and real estate developer is also a very generous and humble philanthropist and gem of a man. Our community owes him a lot and he is so passionate about community service that we feel secure in the future of India House.
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
4
January 10, 2014
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
COMMUNITY
January 10, 2014
5
New Year Celebrations 2014 at Sri Meenakshi Temple
BY CHANDANA GOLLA AND AKILAN GOPAL PEARLAND: Sri Meenakshi Temple Society (MTS) started off this New Year with a day of celebration and prayer, bringing in almost 7000 devotees. Starting as early as midnight, devotees arrived to perform special Archanas and receive blessings from gods for the New Year. The morning started with Ganesha Homam and abhishekam for Prasanna Vinayagar in the newly built Ganesh temple. Over 500 devotee Archanas were performed for Venkateswara, Shiva, and Meenakshi. Laksharchana (100,000 archanas) which was started a couple of days in advance, was completed. The day was also particularly special for the society as they honored the 70th birthday and meaningful contributions of one of the original founders, Sam Kannappan. In addition, a special pooja was done to ask blessings for the passing of the torch between the old and new
The newly elected board.
From left: Tupil Narasiman, Dr. Vaduganathan, Dr. Ranga.
board members as the board membership was transitioned. The new board has a goal to raise money
to work on the renovation of the main temple to make it more spacious over the next two years. Local restaurants sold food
throughout the day, and the temple sold saris worn by the deities and special Meenakshi Temple Society calendars. A few times during the day, dif-
ferent deities dressed up in jewelry and adorned with flowers went around the temple on poo pallakku or palanquin carried on the shoulders of 16-20 volunteers. Enthusiastic crowds followed the pallakku each time in a procession. In the afternoon, Sri Meenakshi Temple hosted an entertaining cultural program, Anandam, highlighting performances from various regions of India. The program started with a three-year old girl Nithalakshya’s prayer song followed by a honoring of the new MTS Chairman, Dr. Vaduganathan. This commemoration was truly special as Dr. Kas Ranga crafted a Tamil poem to auspiciously laud the transition from Tupil Narasiman to Dr. Vaduganathan as MTS’s chairman. The afternoon was filled with a cultural road trip of India starring Saratha and Dr. Ranga as they performed in Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kanda, Malayalam, and more. Singing and dancing became the alternating themes of the show. Highlights of performances included classical BharataNatyam and Kuchipudi performances by Divya Unni and Sunantha Nair’s students, modern Bollywood and Kollywood dance numbers, classical and light music ensembles, and magnificent solo performances. Each of these shows portrayed unique talents that in culmination with the other performances portrayed the diverse and distinguishing cultural identity of India. Anandam, organized by Mala Gopal and Mahesh Iyer, concluded with an address from the new MTS secretary, Srikanth Venugopalan. All in all, this festive day brought together people from as far away as India, to say farewell to 2013 and greet the spectacular and promising New Year to come, receiving the blessing of deities and celebrating with family and friends. MTS thanks the large contingent of volunteers who worked tirelessly for several days to make this event possible.
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:713-789-6399, 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 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
Sri Govindaji Gaudiya Matha A New Year Celebration in a New Temple
HOUSTON: Sri Govindaji Gaudiya Matha welcomed the New Year with a beautiful ‘Bhajan Sandhya’ (devotional singing), aarati and a sumptuous prasadam feast. Over several hundred attended in the newly constructed 15,000 square foot temple. There was much to be grateful for and much to celebrate. Last year was wonderful and the coming year promises to be another good one for the temple and its growing congregation of devotees. There were so many good voices accompanied by harmonium, mridanga and other instruments. The congregation was particularly pleased with the high school students’ devotional singing. Everyone appreciated that there are so many devotees who sing so well and lead all in wonderful worship of the Deities. The melodies and words of bhajans are to carry our hearts to transcendental realm and remind us of the true reality often obscured behind the maya of daily life. It felt as if time were suspended at the New Years’ service. Sri Govindaji Gaudiya Matha was founded by His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktivedanta Narayana Goswami Maharaja, a renowned preacher of Vedic knowledge and author of over a 100 books on Gaudiya Vaishnavishm. The presiding Deities at the temple are: Krishna (Sri Govindaji) and Srimati Radharani; Sri Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu and Sri Nityananda Prabhu; and Sri Sri Sita Rama Laksmana Hanuman. The temple has six regular aarati and darshans every day along with several spiritual classes during the week. Visitors are warmly welcomed anytime and are especially encouraged to attend our Sunday services. We have members from Punjab to Tamil Nadu, Bengal to Gujarat, and places across America. You will find traditional Vedic teachings, worship and values in an American setting. The Sri Govindaji Gaudiya Matha temple is located between the Katy Freeway (I-10), the Northwest Freeway (290), Grand Parkway (99) and Highway 6. It is very convenient for the following areas: Katy, Cy-Fair, Sugar Land, the Energy Corridor, Memorial and Tomball. Every Sunday we have: bhajans and kirtan starting at 5 PM; Hari katha in English at 5:45; Aarati at 7:00 followed by Sri Tulasi puja; and delicious healthy prasadam afterwards. Bhakti Gurukula for children in grades K-12 starts at 5:45. The new Gurukula semester starts from Jan 12th. Hindi classes are at 5 PM. For further information, visit the temple website: www.sggm.org
COMMUNITY
CALL: 713-789-6397
January 10, 2014
FOR ADVERTISEMENT
6
India House and Harris Health System cordially invite you to join the celebration and ribbon cutting ceremony of the
Rita & Bal Sareen Clinic Friday, January 24, 2014 at 6:00 pm sharp 8888 West Bellfort Houston, TX 77031 *Dinner to immediately follow ribbon cutting Free registration is required to attend. Please register at www.indiahouseinc.org/events You can also email to info@indiahouseinc.org or call 713-929-1900 *Note that seating is limited to first 300 registrants. India House Houston 8888 West Bellfort Houston, TX 77031 713-929-1900 info@indiahouseinc.org www.indiahouseinc.org
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
January 10, 2014 MADRAS N PAVILIO T & DAAWA CATERING
Indo-American News
Rao’s Satish CA FE UDIPI
r 28 2011 Octobe Friday,
RAJENDER SINGH OTION INC.
.com -news erican www.indoam
Diwigahlits
INDIA INDIWAORLD P OF THE JUGAL & NI RAJ MALA
No. 43
ndo can IIn Ameri News
CPA DEV PATHAK EL AJIT PAT A INSURANCE COOL BEM AIR AN U
IONS CONGRATULAT TEAM
| Vol. 30,
Del
ON TO
RA. Onse Break Barriers
STAR PROM
SWAPAN YAWAN DHAIR ingCIATES
GUJARATI SAMAJ
page 34
Story on with Fri nds3,9 & 14 ate Diwali ily and Frie into Cash Fam Story on pages ians Celebr / Platinum metal Houston Feasts, Fireworks, Gold / Silver the above le prices $ for all Turn your at affordab on site We pay top Jewelry Festivities, setting done set and Gold
USTON
OF HO 2011
Spr MD ASSO Tap ed Ball rnament Cricket Tou
Infodat
CUP
WAJ BHARAD ! Great ANDY ulations Team India s aretoplayed:
ACC BZCC CMCC
Teams Participating I MCC II LCC ECC HACC HOCC
LCC II MCC I
PCC STYXCC
www.htbc.net
d e Diamon Jewelry repairs and TX 77036 Exclusiv Houston,
ALI HAPPY DIW elers aja Jew MaharJewe lry Store
ESS PRINC CUISINE
matche All Congrat grounds and the boys! job, Dhoni and full rd ball - On fulla pitches - With semi-ha on Saturdays - Exclusively
7
INDIAN
r at a one custome Diamond relationships
ft, 5821 Hillcro
73 713-784-56 s North Deliciou • Serving Indian DishesSizes: & South of All g Events • Caterin ate | Weddings saries Corpor | Anniver Birthdays
time
Building
sh Sati
Subscribe to
s Rao’
ARIAN INDIAN PURE VEGET
m cafeusa.co
www.udipi
d • Adjudge Restaurant ian Indian Best Vegetar 2002, 2003, 2001, 2010 2008, 2009,Press – Houston
CUISINE
ing: • Cater
16 281-914-27
Indo-American News Today
We cover your world!
Name: ____________________________________ Phone: ____________________________________ Address:___________________________________ __________________________________________ Number of Years: (Circle One)
1 $40
3 $100
Credit Card: Master Card / Visa (Circle One) _________________________________________
Your Signature:
Exp Date: ___/___ 3 digit code:______
_______________
Do cut and mail to: 7457 Harwin Dr, Ste 262, Houston, TX 77036 (OR) Scan and E-mail to: Indoamericannews@yahoo.com • Call us at 713-789-6397 • Call us to sign up for E-mail Blast Indo-American News is community oriented. We thank you for your subscription & support.
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
8
COMMUNITY
January 10, 2014
New Indian Customs Forms for All Passengers in 2014
The new customs rules are available from the internet.
