COLLECTED FOR GENDER TEST - South Asian Dailysouthasiandaily.com/pdf/July 3, 2012/1-24.pdf ·...

CIRCULATED THROUGH : TORONTO, MARKHAM, SCARBOROUGH, RICHMOND HILL, VAUGHAN, WOODBRIDGE, ETOBICOKE, NORTH YORK, MALTON, REXDALE, BRAMPTON, MISSISSAUGA, OAKVILLE

PINKI PRAMANIK'S BLOOD SAMPLESCOLLECTED FOR GENDER TEST

Sohail Khan's drivercrushes woman todeath with SUV

26/11: Abu Jundalnames same Pak armyofficers as Headley did

Mumbai/S Ahmed AliThe statements of American jihadiDavid Headley and alleged 26/11handler Zabihuddin Ansari, aliasAbu Jundal, match in one keyrespect: they have both named thesame three Pakistani officials as beinginvolved in the planning andexecution of the 26/11 attacks.Sources in the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), which iskeeping tabs on the developmentsin Delhi, where Jundal is beinginterrogated, said Jundal has namedMajor Iqbal, Major Sameer Ali andColonel Shah of the Pakistani army.Jundal is believed to have toldinterrogators that Major Iqbalprovided Rs 25 lakh for the boat thatwas initially purchased for the 2008attacks. However, the terrorists' firstattempt to reach Mumbai by sea wasthwarted due to bad weather. "Priorto November 2008, the ISI had saileda weapons-laden boat towardsMumbai, but the boat rammed intorocks and the attack waspostponed," said an officer inMumbai on condition of anonymity.Mumbai officers are being keptabreast of developments in Delhi bycentral investigating agencies. Therevelation continues to put pressure

on Pakistan, which has beendenying any role in the attacks.Pakistani-American Headley namedthe same three Pakistani armyofficials, according to a NationalInvestigation Agency report on hisstatement. Headley had said thatthese three Pakistani army officialswere among the architects of the 26/11 attacks. Investigators willreportedly compare the statementsof Jundal and Headley. Headley alsotold the American FBI that Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafeez Saeed was inthe loop at each and every stage ofthe planning and execution of theattacks. Contd. on Page 5

New Delhi: Asian Games goldmedalist Pinki Pramanik'sblood samples were collectedTuesday to determine thegender of the athlete who wasarrested in June on charges ofalleged rape.The athlete has been accusedof being a male, and iscurrently under judicialcustody for alleged rape.Pinki's blood sample wascollected for karyotyping test(to determine thechoromosom pattern). Thesamples will be sent outside

as the city hospital does nothave the facility todetermine gender. The courtlast week directedsubmission of Pramanik'schromosome pattern reportto determine her sex whileextending the athlete'sjudicial remand to July12.Meanwhile, there havebeen reports that an MMSclipping of the athletecompletely naked andundergoing tests at aprivate nursing home hasgone viral online.

CANADA'S PRIME MINISTER STEPHEN HARPER SHAKES HANDS DURING CANADA DAY CELEBRATIONS ONPARLIAMENT HILL IN OTTAWA JULY 1, 2012.

LeT planned to attack NashikPolice Academy: Jundal

The athlete has been accused of being a male, and is currentlyunder judicial custody for alleged rape

Madrid in raptures as Spain return

Spain celebrate their UEFA EURO 2012 success on the streets in Madrid

Madrid: After the national team'ssuccesses at UEFA EURO 2008and the 2010 FIFA World Cup,Spain might have becomeaccustomed to celebrating majorvictories, but there was no let-up in the nation's joy as Vicentedel Bosque's triumphant sidereturned from UEFA EURO 2012on Monday.

The party that started themoment that match referee PedroProença blew the final whistlefollowing La Roja's 4-0 winagainst Italy in Kyiv on Sundaywas still in full flow in the earlyhours of this morning, with theteam's return to Madrid's BarajasAirport at 16.00 on Mondayafternoon helping to give revelers

a second wind.??Soon after theirarrival, the squad were taken tomeet King Juan Carlos of Spain,who said: "It 's not easy toknow what to say to a groupwho are now triple champions.You have given everyone inSpain so much happiness, notjust because you won, butbecause you are bril l iantpeople. You knew how to winand how to behave as a team.We have seen the fruits of yourknowledge and determinationand above all, the effort put inby coach Vicente del Bosque,who had to put up with a lot.Congratulations, and let's hopethis run continues."

Spanish prime ministerMariano Rajoy had said afterthe final in Kyiv: "Spain isproud of its football team -proud of their style and proudof their human qualities. Wethank the players and Vicentedel Bosque for a great win."

After the royalengagement came a paradethrough the streets of Madrid,with hundreds of thousands ofsupporters cheering thechampions as they made theirway by bus to the Plaza deCibeles, where goalkeeper PepeReina led the celebrations. TheLiverpool FC goalkeeper toldthe jubilant crowd: "This is alegendary team. We have donewhat nobody has done in thehistory of football."

The official UEFA EURO2012 Best Player of theTournament Andrés Iniesta anddefender Sergio Ramos hadreceived the biggest cheers asReina introduced the players,before captain Iker Casillastook the floor, prompting a hugeovation. "It's an honour and apleasure to be captain of thisteam," he said. "This win is foryou all." For more information,visit www.uefa.com.

Mumbai: An elderly womanwas crushed to death by aSUV car being allegedly drivenby actor and filmmaker SohailKhan's driver in suburbanBandra late Sunday night. TheLand Cruiser is reportedlyregistered in the name ofSohail's brother Arbaaz Khan,but was being driven bySohail's driver DhananjayPimple, police sources said.Preliminary reports suggestedthat the actor was not present

Driver Dhananjaya Pimpale (centre) was arrested on Monday

in the car at the time of theaccident. The incident occurredat around 11pm when Pimple, whiletaking a U-turn near St AndrewsChurch mowed down the womansleeping on the footpath. Thewoman was rushed to a nearbyhospital where she was declareddead, police said, adding thedriver was arrested and furtherprobe was on.Later, Pimplemoved a bail application andthe court granted him bail on asurety of Rs 10,000.

READ MORE ON CANADA DAY: PAGE 9

2 MidWeek MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, JULY 3, 2012

MidWeek 3MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY


page 3 PAKISTANFASHIONEXTRAVAGANZAHELD INTORONTO

TORONTO: The International Fashion Festival 2012 Toronto willfeature a series of fashion shows and exhibitions over the three-daylong festival commencing later this week. Presented by AbsoluteCulture & Black Diamond Entertainments, IFFT 2012 will showcasecollection of 24 designers in the event that will have six performancesfeaturing International Models, Top Designer Workshops, Hair &Make-up Workshops, Modeling Workshops and Great entertainmentfor all attendees.

The International Fashion Festival has been a series of fashionshows and exhibitions that have taken place all over the MiddleEast and South Asian Markets. IFF (International Fashion Festival)

had its premiere event in Lahore, Pakistan back in 2005 and latermoved on to Dubai as a successful sophomore. The North AmericanPremier of IFF was presented by Absolute Culture Inc. in Toronto,Canada in November 2011 which was an event of phenomenalsuccess. This year Absolute Culture presents another blockbusterfashion show and exhibitions based event with glitz, glam andimmense excitement through a super hot fashion week beginninglater this week. The three-day festival will include line up of fashionshows where Top Fashion Designers from India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka,Egypt, UK, Lebanon, US, Dubai and Canada will showcase theircollections. For more information, visit www.ifft.ca.THE INTERNATIONAL

FASHION FESTIVAL 2012

TORONTO STARTING

LATER THIS WEEK WILL

FEATURE FASHION

SHOWS FROM TOP

FASHION DESIGNERS

FROM INDIA, PAKISTAN,

SRI LANKA, EGYPT, UK,

LEBANON, US, DUBAI

AND CANADA.

(Picture Courtesy: Ali

Nice Productions)

PAKISTAN FASHION EXTRAVAGANZA

HELD IN TORONTOPakistan FashionE x t r a v a g a n z aheld at PearsonC o n v e n t i o nCentre featuredsome of thebiggest namesfrom the PakistanFashion Industryalong with the liveperformances bySaad and Ahsan,Shumaila Azeem,Shaam Idrees, AliPervaiz Mehdi.(Ali NiceProductions)

International Fashion Festival In Toronto


TUESDAY, JULY 3, 2012special report

Now a new and improved ultra-youSlim and sexy, ultrabooks are the result of marriage between the best of PCs and tablets.No doubt, these are being hailed as ‘the’ thing in the world of technology todayToday, we prefer computingdevices that are sleeker, fasterand allow us to connect to theInternet instantly, withoutcompromising on theperformance. And, mobilecomputing especially is beingreinvented with the introductionof ultrabook devices. All theearly signs point in the rightdirection and the buzz in thecategory has beenunprecedented. In India, all majororiginal equipmentmanufacturers (OEMs) havealready launched a wide rangeof ultrabooks and there are aseries of newer, sleekerultrabooks which are in thepipeline, ready to be launchedthis year.

Ultrabook is an excitingnew category that givesconsumers the features and formfactor that they love in laptops,but also delivers the featuresthey enjoy with their tablets.There will be a consistent set ofexpectations that a buyer canhave of any ultrabook includingthe thickness of the device,battery life, the processor thatpowers the device and certaintechnologies for instant boot-upand better security.

Sandeep Aurora, directorof marketing, Intel South Asia,says, "Ultrabooks takeadvantage of a technologycalled the Intel Rapid StartTechnology that helps get the

system up and running fromdeepest sleep, saving both timeand battery life. A current PC maytake a minute or more to wake upfrom deep sleep. On an average,an ultrabook takes less thanseven seconds. So it could saveyou five minutes in a week, 20minutes in a month or four hoursin a year, that's half a work day.If we were to capture the essenceof these devices in one line itwould be that ultrabooks areultra-sleek, ultra-responsive,ultra-you."

ULTERNATIVE TOTABLETS The quick boot-upand start up time will change theway people interact with their PCwithout leaving the Windowsexperience. Vishal Tripathi,principal research analyst,Gartner, feels, "This new formfactor can be very appealing tothe people who are not big tabletfans, but need some devicewhich is sleek, lightweight, smartto carry and meet theircomputing needs. Mostconsumers will see ultrabook asan alternative to tablets unlesstheir screen is so big that hindersportability." No doubt,ultrabooks are the result of amarriage between the best ofPCs and tablets. Shishir Singh,director, product marketing,CSMB, Dell India, says,"Mobility will dictate the formfactor of computing devices inthe years to come. Today,devices are changing according

to the needs of the consumersand there is a huge convergenceof user devices which enablethem to easily connect anytime,anywhere. We see ultrabooks asan important niche category forthose looking for a companionPC device that moves beyondthe basic computing needs."

PERFECT TRAVEL MATEUltrabooks are ideal for

content creation andconsumption-writing, browsing,presentations, research,entertainment, multimedia andalmost all the regular everydaytasks that prosumers(professional consumers) want.They are your perfect travel mateowing to their ultraportabilityand longer battery life, addsSingh.

Vinay Awasthi, seniordirector, product category, PSG,HP India, concurs. "Ultrabooks

are meant for people who lookfor full day uninterruptedcomputing experience. They willbe embraced by bothprofessionals working in anenterprise and by prosumers whowant the power of mobility." Oneof the important growth driverswe see affecting ultrabooks isthe trend of BYOD (bring yourown device) in the workplace.Rajesh Thadani, director,consumer business segment,Lenovo India, is of the opinionthat "Ultrabooks are adding tothe choices available for anotebook user. In short, theymarry the best features ofnotebooks and netbooks."

STYLE QUOTIENTUltrabooks cater to a

consumer segment that lovesfashion and looks for the finestof everything they can afford.Ranjit Yadav, country head,

Samsung Mobile and IT, says,"As far as penetration ofultrabooks is concerned, the IDCfigures clearly state thatnotebook PCs and ultrabooksare growing at a faster rate thandesktop PCs with the earlieraccounting for 24 per cent ascompared to desktops which isaround five per cent."Ultrabooks come in the pricerange of 48,000 to one lakh plus.The end user adoption is low dueto the high price points, which

are not appropriate for the cost-conscious mass market."Windows 8 launch, with touchexperience and Metro UI apps,might act as a catalyst forultrabooks and could propel thepenetration of these devices inIndia. Intel's 3rd generation IvyBridge processors will letvendors come with more skews,making the market morecompetitive and this couldenable some price drop in thefuture," foresees Tripathi.

WHAT MAKES AN ULTRABOOK?PROCESSOR: The first phase of ultrabooks is based on ultra-low voltage (ULV) 2nd generation Intel core processors thathave enabled the thin, light, beautiful designs. The next phasewill be based on nextgeneration chipcodenamed "Ivy Bridge",which will bring improvedpower efficiency andenhanced security."Haswell" is the third steptoward accelerating it.

THIN/LIGHT DESIGNS: These are less than 0.8 inches inwidth; some are much thinner.

ULTRA-FAST START-UP: Intel Rapid Start Technologygets a system up and running faster from the deepest sleep,saving time and battery life.

EXTENDED BATTERY LIFE:Ultrabooks offer at least five hours of battery life, some

even provide eight hours or more.SECURITY ENABLED: Identity protection technology

provides a secure online experience for shopping, banking orgaming online. Anti-theft technology deters theft. If stolen, itcan be disabled automatically or one can notify the serviceprovider.

D E V G A D ,MAHARASHTRA:Innova t ion andexperimentation are bringingthe bes t ou t o f th i shor t i cu l tu ra l so i l .Convent iona l agr icu l tu replanted a sapling and moderntechnology is helping it growinto a gigantic tree. The kingof f ru i t s , a lphonso mangofrom Devgad in Konkan in thesou thernmos t pa r t o fMaharashtra, is truly goingg loba l . Work ing oncooperative basis has helpedmango growers g rowthemselves. The cooperativemantra is working wonders,says Santosh Patkar, managerof Devgad Ta luka AmbaUdpadak Sahakari Sanstha.“ In 1987 , mango growersunderstood the importance ofworking in an organisationalset-up. That was time whenmany of them came togetherto work on cooperative basis.There was no looking backsince then. Today, we have700 members,” Patkar adds.

The main objective ofthe cooperative society is toprovide support structure tothese g rowers , Pa tkarinforms. Apart from helpingcu l t iva tors p rocure fa rmequipments , i t keeps themupda ted on the l a tes ttechnological t rends . Theya l so ge t manures andpesticides at subsidised rates.They don’t have to rely solelyon Agr icu l tu re ProduceMarke t ing Commit tee(APMC), as the soc ie ty i sdirectly marketing the stuff

ON A JUICY TRAIL With mango growers working on a cooperative basis and takingto e-commerce, Devgad, the alphonso heartland in Konkan, isfast blooming. Kanchan Gogate gives a low-down

shunning middlemen.“Work ing on coopera t ivebas i s has he lped even thesmallest grower. The societyhas g iven cu l t iva to rs anassured marke t . Ear l i e r,mangoes were sold in APMCmarke t s a t the base p r icethrough middlemen. Now,growers a re ge t t ingappropr ia te re tu rns andt imely payments .” Thesociety has also undertakenin i t i a t ives l ike o rchardmanagement , where mangoorchards a re g iven oncont rac t . E-commerce hasacce le ra ted the p rogress ,Patkar says adding that thesociety has now created itsown website. “In 2004, whenthe tsunami s truck, suddenwea ther changes p layed aspoilsport. We had a very lowyield. Realising the need forfa rmers hav ing reasonablereturns, we decided to go onthe web. It has phenomenallyhelped us in building a brand.Apart from giving buyers thet rus ted Devgad hapus , wea l so p rov ided them wi thoptions like Mango bond, aprepa id o rder bookingsystem. The online feedbackhas been fabu lous . E-commerce has ce r ta in lyincreased profitability.”

On the line of agri-tourism, the society plans todeve lop mango orchardtourism to open an additionalincome avenue. Farmers willalso be given training in thela tes t cul t ivat ion pract icesand marke t ing techniques .Devgad alphonso stands outbecause o f i t s t a s te and

f ragrance , says VidyadharJoshi, a mango grower. “It’sarguably the best in the world.I t ’s hear ten ing to seemangoes be ing so ld asDevgad mango . We knowonce a person tastes it, s/hewill crave for it. The skin ofDevgad a lphonso i s theth innes t you would comeacross. Keep it anywhere andi t s f ragrance be t rays i t spresence. It contains a lot ofiron. This soil, humidity andweather a re benef ic ia l fo rmangoes.”

Pa tkar a l so speaksabout o rgan ic fa rmingbreak ing on the scene .Though awareness about it isspreading, growers say thatit’s still not giving expectedre turns . However, manycul t iva to rs have ob ta inedEuro-GAP (Good AgriculturalPractices) and Global GAPcertificates. The society stillhas a long way to go, he says.“It’s just a beginning. A lotthings need to be addressed.Automated segrega t ionmachines are requi red and

overall transport needs to bebettered. Packing of mangoesis a concern since we needsturdy packaging mater ia l .More importantly, many in thenext generation are quittingfa rming and we need topersuade them.”

MANGO TOURISM: The main objective of the cooperative so-ciety is to provide suppor t structure to these growers

TOWARDS FULLBLOSSOMING

The region’s potential remains largely unexploited, accordingto growers as well as administrators. Listing challenges, MLAPramod Jathar says, “Mango being too delicate, even a minorweather fluctuation can affect the crop. Hence we feel that aresearch centre is required, at least during the peak season, toguide farmers. APMC must have a branch here for smoothoperations. All we need is an improved sense ofprofessionalism.”


