The South Asian Times
e x c e l l e n c e
Vol.10 No. 34 December 23-29, 2017 80 Cents
BJP wins Gujarat & Himachal
but loses Modi home seat
Gandhinagar/Shimla: The BJP
just managed to hold on to power
in Gujarat, edging past the half
way mark to clinch a sixth term
in government, but wrested
Himachal Pradesh from Congress
with a comfortable majority.
Overcoming initial setbacks in
a seesaw battle, the Bharatiya
Janata Party bagged 99 seats,
seven more than the magic figure
of 92 in a House of 182 in
Gujarat. Putting up an improved
performance, the Congress
PM Modi being congratulated by BJP leaders at party head office after
secured 77 seats while its allies Gujarat and Himachal election results. In Unjha constituency, however,
Continued on page 4 which encompasses Modi's hometown Vadnagar, Congress won.
Trump backs 'leadership role'
for India, slams China, Russia
New York: President Donald Trump has unveiled his
"America First National Security Strategy" giving India
a "leadership role" in the "broader" IndoPacific
region and taking a hardline on China and Russia,
provoking strong reactions from Beijing and Moscow.
The security plan released on Monday said: "We will
deepen our strategic partnership with India and sup
port its leadership role in Indian Ocean security and
throughout the broader region."
Washington also pledged to increase quadrilateral
cooperation with Japan, Australia and India.
"We welcome India's emergence as a leading global
Diwali Foundation USA honors 6 ambassadors
ART 15 DIPLOMACY 16 SCITECH 26
i n j o u r n a l i s m
New York Edition
President Trump has unveiled his "America First
National Security Strategy" giving India a "leadership
role" in the "broader" IndoPacific region.
The Diwali Foundation
USA's Power of One
inaugural awards with Ranju
Batra as its Chair, were held
on December 11 at a United
Nations venue in New York
with many supporting
ambassadors. The six hon
orees (L to R): Ambs. Maged
Abdelaziz, Yuriy Sergeyev,
Ion Botnaru, Nawaf Salam,
Lakshmi Puri, and Matthew
Rycroft. (Photo:
Mohammed
Jaffer/SnapsIndia)
More pictures
& story on page 1617.
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SPIRITUAL AWARENESS 30
Follow us on
UNGA session
on Jerusalem
after US veto
US ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley vetoed the UNSC resolution
criticizing US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel capital. (Photo : Reuters)
l By Arul Louis
United Nations: An emergency
meeting of the UN General
Assembly on Thursday will take
up President Donald Trump's
decision to recognize Jerusalem
as capital of Israel after the
United States vetoed a Security
Council resolution criticizing it.
Assembly President Miroslav is
convening the special session at
the request of the Organisation
of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and
the Arab Group at the UN, his
Spokesperson Brenden Varma
told reporters on Tuesday.
On Monday US Permanent
Representative to the UN, Nikki
Haley vetoed the Council resolu
tion introduced by Egypt seeking
to express "deep regret at recent
decisions concerning the status
of Jerusalem" and ask other
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
countries to not follow
Washington and move their
embassies to the city considered
holy by Jews, Christians and
Muslims. All the other 14 mem
bers of the Council voted for the
resolution.
Unlike in the Council there is
no veto in the Assembly and a
resolution criticizing the US deci
sion to recognise Jerusalem as
Israel's capital and move it
embassy there is expected to
pass easily because even
Washington's allies broke ranks
with it and supported the
Egyptian resolution.
Technically Thursday's meeting
is a continuation of the emer
gency special session that last
met in 2009, Varma said. Its
theme is "Illegal Israeli Actions in
Occupied East Jerusalem and the
Continued on page 4
excellence in journalism
TheSouthAsianTimes.info December 23-29, 2017
TheSouthAsianTimes.info TRISTATE COMMUNITY December 23-29, 2017 3

US ready to denuclearize AAPIQLI hosts its

N. Korea: McMaster
Washington: America is ready to forceful
ly "denuclearize North Korea," Donald
Trump's national security adviser has said,
calling the state a "grave threat". As ten
sions between the US and the communist
state increase, General HR McMaster said
the US was not ruling out war as they pre
pared to bring the regime to task.
"We're not committed to a peaceful reso
lution we're committed to a resolution,"
Gen McMaster told the BBC.
"We want the resolution to be peaceful,
but as the President said, all options are
on the table. We have to be prepared, if
necessary, to compel the denuclearization
of North Korea without the cooperation of
that regime."
Gen McMaster added: "The chances of
war who knows what they are they
could go up or down based on what we all
decide to do."
Gen McMaster also criticized North
Korea for its repeated nuclear missile
tests, calling the state a "grave threat".
In November the North Korean regime
claimed to have successfully completed
their most advanced nuclear test to date
National Security Advisor HR McMaster
has stated that we're not committed to a
peaceful resolution we're committed
to a resolution.
in a show of military strength. It said the
intercontinental ballistic missile, topped
with a "superlarge heavy warhead," had
the potential to hit the continental US.
Gen McMaster said the chance of war
could change "based on what we all decide
to do". But he added: "North Korea is a
grave threat to all civilized people across
the globe."
annual meet
Nassau County
Executiveelect
Laura Curran
(second from
left) was
among many
dignitaries who
attended the
convention.
Also seen in
photo AAPIQLI
President
Dr. Rakesh Dua
(right).
Huntington, NY: AAPIQLI (American Hon. Tom Suozzi, and Nassau County
Association of Physicians of Indian Origin Executive elect Hon. Laura Curran, as well
of Queens and Long Island) hosted its as first deputy commissioner at depart
22nd Annual Convention at Huntington ment of health New York State Dr. Eugene
Hilton on Long Island on December 16, Heslin, many dignitaries and more than
under the leadership of its President Dr. 600 guests. Four physicians of Indian ori
Rakesh Dua. gin were honored for their lifetime
It was attended by Chief Guest achievements and funds raised for many
Congressman from New Yorks 3rd district local and national charities.

Philadelphia, PA: The American

Pain Association (APA) hosted the
Turn the Tide Summit to address
the challenges and strategies sur
rounding Americas opioid epidem
ic. The event was held at Rowan
University Medical School,
Camden, NJ, and marks the first
stop in the APAs US national tour,
which will continue, statebystate,
in an ongoing effort to generate
awareness and open up dialogue
concerning the opioid epidemic
and ways to combat an increasing
ly deadly crisis.
With 500,000 American deaths ,
this has become #1 national crisis
and resident Trump has declared a
national emergency on this issue.
In his keynote address, New
Jersey Governor Chris Christie who
is White House Opioid Crisis
Commission Chair said, Because of
this epidemic a 9/11 disaster is
happening every two weeks and
we are committed to putting a stop
to this. Government wont be able
to do it alone without the help of
public and private partnership. He
gave the example of AIDS, where
people came marching in streets to
gather support for a topic with
huge stigma, and thanked Dr
Sanjay and Kavita Gupta in leading
American Pain Association launches
campaign against opioid crisis
important message.
Dr Gupta stated that NRI kids are
especially prone to smoking, drink
ing and drugs given the immense
parental and competitive pressure.
In India also, with 65% of its popu
lation under 35 years, this trend is
increasing, but not many are talk
ing about it.
APAs Dr Kavita Gupta, who is
Chair of Turn the Tide, said, In the
age of social media, music and film
content from Hollywood and
Bollywood is uncensored and
spreads virally sending wrong mes
sages worldwide. We need a con
scious and active participation
from film industry in this. It has
Dr Sanjay Gupta, President APA, Governor Chris Christie, Dr. Vanila taken lives of many Hollywood
M. Singh, Chief Medical Officer, US Dept of Health and Human Services,
celebrities including Michael
and Dr Kavita Gupta, Chair #TurntheTide Public Campaign.
Jackson, Whitney Houston, and
APAs efforts against this epidemic discussion on this epidemic. He Heath Ledger. We need to start dis
and considered it a historic launch. added that the tour will provide a cussing and talking about this
Dr. Sanjay Gupta, APA President platform for lawmakers, athletes, topic. A social media public cam
and Turn the Tide tour originator, music and film artistes and others paign with hashtag #turnthetide is
said, We need more dialogue and to come together in spreading the also planned by APA under Dr
Kavita Guptas leadership. Ali Quali
Mirza, a Bollywood singer and rap
per, stated that although peer pres
sure on artists is huge, I don't
drink or smoke. I agree with Dr
Kavita Gupta that Hollywood and
Bollywood can help in spreading
the message that one can be happy
without smoking, drinking and
drugs.
Several athletes , Hollywood and
Bollywood artists and lawmakers
have joined the APA campaign.
NY Jets fame Marvin Washington
, Philadelphia Eagles and
Indianapolis
Colts Fame Todd Herremans, and
Philadelphia Flyers fame Riley Cote
, cofounder, Athletes for Care
shared some of their personal
experiences with opioids.
The primary efforts of American
Pain Association are directed
towards education, research and
improving medical treatment.
Contact: info@painassociation.org.
 4 December 23-29, 2017 TURN PAGE TheSouthAsianTimes.info

UNGA session on ed that the US would continue to Korea and Iran as "rogue govern

US House to revote Jerusalem after US veto

on Republican tax bill
Washington: The House of
Representatives will revote on
Wednesday on the Republicans'
tax bill, though the legislation is
still expected to pass both cham
bers in Congress and be on
President Donald Trump's desk in
the next 24 hours, the media
reported.
A version of the bill passed
along sharp partisan lines, 227
203, with 12 House Republican
members opposing the legisla
tion, and no Democrats voting for
it, earlier on Tuesday, reports
CNN.
But shortly after debate started
in the Senate, the House Majority
Leader's office advised its confer
ence to be prepared to vote on
Wednesday citing Senate rules
that would likely strip out certain
parts of the final bill in order to
pass with a simple majority.
The Senate is expected to clear
the bill later by early Wednesday
morning, with Vice President
Mike Pence presiding over the
vote. After the bill clears the
House, the measure will then
head to the President's desk for
his signature before the
Christmas holiday. As House
Republicans prepared to vote on
the tax bill the first time, Speaker
Paul Ryan was seated next to the
conservative House Freedom
Caucus Chairman Mark
Meadows, a North Carolina
Republican.
The two men went head to head
at certain points on health care
and spending bills, but on tax
reform, the House Freedom
Caucus has worked hand in glove
with leadership.
Ryan spoke from the floor and
said that this vote on the tax bill
is a "generational defining
moment".
"This is without question the
single most important thing we
can do to once again make
America the best place to do busi
ness," Ryan said.
Meanwhile, protesters were
repeatedly removed from the
chamber for shouting "kill the
bill, don't kill us", in the minute
before the House vote.
The plan, which critics say is
heavily weighted to ease the tax
burden of businesses rather than
the middle class, drops the corpo
rate tax rate down from 35 to 21
per cent, repeals the corporate
alternative minimum tax, nearly
doubles the standard deduction
for individuals and restructures
the way passthrough businesses
are taxed, reports CNN.
The bill keeps seven personal
income tax brackets, and lowers
that tax rates for most brackets,
including dropping the top rate to
37 from 39.6 per cent.
It would also reduce tax breaks
important to states and cities
with higher taxes by placing a
$10,000 cap on the deduction for
state and local and taxes.
The bill would also repeal
ObamaCare's individual mandate
and open up a section of the
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
for drilling. IANS
Continued from page 1
rest of the Occupied Palestinian
Territory," and it first convened
in 1997, he added.
Unlike the regular annual ses
sions of the Assembly which end
after a year, an emergency spe
cial session can continue indefi
nitely and be reconvened periodi
cally even after a gap of several
years.
BJP wins Gujarat &
Himachal but loses Modi
home seat
Continued from page 1
got three more. The NCP, which
fought alone, got a lone seat and
Independents got two.
In contrast, Himachal Pradesh
lived up to its reputation of chang
ing the ruler every election, as the
BJP comfortably beat Congress,
winning 44 of the 68 seats that
were up for grabs. The Congress
won 21 in the hill state where it
had previously held 36 seats. Two
seats went to Independents and a
lone seat was taken by CPIM.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi,
who put up an aggressive cam
paign in Gujarat, camping in his
home state for days, described the
BJP's electoral victory in the state
as "historic" as "in this age for a
party to keep winning for so long"
is unheard of.
However, in Unjha constituency,
which encompasses Modi's home
town Vadnagar, Congress candi
date Asha Patel has won the seat
by over 19,000 votes.
Trump backs 'leadership
role' for India, slams
China, Russia
Continued from page 1
power and stronger strategic and
defense partner. We will seek to
increase quadrilateral cooperation
with Japan, Australia and India."
Trump's security strategy also stat
push Pakistan to speed up its
counterterrorism efforts.
"We will press Pakistan to inten
sify its counterterrorism efforts,
since no partnership can survive a
country's support for militants and
terrorists who target a partner's
own service members and offi
cials," it said.
"The US will also encourage
Pakistan to continue demonstrat
ing that it is a responsible steward
of its nuclear assets."
In a yearend, campaignstyle
speech in central Washington, the
President warned of rising threats
from an emboldened Russia and
China.
He called Moscow and Beijing
"revisionist powers" who "want to
shape a world antithetical to US
values and interests, attempting to
erode American security and pros
perity". "They are determined to
make economies less free and less
fair, to grow their militaries, and to
control information and data to
repress their societies and expand
their influence." But, he said, the
US must attempt to build a "great
partnership with them". Trump
stopped short of calling out
Moscow for its election meddling.
He said intellectual property
theft would be targeted, a clear
warning to China which American
companies have complained about
for years. "We will no longer toler
ate trading abuse."
Beijing slammed Washington
and asked it to "abandon its Cold
War mentality and zerosum game
concept". Foreign Ministry spokes
woman Hua Chunying warned
Washington that failure to do so
"would only harm itself as well as
others".
The Kremlin said Trump's securi
ty sounded "imperialist" and said
the "mentions of Russia demon
strated the imperial nature of the
document" and showed "an aver
sion to a multipolar world". The
new policy also mentioned North
ments".
Trump described "four pillars" to
his new plan: protecting the home
land, promoting American pros
perity, demonstrating peace
through strength and advancing
American influence.
The 68page document, which
White House officials began work
on 11 months ago, suggested a
return to Trump's campaign prom
ise of "America First". "A nation
that does not protect prosperity at
home cannot protect its interests
abroad," he said.
Trump emphasised that the US
had been cheated and taken
advantage of abroad while its citi
zens were illserved at home a
situation he said his security plan
would seek to reverse.
In his speech, Trump referred to
his election victory, saying that in
2016 voters chose to "Make
America Great Again". He boasted
about his achievements and reiter
ated that Americans have been left
behind as a result of decisions
made by past administrations,
including on immigration, the Iran
nuclear deal and trade pacts.
"Now less than one year later I
am proud to report that the entire
world has heard the news and has
seen the signs," he said. "America
is coming back and America is
coming back strong." He said that
past administrations didn't now
how to cut trade deals. "Our lead
ers in Washington negotiated dis
astrous trade deals that brought
massive profits to many foreign
nations but sent thousands of
American factories and millions of
American jobs to those other coun
tries." He outlined his campaign
promise to build a wall on the bor
der with Mexico as well as reform
the immigration visa system. The
new policy stressed economic
security but did not recognize cli
mate change as a national security
threat.
IANS