LAW OFFICES OF ZAINAB K. RIZVI DEDICATED DEPENDABLE & PERSONAL ATTENTION IMMIGRATION LAW Non Immigration and Immigrant Visa, Family & Employment Immigration. Citizenship/Naturalization, Asylum,VAWA
WILLS/TRUSTS
Power of Attorney, Estate Planning
BUSINESS FORMATION Partnerships, LLC, LLP
WE ALSO SPEAK URDU & HINDI CALL TODAY FOR FREE CONSULTATION
713-297-9131 www.zkrlaw.com
2425 WEST LOOP SOUTH SUITE 200, HOUSTON, TEXAS 77027 Principal office located in Houston, Texas
HOUSTON: According to press reports, with the new year, new rules are in store for travelers to India. All passengers will have to fill in a new customs form on their arrival but returning Indians will no longer have to fill out immigration forms. Indians will only have to fill in the immigration form when they leave the country. “The new forms will be different and separate from the detachable perforated strip which has been part of the immigration card so far”, reported Homi Davier of Xpert Tours as he made bookings for other clients from his office in Little India at 5663 Hillcroft next to Raja Sweets. “New items have been added for declaration of duty as well as a new list of prohibited goods”. For the first time, travelers will have to declare any prohibited articles, gold jewelry (over the free allowance), gold bullion and Indian currency exceeding Rs 7,500 (about $120). Passengers will also have to give details of countries visited in the past six days and mention their passport numbers. Retained in the new form will be declaration of satellite phones, foreign currency exceeding $5,000 or equivalent, aggregate value of foreign exchange including currency exceeding $10,000 or equivalent, meat, meat products, dairy products, fish or poultry products and seeds, plants, fruits, flowers and other planting material. Passengers will also have to give details of baggage being carried by them in a separate column instead of pieces of hand baggage and checked in baggage separately. Among the prohibited items are maps and
MITRA / CAMDEN TRAVEL Consolidators for Turkish Airlines and Asiana Airlines
We have completed 20 successful years 12375 Bissonnet, Ste. B Houston, TX 77099
WHOLESALER FOR S MAJOR AIR CARRIER • Emirates • Gulf Airways • Kingfisher • Singapore Airlines • Jet Airways • Sahara Airlines • Indian Airlines • Eva Airlines We have • Asiana Airlines special low • Qatar Airways • PIA fares on • Air India Jet Airways • Royal Jordanian • China Airlines
Announcement
literature where Indian external boundaries have been shown incorrectly, narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, goods violating any of the legally enforceable intellectual property rights and wildlife products. Counterfeit currency notes or coin or fake currency notes and specified live birds and animals are also prohibited for import by passengers. Passengers of Indian origin and foreigners over 10 years of age residing in India and coming from Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and China are eligible for duty free allowance of Rs 6,000 (about $97); while those coming from other countries are allowed a duty free allowance of Rs 35,000 (about $565). Foreign tourists get a duty free allowance of Rs 8,000 ($129). Indian passengers, who have been residing abroad for over one year, can bring in gold jewelry worth Rs 50,000 ($806) for men and Rs 100,000 ($1,612) for women without paying any import duty. All passengers 18 years and above will be able to bring in up to two liters of liquor or wine, 200 cigarettes, 50 cigars or 250 gms of tobacco as well as bring one laptop or note book without customs duty. Customs duty is levied at 36.05 per cent on the value of dutiable goods that is in excess of the duty free allowance. Officials said that the separate forms will ensure quick and timely filtering of collected information about passengers and avoid duplication of data as well as check on duty frauds and cases of under-valuation, as well as keep a record of gold jewelry and bullion being brought into the country.
281-530-3000 1-888-811-LESS Please call us to get these special fares WHOLESALE CONSOLIDATOR OF QATAR & EMIRATES AIRLINES Call us for competitive and confirmed seats on all major cities in Texas to any city in India.Call us for Summer and December seats now
Last minute fares to Mumbai, Chennai, Delhi, Bangalore, Calcutta and many more...
For December fares please call us now.
Special Student and Teacher discounts www.faregurus.com/ camdentravel@aol.com
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
Indo-American News © 2013
COMMUNITY
January 10, 2014
9
“Thee” – Terrific Tamil Music Video
Released by an all Houston Team Led by Mahalakshmi Krishnan
Mahalakshmi Krishnan
BY NALINI SADAGOPAN HOUSTON: Setting fire to the music scene in Houston is the new music video “Thee” – which translates to “Fire” – released by the popular play back singer Ma-
halakshmi and her team. Mahalakshmi - who has made Houston her recent home since 2010 is a musical breeze that has swept town with her scintillating and mesmerizing voice. Since her arrival, her talent and pleasing persona have made her a much sought after musician among the Houstonites. She has performed around town at galas including the recent IACF fundraiser for a real worthy cause – enthralling audience with her multilingual abilities. Besides a performing artist, Maha as she is fondly known has always had the fire to create something new and exciting. Stretching herself into newer frontiers of music – she composed the tune to her first number recently. A project such as the making of an outstanding music video requires the key ingredients of talent, passion and
team work in equal proportion. The smash hit (released Nov 24 2013 on youtube) which has garnered more than 1500 views in less than 24 hours is proof to such incredible work by the talented team led by Maha. She worked with a team of musicians led by Sandeep Kumrouth in Mumbai to orchestrate and arrange the music with many live instruments; music melodiously mixed by Beno PK. Dr. Babu Sundaram - who is no stranger to the Houston scene and is popularly known as Director Babu based on his successful productions for the 48h film projects, and short movies - set fresh, imaginative and catchy lyrics in Tamil to the tune by Maha. The lyrical value in combination with the catchy and melodious tune was visually captured by Jake Hellbach an extremely talented cinematographer also a Houstonian. The song which portrays the mood of a young girl in love and in anticipation of her lover was pictured in a lovely bamboo garden Caldwell nursery in Rosenberg, TX with Sanjana Ranganathan
a sophomore at Rice University. The all Houston team includes, Priya Chandru, Ila Muruga, Delores Taylor and Barani Venkataraman. Dr. Sundaram wears another feather on his cap as the director and the editor of this production. Under the passionate leadership of Maha the wholesome product has stolen the hearts of not only the local music lovers but also those worldwide through social media. Maha who is a MBA graduate from Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago played a corporate stint with Freddie Mac for a few years, before she decided to pursue the dream of her life – MUSIC - with gusto. Her mom - her musical inspiration and her husband Krishna have been extremely supportive of her efforts in making a difference through music. Her profound training in classical Indian music along with her sonorous voice are her key assets. Maha shuttles between the Indian sub-continent as she records music for well-known music directors in the Kollywood scene and Houston
where she lives. “I thought you miss out on BIG opportunities because you live far away from the Indian music/film scene and that age limits the limelight brought by reality music shows. But if you are passionate about what you do, then you end up making the BEST use of the opportunities that are available to you. Through “Thee”, I have realized that I have won many hearts and I am really encouraged and motivated to create more music”, says Maha, the everyoung looking delight, who has also played a role alongside some popular cast in a Tamil movie to be released soon. “Imagination creates Reality”true to the great German composer Richard Wagner, Maha is passionate to create more reality through her musical imagination. Congratulations and best wishes as we impatiently await more reality music videos from the talented team of Houstonians who make us very proud through their impeccable work.
13100 Southwest Freeway, Sugar Land, TX 77478
www.testmasters.com
281-564-7700
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
10 January 10, 2014
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
COMMUNITY
January 10, 2014
11
Japa Retreat 2013 at Hare Krishna Dham by ISKCON Houston
ART directly on your walls! Hand-painted MURALS for your home or office by
s���T 713-806-7490 www.carolinasart.com
Read us online at
www.indoamerican-news.com Devotees during the Japa retreat 2013.
BY SWATHI MURALI HOUSTON: The holiday season is filled with many happy occasions where people gather together to celebrate love, life and happiness. For devotees of Hare Krishna Dham Houston, this holiday season was made even more special due to the Japa retreat conducted by His Holiness Romapada Swami. Chanting the names of God is a form of worship that is common among all the great religions of the world from Christianity to Islam and is a common practice within Hinduism as well. Devotees of the primeval lord Krishna chant what is referred to as the Hare Krishna Maha mantra. Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare They do this in order to help reconnect with God (Krishna). Many people have a desire to understand who God is and what relationship they personally have with him but often times cannot find the time or means to do so. This retreat provided the perfect opportunity for both obstacles to be overcome by providing the resources needed to enter into your relationship with God. With more than 150 persons attending the three day retreat it was amazing to see how many
Photos: Nawal Sharma
people were more than willing to reconnect to the holy name of Krishna. The three day retreat, from the 27 to 29 of December, was held in the greater Houston area at Hare Krishna Dham (www. iskconhouston.org) where the presiding deities Sri Sri Radha Nila Madhava are worshipped with great care and attention. Many people from all over North America attended the retreat and gained tremendous spiritual benefit from attending the lecturers by HH Romapada Swami, kirtans by world renowned musician and long term devotee HG Bada Hari Das and chanting and hearing in the association of devotees. The highlight of the entire retreat was the 64 round (chanting of 108 times the Maha Mantra means ONE round) day where the attendees, having taken a vow of silence for that day called mouna vrata, worked toward entering deeply into the holy name by focusing all their attention on chanting the Hare Krishna Maha Mantra. This is the day where all the various resources given through the lectures and discussions are utilized by the devotees to reconnect with The Lord through the medium of His Holy Names. The final day and often time the favorite day of the retreat the attendees share their realizations followed by a ques-
tion and answer session which is mainly focused on how you can take the retreat home with you. Unlike other retreats that one might attend, this retreat provides one of the rarest gifts and unveils to you the treasure of spirituality, love of God, in its purest form. Truly, there can be no better way to start 2014 than by re-establishing your transcendental relationship with The Lord in this wonderful way. We wish to take this opportunity to welcome you all to the Hare Krishna Dham Houston at 1320 W 34th St, Houston TX 77018 (713 686 4482) For further details visit http:// www.iskconhouston.org
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
12 January 10, 2014
COMMUNITY
At Upma’s, the Coziness of Singers Wards off a Wintry Blast of Cold Air BY JAWAHAR MALHOTRA SUGAR LAND: The wintry blast of sub-zero air that barreled down through the Southwest could not dampen the characteristic warmth and enthusiasm which Upma Shah and her husband Mukulesh exuded to the nearly 70 people who came to attend the first concert of the New Year in their spacious and vaulted ceiling living room as once again the Shah’s opened up their home to make a cozy hall for the year’s first concert by four talented artists from the Bayou City area. Ever since they moved in 2008 into their house by the lake, with the floor to ceiling 20-foot high glass wall that offers a view of palm trees and the water jet in the lake beyond, the Shahs have wasted no time in indulging in their passion for finding and promoting singers and musicians from the Indian community scattered over our fivecounty area. Every other month, they turn their living room into an impromptu concert venue – the sofas and center tables moved to the side and plastic patio chairs making several rows for the invited guests. Just about anyone can come, as long as they are with a guest, and over the past five years - especially after their kids went off to college – the venue has come to be known as “Upma’s”, not taking anything away from her husband Mukulesh who is always behind the scenes helping orchestrate the seating, sound and stage. But it is more of a testimonial to the passion for music that burns inside Upma, ever since her student days in Bombay, as she seeks out artistic talent hidden in the forests of the Indian community and promotes them in her own style in these musical events. As she is wont to say, “I truly believe that some sort of a divine power is working to motivate me to do this,” exuding a warm smile. Her generosity doesn’t end there: after the performance, she insists that all stay for a delicious Gujarati
The artists performed at Upma and Mukulesh Shahs home on Sunday, January 5. From left: Jayendra Prabhukhot, Sucheta Karandikar, Varsha Habale and Ambarish Prabhukhot. Photos: Jawahar Malhotra
dinner, in which she has been aided for the past few years by Trupti and Kiran Sheth. This past Sunday, January 5, the Shahs featured the musical virtuosity of two women who are talented singers from the Marathi community – Varsha Habale and Sucheta Karandikar – whose voices complement each other. Sucheta comes from a family of talented artistes and though she is mostly a self-taught improvisationist with a melodious voice, she is also taking lessons from Houston’s own accomplished singer Jamuna Murali. Varsha has learnt classical Indian music as a child, taking classes from Mr. Marathe of the Gandharv Mahavidyalaya in Pune and many other famous singers in the city. She has performed in India, the UK and the US and recently at the Brihan Maharashtra Mandal Convention in Providence, Rhode Island in July 2013. Varsha sang superbly, despite some hoarseness due to a lingering cold. Rounding out the ensemble, and providing the music were the father-son duo of Jayendra Prabhukhot whose fingers just whiz over
the table and his son Ambarish who quickly picks up the melody on the harmonium and keyboards. Both are mainstays of Upma’s
Sonali Patil emceed the event entirely in Hindi.
