May 2018

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MAY 2018
Pakistan’s Hazara
community end
protest against
targeted killings
Islamabad, The leaders of
Pakistan’s Shia Hazara community
on Wednesday agreed
to call off their protest over a
recent spate of targeted
killings in Quetta city following
a meeting with Chief of
the Army Staff Gen Qamar
Javed Bajwa. Bajwa arrived
in the city late Tuesday night
and held a meeting with representatives
of the Hazara
community that has been hit
badly by the incidents of targeted
killing, reports Dawn
news. According to the Inter-
Serv ices Public Relations, the
meeting was also attended by
Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal.
Iqbal had reached Quetta
on Monday to persuade the
community leaders to call off
the ir protest but they refused
unless Gen Bajwa held a
meeting with them. Earlier,
the Majlis Wahdatul
Muslimeen (MWM) wrote a
letter to Gen Bajwa, asking
him to intervene to halt the
killings, reports Dawn news.
The letter said the organised
sectarian cleansing of
Hazara people was going on
in Balochistan and there was
an immediate need to stop it
without further delay.
Christians and members of
other minority communities
in the province were also
becoming targets of terrorist
attacks, it added. He alleged
that terrorists openly claimed
that they were involved in the
killing of Hazaras, but no
action was not being taken.
Sri Lanka Cricket polls
postponed to May 31
Colombo, The polls to elect
the next set of office bearers of
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) have
been pushed to May 31, postponed
on technical grounds
from the original date of May
19.
Instead, the Special General
Meeting of the SLC will now
be held on May 19, according
to a report by cricbuzz.
Sri Lanka’s Sports Ministry
had informed the board that the
procedure followed in appointing
the election commission
Test for PM as England
votes in local elections
London, Ballots were being counted
on Friday from local elections in
England seen as the first key electoral
test for Prime Minster Theresa May
since she lost her parliamentary majority
last year. Polls closed at 10:00 pm
(local time) on Thursday to elect local
councillors, with May's Conservative
party braced for defeats in London, a
traditional stronghold of the opposition
Labour party. Early results were
mixed, with both Conservatives and
Labour losing control of key councils,
but a clear overall picture was not
expected until later Friday, when more
results from London's 32 local councils
are due.
By around 5:30 am (local time),
with 90 out of 150 council results in,
Labour had 20 more seats nationally,
the Conservatives eight more, and the
centrist Liberal Democrats were up 40,
according to the BBC.
The pro-Brexit UK Independence
Party had lost 86 seats to have only two,
it said. The elections took place across
England, including in cities such as
Manchester, Leeds and Newcastle, with
a total of more than 4,300 seats being
contested. In London, where last year's
Grenfell Tower fire disaster in which 71
people were killed is still a fresh memory,
some residents said they were using
the vote as a proxy poll on Conservative
leaders on both local and national levels.
Charity worker Joe Batty, 54, cast his
ballot when polls opened in the borough
of Islington at 7:00 am on Thursday.
"The cuts to the local councils, that's
come
from the central government austerity,"
he said.
Pensioner Joyce Mason, 79, said cuts
to hospital services had weighed on her
decision.
"I know they're under stress, they are
under a lot of stress at the moment. But
we've never had nothing like this
before." - Brexit divisions - Turnout
is usually low — only around one third
of voters cast their ballot in last year's
local elections, compared to 69 percent
in the national vote in June.
Since then the government has been
rocked by divisions over Brexit, as well
as a recent scandal over its treatment of
was invalid.
“The Sports Ministry had
informed us that the composition
of the committee to oversee
the elections needs to be
formed only after an SGM and
we will go ahead as we have
been advised,” said SLC
President
Thilanga
Sumathipala, who will contest
for the post of president for a
second term.
Earlier, the election committee
had been formed after a
meeting of the SLC’s
Executive Committee, whereas
it had to be formed after a
Special General Meeting.
Caribbean citizens who emigrated in the
1960s and 1970s, and which led to the
resignation of home secretary Amber
Rudd on the weekend.
National issues often factor in the
local elections, which offer a chance to
send a mid-term message to the government,
and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn
is hoping for a boost. But Corbyn's
resurgent left-wing party is far from
guaranteed to sweep to victory.
Before her vote, taxi driver Jeanette
Barton, 64, said she would break with
her family's tradition and vote for May's
party.
"I'd like to kick Labour out... so I'm
voting Conservative", she said.
"I don't like Jeremy Corbyn." EU citizens
are able to vote, unlike in general
elections, and some campaigners have
been pressing Brexit as an issue.
However, questions of local tax rates,
bin collection and the state of the roads
also dominate many campaigns, making
analysts wary of drawing too many
national lessons from the results.
Sushma to meet Northeast
CMs on Act East Policy
New Delhi, With India increasing its engagements
with Southeast Asia under New Delhi’s Act East
Policy, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will
on Friday chair an interactive session with the Chief
Ministers of all eight northeastern states.
According to the External Affairs Ministry, following
the successful Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (Asean)-India Commemorative Summit that
was hosted by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on
January 25 this year, Friday’s meeting will further
underscore Modi’s vision of keeping the Northeast at
the heart of India’s Act East Policy and the engagement
with Asean. “Chief Ministers of the eight northeastern
states have been invited to attend this meeting
and they will be accompanied by senior officials from the states who deal with
policy issues related to the subject,” the statement said. Others who will attend the
meeting include Minister of State for External Affairs V.K. Singh, Niti Aayog Vice
Chairman Rajiv Kumar, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale and Secretary (East) in
the External Affairs Ministry Preeti Saran.

2 May 2018
UNITED KINGDOM
www.theasianindependent.co.uk
Government action to end letting fees
A new government bill to ban letting
fees across England is set to save
tenants millions of pounds and make
the market fairer and more transparent.
Unexpected letting fees and high
deposits can cause a significant affordability
problem for tenants and are
often not clearly explained – leaving
many residents unaware of the true
costs of renting a property.
Introduced into Parliament today (2
May 2018), the Tenant Fees Bill will
bring an end to costly letting fees and
save tenants around £240 million a
year, according to government figures.
The Bill will also give tenants
greater assurances that the deposit
they pay at the start of the tenancy
cannot exceed 6 weeks’ rent.
Housing Secretary Rt Hon James
Brokenshire MP said: This government
is determined to build a housing
market fit for the future. Tenants
across the country should not be stung
by unexpected costs. That’s why we’re
delivering our promise to ban letting
fees, alongside other measures to
make renting fairer and more transparent.
The Tenant Fees Bill will stop letting
agents from exploiting their position
as intermediaries between landlords
and tenants, and prevent unfair
practices such as double charging for
the same services.
It will also help to increase competition
between agents and landlords,
which could help drive lower costs
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Editor-in-chief
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Marketing & Creative Manager
Columnists
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The new measures
are subject to
Parliamentary
timetables and will
be introduced in
law next year.
British PM faces Brexit challenges from her party
London, Confidence in
Britain’s Brexit negotiations
ending successfully have hit a
new low, according to a new
opinion poll.
A poll published on Tuesday
by the Guardian newspaper and
ICM revealed that only 28 per
cent think the Brexit talks will
conclude satisfactorily, against
47 percent who now think they
will end unsatisfactorily,
Xinhua reported.
In a similar poll in
December 39 per cent feared an
unsatisfactory outcome, but 35
per cent were confident of a
satisfactory outcome.
The results came as Prime
Minister Theresa May and her
cabinet met at 10 Downing
Street to discuss a string of
votes in the House of
Commons Monday. The votes
saw unelected peers in the
House of Lords backing
amendments against May’s
flagship European Union withdrawal
bill.
The biggest blow was an
amendment passed by 335
votes to 244, which would give
MPs the power to stop Britain
from leaving the EU without a
deal, or make May return to the
negotiating table, ruling out a
no-deal scenario.
Journalists briefed after the
cabinet meeting were told later
that May and cabinet
ministers
expressed strong
disappointment at
the defeats in the
House of Lords
over the EU withdrawal
bill.
Downing Street
said there was concern
the amendments
risked tying
the government’s hands behind
its back in negotiations.
May’s spokesperson said
both the Prime Minister and the
Brexit secretary, David Davis,
said the government would be
robust when the EU withdrawal
bill returned to the House of
Commons after completing its
passage in the House of Lords.
In a Tuesday radio interview
International Trade Secretary
overall and a higher quality of service
for tenants. Other key measures in the
Bill, which reflects feedback from a
recent public consultation and pre-legislative
scrutiny from the Housing,
Communities and Local Government
Select Committee, include:
capping holding deposits at no
more than one week’s rent. The Bill
also sets out the proposed requirements
on landlords and agents to
return a holding deposit to a tenant
• capping the amount that can be
charged for a change to tenancy at £50
unless the landlord demonstrates that
greater costs were incurred
• creating a financial penalty with a
fine of £5,000 for an initial breach of
the ban with a criminal offence where
a person has been fined or convicted
Liam Fox said it was not
acceptable for the unelected
House of Lords to try to block
the democratic will of the
British people, who voted by a
52-48 margin in June, 2016 to
leave the EU.
Fox said the House of Lords
amendment opened up the possibility
of delaying Britain’s
exit from the EU indefinitely.
It will be up to the House of
Commons to decide whether to
accept the amendments to the
Brexit bill from the House of
Lords, or strike out the proposed
changes.
With May running a minority
government, shored up by
the Democratic Unionist Party
(DUP) of Northern Ireland, victory
for the prime
minister is far from
guaranteed, particularly
with a number
of pre-EU rebels
among her ranks.
To add to May’s
woes, media reports
in London say several
of her senior
ministers have
threatened to resign
if she strikes a deal that will
keep Britain in a customs
union. The Independent newspaper
Tuesday night reported
that May was preparing for a
Brexit meeting with select cabinet
ministers Wednesday at
which they will try to come up
with a joint position on postwithdrawal
customs relations
following rejection of Britain’s
existing proposals.
of the same offence within the last 5
years. Financial penalties of up to
£30,000 can be issued as an alternative
to prosecution
• requiring Trading Standards to
enforce the ban and to make provision
for tenants to be able to recover
unlawfully charged fees via the Firsttier
Tribunal
• prevents landlords from recovering
possession of their property via the
section 21 Housing Act 1988 procedure
until they have repaid any unlawfully
charged fees
• enabling the appointment of a lead
enforcement authority in the lettings
sector
• amending the Consumer Rights
Act 2015 to specify that the letting
agent transparency requirements
should apply to property portals such
as Rightmove and Zoopla
• local authorities will be able to
retain the money raised through financial
penalties with this money
reserved for future local housing
enforcement
Alongside rent and deposits, agents
and landlords will only be permitted to
charge tenants fees associated with:
a change or early termination of a
tenancy when requested by the tenant
utilities, communication services
and Council Tax
payments arising from a default by
the tenant such as replacing lost key
The new measures are subject to
Parliamentary timetables and will be
introduced in law next year.
The Tenant Fees Bill builds on government’s
work this year to protect
tenants and landlords through the
introduction of new rogue landlord
database, banning orders for rogue
landlords and property agents as well
as a new code of practice to regulate
the letting and managing agents sector.
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www.theasianindependent.co.uk
UNITED KINGDOM
May 2018
UK Space Agency leads work on
options for independent satellite system
3
Government confirms UK Space
Agency will lead work to develop
options for a British Global
Navigation Satellite System.
The UK Government has confirmed
today it is developing options
for a British Global Navigation
Satellite System.
Led by the UK Space Agency, a
taskforce of Government specialists
and industry will work quickly to
develop options that will provide both
civilian and encrypted signals and be
compatible with the GPS system.
The UK is already a world-leader in
developing satellite technology, building
40 per cent of the world’s small
satellites and one in four commercial
telecommunications satellites.
UK companies have made a critical
contribution to the EU Galileo programme,
building the payloads for the
satellites and developing security systems.
The taskforce will draw on this
experience and expertise as it develops
plans for an innovative system that
could deliver on the UK’s security
needs and provide commercial services.
Business Secretary Greg Clark
said: This taskforce will develop
options for an independent satellite
navigation system using the worldbeating
expertise of Britain’s thriving
space sector. We have made our position
clear to the European
Commission and highlighted the
importance of the UK to the Galileo
programme.
It is now right that we explore alternative
options to ensure our security
needs are met as we continue to take
full advantage of the opportunities that
exist in the global space sector,
through our modern Industrial
Strategy.
Dr Graham Turnock, CEO of UK
Space Agency said: As the
Government has made clear, we
should begin work now on options for
a national alternative to Galileo to
guarantee our satellite
positioning, navigation
and timing needs
are met in the future.
The UK Space
Agency is well placed
to lead this work and
will use a wide-range
of expertise from
across the space, engineering
and security
sectors.
The UK will be
able to use Galileo’s
open signal in the
future, and British
Armed Forces and
emergency services
were due to have
access to the encrypted
system when it is
fully operational. The Government has
been clear there is a mutual benefit to
the UK remaining involved in Galileo
and is working hard to deliver this.
Without the assurance that UK industry
can collaborate on an equal basis
and without continued access to the
necessary security-related information,
the UK could be obliged to end
its participation in the project. The
Business Secretary Greg Clark wrote
to the Commission last month
expressing concern about its intention
to exclude the UK from the secure elements
of Galileo. The UK Space
Agency has been engaging regularly
with the UK companies involved and
will now lead the work to develop
potential alternative options.
The recent Blackett review estimated
that a failure of navigation satellite
service could cost the UK economy £1
billion a day. Resilient and secure
position, navigation and timing information
is increasingly essential for
defence, critical national infrastructure
and emergency response.
The UK Space Agency is driving
the growth of the space sector as part
of the Government’s Industrial
Strategy with major initiatives including
the National Space Test Facility at
Harwell, and the UK continues to be a
leading member of the European
Space Agency, which is independent
of the EU. New figures released today
by the ADS Group trade body show
that in 2017 the UK space industry
was worth around £15 billion a year in
turnover, with exports of £5.4 billion
and 71 percent growth since 2012.
UK condemns attack
on Libyan Elections Commission
Minister for the Middle East, Alistair Burt
has issued a statement following a terrorist
attack in Libya on the High National Elections
Commission
Minister Burt said:
I am extremely concerned to hear about the
attack on the High National Elections
Commission (HNEC) in Tripoli today. I condemn
the attack in the strongest terms and send
my deepest condolences to the families of
those who were killed.
The HNEC plays an invaluable role in supporting
Libya’s progress on the democratic
path. The UK continues to stand by Libya, and
our commitment to supporting all Libyans
remains steadfast.
LLWR chooses new charity of the year
Give Us A Break 2010 will be supported by
fundraising in addition to help in kind from the
LLW Repository Ltd workforce.
The LLWR workforce has chosen Give Us A
Break 2010 as its new charity
of the year.
The west Cumbrian charity
proved a popular winner in a
vote from a shortlist of four
worthy local organisations.
Give Us A Break 2010 was
formed to improve the quality
of life for disabled children by
providing a much needed short
break centre in the community.
Cath Giel, LLWR’s Head of Public Affairs,
said: “We raised a record £8,000 for our chosen
charity last year, Macmillan Cancer Support, and
this year we want to build on the amazing generosity
of our people by asking them to help in
kind, as well as in cash. “We will still be holding
fundraising events but we are also keen to establish
a relationship with the organisation and work
on joint initiatives to help them achieve their
objectives.
“This might involve offering expert advice or
simply bending our backs and
getting involved in some
heavy lifting work. There are
many possibilities.
“We look forward to chatting
to Give Us A Break 2010
to explore the opportunities.”
Youngsters with a variety of
conditions such as autism,
cerebral palsy and Down syndrome
will be eligible to visit
the centre to pursue a string of activities in a safe
and stimulating environment, whilst giving families
and carers a much needed rest.
The charity was formed by Dawn Raynor,
mum of twins Callan & Ethan, who suffer with
Tuberous Sclerosis, a rare genetic disorder that
causes intractable epilepsy.

4 May 2018
UNITED KINGDOM
www.theasianindependent.co.uk
Dr Ambedkar’s anti-discrimination work
commemorated in the House of Lords
He is the father of the Indian
Constitution and modern India. A
man from India’s so-called low
caste dalits, the most qualified
leader of his time, way beyond his
years, Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar
fought all his life to eliminate
caste discrimination, dispossession,
and humiliation.
It was the 127th anniversary of
his birth on the 14th April 2018
and, while different parts of India
enjoyed the spectacle of a great
leader’s birth anniversary
(Ambedkar Jayanti), political
leaders, academics, social entrepreneurs,
volunteers, and activists
from the UK got together to commemorate
the occasion in
London.
LORD HARRIES
Lord Harries of Pentregarth
and the Federation of
Ambedkarite and Buddhist
Organisations UK organized a
short and informative seminar
titled “Dr B R Ambedkar – His
life and Work” on the 30th April
held in Committee Room 2 at the
House of Lords.
The Lord welcomed the gathering,
expressing his heartfelt gratitude,
stating: “we have very well
informed, committed speakers
and we are very fortunate to have
such a line up at today’s event.”
He congratulated the delegates,
some of who had traveled all the
way from India. Lord Harries sits
as a crossbench member and is the
Co-Chair of the All Party
Parliamentary Group for Dalits.
After that Ms Santosh Dass
MBE, President of the Federation
of Ambedkarite and Buddhist
Organisations (FABO UK), the
Vice Chair of the Anti Caste
Discrimination Alliance (ACDA),
and a leading figure in the campaign
to outlaw caste-based discrimination
in the UK, briefly
introduced the event.
“This is the fifth such discussion,
and these sessions championed
dalit issues, the condition of
India. I want to make Dr
Ambedkar’s appeal universal. He
is one of the finest academics of
his generation, a prolific writer, a
world-class social reformer, an
outstanding economist, empowerer
of women in India,” she said.
Over the coming years Santosh
hoped that there would a lot more
structure and awareness about
Babasaheb Ambedkar. One plan
for the future is the setting up of a
Dr Ambedkar and Dalit Study
Centre in some of the top colleges
and universities. She suggested
the University of Leeds, SOAS or
the London School of Economics.
Once the opening speeches
were out of the way, the floor was
opened with the first topic of discussion,
a subject based on
research by two academics from
the University of Leeds. “The
other from within: Indian anthropologists
and the birth of the
nation” was presented by Dr Jesús
Cháirez-Garza, Research Fellow
at the University of Leeds and Dr
William Gould, Professor of
Indian History at the University of
Leeds.
Their research reflected on why
race was important in relation to
caste, especially with the idea of
caste and race closely related in
the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
One was commonly perceived
to be of higher heritage if
you belonged to a higher caste. Dr
Ambedkar believed that dalits
were not racially inferior to
Indians of higher castes. His findings
and research were the first
academic account to be published
at Columbia University, opening
up conversations on India’s caste
system for the first time. Dr Gould
discussed the research the
University of Leeds were undertaking
to look into how Scheduled
Castes and Scheduled Tribes
NGOs were able to shape and
influence Government policies
related to them. He thanked
Santosh Dass MBE in ACDA for
becoming a joint partner in the
research.
Ms Santosh Dass MBE, briefly
touched upon the aspect of caste
Smita Sarkar
discrimination in the UK, along
with the initiatives taken to eradicate
this practice in the 21st century
in the UK, which she said
was “a relentless and ongoing
fight.” Santosh has also taken up
the issue and the rising atrocities
against Dalits in India, at the UN.
She was instrumental in proposing
and lobby the Maharashtra
government in India fund the
acquisition of the house where Dr
BR Ambedkar lived as a student
in London and refurbish it as a
memorial, open to the public.
Santosh’s speech was followed
by Ms Bonnie Dobson, a singer
and activist who described how
she came to know about the
Ambedkar movement, through
small personal anecdotes. She
expressed her gratitude for being
able to participate in such an
important cause where there is so
much yet to be done.
Next it was the turn of Mr Arun
Kumar, the General Secretary of
FABO UK who spoke about the
Ambedkar House in King Henry’s
Road in London, briefly touching
upon the history – the building
where Dr Ambedkar lived during
his student days in London in the
1920s. . Arun also emphasized the
valuable work undertaken by the
Dr Ambedkar Memorial Advisory
Committee to refurbish and turn
it into a memorial. He also
referred to Prime Minister
Narendra Modi’s no show at the
Ambedkar House on 19 June. He
said organisations there wanted to
have a face to face opportunity to
hand in a Joint Memorandum by
organisations to the PM Modi
about need for action against
atrocities against Dalits in India;
volience against women; and dilution
of the Atrocities Act.
He was followed by Mr Raj
Bangar, a Dalit activist living in
the UK and one of the co-founding
Trustees of Kanshi TV, who
said he was carrying his father’s
dreams of giving the marginalized
a voice. He said Kanshi TV
reports on UK and India Dalit
issues that the maintstream media
ignore. He has actively campaigned
to outlaw caste discrimination
in the UK. He spoke briefly
about how Babasaheb Ambedkar
was a leader of the masses, who
worked not to uplift a section of
the community, but bring in
reforms that laid the foundations
of modern India.
Then Mr Pratap Tamble, a
Diversity lead, presented a short
research paper, based on a pan-
India survey of higher education
in 2015-2016. He brought to light
certain findings such as the lack
of representation in different
wings of the government. The
report quoted the President of
India, Mr RN Kovind: “There is
unacceptably low representation
of traditionally weaker sections
such as Other Backward
Communities (OBCs), Scheduled
Castes and Scheduled Tribes
especially in higher judiciary.”
Other conclusions included
how a lack of representation in
faculty can be co-related with suicides,
incomplete courses, and
poor performances among the
Scheduled Caste and Scheduled
Tribes students. The report also
highlighted the under representation
in Cabinets in Central
Governments, higher levels of
Business and the Public Media.
Based on the principles of Dr BR
Ambedkar, India for Diversity
wants to set up a safe space for all
in order to create an inclusive and
progressive India.
The last speaker for the session
was Dr David Mosse, Professor
for Social Anthropology, SOAS,
University of London, who presented
a paper on “Caste and the
Market Economy: How and for
whom is Caste relevant in India
today.” Dr Mosse discussed the
economic repercussions attached
to caste, and its relevance or irrelevance
in a rapidly globalizing
market economy of the world. Dr
Mosse is also involved in a collaborative
research project, ‘Caste
Out of Development’, which is
concerned with the civil society
activism and transnational advocacy
on Dalit rights and
Development. He has also worked
on a project for the UK Equalities
and Human Rights Commission
on ‘Caste in Britain.’
Followed by a brief Q&A session,
some thought-provoking
questions were asked about how
Dr Ambedkar untangled the misconception
that race and caste are
interconnected. There were statements
made on the work that
allied organizations have undertaken
in the UK. It was a rich and
informative session in a packed
committee room which brought to
light how important Dr Ambedkar
and his ideas still are, whilst
bringing attention to the progress
being made to tackle the issues of
caste and reinforcing the positive
momentum the movement is gaining
in the UK. There may be plenty
of work still to do but the passion
to make progress was certainly
in abundance at the House
of Lords that day.