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 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
R. K. M. JAYANTY HONORED WITH Tamil Professorship established
2017 NORTH CAROLINA AWARD at Stony Brook University
New York: Indian American
chemist R. K. M. Jayanty was hon
ored with the 2017 North Carolina
Award, presented to him by the
Governor of North Carolina Roy
Cooper, for his work in air pollu
tion monitoring and control.
Dr. Jays research has impacted
the lives of countless numbers of
people in North Carolina and
around the world. His dedication to
improving the human condition
d through research into one of the
worlds most challenging problems
pollution in the air we breathe
coupled with his commitment to
RTI over nearly four decades, has
made an incalculable contribution
to our scientific stature, said RTI
an
President and CEO Wayne Holden.
Jayanty received advanced
degrees in chemistry and engineer
h
ing from Andhra University in
India, the University of Bradford in
d
England and Pennsylvania State
University, he then took the posi
tion of chemist position at RTI in
,
0.
Princeton Professor Kaushik Sengupta awarded 2017 Bell Labs Prize
New York: Nokia Bell Labs
announced Dec. 8 that Indian
s
American assistant professor of
s
electrical engineering at Princeton
University Kaushik Sengupta has
been named the 2017 winner of the
y
Bell Labs Prize.
Sengupta was named the winner
of the fourth annual prize for his
k
invention of a radical new trans
ceiver chip technology that could
power a truly universal software
defined reconfigurable radio,
according to a Nokia Bell Labs news
release.
Among Sengupta's research inter
ests are siliconbased RF, mmWave
and THz circuits and systems, on
chip active electromagnetic field
S)
synthesis and selfhealing and
TRISTATE COMMUNITY
From Left: James
Woodward, Governor
Roy Cooper, Philip
Freelon, Margaret
Bauer, Jane Smith
Patterson, Loretta
Lynch, R.K.M. Jayanty,
NC Dept. of Natural
and Cultural
Resources Secretary
Susi Hamilton
(Courtesy: rti.org)
1978 and has since risen to the
position of Distinguished Fellow.
Jayanty has significantly
advanced the stateofthe art meas
urement of toxic pollutants in mul
timedia environments for over 35
years now and his work has
enabled the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency and other regu
latory agencies to meet important
regulatory goals, providing the sci
entific basis for international adop
tion of these methodologies for use
in pollutioncontrol programs and
protected human health and the
environment.
His research data on fine particu
late matter and volatile organic
compounds in the atmosphere are
used worldwide to determine com
pliance and enforcement strategies
with the national ambient air quali
ty standards and to develop control
strategies. The North Carolina
Awards are the states highest
recognition and have been present
ed annually since 1964.
Kaushik Sengupta
(Image : Princeton.edu)
reconfigurable integrated circuits
and systems in silicon, among oth
ers. Sengupta, who earned a bache
lor's degree from the Indian
Institute of Technology and a mas
New York: Stony Brook University
in New York Dec. 11 announced
that Bala and Prabha Swaminathan
have established a new endowed
professorship which will offer
Tamil language studies at the uni
versitys College of Arts and
Sciences.
The Tamil language is nearly as
old as Hebrew, and stands next to
Chinese as the most enduring clas
sical language still spoken today,
according to a university news
release. Despite the language
standing the test of time, only a
handful of colleges and universities
offer Tamil as a language study, it
said.
In a quest to change that, the
Swaminathans created the
Anandavalli and Dr. G.
Swaminathan Endowed Research
Professorship in Tamil at Stony
Brook University in honor of Balas
mother and father.
Tamil language is more than
something to speak, said Bala
Swaminathan in a statement. It
harbors a cultures history and tra
ditions and perpetuates identity
and pride. Ultimately, when its wis
dom is shared, Tamil language cre
ates better crosscultural under
standing and cooperation.
While the university is also home
to a thriving India Studies Center,
the Swaminathans deliberately
established the Tamil professorship
in the college of arts and sciences
ter's and doctorate from the
California Institute of Technology,
was an IBM Fellow, an IEEE Fellow
and Caltech Institute Fellow, as well
as an IIT Kharagpur Prime Minister
Gold Medal recipient. He has been
at Princeton University since
February 2013.
The Indian American also in 2017
was among a group of researchers
named Young Investigator
awardees by the Office of Naval
Research.
Joining Sengupta as 2017 win
ners, honored during an event at
Nokia Bell Labs headquarters in
Murray Hill, N.J., were research
teams Tse Nga Ng of U.C. San Diego
and Jason Azoulay of the University
of Southern Mississippi, as well as
December 23-29, 2017
Bala and Prabha Swaminathan
(Image : stonybrook.edu)
to leverage interdisciplinary, schol
arly research collaborations with
linguistics, anthropologists, musi
cians and sociologists, according to
the university.
I have a very high regard for
Stony Brooks research capabili
ties, Swaminathan added. I expect
the professor in Tamil will be an
active contributor on campus, pub
lishing many papers, offering
Tamil language classes and creat
ing the new knowledge that will
perpetuate and celebrate the lan
guage that still has so much to
teach us.
It was the wisdom of one of
Tamils oldest texts, the Kural, that
first captivated Swaminathan as he
grew up in the southern Indian
town of Madurai, Stony Brook said.
His father lived by the Kural.
Written by the 4th century BCE
poet and philosopher Valluvar, the
Kural is one of the most venerated
texts of secular ethics and most
Irelandbased University College
Cork's Colm O'Dwyer, who all fin
ished tied for second.
The 2017 winners demonstrated
breakthroughs in advanced radio
technology, flexible organic senor
electronics and new wearable
power sources with an impact on
creating time for humankind,
Nokia Bell Labs said.
The winners were handpicked
from among nine finalists, who
were in turn drawn from a total of
over 330 proposals from 35 coun
tries, it said.
The prize winners demonstrated
gamechanging ideas in science,
technology, engineering or mathe
matics with the potential to solve
broader societal challenges humans
5
widely translated works in the
world. Coincidentally, Valluvar was
also born in Madurai, preceding
Swaminathan by more than 2,000
years, it said. Before
Swaminathans father became a
prominent doctor, he had little to
give to others. Still, his father fol
lowed the Kural precept to be char
itable, once explaining to his son,
Whatever we earn is to provide
for others who do not have the
same opportunities, the university
noted. While creating a successful
career in the U.S. and founding the
New York Tamil Academy for
school children, Swaminathan says
hes most proud of the life of pur
pose and meaning he shares with
Prabha and their two sons, Isai
Maran and Kavin Mathi, according
to the news release.
The Indian American couple
hopes the professorship will help
sustain the language and culture
that have served them so well.
Offering endowed faculty
appointments, such as the
Anandavalli and Dr. G.
Swaminathan Endowed Research
Professorship in Tamil, helps us
attract the most talented teachers
and researchers, said Stony Brook
University president Samuel L.
Stanley Jr. in a statement. We are
grateful to Bala and Prabha for
their incredible leadership in keep
ing Tamil and the ideas of the
Kural alive for future generations.
face within the next ten years.
In addition to their cash prizes,
the winners will also be given the
opportunity to collaborate with the
worldrenowned researchers at
Nokia Bell Labs on the further
development of their ideas, accord
ing to the news release.
The Bell Labs Prize is a competi
tion for innovators from participat
ing countries around the globe that
seeks to recognize proposals that
"change the game" in the field of
information and communications
technologies by a factor of 10, and
provides selected innovators the
unique opportunity to collaborate
with Bell Labs researchers to help
realize their vision, according to the
prize website.
 6 December 23-29, 2017
USCIS to start accepting
applications under the IER
Washington, DC: On Dec 14th,
2017, U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services (USCIS)
announced it is taking steps to
implement the International
Entrepreneur Rule (IER), in accor
dance with a recent court deci
sion.
Although the IER was published
during the previous administra
tion with an effective date of July
17, 2017, it did not take effect
because the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS) issued a
final rule on July 11, 2017, delay
ing the IER's effective date until
March 14, 2018. This delay rule
was meant to give USCIS time to
review the IER and, if necessary,
to issue a rule proposing to
remove the IER program regula
tions.
However, a Dec. 1, 2017, ruling
from the U.S. District Court for the
District of Columbia in National
Venture Capital Association v.
Duke vacated USCIS' final rule to
delay the effective date. The Dec.
1, 2017, court decision is a result
of litigation filed in district court
on Sept. 19, 2017, which chal
lenged the delay rule.
The IER is an important oppor
tunity for foreign nationals as well
as for the US economy as it grants
"parole" to certain foreign nation
al entrepreneurs and it opens a
window for certain businessper
sons to come to (or remain in) the
U.S. For more information about
H1B holders can work for more than one
company says US Immigration Agency
Washington, DC: Foreign workers
in the US on a H1B work visa, the
most sought after among Indian
IT professionals, may work for
more than one company, the
country's immigration agency has
said.
The H1B visa is a nonimmi
grant visa that allows US compa
nies to employ foreign workers in
speciality occupations that re
quire theoretical or technical ex
pertise. The technology compa
nies depend on it to hire tens of
thousands of employees each year
from countries like India and Chi
na. "In general, H1B workers may
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
the IER, please see the new sec
tion added to 8 CFR 212.19 which
provides guidance with respect to
the use of "parole for entrepre
neurs of startup entities based
upon significant public benefit."
The IER was published during
the previous administration to
provide an unlimited number of
international entrepreneurs a new
avenue to apply for parole, enter
the U.S., and use American invest
ments to establish and grow start
up businesses. Parole is a discre
tionary grant made by the
Secretary of Homeland Security
and is granted only on a caseby
case basis for urgent humanitari
an reasons or significant public
benefit. The rule established new
criteria to guide the adjudication
of parole applications from cer
tain foreign entrepreneurs, pro
viding them with temporary per
mission to come to the country.
The rule did not afford a path to
citizenship, which only Congress
can do.
On Jan. 25, 2017, President
Trump issued Executive Order
13767, Border Security and
Immigration Enforcement
Improvements, which requires the
Secretary of Homeland Security to
ensure that parole authority is
exercised only on a casebycase
basis, and only when an individual
demonstrates urgent humanitari
an reasons or a significant public
benefit due to the parole.
work for more than one employer
but must have approved I129 for
each," the US Citizenship and Im
migration Services (USCIS), the
federal agency which receives and
determines the successful applica
tions for H1B visas, tweeted.
"New employer must submit an
I129 petition before you may be
gin working," the USCIS said.
Form I129 is a form submitted
for a nonimmigrant worker to
the USCIS used by employers or
prospective employers to obtain
(or amend the details of) a worker
on a nonimmigrant visa status.
While this is not a new rule, but
Trump to end H4 EAD program
for spouses of H1B workers
Washington, DC: Immigration
lawyers think that the visa pro
gram that allows certain cate
gories of H4 spouses to work
legally in the US is in jeopardy a
result of Trump administrations
immigration reforms.
The Obamaadministration in
2015 made spouses of H1B appli
cants, waiting for their green card
approval, eligible to work in the
US, giving a sigh of relief to thou
sands of talented
spouses who couldnt
legally work.
H4 visa is a depend
ent visa that is issued
by the USCIS to imme
diate family members,
which include spouse
and children less than
21 years of age of the
H1B visa holders.
Considering that In
dian Americans are the
biggest beneficiaries of H1B visa
program that allows skilled for
eign labors to legally work in the
US, the latest move of the Trump
administration will render thou
sands of H4depended Indians job
less.
The latest update on H4 visa
program from the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS) has
caused an escalation of the wor
ries of H4visa holders as the fed
eral agency said it is all set to do
away with the rule that permits H
4 dependents to work in the US.
very few people know about it.
The H1B visa has an annual nu
merical limit cap of 65,000 visas
each fiscal year as mandated by
the Congress. The first 20,000 pe
titions filed on behalf of benefici
aries with a US master's degree or
higher are exempt from the cap.
Additionally, H1B workers who
are petitioned for or employed at
an institution of higher education
or its affiliated or related non
profit entities or a nonprofit re
search organization or a govern
ment research organization are
not subject to this numerical cap.
Meanwhile, an American think
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Since the time Trump announced
his Buy American, Hire American
executive order, the immigration
attorneys were warning about an
impending reversal of the H4
work permit.
The Trump administration has
been attacking the H4 EAD pro
gram accusing it of taking away
jobs from Americans. Even though
there is no material evidence to
prove the claim, it was evident
from the recent attack that the H
4 EAD program had a bleak future.
If the Trump Administration
wishes to alter or completely dis
mantle the H4 EAD program, it
very likely would have to go
through the regulatory process,
saidMuthry Law Firm in Novem
ber.
It also said, If true, once the
proposed rule is published, it
would still likely take at least a
few months to end the program.
Further, until details of this ru
mored proposal are released, it is
tank, the Cato Institute in a report
said that in 2015, a total of 56
per cent of all supposed employ
mentbased green cards went to
the family members of workers.
The other 44 per cent went to the
workers themselves.
If family members were exempt
ed from the quota or there was a
separate green card category for
them, an additional 76,711 highly
skilled immigrant workers could
have earned a green card in 2015
without increasing the quota. Ac
cording to the institute, about 85
per cent of those who received an
employmentbased green card in
not clear how it may impact those
with existing H4 EADs and/or
pending H4 EAD applications.
In addition to making changes in
the H4 EAD program, the DHS is
also mulling of making some sig
nificant amendments to the H1B
visa program, which was one of
the key agendas of Trumps Execu
tive Order.
Since Obama Administration al
lowed work permit for H4visa
holders, the program
has been facing law
suits accusing it of
taking away the op
portunities of Ameri
can workers by em
ploying foreign work
ers for lower wages.
Save Jobs USA, a
group of former em
ployees of Southern
California Edison,
filed a lawsuit against
DHS but it lacked legal standing
and was dismissed by the trial.
The group has now moved to the
US Court of Appeals for the Dis
trict of Columbia Circuit but immi
gration lawyers believe there is lit
tle chance that they will be suc
cessful.
Since Trump administration
came to power, talks about over
hauling H1B visa program had in
tensified causing panic among In
dians who account for 70 percent
of total H1B recipients.
(Source: news wire)
2015 were already legally living
in the US.
"They were able to adjust their
immigration status from another
type of visa, like an H1B or F
visa, to an employmentbased
green card. Exempting some or all
of the adjustments of status from
the green card cap would almost
double the number of highly
skilled workers who could enter,"
it said.
In a blog post, Immigration At
torney Tsion Chudnovsky said im
migration lawyers are seeing a
big change in how visas are being
processed in 2017 and many ex
pect denial rates to increase to 40
per cent in this year's H1B cap.
The USCIS has started challenging
H1Bs which would have no prob
lem being approved in the past,
she said. (PTI)
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Emerging technologies, entrepreneurship
focus of ASEIs 32nd annual convention
2017 ASEI Awards Recipients with ASEI Founder and ASEI President (L to R): Hari Bindal,
Aaron Ghumman, Rakesh Patel, Mamatha Chamarthi, Bhushan Kulkarni, Dr. Rahul Mittal
Novi, Michigan: American Society of
Engineers of Indian Origin (ASEI) held its
32nd Annual Convention focusing on the
theme of Emerging Technologies and
Entrepreneurship (ETE 2017). This conven
tion was held on December 9th at the Novi
Civic Center in Novi, Michigan. The 32nd
Annual Convention is hosted by the Michigan
Chapter of ASEI. The objective ETE 2017 was
to provide a forum to promote and share
advancements related to emerging technolo
gies and entrepreneurship. This convention
was attended by scientists, engineers, entre
preneurs, and corporate leaders across USA.
The convention featured multiple interactive
sessions with prominent business owners,
technologists, media personalities, educators,
policy makers, and investment bankers.
The convention had multiple interactive
sessions led by various subject matter
experts providing information and insight on
many topics related to the convention theme.
The attendees found these sessions very
informative and comprehensive. The sessions
were organized in two tracks with topics
such as Autonomous Cars, Latest Trends in
Automotive Transmissions Technology, Tax
Indian pleads guilty to launching
cyberattack on varsity computers
Washington, DC: An Indian
American has pleaded guilty
to charges of launching a
cyberattack on a US universi
ty's computer network, offi
cials said.
Paras Jha, 21, of New Jersey
along with two others Josiah
White, 20, from Pennsylvania
Paras Jha
(Image : nj.com)
and Dalton Norman, 21, from
Louisiana also pleaded guilty to creating
and operating two botnets, which targeted
'Internet of Things' (IoT) devices, the
Department of Justice announced Tuesday.
"Paras Jha has admitted his responsibility
for multiple hacks of the Rutgers University
computer system," Acting US Attorney
William Fitzpatrick said in a statement.
"These computer attacks shut down the
server used for all communications among
faculty, staff and students, including assign
ment of course work to students, and stu
dents' submission of their work to profes
sors to be graded," he said.
"The defendant's actions effectively paral prison and a fine of $250,000, or twice the
ysed the system for days at a time and mali
ciously disrupted the educational process
for tens of thousands of Rutgers' students.
Today, the defendant has admitted his
NATIONAL COMMUNITY December 23-29, 2017 7
Considerations for Entrepreneurs, War on
Cash, Cybersecurity and Healthcare,
Innovations in Branding, and Intelligent
Transport Systems. The speakers for these
sessions were from Ford, GM, Harman,
Prudential, SBD, Futurenet, Michigan
Business Network, University of Michigan,
TiE, and Jenesys Group. The attendees found
these sessions very informative and helpful.
Keynote speaker Sanjay Dhal CEO of
Detroit Flying Cars talked about introducing
new approaches, bridging diverse domains,
small footprint thinking and seeking efficien
cies while pursuing his lifelong passion for
designing, building and flying models and
full size aircraft. Mehul Desai Founder and
CEO of DeZai, LLC focused on fostering inno
vation in the areas of Technology, New Media
and Social Entrepreneurship and his pioneer
ing work in the field of secure transactions
for mobile phone users, evolving the Digital
Wallet to Mobile Wallet to Lifestyle
Container.Youth Technology Exhibition (YTE)
for middle and high school students had over
35 students from 11 teams demonstrate
their work based on Science, Technology,
Engineering, and Math.
role in this criminal offence and
will face the legal consequences
for it," Mr Fitzpatrick said.
In a guilty plea before US
District Judge Michael Shipp in
Trenton federal court in New
Jersey, Paras accepted of violat
ing the Computer Fraud &
Abuse Act. According to court
documents, between November
2014 and September 2016, Paras executed
a series of attacks on the networks of
Rutgers University.
His attacks effectively shut down Rutgers
University's central authentication server,
which maintained, among other things, the
gateway portal through which staff, faculty,
and students delivered assignments and
assessments. At times, he succeeded in tak
ing the portal offline for multiple consecu
tive periods, causing damage to Rutgers
University, its faculty, and its students.
The count to which Jha pleaded guilty is
punishable by a maximum of 10 years in
gross amount of any pecuniary gain or loss
derived from the offence, whichever is
greater. Sentencing is scheduled for March
13, 2018.
 8 December 23-29, 2017
Washington, DC: A new national
governing body for cricket in the
USA took a step closer to fruition
with the formal approval of a new
constitution for the sport
paving the way for historic elec
tions in 2018. The Sustainable
Foundation Advisory Group
(SFAG), set up to unify the cricket
community in the USA, has given
the green light to a constitution
that will see the election of a new
Board, including three independ
ent directors, of which one must
be Chair.
USA Cricket has been estab
lished as an entity and the
approval of the constitution regis
tered under Colorado State Law
provides the process under which
the ofce bearers of the govern
ing body can be elected and
operate.
USA Cricket will now focus on
nalizing a membership program
reective of the whole sport
across the country, which will in
turn be able to vote on the seven
of the ten Board members. The
details of the program will be
announced shortly, with an
opportunity to register for
Membership in early 2018.
The ICC Americas Project USA
team has undertaken a signicant
community consultation program
l By Suchitra Srinivas
New Jersey: Dream college?
Dream jobs? Dream house?
Dream car? All assured but, when
we extend this to Dream Date and
a compatible partner for life; may
be stammers and stutters deco
rate the answers for many partic
ularly in the South Asian commu
nities.
Launched in October 2017,
Pyar.com a dating website cater
ing to South Asian population is
condent to change this tone for
ever.
Internetbased dating platforms
are rapidly growing worldwide,
we noticed that a large population
of the global South Asian commu
nity is left behind as they look for
wholesome experience than what
is frequently offered, said
Vidyadhar Garapati, CEO of the
new initiative. Days have
changed, what we need is not
mere matrimony sites but those
which help nd a compatible date.
Pyar.com will be a platform
safe and secure to nd a compati
ble partner leading to meaningful
longterm relationship, embracing
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
Approved constitution marks historic
landmark for cricket in USA
(Images courtesy: icccricket.com)
over the last few months in which
the constitution received only
minor adjustments to that which
the Sustainable Foundation
Advisory Group had originally
recommended. Any such changes
are minor and are based either on
feedback from the community
consultations or as necessitated
by Colorado State Law, where
USA Cricket is based.
Highlights of the new constitu
Dating is no more a taboo
Vidyadhar Garapati,
CEO of Pyar.com
cultural values and preferences,
said Vidyadhar, the New Jersey
based CEO who earlier successful
ly promoted movers.com. This
time Vidyadhar has come out with
yet another initiative catering to a
need that has not been recognized
for long.
In a quick time, the web sites
social media following has
reached a million. The focus is all
about nding the perfect match,
tion include:
l New individual membership
structure that allows USA Cricket
to engage, communicate with and
support the entire cricket com
munity directly, including players,
coaches, match ofcials, fans and
administrators.
l Supplemented by organiza
tional membership that continues
league engagement and involve
ment but also provides the oppor
A New Jersey start up, Pyar.com helps
find compatible partners through
its safe and secure platform
says Vidyadhar. The concept of
arranged marriages ceases to
impress modern society, yet
embracing the western dating
practices in total seems to be too
early to be declared as universal
norm in the South Asian commu
nities. Currently the market has
no big player catering to this
unique perspective.
Initial hesitations to get started
with a complete stranger, what to
look for and what not to expect,
how safe can this meeting be, how
true is the information shared and
more concerns like these have
been major road blocks.
Our App will help nd perfectly
compatible matches through safe
dating website breaking the taboo
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
"This Constitution
gives the new national
governing body in
USA the best
possible chance of
success, says David
Richardson, CEO, ICC
tunity for membership of USA
Cricket by all of the individual
clubs across the USA.
l The country will be divided
into three Conferences further
split into six geographic
Zones(East, MidAtlantic, South,
SouthWest, West, Midwest) with
programs and services including
unied and structured competi
tions, high performance camps
and coach / umpire education
being delivered in each Zone.
l New Board composition that
is diverse, inclusive, engages and
barriers, says Vidyadhar.
The real truth is that we have
moved far from matrimony
parameters. The usual declaration
for traditional match making used
to be the height, weight, complex
ion, sub sects and job including
salary details. Today the expecta
tion beyond these is one of com
patibility parameters. The compa
ny has developed app which
works on the analytics on various
leading questions.
Questions leading to cultural
values and preference, their social
proling preferences, their values
all are collected as meaningful
data. We have developed a series
of algorithms that work out the
compatibility or Pyar percentage
is representative of the entire
cricket community, complies with
the requirements of
the US Olympic
Committee,
and estab
lishes a
focus on
independ
ence. It will
be made up of
the following ten
directors Two Player
Directors, Three Independent
Directors, Three Individual
Directors, One Club Director, One
League Director & Independent
Chair of the Board
Engagement in the governance
of USA Cricket by a wider group
of individuals in the cricket com
munity will be undertaken via ve
additional Standing Committees
including; Cricket, Leagues,
Finance and Commercial, Ethics,
Grievance and Disciplinary and
Audit, each of which would have a
signicant level of representation
by players.
between the proles that register
with us. Thus, even before they
meet they get to know how friend
ly and likeminded can a relation
ship be. Something that gives
them the condence to move
ahead, said Vidyadhar.
The values and beliefs South
Asian immigrants are unique
embracing tradition and moderni
ty at its fullest and Pyar.com
seems to include these values in
nding proper date. In the past if
it used to be the planetary posi
tions represented in the boxes of
the horoscope that determined
relationships today it will be the
Pyar percentage calculated by the
algorithms worked by these Apps
that will perhaps do the magic!
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Shree Saini crowned
Miss India USA 2017
Washington, DC: Shree Saini, a res
ident of Washington state, was
crowned Miss India USA 2017.
The 21yearold, who is a stu
dent at the University of
Washington, said she wants to lead
a life dedicated to service.
Shree, who had a pacemaker
implanted at the age of 12 and was
told that she would never be able
dance, is an inspiration for all.
A victim of bullying in high
school, she has been campaigning
against the oppressive behavior.
"I believe in working together to
create a hole that is greater than
the sum of its parts," Shree said,
whose parents migrated to the US
from Punjab.
She said she wants to eliminate
human trafficking and work
towards promoting the importance
of emotional wellbeing in the soci
ety.
Prachi Singh, a 22yearold med
ical student from Connecticut was
declared the first runnerup, while
North Carolinas Fareena became
the second runnerup at Miss India
USA 2017 pageant.
At the beauty pageant, cancer
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
over two dozen states participated
Shree Saini
(Image : Twitter/Shree Saini)
surgeon Kavita Malhotra Pattani
from Florida was declared Mrs
India USA 2017.
Prerna was the first runnerup
while Ishwarya was declared the
second runnerup for this title.
Swapna Mannam, 17, from New
Jersey was crowned with Miss
Teen India USA 2017.
While Simran was the first run
nerup, Kritika bagged the sash as
the second runnerup.
More than 50 contestants from
Trump to step down amid resur
in the three different pageants
Miss India USA, Miss Teen India
USA and Mrs India USA.
Started by New Yorkbased emi
nent Indian Americans Dharmatma
Saran and Neelam Saran, under
the banner of India Festival
Committee around 36 years ago,
Miss India USA is the longest run
ning Indian pageant outside India.
Winners of the pageants here
have gone on to act in various
Bollywood movies.
"It has evolved over the years.
Earlier, the participants of pag
eants presented their talent
around Bollywood dance and
songs and classical dances. But
now pageant participants come
out with their own innovations.
"In addition to Bollywood dance
and songs on stage, they give
speeches, do motivational speak
ing, mono acting, sing popular
American songs, hiphop, fusion
music and even do real time paint
ing," Dharmatma Saran told PTI.
December 23-29, 2017
TRUMP SHOULD RESIGN,
SAYS KAMALA HARRIS
Washington, DC: Kamala Harris,
first IndianAmerican to serve in
the US Senate, has joined a grow
ing group of Democratic senators
calling for President Donald
faced allegations of sexual mis
conduct.
"I think he should resign in the
best interest of the country," the
California Democrat told Politico
in an interview on Thursday.
Harris joined six other
Democratic senators Kirsten
Gillibrand, Cory Booker, Bernie
Sanders, Jeff Merkley, Mazie
Hirono and Ron Wyden who
called for Trump to resign.
The former California Attorney
General's remarks came as Trump
faced renewed scrutiny over past
accusations of sexual misconduct.
At least 16 women have accused
him of inappropriate behavior.
Earlier this week, three of the
16 women renewed their allega
tions publicly as they detailed
their accounts of being groped,
fondled and forcibly kissed by
Trump before he was elected the
US President. They urged
Congress to investigate their sto
ries. Trump inflamed his critics
9
Kamala Harris
again this week when he said in a
tweet that Senator Gillibrand used
to "come to my office 'begging'
for campaign contributions" and
that she "would do anything for
them." Harris, a potential presi
dential contender in 2020, said
Trump's tweet "was completely
inappropriate on every level."
"First of all, we know he's not
going to resign," Harris said. "So
let's just be clear about that. But if
he were going to make a decision
that was in the best interest of the
country, I think he should. He
should seriously consider it."
Trump has repeatedly denied
accusations of sexual misconduct,
taking to Twitter to deride what
he called "false accusations and
fabricated stories."
 10 December 23-29, 2017
Republicans release final bill on tax reform
Washington: The ruling
Republican party on Friday
unveiled the final version of their
tax bill which promises massive
tax cuts for the middle class and
businesses.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act low
ers the corporate tax rate to 21
per cent (beginning January 1,
2018) down from 35 per cent, the
largest reduction in the history of
the US.
The voting on the $ 1.5 trillion
tax cut Bill will be held this week
and if passed will be the most
sweeping tax overhaul in decades.
President Donald Trump, who
had promised taxcut during his
election campaign, now wants the
Bill signed into law by the end of
the year. By lowering tax rates,
simplifying the rigged and burden
some tax code, and repealing the
failed tax on lower and middle
income households known as the
Obamacare individual mandate,
this legislation will grow our econ
omy, raise wages, and promote
economic competitiveness, White
Trump lawyers set for
key meeting with
Special Counsel
Washington: President
Donald Trump's pri
vate lawyers are slated
to meet Special
Counsel Robert
Mueller, who is cur
rently probing alleged
Russian meddling in
the 2016 presidential
election, this week, the
media reported.
While the lawyers
have met with
Mueller's team before
and might again, the
upcoming meeting has
greater significance
because it comes after
the completion of Special Counsel Robert Mueller
interviews of White
House personnel requested by
the Special Counsel and after all
requested documents have been
turned over, informed officials
told CNN late Friday.
Mueller could still request
more documents and additional
interviews. No request to inter
view the President or Vice
President Mike Pence has been
made.
Trump's team, led by John
Dowd and Jay Sekulow, is hoping interviewed.
for signs that Mueller's investi
gation is nearing its end, or at
least the part having to do with
the President, the officials said.
After about seven months on
the job, Mueller has already
The passing of the tax bill will be the first big
legislative win for President Trump
House Press Secretary Sarah
Sanders said.
President Trump applauds the
House and Senate conferees on
coming to an agreement on the
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and looks
forward to fulfilling the promise he
made to the American people to
brought charges against four
people, including two who have
pleaded guilty to making false
statements and are now cooper
ating with the investigation, CNN
reported.
Earlier this week, White House
Counsel Don McGahn sat for an
interview with Mueller's investi
gators, according to the officials.
He was among the last of the
White House employees to be
White House officials and the
President's lawyers have dis
missed the idea that Mueller
could charge Trump and others
around him for obstruction of
justice.
US AFFAIRS
give them a tax cut by the end of
the year, she said.
The White House statement
came after the House and the
Senate agreed on the unified tax
Bill. Senators Marco Rubio and Bob
Corker also voiced their support
for the Bill. House Majority Leader
Not retiring from Congress: Paul Ryan
Washington: Speaker Paul Ryan
has dismissed swirling media
reports that he is going to retire
from the Congress.
Asked at the end of his weekly
press conference last Thursday
whether he was leaving
Congress "soon", Ryan said: "I'm
not, no", Xinhua news agency
reported.
Politico had published a
lengthy report saying that Ryan,
a 47yearold Republican from
the US state of Wisconsin, told
confidants that he would retire
after the 2018 midterm election.
US regulator repeals
Obama's net neutrality rules
Washington: The US Federal
Communications Commission
(FCC) has voted to roll back "net
neutrality" rules adopted in 2015
that required internet service
providers to treat all online traffic
equally.
In the rules adopted in 2015
under then President Barack
Obama, internet service providers
were not allowed to block or
degrade access to legal content,
applications, services, or non
harmful devices.
In a 3to2 vote along party lines,
the FCC on Thursday reversed
what it called in a statement
"heavyhanded utilitystyle regula
tion of broadband Internet access
service" which "reduced Internet
service provider (ISP) investment
in networks, as well as hampered
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Kevin McCarthy hoped to deliver
the Bill to the Presidents desk just
in time for Christmas.
House Speaker Paul Ryan said
the bill overhauls Americas tax
code to deliver tax relief for work
ers, families and job creators, and
revitalise the nations economy.
The act will lower taxes across
the board, eliminate costly special
interest tax breaks, and modernize
international tax system
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act will
help create more jobs, increase
paychecks, and make the tax code
simpler and fairer for Americans of
all walks of life, said Ryan.
With this bill, the typical family
of four earning the median family
income of $ 73,000 will receive a
tax cut of $2,059.
The Bill also expands the Child
Tax Credit from $ 1,000 to $
2,000 for single filers and married
couples to help parents with the
cost of raising children.
The tax credit is fully refundable
up to $ 1,400 and begins to phase
out for families making over $
Earlier this week, the
Huffington Post published a
news report titled "When will
Paul Ryan step down?", kicking
into high gear the rumors of
Ryan's possible quit.
According to The Hill news
daily report, a number of
Republican lawmakers said last
month that Ryan could pass tax
reform and quickly quit
Congress, choosing to go out on
top with a victory rather than
waiting to be forced out like his
predecessor, Speaker John
Boehner.
innovation, particularly among
small ISPs serving rural con
sumers", Xinhua reported.
At the same time, it restores the
classification of broadband inter
net access service as an "informa
tion service" and reinstates the
classification of mobile broadband
internet access service as a private
mobile service, the FCC statement
said. The Obamaera rules also
banned the establishment of fast
and slow internet lanes in order to
favor certain online content over
others.
Over the past two years, AT&T
Inc. and other broadband
providers have challenged the net petition is a click away and switch
neutrality rules in court.
Michael Beckerman, president
and CEO of Internet Association, a
trade association that represents
400,000.
Ryan said the reduction in the
corporate tax rate will help
American businesses bring home
foreign earnings to invest in grow
ing jobs and paychecks in local
communities.
This is the first major tax
reform in a generation. It means
relief for hardworking families and
a jumpstart for our economy,
Ryan said. The opposition
Democrats, however, slammed the
Bill alleging that it benefited only
the rich. Slashing the top tax rate
for the wealthiest Americans even
deeper is Republicans final insult
to hardworking Americans in this
deficitexploding scam of a Bill,
said Democrat leader Nancy Pelosi.
Republicans went into confer
ence with two bills that raise taxes
on tens of millions of middle class
families. But instead of actually
helping middle class Americans,
the GOP throws them a few mea
ger crumbs while slashing taxes
for millionaires even deeper, she
said.
Speaker of the US House,
Paul Ryan
internet companies such as
Amazon, Google and Facebook,
opposed the FCC's repeal of the
Obamaera rules, saying "relying
on ISPs to live up to their own
'promises' is not net neutrality and
is bad for consumers."
"There is little competition in the
broadband service market more
than half of all Americans have no
choice in their provider so con
sumers will be forced to accept ISP
interference in their online experi
ence," Beckerman said.
"This is in stark contrast to the
websites and apps that make up
Internet Association, where com
ing costs are low."
Beckerman said his group is cur
rently weighing its legal options in
a lawsuit against the new decision.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Trump lawyers accuse
Mueller of illegal
document cache
Washington: A lawyer for President
Trumps transition team has accused
Special Counsel Robert Mueller of unlaw
fully obtaining documents including
thousands of emails without their knowl
edge, for its ongoing probe into alleged
Russian meddling in the 2016 presiden
tial election. Kory Langhofer, counsel to
Trump for America (TFA), said in a letter
last week to several congressional panels
that Muellers team obtained these emails
from the General Services Administration
(GSA), the government agency that host
ed the transition email system, reports
Xinhua news agency.
In the sevenpage letter, he accused
Muellers team of unlawfully producing
TFAs private materials, including privi
leged communications, to the Special
Counsels Office. The lawyer urged the
Senate Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs Committee and the
House Oversight and Government Reform
Committee to protect future presidential
transitions from having their private
records misappropriated by government
agencies, particularly in the context of
sensitive investigations intersecting with
political motives. Muellers probe into
the alleged Russia meddling entered a
new phase earlier this month when for
mer National Security Adviser Michael
Flynn pleaded guilty of lying to the FBI
about his contacts with Russia.
Hundreds sick
with stomach
illness on Royal
Caribbean cruise
Washington: A Royal Caribbean cruise
ship returned to Florida after hundreds
of passengers contracted a gastrointesti
nal illness, the media reported.
During the fivenight cruise, 332 cases
of the illness were reported, Owen
Torres, a spokesman for Royal Caribbean
told CNN in a statement on Saturday.
He stressed that it was a small percent
age 5.99 per cent of the more than
5,000 passengers and crew onboard the
ship, Independence of the Seas.
"Those affected by the shortlived ill
ness were treated by our ship's doctors
with overthecounter medication,"
Torres said, "and we hope all our guests
feel better quickly".
It is not known what caused the illness.
According to reports, some passengers
who were disembarking on Saturday in
Port Everglades, Florida, believed the
number of passengers who got sick was
higher than what Royal Caribbean said.
Torres, the Royal Caribbean
spokesman, told CNN the company is
"taking steps like intensive sanitary pro
cedures to minimize the risk of any fur
ther issues", and that the ship will "under
go special additional cleaning procedures
before it departs on its next cruise".
US AFFAIRS December 23-29, 2017 11
Trump change of heart on Russian meddling
Washington: President Donald Trump's
first national security strategy has sin
gled out Russia for waging "offensive
Strategy document
cyber efforts to influence public opin singles out Kremlin
ion" in other countries.
The White House on Monday pub for 'offensive
lished a 55page document that envi
sions confrontations with "revisionist" cyber efforts
powers like Russia and China, who are
posing challenges to the United States as cyber and social media to attack our
and are seeking to change the global nation or threaten our society."
status quo, often to harm the America's President Trump's national security
interests. strategy emphasizes that the U.S. "will
"Russia uses information operations be risk informed, but not risk averse"
as part of its offensive cyber efforts to when considering how to respond
influence public opinion across the against malicious cyber actors.
globe," the document states. "Its influ The roll out of the national security
ence campaigns blend covert intelli strategy is the first major step by the
gence operations and false online per Trump administration at forming a
sonas with statefunded media, third comprehensive strategy on the presi
party intermediaries, and paid social dent's 'America First' worldview.
media users or 'trolls.'" "We will promote a balance of power
However, the document doesn't spec that favors the United States, our allies,
ify the Russian interference in the elec and our partners," the document noted.
tions, but it apparently referred "We will never lose sight of our values
Russia's bid at several points. cies." Despite the strategy calling Russia and their capacity to inspire, uplift, and
The document also points out Moscow's out for 'offensive cyber efforts', Trump renew. Most of all, we will serve the
attempts to "interfere" in the domestic didn't mention cybersecurity during his American people and uphold their right to
political affairs of other countries and speech and said, "We will develop ways to a government that prioritizes their securi
"undermine the legitimacy of democra counter those who use new domains such ty, their prosperity, and their interests".
US blames North Korea for
the massive WannaCry attack
Washington: A senior White of the North Korean
House official says North Government.
Korea is "directly responsible" White House homeland
for the socalled WannaCry
cyber attack from earlier in
security adviser Tom Bossert
wrote an opinion piece for the
the year. It comes as concerns Wall Street Journal saying
continue to mount over the
country's hacking capabilities
anyone who harmed the
United States would be held
and its nuclear weapons pro accountable."The attack was
gram.
Earlier, Reuters reported the
widespread and cost billions,
and North Korea is directly
US Government was preparing
to name the rogue nation as
responsible," he said.
He did not detail any specif
Amtrak passenger train derailed on its inaugural trip on a new route
the culprit behind the attack ic actions Washington might
that crippled hospitals, banks
and businesses throughout
the world. The ransomware
take against Pyongyang, other
than saying it would continue
to pursue a "maximum pres
7 killed, many hurt in
Seattle train mishap
unfurled across the globe in sure strategy." An official told
May to infect more than Reuters the public condemna
300,000 computers in 150 tion would not include any
countries The sources said it indictments or name specific Seattle: At least 7 people were motorists were struck by the
had a "very high level of confi individuals. But the shaming is killed and 22 others were hurt fallen train cars and also suf
dence" a hacking entity designed to hold North Korea after an Amtrak passenger fered injuries, but there were
known as Lazarus Group car accountable for its actions train derailed on Monday on its no fatalities among people in
ried out the attack. and, "erode and undercut their inaugural trip on a new service those vehicles, the sheriff's
The group works on behalf ability to launch attacks". route near Dupont, office said.
Washington. At least 77 people were taken
Power outage cripples Atlanta's According to CNN, 13 of the
total 14 cars spilled off an over
to hospitals, including victims
who were able to walk off the
Hartsfield-Jackson airport pass. Ed Troyer, spokesman for
the Pierce County Sheriff's
train, the authorities were quot
ed as saying.
Atlanta: Atlanta's HartsfieldJackson International Airport, the
Office and the Washington An Amtrak spokesperson said
world's busiest airport, was hit on Sunday by a power outage,
State Patrol, the deaths "are all there were about 78 passen
leaving thousands of passengers stranded and planes grounded
contained to the train and the gers and five crew members on
indefinitely. The airport confirmed the issue on Twitter saying
incident is "pretty horrific." board the train when the acci
that the outage had "impacted several areas in the airport" and
Troyer said there were "multi dent happened.
that crews were "working to remedy the situation", Xinhua
ple fatalities" but he could not Amtrak president said the
news agency reported. "We are aware of a situation currently
provide a precise number. company was 'deeply saddened
being investigated at this time and will share more information
MultiCare Health, a nonprofit by all that has happened'
as it becomes available," Georgia Power added. Currently the
network of hospitals and clin Washington state Governor
cause of the outrage remains unknown. HartsfieldJackson han
ics, said 22 people were taken Jay Inslee declared a state of
dles 2,500 flights and an average of 275,000 passengers daily,
to three hospitals for treatment, emergency in the aftermath of
according to its website. Atlanta is the capital of the US state of
Xinhua reported. Several the accident.
Georgia.
12 December 23-29, 2017 INDIA TheSouthAsianTimes.info