daughters Avni and Neha and the young boy Arun who has been learning table for the past two years.
Kumud S. Nilekani displayed some of the fine one line drawings that she believes a “Divine Hand” guides her in making.
mini-concerts and are well-known artistes who have performed on stage and TV in India. Despite a mishap on an unbalanced stage which cut his upper left arm, Jayendra continued to play with his usual robust way, ending the evening on a high note crescendo with the harmonium. The evening’s performance was emceed entirely in Hindi by the svelte Sonali Patil, a Houstonian for 20 years, who has worked in cancer research for the past decade and is also a certified yoga instructor for the past eight years. “With the entire ensemble being Marathis”, Upma laughed, “I thank you all for your love of music and sharing it with us this evening.” And share they did, for an hour, with a short 15 minute interval for tea and snacks. They went through a repertoire of songs, both classical and many Oldies from the silver screen before Bombay was known as Bollywood. Varsha and Sucheta sang solo and also duets, sometimes taking the roles sung by the male in the song, and the results for the guests were wonderful, judging by their interaction and response. They brought the house down with the last numbers from the movie “Ghodda Gaddi”, all famous hits like “Zera hole hole chalo more sajana” which formed a medley since they beat of a marching horse was the same throughout. Many of the songs resonated in people’s minds long after they were sung. The other break, just after the intermission, was for a much appreciated song “Allah tero naam” sung by Varsha’s two young
The evening also featured a small presentation by Indian American Cancer Network President Kanchan Kabad who gave a brief description of the work and seminars that the group has been holding since its inception to better educate the community about cancer and how to deal with it. She showed her appreciation for the Shahs by offering them, and cladding them, in individual, colorful embroidered silk shawls as a sign of respect for their dedication to brining music and performers to the front. An additional aspect of the evening was the display of large, intricate ink drawings called “one line drawings” made by Kanchan’s mother, Kumud S. Nilekani who discovered that she had the innate skill for drawing though she had never touched a pen until she was in her late sixties. “As I was growing up, I would see my father make these drawings, but I never got into it”, she explained. “Years after he died, I one day took up this a pen and started to draw, all without any prior teaching. It’s as if my father is guiding my hand, it’s truly a miracle, a divine gift”, she added. Now she draws every night, almost all night through, but still feels refreshed afterwards. She sends all the proceeds from the sale of her artwork to the Rotary Hospital in Sirsi, Karnataka. Nilekani sang the invocation before the start of the program and later, just shy of the final song, Meena Kapasi recited from memory the entire shlokas of the Jain Shanti Path in her melodious voice.
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
January 10, 2014
TA X E S
www. sarangs.us
Stop wandering ; instead Stop by at
Any service concerning Federal, All 50 US States & Overseas tax reporting
GET THE RIGHT ADVICE AT THE RIGHT TIME EXPERIENCE…. MAKES THE DIFFERENCE.... INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
13
14 January 10, 2014
COMMUNITY The New OFBJP President Unveils Plans for “Mission 2014 – BJP 272 Plus”
ALEXANDER P. MATHEWS, CPA For Services In:
INDIVIDUAL & BUSINESS TAXES • BUSINESS TAX CONSULTATION INCORPORATION, FORMATION OF LLC CERTIFIED QUICK BOOK ADVISOR AVAILABLE
25 Years in Public Accounting 11104 West Airport, Ste 114, Stafford, TX 77477
(281) 564-9500 TAMPA, FL: Chandrakant Patel, a well-known Indian American community activist from Tampa, Florida, took over the responsibility as the President of Overseas Friends of BJP (OFBJP) in USA from January 01, 2014. OFBJP is the biggest chapter of the Bharatiya Janata Party outside of India. Chandrakant Patel has been leading several ethnic Indian organizations, temple trusts, and other charity organization in various capacities in USA. His dedicated service to the community is well noted both in USA and India. Patel, who practiced law in India before arriving in the US 25 years ago, runs an electronics and microchip manufacturing business called Axon Circuits. Since his childhood days, Patel was involved in social and political arena in India. He held several positions in BJP including District General Secretary and City President. He has been serving as a patron of Manava Adhikar Aayog in Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh since 1985, an organization that conducts seminars and gives annual awards to honest and dedicated bureaucrats and police officers.
Patel does charity work for socially deprived and orphaned children in India. He also runs hostels for poor girls through “Seva Bharati” in his home state of Chhattisgarh. He recognized the importance of education in his remote tribal district in Chattisgarh state and established an “Arts and Commerce College” teaching up to post-graduate level courses and a “Nursing College” in his mother’s name, providing free education to poor girls. He also lends help to the local bar association library and schools libraries in his district. He received several awards for the past several years. As he assumed the responsibility as the OFBJP President, he laid focus on OFBJP planning aimed at helping BJP win the ensuing parliamentary elections in India this year under the dynamic leadership of visionary Narendra Modi and make Modi the Prime Minister of India. Chandrakant Patel reminded that Narendra Modi addressed the annual OFBJP national convention help at Tampa, Florida in September 2013 through a satellite video. “The theme of the conference
was “Mission 2014: BJP 272+”, a reference to the party’s ambition to secure absolute majority on its own in the 543-member Lok Sabha”, Patel said. During the live address to the Indian Diaspora, Modi urged the OFBJP workers and BJP sympathizers to visit the new website www.272.com and learn about BJP’s efforts to defeat Congress and its allies and usher in a new era in India. He said that 2014 elections are not about any post but to wipe the tears of the poor. India272+.com and OFBJP 272.com are online and onground volunteering platform to help BJP in its mission towards gaining over 272 seats, absolute majority in the Lok Sabha. Chandrakant Patel said that OFBJP volunteers in the US will make phone calls to friends and relatives back home in India, and seek their support for the BJP. “Each volunteer is expected to make at least 200 calls”, he said. “Thousands of volunteers are getting ready to work for “Mission 2014 – BJP 272+” in US and some of them are traveling to India to campaign for the BJP”, he added.
For Advertising Call 713-789-6397 INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
January 10, 2014 15 COMMUNITY IMAGH Organizes Seniors Picnic
Saleh Shipchandler
Tyeb Shipchandler
HOUSTON: Club 65 members, an umbrella organization of Indian Muslims of Greater Houston, got together at Discovery Green, to bid adieu to 2013, and have some fun and build camaraderie. Discovery Green is a twelve acre park and activity center in the heart of downtown Houston. Its oak trees are more than 100 years old and were transplanted to save them when the skyscrapers, that one sees dotting the downtown skyline were being built. It boasts of two restaurants, a library, a butterfly exhibit, a dog park, a lake for paddle-boating in summer and ice rink in winter. It also has an amphitheater, beautiful gardens, and rich bric-a-brac. The weather gods were very kind to the Senior Citizens, as during the cold wave that hit the city, the Sun shone brightly, and the temperature hovered around 70 degrees
throughout the day. More than fifty Club 65 members and volunteers, participated in a guided tour of the park, had a catered picnic lunch and snacks, and organized karaoke singing, as well as, storytelling and life stories. Some sat on park benches, while some lazed on sheets spread on the grass; young and old, men and women, also sauntered-off in small groups to discover the hidden corners, all by themselves. The highlight of the day was a hilarious impromptu ‘presentation’ by Saleh Shipchandler who was visiting from India and came to the picnic, with his wife Tahara, to stretch their legs and meet people their age. He talked about how hard it was to learn to pronounce urdu words correctly, when one has grown up speaking Gujarati. He also talked about how Seniors groups in India
Abeezar Tyebji talking about club 65
are becoming popular and organizing many activities for exercising mind, body, and spirituality. The ever popular Tyeb Shipchandler (Kaka) sang a couple of ghazals, and Mustansir Dohadwala , Khaled Razvi and others entertained with jokes, hilarious anecdotes and songs. Afzal Shekhani, who is a new member of IMAGH, came with his family and commented that he wished he had become a member sooner. His two young daughters, Sarah and Adrianne, sang beautiful pop songs. This was also the first time that new members like Deepak and Geeta Bhatt, attended a Club 65 event , and left after making many new friends. They also promised to invite Club 65 members to the next gathering of Gujarati Sarita Sahitya discussion.
