NEW YORK • WASHINGTON D.C. • CHICAGO • ATLANTA • CALIFORNIA VOL 26, No. 1366 December 11, 2020 50¢ Periodical Postage PRO FARMER POLICY Modi’s pitch for second green revolution

Ekal Foundation's unprecedented $6.5 million gala Narinder Singh Kapany

Details on page 17 Eminent India- born US scientist Anil Soni CEO passes away for the WHO Details on page 7 Foundation Indian engineers Details on page 8 communicate via human touch US post office to be named after Details on page 7 slain Sikh officer

Details on page 6 CONTENTS

Bollywood ------34 Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing at the inauguration of the construction work of Agra Metro project via Classifieds ------35 video conferencing, in New Delhi on December 07 Community Post ------17-28 Edit Page ------37 LUCKNOW: Amid the row over laws meant to bring ahead of 8 December Bharat Bandh over the three Horoscope ------29 This week’s question a major change in the agri-marketing sector, Prime new farm laws enacted at the Centre. But during his Immigration Post ------12-13 Do you think Sonia or Rahul Minister Narendra Modi has said reforms are needed brief address, the prime minister made no direct ref- Life Style ------14-15 Gandhi will step down? for development and some laws from the past cen- erence to the new laws or the farmers' protests. Philosophy/Perspective ------36

Last week’s result tury have become a burden now. "Reforms are needed for development. Reforms are Info/Highlights ------4 Real Estate ------32-33 Will Biden support India's Launching the Agra metro rail project through very much needed for a new order and to give new UNSC membership? videoconference, Modi said the reforms carried out by his facilities. We cannot build the next century with the TechBiz Post ------10-11 Travel & Hospitality Post ------16 YES 56% NO 44% government are also getting reflected in election results. laws of the previous century, he said. Wellness Post ------30-31 His pitch on the importance of reforms comes Details on page 5 2 India Post December 11, 2020 www.indiapost.com December 11, 2020 India Post 3 www.indiapost.com 4 India Post December 11, 2020 www.indiapost.com

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SAN FRANCISCO & Rani: Learnt about humanity 8th North East Festival SILICON VALLEY Vidya Sethuraman Bureau Chief Rani says she learnt about humanity essay- The NE Festival, a popular event held in Vijay Thapar CPRO & Advertising ing roles as the specially-abled Michelle Delhi's IGNCA for the Arts, ever since its Kiran Pandey Director, WellnessPost McNally in Black and the Tourette Syn- inception seven years ago, will be held Vinita Thapar Marketing Deepak Chhabra Promotions drome patient Naina Mathur in Hichki. in Guwahati, Assam this year. Ritu Maheshwari Director Promotions 34 14 Sudesh Kumari Correspondent

LOS ANGELES Mrs Shashi Trivedi Bureau Chief Cover Story: Techbiz:

CHICAGO PRO FARMER POLICY Hate content Ramesh Soparawala Resident Editor Amid the row over laws meant to bring An independent board set up by A Q Siddiqui Correspondent a major change in the agri-marketing Facebook to look into hate and other ST. LOUIS sector, PM Modi said reforms are undesirable content on the platform has Ashwin Patel Correspondent needed for development. 5 taken up a case from India. 10 NEW YORK & NEW JERSEY Pinky Kaur Bureau Chief Srirekha N. Chakravarty Correspondent Nikita Japra Correspondent Community: Travel: Sukhvinder Saini Circulation Ekal Foundation's Gala Seychelles BOSTON Gope Gidwani Bureau Chief Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation hosted a mag- An archipelago of 115 islands, the is- nificent Star-studded Gala, called 'Future land nation is known for its exquisite CANADA of India'. And raised record-setting natural beauty, spectacular beaches, Paras Nehra Correspondent $6.5 M in pledges & donations. 17 and luxury resorts. 16 NEW DELHI Lakshay Sharma Web Developer

MUMBAI Immigration: Wellness: Nidhi Soparawala Correspondent Frank Fernandes Correspondent US eliminating per-country cap Record-high cases, tops 14 M

VADODARA, GUJARAT Passage of the Fairness for High-Skilled The US set a new world record for the Vaidehi Patel Correspondent Immigrants Act by the Senate comes as number of coronavirus cases and hospi- Priyanka Shah Correspondent a big relief to Indian IT professionals talizations in a single day, as the infec- PUNJAB who come on H-1B work visas. 12 tion tally surpassed the 14 M mark. 30 Raman Nehra Bureau Chief Jaswant Singh Gandam Correspondent INFO-CENTER Business Partner India: CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS PHOENIX DUO MATRIX 1860 Mowry Ave # 200 Fremont, CA 94538 COMMUNICATIONS Tel: 510-396-9140 • Fax: 510-790-2806 • e-mail: [email protected] PRIVATE LIMITED S-1/A, 3rd Floor, Arjun Nagar, E-SUBSCRIPTION& EDITORIAL: Vidya Sethuraman: Tel: 510-491-4867 • e-mail: [email protected] Safdarjung Enclave Extension, ADVERTISEMENT: Naresh Sodhi: Tel: 510-938-8667 • e-mail: [email protected] I Graphics Inquiry: E-mail: [email protected] New Delhi -110029, INDIA T: +91 11 46068685, +91 11 41006051 INDIA CORPORATE OFFICE • E: [email protected] • W: www.phoenixduomatrix.com 230-A, 3rd Floor, Jin Kushal Suri Complex (Opp NDSE Part-II) New Delhi - 110049 • Tel: 11-26257769 • E-mail:[email protected] For advertisement rates call the office nearest to you: India Sales Offices: India Post Copyright©1994 RJ Media Inc, ISSN 1084-3868, is published weekly for SAN FRANCISCO & SILICON VALLEY NEW DELHI PUNJAB $30 for 52 issues yearly by India Post, 1860 1860 Mowry Ave # 200 Fremont, CA 94538 Chandrika Malikarya Amardeep Singh Mowry Ave Ste 200, Fremont, CA 94538- Naresh Sodhi: 510-938-8667 • e-mail: [email protected] Sr. Manager - Sales & Business Development Manager - Business Development 1730. Application to mail at Periodicals M: +91 8373929895 M: +91 8527456807 postage prices is pending at Fremont, Vidya Sethuraman: 510-491-4867 • e-mail: [email protected] E: [email protected] E: [email protected] California and additional mailing offices. LOS ANGELES CHICAGO BANGALORE POSTMASTER: Send address changes to 16224 Alpine Pl. La Mirada, CA 90638 2543 W Devon Ave Chicago IL 60659 Gowtham Sivanandam Advertorials & Event Team India: India Post, 1860 Mowry Ave Ste 200, Tel: 562-441-5511, Tel: 773-973-7394; Fax: 773-973-7396; Sr. Manager Business Development Fremont, CA 94538-1730. [email protected] Email: [email protected] M: +91 9880535664 Deepti Dogra E: [email protected] Assistant Manager DISCLAIMER NEW YORK/NEW JERSEY India Post Editorial and Content Support assumes all advertisers to be Tel: 510-938-8667 • e-mail: [email protected] MUMBAI/AHMEDABAD [email protected] reliable and responsible for all liability M: +91 9560750802 for their claimers For editorial, contact: [email protected] December 11, 2020 Cover/Top Stories India Post 5 www.indiapost.com PRO FARMER POLICY Modi's pitch for second green revolution

LUCKNOW: Amid the row over laws meant to bring the recent past. A glimpse of this confidence is seen a major change in the agri-marketing sector, Prime in the election results in every part of the country, in- Minister Narendra Modi has said reforms are needed cluding UP," he said. for development and some laws from the past cen- The PM said in recent years the poor and tury have become a burden now. the middle class have showered their un- Launching the Agra metro rail project through precedented blessings on the efforts videoconference, Modi said the reforms carried out of the government. He said their sup- by his government are also getting reflected in elec- port and the small joys experienced tion results. by the countrymen gives me the His pitch on the importance of reforms comes courage to do new things and ahead of 8 December Bharat Bandh over the three take new initiatives". new farm laws enacted at the Centre. But during his Modi said his government brief address, the prime minister made no direct ref- intends to solve the festering erence to the new laws or the farmers' protests. problems faced by people, "Reforms are needed for development. Reforms are make life easy, increase in- very much needed for a new order and to give new vestment and ensure the facilities. We cannot build the next century with the maximum use of modern laws of the previous century, he said. technology. Some laws that used to be good in the past century He said a major problem have become a burden in the present century. Re- in the country's infrastructure sec- forms should be a continuous process," he said. tor was that new projects were announced but not years. Agra has a population of 26 lakh and 60 lakh Modi said his government is carrying out holistic much attention was given on how they will be funded. tourists visit the city every year. reforms . Earlier, reforms used to happen in a piece- His government ensures the availability of funds at The prime minister said tourism sector benefits the meal manner, or keeping in mind some sectors and the start of a new project itself, Modi said. most from better connectivity and infrastructure. departments," the prime minister said. He said over Rs 100 lakh crore will be spent under Work is on to make "local tourism vocal", he added. He said the reforms carried out in recent past have the National Infrastructure Pipeline project and work He said the government has not only increased the infused self-confidence in the country, adding that is being done on the master plan for multi-modal con- number of countries covered under the e-Visa people will be satisfied when they go through the nectivity. Efforts are also on to attract investment from scheme, it has also significantly reduced the tax on finer details . all over the world to improve the country's infrastruc- hotel room tariff. This confidence has been seen in every election in ture, he added. Work is being carried out on 1,000 km "With the efforts of the government, India is now of new metro rail lines in 27 cities countrywide, Modi ranked at number 34 on Travel and Tourism Competi- said, claiming big progress in this sector since his first tiveness Index. government took charge in 2014. In 2013, India was ranked 65th on this index," he The Rs 8,379.62-crore Agro Metro project has two said, while hoping for a recovery in the sector as the corridors with a total length of 29.4 km and will con- coronavirus situation improves. . nect major tourist attractions like Taj Mahal, Agra Fort Union Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh and Sikandara with railway stations and bus stands. Puri, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath attended the The project is scheduled to be completed in 5 event. PTI Farm reforms and their background

India Post News Service 1. If farmers want to sell within the APMC mar- NEW DELHI: Disparity of incomes between agricul- kets, that will continue. MSPs also continue. So, the ture and other sectors has been theunderlying need MSP acts as a safety net for farmers. for farm reforms. The difference in annual income of 2. APMC market yards will be open for farmers to farmer and nonfarmer worker, which stood at Rs sell. This apart, they can also sell outside the mandis. 25,398 in 1993-94 further widened to Rs 54,377 in There will be competition to buy from farmers which 1999-2000 and in the next decade it further increased means farmers have greater bargaining power to to more than Rs 1.42 lakh. decide their price. Fragmented markets, market taxes and commis- 3. For every product and for every producer, all of sions increased the final product price but reduced India is a single unified market. Only farmers were returns to farmers. Despite market taxes, infrastruc- denied this benefit of a massive market. ture in markets remained underdeveloped and not in With these reforms, Indian farmers will now fi- tune with modern supply chains. This inadequate in- nally have the freedom to sell their produceto frastructure led to high postharvest losses, estimated who they want and where they want andat price at Rs 90,000 crore in 2014. of their choice, an option denied tothem until The reforms are aimed to bring the following benefits: now. 6 India Post Top Stories December 11, 2020 www.indiapost.com Ahead of Biden's presidency, China US post office to be named after slain calls for reset of its troubled ties with US Sikh police officer

BEIJING: China has called for a reset Earlier this month, Biden, a Democrat, He urged the US to correct its strate- HOUSTON: A post office in the US of its troubled ties with the US under confirmed that he will not make any gic perceptions, while asserting that city Houston will be named after the incoming administration of Presi- "immediate moves" to lift the punitive the root cause of the current state of Sandeep Singh Dhaliwal, the first dent-elect Joe Biden to rebuild mutual tariffs that the Trump administration has bilateral ties is that some people on the Sikh Deputy in Texas's Harris County imposed on imports of Chinese US side cling to the ideological preju- who was shot dead while on duty in goods before a full review of the dice and a continuation of a Cold War September 2019. existing phase one trade deal and mentality. This has led to a "zero-sum- Decks were cleared for renaming consultations with US allies, game" view that China is an adversary, the post office at 315 Addicks dampening China's hopes that it he said. Howell Road in Houston as "Deputy would be able to renegotiate the Wang expressed hope that the US Sandeep Singh Dhaliwal Post Office trade agreement with the new US policy on China can return to objectiv- Building" with the US Congress administration. ity and rationality as soon as possible. passing the necessary legislation, A Write-up in official media In the face of major global chal- the American Bazaar said in a report. here, however, say Biden's tenure lenges, such as the spread of COVID-19 could usher in a "buffering period" and economic recession, China and the for already-tense China-US rela- US should help each other in the same tions, and offer an opportunity for boat and show responsibility, he said. breakthroughs in resuming high- The Trump administration, mean- level communication and rebuild- while, is taking strong actions against Joe Biden ing mutual strategic trust be- the ruling Communist Party of China tween the two countries. (CPC) targeting its officials with visa trust and end months of hostility be- Outlining his eagerly awaited China ban. tween the world's two largest econo- policy, Biden in a recent interview with In its latest action, the US State De- mies. The New York Times said that the "best partment announced new visa restric- President Donald Trump's four-years China strategy" was to get all traditional tions on Chinese government officials Sandeep Singh Dhaliwal in power is regarded as the worst US allies in Asia and Europe "on the on Friday (4 Dec.), citing their alleged phase in US-China relations as the rul- same page", which will be his major pri- involvement in a malign influence cam- The Senate has just passed a bill ing Communist Party of China (CPC) to rename the post office after the headed by President Xi Jinping "The top priority is that both sides should work House of Representatives did so in struggled to deal with Washington un- together to remove all kinds of disruptions and obstacles, September. der an unpredictable American leader. The bill is now headed to the "The top priority is that both sides and achieve a smooth transition in China-US relations," White House for President Donald Trump to sign into law. should work together to remove all Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said kinds of disruptions and obstacles, and The post office named after achieve a smooth transition in China-US Dhaliwal in Houston is only the sec- relations," Chinese Foreign Minister ority "in the opening weeks" of his paign to intimidate critics of Beijing liv- ond one named after an Indian- Wang Yi said during a video meeting presidency. ing overseas. American. The first one was named with business leaders from the US- Biden said his trade policies will fo- Those targeted belong to or are af- after the first Indian-American Con- China Business Council. cus on "China's abusive prac- gressman Dalip Singh Saund in "At the same time, based on the di- tices", including stealing intel- Southern California in 2006. rection of mutual benefits for our two lectual property, dumping prod- On September 27, 2019, peoples and countries, we need to ucts, illegal subsidies to corpora- Dhaliwal, 42, was shot dead by a sus- strive to restart dialogue, return to the tions" and forced technology pect during a traffic stop in the right track and rebuild trust in this next transfers. county's Cypress area. phase of relations, he was quoted as Pitching for resumption of He was the county's first Sikh saying by the Hong Kong-based South dialogue at all levels, Wang said Deputy when he joined the force 10 China Morning Post. China and the US should work in years ago, and became a national Trump, a Republican, pushed aggres- a direction that serves the com- figure after convincing the Harris sively on all aspects of US-China ties, in- mon interests of the two coun- County Sherrif's Department to al- cluding with his relentless trade war, tries and peoples, so that the low him to wear a turban and grow challenging China's military hold on the two sides can restart dialogue, a beard while on patrol. disputed South China Sea, its constant rebuild mutual trust and get bi- Responding to the development, threats to Taiwan and branding lateral ties back on track. the slain police officer's father Pyara coronavirus as 'China virus' after it "The serious difficulties en- Singh Dhaliwal said that the "ges- emerged from Wuhan in December last countered in Sino-US relations in Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi ture will memorialize his legacy of year. recent years are something we service to his beloved Houston, The Trump administration also lob- do not want to see, and I believe it is filiated with the United Front Work De- while also reminding us all to up- bied hard with allies against Chinese also something that all sectors of the US partment, a CPC organ that operates hold his example and celebrate the telecoms giant Huawei, sanctioning community, including the business with a broad mandate to strengthen diversity that makes our and so Chinese officials over human rights community, do not want to see," Wang adherence to the party both within and many other communities strong", abuses in Muslim-majority Xinjiang. said. outside China. PTI American Bazaar reported. IANS December 11, 2020 Top Stories India Post 7 www.indiapost.com Indian-origin engineers digitally Dubai-based Indian expat beats compatriot to death communicate via human touch DUBAI: A Dubai-based Indian expat has been NEW YORK: A team of Indian-origin researchers in wearable or implantable devices can use to send in- charged with assault after beating a compatriot to the US has made it possible to essentially let their formation. death over a dispute, a city court heard. bodies act as the link between the card or "These devices typically communicate using On Sunday (6 Dec.), the Dubai Court of First Instance smartphone and the reader or scanner, making it pos- Bluetooth signals that tend to radiate out from the heard that the Indian victim was under the influence sible to transmit information just by touching a sur- body. A hacker could intercept those signals from 30 of alcohol when a fight broke out in a shared accom- face. feet away," Sen said. modation in International City in August, reports Gulf The prototype, developed by Purdue University Sen's technology instead keeps signals confined News. engineers, doesn't transfer money yet but it's the first within the body by coupling them in a so-called According to court records, the victim's mother technology that can send any information through the "Electro-Quasistatic range" that is much lower on the called his friend to check on him as he had not con- direct touch of a fingertip. electromagnetic spectrum than typical Bluetooth tacted her for few days. While wearing the prototype as a watch, a user's communication. When the friend went to check, he found the victim body can be used to send information such as a This mechanism is what enables information trans- lying dead on a bed. photo or password when touching a sensor on a fer by only touching a surface. According to preliminary investigations, he had laptop, the researchers said. Even if your finger hovered just one centimetre died three days before the body was discovered. "We're used to unlocking devices using our finger- above a surface, information wouldn't transfer Four witnesses living in the apartment testified that prints, but this technology wouldn't rely on biomet- through this technology without a direct touch. the victim hardly ever left his room and that he was "This would prevent a always under the influence of alcohol. hacker from stealing pri- The 31-year-old Indian defendant told the court vate information such as that he was assigned by the owner of the apartment credit card credentials by to collect rents from the tenants. intercepting the signals," The defendant admitted that on the day of the inci- the authors wrote. dent, inspectors were searching residential units to Credit card machines catch violators who had rented out their apartments and apps such as Apple Pay illegally. "The defendant claimed that the victim was un- use a more secure alterna- der the influence of alcohol and insulted him. The de- tive to Bluetooth signals - fendant got angry before kicking and punching the vic- called near-field communi- tim several times until he fell unconscious," Gulf News cation - to receive a pay- quoted an Emirati policeman as saying in the court. ment from tapping a card The defendant then put the victim's body on the or scanning a phone. bed and left. IANS Sen's technology would add the convenience of making a secure payment Global Covid-19 in a single gesture. "You wouldn't have to cases cross 67 M mark: rics - it would rely on digital signals. Imagine logging bring a device out of your pocket. You could leave it Johns Hopkins into an app on someone else's phone just by touch," in your pocket or on your body and just touch," Sen said Shreyas Sen, a Purdue associate professor of said. electrical and computer engineering. The technology could also replace key fobs or WASHINGTON: The overall number of global "Whatever you touch would become more power- cards that currently use Bluetooth communication to coronavirus cases has crossed the 67 million mark, ful because digital information is going through it," grant access into a building. Instead, a person might while the deaths have surged to more than 1.53 Sen added in the study published in Transactions on just touch a door handle to enter. million, according to the Johns Hopkins University. Computer-Human Interaction, a journal by the Asso- The researchers believe that the applications of this In its latest update on Monday 7 December, the ciation for Computing Machinery. technology would go beyond how we interact with University's Center for Systems Science and Engi- Shovan Maity led the study as a PhD student in devices today. neering (CSSE) revealed that the current global Sen's lab. The technology works by establishing an "The ability to transfer information through your caseload and death toll stood at 67,009,962 and "internet" within the body that smartphones, touch would change the applications of that big touch 1,535,107, respectively. smartwatches, pacemakers, insulin pumps and other screen," Sen said. IANS The US is the worst-hit country with the world's highest number of cases and deaths at 14,750,316 and 282,236, respectively, according to the CSSE. India comes in second place in terms of cases Eminent India-born US scientist Kapany passes away at 9,644,222, while the country's death toll soared to 140,182. CHANDIGARH: Eminent India-born US scientist and ets of Sikhism globally through several books, art The other countries with more than a million patron of Sikh arts and literature, Narinder Singh works and exhibitions, besides working tirelessly confirmed cases are Brazil (6,603,540), Russia Kapany (94), passed away in California on Friday 4 De- for preserving Sikh architectural heritage. (2,439,163), France (2,345,648), Italy (1,728,878), cember. He is survived by his son and daughter. He also recalled Kapany's contributions in the the UK (1,727,751), Spain (1,684,647), Argentina In a condolence message, Punjab Chief Minister field of science and technology. Being the father (1,463,110), Colombia (1,371,103), Germany Amarinder Singh said that he was saddened to learn of fiber optics, he would be ever remembered by (1,184,845), Mexico (1,168,395), Poland about the death of Kapany, whom he termed as a one and all for his pioneering research in this field, (1,063,449) and Iran (1,040,547), the CSSE figures great philanthropist and the founder of the Sikh besides lasers, solar energy and pollution monitor- showed. IANS Foundation who introduced various aspects and fac- ing. IANS 8 India Post Top Stories December 11, 2020 www.indiapost.com