The BJP's overall vote share in the state

BJP retains Gujarat, snatches plunged from 60.11 per cent notched in the
2014 Lok Sabha polls to 49.1 per cent, indi
cating a sharp erosion in its support base in

Himachal from Congress

The Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) bagged 99 seats in
Gujarat, 44 in Himachal
where its Chief Ministerial
candidate P.K. Dhumal lost
Gandhinagar/Shimla: The BJP just managed
to hold on to power in Gujarat, edging past
the halfway mark to clinch a sixth term in
government, but wrested Himachal Pradesh
from Congress with a comfortable majority.
Overcoming initial setbacks in a seesaw
battle, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
bagged 99 seats, seven more than the magic
figure of 92 in a House of 182. Putting up an
improved performance, the Cong ress
secured 77 seats while its allies got three
more. The NCP, which fought alone, got a
lone seat and Independents got two.
In contrast, Himachal Pradesh lived up to
its reputation of changing the ruler every
e lect ion, as the BJP comfortably beat
Congress, winning 44 of the 68 seats that
were up for grabs. The Congress won 21 in
the hill state where it had previously held 36
seats. Two seats went to Independents and a
lone seat was taken by CPIM.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who put
up an aggressive campaign in Gujarat, camp
ing in his home state for days, described the
BJP's electoral victory in the state as "his
toric" as "in this age for a party to keep win
ning for so long" is unheard of.
In his victory speech at BJP Headquarters
in Delhi, Modi said the support for the party
showed that "the nation is ready for reform
agenda as every citizen wants India trans
formed".
"I bow to the people of Gujarat and
Himachal Pradesh for their af fection and
trust in the BJP. I assure them that we will
leave no stone unturned in furthering the
development journey of these states and
serve the people tirelessly." In a message to
his opponents, he said "let bygones be
bygones" in a reference to the coming
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President Amit Shah celebrating the win
in New Delhi. (Photo: IANS)
together of leaders heading caste formations
to ally with Congress, to build a new Gujarat.
After Mo di's speech, the Central
Parliamentary Board of the BJP met at the
party headquarters in Delhi and decided to
depute Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and
General Secretary Saroj Pandey to Gujarat
for holding consultations on choosing the
new Chief Minister. For Himachal Pradesh,
where the chief ministerial face Prem Kumar
Dhumal suffered a defeat, Defence Minister
Nirmala Sitharaman and Rural Development
Minister Narendra Tomar are being sent to
decide on a new leader.
W hile the BJP ce le brated all across
Gujarat and in Delhi, the 99seat tally in
Gujarat was far less than the 150 seat target
set by BJP President Amit Shah and 16 less
than what it got in 2012 despite intense
campaigning by Modi. The Congress, whose
campaign was spearheaded by its now
President Rahul Gandhi, conceded defeat but
took a veiled jibe at the BJP.
"My Congress brothers and sisters, you
a state which the party considers its fortress.
The vote share of the Congress, which
joined hands with Patidar leader Hardik
Patel, Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani and OBC
leader Alpesh Thakore, soared from 33.45
per cent of 2014 to 41.4 per cent.
Union Information and Broadcasting
Minister Smriti Irani brushed aside reports
of BJP's waning support, saying the winner
was always the king. "Jo jeeta wo hi
Sikander."
T he Gujarat e lect ion campaign was
marked by viciousness that pitted Prime
Minister Modi against Congress leaders,
including his predecessor Manmohan Singh.
It was the first Assembly election in Gujarat
after Modi shifted to New Delhi.
In Himachal, the BJP was set to form the
government although its two top leaders
Chief Ministerial candidate P.K. Dhumal and
state unit chief Satpal Satti were worsted in
the hardfought contest.
Among the top winners in Gujarat, Chief
Minister Vijay Rupani from Rajkot West, a
seat formerly occupied by Modi, by a margin
of over 50,000 votes. His deputy and
Finance Minister Nitinbhai Patel won by
have made me very proud. You are different 7,951 votes in Mahesana.
than those you fought because you fought The BJP held on in most seats affected by
anger with dignity. You have demonstrated... the Patidar agitation, provoking community
the Congress' greatest strength is its decen leader Hardik Patel to complain about faulty
cy and courage," Gandhi tweeted. Electronic Voting Machines.
BJP now in power in 19 states, has 14 chief ministers
New Delhi: The BJP retained Gujarat and wrested Himachal Pradesh from Congress,
taking the total number of states where it is in power to 19. The party has Chief
Ministers in 14 of these 19 states.
Congress, on the other hand, is now in power in only four states and one union
territory.
The victories in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat has taken the total states where BJP
has formed governments on its own or with allies after Prime Minister Narendra Modi
assumed office in 2014 to 13.
The states with BJP Chief Ministers are Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan,
Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Goa, Manipur, Assam, Haryana, Arunachal
Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Gujarat. The party will now have a Chief Minister in
Himachal Pradesh.
The BJP is in power with allies in Jammu and Kashmir, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim
and Nagaland.
The Congress is in power in Punjab, Karnataka, Meghalaya, Mizoram and union
territory of Puducherry.