Yusuf and Farida Zhumkhawala have recently relocated to Houston from California, and were absolutely touched by the Texas warmth of Club 65 members. They both promised to become active volunteers. Farida Jinnah, Hatim Kanorwala, Ismail and Tasneem Ziauddin, Ali and Sakina Aumir, Idris and Zenab Husain, and Roja Pakal were the volunteers, who made sure that a great time was had by all. The picnic was largely underwritten by Abeezar Tyebji (Chairman, Board of Advisors) and Karim Maknojia, Vice President, IMAGH. To become a member or to volunteer, contact Latafath at 713-269-6171 or at Latafath@imagh.org or visit www.imagh. org
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
16 January 10, 2014
COMMUNITY
Bharathiar and Avvaiyar Visit BKM Houston’s General Body Meeting with a Message HOUSTON: Bharathi Kalai Manram, Houston’s own Tamil organization, celebrated the completion of the current year with the General Body Meeting at Sri Meenakshi Temple on Sunday December 15. During the meeting, Partha Krishnaswamy was officially confirmed as President. Partha thanked the outgoing board (led by Raja Amrithalingam). The meeting was followed with a talent show comprising dance, music, a fashion shown. A highlight of the show was the drama “Vazhgha Senthamizh” (Long Live the Tamil language!) written by Houston’s own script writer par excellence, Chandramouli. The drama opened with a conversation between Tamil literary giants, Bharathiar and Avvaiyar, both keen on knowing the current status of their beloved Tamil language. Known as ‘Mahakavi’ (Great Poet), Bharathiar lived at the dawn of the 20th century and was an Independence activist and reformer. The vigor of his verse was a forerunner to modern Tamil poetry that combined classical and contemporary elements with a prodigious output penning thousands of verses on diverse topics. Avvaiyar, a great 13th century female poet and scholar of Tamil literature is immortalized by her works mostly aimed at children that guide and explain the basic wisdoms that govern life. In the drama, Bharathiar and Avaaiyar come to modern day Chennai and are astounded at changes they see, initially impressed at the economic progress, but
Cast and writer of “Vazhgha Senthamizh” From left: Senthil, Mani, Malar, Chandramouli (script writer), Mala, Prasad).
quickly disheartened with the anglicization of their beloved Tamil language. The skit took the audience through a humorous conversation between the great poets, first with a Chennai auto driver and then a school teacher. In their search of a suitable place that fosters Tamil language learning, both then come to Houston and are pleasantly surprised to end the search in BKM Tamil School. The audience was captivated by all performers with Mala Gopal as Avvaiyar, G.N. Prasad as Bharathiar, Senthil Arcot as the Auto driver, Mani as the Chennai school teacher and Malar Narayan as BKM Tamil school teacher. That ‘language is the window to the culture’ resonated well with the
audience. The drama can be viewed at http:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=8d2J_zE8ek4. Following the drama, the current teachers of BKM Tamil School from various centers, with the respective coordinators from Pearland (Mala Gopal), Sugarland (Dr. Solayappa Chockalingam), Cypress (Kuzhali Arcot) and Durgabari center (Malar Narayanan) were felicitated by Bharathiar and Avvaiyar for their hard work and dedicated service in teaching Tamil to Houston children. All the teachers received trophies and the volunteers received certificates as recognition of their hard work. The event finished off with a lovely dinner catered by Annam Restaurant. The BKM Tamil School centers run a broad curriculum including reading, writing, and popular spoken Tamil language classes. The best of the resources from California Tamil Academy (CTA) and American Tamil Academy (ATA) are used in BKM’s various Tamil Schools with enhancements by BKM teachers to provide an interesting and stimulating environment for the children. For further information, including enrollment in the BKM Tamil School visit www.bkmhouston.org.
Read us online at
Bharathiar (G.N. Prasad) and Avvaiyar (Mala Gopal) in “Vazhgha Senthamizh.”
www.indoamerican-news.com
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
INDIA / COMMUNITY
The Idli Goes to Paris
MUMBAI: It’s not caviar and champagne but the humble idli, vada and dosa that is going places. Muthuswamy, who once supplied milk in Matunga, has Mumbai’s upper crust eating out of his hand, quite literally. Meet the man behind the batter. When big-time diamond merchant and film producer Bharat Shah wanted to throw a party in Antwerp to celebrate the wedding of his son a few years ago, guess who he turned to for catering the food? Not the Hilton or Radisson but Muthukrishnan Reddy aka Muthuswamy of the Matunga Labour Camp, celebrated for his light-as-air idlis and tangy sambhar. Muthuswamy, 58, accepted the order with his characteristic alacrity and flew down to the land of De Beers with an entourage of ten cooks and a lot of cooking vessels. He rustled up the pleasantly pungent Rasam vadas, fluffy idlis, crisp dosas, perfectly spongy panniyarums. The aroma of freshly ground coriander, tamarind and curry leaves wafted in the party hall, and Muthuswamy had the guests, including the who’s who of the diamond trade, licking their manicured fingers. More recently, when industrialist Mukesh Ambani and wife Nita wanted to host a Diwali party at their Rs1,600 crore ($260 m) home Antilla in Mumbai’s Carmichael Road, the self-effacing Muthuswamy was the natural choice. The five feet something caterer, clad in a white mundu and shirt, is a regular fixture at parties thrown by the richest couple of the land. Muthuswamy is also sought after by other biggies of India, including the Ruias and Mittals. The man who started his career 30 years ago by supplying milk in the Matunga Labour Camp-Dharavi area later graduated to selling idlis and dosas at the ramshackle Uma Shankar Hotel in Dharavi, he has since come a long way. His annual turnover runs into a few crores, but he doesn’t like to discuss it. “You know why,’’ he says. Muthuswamy is truly bitter about the high rates of taxation in India.
“Apart from income tax, I have to pay value added tax, service tax, etc. Almost 60 per cent of my earnings goes to the government. It is not worth it,’’ he complains, much like anyone else in the corporate world. Muthuswamy receives 50 to 60 catering orders every month for large weddings, anniversaries, birthdays and JLT (Just Like That) parties hosted by Mumbai’s upper crust. When asked which one was the biggest party he has catered, Muthuswamy replies diplomatically: “Well, all clients are the same for me. What I am interested in is the satisfaction of my clients and their guests.’’ Indeed, gastronomic satisfaction is his USP and pride. Many who have consumed hundreds of idlis in Udupi restaurants, guzzled litres of their sambhar and tasted their fair share of chutneys and masala dosas validate Muthuswamy’s food. His idlis are known for their fluffiness and his sambhar recipe beats the best in the business. Ask for the secret of his recipes and he says, “I do not compromise on quality come what may. I source the best ingredients in the market and prepare the dishes in a traditional manner. I have done my own experimentation and apart from that I have
learnt a lot from recipe books like Samaithupaar. I personally supervise the preparation of all items.’’ His micro-management seems to have paid off. Muthuswamy presides over quite an empire. He has catered parties all over the world, including Belgium, Italy, France and South Africa. In fact, until sometime ago, he would export ready-to-cook idlis and other foods to a company in South Africa, which in turn exported them to Paris, Rome and other European capitals. He has stopped his export business because of logistical issues. Muthuswamy has three sons, one of whom is an aeronautical engineer while the other two are management graduates who help him run the business. They also have plans to expand. A few years ago, Muthuswamy purchased a fast-food joint called Relax opposite Matunga railway station and renamed it Arya Bhavan. It is no surprise that Arya Bhavan is a big hit with the Gujarati, Kutchi and south Indian community in Matunga. Interestingly, it sells idlis called the Brahmin idli and Iyengar idli. Muthuswamy also owns a restaurant in Madhurai called Nellai Arya Bhavan.
January 10, 2014
17
US Presidential Award for Two Indian-American Scientists
Hardeep Singh, M.D., M.P.H., Chief of the Health Policy, Quality & Informatics program at the Houston VA Health Services Research and Development Center for Innovations in Quality, Effectiveness and Safety, and Associate Professor of Medicine and Associate Professor of Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine (BCM). Photo: Examiner
WASHINGTON (TOI): President Barack Obama has named two Indian-Americans among 102 scientists as recipients of a presi-
dential award -- the highest honour bestowed by the US on young science and engineering professionals. The winners, including Karunesh Ganguly of San Francisco VA Medical Center and Hardeep Singh of Houston VA Medical Center, will receive the Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers at a ceremony here next year. “The impressive achievements of these early-stage scientists and engineers are promising indicators of even greater successes ahead,” Obama said in a White House statement. “We are grateful for their commitment to generating the scientific and technical advancements that will ensure America’s global leadership for many years to come,” he said. The awards, established by President Bill Clinton in 1996, are coordinated by the Office of Science and Technology Policy within the Executive Office of the President. Awardees are selected for their pursuit of innovative research at the frontiers of science and technology and their commitment to community service as demonstrated through scientific leadership, public education, or community outreach.