www.theasianindependent.co.uk
UNITED KINGDOM
UK and Norway defence ministers
plan sub-hunting co-operation
The UK and Norway advanced their plans
for international Maritime Patrol Aircraft
(MPA) co-operation in the North Atlantic, as
the nations’ defence ministers flew in an
American P-8A Poseidon from RAF
Lossiemouth today.
Defence Minister Guto Bebb hosted
Secretary Tone Skogen, State Secretary in
Norway’s Ministry of Defence, on her
visit aboard a US Navy P-8A Poseidon
aircraft – equipment which both the UK
and Norway will soon own themselves.
The allies ramped up discussions
around how the nations will work together
and might deploy their submarine-hunting
aircraft fleet in the future. Areas of cooperation
could range from maintenance
to training and operations, which would
not only cut costs but also boost operational
power in the North Atlantic, a key
area of submarine activity.
The aircraft took off from RAF
Lossiemouth, which will be the future
home of the UK’s fleet. Investing £3 billion
in the capability over the next decade, the
UK is buying nine of the Boeing-built aircraft,
whilst Norway are getting five. Their key role
for the UK will be to protect the country’s submarine-based
nuclear deterrent and its two new
aircraft carriers – the Poseidons deploy
sonobuoys to help them detect submarines, and
can fire anti-ship missiles and launch torpedoes
to destroy submarines.
Defence Minister Guto Bebb said: These
sub-hunters will take to the skies from RAF
Lossiemouth and help us combat a range of
intensifying threats, not least increasing submarine
activity in the North Atlantic. We’re
investing £3bn in our own capability, but working
alongside Norway takes this to a higher
level. Not only could we cut costs by sharing
training, spares and repair facilities, but we can
patrol the seas together, meaning we’ve got
more eyes and ears on any potential aggressors.
Norway’s Secretary Tone Skogen said:
Norway and the UK are natural partners given
our shared values, as well as our history and
geography. We can even further strengthen
bilateral defence cooperation related to highend
capabilities such as the F-35 fighter and the
P-8 maritime patrol aircraft. In my discussions
with Guto Bebb, Minister for Defence
Procurement, I find a like-minded ally. The UK
and Norway continue to stand together in training
and exercises in the North Atlantic and the
Northern region, as well as operationalisation
of the Joint Expeditionary Force.
The nine P-8A Poseidons will
be based at RAF Lossiemouth in
Scotland. Last month, Defence
Secretary Gavin Williamson cut
the first turf on a £132m facility
for the new fleet. The new facility
will be completed in 2020, to
coincide with initial operating
capability of the Poseidon aircraft
being available in the UK.
Built by Elgin-based Robertson
Northern, it will comprise a tactical
operations centre, an operational
conversion unit, squadron
accommodation, training and simulation
facilities and a three-bay
aircraft hangar.
At the peak of construction, the project will
support 200 local jobs. When the fleet is fully
operational, some 470 additional service personnel
will be based at RAF Lossiemouth, taking
the total number of people employed there
to 2,200. Further roles are also expected when
the training and support services are established
at the new facility.
May 2018
5
Governments agree plans to work
together on UK frameworks
The Joint Ministerial Committee on EU
Negotiations (JMC (EN)) has agreed plans for the
next phase of multilateral official level discussions
in a range of areas where UK frameworks may be
required. The ninth Joint Ministerial Committee
(EU Negotiations) met today in 70 Whitehall. The
meeting was chaired by the Rt Hon David
Lidington MP, Chancellor of the Duchy of
Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office.
The attending Ministers were : From the UK
Government: the Chancellor of the Duchy of
Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, Rt
Hon David Lidington MP; the Secretary of State for
Exiting the EU, Rt Hon David Davis MP; the
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Rt Hon Karen
Bradley MP; the Secretary of State for Wales, Rt Hon
Alun Cairns MP; the Secretary of State for Scotland,
Rt Hon David Mundell MP; the Minister for the
Constitution, Chloe Smith MP; the Parliamentary
Under Secretary of State for Exiting the EU, Robin
Walker MP. From the Welsh Government: the
Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Mark Drakeford AM.
From the Scottish Government: the Minister for
UK Negotiations on Scotland’s Place in Europe,
Michael Russell MSP. Dr Andrew McCormick,
Director General International Relations from the
Northern Ireland Civil Service attended the meeting
in the continued absence of a Northern Ireland
Executive. The Chair opened the meeting by summarising
the constructive Ministerial and official
level engagement that had taken place since the
Committee last met. The Secretary of State for
Exiting the EU provided an update on negotiations,
including the March meeting of European Council
and the agreement reached on the terms of the
Implementation Period. The Committee discussed the
UK Government’s paper on the Devolved
Administrations’ role in the negotiations.
Multi-million fund to boost
children’s early language skills
Families to receive extra support
to help with children’s early
language and communication
skills at home
New support to help parents
improve their children’s early language
and literacy skills at home
before they start school have been
announced today (30 April) by
Education Secretary
Damian Hinds. Two
schemes will build the
confidence of parents to
support their children in
language and reading at
an early stage. This has
been shown to help close
the so-called ‘word gap’
– the gap in communication
skills between disadvantaged
children and
their peers when they
start school.
A new £5million
scheme will be run by
the Education Endowment
Foundation (EEF) to trial projects
to provide practical tools and
advice to parents so they can help
their children learn new words
through simple steps like reading
and singing nursery rhymes.
Alongside this, an £8.5million
programme has opened for local
authorities to fund projects to
improve early language and literacy
development for disadvantaged
children. Education Secretary
Damian Hinds said: This
Government wants every child to
have the best start in life which
means mastering the basics of
speaking, reading and writing at
an early age. It is important that
parents and families can feel confident
about supporting their children
so they can start school with
the appropriate level of language
and social skills.
This new support will help parents
with early language learning
at home by giving them practical
advice on activities like reading
and learning the alphabet which
are so important in making sure
no child is left behind. Through
the hard work of teachers and the
government’s reforms, academic
standards are rising with 1.9 million
more children in schools
rated good or outstanding than in
2010 and the attainment gap is
narrowing in both primary and
secondary school. English children
are also rising up the international
literacy league tables from
an early age, helping to make
Britain a country fit for the future.
Despite this progress, too many
children arrive at school struggling
with language and social
skills, putting them at a disadvantage
when they begin their formal
education and making it harder
for them to master the fundamentals
of reading that other children
take for granted.
Over the past 40
years, the amount of
time parents spend on
development activities,
such as playing
and reading with their
children has risen
from 23 minutes per
day to 80 minutes, but
research shows that
three year olds from
certain backgrounds
are 37 percentage
points less likely to be
read to every day than
their peers.
The EEF will trial projects in
the north of England, looking at
what works best in improving
children’s communication skills at
home before they begin school, a
key part of the government’s
ambition to give every child the
best start in life.
In a separate drive to aid social
mobility, the government has also
committed £8.5million to a new
Early Years Social Mobility Peer
Review Programme with the
Local Government Association,
which will see councils working
together to improve outcomes for
disadvantaged children.

6 May 2018
ASIA
www.theasianindependent.co.uk
Modi`s Government Mentality
is Totalitarian: Arun Shourie
Arun Shourie, a renowned author, social
activist, politician, Minister of
Communications and Information
Technology in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government(1998-2004)
has been a strong critic
of Modi`s government policies and programmes
since 2014. He launched a scathing
attack on Modi`s government and alleged
that the mentality of Modi`s government is
Totalitarian.
The argument placed by Shourie carries
weight in the sense that the current environment
in the country implies that the BJP in
the hope of making India a Congress Mukt
Bharat has been working on the agenda of
appeasing the minorities. The communal
divide between Hindus and Muslims after
Modi came to power in 2014 widened with
no hope replenishment. It will prove lethal to
the survival of democracy and secularism in
India.
Every day, the BJP leaders, MLAs are
frothing venom against the members of the
minorities. Recently, the Chief Minister of
Tripura has publicly threatened the leaders of
the opposition party. Muslims and Dalits are
humiliated in the public spaces. Modi has no
control over such ruffians. The public perception
of RSS is that this organization has
been funding and maintaining VHP, Bajrang
Dal, and other Hindu frontal organisations to
commit atrocities against the members of the
marginalized communities.
The recent death of two Dalit activists in
the district of Phagwara in the state of Punjab
undoubtedly indicates that the BJP`s agenda
is to establish a fascist government where no
opposition or member of the marginalized
community can dare to
Rahul Bali
Senior Correspondent,
New Delhi
question the ruling party.
In every state of India,
RSS workers are given gun license. The
question is if the RSS is a social and charitable
organization as claimed by the RSS headquarter
then why the workers of the RSS
need pistols, guns etc.
The Nazi Party of Hitler and his political
allies embarked on a systematic suppression
of the remaining political opposition. On the
same line, the BJP has been working since it
came to power. India will pay the price as
Germany paid or still paying because of fascist
ideology of Hitler party. India is a democratic
country where all religions are
respected.
By suppressing minorities no ruling party
can survive for a long time in India. Modi
might win 2019 election. Peace in the society
is more important than winning elections.
The widening gap between Hindus and
minorities would certainly derail the agenda
of development. The popular discontent in
the society will reignite religious communalism.
Today, almost all premier educational
institutions are infested with the communal
poison. India cannot become a superpower if
RSS and its frontal organisations keep on
interfering in the affairs of educational institutions.
Power does not mean to suppress the
minorities. The true meaning of power is to
establish peace in the society and make the
best efforts to make India a livable country.
New terminals to augment capacity
at Lucknow, Chennai, Guwahati
New Delhi, In a bid to create
airport capacity to handle the
exponential growth of air travel,
the central government on
Wednesday approved the upgradation
and expansion of
Lucknow, Chennai and
Guwahati airports at a cost of
over Rs 5,000 crore.
According to IT
Minister Ravi
Shankar Prasad the
C a b i n e t
Committee on
Economic Affairs
(CCEA) approved
the upgradation of
these airports with
funds from a Rs
21,000 crore corpus
created for various
airports in the
country.
“A sum of Rs
2,467 crore has been approved
for the upgradation of Chennai
airport with a new terminal
building that will incorporate
green building features with an
aim to achieve the ‘GRIHA 4
Star’ rating,” he said here.
“For the construction of new
terminal buildings at Guwahati
and Lucknow airports the sums
approved are Rs 1,383 crore and
Rs 1,232 crore, respectively,” he
added.
Besides, the Minister of State
for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha
in a separate media interaction
here said that India has witnessed
the highest growth rate in
its domestic aviation sector and
that the government aims to create
airport capacity
via its new
scheme ‘NABH
Nirmaan’
(NextGen
Airports for
Bharat).
Sinha said that
the scheme will
enhance airport
capacity by five
times to handle
one billion trips.
Currently, the
A i r p o r t s
Authority of India (AAI) is
implementing plans for creating
additional capacity at other airports
— Agartala, Patna,
Srinagar, Pune, Trichy,
Vijayawada, Port Blair, Jaipur,
Mangalore, Dehradun, Jabalpur,
Kolhapur, Goa, Rupsi, Leh,
Calicut and Imphal with a capital
expenditure of Rs 20,178 crore
in the next four-five years.

www.theasianindependent.co.uk
ASIA
May 2018
7
SC/ST Act order affected morale,
confidence : Centre to Supreme Court
The Centre told the Supreme Court that its judgment diluting a stringent provision of the SC/ST
(Prevention of Atrocities) Act has “seriously affected their (SCs/STs) morale and confidence”.
The Centre told the Supreme Court
that its judgment diluting a stringent
provision of the SC/ST (Prevention of
Atrocities) Act has “seriously affected
their (SCs/STs) morale and confidence”.
Attorney General KK Venugopal
on Thursday told a bench of Justice
Adarsh Kumar Goel and Justice Uday
Umesh Lalit that their March 20 judgment
holding that arrest on a complaint
under the law was not mandatory
has shaken the confidence of
Scheduled Castes and Scheduled
Tribes “in the ability of the state to
protect them”.
He added that it resulted in the
death of eight people during protests
as well as an increase in the instances
of attack on the SCs and STs.
The bench however questioned the
submission saying its judgment did
Centre reverses cap on education concession
to defence personnel’s children
Chandigarh, The Central
government has acceded to
Punjab Chief Minister
Amarinder Singh’s request not
to cap the educational concession
provided to children of
armed forces’ personnel, a state
government official said here
on Wednesday.
“Defence Minister Nirmala
Sitharaman has written to the
Chief Minister to convey the
Union Government’s decision
to continue the said concession
without capping it at Rs 10,000
per month,” a spokesman of the
Chief Minister said here on
Wednesday. Welcoming the
decision, the Chief Minister
said it would go a long way
towards boosting the morale of
the armed forces and their families,
particularly the children
of martyrs and disabled soldiers.
“The Defence Minister’s
communication is in response
to Captain Amarinder’s letter
dated December 1, 2017, urging
her to revoke the decision to put
a cap of Rs 10,000 per month
on the combined amount of
tuition fee and hostel charges
under the scheme of educational
concession to such children.
“Expressing serious concern
about the proposed move of the
Defence Ministry, the Chief
Minister had then said it would
make a mockery of the objective
behind the scheme which
was announced in the Lok
Sabha in 1971,” the spokesman
said. Amarinder Singh felt that
not lead to the deaths.
“Our judgment did not incite any
one to commit crime. Our judgment
has been wrongly understood. The
SC/ST community has full protection
of this court,” said Justice Goel refuting
Venugopal’s argument.
Amicus curiae Amarendra Sharan
opposed the plea by the Attorney
General urging the court to stay the
operation of its March 20 judgment by
which it had issued several directions
providing for preliminary inquiry
before an FIR is lodged and action is
taken on a complaint alleging atrocities
under the Act.
“Don’t stay (it), it will send a
wrong message” that by taking to the
streets, the top court’s judgment can
be bent, he argued.
Telling the court that its judgment
amounted to an exercise in law making,
the Attorney General urged the
bench to refer to a larger bench the
question whether the top court can
issue directions, guidelines or mandamus
contrary to the provision of
existing laws.
He said that directions issued in the
March 20 judgment which the Central
government is seeking to be reviewed
were contrary to the provision of the
Act and amounted to whittling down
of the stringent provisions.
the move would “undermine the
sacrifice of the defence personnel,
and amounted to a shameful
disregard for the contribution
of the armed personnel to
the country and its citizens”. He
was of the opinion that the “fee
being paid to the children of
martyrs and disabled soldiers
was a small price in exchange
for what they had given, and
continued to give, to the
nation”.
The educational concession
was initially being given to the
children of armed forces personnel
killed/missing or permanently
disabled in 1962, 1965,
1971 wars, Operation Pawan
and Operation Meghdoot. In
August 2003, the Defence
Ministry extended the concession
to the children of armed
forces personnel who were
killed/declared missing or permanently
disabled during all
post Meghdoot operations in
India and abroad, including
counter insurgency operations.
Why not pay IAS officers too
based on calories: Kejriwal
New Delhi, Taking a dig at bureaucrats,
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on
Tuesday said IAS officers too should be paid on
the basis of the calories they require if this rule
was applicable to labourers. Stressing that a
labourer’s minimum monthly wage in Delhi
which is Rs 13,500 today was Rs 9,500 earlier,
he said the committee which studied the wage
hike decided that labourers needed 2,700 calories
a day. “I told them that a worker won’t be paid
based on calories. He is a human, not an animal…
He has to educate his children, buy
clothes… You can pay IAS officers based on
their caloric needs, not labourers,” he told a
meeting of the Delhi Workers Conference here
on the occasion of May Day. Relations between
the AAP government and the bureaucracy have
been tense since the alleged beating up of Chief
Secretary Anshu Prakash by some Aam Aadmi
Party MLAs. He also noted that his AAP was
formed out “of a very big revolution against corruption
and injustice”.
Citing several instances from the
court’s past pronouncements including
that of collegium system, appointment
of judges, Justice Goel said: “The
court has stepped in to fill the gaps in
law. (Constitution’s) Article 21 - guaranteeing
protection of life and personal
liberty - has been read in the SC/ST
Act.”
Justice Lalit said what has been put
by the court is a “filter” before a complaint
is acted upon.
“It is not that the judgment says no
registration of crime. It is not that the
perpetrators of crime should not be
punished. Let there be a filter” before
a complaint is acted upon and an
accused is arrested, he said. As the
Attorney General cited the instances
of an 83-year-old Dalit woman burnt
alive and Thakur community members
not allowing a Dalit bridegroom to
mount a horse as his wedding party
goes to the bride’s home, Justice Goel
asked: “Why it is that action is not
being taken. There has to be quick
punishment.”
The judge also said the burning of
the Dalit woman was murder.
As Venugopal argued that only 13
to 15 per cent of the complaints were
found to be false, the court observed
that does not mean that remaining 85
per cent were true.
The court fixed May 16 for further
hearing of the matter when Sharan
would respond to the Attorney
General’s submissions.
The Central government moved the
top court for the review of its March
20 judgment that generated a lot of
protests including by lawmakers, who
felt that the Supreme Court verdict had
diluted the provisions of the Act.