Gujarat result a 'massive jolt' to BJP: Rahul

New Delhi: Congress President
Rahul Gandhi said the Gujarat
election result has dealt a "mas
sive jolt" to the BJP and raised
questions about Prime Minister
Narendra Mo di's credibility
because of his silence on corrup
tion charges including BJP chief
Amit Shah's son Jay Shah's mete
oric business rise.
"This election, which Narendra
Modi called election of develop
ment, and put a stamp on GST...
But he did not speak about devel
opment, GST and note ban in his
election speeches. It has raised
questions about Modiji's credibili
ty. Frankly, Modiji has a credibility
problem," Gandhi told reporters
outside Parliament, a day after the
Congress lost to the BJP both in
Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh.
He was replying to a question
on Modi's remarks on Monday
that the Gujarat verdict showed
that the campaign of casteism had
been defeated by development
agenda and that voters had given
their approval on GST.
"I am talking about credibility.
Modiji spoke nonstop about cor
ruption but didn't utter a word on
Jay Shah and (French fighter jets)
Rafale. The nation wants to know
why Modiji is not speaking a word
on how Jay Shah converted Rs
50,000 into Rs 80 crore in three
months and the Rafale scam. This
is the credibility issue," Gandhi
said.
Congress President Rahul Gandhi arrives at Parliament Speaking about election results,
in New Delhi on December 19. he said three months ago it was
said that the Congress cannot
fight the BJP.
"But in three months we did
solid work. You saw the result. For
us, it is a good result though we
lost. We could have won. But the
BJP suf fered a massive jolt in
Gujarat."
Gandhi said the Gujarat model
of development had been exposed
and had not been accepted by the
people. "T he propaganda was
good, marketing was good but it
was hollow within. I saw it there
(in Gujarat)."
He said the Gujarat election also
taught him a message that what
ever hate and anger combined
with endless resources on the
other side should be responded
with love and brotherhood.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info INDIA December 23-29, 2017 13

Rahul is Congress chief, attacks Modi

New Delhi: In a generational shift that ended
the Sonia Gandhi era in the Congress, her
son Rahul Gandhi took over as the new
party President and launched a sharp attack
on Prime Minister Narendra Modi accusing
him of taking the country "backwards to a
medieval past" where people are butchered
because of what they eat and believe in.
The handing over of the mantle of the
leadership of the 132yearold party took
place at a ceremony on the lawns of the
Congress Headquarters where Central
Election Authority President Mullapally
Ramachandran presented the Certificate of
Election to Rahul Gandhi in a ceremony
watched by Sonia Gandhi, Manmohan Singh,
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other top lead
ers of the party.
In his first speech as the Cong ress
President, Rahul Gandhi launched an allout
attack against Modi and the BJP.
"The Congress took India into the 21st
Century while Prime Minister (Modi) is tak
ing us backwards to a medieval past where
people are butchered because of who they
are, beaten for what they believe and killed
for what they eat.
"T his ugly violence shames us in the
world. Our country, whose philosophy and
history is born out of love and compassion,
is tarnished by such horror and no amount
of hugs can repair the damage done to this
great country of ours."
He said the country was now being com
pelled to imagines that businesses can be
In his first speech as the Congress President, Rahul Gandhi launched an allout attack
against Modi and the BJP.
built without harmony and "that only one
man, one man himself is the voice of rea
son, that expertise, experience and knowl
edge can be cast aside for personal glory,
that it is acceptable for our foreign policy to
lie in tatters so that one man can feel strong,
and that everything in fact is subservient to
the leader's personal image".
He said many of the countrymen were
"disillusioned by the politics of our time" as
"today, politics is devoid of kindness and
truth".
"Today, the BJP is trying to spread fire and
violence in the entire country and only one
power can stop this. That is the Congress
worker and leader. They break and we bind.
They set fire and we douse it. They create
anger and we create love. This is the differ
ence between them and us. And I want to
assure you that Congress workers and lead
ers, that you all are my family, whether you
are a youth or an elder, wherever you come
from, you all are mine, and I will give you all
my love."
In an apparent re ference to Mo di's
"Congressfree India", Rahul Gandhi said the
Congress considers the BJP its brothers and
sisters even though it doesn't agree with
them. "They want an India free of Congress,
they want to erase us but the Congress'
inclusion and respect for all Indians extends
even to the BJP. We do not fight hate with
hate. The Congress has met and will always
meet our challenges and struggles with love
and af fection. They crush voice, we allow
the most vulnerable to sing. They defame,
we respect and defend.
"They might control the structures of
power, the machinery of silence and fear
but, we in the Congress, we are the bastion
of the people. It is in this service that my ide
alism, your idealism and our hope for poli
tics always rests."
Sonia Gandhi, 71, who helmed the party
for 19 years, in her last address as the party
President, said the Congress has been play
ing the role of opposition since 2014 and
never before has it faced the challenge that
it faces today.
"The fundamentals of our Constitution are
under attack, our party has lost several state
elections. But an exemplary energy fires our
Congress workers. We are not the ones to
bend in fear, because our struggle is a fight
for the very soul of this nation. We will
never retreat from this fight."
Manmohan Singh said Rahul Gandhi was
assuming the new responsibility amid "dis
turbing trends".

Lok Sabha disrupted A kiss on mother's forehead,

over allegation
against Manmohan a perfect farewell to Sonia
New Delhi: As Sonia Gandhi handed over the charge of Congress
New Delhi: The Lok Sabha was disrupted
President to her son Rahul Gandhi on a chilly Saturday morning
as Congress members sought to raise the
amid fanfare and celebrations laced with mixed emotions, nothing
allegations levelled by Prime Minister
could have been a more pictureperfect moment than the one in
Narendra Modi against his predecessor
which he kissed his mother on her forehead.
Manmohan Singh, forcing an adjournment
The handing over of the mantle of the leadership of the 132
halfway through the Question Hour.
yearold party took place at a ceremony on the lawns of the
The Congress MPs later walked out over
Congress Headquarters where Central Election Authority President
the issue.
Mullapally Ramachandran presented the Certificate of Election to
As soon as the House met, Congress
Rahul Gandhi in a ceremony watched by Sonia Gandhi, former
members tried to raise the matter but
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Rahul Gandhi's sister Priyanka
Speaker Sumitra Mahajan denied them
Gandhi Vadra and other top leaders of the party.
permission and went ahead with the
The moment Sonia Gandhi completed her last speech addressed
Question Hour.
to the party workers as party president and walked up to her chair,
The members, however, trooped near
an emotional Rahul Gandhi came forward greeted her mother with
the Speaker's podium and continued to
a kiss on her forehead. She returned the gesture with a pat on his
raise slogans demanding an apology from
back. She also congratulated him gave her best wishes and bless
Modi. As Sonia Gandhi made way for her son, the party leaders gave a
ings for the future endeavours.
"All elections are over, the things that standing ovation after her speech.
Though Sonia Gandhi's speech in Hindi was punctuated by loud
are said on the roads shall not come to
fireworks set off by enthusiastic party workers, forcing her to so much so that many senior Congress leaders had a tough time
Parliament... I am not allowing you to raise
pause several times and also briefly lose her cool, the atmosphere entering the party office. While many managed to struggle their
the issue," Mahajan said. Even then, the
outside the party headquarters had a feel of a carnival. way into the party headquarters, others had to either leave or be
agitated members did not stop.
Outside the 24, Akbar Road, Congress Headquarters, a group of content listening to their leaders from outside.
Mahajan slammed the Congress for dis
colourfully dressed artistes played drums and danced to bhangra Former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit admitted that she was
rupting the Winter Session of Parliament,
tunes with party supporters, including men and women, shaking a in tears listening to Sonia Gandhi's speech which was laced with
which they insisted on convening.
leg or two and waving Rahul Gandhi's pictures and Congress flags. emotion and a sense of fulfillment.
Modi, during the Gujarat Assembly polls,
There were other groups of artists from Hyderabad and "I have mixed emotions today. @OfficeOfRG (Rahul Gandhi) rein
had claimed that during a dinner meeting
Rajasthan performing folk dances of their regions. forced the hope that Congress and its values are in safe hands.
at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's
Party workers from across the country thronged to the Congress Hearing Sonia Gandhi speak brought tears to my eyes. She went
house, Manmohan Singh discussed the
office in different regional costumes, either to congratulate Rahul through so much in her life and yet never lost her poise," Dikshit
Gujarat polls w ith Pakistan's Hig h
Gandhi or to get a glimpse of their future leader. They distributed tweeted.
Commissioner to India and sweets, burst crackers, took selfies on their mobile phones, shout As the ceremony came to an end, Priyanka Gandhi, on his broth
former Pakistani Foreign Minister ed slogans and gave a hard time to the security personnel. er taking over the mantle of party President, said: "He has a tough
Khurshid Kasuri. The crowd on Akbar Road kept swelling as the day progressed, road ahead...and I think he is the man for it. He is brave enough..."
 14 December 23-29, 2017 OP-ED TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Will Beijing be a stakeholder THE ABIDING CHALLENGE FOR INDIA'S ASPI

RATIONS IN THE INDIAN OCEAN REGION AND
THE REALIZATION OF SAGAR (SECURITY AND
GROWTH FOR ALL IN THE REGION) WILL

in Modi's SAGAR vision? DEPEND ON THE CHINESE FOOTPRINT AND

INTENT IN THIS DOMAIN.
l By C. Uday Bhaskar border military footprint in the and China is not the first extra
IOR. A permanent Chinese military regional power to seek a military

P
rime Minister Narendra
Modi outlined India's mar
itime potential and current
profile in a commendable manner
at the commissioning ceremony of
INS Kalvari, a Scorpeneclass
dieselelectric submarine, in
Mumbai on December 14. Modi's
fluency and grasp over the fine
print of the Indian Ocean is indica
tive of the maritime/naval empathy
that South Block has exuded in
recent years.
However, the abiding challenge
for India's aspirations in the Indian
Ocean region (IOR) and the realiza
tion of the Modi acronym SAGAR
(security and growth for all in the
region) will depend to a large
extent on the Chinese footprint and
intent in this domain.
In the last week, Beijing dropped
anchor in Hambantota, the Sri
Lankan port, and, earlier this year,
China set up its first overseas mili
tary base in Djibouti in the Horn of
Africa.
Why is China in the IOR? To
briefly recall the big picture, the
Indian Ocean had a relatively dor
mant strategic relevance in the
global context. During the Cold war
decades, the global maritime focus,
shaped as it was by the two super
powers , was on the AtlanticPacific
ocean combine. This shifted
towards East Asia in the postCold
War years and was symbolized by
the phrase "AsiaPacific".
Towards the late 1990s, the eco
nomic relevance of Asia began to
rise, powered by the growth of
PM Modi at the commissioning ceremony of INS Kalvari
China and India. Over the next
decade, the trade dependency of
major economies in East, Southeast
and South Asia increased. Then
Chinese President Hu Jintao spoke
about the "Malacca dilemma", a ref
erence to China's high dependency,
hence vulnerability, to hydrocar
bon imports from the Persian Gulf.
This denoted the growing white
shipping trade transit from the
Hormuz towards the Malacca and
onward to Southeast and East Asia.
The enormity of 9/11 and what
followed by way of the USled war
on global terror added to the secu
rity dimension and very soon the
global maritime focus shifted from
the AtlanticPacific continuum
towards the PacificIndian and has
now become extended to what is
being called the IndoPacific
region.
presence in Djibouti marks the first
overseas military base for Beijing
and the strategic location of
Djibouti in proximity of the Red
Sea will make China a credible
Indian Ocean power with its atten
dant implications, with a high
degree of salience for India.
It is instructive that Beijing
embarked upon its Djibouti initia
tive even as India, the US and
Japan were commencing the opera
tional phase of their joint naval
exercise, Malabar 2017, on July
14. The image of three flattops
(carriers) operating in tandem in
the Indian Ocean even as a PLA
navy amphibious ship en route to
Djibouti joined other PLA navy
The entry of Chinese naval ships units, including a surveillance ship,
in December 2008 into the IOR as may well be the abiding template
part an antipiracy effort was an for the Indian Ocean in the years
event of deep strategic import and ahead. China's public narrative
this has been corroborated by marks December 2008 as a histori
more recent events. cal punctuation when Beijing sent
Chronologically, the two initiatives three naval ships to join the inter
of Beijing in 2017 that can be national antipiracy effort off the
deemed "strategic" in relation to coast of Somalia. For the naval pro
the IOR and of considerable rele fessional, there was a certain sym
vance to the powers that be in bolism in PLA naval ships transit
Delhi are: First, the setting up of a ing the Straits of Malacca. The
Chinese military facility in Djibouti; Chinese military base in Djibouti,
and second, the priority accorded when fully established with appro
to the OBOR (One BeltOne Road) priate assets, will be yet another
by Chinese President Xi Jinping at punctuation this time in bold
the 19th Party Congress. font! The logic from the Chinese
In dispatching PLA (Peoples perspective is compelling to
Liberation Army) marines to break out of the USshaped military
Djibouti (July 12) by amphibious constraints along its Pacific Ocean
ships, from the southern port of seaboard, it has to access the
Zhanjiang, China has taken a signif Indian Ocean. Overseas bases have
icant step in enhancing its trans been long favored by major powers
foothold in the Horn of Africa and
adjoining regions.
The US and France are already
resident in Djibouti and India has
also just established highlevel
political contact.
The second major development
of 2017 with a strategic connota
tion, relevant to Delhi, is the man
ner in which President Xi Jinping
has framed the OBOR initiative.
India is the only major nation that
chose not to participate after due
consideration by Delhi, since
Beijing was seen as indifferent to
the Indian sensitivity about the dis
puted territory of POK (Pakistan
Occupied Kashmir) through which
one strand of the OBOR traverses.
This OBOR dissonance is a factor
that could have potentially discor
dant strategic consequences par
ticularly if the US, Japan and per
haps Australia or Singapore come
together in a maritime/naval part
nership in the extended Indo
Pacific region.
China's presence and footprint in
the IOR is likely to grow over the
next five years and Beijing may feel
encouraged to assertively display
its comprehensive national power
and related capability.
The strategic imponderable is
how this power index will be uti
lized. For the greater common
good or in defiance of the prevail
ing status quo? Will Beijing agree
to become a stakeholder in Modi's
SAGAR vision?
The author is Director, Society
for Policy Studies.

l By Vikas Datta es, American strengths and short

The Trump syndrome

comings, incisive political and

T
here are some times you can
despair of the human race,
or at least significant por
tions of it. Especially the times
when a country that sees itself as a
world leader seems to have collec
tively abandoned sanity and ended
up with a President who seems
something out of a psychology
textbook.
We may call Donald Trump crazy
but can this suffice to explain his
victory in a democratic election,
even though it was patently flawed,
rigged and vitiated? Or should we
look elsewhere, say in terms of that
Shakespearean plaint from "Julius
Caesar": "The fault, dear Brutus, is
not in our stars, But in ourselves..."
How exactly are we to blame is
what eminent psychiatrist Allen
Frances explains in his new book,
Twilight of American Sanity, argu
A new book probes its impact
ing that the triumph of Trump rep or crazy, but this tends to hide the
resents the ascendancy of the real problems.
worst traits of humans, bolstered Trump is not suffering from a
by some lessthanwholesome fea narcissistic personality disorder as
tures that are particularly several amateur diagnosticians
American. have said, says Frances, despite dis
In this unsettling prognosis, he playing its symptoms like
shows how these have implications grandiose selfimportance, having
beyond Trump or other global to hang around with special people,
leaders who exhibit one and more requiring constant admiration,
of his attributes or the US, to the lacking empathy, and being
course and future of democracy exploitative, envious and arrogant.
and even our planet. But he deems that Trump is a "man
Frances, a renowned expert in his who causes distress in others but
field, says it may well be comfort shows no signs himself of experi
ing to write off Trump as an excep encing great distress... Trump is a
tion an extremely egregious one threat to the United States, and to gene", societal delusions and bias
the world, not because he is clini
cally mad, but because he is very
bad".
And the harsh lesson, he says, is
that: "Trump isn't crazy, but our
society is." While he means the US,
the world's oldest democracy, there
is lots that could also strike a chord
with India, its dynamics and partic
ularly, its leaders.
In a sweeping narrative that
includes the crudities of Trump and
rightwing forces in the US, the the
ories of Darwin, Freud and
Theodore Adorno, the example of
Martin Luther King, the "selfish
close.
social analysis and more, Frances
shows how democracy is in trouble
from those who subvert it for their
own selfish, autocratic and whimsi
cal rule. The author begins with
global problems overpopulation,
environmental degradation, deplet
ing resources, terrorism, iniquity
and how US is sidestepping or
ignoring them, as well the coun
try's foreign policy and image of
itself. He then takes up the reasons
why people end up making such
bad decisions on crucial issues with
their set of cognitive biases, and
"American exceptionalism".
Frances also provides prescrip
tions aplenty for the people. But
how palatable these will be for the
people of the consumerist societies
in today's democracies remains to
be seen though doom faces us up