TUESDAY, JULY 3, 2012 breaking news

Vajpayee wanted to induct Kalamas minister in NDA govt: BookNEW DELHI: Former PrimeMinister AB Vajpayee wantedto induct APJ Abdul Kalam asa min i s te r in the NDAgovernment in 1998, an offerKalam declined, four yearsbefore he became thePres iden t in 2002 . Therevelation was made by theformer President in his recentbook " Turn ing Po in t s : AJourney ThroughChallenges". He said his decision todecline the Cabinet positionenabled him to contribute totwo major programmes thatgave "spectacular" results tothe nation. Kalam, who wasthen the DRDO chief, recallsthat he got a phone call onthe midnight of March 15,1998 from Vajpayee. "He saidthat he was finalising the listof ministers and he wanted toinduct me into his cabinet. Itold him that I needed somet ime to th ink about i t . Heasked me to see him the nextmorning at 9am." Kalam saidthat in the middle of that nighthe assembled his few friendsand deba ted up to 3amwhether he should join the

THE REVELATION WAS MADE BY THE FORMER PRESIDENT IN HIS RECENT BOOK "TURNINGPOINTS: A JOURNEY THROUGH CHALLENGES".

Cabinet or not.The general opinion was

tha t s ince he was fu l lyinvolved in two missions ofna t iona l impor tance andthese were in advanceds tages and near ing goodresults, he should not leavethem and enter the politicalsystem, he said in the book."The next morning, I went to7 Safdarjung Road, where thePM was staying....I then toldhim, 'I and my team is busywi th two impor tan tprogrammes. One is readyingthe Agni Missile system andanother is bringing to a closethe nuc lear p rogrammethrough a series of tests inpar tnersh ip wi th the DAE(Depar tment o f AtomicEnergy) ' . " I f ee l tha t byinvolving mysel f fu l l t imewith these two programmes, Iwill be contributing more tothe nation. Please permit tocon t inue , " Ka lam sa id .Vajapyee responded bysay ing he apprec ia tesKalam's feelings and told himto go ahead with his task. "Iappreciate your feelings. Goahead , God b less you ,"

Vajpayee responded , thebook says.

Kalam recalls in the bookthat many things happenedsoon after. The Agni Missilesys tem was read ied fo rinduction, five nuclear testswere conduc tedconsecu t ive ly and Ind iabecame a nuc lear weapons ta te . "My dec l in ing toaccept the Cabinet positionenabled me to contribute totwo major na t iona lprogrammes tha t gavespec tacu la r resu l t s to thenation," he said.

Kalam was then the chiefof DRDO. He had taken overas the secretary of DRDO andsc ien t i f i c adv i sor to thedefence min i s te r in 1992itself . He also says that hewas invited by the then TamilNadu governor ChennaReddy to become the v icechance l lo r o f MadrasUnivers i ty and had a l sorequested the government toapprove his appointment asthe vice chancellor, which heintended to take up afterattaining the age of 62. Kalamrecalls that the then Prime

Minister PV Narasimha Rao,who was also the defenceminister, however, asked him tocontinue as scientific advisor asKalam was engaged in a numberof important programmes.

Kalam said he found Rao "veryperceptive" on defence issuesand that the former PrimeMinister had a "long-termvision" of building robustsystems for defence

application. Kalam later onjoined as Principal ScientificAdvisor to the Government ofIndia, a Cabinet rank. He servedon the post from November,1999 to November, 2001.

UP MLAs can buy cars fromdevelopment fund: Akhilesh YadavLUCKNOW: In a controversialmove, Uttar Pradesh chiefminister Akhilesh Yadav placeda proposal in the state assemblywhich allows MLAs to use upto Rs 20 lakh allotted underlocal area development (LAD)fund for buying four wheelers,which MLAs, however, willhave to return to thegovernment after their term isover. The LAD is given toMLAs for the development oftheir constituencies. The movehas been opposed by mostparties in the opposition.

The proposal will coststate exchequer Rs 80.60 crore,if all the 403 MLAs in the stateassembly decide to buy fourwheelers costing Rs 20 lakh. Atpresent, the MLA LAD fund isRs 1.25 crore, which has alsobeen increased to Rs 1.50 crore.

Yadav justified his moveby saying that there are manyMLAs who cannot afford carbut they have to move aroundin their constituencies to meetpeople and solve theirproblems. A vehicle, he said,will provide mobility to theMLAs and he/she can do his/

her work effectively. After five-year term, the MLA will haveoption to return the vehicle tothe government or buy it ondepreciated value. Whileaddressing the assembly, Yadavalso added that the electedmembers should buy a car formonitoring development work.

Congress, BJP and BSPhave opposed the move andhave announced that they theirMLAs will not buy vehicles fromMLA fund. However, theproposal was supported by RLD.

BJP state president LaxmiKant Bajpai said that instead of

making provision in MLA fundfor buying car, the governmentshould provide interest freeloan to MLAs for vehicle. Theloan, he said, should be repaidwithin five years term.

Some of the MLAs,including those of the rulingSamajwadi Party (SP) were ofthe view that MLA LAD shouldbe scrapped because incidentsof misuse of the fund are morein comparison to using it fordevelopment work. As per law,LAD can be used only fordevelopment and not forpersonal benefits.

UP CM'S CAR BONANZA FOR MLAS

Air India pilots, managementto initiate talks to end strike

NEW DELHI: The 58-day-oldstrike by 434 pilots of erstwhileAir India could be nearing anend now. Thanks to theintervention by the Delhi HighCourt on Tuesday, the IndianPilots' Guild (IPG) and themanagement will set aside theiregos and finally begin talks toend the stalemate that hascaused hundreds of crore of loss

to the bankrupt Maharaja andinconvenienced lakhs ofpassengers.

The pilots on Tuesdaypledged before the Delhi highCourt that they will end theirstrike even as the managementof the national airline said it iswilling to re-instate the agitatingpilots. The pilots also toldJustice Reva Khetrapal that they

will join their duties in 48 hoursand provide their joining reports,whereas the pilots whoseservices were terminated duringthe strike would submit reportsexpressing their willingness tojoin the duty. The offer to endthe 58 day strike came after theAI management assured thecourt that it would consider thegrievances of the pilots"sympathetically".

The IPG however denied theAI management's lawyer's claimafter Tuesday's HC hearing thatthe strike had been called off."As of now, the strike is on. Themanagement lawyer should nothave spoken on our behalf anddeclared that the strike has beencalled off. We have beenrequesting the management tohold talks with us from day onebut no one has ever spoken tous directly," said an IPG member.

DON'T POLITICISE ANTI-NAXALOPERATIONS, SAYS CHHATTISGARH CMNEW DELHI : Amid controversyover a recent Naxal encounter inChhattisgarh, state chief ministerRaman Singh on Tuesday askedthe parties not to politicise theissue. "Bijapur encounter wasnot a planned encounter. Suchissues should not bepoliticised," Singh told reportersafter meeting Prime MinisterManmohan Singh in Delhi. Hesaid that Naxals were usinginnocent villagers as shields toprotect themselves from securityforces. A controversy haserupted over the killing of 19people in an anti-Maoistoperation by security forces inthe dense jungles of Dantewada

in Chhattisgarh during the nightintervening June 27 and 28.

The joint operation by over300 CRPF and state policepersonnel has left questionswhether all the victims wereNaxals. To a question over

concerns related to safety ofRowghat mines in Chhattisgarh,he said, "It is unfortunate thatmatters of national developmentsare being opposed by Naxals."The state government isworking towards development ofbackward regions. But Naxalitesare opposing our efforts. Theyare trying to reverse the processof development." The homeministry had on Monday decidedto provide paramilitary forces forsecurity of Steel Authority ofIndia's ambitious Rowghatmining project and forconstruction of a 235-km-longrailway line to transport oreslurry through the Naxal-hit area.

26/11: Abu Jundal names same Pak army officers as Headley didContd. from Page 1 Jundal has told investigators that Abu Kaahfa, Abu Al Qama, Muzzamil ,Sajid Majeed, Abu Anas and AbuHamza were present in the control room from where instructions were given to the 26/11 terrorists.Jundal, who was in the Lashkar-e-Taiba's (LeT) 26/11 control room, was deported last monthfrom Saudi Arabia. He was a Simi member before he joined the outlawed terror outfit IndianMujaheedin (IM), which is accused of perpetrating blasts throughout the country. Jundal isalso accused in the 2006 Aurangabad arms haul. Jundal allegedly played a key role in bringingthe LeT and IM together for their common cause: spreading terror in the name of jihad in India.The LeT has secretly orchestrated and financed several blasts in the country since 2000,including the 2003 twin blasts and 2006 serial train blasts. Security agencies learnt about theLeT-IM link only after the Mumbai Crime Branch busted an IM module with members that hadperpetrated blasts since 2005.Jundal's name also cropped up in the 2010 Pune German Bakery blast, which left 17 dead and 65 wounded. Thepolice discovered that Jundal sent Rs 6 lakh through hawala channels for the blast.


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DINKAR SHARMADINKAR SHARMADINKAR SHARMADINKAR SHARMADINKAR SHARMA ANJANA RAI ANJANA RAI ANJANA RAI ANJANA RAI ANJANA RAI

BUDGET & ADMINISTRATION MANAGERFINANCE DIRECTOR

SUNIL VERMASUNIL VERMASUNIL VERMASUNIL VERMASUNIL VERMARAJNISH VERMARAJNISH VERMARAJNISH VERMARAJNISH VERMARAJNISH VERMA

GRAPHICS DEPARTMENT

RAJESH KAUSHIKRAJESH KAUSHIKRAJESH KAUSHIKRAJESH KAUSHIKRAJESH KAUSHIKMARKETING EXECUTIVE

SUNNY JOSHISUNNY JOSHISUNNY JOSHISUNNY JOSHISUNNY JOSHICORPORATE MARKETING MANAGER

MidWeek

MOST of our presidentswere elected to office on thestrength of their exemplaryr e c o r d o f p u b l i c s e r v i c e .Pranab Mukherjee is all setto join their ranks. But weh a v e a l s o h a d p r e s i d e n t sw h o l a n d e d t h e j o b f o rr e a s o n s t h a t w e r e f a rremoved from their intrinsicmerits. They were creatureso f p o l i t i c a l e x p e d i e n c yalone.

T h e r e i s a n o t h e rcategory of individuals whoserved the nat ion well andyet fai led to get their due.Two in pa r t i cu l a r dese rves p e c i a l m e n t i o n : Y BC h a v a n – w h o s e b i r t hc e n t e n a r y i s b e i n gce lebra ted th i s year – andJagjivan Ram – whose deathanniversary falls on July 6.B o t h c a m e f r o m h u m b l eb a c k g r o u n d s . B o t h h a dm o r e o r l e s s t h e s a m ea c h i e v e m e n t s t o t h e i rc r e d i t . A n d b o t h s u f f e r e dt h e s a m e f a t e : t h e y w e r edenied the two top jobs ofthe republic.

T h o u g h h e i s h a i l e d ,q u i t e c o r r e c t l y, a s t h ea r c h i t e c t o f m o d e r nM a h a r a s h t r a , C h a v a n i nf a c t m a d e s e m i n a lc o n t r i b u t i o n s t o n a t i o n a ll i fe as a whole. Appointedd e f e n c e m i n i s t e r i n t h ewake of the Sino-Indian war,he moved swiftly to restorethe morale of the forces, re-es tab l i sh cord ia l r e la t ionsbetween the forces and thec i v i l i a n g o v e r n m e n t , t a k es t e p s t o m a k e t h e f o r c e s

Pranab’s Victory A New Beginning

self-reliant and forge closet i e s o f c o o p e r a t i o n w i t hm a j o r w o r l d p o w e r s ,especially the United Statesand the Soviet Union.

Later, as home minister,f i n a n c e m i n i s t e r a n dexternal affairs minister, hecontinued his endeavour tos t r e n g t h e n d e m o c r a t i ci n s t i t u t i o n s , p r o m o t ep r a g m a t i c e c o n o m i cpolicies, provide a boost toi n c l u s i v e d e v e l o p m e n tprogrammes and strengthenIndia’s bargaining posi t ionin a bipolar world.

Known for his spotlessc h a r a c t e r , C h a v a n a l s oe a r n e d a n e n v i a b l er e p u t a t i o n a s a p o l i t i c a lleader who had a voraciousappeti te for arts and ideas.He had f r i ends ac ross thep o l i t i c a l s p e c t r u m .M o r e o v e r , h i s b r i l l i a n tora to ry in Mara th i , no t tospeak of his literary gifts inth i s l anguage , gave h im as t a t u r e , e s p e c i a l l y i nMaharash t ra , tha t r emainsunequalled to this day.

T h e h i g h e s t p o s t h ereached was a brief stint asdeputy prime minister underC h a u d h a r y C h a r a n S i n g hafter he quit the Congress.He returned to the Congressf o l d b u t b y t h e n h i sp o l i t i c a l c a r e e r w a s w e l lbehind him.

Much the same fateawaited Babu Jagjivan Ram.I n d e e d , h i s p o l i t i c a lt r a j e c t o r y w a s i n s o m er e s p e c t s i d e n t i c a l t oC h a v a n ’s t r a j e c t o r y. B o t hcame up from the ranks inthe Congress .

B o t h m a d e a m a r k i nt h e i r r e s p e c t i v e s t a t e s .B o t h h e l d s e v e r a lm i n i s t e r i a l p o s t s a t t h eCentre to great effect . Buti n s o m e o t h e r r e s p e c t s ,B a b u j i ’s r e c o r d w a s e v e nmore remarkable. Born in adalit family in Bihar, he wasthe first child in his villaget o g o t o h i g h s c h o o l a n dlater to study at the BenaresHindu Universi ty.

H e j o i n e d a c t i v epolitics in the latter half ofthe 1930s and waged a two-pronged battle; one againstBritish colonial rule and theother for the emancipat iono f t h e d a l i t s . H o w e v e r,unlike the tal lest leader ofthe da l i t s , B R Ambedkar,J a g j i v a n R a m w a s athoroughbred Congressmanwho was utterly in thrall ofM a h a t m a G a n d h i ,J a w a h a r l a l N e h r u a n dM a d a n M o h a n M a l a v i y aamong others. He made hismark in the Congress before

Independence .He was a member of the

C o n s t i t u e n t A s s e m b l y.Much l ike Chavan, he le f this mark in every ministerialposition he held both as anable administrator and as as t a t e s m a n : l a b o u r ,c o m m u n i c a t i o n s , m i n e s ,agriculture (he is seen to bethe p r ime a rch i t ec t o f theGreen Revolution), railwaysand defence at the t ime oft h e B a n g l a d e s h l i b e r a t i o nw a r. L i k e C h a v a n , B a b uJ a g j i v a n R a m q u i t t h eCongress on the eve of thegeneral elections held aftert h e E m e r g e n c y i n 1 9 7 7 .That enabled him to rise tot h e h i g h e s t p o l i t i c a lp o s i t i o n h e e v e r h e l d :deputy prime minister in theJ a n a t a g o v e r n m e n t . W h yd i d t h e y n o t g e t t h e t o pslots? One reason surely ist h a t t h e s t a t u r e o f b o t hd i s c o m f i t e d t h e N e h r u -Gandhi family.

T h e o t h e r w a s t h e i r‘betrayal’ of the Congress.Pranab Mukherjee, who alsoq u i t t h e C o n g r e s s b u tr e t u r n e d t o t h e f o l d a n dthen went from strength tos t r e n g t h , h a s b r o k e n t h ejinx. The significance of hise lec t ion as p res iden t goesw e l l b e y o n d h i s p e r s o n a lattr ibutes. I t s ignals a newc o m i n g o f a g e f o r t h eNehru-Gandhi dynasty andf o r t h e p o l i t i c a le s t ab l i shmen t a s a who le .Yet again the resi l ience ofI n d i a ’s d e m o c r a c y s t a n d svindica ted .

DILEEP PADGAONKAR

INDIAN ECONOMYWHO HOLDS THE KEY?

Sonia Gandhi wants to be India's Lady Bounti-ful, doling out largesse to the poor and needy;Manmohan Singh wants to revive the "animalspirit" in the people. The two approaches justdon't converge-not even through the over-useof a meaningless phrase called 'inclusive' growth.

The Finance Ministry OF India, now under the direct charge ofthe Prime Minister, to promise a review of the more ridiculousfacets of Pranab Mukherjee's Budget for the Sensex to gain

439 points on a single day and for the Indian Rupee to appreciate invalue. That it took so little effort to boost sentiment merely showsthe extent to which the despondency over economic mismanagementwas also accompanied by a feeling that many of the problemsconfronting India are self-inflicted. India is anxious for good newsbut the Government has given them so little to be cheerful about.

So deep is the dejection that the PMO's tweet about theGovernment helping India to recover the "animal spirit" in theeconomy was accompanied by an innocent question: Is the mousean animal?

It's a question that will be uppermost in the minds of both Indiansand all those with a stake in India. For too long, Manmohan Singhhas given the impression that he has abdicated his largerresponsibilities. He has watched passively as important CabinetMinisters took decisions and acted in a way that was inimical to theinterests of the country. He probably knew that what they weredoing was wrong and often unethical - the 2G issue is a prime example.Yet, he did nothing to guide them into doing the right thing - therebyfostering the impression that he was too weak to intervene.

Are things different now that he is also wearing the hat of theFinance Minister? Is the troika of Manmohan-Montek SinghAhluwalia-C Rangarajan the equivalent of Douglas Jardine's teamthat decimated an Australian side which included the legendaryDon Bradman? With Bodyline bowling, Jardine displayed an "animal

spirit" not hitherto associated with either the MCC or indeed cricket.Will Manmohan Singh ruthlessly sweep away the bureaucratic inertiaand the sanctions raj and make India an entrepreneur-friendlycountry? Will he complement the natural Indian desire to createwealth with purposeful governance?