8 May 2018
ASIA
www.theasianindependent.co.uk
Pakistan denies ‘deal’
on doctor who helped
CIA track bin Laden
Islamabad-Pakistan on Thursday dismissed
rumours that the decision to move
Shakeel Afridi, the doctor who helped the
CIA track Osama bin Laden, from a
prison in Peshawar to Adiala Jail in
Rawalpindi was part of a possible deal
with the United States government to free
him. Afridi was a senior medical officer
in the Khyber tribal region when he was
arrested shortly after US special forces
killed bin Laden in a raid in Abbottabad
on May 2, 2011. He was imprisoned the
following year for his alleged links to a
banned militant group.
Foreign Office spokesman Muhammad
Faisal told a weekly news briefing that
authorities were not planning to swap
Afridi for Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani
national convicted in the US of the
attempted murder of an American soldier
in Afghanistan and given a 86-year prison
term, or former Pakistani ambassador
Husain Haqqani, who lives in the US and
has been accused of involvement in the
Memogate scandal that surfaced in 2011.
Faisal rejected questions about media
reports that claimed the Central
Intelligence Agency had tried to stage a
jailbreak in Peshawar to rescue Afridi,
and said he had no information about the
matter since it concerned the interior ministry.
Afridi, a former senior surgeon
believed to be in his mid-50s, was arrested
after it emerged he had passed on intelligence
about the former Al Qaeda chief
to the CIA. He was accused of helping the
CIA track bin Laden in Abbottabad.
However, he was never tried on those
charges.
It emerged in May 2012 that he had
been tried under the Frontier Crimes
Regulation and sentenced to 33 years in
prison after being convicted of ties to the
banned Lashkar-e-Islam, a charge he has
always denied. The sentence was later
reduced to 10 years by the FCR commissioner.
Sri Lankan President
appoints new ministers
Colombo, Sri Lankan President
Maithripala Sirisena on Wednesday
appointed new ministers, a day after he
reshuffled his cabinet.
Eighteen ministers — 10 deputy, eight
state — took oath before Sirisena, reports
Xinhua news agency.
The reshuffle took place after the
defection of six ministers from the Sri
Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) to the
opposition last month.
The defected ministers had voted in
favour of a no-confidence motion on
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe
when it was taken up in Parliament.
The reshuffle is seen to bring in unity
between the SLFP and the United
National Party (UNP), who are coalition
partners.
Death due to lightning
strikes in Andhra minimal,
thanks to this mobile app
The application was developed by students of Kuppam Engineering College in
Chittoor in collaboration with ISRO. Those who install the app on their mobiles can
get alerts on the location of lightning at least 45 minutes in advance.
Hyderabad- The number of deaths due to an
unusual number of lightning strikes in coastal
areas of Andhra Pradesh in the last week would
have been very high but for the lightning tracker
system installed in the Andhra Pradesh State
Disaster Management Authority (APSDMA).
“The abnormal number of 41,025 cloud-toearth
lightning strikes on Tuesday would have
caused a massive disaster had all of them hit
human beings. But the toll was just 16, which is
very low, considering the magnitude of the phenomenon,”
said K Thanda Krishna, meteorologist
with APSDMA.
On Tuesday, the APSDMA sent alerts on lightning
strikes to as many as 20.14 lakh mobile
phone subscribers, through a specially designed
mobile application called Vajrapath. “At present,
it is available only for BSNL customers. We are
planning to extend them to all mobile service
providers. We send alert messages through the
application in English and Telugu about possible
lightning disasters,” said Krishna.
The state-of-the-art lightning tracking application
is considered to be the first of its kind in the
country and was launched by chief minister N
Chandrababu Naidu in July 2017. The application
was developed by students of Kuppam
Engineering College in Chittoor in collaboration
with Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO),
which has roped in US-based Earth Networks to
analyse electromagnetic waves and spot the exact
location to be hit by lightning. Those who install
the app on their mobiles can get alerts on the location
of lightning at least 45 minutes in advance.
Once a lightning strike occurs, an email notification
is received from Earth Networks System
within five minutes, which initiates in-depth
observation and close monitoring of the activity
through a visualisation tool on screen. If the
Storm toll 108, 150 injured
Lucknow/Jaipur, A severe dust storm whipped
through parts of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan
overnight, killing at least 108 persons and leaving
behind a trail of destruction — razing mud houses,
uprooting trees and flattening crops.
Strong winds in western Uttar Pradesh exceeding
130 km per hour, accompanied by torrential rains,
claimed 70 lives. In Rajasthan, winds moving at 110
km per hour took 38
lives and left more
than 150 injured.
Bharatpur with 17
deaths, Alwar nine
and Dholpur seven
were the worst-hit.
Agra district
reported 43 deaths.
The wall of an educational
institution in
the city collapsed,
killing 23 persons
and injuring 21. Nine
persons were killed
in Bah, two in
Etmadpur and four in
Kheragarh. Relief
Commissioner Sanjay Kumar said the districts that
suffered widespread damage were Bijnore, Kanpur
Rural, Saharanpur, Mirzapur, Kanpur, Hamirpur,
Bareilly, Pilibhit, Chitrakoot, Rae Bareli, Unnao,
Mathura, Amroha, Banda, Sitapur, Sambhal,
Etawah, Allahabad and Rampur.
In Pilibhit, a fire, believed to have been caused
by lightning, spread rapidly, killing four cows and
engulfing a number of villages.
The Lucknow Meteorological Department has
warned of more severe thunderstorms in 32 districts,
including Gorakhpur, Ballia, Mau, Ghazipur,
Ambedkar Nagar, Sant Kabir Nagar, Shahjahanpur,
Pilibhit, Rampur, Bareilly, Badaun, Aligarh, Etah,
Amroha, Mathura, Greater Noida, Moradabad and
Meerut.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, campaigning in
Karnataka, directed officials to ensure adequate
medical facilities to
the injured. In
Rajasthan’s Alwar
district, power supply
was snapped owing to
uprooted poles and
damaged power
cables. Jhunjhunu,
Sikar and Pilani cities
saw heavy thundershowers
that
destroyed thatched
and under-construction
houses.
Home Minister
Gulab Chand Kataria
held a high-level
meeting on possible
help — cash, food and clothes — to the victims. The
state government has already begun distributing exgratia.
Also, blood donation camps are being held
for the injured.Congress leaders Ashok Gehlot and
Sachin Pilot expressed concern. The former cancelled
his birthday celebrations. Prime Minister
Narendra Modi expressed sorrow over the deaths.
The state Met Department has warned of squall
and dust storm in Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Barmer,
Bikaner and Sriganganagar in the next 24 hours.
intensity of the activity is high, a team of operators
immediately notifies authorities in the State
Emergency Operation Centre.
“Alert messages are then sent through the
Kaizala mobile application and also through
direct telephone calls to tehsildars and concerned
village revenue officers. Simultaneously, alert
messages are sent through WhatsApp mobile
application and social media to information and
public relations department to alert the media,”
the official said.
Sri Lanka plans to
introduce E-motoring
for vehicle registration
Colombo, The Sri Lankan Motor
Traffic Department is planning to introduce
E-motoring system for the registration
of vehicles through an online
system by 2020, an official said on
Tuesday.
Commissioner General of Motor
Traffic A.H.K. Jagath Chandrasiri told
Xinhua news agency that his office had
launched the project to improve efficiency
in the process.
He said the project would be introduced
to save the time of people who
seek registration of their vehicles.
Chandrasiri said the project would
include the introduction of the Radio-
Frequency Identification (RFID) for
motor vehicles.
According to the Department, Sri
Lanka introduced two new classes of
vehicles — quadricycles and motorhomes
— in recent times for registration.
Sri Lanka’s registered vehicle
population stands at 7,376,268.

www.theasianindependent.co.uk ASIA May 2018 9
Dhaka expects move on refugee crisis
Dhaka -“Rohingya crisis will get
greater focus at the two-day conference
beginning on Saturday [tomorrow] and
there will be a special session on the
issue,” Foreign Minister AH Mahmood
Ali said, adding that a delegation of
ministers and representatives of the OIC
countries would visit refugee camps in
Cox's Bazar today. Officials said a delegation
of foreign ministers, foreign secretaries
and other high officials from 38
countries is expected to visit the refugee
camps where over 700,000 Myanmar's
Muslim Rohingyas are sheltered after a
military crackdown in Rakhine State.
Foreign Minister Ali and State Minister
for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam
would accompany the delegation.
They will go to Cox's Bazar in the
morning and return in the afternoon to
attend a dinner hosted by Ali at the
Sonargaon Hotel. Ali addressing a precouncil
press briefing yesterday said
there would be a brainstorming session
on humanitarian challenges with a special
focus on the Rohingyas. "We'll discuss
the possible ways to resolve the
Rohingya crisis and intensify the efforts
of the intentional community and the
OIC member countries."
Diplomatic sources in Dhaka said
they believe the back-to-back visits of
the UN Security Council delegation and
OIC foreign ministers would have a
positive impact towards a sustainable
solution to the crisis.
The OIC is considered the second
largest inter-governmental organisation
after the United Nations, with the membership
of 57 states, covering four continents,
with a collective population of
over 1.6 billion. Ali said Dhaka was set
to host the council, in which foreign
ministers and high officials of 57 countries
would discuss issues like connectivity,
use of media in achieving sustainable
development, poverty alleviation,
trade, commerce and investment.
Bangladesh would get an opportunity
to present its initiatives, experience
UNESCO report features
‘India+Kashmir’ in
nation chapters list
New Delhi, A UNESCO report on press freedom
released on Thursday featured
‘India+Kashmir’ under the ‘country chapters’ category,
provoking a question from the audience on
whether the report considered Kashmir a separate
entity.
On the occasion of the World Press Freedom
Day, the UNESCO-International Federation of
Journalists (IFJ)
r e p o r t
‘Clampdowns and
Courage-South
Asia Press
Freedom Report
2017-18’ was
released here at the
UNESCO office.
During the question-answer
session
after the report’s
release, a question
was asked about
why Kashmir was
specially mentioned
with India in
the report and whether it considered Kashmir a
separate entity. IFJ South Asia Coordinator Ujjwal
Acharya, however, said the issue had nothing to do
with any “particular political interest” and Kashmir
was included as it was considered one the volatile
zones in South Asia.
He said last year the report included 5-6 conflict
zones, which were volatile in the context of freedom
of expression and press freedom, and this time
Kashmir was special focus.
“Last year, we had covered Chhattisgarh,
Kabul, some part of Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Nepal.
This is an ongoing process,” he said.
He said the objection had been noted and the
concerned people would be intimated.
In the last two decades, he said over 30 journalists
were killed in India as a result of their work but
the rate of conviction continued to remain near
zero. He said a similar situation was in Pakistan,
Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and
and achievements before the international
community, he said.
"We hope all the decisions to be
made at the conference and the Dhaka
declaration will be considered as the
outcome document ... the successful
holding of the conference will add a
new dimension regarding the cooperation
between the OIC and Bangladesh,"
the minister added. The theme of this
year's Council of Foreign Ministers is
“Islamic Values for Sustainable Peace,
Solidarity and Development.” Ali said
Maldives among
other nations where
very few convictions
were recorded and
that also after a long
battle.
Acharya said
eight journalists
were killed in India
during May 2017
and April 2018 and
added that some of
those who lost their
lives, including
Gauri Lankesh, who
was shot dead outside
her home, and
Shantanu Bhowmick, who was killed by a mob
while covering a demonstration.
He said there were 97 instances of Internet shutdown,
ranging from a few hours to 45 days of continuous
curb, in South Asia, with India recording
the highest number of 82 such instances. Pakistan
witnessed 12 instances and Sri Lanka, Afghanistan
and Bangladesh witnessed one instance each.
A UNESCO report ‘World Trends in Freedom
of Expression and Media Development Global
Report 2017/2018’ was also released on the occasion.
over 550 representatives of the OIC and
different international organisations,
including around 40 ministers and state
ministers, are expected to join the event.
In addition, Canadian Foreign
Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland
arrived yesterday to visit the Rohingya
camps and attend the council as a special
guest. Prime Minister Justin
Trudeau's Special Envoy to Myanmar
Bob Rae, and Canada's Special Envoy
to the OIC Masud Husain would be
accompanying her. Prime Minister
Sheikh Hasina is scheduled to formally
inaugurate the two-day meet at
Bangabandhu International Conference
Centre (BICC) tomorrow. Bangladesh is
to receive the chairmanship of the council
from Cote d'Ivoire. Bangladesh
would remain chairman for one year.
The issue of Palestine, challenges
facing the Muslim Ummah like conflicts,
divisions, tension and instability
will receive focus at the Dhaka meeting,
Ali said, adding that terrorism, extremism,
sectarian violence, hatred, prejudice,
and Islamophobia, would also be
discussed. According to OIC's 11th
Islamophobia Observatory Report,
which covers from July 2017 to April
2018, the number of reported incidents
related to Islamophobia was much
lower compared to those at the last
trimester of 2016, or the first trimester
of 2017. The full report, to be presented
during the meeting on May 5-6, highlights
"the failure of racist policy in the
United States and the break-apart of
Trump's far-right inner circle" as among
the four factors that influenced the
decline of Islamophobia in the US and
Europe, according to a report of
Malaysian Digest. This is the second
time Bangladesh is hosting the council.
Its last was in 1983.
Ali said the council was being held
for the first time in Bangladesh under a
democratic government. He said the
previous one was held during an illegal
government's reign.
May 14 not final date for
Bengal Panchayat polls: HC
Kolkata, In an apparent blow to the West
Bengal State Election Commission, the Calcutta
High Court on Tuesday termed the polling date for
the state Panchayat polls on May 14 as a proposed
date and referred the matter to a division bench
hearing another case on the same issue.
A single judge bench of Justice Subrata
Talukdar, hearing the case on the writ petition filed
by the opposition parties objecting to the SEC’s
decision to bring down the Panchayat election
from three phases to one, said May 14 could be a
tentative date and not the final one.
He said the Division Bench of Chief Justice
Jyotirmay Bhattacharya and Justice Arijit Banerjee
— that is hearing a case on the issue of providing
adequate security during the rural council elections
— will decide the final date after scrutinising the
SEC’s report regarding security arrangements.
The Division Bench would next hear the case on
May 4. Welcoming the court’s observation, the
Party of Democratic Socialism that filed the petition
before the single bench said such a verdict
would relieve those who were constantly under
attack of the state’s ruling Trinamool Congress and
reinforce people’s faith in democracy.
It also questioned how the SEC could decide to
go for a single phase election with the same number
of state armed forces available to them.
The BJP also termed the verdict as historic and
said the SEC is repeatedly getting exposed before
the court for working to please the state government
and the state ruling party.
“The SEC has not ensured any security for the
voters and opposition party activists even after the
court’s order. They arbitrarily fixed the date of
election and did not hold any meaningful discussion
with the opposition parties regarding the necessary
security. Their misconduct has been
exposed,” state BJP President Dilip Ghosh said.
Trinamool Congress counsel Kalyan Banerjee,
however, said the opposition parties’ ploy to defer
the polls has fallen flat.
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A First Class Full Service
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Accountants
City Accountants
29 Foremans Road, Sparkhill,
B’ham B11 3AA
Tel. 0121 777 8000
www.city-accountants.co.uk
43B Formans Rd, B’ham, B11
3AA | Tel: 0121 777 8000
Barber Shop
JC Hairstyles
78 Gipsy Ln, Leicester LE4
6RE
Tel: 0116 266 9188
271 Tat Bank Rd, Oldbury,
Birmingham, B68 8NP
Tel : 0121 544 0068
Ladypool Rd, Birmingham,
B128JY
Bars & Pubs
5 Market Pl, Tipton, DY4 7EJ
Tel : 0121 557 6506
Bank
118 Soho Rd, B21 9DP
Tel : 0121 515 0400
182 Soho Rd, Birmingham,
B21 9LP, Tel : 0121 507 9940
173-175 Soho Rd, B’ham, B21
9SU | Tel : 0121 523 5973
290 Soho Rd, Birmingham,
B21 9LZ | Tel : 0121 554 9082
Builders
S &P Builders
Sukhi Mob. : 07737 060 121
Pamma Mob.: 07450 762 550
Bearwood Maintenance
Mob. 07811 392 786
Raj & Raj Building Work
B’ham | Mob. 07404 042 783
Birmingham Building
Construction
Osman Abyan
Managing Director
Mob; 07429 398 280
birminghambuildingconstruction@hotmail.com
Carpentry
Flora Carpentry
Sunny Mob. 07403 586 305
Mail: gurdipflora@hotmail.com
Carpets
UK Carpets
1188-1190 Warwick Rd, Acocks
Green, B’ham B27 6BT
Tel. 0121 707 6424
www.uk-carpets.com
Corner Shop
165 -167 Stratford Rd, B’ham,
B111RB | Tel : 0121 772 1322
523 Foleshill Rd, Coventry,
CV6 5AU | Tel : 024 7666 5277
Wallsal Rd, Wednesbury,
WS10 9SJ
44a Pinson Rd, Willhall,
WV132PR | Tel : 01902 606302
42 Church St, Bilston,
Wolverhampton,
WV14 0AH
Aaron’s Catering Services
Brewery Street, off High Street
Smethwick B67 7RA
Tel : 0121 555 8400
Mob : 07805 337 232
Mail: info@aaronsfoods.co.uk
Web: www. aaronsfood.com
Indian Sweets
& Catering
We Cater For All Occasions;
Weddings, Birthdays,
Engagements Parties or any
other Social Functions.
Big Discounts on
Bulk Orders
Quality Service and
Years of Experience
71 Great Bridge,
Tipton, DY4 7HF
Tel. 0121 238 2648
Mob: 07413 426 930
Mail: vivek_18hp@yahoo.com
Café & Restaurants
84 Oxhill Rd, Birmingham,
B21 9RH | Tel : 0121 554 5517
225 Holyhead Rd, Birmingham
B21 0AP | Tel : 0121 515 4110
20 High St, Smethwick, B’ham,
B66 1DX | Tel : 0121 558 8488
86 High St, Smethwick, B’ham,
B66 1AQ | Tel : 0121 558 8372
Tollgate Shopping Precinct,
Smethwick, Birmingham, B67
7RA | Tel : 0121 565 2122
Tollgate Shopping Centre,
Brewery St, Smethwick, B’ham,
B67 7RA | Tel : 0121 555 8400
285-287 High St, Smethwick,
Birmingham, B66 3NJ
Tel : 0121 565 2187
166 High St,
Harborne,Birmingham,
B179PN
314, High St,
Harborne, Birmingham,
B179PU
10, Rood End Road,
Oldbury, Birmingham,
B688SH
125 High St, West Bromwich,
Birmingham, B70 6NY
Tel : 0121 525 9458
142 High St, West
Bromwich, Birmingham,
B706NY
40 Old Walsall Rd, B’ham,
B42 1NP
205 Dyas Ave, Birmingham,
B42 1HN
572 Kingstanding Rd, B’ham,
B44 9SD | Tel : 0121 373 3549
563 Coventry Rd, Small Heath,
Birmingham, B10 0LP
Tel : Tel: 0121 572 6397
703 - 705 Stratford Road,
Sparkhill, B’ham, B11 4DN
Tel: 0121 778 5100
71 Great Bridge, Tipton, DY4
7HF | 0121 238 2648
48A Lower High St,
Wednesbury, WS10 7AL,
Tel : 0121 505 1211
200 Dudley Rd, Wolverhampton,
WV2 3DT | Tel : 01902 450939
Barcroft Rd, Wolverhampton,
WV2 3HF | Tel : 01902 451113
Cash & Carry /
Supermarkets /
Corner Shops
Radias Superstore
121-127 Melton Rd, City
Centre, Leicester LE4 6QS Tel:
0116 266 9409
A1 Cash and Carry
112 Green Lane Road,
Leicester, LE5 3TJ
Tel: 0116 212 2129
Shah's Pan House
523 Foleshill Rd, Coventry,
CV6 5AU
Tel: 02476 665 2777
Catering
Sukhdev's Catering
Unit 4, 5/7 South Road,
Hockley, Birmingham B18 5LT
Tel: 0121 314 1247
Mail: sukhdev@sukhdevfoods.com
www.sukdhevcaterings.co.uk
Double Glazing
Star Windows (GB) Ltd.
16 Rolfe St, Smethwick,
B’ham B66 2AA
Tel. 0121 555 8333
Electronics
86 Great Hampton St, B’ham,
B186EW
Fence
T & D Fencing
Unit 405, Smethwick Enterprise
Centre, St, Smethwick, B66 2AR
Tel. 0121-565 4533
www.TandDfencing.co.uk
Hardware Store
Queens Park Stores
Diy • Furniture • Beds • Bathrooms
224/230 Court Oak Road,
Harborne, Birmingham B32 2EG
Tel: 0121 – 4282164
www.queensparkstores.co.uk
27A W Bromwich St, Walsall,
WS1 4BP :| Tel : 01922 642329
CLASSIFIED
Health Care
Premium Community Care
86 Digbeth, B’ham B5 6DY
Tel. 0121 643 9808
Insurance
Crownsway Insurance
Brokers Ltd.
183 Holyhead Road,
Handsworth, Birmingham
Tel. 0121 554 3566/9788
www.crownsway.co.uk
Insurance Broker
46 Summer Rd, Birmingham,
B236UR
DJS House, 183 Holyhead
Road, Birmingham, B21 0BD
Tel : 0121 554 3566
Lettings & Sales
Ignite Properties
44A High Street, Leamington
Spa, CV31 1 LW
Tel.: 01926 930 251
www.ignite-properties.co.uk
Angel Estates Ltd
251-253 Rookery Rd,
Birmingham B21 9PU
Phone: 0121 448 0717
M & R Lettings & Sales
Wolverhampton
Tel. 01902 833 844
Sodhi & Co.
123 Evington Road, Leicester
Tel. 0116 255 3455
www.sodiandco.com
Library
Birmingham Rd, Birmingham
B43 6NW
193 High St, Harborne, B’ham,
B179QG
Kingstanding Road, B’ham,
B44 9ST | Tel : 0121 464 5193
Meat Shop
Soand Meat Shop
122 Green Lane Road, Leicester
Tel. 0116 276 0658
326 Ladypool Rd, Birmingha,
B128JY
Punjab Meat Center
16 Tollgate Shopping Precinct,
Smethwick, B’ham B67 7RA
Tel. 0121 448 7279
169 Rookery Rd, Birmingham,
B21 9QZ, Tel : 0121 554 1988
Tollgate Shopping Precinct,
Smethwick , B’ham, B67 7RA
Tel : 0121 558 4441
123 High St, West Bromwich,
Birmingham, B70 6NY
Tel : 0121 553 3555
37 High St, West Bromwich ,
Birmingham, B70 6PB
Tel : 0121 553 5231
600 -602 Coventry Rd, Small
Heath, Birmingham, B10 0US
Tel : 0121 773 0234
542 -544, Coventry Rd, Small
Heath, Birmingham, B10 0UN
Tel: 0121 771 0292
711/713 Stratford Road,
Sparkhill, Birmingham, B11
4DN | Tel: 0121 778 5553
Soand Meat Shop
122 Green Lane Road, Leicester
Tel. 0116 276 0658
Punjab Meat Center
16 Tollgate Shopping Precinct,
Smethwick, B’ham B67 7RA
Tel. 0121 448 7279
Stand Meat Shop
122 Green Lane Road,
Leicester, LE5 3TJ Tel: 0116
276 0658
New Asia Meat Centre
119 Caludon Rd, Coventry CV2
4LR Tel: 024 7644 7900
Gill Meat & Grocery
Unit 12, Tollgate Shopping Centre,
Smethwick, B’ham B67 7RA
Tel : 0121 558 4441
383 Mosley Rd, B’ham,
B129DD
Tat Bank Rd, Oldbury, B’ham
B68 8NR
212 Golden Hillock Rd, B’ham,
B112PN
Birmingham,
B10 0QP
Mortgage
Zakir Mortgage
128 A, Stoney Lane, B’ham
Tel. 0121 449 7091
Mob. 07890 615 016
Motoring
BR Car Care
383-387 Moseley Rd, B’ham
B12 9DD
Tel. 0121 440 0779
Mosque
Off License
Super Wines and Spirits
91-793 Stratford Rd,
Birmingham B11 4DG
Tel: 0121 778 5016
May 2018
10
4-6 Beauchamp Ave, B’ham,
B201DR
255 Lodge Rd, B’ham,
B18 5SJ
91-793 Stratford Rd, B’ham,
B11 4DG | Tel: 0121 778 5016
138 Clay Ln, Coventry,
CV2 4LT
Brax News, 156-160 W
Bromwich St, Walsall,
WS1 4DE
Darlaston, Wednesbury,
WS10 7TQ
Party Hall
Supreme Banqueting and
Conference
10, Roebuck Lane, West
Bromwich, B70 6QP.
Tel: 0121 553 3921
Radio
715-C Parkfield Road
Wolverhampton, WV4 6EE
Tel. 1902 681 655
TM
Sky Digital Channel 0205
24 hour Entertainment
On Sky, On-Line, On Mobiles
Studio : 01902 457875
Reception : 01902 450533
Safety Lockers
MINT Safety Deposit Centres
MacDonald Road, Leicester,
LE4 5HD | Tel. 0345 222 3456
School of Motoring
Bains School of Motoring
Mobile: 07973 281968
Tel: 0121 523 2848
Security Services
Your Security Services Ltd.
86 Digbeth, B’ham B5 6DY
Tel. 0121 448 0750
www.ysrl.co.uk
Singers, Stage and
TV artists
Babbu Chander
Wolverhampton
Mob. 07492 129 321, 07429 119 530
Sukhdev Jassi
Bedford | Mob. 07901 796 669
Pamma Lasadia
Wolverhampton
07448 886 166