The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
By taking up art projects in public spaces, St+art India Foundation aims to make art
accessible to a wider audience and adding some beauty to Indian cities.
A
t a public talk in Delhi,
Hanif Qureshi, art gradu
ate from MSU Baroda,
described the art scene in India
for that matter in most countries
of the world as confined to art
galleries and museums. But peo
ple like you and me may not be
art cognoscenti, we too have a
right to behold art. Thankfully
St+art India Foundation, of which
Qureshi is Creative Director, has
been taking art out of the conven
tional gallery space and embed
ding it within the cities we live in
making art truly democratic
and for everyone. They have held
street art festivals in Delhi,
Mumbai, Bengaluru and
Hyderabad. Their second edition
of the Mumbai festival ends this
month.
Artists from India and other
countries are invited to create
works of public art, to transform
dull street walls into striking art
Faizan
Khatris
installation The
Pissing Dog at Sassoon
Dock in Mumbai this month
is a metaphor for the mess
mankind creates for the
environment and
himself. In the Indian
context, it can also be seen
as a denunciation of men
urinating at street
corners.
ART December 23-29, 2017 15
By Parveen Chopra
works. Many of their projects are
massive. For example, fashion
designer Manish Arora collabo
rated with St+art Foundation to
create an installation earlier this
month titled All We Need is Love
for Jindal Mansion on Peddar
Road in Mumbai. The installation
was the result of long period of
ideating, 35 artisans and 3
months work. Created with yards
of cloth, either hand embroidered
or printed, close to 2,400 pieces
were pieced together to create
the final look. Said the fashion
designer, As the year 2017
comes to a close, I wanted people
to wrap up the year with opti
mism and a positive outlook and
feeling rather than all the nega
tivity. Hopefully, I get people to
stop and think and remember
that love and hope surpasses
everything, he said.
government servants in Delhi
Lodhi Road residential colony for
Contact: https://startindia.org/ lic Art District in early 2016.
was turned into an Open Air Pub
Fashion
r building at ITO.
designer Manish rwise drab Delhi Police Headquarte
Mahatma Gandhi mural on the othe
Arora collaborated with
St+art India Foundation to
create an installation this
month titled All We Need is
Love for Jindal Mansion
in Mumbai.
e art, some reflecting on the plight of its inmates.
Walls of Tihar Jail in New Delhi got som
Hanif
Qureshi is the
Creative Director
and cofounder of
St+art India
Foundation.
16 December 23-29, 2017 DIPLOMACY TheSouthAsianTimes.info TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIPLOMACY December 23-29, 2017 17

Diwali Foundation USA honors 6 diplomats

l By SATimes Team

United Nations: The Diwali Foun

dation USAs inaugural Power of
One awards were presented here
on December 11 to six excep
tional diplomats: Ambassadors
Maged Abdelaziz, Ion Botnaru,
Lakshmi Puri, Matthew Rycroft,
Nawaf Salam, and Yuriy Sergeyev.
Belarus, Georgia and India
joined with Diwali Foundation
USA to bestow what are being
called the Oscars of Diplomacy.
The august event held at the pres
tigious Trusteeship Council Cham
bers at the UN headquarters in
New York .was cosponsored by
Algeria, Armenia, Azerbaijan,
Botswana, Cyprus, France, Hon Deputy Executive Director of UN Women Lakshmi Puri (left)
duras, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Malta, being honored. Also in the picture, Amb. Syed Akbaruddin,
Morocco, Republic of Korea, Ro Ranju Batra and Ravi Batra.
mania, Slovakia, Spain, Sri Lanka, Deputy Executive Director of UN ties are closely linked. I have envi
Thailand, Tunisia, Ukraine, UK, Women Lakshmi Puri said she sioned my mission which in
USA, Permanent Observer State of was honored to receive the Power cludes: to dispel the darkness of
Palestine, and International of One award from the Diwali poverty, deprivation and despair
Indias ambassador to the UN, Syed Akbaruddin addressing the august audience.
Atomic Energy AgencyNY. Foundation USA and would like to everywhere; to secure an Interna
Belarus PR to the UN, Amb. Ry booked this historic chamber to tion of the Power of One awards in his speech, I must acknowl thank and congratulate the tional Compact for the triumph of
bakov, who was Master of Cere celebrate the Diwali Stamp and being bestowed upon globally ex edge the CoSponsors and the founder, inspiration and personifi the global public Good of gender
monies, invited Georgias Amb. honor my journey at the UN. ceptional people who have speakers from their midst. The cation of this concept, Ranju Batra equality, womens empowerment
Kaha Imnadze, Indias Amb. Syed At that celebration last year, toiled selflessly to help form a sponsorship is a principled state and her equal half Ravi Batra. and human rights.
Akbaruddin, Diwali Foundations Minister Rybakov spoke of my de more perfect, peaceful and secure ment by these nations that hu As an Indian and a UN diplomat And yes, Amb. Lakshmi Puri
chair Ranju Batra, National Advi termined efforts as The Power of world for all of us. manity & religious mooring ought my vision has always been that of continued, I do believe in the
sory Council for South Asian Af One, and nowMinister Dapkiunas This slate of honorees has set not be banned, but rather, cher Vasudhaiva kutumbakam the power of one, in each of us being
fairs Chair Ravi Batra along with spoke of the Diwali Stamps jour the bar quite high for all future ished if Good, Light, Knowledge whole world is an interdependent a lamp to illuminate and trans
Amb. Frantisek Ruzicka, Chef de ney being consistent with the honorees. & Hope are to be given to our family and our destinies are con form the world through the power
Cabinet to President of the 72nd At the inauguration of the event (from left) Ambassadors Rybakov, Imnadze, Akbaruddin, Ranju Batra, CDC Frantisek Ruzicka and Ravi Batra. highest ideals of the UN Charter, Whatever the UN Charter kids and grandkids so they can nected each to each and across all of ideas and knowledge, advocacy
General Assembly, H.E. Miroslav and that Diwali was global. That dreams of, the Diwali Founda have a more perfect world. borders and spaces. To me the sig and movement building, setting of
Lajcak, to light the diya to open event, like a seed, with added tions Power of One honorees He concluded by saying, When nificance of Diwali and the United global standards and values to re
the event. prompting, grew this year into the have helped to make it a reality! all nations agree to cosponsor Nations projects for humanity alize the ideals of the United Na
Amb. Rybakov said, Having Di Diwali Foundation USA. In turn, National Advisory Council South these awards, we may have ar which I have been proud to serve tions and the Perfect World we all
wali event held already second that resulted in todays inaugura Asian Affairs Chair Ravi Batra said rived at a nearperfect world. for 43 years in different capaci dream of, want and deserve.
year in a row is hopefully becom
ing a regular tradition here at the
United Nations. Being a symbol of
charity, kindness and peace, Di
wali is in lockstep with the goals
and ideals of the UN.
He explained that after a very
successful launch of the Diwali
stamp in 2016 (after a prolonged
campaign spearheaded by Ranju
Batra), this is now transformed
into the Power of One awards ac
knowledging the role a person
can play in the International com
munity.
Others who spoke on the occa
sion included Chef de Cabinet to
the President of the 72nd Session
of the UN General Assembly, Amb.
Diwali Foundation USA Chair Ranju Batra, who spearheaded
Frantisek Ruzicka, Georgias Amb.
Ravi Batra, Chair, National Advisory Council for South Asian Affairs, the campaign to secure USPS issued Diwali stamp,
Imnadze, Indias Amb. Syed Ak
speaking at the event. is the inspiration behind Power of One awards.
baruddin, Algerias Amb.
Boukadoum, and Kazakhstans the foundational principles of the Eid, and Kwanza; and I was deter secured support from Indias She described the origin of the
Amb. Umarov. United Nations, which stand for mined to get the USPS to issue the Prime Minister Modi and Amer Power of One awards thus: Days
Amb. Akbaruddin said that the universal good. Diwali stamp despite knowing icas then President Obama. In Oc after the Official Dedication (of
Power of One awards honor those Diwali Foundation USA Chair many others had tried and given tober 2016, we got our Forever the Diwali stamp), we attended a
who have successfully brought Ranju Batra in her speech re up. I spent nearly 7 years at it and Diwali Stamp. I personally sold dinner hosted by Georgias Am
about change, adding, The mes called her long journey to secure along the way, I got a lot of help over 170,000 stamps to make the bassador Imnadze, and I told my
sage of Diwali is the triumph of the release of the Diwali stamp : from many people. Congress Diwali Stamp the USPS #1 Best story. Next day, Belarus Ambassa Ambassador Frantisek Ruzicka, Chef de Cabinet to the
good over evil, light over dark I was happy that there were woman Carolyn Maloney provided seller for Day One in its over 200 dor Dapkiunas called (my hus Belarus Permanent Representative to the UN, Valentin Ry Georgias Permanent Representative to the UN, President of the 72nd Session of the UN General Assembly,
ness. It is also the reaffirmation of stamps for Hanukkah, Christmas, national political leadership. I also year existence. band) Ravi to tell him that he had bakov was the Master of Ceremonies Kaha Imnadze, speaking at the event at the event. (Photos: Mohammed Jaffer/SnapsIndia)
 18 December 23-29, 2017 ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD TheSouthAsianTimes.info

REVIEW
INDIA'S 'NEWTON' OUT OF
OSCAR RACE, TEAM STILL PROUD 'Monsoon Shootout': An astutely
mounted crime drama
O
pportunities and words of wisdom
have always been at loggerheads,
especially during decision making. It
leads to a moral dilemma, for decisions and
its consequences keep haunting you for the
rest of your life. But what happens when your
life is at stake?
Designed as a crime drama, director Amit
Kumar's "Monsoon Shootout" astutely deliv
ers a very subtle and pragmatic message
despite a convoluted plot.
The film takes us through the trials and
tribulations of Adi (Vijay Varma) an idealistic
greenhorn in the crime branch of Mumbai
police. At the very onset of his budding
career, he is reminded by his mother what his
dead father would often tell him "There are
Actor Rajkummar Rao plays the lead role in the movie. three ways; the right, the wrong and the mid
and reality. The conflict gnaws into his con
science, especially when he is tasked to cap
ture Shiva (Nawazuddin), a purported serial
killer who hacks his victim to death.
The writing is mature and indulgent as it
exposes not only the character's inner tur
moil, but it also offhandedly exposes the
city's underbelly and its association with the
police force, with brutal honesty.
What adds to the intrigue factor of the
screenplay and narrative, are the perform
ances of the cast. While we have seen
Nawazuddin play a noir character earlier, it is
Vijay Varma who steals your heart in his per
formance as Adi. He is a bundle of talent. He
brings to the surface the innocence of his
character and you empathize with his pain
and frustrations while you back him up for

I
ndia's official entry for the Best Foreign
Language Film at the Oscars 2018,
"Newton", is out of the race for the
honor. But the movie's team is feeling far
from defeated.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences announced that nine features out
of 92 will advance to the next round of vot
ing in the Foreign Language Film category
for the 90th Academy Awards, according to
the official website of the Oscars.
"Newton", directed by Amit V. Masurkar
and starring the stellar Rajkummar Rao in a
story set against the backdrop of elections
in the world's largest democracy, was not a
part of it.
Masurkar said: "The Foreign Film
Category is like the Olympics. We are com
dle path." his sincerity.
peting with the best in the world, so it's But at his office, while being taken through Overall, "Monsoon Shootout" keeps you riv
extremely tough. The response from the ropes of the trade by his senior, PI Khan eted and haunts you long after you leave the
Academy members to 'Newton' was very (Neeraj Kabi), he is torn between the truth theatre.
positive and we are grateful to everyone
who supported us on this journey.
"The experience has enriched us and has Actor Nawazuddin
encouraged me to push my limits each time Siddiqui plays a serial
I make a new film." killer in the movie.
Final nominations for all categories of the
90th Academy Awards will be announced
on January 23. The Oscars ceremony will be
held on March 4 at the Dolby Theatre.
So far, "Mother India", "Salaam Bombay!"
and "Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India"
are the only Indian films that made it to the
top five in the Best Foreign Language Film
category at the Academy Awards, but none
have won the honor.

Prince Harry, Meghan

Markle to wed on May 19 Cops say no to Sunny Leone's
New Year bash
P
rince Harry and Meghan

Markle's wedding will be
held on May 19 next year,
Kensington Palace announced.
The couple confirmed their
engagement last month and said
the wedding ceremony would
take place on a Saturday at St.
George's Chapel, Windsor Castle.
The date breaks with tradition
as royal weddings usually take
place on a weekday, the BBC
reported. The royal family will
pay for the wedding, including
the service, music, flowers and
reception.
Earlier this week, Kensington
Palace announced the couple will
be spending Christmas together
at Sandringham with Queen
Elizabeth II and other members
of the royal family. Prince Harry
Prince Harry and Markle have been
and Markle have been dating
since July 2016 and made their
first public appearance as a couple in
September.
They opened up for the first time about
their relationship in an interview last
month when Prince Harry told the BBC that
his late mother, Princess Diana, would have
dating since July 2016.
been "over the moon" about the pair's
engagement. The couple will live in
Nottingham Cottage on the grounds of
London's Kensington Palace, the official
residence of the Duke and Duchess of
Cambridge.
B
engaluru Police Commissioner T.
Suneel Kumar denied permission to a
New Year bash in the city where
Bollywood cine star Sunny Leone has been
invited to perform, ostensibly to "maintain
law and order" and prevent any "untoward
incident".
"We are denying permission for the Sunny
Leone's musical show on December 31 night
to maintain law and order and prevent any
untoward incident in the city," Kumar told
reporters.
Though the event organizer Time
Creations is yet to approach police for per
mission to host the gala show with Leone and
DJ All OK musical group at Manyata Tech
Park in the city suburbs, the city police chief
said it would not be possible to provide
enough security at the venue as its entire
force would be on duty across the city on the
same night.
"In view of a directive from the Karnataka
High Court to ensure peaceful New Year cele
brations and prevent untoward incidents in
the city, we will not be able to deploy enough
Bollywood star Sunny Leone has been
invited to perform in Bengaluru.
force at one place at the risk of other areas,"
he said. 100 activists of the Karnataka Rakshana
The decision against the 36yearold for Vedike had demonstrated at the venue
mer porn star also came a day after about against her presence in the show.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD December 23-29, 2017 19

'Tiger Zinda Hai' Shilpa Shetty wins PETA's

banned in Pakistan 'Hero To Animals' Award
A
ctressentre
preneur Shilpa
Shetty Kundra
has been honored with
a 'Hero to Animals'
Award by animal
rights organization
PETA for speaking out
against the cruelty of
circuses; signing a
petition asking the
government to uphold
the ban on jallikattu,
bull races, and bull
fights; and adopting a
stray kitten.
Shilpa's compassion
towards animals was
Actor Salman Khan in a still from the film. recognized by People

B
for the Ethical
ollywood film "Tiger Zinda Hai", ers of the film available in media, in the
Treatment of Animals
which has been refused the No said feature film, our national security and
(PETA).
objection Certification for import law enforcement institutions, agencies,
"Shilpa is beautiful
into Pakistan, shows the country's national individuals and certain state symbols are
inside and out and has
security and law enforcement institutions being shown in a demeaning manner on
a golden heart that
and agencies in a demeaning manner, which we have a 'nocompromise policy',"
beats for animals. We
according to the Pakistan censor board CBFC's chief Mobashir Hasan said via social
thank her for standing
chief. media from Islamabad.
up for animals through
Pakistan's Ministry of Information, The Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif starrer
her work and other
Broadcasting, National History and Literary is a sequel to the thriller "Ek Tha Tiger",
actions," Sachin
Heritage refused the grant of the NoC to which too was not released in Pakistan.
Bangera, PETA
the local distributor, Geo TV Network, for "(The) first film 'Ek Tha Tiger' was also
Associate Director of
"Tiger Zinda Hai" on the recommendation banned in 2012 as it blatantly flouted the
Celebrity and Public
of the Central Board of Film Censors Code of Censorship of Films, 1980 under
Relations, said in a
(CBFC), thereby banning the movie in the MPO (Maintenance of Public Order), 1979,"
statement. Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty.
country. "As per synopsis, reviews and trail Hasan said.

WHEN LATA MANGESHKAR GOT UPSET WITH RAJ KAPOOR

I
t was sometime in 1948, I was
recording a song at the
Famous recording studio for
music director Anil Biswas. At that
time, Raj Kapoor had a very small
office on the second floor in the
same building. Anil Biswas con
tacted him and asked him to come
down to the studio and listen to
my voice. I sang and he listened.
There was no reaction. He lis
tened and left! Next day, Anil
Biswas called and said that Raj
Kapoor has called you at the
Mahalaxmi office.
In Kohlapur, I had seen
Prithviraj Kapoor's film "Sikandar"
fifteen times. I was a great fan of
his. He was tall and so handsome.
I thought it might be a good
opportunity to meet my favorite
star's son, Raj Kapoor.I accepted
the invite and went. Raj Kapoor
was sitting on his desk in his
office. I sat across the table. He
said, I want you to sing for my
film,' and asked me what that
would cost him. I responded by
saying any amount that he gave
me would be acceptable. He
replied by offering me rupees 500
for the same. At this time, Ram
Ganguly was the music director
and both Shankar and Jaikishen
Noted playback singer Lata Mangeshkar and showman of Indian cinema Raj Kapoor.
were music angers. They all
worked together at Prithvi
Theatres.
Shankar was on the tabla and
Jaikishen on the harmonium.
They sang and taught me the
song Jiya bekarar hai' for the film
"Barsaat."
It was after this recording that
Raj Kapoor took the decision that
the music director for the film
would be ShakarJaikishen and
not Ram Ganguly. This was the
historic decision, with Shailendra
and Hasrat Jaipuri handling the
lyrics that created the evergreen
music of R.K. Films.
I also recall Rajji cautioning
Jaikishen. He was concerned
about my ability to sing commer
cial film songs, being a classical
singer. Hearing this I was natural
ly very upset. I was new and had
not worked in the film industry. I
sang all the songs in Barsaat. It
was very gratifying for me to hear
of a request from Raj saab for a
bhairavi alaap in a certain song in
Barsaat. I sang it and he loved it
and was very happy. The music of
this film was very successful.
Later, for the following films, he
would leave the details of the
melody to me. But he always
wanted an alaap which would
touch the hearts of millions of
people. I recall a time when we
were recording the famous song
in Awara, Ghar aaya mera parde
si', with Manna Dey accompany
ing me. We reached the recording
theatre. Shankar and Jaikishen
made us learn the lyrics and the
melody of the song, but Raj saab,
who came later, rejected our
entire day's work. He said to
Jaikishen, I don't want a popatiya
song!' He changed the whole song.
He also added an alaap to the
song! All this went on till 3 a.m.
and only after it was done did he
say, Now let us eat!' He had
arranged food for the entire unit. I
remember the entire team sat in
the middle of the road and ate.
There was almost no traffic those
days, particularly at 3 a.m. A sheet
was spread on the road where we
all ate and left for home.
I was also bad tempered. I used
to fight. I was recording with his
son Randhir Kapoor for his film
"Kal Aaj Aur Kal". Rajji had come
for the recording. There, he told
me that he was soon starting his
next film called "Satyam Shivam
Sundaram" for which he wanted
my brother Hridaynath
Mangeshkar to score the music. I
replied to him saying that I would
ask my brother. I managed to per
suade my brother who was not
really interested in scoring scores
for films. I left for my US trip
where I was shocked to hear from
Mukesh, Hridaynath ki picture
gayi (Hridaynath has lost the
film)!' Hridaynath called and said
that he had accepted the film
because of me but the newspapers
were writing otherwise. He was
offended and embarrassed. I was
very angry with Rajji. On my
return, I called him and said, why
did you do this?' I had persuaded
him because you had asked me to!'
(Extracted from "Raj Kapoor:
The One And Only Showman")
 20 December 23-29, 2017 DIASPORA TheSouthAsianTimes.info

