Friday, June 28 2013 | Vol. 32, No. 26
Indo American erican News
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www.indoamerican-news.com Published weekly from Houston, TX
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INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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June 28, 2013
Enjoy the clouds,
Enjoy Air China, Welcome on board.
Air China’s four weekly nonstop flights between Houston and Beijing start July 12, 2013. Air China offers the most convenient connecting service to Delhi via Beijing. Visiting your family and friends is easier and more affordable than ever. For a limited time, Air China is offering an economy class fare starting at $1,403 (fuel surcharges and taxes included) from Houston to Delhi. Onboard the new-generation Boeing 777-300ER, your flight is an experience in comfort and style. Individual TV screens and entertainment system with audio-video-on-demand (AVOD), in-seat personal power sockets and ambient mood lighting are few of the amenities in Air China’s economy cabin. In addition to two free checked pieces of baggage for passengers on North America routes traveling to Delhi and Southeast Asia, Air China also offers complimentary transit lounge. Plus, passengers carrying U.S. or Canadian passports can stay in Beijing for 72 hours visafree, enough time to explore Beijing’s stunning attractions before your connecting flight. Contact your travel agent or call the Air China North America Ticketing Hotline at (800) 882-8122 or visit www.airchina.us. Book NOW! Flight
Departure
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Flight Schedule
IAH-PEK
CA 996
1:30
05:00+1
Mon, Wed, Fri, Sun
PEK-DEL
CA 947
20:50
01:40+1
Mon, Wed, Sat, Sun
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3:15
12:25
Mon, Tue, Thu, Sun
PEK-IAH
CA 995
15:00
15:40
Tue, Thu, Sat, Sun
800.882.8122 www.airchina.us
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
COMMUNITY
June 28, 2013
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Eminent Scientist, Professor G. Venkataraman, Talks about Sathya Sai Baba’s Divine Life
HOUSTON: The Sri Sathya Sai Centers of Houston organized a special talk by Dr. G Venkataraman, an eminent scientist, recipient of the C.V. Raman Centenary Award, the Padma Shri award from the Government of India, author of numerous books and articles, and the current head of Radio Sai Global Harmony. Over 300 people attended the one and a half hour talk at the beautifully decorated Durga Bari Temple Auditorium on Sunday, June 23. The main theme of Dr. Venkataraman’s presentation was how Sathya Sai Baba worked tirelessly throughout His life in restoring Dharma (righteousness) and conferring joy and bliss to all who came to Him. Dr. Venkataraman interspersed his talk with over 200 slides comprising of early and recent pictures of Sathya Sai Baba’s institutions along with Sai Baba’s message to humanity. There were three aspects to Dr. Venkataraman’s talk. The first aspect of the talk was based on the fact that Sai Baba was bliss personified, and He gave ananda (joy) to his devotees. Dr. Venkataraman described how Sai Baba traveled far and wide in India and in Africa to confer joy to his devotees. Sai Baba lived like a mortal, but his every action had the fragrance of Atma Bhava (Divine Feelings). He was the personification of pure, unselfish Love. The second aspect of Dr. Venkataraman’s talk was about Sai Baba’s service projects and of the incredible institutions that He built. Sai Baba worked tirelessly to provide free schools, universities, and hospitals for the common man. Sai Baba took on a massive drinking water project that even the Government could not undertake. The project provided free water that benefited over a million people in
31 districts. To fund this project, He even mortgaged his Ashram (residential campus) in Southern India. Such was Sai Baba’s love for humanity. During the havoc created by the Orissa earthquake, Sai Baba constructed 1000 houses for the people affected by this disaster. Sai Baba also gave a lot of attention to his students, encouraging and motivating them to lead a spiritual life. The third aspect of the talk was about Sai Baba’s message to Humanity. Sai Baba implored Man to see God in every person and to realize the Atma (divinity) within. Dr. Venkataraman quoted noted physicist Victor Weisskopf who once said: “[Scientific] knowledge without compassion is inhuman while compassion without knowledge is ineffective.” Dr. Venkataraman said that in Sai Baba’s institutions, there is a special emphasis to impart education blending knowledge and compassion. He spoke about how Sai Baba believed that our lives should exist on the two pillars of “Compassion” and “Knowledge”. These two pillars should rest on a foundation of “Righteousness” with a “Ceiling on Desires”. Man should then lead a life based on Sai Baba’s principle of Love All Serve
Dr. G Venkataraman
All. Dr. Venkataraman said that based on Sai Baba’s teachings, we should come together to form team
Dharma (Right Action), and carry on Sai Baba’s task of Dharmasthapana (establishment of Righ-
teousness) through Prema (love) and Ahimsa (non-violence). The talk concluded with an interesting question and answer session. The talk commenced with melodious devotional group singing including songs in Sanskrit, Hindi, Spanish, and English. The inspiring evening ended with the distribution of (sanctified) snacks (Mahaprasad) for all assembled. Houston area Sai devotees meet at two locations in North and South parts of the town on Sundays from 3:00pm - 5:30pm. They engage in weekly activities that include community service, Sai Spiritual Education classes for children, meditation, study circle, and devotional group singing. For further information, visit www.saicenterofhouston.org.
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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June 28, 2013
Chinmaya Mission Houston Invites everyone for a Jnana Yajna on
SVETASVATARA UPANISAD Mainly reveals the true nature of God and establishes essential oneness with Him.
His Holiness Pujya Swami Tejomayananda (Spiritual leader of Chinmaya Mission worldwide)
“Alphabet Connection” Play by Bal Vihar Students
Sat, July 6 - 7:30pm
Stafford Centre 10505 Cash Road, Stafford, TX-77477 Tickets: $25, $50 & above.
For more information visit: www.chinmayahouston.org Or Contact: Bharati Sutaria 281-933-0233 Jay Deshmukh 832-541-0059
Discourse Schedule
July 7 to July 12
July 13
9:00am – 10:00am 9:00am – 10:00am 11:00am – 12:00 Noon 11:00am – 12:00 Noon 7:30pm – 8:30pm Open To All (Adults Only). Admission Free. Chinmaya Mission Houston Chinmaya Prabha, 10353 Synott Road, Sugar Land, TX 77478 Tel: 281-568-9520
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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COMMUNITY
June 28, 2013
BY MANU SHAH HOUSTON: Karun Sreerama’s father joined law school after he retired from the Indian Railways and his mother has eight post graduate degrees to her credit. So, it should come as no surprise that Sreerama is a gold medalist from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee, one of India’s premier engineering colleges; has two Masters in Engineering, a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering, an MBA, and a Professional Engineering license and was one of 12 students selected for the prestigious Cambridge Nehru Scholarship program in the UK. But his highest qualification is that he still doesn’t take himself too seriously: he has a perennial twinkle in his eye, a ready laugh and a quick wit. According to Sreerama, going to Cambridge was a “childhood dream” come true and an indelible memory today. He got to work on a centrifuge, the only one in the free world at that time, saw the desk in the science lab where James Watson and Francis Crick worked on the ground breaking DNA double helix discovery, met Nobel laureates like Subrahmanyan Chandrashekar and literally did a double take when he passed Stephen Hawking in the corridor! However, Britain’s limping economy and tepid job prospects spurred Sreerama to move to Missouri in the US in 1986 where he started work on his Ph.D. As part of his assistantship, he taught some Continuing Education courses and during one such course, a man in the audience invited him out for dinner. The prospect of a good meal persuaded Sreerama to agree and by the end of dinner, he had also agreed to the man who happened to be with from Law Engineering, an Atlanta based firm, to a three month summer job with the company’s South Carolina office analyzing paper machine foun-
company to KCI Technologies, a Baltimore based company which for years was looking to break into the intensely competitive Houston market. The offer was irresistible! KCI retained Sreerama as President of its subsidiary, ESPA, and other than a piece of paper exchanging hands, not much changed. In fact, Sreerama looks at it positively as with more manpower at their disposal, the Company can now go after bigger projects. A strong give-back philosophy led Sreerama to get involved with, and on, the Board of several organizations such as the Interfaith Ministries of Greater Houston, the HCC Foundation which helps to raise scholarships for deserving students and more recently the Indo American Political Action Committee of which he is President-Elect. In this role, Sreerama and other key members of the organization have been talking to several Congressmen to remove the US cap on LNG exports to India which would help India save billions of foreign exchange dollars. The response has been extremely positive and Sreerama hopes that the cap will be lifted next year. To cap it off, two weeks ago, Sreerama became the first nonAnglo President of the American Council of Engineering Companies of Houston (ACEC-Houston) – an organization that is the voice of and protects the interests of Houston’s engineering community. In this one-year term position, he hopes to continue the work of providing engineering solutions to the community, while at the same time taking into tackling the issues and concerns of local people, to ensure a mutually beneficial relationship. He also hopes to incorporate more Green designs to engineering projects as well as increase the community outreach of the organization.
Satisfied as an Engineer, but a Yearning to Help Society Opens Other Doors
Karun Sreerama with wife Lakshmi, son Abhijit and daughter Vijetha.
dations. The experience proved to be invaluable and boosted his confidence and also turned out to be providential as Sreerama took a job with the company in its Houston after finishing his Ph.D. In the late eighties, computer technology was making great inroads and the general assumption was that the world was on its way to becoming paperless. Paper production reduced drastically but a paperless world didn’t quite materialize, as personal computers pushed up printing and paper usage. To keep up with demand, for the next 5 years Sreerama travelled all over the country designing and building paper machine foundations for several companies. He also helped design over 600 towers for cell phone companies - there’s a good chance that one of his designs is in the Greater Houston area.