www.theasianindependent.co.uk
Solicitors Chaudhary’s Cash & Carry
Stratford Rd, Birmingham, B11
4BP | Tel: 0121 778 3800
Dadiyal Supermarket
118-120 Alum Rock Rd, B’ham,
B8 1NH
Desi Bazaar
560 Coventry Rd, Small
Heath, Birmingham, B18 0UN
Tel: 0121 773 9909
Braitch Solicitors
28 Chapel Ash,Wolverhampton
Mob. 07773 374 848
Tel. 01902 711 200
Indian Advocate & Top
Immigration Services
Wolverhampton
Tel.01902 457711
Mob. 078 2828 3992
Midland Immigration
Services Ltd.
255 Melton Road, Leicester
Tel. 0800 0304 998
VKM
48, Queen St, Wolverhampton
WV1 2BJ
Tel: 01902 311 1155
Super Market
Sabar General Stores
113, Holyhead Road,
Handsworth B21 0HH
Tel : 0121 551 6423
Wayco Supermarket
72A Soho Road, Handsworth,
BIRMINGHAM, B21 9BH
Tel : 0121 551 8711
Soho News
129 Soho Rd, BIRMINGHAM,
B21 9ST
Al Halal Supermarket
7 - 13 Alum Rock Rd, B’ham,
B8 1LL | Tel: 0121 327 0074
Al Halal Supermarket
360 Coventry Rd, Birmingham,
B10 0XE | Tel: 0121 753 4391
Al Halal Supermarket
753-770 Stratford Rd, B’ham,
B11 4DG | Tel: 0121 777 1510
Aujla Supermarket
116 High St, West Bromwich,
B‘ham, B706PB
Buy and Save
Rood End Rd, Oldbury, B’ham,
B688SH
Desi Mass Bazar
Ladypool Road, Birmingham,
B128TT
East & West Supermarket
721-725 Stratford Rd, B’ham,
B11 4DN | Tel: 0121 7773904
East & West Super market
132 - 136 Ladypool Rd, B’ham,
B128JA
Food World
121 Villa Rd, Birmingham,
B19 1NH | Tel: 0121 554 6532
Food World Super market
728 Stratford Rd, Birmingham
B11 4BP | Tel: 0121 777 8636
Gill Super market
330A Soho Rd, Birmingham,
B21 9NA | Tel : 0121 523 5272
Grocery Store
New Street, Smethwick, B’ham,
B66 4PH |
Hill Top Super market
125 Hill Top, West Bromwich,
Birmingham, B70 0RU
Tel : 0121 505 3529
Khan Super Market
618 - 620 Coventry Rd, Small
Heath, Birmingham, B10 0UT
Tel : Tel: 0121773 6843
Lifestyle Express Apna
Food & Wine
Albret Rd,
B’ham, B21 9QX
Lodge Supermarket
70 Lodge Rd, West Bromwich,
Birmingham, B70 8PA
Tel : 0121 553 4004
Londis Supermarket
23 Acfold Rd, Birmingham,
B20 1HD
Malhi's Supermarket
Bacchus Rd, Birmingham, B18
4RE
Money Saver Food Store
Ladypool Rd,
B’ham, B128TT
Pak Super Market
121-125 Lozells Rd, B’ham,
B19 2TR | Tel : 0121 554 2711
PAK Supermarket
Unit 1 Cape Hill Retail Centre,
Cape Hill, B’ham, B66 4PH
Tel : 0121 558 6786
Pak Super Market
42 Alum Rock Rd, B’ham, B8
1JA | Tel: 0121 328 7868
Punjab Food Store
94 High St, West Bromwich,
B’ham, B706NZ
If You See This...
List Your Business Here
Call : 07878 456 484
Punjab Supermarket
Birmingham :
B11 4DX
R S Superstore
58 Nineveh Rd, Birmingham,
B21 0TE | Tel : 0121 554 1687
S & B General Store
3 College Rd, B’ham B20 2HU
Tel : 0121 523 4371
Sabar General Store
113 Holyhead Rd, Birmingham
B21 0HH | Tel :
Sonali Supermarket
537, Coventry Rd, Small
Heath, Birmingham, B10 0LL
Tel: 0121 773 8236
Toor Supermarket
93 Rookery Rd, B’ham, B21
9QX | Tel : 0121 554 0796
Vegmart
147-149 Soho Rd, B’ham, B21
9ST | Tel :
Villa Supermarket
117 Villa Rd, B’ham, B19
1NH | Tel : 0121 554 2374
Wayco Supermarket Ltd
72A Soho Rd, B’ham, B21
9BH | Tel : 0121 551 8711
Heer Super Store
19-21 Clay Ln, Coventry, CV2
4LJ | Tel : 024 7645 6903
Warley Supermarket
75 Bridge St, Wednesbury,
WS10 0AH | 0121 505 5898
Banga Stores
59A Lea Rd, Wolverhampton,
WV3 0LW | 01902 338835
Samra Supermarket
418 Dudley Rd, Wolverhampton
WV2 3BP | 01902 458814
Sandhus Supermarket
15 Bargate Dr, Wolverhampton,
WV6 0QW | Tel: 01902 311556
Take Away & Cafe
Chick King
225 Holyhead Rd, B’ham
B21 0AP | Tel. 0121 515 4110
Jalandar Sweet Shop
86, High St, Smethwick,
B’ham B66 1AA
Apna Punjab Sweet Centre
65A, Purely Road, Leicester
LE4 6PB
Tel: 0116 266 6567
Taxi & Coach Hire
Brit Coaches
93 Dudley Rd, Halesowen
B63 3NS
Tel. 0121 769 2707
www.britcoaches.co.uk
Warley Cars
Tel. 0121 555 7654
Taxi & Bus Hire
86, Digbeth Rd, Birmingham, B5
6DY | Tel : Tel: 0121 643 1000
209, Bordsley Green, B’ham, B95SP
Tent Hire
Amrit Tent Hire
Mob; 07815 134 618
amrittenthire@yahoo.co.uk
Walsall DIY
West Bromwich St.
Walsall 01922 642 329
CLASSIFIED
Travel Agency
101 Soho Rd, Birmingham, B21
9SP |
Travel Agencies
Sky Way Travel
232 Soho Rd, B’ham B21 9LR
Tel. 0121 523 3050
Balu Travel
114 Soho Rd, B’ham B21 9DP
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May 2018
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12 May 2018
BUSINESS
www.theasianindependent.co.uk
GDP REVISIONS, CALCULATION METHODS
ARE‘CONFUSING’, SAY RBI ECONOMISTS
OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS, MULTIPLE CHANGES HAVE BEEN MADE TO HOW INDIA USES AND CALCU-
LATES STATISTICS -- FROM ECONOMIC GROWTH AND INFLATION TO JOBS AND TAXES. THIS HAS
SPARKED A DEBATE ON CREDIBILITY ABOUT GOVERNMENT DATA ONCE HAILED FOR ITS RIGOUR.
Bloomberg-India’s multiple revisions
of the gross domestic product
(GDP) growth estimates are “confusing,”
much less provide a true state of
the economy, according to researchers
at the Reserve Bank of India.
The first readings of GDP tend to
underestimate growth more often than
not, officers at the central bank’s
Department of Economic and Policy
Research wrote in a paper. They
flagged considerable volatility in the
statistics ministry’s initial estimates of
GDP, raising questions on the credibility
of India’s growth numbers.
Investors often question the veracity
of official data in a country which
has no timely employment report or
retail sales numbers. Over the past few
years, multiple changes have been
made to how India uses and calculates
statistics -- from economic growth and
inflation to jobs and taxes. This has
sparked a debate on credibility about
India’s gold demand dropped 12% in
January-March quarter: World Gold Council
Mumbai, Demand for gold in India for
January-March quarter (first quarter) of
2018 was down by 12 per cent at 115.6
tonne compared to overall Q1 demand for
2017 due to rising gold prices, exaggerated
by a weakening rupee, a World Gold
Council statement said here on Thursday.
Total Jewellery demand in India for Q1
2018 was down by 12 per cent at 87.7
tonne as compared to Q1 2017 (99.2
tonne).
“Local gold price rises led to the second
weakest quarter for jewellery demand in
almost 10 years. After the strongest Q4 on
record in 2017, Indian jewellery demand
saw a sharp downturn in Q1 2018, falling
12 per cent year-on-year to 87.7 tonnes,”
said Somasundaram PR, Managing
Director, India, World Gold Council.
“A substantial drop in the number of
auspicious wedding days during the period
compared with Q1 2017, could be a factor
for muted demand as consumers made less
wedding-related purchases. Imports were
also down 50 per cent year-on-year, in
anticipation of an import duty cut in the
Union Budget that did not materialise,” he
added.
India’s Q1 2018 gold demand value was
Rs 31,800 crore, a fall of 8 per cent in comparison
with Q1 2017 (Rs 34,440 crore).
Total Investment demand for Q1 2018
was down by 13 per cent at 27.9 tonne in
comparison with Q1 2017 (32 tonne). Total
gold recycled in India in Q1 2018 was 14.1
tonne, a drop of 3 per cent compared to
14.5 tonne in Q1 2017.
However, Somasundaram said: “The
positive sentiment following the announcement
in the Union Budget about an
impending gold policy to make gold an
asset class will boost the industry momentum
to get more organised and transparent
and build a strong case for a central gold
body under the gold policy.”
He said trade activity resumed positively
during Akshaya Tritiya demonstrating
the resilience of the industry.
“Policy focus on doubling farm income
and ease of business under GST augur well
for the gold industry in 2018 and the medium
term. New ways of buying gold
through digital platforms are catching up
quickly; this will not just promote ease of
savings but bring about a mindset change,
thereby enhancing acceptability of centrally
vaulted gold – which underpins any
attempt to mainstream gold including Gold
Monetisation Scheme,” he added.
Globally, gold demand had a soft start to
2018, reaching 973 tonne, the lowest first
quarter since 2008. This was largely caused
by a fall in investment demand for gold
bars and gold-backed exchange-traded
funds, as a subdued gold price environment
hampered demand, the statement said.
“Global jewellery demand was roughly
flat at 488 tonne, down 1 per cent on Q1
2017. Demand in China was buoyed by
holiday demand, and US demand continued
to improve in response to the supportive
economic backdrop. In contrast, Indian
consumers were discouraged by rising gold
prices, exaggerated by a weakening rupee,
with demand down 12 per cent compared
with 2017,” it added.
government data once hailed for its
rigor. In January, the central statistics
office estimated economic growth in
the financial year that ended March 31
to be 6.5% and revised it to 6.6% a
month later. The next provisional
annual estimates for fiscal 2018 are
due to be released May 31. “This is
mainly because firmer data are captured
in successive rounds of revisions
accompanied with a gradual increase
in data coverage,” the officers wrote in
a Mint Street Memo that examined
GDP data revisions since 2002. “More
importantly, we observe a bias when
the growth cycle ‘turns’.” “In view of
multiple rounds of data revision, it
may be confusing for data users to
decide on the true state of the economy,
and, more specifically, the real
strength of the growth momentum.
The dilemma/confusion regarding the
reliability of data is usually the greatest
around the release of advance estimates,
which is generally understood
to be tentative and liable to change
with the arrival of subsequent firmer
datasets”, the report said.
The RBI study found there were
substantial upward revisions in the
years coinciding with the ‘upturns’ in
the economy, and a huge downward
revision around the time of the global
financial crisis in 2008 and 2009.
The paper showed that for real
GDP, first estimates were revised
upwards for twelve years by an average
of 81 basis points. They were
revised down in only two years by an
average margin of 204 basis points.
“The advance estimates need to be
supplemented with other high frequency
indicators of real sector to
arrive at a more realistic assessment of
the state of the economy,” said the
four researchers, who work under
Monetary Policy Committee member
Michael Patra.
Punjab, Haryana wheat
procurement crosses
200 lakh tonnes
Chandigarh, Food grain states Punjab and Haryana have procured
over 200 lakh tonnes of wheat this season, food and supplies
officials in both states said
on Thursday.
Both states had procured
over 175 lakh tonnes of
wheat last year. In Punjab,
the wheat procurement was
over 118.56 lakh tonnes as
compared to 112 lakh tonnes
procured in the same period
last year. Over 118.08 lakh tonnes (99.6 percent) has been procured
by government agencies. In Haryana, nearly 81.5 lakh
tonnes of wheat has been procured so far this season. A Punjab
government spokesman said that an amount of Rs 16,170 crore has
been disbursed to the arhtiyas (commission agents) and farmers.
Despite reports of wheat not been lifted in grain markets, Punjab
Food and Supplies Minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu said on
Thursday that 83 lakh tonnes has been lifted from the grain markets
so far. Government procurement agencies have procured over
81.49 lakh tonnes of wheat from farmers in Haryana, an official
spokesman said. The procurement is higher than the corresponding
period last year. State procurement agencies had procured
74.25 lakh tonnes wheat in the same period last year. Procurement
in both states started on April 1.
Strong demand pushes India’s April
manufacturing sector growth
Mumbai, Strong demand accelerated
India’s manufacturing sector growth in
April 2018, the Nikkei India
Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’
Index (PMI) showed on Wednesday.
The composite indicator of manufacturing
performance increased to 51.6 in
April 2018 from 51 in March.
An index reading of above 50 indicates
an overall increase in economic
activity and below 50 an overall
decrease. According to the PMI, faster
expansions in output and new orders led
to a higher reading for April.
Commenting on the PMI data,
Aashna Dodhia, Economist at IHS
Markit and the author of the report, said:
“The Indian manufacturing economy
started the quarter on a slightly stronger
footing as growth picked-up from
March’s five-month low, buoyed by
stronger demand conditions.
“Putting the PMI data under a magnifying
glass, consumer goods was again
the bright spot, with output growth
being the fastest among all the three
market groups. Meanwhile, investment
goods was the weakest performing category
as both production and new orders
declined during April.”