At over 15.6 million, Indian diaspora is world's

largest, Gulf nations house biggest share
New Delhi: The Indian diaspora
is world's largest with more than
15.6 million living abroad and
Gulf nations hold the biggest
share, the United Nations said in
a recent report.
Indians constituted 6% of the
total number of migrants, or peo
ple living outside the country of
their birth, which was estimated
at 243 million in 2015.
The report also said that the
global migrant population rose
by 10% in 2015 compared with
the figure recorded in 2010,
which means of the 7.3 billion
global population in the given
year, one of every 30 people was
a migrant.
However, the World Migration
3.2% in 2010 to 3.3% in 2015.
The report also said that nearly
half of all migrants worldwide in
2015 were born in Asia, mainly
from India, China and other
South Asian countries.
Mexico ranked second in terms
of diaspora population followed
by Russia, China, Bangladesh and
Pakistan.
Nearly 72% of the international
migrant population were in the
working age group of 20 to 64
years, the report, published by
Report 2018 noted that the the UN agency of International
growth of the Indian diaspora Organisation for Migration, said.
largely remained static, from The US has been the main des
tination for international
migrants since 1970, and of the
46.6 million foreignborn people
residing in the country in 2015,
nearly two million were of Indian
origin, it said.
The report further said that the
number of foreignborn migrants
in the US has almost quadrupled
from around 12 million in 1970
to 46.6 million in 2015.
The report is the ninth in the
series published by the UN
agency since 2000 and aimed at
contributing to increased under
standing of world migration.
(Source: Zee News)

How to avail an Aadhaar Card if you are an NRI

re you an NRI (nonresident Indian) look
A ing to get an Aadhaar card? Well, you
need not worry. The government has now
made a provision to issue Aadhaar card to
NRIs. Yes, the Aadhaar card can also be
availed by nonresident Indians. According to
the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial
and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services)
Act, 2016, an NRI having resided in India for
a period of 182 days or more in 12 months
immediately preceding the date of applica
tion for enrollment and having an Indian
address can apply for Aadhaar.
The process to register for an Aadhaar card
for NRIs is similar to the process followed by
residents. A NRI can fix an appointment in
either of two modes: online and offline. An
NRI can apply for Aadhaar online, through
the selfservice portal of the UIDAI (Unique
Identification Authority of India), the issuer of
the 12digit Unique Identity Number (UID)
and Aadhaar card. Alternatively, he or she
can visit the enrollment centers approved by
UIDAI to apply for Aadhaar card offline.
However, as per the Aadhaar Act, NRIs are
fully exempted to produce Aadhaar for any
verification. NRIs, although they are citizens
of India, are not eligible for Aadhaar card if
they have not stayed for 182 days or more in
the last 12 months, preceding the date of
application.
Here's a step by step guide on how NRIs
can apply for Aadhaar:
Step 1: Visit the official website of UIDAI
uidai.gov.in and find an enrollment center
near you.
Step 2: Fix an appointment online or visit
the enrollment center directly.
Step 3: Carry photocopies of documents
such as resident proof, birth certificate and
PAN card along with the Aadhaar card appli
cation form. Give all the copies to the official
at the center.
Step 4: The official at the enrollment center
will take your biometric details (through fin Ambassador Sujan R Chinoy at luncheon hosted by Prime Minister Abe
gerprint and iris scans). at his official residence #Kantei for Japanesespeaking Ambassadors in Tokyo on
Step 5: The Aadhaar official will then give December 18, 2017. Ambassador Chinoy delivers a speech in Japanese
you an acknowledgment slip containing the highlighting IndiaJapan close ties and his impressions of Japan.
Enrollment ID which you can use for tracking (Photo courtesy: Embassy of India, Japan/Facebook)
the status of your application. (ndtv.com)

Indian cultural center to come up in Bahrain

Manama: A new BD58000 Indian
cultural center could soon be built in
Bahrain for the Kannada community,
a government official from India
said. The cultural center, which will
cater to the Kannada community will
help bring together over 50 official
and unofficial Kannada groups.
The details were revealed to DT
News by Dr. Arathi Krishna, Deputy
Chairman of Non Resident Forum,
Government of Karnataka, India, who
was in Bahrain yesterday.
However, community members are
hoping to receive more funds from
the government of India.
Dr. Krishna, who held meetings
with several Kannada communities
in the Kingdom, said that, The mem
bers have shared many concerns,
needs and wants. One of the things
they would like see is a new commu
nity center. Currently, there are
many Kannada groups in the king
dom, but they would like to a place
where they can all come together.
The previous government in
Karnataka had given them about 1
crore Indian rupees but their esti
mate is that they will need 10 crores
to build the center. During the meet
ing the community members
requested me to help obtain a fur
ther 5 crore Indian rupees funding
from the government. They want the
works to be underway within the
next year and are also collecting
funds from the members as well, Dr.
Krishna added.
She has requested help from the
Indian Ambassador Alok Kumar
Sinha to support the local efforts,
which he has agreed to.
She said that there are around
20,000 people from Karnataka in
Bahrain.
During the meeting the community
members made a request to the
Karnataka government to allot land
in India where NRIs could purchase
and build houses.
They also requested a cut in the
huge fees charged by educational
institutions where NRIs have to pay
a lot more than citizens residing in
the country. They also requested to
allow NRI students to be eligible for
local examinations at the institutes.
Dr. Krishna, who also received a
similar concern from the community
in Saudi, assured them that she
would take the matter up with the
education minister.
The community members have
also complained about the number
of flights from Bahrain to Mangalore
and Bangalore and have also
expressed their concern about being
treated unfairly at the Mangalore
airport. (Source: newsofbahrain.com)
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
9 dead in attack on church in Nepal's CPNUML
Pak, IS claims responsibility emerges largest party
The inside view of the church after the attack.
Islamabad: At least nine people
have been killed, including two of
the attackers, and another 30
injured after four armed insur
gents attacked a Methodist
church in Quetta in Pakistan. The
Islamic State has claimed respon
sibility for the attack.
The attack on the Bethel
Memorial church on Imdad
square, where around 400 peo
ple were present, started at
12.10 p.m. when a suicide attack
er detonated the explosives he
40 more Rohingya villages
burnt in Myanmar: Report
Nay Pyi Taw: The Human Rights
Watch (HRW) reported the burn
ing of 40 additional Rohingya vil
lages in Myanmar in a military
campaign, which has led more
than 655,000 people of this
Muslim minority community to
flee to Bangladesh.
The HRW used satellite images
to identify the new incidents,
recorded between October and
November, raising the total num
ber of villages completely or par
tially razed to 354 since the
beginning of the military offen
sive on August 25, reports Efe
news. HRW Asia director, Brad
Adams, said the continued
destruction of Rohingya villages
shows that the commitment
signed to ensure the safe return
of refugees is merely a public
relations stunt.
"The satellite imagery shows
what the Myanmar Army denies:
that Rohingya villages continue
to be destroyed. The Myanmar
government pledges to ensure
the safety of returning Rohingya
cannot be taken seriously," said
was carrying at the church's
entrance, police spokesperson
Muhammed Ramzan said.
Another of the attackers, who
failed to detonate his explosives
laden vest, was killed in a
shootout with the police inside
the church while the remaining
two assailants fled the scene,
reports Efe news.
"The police are hunting for
those who ran away," a police
officer added. According to the
police spokesperson, among the
Myanmar does not recognize
Rohingyas as citizens.
Adams.
The organization accused the
Myanmar Army of committing
murders and rapes, among other
abuses, during the military opera
tion that began after several
armed assaults by a poorly armed
Rohingya insurgent group
against security forces, which left
11 Myanmar security personnel
dead.
The Myanmar Army denied all
allegations of abuse despite the
UN High Commissioner for
Human Rights calling it a text
book example of ethnic cleansing.
SUBCONTINENT
nine killed were two women and
five men, in addition to the two
attackers. Another 28 people
have been injured, including a
police officer guarding the
church.
In a statement published via
the messaging service Telegram,
IS said two of its members
launched the attack on the Bethel
Memorial Church in Imdad
Square in Quetta, where around
400 people were present, Efe
news agency reported.
Sri Lankan risks torture if
deported from Australia
Canberra: A UN committee
against torture has advised the
Australian government not to
deport a Sri Lankan man, fearing
he might be tortured upon
return, the media reported.
The Genevabased committee
of 10 human rights experts has
formally requested Australia not
to return the man to Colombo,
reports the Guardian.
The man was told on December
6 by the Department of
Immigration to prepare to be
deported from Australia. He
faces arrest in Sri Lanka for his
alleged links to the now van
quished Liberation Tigers of
Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
His arrest warrant states he
faces charges of "assisting anti
government activities and sup
porting and assisting a terrorist
organization".
The Tamil Tigers were ulti
mately defeated in 2009 after 26
years of civil war.
The asylum seeker, an ethnic
Tamil, went through Australia's
controversial "fasttrack" refugee
December 23-29, 2017
in historical polls
Kathmandu: Nepal's
CPNUML emerged
as the largest party
in the Himalayan
nation as vote count
ing of the firstpast
thepost (FPTP) for
Parliament and
provincial assembly
elections in Nepal
came to an end, the
Election Commission
said. The
Communist Party of
The historical elections are seen as a crucial
step to implement the new Constitution.
NepalUnited
Marxist Leninist was able to
secure 80 out of the total 165
seats under the FPTP category of
the Parliament. The party gar
nered 166 out of 330 seats in
provincial assembly polls, the
Kathmandu Post reported.
The CPN (Maoist Centre) led by
Pushpa Kamal Dahal "Prachanda"
became the second largest party
by winning 36 seats in
Parliament and 73 seats in
provincial assembly under the
FPTP category.
The Nepali Congress (NC),
which was the largest party in
the last election, managed to win
23 seats in Parliament and was
elected in 45 provincial con
stituencies, said the Election
UN's special rapporteur Ben
Emmerson.
status determination process and
was found to not meet the crite
ria for refugee status.
Under the fasttrack system, no
additional information can be
brought after an initial protec
tion application.
He did not present the arrest
21
Commission.
It became the third largest
party this time.
Though the Election
Commission announced the final
outcomes of the federal and
provincial assembly elections,
vote counting for the proportion
ate representation category was
still underway.
The CPNUML took a clear lead
in the proportionate representa
tion category as well, according
to the results made public so far.
The historical elections are
seen as a crucial step to imple
ment the new Constitution which
saw strong protests from some
Madhesi ethnic groups in Nepal's
Terai region bordering India.
warrant in the first instance, later
explaining he did not understand
the Australian justice system and
feared he would "get in trouble"
because of it, reports the
Guardian.
Having failed to produce the
warrant, his protection claim was
dismissed as not credible, and
the Immigration Assessment
Authority, which reviewed his
case, chose not to consider the
document after being presented
with it.
In July, the UN's special rappor
teur Ben Emmerson visited Sri
Lanka and reported that "the use
of torture, has been, and remains,
endemic and routine, for those
arrested and detained on nation
al security grounds.
"Entire communities have been
stigmatized and targeted for
harassment and arbitrary arrest
and detention, and any person
suspected of association, howev
er indirect, with the LTTE
remains at immediate risk of
detention and torture,"
Emmerson wrote.
 22 December 23-29, 2017
Heads of states and governments present at the OIC summit.
Islamic summit declares East
Jerusalem as Palestine's capital
Istanbul: A summit of Islamic
countries held in Istanbul declared
East Jerusalem as the capital of
Palestine.
The summit of the Organization
of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) also
invited all the countries to "recog
nize the State of Palestine and East
Jerusalem as its occupied capital",
said the draft final communiqu
unveiled at the conclusion of the
oneday meeting.
The heads of states and govern
ments present at the summit
"re ject and condemn in the
British PM May delivers N Korea threatens to be 'most
defiant message on Brexit powerful nuclear, military state'
London: British Prime Minister
Theresa May issued a defiant
message, saying the British gov
ernment will not be derailed from
the fundamental duty of deliver
ing the will of the people who
voted to leave the European Union
(EU).
"Amid all the noise, we are get
ting on with the job. In the face of
those who want to talk Britain
down, we are securing the best
and most ambitious Brexit deal
for our whole United Kingdom,"
May said in an article published in
the Sunday Telegraph newspaper.
The Independent published the
result of a new poll revealing that
socalled remainers who want
Britain to stay in the EU have been
given their biggest lead since the
2016 national referendum when
the leave side won by a 52to48
margin, Xinhua news agency
reported.
The Independent said a survey by
BMG Research showed 51 per cent
now back staying in the EU, while
41 per cent want to leave, a 10lead
for the remainers.
May, in her message, said: "The
last 10 days have marked a water
shed in our negotiations to leave
the EU. We will begin discussions
on the new, deep and special part
strongest terms" the unilateral
decision by US President Donald
Trump to recognize Jerusalem as
the capital of Israel, the commu
niqu was cited as saying by Efe
news.
The OIC communiqu declared
Trump's move "null and void" and
considered it an "attack" on the
rights of the Palestinian people. It
accused the US of "deliberately
undermining" peace ef forts and
warned that it has given "impetus
to extremism and terrorism".
Palestinian President Mahmoud
British PM Theresa May said talks
will start soon with the EU.
nership that we want to build
between the United Kingdom and
the European Union."
The Prime Minister said talks will
now begin immediately with the EU
on agreeing an implementation
period, giving businesses and fami
lies time to implement the changes
required for Britain's future part
nership with the EU.
"I very much welcome the desire
of the EU to agree the precise terms
of this period as soon as possible,"
said May.
INTERNATIONAL
Abbas earlier said the UN should
take over. In a speech to the OIC
summit, he said it would be "unac
ceptable" for the US to be the
mediator "since it is biased in favor
of Israel".
T he communiqu said
Washington will be held "fully
liable for all the consequences of
not retracting from this illegal
decision".
The leaders at the summit asked
the UN to assume its responsibili
ties and reaf firm the city's legal
position.
United Nations: In a challenge
to the global order, North
Korea has issued a threat that
it will become "world's most
powerful nuclear and military
state".
Pyongyang's assertion of
ambitions to global suprema
cy came on Friday after
SecretaryGeneral Antonio
Guterres warned the Security
Council, "The situation on the
Korean Peninsula is the most
tense and dangerous peace
and security issue in the world
today." Pyongyang "will march
forward and make great
advancement victoriously as
world's most powerful nuclear
and military state upholding
the line on simultaneous
development of the Two
Fronts," North Korea's
Permanent Representative Ja
Songnam told the Security
Council during a session on
the threat from his country's
nuclear and missile programs.
The mention of "Two Fronts"
is a reference to North Korea's
theory of simultaneously
developing its military capa
bilities, as well as its economy,
which are both vulnerable to
international sanctions.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Putin calls Trump to
thank CIA for sharing
terrorist info
Moscow: Russian
President Vladimir Putin
called US President Donald
Trump to express grati
tude to the Central
Intelligence Agency (CIA)'s
information that helped
foil terrorist attack
attempts in St Petersburg,
the Kremlin said.
Russia's Federal Security
Service said that it
detained seven Islamic
State supporters earlier
this week for plotting to
blow up the famous Kazan
Cathedral in St. Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Petersburg, the second
largest city in Russia. US and its citizens, will immedi
"The information received ately provide it to their US
from the CIA proved to be suffi counterparts.
cient for the search and deten This was the second phone
tion of the suspects," Xinhua conversation between Putin
cited a statement from Kremlin and Trump within a week fol
as saying. lowing a call when the two
Putin told Trump that the presidents discussed "urgent
Russian special services, upon issues" in bilateral diplomatic
receiving information regard relations and situation on the
ing terrorist threats against the Korean Peninsula.
North Korean leader Kim JongUn.
With the characteristic bom test flight.
bast of his country's rhetoric, While claiming to be march
Ja dismissed the Council as ing towards becoming the
"tool" of the US, which he said world's most powerful military
is "terrified by the incredible and nuclear state, Ja also
might of our republic". asserted that Pyongyang
He described the latest "would not pose any threat to
North Korean intercontinental any country and region" as
ballistic missile test on long as its interests were not
November 29 as the "Great threatened.
November Event" leading to US Secretary of State Rex
"completing the state nuclear Tillerson, who spoke before Ja
force" and "building a rocket reiterated Washington's warn
power". That missile, said to ing that "all options are on the
be capable of hitting targets table" to contain North Korea's
anywhere in the US, landed off nuclear threat while offering
Japan's coast within its eco to keep the lines of communi
nomic exclusive zone in its cation with Pyongyang open.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Adani parts ways with mining services firm Downer
Sydney: Embattled Indian miner
Adani Group has parted ways
with mining services giant
Downer and said it will build and
run the Carmichael coal mine,
Australia's biggest coal venture
in central Queensland's Galilee
Basin, on its own, a media report
said.
Adani in a statement revealed
that both parties had canceled a
conditional $2.6 billion contract
as part of Adani's costcutting
drive following last week's deci
sion by the Queensland state
government to veto an A$900
million federal government loan
to Adani.
The split comes after
Australian company Downer
became the target of a nation
wide activist campaign pressur
ing it to quit the Carmichael proj
ect in central Queensland,
abc.net.au reported.
The move raises further ques
tions about the fate of the mas
UIDAI puts Airtel, Toyota to introduce its BEVs
Airtel Bank's eKYC in India through 2020s
services on hold
New Delhi: The Unique
Identification Authority of India
(UIDAI) has temporarily suspend
ed telecom major Bharti Airtel and
Airtel Payments Bank's "Aadhaar
linked eKYC" services for alleged
misuse of the facility.
"We can confirm that we have
received interim order from the
UIDAI regarding temporary sus
pension of Aadhaar linked eKYC
services till their satisfaction on
certain processes relating to Airtel
Payments Bank's onboarding of
customers," the company said in a
statement on Saturday.
"We are engaging with the
authority and are hopeful of an
early resolution. We are also
undertaking to complete the said
actions on priority and have com
menced with checks of our process
flows. Being compliant to all guide
lines is paramount to us," the
statement added.
According to sources, UIDAI's
interim order comes after some
Adani Group revealed that both parties had canceled a
conditional $2.6 billion contract.
sive project, with Downer one of
only two mine contractors
along with Thiess considered
capable of handling an operation
producing up to 60 million
tonnes of coal a year. It is the lat
UIDAI's interim
order came
after some
Bharti Airtel
customers
alleged that the
company had
opened their
bank account
in Airtel
Payments Bank.
customers of the telecom major
alleged that the company had
opened their bank account in
Airtel Payments Bank when they
used the "Aadhaar linked eKYC
services" without their consent.
The "Aadhaar linked eKYC"
service of UIDAI provides an
instant, electronic, nonrepudiable
proof of identity and proof of
address along with date of birth
and gender, resident's mobile
number and email address to the
service provider.
Aadhaar authentication and e
KYC services are available to dif
ferent sectors and government
organizations under a licence.
Bharti Airtel uses the Aadhaar
data base for the purposes of
mobile services KYC under a
licence agreement, while Airtel
Payments Bank which is a separate
entity is an authorized KYC User
Agency (KUA) and Authentication
User Agency (AUA) of UIDAI hav
ing signed the licence agreement.
BUSINESS
est in a long series of project hic
cups for the Carmichael mine,
including the veto of Adani's
application for a Northern
Australia Infrastructure Facility
(NAIF) loan last week, and its so
New Delhi/Tokyo: Global
automobile major Toyota
aims to introduce its new
range of battery electric
vehicles (BEVs) in India
and other key markets
through the 2020s.
According to an official
statement released on
Monday, the global auto
mobile giant plans to
popularise electrified
vehicles for the decade
20202030. "Toyota's
electrified vehicle strategy cen
ters on a significant acceleration
in the development and launch
plans of hybrid electric vehicles
(HEVs), plugin hybrid electric
vehicles (PHEVs), battery electric
vehicles (BEVs), and fuel cell
electric vehicles (FCEVs)," the
statement said.
"Toyota will accelerate the pop
Sensex ends volatile day in
green after election results
Mumbai: Dancing to the tune of
the assembly poll results of
Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh,
key Indian equity indices provi
sionally closed in the green on
Monday after swinging from the
extreme negative to the positive.
The wider Nifty50 of the
National Stock Exchange (NSE)
provisionally closed (at 3.30
p.m.) higher by 55.50 points or
December 23-29, 2017
far unsuccessful attempts to
raise finance in China.
Adani said in a statement it
remained committed to the proj
ect and the split with Downer
was "simply a change in manage
ment structure".
"Following on from the NAIF
veto last week, and in line with
its vision to achieve the lowest
quartile cost of production by
ensuring flexibility and efficien
cies in the supply chain, Adani
has decided to develop and oper
ate the mine on an owner opera
tor basis," the statement said.
"Adani and Downer have mutu
ally agreed to cancel all Letter of
Awards and Downer will provide
transitional assistance until
March 31, 2018.
"Adani remains committed to
develop the Carmichael project
and will ensure the highest level
of standards and governance.
"This will not affect our com
mitment or the number of local
ularisation of BEVs with more
than 10 BEV models to be avail
able worldwide by the early
2020s, starting in China, before
entering other markets, the grad
ual introduction to Japan, India,
United States and Europe is
expected."
As per the company's plans, by
around 2030, Toyota aims to
0.54 per cent at 10,388.75
points. The barometer 30scrip
Sensitive Index (Sensex) of the
BSE, which opened at 33,364.52
points, closed at 33,601.68
points up 138.71 points or
0.41 per cent from its previ
ous close.
The Sensex touched a high of
33,801.90 points and a low of
32,595.63 points during the
23
jobs across Queensland."
Adani had intended to out
source the operation of its
Carmichael mine to Downer
under an agreement that was
worth $2bn at the time of its
announcement in 2014.
The very first act of
Queensland's newly reelected
Labor government was to make
good on its election promise to
veto a loan to Adani of up to
$1bn from the federal Northern
Australian Infrastructure Fund
(Naif ).
The government has said it
backs the mine and wants the
jobs it will create, but also says
the project must be viable with
out taxpayer funds, including
federal funds.
Adani is yet to secure funding
for the mine. Earlier this month,
Chinese lenders ruled out provid
ing finance, joining Australia's
big four banks in avoiding the
controversial project.
have sales of more than
5.5 million electrified
vehicles, including more
than 1 million zeroemis
sion vehicles (BEVs,
FCEVs).
Additionally, by around
2025, every model in the
Toyota and Lexus lineup
around the world will be
available either as a dedi
cated electrified model
or have an electrified
option. "This will be
achieved by increasing the num
ber of dedicated HEV, PHEV, BEV,
and FCEV models and by gener
alizing the availability of HEV,
PHEV and/or BEV options to all
its models," the company said in
a statement.
"As a result, the number of
models developed without an
electrified version will be zero."
intraday trade so far.
The BSE market breadth was
bullish 1,472 advances and
1,182 declines.
"Sectorally, pharma, PSU bank,
auto, telecom and metals indices
have gained the most, while
Realty has slipped marginally
into red," Deepak Jasani, Head
of Retail Research for HDFC
Securities, told IANS.
 24 December 23-29, 2017 SPORTS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Sushil Kumar wins gold as Indians