Career wise, Sreerama felt he was plateauing out as Chief Engineer at Law Engineering, and PSI (an Illinois based firm) the companies he was working for, and the itch to start something on his own was getting stronger. The opportunity came in the form of ESPA CORP – an engineering and architectural firm in Houston started in 1981 by among others, Harris County Commissioner El Franco Lee, that was up for sale. Sreerama bought the firm, revamped the business with a focus on quality and client satisfaction and went on to double the revenues. Over the past five years, ESPA racked up construction projects - such as the second phase of the George R. Brown Convention Center, the Bush International Airport expansion and the additional Houston Metro Light Rail lines - worth a staggering 2 billion construction
dollars! However it’s the latest project that has Sreerama positively animated – the restoration of the historic 100-year old San Jacinto High School, now called the Houston Community College’s San Jacinto Memorial Building, on the Central Campus on San Jacinto and Holman. The original drawings of the building were not preserved so the team had to do their own surveys and go back to their computers and recreate the drawings. The end design created a state-of-theart renovated interior while maintaining the historical character of the exterior facade. Sreerama is totally enthused about the 100year old beautifully etched copper panels that were found, a fountain on the second floor and an antiquated music organ embedded in the walls of the auditorium. Last year, Sreerama sold his
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, JUNE 28, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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June 28, 2013
Uttarakhand Disaster
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INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM Learn More Indo American News Summer2013.indd 1
4/30/13 1:29 PM
June 28, 2013
All A lll W World ld dG Gayatrii P Pariwar, i H Houston Representatives from Shantikunj, Haridwar, India will perform Gayatri-Yagya Program 24 Kundi Gayatri MahaYagya Followed by MahaPrasadam 611 Walker St., 7th Floor - Houston, Texas 77002
Last fiscal year, the City of Houston awarded over $339M to certified Minority, Women, Small, and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises. The City wants you to be a part of future awards. Get Certified Now!
Pre-Certification Workshop Held Every Thursday at 2pm!
Saturday, 6th July, 2013, 4:00PM Venue: Gauranga Hall, Hare Krishna Dham 1320 West 34th Street, Houston, TX-77018
CONTACT US: The Office of Business Opportunity is committed to creating a competitive and diverse business environment in the City of Houston by promoting the growth and success of local small businesses, with special emphasis on historically underutilized groups by ensuring their meaningful participation in the government procurement process.
EDUCATE. CONNECT. GROW.
CENTER FOR GAYATRI CONSCIOUSNESS 5645 Hillcroft, Suite 307, Houston , TX 77036
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Mahesh Patel (281-954-4275); Sangita Tailor (281-304-0727) Garima Doshi (313-550-9121); Sunita Dilwali (781-698-9750)
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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COMMUNITY
June 28, 2013
Hindu Youth Awards on July 13
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tinued to contribute in strong ways. Tejas Dave, a 2011 recipient, is now in UC Berkeley undergraduate studies and Coalition of Hindu Youth network coordinator and presently an intern at Tulsi Gabbard’s office. Vidha Dixit, a 2012 recipient, is a Tier One scholar at the University of Houston, and will be attending Bauer Honors Program in the fall and continuing to work with Hindus of Greater Houston. Kavita Pallod is an Executive Council member of the Hindu American Foundation. The Chief Guest for the event will be Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, the first Hindu Representative (D-HI 2nd District) from Hawaii. HGH has worked to ensure that the Youth award event is presented, organized and conducted mainly by youth and their participation. The event is also free Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard to youth, while sponsorship tables will be HOUSTON: The Hindus of Greater available with donation to Hindus of GreatHouston (HGH) will hold the Hindu Youth er Houston. Awards Gala on Saturday, July 13 at the With the generous support of patrons in VPSS temple at 11715 Bellfort Village Dr., the community the Hindus of Greater HousHouston, TX. ton holds variety of events that benefits the HGH is proud to recognize the achieve- Hindu Community throughout the year. We ments of Hindu youth in the community, hope you will join us in celebrating the exand their various contributions of service cellent achievements of our youth. and leadership. “They are the future leaders Hindus of Greater Houston appreciates of our community, and it is pertinent that we your generous donation and continued supencourage them to keep up their great work port. This year in commemoration with and contribution to society ”, said Richa celebrations of 150th Birth anniversary of Dixit, coordinator of the event. This is third Swami Vivekananda, HGH will be celebrattime the gala is being celebrated thanks to ing the Janmashtami festival on Sep 7 at the tremendous response of organizations George Brown convention center. whose youth are being recognized. For details visit website www.hindusofThis year six youth will be celebrated for houston.org their service to the community and one organization will be recognized that has proFor further information on Youth Awards vided outstanding contribution in education please contact Richa Dixit at 832-451-7206 and development of youth. or Gaurav Ved at 832-475-2177. Recipients from prior years have con-
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INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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COMMUNITY
June 28, 2013
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The 2013 MetLife South Asian Spelling Bee Reaches Texas Dallas & Houston Winners Announced HOUSTON: The 2013 MetLife South Asian Spelling Bee (www. SouthAsianSpellingBee.com) continued its 12 city tour this past weekend reaching Texas with events in Dallas and Houston. With a huge turnout this year as well, the bee attracted some top talent as well as young and new spellers that competed for the coveted prizes and titles. “It is very heartening to see that each year we get fresh faces and new talent which is a continuing testimony to our community’s strength in this craft,” said Rahul Walia, Founder - South Asian Spelling Bee. In Dallas, Chetan Reddy from Plano, TX was the regional champ and Lokesh Nagineni from Flower Mound, TX was the first runner up while Ansun Sujoe from Fort Worth, TX was second runner up. “All the families should be proud of the skills these children demonstrated,” said Matthew Cranston, a registered representative from the Dallas office of New England Financial, which is a MetLife company. “By challenging themselves in this manner, these students saw the potential that can be unlocked through hard work, talent and dedication.” In Houston, Shobha Dasari from Pearland, TX was the regional champ and Shourav Dasari from Pearland, TX was first runner up while Himanvi Kopuri from Denver, CO was second runner up. “MetLife congratulates all of the families who took part in this year’s event. We were so pleased to see how many families participat-
From left: First Runner Up Shourav Dasari of Pearland, TX alongside Regional Champ Shobha Dasari of Pearland, TX; Second Runner Up Himanvi Kopuri of Denver, CO with Rahul Walia, Founder of the South Asian Spelling Bee.
ed in both the Dallas and Houston competitions,” said Omar Saeed, LUTCF, a financial services representative who works at MetLife’s Houston office. Along with MetLife, airline major Air-India and education company C2Education have also come on board as sponsors for this event. The winners received cash prizes of $500, $300 and $200 respectively. Children up to 14 years of age are eligible to participate and the contest saw spellers of even 6 years of age compete and make it past a few rounds. There are 10 more cities on the anvil and for more information and to register your child, please visit www. SouthAsianSpellingBee.com.
The top two winners plus one parent each from every city will be given an all expenses paid trip to NJ on August 17 for the finals. SONY Entertainment Television Asia is the exclusive broadcast partner for the MetLife South Asian Spelling Bee and will be airing the series across 120 countries. Find us on Facebook at South
From left: Regional Champ Chetan Reddy of Plano, TX alongside First Runner Up Lokesh Nagineni of Flower Mound, TX; Second Runner Up Anjun Sujoe of Fort Worth, TX with Rahul Walia, Founder of the South Asian Spelling Bee.
Asian Spelling Bee and you can follow us on our Twitter handle at Spell South Asian. To reserve your free passes to the Finals, please log on to www. SouthAsianSpellingBee.com and fill in your details. About Touchdown Media Inc.: Touchdown Media Inc. is a specialized South Asian advertising and promotions firm based in New
Jersey. Now in its 10th successful year, Touchdown has helped clients- both mainstream and otherwise, reach out to the lucrative South Asian market, Touchdown Media represents more than 35 years of collective experience in this niche market. As a full service ad firm, Touchdown has helped many clients achieve their media and marketing goals within the South Asian Diaspora in the US.
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INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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COMMUNITY
June 28, 2013
Convention of Aligarh Muslim University Alumni in Houston
Lt. Gen. Zameer Uddin Shah, Retd.