www.theasianindependent.co.uk
HEALTH
May 2018
13
This pregnancy complication
could cause pre-term labour
The findings of a recent study showed that pre-term labour may sometimes
happen when the foetal immune system “wakes up” too early and begins to
reject the mother, causing the uterus to start contracting.
Smoking and alcohol consumption increase
the lifetime risk of a rapid and irregular heart
rate, called atrial fibrillation, which can lead to a
stroke, dementia, heart failure and other complications,
a new study says. The results, published
in the journal The BMJ, showed that among
individuals aged 55 years or older, the overall
lifetime risk of atrial fibrillation (AF) was 37%
and was influenced by the burden of lifestyle
risk factors such as smoking and drinking alcohol.
“We examined the lifetime risk of atrial fibrillation,
which measures the cumulative risk of
developing a disease during the remainder of an
individual’s life,” said study co-author Ludovic
Trinquart, Assistant Professor at Boston
University School of Public Health in
Massachusetts, US.
“It is essential to look at lifetime risks in
addition to short-term risks, because it may
enable early identification of individuals at
higher long-term risk and facilitate lifestyle
change counseling,” Trinquart said.
In the study involving more than 5,000 participants,
the researchers identified smoking,
alcohol consumption, body mass index, blood
pressure, diabetes, and history of myocardial
infarction or heart failure as risk factors.
“Studying atrial fibrillation is important
because it is emerging as a global epidemic; it
Smoking, alcohol consumption
raise lifetime risk
of irregular heart rate
Smoking and drinking alcohol could raise your
risk of developing a rapid heart rate.
Smoking and alcohol
consumption increase the
lifetime risk of a rapid and
irregular heart rate, called
atrial fibrillation, which can
lead to a stroke, dementia,
heart failure and other complications,
a new study
says. The results, published
in the journal The BMJ,
showed that among individuals
aged 55 years or
older, the overall lifetime
risk of atrial fibrillation
(AF) was 37% and was
influenced by the burden of
lifestyle risk factors such as
smoking and drinking alcohol.
“We examined the lifetime
risk of atrial fibrillation,
which measures the
cumulative risk of developing
a disease during the
remainder of an individual’s
life,” said study coauthor
Ludovic Trinquart,
Assistant Professor at
Boston University School
of Public Health in
Massachusetts, US.
“It is essential to look at
lifetime risks in addition to
short-term risks, because it
may enable early identification
of individuals at
higher long-term risk and
facilitate lifestyle change
counseling,” Trinquart said.
In the study involving
more than 5,000 participants,
the researchers identified
smoking, alcohol
consumption, body mass
index, blood pressure, diabetes,
and history of
myocardial infarction or
heart failure as risk factors.
Fasting improves stem cells’ regenerative capacity: Study
Washington, The US biologists found that a 24-hour fast can reverse the age-related
loss of intestinal stem cell function that can regenerate new intestinal cells.
The study, published on Thursday in the journal Cell Stem Cell, revealed that fasting
dramatically improves stem cells’ ability to regenerate, in both aged and young mice,
Xinhua reported. In fasting mice, cells begin breaking down fatty acids instead of glucose,
a change that stimulates the stem cells to become more regenerative. The
researchers found that they could also boost regeneration with a molecule that activates
the same metabolic switch and such an intervention could potentially help older people
recovering from gastrointestinal infections or cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.
“Fasting has many effects in the intestine, which include boosting regeneration as well
as potential uses in any type of ailment that impinges on the intestine, such as infections
or cancers,” said Omer Yilmaz, an assistant professor of biology in Massachusetts
Institute of Technology (MIT), and one of the senior authors of the study.
In the study
involving more than
5,000 participants,
the researchers identified
smoking, alcohol
consumption,
body mass index,
blood pressure, diabetes,
and history of
myocardial infarction
or heart failure
as risk factors.
also imposes considerable socioeconomic burden.
Atrial fibrillation hospitalisations follow an
exponential increase and have surpassed heart
failure admissions,” Trinquart said.
Coffee unlimited:
Italian jugaad
In the U.S. at 21, I thought I’d
understood the coffee universe.
There was the instant Nescafé and
Bru widely available in India, there
was the South Indian kaapi which I
loved, and then there was American
‘cawfee’ (with an anuswar after
‘caw’, so actually cawn-fee) that
I’d had in my college cafeteria and
in various people’s houses. Moving
to New York City after graduation
from a small college in Vermont,
my visa allowing licensed
vagabondage, I had no idea what
lay in store.
Rapidly I discovered proper
espresso and its Cuban variation,
café con leche, which was as close
as you could get to strong, milky
Gujarati tea but in a coffee avatar.
Wires taking their time to join up in
my brain, I initially had no inkling
how this wondrous potion was
brewed or that you could produce it in
your own kitchen. It was only when I
moved into a shared apartment in the
still very rough Lower East Side in
Manhattan that I achieved java-nirvana.
My neighbour Angel
My flatmate was away on vacation,
and I knew better than to try and
decipher his kitchen stuff, which was
like a different steel and enamel language,
even in that rudimentary cupboard
of a space. However, the next
morning my doorbell rang. “Hi there,
I’m Angel! Like Angel, but the ‘g’ is
an ‘h’ in Spanish, so it’s Anhell! I’m
your neighbour! Lou told me to check
on you while he’s away. Would you
like some coffee?”
It was a hot August day and the one
thing I craved was a cup of that wondrous
Cuban coffee. My wallet,
though, was thin, money only due a
couple of days later, and I certainly
couldn’t justify the $1.25 one would
have to spend on a con leche. “Er, I’d
love to... but do you know a place
nearby?” “Place? Oh, no, no, no, I
mean come to my apartment and I’ll
make us some coffee.” Just across the
hallway was the door of Angel’s mirroring
tenement hovel. I had no idea
what kind of coffee I was being
offered but I wasn’t about to quibble.
Almonds may reduce risk
of cardiovascular disease
among Indians: Study
Including almonds in the diet may significantly
reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease among Indians,
who are more prone to heart disorders than their
European counterparts, the latest review of over 1,500
studies has found.
The systematic review by a panel of Indian experts in
the field of nutrition and cardiovascular disease (CVD),
published in the journal Nutrients, suggests that daily
inclusion of almonds as part of a healthy diet can reduce
dyslipidemia, one of the most important risk factors for
cardiovascular disease among Indians.
Dyslipidemia is a condition marked by high LDLcholesterol
and triglyceride levels and low HDL cholesterol
levels.
Angel’s kitchen got direct sunlight
from the east and was thus much better
lit than mine. I could see the light
glinting off an aluminium contraption
as Angel primed it.
“Have you had Puerto Rican coffee?
I hope you like it?” “Umm, I’ve
had Cuban...” “Oh! Same thing! Our
blends are just a little bit better, but
it’s all Latin American coffee, much
better than gringo coffee, which is,
frankly, undrinkable!” Till then I had
been quite alright with my elevation
from the plastic horrors of Nescafé to
gringo coffee but now my life was
about to change, bumped up one huge
step closer to heaven.

14 May 2018
HEALTH
www.theasianindependent.co.uk
Make your evening snack delicious, healthy
New Delhi, In todays fast-paced world and
lifestyle, snacking has become an integral part of
the daily diet. But most snacks consumed today
skew toward prepackaged and processed foods,
that only add calories, but very little of anything
else hence it is important to provide healthy yet
tasty alternatives that is changing the quick snack
culture in India.
Rishab Jain, founder of Mr. Makhana from
Mehak Group of Industries and Anubhav Gupta,
founder of Wonderland Foods list reason on how to
make evening snack delicious as well as healthy.
* Opt for Makhana (Fox nut)
* Makhana is easy on the body and provides a
wholesome alternative to unhealthy binging. They
also known as a great guilt free snack around the
world.
* With properties such as low in cholesterol, fat
and sodium, they make for an ideal snack to satiate
those in-between meal hunger pangs.
* They are beneficial to those suffering from
high blood pressure, heart diseases and obesity due
to their high magnesium and low sodium content.
Besides this, makhana acts as an anti-oxidant, very
light and good for digestion.
* While it is roasted in Olive oil, its mild flavour
makes them a perfect everyday snack for all age
groups. For the older audience, it is the perfect
choice as an anti-ageing enzyme in these seeds are
said to help repair damaged proteins.
* With the idea of catering to all Indian taste
buds and all sections of the society, manufacturers
Baking soda may help combat
rheumatoid arthritis
are now introducing interesting flavors which are
adaptable to the Indian palettes. The aware and
health conscious Indian audience has now definitely
started using Makhanas as a substitute to
Popcorn. evening or late night snacking.
One can also try other variants of snacks.
* Nuts: Nuts are nature’s way of showing us that
good things come in small packages. These bitesize
nutritional powerhouses are packed with
A daily dose of baking soda may help
reduce the destructive inflammation of
autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis,
a study has found for the first time.
Researchers from Augusta University in the
US showed that the cheap, over-the-counter
antacid could encourage our spleen to promote
an anti-inflammatory environment that
could be therapeutic in the face of inflammatory
disease. The study, published in the
Journal of Immunology, showed that when
rats or healthy people drink a solution of
baking soda, or sodium bicarbonate, it
becomes a trigger for the stomach to make
more acid to digest the next meal and for little-studied
mesothelial cells sitting on the
spleen to tell the fist-sized organ that there's
no need to mount a protective immune
response. Mesothelial cells line body cavities,
like the one that contains our digestive
tract, and they also cover the exterior of our
organs to quite literally keep them from rubbing
together. About a decade ago, it was
found that these cells also provide another
level of protection. They have little fingers,
called microvilli, which sense the environment
and warn the organs they cover that
there is an invader and an immune response
is needed. Drinking baking soda tells the
spleen—which is part of the immune system,
acts like a big blood filter and is where some
white blood cells, like macrophages, are
stored - to go easy on the immune response,
researchers said.
heart-healthy fats, protein, vitamins, and minerals.
* Almonds: These are highly nutritional nuts
rich in Vitamin E, Calcium, Iron amongst many
others. Besides being great in taste, eating almonds
boosts brain health, greatly effects weight loss,
lowers your cholesterol and reduces you hunger,
hence, lowering your overall calorie intake.
* Walnuts: Walnuts are most often eaten on their
own as a snack. However, they can be added to salads,
pastas, desserts, breakfast cereals, soups and
baked goods as well. They’re often referred to as
“brain food”.
* Berries: They are sweet superfruits with an
unending list of benefits.
* Blueberries: Sweet in flavor, these berries are
succulent and nutritious. They are the King of
antioxidant foods, boost immunity, manage diabetes
and help prevent cancer. Raw or dried, you
can add either to your breakfast cereal/ smoothie or
just sprinkle some over your garden salad and
you’re good to go.
* Cranberries: These little red berries are a
delectable, popular and healthful food.
They not only help guard against UTIs, heart
disease, types of cancer, and the flu, but benefits
oral health too. You can eat them in their raw state,
but if the zesty flavor of fresh berries is not your
thing, you can go for readily available jams or
dried cranberries.
* Pumpkin seeds: Eat them raw, or roast them in
the oven. Either way, these wholesome powerhouses
are a formidable source of B vitamins, magnesium,
iron and protein. They go great with your
evening tea and considering their size, are an effective
snack on-the-go!
* Flax seeds: When it comes to nutritional
goodness, flaxseeds are full of it. Get creative and
add them to your daily parfaits, yogurts, salads,
smoothies or morning cereals. Nutritionists recommend
a tablespoon of flaxseeds a day (which only
contain approx 55 calories).
Italian schools ban kids with no vaccination
Rome, School authorities in Italy’s Piedmont region have banned
several children from attending kindergarten because their parents
failed to comply with a government immunization deadline, media
reports said.
The children belong to four different families, Italian news agency
ANSA has reported. Immunization against highly contagious diseases
such as measles, polio, and rubella were made mandatory for
kids aged up to 16 years. The number of vaccination went up from
four to 10, Xinhua news agency reported.
Completing these vaccinations are a pre-requisite for children to
attend school. Italy has seen a drop-off in immunisations in the midst
of highly organised “no-vax” campaigns claiming that vaccines
cause autism. The populist Five Star Movement and the rightwing
League, the two winners of Italy’s March 4 general election, have
endorsed “no-vax” positions in the past and oppose mandatory
immunisations. A measles epidemic flared up in Italy beginning in
January 2017. Almost 5,000 people were infected and four died, the
Health Ministry said. Of the measles cases, 92 were children under
five years old and 28 were infants under 12 months old, while 91 per
cent of those affected had not been vaccinated, according to the
Superior Institutes of Health (ISS).
Pasta-heavy diet may hasten menopause: Study
High consumption of refined white
pasta and rice may advance the onset of
menopause by about one-and-a-half
years, a UK study warns. The study,
published in the Journal of
Epidemiology and Community Health,
also showed that high intake of healthy
foods, such as oily fish and fresh
legumes, such as peas and green beans
is associated with a later onset of the
menopause.
Researchers from the University of
Leeds examined the link between diet
and the onset of menopause in 14,150
women living in the UK. “This study is
the first to investigate the links between
individual nutrients and a wide variety
of food groups and age at natural
menopause in a large cohort of British
women,” said Yashvee Dunneram, a
postdoctoral researcher at University of
Leeds. “Further studies are needed to
improve understanding on how this may
impact health and wellbeing,”
Dunneram said. Along with a detailed
diet questionnaire, an initial survey collected
information on reproductive history
and health. When a follow up survey
and questionnaire were conducted
four years later, researchers were able to
assess the diets of the women who had
experienced the onset of a natural
menopause in the interim.
The average age at the start of the
menopause for women in the UK is 51
years. Over 900 women between the
ages of 40 and 65 had experienced a
natural start of their menopause at the
time of the follow-up survey.
They had not had menstrual periods
for at least 12 consecutive months and
menopause had not been brought on by
such things as cancer, surgery or pharmaceutical
treatments. Analysis of their
diet showed that high intake of oily fish
was associated with a delayed start to
menopause by nearly three years,
researchers said. A diet with lots of
refined pasta and rice showed that
menopause was more likely to occur
one and a half years earlier than average,
they said. “The age at which
menopause begins can have serious
health implications for some women,”
said Janet Cade, a professor at the
University of Leeds. “A clear understanding
of how diet affects the start of
natural menopause will be very beneficial
to those who may already be at risk
or have a family history of certain complications
related to menopause,” Cade
said. Previous studies have suggested
that earlier onset of menopause is associated
with lower bone density, osteoporosis
and increased risk of cardiovascular
diseases.

www.theasianindependent.co.uk
SPORTS
May 2018
15
USA Gymnastics star
coaches Karolyis sued over
Nassar sex abuse
Chicago : A champion American gymnast has
filed a suit against her sport's star coaches Bela
and Marta Karolyi for failing to protect her from
convicted serial sex abuser Larry Nassar, the former
USA Gymnastics team doctor.
Sabrina Vega on Tuesday also sued Nassar,
USA Gymnastics -- the governing body for her
sport -- and the US Olympic Committee (USOC),
claiming Nassar molested her hundreds of times
starting when she was 12 years old.
The 22-year-old alleges some of the abuse took
place at the Karolyis' remote Texas ranch, which
USA Gymnastics sanctioned as an elite training
center for national and Olympic athletes. At least
265 female athletes -- including several Olympic
gold medal-winning gymnasts -- have said they
were abused by Nassar over a two-decade period,
in the guise of medical treatment. The scandal is
the biggest in US Olympic history and has had
far-reaching ripple effects -- ending careers at
USA Gymnastics, the Olympic committee and at
Michigan State University, where Nassar practiced
medicine. Athletes have testified in court
that girls were easy prey at the Karolyi ranch outside
of Houston, where parents were not allowed,
but Nassar had unsupervised access to girls' dormitory
rooms. "I have struggled to cope with the
effects of the repeated abuse I suffered," Vega said
in a statement.
RM Lodha panel’s one-state,
one-vote policy may be
reconsidered: Supreme Court
New delhi- The vexatious recommendation of
Justice RM Lodha panel on one-state, one-vote
policy may be reconsidered by the Supreme Court
which said it may look at the only aspect relating
to loss of full-time membership
of some cricket bodies.
One of the Justice Lodha
panel’s recommendations,
which was later approved by
the apex court in its 2016 verdict,
was that there would be
one cricket association, having
full time membership and voting
rights in the Board of
Control for Cricket in India
(BCCI), in one state.
This had led to the loss of
permanent membership and
voting rights to iconic bodies
like Mumbai Cricket
Association (MCA), Cricket
Club of India (CCI), Vidarbha
Cricket Association, Baroda
Cricket Association and
Saurashtra Cricket Association. These bodies are in
Maharashtra and Gujarat respectively which have
separate permanent membership of the Board of
Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra
said so far as the one-state, one-vote policy with
regard to north-eastern states was concerned, it will
Verratti to miss rest
of PSG’s season after
groin surgery
Paris, Paris Saint Germain (PSG) midfielder
Marco Verratti, who on
Thursday underwent
successful surgery on a
groin injury, is to miss
the remainder of the
season, the club reported.
In a statement, PSG
indicated that the operation
was a complete
success and that it was
performed by the Dr.
Gilles Reboul, of the
Aspetar Groin Pain
Centre in Qatar, reports
Efe.
“The decision to
operate today was taken to ensure Marco Verratti
will be able to begin the 2018-19 in the best possi-
not be re-considered.
Likely reconsideration - However, the bench,
also comprising Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY
Chandrachud, indicated that it may consider the
aspect of the cricket bodies of
Maharashtra and Gujarat as
they have played a historic
role in the game and cannot
be left out.
“So far as eastern states
are concerned, you cannot
deny them (the right)...we are
on the principle of inclusion,”
it said. The apex court, meanwhile,
asked the state cricket
associations and BCCI officebearers
to give suggestions on
the draft constitution for the
apex cricket body to senior
advocate
Gopal
Subramanium, who is assisting
it as an amicus curiae,
before May 11, the next date
of hearing.
It said the draft constitution has to be in tune
with the Lodha panel recommendations and its verdict.
The draft would be finalised by the court and
be binding on the BCCI.
However, it clarified that its order on the petitions
seeking recall of the 2016 verdict would deal
with the validity of the draft constitution.
ble condition,” PSG stated on its twitter account.
Verratti, 25,
had suffered from
groin pains for
months.
In May 2016,
the Italian national
underwent
another surgery
due to pains in the
groin that prevented
him from playing
with Italy in
the European
Championship
that year. Verratti,
who is finishing
his sixth season at PSG, extended his contract in
December until 2022.
India favourites for 2019 World Cup: Ganguly
New Delhi, Former skipper Sourav Ganguly
believes India will go to any World Cup as
favourites, whether they win or not, thanks to their
consistency and quality.
The cricketing great said that India was one of
the title contenders in the 2003, 2007 editions of
the World Cups and went on to lift the trophy in
2011. Speaking at the launch of his autobiography-
‘A Century is Not Enough’ at a city hotel, Ganguly
said,”I don’t believe in the word ‘best’ as different
teams play well under different situations but we
have a side which is very strong. “We went to
2003 and 2007 World Cups as favourites, in 2011
we won and even now. It’s all because of the culture
of Indian cricket and the quality which comes
out every time which makes Indian cricket special,”
the former skipper added.
While in the 2003 World Cup, India finished
runner-up to Australia, in the next edition, they suffered
an annihilating group stage exit in the
Caribbean. Ganguly’s former teammates, Virender
Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh, who were also present
at the occasion, said the men in blue will come out
victorious in the 2019 Cricket World Cup.
Shuttler Srikanth
climbs to 3rd spot in
world rankings
New Delhi, Star shuttler Kidambi
Srikanth has climbed to the third spot in
the latest rankings released by the
Badminton World Federation (BWF)
here on Thursday. Srikanth, who took
silver in the men’s singles category at
the Commonwealth Games in Australia
last month, climbed a couple of spots
from the fifth place. Fellow Indian H.S.
Prannoy also rose two rungs to take the
eighth spot. Viktor Axelsen of Denmark
is at the top spot followed by South
Korean Son Wan Ho. Srikanth is currently
on 74,135 points while Son has
74,670. Axelsen has a sizeable lead at
the top with 77,570 points. In the
women singles section, Indian star P.V
Sindhu continues to hold on to the third
spot. The 2016 Rio Olympics silver
medallist had lost to compatriot Saina
Nehwal in the women’s singles final at
the Commonwealth Games. Saina has
climbed two spots to enter the the top
10. The Hyderabad-based London
Olympics bronze medallist is currently
at the 10th position with 55,890 points.
Tai Tzu Ying of Chinese Taipei leads
the wommen’s singles standings while
Japan’s Akane Yamaguchi is at the second
spot.