“IT HAPPENS ONLY IN INDIA”
Stay tuned every Sunday,
HIREN JOSHI
to from 2.30pm to 3.30pm
832-646-2116
hjoshi7@hotmail.com
www.shobajoshi.com
SHOBA JOSHI
ON AM 1320 Geetanjali Radio Sat & Sun 2-6 PM For your business ads
Tel:281-909-0825 - 713-545-4749 Cell:832-878-4338 shobajoshi999@gmail.com INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
18 January 10, 2014 Thinking of 2014
In Blake Edwards’ hilarious 1968 film, The Party, a browned-up Peter Sellers plays the bit-role Indian actor Hrundi V Bakshi trying to make a break in Hollywood. We find him in the opening scene as an extra in a historical bigbudget movie. His job is to play a Gunga Din-type bugler who is shot dead by enemy fire as he tries to raise an alarm from the frontline. Bakshi, desperate to leave his mark in the film, keeps on playing the bugle even as he gets pumped by bullets. He convulses, gets up, convulses again and keeps refusing to make his character die a quick death as planned. He keeps dying much after the exasperated director shouts ‘Cut!’ This year has been a Hrundi V Bakshi year. Which is a bit ironic, because ever since 2013 started, we have been really thinking of 2014. Not only does 2014 sound more wholesome than 2013, but it will be shorn of most of those silly ‘serious’ things that people fill a vacuous year like 2013 with. Take the 2014 general elections. For anyone who wanted to be taken seriously in 2013, not asking or responding to the query ‘So will Modi become PM?’ was construed as a mark of being frivolous — the biggest sin, I’m told, that anyone can commit these days. Somehow, the option of replying, ‘I freakin’ don’t know!’ has been considered to be a sign of weakness, on par with not bombing Washington DC in retaliation to how America has treated jugaad-worshipping Indian diplomats. This stupid exercise of asking how things will be will, thank the lord, come to an end in 2014 and we’ll simply know whether Modi will become PM or not, whether Rahul will become Sonia or not, whether Ranbir will marry Katrina or not. The Football World Cup in Brazil in summer may not be the top-of-the-mind event for the likes of Arvind Kejriwal, Mukesh Ambani or Deepika Padukone as it will be for me. But at least for a month starting June, we won’t have to wear the mournful white that we’ve been wearing since Sachin Tendulkar retired in true Hrundi style. “A child born today will grow up with no conception of privacy at all,” Snowden said in a two-minute video. “They’ll never know what it means to have a private moment to themselves...” Clearly, he’s never met anyone who lives in a one-roomer chawl in Dharavi or in a wealthy Indian family nearby where a car or two chaperone you whenever you go on a drive. It has been a particularly Hrundi year and one can expect Indians to answer the question, “Who do you think you are?” — whether from American prosecutors or non-Indian cricket boards — in 2014 with the Peter Sellers’ line from The Party which Indira Gandhi, of all people, loved to quote: “In India we don’t think who we are, we know who we are!” Indrajit Hazra in Hindustan Times
EDITORIAL
Politics as Unusual BY ASHUTOSH VARSHNEY How should one understand the politics of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)? How promising is the AAP’s future, in 2014 and the years to come? Will the AAP hurt only the Congress, or also the BJP? The AAP’s electoral debut is stunning. It won 30% of Delhi’s vote within a year of its birth. It relegated the Congress to third place, eating away 15 per cent of its vote. The AAP also chipped away roughly three per cent of the BJP’s vote, and reduced the BSP, which held great promise, with 14 per cent of Delhi’s vote in 2008, to insignificance. With less money than the Congress or the BJP, and driven by volunteer energy, the AAP has stolen the thunder from an otherwise quite impressive BJP performance. It has rattled the Congress and planted doubts in the BJP’s mind, making it unsure of what lies ahead. Moving forward, the AAP’s quick spread to India’s urban parliamentary constituencies (94 in all) and semi-urban constituencies (122) simply cannot be ruled out. Penetrating rural constituencies (327) — beyond those that exist in the larger neighbourhood of Delhi, especially Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh — by May 2014 will be a tall order. If the AAP gets 3040 seats in 2014, mostly from urban India, it will be the third largest party in Parliament. If it gets 1525 seats, it will still be a force like the BSP, SP, JDU, TMC, DMK, AIADMK or BJD in Parliament. This may or may not come true in May 2014, but it remains a remarkable prospect. The Congress won a large proportion of urban seats in 2009. Riding an anti-incumbency wave, the BJP, especially under Narendra Modi, had hoped to garner most of the urban vote. The AAP might significantly cut into that, hurting not only the Congress but also the BJP. That is why India’s two largest parties feel a deep sense of threat. The AAP’s performance is best described as an electoral insurgency. Only three comparable, though not identical, instances in India’s
AAP is tapping into the worldwide debate variously entitled as: democratic deepening, deliberative democracy, governance, accountability, citizen politics versus clientelistic politics. post-Independence history come to mind: the victory of the Janata Party in 1977, the rise to power of the TDP in Andhra Pradesh, and the AGP in Assam in the 1980s. Each instance was bigger in scale, and also different in key respects. The 1977 Janata victory came after the only post-1947 nationwide suspension of democracy; the AAP has made a Delhi debut, not a national one. A charismatic film star, recognised all over Andhra, led the TDP on the slogan of regional pride; Arvind Kejriwal has no cinematic record. The AGP is perhaps the most similar. It was born out of a student movement, the AAP of an anti-corruption movement. But, like the TDP, regional pride was the AGP’s slogan. The AAP has national ambition. Given the prospect of the AAP’s national rise, we need to pay special attention to the ideology of the party. What can we say? The AAP wants to practice what may be called the politics of citizenship. The party’s Delhi election manifesto and Kejriwal’s book, Swaraj, are the best windows to its guiding principles. Both constitute an indictment of representative democracy, as practised in India. India’s polity comes remarkably close to its citizens at the time of elections, but a seemingly unbridgeable gulf appears between elections. A wooing polity at the time of elections becomes an unfeeling polity between elections. “Is democracy all about casting your vote once in five years and then
letting these parties and their leaders rule the roost?” asks Kejriwal. In formulating the problem this way, the AAP is tapping into the worldwide debate variously entitled as: democratic deepening, deliberative democracy, governance, accountability, citizen politics versus clientelistic politics. These are not the same things, but each points to the insufficiency of electoral democracy. There is, of course, no democracy without elections, but a deeper democracy requires accountability not only at the time of elections, but also during routine, postelection government functioning. Voting is only one part of the modern idea of citizenship. Citizenship also means that individuals have a bundle of rights , especially with respect to health, education and public order. Such rights are entitlements, not an expression of government kindness. Regardless of class, ethnicity or religion, a democratic polity must deliver these services. This is the key problem the AAP wishes to address. “The amount collected by the government in taxes,” writes Kejriwal, “is our money... Those whose salary comes from our money don’t listen to us. We cannot do anything against government doctors, teachers, fairprice shopkeepers, or policemen.” It is this critique, the promise of a citizen-friendly and corruptionfree state, that has begun to excite the imagination of urban India. The AAP threatens to undermine politics as it is practised. But what are the solutions it proposes? The AAP has given the impression of being anti-business. All parties evolve. The AAP also will. As it does, it will have to pay greater attention to policy and institutional designs. Meanwhile, there is no doubt that we have watched a formidable electoral insurgency. The writer is Sol Goldman Professor of International Studies and the Social Sciences at Brown University, where he also directs the India Initiative at the Watson Institute. He is a contributing editor for The Indian Express.
Indo American News FOUNDER: DR. K.L. SINDWANI PUBLISHER: JAWAHAR MALHOTRA EDITOR: PRAMOD KULKARNI BUSINESS & PRODUCTION MANAGER: VANSHIKA VIPIN GRAPHIC DESIGN: AMITHA DEVIKRUPA CORRESPONDENTS
HOUSTON: MALAY VYAS CHICAGO: NAND KAPOOR, INDIA: RAJ KANWAR ®All rights reserved. No material herein or portions thereof may be published without the written consent of the publisher. The deadline for advertising and articles is 4 pm on Monday of each week. Please include self-addressed, stamped envelope for return of all unsolicited material. Published at 7457 Harwin Drive, Suite 262, Houston, Texas 77036. Tel: 713-789-NEWS or 6397 Fax: 713-789-6399, email: indoamericannews@yahoo.com, website: indoamerican-news.com
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
HEALTH
January 10, 2014
How can Women Lose Weight on Hips and Thighs?
19
LEARN TO DRIVE TODAY!
Ganesh Anand Catering Services Pure Vegetarian South & North Indian Dishes. Chaat & Snacks Contact Babulbhai: 832-891-1421 13180 West Park Dr. @ Synott Houston, TX 77082
All of us worry about that stubborn fat around our thighs, tummy or hips. But instead of working out endlessly and trying to go on various diets to get rid of that ugly fat, here is a much simpler option – relax! Deanne Panday, celebrity trainer and author of ‘Shut Up and Train!’believes that the culprit is our hormones (oestrogen and progesterone). In addition to this fact, even small changes in our environment, the way we eat, how much we sleep and exercise – all play a role in determining the amount of fat we accumulate. She says, ‘oestrogen and progesterone are hormones produced by a woman’s ovaries and are vital to their health. These two hormones exist in a delicate balance, and when that delicate balance is thrown off, various health complications can ensue. They play an important role in keeping the waist of a woman tiny and melting away fat in major problem areas like the hips and thighs.’According to her,
oestrogen works against the action of insulin and progesterone works against cortisol. When both insulin and cortisol are produced in excess, they lead to the retention of fat – essentially around the belly. When it comes to your hips and thighs Deanne says, ‘Oestrogen is the main hormone that increases fat around the hips and thighs. But progesterone works with oestrogen to stop this. When a woman is stressed this natural process does not occur. High stress levels means higher levels of cortisol, which in turn depresses the level of progesterone. So if you are a woman and you see fat accumulating around your waist, you need to de-stress and raise the progesterone levels in your body. How to increase your oestrogen levels Oestrogen levels are raised when you have a healthy diet that contains proteins and good carbohyderates in balanced proportions. Another factor
is age. As we age we tend to accumulate more hormone mimicking chemicals in our body. This leads to an imbalance and we eventually end up producing lesser amounts of the essential hormones – oestrogen and progesterone. According to Deanne, having shapely thighs and a tiny waist are the result of a combination of eating right, de-stressing and living clean. All these habits help to put your hormones back in synch with each other, reducing your waist size in turn. She says, ‘Isn’t it nice to know that you don’t have to bust your bottom on the treadmill to lose fat on your hips and thighs? Instead just eat right, lift weights to increase HGH (human growth hormone) and spend a day shopping, or at the spa. Do yoga take up Thai Chi, de-stress – you hips and thighs will thank you for it’. Deanne’s quotes are from her latest book Shut Up and Train! -Healthindia.com
It’s your moment.
No matter your passion, HCC can help turn your dreams into reality. If you’re just getting started, or starting a new chapter, we have the skills and knowledge that meet your goals and your schedule. HCC has convenient locations and hundreds of programs and degree plans. What are you waiting for? Go get it. It’s yours. Your journey begins here.
Classes start January 13 Register today at hccs.edu Learn about our advanced manufacturing program, and many more at HCC.