dominate Commonwealth wrestling
Johannesburg: Indian star Sushil
Kumar made his return to interna
tional wrestling a memorable one,
outclassing Akash Khullar of New
Zealand in the final of the men's
74 kilogram freestyle category to
clinch gold at the Commonwealth
Wrestling Championship here.
Sushil gave his opponent virtual
ly no chance in the title clash, carv
ing out an easy 60 victory. The
double Olympic medallist, who is
staging a comeback after around
three years, thus clinched his fifth
title at the Commonwealth level.
"It's a very proud and emotional
moment for me as I have returned
to the mat on international level
after a gap of 3 years. I want to
dedicate this Gold medal won in
#Commonwealthwrestlingchampio
nship at #SouthAfrica to my guru
and to my Nation. JaiHind," Sushil
later wrote on his official Twitter
handle along with a photo of the
Botha of South Africa in the play
off for the third place.
Sakshi Malik, the only Indian
female g rappler to clinch an
Olympic medal, also bagged a gold
medal. The Rio Olympics silver
medallist defeated New Zealand's
Tayla Tuahine Ford 132 in the
final of the women's 62kg catego
ry. The Indians dominated most of
the weight categories in the men's
freestyle with Bajrang (65kg),
Jitender (79kg) and Sumit (125kg)
also winning gold in their respec
tive events.
Hitender (125kg), Somveer
(92kg) and Jitender (79kg) had to
be content with bronze medals.
The Indian women also imposed
total domination in the competi
tion, winning gold in each of the
Indian wrestler Sushil Kumar. 10 weight categories.
Apart from Malik, Kiran (72kg),
national flag. Rana got the bronze in the 74kg Divya Kakran (68kg) and Ritu
Emerging Indian star Parveen category, beating Johannes Petrus Malik (65kg) emerged champions
in their respective categories on
Sunday while Pooja (76kg) and
Ravita (59kg) finished with silver
medals. Kavita (76kg) and Manu
Tomar (72kg) took bronze.
Sushil started his campaign with
an easy 80 win over Botha.
In the second round, Sushil over
powered Jasmit Singh Phulka of
Canada 91 before defeating Rana
54 in a thrilling contest.
Sushil's longtime coach Satpal
Singh was ecstatic at India's per
formance.
"It was a superb performance by
all the Indian wrestlers. Sushil has
made a strong comeback after a
long time. He worked very hard
for the last 810 months," Satpal
told IANS.
"The toughest competition was
in the 74 kilogram category. The
wrestlers from New Zealand, South
Africa and Canada were really
good," he added.

Rohit Sharma enters top SUPERSERIES FINALS:

5 spot in ODI rankings SINDHU LOSES IN FINAL
Dubai: India opener Rohit Sharma has
climbed to the fifth spot amongst batsmen in
the latest International Cricket Council (ICC)
OneDay International (ODI) player rankings
released here.
The righthanded batsman has gained two
slots and crossed the 800point mark for the
first time after leading India to a 21 ODI
series victory against Sri Lanka, according to
a release by the ICC.
The 30yearold had earlier enjoyed a
careerhigh ranking of being on the third
spot in February. He reached a personal high
of 825 points after the second match in
Mohali when he struck an unbeaten 208 to
record his third ODI doublecentury. He
ended the series with 816 points.
Rohit's opening partner Shikhar Dhawan,
who was named player of the series, too has
Rohit Sharma.
gained one slot to reach 14th position after
aggregating 168 runs including an unbeaten
100 in Visakhapatnam.
Dhawan had slammed 68 in the second
match, figuring in a 115run opening stand
with Sharma.
Among the bowlers, legspinner Yuzvendra
Chahal has moved up 23 places to take 28th
place after finishing with six wickets in the
series. Chinaman Kuldeep Yadav has moved
up 16 places to take a careerbest 56th slot
while allrounder Hardik Pandya has gained
10 slots to also reach a careerbest 45th posi
tion. For the visiting side, Upul Tharanga has
gained 15 places to reach 36th position
among batsmen with his current tally of 571
points his highest in five years. Niroshan
Dickwella has gained seven places to take
37th position.
Dubai: Indian star shuttler P.V. Sindhu lost
to Japan's Akane Yamaguchi in the
women's singles final of the seasonending
BWF World Superseries Finals here.
Rio Olympics silver medallist Sindhu lost
a hardfought battle 2115, 1221, 1921
in an hour and 34 minutes to world No.2
Yamaguchi at the Hamdan Sports
Complex.
With this win, the 20yearold Japanese
improved her headtohead record against
Sindhu to 35.
Sindhu came into the match on the back
of four consecutive wins, including a 219,
2113 dominat ing victory over
Yamaguchi. The way Sindhu ran away
with the first game with a 2115 triumph,
it seemed to be easy for the threetime
World Championships medallist.
Japan's Akane Yamaguchi with P.V.
Sindhu utilised her wide reach to good Sindhu in Dubai. (Xinhua/IANS)
effect, especially in crosscourt situations.
Sindhu showed glimpses of her mistakes to take the match to the third game. At 16
in defensive situations in the first game as 10 in favour of the Japanese, Sindhu
well but her persistent strokeplay enabled apparently surrendered the second game,
her to get a sparkling start. deciding to save her energy for the third
In the second game, Sindhu charged and deciding game.
ahead to 40 but Yamaguchi fought back. In the decider, Sindhu jumped to a 40
Her quick game put pressure on Sindhu lead to throw the challenge to Yamaguchi
which resulted in the latter committing which the Japanese accepted and coolly
multiple errors. notched up point after point to equalise at
Yamaguchi equalised at the eightpoint the fivepoint mark.
mark and there was no looking back for However, Sindhu improved her defen
her. sive game and looked confident. She was
Sindhu lacked concentration especially better in defending away from the body
in receiving service from Yamaguchi, who but struggled in facing bodyline shuttles.
didn't give the lanky Indian space to go for It was India's third medal in the season
the winners. ending tournament after Saina Nehwal
Yamaguchi was too strong to be halted (2011) and the mixed doubles pair of V.
by Sindhu as the former was determined Diju and Jwala Gutta (2009).
TheSouthAsianTimes.info December 23-29, 2017
 26 December 23-29, 2017
India offers $100 bn Intelligent
Edge opportunity: Microsoft India
Hyderabad: In a mobilefirst and
Cloudfirst country like India,
there now lies a new over $100
billion opportunity if we can
leverage Intelligent Cloud and
Intelligent Edge solutions across
industries, Anant Maheshwari,
President, Microsoft India, said
here on Wednesday.
The Intelligent Edge brings the
power of the Cloud to mobile and
Internet of Things (IoT) devices,
thus creating a connected
ecosystem.
Microsoft today is leading the
digital momentum in India with a
renewed thrust on Intelligent
Cloud and Intelligent Edge.
"Look at any industry in India
and you will see Intelligent Edge
around. Think about a farm
where a farmer can leverage
Intelligent Edge. Health care and
education are areas where appli
cation of Intelligent Edge is now
being seen in the country,"
Maheshwari told reporters dur
ing the annual Microsoft media
day at the sprawling, 54acre
campus here.
Azure IoT Edge is an implemen
tation of the Intelligent Edge.
Cloudenabled computing at the
edge means concentrating data,
making sense of it by analyzing it
MIT engineers induce
plants to give off light
New York: Engineers at
MIT have found a way
to induce plants to give
off dim light, a major
step towards realizing
their vision of using
plants to illuminate the
workspace.
The vision is to make
a plant that will function as a desk
lamp a lamp that you dont
have to plug in. The light is ulti
mately powered by the energy
metabolism of the plant itself,
said Michael Strano, Professor at
MIT and the senior author of the
study. By embedding specialized
nanoparticles into the leaves of a
watercress plant, the researchers
successfully induced the plants to
give off dim light for nearly four
hours, according to the study pub
lished in the journal Nano Letters.
This technology could also be
used to provide lowintensity
indoor lighting, or to transform
trees into selfpowered street
lights, the researchers said. To cre
ate their glowing plants, the MIT
team turned to luciferase, the
enzyme that gives fireflies their
glow.
Luciferase acts on a molecule
and then leveraging it to its full
potential.
"More than
just delivering
devices and
Cloud experi
ences to mil
lions, Microsoft
has now turned
its focus on
empowering
health care and
education in the
country with its
NextGen Cloud
and Edge solu
tions," Maheshwari
said.
Almost every company will
eventually become a software
one at some point of time with
the fourth industrial revolution
and an Intelligent Cloud will
chart their digital journey.
"Customers are looking to
Microsoft and our thriving part
ner ecosystem to accelerate their
own digital transformations and
to unlock new opportunity in this
era of Intelligent Cloud and
Intelligent Edge," the Microsoft
India head stressed.
With a rich ecosystem of over
9,000 partners and nearly 102
million developers, Microsoft
called luciferin, causing
it to emit light. Another
molecule called co
enzyme A helps the
process along by remov
ing a reaction byproduct
that can inhibit
luciferase activity.
The MIT team pack
aged each of these three compo
nents into a different type of
nanoparticle carrier.
To get the particles into plant
leaves, the researchers first sus
pended the particles in a solution.
Plants were immersed in the
solution and then exposed to high
pressure, allowing the particles to
enter the leaves through tiny
pores called stomata. Particles
releasing luciferin and coenzyme
A were designed to accumulate in
the extracellular space of the mes
ophyll, an inner layer of the leaf,
while the smaller particles carry
ing luciferase enter the cells that
make up the mesophyll.
The particle carriers gradually
release luciferin, which then
enters the plant cells, where
luciferase performs the chemical
reaction that makes luciferin glow,
the study said. IANS
SCI-TECH
works
with over 200,000 large, medium
and small enterprises, 29 state
governments and over 5,000
startups in the country.
"Both Telangana and Andhra
Pradesh governments are leading
Microsoft partners when it
comes to Cloud. We are also
among the first global Cloud
providers to be
partnered/empanelled by the
Ministry of IT," Maheshwari told
the gathering, adding that
Microsoft Cloud services have
been deployed in 13 states so far.
Setting up India operations in
1990, Microsoft currently
employs more than 8,000 people
in the country.
UN warns of severe health risks
from ewaste in India
New York: The UN has warned
about the health and environmental
dangers from the processing of e
waste the discarded electronic
and electrical material by the
informal sector in India without
proper safeguards.
Severe health impacts and envi
ronmental damage are widespread
in India, due to the final step of the
ewaste processing by the informal
sector, a report by the
International Telecommunications
Union and the UN University
released on Wednesday said. Over 1
million poor people in India are
involved in manual recycling opera
tions, but most of these people
have very low literacy levels with
little awareness of the dangers of
the operations, it added.
The dangers come from improp
er and unsafe treatment and dispos
al through open burning or in
dumpsites, the report said. The
report, Global Ewaste Monitor
2017, said that domestically India
produced 1.95 million tonnes of e
waste last year or about 1.5 kg
per person and it also imports it
from developed countries.
Ewaste includes a whole variety
of small and large appliances, and
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Nearly 70% Indian rms might
deploy AI before 2020: Intel
Bengaluru: As
firms appetite for
the adoption of
Artificial
Intelligence (AI)
grows, 71 %
Indian organiza
tions are looking
at increased
process automa
tion as a key
benefit which in
turn is expected
to spike spends
on this technol
ogy over the
next 18 months, a report said
on Thursday.
The Intel India commissioned
report, undertaken by the
International Data Corporation
(IDC) that surveyed 194 Indian
organizations across sectors,
said that nearly 75 percent of
the firms surveyed anticipate
benefits in business process
efficiency and employee pro
ductivity with the use of AI.
While 64 percent of the
respondents believe that this
technology can empower them
in revenue augmentation
through better targeting of
offers and improved sales
processes, 76 percent of the
companies are or believe that
The dangers come from improper and unsafe treatment and disposal
through open burning or in dumpsites.
electronic equipment including cell
phones, TVs, refrigerators, air con
ditioners, computers and lamps,
small appliance and large appli
ances. Last year, the world pro
duced 44.7 million tonnes of e
waste or 6.1 kg per person, which is
four times more than the ewaste
produced by each Indian. Only 8.9
million tonnes or 20 per cent
per cent of total global ewaste was
recycled, it noted.
The report estimated that the
value of recoverable precious mate
rials like gold, silver, copper, plat
inum and palladium contained in
last years ewaste was $55 billion
they will face a shortage of
skilled personnel to harness the
power of AI.
This research is a small step
towards comprehending this
knowledge, and enabling com
panies, such as ours, shape
strategy and move ahead in the
right direction, Prakash
Mallya, MD, Sales and
Marketing Group, Intel India,
said in a statement.
Intel currently powers 97
percent of data centre servers
running AI workloads world
wide and has been investing in
the development of the ecosys
tem in India. Indian enterpris
es have been quick to adopt AI
in the recent past, with nearly
one in five organizations across
the four verticals surveyed
implementing the technology in
some way. This number is
anticipated to soar considerably
by mid2019 with nearly seven
in 10 firms anticipated to
deploy (it), the company said.
However, concerns around
the adoption of AI continue
with the high cost of solutions,
acute shortage of skilled profes
sionals, unclear return on
investment and cybersecurity
emerging as the key hin
drances.
and much of it was going to waste.
A formal ewaste recycling sector is
now being developed in major
Indian cities and under the coun
trys rules producers have extended
responsibility for the handling the
waste that ultimately results from
their products, the report said.
Looking ahead, the report said
that the problem could become
more acute with cheaper cell
phones and other equipment
becoming available. This means
that more people will be able to
afford purchasing new equipment,
and that more equipment will even
tually be discarded.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info December 23-29, 2017
28 December 23-29, 2017 HUMOR TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Funny Side by Nury Vittachi

Mythical medicines that

I am impatient to try
I
hate it when I
want to sneak out
of work early but
invisibility pills have
not yet been invent
ed. Science moves
soooo sloooowly. It's
nearly 2018! Scifi
stories promised us
that technology
would bring us flying
BEST cars; instead it has
brought us "Press 7
RATE For Even More
Maddeningly
FOR Irrelevant Choices..
I was moaning
(Image courtesy: dotelekinesis.com)
INDIA about this when a
reader informed me that one group of peo potions which do exactly that, including

AND ple is serious about making fiction into real Carlsberg, Kingfisher, Bud Light, etc.
ity. Officials in Uttarakhand, India, are Then he suggested the elixir in

PAKISTAN investing cash into finding sanjeevani booti,

the magic herb from the Ramayana which
the god Hanuman uses to raise Lakshmana
from the dead.
New York Head Quarter What a great idea. I asked readers and
colleagues: What other potions from litera
422S Broadway
ture could governments turn into reality?
HICKSVILLE
The first response came from an overedu
NY 11801 cated workmate, who said that ancient
Greek literature had two medicines,
5168271010 Nepenthe and the Waters of Lethe, which
made those who drank it forget their sor
rows.
Bleeaaah. (That's me making the Wrong
Answer Noise from TV quiz shows.) Reject!
Modern society already has many magic
Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, which puts
you in a deathlike coma. Bleeaaah. Reject
again! We already spend most of our days
in deathlike comas.
So I handed the question to the Internet's
Hive Mind and it concluded that authors in
general are shockingly lazy. Fiction is full of
disappointingly vague potions that instantly
heal any type of wound, including Athelas
elixir from Lord of the Rings, Dittany potion
from Harry Potter, Chamalla extract from
Battlestar Galactica, the Senzu Bean from
Japan's Dragonball stories and so on.
In fact we found only four literary potions
which were a bit more creative and possi
bly worth turning into reality.
1) Dried Frog Pills: From Terry Pratchett's
Discworld stories, these make you halluci