Read us online at
www.indoamerican-news.com
HOUSTON: The XIIth annual convention of The Federation of Aligarh Alumni Associations will be held in Houston from June 28 June 30 at Crowne Plaza Houston River Oaks Hotel. The event will be organized by Texas chapter of the federation, Aligarh Alumni Association of Texas. At the convention, representatives of various AMUAAs, researchers, business executives and academic experts will analyze and offer solutions to challenges faced by AMU, its student body and alumni. At every annual convention, a large number of Alumni, of all affiliations and professional backgrounds, from across North America gather. Representatives of each association make presentation on their activities of the past year; discuss plan for the upcoming year, and more importantly create consensus to align their goals to better serve the community they represent, and their Alma Mater. The three day event includes meetings, presentations, and thoughtful discussions. It culminates with a Gala Dinner on Saturday, June 29. The Gala Dinner is open to all and local community members are encouraged to attend the dinner and meet the distinguished guest. Detailed information is available at www.aligs.org or call 713530-8696. Consul General of India, Hon. P. Harish is the Honorary Guest at the event. Famous Ghazal singer, Udayan Parikh is the featured entertainment. The Chief Guest of the event is the current Vice Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University, Lt. Gen (Retd.) Zameer Uddin Shah. He is flying in from India to meet the Alumni and apprise them of his vision for AMU. He also wants to channel the expertise and resources of the Alumni settled in USA and Canada, for the development of the University. Among the many projects he has initiated since taking over the helm at Aligarh is to develop a strong Alumni liaison group, and to use the success of its alumni for both networking and improvement of infrastructure. Lt. Gen. Zameer Uddin Shah, is an alumnus of St. Joseph’s College, Nainital, National Defense Academy, Khadakvasla, Defense Services Staff College, Wellington, Army War College, Mhow and National Defense College, New Delhi. He has held prestigious command, staff and instructional appointments in his unblemished career of 40 years in the Army. He was appointed Deputy Chief of Army Staff on Oct 06, 2006, He became the Vice Chancellor of AMU on May 17, 2012.
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
COMMUNITY
June 28, 2013
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Mesmerizing Indian Ragas from Classical to Fusion
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for Jewelry Store. Must speak Hindi & be good in Math. Please Call: 713-789-7575 BY SANCHALI BASU HOUSTON: It was an eagerly awaited event and when it happened it delivered beyond expectations. On June 15, 2013, the Tagore Society of Houston, in partnership with Houston Arts Alliance and the City of Houston, presented to music lovers an enchanting melodious evening with music maestros from India: Pandit Tejendra Narayan Majumdar on sarod and Pandit Tanmoy Bose on tabla. The event was held at the Kaplan Theater in the Evelyn Rubenstein Jewish Community Center. For about 3 hours this duo of musical genius - representing combination of intellectual density and technical virtuosity in their instruments - carried the audience through
followed by fast tempo Gat in Ektal and ending in a dramatic and breathtaking Jhala in Ektal. After a short break and snacks, the melodious evening culminated into a mesmerizing musical night. For this half of the program, the maestros continued with a Raagmala based on raag Zillakafi in medium tempo and fast tempo during an enchanting exchange of Sawal-Jabab between the sarod and tabla, bringing the audience to their feet in overwhelming applause. The Raagmala continued with glimpses of raags Desh, Hambir, Kedar and Darwari Kanada. The artist’s control on taal, intriguing rhythmic intricacies and finesse in captur-
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a mesmerizing musical journey beyond any geographical, cultural or musical boundary. Both artists embody, exemplify and personify a growing trend of Indian music transcending borders and boundaries through assimilation, expansion and experimentation. While they were trained from a very early age in intense and traditional classical Indian music, both have made significant impact on international stages by breaking the barriers of tradition, at the same time preserving and blending it with modern trends in a way that captivates audiences.. The evening began with TSH’s President Dr. Ruma Acharya welcoming the artists and the guests. One of the cultural coordinators of TSH, Chandana Guha introduced of the artists and their accomplishments. The first half of the program began with Pandit Majumdar playing the raag Jhinjhoti through Aalap, Jode and an exciting, vibrating Jhala. In the second piece Pandit Bose joined on with the tabla in a rhythmic composition in Rupaktaal medium tempo
ing and expressing the particular sentiment of the raagas added to the intensity of the program and left the audience enthralled for more. At audience request, the duo ended the evening with a mesmerizing rendition in raag Bhairavi in medium and fast tempo. An unforgettable experience resulted after Acharya requested Pandit Bose for a piece of fusion music, who then played snippets from his world music project Taaltantra, showcasing familiar sounds through unfamiliar media, inspired by Congo beats of African percussion. The blend of traditionalism and modernization of Indian music is resoundingly represented by these two musical geniuses of current India. As expected, the performance left a memorable mark on the Houston audience, of this emerging trend of music in India, which, while true to its classical roots is not afraid to experiment and expand, with Pandits Majumdar and Bose as leading pioneers and pathfinders.
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Visa, OCI, PIO and Renunciation Certificate Support Services Outsourced to BLS HOUSTON: As IAN reported last week, Embassy of India in the USA has awarded new contract to BLS International Services Limited for providing Visa/OCI/PIO/ Renunciation of Indian Citizenship Certificate application support services, to be operational from July 1. The current service provider, Travisa Outsourcing, will be closing its services on 28 June at all Embassy and Consulate locations. Applications in person will be accepted by Travisa Outsourcing only upto 27 June. Only Emergency Visas will be entertained by Travisa Outsourcing on 28 June. All applications sent through mail will be accepted by Travisa Outsourcing upto 21 June. Applicants, who propose to send their applications by mail thereafter, may send them so as to reach offices of the BLS International Services Limited at jurisdictional locations on July 1 or thereafter. It may also be noted that Banker’s checks accompanying these applications are drawn in favor of BLS International Services Limited. Applicants, who already submitted their applications to Travisa, may check status of their appli-
cations from Travisa till June 28. Pending cases, thereafter, will be transferred to the BLS and can be tracked from their website for status and delivery. Central Call Center details of the BLS International Services Limited are as follows: 8886837830: BLS - Washing ton/ New York/ Atlanta 8886837831: BLS - Chicago/ Houston 8886837832: BLS - San Fran cisco Website of BLS International Services Limited is http://www. visa.blsindia-usa.com. It will be operational starting 25 June. Addresses of the BLS offices at different locations are as follows: Washington, DC: 220 Eye Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 New York: 13 East, 37th Street, Between 5th and Madison, NY 10001 Chicago: 55 West, Van Buren, Chicago, IL 60607 Houston: Suite 515, Level 5, 1235, North Loop West, Houston, Texas 77060 San Francisco: 4239 Geary Street, SFO CA - 94118
Atlanta: 5775, Glenridge Drive, Building B, Suite 380, Atlanta, Ga 30328 Due to some technical reasons, Visa services at Atlanta Consulate jurisdiction would begin from 18 July. Visa applicants from the states under the Atlanta jurisdiction may continue to submit applications as per the current Visa jurisdictions until 17 July. However, OCI/PIO/Renunciation services would begin at Atlanta Consulate jurisdiction location from July 1. Consular jurisdiction of Consulate General of India, Houston over the following states would cover the full range of Passport, Visa, OCI, PIO, Surrender Certificates, Miscellaneous services and Consular outreach activities: Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas. Consulate General of India, Houston would provide Visa services outside its consular jurisdiction until 17 July for the states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Mississippi.
Four Leading Asianet Channels Launch Exclusively on DISH ENGLEWOOD: DISH, one of the nation’s leading pay-TV providers, announced the launch of Asianet, Asianet Plus, Asianet News and Asianet Movies to its lineup. As the U.S. leader in international programming with more than 280 ethnic channels in 29 languages, DISH is the exclusive satellite pay-TV platform to offer this leading Malayalam-language content. Additionally, DISH’s broadcast of Asianet Movies marks the U.S. premiere of this popular Malayalam film channel. “We are pleased to exclusively offer this programming on satellite and proud to debut Asianet Movies for the first time in the U.S.,” said Sruta Vootukuru, director of international programming at DISH. “DISH has long offered an impressive South Asian channel lineup, and we are dedicated to the consistent pursuit of the best news and entertainment tailored
to a variety of language groups.” Commenting on the launch, Managing Director of Asianet Cummunications Limited, K Madhavan stated, “When Asianet entered the US market in 2003, our overarching goal was to expand the presence of our special programming. Partnering with DISH to launch the Asianet channels allows us to realize this dream of providing yet another incredible addition to the lineup of Malayalam content in the United States”. The Malayalam Asianet programming package is now available to customers for $24.99 per month. Effective June 20, all Malayalam: Mega Pack or Surya a la carte customers will be eligible to subscribe to Asianet as an add-on package for a monthly price of $15. Asianet channel descriptions are listed below. Asianet (channel 784) is the leading Malayalam-language gen-
eral entertainment channel with a wide variety of popular family, teen and children’s programming, including movies, music, soaps, reality and talk shows. Asianet Plus (channel 785) features entertaining movies, reality shows and music programming for the whole family. Asianet News (channel 787) is the top Malayalam news channel, with a strong team of experienced journalists and an extensive network of news bureaus. As one of the oldest news channels in India, Asianet News stands tall amid the clutter of Kerala news stations as the most trusted source for timely information. Asianet Movies (channel 788) is a new and only 24hour channel devoted to showcasing Malayalam movies. For further information contact 888-229-8173 or visit www.DISHMalayalamTV.com.