The problem is that when the issue of 'reforms' is scrutinised forconcrete details, last Friday's stock market rally begins to look like about of irrational exuberance. There was a time when good politicsand good economics meant Government doing as little as possibleand allowing market forces to do the needful. Unfortunately, thattime is long gone.

The souring of the India story owes a great deal to malevolentgovernance. The fiscal deficit cannot be brought under control unlessGovernment expenditure keeps a healthy balance with revenues;the bottlenecks in production cannot be removed unless theGovernment attends to the power deficit, speeds up work on theMumbai-Delhi corridor, improves surface transport and improvesthe productivity of ports; and entrepreneurship cannot flower unlessthe number of official sanctions is sharply reduced, corruption isbrought under control and environmental clearances stop beingused as a political plaything.

There is, of course, another grave issue that the PM mustaddress. For the past seven years, there has been a divergence ofapproach involving the political head of the Government and thenominal head of the Cabinet. This has led to policy incoherence anddrift. Sonia Gandhi wants to be India's Lady Bountiful, doling outlargesse to the poor and needy; Manmohan Singh wants to revivethe "animal spirit" in the people. The two approaches just don'tconverge-not even through the over-use of a meaningless phrasecalled 'inclusive' growth. The issue that, therefore, has to be exploredis simple: has the balance of power tilted abruptly against Sonia

Gandhi after a series of embarrassments over the presidential election?Yes, there is no question that all the sophistry of Digvijay Singhhasn't been able to dispel the belief that the Congress president isweaker than she was six months ago. More than being forced toselect Pranab Babu over her preferred choice Hamid Ansari, it is thedefeat in Uttar Pradesh and the decimation in Andhra Pradesh thathave undermined the dynastic forces. Add to this the sorry spectacleof the heir apparent reduced to making sporadic appearances andperforming item numbers that have no bearing on the main plot, andthe demoralisation of the Congress will be apparent.

However, the weakening of Sonia hasn't led to a correspondingenhancement of the PM's political clout. That the PM still has tobank on Montek and Rangarajan to fulfil his economic agenda showshow clearly isolated he is in the political arena. Jairam Ramesh'sdecision to both submit and publicise his job application as FinanceMinister to 10 Janpath suggests that Manmohan's continuation asFinance Minister is not a given. In any case, the PM will be loath toface up to insolent parliamentary interrogation in the Monsoonsession.

To attend to India's faltering economy, the country has to firstaddress its political listlessness.



community INDIAN COUPLE GETS$36.48 MILLION INACCIDENTCOMPENSATION IP8

TIGER JUNIOR, LISA RAIT(LABOUR MINISTER),SUSAN FENNEL(MAYOR OF BRAMPTON),TIGER ALI SINGH, PARAM GILL (M.P.) & VICKY DHILLON ( BRAMPTON COUNCILLOR)

CANADA DAY CELEBRATIONS

Indian Americans most educated, richest, says Pew reportIndian Americans are the most educated population in the

US, with more than 80 per cent holding college or advanceddegrees, stated a report released June 19 by the Pew Research

Center.Indians Americans also have the highest income levels, earning

$65,000 per year with a median household income of $88,000, farhigher than the US household average of 49,000, according to thesurvey.

But the report, titled "The Rise of Asian Americans," wasimmediately taken to task by several organizations for its seemingly-homogenous portrayal of the US's fastest growing ethnic population.

"Our community is not a monolith," said Deepa Iyer, executivedirector of South Asian Americans Leading Together, in an interviewwith NPR. Iyer, who also serves as chair of the National Council ofAsian Pacific Americans, said that the community has historicallybeen seen as a model minority, or job takers, and viewed withsuspicion.

"We need to make sure we are not portraying a one-dimensionalpicture of our community. We have to look at those who are not asmuch of a success story," said Iyer, calling for the disaggregation ofdata of various Asian American subgroups.

In a letter to India-West, Iyer noted that one out of five SouthAsian Americans lack health insurance and one out of every threeBangladeshis in New York lives in poverty. "South Asians as a wholecontinue to face discrimination and immigration barriers and oftenlack access to vital services," she said.

"If we ignore the disparities within our communities in favor ofa model minority narrative, then government agencies, philanthropicinstitutions and lawmakers may leave us out when designingprograms, providing funding or changing policy intended to addresspressing issues many Americans face," stated Iyer.

The Asian American Center for Justice applauded the PewCenter for surveying the community, but said its findings were "overlysimplistic." Household income is a poor measure of success forimmigrant communities, which tend to have a larger number ofworkers per household and a greater number of people who rely onthe income, noted the AAJC.

The 225-page Pew report does disaggregate data for the Indian,Chinese, Filipino, Vietnamese, Korean and Japanese Americanpopulation, but lumps Bangladeshis into the "other Asian" category.The report contains no data for the Pakistani, Afghan, Sri Lankan,Nepali or Bhutanese communities.

The 3,511 people interviewed for the survey included 580 IndianAmericans who were interviewed earlier this year. While householdincome surpasses that of the US population at large, slightly morethan half of Indian Americans own their homes, compared to a two-thirds rate of home ownership among the US population at large.

Nine per cent of Indian Americans live in poverty, defined as$19,000 annually for a family of three.

Nearly 87 per cent of the Indian American population is foreignborn, and eight per cent of the families surveyed have had a baby inthe past year, as opposed to seven percent in the total US population.

Almost three-fourths of Indian Americans are married,significantly higher than for the US overall, in which only half aremarried. Ninety-two percent of Indian American children live withtwo married parents, and only two per cent of Indian American babies

are born to unwed mothers.Only eight per cent of Indians view the US as better for the

strength of family ties; 69 percent regard India as better in thatregard, but still see America as a good place to raise children.

Whether myth or reality, Asian Americans have gained areputation for being strict and demanding parents. Indian Americansstood out from the other Asian groups for the emphasis they put ongood parenting and more than 71 per cent believe American parentsare too easy on their children. More than two-thirds of IndianAmericans believe that parents should have some influence on theirchildren's career choices.

One-fourth of the nation's 3.1 million Indian Americans live inthe West, while 31 percent live in the Northeast and 29 per cent livein the South.

Compared to other Asian Americans, Indians are the most likelyto identify as Democrats; 65 per cent are registered for that party orlean that way. Eighteen percent are Republicans.

Two-thirds of Indian Americans approve of President BarackObama's job performance, according to the Pew report.

Asian Americans are also strong proponents of hard work withtwo-thirds of those surveyed saying that people can get ahead ifthey're willing to work hard. Only 27 per cent say hard work is nodeterminant of success. Interestingly, three-fourths of IndianAmericans say hard work is the key to success whilst only two-thirds of Indians in India believe the same.

More than half of Indian Americans believe they will do betterin life than their parents, whereas less than one-third of Indians

living in India believe the same. The Pew report noted that the Indianeconomic climate has shifted dramatically in recent years, which hasled Indian Americans to be less positive about conditions in thehome country. Almost 60 percent are dissatisfied with economicconditions in India, but reported high levels of satisfaction with theUS economic climate. Indian Americans were also the highest ethnicgroup to describe their personal financial situation as good orexcellent, and the most likely to say that Asian American successsurpasses the US population at large.

Indian Americans are the most educated population in the US,with more than 80 per cent holding college or advanced degrees,stated a report released June 19 by the Pew Research Center.

NRI in Canada asked to pay alimony to estranged wife in IndiaNEW DELHI: A non-resident Indian has been asked by a

Delhi court to pay an alimony of Rs 33,000 a month to his estrangedwife living here.

Additional Sessions Judge (ASJ) Ila Rawat ordered PuneetArora, residing in Canada with his parents and sister, to paymaintenance to his wife from January 2010 when she had movedthe court for the alimony.

The sessions court's order came on the woman's plea formodification of a magisterial court order, which had allowed heran alimony of Rs 33,000 a month but had slated the date of itspayment from August 5, 2011, the day the trial court had givenits ruling.

"The respondent no. 1 (Puneet) is directed to pay Rs 33,000per month towards maintenance and for rent amount to his wife(the petitioner) from the date of filing the application," said ASJRawat, slating the 10th day of every month as the date forpayment of the alimony.

In her plea, the woman had said she was married to Puneeton September 15, 2009 with her parent giving sufficient dowry tohim as per his family's demand.

She said Puneet left for Canada after a fortnight of hismarriage and when she joined him after five months after grant ofvisa, she was not treated properly and was not given the statusof wife.

She said her in-laws and husband threatened, harassed,tortured, taunted and even beat her up despite receiving ampleamount of dowry from her parents.

She also alleged that her husband was having an extra maritalaffair with a divorced woman in Canada and with whom she hadseen him in objectionable position.

Ultimately, she was forced to leave Canada on December 7,2009 and took shelter at her parental home in India without anymonetary help from her husband for her maintenance and day today expenses, she said.


TUESDAY, JULY 3, 2012c o m m u n i t y

M AT R I M O N I A LParents are looking for a suitable match for marriage inCanada of their only son 23 years of age in India. Boy

belongs to Punjabi Jat Sikh family, standing at 6 feet tall,clean shaven with athletic built. Graduate of technical

diploma from India. Parents would like to settle the boy inCanada. To meet with the parents presently in Canada or to

get more information.

PLEASE CONTACT AT 416 844 2469

T R U C K D I S PAT C H E RA Trucking company is looking for Truck dispatcher in

Mississaua area. Candidate must have knowledge of majorNorth America cities. Good communication skills, computer

skills, customer service and must know Punjabi.Interested candidate must fax resume at

(905) 793- 1932 or e_mail [email protected]

WANTED CRICKET PLAYERSABOVE 16 YRS, FOR CPC INTERCITY

CRICKET TOURNAMENT-2012For more information call: Manav Sharma 416-471-6646

e-mail: [email protected]

C L A S S I F I E D S

Going the ‘Extra Mile’FOR YOUR PASSION

MUMBAI: The Extra Mile Café,a peaceful seating area amidstthe hustle bustle of Bandra, hasmore to offer than other ordinarycafés. It goes the extra mile tocater a variety of one-dayworkshops to help you hone yourskills and discover your hiddenzeal.

If you ever wanted to tryyour hands on photography,creative writing, film making,acting, modelling, styling,bartending and many more thingsto pursue your passion or just for

fun then The Extra Mile Café isthe place for you. Not only arethese workshops conducted byindustry experts but the café tooin some cases provides therequired necessities. Forinstance, they have a studio atMadhIsland with all theequipment including lights,camera, costumes required for amovie shoot. So, all you need todo is choose a workshop of yourinterest and apply as an individualor as a group to get hands onexperience for a nominal fee.

Pooja Chadha, Founder andCEO of The Extra Mile Café, says“It all started when I was workingas a marketing professional a fewyears ago. Back then mycolleagues, friends and even I attimes used to wonder if only wecould pursue our passion andlearn new things along with theroutine work then life would havebeen more fun. And that’s howthe idea of opening up a culturalhub, where you meet like-mindedpeople, came to me. Since thenwe have conducted differentkinds of workshops and hobbymanagement sessions forcorporates like Birla Sun Life andPinstorm. In one of the stylingworkshops taken by TanyaGhavri some of the participantswere also hired by her.”

EM Café, which started ayear ago, conducts variousworkshops for individuals as wellas corporates. Anyone whowants to learn a new skill underthe guidance of renownedprofessionals and has two tothree hours to spare can enrol forthem. After all, what’s better thanto discovering yourself throughexperiential learning!

Marrying an NRI is no longer in vogueNervous, excited, anxious...it isindeed a cocktail of feelings whenyou're about to get married, and to anon-resident Indian (NRI) at that. Butdoesn't the emotional hullabalooappear trivial as compared to theattraction that the West offers? Well,in the present times, the consensushas to be, negative.

Five years ago, came a marriageproposal from the West for MrsWalia's eldest daughter, Anchal. Thesoftware professional working witha world-renowned IT consultancyfirm in New Jersey proudly flauntedhis sound bank balance, offered apromising (read secure) future,which made the Walias very happy.Not a minute was wasted and thenewly married couple flew to theirabode in the US. But that was fiveyears ago. Today, when the family isonce again on a groom-huntingmission for Anchal's younger sister,their priority, or rather interest, strictlydenies any overseas prospect. "Ourdaughter has been away for a longtime. She and her family can visit usonly once in two years. We don'twant the same situation with ouryounger daughter," says a changedMrs Walia, who has let her outlooktake a gradual U-turn. Over the years,the fascination for the West,especially when it comes to match-making, has undergone a completetransformation. Modern Indianfamilies that solely rested theirdecisions on common baits likefinancial security, better standard ofliving, and career growth for their to-

be-married children, refuse to getlured any more. Reasons are galore -India is progressing at a breakneckspeed, there is no dearth of betterpaying jobs here, job insecurity is athing of the past, travelling overseasis a part of the job now, and mostimportantly, people want to be closerto home. More than parentsdisapproving the idea of marryingNRIs, it is the children who areindifferent towards relocating toanother country. Sharmistha Basu,an IT professional from Bangaloresays, "My parents had reluctantlylooked for a match for me fromsomeone in the US but since I hadnever been eager to live elsewhereexcept India, I turned it down. Theywere overjoyed with my decision. I

just don't want to stay far away fromthem since I am the only daughter."Concurring with the waning interestin NRIs, Murugavel Janakiraman,CEO of a matrimony website, says,"The demand for NRIs, grooms andbrides alike, is not the same as it was10 years ago when we started thebusiness. There's been a tremendousdecline in the number of profilesopting for NRI matches. Today, outof 100, only 25 per cent of profileswould click on the preference for NRIgroom/bride matches, so you canwell imagine the plunge." Indianbrides might be on a spree ofignoring eligible NRI matches but itseems that the grooms are in for hardluck. Gaurav Kapoor, a resident ofthe United States, is one such case.

Indian couple gets$36.48 million inaccident compensationWASHINGTON: An Indiancouple, who sustained seriousinjuries in an accident in the USin 2010, has been awarded awhopping $36.48 million ascompensation by a Californiacourt.

A Riverside CountySuperior Court jury awarded$36.48 million to Prakash Sheth,64, and his wife, Jashiree Sheth,58, from Mumbai, whose car wasstruck by a big-rig on Interstate10 in Beaumont two years ago.

At the time of the accident,the Sheths were visiting the USfrom India and were on their wayto an airport in Orange Countyfor a family vacation in Hawaii.

According to the plaintiffs'attorneys, the Sheths were beingdriven by an American relativeto John Wayne Airport in SantaAna when their vehicle was hitby an 18-wheeler truck that wentaround the victims' car but failedto completely clear the sedanwhile changing lanes, Valleynews reported.

"The impact of the truckcaused the Sheths' vehicle tospin out of control across thefreeway, where it hit the median

barrier and was struck by anothervehicle," according to astatement released by Panish,Shea & Boyle, the law firmrepresenting the couple.

All of the occupants werehurt, but Jashiree received theworst injuries, including a spinalfracture that left her paralyzed.She now requires 24-hour care,said attorney Brian Panish.

"The plaintiffs havesuffered tremendously and willcontinue to suffer for the rest oftheir lives," he said. "The juryrecognised this with theirverdict. Justice was done."

The jury award against the

truck company SchneiderNational included $469,490 inpast medical expenses, $4.8million for future medicalexpenses, $6 million for past painand suffering and $22 million forfuture pain and suffering.

It was not immediately clearwhether Schneider planned toappeal the jury verdict andaward. Company representativescould not immediately bereached for comment.

There was no answer fromSchneider National's corporateoffice. A company spokeswomancould not immediately bereached for comment.



canadaCANADA WON'T PREDICTREACTION TO ANY RIMTAKEOVER BIDI P10

In Quebec, Canada Day celebrationsshine light on debate over national unityMONTREAL : As residentsgather at barbecues, parks andparades across the country tocelebrate Canada Day, many inQuebec will be focused on otherthings, whether it's movingapartments or relaxing in the sun.The national holiday has neverattracted the same level of flag-waving patriotism in Quebecseen in other parts of thecountry. Many in the provinceconsider themselves Quebecersfirst, and Canadians second. Theprovince's St. Jean Baptiste Dayfestivities, held seven daysearlier, bring together far morepeople. "I celebrate both, but St.Jean is more important," 65-year-old Montreal resident MoniqueBourget said while walking herdog in a park. This year though,Canada Day in Quebec appearsto highlight a larger issue.

The long-dormant debateover national unity has come alittle closer to the surface overrecent months, with speculationthe separatist Parti Quebecoiscould form the next provincialgovernment. The strugglingQuebec Liberals could call anearly fall election and the PQ, led

by Pauline Marois, has a chanceat leading Quebec after nearly adecade under Premier JeanCharest.

Prime Minister StephenHarper seems well aware of thepossible change in theprovince's political landscape.Earlier this month he met withformer prime minister BrianMulroney and Charest for adviceon the national unity issue.

The Conservatives havelittle clout in the province,having won just five of Quebec's75 federal seats in the lastelection. That puts them in aweak position to lead anyrenewed unity debate. It appearsthe rest of Canada may not beup for another national unitytest either. A poll released thisweek suggested many in the restof Canada aren't too worriedabout Quebec, with about halfsaying they don't care if theprovince splits from the rest ofCanada. Meanwhile in Quebecitself, sovereignty — which hashistorically been a hot topic —doesn't seem to be ranking ashigh with many voters today.Another recent poll suggested

only four per cent saw it as thekey election issue, well behindcorruption and the conflict over

tuition fee increases in theprovince.