Laughter is the Best Medicine nate that you are sane. This would help
pretty much all world leaders at the
moment, the hope being that they would
behave like sensible people for a change.
2) Extract of Phoenix Feathers: From
Japan's Final Fantasy stories, this not only
reanimates the dead but turns zombies
back into humans. I know some people say
there's no such thing as zombies, but clearly
they've never met modern teenagers.
3) Blinkmoth Serum: From Magic: The
Gathering, this gives you extreme intelli
gence, selfawareness, and understanding,
making you a person of great wisdom. (This
is not to be confused with drinks such as
Prosecco and arrack, which make you think
you have become a person of great wis
dom.) Problem: Everyone I mentioned this
to declared that they would rather be stupid
all their lives than eat a moth. Good point.
4) The Spice Melange: This stuff from the
Dune stories makes your senses super
sharp and gives the whites of your eyes a
strange blue glow. This would be useful to
hide the red, bloodshot eyes I'm going to
have later this afternoon. "Barman, bring
By Mahendra Shah me your biggest jug of the Waters of Lethe."
Cheers!
Mahendra Shah is an architect by education, entrepreneur by profession, artist and humorist, But of course I have to wait until those
cartoonist and writer by hobby. He has been recording the plight of the immigrant Indians for the past many years lazy scientists invent invisibility pills so I
in his cartoons. Hailing from Gujarat, he lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. can sneak out of work. Come on, guys!
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
By Dr Prem Kumar Sharma
DECEMBER 2329, 2017
ARIES: At work you are likely to win
appreciation and awards for past efforts.
Make sure you do something exciting and
different with people at home. You are likely to
earn monetary prots through most unexpected
sources. Avoid raising controversial issues in
love rather enjoy the company. Charity work
undertaken will bring mental peace & comfort.
Your travel plans are smooth, but the toughest
part is that your partner doesnt have time.
Selling your home privately can be an excellent
way of saving on costs. You succeed in changing
the thinking of a close friend for the better.
TAURUS: You are likely to make some
wrong decisions under the heat of excite
ment. You move with new excitement &
condence as you receive support from family
and friends. Speculation coupled with some
unexpected gains improves nancial health.
Warm romantic thoughts occupy mind. Your
condence and energy will be high in this week.
Dreaming of travelling is good, but if possible
than plan a trip. Investing on a ship or a cruise is
an exciting venture to be made. You keep a vigi
lant eye at whats happening around you.
GEMINI: Your greatest gains will come
through your creative ideas at profes
sional front. Family front seems to go
smoothly as you receive their full support to
your plans. You need to control your spending
by purchasing only essential items. You need to
make a proper planning before embarking on
love journey. Cataract patients must avoid over
exposure to sunlight. Take some time to travel
with your spouse for romance and seduction.
The best ideas for investment are to on invest on
real estate business. You will be able to shift
your focus/attention from personal to social life.
CANCER: Success is certain provided
you work as a team. Time to get
involved into activities that would help
in bringing contact with close relatives. A new
source of income will generate through inuen
tial contacts. Your charm & generosity bring
new romantic opportunities for you. Make sure
you avoid everything that af fects your health.
You can make your vacation extra special by
planning it with your family and friends. Avoid
the use of estate agents to sell your house or
property. You are likely to make a commitment
without knowing how to honour it.
LEO: You will be on the seventh heaven
when you receive recognition for your
achievements at work. You nd relief,
comfort and affection in the company of family
members. Investment made in this week would
enhance prosperity and nancial security. Love
life brightens your week. A week when smile will
perpetually be on your face and strangers will
seem familiar. Spiritual vacation is a quest for
life, plan it and enjoy it with your family. Are you
longing to buy a farmhouse, try for it? You suc
ceed in reassessing your strengths and weak
nesses.
VIRGO: Your creativity will amaze people
around you besides enhancing career
prospects. Time spent with relatives will
be to your advantage. An improvement in nan
cial position would enable to make important
purchases. Your wit & charm would help in
catching the attention of opposite sex. Your
energy level will be high. Better to channelize it
in a positive direction. The idea of a holiday
seems to be tired and rushed. You might face
problem to sell your property as marketing
might not be correct. You are likely to realise the
necessity of reaching out to people.
LIBRA: Selfcondent would enable to
convey your point of view with ease a
workplace. Guests visit would make it a
ASTROLOGY
pleasant & wonderful week. Investment should
be handled with extreme care and avoid being
lured by dubious money ventures. Love compan
ion will be eager to meet you in this week. A
sparkling laughter lled week when most things
proceed, as you desire. A trip that stimulates and
gives opportunity for work is coming ahead.
Investing on properties which are under devel
oped will be protable. You will not compromise
your principles & values at the face of distress.
SCORPIO: New job opportunities for
some will be better than expected. Family
members will be very positive & support
ive to your plans. If possible take independent
decisions when it comes to making fresh invest
ments. Love partner would be extremely sup
portive and in a loving mood. Positive outlook
impresses those around you besides keeping
you t & ne. Vacation full of beauty and history
as well as exciting is waiting for you. If you want
to invest on property, then go for residential
one. You motive a friend showing him/her the
truth by facts & arguments.
SAGITTARIUS: Timely and swift action
would give an edge over others at pro
fessional front. Performing rituals/aus
picious ceremonies at home prove high bene
cial. A sudden inow of funds will take care of
your bills and immediate expenses. A romantic
week as you receive all praises from partner.
Meditation and selfrealization prove benecial.
If you want to travel start planning your trip
now. Offplan property investment is one of the
easiest and most protable methods to maxi
mize gains in the real estate market. You are
likely to take a stand, which could play a
greater role in shaping your future that upholds
the peace & harmony.
CAPRICORN: Even on confronting set
backs let these not deter you from pro
fessional path. Relatives will be willing
to lend a helping hand at the time of need.
Monetary position is likely to improve on recov
ering of delayed payments. You nd pleasure
and enjoy ecstasies of love in the arms of part
ner. You will have ample time to do things to
improve your health. Travelling on your own,
with a friend or with the whole family will be
exciting and comfortable too. Your property
prices will boost in the coming period. You will
have to be very diplomatic and tactful to get the
work done in friend circle.
AQUARIUS: Colleagues and subordi
nates w ill lend a he lping hand
enabling to complete the work on
time. New relationship at family front will be
long lasting & highly benecial. Investment in
antiques & jewellery brings monetary gains and
improvement in nancial position. You enjoy a
lovely time as Cupid is on your side in this
week. Sound physical health will enable to par
ticipate in outdoor activities. Travel in comfort
with kids to an adventurous place might be pos
sible. Buying property can lead to gains as prop
erty prices continue to increase. With the help
of friends you will nd it very easy to kick your
drug addiction.
PISCES: Success in completing difcult
assignments brings a lot of laurels at
work. Continuous negligence to house
hold duties will annoy family members. Long
pending arrears and dues will nally be recov
ered. A special message from beloved/lover lifts
spirits. You will be successful in getting rid from
tensions. Before you travel examine yourself
and your travelling partner, to determine what
you expect from your vacation. You could buy
the property that you are looking for.
Temptation of any kind would fail to allure you
in this week.
Chandigarh, India: +91-172- 256 2832, 257 2874
Delhi, India: +91-11- 2644 9898, 2648 9899
psharma@premastrologer.com; www.premastrologer.com
ANNUAL PREDICTIONS: FOR THOSE BORN IN THIS WEEK
23rd December, 2017
Ruled by number 5 and the planet Mercury.
You are practical, sensitive, friendly, diplo
matic and an optimistic person. You possess a
sharp memory, excellent health, and a power
ful character. You are highly respected in
your group and people look up to you for
inspiration and support, but you need to
check your tendency to behave restless, nerv
ous and timid at times.
This year brilliant opportunities will come
your way but you need to grab them before
others. Financial gains will accrue from past
investments. A wonderful period to do things
that you enjoy and make you feel good. A dis
tant journey for pleasure or pilgrimage seems
likely later in the year. Your health will
remain good but health of an aged family
member will become a matter of concern.
New friendship and contacts developed dur
ing this period will be highly worthwhile. The
months of November, February, June and
September will be eventful.
24th December, 2017
Influenced by number 6 and the planet
Venus. You are highly energetic, independent,
ambitious and charming person. You are fond
of socializing with people, who are well edu
cated, intelligent and hold important posi
tions in the society. You can easily make
friends, but you need to check your tendency
to behave moody, stubborn and lazy at times.
The year promises to bring you physical as
well as financial benefits. Your energy will be
high and will bring you immense gains.
Speculation in real estate will yield handsome
returns. Distant travel will be undertaken for
business purpose as we ll as pleasure.
Children need to concentrate more on their
career. Health despite some initial hiccups
will be more or less fine. You need to spend
time on meditation and yoga for remarkable
gains. The months of December, February,
June and August will be highly significant
and result oriented.
25th December, 2017
Governed by number 7 and the planet
Neptune. You are independent, brilliant,
quick, confident and friendly person. You are
very cheerful and pleasant person and posses
an excellent sense of humour. You dislike
office politics, arguments and confrontation,
but you need to check your tendency to
behave jealous, introvert and selfish at times.
The coming year promises new hope and
possibilities. Your gains will commensurate
according to your efforts, but luck will defi
nitely be on our side. Your imagination and
skills will do wonders for you and your cre
ativity will be at all time high. Your best
opportunities will develop through your asso
ciation with people who hold position of
authority. Sudden gains and losses are fore
seen, therefore do not indulge into hasty
speculation. Children will bring happy news
later in the year. The month of January,
March, May and October will be eventful
months.
26th December, 2017
Ruled by number 8 and the planet Saturn.
You are assertive, cheerful, confident, authori
tative and enthusiastic person. You are gifted
with strong intuition, a lot of talent and a
remarkable imagination. You are simple and
honest, but you need to control your tenden
cy to behave erratic, hypocrite and ungrateful
at times. This year investments will bring you
December 23-29, 2017 29
fresh gains and you will spend more on luxu
ries and other comforts. Romantic entangle
ment will be pleasant and chances to enter
into a matrimonial alliance will be very
strong. Religious feelings will arise making
you embark on a pilgrimage later in the year.
Expect gifts and goodies both in cash and
kind, but some unexpected expenses will take
you by surprise. The months of January,
April, July and September will especially be
significant.
27th December, 2017
Influenced by number 9 and the planet
Mars, you are dynamic, courageous, ener
getic, warm hearted and a religious person.
You are a great admirer of music and litera
ture. You are research oriented and have a
strong determination, but you need to check
your tendency to behave jealous, lazy and
erratic at times.
This year you should plan things well in
advance to reap benefits. Efforts that you put
during this period will bring desired results in
the long run. Favourable period for property
investment. Romance will be on top of your
list. There seem to be chances too of a new
arrival as well. Your financial condition will
improve as you pickup job involving higher
responsibility and position. Some exhilarating
news from distant relations will boost up the
spirits of the entire family. Travel and jour
ney will be pleasurable. T he months of
January, May, July and October will be signifi
cant for you.
28th December, 2017
Governed by number 1, and the Sun, you
are original, active, responsible, trustworthy
and a very simple person. You are highly tal
ented and fond of accepting challenges, but
you need to control your tendency to domi
nate, overspend and behave destructive at
times. This year long awaited promotions
and monetary benefits will finally be yours.
Financially you will face some problems ini
tially, but things will become better later in
the year. This is an excellent period to devel
op new contacts and revive old ones.
Traveling will be undertaken for attending
auspicious events. Avoid entering into any
financial joint ventures and stay away from
speculation. Wedding bells will ring for those
eligible towards the end of the year. The
months of November, February, March and
September will be highly important.
29th December, 2017
Ruled by number 2 and the Moon. You are
highly active, reliable, methodical, imagina
tive, trustworthy and warmhearted person.
You do not have any hesitation in spending
your time and money for others. You are very
fond of making new friends, but you need to
check your tendency to behave restless, stub
born, lazy and careless at times.
T his year brings in appreciat ion and
rewards that you deserve. Investments in real
estate during this year will prove highly
rewarding. However indulging in speculation
will be detrimental and should be avoided.
Legal disputes, which have been bothering
your mind, will settle amicably to your satis
faction. Children will be a major source of
happiness and spouse will keep you happy.
Health of your parents will suf fer due to
stress, and rise in family medical expenses
w ill bother your mind. T he months of
December, April, June and October will be
highly important and eventful.
30 December 23-29, 2017 SPIRITUAL AWARENESS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Happiness is a state of mind

more miserable than before. Your
advice did not work. Next time we think things are going
He thought for a moment and
asked, Do you have any chickens? badly and that God is not properly
Yes, she said. listening to us, we should sit back,
He told her, Take them into the
hut with you for a week. She did take a deep breath, and relax. We
not understand how this would
help, but since he was a wise man,
should give God a chance to let
and everybody in her village found things happen and observe patiently.
By Sant Rajinder his advice helpful, she thought she
Singh Ji Maharaj would give this a try. We will find when all is said and
When she returned home, she done that God worked things out for

L
collected all the chickens from the
ife is filled with many chal
backyard and moved them into the the best in the end.
lenges and sometimes, under
house. For the next week, the chick
pressure, people crack. They
ens were flying around the hut,
feel they can no longer stand all
landing on everything and making house. She took the chickens out cult life is without them. We always messed things up terribly on our
the problems facing them.
a mess of the place. and returned them to the backyard. feel the grass is greener on the own and prayed to God to return
Sometimes people feel they have
After a week, she returned and A week later, the woman other side. The woman learned that things to the way they were.
the worst job in the world. Others
cried, in tears, You must be crazy. returned to the wise man. what she thought was bad was Next time we think things are
feel they have the worst health
Your advice is terrible. It is impossi How are things now? he asked. actually not so bad when she saw going badly and that God is not
problems; they feel no one could be
ble to live in the hut now. The cow Thank you so much! You are how much worse things could be. It properly listening to us, we should
plagued with as many physical
turns around and knocks into us. truly wise. Since I removed the cow is human nature to think that sit back, take a deep breath, and
problems as they have. At some
The chickens fly all around the hut. and chickens from the hut I feel so everybody else has it so good and relax. We should give God a chance
time in our lives, we feel that no
My inlaws are always choking much happier. Things have become it is only we who are suffering. to let things happen and observe
one could have things as bad as we
from the smell and complaining so peaceful. We think we know what is best patiently. We will find when all is
have.
about how bad it is living with us. The wise man smiled. The for us. How many times have we said and done that God worked
There is a folk tale about a wise
The children find chicken feathers woman returned home and lived tried to intervene with our two things out for the best in the end. If
man who lived in a forest. People
falling into their food. My husband happily with her husband, her chil cents to find that when we tried to we reflect, we would find that if
would travel far and wide to seek
is constantly fighting with me over dren, and her inlaws. change our situation, we made God had listened to our complaints
him out for answers to their prob
the living conditions in our home This story illustrates that we are things worse? Then, we regret and let us do things our own way,
lems. One day, a woman came to
and says, It is all your fault! often unhappy with our situation what we have done and wish we things may not have been in our
him for advice.
The wise man thought for a until we find that things could could make things go back to the best interest at all.
He said, My dear, what can I do
moment and said, My dear, go always be worse. We think our job way they were. Happiness is a state of mind. If
for you?
home and try one more thing. Take is horrible, until we lose it and find On the spiritual path, one of the we think that God is not doing
She said, Things are terrible at
the cow and the chickens out of that life is harder without an lessons we need to learn is accept what is best for us, we will always
home. I live in a small hut with my
your hut. Then, come back to me in income. We think our health is bad ing the will of the Lord. Life would be unhappy. If we would realize
husband and two children. The hut
a week. until we spend time in a hospital be so much easier if we accept that that we are living according to
is barely large enough for the four
The woman was fed up with his and find people in worse condition God knows what is best for us. If what God wishes for us and that
of us. I wanted a bigger house but
advice but thought she would give than we are. We think our family we examined the times in our lives God is giving us what is best for us,
my husband is not doing well at
it one last chance. She returned members are bad until we find our that we interfered with Gods will, we would always be happy and
work and cannot afford anything
home and pulled the cow out of the selves alone and realize how diffi we may have discovered that we content.
larger. As times are bad, my hus
bands father lost his job, so his By Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj plined. In the same way, as parents, we teach
parents had to move in with us. We
Teaching by our children through loving discipline and by

were already crowded before but
now with six of us living together
in that small space, it is unbearable.
I cannot take it anymore. I feel like
screaming! The wise man thought
for a moment and asked, Do you
have a cow?
The woman said, Yes, we do.
He said, I advise you to bring the
cow into the hut to live with you
for a week and then come back to
see me.
The woman was puzzled. She
thought that since he was a wise
man, there must be some magic in
bringing the cow into the house, so
she did what he said.
The next week was horrible. It
was so crowded in the house that
every time the cow turned around,
all the six family members had to
change their seats. When they tried
to sleep, the smell was intolerable
and it would moo throughout the
night, waking them all up.
After the week passed, the
woman returned to the wise man
and began shouting at him, What
have you done? I came to you to
make things better and now I am
A
ll too often people are quick to pass
judgment on others without knowing
their full story. They may be quick to
criticize someones actions, believing that
their perspective is correct and that they un
derstand all the circumstances. In turn, how
many of us are willing to withhold judgment
and put ourselves in the shoes of another per
son? How many times have we passed judg
ment on others only to later find that they
had a good reason that justified their actions?
Along the same lines, if we want others to
change their ways, telling them will have little
effect unless we are examples of that behav
ior. In this connection, there is a true story
from the animal kingdom about a team of re
searchers who had gone to Africa to study the
behavior of elephants. They came across an
area in which a pack of elephants was run
ning wild. As the research team set up tele
scopic cameras to observe the animals from a
distance, they saw that every day the ele
phants were fighting with each other, running
over trees and destroying their environment.
They had studied other elephant packs before
and never saw such chaotic and wild behav
ior. On further investigation they discovered
that the group was composed of all teenage
male elephants. There were no adult male
elephants in the group. When they checked
example
with the local inhabitants in the village why
there were no adult male elephants in the
pack, the villagers explained that poachers
came into the village and killed all the male
adults for their ivory.
The researchers saw that the teenage male
elephants had no adult male role models
from which to learn. Curious to see if it truly
made a difference, they arranged to have
some male elephants brought in from anoth
er area. The first thing the male adults did
was to flap their ears and raise their trunks.
Next, they began to make loud trumpeting
sounds. In the beginning, there was no
change and the teen elephants continued to
run wild and fight each other. However, after
a few days in which the adults flapped their
ears, raised their trunks, and made loud nois
es, the teen elephants began to settle down.
Over time, they became well behaved and
their wild actions subsided.
The researchers realized that on their own,
the teen elephants had no role models and
did not know how to behave. Once the male
adults were introduced into their pack, the
teens had role models and began to be disci
setting an example. Our children do not be
lieve in our words alone but in what they see
us do. They copy our own good and bad
habits because that is the example we set.
Similarly, when we are in a position to train
or teach otherswhether we are teachers,
parents, employers, or citizens imploring oth
ers to be conscientiouswe must first set an
example ourselves. That is the only way to
bring about change, teaching by example
rather than by mere words. If we want to see
a positive change in others and in our family,
neighborhood, community, society, or coun
try, then we need to set an example. In the
words of Mahatma Gandhi, Be the change
you want to see in the world.
On the spiritual path, two qualities to incul
cate are patience and understanding. These
are aspects of leading a nonviolent life. Those
who are nonviolent are patient. They do not
rush to criticize or accuse someone. With em
pathy they try to think of how the world looks
through other peoples eyes. If each of us
could treat others with patience, love, and un
derstanding, this world would be more peace
ful and loving. When we are patient and un
derstanding, we never have to go to sleep at
night worrying if we did the right thing. We
will know that when we have patience and un
derstanding, we are acting in a noble way.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info December 23-29, 2017
TheSouthAsianTimes.info December 23-29, 2017