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Deva Snana Celebrated at Durga Bari HOUSTON: With much pomp and ceremony, Deva Snana, bathing ceremony of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra was celebrated at Durga Bari on Sunday, June 23. Deva Snana is the day the deities are bathed with 108 pitchers of water brought from the well in the precincts of Puri Jagannath temple. After the bath, the deities dress up in Ganesha Vesha. This day is also known as the birthday of Lord Jagannath. The same rituals were performed at Durga Bari by Dr. Bishnupada Goswami. Special deities (2.5ft tall) were ordered from Puri for this occasion. They were made exactly the same way as those in the Puri temple. There are seven layers between wood and paint which makes the deities living entities. After the bath, the deities were dressed in Ganesha Vesha. About 300 people attended the ceremony and were treated to some beautiful Kirtan from ISKCON and melodious bhajan from Sonali Mohanty. Then the devotees enjoyed delicious lunch Prasad, prepared by Durga Bari volunteers. After the ceremony, the deities were placed in Anabasara, where the devotees can’t see them until Rath Yatra, which will be celebrated on Saturday, July 13, which is being organized jointly by Char Dham Hindu Temple, Houston Durgabari Society and ISKCON. There will be 2 events on Saturday, July 13. Morning 9AM to 2PM, Rath Yatra will be celebrated at Durga Bari. Devotees can pull the chariot and enjoy free lunch Prasad. The same evening, from 5PM to 9PM, for the first time in Houston, Rath Yatra will be celebrated at Discovery Green, symbolizing it’s accessibility to all Houstonians and underscoring the fact that Jagannath is the Lord of the Universe. Also for the first
time, 3 separate chariots will be used. The carts, designed in Puri and assembled here under the supervision of Dr. Surya Sahoo, are replicas of the ones in Puri. Kirtan parties comprising of devotees from Houston, Dallas and San Antonio will perform in front of each chariot. The highlight of the evening will be “The Mayapuris”, the most talked about group in the Kirtan genre. In addition, there will be Masala Bhangra, Indian Semi Classical dance, Bharath-
natyam, Royal Scottish country dance, Polish dance and Chinese folk dance, celebrating cultural diversity of Houston. Yoga meltdown session, free health screening like BP Check, face painting & balloons for children and air brush tattoos for all ages and free Prasadam feast round out the celebrations. For further details, visit greaterhoustonrathyatra.org or iskconhouston.org or durgabari.org. See ad on Page 28.
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Graduation Ceremony at Chinmaya Mission Houston BY UMA AGGARWAL & VINOD SHARMA HOUSTON: Sunday June 9 was a day of joy and tears at the same time, at the Chinmaya Mission. Joy because the 12th graders of Bal Vihar were celebrating their successful completion of Bal Vihar curriculum and also various achievements of many years, tears because it was time to say good bye to the graduating Bal Vihar children who are leaving town soon to join Universities. Some children had been with the Mission for almost 13 years starting as toddlers in Pre-K. The festivities started with a Puja at Sri Saumyakasi Sivalaya performed by Priest Sri Ganeshji, followed by melodious procession back to the Chinmaya Smrti Hall where Acharya Sri Gaurang Nanavaty delivered the message of Taittiriya Upanisad. Message from this Upanisad is more than 5000 years old, but more relevant now than ever before. Acharya Gaurang Nanavaty stressed the true meaning of upholding truth, and talked about performing your duty no matter what, because this protects the right of other person automatically.
Photo : Jayesh Mistry
He also stressed upon scriptural command to continue our spiritual study and to make time for it to stay inspired and motivated in our pursuit of a higher goal. He added that we need to graciously share our God-given gifts with those who are less fortunate or are in need, with modesty and without desiring recognition. His words were Powerful and moving, and
this was a loving farewell gift to the high school graduates as they are embarking on their higher education and careers. Next Acharya Gaurang Nanavaty and Darshana Nanavaty lit the symbolic lamps of knowledge to dispel the darkness of ignorance. The discourse was serious and thought provoking, but what followed was good humored and in-
formative. A power point presentation, giving a brief overview of each participant was shown to the audience while the graduates also lit the lamp of knowledge signifying the passing of the knowledge from teacher to the student. They walked on the stage and received a Trophy from the Acharyas for successfully completing the Bal Vihar course. “Always learn to put your
mind where your hands are working. Love Swami Chinmayananda”, these were the words inscribed on the plaque. The power point presentation drew applause and laughs from the audience as some of the graduates had added their own humor and wit to it. Some of the students had inspiring quotes in the presentation, for example Shivam Bemalkar’s favorite quote was, “How can sky be the limit where there is footprints on the moon? – Logic.” Utsav Nigam’s favorite quote was, “Some are destined to succeed, some are determined to succeed.” – Swami Tejomayananda. When it came to favorite moment at Chinmaya Mission, Holi and Lock ins were most popular, but one that drew applause was, “Seeing Darshana Aunty smile” by Utsav. The festivities concluded with Ice cream and cake served by Graduates to their teachers and audience. For further information on Chinmaya Mission Houston and its activities visit www.chinmayahouston.org or call Jay Deshmukh 832 541 0059 or Bharati Sutaria 281-933-0233.
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
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IACCGH Helps Clear the “Cloud” for Small Business
HOUSTON: The Indo-American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston (IACCGH) conducted the first in a series of seminars in 2013 based on the topic of Cloud technologies and how small businesses and individuals can benefit from it. The seminar was held on June 20 at START Houston and was a big success as it was attended by a capacity-full crowd. IACCGH took this initiative of conducting the seminar based on the feedback from their members and prior survey topics that were sent out. Needless to say, it is a topic that everyone is currently interested in due to its ubiquitous nature and rapid rate of adoption. The panelists for the seminar comprised of Dr. Arun Pasrija, President of CHR Solutions, Gaurav Khandelwal, CEO of ChaiONE, Pankaj Malani, VP of Unique group of Industries; and was moderated by Sunil G. Shenoy, Technical Partner Manager from Dell, Inc. After a brief introduction of the IACCGH Charter by Pankaj Dhume, President
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and Jagdip Ahluwalia, Executive Director, Leah Mayo from START Houston provided a quick background on the concept of START Houston, which provides an incubator environment for entrepreneur individuals in the IT field. The panelists and moderator who are all from relevant industries then commenced the seminar and provided insights into the various aspects of Cloud including the basic definitions, characteristics, types of clouds and what makes the Cloud so powerful and useful. They then covered the different Cloud applications that small businesses can leverage from a cost savings and revenue generation perspective. Relevant facts about Cloud adoption as well as actual business cases were also discussed. It was a very lively and interesting seminar with continuous interaction from the attendees. A copy of the seminar presentation can be found on the IACCGH website at www.iaccgh.com.
From Left: Pankaj Dhume, Pankaj Malani, Gaurav Khandelwal, Dr. Arun pasrija, Sunil Shenoy, Jagdip Ahluwalia. Photo: Bijay Dixit
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EDITORIAL
June 28, 2013
Unemployment to Innovation If signs in Bangalore are any indication, the country is headed for an unemployment rut of the likes not seen since 1991. As slowing growth collides with an increasing output of graduates, the unfulfilled aspirations of young India could make for the beginnings of a social upheaval. To look at the positives, in the long term, this could turn out to be a boon for India. But there is no escaping the immediate bad news. Take India’s most high-profile group of job aspirants, the engineers. The supply-demand equation in the engineer production line is worrying. On the supply side, there is an inundation of engineers. In the past decade, hundreds of engineering colleges sprouted. As per a report, in Andhra Pradesh, over 200 engineering colleges were sanctioned during the course of a year. On the supply side again, the government has never worried about mapping skill supply to marketplace demand. It has mostly caved in to popular demand, licensing engineering colleges and courses willy-nilly. In the past five years, only 5 per cent of biotech graduates from the top 10 engineering colleges have found jobs in the biotech industry. The rest found their way to, where else, the IT industry. The scenario has changed in the past couple of years. On the demand side, these graduate engineers’ biggest employer, the IT industry’s growth is slowing and is no longer in the same hiring mode. For instance, the number of entry-level engineers hired by the top 20 IT companies in India has dropped steadily from around 350,000 annually a few years ago to 150,000 last year. But, as seen from Bangalore again, there may be a bright side to this story. The glut of engineers is sparking off an entrepreneurial and innovation surge. Thousands of engineers pour into Bangalore each year, hoping to snag their dream job. Dissatisfied with the choices, some are turning to entrepreneurship. At a time when every idea is being converted into an app, newer technologies such as social, mobile, analytics and cloud are opening up opportunities for students to demonstrate their innovative spirit, said former academician Ramamoorthy Ramkumar, a senior vice president of research and communications at Cognizant Technologies. “The glut could unleash a new normal, a start-up culture,” he said. “There may be a deficit of jobs for engineers but the idea that there is a shortage of opportunity is nonsense,” said Sanjay Swamy, an angel investor who is managing partner at an early stage start-up incubator, Angel Prime. There are significant prospects for Indian engineers to build world-class products targeting the domestic as well as global markets, he said: “The past 20 years have been a dream run for IT but the next 20 will be just that for engineering innovation.” More engineers could take to higher education, niche specialisation and research, all areas that got the go-by during the IT revolution. These opportunities could come knocking on the doors of those with ambition, passion and original thinking. For the others, the engineering dream could soon go sour. Saritha Rai in Indian Express
Sad Truth about Uttarkhand BY RAJESH KALRA
For well over a week, the flash floods in the Himalayas have captured everyone’s mind space. And rightly so! The scale of destruction, combined with the inaccessibility of the terrain, has made it almost impossible to gauge the exact extent of destruction. Everyone is guessing, and with the flood waters finally receding, the guesswork has only increased. The one thing that is conspicuous in all these guesses is the estimate of the number of deaths. From a couple of hundreds to the Uttarakhand CM’s estimate that it would be a thousand to the state’s disaster management minister that the deaths could be up to 5000, anyone can claim any number and the sad part is all of them are shooting in the dark. For, the truth is we will never really know the exact number of people who died. The reason for my scary surmise is simple. The terrain where the tragedy happened and the fact that vast swathes of some towns are under several feet of silt would never let the real numbers emerge. If they perished in water, they may be found downstream somewhere, but it is quite likely several have disappeared in areas that are totally inaccessible and they would never be found. As for towns under silt, that too several feet, it is virtually impossible to clear the silt and any reconstruction has to start on top of it all, which only means what lies beneath cannot really be known. All this may sound sinister, but that indeed is the sad truth. Let us try and see what is the closest we can arrive at the number of people affected. Other than the locals, the others who would have been in the area would be tourists and pilgrims. Since the ‘char dhaam’ pilgrimage was on, the number of pilgrims would be very high. The number of tourists who flock to the hills in summers is quite high too.