Govt supporting hundreds of projects Navy rescue teams recover body in fight against coronavirus: Vardhan near Nov 26 MiG 29K crash site NEW DELHI: Rescue teams of the Indian Navy NEW DELHI: The government is supporting hun- ucts for COVID-19," Vardhan said. have recovered a body, believed to be that of pi- dreds of projects in its fight against the coronavirus Just after the pandemic struck, the Department of lot Commander Nishant Singh who went missing pandemic and more than 100 start-ups have devel- Science and Technology and the Department of Bio- after his MiG-29K aircraft crashed into the Ara- oped innovative products to deal with COVID-19, Sci- technology launched a series of initiatives ranging bian sea 11 days back, official sources said. ence and Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan said on from funding efforts towards finding therapeutic for- They said DNA testing is being carried out to Monday 7 December. mulations to vaccine development. ascertain the identity of the body, which has been Speaking at the India-Portugal Tech Summit, orga- About 30 vaccine candidates are in different stages recovered from the site of the crash. nized by the Depart- of development, said "There are reasons to believe that the body is ment of Science and Vardhan, who is also the of Commander Nishant Singh. However, it can be Technology and the Minister for Health and fully ascertained following the result of the DNA Confederation of Indian Family Welfare. testing," said an official on condition of anonym- Industry (CII), Vardhan Two of them are in ity. said the government the most advanced Indian Navy pilot Commander Singh went has announced a USD stage of development missing in the Arabian sea after his MiG-29K air- 120 million grant for 'Covaxin', being devel- craft crashed into the Arabian Sea on November COVID-19 vaccine re- oped through ICMR- 26. The second pilot was rescued soon after the search. Bharat Biotech collabo- incident. This is being pro- ration, and Covishield' vided for COVID from the Serum Insti- Suraksha Mission and is tute of India. to be used purely for "Both are in the research and develop- Phase-III clinical trial ment in this field, he stage. Our premier in- said. stitution -- the Indian "From the develop- Harsh Vardhan Council of Medical Re- ment of indigenous search -- is involved in vaccines, novel point-of-care diagnostics and thera- their trial executions," he said. peutic formulations based on traditional knowledge "India is also hosting clinical trials for all the major to establishing research resources and offering ser- vaccine contenders. Serum Institute of India, the vices, Indian R&D entities both public and private, are world's largest vaccine manufacturer, is conducting working relentlessly to develop effective interven- trials for the vaccine developed by Oxford University. tions for combating the pandemic," the minister said. One of our pharma giants, Dr Reddy's Laboratories, "Hundreds of projects are being supported. More will distribute the Russian vaccine in India," Vardhan than 100 start-ups have developed innovative prod- said. PTI

Anil Soni Chief Executive Officer Achieved success with single for the WHO Foundation kidney: Anju Bobby George's The Indian Navy deployed nine warships, 14 India Post News Service stunning revelation aircraft and a number of fast interceptor craft as orld Health Organization today appointed In- part of the search and rescue mission to locate dian-origin Anil Soni as the Chief Executive Of- KOCHI: Olympian Anju Bobby George, who secured W Commander Singh. ficer for the WHO Foundation. Global health expert a historic bronze medal in the 2003 World Athletics Some debris of the aircraft including landing Soni will assume his role as its inaugural CEO on Janu- Championship in Paris, said she achieved success and gear, turbo charger and fuel tank engine were ary 1 next year. reached the top with a single kidney. located last week. WHO Director- In a tweet, the ace athlete, a gold medalist in the The Navy had ordered a high-level inquiry to General Dr Tedros IAAF World Athletics Finals (Monaco, 2005), said she Adhanom investigate the incident, which was third involv- had many limitations, including being allergic to even Ghebreyesus de- ing the Mig-29K in the last one year. a painkiller, but still made it. scribed Soni as a A MiG-29K twin-seat fighter aircraft had "Believe it or not, I'm one of the fortunate, among proven innovator crashed in South Goa district on November 16 last very few who reached the world top with a single KID- in global health year, but both the pilots had ejected safely. who has spent NEY, allergic with even a painkiller, with a dead takeoff Another MIG-29K crashed into the Arabian Sea two decades in leg...Many limitations…still made it. off the Goa coast on February 23 this year after service of commu- Can we call, magic of a coach or his talent," Anju taking off from INS Hansa, a prominent naval air nities affected by tweeted. station at Vasco in Goa. The pilot of the aircraft HIV/AIDS and Her career blossomed under the coaching of hus- had managed to eject safely. other infectious band Robert Bobby George. diseases. The MiG-29K is an all-weather carrier-based Responding to her tweet, Union Sports Minister In his new role, Anil Soni multirole fighter aircraft developed by Russian Kiren Rijiju said she brought laurels to India through Soni will acceler- aerospace company Mikoyan (MiG). The Indian her hard work, grit and determination. ate the Foundation's work to invest in innovative, evi- Navy had procured a fleet of 45 MiG-29Ks from "Anju, it's your hard work, grit and determination to dence-based initiatives that support WHO in deliver- Russia at a cost of around USD 2 billion to operate ing on its mission to ensure healthy lives and promote bring laurels for India supported by the dedicated from INS Vikramaditya. PTI well-being for all, the WHO Foundation stated. coaches and the whole technical backup team. PTI December 11, 2020 India Post 9 www.indiapost.com

New York AIRWING TRAVELS INC. New Jersey (Hicksville) (Iselin) Est. 1991 Tel: (516) 931 4600 Toll Free: (866) 532 3413 Tel: (732) 658 5450 Lowest Fares / Confirmed Seats to INDIA & Other Destinations Worldwide Save upto 40% on First and Business Class OPEN 7 DAYS -CCall or Email : [email protected] Tech News Job cuts, salary adjustments not as widespread as apprehended: CII ICICI enters 'FinTech' NEW DELHI: Despite a severe impact on revenue and cash in- space, launches flows, display of compassion and community outreach produced a 'iMobile Pay' app spontaneous level of commitment and loyalty from employees and TechBiz that the job cuts and salary adjustments were not as widespread as originally apprehended, an industry body study has said. MUMBAI: Private lender The CII (Confederation of Indian Industry)study entitled ICICI Bank has entered the 'Reimagining the Organization for the New Normal: Role of HR' 'FinTech' space by launching conducted in partnership with Talentonic has revealed interest- 'iMobile Pay' app, which offers 10 India Post www.indiapost.com December 11, 2020 ing facts about employer behavior during the pandemic. IANS payments and banking ser- vices to customers of any bank. The mobile application of- fers a combination of facilities Hate content: Facebook's Oversight of a payment app -- such as en- abling customers to pay to any UPI (Unified Payments Inter- Board takes up case from India face) ID or merchants, paying bills and do online recharge NEW DELHI: An independent Board said. announced on December 1. refer cases to the Board. among others -- with instant board set up by Facebook to Facebook has indicated that Facebook -- which has faced The Board's decisions are banking services such as sav- look into hate and other unde- although its policies allow it to flak in many parts of the world binding on the two social net- ings account, investments, sirable content on the platform determine a potential threat of over various issues, including working platforms. Instagram loans, credit cards, gift cards, has taken up a case from India real-world violence and to bal- its handling of content and is owned by Facebook. travel cards and much more. wherein a user had called for ance that determination data breaches -- has set up the Each of the cases are as- Besides, the users of 'iMobile violence against French Presi- against the user's ability to ex- independent body for content signed to five-member panels, Pay' could also transfer money dent Emmanuel Macron over a including at least one member to any bank account, payment cartoon of Prophet. from the region implicated in app and digital wallet. In a recent statement, the the content. The Board expects "Another prominent feature Oversight Board said it has se- to decide on each case, and for of 'iMobile Pay' is 'pay to contacts' lected an additional case for Facebook to have acted on this which enables users to automati- consideration, which had been decision, within 90 days. cally see the UPI IDs of their referred by Facebook. The body also invites the phonebook contacts registered Facebook has already removed public to comment on the on the ICICI Bank UPI ID network the particular content that dis- cases that have been taken up. of any payment app and digital played a sword and hate mes- Once the Board reaches a wallet," the lender said in a state- sages, and now the Board will decision on these cases, ment. "This unique functionality review the matter. Facebook will be required to provides users a significant con- "In its referral, Facebook implement the decisions as venience of inter-operability as they no longer have to remem- stated that it considered this well as publicly respond to any ber the UPI IDs and could easily case to be significant, because press their religious beliefs, it moderation in a transparent additional policy recommen- transfer money across payment the content could convey a was difficult to draw the line in manner. dations that it makes. app and digital wallet." 'veiled threat' with a specific this case, according to the The Board started function- In May, the Board an- The mobile application ex- reference to an individual, statement. ing earlier this year, and is re- nounced the names of 20 tends the ambit of mobile bank- President Macron. Facebook The Board noted that the viewing appeals from users on members, including Sudhir ing apps, which are hitherto re- referred to heightened ten- new case replaces one of the six material that has been taken Krishnaswamy, Vice Chancellor stricted to only the customers of sions in France at the time the cases that it was to review. The down from Facebook and of the National Law School of respective banks. IANS user posted the content," the review of those six cases were Instagram. Facebook can also India University. PTI Cisco to acquire UK-based software firm IMImobile for $730mn

SAN FRANCISCO: Global solution for the market-one "We are excited to join networking giant Cisco an- that gives businesses a plat- Cisco and become part of nounced to acquire UK-based form to provide delightful ex- one of the world's leading software firm IMImobile for periences across the entire technology companies as $730 million, with an aim to customer lifecycle journey," they seek to enable great provide a seamless end-to- said Jeetu Patel, senior vice customer experiences," said end customer interaction president and general man- Jay Patel, IMImobile CEO. management solution. ager of Cisco's Security and "We believe there will be Cisco will pay 595 pence Applications business. a world of dynamic, always- per share in exchange for IMImobile provides soft- on connections between each share of IMImobile. The ware and services, which allow global businesses and their acquisition of IMImobile is ex- enterprises and organizations customers and the combi- pected to close in the first tomer interaction manage- nel of choice. to stay constantly connected nation of our respective quarter of calendar year 2021. ment solution, and the ability "We look forward to working to their customers through en- technologies will enable to The company said that the to drive faster and smarter in- with IMImobile to help create hanced interactive channels us make every interaction acquisition would be able to teractions and orchestration a comprehensive CxaaS (Cus- including social, messaging matter more for our cli- provide an end-to-end cus- through the customer's chan- tomer Experience as a Service) and voice. ents". IANS December 11, 2020 TechBiz Post India Post 11 www.indiapost.com YouTube's new feature to warn users Tech Briefs before they post toxic comments Amazon rolls out typed instructions WASHINGTON: In a step to prevent bullying and hate on function in Alexa for iPhone users its platform, YouTube has intro- WASHINGTON: Tech com- will arrive for Android and in duced a new feature that will pany Amazon has started to other markets. warn users when they post of- roll out a new feature to As per Mashable, Google fensive comments. YouTube iPhone users, enabling them Assistant has long supported will prompt them before post- to fire off a text message to text input from users. There is ing a comment to be more re- their assistant rather than us- a good reason to have this spectful. ing voice to communicate option because if some users According to Mashable, with the find it difficult Johanna Wright, Vice President speaker. to communi- of Product Management at According cate verbally YouTube said in a blog, "We to Mashable, with an assis- know that comments play a the reminder may pop up be- stated that YouTube will be test- the new fea- tant due to, key role in helping creators fore posting a comment that ing a new filter in YouTube Stu- ture, how- for example, a connect with their community, may be offensive to others, giv- dio for inappropriate and hurtful ever, is not speech im- but issues with the quality of ing the commenter the option comments. These comments accessible to pediment. comments are also one of the to reflect before posting". will be automatically held for re- everyone at The users most consistent pieces of However, the users can con- view so that content creators on this time. The who have ac- feedback we receive from cre- tinue to comment if they want the platform won't ever have to new Alexa cess to the ators." Google employee Sarah to. Apart from the new re- read these comments if they are texting fea- public pre- posted on Google support, minder feature, YouTube has not interested. YouTube said it ture has launched as a public view will see a keyboard in "Today we're introducing a also made a few more updates will also be streamlining the preview on iOS, according to the top corner of the app; new reminder in comments to to make YouTube a more inclu- comment moderation tools to the company, which con- tapping that icon will pull up help encourage respectful in- sive platform. make the overall process easy firmed the feature to The the text feed. According to teractions. Now on Android, As per Mashable, the blog for creators. ANI Verge following reports from Amazon, users can input any- some users. The users will thing they could otherwise need the Alexa app for iOS, say to the speaker, such as Global Ecommerce Help Indian Job cuts, salary assuming that one is in the US. telling it to turn off the lights adjustments not as It is unclear when the feature or asking a question. ANI Manufacturers in the Pandemic widespread as Google Maps now lets anyone upload MUMBAI: Textile and apparel said Apparel Export Promotion apprehended: CII exporters have had to deal Council (AEPC) chairman A Street View photos with a phone with the worst mass layoffs and Sakthivel. NEW DELHI: Despite a se- CALIFORNIA: Google has nected images in the right factory closures during the cri- Going the B2B Way vere impact on revenue and announced the launch of a place on Google Maps, so sis caused and subsequently A survey of business buyers cash inflows, display of com- new update that lets users your new Street View can be exacerbated by the covid-19 conducted by Digital Com- passion and community out- create Street View photos found in the exact location pandemic. merce 360 found that 22 per reach produced a spontaneous using just a phone on Maps. where it was taken for others But finally--after all these cent purchasing managers level of commitment and loy- With the new connected to see and explore," ex- months, exports have wit- spent significantly more on alty from employees and that photos tool in the app, users plained a blog post form nessed a positive shift. India's B2B marketplaces during the the job cuts and salary adjust- can record a series of con- Google. apparel exports rose by 10.22 pandemic. Textiles and apparel ments were not as widespread nected images as they move "Before this feature, you per cent in September 2020 to vertical marketplaces like as originally apprehended, an down a street or USD 1,190 million from USD Fibre2Fashion are leading the industry body study has said. path. These images 1,079 million a year ago. Simi- way in presenting ways indus- The CII (Confederation of In- are captured using larly, India's neighbor try players that are suitably tai- dian Industry)study entitled ARCore, the same Bangladesh, with its exports to lored to the complex and nu- 'Reimagining the Organization augmented reality Japan valued at USD 96.23 mil- anced world of B2B e-com- for the New Normal: Role of HR' technology the tech lion saw a 3.95 per cent growth merce. conducted in partnership with giant has used to in September over the previ- Amid the pandemic, one Talentonic has revealed inter- produce experi- ous month. These numbers platform that has been thor- esting facts about employer ences like 'Live paint a positive picture of the oughly dedicated to fuelling behavior during the pandemic. View'. would typically need special textiles and apparel industry, the advancement of its part- As against what was widely After users record images 360-degree cameras to cap- which is slowly and gradually ners and helping exporters off- perceived, reducing the and publish them via the ture and publish Street View moving towards recovery. The set infrastructural inefficien- headcount has been given 7th Street View app, Google will imagery," it added. recovery from the huge fall of cies is the F2FMart. ANI/ priority out of 13 when it came automatically rotate, posi- These pictures will help April this year to a 10 per cent BusinessWire India to actions taken to deal with tion and create a series of make Google Maps more ac- rise in September corrobo- the crises while reducing or connected photos. curate and up-to-date for ev- rates industry's belief that the postponing salary or other "We then place those con- eryone. ANI apparel sector is already on its For detailed story visit payouts was given the 9th pri- path to a V-shaped recovery, www.indiapost.com ority. IANS In Brief The passage of the Fairness for High-Skilled Search persists for Immigrants Act by the parents of 628 kids Senate comes as a separated at border Immigration big relief to Indian IT SAN DIEGO: A court-ap- professionals who pointed committee has yet to come to the US on H-1B find the parents of 628 children work visas separated at the border early in 12 India Post www.indiapost.com December 11, 2020 the Trump administration, ac- cording to a court filing that also said the government has pro- vided additional phone numbers US Senate passes bill eliminating per-country to aid the long-running search. Parents of 333 children are believed to be in the United cap for employment-based immigrant visas States, while parents of the WASHINGTON: The US Sen- the seven per cent cap for em- Of the unreserved visas, not other 295 are believed to be worked to ensure that the leg- ate has unanimously passed a ployment-based immigrant vi- more than 85 per cent shall be outside the U.S. islation includes safeguards bill that eliminates the per- sas, a provision that will facili- allotted to immigrants from That doesn't necessarily mean against fraud and abuse in the country numerical limitation tate removal of the massive any single country. Running the parents and children are still visa system. for employment-based immi- backlog of Indian IT profession- against time, the Senate on separated, only that the commit- The Senate passed the bill grant visas and raises it for tee has been unable to locate the as Senator Cramer presided family-based visas, a legislation parents. The committee has over the chamber. Immigration that will hugely benefit hun- found other family members for is often a contentious issue, dreds of thousands of Indian 168 of the 628 children whose but we should not delay professionals in America who parents have yet to be located. The progress where there is bipar- have been waiting for years to joint filing by attorneys for the Jus- tisan consensus," he said. get their green cards. tice Department and families of- In February 2019, Cramer The passage of the Fairness fers the latest snapshot of efforts brought Debjyoti Dwivedy ("DD"), for High-Skilled Immigrants to reunite families under a ``zero a North Dakota State University Act by the Senate comes as a tolerance'' policy on illegal border alumnus and Vice President of Im- big relief to Indian IT profes- crossings that resulted in thou- migration Voice, a group that ad- sionals who come to the US on sands of separations when parents vocates for this bill, as his guest to H-1B work visas and their cur- were criminally prosecuted. the State of the Union. rent waiting period for Green On Nov. 25, the administra- As Congress debates the Card or permanent residency tion provided the search com- many aspects of our broken im- is running into decades. mittee with phone numbers migration system, Debjyoti of- Originally passed by the US als in the US. It also removes an Wednesday (2 Dec.) moved and other information from a fers expertise and experiences House of Representatives on offset that reduced the num- the process very quickly. It was database of the Justice that reflect North Dakota pri- July 10, 2019 by a bipartisan ber of visas for individuals from passed by the Senate Judiciary Department's Executive Office orities and values, Senator 365 to 65 votes, the legislation China. Because of arbitrary per- Committee by unanimous con- for Immigration Review, which Cramer said at the time. It is increases the per-country cap country caps, the legal status sent and soon thereafter it was manages immigration courts, my hope we can finally pass a on family-based immigrant vi- of Indian IT professionals was considered by the full Senate. the filing said. Lee Gelernt, an version of the Fairness for High sas from seven per cent of the constantly in jeopardy. The Senate passed it quickly attorney representing parents Skilled Immigrants Act this total number of such visas In fiscal year 2019, Indian with unanimous consent. for the American Civil Liberties Congress. available that year to 15 per nationals received 9,008 cat- Currently, there is a backlog Union, said he had been press- Being invited as his guest to cent. It was sponsored by Re- egory 1 (EB1), 2,908 category 2 of almost one million foreign ing the administration for any the State of the Union was a publican Senator Mike Lee (EB2), and 5,083 category 3 nationals and accompanying additional information for the great honor. To me, this demon- from Utah in the Senate. (EB3) Green Cards. EB1-3 are family members lawfully resid- last year. AP strates his appreciation for the The legislation eliminates different categories of em- ployment-based Green Cards. In fiscal year 2019, Indian nationals received 9,008 In July, Senator Lee had told category 1 (EB1), 2,908 category 2 (EB2), and 5,083 PRADEEP ROY-SINGH the Senate that the backlog for an Indian national to get per- category 3 (EB3) Green Cards. EB1-3 are different B.A. LL.B. M.B.A. J.D. manent residency or Green Attorney-at-Law Card is more than 195 years. categories of employment-based Green Cards Former Assistant State’s Attorney The new legislation also es- tablishes transition rules for ing in the US who have been important role immigrants 1 Civil & Criminal Litigation employment-based visas from approved for, and are waiting play to North Dakota. His ar- 1 Felonies, Misdemeanors, Inc DUI FY2020-FY2022, by reserving a to receive, employment-based dent support for the Fairness 1 Personal Injury, Business, Divorce etc. percentage of EB-2 (workers Green Cards. The largest num- for Immigrants Act is found in 1 Property Tax for Commercial Properties with advanced degrees or ex- ber of them are from India. both his conservative prin- ceptional ability), EB-3 (skilled The Fairness for High-Skilled http://www.proy-singh.com ciples and his commitment to and other workers), and EB-5 Immigrants Act creates a more the people of North Dakota, DD (investors) visas for individuals merit-based system that levels wrote after the event. PTI 2335 W. Devon Ave., Suite 204, not from the two countries the playing field for high- Chicago, IL 60659 Tel: 773-381-1820 with the largest number of re- skilled immigrants, said Sena- For detailed story visit cipients of such visas. tor Kevin Cranmer, who www.indiapost.com December 11, 2020 Immigration Post India Post 13 www.indiapost.com

US court blocks two H-1B regulations US govt sues Facebook, alleges bias against proposed by Trump administration American workers WASHINGTON: In a huge relief to tens of thousands tions, said Jim Wunderman, Bay Area Council President of Indian professionals and top American IT firms, a US and CEO. WASHINGTON: The US government has filed a court has blocked two H-1B regulations proposed by "H-1B workers fill an important need in our lawsuit against Facebook, accusing the social me- the Trump administration to restrict the ability of economy and provide immense benefits not only to dia giant of "intentional and widespread" viola- American companies to hire foreign employees. the companies they work for but the communities tions of the laws to discriminate against Ameri- H-1B visas are a non-immigrant visa that allows where they live. Many of the leading and fastest-grow- can workers and favor H-1B visa holders. American companies to employ foreign workers in ing technology companies in the Bay Area have been H-1B is a non-immigrant visa that allows US specialty occupations that require theoretical or tech- founded by entrepreneurs from other countries who companies to employ foreign workers in specialty nical expertise. The US issues up to 85,000 H-1B visas first came here on visas, he said. occupations that require theoretical or technical each year. Usually, they're issued for three years and Closing the door to talent from around the world expertise. Most of the nearly 600,000 H-1B visa renewable. Most of the nearly holders are from India and China. 600,000 H-1B visa holders are from The lawsuit, filed by the Justice Department, India and China. alleges that Facebook refused to recruit, consider In his 23-page order on Tuesday or hire qualified and available US workers for over (1 Dec.), US District Judge Jeffrey 2,600 positions and instead, reserved for tempo- White of Northern District of Califor- rary visa holders it sponsored for permanent work nia blocked the Trump authorization (or "green cards") in connection administration's recent policy that with the permanent labor certification process required employers to pay foreign (PERM). workers on H-1B visas significantly The PERM process requires an employer to first higher wages. demonstrate that there are no qualified and avail- He also set aside another policy able US workers for the position that the employer that narrowed the eligibility of H-1B plans to offer to the temporary visa holder. valued by US tech firms and other The positions that were the subject of employers. Facebook's alleged discrimination against US As a result of the ruling, the De- workers offered an average salary of approxi- partment of Homeland Security rule on occupations will drive those skills and the opportunities they cre- mately USD 156,000. and other issues that was to come into effect from ate to other countries that are more welcoming. In the According to the lawsuit, which followed a December 7 stands invalid. The Department of Labor end that means fewer US jobs, Wunderman said. nearly two-year investigation by the Justice De- rule on wages, which took effect on October 8, is also This ruling has many companies across various in- partment, Facebook intentionally created a hiring now no longer valid. dustries breathing a huge sigh of relief today, said Jon system in which it denied qualified US workers a The COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on the Baselice, director of immigration policy for the Cham- fair opportunity to learn about and apply for jobs nation's health, and millions of Americans have been ber of Commerce. Both of these rules had the poten- that the company instead sought to channel to impacted financially by restrictions imposed on busi- tial to be incredibly disruptive to the operations of temporary visa holders. nesses, large and small, during the pandemic; the con- many businesses, he added. "The Department of Justice's lawsuit alleges sequences of those restrictions has been a fiscal ca- FWD.us president Todd Schulte said the ruling is that Facebook engaged in intentional and wide- lamity for many individuals, the judge wrote. great news for Americans and for the ability of the US spread violations of the law, by setting aside posi- However, the history of the US is in part made of to remain the top destination for talented individuals tions for temporary visa holders instead of con- the stories, talents, and lasting contributions of those - including international graduates of American uni- sidering interested and qualified US workers, said who crossed oceans and deserts to come here. The versities - who are looking to contribute their skills Assistant Attorney General Eric S Dreiband of the national government has significant power to regu- here and build a stronger economy. Civil Rights Division. late immigration. With power comes responsibility, These rules were another rushed attempt by the "This lawsuit follows a nearly two-year investi- and the sound exercise of national power over immi- Trump administration to restrict legal immigration. If gation into Facebook's practices and a reasonable gration depends on the nation's meeting its responsi- implemented, they would be deeply harmful to both cause' determination by the Justice Department's bility to base its laws on a political will informed by American families and our nation's global competitive- Civil Rights Division. Our message to workers is searching, thoughtful, rational civic discourse, he said. ness by imposing obligations completely discon- clear: if companies deny employment opportuni- The lawsuit in this nected from real ties by illegally preferring temporary visa holders, case was filed by US The US issues up to 85,000 H-1B visas each world labor markets, the Department of Justice will hold them account- Chambers of Com- Schutle from the pro- able, he said. merce, Bay Area year. Usually, they're issued for three years and immigration lobby- According to the complaint, between January Council and several renewable. Most of the nearly 600,000 H-1B visa ing group said. 1, 2018 and September 18, 2019, Facebook em- ployed tactics that discriminated against US universities, includ- holders are from India and China The future of US' ing Stanford, and economic security workers and routinely preferred temporary visa trade bodies repre- and growth stems in holders, including H-1B visa holders, for jobs in senting top Silicon Valley companies, including Google, part from the contributions of hardworking immi- connection with the PERM process. Facebook and Microsoft. grants and we must reject "scapegoating" people Rather than conducting a genuine search for The lawsuit argued the new restrictions are not who are a cornerstone of the country's economic en- qualified and available US workers for permanent only illegal on their face but that the rushed process gine, he said. positions sought by these temporary visa holders, for implementing them was flawed. The Department of Homeland Security on October Facebook reserved the positions for temporary "This is a major win for our economy and for our 7 had said its new rule will combat the use of H-1B visa holders because of their immigration status, ability to recover from the worst downturn in genera- workers to serve as a low-cost replacement for other- it said. PTI 14 India Post www.indiapost.com December 11, 2020

he North East Festival, a popular event held in The festival will also witness a session on Make in A virtual walk through the North East Festival will Delhi's Indira Gandhi National Centre for the North East which will have investors in the NER such as be taking place on both the days at 4 pm, highlighting Arts ever since its inception seven years North East tourism destinations, festivals such as Tago, will be held in Guwahati, Assam this year. Hornbill, Sangai, Tawang Festival etc., cuisines of the Starting on December 19, the two-day event is region, dance forms and crafts. open for public to attend virtually. The festival will also feature various cultural pro- Well known personalities of the region like In- grams, fashion show and musical concerts in which dian athlete Hima Das, Bollywood singer Zubeen Zubeen, band Soul mate and other artistes will be Garg, mountaineer Anshu Jemsepa and Indian performing. cricketer Riyan Parag Das will hold a series of dis- Shyamkanu Mahanta, Organizer-in-Chief, North cussion sessions under NEF Ideation Conclave and East Festival, said in a statement: "North East Festi- share their success stories. val over the years have been able to create a posi- The focus of the annual event this year is on tive perception about the region. This time focus is 'Growth Agenda for North East Post Covid19'. to highlight the strength of North East as invest- A session Market linkage on Agriculture will have ment destination and focus on the region as an farmers, producing companies of the NER interact- ideal tourism destination post Covid. The Virtual ing with buyers from outside. A B2B Meet on Tour- North East Festival will aim at creating a market link- ism will also be organized wherein tourism stake- age for North Eastern products and will try to moti- holders of the North East will interact with tour opera- NRL, Patanjali, ITC etc. will share their experience of vate youngsters of the region for entrepreneurship, tors of the country. investment in the region. sports and other activities." IANSlife December 11, 2020 India Post 15

www.indiapost.com Author-naturalists release photographic field guide to wildlife of South India

SIDDHI JAIN The book is a collection of their com- bined 16 years of experience and NEW DELHI: Renowned naturalists knowledge, accumulated over their Surya Ramachandran and David Raju various explorations. have released their new book 'Photo- According to Surya Ramachandran, graphic Field Guide-Wildlife of South "As professional wilderness guides and India'. The comprehensive field guide naturalists, we understand the impor- covering all mammals, birds, butterflies, tance of simplifying and presenting dragonflies, reptiles and amphibians of complicated information in a beautiful the six states (Tamil Nadu, Kerala, concise manner. That is essentially what Karnataka, Goa, Andhra Pradesh and this book is all about a powerful tool for Telangana) of South India. anyone who wishes to explore and bet- A must have for wilderness ter understand the wild corners of the enthusiasts,'Photographic Field Guide - region. It has been three years since we Wildlife of South India' is a window to the started working on the book and in the rich biodiversity of South India in its own end, all we want to do is get back out right. It is sure to transform wilderness there and revisit all the wild spaces of walks and safaris and even the way people South India that inspired us to make this perceive urban wilderness, starting from book a reality." one's own balconies and gardens. The 360- David Raju adds, "The first connect page book covers 1920 species belonging we make with anything we come to the six taxa using 1850 photographs con- across, from people we come across to tributed by around 280 photographers objects and wild denizens, is the pro- from India and beyond. It has been de- cess of naming it. This often leads to the signed by Mugdha Sethi and edited by building of curiosity, awareness and Emotional stability predicts successful Faiza Mookerjee. The book is supported by eventually conservation in some form. WWF India and the Muthiah Research Foun- This book is an effort to ensure that the career outcomes: Study dation, said a statement about the book. process of initial identification is made David Raju works as a naturalist in easy and plant the seeds of exploration HOUSTON: A new study published at the University of Houston said, "Re- Central India and has authored a well- and the need for preservation of our in Psychological Science has found sults revealed that certain patterns of regarded field guide on his first love, biodiversity." that the changes during young adult- personality growth predicted career the dragonflies and damselflies of Field Guides are invaluable tools in hood indicate personality growth, outcomes over and above adolescent Kerala. Surya Ramachandran used to be the field, which can be used by keen which can be beneficial for career personality and ability." a documentary producer and now visitors to wildlife parks and guides. growth. According to the journal, Hoff's works as a full-time naturalist. He is cur- The content covers areas like Birds, According to a 12-year longitudinal study is the first to assess the predic- rently an ambassador for Swarovski Mammals, Reptiles, Amphibians and study at the University of Houston, tive power of personality changes for Optik Birding and runs a conservation Insects. the importance of personality growth a broad range of career outcomes tourism outfit focused on snow leop- This is the second such book by the during young adulthood indicates across more than a decade of young ards and other trans-Himalayan fauna in authors. Their first book 'The Photo- benefits in career. They stated that adulthood. the mountains of Ladakh. graphic Field Guide- Wildlife of Central The researchers of the study Over the years, the two of them have India' was published in 2016 and it assured the good news for ado- been invited to conduct many training aimed to shift the focus of visitors and lescents experiencing difficul- sessions for park guides, naturalists, wil- local guides towards the wilderness as ties and dissatisfaction with as- derness lodges and various forest de- an entity, and not just the mega species. pects of their personality. partments. IANSlife "The study showed you're not just stuck with your person- ality traits, and if you change over time in positive ways, that can have a big impact on your career," said Hoff. Hoff's team tracked two rep- young people who develop higher resentative samples of Icelandic youth levels of conscientiousness and emo- for approximately 12 years, from late tional stability during the transition to adolescence (about 17 years old) to employment tend to be more success- young adulthood (about 29 years old) ful in some aspects of their early ca- and found individuals who developed reers. Kevin Hoff, assistant professor of higher trait levels achieved greater industrial-organizational psychology success as young adults. ANI 16 India Post www.indiapost.com December 11, 2020

The entire population is con- north to south and successfully centrated in the inner dividing the island into east and Seychelles region, which con- west. These two sides of the is- sists of three islands of Mahe, land consist of several stunning Praslin and La Digue. Together bays that are captivating in these islands form the eco- their own beauty and look even nomic, cultural and tourism hub more mystical with the back- of the country. Do not miss out drop of the lush mountains. on the chance of exploring the La Digue Island: La Digue Is- Seychellois Creole cuisine and land is often considered to be the country's capital Victoria, a the island you must visit when land of pristine beauty, city that can be explored en- taking a trip to Seychelles. Out Seychelles is a luxury tirely on foot in less than a day. of the 115 islands that make Adestination that lies in Due to its remote location, this beautiful country, La Digue the western part of the Indian Seychelles is unlike any other is the fourth largest in size and Ocean. An archipelago of 115 island getaway. This tropical third largest in population. islands, the island nation is paradise provides an aura of However, that is not much as known for its exquisite natural seclusion marked by soft white the population of this island is a beauty, spectacular beaches, powdery sands and spectacular mere 2000 residents that live and luxury resorts. It is home to turquoise waters. mainly in the village of La Passe. the world's oldest ocean islands This leaves the rest of the island and largest raised coral atoll. PLACES TO VISIT virtually uninhabited which lets Seychelles is blessed with a Mahe Island: The largest is- the island retain its natural warm climate throughout the land in Seychelles, Mahe is the beauty. year making it a hotbed for wa- cultural and economic center of Snorkeling in Seychelles: ter activities such as diving and Seychelles. With the Seychelles The Seychellois islands are full snorkeling in its clear turquoise International Airport located of fascinating marine flora and waters. Seychelles is also a hub here, every individual travelling fauna including exotic species for ecotourism and endemic to Seychelles is bound to step as well as bright corals and are wildlife spotting offering an in- foot on the island. Mahe's most an absolute paradise for sea credible variety of flora and prominent characteristic is the lovers. www.holidify.com fauna with some of the most huge granite mountains that exotic trees, birds and marine overlook the bays and cover For detailed story visit life. the entire center, running from www.indiapost.com Desi News Indian Origin Neera Tanden: First South COMMUNITY Asian to lead OMB SURENDRA ULLAL CHICAGO: Indian Americans ACROSS AMERICA across the country have re- ports about Neera Tanden's nomination by President-elect December 11, 2020 www.indiapost.com India Post 17 Joe Biden to be Director of the Sukhwinder & Ajay Keshap - Pledged $1M Office of Management and Budget. Ekal Foundation's unprecedented $6.5 million magnificent gala PRAKASH WAGHMARE

the evening was, not only, to raise funds, but also, to ac- knowledge gratitude to loyal Tanden is the daughter of philanthropists who had con- Indian immigrants and would sistently supported 'Ekal' be the first woman of color through the years. Earlier in the and the first South Asian Ameri- year, after successfully control- can to lead OMB. ling 'Covid-19 pandemic in NeeraTanden understands 102,000 rural & tribal villages the power of the American of India, 'Ekal' had raised funds Dream. She was raised in an through 10 regional mid-year immigrant family that ben- virtual concerts for its conven- Hon. Minister Piyush Goyal efited from America's social tional activities even in the cur- safety net as a ladder to climb Mohan Wanchoo, Gala Chair rent covid-19 pandemic. to the middle class. Despite Despite a snowstorm and making it to the highest levels n Saturday, December 5, raised record-setting $6.5 Mil- tornado that created some of government, she refused to O"Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation lion in pledges & donations for technical problems in trans- forget where she came from, (EVF)" hosted a magnificent the special projects. The high- mission, the delayed start for never backing down from the Star-studded Gala, called 'Fu- light of this virtual event was the evening could not dampen toughest battles to fight for ture of India'. This Gala-2020 not only the participation of a the spirit of generous philan- the American worker. galaxy of outstanding person- thropists to support their fa- In NeeraTanden, President- alities, but also, the way they vorite projects at Ekal. There elect Biden has chosen an ideal expressed their vote of confi- was overwhelming support for partner to restore the Ameri- dence in'Ekal' movement (as 'Integrated Village Develop- Kamlesh Shah, Co-Chair can dream because she has "EVF" is popularly known). ment' (IVD),E-Shiksha, Tailoring lived it according to Neil Makhija Executive Director of The celebrities that lent their wholehearted IMPACT. support were iconic cricketer Kapil Dev, Moviestar Vivek Oberoi, Hon. Minister Piyush Goyal, leading entrepreneur Ajay Piramal, Bollywood singer Aditi Sri's new Sanjeevani Bhelande milestone single Unbreakable Bajarang Bagra The celebrities that lent Center, Telemedicine, 'Arogya Chairman 'Ekal Abhiyan' India Post News Service their wholehearted support Initiative', Ekal-on-wheels', diti Sri a pop singer is the were iconic cricketer Kapil Dev, 'Gramotthan Research Ctr' Kapil Dev first Indian American who Moviestar Vivek Oberoi, Hon. (GRC), Computer Center etc. A Minister Piyush Goyal, leading Among the high net-worth do- has signed with Sony SM1 from an Ekal village trans- Record Label. She has per- entrepreneur Ajay Piramal, nors, 15 pledged $250,000 or Bollywood singer Sanjeevani more while Ajay Keshap con- formed his life for better. formed over 100 concerts and Kamlesh Shah, co-chair of Gala has released three Hollywood Bhelande and numerous entre- firmed donation of cool preneurs. $1,000,000. started the pledge-drive by singles. Her first single On My contributing $580,000 and ap- Own talks about finding out The Gala was chaired by Mohan Wanchu, welcoming Mohan Wanchu, Chairman & the virtual audience opened pealing donors to raise the bar who you are and handling of Gala-2020 to unprec- things alone. CEO of EC Info Systems who, up the evening with an anec- like all previous Galas, had ush- dote about a 'Rickshaw-puller' edented level. Details on page 19 ered the concept in the first and how a 'Lok-kathakars' (a Vivek Oberoi, Ekal-brand Ambassador place. The main objective of cadre of cultural story-teller) Cont’d on page 27 18 India Post Community Across America December 11, 2020 www.indiapost.com Food Network Star Aarti Sequeira celebrates the holidays with social distancing

LAKSHMI IYER with her husband as videographer. travel and go see our family." As they watched on the screen, Aarti India Post News Service In her post on her Facebook page In her trademark cheerful voice and offered them the beautifully decorated 020 has been a difficult year for that she shared just before Diwali, she demeanor, she greeted her parents and pakoras on a plate. the whole world, with most of us shared some personal family moments younger sister on a video call on her She said that she wanted to send 2unable to see family, close them a present to let them know that friends, or even our colleagues in per- she and her family were thinking of son. It has been a year of video them. Aarti proceeded to load the conferencing and calls to dear ones. Xoom app on her cell phone to send Aarti Sequeira, Food Network star, them some money so that they could host and judge, put out a post about her buy something. socially distanced holiday celebration. In just less than a minute, the trans- Aarti won the Food Network Star sea- action went through and her younger son six contest. She has her own show sister could see the money deposited called Aarti Party and has hosted the in her account, and was absolutely de- travel show, Hidden Eats. She has lighted, as were her parents. served as a judge on several shows This was certainly a cool, spontane- such as Guy's Grocery Games and made ous way to bring a smile on the faces of appearances on several other shows. family members and other loved ones. Aarti Sequeira is also the author of the (Xoom is a money transfer app from cookbook, "Aarti Paarti: An American Aarti Sequeira - Food Network star, author and TV personality PayPal - https://www.xoom.com/). Kitchen with an Indian Soul", published Material reference courtesy IWC in 2014. In addition, she penned a na- with her little daughters by her side, laptop, with her two little girls by her Group, Inc. (https:// tionally syndicated column for the As- video chatting with her parents and side, all excited and chirpy to see their www.iwcgroupinc.com) and Aarti's sociated Press called "World's Fare". youngest sister. True to her personality, grandparents and aunt. website - https://aartisequeira.com/ Aarti had a multicultural upbringing. she started off by making sweet potato She was born in India, raised in Dubai and and onion pakoras ('fritters') and top- educated in a British school. She took up ping them with creme fraiche and journalism, earning her Bachelor's de- caviar, adding that extra pizzazz. House passes joint US-India gree at Northwestern's prestigious Aarti said, "It's beginning of the holi- Medill School of Journalism. After that, day season...Diwali starts this weekend, she worked at CNN, covering varied top- then we have Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, foundation Bill ics. A multifaceted personality, she also Christmas, New Year's, this is my favor- India Post News Bureau cans and all civil rights activists to take produced the HBO documentary, "Sand ite time of the year." WASHINGTON DC: The US House of action in support of the bill. H.R. 5517 and Sorrow" about the genocide in She added, "The holidays make me Representatives adopted H.R.5517, the was also a priority bill during meetings Darfur, which was narrated by George miss my family, especially my family Gandhi-King Scholarly Exchange Initia- HAF held with Members of Congress as Clooney and directed by Paul Freedman. all the way in India and I feel that this tive Act, by voice vote on Thursday De- part of HAF's 2020 Virtual Advocacy Fo- Her foray into her role of cooking year, you guys are going to know cember 3 2020 rum in September 2020. host and star started with her host- what that feels like a little more be- H.R.5517 creates an annual educa- The bill now goes to the US Senate ing her cooking show on YouTube, cause not that many of us are able to tional forum held in the US and India where it awaits consideration. The Sen- that focuses on the social justice, civil ate will reconvene on Monday, Decem- and human rights legacies of Mohandas Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; "We urge the Senate to swiftly creates a student exchange program take up HR 5517 and in so doing, for students in the U.S. and India at all academic levels; establishes a profes- codify the legacies of iconic non- sional development training program violence leaders Mahatma called the Gandhi-King Global Academy Gandhi, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., within the US Institute of Peace (USIP); and establishes the US-India Gandhi- and Congressman John Lewis," King Development Foundation within the US Agency for International Devel- opment (USAID), which would provide ber 7, for what is expected to be its fi- grants to private nongovernmental en- nal week of session before adjourning tities to address critical humanitarian, for the year. environmental, and development is- "We urge the Senate to swiftly take sues in India. up HR 5517 and in so doing, codify the The Hindu American Foundation legacies of iconic non-violence leaders (HAF) directly advocated for H.R.5517 Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Martin Luther King, since introduction and launched a Jr., and Congressman John Lewis," said grassroots campaign for Hindu Ameri- Suhag Shukla, HAF Executive Director. December 11, 2020 Community Across America India Post 19 www.indiapost.com Aditi Sri's new milestone single Unbreakable with World Famous Top Hollywood Rapper is coming soon!

lyricist Alexa who is from Atlantic Record Label and Production Engi- neer who is from Warren Record La- bel. This song is produced by World famous Bobby. Sony SM1 Label President CEO Clay Dustin and Celebrity CEO Tory Harrelson were keen part of this project and supported Aditi im- mensely. Her parents Srini and Shalini have supported her in every way and motivated her to follow her dreams. The song Unbreakable was recorded at the world renown Paramount Re- cording Studio.?Her single Unbreak- able is about a strong girl who cannot be broken by anyone or any situation. Aditi feels as we all go through India Post News Service tionship and figure out what you want gives a strong message that provides stressful problems in life there is a diti Sri a pop singer is the first In- in life and to be so strong you shine. everyone with courage to do what they source of power in all of us that is Adian American who has signed with Both these singles talk about self-im- want, make them stronger and un- greater than the problem so we Sony SM1 Record Label. She has per- portance. Her third single Like You Do is beatable. Now Aditi is currently work- should be strong enough to fight formed over 100 concerts and has re- about a girl moving from her hometown ing with Sony SM1 Label and USHMS against it and shine in our lives. leased three Hollywood singles. Her to follow her dreams of becoming a Inc. on a Mega Production with Top Thanks to FOG chairman Dr. Romesh first single On My Own talks about find- musician. Like you do also shows a love Hollywood Rapper. Aditi worked with Japra for his blessings and support. ing out who you are and handling things story between her loved ones and her alone. Aditi's second single Shine talks music career. about how to get out of a strained rela- All of her singles are unique and Midwest organizations support Indian farmers SURENDRA ULLAL

CHICAGO: A memorandum co-signed Irwinpreet Singh and past president Dr. by 31 Chicago US Midwest organiza- Pardeep Singh Gill met with the CG on tions, led by Sikh Religious Society, Pa- Dec. 3 to express solidarity with the In- latine in Illinois, was sent to PM Modi ji dian farmers and urge him to advise the through the offices of Indian Consul Indian Government to repeal the Farm- General Amit Kumar in Chicago last ers Act 2020 laws immediately because week those are unfair to the farmers of India. If according to the govern- ment these laws are so good for the farmers, then why are mil- lions of farmers from all the states of India are protesting against it? The Police brutality of stop- ping a peaceful protest with cold water cannons, tear gas, beatings with batons, digging up high- ways to harass the protesters was also mentioned in the memorandum. The Indian Consul General Amit Kumar is learnt top have given a patient hearing to the views of the delegation and de- A delegation from Sikh Religious So- tailed the Indian government position ciety Palatine IL including its president on this issue as a backgrounder 20 India Post Community Across America December 11, 2020 www.indiapost.com International NGOs call for justice for Bangladesh lawyer Rabindra Ghosh MADHU PATEL CHICAGO: In a letter to US Ambassa- them against attacks by the govern- national Religious Freedom vocate in order to secure justice for dor to Bangladesh Earl Miller signed by ment or in which governments are Roundtable's South Asia Working those from whom Bangladesh withholds over 35 international non-governmen- complicit. The Group, which is re- it. We have fought injustice side by side tal organizations (NGOs) has pleaded to Bangladeshi govern- sponsible for monitor- and will not stop until Bangladesh's the US government to intervene " for ment must provide ing, documenting, Hindu citizens have the rights of all the immediate protection of Rabindra equal protection un- and raising awareness Bangladesh's citizens," Benkin said. Ghosh and other human rights activists der the law for all its of religious freedom The Hindu American Foundation and attorneys" in Bangladesh. citizens and punish ac- violations in the re- here has maintained that targeting of The letter provides a detailed ac- cording to law, those gion. Hindus and other religious minorities in count of the attack on Rabindra Ghosh, police and other offi- "Rabindra Ghosh Bangladesh has occurred for decades, a human rights lawyer and human cials who engaged in continues to put him- but has progressively gotten worse rights activist who has devoted his life's or allowed these at- self in danger to pro- since the COVID-19 outbreak. In fact, work to defending the rights of and tacks on Rabindra tect Bangladesh's Hin- just weeks ago HAF sent a letter to US pursuing justice for persecuted reli- Ghosh and other attor- Bangladesh lawyer Ghosh dus and other minori- Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urging gious minorities in Bangladesh. Sadly, neys and activists for ties; despite death US condemnation of the latest mob vio- the October 16, 2020 brutal assault of religious freedom. Failure to do so would threats, regular beatings, and other at- lence in Bangladesh that destroyed 20 Ghosh and his colleague, also an attor- give the Bangladeshi government li- tacks on his person, public image, and Hindu homes and four temples in ney, inside a Bangladesh police station cense to proceed with its attack on reli- property," stated Forcefield President Comilla district. by state and non-state actors is just one gious freedom and its advocates." Dr. Richard Benkin. "He eschewed the For media inquiries, please contact incident in decades-long pattern of Spearheaded by Illinois-based comfortable life of a Supreme Court Ad- Mat McDermott. abuse and assault on Ghosh. Forcefield, NFP the letter was signed by The letter goes on to state that "No a total of 37 human rights NGOs and government can protect all its citizens activists from across the globe working against all attacks, but they can protect in tandem with members of the Inter- Sikh community activist for Palatine board trusteeship HARISH RAO

CHICAGO: The Palatine Township for the Township Board is an Indian Sikh Democrats announced nominating a community activist Thaker Basati. He is slate of candidates to run for the Pa- nominated for Township Trustee: latine Township Board in the April 6, ThakarS. Basati,is a founding member of 2021 Consolidated Election. POC, Partners for Our Communities, The candidates were nominated at founding President of Punjabi Cultural the Palatine Township Democratic Caucus, held on Tuesday Dec. 1, 2020. About 36 local Democrats gathered online and at the Palatine Park District's Community Center to select the candidates. Under pandemic guidelines approved last month by Gov. J.B. Pritzker, the state-mandated caucuses were encouraged to meet online to pro- tect the health of participants. The Township elections are the only partisan elections in the Con- solidated Election. All other races are non-partisan. "Palatine Town- ship has been represented by Re- publicans for generations, but this is not your father's Palatine Town- Thaker Basati ship," said Maria Galo, Democratic Committeeperson for Palatine Town- Society, active on many nonprofit ship. "The township board should reflect boards including the Interfaith and the diversity of our community. We Asian American Coalition of Chicago. He think the Township can provide services has lived in Palatine since 1991. to more people at a lower cost to tax- Contact: Maria Galo, Democratic payers." Committeeperson, Palatine Township Among the Democratic candidates [email protected] December 11, 2020 Community Across America India Post 21 www.indiapost.com L.A. County digs in to battle Covid

VIDYA SETHURAMAN ference. With one out of 200 LA County and transmit it to others," said Dr. Tasa Antonia Jimenez, Director of the De- India Post News Service residents infected by COVID 19, county Dixon, lead physician for DHS's Martin partment of Public Social Services, em- os Angeles County continues to officials are mobilizing to provide an ar- Luther King, Jr. Outpatient Center. phasized the CalFresh program, which see "terrifying increases" in ray of services and resources to meet "Please come in. We will not turn you provides help with grocery purchases LCOVID-19 cases along with hospi- pandemic-related needs head-on. In away, we will not provide any informa- for residents whether or not they have talizations that are putting a growing the second of a series of briefings for tion to authorities. We are here to care a home, a car or a job. One in three strain on the region's health care sys- ethnic media on Dec. 3 to raise aware- for your health." If someone is at risk of people in the county is getting tem, county officials said in an EMS con- ness of its programs, county speakers transmitting COVID in his or her house- CalFresh aid, with 70% of applications urged everyone to take precautions for hold because of possible exposure to received over the phone approved on their own health and to avoid spread- the virus, the county has quarantine fa- the same day. Those calls can be made California clothing firm ing the infection to others. cilities available. These can be arranged in any of 10 languages, she said, and removes goddess Kali Having grown up in southeast L.A., by calling: (833) 540-0473. translators are available for other lan- "Booty Shorts" seeing COVID-19 disproportionately af- We must keep ourselves and our guages when needed. fect communities of color there has MADHU PATEL made her work this year feel personal, With one out of 200 LA County residents infected CHICAGO: Temecula (California) and being at the hospital - helping by COVID 19, county officials are mobilizing to headquartered firm Liquid Dreams re- Spanish-speaking patients feel more moved Kali Booty Shorts, Ganesha Leg- comfortable by conversing with them provide an array of services and resources to gings and Ganesha Yoga Shorts carrying in their native tongue - all the more im- meet pandemic-related needs head-on images of Hindu deities Lord Ganesha portant, said Erika Flores Uribe, an and goddess Kali, after upset a large emergency medicine physician at Los group f Indian Americans protested Angeles County-USC Medical Center. families safe so that we can avoid get- Phones are staffed Monday through dubbing it disgusting Getting tested is vital; the county has ting sick and adding even more burden Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. and These three products were not expanded testing sites from 30 when to our already overwhelmed healthcare on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. found on the company website when the pandemic began to 180. Services system," Hilda L. Solis, Pro Tem Chair of Applications can also be submitted at searched recently. at these sites are available whether or the County Board of Supervisors, whose the web site getcalfresh.org. Beyond not people have insurance, money to district is home to more than 107,000 CalFresh, there are many food pantries pay and whatever their immigration or of the county's 400,000-plus COVID pa- offering groceries. For a list of these, citizenship status. Call 211 to find the tients. "It's unacceptable. We have to check out the Los Angeles Regional nearest testing site and make an ap- find a way to bring down the curve of Food Bank's locator (https:// pointment, added Dr.Erika. COVID by incentivizing our communi- www.lafoodbank.org/find-food/pantry- "This is a virus that none of us are ties to take advantage of all these locator/) and also FoodFinder's (https:// immune to. All of us can get this virus health care services." foodfinder.us/).

Kali Mata on booty shorts

The protest campaign was led by RajanZed,President of Universal Society of Hinduism observing that placing im- ages of Lord Ganesha and goddess Kali on such products was insensitive. The withdrawal is highly appreciated Lord Ganesha and goddess Kali are highly revered in Hinduism meant to be worshipped in temples or home shrines and not to adorn one's legs, thighs, groin, genitals and pelvis. Inap- propriate usage of sacred deities or concepts or symbols or icons for com- mercial or other agenda was not okay as it hurt the devotees. Liquid Dreams is a "lifestyle brand" which sells men's and women's apparel and accessories. It states to be creating "Functional Art For A Dysfunctional World", claims "thoughtfully designed" products and adds that "Liquid Dreams is all about making the world a better place". 22 India Post Community Across America December 11, 2020 www.indiapost.com Guru Nanak Dev Ji's 551st Prakash Gurpurab PRABH SIMRAN SINGH CHICAGO: Dhan Guru NANAK DEV Ji's 551st Prakash Hazoori Ragi Jatha - Bhai Sahib Bhai Teerath Singh Ji, Grace and Kirpa of the Almighty. Gurpurab was celebrated with great fervor at Devon Bhai Trilok Singh Ji and Bhai BachanSingh 2. KIRAT KARO - He asked the Sikhs to live as house- Gurdwara Sahib of Chicago on November 30 2020 . connectedSadhsangat to the principles laid down by holders and practice Kirat Karo: to honestly earn, with This evening program was held after the Paath Sodar Guru Nanak Dev Ji. Besides rendering Kirtan hard work, by one's physical and mental effort, while Rehras Sahib. Guru Nanak Dev Ji was born in 1469 AD to father - accepting God's gifts and blessings. Live a life of de- The Gurpurab was celebrated with the cooperation Mehta Kalyan Das Ji and mother and contribution from the whole Sadhsangat (holy - Mata Tripta Ji at 'Rai Bhoye di congregation)who came to pay their obeisance and Talwandi' in Pakistan, which is seek the blessings of Jagat Guru Dhan Guru Nanak Dev now called Nankana Sahib Ji. ji. Hazoori Ragi Jatha sang Gurbani Kirtan with great His elder sister was devotion and everyone enjoyed the blissful atmo- BibiNanake ji. He conducted a sphere. Langar was served after the Ardas. Sacha-sauda for the 20 Rupees given to him by his father for business by preparing Langar and feeding the Hungry Sadhoos. Accompanied by Bhai Mardana Ji - the Rabab player; undertook 4 major spiritual journeys (UDAASI's) to preach the message of oneness of God and to guide humanity who was derailed from the path of Granthis rendering Gurbani Kirtan God. He recited Jap Ji Sahib, which is read as part of the daily morning prayer by cency, high moral values and spirituality. every Sikh. He also recited Asa-Di-Vaar, which is sung 3. VAND CHAKKO - The Sikhs were asked to share in all major Gurudwaras today across the globe. He their wealth within the community by practicing Va? also formalized the Three Pillars of Sikhism- Chakk? - "Share and consume together". The commu- 1. NAAM JAPO - Practice Simran - Contemplating nity or Sadhsangat is an important part of Sikhism. One on the name of God by repetitive recitation of God's must be part of a community that is pursuing the val- Name - WAHEGURU and listening with ears. The Sikh is ues set out by the Sikh Gurus and every Sikh must give, to recite the Nitnem daily in remembrance of the in whatever way possible to the community.

Harare Indians collecting donations for Devon Gurdwara less fortunate during Christmas season India Post News Service Hinduism is the oldest and third largest reli- HARARE: The Hindoo Society Harare (HSH) in Zimba- gion of the world with about 1.2 billion adherents, bwe is collecting donations for giving to less fortu- and moksh (liberation) is its ultimate goal, main- nate during upcoming Christmas season. tains Rajan Zed President of Universal Society of The collections include clothes, toys, footwear, Hinduism. etc. "Help us to help the less fortunate and make this festive season special for them", HSH "Appeal for Christmas Donations" states. In Harare, HSH run Cameron Street Shree Omkar Mandir celebrated 90th anniversary in February 2019, while 25th anniversary of Ridgeview Shree Omkar Mandir was observed in 2017. HSH "intends to publish a written record" of the hundred years of "community's existence in Zimbabwe". In the pre-Covid-19 times, HSH reportedly had been conducting various bhajan events, twice- weekly yoga classes, Hindi lessons, cultural/social activities; organized daily aarti at both the temples with Havan on Sundays; and offered funeral assis- tance for bereaved families; etc.; besides running Mahila Mandal, Shishu Mandal and Yuvak Mandal. HSH has also been running various schools- Westridge High School, Westridge Primary School, Gathering for Gurpurab celebration Gujarati School. Harare Temple December 11, 2020 Community Across America India Post 23 www.indiapost.com Mira Nair's A SUITABLE BOY Now Streaming in US/Canada Exclusively on Acorn TV GITESH PANDYA he acclaimed mini-series country, finding its own voice. hit A SUITABLE BOY has Tnow premiered in North How did you cast the charac- America and is currently ter of Lata and what has Tanya streaming exclusively on the Maniktala brought to the role? streaming service Acorn TV. I searched all over India to The first two episodes of the cast Lata and I must have seen Mira Nair-directed series are more than 500 young women, now available to watch with and they were all extraordinar- new episodes debuting ily talented. But when I saw weekly through January 4, Tanya Maniktala, I just knew 2021. More information on this was Lata. She has a sense Acorn TV is available at http:// of wonder in her eyes, a sense signup.acorn.tv where a free of being curious about the trial is also being offered. world and yet, a very self-pos- Mira Nair sat down to dis- sessed sweetness. That is very cuss how she made this epic real and genuine and not series in this new interview acted. It was very difficult in below. modern India to find a young Interview with Mira Nair - woman who had not seen the Director and Executive Pro- world, and so was protected ducer of A Suitable Boy from it, and yet had this intelli- Mira Nair What is A Suitable Boy about? gence about it. A Suitable Boy is a massive have a great relationship and pleasure and pride to have the loved and have asked to be in yet intimate saga of four inter- What has Ishaan Khatter he has a real understanding of privilege of directing this show the show has said yes and has woven families across northern brought to the role of Maan the part. He worships Tabu because it is something that has come along for the ride, from India in the year 1951; four Kapoor? who plays Saeeda Bai, the cour- inspired me so much. It also gives the genius of Manoj Pahwa, to years after Indian indepen- When I found Ishaan Khatter, tesan he falls in love with. I'm me this vast canvas as I have 113 the young Tanya Maniktala who dence from the British. It's an which was almost a year ago, just thrilled that he is our actors in the show and six hours is a newcomer to this game extraordinary tale of love and there was just no going back. Maan, because I'm not exag- to let the story unfold. That's the and is so beautiful in what she friendship across class and cer- way to make this show, it's not does. tainly across religion. Vikram something that should be The range of actors in be- Seth is able to reach the depths squeezed into a shorter story as tween is great and there was of human relationships - the it needs to unfold. It's so full of never a tense day, they heart, the mind and love in all surprises and rhythms, where brought their best to the set, its peculiarities. It's universal things need their time and their whether they were newcom- and affects and relates to ev- pace. I feel really privileged. ers or legends. We aspired for eryone. One level of our story excellence and I do feel like we is the journey of Lata finding What have you loved about have done our absolute best- herself, her own voice, finding directing A Suitable Boy? which is really what we are put love and being loved. At the What I have loved about di- on this Earth to do. same time, India goes on its recting A Suitable Boy is reap- Watch the new behind-the- own journey towards its first ing the great joy of telling a scenes interviews for A SUIT- national election. Besides the He was Maan to the core and I gerating when I say that there fantastic story with the finest ABLE BOY here: affairs of the human heart, what knew I would have been so was no other Maan, but Ishaan. actors that we have in our https://youtu.be/ interests me in this story is the lucky to have him. It took some country. Any actor that I have TX5SPJSZjN0 interweaving of the personal months until our show really What attracted you to A Suit- story of Lata and her family but got off the ground and he was able Boy? also the political story of our confirmed as our Maan. We A Suitable Boy has been one of my favorite novels since the day it was written. I read it re- peatedly and felt as if it was my best friend. I felt a sense of great companionship and un- derstanding and a sense of evoking a time in India in which I longed to have lived. I just vowed to direct the adaptation of it but it was too big at the time for me to get my hands on it. It really gives me extraordinary 24 India Post Community Across America December 11, 2020 www.indiapost.com

mine; I own it! After the wholesome sweet meal, I sleep content, satiated like a baby. The Sweet Devil In Me! I am a strict vegetarian, no cookies, no pastries, no cakes, so I find my peace in THE ONE AND ONLY Ras- DR. MONIKA CHUGH Malai! Twenty-four pieces in the box and all disappear in one day, well, you know where they all went away! I still wonder of the genius mind came up with this sumptuous, zestful, and toothy dessert. He/She is my hero- they created the gateway to the pearly gates of dreamland for the most delicious mithai/desserts ever. I can never forget my toddler son- now twenty-one asking, Mom," Can I, please have the small white balls in the thick white soup "- what a moment- he was fol- lowing my footsteps, after all! And the legacy continues- my son, his sweet tooth and love for Ras Malai. Want to keep the wife and mom happy, make sure she gets her bites regularly- says who, my family. Seize the moment, grab a piece of Ras Malai, live a sweet candied life! Desserts are the sweet threads of the warp and weft of our lives.-Nicolette M. Dumke. And, that's Ras Malai to me! Ras Malai is a combination of two words, Ras, mean- ing juice, and Malai, meaning cream. The dessert is also described as a creamy cheesecake without a crust. The name itself is exotic and denotes the richness of this delicate Indian sweet. Ras Malai undoubtedly tops the :30 pm, dinner is done, dishwasher loaded, nectarous- I am in heaven! Just imagine how desper- list of all Indian milk-based desserts ever! floor mopped, air freshener sprayed. ate I am- that I can't wait, pounce on something that Life is a gift. Life is beautiful. Life is fascinating. Life The sign is up- Kitchen Closed! should be eaten cold and not warm. is gripping. 7Time for my evening walk, jacket, leggings, Enough of romanticization, of the smorgasbord of Do not let it slip away. Hold it tight. Grab the reigns. and headsets on top of my head. Calories screaming the savory stuff, I eat one, I eat two, I eat three, and Laugh till your jaws hurt. Enjoy till your bones ache. on top of their voice, please burn me, I can't face my- then force myself to stop. I close the box, puppy face- Cherish the good moments. self in the mirror, help me! My head spins and says, and glum, with fluttering hands I open it again, quickly And don't forget to keep your taste buds happy- okay, please be patient, I'm trying! Finish my two-mile guzzle the fourth piece down my throat. with your favorite savories! brisk and refreshing walk-back home, off to my favor- With the promise to be a good girl, I close the box, not Life is EVERYTHING if we have enough sweets ite place, the loft! I feel good, feel a few pounds lighter, plonk on the couch with my laptop, a cup of warm water with the television in the background-chit chat Enough of romanticization, of the smorgasbord of the savory with husband, kids, and around 11:00 pm, time to hit the bed. Read, meditate, finally- lights off and stuff, I eat one, I eat two, I eat three, and then force myself to stop. I close goodnight. Tossing and turning noises, stomach rumbling, the box, puppy face- and glum, with fluttering hands I open it again, screeching again, I think I am a bit hungry. Oh, my not quickly guzzle the fourth piece down my throat again! The debate in my mind starts, should I or should I not? I can't handle the commotion going on in my belly; I finally get up and walk back to the kitchen. Why, Monika, why? No self-control? Too bad, I don't! I stare to open it again, and I keep it back very submissively. around- Enjoy the good stuff! at the overloaded fridge with my big fat glasses, des- Thanks to my sense that kicked in, knocked me Author Dr. Monika Chugh is a resident of Fremont perately trying to find something that I had hidden hard, and said, look, there is tomorrow also, so please and a doctor by profession. She has an undying love from my family. Where is it, darn it, why can't I find it? slow down. Why will you in your right and sane senses for blogging and actively shares her personal experi- Oh, ya, - it just strikes me; it's in the other fridge, in the overindulge? But I love Indian sweets, and this is my ences with the world on different topics. An active garage. I quickly storm to the garage, very sheepishly most favorite- Ras Malai. I go on an emotional roller Rotarian, nature lover, fitness-yoga-hiking enthusiast, sneak out the white, brown box and head back to the coaster when I think about this particular dessert, my domestic violence advocate, in her free time, you will kitchen. eyes light up, and the selfish in me kicks in as I abso- find her reading in her Zen sipping coffee working on The frozen box lands up in the microwave for two lutely refuse to share it with anyone. The box is all her writing. She actively writes on her website https:/ minutes; juices are flowing in my mouth. My palette is /monikachugh.com/ having the short fuse moment, ready to burst any sec- ond. I can't wait- I am running out of patience! I open the box, run into a quiet corner; obviously, I do not NEWS want to be seen amidst my clandestine mission dur- ing the deep starry night, dig deep into it, try to on your desktop gobble up the small, round, delectable, syrupy white ball loaded with nuts, and finally, it lands in my mouth. www.indiapost.com Oh my, what did I just eat, so divine, bewitching, and December 11, 2020 Community Across America India Post 25 www.indiapost.com Parsi Girl Kamalrukh facing love jihad pressure

India Post News Service tsia, there is no 'Love' but only the backwards for him and his family, by it should be kept in mind that the Parsi MUMBAI: After late musician Wajid agenda of 'Jihad' behind such friend- converting to Islam." community is the smallest minority fra- Khan's Parsi wife Kamalrukh made pub- ships! This fact was also asked by a Wajid Khan died earlier this year on ternity in Bharat (India). The Jihadists lic the ill effects of marrying a Muslim, it court of law, as to why in such so-called June 1, 2020.Kamalrukh has opened up have the same mindset towards the is getting obvious that the real minori- marriages only the girl is forced to con- for the first time about her ordeal of Parsi girls as they have towards the ties of the country are also no longer vert? marrying the late music composer. She girls from other communities. Hun- secure from the claws of the Love Jihad Kamalrukh said that the couple had dreds of instances and Kamalrukh, the Zoroastrian wife of an inter-religion wedding and ob- cases of Christian, Sikh, the late musician Wajid Khan, has re- served, "We were what you would call Dalit, Jain, etc., girls be- vealed and exposed the ill effects of "college sweethearts". Eventually, when ing victimized come ev- marrying a Muslim. Firstly she was pres- we did get married, we married for love ery month. surized by the Muslim husband after under the Special Marriages Act (an act When the girls from marriage to convert to Islam and now, that upholds the right to practice one's their own communities as she struggles for the rights of her own religion post-marriage)." fall prey to these helpless children, Wajid's families are "I have always respected, partici- Jihadists, they, instead again forcing her to convert to Islam. pated and celebrated all faiths. But my of fighting for ensuring justice for these victim- ized girls, duck out or Wajid Khan died earlier this year on get out of the jihadi June 1, 2020. Kamalrukh has opened up for t dare. Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar had also he first time about her ordeal of marrying warned the society many times against the late music composer. such leaders and The Parsi Girl Kamalrukh Jihadis. With appeal for en- So far no Muslim leader or actor/art- resistance to convert to Islam drasti- talked about the suffering that she is suring justice to Kamalrukh, VHP also ist has come forward to help ensure jus- cally widened the divide between me facing in an inter-caste marriage. In her request all the State governments, in- tice for Kamalrukh. It has become clear and my husband, making it toxic recent social media post, the Wajid's cluding Maharashtra, to enact laws at that, for those people, be it from the enough to destroy our relationship as wife has poured out her heart about the earliest to prevent love jihad and il- film world or the outside world, be it husband and wife. My dignity and self- being harassed to convert to Islam. legal religious conversions for the pro- the artistes or the so-called intelligen- respect did not permit me to bend Dr Surendra Jain of the VHP said that tection of the people. Domestic violence rising during pandemic

VIDYA SETHURAMAN lack of safe and stable childcare and so- shelters and hotlines have also in- cepts even one incident of abuse, it may India Post News Service cial support can worsen already tenuous creased. lead to a vicious cycle of abuse. s we face rising COVID infection situations. Closures of schools and Speakers at the Dec. 4 briefing in- Fawn Jade Korr, senior staff attorney rates, the possibility of addi- childcare facilities have added to the cluded Dr. Ravi Chandra - Psychiatrist with Bay Area Legal Aid, spoke about Ational quarantines rises. Al- stress at home. IPV cannot be addressed Ravi Chandra, distinguished fellow of the how law enforcement and the legal sys- though stay-at-home orders might pro- without also addressing social factors, American Psychiatric Association, HaNhi tem often fail victims of abuse, particu- tect individuals from the virus, home especially in the context of a pandemic Tran, deputy district attorney in the larly women of color. Responses by isn't safe for everyone. In the Dec 4 that is causing substantial isolation. Santa Clara County District Attorney's judges and law enforcement officers dif- weekly brief by EMS, the panel ex- Black and Native American women Office, and Johanna Thai Van Dat, staff at- fer depending on the ethnicity of the plored the questions rarely asked are at greater risk for being killed by do- torney at the Santa Clara County's Family survivor, she stated. Most of her clients about domestic violence: the causes of mestic violence, panelists said, while Law Facilitator's Office/Self Help Center don't feel support from the police when male aggression, how women can access Black and brown people are less likely to and Fawn Jade Korr - Senior Staff Attor- they call to report a violation of a tempo- the legal system once they are ready to call police in domestic violence situa- ney in the San Francisco office of Bay rary restraining order by the abuser, or flee, and why the justice system often fails tions because of distrust of law enforce- Area Legal Aid. for help in getting him out of the home, victims of intimate partner violence. ment. Shelters are closed or operating The victims of domestic violence must stated Korr. Domestic violence has spiked alarm- at full capacity, and thereby cannot take remember not to blame themselves Tran said in Santa Clara County, victims ingly as victims are trapped at home on new clients. And many courts and law ever for what is happening to them. The can get help from victims' advocates at with their abusers amid lockdown or- enforcement agencies have severely re- perpetrator is 100% responsible and the the District Attorney's office, who will ders during the COVID pandemic. At the stricted the scope of their operations victims must not find excuses for the ac- book a conference room at which the same time, traditional safety nets have since the start of the pandemic. Calls to tions of the perpetrator. If the victim ac- survivor can safely listen to court pro- largely been shut down, said the experts. ceedings and advocate for herself. A no One in 4 women and one in 10 men ex- One in 4 women and one in 10 men experience Intimate contact restraining order removes the perience Intimate Partner Violence, and abuser from the home until the case is violence can take various forms: it can be Partner Violence, and violence can take various forms: it can heard. A peaceful contact order allows physical, emotional, sexual, or psycho- be physical, emotional, sexual, or psychological the offender to remain in the home, but logical. Economic instability, unsafe they cannot physically or verbally abuse housing, neighborhood violence, and the victim in any way. 26 India Post Community Across America December 11, 2020 www.indiapost.com Lord Christ's message of love in action by Sant Nirankari Mission C.L. GULATI

mongst the living beings, in dif- ties of humanism, altruism, humility, being man needs wisdom, which is cording to the Old Testament is: ferent categories, constituting love, mercy, compassion and service of more valuable than material wealth. Lord is One. Athe entire living world, rare is mankind and their teachings transcend Changing the hard appearance means Love thy God with all your heart and human birth. Rarer is coming into con- time and place. making one humble and lovable. with all your soul and with all tact with Satguru (True Master) for at- The eternal continuity of True Mas- There is also a reference that remem- your strength." tainment of God-knowledge, the pri- ters (Prophets) with their revelation of brance of God should begin in youth. The same commandment is given by mary purpose of human life. Rarer still is one Formless God, the process of hu- "Remember your Creator in the day Jesus in the New Testament:- the opportunity to serve the True Mas- manization and rearrangement of hu- of your youth, before the days of trouble "Love the Lord your God ter for spreading the message of Truth man relations on the basis of love and come and the years approach when you with all your heart and with all your and the rarest of all is to treat all of hu- humility characterize the main features will say, I find no pleasure in them". soul; manity as your own family! of the Mainstream of Spirituality in the (Ecclesiastes 12.1) and with all your mind. This is the If we peruse the literature pertaining world. In this background, all the proph- The Holy Bible refers to the Ten Com- first and greatest commandment." to spiritual thought down the ages in ets and the acknowledged scriptures mandments. The first five relate to our (Matthew: 22.37) the shape of scriptures, epics and other are part and parcel of the mainstream. love and worship of God, while the re- This establishes kinship of Jesus with philosophic treatises, we can very eas- The entire content of spirituality and maining five refer to our obligation and all his preceding Hebrew prophets. He ily identify all the True Masters, Proph- the essence of humanism belong only service to our society. Like two sides of continued the same old tradition en- ets, sages and seers, who embodied the to the mainstream. the same coin, these are inseparable shrined in the Mainstream of Spiritual- Mainstream of Spirituality from time to Lord Jesus Christ the presiding deity and give us coherent advice, "Worship ity, which related to worship of One time and transmitted it to their worthy and prophet of the New Testament em- and love for God and service to man go Formless God as the Ultimate Reality of successors for continuing it further and bodied the Mainstream of Spirituality in hand in hand." cosmos. further. It is in this context that it is said, his life time, with his revealing teach- THE NEW TESTAMENT Two points are of basic importance "Prophet is said to be the oldest and the ings in the Holy Bible, carrying a crisp The New Testament and the Old Tes- in the philosophy of Jesus. Firstly, be- newest on earth, like the day and night fore worship of God, one must know which have followed each other down As God is one and Omnipresent, He is cosmic and common what God is; and secondly, God is to be the ages and are still ever new." worshipped as Spirit only. Any trans- (Atharvaveda 10:8:23) Every True Mas- to all. All the prophets of the Old Testament have total gression from this is not approved by ter (Prophet) is not the originator but Jesus. So whosoever wants to follow only the latest revealer of the divine agreement on this. God of one prophet is also the God of and practice the teachings of Jesus knowledge. the other prophets. Being one, god cannot be divided or Christ he has to attain practical knowl- Whenever there is decline of righ- edge of God as Spirit, as Formless Being teousness and the forces of Matter sub-divided. Only such a God is to be worshipped and then only he can be a true worship- (Maya) tighten their stranglehold on per. There is no exception to this divine the human mind, it becomes a cosmic principle. Jesus has used the word compulsion, a spiritual necessity, to re- message to the weary world:- tament have integral relation with each 'Must' in this commandment i.e. "Must trieve the situation to normalcy and re- "If God is all you have, other. St. Augustine has rightly said : worship in Spirit". Any dilution or devia- establish the law of Dharma through you have all you need". (St. John. 14:8) The New Testament was in the Old tion from this commandment will take the instrumentation of Revelation Keeping in mind the occasion of concealed, away the essence out of what Jesus (Brahm Gyan). The Mainstream of Spiri- forthcoming, "Merry Christmas Day" it The Old Testament is in the New re- preached and died for. To quote; tuality again manifests itself on the is worth understanding the Holy Mes- vealed." "God is a Spirit; and they that worship world screen. sage of Lord Jesus Christ in letter and Jesus Christ is the presiding deity Him This brings out that True Masters, spirit and translate it into action in our and the prophet of the New Testament must worship Him in Spirit and in Prophets of God refer to the same life as envisioned in the Mainstream of who embodied the Mainstream of Spiri- truth" (St. John 4-24) Formless spirit although their embodi- Spirituality. tuality in his life time. Revelation Through Prophet ments kept on changing. They have THE OLD TESTAMENT Jesus clarified that he was continu- Another important aspect of the been basically holding common As God is one and Omnipresent, He ing the old prophetic tradition and ful- Mainstream is that God is known only threads with each other, carrying on is cosmic and common to all. All the filling their commandment. He said: through the living contemporary and weaving the same pattern of spiri- prophets of the Old Testament have to- "Do not think that I have come to prophet. Jesus says: tuality till date. The four main pillars on tal agreement on this. God of one abolish "No one knows the son which the Mainstream of Spirituality prophet is also the God of the other the Law or the Prophets; except the father, and no one have always rested are, Firstly, Formless prophets. Being one, god cannot be di- I have not come to abolish them, knows the Father except the son God is cosmic and belongs to all. Sec- vided or sub-divided. Only such a God but to fulfill them." (Matthew. 5-17) and those to whom the son chooses. ondly, His revelation is possible only is to be worshipped. All this shows that Jesus had nothing (Matthew: 11.27) through True Master of the day. Thirdly, As per the Old Testament, man was different to reveal to the people. He Note : Sant Nirankari Mission recently any kind of rites and rituals performed made in the image of God, superior to preached the same as the earlier proph- held its 73rd Annual Nirankari Sant for any length of time, cannot help all species, having inherent power to ets had preached. His commandments Samagam (Virtual) online from 5th to knowing or seeing God. Fourthly, all the know God. were the same as those of 7th December. True Masters who blessed the seekers The prophets rejected the dead- the earlier prophets. Jesus also with revelation of one Formless God, wood of religious rites and put forth the preached that God is One, Formless and For detailed story visit taught their disciples to imbibe quali- concept of true worshipper. As a social Spirit. The basic commandments ac- www.indiapost.com December 11, 2020 Community Across America India Post 27 www.indiapost.com Bay Area Health Officers move to implement the State's new Regional Stay Home Order

India Post News Service hospitalizations statewide, many be- well as the City of Berkeley are jointly have less than 15 percent of ICU beds esterday, Governor Newsom an- lieve even more aggressive action is announcing that they will implement available, and the time to act is now." nounced that all sectors other necessary in the Bay Area to slow the the State's Regional Stay Home Order "We are seeing a surge in COVID-19 Ythan retail and essential opera- surge and prevent our local hospitals now. cases and hospitalizations here in Con- tions would be closed in regions of the from being overwhelmed. "It takes several weeks for new re- tra Costa County and across our re- State where less than 15 percent of ICU Rather than waiting until Intensive strictions to slow rising hospitalizations gion," said Contra Costa County Health beds are available under a new Re- Care Unit (ICU) bed availability reaches and waiting until only 15 percent of a Officer Dr. Christopher Farnitano. "The gional Stay Home Order. Although critical levels and delaying closures that region's ICU beds are available is just number of patients hospitalized with health officials throughout the Bay Area are inevitable, the Health Officers for too late," said San Francisco Health Of- COVID-19 in our county has doubled in are glad to see the State take action in the Counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, ficer Dr. Tomás Aragon. "Many heavily just the past couple of weeks, and we light of the rapidly escalating surge in Marin, San Francisco, and Santa Clara as impacted parts of our region already are at risk of exceeding our hospital ca- pacity later this month if current trends continue." "We cannot wait until after we have driven off the cliff to pull the emergency break," said Santa Clara Ekal Foundation's unprecedented County Health Officer Dr. Sara Cody. "We understand that the closures under the State order will have a profound impact $6.5 million magnificent gala on our local businesses. However, if we act quickly, we can both save lives and Cont’d from page 17 ever, was introduced by Vivek Sharma. Ekal's infusion of fun-sports in educa- reduce the amount of time these re- It is aimed at bringing E-commerce ac- tion. Earlier this year in September, strictions have to stay in place, allowing Ranjani Saigal, Executive Director of tivities to the villages so as to avail vil- Bajrang Bagra, CEO of 'Ekal Abhiyan' businesses and activities to reopen "EVF" gave a brief outline of all Ekal spe- lagers with new profitable economic (umbrella organization of all 'Ekal' satel- sooner." cial projects, which was followed by opportunities. Hon. Minister Piyush lite-divisions) had proposed to keep "Rising hospitalization rates across former ZEE-TV CEO & Chairperson of Goyal affirmed his own and his family's 102,000 school tallies 'as is' and embark the region threaten not only our com- Ekal-Global, Dr Subhash Chandra giving long association with Ekal. He lauded on a transformative 'roadmap' that munity members with severe COVID- an overview of what Ekal is all about. The Hon PM Modi's August 15 speech would revolutionize rural life in all its 19, but anyone who may need care be- person that stole the show was the whereby all villages would be intercon- aspects. cause of a heart attack, stroke, accident, movie star, philanthropist Vivek Oberoi nected by digital broadband in next Among the primary goals proposed or other critical health need," said who also happens to be the Ekal-brand 1,000 days. It is likely to promote wide were to increase parameters of various Alameda County Health Officer Dr. Ambassador. spread digitization of Education & special project, in next 5 years --for ex- Nicholas Moss. "By acting together now He emphasized that "the donation to Telemedicine. It is worth noting that ample : to increase 'Ekal On Wheels' vans we will have the greatest impact on the Ekal wasn't a subsidy for the needy, but Ajay Plodder of 'Artech Int'L and from current 25 to 85; 'Integrated Vil- surge and save more lives." a divine investment in India's future". He Himanshu Shah of 'Shah Capital' have lage Clusters' (30 villages each) from "Each of us can fight the spread," said further appealed to the youths of India Dr. Lisa B. Hernandez, the City of Berke- to join 'inquisitive, creative and passion- Hon. Minister Piyush Goyal affirmed his own and his ley Health Officer. "Keep your family ate organization like Ekal' to give pur- safe by avoiding even small gatherings pose to their life. Global business ty- family's long association with Ekal. He lauded Hon PM Modi's outside of your household and not trav- coon, Ajay Piramal said," Ekal's empha- August 15 speech whereby all villages would be intercon- eling. We don't want holiday gatherings sis on dispensing quality education and and travel to create a spike of cases on primary healthcare in rural area is a nected by digital broadband in next 1,000 days top of the surge we're already seeing." game changer. No one understands ru- "Although Marin has fared better than ral-tribal mindset better than Ekal with some other counties in our region over its wide spread presence in villages nor established "Gramotthan Research Ctr" current 12 to 51; 'Skill Development the last few weeks, we know it is only a anyone has a committed pool of huge that would soon circuitously help up to Ctrs' from current 33 to 100; matter of time before rising case and selfless volunteers". one Million people, at each place with 'Gramotthan Resource Ctrs' (GRC) from hospitalization put pressure on our hos- Sajjan Agarwal, not only donated the state-of-the-art information on mul- current 16 to 27; 'Telemedicine' from pitals too," said Marin County Health Of- $250,000 for 'Arogya Sevika' tiple levels . current 120 villages to 6,000 villages ficer Dr. Matthew Willis. "We must act (Healthcare Assistant) in the villages, The evening was interspersed with and 'Intensive Health Care' from current now, and must act together to ensure all but also, appealed other donors to brief video-clips of Ekal's outstanding 1,200 villages to 6,000 villages. In addi- hospitals in the Bay Area have the capac- match his willingness to donate addi- work, its impact on rural lives and its ini- tion, the most ambitious project that ity they need to care for our residents." tional $250,000. This challenge, in the tiatives to empower rural folks. Kapil Ekal wants to push hard is that of 'E- Consistent with the State framework, very next moment, was met by Dev was interviewed live for his unique Shiksha' or digital education. It wants to the six jurisdictions are working to en- Manubhai Shah. When it comes to achievements in Cricket. He asserted spread it from current 1,200 villages to sure that all sectors have at least 48- healthcare, it is imperative to know that that, "in life, winning is not everything". 100,000 villages. With the success of hour notice of these closures. Most of the donation of $250,000 benefits The most endearing memory to him Gala-2020, it is quite apparent that Ekal the Bay Area Health Officers will imple- 7,500 people in 150 villages. was the fact that he got to play his game is on the way to achieve its ambitious ment the State's Regional Stay At Home A new initiative, called 'GRANE' for his beloved country - and not win- goals. For more information to join this Order as of Sunday December 6, 2020. (Gramotthan Atma-Nirbharata for Ekal), ning the 'World Cup' or the captainship organization or to support it, kindly tap that is going to change farmer's life for- of the team etc. He was impressed by into www.ekal.org. Cont’d on page 28 28 India Post Community Across America December 11, 2020 www.indiapost.com State of California - Regional Stay At Home Order

India Post News Service Public Health Officer of the State of Cali- with) any number of persons from any 7. After the termination of the Terms pon assessment of the re- fornia, order: other household, except as specifically of this Order in a Region, each county cent, unprecedented rise in 1. CDPH will evaluate public health permitted herein. within the Region will be assigned to a the rate of increase in based on Regions, responsive to hospi- i. Terms (a) and (b) of this section do tier based on the Blueprint for a Safer U COVID-19 cases, hospitaliza- tal capacity for persons resident in not apply to persons experiencing Economy as set out in my August 28, tions, and test positivity rates across those Regions. homelessness. 2020 Order, and the County is subject California, the California Department of 2. CDPH will evaluate the adult ICU 3. Except as otherwise required by to the restrictions of the Blueprint ap- Public Health (CDPH) is taking immedi- bed capacity for each Region and iden- law, no hotel or lodging entity in Cali- propriate to that tier. ate actions to prevent the spread of the tify on covid19.ca.gov any Regions for fornia shall accept or honor out of state 8. I will continue to monitor the epi- virus. which that capacity is less than 15%. reservations for non-essential travel, demiological data and will modify this The State, like the nation, continues When that capacity is less than 15%, the unless the reservation is for at least the Regional Stay-at-Home Order as re- to record an unprecedented surge in following terms (the Terms of this Or- minimum time period required for quar- quired by the evolving public health the level of community spread of der) will apply. antine and the persons identified in the conditions. If I determine that it is nec- COVID-19. California implemented an a. All gatherings with members of reservation will quarantine in the hotel essary to change the Terms of this Or- accelerated application of the Blueprint other households are prohibited in the or lodging entity until after that time der, or otherwise modify the Regional Framework metrics on November 16 Region except as expressly permitted period has expired. Stay-at-Home Order, these modifica- and a limited Stay at Home Order is- herein. 4. This order shall take effect on De- tions will be posted at covid19.ca.gov. sued on November 19. However, in the b. All individuals living in the Region cember 5, 2020 at 1259pm PST. 9. When operative in a Region, the interim, the number of new cases per shall stay home or at their place of resi- 5. For Regions where the adult ICU Terms of this Order supersede any con- day has increased by over 112%, (from dence except as necessary to conduct bed capacity falls below 15% after the flicting terms in other CDPH orders, di- 8,743 to 18,588) and the rate of rise of activities associated with the operation, effective date of this order, the Terms of rectives, or guidance. Specifically, for new cases per day continues to in- maintenance, or usage of critical infra- this Order shall take effect 24 hours af- those Regions with ICU bed capacity crease dramatically. The number of new structure, as required by law, or as spe- ter that assessment. triggering this order, the Terms of this hospital admissions has increased from cifically permitted in this order. 6. The Terms of this Order shall re- Order shall supersede the State's Blue- 777 on November 15, to 1,651 on De- c. Worship and political expression are main in place for at least three weeks print for a Safer Economy and all guid- cember 2, and because of the lag be- permitted outdoors, consistent with ex- from the date the order takes effect in ance (other than guidance for critical tween case identification and hospital- isting guidance for those activities. a Region and shall continue until CDPH's infrastructure sectors) during the op- izations, we can only expect these num- d. Critical infrastructure sectors may four-week projections of the Region's erative period. In all Regions that are bers to increase. operate and must continue to modify total available adult ICU bed capacity is not subject to the restrictions in this or- Current projections show that with- operations pursuant to the applicable greater than or equal to 15%. Four-week der, the Blueprint for a Safer Economy out additional intervention to slow the sector guidance. adult ICU bed capacity projections will and all guidance shall remain in effect. spread of COVID-19, the number of e. Guidance related to schools re- be made approximately twice a week, 10. This order is issued pursuant to available adult Intensive Care Unit (ICU) main in effect and unchanged. Accord- unless CDPH determines that public Health and Safety Code sections beds in the State of California will be at ingly, when this Order takes effect in a health conditions merit an alternate 120125, 120130(c), 120135, 120140, capacity in mid-December. This is a sign Region, schools that have previously re- projection schedule. If after three 120145, 120175,120195 and 131080; that the rate of rise in cases, if it contin- opened for in-person instruction may weeks from the effective date of the EO N-60-20, N-25-20, and other author- ues, is at risk of overwhelming the abil- remain open, and schools may continue Terms of this Order in a Region, CDPH's ity provided for under the Emergency ity of California hospitals to deliver to bring students back for in-person in- four-week projections of the Region's Services Act; and other applicable law. healthcare to its residents suffering struction under the Elementary School total available adult ICU bed capacity is Signatory: from COVID-19 and from other illnesses Waiver Process or Cohorting Guidance. greater than or equal to 15%, the Terms Erica S. Pan, MD, MPH; Acting State requiring hospital care. ICU beds are a f. In order to reduce congestion and of this Order shall no longer apply to the Public Health Officer; California Depart- critical resource for individuals who the resulting increase in risk of trans- Region ment of Public Health need the most advanced support and mission of COVID-19 in critical infra- care and the ability to add additional structure retailers, all retailers may op- ICU capacity is limited by the lack of erate indoors at no more than 20% ca- available ICU nurses and physicians as a pacity and must follow the guidance for Bay Area Health Officers move result of the nationwide surge in hospi- retailers. All access to retail must be talizations and ICU admissions. strictly metered to ensure compliance to implement... Because the rate of increases in new with the limit on capacity. The sale of cases continues to escalate and threat- food, beverages, and alcohol for in-store Cont’d from page 27 7890 [email protected] CITY OF BER- ens to overwhelm the state's hospital consumption is prohibited. KELEY Matthai Chakko - Public Informa- system, further aggressive action is nec- g. To promote and protect the physi- In Alameda County, it is scheduled to tion Officer, City of Berkeley (510) 995- essary to respond to the quickly evolv- cal and mental well-being of people in take effect on Monday, December 7, 0893 CONTRA COSTA Contra Costa ing situation. While vaccines are prom- California, outdoor recreation facilities 2020, and Marin County's order will take County Joint Information Center (925) ising future interventions, they are not may continue to operate. Those facili- effect Tuesday, December 8. The new 608-5463 [email protected] available to address the immediate ties may not sell food or drink for on- restrictions will remain in place until MARIN Laine Hendricks - Public Informa- risks to healthcare delivery in the cur- site consumption. Overnight stays at January 4, 2021. tion Officer (415) 359-4508 rent surge. The immediate aggressive campgrounds are not permitted. The sector closures and restrictions [email protected] SAN institution of additional non-pharma- h. Nothing in this Order prevents any on activity under the State's Regional FRANCISCO Department of Emergency ceutical public health interventions is number of persons from the same Stay Home Order are described here. Management Joint Information Center critical to avoid further overwhelming household from leaving their residence, Media Contacts by Jurisdiction (415) 558-2712 [email protected] hospitals and to prevent the need to lodging, or temporary accommodation, ALAMEDA Neetu Balram - Public In- SANTA CLARA County of Santa Clara ration care. as long as they do not engage in any in- formation Manager, Alameda County Joint Information Center Media Line: NOW, THEREFORE, I, as Acting State teraction with (or otherwise gather Public Health Department 925-803- (408) 808-7863 [email protected] December 11, 2020 Horoscope India Post 29 www.indiapost.com Your Weekly Future by VANEET SHARMA DEC 11TH to DEC 17TH 2020

MAR 21 to APRIL 20 JUN 21 to JULY 22 SEP 23 to OCT 22 DEC 22 to JAN 19

ou shall be feeling he planetary tran- he beginning of n the beginning of Y very low and T sit indicates all T the week shall I the week you lethargic in the begin- sorts of happiness, be wonderful for your shall face the prob- ning of the week. The betterment and de- progress at work with lems of ups and second day of the week velopments in matters rise in your position downs in your married shall be better however you shall be crav- related to your education, love life and eventually resulting in an increase in the life and health however from the mid of ing for brightness. Health conditions and children. Your artistic talent shall be get- inflow of money by the mid of the week. the week the situation shall improve and energy level shall improve by the middle ting lot of appreciation. If you are full On 12th & 13th you are likely to go on a you might go on a long journey or a place of the week. The latter half of the week time public figure then this time can be journey with your family members. The of pilgrimage along with your spouse. The shall be excellent for getting support of utilized to gear up yourself for those expenses shall increase. You might have week end is indicating progress and spouse. The marital bliss shall also get preparations which shall prove benefi- to go some work related journey too. achievement in work area. The support of multiplied. The working efficiency and con- cial to enhance your popularity graph. Last two days of the week shall bring in spouse, seniors and partners shall help you fidence level shall also be excellent. Your abilities to do well. some good news at work area. earn recognition in your field of working.

APRIL 21 to MAY 20 JULY 23 to AUG 22 OCT 23 to NOV 22 JAN 20 to FEB 19

he planetary tran- ou shall remain in n the beginning of his week shall T sit is highly fa- Y very jovial mood in I the week you T prove to be vorable in this week. the beginning of the are likely to visit a tour- excellent for all areas Your social life, relation week. Your health shall ist place or else you of life. You can expect with friends and rela- also be perfect. You shall visit a place of good results in mat- tives and social influence shall be at shall be spending money on yourself, your down trodden, poor, patients, handi- ters related to harmony with spouse, ad- its peak from the beginning of the family and also on journeys in this week. capped or otherwise suffering people to ministrative activities, enhancement of week. In the mid of the week you shall In the first half of the week you shall be help them in best possible way. You shall immunity and recognition at work place. be more concerned about domestic focusing mainly on your family whereas be short of funds however even then you There are no issues related to mood and especially children related mat- in the latter half of the week you would shall extend one or other type of help. swings. This week your confidence level ters. You shall do well in competition be concentrating more on your social life In your own work you shall keep gener- shall be at its peak and that shall help and any type of tension won't be com- and work area. Your all activities related ating the required gains but the end of you fight with the problems that shall ing on the way of your personality de- to you, your family, friends and work shall the week is indicating little financial cri- be coming in your way on 12th & 13th of velopment. keep you happy and lively. sis, mental tensions too. December.

MAY 21 to JUN 20 AUG 23 to SEP 22 NOV 23 to DEC 21 FEB 20 to MAR 20

he beginning of eginning of the ou shall be feeling he beginning of T the week shall B week indi- Y light and ten- T the week is mark lot of activity on cates financial gains sion free in this week. best time for your social front because of and some mental ten- You shall be inclined emotional relations which the bitterness sions which are likely towards religious ac- and marital bliss how- of family life won't affect you much. The to increase by the mid of the week and tivities and would go on journeys too. ever the health related troubles or some day of 10th and 11th December shall be after that also there won't be a big relief There shall be sudden increase in your type of obstacles shall create tensions average for your happiness whereas the from the stress and tensions till the morn- income in this week. The source of in- too. Do not take any decision related to next two days are good for you in all re- ing of 13th December however, after come shall get strengthened. Your good relationship in a hurry. In professional life spects. Your opinions shall be appreci- that this week shall go perfectly alright planning, systematic approach and there won't be any issue. The latter half ated. You shall do educationally. Your chil- till its end as the tremendous support of micromanagement shall help you earn of the week is giving indications of your dren shall also bring happiness for you. family members shall certainly help you more recognition and gains in this week. inclination towards research work or Last two days of the week appear to be come out of it. Financial issues are not You shall go on a long journey in last two writing work. You are advised to take average for your health. indicated in this week. days of the week. care of your health.

Kindly read the predictions from your ascendant sign. If you do not know your ascendant sign then read the VANEET same from Moon sign. If Moon sign is also not known then read it from the Zodiac sign. The ascendant sign which is SHARMA calculated from the birth details viz. date, month, year, time & place of birth gives 85 % accurate predictions. The 510-648-4899 accuracy of predictions from Moon sign get limited to only 50 %. The predictions from Zodiac sign are only 25 % “Felicitated and accurate. In nutshell the predictions from ascendant sign are most accurate. In getting personality analysis the traits honored by then President of India Shri given by ascendant sign are 100 % accurate and that is the essence of Vedic Astrology. Pranab Mukherjee" Health Line CA, COVID-19 surge could lead to new stay-home order

SACRAMENTO, Calif.: California's quarantined gover- One can be said to be perfectly healthy in body and mind only if no part of the body or mind makes itself felt. A part nor is considering placing makes itself felt only when there is something wrong with it. You know that you have a head only when it aches. nearly all of the state's 40 mil- Sri Atmananda (1883 - 1959) lion residents under a tough 30 India Post www.indiapost.com December 11, 2020 stay-at-home order amid fears that a staggering coronavirus surge could swamp the hospi- tal system within weeks. US reports record-high daily Covid-19 California reported more than 20,000 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday (2 Dec.), shatter- cases, tally tops 14mn ing the state's previous one-day record. A record 8,500 people WASHINGTON: The US has marked a new high since late cent of the nation's coronavirus individuals aged 65 years and are in the hospital, including set a new world record for the April. deaths and only 6 per cent of older. more than 2,000 in the intensive number of coronavirus cases The latest figure from The cases. Many states are grappling care unit, leaving the state with and hospitalizations reported Covid Tracking Project showed The Midwest remains the with the surge of hospitaliza- fewer than 2,000 available in- in a single day, as the country's there were 100,226 infected epicenter of the pandemic in tions. tensive care unit beds. overall infection tally has sur- patients hospitalized across long-term care facilities. More than 1,000 hospitals Gov. Gavin Newsom _ who is passed the 14 million mark. the US, the first time the num- The region has seen the across the country are experi- staying at home after three of It took only six days for the encing critical staffing short- his children were exposed to country to add another 1 mil- ages, according to the Depart- the virus _ warned this week lion new cases, Xinhua news ment of Health and Human Ser- that he would take ``drastic ac- agency. vices. tion'' if the numbers didn't im- In its latest update, the US "The reality is, December, prove. That could be similar to Centers for Disease Control January and February are going his mid-March lockdown that and Prevention (CDC) on Thurs- to be rough times, I actually closed many businesses and day said that there were believe they're going to be the barred people from leaving 196,227 new cases and 2,762 most difficult time in the pub- home except for essential tasks deaths reported in the last 24 lic health history of this nation such as getting groceries. hours. -- largely because of the stress Newsom already has im- With this, the overall that's going to put on our posed restrictions _ including caseload and death toll has healthcare system," CDC Direc- a nighttime curfew _ on 51 of now increased to 14,124,678 tor Robert Redfield warned on the state's 58 counties com- and 276,148, respectively. Wednesday. prising nearly the entire state The new daily case count set ber exceeded 100,000. highest number of reported He urged Americans to con- population. Los Angeles a new world record, bringing Long-term care facilities in cases and deaths every week tinue mitigation efforts such as County, the nation's most 7-day average daily increase to the US were hit hard by the since mid-November, accord- social distancing, wearing populous with 10 million resi- over 163,000. pandemic with over 100,000 ing to the tracking project. masks, limiting crowds and to dents, also has imposed Wednesday also marked the known Covid-19 deaths as of According to the CDC, the not let their guards down dur- tighter stay-at-home restric- 25th consecutive day that daily last week, according to the overall weekly hospitalization ing family gatherings. tions and a three-week ban on case increase in the US sur- tracking project. rate in the US is at its highest Some states have imposed in-person restaurant dining. AP passed 100,000. Residents of long-term care point in the pandemic, with new restrictions in the wake of The daily death count also facilities make up about 40 per additional steep increases in the worsening situation. IANS Biden taps Indian-American Vivek Murthy as Surgeon General

WASHINGTON: US Presi- Vivek H Murthy, a former US expanded version in the new quoting an individual familiar with knowledge of the matter, dent-elect Joe Biden has surgeon general, has been administration, The Washington with the decision. the report said. tapped his key COVID-19 ad- asked to reprise the role in an Post reported on Thursday, A formal announcement in He was appointed as the Sur- visor Dr. Vivek Murthy as the this matter is expected soon. geon General on December 15, next Surgeon General, a role The surgeon general serves a 2014, after being approved by a for which he was appointed four-year term and is the top 51 43 Senate vote. He was re- during the Obama adminis- government official on public lieved of his duties on April 21, tration and had to leave health issues. Jerome Adams is 2017, by President Donald Trump. abruptly during the current the incumbent Surgeon General. Politico on Thursday re- Trump administration, ac- Murthy is expected to be ported that Murthy will re- cording to a media report. part of a team of health-care turn to that role, but with a The 43-year-old Indian- officials charged with tackling broader portfolio that will in- American doctor is one of the the issue Biden has said would clude acting as the top medi- three co-chairs of the Biden's be his top priority upon taking cal expert and public face of COVID-19 Advisory Board. office, according to people the effort. PTI December 11, 2020 Wellness Post India Post 31 www.indiapost.com Peanut treatment lowers risk of severe Kidney disease leading allergic reactions in preschoolers risk factor for Covid hospitalization WASHINGTON: A new study by researchers at the therapy, involves gradually increasing the amount of University of British Columbia and BC Children's Hos- peanuts (or peanut products) given to the child. One NEW YORK: Chronic kidney disease is the leading pital gives hope to parents and kids who face real dan- treatment aim is to reach desensitization, whereby the risk factor for hospitalization from Covid-19, says a ger from exposure to peanuts. child can ingest a full serving of peanuts without trig- study of electronic health records. "There's a common misperception about peanut gering a dangerous reaction. For the study, the researchers examined the allergies--that it's not a serious health issue. Although Another goal is protection in the event of acciden- health records of 12,971 individuals who were tested for Covid-19 within the Geisinger Health the risk of a fatal reaction to peanuts is low in tal exposure, and lessening or eliminating the need System in the US. Of this group, 1,604 were Covid- patients with peanut allergy, it has a major for epinephrine injections in response to re- positive and 354 required hospitalization. impact on the quality of life and many actions. To sustain their level of immunity, The team analyzed the records for association families feel hopeless in dealing with the child must continue to eat pea- between specific clinical conditions, including kid- what can seem like an unman- nut products on a regular basis. ney, cardiovascular, respiratory and metabolic con- ageable problem," said the Over the course of this ditions, and Covid-19 hospitalization. study's senior author Dr study, 117 preschool-age chil- Overall, chronic kidney disease was most Edmond Chan, head of the dren--between the ages of 9 strongly associated with hospitalization, and division of pediatric allergy months and five years--with COVID-19 patients with end-stage renal disease and immunology at UBC's peanut allergies from across were 11 times more likely to be admitted to the faculty of medicine and clinical Canada received a daily main- hospital than patients without kidney disease, said investigator at BC Children's Hospital tenance dose of 300 mg of pea- the study published in the journal PLOS ONE. Research Institute. The study, recently nut protein--equivalent to "Previous studies have identified a variety of published in the Journal of Allergy and about one peanut or a quarter health conditions associated with an increased risk Clinical Immunology: In Practice, is the first teaspoon of peanut butter. of COVID-related hospitalization, including diabe- to demonstrate that exposing children to a small, After one year, the researchers tes, heart failure, hypertension, and chronic kidney regular dose of an allergen (in this case, peanuts) in a found that nearly 80 per cent of the preschoolers were disease," said Alex Chang, Geisinger nephrologist real-world setting (outside of a clinical trial) is effec- able to eat 15 peanuts (equivalent to 4000 mg of pea- and co-director of Geisinger's Kidney Health Re- tive in reducing the risk of allergic reactions. nut protein) without reaction during an allergist-su- search Institute. IANS The treatment method, known as oral immuno- pervised oral challenge. ANI Realty Tidbits Check these Vastu Shastra norms, before moving into a rental home How to register hile it may be relatively easy for home owners property online Wto modify their homes or apply corrections to in Delhi Real Estate address Vastu Shastra defects, tenants may not have the same flexibility. In view of this, we look at some SURBHI GUPTA of the Vastu factors that tenants should look for be- urchasing property in the fore renting a property Pnational capital territory of Vastu Shastra compliance is nowadays an impor- Delhi attracts stamp-duty and tant factor that influences the decision of home buy- registration charges that have ers and tenants, alike. 32 India Post December 11, 2020 For detailed story visit www.indiapost.com to be paid to the Delhi Prop- www.indiapost.com erty and Land Registration De- partment. A part of this prop- erty registration in Delhi pro- cedure has been made online, UP CM lays foundation stone for to save time and ensure trans- parency in the system. Currently, a user has to Data Center in Gr. Noida browse through multiple por- tals, for calculating stamp duty, NOIDA/LUCKNOW: Uttar "A 100-bed hospital and registration charges, etc., for Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi trauma center should be built registration of property in Adityanath recently laid the near Yamuna Expressway: Delhi but soon, the urban de- foundation stone for a data Chief Minister Yogi velopment department will center to be developed at Adityanath," his office launch a single portal that will Greater Noida. tweeted. simplify the process of prop- The chief minister also di- Responding to the develop- erty registration in Delhi. rected officials to establish a ment, Greater Noida-Jewar The new web portal will al- 100-bed hospital and a trauma MLA Dhirendra Singh said the low users to view and down- center near the Yamuna Ex- setting up of a hospital in the load land records, including pressway at Jewar in Gautam region would benefit the local certified, digitally signed maps Buddh Nagar. residents. in possession of the land Adityanath virtually joined "This is a unique gift from record agencies of Delhi, and the ceremony for the ambi- proval to the data center In the absence of adequate the chief minister to the Jewar all other property-related his- tious data center project from which will be set up by data centers, data is largely assembly constituency. The torical and current information the state capital along with Mumbai-based real estate stored in locations outside the hospital will give relief to local required for its registration. Cabinet Minister Satish group Hiranandani on a 20- country but with this data park residents from the arbitrary Visit https:// Mahana, among others. acre plot and would cost ap- it will now be safely kept and costly treatments given by doris.delhigovt.nic.in. The state government had proximately Rs 6,000 crore, ac- within the state, the officials private facilities," Singh For detailed story visit on October 24 given its ap- cording to officials. added. tweeted. PTI www.indiapost.com NCR commercial realty market may report growth in Oct-Dec

NEW DELHI: The commer- uptick in the sentiments by Q4' able industries and business Gurugram have turned out to and more and more buyers cial real estate sector of the 2020," it said. houses already located in the be the most lucrative options and investors are showing National Capital Region (NCR) It noted that several areas of vicinity. Demand for office for leasing activities. The their interest in it because is likely report growth in the Gurugram and Noida have spaces in Noida has also been lower rent, new supply and in- commercial asset class has current quarter (October-De- turned into business hotspots. on a high growth trajectory frastructure development performed much better cember) on the back of im- Gurugram has been a pre- after commercial space satu- have boosted the demand in than the residential sector proved demand, said a re- mium location for commercial rated in Delhi and availability NOIDA key sectors such as over the last few years," port by 360 Realtors. office spaces in NCR for al- dwindled in the national capi- Sec-16, Sec-62 and Noida Ex- said, Ajay Rakheja, National The report said that as per most a decade now owing to tal, the report said. pressway. Head, 360 Realtors - Com- its estimates commercial its proximity to the national Micro-markets like NH-8, "Commercial Realty market mercial. market will take a V-curve capital, apart from innumer- Golf Course Road, SPR in is witnessing an upward trend He added that while the and return to normalcy by residential market for Delhi- Q4, 2020, noting that NCR's NCR has largely remained commercial real promises subdued in the last few growth and continues to years, commercial space perform more than any leasing and investment has other real estate asset class. gained traction, especially in "Till Q1'2020, the commer- the last financial year. cial realty space was on a Demand was largely growth trajectory but in driven by BFSI, FMCG, Q2'2020 owing to the COVID- wellness and healthcare, 19 crisis the sentiment re- consulting, head-offices of mained muted but the mar- big corporate and MNCs, ket will again witness an Rakheja said. IANS December 11, 2020 Real Estate Post India Post 33 www.indiapost.com Local land measurement units in India SUNITA MISHRA hile there are some standard land-mea by 4 rods wide. and MP. surement units used globally, some One acre consists of 43,560 sq. ft. Chatak countries, including India, also use more One Chatak is equal to 45 sq. ft. Wlocally popular benchmarks, which have Hectare States where Chatak is used: West Bengal been in practice for long. In this article, we will dis- Hectare, a commonly used unit of the metric sys- cuss the common land measurement units used in tem that is used to measure land and plots all across Lecha various parts of India, apart from the globally accepted the world, goes by the symbol ha. Invented in the year A Lecha denotes 144 sq. ft. benchmarks. 1795, the term hectare is a conjunction of the Latin States where Lecha is used: Assam Common land measurement units used across the words area and hect. One hectare is equal to 1,07,639 world sq. ft. Gaj Quite commonly used in the northern part of India, Square foot (sq.ft.) Land measurement units in east India a Gaj is made of 9 sq. ft. The most commonly-used unit is a square foot Dhur States where Gaj is used: Delhi, Punjab and Haryana. (sq.ft.), which is equal to 0.11 of a square yard. Under It is mostly used in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, the rules of the real estate law in India, developers have to notify the area in sq.ft. terms. An imperial unit used to measure area, sq.ft. is used across geographies to map the area at the time of property purchases. Countries where the usage of sq.ft. is most common include India, the US, the UK, Bangladesh, Canada, Ghana, Hong Kong, Liberia, Ma- laysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan and Singapore.

Square yard Larger than a sq.ft., a square yard is made of 9 sq. ft. The unit is widely used across the globe to measure land, especially in residential real estate. In several In- dian states, local governments use square yard as the standard value while fixing circle rates (in Rs per sq. yard). In Haryana, for example, land rates in urban ar- eas are fixed on a rupee per square yard basis by the state government.

Square meter (sq.Mt.) Tripura and West Bengal. Dhur denotes different sizes, Biswa Made of 10.76 sq.ft., a square meter is also a com- depending on the state where it is being used. In A Biswa is 1,350 sq. ft. mon land measuring unit applied in India. Since Bihar, it is equal to over 68 sq. ft. In Tripura, it stands for States where Biswa is used: UP, Punjab, Haryana, square meter is a unit that measures area, these are 3.6 sq. ft. The use of dhur is also common in Nepal. Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. avoided when measuring length or distance in one States where Dhur is used: UP, Bihar, Jharkhand and direction. Tripura. Killa A Killa is equal to 43,560 sq.ft. of land. Acre Kattha States where Killa is used: Punjab and Haryana. Counted among the oldest units applied across the Kattha (or Katha) also has different values, ranging world to measure vast tracts of land, the acre and has between 600 and 2,800 sq. ft. A standard sq.ft. equiva- Kanal undergone a lot of changes along the way. Used in the lent of the unit is 719 sq. ft. A Kanal is equal to 5,445 sq. ft. imperial system of units and the US system, the mod- States where Kattha is used: Assam, Bengal, Bihar States where Kanal is used: Haryana, Himachal ern acre is equal to 4,840 square yards, 43,560 square Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Punjab. feet, 4,047 square meters and 0.4047 hectares. An www.housing.com acre could also be defined as an area one furlong long For detailed story visit www.indiapost.com TOP TEN HINDI FILM SONGS

1 Taaron Ke Shehar: Taaron Ke Shehar Naach Meri Rani 34 India Post www.indiapost.com December 11, 2020 2 Naach Meri Rani: 3 Teri Aankhon Mein: Teri Aankhon Mein ani Mukerji says she learnt a lot about humanity es- 4 BurjKhalifa: Laxmii saying roles as the specially-abled Michelle McNally Chhalaang in Black and the Tourette Syndrome patient Naina 5 Care Ni Karda: R Baby Girl Mathur in Hichki. 6 Baby Girl: "I learnt a lot about humanity by doing these outstand- 7 Dil Chahte Ho: Dil Chahte Ho ing, sensitive films like 'Black' and 'Hichki'. I think these films 8 BamBholle: Laxmii contributed to making me a better human being and I'm 9 Aabaad Barbaad : Ludo fortunate that I got to do these films and be a part of such Ae Mere Dil beautiful cinematic visions of Sanjay Leela Bhansali and 10 Ae Mere Dil: Siddharth P. Malhotra. I hope these films man- aged to spark the right conversations in society about the need to treat everyone as an equal," she said. The 42-year-old actress says for her, Black and Hichki were emotional experiences that opened her eyes more to- wards inclusivity, kindness and gratitude. "As citizens of this country, we must all do our bit to con- stantly bring con- versations about inclusivity and equality to the fore. Every citi- zen has rights and I realized that there is a lot of work that we all need to put in in- dividually, to stop discrimi- nation. IANS

THE EXPECTING MOTHER CHOSE TO TIE HER HAIR IN HER SIGNATURE ctor Akshay Kumar will reportedly shoot his next film, Ram Setu, in BUN WHILE SHE BASKS IN THE A Ayodhya after getting permission WINTER SUN WITH A REDDISH from Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister GLOW ON HER FACE Yogi Adityanath. The actor had met the UP Chief om-to-be actor Kareena Kapoor Minister for dinner at the Trident MKhan shared her very first Instagram Hotel in Mumbai, according to a reel that featured her glowing and enjoying government spokesman. The the winter sun. Chief Minister appreciated The 'Jab We Met' actor is seen holding a Akshay's efforts in making films dressed in a red and blue colored sweatshirt with social messages. with a cup of coffee in her hand in the reel. Akshay had announced his "Breakfast with Beboo...#feelitreelit," she cap- new project titled Ram Setu tioned the video. in November during Diwali. The expecting mother chose to tie her hair "This Deepawali, let us in her signature bun while she basks in the win- endeavor to keep alive the ter sun with a reddish glow on her face. ideals of Ram in the con- The reel received several comments from the sciousness of all fans of the 40-year-old actor including actors Bharatiyas by building a Jacqueline Fernandez and Arjun Kapoor. bridge (setu) that will The 'Omkara,' actor is expecting her second baby connect generations to with her superstar husband Saif Ali Khan. ANI come. IANS December 11, 2020 Classifieds India Post 35 www.indiapost.com

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www.indiapost.com 36 India Post OP-ED December 11, 2020 www.indiapost.com Philosophy

OSHO Try it. Suddenly you will get the point China- Pak: Why they are allies - and you can get it; it is already there. fter breath comes in - that is, Nothing is to be added to you or to your and not in an alliance Adown - and just before turning out structure, it is already there. Everything - that is, going up - The Beneficence. is already there except a certain aware- RANJIT SINGH Be aware between these two ness. So how to do this? First, become points, and the happening. When your aware of the breath coming in. Watch it. hina-Pakistan relations have tion the beginning of a deep and mu- breath comes in, observe. For a single Forget everything, just watch breath been described by many po- tual relationship based almost en- moment, or a thousandth part of a mo- coming in - the very passage. Clitical leaders of both countries tirely on the classic policy of balanc- ment, there is no breathing - before it When the breath touches your nos- with platitudes like 'all weather', 'iron ing - 'my enemy's enemy is my friend'. turns up, before it turns outward. trils, feel it there. Then let the breath brother' or 'higher than the mountain Over the last five decades, Paki- One breath comes in; then there is a move in. Move with the breath fully and sweeter than honey' at various stan has been a reliable ally to China. certain point and breathing stops. Then consciously. When you are going stages of their relationship. China has never forgotten the role of the breathing goes out. When the down, down, down with the breath, In recent years, China has increas- former Pakistan President Yahya Khan breath goes out, then again for a single do not miss the breath. Do not go ingly leaned on Pakistan in South Asia as the messenger between US Presi- moment, or a part of a moment, breath- ahead and do not follow behind, just and the Indian Ocean Region to dent Richard Nixon and Mao Tse Tung, ing stops. Then breathing comes in. go with it. Remember this: do not go propagate its foreign, economic and which resulted in the US-China rap- Before the breath is turning in or ahead, do not follow it like a shadow; military policies through various ini- prochement in 1970. Ever since, Paki- turning out, there is a moment when be simultaneous with it. tiatives like CPEC, BRI etc. stan has been a staunch supporter of you are not breathing. In that moment Breath and consciousness should Michel Berkley of the Belfer Centre China in the Organization of Islamic the happening is possible, because become one. The breath goes in - you at Harvard university has succinctly Countries (OIC), fending off any anti- when you are not breathing you are go in. Only then will it be possible to identified the main interests that China sentiments, especially with ref- not in the world. Understand this: get the point which is between two China has in Pakistan; firstly, preserve erence to Chinese atrocities in when you are not breathing you are breaths. It will not be easy. Move in Pakistan as viable military competitor Xinjiang. to India; secondly, use Pakistan as an The OIC, a powerful grouping of 57 overland trade and energy corridor; countries, has surprisingly been a Between two breaths is and thirdly, use Pakistan's cooperation mute spectator to the horrors per- in severing links between Uighur petuated by the CCP on the Uighurs the moment of happening separatists in Western China and Is- and Sinicisation of Xinjiang. Pakistan lamists in Pakistan. has also been an ardent supporter of For Tantra, each outgoing Quite clearly, China looks at Pakistan China in the United Nations, provid- as a supporter, a facilitator and pro- ing unwavering support to China dur- breath is a death and each ing the crisis in Quite clearly, China looks at Pakistan as a South China Sea new breath is a rebirth Osho supporter, a facilitator and promoter of her and in its 'One China' policy on dead; you ARE still, but dead. But the with the breath, then move out with national interest. More recently, this Taiwan. moment is of such a short duration that the breath: in-out, in-out. relationship has been witnessing a deeper In return, Paki- you never observe it. All the religions of the world, all the stan has ben- For Tantra, each outgoing breath is a seers of the world, have reached understanding and transforming into efited from the death and each new breath is a re- through some technique or other, and a strong military relationship Chinese largesse. birth. Breath coming in is rebirth; all those techniques will be in these As Chinese aspi- breath going out is death. The outgo- one hundred and twelve techniques. rations of global ing breath is synonymous with death; This first one is a Buddhist technique. moter of her national interest. More power gained traction, her expand- the incoming breath is synonymous It has become known in the world as a recently, this relationship has been ing footprint in South Asia made Paki- with life. So with each breath you are Buddhist technique because Buddha witnessing a deeper understanding stan the centre of its South Asia dying and being reborn. attained his enlightenment through and transforming into a strong military policy. Pakistan supported Chinese The gap between the two is of a very this technique. relationship. Yet what defies reason is - entry as an observer in SAARC, which short duration, but keen, sincere obser- Excerpted from 'The Book of Se- why does China refuse to sign an alli- was reciprocated, by Pakistan's entry vation and attention will make you feel crets', Discourse #3. The 89th birth an- ance with Pakistan? into SCO. The flagship Belt & Road Ini- the gap. If you can feel the gap, Shiva niversary of Osho is being observed tiative (BRI) of Xi Jinping had become says, The Beneficence. Then nothing on December 11. Historical Background the cornerstone of Chinese economic else is needed. You are blessed, you Pakistan began flirting with China policy, coupled with a military strat- have known; the thing has happened. after 1962. Ayub Khan realized that egy of increasing its global footprint You are not to train the breath. 50 SPIRITUAL APPETIZERS the US was not a credible ally, more in Asia, Africa and Europe. Leave it just as it is. Why such a simple Vinod Dhawan so when the US agreed to support In- Among the six sub-initiatives that technique? It looks so simple. Such a “It’s a lovely book. It feels en- dia after the 1962 Sino-Indian war. Pa- comprise the BRI, the most successful simple technique to know the truth? To ergetically clear and light. It’s kistan was unable to capitalize on a has been the China-Pakistan Eco- know the truth means to know that easy to read, dip in and out and weak India. The Treaty of Shaksgam in nomic Corridor (CPEC), which is en- which is neither born nor dies, to know most importantly it offers infor- 1963, wherein Pakistan parted with tirely routed through Pakistan and that eternal element which is always. mation without fluff! Blessings 5,180 sq. km of territory of the erst- the UT of Ladakh. IANS You can know the breath going out, on this project.” while Indian state of Jammu and Kash- Jac O’Keeffe you can know the breath coming in, Spirituality teacher based in mir (now UT of Ladakh), set into mo- For detailed story visit but you never know the gap between USA. www.indiapost.com the two. Available on AMAZON, FLIPKART Disclaimer: Views expressed are personal to the author December 11, 2020 OP-ED India Post 37 www.indiapost.com Mamata's Bengal: Democracy or Democrazy! JUDHAJIT SENMAZUMDAR

engal once the epicenter Attack on media is multi- lice has come up with a story of of India's spiritual enlight pronged though and interestingly, BJP's infighting to justify the kill- Benment and the land of on the same day, one of the Mem- ing, which has been categorically FARM REFORMS Swami Vivekananda, Rishi bers of Parliament from ruling discarded by locals and BJP lead- ast week saw major events around the world, some posi- Aurobindo and Netaji Subhash party TMC, Mohan Mitra, went ership. tive and others in total chaos. Hopefully in US, the presi- Chandra Bose to Rabindranath ahead to insult the media with a No wonder, like the people of L dential race will finally end with President Trump conceding Tagore, today is fighting its West Bengal, even the Global to the newly elected President Joe Biden. In the Middle East battle to save democracy and Bengali Diaspora is deeply con- assassination of the nuclear scientist in Iran would definitely reclaim the past glory. cerned and while talking to us bring unrest in the region. 34 years of left rule has made it Founders of "Nris4Bengal" and While in India major opposition parties joining hands, demand- a barren land for industries and FOG Bengal Chair, Silicon Valley ing roll back of new farm laws brought the capital New Delhi to a the last 10 years of TMC rule almost Based Technology Entrepreneur complete halt. Why are the farmers opposing these new reforms, one turned the state in to a battlefield! Judhajit Senmazumdar, has ech- would ask? It is not so easy to answer with the country the size of Be it jihadi terrorism, blind ap- oed the same sentiment". We all India and a vast majority illiterate. Every political party has taken farm- peasement or political violence, are concerned and deeply hurt, ers for a ride over the last 70 years. India largely agriculture based the great land of West Bengal and the way democracy is being hi- country; the new farm reforms could be a game changer. But there it's immensely talented populace jacked. exists a large network of farm-produce brokers, locally known as is reeling under a pathetic autoc- Every voice of dissent is being Mamata Banerjee arthiya, who naturally have a vested interest and do not want these racy! As many says, is it a "Democ- harassed, arrested or killed, as if changes, as they are likely to be eliminated. Farmers will be able to racy" or Democrazy"! sweeping statement by saying you just can't protest! The sell their produce in the open market seeking better prices. Also they Things got even worse, when "value of 2 cents"! That raises more "Nris4Bengal" campaign is to con- will have the opportunity to grow cash crops, which too could fetch couple of days back a local jour- eyebrows, as many are connecting nect all nationalistic NRI Bengalis better prices. nalist and founder of an im- the dots and fearing, if we are go- from across the globe, some of As of now with the support of MSP (Minimum Support Price) by mensely popular news media plat- ing to witness more attacks on the those are scientists, doctors, law- the government, big farmers try to cheat by producing low quality form "The Bengal Owl", Subho 4th pillar of democracy and arrest/ yers, professors, who are commit- produce, which the government nevertheless acquires under the Sengupta, was arrested for protest- harassment of any media house ted to rebuild Bengal and it's really food security program. This produce soon lands up at the govern- ing another social media post, that dares to dissent, as in Bengal's sad to hear their concern and fears ment agency FCI (Food Corporation of India) warehouses, at differ- which was hailing "Huseyn own "Arnab Goswami Episode", almost every other day. Is that the ent locations across the country. Most of this stored grain never Shaheed Suhrawardy", infa- which was criticized globally by all Bengal we all dream for!" reaches the poor, as it either rots in the rain or, is eaten up by rats. The mously known as "Killer of Bengal" the responsible citizens. Speaking to many other new reforms could change the scenario with opportunity for mod- and mastermind behind deadly One way, when the state is see- Bengali NRIs like Somanjana ern cold storage facilities and save grains and perishable produce "Direct Action Day"! Subho's only ing plethora of political violence, Chatterjee another California worth millions that would otherwise rot. fault was being righteous and criti- killing, jihadi riots, Hindu human based media personality, Souptik The major mistake by the present government was to push these cize those who were trying to right violations added with school Mukherjee, Florida based scientist, reforms in haste without due protocol and discussions with all stake- morph the history and glorify service commission scam and alle- Abhishek Ray, London based in- holders and opposition parties. Most of the opposition parties have someone who is against the basic gation of "Cut money" in every vestment banker or Aniruddha been almost eliminated in the country and the ruling BJP govern- ethos of what the city of Kolkata sphere; this new paradigm of at- Chatterjee, management consult- ment thought they could push whatever they want through parlia- stands for, "Live and Let Live"! tack on media houses just rang ant from Australia, the same emo- ment with a majority in both houses. BJP is now paying a big price for tions and concerns were palpable. this mistake. Opposition parties are taking advantage by spreading 34 years of left rule has made it a barren land With election coming early rumors that farmers would eventually lose the MSP and big corpora- tions will enter and take over the farm sector, and the farmers would for industries and the last 10 years of TMC rule next year and rapid surge in politi- cal and human rights violence end up at the receiving end. Even though the government promises almost turned the state in to a battlefield! where even top leaders like no change to the status of MSP, farmers are not convinced. According Kailash Vijayvargiya, Dilip Ghosh to experts, making the MSP legal would push back reforms the gov- Subho is not the only one but that panic bell like never before! and Mukul Roy are not spared, ernment wants to initiate. there is a group of educated Subho's incidence is not stand- general populace who has the As in United States there are consortiums like Certified Grocers Bengali youth who are honest, alone but the same day, Bengal guts to call out the shortcomings who see that farmers get the best price for their produce and help them with modern technology and finances. Even in India there are steadfast and has the courage to also witnessed the killing of a BJP's of current government are really many successful homegrown Co-ops like Amul, Verka, Nandini and come out of the threat from state Rajbangshi member from Siliguri, scared that they might come un- several others who have been game changers in the farm sector. There machinery to call "a spade a Sh. Ulen Roy. Many believe he has der the chopper block! No wonder, are several good examples around the world too including countries spade"! Sadly, though, Bengal succumbed to splinter injuries for many, come 2021, it's not a mere like Japan, which India could emulate. Currently, an Indian farm pro- which was once known for free- caused by country bombs the po- election but a second "Freedom duces less than half of what farms in other Asian countries do, and the dom of expression and liberalism, lice threw, as echoed by BJP's Na- Movement" to save West Bengal new farm reforms could make a major impact on their income and now is driven by fear psychosis tional observer Sh. Kailash from anarchy, blind appeasement, improve livelihoods. and known for shutting down any Vijayvargiya Ji and national presi- cut money, insecurity and vio- Any kind of reform is not going to be a cakewalk for any govern- voice of dissent, by political dent, BJP Yuva Morcha, Tejasvi lence... as they say,"Aar Noi Annay" ment, especially for a country like India, where most sectors are en- muscle power and the innocent Surya, and demanded a CBI en- , we will rebuild our motherland snared with deep-rooted corruption. Modi's efforts to bring transpar- victims are Subhos of the world! quiry. Interestingly though WB Po- and "Save Bengal". ency and reforms may be sincere but the mindset of the country Disclaimer: Views expressed are personal to the author needs to be changed. He will have to be patient. 38 India Post December 11, 2020 www.indiapost.com