16 May 2018
SPORTS
www.theasianindependent.co.uk
Serena Williams’ strength
and fears unveiled in new
documentary
New York-Serena Williams, winner of an Open
Era-record 23 Grand Slam singles titles, unveils the
joys and pains of her private life in an HBO documentary
debuting Wednesday. In the five-part
series, the former WTA world number one recounts
her victory in last year’s Australian Open, complications
surrounding the birth of her eight-monthold
daughter Olympia and her wedding to Alexis
Ohanian last November. “It’s about ups and
downs,” Williams said in an HBO interview
released Tuesday. Williams won the Australian
Open while pregnant and returned in February
alongside her sister Venus in a US Fed Cup firstround
tie. She lost to Venus in the third round at
Indian Wells and to Japan’s Naomi Osaka at Miami
in her WTA returns. “I’m sure there are some
moments in there that I’m not excited about. But
that’s what it’s all about,” Williams said. “The camera
follows you. You have to just allow yourself to
just be.” Williams revealed in an interview with
Vogue that she suffered a pulmonary embolism
after her daughter was born and spent six weeks
recovering with bed rest.
Among the behind-the-scenes footage included
in the presentation are wedding dress fittings, time
with her baby and husband and pets plus wedding
photos and even images of her in the hospital as
well as seeing Olympia for the first time.
Roma counting on
Dzeko miracle
Rome- Roma coach Eusebio Di Francesco said
today he was counting on another Edin Dzekoinspired
miracle against Liverpool to reach the
Champions League final. Trailing 5-2 after the first
leg of their Champions League semifinal, Roma need
to score at least three goals at the Stadio Olimpico
tomorrow to reach the May 26 final in Kiev. Dzeko
scored a crucial, late away goal in the 4-1 quarterfinal
first leg defeat at Barcelona and the opening goal
of Roma’s 3-0 second leg win at the Stadio Olimpico
that saw the Italians through on away goals. The
Bosnian handed Roma another lifeline with an 81st
strike after Liverpool had romped to a five-goal lead
at Anfield last week, with Diego Perotti adding a precious
second from the spot four minutes later to keep
Roma’s final hopes alive. “Players with his (Dzeko)
qualities must be decisive as (Mohamed) Salah was
in the first leg,” said Di Francesco. Former Roma
forward Salah tore through his former club at
Anfield, scoring twice and setting up two more goals.
Ludhiana man is FIDE world
amateur chess champion
Chandigarh- Arvinder Preet, who hails from
Ludhiana, has become the first Indian to win the
Fide World Amateur Championship in the Under-
2300 category. He became the champion in the
world event that concluded at Cagliari, Italy, on
Monday. Arvinder scored seven out of nine points
in the nine-round competition. His rating is 2069.
He was seeded 26 in the 45-player tournament but
played with precision to emerge victorious.
The 36-year-old works as a technician with the
Railways at Sahnewal. This was his first international
tournament. Arvinder has been playing chess
since 1996. He has won many tournaments in India,
besides being the the state champion four times.
FIDE, the international body of chess, has been
organising category-wise world championship to
encourage non-professional chess players.
Real Madrid see off Bayern
Munich to reach third straight
Champions League final
Holders Real Madrid reached the
Champions League final for the third
year in a row after Karim Benzema
scored twice in a 2-2 draw with
wasteful Bayern Munich on Tuesday
to win their semi-final, second leg 4-3
on aggregate.
Bayern defender Joshua Kimmich
had put the visitors ahead after three
minutes but Benzema levelled with a
free header in the 11th. A goalkeeping
howler from Sven Ulreich then
allowed Benzema to tap in Madrid’s
second just after the break.
James Rodriguez, on loan from
Madrid, equalised for Bayern in the
63rd to set up a gripping finale but
Real held on despite waves of pressure
to become the first team since
Juventus in 1998 to reach the final for
three years in succession.
They will meet Liverpool or AS
Roma in the final in Kiev on May 26,
where they will bid to become the
first side since Bayern in 1976 to win
the competition for three straight
years. “This club’s DNA pushes you
to fight until the end. We knew how to
suffer together,” Real captain Sergio
Ramos told reporters. “They had
more possession but overall we were
better. This team deserves to be in
Kiev.”
Real rode their luck to win the first
leg in Munich 2-1 after Bayern had
missed a slew of chances and
Zinedine Zidane’s side made the most
of their few opportunities. Madrid
SC may reconsider one-state, onevote
policy relating to MCA, CCI
New Delhi-The vexatious
recommendation of
Justice R M Lodha panel
on one-state, one-vote
policy may be reconsidered
by the Supreme
Court which said it may
look at the only aspect
relating to loss of fulltime
membership of some
cricket bodies.
One of the Justice
Lodha panel's recommendations,
which was
later approved by the
apex court in its 2016
verdict, was that there
would be one cricket
association, having full
time membership and
voting rights in the
BCCI, in one state.
This had led to the
loss of permanent
membership and voting
rights to iconic
bodies like Mumbai
Cricket Association
(MCA), Cricket Club of
India (CCI), Vidarbha
Cricket Association,
Baroda Cricket
Association and
Saurashtra Cricket
Association. These bodies
are in Maharashtra and
Gujarat respectively
which have separate permanent
membership of
the Board of Control for
Cricket in India (BCCI).
A bench headed by
Chief Justice Dipak Misra
said so far as the onestate,
one-vote policy with
regard to north-eastern
states was concerned, it
will not be re-considered.
However, the bench,
also comprising Justices
A M Khanwilkar and D Y
Chandrachud, indicated
that it may consider the
aspect of the cricket bodies
of Maharashtra and
Gujarat as they have
played a historic role in
the game and cannot be
left out.
"So far as eastern states
are concerned, you cannot
deny them (the right)...we
are on the principle of
inclusion," it said.
The apex court, meanwhile,
asked the state
cricket associations and
BCCI office-bearers to
give suggestions on the
draft constitution for the
apex cricket body to senior
advocate Gopal
Subramanium, who is
assisting it as an amicus
curiae, before May
11, the next date of
hearing.
It said the draft constitution
has to be in
tune with the Lodha
panel recommendations
and its verdict.
The draft would be
finalised by the court
and be binding on the
BCCI.
However, it clarified
that its order on
the petitions seeking
recall of the 2016 verdict
would deal with the validity
of the draft constitution.
The court also said
that while finalising the
BCCI constitution, it may
not restrict the number of
national selectors to three
and impose the eligibility
criteria that selectors have
to be test players.
fans unfurled a giant banner before
kickoff stating “We will defend the
throne, we will capture glory”, but
Bayern launched an early assault on
their kingdom as David Alaba rushed
forward only to pass into the hands of
keeper Keylor Navas. ¥Bayern came
back down the other flank and landed
their first punch when Ramos failed
to clear a cross and Kimmich gleefully
knocked the ball home from close
range. It was the third consecutive
home game in the Champions League
knockout stages that Madrid had fallen
behind, but they kept their composure
and soon found an equaliser.
Treble-maker Messi
helps Barca ‘finally’
seal 25th title
Madrid- Barcelona coach
Ernesto Valverde was delighted
that his side “finally”
wrapped up a 25th La Liga
title with four matches to
spare, after a Lionel Messi
hat-trick secured a thrilling 4-
2 victory at Deportivo La
Coruna.
Valverde’s men completed
a league and cup double after
thrashing Sevilla 5-0 in last
week’s Copa del Rey final,
regaining the Spanish crown
from Real Madrid and relegating
Deportivo in the process.
“When you chase it for so
long you say ‘finally’,” he told
Spanish television. “I feel
very happy because in the end
the league is very long, it
starts in August... and when
spring arrives everything is
decided, we have passed
everything. We’ve been pursuing
it since the beginning, we
have been in the lead, we’ve
finished well, with a big margin...
It’s the first La Liga that
I’ve won.”

www.theasianindependent.co.uk
The first song from Veere Di
Wedding, Tareefan, could not have
had more style
if it tried. It has
Kareena Kapoor
Khan and
Sonam Kapoor
– undoubtedly
two of the most
stylish female
actors in the
industry today,
Badshah singing
(which is different
from
Badshah rapping)
and
clothes so stylish
– to use a
cliché – that
vaginas might
burst. The club mood of the song,
Kareena and Sonam grooving and
we have all the upcoming veere di
weddings covered. Well, it would be
a refreshing change from the shaadi
ka gaana we have seen till now and
we are not complaining.
The important part is that male
gaze gets subverted as Kareena and
Sonam take up the roles normally
defined as ‘male’ in Tareefan. The
song has been sung by Badshah and
composed by by Qaran Mehta. In
Bollywood actress Sonam Kapoor
will marry Delhi-based businessman
Anand Ahuja in Mumbai on
May 8, the family has confirmed
following weeks of speculation
around the wedding. A statement
on behalf of the Kapoor and
Ahuja families was issued on
Tuesday.
The families have said it is
an “intimate affair” and have
requested the media “to respect
the family’s need for privacy”.
Veteran actor Anil Kapoor,
Sonam’s father, reportedly
commented at an event last
week: “Media has always
been with me and my family
when we began our
careers. We will share
everything at the right
time. You all will
know very soon. We
won’t hide these
details. You will
know why there is
lighting outside
the house.”
ENTERTAINMENT
Sonam to wed Anand on May 8
Veere Di Wedding song Tareefan: Kareena
Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor turn boss ladies
the choreography department, Farah
Khan is doing the honours. The choreographer-turned-director
has
become extremely choosy in the
projects she picks up but made an
exception for Veere Di Wedding.
Farah earlier said in a statement
about the song, “This is the second
music video that I have conceptualised
after Bluffmaster’s Ek Main
Aur Ek Tu Hai. We’ve taken this
song to the next level. The concept
of a gender swap really appealed to
me, so we made the boys the decorative
pieces in the song, with the
girls being the heroes. It was fun
working with some truly empowered
and
enlightened
women like
Rhea (Kapoor),
Ekta (Kapoor),
Kareena,
Sonam, Swara
and Shikha.”
Kareena plays
the main character
in the
film -- Kalindi,
a woman who
is getting married,
though
she is yet to
come to terms
with the conditions
of commitments
and emotional baggage
attached with a traditional Indian
wedding. Sonam, Swara Bhaskar
and Shika Talsania play her close
friends. Sumeet Vyas also features
in the movie.
Earlier, talking at the film’s trailer
launch, Sonam had said, “We are
hoping this film does well. It is
important for this film to do well so
that we as women will get our space.
We can break the glass in some way
or the other.”
Sarah Hyland to star in romcom
'The Wedding Year'
Los Angeles- "Modern Family"
star Sarah Hyland is all set to
feature in the romcom "The
Wedding Year".
The 27-year-old actor
will be directed by
"Legally Blonde" filmmaker
Robert Luketic
for Lakeshore
Entertainment,
according to The
Hollywood Reporter.
The story
revolves around a
marriage-averse
Los Angelesbased
photographer
(Hyland),
who is invited to
15 weddings in
the same year
with her new
ready-to-tie-theknot
boyfriend.
The actor is
executive producing,
with
Lakeshore's
Gary Lucchesi,
Marc Reid and
Mark
Korshak
attached as
producers.
Production
will begin later
this month here.
May 2018
17
Bruce Springsteen to
receive special honour
at 2018 Tonys
Legendary musician Bruce
Springsteen will receive a special award
for his blockbuster solo show
'Springsteen on
Broadway' at this
year's Tony Awards.
The 68-year-old
music icon will be
honoured for his gig
that went on to
become the highest
grossing new production
of the 2017-
18 season, the Tony
A w a r d s
Administration
C o m m i t t e e
announced.
According to
Variety, the show is an intimate, autobiographical
narrative-driven concert built
around excerpts from Springsteen's 2016
memoir, "Born to Run".The production
began previews from October 3 at the
Walter Kerr Theatre and officially
opened nine days later garnering rave
reviews from both theatre fraternity and
music press. The limited engagement initially
was scheduled to run through
It’s important to
rise above looks,
says Sonakshi
New Delhi, Actress
Sonakshi Sinha, who has often
been bodyshamed,
says
it is important
for the audience
to rise
above looks
and delve
deeper into an
artiste’s work.
Sonakshi
is all for the fact that one’s work
speaks for itself.
The actress, who walked the
ramp at the launch of Streax
Professional’s Spring Summer
2018 Collection ‘Marigold’ in an
orange floor-sweepimg gown, on
Tuesday told IANS: “We should
tell the audience and honestly that
is something I have advocated
since the starting of my career.” “I
have always been projecting a very
strong body image. Being true to
yourself… I have been
bodyshamed quite a bit but moving
ahead of that because that is what I
have always believed in…That it’s
not how you look but how you do
and about how many people you
reach out to,” she added.
While the media here waited
for a conversation with the actress,
who had flown in from Kuala
Lumpur to be a part of the event,
there was chatter about Sonakshi’s
weight loss and “sculpted body”.
Don’t such comments and questions
on weight annoy her? “I have
been answering questions on my
weight loss for so long that I have
become indifferent to them. There
are certain things that seem odd at
the moment, but I am kind of used
to it,” said Sonakshi.
November 26, but overwhelming ticket
demand along with Springsteen's engagement
with the crowd — 939 people a
night — have prompted
him to extend the
concert multiple times.
Following a brief hiatus,
the show is now
back on the boards and
selling through
December 15.
A total sellout, with
barely four shows for
weeks, the production
has been pulling in
close to USD 2 million
- the figure climbing to
USD 2.4 million on
five-performance
weeks. The average ticket price has
remained around USD 500 throughout
the run, with cumulative box office currently
at USD 55 million. It will be
Springsteen's first Tony, among 20
Grammys, one Academy Award and four
AMAs and more. It is currently unknown
if the "Born In The USA" hitmaker
would perform at the award ceremony to
be telecast on June 10.

18 May 2018
ENTERTAINMENT
www.theasianindependent.co.uk
Vinod Khanna’s family
emotional over posthumous
Dadasaheb Phalke Award
New Delhi, Vinod
Khanna’s family members,
who were here to receive the
Dadasaheb Phalke Award, conferred
posthumously, at the
65th National Film Awards on
Thursday, said it was a proud
and emotional moment.
Vinod Khanna’s wife Kavita
was accompanied by son
and actor Akshaye at the
Vigyan Bhawan here to
receive the honour.
Ahead of the ceremony,
Akshaye said: “It is
very humbling as a son
to be receiving this on
his behalf. It’s a very
proud and emotional
moment for all of us.”
Kavita said: “It’s such
a happy occasion and
time of great pride for us,
for the family, for all his
fans and for everyone
who loves him. There’s
also a sense of his not
being here to receive it.
“But I am so happy Akshay
is going to receive it on his
behalf… There can be no one
better than Akshay to receive
this on his behalf.”
The Dadasaheb Phalke
Award was this year among the
select 11 categories of honours
distributed by President Ram
Nath Kovind. The rest were
given out by Information and
Broadcasting Minister Smriti
Irani and Minister of State for
Information and Broadcasting
Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore.
Vinod Khanna died last year
Unfortunate Sridevi got National
Award after she left: Boney Kapoor
New Delhi, Sridevi’s husband and producer Boney Kapoor
says the late actress gave her best to all the films that she did in
her career and it is unfortunate that she is getting her first
National Film Award after her death.
Boney on Thursday was here with his two daughters Jahnvi
and Khushi to receive the Best Actress posthumous honour the
65th National Film Awards ceremony. Jahnvi wore her mother’s
sari for the occasion, revealed designer and close family friend
Manish Malhotra. When a Doordarshan anchor asked Boney to
share his sentiments on Sridevi’s second National Film Award,
he corrected her and said: “First let me correct you. This is her
first National Film Award. It is a
very proud moment for all us.
“At the same time, a sad
moment. We wish she was here
with us. She truly deserves it
and she has been around for
almost 50 years and done almost
300 films.
“She has always given her
best to all her films. Finally,
unfortunately after she has left,
that she has been awarded with
this honour.”
Sridevi’s powerful role as
vengeful mother in the Hindi
film “Mom” fetched her the honour. In the movie, directed by
Ravi Udyawar, Sridevi, whose sudden death in February this
year shocked everyone, played a mother who sets out to avenge
her step-daughter, essayed by Pakistani actress Sajal Ali. Boney
expressed his gratitude towards the Indian government, Ministry
of Information and Broadcasting and the jury, which was led by
Sridevi’s “Mr. India” director Shekhar Kapur. “It is a very proud
moment for all of us but sadly she is not around for this proud
moment,” he added.
Asked what advice he would like to give to all the young fans
who want to be like Sridevi, Boney got his daughters — who
looked simple and elegant in ethnic wear — forward, and said:
“Like my daughters, there are many more young ladies who
aspire to be like my late wife Sridevi. “I would only ask them to
be as dedicated as focused as sincere, as hardworking as her.”
Boney also said Sridevi will be alive forever through her work.
“The world is watching all what she did, all what she achieved…
Thanks to television and the digital era, she will continue entertaining
people forever… As long as entertainment industry
exists, as long as media exists, she will continue to entertain
everybody.”
following prolonged illness. He
was 70.
Honouring him with the
Dadasaheb Phalke Award was a
collective decision of the 65th
National Film Awards jury,
chaired by filmmaker Shekhar
Kapur.
The actor had starred in
some of the biggest Bollywood
hits like “Mere Apne”,
“Insaaf”, “Parvarish Muqaddar
Ka Sikandar”, “Qurbani”,
“Dayavaan”, “Mera Gaon Mera
Desh”, “Chandni”, “The
Burning Train” and “Amar,
Akbar, Anthony”. He also pursued
a political career as the
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
member of the Lok Sabha from
Punjab’s Gurdaspur constituency
and had also been a Union
Minister in the Atal Bihari
Vajpayee government.
Happy birthday,
Mrs Kohli
Anushka Sharma turned a year older on May 1. The
actress, who tied the knot with Indian cricket team captain
Virat Kohli on December 11, 2017, celebrated her
first birthday as Mrs Kohli at her love nest. Virat took
to social media to wish his dear wife. He posted a picture
and captioned it as, “Happy B’day my love. The
most positive and honest person I know. Love you.”
AKSHAY KUMAR & CO-STARS
WIN BIG AT THE DADA SAHEB
PHALKE AWARDS
Akshay Kumar has received a wealth of
praise from critics and cinemagoers alike for his
role in this year’s Pad Man – and now he can add
the Dada Saheb Phalke Award to his list of accolades.
Akshay Kumar won both the Best Actor in
a leading role Award for Pad Man and the Best
Actor Award for
Toilet@ Ek Prem
Katha at the Dada
Saheb Phalke Film
Foundation Awards,
taking place in
Mumbai.
The prestigious
Dada Saheb Phalke
Film Foundation
Awards, named after
one of Indian
Cinema’s most influential
figures, rewards
today’s most talented actors. The best actor in a
leading role award was decided by the Jury, and
presented to Akshay Kumar for his role in the
revolutionary family entertainer Pad Man. The
film famously tackles the issue of menstrual
hygiene and taboo in India, and Akshay Kumar’s
commitment to the cause has garnered praise
from all over the world. His co-star Sonam
Kapoor won the Best Leading Actress Award for
Pad Man.
Ranbir Kapoor aces the
1990s Sanjay Dutt look
in a new Sanju poster
Bollywood filmmaker
Rajkumar Hirani shared a new
poster from his upcoming Sanjay
Dutt biopic, Sanju on
Wednesday. Ranbir Kapoor
looks exactly like the Munnabhai
star from the ’90s. He flaunts the
same hairstyle as Sanjay when he
featured in Mahesh Bhatt’s
Sadak (1991).
Sharing the picture, Hirani
tweeted, “Here is Ranbir as
#Sanju in the 90’s.
# R a n b i r K a p o o r
#RajkumarHiraniFilms
@VVCFilms @foxstarhindi.”
Ranbir Kapoor plays Sanjay
in the movie that also stars
Anushka Sharma, Sonam
Kapoor and Vicky Kaushal,
among others.
Promising fans that he will
reveal new stills and posters
But the Best Actor in a Leading Role wouldn’t
be the only award Akshay Kumar would win
that night; he also won the Best Actor award for
Toilet: Ek Prem Katha, the world’s first film on
the issues of open defecation and sanitation. His
co-star Bhumi Pednekar also received the Best
Actress Award for her
role. Audiences will
remember Akshay
Kumar’s spirited championing
of the film and
the issues it tackled,
including building toilets.
The Dada Saheb
Phalke Award ceremony
won’t be the last place
we’ll see the two awardwinning
stars together
however: Akshay
Kumar is set to reunite with Bhumi for a new
Swachh Bharat (Clean India) campaign.
Although few details have been revealed at this
stage, it has been revealed that it isn’t the only
reunion Akshay Kumar will have, with Pad Man
director R.Balki set to direct the campaign.
With sanitation still a key issue for India, the
public will eagerly be awaiting the support of
one of their favourite award-winning stars in this
new campaign.
from Sanju every day, the director
had earlier tweeted, “Starting
tomorrow, I’m going to put out
posters and production stills of
Ranbir as Sanju. A new one
everyday. Hope you like it.
# R a n b i r K a p o o r
#RajkumarHiraniFilms
@VVCFilms @foxstarhindi.”
Taking at the teaser launch of
Sanju, Ranbir had said he enjoyed
playing Sanjay as Munnabhai, “It
was difficult to play the young
Sanju. There were more faces we
had to show; the drugs and his
mother’s loss. The fun was the
Munna Bhai phase.” Directed by
Rajkumar Hirani, Sanju also stars
Paresh Rawal, Dia Mirza,
Karishma Tanna, Manisha
Koirala, Jim Sarbh and Boman
Irani in pivotal roles. The film is
slated to release on June 29.