The local population can perhaps be compared with the latest data that the government may have through census. But how likely is it that we would have the exact number of tourists and pilgrims? Although entry into the ‘dhams’ may be regulated, it is only at the point of entry. There is no real data on the thousands who actually make it to the pilgrimage and are willing to wait for their turn when their numbers are regulated. Similarly, the exact number of tourists who were in the state at the time can only be guessed. Although the government bandies about figures of the number of tourists, how many of them were struck by the calamity and how many survived and made it back can again be guesswork alone. As for the rescue operations, one shudders to think what would happen if we did not have the services of our armed forces and paramilitary forces for such operations. Despite having a National Disaster Management Authority and the state having its own disaster management wing, that all hill states must necessarily have, the fact is when the time to act comes, they are worthless and useless. Filled up with retired babus who had shown themselves to be spineless in front of their political benefactors and were thus rewarded with a post that entitles them to government benefits such as house, vehicles and all else, at our expense. And when the time for real work arrives, they either perform the vanishing act or are clueless or both. There would be some activity and promises made on this front,
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but after some time, all will be back to normal and postretirement postings would continue to be nurtured for the favoured few. It’s the forces that always redeem themselves and how! Is it any wonder that people think they are the only ones in the country that work in time of need? Of course, even as we praise the forces, a few words of credit must also be expressed for the organisations vilified by the media, especially the English language one – the RSS and the volunteers of Baba Ramdev. I have spoken to a number of officers in the admin and also some of those who have made it back safely from the devastation, and one thing that all uniformly acknowledged was that the first ones to reach the devastated zones were these volunteers, and that several people survived because of the first aid and food that was made available to them when needed most. And before I end, for those who do not understand the pace at which devastation arrives in a flash flood, look at this video from a river in central India that was apparently shot by young picnickers a couple of years ago. The video of kids caught in a flash flood is gut wrenching. Please watch only if you think you can handle it. Once you see this, say a silent prayer for those who have perished in the hills of Uttarakhand and Himachal and also wish that those who are still caught somewhere are rescued and brought back safely and quickly! ToI Rajesh Kalra is the Chief Editor of Times Internet and responsible for innovations. A journalist for two decades, he also tried his hands at entrepreneurship in between. Although he has written on several subjects, he has a weakness for IT and telecommunications. He is an avid sportsman, a trained high-altitude mountaineer and a marathoner.
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June 28, 2013
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Hindu Mahasabha of America Hosts Third Annual Hindu Sports Day in Houston
Hindu Sports Day winners with HMSA members. From left (Row 3): Ravindra Shukla, Rajendher Reddy (President, HTW), Rahul Chandra, Amit Banerjee, Dr. T.N. Rao, Dilip Mehta (President, HMSA), Padmaja Vedartham.
THE WOODLANDS: Hindu Mahasabha of America (HMSA) aka Hindu Congress of America Houston chapter conducted its third annual Hindu Sports Day (HSD) at Hindu Temple of Woodland (HTW). The event was hosted and supported by Hindu Temple of Woodland. The idea was to engage Hindu youth in fun activities around the spiritual and moral guidance that is provided by the temples. It was also aimed at providing youngsters with the chance to meet, interact and connect with others of similar cultural background. This year Hindu Sports Day had six games categories including Spell Bee, Carrom, Chess, Table Tennis, Arts.
Below are the winners in each category: Arts (Elementary) : Amoga Prahalad (Gold), Minakshi Reddy (Silver), Anchita Shukla (Bronze) . Arts (Middle School): Adarsha Prahalad (Gold) Chess (Under 18): Aryan Shenoy (Gold), Monica Balkrishnan (Silver), Anchita Shukla (Bronze), Amrita Gorthi (Bronze). Chess (Above 18): Amit Banerjee (Gold), Fabian Fer-nandez (Gold) Carrom (Senior): Amit Banerjee (Gold), Murthy Gorthi (Gold), Carrom (Junior): Nitika Veludandi (Gold) Spell Bee : Adarshia Prahalad (Gold), Amrutha Gorthi (Silver), Aaryan Shenoy (Bronze), Anchita Shukla (Bronze), Amoga Prahlad (Bronze), Arush (Gold),
Smriti (Silver), Monica (Bronze) Dilip Mehta, President of HMSA along with Rajendher Reddy, President of Hindu Tem-ple of Woodland congratulated and awarded the medals. Kiran Patel, one of the participants mother said “such events like Hindu Sports Day enable Hindu youth to enjoy and keep updated with traditional Hindu sports and also motivate and inspire Hindu youth.” HMSA would like to thank Hindu Temple of Woodland for the excellent coordination and assistance they provided for Hindu Sports Day. HTW management also acknowledged and appreciated the efforts of HMSA for their work towards Hindu unity, awareness and empowerment.
Sri Sri Radha Govinda to Appear in Houston on July 13
HOUSTON: By the causeless mercy of our Srila Gurudev, Bhaktivedanta Narayan Goswami Maharaj and their Lordships, we are pleased to announce the deity installation ceremony for Sri Sri Radha Govindaji, Gaur Nitai and Ram Darbar. Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur, a great vaishnava saint writes “Love (priti) is a very sweet word. When it is spoken, a very sweet mood arises in the hearts of both the speaker and the listeners. Though few are able to understand its true meaning, everyone still likes to hear the word. All beings are controlled by love”….quoting Srila Chandi dasa, he explains how the universe was created by Bramhaji on the underlying principles of love: “Concentrating deeply, Brahma created the syllable pi. Then when the ocean of rasa was churned, the syllable ri emerged. When the ocean was churned a second time, nectar emerged, which was prepared into the syllable ti. How can I compare anything to these three syllables, which are the abode of all happiness? That person in whose heart the
essence of these three syllables has forcibly entered finds dharma, karma, shyness, commonsense, caste and family tradition useless”. Pure love or priti can be applied only to Krsna. As conditioned souls, we have forgotten our true identity and our eternal constitutional position. Because it is our nature to love, we are always seeking out for it; but we search in worldly or material relationships, and are thus always frustrated. “The supreme occupation [dharma] for all humanity is that by which men can attain to loving de-
votional service unto the transcendent Lord. Such devotional service must be unmotivated and uninterrupted to completely satisfy the self. Therefore, with one-pointed attention, one should constantly hear about, glorify, remember and worship the Personality of Godhead, who is the protector of the devotees”. The mission of Sri Sri Radha Govinda mandir is to provide a platform in which everyone can come and join in hearing the Lords pastimes or Harikatha and in chanting the holy names. With this process we can revive the true love or priti that we are eternally seeking. Please join us to welcome their Lordships for the inauguration festival celebration. Delicious prasadam will be served after every program. For further details contact 832464-4686 or email at contact@ sggm.org. You can also visit their website at www.sggm.org Temple address is 16628 Kieth Harrow Blvd, Houston,TX 77084 Contributed by Subal Sakha Das See ad on Page 2.