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM Its your future Indo American News Spring 2014.indd 1
12/10/13 9:55 AM
20 January 10, 2014
PUZZLES / RECIPES
SUDOKU
Place a Number in the empty boxes in such a way that each row across, each column down and each 9-box square contains all of the numbers from one to nine. Send us the correct answer before January 15, 2014 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
L��� W���’� SUDOKU S�������
L��� W���’� SUDOKU W������
Open 7 days a week
1) Pratima Banik 2) Vani Kumari 3) Divya Priya
Mama’s Punjabi Recipes
Ghiye ka Raita (Grated Bottle Gourd Or Squash Yogurt Sauce) There are many types of raita to choose from when deciding on a complement to an Indian meal and the choice often comes down to the effect that you want to achieve with the food. For example, if the food is very spicy and served with roti, then a pudina (mint leaf) raita is probably best to soothe the mouth as the spices go down. If, on the other hand, the meal is composed of rice and vegetables, a boondi (gram flour drop) raita or an aloo raita is a good complement. Never eat moolis (radishes) with yogurt or in a raita as the mooli is a naturally cooling vegetable and is not easy to digest. But there is one raita that goes well with many Punjabi meals, it is the ghiya (squash) raita. It takes a little more preparation but the end result is worth it. It is especially effective in the hot summers as it helps cool you down. When ghiya – also known as kaddu or lauki - is eaten with yogurt it is not only a good filler and great for people watching their weight, but also aids in digestion. Be careful to use the thick, light green squash and not the zucchini squash most usually found in grocery stores in the US. When picking one, check that it is not hard Ghiya is a member of the calabash family of gourds, has a light green skin and white flesh and can be huge and round or slim and long or bottle shaped. It is high in potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, calcium and vitamin C and its juice is considered very beneficial for health. Because it has quite a bland taste by itself, ghiya is often made with other ingredients in an appetizing dish. Ghiya Raita is usually hard to find in restaurants as they mostly serve the easier to make boondi or piyaaz raitas instead, so many younger people have no idea what ghiya raita tastes like. Ingredients: • 500gm saddi dahi (plain yogurt) • 1 medium giya (bottle gourd or squash) • ½ cup doodh (milk) • ½ teaspoon jeera til (cumin seeds) – optional if you like the taste • Spices to taste: namak (salt), mirch (red pepper)
Directions: 1. Peel the squash and then grate into medium pieces.
on the raita (you can also substitute this with powdered cumin).
2. Place in a saucepan of water, and bring it to a boil for 10 minutes. Run through a strainer and collect the grated squash. Let it cool down for a 20 minutes.
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 Punjabi recipes.
3. Place the dahi in a bowl and stir it thoroughly adding the milk to it. If you have too much of the grated squash, save some for use on another day. 4. Add the cooled down grated squash to and mix thoroughly. Add salt and pepper to taste. If you like, roast the jeera seeds on a tava (flat plate), grind them and sprinkle
Mrs. Malhotra would like to give free knitting classes to those who are interested. She has been an avid knitter all her life and has won praises for many of her sweaters, scarfs and other items. If enough people are interested in Knitting Classes, Mrs Malhotra will arrange for a weekly class to be taught at India House on a weekend.
Call: 713-962-5555
BOMBAY SWEETS & Pure Vegetarian Restaurant Mouth watering Indian dishes & Chats Catering available for all occasions 100+ varities of sweets
5. Chill for 10 minutes and serve.
Need Kitchen & Cashier Help The Only Branch in Houston
ner Buffet in D & h c n Lu cold items 21 Hot & ou can eat ll y available Ays a week 7 da
$6.99
Dosas & Snacks PH:713-780-4453 Samosas & Chats 5827 Hillcroft, Houston Texas 77036
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
ENTERTAINMENT
January 10, 2014
Deepika Padukone Spends Birthday with Ranveer Singh in New York
BY APURVA SINGH NEWDELHI: Bollywood’s reigning queen Deepika Padukone, who turned 28 on January 5, 2013, spent her birthday with her rumoured beau and ‘Ram-Leela’ co-star Ranveer Singh. The secret couple was spotted together in New York City by a few onlookers, who tweeted their picture yesterday. Although Deepika Padukone has never admitted to having an affair with Ranveer, the pictures of them together from New York say it all.
Recently, when Deepika was on Karan Johar’s chat show ‘Koffee with Karan’ and was asked on her supposed current boyfriend Ranveer Singh, Deepika said, “Am I dating him?” Karan further asked why would she choose to keep her relationship with Ranveer under wraps, especially since she was so open about Ranbir. “So I think that was a stage in my life where I genuinely believed that that I had fallen in love... I think that it was a relationship that I thought would
go beyond. For whatever reasons…I think we’re very different people and we’re not compatible. For whatever reasons it didn’t work out. And since then I wont say cautious but I think I’m very, very scared to invest emotionally in a relationship, because I don’t know how to just casually date, I don’t know how to be in this in-between dating but not committing. I don’t know that space. I want to be very sure before I’m ready to commit.” -Indianexpress
21
Dhoom 3: First Indian Film to Earn Rs. 500 Crore Worldwide
MUMBAI: With Bollywood films setting new landmarks everyday, Rs. 100 crore seems like a forgotten figure! Dhoom:3, the latest instalment of one of our most successful action adventure franchises, has grossed Rs. 501.35 crore ($83.56 million) worldwide since its release on December 20, 2013. On Monday,Yash Raj Films (YRF), the production house of Dhoom franchise, issued a statement citing figures for the worldwide collections. “Dhoom:3 continues to create his-
tory at both the Indian and overseas box office. It is now officially the first Indian film to cross Rs. 500 crore worldwide,” read the statement from YRF. The movie also broke the record for fastest entry into Rs. 100 crore, earlier held by Shah Rukh Khanstarrer Chennai Express. According to the breakup of the gross box office collections, in India, the action adventure movie, starring Aamir Khan, Katrina Kaif, Abhishek Bachchan and Uday Chopra, has grossed Rs. 351.29 crore, while in the overseas market, it has collected Rs. 150.06 crore ($25.01 million). The collection totals Rs. 501.35 crore. The movie, directed by Vijay Krishna Acharya and produced by Aditya Chopra, is yet to open in international territories like Germany, Peru, Romania, Japan, Russia and Turkey. -Hindustantimes
Uday Kiran: A Case of Suspicious Death, Say Police Apparently depressed over not getting films, Telugu actor Uday Kiran committed suicide by hanging himself on Sunday night, police said. Kiran, 33, is survived by his wife Vishita. Kiran, who acted in 19 films including three Tamil movies, ended his life in his flat at Srinagar colony around midnight.
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
22 January 10, 2014
PAKISTAN
Pakistan’s Truck Art Masters Fret Over Nato Withdrawal KARACHI: Pakistan’s truck artists, who transform ugly lorries into flamboyant moving works of art, fear boom times for their trade could be at an end as Nato winds down its mission in Afghanistan. The workhorses of the Pakistani haulage industry are often ageing, patched-up Bedford and Dodge models, but almost without exception they are lavishly decorated. Elaborate colourful designs, calligraphy, portraits of heroes and singers, mirrors and jingling tassels are skilfully worked onto the trucks by artists such as Haider Ali. In his open-air workshop in the heart of Karachi, a goat or two browsing the dusty ground, Ali sketches out a design for a boat. Others include horses, partridges, tigers, the faces of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto or singer Attaullah Khan Essa Khailvi. “The design depends on the owner of the truck. Everyone wants his truck to be different from everyone else’s,” Ali, who left school to
follow his father Mohammad into the truck art business, told AFP. Truck art has become one of Pakistan’s most distinctive cultural exports in recent years, but it is still not highly regarded at home. “The higher echelons of society don’t call it art but craft, or anything else, just not art,” said Ali. Call it what you will, decorating trucks is big business, haulage firms and lorry owners shell out $5,000, even $10,000 a time to have their vehicles adorned. It can take a team of half a dozen artists nearly six weeks to decorate a truck, not just painting but working up intricate arabesque collages of laminated stickers. Jamal Elias, a truck art expert from Penn State university in the United States, said it represents the largest art sector of the Pakistani economy. “You can’t say the gallery world or textile design begins to compare in size,” he told AFP. But in Pakistan, he said, the artists “are never going to be treated
First Ever
24 Hour
Telugu Radio in Houston
Online at www.radiohungama.net & Every Sunday 12 PM to 3 PM CST On
KCHN AM 1050 Contact: Sridhar Dadi at
281-217-9736
houstonradio@yahoo.com
In this photograph taken on November 22, 2013, a Pakistani truck painter adds the finishing touches to the bodywork of a truck in Karachi. Pakistan’s truck artists, who transform ugly lorries into flamboyant moving works of art, fear boom times for their trade could be at an end as Nato winds down its mission in Afghanistan. — Photo by AFP
as real artists as long as the social structure remains the way it is”. For the past decade, hauliers in Pakistan have been making money by ferrying supplies for the Nato mission in neighbouring, landlocked Afghanistan from the port of Karachi. Profits from this work have meant they have been happy to spend on decorating their vehicles, but with Nato withdrawing from Afghanistan by the end of 2014, the artists fear the good times could be over. “There was a great deal of demand because of Nato trucking, and everyone was trying to get the work, but the decline has already started,” said Ali. Noor Hussain, 76, who has been painting trucks in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, next to Islamabad, for 65 years, shares his fears. “We’re afraid that because of the decrease in trucks circulat-
Job Posting:
ing, people will lose their jobs in our business,” he told AFP. “Because if there are fewer lorries in circulation, we will have fewer to decorate.”Mumtaz Ahmed, another Karachi artist, said business surged under the rule of former army dictator Pervez Musharraf, who gave Pakistan’s support to the US-led invasion of Afghanistan after the 9/11 attacks. A foretaste of what might happen came in late 2011 and 2012, when the Pakistan government shut Nato’s supply routes through its territory for several months in protest at a botched US air raid that killed 24 soldiers at a border post. “We felt a real slowdown when there was the ban on Nato supplies,” said Ahmed. “Things are just getting better now. Nato has meant a good boom for us.”But in a country with
a stagnant economy and galloping inflation, why bother spending so much just to decorate a lorry? “It shows our pride, our love for our job and also that our trucks are in good condition and attractive,” said Mir Hussain, who was about to spend a small fortune repairing and redecorating a truck. The more a lorry grabs the attention with its beauty, the better its owner thinks it will attract clients, though most contracts are granted without regard to looks. Perhaps the real reason behind the slightly shaky logic is the simple love of man for his machine. “His wife may be dying of hunger at home in the village, but the driver will still go ahead and have his truck decorated,” said mechanic Sajid Mahmood. -Dawn.com
NEWS ANCHOR/REPORTER
KTRK-TV, the ABC/Disney owned station in Houston, TX is looking for an outstanding News Anchor/Reporter. The ideal candidate should have at least 3 years experience as a News Anchor and 5 years experience as a General Assignment Reporter. Applicant must display excellent Live ENG and SNG skills, be able to develop contacts, enterprise good, hard news stories and respond well to spot news. This position requires outstanding writing skills and leadership ability as an Anchor during Breaking News. This position will require weekends be worked. This is an excellent opportunity to join a first-class station and live in a fun and affordable city. Candidates must apply on-line at www.disneycareers.com by uploading a resume file. Please Reference Job ID: 157060BR on all materials submitted. Send non-returnable sample of your most recent work to the attention of Human Resources, KTRK-TV, 3310 Bissonnet; Houston, TX 77005 and include the job reference ID. No phone calls please. KTRK-TV is an Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/D/V. INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
January 10, 2014
www.indoamerican-news.com
Friday, June1010, 20142011 .com ry , ews Janua ican-n Friday r e m a indo www.