www.theasianindependent.co.uk
TECH
May 2018
19
LG G7 ThinQ vs Huawei P20 Pro vs Samsung
Galaxy S9+: Flagship phones compared
LG G7 ThinQ will compete with a range of premium Android phones. Let’s take a look at how G7
ThinQ fares against Huawei P20 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S9+.
LG on Wednesday launched
its latest flagship smartphone,
G7 ThinQ. Deeply integrated
with the company’s ThinQ
Artificial Intelligence
platform,LG G7 ThinQ comes
with top-of-the-line specifications
and remarkably improved
design over the predecessor. The
smartphone also joins a long list
of smartphones that are coming
with a cut-out display, popularly
known as notch.
LG G7 ThinQ will be first
launched in South Korea followed
by a wider roll-out in the
coming weeks. The new LG G7
ThinQ will be competing with a
range of premium Android
smartphones, including the
upcoming OnePlus 6. LG will
also be aiming to steal
Samsung’s thunder in the premium
phone segment where its
Galaxy S9-series dominates.
Another worthy contender to
LG’s new smartphone is
Huawei’s P20 Pro which has created
a lot of buzz for its triple
rear camera setup and unique
approach to design.
Let’s compare LG’s latest
smartphone with these two hot
smartphones.
Artificial Intelligence
Both Huawei and LG phones
come with deep AI integration.
Huawei’s Kirin 970 chipset
comes with bunch of AI-based
features allowing the phone to
deliver smarter image recognition,
real-time filter recommendations
based on scene and
object recognition.
LG G7 ThinQ also has a variety
of AI features. For example,
it features Voice AI which is said
to deliver better output for voice
commands. The onboard AI cam
has 19 different shooting modes
for different kind of settings.
Camera
LG G7 ThinQ thrives on the
Artificial Intelligence features
baked into its core features. The
camera on the phone has AI Cam
which has 19 shooting modes
and smart image recognition. In
terms of specifications, LG G7
ThinQ has two cameras on the
back, including a 16-megapixel
sensor (super wide angle) and a
16-megapixel
sensor (standard).
On the
front it has an
8-megapixel
camera.
Samsung
Galaxy S9+
also has a
dual-camera
setup on the
back which
are of 12-
megapixel
sensors. The smartphone has an
8-megapixel front-facing camera.
Huawei’s P20 Pro, however,
takes the camera a level up with
three cameras on the back, having
a 40-megapixel RGB sensor,
20-megapixel monochrome sensor
and an 8-megapixel telephoto
lens. Up front it has a 24-
megapixel camera for selfies.
Note that P20 Pro currently
ranks on top in DXO marking for
cameras. The phone scored a
total of 109 rating, which is the
highest for any smartphone. It
even beat Samsung Galaxy S9+,
Google Pixel 2 and Apple
iPhone X.
Design and Display
LG G7 ThinQ is a big
upgrade over the predecessor in
terms of design. It is quite slim at
7.9mm and has a 6.1-inch QHD+
19.5:9 FullVision ‘Super Bright’
display which the company
claims is nearly half an inch
larger than its predecessor, but
not a hair wider.
Huawei’s P20 Pro comes with
6.1-inch full HD+ OLED
‘FullView’ display. P20 Pro,
however, has a relatively thicker
profile, but with more stylish
back panel. Samsung Galaxy
S9+ also has an edge-to-edge
front with 6.2-inch Super
AMOLED display with 1440 x
2960 pixels resolution. All these
phones have a similar screen
size, except Samsung phone,
which doesn’t have a cut-out display.
Performance
As expected from a flagship
phone in 2018, LG G7 ThinQ
runs on Qualcomm’s top-end
Snapdragon 845 processor with
4GB and 6GB RAM. The smartphone
is available in 64GB and
128GB storage variants and runs
on Android 8.0 Oreo.
Both Samsung and Huawei
offer their own custom chipsets
on their flagship smartphones.
Samsung Galaxy S9+ runs on
Exynos 9810 octa-core processor
(in India variant) and is powered
by 6GB RAM. It is available
in 64GB, 128GB and
256GB models. The phone also
runs on Android 8.0 Oreo.
Huawei’s phone runs on Kirin
970 octa-core processor. In
terms of memory, the
smartphone offers 6GB RAM
and 128GB internal storage. On
the software front, it has Android
8.1 Oreo with EMUI 8.1 running
on top. LG hasn’t revealed the
price of G7 ThinQ, but it’s most
likely to be above Rs 35,000.
Samsung Galaxy S9+ is selling
in India for a starting price of Rs
64,900. Huawei’s P20 Pro is
priced at Rs 64,999 and is available
for purchase starting today.

20 May 2018
TECH
www.theasianindependent.co.uk
Delinking of Aadhaar
an interim measure:
Centre tells SC
New Delhi, The Centre on Thursday told the
Supreme Court that delinking of Aadhaar as a
sole identity proof for getting a SIM card was an
interim measure.
It will continue to be in place till the pronouncement
of the verdict by the apex court on
petitions challenging the validity of the Aadhaar
Act. Attorney General K.K. Venugopal was
responding to a five judge Constitution Bench
headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra after he
was asked about reports of Aadhaar not being
the sole identity proof for getting a SIM card.
Venugopal told the bench that besides
Aadhaar, other identity proof have been included
as an interim arrangement in pursuance to the
court’s earlier order and this would remain so
till the judgment was pronounced. The Attorney
General referred to Page-two of the government
order which says that delinking with Aadhaar
was interim measure till the verdict
Paytm Mall launches PoS system
for retailers, ties up with Asus
New Delhi, Paytm’s ecommerce
arm Paytm Mall on
Wednesday launched its pointof-sale
(PoS) system for retailers
and its brand partners to
manage their offline
(walk-in) and online customers.
“Our Offline-to-
Online (O2O) model is
deeply in sync with what
the offline shopkeepers
need and hence we are offering
a unified solution, Paytm Mall
PoS,” said Paytm Mall Chief
Operating Officer Amit Sinha.
“They can now cater to
walk-in customers conveniently
and can also fulfill online
orders locally through this connected
PoS system,” he said
Announcing its partnership
F8 2018: Facebook promises
steps to stop abuse of its services
San Francisco, Sensing the displeasure
of its developer community
over the controversies in which
Facebook found itself embroiled in
recent times, from the Cambridge
Analytica data scandal to Russian
meddling in the US presidential
election, the social networking
giant has now promised more steps
to stop abuse of its services.
Delivering the keynote address
on the inaugural day of the two-day
F8 developers’ conference in San
Jose on Tuesday, Facebook CEO
Mark Zuckerberg said the company
was taking a broader view of its
responsibility by not only giving
with Taiwan-based electronics
maker Asus for the PoS system,
Sinha said: “We are enabling
Asus branded offline stores and
will soon be expanding further.”
Paytm Mall further
unveiled the exclusive online
launch of Vivobook X507 on
its platform that would be also
available through Asus offline
retail stores.
“We are excited to partner
with Asus for the
exclusive launch of Asus
VivoBook X507 range on
Paytm Mall and through
Asus partnered offline
stores,” Sinha said.
The device will be available
starting at Rs 21,990 including
Paytm Mall cashback of Rs
2,000 May 2.
Xiaomi launches ‘Mi
Music’, ‘Mi Video’ in India
people powerful tools, but also
making sure those tools are used for
good. He promised new services
that bring people together in meaningful
new ways
across Facebook,
Instagram,
W h a t s A p p ,
Messenger and
Oculus. With a focus
on building trust with
the people who use
its products,
Facebook said it was
making several
important improvements
to its policies
and programmes for
the developer community. “We are
re-opening our app review process
after making some changes to make
Mumbai, Xiaomi India on
Wednesday announced the
launch of “Mi Music” and “Mi
Video” to offer value-added
Internet services in India.
“With the launch of these
two apps ‘Mi Music’ and ‘Mi
Video’, we hope to serve millions
of Xiaomi smartphone
users with a better user experience
through enhanced
Internet services,” Manu Jain,
Vice President, Xiaomi and
Managing Director, Xiaomi
India, said in a statement.
“Mi Music” is a preinstalled
music app which
offers an integrated music
streaming service along with
it more comprehensive and grounded
on ensuring that each of our
APIs creates value for people, is
transparent and builds trust,”
Facebook said in a statement.
Among the biggest announcements
made on the first day of the conference
was Facebook’s plans to build
a “Clear History” privacy tool
which will enable users to see the
websites and apps that send information
to Facebook when they use
them. The tool, Facebook said, will
also enable the users to delete this
information from their account, and
turn off Facebook’s ability to store
it.
the ability to store offline
music and has nearly seven
million daily active users
in India, the statement said.
“Mi Video” is a preinstalled
video app that
provides integrated video
streaming across platforms.
“Mi Video” content is
currently powered by
Hungama Play, SonyLiv
and Voot. It offers more
than 500,000 hours of content
with nearly 80 per cent free
content, the statement added
Apple posts $61.1bn in revenue, logs
record first-half growth in India
San Francisco, As Apple posted a
healthy revenue of $61.1 billion and
net quarterly profit of $13.8 billion
globally for its second quarter for fiscal
2018, defying global reports of a
weakened demand for its iPhones,
CEO Tim Cook said the Cupertinobased
tech giant has set a new firsthalf
record in India.
Buoyed by the fact that more
Indians are set to move into the middle
class, Cook said he will now put great
energy into the growing domestic market.
“Let me start with India and then
I’ll talk more about China. India, we
set a new first-half record. So we continue
to put great energy there… Our
objective over time is to go in there
with all of our different initiatives
from retail and everything else,” Cook
said during the company’s earnings
call late Tuesday. “And so we’re
working toward those things. It’s a
huge market and it’s clear that many
people will be moving into the middle
class over time as we’ve seen in other
countries,” the Apple CEO added.
In the first quarter of 2018 in India,
Apple was at the third spot with 20 per
cent market share in the premium
smartphone category, according to
market research firm Counterpoint
Research. In the fourth quarter of
2017, Apple led with a 46.9 per cent
share of the premium segment, while
OnePlus and Samsung trailed with
24.9 per cent and 17.6 per cent respectively.
Apple’s quarterly revenue of
$61.1 globally billion was an increase
of 16 per cent from the year-ago quarter
and international sales accounted
for 65 per cent of the quarter’s revenue.
“We’re thrilled to report our best
March quarter ever, with strong revenue
growth in iPhone, services and
wearables,” Cook said in a statement.
“Customers chose iPhone X more
than any other iPhone each week in
the March quarter, just as they did following
its launch in the December
quarter. “We also grew revenue in all
of our geographic segments, with over
20 per cent growth in Greater China
and Japan,” he said.
As global handset profits dipped 1
per cent (year-on-year) in the fourth
quarter of 2017, Apple X alone generated
35 per cent of the total handset
industry profits, helping the iPhone
maker grow 1 per cent (YoY) in the
same quarter. Apple also announced
$100 billion in additional stock buybacks.
“Given our confidence in
Apple’s future, we are very happy to
announce that our Board has approved
a new $100 billion share repurchase
authorization and a 16 per cent
increase in our quarterly dividend,”
said Luca Maestri, Apple’s CFO.
The iPhone maker reported $13 billion
in revenue from Greater China.
“China, I continue to believe is a
phenomenal country with lots of
opportunity from a market point of
view, but also lots of opportunity from
an app developer’s point of view,”
Cook said during the earnings call.
“We have almost two million application
developers in China that are
writing apps for iOS and the App
Store, and they’re doing unbelievably
creative work and innovative work. So
we look at China holistically, not only
as a market,” he noted.
Apple will complete the execution
of the previous $210 billion share
repurchase authorisation during the
third fiscal quarter.
“Our business performed extremely
well during the March quarter, as we
grew earnings per share by 30 per cent
and generated over $15 billion in operating
cash flow,” said Maestri.
China launches new communication satellite
Beijing, China launched a new
communication satellite
“APSTAR-6C” late on Thursday at
the southwestern Xichang Satellite
Launch Center. The satellite was
sent into orbit by the Long March-
3B carrier rocket. This was the
273rd mission of the Long March
rocket series, Xinhua reported.
Both the satellite and the rocket
were developed by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation.
The user of the satellite is Hong Kong-based APT Satellite Co. Ltd. The
satellite will provide TV transmission, communication, Internet and multimedia
services to customers across the Asia-Pacific region.

www.theasianindependent.co.uk
WORLD
May 2018
21
Arizona wildfire still blazing, has
destroyed 30 homes, 17 other structures
Toll in Libyan poll office attack rises to 15
Tripoli, The death toll in an
attack by Islamic State (IS) suicide
bombers on the headquarters
of the Libyan Higher
Commission of Elections here
has risen to 15, according to a
medical source.
Confirming the deaths,
Abdaddaem al-Rabti, an official
of the public Tripoli Field
Hospital, told Xinhua late on
Wednesday that nine commission
employees, four security
personnel and two terrorists
had died while 21 people were
injured.
The terrorists had stormed
the building’s main gate on
Wednesday, exchanged fire
with the security, and blew
Chinese Minister
meets Kim in North
Korea
Pyongyang, Chinese Foreign
Minister Wang Yi on Thursday met
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un here
and congratulated him for the thaw in
relations with South Korea, officials
said. Wang met Kim at the Korean
Workers’ Party headquarters and praised
the successful April 27 meeting between
the North Korean leader and South
Korean President Moon Jae-in.
The Chinese minister backed the joint
statement — the Panmunjom agreement
— signed by Moon and Kim pledging to
work towards the denuclearisation of the
Korean peninsula, Efe news reported.
Wang said the meeting had provided
an opportunity to resolve issues on the
inter-Korean issues politically rather
than through the use of force.
The minister added that China supported
the deal to formally end the
Korean War. Wang had also met his
counterpart Ri Yong-ho and discussed
the current situation on the peninsula
following the inter-Korean summit.
Wang and Ri had an “in-depth” discussion
on the “friendly and cooperative”
relations between North Korea and
China. Wang arrived in North Korea on
Wednesday that made him the first
Chinese Foreign Minister to make an
official trip to the country in 11 years.
He was accorded a ceremonial reception
on Thursday.
themselves up after being surrounded
by backup security
personnel. The attack took
place as the UN-backed government,
in cooperation with
the UN Support Mission in
Libya, prepared to hold presidential
and parliamentary elections
before the end of 2018, as
proposed by the head of the
mission, Ghassan Salame.
Abdalhakim Belkhair, deputy
head of the commission, told
Xinhua that the attack “seeks to
Fire management officials included the count of
destroyed or heavily damaged buildings in a
Thursday update. The Arizona fire is 12% contained.
Officials say a week-old wildfire burning in an Arizona forest has destroyed 30 homes and 17
other structures. Fire management officials included the count of destroyed or heavily damaged
buildings in a Thursday update. The fire is 12% contained.
Coconino County spokesperson Matt Rudig tells the Arizona Daily Sun that most homes lost to
the fire were second residences.
The fire near Clints Well, about 50 miles south of Flagstaff, has burned 19.2 square miles. Fire
officials say it spread from an illegally built and abandoned campfire.
Cooler and damper weather aided firefighters this week but temperatures are expected to rise this
weekend. Officials are considering when they can lift evacuation notices for residences in the area.
send out clear messages
attempting to thwart the
upcoming elections in any
way”.
The UN-backed Libyan government
declared three days’
national mourning for the victims,
saying, “These crimes
will only increase our determination
to unite against them and
to fight terrorism in all forms.”
Libya has remained mired in
chaos following the 2011 uprising
that toppled former leader
Muammar Gaddafi. It is struggling
to make a democratic
transition amid political division
and unrest, as well as dominance
of armed groups and
militias with shifting loyalties.
Bangladesh asks UK
to extradite Zia’s son
Dhaka, Bangladesh
has asked the UK to
extradite Tarique
Rahman, the exiled son
of former Prime
Minister Khaleda Zia
and Chairman of the
Bangladesh Nationalist
Party (BNP) who has
been convicted in two
corruption cases.
“The process is going
on. Next step always
depends on the response
from the British government,”
Foreign Minister
A.H. Mahmood Ali was quoted as saying by
bdnews24.com on Thursday.
In February, a Bangladeshi court sentenced
Rahman, living in London since
2008, to 10 years imprisonment in a fraud
case related to a foundation created to fund
an orphanage trust, while his mother was
handed a five year prison sentence for the
same offence.
After the verdict, the BNP named
Rahman as the party’s chairman to replace
Zia, currently serving her prison term.
The opposition leader’s son had been sentenced
to seven years in prison in 2016 on
charges of laundering $2.5 million between
2003-07. Zia — who headed the
Bangladeshi government twice (between
1991-96 and 2001-06) — was named in 13
cases of corruption, violence and sedition.
According to the BNP, hundreds of its
activists and leaders face similar charges.
The BNP, which does not currently hold
any seats in Parliament, boycotted the 2014
general elections after the government, led
by Sheikh Hasina of the Awami League,
scrapped the system of an interim government
which for decades had supervised elections
in the country.
The BNP and the Awami League have
taken turns in power in the country since
1991, except for a brief period of military
rule between 2006-08.
NASA’s portable nuclear reactor
could power missions to Mars
Washington, NASA has said that it successfully demonstrated
a new nuclear reactor power system that could enable crewed
missions to the Moon, Mars and destinations beyond.
NASA announced the results of the demonstration, called the
Kilopower Reactor Using Stirling Technology (KRUSTY)
experiment on Wednesday at its Glenn Research Center in
Cleveland. The Kilopower experiment was conducted at the US
Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security
Administration’s Nevada National Security Site from November
2017 through March.
Such a demonstration could pave the way for future
Kilopower systems that power human outposts on the Moon and
Mars, NASA said in a statement.
“Safe, efficient and plentiful energy will be the key to future
robotic and human exploration,” said Jim Reuter of NASA’s
Space Technology Mission Directorate in Washington.
“I expect the Kilopower project to be an essential part of
lunar and Mars power architectures as they evolve,” Reuter said.
Kilopower is a small, lightweight fission power system capable
of providing up to 10 kilowatts of electrical power – enough
to run several average households – continuously for at least 10
years. Four Kilopower units would provide enough power to
establish an outpost.
The pioneering power system is ideal for the Moon, where
power generation from sunlight is difficult because lunar nights
are equivalent to 14 days on Earth, said Marc Gibson, lead
Kilopower engineer at Glenn.
“Kilopower gives us the ability to do much higher power missions,
and to explore the shadowed craters of the Moon,” said
Gibson. “When we start sending astronauts for long stays on the
Moon and to other planets, that’s going to require a new class of
power that we’ve never needed before.”
The prototype power system uses a solid, cast uranium-235
reactor core, about the size of a paper towel roll.
Passive sodium heat pipes transfer reactor heat to high-efficiency
Stirling engines, which convert the heat to electricity.
The purpose of the recent experiment in Nevada was twofold:
to demonstrate that the system can create electricity with
fission power, and to show the system is stable and safe no matter
what environment it encounters, said David Poston of
National Nuclear Security Administration’s Los Alamos
National Laboratory.
“We threw everything we could at this reactor, in terms of
nominal and off-normal operating scenarios and KRUSTY
passed with flying colours,” said Poston.

22 May 2018
WORLD
www.theasianindependent.co.uk
US warns China of ‘consequences’ of
military buildup in South China Sea
Washington-The US on Friday warned China
that it would face “consequences” for military
buildup in the disputed South China Sea where
Beijing has deployed anti-ship cruise missiles
and surface-to-air missile systems. White House
Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said that the
Trump administration has raised the issue with
the Chinese leadership.
“We are well aware of China’s militarisation
of the South China Sea. We’ve raised concerns
directly with the Chinese leadership about this.
And there will be near-term and long-term consequences,”
Sanders told reporters, responding
to a question on the Chinese military build up in
the South China Sea and other parts of the world.
China on Thursday defended the deployment
of anti-ship cruise missiles and surface-to-air
missile systems in the disputed waters, saying it
has “indisputable sovereignty” over the area.
The Pentagon has also expressed concern over
the Chinese military buildup in the disputed
waters. “We have been very vocal about our concerns
about them militarising these artificial
islands. China has to realise that they’ve benefited
from the free navigation of the sea. And the
US Navy has been the guarantor of that,” Chief
Pentagon Spokesperson Dana White told
reporters. “We will continue to do our operations
and ensure that the Chinese understand that they
China launches new
communication
satellite
Beijing, China launched a
new communication satellite
“APSTAR-6C” late on
Thursday at the southwestern
Xichang Satellite Launch
Center.
The satellite was sent into
orbit by the Long March-3B
carrier rocket. This was the
273rd mission of the Long
March rocket series, Xinhua
reported.
Both the satellite and the
rocket were developed by the
China Aerospace Science and
Technology Corporation.
The user of the satellite is
Hong Kong-based APT
Satellite Co. Ltd. The satellite
will provide TV transmission,
communication, Internet and
multimedia services to customers
across the Asia-Pacific
region.
cannot, and should not, be hostile and understand
that the Pacific is a place in which much commerce
goes through. And it’s in their interest to
ensure that there’s a free navigation of international
waters,” she said. China is engaged in
hotly contested territorial disputes in both the
South China Sea and the East China Sea. China
claims almost all of South China Sea. Vietnam,
Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan have
counter claims. The US media reports earlier
said China has installed anti-ship cruise missiles
and surface-to-air missile systems on three of its
outposts in the South China Sea.
In April, the Chinese military held its largest
ever maritime drill in the disputed South China
Sea during which it displayed for the first time
the country’s aircraft carrier strike group and the
most advance weaponry of the People’s
Liberation Army (PLA).
The drill was held amid frequent forays made
by US naval and aircraft into the South China
Sea to assert the freedom of navigation especially
around the artificial islands built by China,
where it has also established garrisons. The
strategic South China Sea is rich in energy
reserves, fishery resources and is a busy shipping
route. Meanwhile, the Pentagon confirmed that
Chinese military personnel have used lasers
against US military planes in Djibouti.
“They are very serious incidents. There have
been two minor injuries. This activity poses a
true threat to our airmen,” Pentagon Chief
spokesperson Dana White told reporters at her
weekly news conference. “We have formally
demarched the Chinese government, and we’ve
requested that the Chinese investigate these incidents,”
she said.
Afghan journalists mark World
Press Freedom day with protests
Kabul, Afghan journalists
on Thursday boycotted an official
ceremony to mark World
Press Freedom day and accused
the government of not doing
enough to ensure the safety and
security of media workers in
the country.
They demonstrated with
placards that read “Stop deceiving
— Journalists are not something
to play with”, Efe news
reported.
On Monday, three attacks in
Afghanistan killed over 40 people,
including 10 journalists, in
one of the deadliest strikes on
the country’s media since the
fall of the Taliban in 2001.
Afghan journalists said there
were not enough measures
taken by the government to
ensure their safety in a country
that in 2017 was ranked as the
third most dangerous country
in the world for journalists by
Reporters Without Borders
(RSF). Amnesty International
also released a statement to
mark the day and remember the
slain journalists.
“Afghanistan’s journalists
are among the bravest in the
world. Working in some of the
most difficult conditions, they
have faced threats, intimidation
and violence for simply doing
their jobs,” said Omar Waraich,
Amnesty International’s
Deputy Director for South
Asia.
Nine of the journalists were
killed as they rushed to the site
of the first blast in Kabul, when
a second suicide bomber, posing
as a cameraman, detonated
his explosives. “The second
attacker deliberately sought out
journalists to kill after the first
bomber had drawn them to the
scene. Mere moments after
killing one group of civilians
they targeted another, committing
multiple war crimes on the
same spot,” Waraich said.
Another was killed in a separate
incident. According to the
Afghanistan Journalists Safety
Committee, at least 80 media
workers lost their lives while
working in the country since
2001.
UAE Foreign Minister meets New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern
Wellington, UAE Foreign Minister
Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan
has met New Zealand’s Prime Minister
Jacinda Ardern here for bilateral discussions,
following the reveal of New
Zealand’s $53 million pavilion for the
2020 World Expo to be held in Dubai.
During the meeting on Wednesday,
the two sides discussed means of
enhancing and developing friendly relations
and cooperation between the
United Arab Emirates and New Zealand
in investment, trade, economic, energy,
renewable energy and food security.
Sheikh Abdullah was also
briefed on New Zealand’s
plans for its pavilion for the
2020 world expo in Dubai.
The 2000 square metre
pavilion will feature an
exhibition space, restaurant,
design store and hosting
facilities.
Both the leaders also
reviewed the latest developments
in the region and
exchanged views on a number of
regional and international issues of
common concern. Sheikh Abdullah
affirmed the close relations that the
UAE and New Zealand share and the
continuous keenness to strengthen and
develop them with the support of both
countries’ leadership. Ardern welcomed
Sheikh Abdullah’s visit, saying it will
open wider horizons of joint cooperation
between the two countries. The
meeting was attended by Saleh Ahmed
Al Suwaidi, the UAE Ambassador to
New Zealand.

www.theasianindependent.co.uk
3 killed, 13 injured
in suicide attack in
Pakistan
Islamabad, At least three people
were killed and 13 others injured when
a suicide bomber blew himself up near
a bus carrying Pakistan Atomic
Energy Commission (PAEC) employees
in Pakistan’s Punjab province on
Thursday, the media reported.
According to the reports, the suicide
attacker targeted a bus carrying
the PAEC employees oon Basal road
near Dhok Gama area in Attock city.
Police officials confirmed that, an
employee of the PAEC and a passer-by
were among the three killed in the
attack whereas all the injured were
employees of the PAEC.
The bus driver and a passer-by tried
to overpower the attacker who blew
himself up after firing shots at the bus,
killing both of them on the spot, said
District Emergency Officer Ashfaq,
adding that the bus was completely
destroyed by the powerful blast.
Security forces and rescue teams
rushed to the site and shifted the
injured to nearby hospitals in the city.
The area has been cordoned off and
a search operation launched.
No group or individual has claimed
the responsibility for the attack yet.
WORLD
May 2018
23
UN Council chief calls for
action on Rohingya refugees
United Nations, Ambassador
Joanna Wronecka of Poland, UN
Security Council president for May,
has said that the world body must act
when Rohingya refugees are suffering.
She made the remarks on
Thursday here after visiting Myanmar
Rohingya refugee camps in
Bangladesh earlier this week, Xinhua
news agency reported. “So, when you
see the people suffering we have to
act,” she told reporters at the UN
headquarters during a monthly briefing
on the council’s program of work.
“The main question is how to help.”
Wronecka said the Security
Council would meet on May 14 for a
formal briefing on the situation.
She said it was possible the panel
“may adopt a PRST” (it carries the
weight of international law), since
“we are united, definitely committed
to doing something…” “It is difficult
to live in the camps,” she said. “The
conditions are extremely difficult
because in Bangladesh due to the
monsoon season there is always a risk
for raining,…” The Monsoon has
already started and have caused
flooding in some areas, threatening
the spread of disease and impeding
the distribution of humanitarian aid.
France seeks broader
nuclear pact with Iran
Sydney, French President
Emmanuel Macron on
Wednesday said that France is
willing to seek a broader
nuclear pact with Iran even if
the US withdraws from the deal
that Tehran signed with world
powers in 2015. “I don’t know
what the US President will
decide on May 12. Whatever
the decision, we will have to
prepare a broader negotiation
and a broader deal because I
think nobody wants a war or an
escalation of tensions in the
region,” Macron said in Sydney
on the second day of his official
visit to Australia.
He also stressed
that the agreement
was the best way to
monitor the current
activity of the
Iranian regime.
Macron made
the comments during
an appearance
with Australian
Prime Minister
Malcolm Turnbull, who also
supported the pact with Iran
and called it the “best option”
available. The French President
called the deal with Tehran as
Over 100 injured in Iran earthquake
Tehran, At least 105 people were injured in the 5.2-magnitude
earthquake that shook Iran’s western Kohgiluye and
Boyerahmad province on Wednesday, media reports said.
The epicentre of the earthquake, with a depth of 8 km, was
determined to be at 30.834 degrees north latitude and 51.559
degrees east longitude, Xinhua reported.
People in Sisakht city rushed out onto the streets in panic following
the quake. Firefighters were patrolling on the streets and
asking people to stay out of their houses.
Major damage has not been reported in the city so far, but the
residential areas in the suburban rural regions have sustained
damage. The cell phone communication and power supplies in
some areas of Dena region and Sisakht have been disrupted.
The Governor of Boyerahmad county, Shahrokh Kenari, said
that the drinking water of Madvan city and vicinity has been cut
off due to the damage of a major water pipe.
Rockfalls in some mountainous areas have blocked the roads
to Yasooj, the capital city of Kohgiluye and Boyerahmad
province. The Managing Director of Red Crescent Society of the
province, Amanollah Jahanbin, warned the locals and the mountaineers
of the rockfalls and asked them to avoid climbing the
heights of Dena Ranges.
“a starting point”
and advocated
expanding it
beyond 2025 while
improving control
over Iranian
regime’s ballistic
missile activities
and containing it
within the region.
US President
Donald Trump is
expected to announce on May
12 whether Washington would
opt out of the agreement signed
to regulate Iran’s nuclear energy
programme in exchange for
the lifting of economic sanctions.
Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu had earlier
this week presented documents
as proof of an Iranian
nuclear weapons plan, which
he said were copies of a secret
Iranian archive obtained by its
intelligence services.
The US called the documents
“real” and “authentic”,
while the EU recalled that the
agency in charge of monitoring
the Iranian nuclear programme
didn’t question Tehran’s fulfilment
of the commitments.
Tripoli, The death toll in an
attack by Islamic State (IS) suicide
bombers on the headquarters of the
Libyan Higher Commission of
Elections here has risen to 15,
according to a medical source.
Confirming the deaths,
Abdaddaem al-Rabti, an official of
the public Tripoli Field Hospital,
told Xinhua late on Wednesday that
nine commission employees, four
security personnel and two terrorists
had died while 21 people were
injured. The terrorists had stormed
the building’s main gate on
Wednesday, exchanged fire with the
security, and blew themselves up
after being surrounded by backup
security personnel. The attack took place as
the UN-backed government, in cooperation
with the UN Support Mission in Libya,
prepared to hold presidential and parliamentary
elections before the end of 2018,
as proposed by the head of the mission,
Ghassan Salame. Abdalhakim Belkhair,
deputy head of the commission, told
“I had the chance to speak especially
to women because they are the most
affected with the children…,” said a
visibly moved Wronecka. “But the
refugees cannot stay for ever. It was
obvious. So the question is how to
help them return to their place of origin.”
The Warsaw envoy said members
of the panel of 15 then met with
Myanmar State Councilor Aung Sang
Su Kyi. Bangladesh and Myanmar
had signed an agreement on the return
of refugees. However, the UN has
been saying refugees should only
return voluntarily when they are
ready to go where they want to go in
a dignified manner.
“We see a possibility more for the
role of different UN agencies to
help.” She particularly singled out the
UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and
the International Organization for
Migration (IOM).
More than 670,000 ethnic Muslim
Rohingya have fled northern Rakhine
State since August 25, 2017.
A PRST is a step below a resolution,
which is read out by the president
in a formal Security Council
meeting and becomes an official document
of the world organisation.
US troops to stay post Seoul-
Pyongyang treaty: South Korea
Seoul, President Moon Jae-in on Wednesday flatly dismissed
the idea of US troops stationed in South Korea pulling out following
a peace treaty that could be signed between the two Koreas,
saying the issue has nothing to do with Pyongyang.
“US Forces Korea (USFK) is a matter of the South Korea-US
alliance. It has nothing to do with signing a peace treaty,” Moon
said, according to his spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom.
In a historic summit held at the border truce village of
Panmunjom on Friday, Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jongun
agreed to push for a peace treaty that would formally end the
1950-53 Korean War. Moon’s remarks came shortly after his special
adviser Moon Chung-in hinted at the possibility of a withdrawal,
Yonhap news agency reported. “What will happen to US
forces in South Korea if a peace treaty is signed? It will be difficult
to justify their continuing presence in South Korea after its
adoption,” the President’s adviser said in an articled published on
Monday by US magazine Foreign Affairs. About 29,000 US soldiers
are based in South Korea, under a security agreement
reached after the war ended in 1953. However, an official from the
presidential office Cheong Wa Dae dismissed the possibility of US
troop withdrawal, highlighting the role of USFK as a mediator.
“The government’s position is that the USFK is playing the role of
a mediator between major powers surrounding the country, such as
China and Japan. It is the government’s stance that the USFK is
needed,” the Cheong Wa Dae official told reporters.
Toll in Libyan poll office attack rises to 15
Xinhua that the attack
“seeks to send out clear
messages attempting to
thwart the upcoming elections
in any way”.
The UN-backed Libyan
government declared three
days’ national mourning for
the victims, saying, “These
crimes will only increase
our determination to unite
against them and to fight
terrorism in all forms.”
Libya has remained mired
in chaos following the 2011
uprising that toppled former
leader Muammar Gaddafi.
It is struggling to make a
democratic transition amid political division
and unrest, as well as dominance of
armed groups and militias with shifting
loyalties.

24 May 2018
WORLD
www.theasianindependent.co.uk
Thousands urged to leave homes after
Hawaii volcano eruption: official
Morocco a champion in migration
management: Belgian envoy
Marrakech, Morocco plays the role of a “champion” in terms
of migration management at the African level, Belgian special
envoy for migration and asylum Jean Luc Bodson said here on
Tuesday. Bodson said: “Morocco decided to play, under the auspices
of King Mohammed VI, a role of champion in migration
matters at the African level.” He called the Kingdom “a key partner
in migration for both Belgium and the European Union”.
Bodson also noted that much of the migration was internal to
Africa, adding that Morocco, especially since its reintegration into
the African Union, played an important role in the migration policy
in the continent. The Belgian diplomat’s comments came on the
sidelines of the meeting of senior officials held as a prelude to the
5th Euro-African Ministerial Conference on Migration and
Development. The first Euro-African Ministerial Conference on
Migration and Development was held in 2006 in Rabat, while the
next three editions were held respectively in Paris (2008), Dakar
(2011) and Rome (2014).
Los Angeles, Up to 10,000
people have been asked to
leave their homes on Hawaii's
Big Island following the eruption
of the Kilauea volcano that
came after a series of recent
earthquakes. "Department of
Public Works reports steam and
lava emissions from a crack in
Leilani Subdivision in the area
of Mohala Street," the Hawaii
County Civil Defense Agency
wrote in a Facebook post.
An official added the zone is
home to about 10,000 people,
and was a "voluntary evacuation."
US Geological Survey
authorities of the Hawaiian
Volcano Observatory unit were
both on the ground and headed
into the air to assess the eruption,
which began yesterday
around 4:45 pm local time .
At 10:30 am a 5.0 magnitude
earthquake south of the Puu Oo
volcano cone triggered rockfalls
and potential collapse into
a crater on the volcano, according
to USGS. "A short-lived
plume of ash produced by this
event lofted skyward and is
continuing to dissipate as it
drifts southwest from Puu Oo,"
an advisory from USGS said,
warning that "anyone downwind
may experience a dusting
of ash." Authorities said hazards
linked to the ongoing eruptions
could include "potentially
lethal concentrations of sulfur
dioxide gas" in the zone as well
as methane blasts that could
propel large rocks and debris in
adjacent forested areas.
Governor David Ige had
activated the archipelago state's
National Guard troops, and told
residents to pay heed to warnings
from the Civil Defence
Agency. "Please be alert and
prepare now to keep your family
safe," Ige wrote on Twitter.
A local community center
was open to residents impacted
by the threat, Hawaii's emergency
management agency
said.
Trump warns he might involve himself in Russia probe
Washington, US President Donald
Trump on Wednesday said that “at some
point (he) will have no choice” but to
involve himself in the Russia probe, which
he has repeatedly called a “witch hunt”.
“At some point I will have no choice but
to use the powers granted to the Presidency
and get involved!” said Trump in a
Wednesday morning Twitter post.
The President insisted that the investigation
is “A Rigged System – They don’t
want to turn over Documents to Congress.
What are they afraid of? Why so much
redacting? Why such unequal ‘justice?'” in
the same tweet. Several Republican lawmakers
have criticized the Department of
Justice, especially Deputy Attorney
General Rod Rosenstein, who has refused
to turn over documents to Congress that
allegedly show anti-Trump bias among
some senior government officials, Efe
reported. In another tweet, Trump called
any investigation into possible obstruction
of justice a “setup and trap”, claiming once
again that there had been no wrongdoing
by people involved in his 2016 campaign
for office. According to a report by The
Washington Post, Special Prosecutor
Robert Mueller, who is heading the independent
Russia probe, told Trump’s legal
team that he might subpoena the President
to testify if he refused to cooperate with the
investigation into cooperation between his
2016 presidential campaign and the
Kremlin. Mueller issued the warning during
a meeting with Trump’s attorneys on
March 5, as four people with knowledge of
the meeting revealed to the capital daily on
condition of anonymity. In addition, on
Monday The New York Times published a
non-verbatim list — allegedly derived
from the notes of one of those present — of
49 questions that Mueller provided to
Trump’s lawyers in March and said he
wanted to ask the president under oath.