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GANGTOK (HT): Sikkim is pushing its tourism envelope with a combination of nature and spirituality to preserve the essence of its Himalayan heritage and make a statement of sustainable growth in this age of manic concretisation of the fragile hill environment. Sample this: Laid out across 23 acres of lush slopes against a startling backdrop of the icy Kanchenjunga and the Maenam hills range in southern Sikkim’s Rabongla district shines the state’s newest tourism address the Tathagata Tsal or the Buddha Park, nearly 65 km from Gangtok. At the center of the park perches a shrine with a towering 140 ft statue of Lord Buddha with its face coated in 3.5 kg of pure gold in the Dharma Chakra Mantra tradition. The icon and the park built at a cost of almost Rs. 400 million ($7 million) over the last seven years is expected to boost the state’s economic fortunes on the strength of the Buddha relics from nine countries. These were installed at the sanctum by Sikkim Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling in a grand ceremony in Rabongla on Tuesday to commemorate Lord Buddha’s 2,550th birth anniversary. Hope for tourism, one of Sikkim’s economic lifelines, piggybacks on Buddhist trails, nature tourism and village tourism. Major Buddhist centers like the old Rumtek Monastery, Rumtek Dharma Chakra Centre, Pal Zurmang Kagyud monastery, the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, a giant statue of guru Padmasambhava and one of Tathagata, together with a handful of holy lakes, including Changu at
12,400 ft above sea level, keep the state’s Buddhist circuit busy. The countryside is dotted with smaller monasteries like the Phadong monastery, Phensang monastery, Tholung monastery and the Doling monastery that one stumbles along the way. However, Sikkim’s approach to spiritual tourism is secular, Chamling said. “Buddha may be of primary importance, but the government has built a replica of the Hindu Char Dham - four temples dedicated to Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu - at Shri Siddhesvara Dhama at Namchi in southern Sikkim”, Chamling said. A gurudwara in Gangtok and churches across the state add to the holistic colour. “We have been pushing tourism as a new profession and major economic activity. We want our children to work in the tourism service sector. We are training youngsters and building capacities,” Chamling said, adding that the “state is exploring new frontiers in eco-tourism to add variety”. The focus on eco-tourism has become more creative and infrastructure-oriented since Sikkim was declared “an eco tourism destination in 2009”, Tourism Minister Bhim Dhungel said. He said Sikkim was one of the pioneering states to promote nature tourism with “forest and flower trails” involving individual stakeholders and non-profit groups. Citing examples, Dhungel said nature getaways like the Singlila trek, the Dzongri trek, the Rhododrendon Valley trek and the Jongu camp trail were popu-
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lar for their diversity of natural splendour both among foreigners and domestic tourists. “Sikkim became a tourist state after 1975. Before that, under the rule of the Chogyal (kings), Sikkim was not exposed to the world. Now tourism is virtually our bread and butter and contributes nearly 6 percent to the state’s GDP,” Tourism and IPR Secretary K.S. Topgay told IANS. “One may wonder why six per cent... It is a small figure,” the official added. Tourism revenue in Sikkim is split - that from the hotels goes to the power department and that from the tourist taxi trade goes to the transport department. As a result, the base tourism revenue is almost a pittance. “The economic determinants for tourism are skewed under the current government policy. Even as a couple of travel components do not benefit tourism directly, the nature of tourism is still centred around urban destinations like Lachen, Rabongla, Pelling and Namchi. The state government has realized that the economic benefits from tourism were not reaching the common man because of its urban drift,” the tourism secretary said. As a pro-people alternative, the government is encouraging home stay in villages, Topgay said. At least 720 new village homestays are going to open their doors to tourists this year. The homestay owners have been trained in hospitality and quality control at the Institute of Hotel Management and State Institute of Capacity building in Gangtok.
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ENTERTAINMENT
June 28, 2013
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Raanjhanaa : Movie Review
Raanjhanaa is a good Bollywood launchpad for Dhanush, Movie Collects Rs 21 Crore in First Three Days Director: Aanand L Rai Cast: Dhanush, Sonam Kapoor, Abhay Deol, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Swara Bhaskar, Kumud Mishra BY SHUBHRA GUPTA NEW DELHI: “Say you love me, or I will slit my wrists”, Kundan threatens Zoya, and we know instantly that he means business. He is not saying this for a lark. Nor for a nudge-and-wink. He is saying this as if he means it. We know instantly that Raanjhanaa is a no-holds-barred love story, not your half-hearted romcom that passes for a romance these days in Bollywood. The riveting first half of the film lives up to its old- fashioned title, with a young lover whose chief driver is passion, the innocent young girl who is the object of his adoration, and the problems that keep them apart. Post interval, it comes unstuck, and squanders its gains. If Raanjhanaa had kept its tone intact, it would have been a great love story. Kundan (Dhanush), the son of a Banaras panda, is madly, deeply in love with Zoya (Kapoor). He does the running. She keeps him at bay. Just as she is about to relent, the Hindu-Muslim never-thetwain-shall-meet angle comes in, and the two part ways. I should
have said ‘torn asunder’, actually, because that is how it is shown, him desperately chasing the train that is bearing her away, both sobbing their hearts out. When she does return, several years later, her Banarasi swain is waiting, unprepared that the girl whom he loves may love someone else (Deol). Aanand L Rai who gave us an acute, well-observed small town sensibility in his first film Tanu Weds Manu, brings the same skill sets to Raanjhanaa. It’s been a while since I’ve seen Varanasi in the movies as a place where regular people live, not a Discovery
channel shoot that peddles exotica. Rai knows the town, its people, and the lingo. Even Dhanush, whose south Indian accent is given a credible reason to exist in the film, says Banarasi launda with a flourish. The actor who really nails it, no surprise here, is Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, who plays the hero’s best friend. In the second half, the film moves to Delhi, goes off to Punjab, and comes back to Delhi via Varanasi. The confusion seems to impact the characters who are left floundering. Zoya’s love interest Akram is a politically active JNU lad who
dreams of a better Bharat. We get a real, non-touristy Delhi and an engagement with current events ( shades of the Arvind Kejriwal-led ‘people’s party’, the farmers’ agitation in Bhatta Parsaul, the students agitation at India Gate after the December rape) that is usually missing from contemporary Bollywood. But the problem with all of this (keep an eye out for a terrific sequence which is a dig at the ‘committed left-leaning JNU students’ understanding of ‘poverty’ and ‘class’) is that it does not fit. The plot feels as if it is being made to function in a different film, and Raanjhanaa, by this point, is contrived and all over the place. The playfulness and intensity that Dhanush, making his Bollywood debut, exhibits consistently is what keeps the film ticking. His complete surrender to the role leads to the kind of unselfconsciousness that is so absent in Bollywood newbies who try playing lovers: if you want to show me your perfect abs, how will you let yourself screw up your face while crying for your mehbooba? And that is what makes Dhanush, who is familiar to north Indian audience only through the chartbuster Kolaveri Di, so believable. I’ve seen him in one Tamil film, the National-award winning Aaduka-
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
lam, and there again it was visible, his becoming the part. Great casting choice, which brings back young love to Bollywood, even if it leaves me wondering: can this kind of passionate love story only be set in small towns where stalking a girl (and slitting your wrists) is still considered an acceptable plot device, as the only way of showing your feelings? Just as much Dhanush and Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub feel as if they belong to the milieu, as well as Kumud Mishra (who plays Zoya’s father), the others do not. Sonam Kapoor looks the part, but very often does not sound it (stumbling over such words as Bhatta Parsaul, which she has clearly pronounced for the first time, among others). She is getting better in the lighthearted bits, but her limitations as an actor are evident when she has to get serious. Swara Bhaskar, who was so good in Tanu Weds Manu, gets an over-talky but underwritten part here, and Abhay Deol sticks out, not belonging to his role at all. Raanjhanaa is a film which is all of a piece in its engaging first half, and a good Bollywood launchpad for Dhanush. Makes me want to see what he will do in his second pass. -Indian Express
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RECIPES/PUZZLES
June 28, 2013
Mama’s Punjabi Recipes
Bhature wale Chole (Chick Peas for Deep Fried Bread) If ever there was a Punjabi dish that took off all over India, it probably has to be chole bhature (chickpeas and deep fried bread). It is a dish that is at once spicy, eaten with plenty of garnishes like raw onions, sprinkled with chopped coriander leaves, achaar (pickles) and with those long, spicy green Indian mirchen (chilli peppers). It is a favorite for a heavy breakfast, served with salty lassi (buttermilk). There are different varieties of bhature: filled with aloo (potatoes) or paneer (Indian cottage cheese). In some parts of India, the dish is sometimes called chole poori. A non-fried variation is the kulcha, which is baked or cooked on a tava (flat skillet) using the same dough. It is easier for those who can’t eat fried foods and want fewer calories but still want the flavor of this tasty dish. In Delhi, one of the most famous shops serving chole bhature is Roshan di Hatti in the busy Karol Bagh bazaar on the west side of the city, where people follow it up with a sweet kulfi falooda. In Amritsar, there is a whole bazaar near the Golden Temple devoted to serving chole bhature in the city’s own style. Though now available all year long in shops, this dish is most popular when the weather is a bit cooler or during the rainy monsoon season. India is the world’s largest producer of chickpeas, also called garbanzo beans by the Spanish and arvanco in Portugese. There are two common varieties: desi, grown mostly in South Asia, Ethiopia, Mexico and Iran and Kabuli grown in Southern Europe, Northern Africa, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and Chile. In the Middle East, chickpeas are used to make the popular hummus spread. Chickpeas are high in protein, polyunsaturated fat, zinc, folate, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and calcium. Bhature are made of finely milled, refined and bleached wheat maida (white flour) which is low in dietary fibre. Pastry flours available in United States may be used as a substitute for maida. Bhature are made with
white flour, yogurt, oil and yeast, but I will give that recipe separately. Ingredients: • 500 gm chole (chickpeas) • 2 medium pyaaz (onion) peeled and finely chopped • 2 cloves of lasan (garlic) peeled and finely chopped • 1 medium sized adrak (ginger) peeled and finely chopped • 4 tablespoons of vegetable or olive oil • 1 tablespoon amchoor (dry green mango powder) • 1 teaspoon loung (powdered cloves, see directions) • 1 teaspoon garam masal • Spices (to taste): namak (salt), mirch (red pepper), dhania (coriander) Directions: 1.Washthechickpeaswellandthen soak them overnight in a large pot. 2. Transfer the contents to a pressure cooker and bring it to a boil, turning it off after 10 or 15 minutes. If you don’t have a pressure cooker, bring the contents to boil in the pot till the chickpeas are tender and the skin starts to peel off a little. 3. Heat the oil in a medium sized pot and throw in the onion, ginger and garlic. Stir till they are brown, then add the salt, pepper and coriander. This dish does not use any turmeric. 4. Drain the water from the boiled chickpeas and keep to the side. Some people keep the water, add a little salt and drink it as a broth for its nutrients. 5. Take the cloves and place them on a warm flat skillet. Take them off and when they are cooled down, grind them into a medium coarse
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powder. The clove powder gives the chickpeas a blackened color and improves the dish’s digestion. 6. Add the chickpeas to the masala and stir well for 10 minutes, adding the amchoor, clove powder and garam masala to bring in the authentic medium brown color and spicy tanginess. Continue to mix the ingredients well. 7. Add some of the drained water to the pot to make a thick sauce but do not make it too watery. Bring to a boil for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally so that it does not stick to the pot. 8. Reduce the heat to low and let it cook for 5 more minutes. Turn the heat off, cover the pot and let it sit for 5 minutes. Add more salt, pepper and amchoor to your taste. 9. Serve the chole with freshly made bhature from the local Indian store or restaurant or if not available, the frozen variety. My next recipe will be on how to make bhature. 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.
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Govt Cuts Import Tariff Value of Gold, Silver
NEW DELHI (HT): The government on Monday slashed the import tariff value of gold to $421 per ten grams and that of imported silver to $709 per kg, considering the falling trend in global prices. Tariff value is the base price on which the customs duty is determined to prevent under-invoicing. Last month, the tariff value of gold was at $459 per 10 grams and silver at $737 per kg. The notification in this regard has been issued by the Central Board
of Excise and Customs (CBEC). Government has reduced the import tariff value of gold as global prices in Singapore have been volatile in the last few days. Global prices today fell by 1.4% to $1,278.94 an ounce and silver by 2.8% to $19.55 an ounce. A similar trend was seen in silver rates as well. India’s gold import in the second quarter of the current fiscal is expected to more than halve to 150 tonnes, as against around 350 tonnes in the April-June pe-
riod of the 2013-14 fiscal, as per the Bombay Bullion Association. Gold in the national Capital is costing around Rs. 27,320 per 10 grams, while silver at Rs. 42,500 per kg. Besides precious metals, the government has hiked the import tariff value of RBD palmolein to $869 per tonne, as against $854 per tonne. The tariff value of other varieties of edible oil have been kept unchanged.
Cairn India to Invest $3 bn Over Next 3 Years
NEW DELHI (HT): Cairn India is planning to invest about $3 billion ( Rs. 16,500 crore) over the next three years in finding more oil and raising output from its flagship Rajasthan oil fields, the company’s chief executive P Elango said on Monday. “We have planned for a net capital investment of $3 billion in a three-year-period from FY2014 to FY2016. We are focused on realising the full potential of our world-class Rajasthan
assets through a combination of aggressive exploration and fasttrack development,” Elango said in the company’s annual report. Cairn India will raise crude oil production from Rajasthan fields by as much as 23% to 215,000 barrels per day by March 2014. The current production comes from five fields -- Mangala, Bhagyam, Aishwariya, Raageshwari and Saraswati. The Mangala field, he said, is producing at plateau rates of 150,000 bpd. Aish-
wariya commenced production in March and is expected to ramp up to approved rate of 10,000 bpd over the next few months. Bhagyam, the second biggest oilfield behind Mangala, is expected to ramp up to the approved rate of 40,000 bpd by the second half of current fiscal year, he added. “We plan to drill more than 450 wells in Rajasthan block over a three year period, an increase from the current rate of 25 wells drilled in FY2013,” Elango said.
Rupee Hits New Closing Low of 59.68 Against Dollar
MUMBAI (HT): The rupee hit a new record closing low of 59.68 against a dollar Monday as foreign investors pulled money from debt as well as equities markets. The partially convertible rupee remained weak throughout the day and closed at 59.68 against a dollar, surpassing the previous record closing low of 59.57 hit June 20. The rupee slumped to a low of 59.82 intra-day, nearing the record low of 59.98 touched last week. Continued sell off by foreign institutional investors in equities as well as debt markets have increased pressure on the Indian currency. Foreign Institutional Investors
(FII) pulled out over $250 million from the Indian equities markets Monday, according to the provisional data available with the stock markets. “With India’s external vulnerability on the rise, global risk appetite and liquidity matter more than ever for stability of the rupee. Of late, even smaller external shocks are causing massive volatility in the currency,” CRISIL credit rating agency said in a report. However, the agency expressed hope that the rupee would appreciate from the current lows to about 56 against a dollar by the end of the current financial year.
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June 28, 2013
Tough Selections Bear Fruit
SPORTS
Sania Lights Up Gloomy London
The Champions Trophy win is an important landmark in India’s rebuilding effort, and credit must be extended to the team’s selection committee that has been unafraid of taking a few tough decisions BY SIDHARTH MONGA LONDON (ESPN Cricinfo): When you saw India jubilant in England after winning the Champions Trophy, you couldn’t help but go back to the second day of the Kolkata Test last year, against the same opponents. England ended that day at 216 for 1, a day that summed up everything that was wrong with Indian cricket: lacklustre bowlers, poor catching, fielders who didn’t want to be there and probably—as a consequence of these factors—a defensive captain. And it won’t be unfair to believe that—yet again—amid the debris in Kolkata, India began a turnaround. Only this time it began in a selection committee meeting. And this panel led by Sandeep Patil has clearly shown that the scorn heaped on Kris Srikkanth and Co was earned and deserved. One by one, they dropped, Zaheer Khan, Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, in that order Look at the replacements. M Vijay has scored more Test centuries in one series than Sehwag did in two years. Shikhar Dhawan outdid in one Test Gambhir’s achievements over the last three years. Debatably Yuvraj’s ODI place went to Ravindra Jadeja, and the results are for all to see. Bhuvneshwar Kumar has not let India miss Zaheer yet, although that arrangement could change. The obvious question that will arise is: if it was that simple, why didn’t the team management ring in the changes? They had the reserves in the squad. First, it wasn’t that simple. While improvement was guaranteed—it was scarcely possible to do worse than the outgoing players—such a huge improvement has been surprising. More importantly, though, the captain just can’t drop seniors in India, or in many other teams. Only once had MS Dhoni tried to disturb the apple cart when he decided during the 2012 CB series in Australia that Sehwag, Gamb-
Virat Kohli does his rendition of Gangnam Style, England v India, Champions Trophy final, Edgbaston.
hir and Sachin Tendulkar could not be part of the same playing XI because that meant giving the opposition a headstart of 20 runs. Clearly it was not well received. Sehwag, who never really opens up in press conferences, chose to selectively give out details from the team meeting. There was bad blood. Dhoni was criticised for looking ahead, and he didn’t have any backing from the selectors. India must enjoy this, and they will, but the ultimate test awaits when they begin touring away for Tests, at the end of this year. That will tell you for sure what the real progress has been. However, this combine of team management and selectors has already done better than the previous leadership, in that they have tried to stop that treadmill of defeat. Earlier on that tour, when India lost every Test with the same set of batsmen batting in the same sequence, the touring selectors enquired with the team management if they had given thought to leaving out VVS Laxman. Somebody needed to make the unpopular calls, and Patil’s group has begun to do so. It’s not as if the previous selectors didn’t have reason to make changes; India had lost eight away Tests in a row.
Dhoni’s refusal to disturb the status quo had another ugly side. The previous selection committee knew there would be little room for a new player in the XI even if they selected him in the squad. It came to head when India selected a 15man squad with just six batsmen for the Nagpur Test against South Africa in 2010. One of those six was uncapped, and had not found his way into the XI previously. It was clear the captain’s hand was being forced here. How it backfired. One of the six fell ill, his last-minute replacement injured himself just before the toss, and Wriddhiman Saha had to make Test debut as a specialist batsman. The chairman of that selection committee is now a paid expert on a TV channel, and questions Dhoni’s captaincy even though he did nothing about it when he was in a position to do so. Crucially, now, the selectors have decided to make the calls that will not be liked. They were criticised for dropping Yuvraj for the Champions Trophy, arguably India’s biggest match-winner in ODIs after Tendulkar and before Dhoni. The selectors, though, looked at just the performance: 181 runs in the last 10 ODIs. Consequently, for the first time
possibly since India began rebuilding under Sourav Ganguly and John Wright, they had a squad of 15 that were at their best fitness. Ashwin made up for his slowness with some good slipcatching. Ishant Sharma is never short of effort, and Umesh Yadav and Bhuvneshwar kept themselves inconspicuous in the field, which was a job well done. Thirteen of the 15 had earned their places with performances in either recent international cricket or domestic matches. Rohit Sharma and Ishant were picked because of a lack of alternatives, but they were not what you would call blind prayers. Patil and team can afford themselves a quiet pat on their backs. India can’t afford to get ahead of themselves. They must enjoy this, but the ultimate test awaits when they begin touring away for Tests. That will tell you for sure what the real progress has been. However, this combine of team management and selectors has already done better than the previous leadership, in that they have tried to stop that treadmill of defeat. Not trying to do so was the most frustrating part of India’s poor show from July 2011 to January 2013. Sidharth Monga is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo
INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, JUNE 28, 2013 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM
LONDON: On a chilly, overcast afternoon, Sania Mirza arrived at the Aorangi Park, the practice venue attached to the All England Club, much like a warm summer blast. Dressed in sunshine yellow, body-hugging exercise gear, the solitaires on her ears sparkled just like the rock on her ring finger. Her face lifted with laughter that touched her eyes. “I’ve been a wife for a week,” she said, pointing to the time spent with her Pakistani cricketer husband Shoaib Malik, during the just concluded Champions Trophy in England. “It was nice,” Sania said, summing up her WAG experience. “Very relaxing. You’re not pushing yourself or rushing around. It’s really a long, long way from the life of a pro-athlete.” “When you are competing everything pretty much revolves around you,” she said. “It is always about what you want to do. About how you’re feeling, when you want to practice, etc,.. It was nice to be there for my husband, watching him play and preparing for a match. You take a backseat, put things together and just be there for the other person. It helps that I’m also a competitive sportsperson, we can relate to circumstances, situations, highs and lows.” The 26-year-old Hyderabadi, who likes to keep pace with the new styles and trends in the fashion world, said she couldn’t ever just be a WAG. “No offence meant to the WAGs,” she said laughing, “I’m sure it takes hard work to look that good. You know the make-up and hair and clothes, it’s time consuming. But even if I wasn’t a competitive athlete, I would’ve had a career, something that would’ve engaged my brain.”
INDIA
June 28, 2013
25
Modi’s ‘Coronation’ ke Side Effects
BY RAJ KANWAR IAN INDIA CORRESPONDENT NEW DELHI: When the Rajnath Singh-led BJP at its national executive session in Goa decided to anoint Gujarat’s chief minister Narendra Modi as the chairman of its national election campaign committee, it had not bargained for the tumultuous side effects that would follow his ‘coronation’. Nor did it foresee the possible collateral damage that such a decision could cause and totally change the political demographic scenario in Bihar. Modi’s elevation followed the script written by the Nagpur Puppeteers; Rajnath Singh played to perfection the role that had been assigned to him by the caucus of the “old men”. Not so surprisingly, the decision to bring Modi on the national centre stage was vociferously welcomed not only by the RSS brass but also by tens of thousands of its Swayamsevaks. Currently, Modi’s demagoguery accompanied by show of machismo makes him India’s most effective political speaker. No wonder then not only the BJP’s rank and file feel enthused but India’s growing urban middle class too swears by him. The only discordant note was struck by none other than the octogenarian LK Advani who promptly put a spanner in the works that threatened to thwart Modi’s wellplanned ‘coronation’. Staying away from the Goa session and without mincing words, Advani openly castigated the decision to elevate Modi and immediately followed it up by submitting his resignation from party’s national executive, the parliamentary board and the election committee. Coupled with similar reservations and misgivings on Modi’s elevation expressed by some other prominent national leaders, the BJP hierarchy feared that Advani’s resignation might cause a domino effect. Attempts by Rajnath Singh, Sushma Swaraj and other top leaders to placate the recalcitrant Advani failed to cut any ice. It was eventually the RSS supremo Mohan Bhagwat who had to use his ‘persuasive powers’ and a carrot and stick approach to bring around a sullen Advani. Advani’s dream lay shattered What exactly was Advani’s game plan? Let it be noted that Advani, by all consensus, was an architect of sorts of the resurgence of BJP in the late 1990s; his Ayodhya rath yatra had brought BJP a windfall of 180 Lok Sabha seats and helped it to become a major national party second only to the
Congress. It was thus that Atal Behari Vajpayee became India’s prime minister in 1996 and Advani remained content with occupying his deputy’s chair. It was during this tenure that BJP-led front performed exceptionally well and won much approbation and admiration. It was another matter that this highly successful coalition fell at the hustings in 2004. That loss had come as a great shock to Advani who had hoped to become the prime minister that time had the BJP alliance won the mandate. This great disappointment was further compounded when BJP-led NDA again lost to the National Progressive Alliance (NPA) in the 2009 general elections. That must have been the saddest day in the life of the ageing BJP patriarch. The dream that Advani had nursed and nurtured most of his later political life lay shattered. The BJP’s hopes of regaining the power in the coming general elections in 2014 are brighter today than ever before thanks to the many unsavoury scandals, scams, acts of commission and omission involving the current NPA-II dispensation. Every BJP leader of any or no consequence is licking his or her lips in anticipation of capturing the Delhi throne. Now in his twilight years, Advani too had hoped that he would at last be anointed the prime ministerial candidate that he rightfully considered to be his due. But this lifelong ambition of his too seems to have once again become a distant dream, thanks to Johnny come lately in the person of Narendra Modi who came riding on the back of his, what his supporters call, “three splendid innings” as the chief minister of Gujarat. This must have come like a bolt from the blue for Advani. That possibly must have been the reason that compelled Advani to take a belligerent stand on the question of elevating Modi to the national centre stage. In a heart-rending letter to the BJP president Advani wrote,
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“All my life I have found working for the Jana Sangh and the Bharatiya Janata Party a matter of great pride and endless satisfaction for myself, but lamented that “most leaders of ours are now concerned just with their personal agendas”. The fact that Advani later withdrew his resignation after having been given some assurances is known to all. Incidentally, Advani is not the only prime minister-inwaiting among the BJP stalwarts. Many others such like Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley, Jaswant Singh, Yashwant Sinha et al had too quietly nurtured such an ambition but kept quiet believing ‘discretion is better than valour’ Frankly, they are equally, if not more, deserving than Modi who has come on the national stage, as if from the cold. It would be interesting to recall that only four of the India’s 13 prime ministers (Gulzari Lal Nanda was twice the stop gap prime minister for very brief periods) since 1947 were chief ministers in their respective states, and unfortunately none of them could even complete a year in office. Most of the India’s durable prime ministers were ‘actors’ who had spent all of their lives on the national stage. Thus having been a successful chief minister alone is no guarantee that the incumbent could equally perform well as the prime minister. A successful prime minister will more likely to fail if sent to a state as its chief minister; the two jobs have dissimilar profiles having altogether a different resume. The side effect in Bihar Another major side effect that was broadly expected came about in Bihar. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar of JDU announced separation from BJP after having cohabitated with it for 17 long years. At his recommendation, the BJP ministers in the coalition were ungracefully and summarily dismissed by the governor. It was indeed a bitter parting of ways by the two part-
ners that also led to violent clashes between the two erstwhile partners on 18 June. It was the virtual demise of the NDA in which JDU had been the second largest constituent; now the rump NDA is left with Akali Dal in the Punjab and Shiv Sena in Maharashtra. The divorce between two partners has left the political equation in Bihar in a fluid state; who has gained or who has lost in this game of one-upmanship is not clear. Laloo Yadav is quite excited and hopes to reap the harvest following the disintegration of Bihar NDA. The Congress, which hardly has any presence in the state assembly, has now the luxury of political options; she could join hands either with Laloo Yadav’s RJD or even Nitish Kumar’s JDU. It is too early to say which way the wind will blow; but one thing is certain that the contest in Bihar for the next Lok Sabha elections in 2014 will be a triangular one amongst the three major political outfits viz BJP, RJD and JDU with the Congress riding piggyback on either of the two non-BJP groupings. Two can play game of polarization Yet, despite all these side effects, the ecstatic Narendra Modi is in seventh heaven. He is ruthlessly ambitious and makes no bones about it. He has cleverly built up a coalition of ardent supporters that include several prominent industrialists who are unapologetic about their admiration for him. In the past few months, even the envoys from the European Union countries have been trying to cultivate Modi for reasons that are
not in the public domain. Modi undoubtedly has a controversial persona; he has not lived down the 2002 riots and feels no necessity of being repentant about them. His very name is like a red rag to a bull to the vast majority of India’s Muslim populace. That was the principal motivation that compelled Nitish Kumar to break ties with BJP since he, perhaps rightly, felt that with Modi as its spearhead in the 2014 general elections, the continuation of the alliance with BJP would lose him his assured Muslim vote bank. If India’s Muslims en bloc vote against Modi, then his strategy would possibly be to unite Hindus behind him as a counter to their polarization. Let it be remembered that polarization is a game that two can play. The general elections are still a year away and a year is too long a period in politics. However, Modi deserves to be applauded for single handedly capturing the imagination of a large number of the youth belonging to India’s bourgeoning middle class. In this, he has proved himself as a master strategist and a loyal follower of Chanakya. The road to New Delhi is tough and tortuous and there are many more bridges to cross before Modi can, if at all, reach his cherished destination. Raj Kanwar is a veteran Dehra Dun journalist and author. At 83, he writes regularly on local and current affairs.
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KTRK-TV is looking for a temporary multimedia web producer who can do it all for its Internet department. The ideal candidate will have the following: •Three years experience working in major market television or print news Internet operation • Experience on Final Cut Pro • Experience on Photoshop • Experience shooting with both still and video camera • Experience creating and editing video for distribution on multiple platforms Candidate must be able to handle many projects simultaneously. Candidate must be a self-start and have a ‘Do It Now’ mentality to excel in our fast-paced environment and must be able to easily adapt to changes. No beginners. This position may include weekends and evenings. All interested applicants must apply online at www.disneycareers.com by uploading a resume file, cover letter and list of references. Please Reference Job ID: 114549 on all materials submitted. No phone calls please, and no third parties. KTRK-TV is an Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/D/V.
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