23
IndoAmerican News
Business IndoAmerican News
STOCKS • FINANCE • SOUTH ASIAN MARKETS • TECHNOLOGY
India Considers Easing Gold Import Curbs NEWDELHI: Indian officials are in discussions to cut a record high import duty on gold and relax rules on exports, government sources said, after the measures helped narrow the country’s trade deficit and now threaten to encourage smuggling. India imposed the curbs last year when overseas gold purchases - the country’s second most expensive import after oil - pushed its current account deficit to a record and undermined the rupee currency. With three duty hikes last year to a record 10 percent and onerous restrictions tying purchases to exports, official arrivals shrank almost 90 percent in the six months to November, helping China displace India as the world’s top gold buyer. The decision to cut the import duty is likely to be taken anytime this month, said one of the government sources, who has direct knowledge of the delibBY SHEKHAR IYER NEW DELHI: There’s nothing sexy about death or taxes unless someone promises to abolish it if you vote for them, an American tax lawyer once said. Forthepastmonthorso,topBJPleaders have been thinking aloud about a proposal to abolish income, sales and excise taxes and replace them with a tax on every transaction made with a plastic card, which they think can sweep every voter off his or her feet. The buzz about the new proposal got louder on Sunday when BJP PM candidate Narendra Modi said, “The present taxation system is a burden on the common man. There is a need to introduce a new system.” Modi said this at an event organised in New Delhi by Ramdev, who demanded abolition of all taxes and pitched for a single banking transaction tax if Modi becomes PM. “Some problems may appear at first sight but we will
erations but did not want to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue. With the current account deficit much reduced and little impact seen on the rupee from the U.S. Federal Reserve’s decision to cut back stimulus, the time may soon be right for authorities to make it easier for gold-hungry Indians to buy. “Earlier, we had argued that we should wait for the Fed’s decision on tapering its monetary stimulus. After the Fed’s decision, we are not left with any strong argument,” said another source with direct knowledge of the deliberations.
The Fed trimmed its monthly bond purchases at the end of 2013 with little impact on the rupee. India’s current account deficit is now likely to be less than $50 billion in the year to March 31, 2014, down at least $20 billion from earlier estimates, the second source said. Even the governor of India’s central bank, whose insistence that 20 percent of gold imports be exported as jewellery has hurt the most, has suggested there may come a time for change. “Once we feel more comfortable with the current account deficit, once we have a sense the tapering, at least the threat of it, is behind us, we will certainly consider unwinding some of these distortionary actions,” Raghuram Rajan said last month. He had also said smuggling would rise if curbs on gold imports continued for too long. Indians are smuggling in more
bullion than ever as buyers seek alternative sources of the metal, which is often given as gifts at weddings and festivals in the country. Between April and September, customs officials seized nearly double the amount of illegal gold taken in the whole of 2012.TheWorld Gold Council estimates about 150 to 200 tonnes may be smuggled during 2013, on top of official demand of 900 tonnes. India’s official imports were 21 tonnes in November, down from 2012’s monthly average of 72 tonnes and sharply below the record of 162 tonnes hit in May, according to Thomson Reuters GFMS. The supply crunch helped drive Indian gold premiums to a record high of $160 an ounce over London prices in early December, versus about $1.30 to $1.50 an ounce in Singapore. Jewellers, who estimate India’s monthly demand to be nearer 60
BJP Plans Uniform Banking Transaction Tax to Replace Income Tax System
find new solutions,” Modi said. His remark assumed significance as BJP president Rajnath Singh and leader of the opposition in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley too appeared inclined to give it serious thought. Last year, the UPA government had come up with a Direct Tax Code Bill to replace the income tax law that is more than 50 years old. But the new bill, a brainchild of finance minister P Chidambaram since 2008, didn’t offer any radical abolition. In fact, the DTC Bill kept the I-T exemption limit unchanged at Rs. 2 lakh for individuals. It proposed a fourth slab with a 35% tax rate for those with an annual income of over Rs. 10 crore, drawing protests from industry and business. A parliamentary standing committee, led by the BJP’s Yash-
want Sinha, which examined the bill, favoured raising the exemption limit to Rs. 3 lakh for individuals and reworking the tax slabs. Last month, former BJP president Nitin Gadkari was the first to hint that the party was looking for an Aam Aadmi Party-type pledge that would rock with voters. The BJP, he said, may incorporate a proposal to abolish income, sales and excise taxes in its Vision 2025 document, which will be released before the polls. Rajnath Singh later came out in support of the idea. On January 2, Pune-based anti-tax group Arthakranti made a presentation to senior BJP leaders, including Rajnath Singh, LK Advani, Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley, former finance minister Yashwant Sinha and Nitin Gadkari, on simplifying taxation
by a flat banking transaction tax. But few leaders are impressed by the proposal apart from Gadkari and Subramanian Swamy, who heads a sub-panel drafting the party’s vision document on economic issues. Sinha minced no words, saying, “We will have to go back to Vedic days
tonnes, have been asking for a duty cut to 8 percent and have the backing of the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, which is leading in state polls ahead of national elections due this year. A final decision lies with Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, who has so far resisted a cut but shifted last week to say he was in favour of continuing “some restraint” on imports. N. R. Bhanumurthy, an economist at Delhi-based think-tank the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP), said: “We have unaccounted imports of gold that are much more damaging for the overall monetary system. It actually creates a huge problem for monetary policy. “Now when they have come close to a comfort level on the current account deficit, there is definitely a need to review this import duty.” -Indianexpress if we abolish income, sales and excise tax.” Jaitley too thought it was a complicated idea and instead favoured rationalisation of the tax system. “You cannot tax the rich and the poor at the same rate. Also, some taxes are collected by states and the Centre. There are legal issues involved too. We need to examine all aspects,” he said at Ramdev’s function. -Hindustantimes
127
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
24 January 10, 2014
SPORTS
Second Test, Pak vs. SL: Will Dubai Have More for Spinners? BY ANDREW FIDEL FERNANDO AND UMAR FAROOQ DUBAI (ESPN Cricinfo): The second test between Pakistan and Sri Lanka: MATCH FACTS January 8-12, 2014, Start time 1000 local (0600 GMT) BIG PICTURE If there is a pitch in the UAE that might make amends for the anticlimactic fourth and fifth days in Abu Dhabi, it is the surface in Dubai. In the last match at the venue, spinners accounted for 12 first-innings scalps and the match ended with a day to spare. Rangana Herath had done marginally better than Saeed Ajmal in the first Test, but in truth, neither were ever really a major threat. If either finds assistance in Dubai, it is unlikely the batsmen can play out another draw. As many as five Test matches have been played at Dubai International Stadium with four ending up with a result. With the series locked at 0-0, a draw obviously will not be a satisfying result for both teams. Pakistan’s biggest aim will be to guard against complacency. Despite taking a 179-run lead in the first innings, they had to toil hard to salvage the match; at one stage they had been in a position to win but Sri Lanka’s batsman changed the game to give Pakistan a scare. Big runs are what captain Misbahul-Haq and coach Dav Whatmore are endeavouring for. Pakistan might be the better bowling side but they still need their batsman to stand up. With Ahmed Shahzad and Mohammad Hafeez, Pakistan’s top order looked to be a settled one but they might tweak the opening combination, bringing in lefthander Shan Masood in place of Khurram Manzoor - who combined 29 runs in the first Test following his previous back-to-back ducks. Sri Lanka’s top order may feel they have an edge, however, if the match becomes a spin-bowling shootout. Ajmal’s 49 wicketless overs in the second innings in Abu Dhabi gave the visiting batsmen an extended view of his variations, and in any case, Sri Lanka have
Ahmed Shehzad drives through the off side, Pakistan v Sri Lanka, 1st Test, Abu Dhabi, 5th day, January 4, 2014.