(Contd. on page 10)

A MAN, DRAPPED BY THE QUEBEC FLAG, WAVES ACANADIAN FLAG DURING THE CANADA DAY PARADE ONJULY 1, 2000 IN MONTREAL.

CANADA'S TROUBLEDASBESTOS INDUSTRY GETSA $58 MILLION LIFELINE

ASBESTOS, QUE. : Canada'sbeleaguered asbestos industry,which has been a target ofactivists who link its product tocancer, has been given a $58million lease on life by theQuebec government.

While the industry hasappeared on the brink ofcollapse, Friday's long-rumouredprovincial loan will cover morethan two-thirds of the cost ofrenovating and reopening theJeffrey Mine in Asbestos, Que.— a move that could keepproduction going for another 20years.

Critics here and abroadhave called it immoral for Canadato be exporting the substance todeveloping countries wheresafety standards are suspect.One of the last two remainingasbestos facilities in Canada,Jeffrey Mine suspendedproduction last year due tofinancial problems. The othermine, Lac d'amiante du Canadain nearby Thetford Mines, shutdown shortly afterward but someproponents hope it can berevived as well. At its peak, theonce-mighty Canadian asbestosindustry helped create entire

towns and dominatedinternational production of themineral used in fireproofing andinsulation.

The deal to refurbish JeffreyMine will see private investors,led by Balcorp Ltd., kick inanother $25 million. The ownerswill have to provide royaltiesalong with annual fees that, overtime, will see $7.5 million putaside to diversify the region'seconomy. The announcement,which was made before anapplauding crowd of around 700townsfolk, had been expected forsome time. Speculation about thereopening has drawn attentionin international media includingthe New York Times, which lastyear ran a long feature on, "atown called Asbestos." Balcorppresident Baljit Chadha alsoindicated last year he was closeto securing the necessaryfunding from an internationalconsortium of investors. "Thisis excellent news for the city ofAsbestos and for the region,"said Yvon Vallieres, the localMNA and cabinet minister whois retiring from provincialpolitics.

(Contd. on page 10)

THE JEFFREY OPEN-PIT ASBESTOS MINE IS SHOWN ONOCTOBER 7, 2011 IN ASBESTOS QUE. CANADA'S BELEA-GUERED ASBESTOS INDUSTRY, WHICH HAS BEEN A TAR-GET OF ACTIVISTS WHO LINK ITS PRODUCT TO CANCER,HAS BEEN GIVEN A $58 MILLION LEASE ON LIFE BY THEQUEBEC GOVERNMENT.

2 NOVA SCOTIANS NAMED TO THE ORDER OF CANADARideau Hall has released the latest list of appointees to the Order of Canada, and it includes two Nova Scotians. Author SilverDonald Cameron and developer Wadih Fares have been named members to Canada's highest honour. Cameron is an author andcolumnist with deep roots on Cape Breton Island. He said this honour is a wonderful 75th birthday present.

"It's very gratifying getting towards the end of your career to have the sense that the country thinks that you haven't entirelywasted your life," Cameron said. "It's a wonderful validation, really."

Fares came to Halifax from war-torn Lebanon in his teens with almost no money. He's now a developer whose projects includeone of the newest landmarks in the city, The Trillium on South Park. Fares has an entire wall of honours decorating his office but saidbeing awarded the Order of Canada caught him off-guard. "When I first learned about it I was stunned," Fares said. "I wasoverwhelmed." Fares is also a strong voice in Halifax's tightly-knit Lebanese community and was a key player in convincing PrimeMinister Stephen Harper to designate Pier 21 a national museum. He said this honour is a result of hard work from his employees, hiswife of 20 years, his family and his community. "I take this on their behalf because, definitely, you don't get here by yourself. Self-made men, they don't make it on their own," Fares said. Fares calls the honour, "A huge sign for all immigrants out there, allnewcomers out there that this country truly is the country of opportunity, the country of equality." He said the honour is a lessonfor all those who give back to their community. "Contributing to your community doesn't go unseen or unappreciated," Fares said.The Order of Canada will be presented at a ceremony at Rideau Hall later this year. The newest recipients are being honoured for theirachievements in politics, sports, journalism, the arts, and many other fields. Also nominated this year is former Alberta Premier RalphKlein and former NHL player and coach Pat Quinn.

PRIME MINISTER STEPHEN HARPER SHAKES HANDS WITH CANADIANS CELEBRATING CANADA DAY ON PARLIAMENT HILL

CANADA DAY CELEBRATIONS


TUESDAY, JULY 3, 2012c a n a d a

In Quebec, Canada Day celebrationsshine light on debate over national unity(Contd. from page 9)But Quebec's determination to maintain a cultural identity distinct from the rest of Canada seems topersist. "We are Quebecois, that's what makes us unique in North America," said Robert Dufour, a61-year-old Montreal resident and longtime sovereigntist. "People compare us to Ontario, and saymaybe we should be this way or that way, but we're not Ontario." Dufour added though that there'sno longer the same sense of urgency to see Quebec form its own country. "I don't think the PartiQuebecois is the inspiration it once was," he said. "The PQ is more focused on a good administrationthat would benefit Quebecers, rather than holding a referendum (on sovereignty)." Dufour saidQuebec's protests over tuition fees, which spawned a far broader movement related to social andenvironmental issues, are further proof that Quebecers have different values than the rest of Canada.The next generation in Quebec has shown it wants to ensure the province retains its social values,he said. Lorne Bozinoff, president of the polling firm Forum Research, noted the Parti Quebecois hasavoided making sovereignty its main issue. "I think the key thing is they've stayed away fromsaying they'll hold a referendum," Bozinoff said. "I think until they say we're going to have areferendum, it's a different ball game." There are, of course, events still scheduled for Canada Day inQuebec, including a parade in downtown Montreal that annually draws a sizeable crowd.

Emi Wang, a 25-year-old who moved to Montreal from China three years ago, said she's planningto attend the festivities. She takes part in St. Jean celebrations as well and finds both holidays a lotof fun. "It's a very special place," she said of Montreal. "I find it really different than all the otherCanadian cities. Living here is like living in America and Europe at the same time." That doesn't meanQuebecers will be celebrating today en masse though. For many Montrealers, July 1 is known moreas the city's annual moving day than anything else. Preparations for Canada Day have receivedlittle coverage in Quebec in recent days. The biggest buzz around the holiday was over the decisionby the Harper government to lead the celebrations in Ottawa with a rendition of "God Save TheQueen," irking those Quebecers who feel no connection with the monarchy. Still, one Montreal-arearesident, Andre Linskiy, said he planned to make the two-hour trip to Ottawa to join the big bash onParliament Hill. "We drive there with our kids because nothing is scheduled here," he said.

(Contd. from page 9)"The reopening of the mine willnot only create 425 full-timejobs, especially for youngpeople, but it will also contributeto development in Asbestos, aone-industry town." He citedpredictions that worldwidedemand for asbestos wouldincrease — especially in India —while the supply would drop. Hesaid an external audit with arespected firm would monitorwhether the material was beinghandled safely by Jeffrey'sforeign customers.

The announcement came asrumours swirled about a possibleprovincial election in September.Vallieres, the long-time Liberallegislature member for the area,has announced he is notrunning.

Industry proponents insistasbestos can be used safely if itis handled properly and say thechrysotile asbestosmanufactured at the Jeffrey Mineis not as dangerous as otherforms of the material. But not

CANADA'S TROUBLED ASBESTOSINDUSTRY GETS A $58 MILLION LIFELINE

everyone hailed the news. Dr.Yves Bonnier Viger, president ofan association of Quebec medicalspecialists, criticized the move."It makes me very sad," said Dr.Yves Bonnier Viger, president ofan association of Quebec medicalspecialists in public health.

"It shows an insensitivityto the scientific data and a lackof respect for the health and well-being of the population." Thedoctor said he and his colleagueswill lobby the government toreverse its decision.

Attempts to restart theJeffrey Mine have beenpummelled by an internationalanti-asbestos campaign led byphysicians, activists andasbestos victims who insist thematerial is linked to cancer.

A senior official of the WorldHealth Organization says itstands by its estimate thatasbestos-related diseases, suchas certain forms of lung cancer,kill more than 107,000 peoplearound the world each year. Thefigure relates specifically to

people exposed to asbestosfibres at work.

Ivan Ivanov, a team leaderin WHO's department of publichealth and the environment, saidearlier this year the estimate inbased on data from publishedscientific research.

However, BernardCoulombe, the president ofJeffrey Mine, has challenged thedata, calling it an exaggerationbased on unfounded evidence.He said in a news release Fridaythat the product produced atJeffrey will be used safely —principally as a component incement for infrastructure likeaqueducts, wells, and buildingsthat are mostly agricultural.

The news release noted thatthe Quebec government recentlysigned an agreement with Indiaon the safe use of miningmaterials. "We have taken allnecessary measures to ensurethat chrysotile be used safely byall our clients," Coulombe said. -With files by Nelson Wyatt andSylvain Larocque

Canada won't predict reactionTO ANY RIM TAKEOVER BIDOTTAWA : St ruggl ingBlackBerry maker Research InMotion is important to bothCanada and the wor ld ,Canadian Finance Minis terJim Flaherty said on Friday,but he refused to be drawn onwhether the governmentwould a l low a fo re igntakeover of the company. "Ifthere were a proposal for RIMor part of RIM coming fromoutside Canada, then that's amat te r tha t o f course theminister of industry wouldreview, should it fall under thete rms of the Inves tmentCanada Act . But I 'm no tgoing to speculate becausethere ' s , a s fa r as I know,nothing being proposed rightnow," Flaherty told reporters.

The Investment CanadaAct requ i res governmentapprova l o f any fo re igntakeover worth C$330 million($324 million) or more, a levelwhich almost certainly wouldinc lude t ransac t ionsinvolving RIM. Flaherty wasspeaking on a conference callfrom Ireland the day after RIMshocked markets byannouncing a delay in thecri t ical launch of i ts next-generat ion BlackBerrysmartphones as well as asteeper-than-expected lossand extensive job cuts. PeterMisek, a Canadian analyst atJefferies in New York, said RIMhad indelibly harmed theCanadian tech sector bydigging itself into the hole it is

in."They were champions

and now they've becomepariahs," Misek said, addingCanada's future has to beinnovation and technology. "Ina generation or two Canada will

be a resource-depleted, ThirdWorld country. If it doesn't fixi ts abil i ty to foster globaltechnology companies, it willbe in a lot of trouble." Miseksaid, however, that he did notthink Ottawa should buy RIM

or get directly involved.Prime Minister Stephen

Harper told Reuters inFebruary that he wanted RIMto grow as "a Canadiancompany". He said takeoversof critical technology that thegovernment has invested in, orhosti le takeovers of keyCanadian businesses, were notin Canada's interest.

Flaherty, asked what stepsthe government might be ableto take to help RIM keep going,responded: "RIM is animportant company not only inCanada but globally. I useBlackBerrys. I'm not going tospeculate about what stepscould be taken, because thesteps to be taken are reallysteps for the company to take,

to decide on its path forwardin order to stabil ize thecompany. So I will leave thatto them." He added, however,without explanation: "Thatdoes not mean we do notspeak, but they need to look attheir own options and tochoose their path." He alsorefused to be drawn on whetherthe United States hadexpressed any reservationsabout possible bids fromoutside North America, giventhe importance of RIM tocommunications security. ThePentagon is RIM's biggestcustomer. Asked ifWashington had made anyrepresentations about that toCanada, he said simply: "Notto me."

Canada’s single-payerhealth plan turns 50PORT TOWNSEND, WASH. :The same week that PresidentObama’s health-care programsqueaked through the U.S.Supreme Court, Canada markedthe 50th anniversary of its ownnational health care. But it, too,needs to change, despite itshuge popular i ty with mostCanadians. Just not asdrast ical ly as the potholedU.S. system needs to change.

Single-payer’s popularitywith Canadians may also be itsAchilles’ heel (not a medicalcondition). Do Canadians stillhave an “unheal thysuperiori ty complex” abouttheir s ingle-payer system?Some Canadian commentatorsand columnists think so.They’re charging, and I agree,that this national smugness isinterfer ing with makingmeaningful and long-overduechanges to Canada’s healthsystem.

That’s because nationalhealth care has become part ofCanada’s national identity —more so than ever after yearsof American heal th-careopponents ‘ dis tor t ing andlying about the Canadiansystem. The U.S. spendsabout half again as much onhealth care as Canada — 18%of GDP versus Canada’s11.7%, and s tudies haveshown i t doesn’t providebetter outcomes. “In the U.S.,

they check your wallet beforeyour pulse,” former PrimeMinister Jean Chretien oncefamously said. He wasreferring to what is sometimescalled “wallet biopsies” here inthe States.

Being un-American haslong been a big par t ofCanadian identity. And eventhough that’s changedconsiderably as Canada’sprofi le and prest ige in theworld has risen, Canada’s un-American health care remainshugely popular — part lybecause i t actual ly works(more or less), but also partlybecause Canada had it a half-century before i ts U.S.neighbors.

Health care for all is calledsimply (lowercase) “medicare”

in Canada, and it was adoptednat ional ly four years af terSaskatchewan ‘s social is tPremier Tommy Douglas —later named “The GreatestCanadian” in a national CBCvote — inst i tuted i t in hiswestern province. EachCanadian province managesits own single-payer system,drawing most of the fundingfrom Ottawa. But that’s slowlychanging as Stephen Harper’sgovernment gradually reducesfederal spending across theboard, aiming for a balancedCanadian budget in threeyears. Still, despite looming(and actual) funding problems,Canadians take “smug andunwarranted satisfaction,” asone Toronto columnist puts it,in their health-care system,which, despite what you oftenhear in some U.S. media, doesNOT leave Canadians waitingfor critical care. (If you showup at an E.R. in Canada, you‘ll get right in. For other, non-life-threatening things, yes,you may well wait longer to seea doctor or specialist than youwould in the U.S.) Both theU.S. and Canada ration healthcare. Everyone does.Traditionally, in the U.S., it’sbeen done by income. InCanada, it’s been done on anas-needed basis, which makesa lot more sense and is farmore humane.

HOW THE WORLD SEES CANADA, PAGE 2This is the second page of contributions, after CBC News asked people knowledgeable about Canadabut outside of North America to give us their views on Canada's image abroad. The responses — from11 countries — touch on a range of emotions, from humour to love, joy and distress. Here's page two.(There's a link to page one on the left.) When I was working on my PhD in law in the UK I heard Canadacalled parochial, somehow a quaint offshoot of British culture that had not really emerged as a meaningfulnation. When I joined the British Association for Canadian Studies I began to understand how Canadareally does exert its influence. At one conference I listened to an Italian legal scholar describe how theharm principle, and other aspects of our Charter law would be beneficial for the ethnic tensions in Italy.This is only one small example of how I saw Canadian domestic and foreign policy discussed as a wayforward for the world. I believe I became much more proud of being Canadian by seeing how the worldviewed us. We now live in the United Arab Emirates where Canada has little influence or presence. TheAbu Dhabi embassy office was just closed down so I do not see much influence seeding here at all. Infact, the only thing being Canadian is apparently good for is that if you tell a taxi driver you are fromCanada they don't want to debate American politics. More than one of my American friends havebecome Canadian, at least during their cab ride. Lawyer Tracie Lea Scott lives in Abu Dhabi, U.A.E.

Canada seems to have lost its desire for positive self-promotion on the world stage at the very timewhen the nation needs to shore up its reputation most! Not so long ago the Canadian government madefunds available so that I might teach students about “the better America.” It also gave money for booksand paid for research into Canadian themes.



worldworldworldworldIRAN TO FIGHTBACK 'MALICIOUS'OIL BAN

I P12

53 ARRESTED IN LANKADENGUE CRACKDOWN

The Sri Lankanpolice along withdefence forcesarrested 53persons fromColombo forfailing to preventbreeding ofm o s q u i t o e saround theirhomes.

COLOMBO: With cases ofdengue r i s ing sharp ly, theSri Lankan police along withd e f e n c e f o r c e s t o d a ya r r e s t e d 5 3 p e r s o n s f r o mC o l o m b o f o r f a i l i n g t op r e v e n t b r e e d i n g o fm o s q u i t o e s a r o u n d t h e i rh o m e s . " S o m e 1 1 , 0 0 0household were checked inthe special campaign and 53p e r s o n s w e r e a r r e s t e d f o rh a v i n g d e n g u e m o s q u i t o

b reed ing g rounds , " po l i cespokesman super in tendent ,Ajith Rohana said.

H e a l t h o f f i c i a l s a l s oa s s i s t e d t h e p o l i c e a n dd e f e n c e f o r c e s i n t h eoperation which was carriedout between 9am and 4pm.Health authorit ies searchedt h e r e s i d e n t i a l a r e a s f o rs t a g n a n t w a t e r, w h i c h i st h e y k e y f o r m o s q u i t ob r e e d i n g g r o u n d , h e s a i d

adding, they will prosecutep e o p l e w h o i g n o r e d t h em e a s u r e s t o k e e p t h eenv i rons f ree o f mosqu i tobreeding grounds.

D u r i n g t h e f i r s t s i xm o n t h s o f t h e y e a r, t h e r ewere 11,300 dengue patientsa n d 7 6 d e a t h s i n t h ecountry. This marks a three-fold increase in number ofdengue cases over the las tyear.

MEXICO RETURNS FORMERRULING PARTY TO POWER

MEXICO CITY: Mexico's oldguard sailed back into powerafter a 12-year hiatus Sunday asthe official preliminary votecount handed a victory toEnrique Pena Nieto, whoseparty was long accused ofruling the country throughcorruption and patronage. Thesecond place candidate, leftistAndres Manuel Lopez Obrador,refused to concede, saying hewould wait for a full count.

The Federal ElectoralInstitute's representative countsaid Pena Nieto of theInstitutional RevolutionaryParty, or PRI, won about 38percent of the vote, promptingwild cheers from a party thatwas voted out in 2000 after 71autocratic years in power. LopezObrador of the DemocraticRevolution Party had 31 percentand Josefina Vazquez Mota ofthe ruling National Action Partyhad about 25 percent,according to the institute. PenaNieto, who sought to casthimself as the leader of a newPRI, called his victory "a fiestaof democracy."

"There is no return to thepast," said the youthful, 45-year-old who is married to a soapopera star. "You have given ourparty a second chance and wewill deliver results."

He promised a governmentthat would be democratic,modern and open to criticism. Hepledged to fight organized crimeand said there would be no pactswith criminals.

"My gratitude tonight is forthe millions of Mexican whovoted for me," he said. "I willwork for all of Mexico ... I willgovern for everyone."

Despite a clear victory, morethan 60 percent of voters did notsupport him and it was not themandate the PRI had anticipatedbased on the pre-election polls.

Vazquez Mota, 51, was thefirst to concede, followed byNew Alliance candidate GabrielQuadri, who had only single-digit support. At the PRIheadquarters in Mexico City, aparty atmosphere broke out withsupporters in red dancing tonorteno music. There wereplenty of reasons to celebrate.

The party also appeared likelyto retake at least at least oneof the two houses of Congressand some governorships.

Critics say the party's 71-year rule was characterized byauthoritarian and corruptpractices. But the PRI hassought to portray itself as agroup that has beenmodernized and does not seeka return to its old ways.

Enrique Pena Nietoappears to be accomplishingwhat many thought wouldnever happen again: the returnof a strong and dynamic PRI,"said Eric Olson of theWashington-based MexicoInstitute. "The question: Howwill they govern?" LopezObrador took hundreds ofthousands of supporters tothe streets in protest when henarrowly lost in 2006. "Wehope the candidate of the leftwill act with democraticmaturity and also recognize theresults," Coldwell said.Vazquez Mota garnered littlemore than 23 percent in exitpolls released by Milenio andTV Azteca networks and quickcount by Mitofsky. LopezObrador had about 30 percentof the vote.

The PRI has beenbolstered by voter fatigue dueto a sluggish economy and thesharp escalation of a drug warthat has killed roughly 50,000Mexicans over the past sixyears. Hugo Rubio, 33, amunicipal employee inNezalhualcoyotl, says what heexpects is "more jobs, moretranquility in terms ofsecurity" under Pena Nieto.

(Contd. on page 12)

INDIA SHOULD APOLOGIZEFOR SENDING SURJEET SINGHTO SPY: REHMAN MALIK

ISLAMABAD: Days after heclaimed terror suspect ZabiuddinAnsari could have mounted a"sting operation" to carry out theMumbai attacks from Pakistanisoil, interior ministry chiefRehman Malik today demandedthat India apologize for sendingSurjeet Singh to spy in Pakistan.

Malik made the demandwhile addressing a newsconference in London, thePakistani media reported. Hedemanded an apology from India

for sending Singh "for spying inPakistan", state-run radioreported.

Singh was freed last weekafter serving a life term in aPakistani jail following hisconviction for espionage in 1985.

Though Singh was giventhe death sentence, it wascommuted by the PakistaniPresident in 1989. He wasimprisoned for nearly threedecades.During the newsconference, Malik also rejected

the assertion by Indian officials,including home minister PChidambaram, that terroristhandlers had set up a controlroom in Karachi for the 2008Mumbai attacks.

He contended that threeIndian citizens, including Ansarialias Abu Jundal, were involvedin the attacks.

Claiming that foreignintelligence agencies wereinvolved in violence in Karachito sabotage the peace inPakistan's financial hub, Maliksaid: "India should tell how manyextremists they have sent toPakistan".

Ansari was recently arrestedin Delhi after he was deportedfrom Saudi Arabia. Indianofficials have said that Ansarihad been travelling on aPakistani passport. Ansari hastold investigators that he waspresent in the control room inKarachi from where Lashkar-e-Taiba handlers controlled the 10terrorists who carried theMumbai attacks.

EXTRA COVER: BRITAINPLANS MISSILE SHIELDLONDON: Britain is planning todeploy surface-to-air missiles onsix sites in London, amidstreports that al-Qaida is plottingto blow up an American airlinerand has trained a NorwegianMuslim convert in an attempt toevade airport security before theOlympics.

Residents of areas wherethe Rapier missiles are proposedto be deployed staged a proteston Saturday and signed apetition opposing thedeployment. The six sites wherethe missiles are proposed to bedeployed include the LexingtonBuilding in Tower Hamlets, FredWigg Tower in Waltham Forest,east London, BlackheathCommon; Oxleas Wood, Eltham; William Girling Reservoir ,Enfield and Barn Hill in EppingForest. On the deployment ofmissiles , the ministry of defencesaid the safety of the July 27-

August 12 Olympic Games wasparamount and a "broad rangeof community engagement" hadtaken place.

During a majorOlympicsfocussed securityexercise in April, CommanderGeneral Sir Nick Parker saidthere must be a plan which coulddeal with "the unlikely but very

serious threat" that might existto the Olympic Park.

He added, "It's an air threat,really categorized in two ways,the sort of 9/11 threat everyoneknows about, and also for thelower, slower type of targetwhich might pop up closer to theOlympic Park, which we wouldneed to intervene."

TO SETTLE IN UK, KNOWMORE ABOUT ITS HISTORYLONDON: A test immigrantshave to pass be fore be ingallowed to settle permanentlyin the UK is to be revised toinc lude more ques t ions onBr i t i sh h i s to ry andknowledge about keypersona l i t i e s such asI sambard Kingdom Brune land Edward Elgar. Called 'Life in the UK Test', the mandatory 45-minutetes t was int roduced by theLabour government in 2005.

As part of moves to curb

immigra t ion , the DavidCameron government i sscrapping some sections andin t roduc ing new ones toinclude knowledge of the firstverse of the national anthemand key historical facts aboutBritain. The Sunday Timesreported that home secretaryTheresa May i s sc rapp ingsec t ions on how to c la imwelfare payments and meritsof the Human Rights Act, andinc lud ing sec t ions onknowledge o f Br i t i sh

invent ions , famous ba t t lesand Engl i sh poe t ry. In asection on culture, immigrantswill be told for the first timethat "historically, the UK is aChr i s t i an na t ion" . In asection seen as an 'explicita t t ack on I s lamicfundamentalism' , the drafts ta tes there ' s "no p lace inBritish society for extremismand in to le rance" andprovides a l i s t of cr iminaloffences that migrants wil lhave to memorize.


TUESDAY, JULY 3, 2012w o r l d

shortshortshortshortshortstoriesstoriesstoriesstoriesstories

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, center,speaks to the heads of Russian Far East region inVladivostok. Medvedev arrived in Vladivostok begin-ning his four-day visit to the Russian Far East alongwith 10 ministers, which is expected to include a tripto one of the Russian-held islands off Hokkaido claimedby Japan.

Indian couple gets$36m in damagesWASHINGTON: An Indian couple, who sustained seriousinjuries in an accident in the US in 2010, has been awarded a$36.48 million as compensation by a California court. ARiverside County Superior Court jury awarded $36.48 millionto Prakash Sheth, 64, and his wife, Jashiree Sheth, 58, fromMumbai, whose car was struck by a big-rig on Interstate 10 inBeaumont two years ago. At the time of the accident , theSheths were visiting the US from India and were on their wayto an airport in Orange County for a family vacation in Hawaii.According to the plaintiffs' attorneys, the Sheths were beingdriven by an American relative to John Wayne Airport in SantaAna when their vehicle was hit by a 18-wheeler truck thatwent around the victims' car but failed to completely clear thesedan while changing lanes, Valley news reported. "The impactof the truck caused the Sheths' vehicle to spin out of controlacross the freeway, where it hit the median barrier and wasstruck by another vehicle," according to a statement releasedby the law firm representing the couple. All of the occupantswere hurt, but Jashiree received the worst injuries, including aspinal fracture that left her paralyzed.

Pak college's editorial boarddissolved over blasphemy rowLAHORE: Pakistan's first arts college's editorial board hasbeen dissolved and two other departments have been closed,weeks after the institution's annual journal was accused ofpublishing material that supported homosexuality and ridiculedIslamic values. The architecture and research and publicationdepartments of the National College of Arts in Lahore havebeen closed while the director for research and publication,Sarosh Irfani, has been suspended. Following complaintsabout the inclusion of some paintings and a feature in theannual journal "Sohbat", the college's editorial board too hasbeen dissolved. The principal of the NCA, Sajjad Kausar, andsome other staff are facing charges of blasphemy, officialsources said. With extremist and hardline religious parties,including the Jamaat-ud-Dawah, calling for stringent actionagainst those responsible for publishing "blasphemousmaterials" in the journal, the college's administration, includingthe principal, are feeling insecure, the sources said. "I havedissolved the editorial board, closed down the research andpublication and architecture wings and suspended the directorfor research and publication," Kausar told reporters.

Three UK soldiers killed in AfghanistanLONDON: The ministry of defense said on Monday threeBritish soldiers were killed in southern Afghanistan on Sundayby a man dressed in the uniform of the country's police force.The defense ministry said in a statement on Monday that twoof the soldiers were from the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards, andone was from the Royal Corps of Signals. They have not yetbeen named by officials. The men were shot by a man wearingthe uniform of the Afghan National Civil Order Police. A totalof 422 British troops have now died in Afghanistan since 2001.

Indian envoy in Tibetafter 10 yearsBEIJING: The Indian envoy to China, S Jaishankar, is on arare visit to Tibet where he is touring Mount Kailash andManasarovar — two religious centres frequented by Indianpilgrims, and areas that witnessed unrest and a number ofself-immolations. Jaishankar's visit is the first such visit bya top Indian diplomat in a decade, after the 2002 visit of thethen Indian Ambassador and present National SecurityAdvisor, Shivshankar Menon. Beijing invited Jaishankarto have first-hand look at the Himalayan region, speciallysacred places like Manasarovar where it plans to step upinvestments to improve facilities for Indian pilgrims. Therare visit of Jaishankar to Tibet has its own politicalsignificance. During his ongoing tour, Jaishankar hasalready visited Mount Kailash and Manasarovar — the twomost important sacred places visited by batches of Indianpilgrims every year.He is scheduled to visit the Nepal border tomorrow fromwhere the Indian pilgrims enter Tibet.

( Contd. from page 11) "He has demonstrated that(the party) had changed, thathe cares about the people whoare most in need," Rubio saidat a red-clad crowd ofsupporters gathered withbanners and balloons. Therewere very few reports ofproblems during the vote,though some polling stationsran out of ballots and at leastnine people were arrested in thesouthern state of Chiapas fortrying to pass ballots pre-marked for the PRI. InteriorSecretary Alejandro Poire saidthat across the country federalsecurity forces were working

MEXICO RETURNS FORMER RULING PARTY TO POWERclosely with local and stateauthorities, as well as electoralofficials, to guard the peaceduring the vote. Sergio Ortega, a31 year old businessman fromthe city of Guadalajara, said hewould vote against Pena Nietoto try to prevent the return of thePRI. "He had too muchfavoritism. They played manytricks," Ortega said.

Pena Nieto has cast himselfas a pragmatic economicmoderate in the tradition of thelast three PRI presidents. He hascalled for greater privateinvestment in Mexico's state-controlled oil industry, and hassaid he will try to reduce violence

by attacking crimes that hurtordinary citizens whiledeemphasizing the pursuit of drugkingpins. Pena Nieto also hasbeen dogged by allegations thathe overspent his $330 millioncampaign funding limit and hasreceived favorable coverage fromMexico's television giant,Televisa. University studentslaunched a series of anti-PenaNieto marches in the final weeksof the campaign, arguing that hisparty hasn't changed since itsdays in power. But many say thePRI would not be able to re-impose its once near-total controleven if it wanted to because ofchanges in society, the judiciary

and Congress. "The contexthas changed dramatically,"said Rodrigo Salazar, aprofessor at the Latin AmericanFaculty of Social Sciences inMexico City. "Society isn't thesame. It's a very critical society,a very demanding society, witha strong division of powers."Caldwell predicted the partywould take two and possiblyfour of the six governor's seatsup for grabs from rival parties.He said the party won in Jaliscoand Chiapas, and stood todefeat the PAN in Morelos andGuanajuato, despite tight racesand claims from both sides ofvictory.

Qaida plot to bomb USjet during Olympics?LONDON: Al-Qaida is plottingto blow up an American airlinerin the run-up to this month'sLondon Olympics and hastrained a Norwegian Muslimconvert in an attempt to evadeairport security, a media reportsaid on Sunday. Al-Qaida in theArabian Peninsula (AQAP) hastrained the Norwegian convertand is understood to have alsoselected a target, believed to bea US passenger jet, The SundayTimes quoted intelligencesources as saying. "TheNorwegian recruit goes underthe name of Muslim AbuAbdurrahman. He is understoodto be in his thirties and a 'cleanskin' , with no previous criminalrecord," it said. "He convertedin 2008 and quickly becameradicalized. He later travelled toYemen , where he has spentseveral months, to complete histraining," the paper said. The plotconfirms fears among US andBritish intelligence agencies that

al-Qaida is seeking to recruitradicalised westerners in anattempt to evade airport security,it said. The Norwegian wasbelieved to have been in thesoutheastern town of Azzan, thelongtime home of AQAP, untillast month. He then moved toDammaj, a town in the north.

The new plot is the terrorgroup's fourth to be detectedsince 2009, when AQAP sent a

Nigerian-born British student ona plane with an underpantsbomb. The bomb failed todetonate over Detroit and theman was arrested and jailed. In2010, it sent two bombs hiddenin printer cartridges on cargoplanes destined for Chicago.They were intercepted anddefused in Dubai and Britain.Two months ago, a third plot wasaverted when a British

undercover agent, who hadinfiltrated AQAP, volunteered tobe a suicide bomber. Hesmuggled out the latest versionof the sophisticated underpantsbomb to US authorities.

"There is terrorist plottinggoing on irrespective of theOlympics (from July 27 to August12). The only thing that connectsthis to the Olympics is the factthat they are about to happen,"said a Whitehall official.

The intelligence officialssaid the latest plot should beseen in the context of al-Qaida'scontinuing ambitions to blow upAmerican planes. AQAP has nohistory of targeting Britain .However, that did not meanBritish citizens were not at risk.

"If you are blowing upaeroplanes you are likely to bekilling Brits or having a bigimpact on the European orBritish economy. (So it) would ineffect be an attack againstBritain," the official said.

Chinese President heckledAMID HONG KONG STIRHONG KONG: A pro-democracyheckler interrupted a speech byChinese President Hu Jintao atthe swearing-in of Hong Kong'snew leader, Leung Chun-ying, onSunday and tens of thousandsof residents marched to protestChinese rule on the 15thanniversary of Hong Kong'sreturn to Beijing's control.

The outpouring ofdiscontent underscored risingtensions between theCommunist mainland and HongKong that was returned to Chinain 1997 after more than a centuryof British rule.

While much of thediscontent is over growingeconomic inequality and stunteddemocratic development, HongKongers are also upset over

what they see as arrogantChinese behavior - wealthymainlanders taking over retailoutlets during flashy Hong Kongshopping trips, for example, or

even the choice of languageduring the swearing-in ceremony, Beijing-accented Mandarininstead of the Cantonese dialectspoken locally.

IRAN TOFIGHT BACK'MALICIOUS'

OIL BANDUBAI: I ran p ledged tocounte r the impac t o f aEuropean Union oil embargowhich took fu l l e f fec t onSunday, saying it had built up$150 b i l l ion in fo re ignreserves to protect itself. TheEU ban on crude imports ispar t o f a push by Westerncountries aimed at chokingI ran ' s expor t ea rn ings andforcing it to curb a nuclearprogramme they fear includesweapons development.

"We are implement ingprogrammes to counte rsanctions and we'll confrontthese mal ic ious po l ic ies , "Mehr news agency quo tedcen t ra l bank governorMahmoud Bahmani assaying.

The EU banned newcont rac t s fo r impor t s o fIranian crude in January, buta l lowed ex i s t ing ones tocontinue until July 1.

So far, sanctions have notforced Iran into concessionson its nuclear programme. Infact Iran has demanded thatthe sanctions stop before itwi l l t ake s teps to curburanium enrichment.

But there are signs of theembargo having an impact onIran's economy. Its crude oilexports - which according toEU estimates represent halfthe government ' s income -have fallen by 40% this year.Iran used to export a fifth ofits crude to EU countries.

BRITAIN BLAMED FOR INDIANMALAYSIANS' 'PLIGHT' IN EX-COLONYLONDON: An exiled Indian Malaysian human rightslawyer plans to file a lawsuit against the Britishgovernment for failing to provide adequate safety tothe community under the rule of Malay-Muslimmajority when independence was granted to theformer colony.

London-based Waytha Moorthy claims that thethen British Harold MacMillian's government failedto provide protection to Indian Malaysians whenindependence was granted to the former colony in1957. The 46-year-old lawyer was expected to re-issue a class action lawsuit at the High CourtMonday. He is claiming a sum of $1 million incompensation for each one of Malaysia's 1.8 millionIndians. Originally launched in 2007, but never heardand now out of time, Moorthy's claim is on behalf ofIndian Malaysians who he said face human rights

abuses and live unprotected and in "continuouscolonisation". The then British governmentgave the Muslim population special rights andprivileges, effectively establishing a system ofapartheid ever since, he said in a statement. "InIndia, at the time of partition, the Britishgovernment gave rights to minorities.

"In Malaysia, minority racial and religiousgroups were hung out to dry. The result is that45 percent of the population is still beingmarginalised, humiliated and discriminatedagainst when it comes to jobs, education andfinance," said Moorthy, chair of HINDRAF, anNGO advocating equal rights for IndianMalaysians. The organisation is banned inMalaysia and Moorthy has been jailed onnumerous occasions in that country.



indiaindiaindia APJ ABDUL KALAM:PENDENCY OF DEATHPENALTY CASES HADSOCIAL, ECONOMICBIASI P14

NAVEEN PATNAIK ACCUSESPRANAB OF BUYING SUPPORT

BHUBANESWAR: Odishac h i e f m i n i s t e r N a v e e nPatnaik has accused UnitedProgressive Alliance (UPA)p r e s i d e n t i a l c a n d i d a t eP r a n a b M u k h e r j e e o fb u y i n g s u p p o r t o f p a r t i e sby doling out large sums ofm o n e y t o s e l e c t i v e s t a t e sduring his tenure as f inanceminister.

" P r a n a b M u k h e r j e e a sf i n a n c e m i n i s t e r o f I n d i ahad doled out huge sum ofmoney. . . l akhs of c rores . . .to certain states l ike Bihar,B e n g a l a n d U P, " P a t n a i k ,chief of the Biju Janata Dal( B J D ) , t o l d r e p o r t e r s o nS u n d a y n i g h t a f t e rreturning from New Delhi.

" C o u l d i t b e t h a t t h i smoney is going because hew a n t s c e r t a i n p a r t i e s . . . t osuppor t h is candidature asR a s t r a p a t i ( p r e s i d e n t ) o fI n d i a ? " P a t n a i k , w h or e t u r n e d a f t e r a f o u r - d a ytr ip, asked.

He said the money hadbeen sanc t ioned in f avouro f s t a t e s r u l e d b yM u l a y a m S i n g h Ya d a v ' sS a m a j w a d i P a r t y ( U t t a rP r a d e s h ) , N i t i s h K u m a r ' sJana ta Da l -Uni t ed (B iha r )a n d M a m a t a B e n e r j e e ' sTr inamool Congress (WestBengal) .

" T h i s i s n o t p r i v a t emoney but people 's money,your money.

Why is so much moneybeing given by the centra lg o v e r n m e n t w h e n t h ep r e s i d e n t i a l e l e c t i o n s a r eg o i n g o n ? " P a t n a i k w a st h e f i r s t t o a n n o u n c e t h ename of former Lok Sabhaspeaker P A Sangma in Mayf o r c o u n t r y ' s t o p p o s ta g a i n s t f o r m e r f i n a n c eminister Pranab Mukherjee.

He was also the first tos i g n a s a p r o p o s e r o nS a n g m a ' s n o m i n a t i o np a p e r s . S a n g m a i s a l s ob e i n g b a c k e d b y t h eB h a r a t i y a J a n a t a P a r t y,t h e S h i r o m a n i A k a l i D a land the AIADMK.

T h e p r e s i d e n t i a lelection is on July 19.

NITISH TAKES GUJARAT HELPFOR PATNA MAKEOVERAHMEDABAD: Bihar chiefminister Nitish Kumar may havewhipped up a political storm withhis scathing attacks on Gujaratchief minister Narendra Modi,but, when it comes to givingPatna a makeover, the Bihar CMdoes not mind a Gujaratinfluence. Based on Gujarat'stown planning schemes,Ahmedabad's Centre forEnvironmental Planning andTechnology (Cept) Universityhas prepared a master plan forPatna's town planning scheme.The draft, which has beenapproved in principle, will guideplanned urban development inBihar.

In January 2011, the Bihargovernment had approachedCept to prepare a citydevelopment plan for Patna,which had been facing civicissues, especially water-logging,waste management andunplanned constructions.

Cept is now ready with thenew town planning scheme forPatna, which will be announcedin August by Nitish Kumar.During discussions with Ceptand Patna-based consultants,representatives of the Bihargovernment had requested thatBihar's urban plan should besimilar to that of Gujarat. "Cept

has submitted itsrecommendations along with themaster plan to the Patna cityauthorities, which has beenapproved. The plan is based onGujarat's town planning model,"said Utpal Sharma, dean, Facultyof Planning & Public Policy atCept University.

As part of the task, Ceptprepared a master plan, whichcovers areas like town planning,urban flood and solid wastemanagement, housing plans forpoor, public transport, industrial

area infrastructure developmentand even tourism. Cept has alsoproposed conservationmeasures for heritage structuresin Patna, which is an importantpilgrimage centre for Buddhistsfrom all over the world. "Patna isdifferent from other cities andhas its own charm, history andstories. But the city is quitecongested and had not beenplanned for the last 20 years. Wehad to keep all these aspects inmind while planning the city'sdevelopment," Sharma added.

BASED ON GUJARAT’S TOWN PLANNING SCHEMES,AHMEDABAD’S CENTRE FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNINGAND TECHNOLOGY (CEPT) UNIVERSITY HAS PREPARED AMASTER PLAN FOR PATNA’S TOWN PLANNING SCHEME.THE DRAFT, WHICH HAS BEEN APPROVED IN PRINCIPLE,WILL GUIDE PLANNED URBAN DEVELOPMENT IN BIHAR.

FACEBOOK ‘LIKES’ MAMATA,FAKE PROFILES MUSHROOMKOLKATA : Mamata Banerjee’spopularity seems to be soaringon cyberspace even if herpolitical stock is down after thefailed push for APJ Abdul Kalamas next president. More than 100Facebook profiles and fangroups of the West Bengal chiefminister have sprung up soonafter her official profile wascreated on June 15 — ironically,to drum up support for Kalamas president. Party spin doctorssee it as an indication of theirleader ’s increasing youthappeal. While Banerjee’soriginal profile page has gottremendous response withnearly 85,000 'likes' and severalcomments, netizens are also

flocking to Didi’s similar avatars— each one claims to be genuine— in hordes.

A profile page detailingBanerjee’s achievements anddevelopment plans has morethan 12,000 likes and around3,000 people posting on its wall.

Another profile, MamataBanerjee Super CM Of Bengal,has nearly 250 people liking it.

‘Mamata Banerjee Fan Club’boasts of 702 people likes. Thispage also has a discussion boardto encourage conversation andfeedback on the TrinamoolCongress chief.

However, not all pages aresinging paeans to Banerjee. Aprofile page, which takes a digat Didi, has around 1,000 friendsand nearly 6,000 subscribers.“We cannot keep track of eachand every profile being created.However, everyone knowswhich is the official page,” saidDerek O’Brien, TrinamoolCongress Rajya Sabha MP.

26/11: Pakistan says Mumbaiattackers were helped by 40 IndiansISLAMABAD: Days after terrorsuspect Zabiuddin Ansari'srevelations about the Mumbaiattacks being controlled andfacilitated from Karachi, Pakistaniauthorities have claimed 40 Indiannationals were involved in theterrorist incident. "Our informationis that there were at least 40 Indiannationals who helped the attackers.We want India to come clean onthis," an unnamed official ofPakistan's Foreign Office was quotedas saying by The Express Tribune.Pakistan will "push" India to sharedetails of the recent arrest of Ansarialias Abu Jundal when the foreignsecretaries of the two countries meetin Delhi this week, the report said.The two-day talks between theforeign secretaries, beginning on July4, are expected to be dominated byAnsari's arrest and subsequentclaims by Indian authorities, the

report further said. The ForeignOffice official said Pakistan will askIndia to share details of Ansari'sarrest. "India has yet not sharedanything with us about this arrest,"the official said. Pakistan had beensaying that the Mumbai attackswould not have been possiblewithout help from Indian nationals,

he claimed. The official furtherclaimed Indian authorities had"always been reluctant to give usthe full picture" of the investigationinto the Mumbai attacks. "When aPakistani judicial commission visitedIndia to collect evidence, it wasstopped from cross-examining thewitnesses," he claimed. Pakistancould take "decisive action" if it isprovided details of the investigation,the official claimed. "We cannot acton hearsay," he said. Indian officialshave maintained that an agreementfinalised between Delhi andIslamabad before the commission'svisit made it very clear that the panelwould not be allowed to cross-examine witnesses. Ansari, an Indiannational, was arrested after beingdeported from Saudi Arabia.

Indian officials have said thatAnsari was travelling on a Pakistanipassport.


TUESDAY, JULY 3, 2012india

No records of PM-Raja 2G meets: PMONEW DELHI: The Pr imeMinister 's Office does nothave any information aboutmeetings held between PMManmohan S ingh and thethen telecom minister and2G scam accused A Raja ,between August 2007 andJuly 2008.

R e p l y i n g t o a n RT Ia p p l i c a t i o n f i l e d b y o n eD e e p a k S a l u j a i n t h i sregard, the top off ice haspassed the buck to SpecialProtection Group (SPG), ane x e m p t e d o r g a n i z a t i o nu n d e r t h e RT I A c t , f o rf u r n i s h i n g d e t a i l s o f t h e

meetings.T h e S P G w h i c h i s

exempted from making anyd i sc lo su re unde r t he RTIAct except those related toallegations of human rightsv i o l a t i o n a n d c o r r u p t i o nhas refused to furnish thei n f o r m a t i o n c i t i n g t h eexemption clause.

T h e P M O a l s otransferred the applicationt o d e p a r t m e n t o ft e l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n t op r o v i d e t h e i n f o r m a t i o nbut i t was a l so sen t backw i t h d i r e c t o r(coordination) stat ing that

i t was PMO to answer theapplication. After SPG andDOT refused to furnish thei n f o r m a t i o n , P M O c i t e danother exempt ion c lauserelated to national securityt o d e n y t h e i n f o r m a t i o ns a y i n g " i t h a s b e e nc o n s i s t e n t s t a n d n o t t or e v e a l d e t a i l s o fappointment ."

Fo l lowing the r e fusa lto furnish the information,S a l u j a a p p r o a c h e d t h eC e n t r a l I n f o r m a t i o nCommission with a plea thati n f o r m a t i o n b e m a d eavailable to them.

PM, SONIA MAKE AERIALSURVEY OF FLOOD-HIT

AREAS IN ASSAM

JORHAT (ASSAM): PrimeMinister Manmohan Singh andUPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi,accompanied by chief ministerTarun Gogoi, on Monday madean aerial survey of floodaffected areas in Assam. The three leaders made anaerial survey by helicopter ofMajuli island, Jorhat, Sibsagar,Lakhimpur and Dhemaji districts,which were among the worst-affected in the floods, seniorofficials said. They were also expected tosurvey the Kaziranga NationalPark, which has been completely

submerged by flood waters.Earlier, Singh and Gandhireached Jorhat's Rowriah airportfrom New Delhi by a special flightat around 11:00am. Later in the day, the twoleaders would reach Guwahatiand discuss the latest situationwith ministers and officials.Singh and Gandhi are scheduledto leave for New Delhi fromGuwahati in the afternoon. TheAssam floods have so far claimed61 lives and another 16 personshave been killed in landslides.The floods have affected all 27districts of the state.

APJ ABDUL KALAM: PENDENCY OF DEATHPENALTY CASES HAD SOCIAL, ECONOMIC BIASNEW DELHI: Pendency of severalcases related to capitalpunishment in Rashtrapati Bhavanis one "inherited task" that noPresident would feel happy about,according to former President APJAbdul Kalam. "I thought I shouldget all these cases examined froma normal citizen's point of view interms of the crime, intensity of thecrime and the social and financialstatus of the individuals who wereconvicted and awarded capitalpunishment," Kalam writes in hissoon-to-be-released book "Turning Points" against thebackdrop of the demand for early

hanging of convicts like Afzal Guruand Ajmal Kasab.

APJ Abdul Kalam says thestudy revealed to his surprise thatalmost all pending cases "had asocial and economic bias", givingan impression that "we werepunishing the person who wasleast involved in the enmity andwho did not have a direct motivefor committing the crime".According to Abdul Kalam,deciding on the issue ofconfirming capital punishmentawarded by courts afterexhausting all processes ofappeals was one of the more

difficult tasks for him as President."As a substantial number of

cases have been pending inRashtrapati Bhavan for manyyears, it is one inherited task thatno President would feel happyabout," he writes.

"Of course there was onecase where I found that the liftoperator (Dhananjoy Chatterjee)had in fact committed the crime ofraping and killing the girl withoutdoubt. In that case I affirmed thesentence." Chatterjee, sentencedto death for raping and murderinga 14-year-old girl in Kolkata in1990, was hanged on August 14,

2004.APJ Abdul Kalam feels that

while courts are hearing the capitalpunishment cases they should"alert the law-enforcing authoritiesto intelligently find out the sourceof sustenance of the individualwho is being punished and of hisfamily". This kind of analysis, hethinks, may lead to the real personand the motive which has led tothe crime. "We are all the creationsof God. I am not sure a humansystem or a human being iscompetent to take away a lifebased on artificial and createdevidence."

MAGISTERIAL INQUIRY ORDERED INTO ASSAULT ON MLAGUWAHATI: A magisterialinquiry has been ordered into theassault on Congress MLA RumiNath and her second husband ata Karimganj hotel which sparkedoff violent protests and bandh insouth Assam's Barak Valley.

Karimganj DeputyCommissioner Debeswar Malakarordered the inquiry into theincident on Monday. The reportof the inquiry is to be submittedwithin 15 days, official sourcessaid. In another development,

three personnel security officers ofthe MLA were suspended due todereliction of duty. "The PSOs hadfailed to protect Nath and her secondhusband and had fled from the spotwhen the mob barged into the hotelwhere the duo were staying", the

sources said. Nath, who representsBorkhola constituency in Cachar,and her second husband werebeaten up and injured on Fridaynight in a hotel here by a group ofpeople who were angry over hersecond marriage without divorcingher first husband. Violent protestsby supporters and opponents of thecontroversial MLA have been goingon in Barak Valley since the last threedays. Prohibitory orders undersection 144 of the CrPC wereimposed in Cachar, Karimjang and

some parts of Hailakandi district toprevent untoward incident. Fivepersons were arrested for theassault on the MLA. Six minorityorganisations have today declareda 24-hour bandh at Badarpur inprotest against the attack on theMLA. A 12-hour bandh has beencalled at Borkhola. The VishwaHindu Parishad, the RSS and theHindu Jagran Manch have calledfor a day-long bandh in the entireBarak Valley on July 24.casualtiesfrom flooding every year.



NO SUNNY, BOBBY AT ESHA DEOL'S WEDDING

-Upala KBREsha Deol’s s wedding todiamond merchant BharatTakhtani yesterday at the HareRama Hare Krishna temple inJuhu had an eclectic mix of B-Town celebrities, spiritual gurus,industrialists, close friends andfamily of Hema Malini andDharmendra.

Those present wereAmitabh and AbhishekBachchan, Nita Ambani, SubrataRoy, Rani Mukerji, Anu Malik,Fardeen Khan, Vinod and KavitaKhanna and Vyjayanthi-mala(who specially flew down fromChennai to bless the couple).

Surprisingly, Esha's half-brothers Bobby and Sunny Deolwere conspicuous by theirabsence. Bobby is shooting inLondon while Sunny, who is intown, was also busy with ashoot. He had attended theengagement in February. AbhayDeol, who is known to be closeto Esha, was present at all thefunctions. Here's a lowdown onthe wedding. Venue The venueat the temple was the PadmaPalace (a replica of the spotwhere Krishna and Rukmini hadgot married in Dwarka). Themandap was decorated withgarlands of orange marigoldsand pink lotuses. Huge balls ofyellow and orange marigolds and

pink and orange fluorescentlights also decorated the Palace.There were silver chairs for theparents, while Esha and Bharatsat on cream coloured seats.WEDDING RITES

Krishna hymns and chantsand a live musical performanceby South Indian women washeard during the ceremony.Hema had flown in a priest fromthe Tirupati temple in AndhraPradesh to perform the rites, asDharam gave the bride away.

The wedding rites were allSouth Indian, including thevratham ceremony, where atdawn the sacred threads are tiedaround the wrists of the bride andbridegroom. Bharat came to themandap in a chariot, while Eshawas carried in a flower-bedeckeddoli. Hema and her familymembers greeted Bharat with anaarti and garlands, after which heand Esha exchanged garlands.

After this they sat for theoonjal ceremony on a flower-decorated swing, while rice wasthrown at them amidst traditionalsongs. Dharamendra gave Eshaaway during the kanyadanam,after which the mangalsutra wastied and the couple were finallywed. The event ended with thesaptapadhi, where they walkedaround the holy fire seven times,taking a vow with each step.

PARENTS OF THE BRIDE DHARMENDRA AND HEMA MALINI AT THE WEDDING

ESHA-BHARAT TIE THE KNOT

Abhay performed the laajahomam, where the bride gives anoffering of puffed rice to the fire.As an expression of siblingsupport, her brother helps her inthis ritual. The bidaai took placein the evening from Hema's Juhubungalow.WHAT THEY WORE

Hema Malini, her daughtersEsha and Ahana and Bharat allwore Neeta Lulla creations.

While Hema looked resplendentin a pink and orange brocadeKanjeevaram saree along with aVishnu Dasavataram gold andgem-studded necklace,Dharamendra wore a beige suitwith a pale blue shirt.

Bharat wore an off-whitesherwani with a brown brocadejacket in South Indian style witha stole. Esha wore a red and goldKanjeevaram saree specially

created out of three Kanjeevaramsarees selected and flown downfrom Chennai by Hema andNeeta.FOOD

While special nariyal paaniwith rose petals and watermelonjuice was served at the weddingceremony along with anassortment of vegetarian snacks,a lavish lunch was served on thetemple premises.

Rahman's Punjabitrack at the Olympics-SRINIVAS RAMANUJAMThe Oscar winner iscollaborating with Danny Boylefor the special number A RRahman's song will play out atthe London Olympics.

Yes, the music wizard hascomposed a special Punjabinumber that will be showcasedat the opening ceremony of thegrand sporting event. What'smore, he'll be collaborating withnone other than SlumdogMillionaire director DannyBoyle for this segment of theshow. Rahman tweeted, "It's atrack in Punjabi, celebrating theIndian influence in the UK. It'sa part of a medley in theOlympics opening ceremony,according to Danny Boyle'screative wishes!"

When contacted,Rahman's official spokespersonstated, "Yes, he has composeda number for the Olympics. Buthis is one of the songs and notthe only song." It is heard thatthe Oscar winner is ensuringthat the song is grand in termsof musical content, given theglobal reach of the Olympics.

Filmmaker Danny Boyle,who has worked with theChennai composer on 127Hours as well, is said to haveplanned a three-hour musicalshow that will feature variousgenres of music. He's takingactive interest in puttingtogether a big show forworldwide audiences, saysources. Interestingly, it's also

learnt that one of maestroIlaiyaraaja 's songs tooreportedly features in the listfor the opening ceremony ofthe upcoming LondonOlympics.

The selected song isNaandhaan Ungappanda.. .from the 1981 film RamLakshman, starring KamalHaasan and Sripriya.

The $250 million divorce dramaWith Katie Holmes filing fordivorce from superstar Tom Cruiseover reported reasons of seekingfreedom from her "controlling"husband and sole custody of theirdaughter Suri, the celebrity divorcecircus has officially begun.

With pre-nups and alimonynegotiations set to go on for weeksnow, speculations will be rife. Whatwe can tell you is that the trend ofseparating and coming into a lot ofmoney is nothing more than a multi-million business. No marriage,seemingly, lasts forever inHollywood.

As far as the Tom-Katieseparation goes, one of the majorreasons that drove them apart wasparenting styles. Katie wants Suri togo to school with other children andhave a grounded routine whereasTom wants her schooled in the samemanner as his adopted childrenConnor and Isabella were. Tombasically treats Suri as a little adult,however Katie treats her like a six-year-old child, and that causes somemajor clashes over parenting style.Katie also wants primary custody ofSuri. The other was Cruise's strongties to Scientology. This is Tom's thirddivorce. He first split from MimiRogers, then Nicole Kidman.

Biggest Payout For AnUnmarried Couple

Johnny Depp is paying formerlover Vanessa Paradis up to 100

million pounds, in one of the biggestpay-offs involving an unmarriedcouple. Depp, 49, who is worth morethan $156.8 million, and French singerand actress Paradis, 39, announcedthey were splitting after months ofdenials. They have been together for14 years but never tied the knot.

Tom-Kat apart, here are otherrecent costly celebrity divorce casesin Hollywood...

Ashton Kutcher and DemiMoore

Married for: 7 yearsSettlement: $145 million eachReported/ rumoured reasons:

Insiders close to Demi Moore andAshton Kutcher reveal that theactor's cheating was only the tip ofthe iceberg in their split. The couplewas dealing with his wandering eye

as well as her insecurities with their15-year age difference.Kim Kardashian and KrisHumphries

Married for: 72 daysSettlement : A $ 7 million offering

to Kris from Kim is in processReported/ rumoured reasons:

According to some reports, Kimdumped Kris over money!According to an insider Kris told herhe wouldn't be pulling in $20 million ayear and that deflated things for her.According to some reports themarriage was a publicity stunt. Somesources also revealed that Kriswanted his new bride to settle downwith him in Minnesota, and Kim justcouldn't imagine a life where shewould not be in the limelight.


TUESDAY, JULY 3, 2012hollywood

Upcoming

HOLLYWOOD Movies

PARANORMANRELEASE DATE: 17-Aug-2012STARING: Casey Affleck, TempesttBledsoe, Jeff Garlin, John Goodman, Ber-nard Hill, Anna KendrickDIRECTOR(S): Sam Fell, Chris ButlerMUSIC : Jon BrionPRODUCER : Travis Knight, Arianne Sutner

ICE AGE: CONTINENTAL DRIFTRELEASE DATE: 13-Jul-2012STARING: Ray Romano, QueenLatifah, Denis Leary, John Leguizamo,DIRECTOR(S): Steve Mar tino, MichaelThurmeierMusic: John PowellProducer: Lori For te, John Donkin

THE DARK KNIGHT RISESRELEASE DATE: 20-Jul-2012STARING: Christian Bale, MichaelCaine, Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy,Anne Hathaway, Joseph Gordon-LevittDIRECTOR(S): Christopher NolanWRITER: David S. Goyer, Christopher Nolan

KISSES WIFE KELLYPRESTON IN PUBLICJohn Travolta and his wifeKelly Preston enjoyed apassionate kiss at the premiereof his movie Savages, showingtheir first public display ofaffection after a string of sexualassault charges rocked thecouple’s life.

It’s their first publicappearance since Travolta’srecent scandal in the US, wheretwo male masseurs accused the58-year-old actor of sexualassault. The Grease star cut agood figure in a neatly tailoredsuit and tie, while his wife of 21years wore a flirty lace dress, theMirror reported. Salma Hayek,who plays Elena in the movie,also joined the smitten pair.

JOHN TRAVOLTAmay get $66k compensationover nude photo hackingScarlett Johansson shouldget more than 66,000 dollars fromthe hacker who leaked sexy snapsthat were meant for former hubbyRyan Reynolds, prosecutors saidin a federal court filing. USattorneys in Los Angeles saidhacker Christopher Chaney alsoshould pay 7,500 dollars to singerChristina Aguilera and 76,767.35dollars to actress Renee Olstead,a star on the hit ABC Family show‘The Secret Life of the AmericanTeenager.’

Federal prosecutors made therestitution request in a 19-pagefiling ahead of Chaney’s expectedsentencing July 23, the New YorkDaily News reported.

They mentioned victim MilaKunis but did not recommendmoney for the ‘Black Swan’ star,noting there was “no evidencethat nude photos of Mila Kuniswere stolen or posted bydefendant.” The nude pics ofJohansson that flooded theInternet last year showed the‘Avengers’ star posing naked in abathroom mirror and lying toplessin bed. “I know my best angles,”the 27-year-old told Vanity Fair.Chaney pleaded guilty to felonywiretapping and unauthorizedaccess of a computer in March ina plea deal that spared him othercharges. Authorities said he usedpublic information to resetpasswords on the email accountshe commandeered.

The feds are asking for sixyears and 11 months in prison, asentence at the high end of federalguidelines. They said the time is

SCARLETT JOHANSSON

warranted because Chaney isbroke and probably won’t havethe means to pay up. “Based onhis past employment historywhich consists of only temporaryclerical jobs and periods ofunemployment… it is unlikely thatdefendant will be able to repay anysignificant amount to the victims inthis case,” prosecutors said. TheAguilera photos hacked from her

stylist’s email account showed the 31-year-old singer wearing little more thansilver pasties. Photos of Olstead, 23,showed the actress topless andshowering in a see-through whiteshirt. Photos swiped from Kunis, 28,leaked around the same asJohansson’s. One was an innocentshot of Kunis in a bathtub with onlyher head showing. Another was anexplicit shot of an unknown man.

MATT DAMON JOINS ‘THEMAGNIFICENT SEVEN’?

L O N D O N : A c t o r M a t tDamon is the latest s tar tos i g n o n f o r t h e u p c o m i n gremake of c lass ic Weste rnm o v i e ‘ T h e M a g n i f i c e n tSeven.’

H o l l y w o o f s u p e r s t a rTom Cruise is said to have

agreed to appear in thr film,a n a d a p t a t i o n o f J o h nSturges` 1960 movie of thes a m e n a m e , r e p o r t e d S u nOnline.

D a m o n i s s e t t o s t a ralongside Cruise as Vin, thecha rac t e r S t eve MCQueen

p l a y e d i n t h e o r i g i n a l ." M g m a r e t h r o w i n g b i gm o n e y a t t h e f i l m a n dwanted some top names tofill the main parts.

Yo u c a n ` t g e t m u c hb i g g e r t h a n C r u i s e a n dDamon," a source said.

JESSICA BIEL WAS NERVOUS ABOUTPUNCHING KATE BECKINSALELOS ANGELES: Actor Jessica Biel says she did not want to punch her`Total Recall̀ co-star Kate Beckinsale while shooting the movie. Theactress was worried because Beckinsale`s husband and directorLen Wisemen was present on the sets of the 1990 s̀ sci-fi remake,reports contactmusic.com. "I was so fearful of hitting her. Iwas thinking, `Please don t̀ let me hit this woman in the face!Her husband is watching! ̀And then I hit her," Biel toldEmpire magazine. Beckinsale said: "I like the fact that there s̀this fight between Jessica and I and it doesn t̀ end up thatsome one s̀ sleeve is ripped off, or some one s̀ bra is out.This was as if it was two guys - and yet it was us kind ofmadly apologising to each other." The 30-year-old Bielplays female protagonist Melina while Beckinsaleportrays the evil Lori.

`Daredevil` AngelinaJolie performs ownstunts in ̀ Maleficent`

NEW YORK: AngelinaJolie revisited her earlydays as an ac t ion s ta rwhen she performed herown action scenes in theDisney movie‘Maleficent’.

New photos from these t o f Disney’s ep ic‘S leep ing Beau ty’adaptation show the 37-year -o ld ac t ress be inghoisted into the air by anenormous crane, the NewYork Daily News reported.

The former ‘TombRaider ’ s t a r i s seensuspended h igh abovethe g round beforeflinging herself into theair while filming a high-action shot in the Englishcountryside.

‘Male f icen t ’ , co-starring Elle Fanning, iscurrently being filmed inB u c k i n g h a m s h i r e ,England and is expectedto hit theaters in March2014.

Lady Gaga in soupover Bangkok concertFIRST she made a joke about buying a fake rolex. NowThailand's culture ministry has filed a complaint to police againstLady Gaga for misuse of the Thai flag during her show last month.

The ministry said the part of Lady Gaga's performance whenshe wore a traditional headdress and sat on a motorcycle in askimpy outfit with a Thai flag trailing behind was "inappropriateand hurt Thai people's sentiment." "We are not asking police toprosecute her but it's our normal procedure to file complaints toconcerned agencies when we receive them," a senior ministryofficial, who declined to be named, said by telephone. The ministrynoted that the Thai national flag consisted of three colours -- redfor the nation, blue for the revered monarchy and white for religion.Gaga caused a stir soon after her arrival in Thailand last month bytweeting that "I wanna get lost in a lady market and buy fakeRolex," remarks that some Thais complained cast the kingdom in anegative light. About 50,000 people attended her concert inBangkok, which was part of a tour that sparked protests fromreligious hardliners in Indonesia, the Philippines and South Korea.


TUESDAY, JULY 3, 2012 b o l l y w o o d

2 Teri Meri Kahaani Mukhtasar3 Teri Meri Kahaani Humse Pyaar Karle Tu4 Cocktail Daru Desi5 Rowdy Rathore Dhadang Dhang6 Rowdy Rathore Aa Re Pritam Pyare7 Rowdy Rathore Chinta Ta Ta Chita Chita8 Gangs Of Wasseypur Jiya Tu Bihar Ke Lala9 Vicky Donor Pani Da Rang10 Gangs Of Wasseypur Hunter

top

10

MOVIE COLLECTIONS

HIT OR FLOP MIDWEEKROWDY RATHORE SUPER HIT

DANGEROUS ISHQ FLOP

VICKY DONOR SUPER HIT

THE AVENGERS (ENGLISH) HIT

TITANIC 3D (ENGLISH) AVERAGE

TEZZ DISASTER

UpcomingBOLLYWOOD Movies

STUDENT OF THE YEARRELEASE DATE: 06-Jul-2012STARING: Siddhar th Malhotra,Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, RishiKapoor, Kitu Gidwani, Kajol.DIRECTOR(S): Karan JoharPRODUCER(S): Karan Johar,Shahrukh Khan

ANJUNAA BEACHRELEASE DATE: 06-Jul-2012STARING: Nataliya Kozhenova, AmitaNangia, Kiran Kumar, Syed Faiz AliDIRECTOR(S): Shakeel S. SaifeePRODUCER(S): Sikander KhanMUSIC: Sunil Patni

SHAADI KE LIYE LOANRELEASE DATE: 11-Jul-2012STARING: Vikram Kumar, VrijeshHirjee, Mrinalni Sharma, Vijay Raj,Manoj Joshi, AsraniDIRECTOR(S): Rikshit MattaPRODUCER(S): Suhas RahurkarMUSIC: Sanjeev Darshan

CHENAB GANDHIRELEASE DATE: 20-Jul-2012STARING: Amitabh Bachchan, VidyaBalan, Harman BawejaDIRECTOR: Sanjay Leela Bhansali,Vibhu PuriPRODUCER: Madhu Mantena

Film:Cocktail

TUM HI HO BANDHU

SONG

songsFILM

BOL BACHCHANRELEASE DATE: 06-Jul-2012STARING: Ajay Devgan, AbhishekBachchan Asin Thottumkal,Prachi DesaiDIRECTOR(S): Rohit ShettyPRODUCER(S): Ajay Devgan,Dhillin MehtaMUSIC: Ajay-Atul

COCKTAILRELEASE DATE: 13-Jul-2012STARING: Saif Ali Khan, DeepikaPadukone, Diana PentyDIRECTOR(S): Homi AdajaniaPRODUCER(S): Dinesh Vijan, Saif AliKhan, Sunil A Lulla, Andrew Heffernan

WAS SHAHID'S FIRST CRUSHIn an age where 'Gang' wars,'Dirty' deeds and 'Rowdy' romeosare striking gold at the box office,Shahid Kapoor and PriyankaChopra have arrived with acutesy love story that spanseras. Madhureeta Mukherjeechats with the twosome...

Timeless love...Priyanka: "I'm a hopeless

romantic at heart. I'm very old-school, and believe in timeless

Madhuri Dixitromance and love that lastsforever."

Shahid: "I don't knowwhether I believe in timelesslove, frankly, saat janmon kasaath is a very scary thought. Butit's important to be open to allkinds of love. It just... happens!I can't be closed to anything. Ilike to be experimental."

Rumours and roadblocks...Priyanka: "Link-ups are a

professional hazard and they

won't go away. But what's greatis that Shahid and I share such agreat camaraderie, and we're socomfy with each other that itdoesn't matter."

Shahid: "Why just link-uprumours? Any rumour isdisturbing. Even the one where Iwas supposedly rejecting filmswith Sonakshi was absolutelyridiculous."

Muscled men and action...Priyanka: "Oh! I love action.

I can't get enough of it... I evenhave a soft spot for tough men."

Shahid: "An 80s-styled-action film is definitely on myagenda. And when I signsomething like that, I'm callingPC for help. The amount ofharness-entries she's done inshows, I don't think an actionhero must have done in alifetime!"

Failures and flops...Priyanka: "I get sulky,

grumpy and upset when my filmsdon't work. I even lock myself ina room and bawl."

Shahid: "I find things to hitand throw around when my filmsdon't work."

Woman-power inBollywood...

Priyanka: "I'm a Vidya Balanfan; I think she's got the courage

to push herself and do the rolesshe's doing. Actresses havestarted getting their duecreatively; it's a great time to bea Hindi film heroine. When I didAitraaz, people told me I'dbecome a vamp, and that Ishouldn't do it because heroine-centric films se opening nahilagti hai."

Shahid: "Chalo, hum sab bhiheroine ban jaate hain, dupattaoodh ke. Ha, ha!"

First crush ki kahaani...Priyanka: "Well, you know,

girls keep having crushes. Itwasn't a particular person, butmy crushes sort of keptchanging."

Shahid: "I think every boyof my generation had a hugecrush on Madhuri Dixit. And sodid I."

I have a lot to learnABHISHEK BACHCHANReviewing his last 12 years'work, Abhishek Bachchan feelspeople have been over-generousand have given him much morecredit than he deserves. "I thinkpeople think I am a much betteractor than I actually am. I think Ihave a lot more to do andimprove. I think people are tookind to me," Abhishek told IANS.

"I am very harsh on myself.An actor is always his worstcritic. I feel I have been given toomuch due and I am not shammingby saying this. I genuinelybelieve that, I feel I have a lotmore to do and learn," he added.

Junior B made his debutwith J.P. Dutta's Refugee in 2000- which got an iffy reception.Since then, he has seen ups anddowns in his career with hits likeBunty Aur Babli and Sarkar andflops like Kuch Naa Kaho, BasItna Sa Khwaab Hai and Players.

Abhishek goes by only one

parameter while selecting hisroles. "Be it the biggest directoror be it a very good script, but ifmy heart is not with it, I will notdo it," he added. The actor, whoturned 36 this year, is right nowlooking forward to the release ofBol Bachchan, which is comingout July 6. Describing hisexperience, he says matching up

to the required"energy level" and"style" of comedy inBol Bachchan hasbeen an"exhausting" task forhim. "Everythingwas a challenge. Ithought it will be aneasy film to do but itturned out to be themost difficult film ofmy career. I havedone some difficultfilms in the past as

well. But this film wasexhausting to do. Mymisconception was that it is acomedy film, so it will be aholiday, but it wasn't one. Iworked very hard for it," he said.

Loosely based on 1979 filmGolmaal, the cast of BolBachchan also features AjayDevgn, Asin Thottumkal andPrachi Desai. This was notAbhishek's first comedy. Hetickled the audience's funnybones with Dostana, but saysthat his "style of comedy isdifferent" from what the filmrequired.

IMRAN KHAN TOBUILD MUSCLESFOR SONAKSHI

In order to look physicallycompatible opposite curvySonakshi Sinha, skinnyImran Khan has been busyhitting the gym for his rolein Once Upon A Time inMumbaai 2. Sonakshi Sinhawho's quite well-endowedhas so far worked withbrawny actors like SalmanKhan, Akshay Kumar andAjay Devgn. “I am gettinginto bodybuilding, so thatI can be seen in the framewith Sonakshi,” the actorwas overheard telling afriend by the tabloid. Thefilm's shooting will kickstartin August. It is to berecalled that ShahidKapoor had to really workhard to look older thanKareena Kapoor in Jab WeMet. Hope Imran Khan issuccessful in matchingSonakshi's screenpresence.

1



Movie Review

Written & Directed:Written & Directed:Written & Directed:Written & Directed:Written & Directed:

Kabeer KaushikKabeer KaushikKabeer KaushikKabeer KaushikKabeer Kaushik

Cast: Cast: Cast: Cast: Cast: Naseeruddin Shah,

Sonu Sood, Neha Dhupia,

Amit Sadh, Vinay Pathak

Rating:Rating:Rating:Rating:Rating: *** ½

Duration: 1 hour 48

minutes

e n t e r t a i n m e n t

STORY: With a kind of brisk businesslike immediacy and theleast amount of fuss Maximum takes us into the world ofencounter killings and the internecine war in Mumbai’s policedepartment which threatens to destroy the very institutionbuilt to mend the wounds and fissures in the social fabric.

Wri ter-di rec tor Kabeer Kaushik seems to be a bornminimalist. His earlier film the underrated Saher was alsosteeped in the khaki colour. In Maximum the world of legally-enforced corruption is created with such a lack of back-projection, history and vocalized subtexts that you often feelthe director takes his audience for granted.

This is not the case. Kabeer Kaushik only presumes thatwe are intelligent enough to enter the murky morally ambivalentworld of his characters without being led by the hand. It’s adark unlit and often dreary world ignited by repugnant flare-ups of violence where cops are shown to behave like hardcorecriminals. You really can’t tell the two sides apart. NaseeruddinShah who plays a ruthless encounter cop Arun Inamdar isintroduced to us when a victim lies bleeding in front of thecop. Characteristically director Kabeer Kaushik plunges intothe scene of crime when the dark deed is done. We see Inamdarwatching the victim bleed to death and then pumping twobullets into the chap to make sure there’s no unfinishedbusiness here. This is a world of unmitigated immorality.Bullets are fired not to stop but to merchanidize crime. Andthe lawmakers are shown to be as corrupt as the ones they setout to nab and mend. Pratap Pandit, as played by that fineversatile actor Sonu Sood, is a man of a few words, muchaction. We are not given a chance to know him closely. Heshifts gears so often we’re often left looking briefly at gapingwounds that can never heal in our socio-political system. Theview is swift and disconcerting.

The narration assumes a peculiar pace. Though there arebloody shootouts, grim exchange of dialogues, item girls

gyrating in smoky dance bars, and car cashes on Mumbai’sdeceptively glistening roads, the underbelly of the film iscoated with a deathly silence.

As guns roar and Daniel George plays out an elegiacevocative background score to underline the senselessnessof the violence, we can see the characters’ self imposedemptiness in the face of the volatile noise that they’ve createdaround their lives.

The hollowness hits you in the head more than the heart.And when the emotions seize the plot in a vice-like grip wefeel terribly sorry for the characters for the deathtrap thatthey’ve built for one another and finally themselves. The filmopens in 2003 at the height of the encounter killings in Mumbai.Two encounter spec ia l i s t s p layed by Sonu Sood andNaseeruddin Shah are a t loggerheads the way any twoprofess ionals in the same job-space are bound to be .Admirably the director doesn’t use the two principal charactersto form a central conflict. This is a world deprived of moraland legal bearings. Dog eats dog. Cop kills cop. Kaushik’snarration is as ruthless and stripped of humour and other

sources of cinematic solace asthe world his characters inhabit.A certain amount of familiaritywi th the wor ld of encounter

killings is assumed on the audiences’ part. We are expected tounderstand the subverted value-system of the encounter copswho do their social cleansing and in the process get soembroiled in blood, their hands are soaked in the very bloodtha t they are meant to wash away. Hence our ‘hero’Pratap(based on a real-life encounter specialist) is shown tokill criminals, extort money from builders and businessman andhobnob with the powerful and profance. And yet he returnshome to a loving wife(Neha Dhupia, blending into the sareefolds as fluently as the slit gowns that she generally wears)and a daughter. The father-daughter scenes are done with atremulous tenderness.

Sonu Sood invests immense emotion in these scenes. Hisperformance takes him through several moral dilemmas. Yearspass. Sood’s body language expresses the deplorable shift inpower equations. Here’s a performance that again proves this

underra ted ac tor ’sunimpeachable versatility.

“When you are slippingyou either fight back or youkeep quie t , ” he te l l s h i sjournalist-friend, played by aninteresting actor Amit Sadh.They share keema-pao at anIrani restaurant. As the yearspass earlier the cop paid, laterthe scribe does.

A subtle illustration of apower-shift that says so muchabout the soc io-economicequat ions of Mumbai . Thejournalist’s character remainsa kind of sutradhar who getswi l ln i l ly sucked in to thepower game between crimeand politics.

By the end of the film wereally don’t know who is in thecrime folds for the money andwho’s there for the power.

Maximum is a film that’sfar more in-charge of its out-of -cont ro l sharp-shoot ingcops than it seems. Yes, therehave been any number offilms about encounter cops.But th i s one ge ts a t theunderbelly of desolation andiso la t ion of such cops aseffectively as Shimit Amin’sAb Tak Chappan. The aresome br i l l ian t ly executedshootouts . Note NehaDhupia’s haunting alaap justbefore a pen-ul t imateexchange of f i re . And thec l imact ic confronta t ionbetween Sood and Naseer ’scharacter on a station leavesus sickened yet invigorated…

MAXIMUM IS A MINIMUM-FUSS CRIME DRAMA

Kanganato matchsteps withMadhuriActor Kangana Ranautwill soon be seen matchingsteps with the dancingqueen Madhuri Dixit in her

forthcoming film DedhIshqiya. This film is a sequelof 2010 super hit Ishqiya.Dedh Ishqiya is about thejourney of NaseeruddinShah and Arshad Warsi. T he film will be shot entirelyin Lucknow. As Madhuri is one of thebest dancers in theindustry, matching stepswith her will not be easy forKangana, but as Kanganais known for herprofessionalism she alreadystarted practicing dancing.Sources say, "She is reallyexcited and is also workingvery hard on her dancingskills as matching stepswith Madhuri will not be aneasy task for her.Though she is trained inclassical dancing, but stillshe is very nervous andconfident at the same time."

DOING an item number infront of her father gave SonakshiSinha cold feet. Just two films andSonakshi Sinha has alreadymaking news for her latkas andjhatkas thanks to her ChikniKamar show in Rowdy Rathore.The actress was recently set tosizzle the stage with her danceperformance in an award functionand was quite confident abouther item number as well. Until shegot to know who would bewatching it. While she wasperforming and showing off herthumkas to the audience, sherealized that her father Shatrughan Sinha was seated on the first row.She was so petrified and anxious about whether he would approve ofher dance moves that she literally broke into a sweat. But soonSonakshi gained composure and held the fort. She completed thesong as a true professional. While her performance was appreciatedby one and all, we are yet to hear what her dad has to say.

When Shatrughan sawSonakshi's item number...DOING an item number infront of her father gave SonakshiSinha cold feet. Just two films andSonakshi Sinha has alreadymaking news for her latkas andjhatkas thanks to her ChikniKamar show in Rowdy Rathore.The actress was recently set tosizzle the stage with her danceperformance in an award functionand was quite confident abouther item number as well. Until shegot to know who would bewatching it. While she wasperforming and showing off herthumkas to the audience, sherealized that her father Shatrughan Sinha was seated on the first row.She was so petrified and anxious about whether he would approve ofher dance moves that she literally broke into a sweat. But soonSonakshi gained composure and held the fort. She completed thesong as a true professional. While her performance was appreciatedby one and all, we are yet to hear what her dad has to say.

When Shatrughan sawSonakshi's item number... -UPALA KBR

KAJOL is doing a cameo in Karan Johar's upcoming campusflick, in whichM a n i s hMalhotra isstyling all the keyactors, fromSiddharth toVarun Dhawanand Alia Bhatt.Says a source,"For the cameo,Kajol will beattired in a long,b l a c kg l a m o u r o u soutfit. Karan hasa l w a y sconsidered Kajoland Shah Rukhas his lucky mascots. So this time too, for his film Student Of TheYear, he wanted Kads to do a special appearance and she readilyagreed."

KAJOL'S CAMEO FOR KJO

KANGANA Ranaut'sboyfriend, UK-based doctor NicholasLafferty, is presently on a month-longholiday in India. We managed to getexclusive pictures of the couple whilethey were stepping out of a suburbancafe on Friday afternoon in Pali Hill inMumbai. Says a source, "Kanganahas been dating Nicholas for over ayear now, and he has visited her inIndia a few times, but they've keptthose visits a secret. Being a doctor,Nick is very busy, so whenever he gets some time off, either he comeshere or Kangana goes to London so that they can spend some moretime together." Till now, only Kangana's family and close friends knewof Nick's visits to India. But this present trip has changed that. "Now,they are in a more committed space and have made their relationshipstronger, which is why they have stepped out in public. Over the lastfew days (Nick arrived on June 20), they've been spotted at restaurantsand with friends. They're even planning a trek to the north as both areinto hiking and adventure sports."

KANGANA SPOTTED WITHHER BOYFRIEND IN MUMBAI

THE latest buzz in B-Town is that ParineetiChopra doesn't featurein Ranbir Kapoor's film.The story goes that shewas considered for thestar's flick with AbhinavKashyap but she wasn'tthe only one in therunning. It looks like thefilmmakers also looked atIndo-Australian actor-dancer Pallavi Sharda.And it looks like theydecided she would be abetter pair with RanbirthanParineeti.ThoughParineeti made atremendous impression in Ishaqzaade, she still doesn't seem tohave made it into the big league yet. Titled Besharm the movie issaid to feature Ranbir in a 'tapori' type role.

PARINEETI CHOPRAREPLACED IN RANBIR FILM

ROCKSTAR fame Nargis Fakhri was in buzz for her three-film-deal with Akshay Kumar's production house Hari OmProductions. But it seems the deal has been called off due to somereasons. In the first film of the deal, Khiladi 786, Nargis was replacedby Asin. We also heard thatNargis has been replaced by a half-Brit-half-Afghan model Maashawho has signed three films withAkshay Kumar's productioncompany. Maasha is a new facefrom the fashion world and hasrecently moved to Mumbai. It is believed that Akshay mightintroduce her by announcing hisnext venture. Akshay Kumar isknown for promoting newcomersin Bollywood. Before this hepromoted Sonakshi Sinha andKatrina Kaif. Meanwhile Nargis Fakhri has nofilm in her hands yet after Rockstar.

IS NARGIS FAKHRI OUT OF AKSHAYKUMAR'S THREE-FILM-DEAL?

Farah, Boman are avid gamers

GUESS what Farah Khan and Boman Irani have in common?Turns out that both are avid gamers and more often than not,engrossed in playing some or the other game on their respectiveiPads. Interestingly, their enthusiasm for gaming was discoveredduring the filming of Bela Sehgal's directorial debut, Shirin FarhadKi Nikal Padi. As our source from the unit of the movie reveals,"While one would usually expect the actors to hang around onthe sets in between shots, Farah and Boman would disappearfrom there. When Bela sent her assistants to look for them, theywould be found in their respective vans, busy playing games ontheir iPads."


TUESDAY, JULY 3, 2012cricket

ICC ODIODIODIODIODI RankingTeam Matches Points Rating

Australia 49 6030 123South Africa 30 3549 118India 55 6409 117England 39 4333 111Sri Lanka 52 5745 110Pakistan 45 4710 105New Zealand 31 2667 86West Indies 32 2753 86Bangladesh 36 2408 67Zimbabwe 33 1511 46Ireland 14 504 36Netherlands 9 137 15Kenya 9 74 8

ICC TTTTTest est est est est RankingTeam Matches Points Rating

England 44 5124 116South Africa 32 3709 116Australia 46 5153 112India 46 5103 111Pakistan 35 3781 108Sri Lanka 38 3780 99West Indies 34 2898 85New Zealand 28 2366 85Bangladesh 18 135 8

ICC T20T20T20T20T20 RankingTeam Matches QFY Points Rating

Matches

England 14 22 1811 129South Africa 12 20 1468 122Sri Lanka 9 18 1056 117New Zealand 14 24 1596 114Pakistan 17 29 1817 107Australia 15 25 1603 107India 9 16 930 103Ireland 10 15 946 95West Indies 10 18 933 93Afghanistan 6 11 500 83Netherlands 5 8 321 64Zimbabwe 9 13 463 51Scotland 5 8 200 40Canada 5 8 79 16Kenya 6 9 75 13

WORLD TWENTY20 IS MY TARGET: YUVRAJ SINGHBANGALORE: Raising thepossibility of a return tointernational cricket at the WorldTwenty20, dashing all-rounderYuvraj Singh resumed his fitnessdrills at the National CricketAcademy in Bangalore onMonday.

Yuvraj, who was at the NCAa fortnight ago for a briefsession, said his body wasregaining strength as hisrehabilitation progressed.

"Feeling good. My body willbecome stronger stage by stage.World Twenty20 is my target.Hopefully I can be ready a littlebefore that," said India's WorldCup hero, who is recoveringafter undergoing treatment forcancer in the United States.

Yuvraj may play in pre-season domestic tournaments inthe southern states.

"I have to see the schedule.May be in August, I should playa few tournaments down south.I am not sure about the dates so

I have to check," said the 30-year-old who has not appearedin any form of the game sincelast November when he wasdiagnosed with lung cancer.

The Shafi Darashah Trophyin Bangalore, Buchi BabuInvitational Tournament inChennai and Moin ud DowlaGold Cup in Hyderabad are thethree tournaments scheduled tobe played in the next threemonths. With the World T20starting scheduled between

September 18 and October 7 inSri Lanka, Yuvraj is not in a rushbut wants to be 100 per cent fitbefore resuming internationalcricket. "I will be in NCA for awhile now. I want to come backand play for India, that's mygoal. It's not very easy on thebody. I have gone through a lotand my body has gone througha lot of shock. People areexpecting me to come back veryquickly, but I don't want to rush,"said the left-hander.

Virat Kohli prefers tobe seen as a youngsterNEW DELHI: Virat Kohli might beenjoying much-needeed break atthe momet. Following astupendous last season, the recentIndian batting sensation is stayingfocused to build on his form. He even turned up for his officeteam ONGC in the Lala RaghubirHot weather tournament in Delhilast week. Looking ahead, with theIndian Test middle-order set to havea new look in the upcoming seasonand him having cemented his placeahead of the Cheteshwar Pujarasand Rohit Sharmas, Kohli says heis up for the responsibility of beingthe mainstay of the batting."Personally, I love responsibilities.I don't think there is any fun withoutpressure. But talking about thevacancies, I feel all six-seven of us(contenders for the Test spot) fall

in the same group with RohitSharma being the most talented. I hope all of us can take theresponsibility of the Indian battingline-up and I see them as my futurecolleagues," remarked Kohli whileadding that the 10 Test matches in

India will help the young batsmen(whosoever gets the chance) tosettle down. However, on apersonal front, he looks to start fromzero in the new season. With a barrage of accoladesshowered on him and now thatRahul Dravid not there in thebatting line-up, does Virat Kohli seehimself as a senior batsman now?Well, he prefers to be seen as ayoungster. "You don't become a seniorbatsman overnight with two-threemonths of performances. It takessix-seven years to be one. But it is a big responsibility withRahul bhai not there and I am willingto bat anywhere in the order. I seemyself as the youngster who cameinto the team few years ago," Kohliasserted.

VIRENDER SEHWAG TO MAKE ODI COMEBACK-INDRANIL BASUNEW DELHI: When India played the last ODI tournament in Asia CupIndian opener Virender Sehwag was rested on fi tness ground and therewas speculation that he was dropped on account of his lackluster formwith the bat in the Austral ian series.

But after a commendable performance with the bat in the IPL, theDelhi dasher is al l set to make a comeback into the Indian ODI teamwhen the selectors pick the squad for the five-match Sri Lankan series,which will also have a one-off T20 match.

Sources said that the selection committee is l ikely to pick the squadin the f i rs t week of July and wi l l se lect a s ide keeping in mind theupcoming World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka this September.

"He wasn ' t fu l ly f i t for the Asia Cup. During the Austra l ian t r i -se r i e s , he was r egu la r ly t r ea ted fo r h i s shou lde r in ju ry and so these l ec to r t hough t i t f i t t o r e s t h im . Bu t i n t he IPL , he was s imp lybril l iant ," a source told TOI. In this year 's IPL, Sehwag, who led DelhiDaredev i l s , s co red 495 runs w i th f i ve consecu t ive f i f t i e s f rom 16matches .

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