been Pakistan’s most frequent foe in the past five years. Rangana Herath also bowled over 56 overs at Pakistan during the Test, but he is less reliant on mystery, owing more of his success to flight and guile. Still, Sri Lanka would do well to be count on Ajmal making an impact in what are effectively his home conditions. Sri Lanka’s batting has also strummed up some form in the first Test, where only Dimuth Karunaratne and Mahela Jayawardene failed to cross 50. The challenge to Sri Lanka’s young players is to build consistency into their cricket, particularly as Pakistan will have run their own analysis of each opposition batsman. IN THE SPOTLIGHT Sri Lanka seam bowlers Shaminda Eranga and Suranga Lakmal did not earn outstanding figures in Abu Dhabi, but the discipline they displayed an unsuspected positive. Having come into the series with startlingly little match-practice, they have now also warmed to their work with 87 collective overs. If the surface is as dry as it is expected to be, perhaps they will not be penetrative, but Sri Lanka have sought to build pressure as a unit in recent years, and the
team will hope their long, accurate spells in Abu Dhabi can be recreated in Dubai. The second innings in Abu Dhabi had proved an unproductive one for Saeed Ajmal, the fifth time he failed to take a wicket in an innings. He’s got 34 wickets in Dubai, the most taken by a bowler at Dubai International Stadium and once again expectations are high on him. He remains Pakistan’s biggest threat. TEAM NEWS Lahiru Thirimanne and Nuwan Kulasekara have both left the UAE with injury and Kusal Perera landed in the UAE about 36 hours before the next match is to begin. Having had such success with the batting line-up from the first Test however, Angelo Mathews is unlikely to change his top seven. The only player who may be switched out is Sachithra Senanayake, who had a mediocre debut, albeit on an unresponsive surface. Uncapped offspinner Dilruwan Perera might replace him, but if Sri Lanka believe the grass on the pitch will make a significant impact, there is a chance Nuwan Pradeep could play instead. Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Dimuth Karunaratne, 2 Kaushal Silva,
3 Kumar Sangakkara, 4. Mahela Jayawardene, 5. Prasanna Jayawardene (wk), 6. Angelo Mathews (capt), 7. Dinesh Chandimal, 8. Sachithra Senanayake/ Dilruwan Perera/Nuwan Pradeep, 9 Shaminda Eranga, 10 Rangana Herath, 11 Suranga Lakmal Pakistan’s first-choice wicketkeeper Adnan Akmal was injured during the first Test, and Sarfraz Ahmed has arrived to take his place. Pakistan could play two specialist spinners with Rahat Ali possibly sitting out. Pakistan (probable): 1. Ahmed Shahzad, 2. Shan Masood/Khurram Manzoor, 3. Mohammad Hafeez, 4. Younis Khan, 5. Misbahul-Haq (capt), 6. Asad Shafiq, 7. Bilawal Bhatti, 8. Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 9. Saeed Ajmal, 10. Abdur Rehman, 11. Junaid Khan PITCH AND CONDITIONS The Dubai stadium has some of the most predictable weather in the world, but if any team can bring rain to the desert, it’s Sri Lanka. There has been little sun in the 48 hours before the match, which means there is a chance the pitch is a little less dry than usual. There is a veneer of live grass, but perhaps not enough to alter the fundamental characteristics of the surface. STATS AND TRIVIA Pakistan have won only one match in the last 12 against Sri Lanka, but that victory came in Dubai in 2011 Saeed Ajmal has 34 wickets in Dubai at 20.11. Rangana Herath has three at 39.33. QUOTES “Sachithra and Dilruwan bowl quite differently. Dilruwan turns the ball a lot usually, while Sachithra bowls very good lines and lengths. If we play Dilruwan, that would be his debut as well, and he’d be under the same pressure that Sachithra was. Both those bowlers are good and anyone will be under pressure on Test debut. We’re not trying to knock Sachithra’s confidence - we want him to develop for the future.” Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews. Andrew Fidel Fernando is ESPNcricinfo’s Sri Lanka correspondent. Umar Farooq is ESPNcricinfo’s Pakistan correspondent.
India in 2013: Good Until Last 15 Days
BY SIDDARTH MONGA India have lost a home Test series to England to go with the 4-0 whitewash in Australia earlier in the year. They have lost an ODI to Pakistan, and are about to go down in the home ODI series. Forget a season full of home Tests and only two away, if somebody had told you it would take India a poor session on their final day of international cricket in 2013 to lose their first Test of the year, you would have kissed the hands of that somebody if you were an India fan. Add to it the Champions Trophy, the only ICC prize missing in captain MS Dhoni’s cabinet, and you could be looking at a great year. It was always going to be a year of repair for India. They were struggling with the grammar of Test cricket, had too many slow legs and tired minds, and had about a year of rebuilding before they went into big tests away from home. In a way, the wins at home would lose half their sheen if they didn’t compete against South Africa in the last 15 days of the year. Before those 15 days, though, India had to go through a lot of tough decisions. Towards the end of 2012, Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh, important parts of India’s No. 1 Test side, left the selectors no option but to drop them. That it came to this says a lot about the previous selection committee. The new players who came in brought freshness and hunger. Those qualities alone do not cut it, though. These new players also brought basic skill, and India kept winning, even as the expectations stayed reasonable. Before the last 15 days of the year, India won everything that was really important. There were gains to be looked at towards the end of a year during which India won 29 of the 43 international matches they played. However, all that can’t paper over the lack of bowlers who can stay fit, intense and skilful for a considerable period of time. Siddharth Monga is ESPN Cricinfo’s India correspondent.
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
January 10, 2014
25
Aam Aadmi Party now Takes Aim at Lok Sabha Polls
NEW DELHI: Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has decided to contest the “maximum” number of seats in the forthcoming
parliamentary elections, riding on its stunning success in Delhi where it has formed the government. The fledgling, but fast growing
party, which has attracted a slew of high-profile personalities like Indian low-cost aviation pioneer Captain GR Gopinath and V Balakrishnan, a
former member of IT company Infosys’board, to its fold, said on Saturday that its first list of candidates would be declared over the next fortnight. “AAP will contest Lok Sabha elections in most states. We will try to declare the list of maximum candidates by mid February or latest by the end of next month,” said AAP leader and lawyer Prashant Bhushan on the sidelines of the party’s two-day national executive, which began on Saturday. The decision to contest Lok Sabha seats was taken at the national executive. Bhushan indicated that Delhi chief ministerArvind Kejriwal would not be the party’s prime ministerial candidate, but a final decision would be taken after the Lok Sabha election results. “Arvind Kejriwal is the supreme leader of the party but we have not decided on the name of our prime ministerial candidate. It does not hold importance to us who will be our PM candidate,” said Bhushan. A PTI report quoted Kejriwal, who attended the national executive along with all other top leaders of AAP, as saying that he will not contest the Lok Sabha elections. AAP
would hold meetings in every state to finalize candidates for Lok Sabha elections over the next month. The party would follow the same procedure to select candidates as it did in the Delhi assembly polls. That means each applicant will have to fulfil basic criteria, including collecting 1,000 signatures from the constituency to show he is a known face there. The party opened its application process last week. As the party’s main poll plank is corruption, it would look for honest candidates with no criminal record. “Candidates facing criminal and corruption charges and questions on their moral character will not be given tickets,” Sanjay Singh, another AAP leader, said. Singh said that like in Delhi, the party will have separate manifestos for each constituency for Lok Sabha elections. Responding to a query on whether AAP will cut into BJP’s urban votes and damage Narendra Modi’s prime ministerial aspirations, Singh said the party has emerged as an alternative to Congress and BJP and it is not contesting election to “benefit” or “hurt” any party. -TheEconomicTimes
Will Ease FDI Norms for NRIs if we Come to Power, BJP Says NEW DELHI: Reaching out to overseas Indians before the Lok Sabha elections, BJP chief Rajnath Singh on Monday promised that his party would create conditions to facilitate FDI by NRIs in the country if it comes to power in 2014. Addressing an event organized by the Overseas Friends of BJP on the eve of Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas, Singh said the Indian diaspora was the second largest in the world after the Chinese but its contribution to FDI was a modest 10 to 15%. “You should cooperate in the formation of a BJP government and we will create conditions to ensure that your contribution to FDI in the country will go up to 35-40%,” he said. BJP, after coming to power, would boost the manufacturing sector and could float bonds which would al-
Job Opportunity
Capricorn Travel Requires Full Time Experienced Travel Agent. For Appointment: Please Call: 713-339-2222
low NRIs to invest in this sector, the BJP chief said, adding that NRIs had heavily invested in Resurgent India Bonds which had been floated by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee regime after the Pokharan nuclear tests in 1998. One of the problems NRIs faced was that it was not always easy for them to travel back to India with families to vote. “We feel that NRIs should also be allowed to cast their votes in the embassies abroad,” Singh said. He urged the United States government to have a relook at the Border Security Economic Opportunity and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013 as the visa fees had increased and Indian engineers were facing problems. Singh said there should be a system under which NRIs should be able to get their children admitted to IITs and other institutions of excel-
lence in the country. Slamming the Congress-led UPA government, the BJP president said that it had brought the credibility of India down in the eyes of the world. BJP has leaders with firm conviction and Gujarat had become a model state for development under its chief minister Narendra Modi, who is the party’s prime ministerial candidate, Singh pointed out. Referring to the recent assembly polls in which Congress lost in four out of five states, Singh claimed BJP will get a “clear majority” in the Lok Sabha elections. Among those who attended the event were Mahendra Chaudhary, former prime minister of Fiji, and England based Lord Rajinder Paul Loomba. -Timesofindia
Award Winning Customer Service & Best Rates in Town Proudly Serving For Best Rates to: India, Europe, Cruises & Vacation Packages South Asian Community Toll Free: 1-866-956-0758 - Tel:713-339-2222 for Past 3939 Hillcroft Ave, Suite# 110, Houston, TX 77057 30 Years
CAPRICORN TRAVEL
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
26 January 10, 2014
Job Opportunity
• Office Assistant Interested Candidates Call : 713-789-6397 INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
January 10, 2014
KTRU presents Live in Concert Renowned Sitarist Shri Indrajit Banerjee Belonging to Maihar Gharana (of Late Pandit Ravi Shankar)
Accompanied by Acclaimed Tabla Artist Pandit Shantilal Shah
W i f n o t e s r y R o J
RMC Grand Hall 6100 Main Street Rice University
ow
C
ele br ati ng 22
as ag
T e
Ritu Tarang
h S g n a vr a N Years of KTRU’s Sunday January 19th
5 - 6:30 PM Free Admission
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
27 3
28 January 10, 2014
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2014 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM