INL Dec12018 U Digital Edition

The English Fortnightly (Since November 1999) 

Issue 405 | DECEMBER 1, 2018 | Free 

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Indian Newslink 

Indian Business Awards 2018 

Winner 

Supreme Business of the Year 

Business Excellence in 

Marketing 

Best Employer of Choice 2017 

Best Medium-Sized Business 2017 

Ashima Singh, Winner of the 

Best Businesswoman of the year 2016 

email: office@legalassociates.co.nz 

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Jacinda Ardern Simon Bridges Sanjiv Kohli Phil Goff Zarak Khan Jacob Mannothra Jackie Clarke 

Jacinda Ardern promises incentives to foster business growth 

Entrepreneurs and professionals honoured at our 11th Annual Business Awards 

Venkat Raman 

venkat@indiannewslink.co.nz 

The Coalition Government 

will provide incentives 

and continue to encourage 

businesses to grow and 

thrive, Prime Minister Jacinda 

Ardern has said. 

Speaking at the Eleventh Annual 

Indian Newslink Indian Business 

Awards Presentation Ceremony 

held at SkyCity Convention 

Centre in Auckland City on Monday, 

November 26, 2018, she said that 

one of the key priorities of her 

government is to enhance the country’s 

economy by supporting the 

progress and success of businesses 

across New Zealand. 

Innovative and Productive 

“And Indian businesses are some 

of our country’s most innovative 

and productive and I am delighted 

that there is a special acknowledgement 

of achievers in that category 

in tonight’s Awards,” she said. 

Editor’s Note: ‘Business Excellence 

in Innovation,’ sponsored 

by Singapore Airlines has been a 

category since the Awards were 

launched in 2008. Please read 

Jacinda Ardern with Simon Bridges at our Awards Ceremony 

our Award Special (from Page 8) 

for details of the Winner and the 

Judges’ Commendation Award. 

Our Guests of Honour 

Ms Ardern recognised the 

presence of several leaders, 

ministers, diplomats, and 

many dignitaries at the Awards 

Ceremony. Among them were 

Leader of the Opposition Simon 

Bridges, Finance Minister Grant 

Robertson, Social Development 

Minister Carmel Sepuloni, Export 

Growth and Trade Minister David 

Parker, Police Minister Stuart Nash, 

Ethnic Communities Minister Jenny 

Salesa, Auckland Mayor Phil Goff, 

Indian High Commissioner Sanjiv 

Kohli, New Zealand’s High Commissioner 

to Fiji Jonathan Curr, Consul 

General and Trade Commissioner 

Australia and New Zealand of Fiji 

based in Sydney. 

Sound economic system 

Ms Ardern said that among the 

aspirations of her government is to 

provide a sound economic system 

for businesses to thrive with good 

growth projections, with lowest 

unemployment in a decade and 

budget surpluses. 

“I hope that we will continue 

Raj Pradeep and Ashima Singh, Winners of the Supreme Business Award 

to provide the eco system that 

you need,” she told about 1000 

businesspersons, entrepreneurs 

and professionals who attended the 

event. 

Fostering relations with India 

Stating that the bilateral relations 

with India continue to grow from 

strength to strength, Ms Ardern 

said that the two-way service trade 

is now valued at $2.7 billion. 

“Tourism has doubled since 

2011 and students from India 

are the second largest source of 

foreign students for us. We believe 

that there is potential to grow 

the relationship between the two 

countries even further and you 

have my commitment that we as 

a government will continue to see 

that relationship thrive,” she said. 

Part of Aotearoa Heritage 

Ms Ardern said that all New Zealanders 

are committed to valuing 

our heritage and tradition across 

every facet of that history and that 

the Indian community has been a 

part of the rich history and heritage 

of Aotearoa. 

“At the recent Armistice Centenary 

(Indian Newslink, November 

15, 2018), I was reminded that 

Indian soldiers fought as ANZAC 

soldiers at Gallipoli as a part of that 

Heritage that we often do not talk 

about, but we should,” she said. 

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02 

DECEMBER 1, 2018 

Homelink 

Todd McClay, Bishop Patrick Dunn Lyndsay Freer Sister Cherubina Sneha Anthony 

Inspiring work of Saint Mother Teresa recalled with compassion 

Venkat Raman 

Much can be learnt from 

the life and teachings of 

Saint Mother Teresa; a 

Member of Parliament 

and a former Minister of the 

Crown has said. 

Todd McClay, elected Member 

of Parliament from Rotorua and 

a senior member of the National 

Party Caucus said that in a iPad 

world where the social media 

dominates so much of our lives, it 

is important to remember that the 

origins of kindness often comes 

from the nobility of a humble 

beginning. 

Making the world better 

Speaking at the Ninth Annual 

Saint Mother Teresa Interfaith 

Meeting at the Catholic Church 

of Christ the King in Mt Roskill 

on Saturday, November 24, 2018, 

he said that it is a simple idea to 

make the world a better place, 

person-by-person through hard 

work, dedication, sacrifice and 

compassion. 

“A better society is not built 

by others. It is constructed 

minute-by-minute and day-by-day 

Bishop Patrick Dunn with Todd McClay, guests, Members and Volunteers of the Saint Mother 

Teresa Interfaith Committee 

by each and everyone of us. Saint 

Mother Teresa was an inspiration 

to countless millions through her 

life of devotion to the most vulnerable 

of the world. The selflessness 

and the sacrifice with which she 

lived made her an international 

symbol of charitable work,” he 

said. 

Mr McClay said that the love 

and compassion that Saint Mother 

Teresa showed the whole world 

won her the Nobel Peace Prize in 

1979, which she donated entirely to 

the poor. 

Blending people 

Earlier, Patrick Dunn, the Roman 

Catholic Bishop of Auckland and 

the Patron of the Saint Mother 

Teresa Interfaith Meeting paid rich 

tributes to ancestors and those who 

have left this world (“on whose 

shoulders we stand’). 

“The Saint Mother Teresa Interfaith 

Meetings are very beautiful 

because they blend people of 

goodwill across the boundaries 

of religions, faiths, cultures and 

incomes. Saint Mother Teresa 

considered everyone as a human 

person, each of who deserves to be 

treated with dignity, love, respect 

and tenderness,” he said. 

Bishop Patrick said that the 

human person is common to all 

and that “While honouring Saint 

Mother Teresa of Kolkata, we are 

honouring her principles and 

teachings.” 

Sister Cherubina of the Missionaries 

of Charity spoke about 

the life, teachings and beliefs of 

Saint Mother Teresa and her work 

towards the alleviation of the poor. 

Representative Faiths 

Among those who lit the ‘Candle 

of Compassion’ were Allan White 

(Bahai Faith), Vivek Bhatia (Buddhism), 

Michael Dennis (Christianity), 

Vinod Kumar (Hinduism), Daud 

Azimullah (Islam), Jules Gaddie 

(Jewism), Hardial Singh (Sikhism), 

Godrej Engineer and Roshni 

Daruwalla (Zoroastrianism), 

Gregory Thwaite (Honorary Consul 

of Panama), Tayo Agunlejika 

(Multicultural New Zealand), Ruth 

Cleaver (Auckland Interfaith 

Council), Mother Superior Maria 

Chiara (Missionaries of Charity) 

and Arthy Devadoss (Saint Mother 

Teresa Interfaith Committee). 

Bishop Patrick presented 

Bookmarks to Mr McClay, Ilango 

Krishnamoorthy (Mercury Printz 

which printed them free of cost), 

Members of Parliament Kanwaljit 

Singh Bakshi and Dr Parmjeet 

Parmar and others. 

There were performances by 

Lyndsay Freer, Jeffery Nathan 

(Vocals) with Michael Dennis (Keyboard), 

the Mother of Divine Mercy 

Youth Group and Children’s Group 

organised by the Missionaries of 

Charity. 

This Reporter, who is also the 

Chair of the Saint Mother Teresa 

Interfaith Committee, acknowledged 

the formation of a similar 

Committee in Kanyakumari, South 

India by Dr Jebamalai Vinanchiarachi 

and of the Interfaith Meeting 

held there on November 10, 2018. 

A video clip of the Meeting was 

shown. 

Sneha Anthony, daughter of the 

late Wenceslaus Anthony spoke 

about the patronage of Bishop 

Patrick, the work of the volunteers 

and members of the Saint Mother 

Teresa Interfaith Committee and 

extended her note of gratitude 

to everyone involved including 

Bikanervala Restaurant and 

Shanti Niwas Charitable Trust for 

their sponsorship of snacks and 

beverages. 

Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi 

National List MPbasedd in 

Manukau East 

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Leaders pay tribute to Indian Business Community 

Accolades at the Eleventh Annual Indian Newslink Indian Business Awards 2018 

Venkat Raman 

Are you looking 

to Buy or Sell 

a Business? 

New Zealand’s political 

and business leaders 

and visiting diplomats 

have paid tribute to 

the members of the Indian 

business community, describing 

them as hard-working and 

resilient. 

They were speaking at 

the Eleventh Annual Indian 

Newslink Indian Business 

Awards Presentation Ceremony 

held on Monday, November 

26, 2018 at SkyCity Convention 

Centre, Auckland City. 

Prime Minister Jacinda 

Ardern said that the presence 

of the Leader of the Opposition 

Simon Bridge, several Ministers 

including Grant Robertson 

(Finance), Carmel Sepuloni 

(Social Development), David 

Parker (Export Growth & 

Trade), Stuart Nash (Police), 

Jenny Salesa (Ethnic Communities) 

Auckland Mayor Phil Goff, 

Indian High Commissioner 

Sanjiv Kohli, New Zealand’s 

High Commissioner to Fiji 

Jonathan Curr, Consul General 

and Trade Commissioner Australia 

and New Zealand of Fiji 

based in Sydney and 15 other 

MPs, indicated the importance 

of the contributions of the 

Indian business community 

to the progress of the New 

Zealand economy. 

Outstanding contributions 

“It is a pleasure to celebrate 

the outstanding contributions 

of businessmen and businesswomen 

of Indian origin. It 

is also a pleasure to see that 

the Indian Newslink Indian 

Business Awards is growing 

from strength to strength and 

getting bigger and better every 

year. The fact that the Awards 

Programme has 15 categories 

this year is a testament to the 

dedication and hard work of 

the Indian business community,” 

she said. 

“This Awards ceremony is 

a wonderful reflection of the 

diversity of our country, which 

Kiwi-Indians share. We are 

grateful for your commitment,” 

Ms Ardern added. 

Simon Bridges on Indians 

Describing his presence at 

the event as ‘a fantastic privilege,’ 

Leader of the Opposition 

Simon Bridges said that he was 

delighted to see a ‘very large 

gathering’ of dignitaries and 

businesses. 

“This is not just a premier 

Indian Business Awards Night 

but a Premier Business Awards 

of New Zealand with the 

cream of the cream businesses 

present. There are so many of 

you here to testify that; and it 

is great to see the excellence 

that is manifest, demonstrating 

the hard work, perseverance 

and innovation that you have 

invested,” he said. 

Mr Bridges said that he 

understands the importance of 

the contributions of the Indian 

business community, which 

make New Zealand economically 

and socially diverse. 

“We want you to scale 

greater heights with the 

support of the government 

but at the same time we want 

you to do it yourself with the 

government getting out of your 

way. Tonight is your night, it is 

a night of your success and the 

recognition belongs to you,” 

he said. 

Phil Goff on Auckland 

Auckland Mayor Phil Goff 

said that he held the proud record 

of attending all the eleven 

Awards Night Ceremonies of 

the Indian Newslink Indian 

Business Awards Programme 

since it was established in 2008 

and that he has been a friend 

and reader of Indian Newslink 

since it was launched on 

November 15, 1999. 

“Indian Newslink is not only 

a quality newspaper but also 

an important contributor to the 

communities with its annual 

events including the Lecture 

Series, Sports and Community 

Awards and the Business 

Awards,” he said. 

Legal Associates 

Mr Goff congratulated all the 

finalists and winners of various 

Awards but made a special 

mention of Legal Associates 

and its Partners Raj Pardeep 

and Ashima Singh, winners of 

the Supreme Business Award 

and Business Excellence in 

Marketing Award (in addition 

to the Best Young Entrepreneur 

of the Year Award and the 

Indian Newslink Commemorative 

Award won by 

their Barristers & Solicitors, 

respectively Haseeb Ashraf 

and Shyama Sharma). 

“We have seen incredibly 

talented people and their 

real commitment tonight. 

Everything they do in the 

wider Indian Community is 

● First Home 

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NewZealand Immigration Specialists with 30 years of experience 

03 

commendable and we are 

grateful for their contributions 

to our country and to 

our city,” he said. 

Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni (not in picture) took this picture to the amusement of (from left) Zarak 

Khan, Jonathan Curr, Sanjiv Kohli, Phil Goff, Stuart Nash, Jacinda Ardern, Simon Bridges and Jenny Salesa 

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029 770 9767 

shaunk@abcbusiness.co.nz 

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04 


Homelink 

Ex-boyfriend guilty of ‘cold-blooded killing’ 

Anneke Smith (RNZ) 

AHigh Court Jury took less 

than an hour to find the man 

accused of murdering South 

Auckland mother Arishma 

Chand guilty. 

Ms Chand, 24, was stabbed to death 

in her Manurewa home in the early 

hours of November 12, 2017. 

Her ex-boyfriend, 42-year-old Rohit 

Deepak Singh, was charged with her 

murder three days later and was on 

trial in the High Court at Auckland for 

four weeks. 

Jealous man 

On the afternoon of November 27, 

2018, after 45 minutes of deliberations, 

the Jury returned a guilty verdict. 

The Crown’s case was that Mr Singh 

was a jealous ex-boyfriend who became 

infatuated with Ms Chand during a 

brief sexual relationship in 2016. 

The pair met through Ms Chand’s 

father, who had worked with Mr Singh 

for a decade in Fiji. 

Mr Singh and Ms Chand entered a 

sexual relationship, kept secret from 

her parents, when she and her threeyear-old 

daughter boarded with him in 

his Flat Bush home. 

She became pregnant, but got an 

abortion and ended their relationship. 

Breakup refused 

Crown Prosecutor Claire Robertson 

said that Mr Singh refused to accept the 

break-up and began stalking her. He 

was messaging her on an almost-daily 

basis and sending her flowers on 

Valentine’s Day. 

“The messages went unanswered but 

s p a c e 

Mr Singh did not give up. At the end 

of August 2017, the defendant went to 

a tattoo parlour and had a picture of 

Ms Chand’s face tattooed on his chest. 

He then sent a picture of this tattoo to 

Ms Chand; presumably with the hope 

that she would change her mind,” Ms 

Robertson said. 

In the Crown’s opening address, Ms 

Robertson told the jurors: “It was this 

obsession which eventually drove him 

to kill her.” 

Multiple injuries 

Ms Chand, according to her parents, 

was in a pool of blood on her bedroom 

floor in their family home on Maich 

Road. She had 26 stab wounds to her 

body found on her face, hands, torso 

and, fatally, her femoral artery. Ms 

Chand had also been struck on the back 

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Rohit Singh was on trial for the murder of Arishma Chand. 

Photo: RNZ/Supplied 

of the head eight times with a 

heavy, blunt instrument. 

Her parents, Rakeshwar Singh 

and Aradhana Devi, had spoken 

to their daughter just 15 minutes 

prior to finding her. 

She had called them at 12.51 

am asking when they would be 

home, as she was worried about 

someone being outside the house. 

They told her not to worry, that 

they were on their way home, but 

they arrived 16 minutes later to 

find her dead. 

Waiting for opportunity 

The Crown’s case was that Mr 

Singh had been watching the address, 

waiting for an opportunity 

to kill her. 

In the Crown’s closing address, 

Crown Prosecutor Yelena Yelavich 

told the Jury that the motive was 

one of seven reasons that they 

could be sure Mr Singh was responsible 

for Ms Chand’s murder. 

Lethal combination 

“There was a reason for the 

defendant to move from someone 

who simply watched and obsessed 

over Ms Chand to someone 

who murdered her. “Following 

that break up, his attitude towards 

her could be described at various 

times as lovesick, obsessive, 

controlling but also resentful, 

angry and jealous and this proved 

to be a lethal combination,” Ms 

Yelavich said. 

Ms Yelavich said it was no 

coincidence that Ms Chand’s 

death coincided with the time she 

introduced her new boyfriend, 

Inderpreet Singh, to her parents. 

“The Crown says that the defendant 

knew of that relationship 

and he knew that Inderpreet had 

been accepted by Ms Chand’s 

parents. He finally realised she 

would not return to him. He was 

obsessed, he was jealous and this 

led him to murder Ms Chand. 

The Crown says that this was a 

deliberated, cold-blooded killing.” 

Singh will be sentenced on 

February 14, 2018. 

Anneke Smith is a Court 

Reporter at Radio New Zealand. 

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Non-compliance of employment 

law could be costly 

Employers, don’t get caught out! 

Supplied Content 

It pays to comply with 

minimum employment 

standards. 

Compliance by employers 

with minimum employment 

standards is a serious concern 

for the Labour Inspectorate. 

Heavy penalties 

Penalties for non-compliance 

can be up to $100,000 (for 

a company) and even more for 

financial gain, plus the risk of 

negative publicity and hiring 

bans. 

Employers are being warned 

about the importance and consequences 

of meeting their 

minimum employment standards 

obligations. 

The Labour Inspectorate 

is active in enforcing these 

obligations. 

Ministry of Business, 

Immigration & Employment 

(MBIE) Labour Inspectorate 

National Manager Stu 

Lumsden said that breaches of 

employees’ rights will not be 

tolerated in New Zealand. 

Employers who fail to meet 

their minimum legal obligations 

are warned that they are 

likely to be investigated and if 

breaches are found they will be 

followed up with enforcement 

action, he said. 

Migrant employees exploited 

“In the most serious cases the 

potential penalties, arrears orders 

and hiring bans could ef- 

fectively lead to a non-compliant 

employer to go out of business. 

In the media, we regularly see 

serious cases of some migrant 

employees being exploited in 

their jobs, leading to issues such 

Stu Lumsden 

as unpaid wages and leave, and 

unfair dismissals. Unfortunately, 

we also regularly see some migrant 

employers exploiting staff 

who are often members of their 

own community,” Mr Lumsden 

said. 

While most employers are fair 

there is clearly a need to keep 

strict compliance, including in 

migrant communities, he said. 

Free Resources 

The Employment New 

Zealand website provides a full 

range of free resources for both 

employees and employers. 

Please visit www.employment.govt.nz 

and enter key 

words ‘minimum rights of 

employees.’ 

The resources include quick 

guides and publications in more 

than 10 translated languages. 

“Current and future employers 

and employees will benefit 

from using the resources to identify 

and resolve issues early, before 

they become problems. In particular, 

an ongoing issue for businesses 

is keeping proper records,” Mr 

Lumsden said. 

Penalties for non-compliance 

can be up to $100,000 (for a company) 

and even more for examples 

of an employer’s financial gain, 

plus the risk of negative publicity. 

Serious breaches of the law are 

published in the news. 

For information on record 

keeping, enter ‘Keeping accurate 

records.’ 

For details of non- compliant 

employers in the news, enter 

‘News.’ 

Phone 0800-209020 toll-free. 

A free interpreting service is 

available. 

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immigration and settlement process 

● Acting on behalf of clients overseas and in New Zealand 

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Phone: +64 9 283 0157 Fax: +64 4 461 6019 

Email: auckland@idesilegal.co.nz 

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WELLINGTON OFFICE 

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Phone: +64 4 461 6018 Fax: +64 4 461 6019 

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05 

EMPLOYERS 

Don’t get caught out! 

Make sure you are complying with 

your legal responsibilities. 

EVERY EMPLOYER who exploits 

migrants can be imprisoned 

and/or fined up to $100,000. 

For more information and your free 

minimum rights and responsibilities 

guide visit www.employment.govt.nz

06 


Educationlink 

Government urged to fund Varsities in ‘real terms’ 

It is time for this Government to play its part in helping 

ensure that the University sector remains a viable and 

successful part of this country’s education and research 

system. 

Ensuring sufficient funding to maintain aviable, internationally 

competitive University sector is key to this. 

This year, the Student Achievement Component (SAC) 

funding went up 1.6% (originally 0% in the Budget) and 

in class / for work / at home 

LOW 

COST* 

Professor Rod Carr 

Enrol now for courses in February 2019 

Learn English with us 

To contact your centre 

www.englishlanguage.org.nz 

*Many courses are free 

Domestic Student Tuition Fees rose by 2%. 

This was helpful, but really just means that 

the sector will slip backwards more slowly 

than would otherwise be the case. 

Spiralling costs 

To put the increases in context, sector 

operating costs rose 15.5% between 2013 

and 2017, despite initiatives to manage 

down costs, such as widely publicised restructurings 

and asset disposals. The single 

largest component of this increase was 

salaries, at 58% of sector costs. These rose 

13.5% between 2013 and 2017—exactly in 

line with wider New Zealand increases in 

earnings of 13.5% over the same period. 

By contrast, CPI rose only 5.15% 

between 2013 and 2017—but CPI does 

not pick up costs such as personnel, 

information technology, building maintenance, 

insurance or construction. Simply 

increasing University sector funding by 

CPI won’t go nearly far enough in helping 

the sector cover its costs. 

Funding and control 

Overall, 78% of New Zealand University 

funding comes either directly from the 

Government (SAC funding, PBRF and other 

research funding), or is subject to Government 

control (increases in domestic 

student fees). 

The financial health of universities, and 

their ability to meet the needs of students 

and the community, is thus significantly in 

Government hands. 

That responsibility has been abrogated 

for the last 20 years by successive governments 

restricting student-related funding 

increases to CPI at best. 

Most of the University sector’s other 

revenue is generally tagged to specific 

purposes. 

For example, most research funding 

is tagged to specific research activities 

and little, if any of it, can be used to offset 

increases in general overhead costs. 

If part or all of the funds are not used for 

the specific purpose, they are either not 

drawn down or the unused component 

must be returned. 

Influencing factors 

New Zealand universities depend greatly, 

therefore, on some combination of the 

following to ensure they can cover costs: 

1. Price/rate increases in tuition fee rates 

charged to domestic and international 

students; SAC funding rates per student; 

Performance Based Research Fund 

(PBRF) funding levels 2. Volume increases, 

through growth in numbers of domestic 

and international students. 

Demographic factors mean that domestic 

student numbers are projected, at best, 

to remain flat until 2023. 

International student numbers have 

been increasing around 3% per annum 

for the past few years. Work across the 

sector and with Government means that 

we are cautiously optimistic that similar 

growth should be achievable for the next 

few years. 

International student fees 

We believe, however, that international 

student fees are already at about the 

maximum that the market will bear. Any 

increases to these are likely to be generally 

in line with inflation or they may even 

fall a little as the market becomes more 

competitive. 

We are also highly dependent, possibly 

too much so, on the Chinese market at a 

time when China is making enormous 

investments in its own University sector. 

New Zealand’s universities therefore rely 

heavily on Government increasing rates 

for domestic student fees, SAC funding 

rates and overall funding for PBRF. 

Greatest threat 

The greatest threat to the sector is 

now potentially that of neglect by the 

Government. 

Universities still generate surpluses. 

We manage our balance sheets well. 

We have strong governance and 

management. 

Because of factors such as these, we 

think there is a risk that the Government 

will neglect the pressing challenges 

of universities while focusing new 

investment primarily on the parts of the 

tertiary system that have already become 

problematic. 

To ensure that New Zealand continues 

to benefit from astrong effective University 

sector and to prevent that sector 

becoming a financial burden in future, 

we need this Government to commit to 

maintaining sector funding in real terms. 

Raising revenue 

We intend to do our part by continuing 

to seek efficiencies, savings and revenue 

where possible—but we can’t do it by 

ourselves. 

If the Government committed to simply 

increasing student fees, tuition subsidies 

(SAC funding) and core research funding 

(PBRF) annually by a percentage that better 

matches the real cost pressures faced 

by universities, that would be enough. 

Universities could cover additional 

cost increases through efficiencies and 

additional income in other areas. 

Varsities at risk 

Without this, universities run the real 

risk of hitting a tipping point in the next 

few years—where declining rankings lead 

to a flight in key staff and afall in student 

numbers. 

This would be nearly impossible to 

recover from and would see the University 

sector join the Institutes of Technology and 

Polytechnic (ITP) sector in requiring large 

Government bail-outs and interventions. 

Professor Rod Carr is Vice-Chancellor, 

University of Canterbury. 

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Secondary Teachers to strike next year 

RNZ, Wellington 

Educationlink 

07 

Secondary teachers have rejected 

a pay offer from the 

government and authorised 

strike action in the first 

term of next year. 

The Post Primary Teachers 

Association (PPTA) had asked for 

a single increase of 15% and in 

response, the government offered 

its members a 3% pay increase for 

three consecutive years. 

PPTA president Jack Boyle said 

that teachers voted overwhelmingly 

to reject the current offer. 

He said that the sector faces 

unprecedented, growing teacher 

shortages and it was becoming 

harder to attract people into 

teaching. 

Realistic wages 

“The key part of why we asked 

for 15% is to re-establish relativity 

with the median wage, such as 

it was the last time that we were 

able to overcome significant 

shortages; so fewer people coming 

in - more of them going, so that 

number then was 1.74 times on 

average the median wage. That 

is what we are asking for with 

that 15%, whether it is overnight, 

whether that it over a period of 

time, that is up to the negotiators. 

“We are passionate about our 

work and feel a responsibility to 

our students and their families. 

We have made this decision because 

the government has given 

us no other options,” he said. 

PPTA Vice-President Melanie Webber and President Jack Boyle at the steps of Parliament in Wellington (Photo for 

RNZ by Rebekah Parsons-King 

Complete Correction 

Mr Boyle said that a complete 

correction is needed since the 

sector has been neglected for a 

decade. 

“We know that it is not Jacinda 

Ardern’s government’s fault that 

we are in this position - a decade 

of neglect and underfunding has 

brought us here, but it is their responsibility 

to remedy it. We need 

urgent action if we are to recruit, 

support and retain a home-grown 

teaching workforce for now and 

into the future,” he said. 

Secondary teachers plan to take 

a one day strike in the first term 

of 2019. 

Minister’s remarks 

Education Minister Chris Hipkins 

said that bargaining with the 

Secondary Teachers Union was 

not as advanced as the Primary 

Teacher Union. 

“We welcome PPTA back to 

the negotiating table, which is 

scheduled to happen soon.” 

On November 23, the final two 

of 35 paid union meetings for 

members were held and the Wellington 

and West Coast branches 

cast their votes. 

Aotea College Science and 

Chemistry teacher Anna Greaney 

said that the revised offer was 

pitiful. She teaches two classes, 

with 29 and 30 students, which 

she said were ‘too big.’ 

“In a practical science subject, 

that is not okay. It is about not 

having enough equipment and 

having eyes on 30 different 

children doing 30 different 

experiments all at the same time. 

Practically, for health and safety, 

it has got to be an issue,” she said. 

“Offer, a Joke” 

English and Media Studies 

teacher Jordan Murray said the 

offer was a joke. 

Secondary teachers at the meeting (Photo for RNZ by Emma Hatton) 

“They are not addressing the 

things that we feel are important: 

class sizes, the time that we need 

to be able to do our job properly. 

We can get paid as much as they 

want, but if we don’t have the 

time, we can’t do the job properly,” 

he said. 

The initial offer 

The Education Ministry made 

its initial offer to the PPTA in 

late September. A new offer 

was made in November, but it 

was slammed as being ‘almost 

identical’ to the first. 

The latest offer is worth $405 

million and would see all trained 

secondary teachers’ base salaries 

increase by 3% every year for 

three years. 

‘Moral failure’ 

Mr Boyle said that it was ‘a 

moral failure’ and recommended 

that members voted against it. 

“We see that it was last minute, 

half-hearted and disrespectful. 

Much of what was in the 

offer - many of the items - lacked 

enough detail to put it in front of 

you for genuine consideration,” 

he said. 

Wellington Regional Union 

Chairperson Ahmad Osama 

agreed, but did not want to preempt 

the vote. 

“We have got a shortage of 

teachers; we have got big class 

sizes, we do not have enough 

relievers in the relief pool, and 

there are many other issues that 

we are trying to deal with,” Mr 

Boyle said. 


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Fijilink 

Opposition Leader Rabuka offers 

olive branch to Bainimarama 

Selita Bolanavanua 

Opposition Leader 

Sitiveni Rabuka has 

appealed to Prime 

Minister Voreqe Bainimarama 

to accept his offer as 

‘Leader of the Loyal Opposition’ 

in the Fijian Parliament. 

Speaking in the Debating 

Chamber on November 30, 

2018, he said, “The two of us as 

coup leaders of 1987 and 2006 

should work together to give 

back to the people of Fiji, the 

Fijians, a country that they can 

all be proud of, a land of hope 

and glory to endure what are 

befalls.” 

Working together 

He assured that the Opposition 

parties would be working 

together with the Government 

so that the Fijian people get 

the best out of the House of 

Representatives. 

“We will continue to hold the 

Government accountable, as is 

the duty of the Loyal Opposition 

and offer the people a view of 

the alternative government,” he 

said. 

More women lawmakers 

Mr Rabuka acknowledged the 

increased number of women 

Parliamentarians, saying that 

during his time as Prime Minister, 

there were only two women 

members of Parliament. 

“It is encouraging to see the 

progress that we have made in 

ensuring the effective participa- 

Employment, Productivity and Industrial Relations and Youth and Sports Minister Parveen 

Bala (left) with Sitiveni Rabuka on November 29, 2018. (Photo for Fiji Sun by Ronald Kumar) 

tion of women in all aspects 

of national leadership. I am 

also proud that I opened 

the door to recruit women 

into the (Republic) Fiji 

Military Forces when I was 

Commander,” Mr Rabuka 

said. 

Commenting on the 

Elections result, he said 

that the low voter turnout 

emanated from the difficult 

political environment faced 

by voters to freely make 

their democratic choice, 

because of the number 

of legislations in place 

that undermine Fiji’s true 

democracy. 

Narrow majority? 

“The FijiFirst Government 

has been elected to run 

Government in the next 

four years, the margin of a 

very narrow majority of just 

over 50.02% of those who 

cast a valid vote, and I agree 

with those members who 

have said in this House that 

‘won is a win’ no matter 

what the margin.” 

Mr Rabuka acknowledged 

the address by President 

Retired Major-General Jioji 

Konrote. 

However, Opposition 

parties have expressed 

reservations about what 

they had perceived from the 

President’s opening address 

as selective references to the 

1987, 2000 and 2006 Coups 

in Fiji, he said. 

Mr Rabuka said that 

Mr Konrote reminded the 

House of the 1987 and 2000 

events in which a democratically-elected 

government 

was removed at gunpoint 

but failed to state that the 

December 5, 2006 events 

where a democratically-elected 

government was 

removed by the military 

Commander himself. 

By Special Arrangement 

with Fiji Sun 

New statute promises 

improved accountability 

Jyoti Prabha 

Acting Prime Minister 

and Attorney 

General Aiyaz 

Sayed-Khaiyum 

introduced to the Fijian 

Parliament on November 

30, 2018 the ‘Code of Conduct 

Bill of 2018,’ promising 

that it will usher in a new 

era of ‘accountability and 

transparency by public 

servants.’ 

He said that the proposed 

Legislation related to 

Section 149 of the Fijian 

Constitution prescribing 

a written law for Code of 

Conduct. 

Universal application 

“The proposed Law 

will be applicable to the 

President, Speaker, Deputy 

Speaker, Prime Minister, 

Ministers, Members of 

Parliament and to all 

persons holding a public 

office. It will be applicable 

to all those holding offices 

including those under the 

2013 Constitution or under 

any written laws covering 

Members of Commissions, 

Permanent Secretaries, 

Ambassadors and other 

Principal Representatives 

of the State. It will also 

apply to persons who hold 

statutory appointments 

Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum outside the 

Fijian Parliament on November 30, 

2018 (Picture for Fiji Sun by Simione 

Haranavanua) 

and governing positions 

in statutory authorities 

including public offices as 

prescribed by the written 

law,” he said. 

Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said 

that the new Legislation 

will enable the Accountability 

and Transparency 

Commission to ensure that 

all public officials are held 

accountable. 

“This means, all of 

us, including those in 

Parliament must declare 

our interests on a yearly 

basis at the very least. Even 

under the 1997 Constitution, 

the SVT Government, the 

Labour Government and 

the SDL Government were 

constitutionally bound to 

enact legislation awhich 

gave effect to section 156 of 

the 1997 Constitution but 

none of those governments 

brought to Parliament a 

Code of Conduct Bill,” he 

said. 

Good Governance 

He said that the FijiFirst 

Government believes that 

democratic principles of 

accountability, transparency 

and good governance 

in practical terms. 

It is understood that 

the Bill also sets out 

provisions under which 

each all public servants 

must declare their 

financials every year and 

that the disclosures can be 

accessible by the public. 

“It means that anyone 

will be able to see how 

much wealth a public 

official accumulated over 

a year and question any 

disproportionate accumulation 

of wealth. Under 

the Code of Conduct Bill, 

we will be legally bound 

to certain behaviour and 

if found in breach of these 

codes, it would be an offence,” 

Mr Sayed-Khaiyum 

said. 

Spouses and children 

included 

It is also understood that 

the financials of spouses 

and legally dependent 

children of public office 

holders may also be released 

and made available 

for scrutiny. 

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Indian Newslink Indian Business Awards Special 2018 

Competition brings the best of businesses to centre stage 

Venkat Raman 

09 

Competition was rife in 

many of the categories 

of the Eleventh Annual 

Indian Newslink Indian 

Business Awards, bringing the 

best among businesses owned, 

operated, managed and franchised 

by people of Indian 

Origin. 

Many of them were identified 

as finalists and honoured 

as winners at the Awards 

Ceremony held on Monday, 

November 26, 2018 at SkyCity 

Convention Centre. 

Jackie Clarke was the Master 

of Ceremonies. 

Guests of Honour 

Among the Guests of Honour 

at the gala Black Tie Event were 

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, 




Minister Carmel Sepuloni, 

Export Growth and Trade 

Minister David Parker, Police 

Minister Stuart Nash, Ethnic 

Communities Minister Jenny 

Salesa, Auckland Mayor Phil 

Goff, Indian High Commissioner 

Sanjeev Kohli, New Zealand’s 


Jonathan Curr, Consul General 

and Trade Commissioner 

Australia and New Zealand of 

Fiji based in Sydney. 

Almost 1000 people including 

government officials, top exec- 

Jackie Clarke, our Master of Ceremonies was at her best in 

entertaining 

Capturing moments of glory: A section of the audience at our 

Awards Ceremony 

Capturing moments of glory: A section of the audience at our Awards Ceremony 

utives of public and private 

sector undertakings, businesspersons 

and professionals 

attended the event. 

Ambika Krishnamoorthy 

presented a Bharata Natyam 

item as an invocatory number, 

while Ratna Venkat choreographed 

and performed a 

dance item for ‘God is Good,’ 

sung by Jeffery Nathan, both 

of who later presented a fusion 

number. 

Awards Sponsors and 

Categories 

The Rainbow Corner Group 

of Companies was the Title 

Sponsor and Sponsor of the 

Supreme Business of the 

Year, while the Consulate 

General of Fiji and Trade 

Commission of Australia 

and New Zealand (based 

in Sydney) was the Major 

Support Sponsor. 

Among our individual categories 

and their respective 

Sponsors were Business 

Excellence in Retail Trade 

(Indian Newslink), Business 

Excellence in Innovation 

Singapore Airlines), Business 

Excellence in Marketing 

(Radio Tarana), Business 

Excellence in Customer 

Service (Mercury Printz), Best 

Employer of Choice (Link2 

Services Limited), Business 

Excellence in Health & Safety 

(Rainbow Corner Group 

of Companies), Best Small 

Business (PIC Insurance 

Brokers), Best Medium Sized 

Business (2degrees Mobile 

Limited), Best Large Business 

(Hotel Grand Windsor of the 

Charles Pandey Group of 

Hotels), Business Excellence 

Continued on Page 10 

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Continued from Page 9 


in International Business with 

India (Manukau Institute of 

Technology), Best Accountant 

of the Year (SmartPayroll), Best 

Young Entrepreneur of the 

Year (Best Financial Advisor 

(Mortgage) of the Year (Oaks 

Property Management), Best 

Financial Advisor (Insurance) 

of the Year (AIA New Zealand) 

and Best Businesswoman of the 

Year (Alexandra Park). 

Winners in each of these categories 

were entered into the 


sponsored by the Rainbow 

Corner Group of Companies. 

Winners and Finalists 

Legal Associates was the 

Winner of the Supreme 

Business of the Year Award. 

Seven other companies 

were finalists for the Supreme 

Business Award 2018. They 

were 

Focus Marketing, Loan 

Market Waitakere, West 

City Auto Group, STAAH, 

Immigration Advice Limited, 

Forever Shine Beauty Therapy 

and Brisk Insurance. 

Ratna Venkat and Jeffery Nathan with ‘God is Good”. 

The following were the winners in 

individual categories: 

1. Forever Shine Beauty Therapy: 

Business Excellence in Retail Trade 

2. Business Excellence in Innovation: 

STAAH 

(Finalists: Ecobags New Zealand, 

Legal Associates, Brisk Insurance 

and Forever Shine Beauty Therapy) 

Ecobags received special commendation 

of the independent panel of 

judges. 

3. Business Excellence in Marketing: 

Legal Associates Limited 

(Finalists: Focus Marketing, Loan 

Market Waitakere, STAAH) 

4. Business Excellence in Customer 

Service: Loan Market Waitakere 

(Finalists: Legal Associates, Forever 

Shine Beauty Therapy, STAAH, R Jay 

Financial Services, Brisk Insurance) 

5. Best Employer of Choice: 

Focus Marketing Limited 

(Finalist: R Jay Financial Services) 

6. Best Small Business: 

Brisk Insurance 

(Finalists: R Jay Financial Services 

and Vision Sales & Marketing) 

7. Best Medium-Sized Business: 

Immigration Service (NZ) Limited 

8. Best Large Business: Focus 

Marketing Limited 

9. Business Excellence in Health & 

Safety: West City Auto Group 

10. Business Excellence in 

International Trade with India: 

Independent Advisory Services – 

Ascent Group 

11. Best Accountant of the Year: 

Ragavan Rengachariar-United 

Industries Limited 

12. Best Financial Advisor 

(Mortgage) of the Year: Satyan 

Mehra-iConsult-Finance & Risk 

(Finalist: Raman Chouhan-R Jay 

Financial Services) 

13. Best Financial Advisor (Insurance) 

of the Year: 

R J Financial Services 

14. Best Young Entrepreneur of the 

Year: Winner: Haseeb Ashraf- Legal 

Associates 

(Finalists: Raman Chauhan – R Jay 

Financial Services; Kiran Arul – 

Focus Marketing) 

15. Best Businesswoman of the Year: 

Winner: Rachana Dave – 

Loan Market Waitakere 

(Finalist: Shyama Sharma – Legal 

Associates) 

Call your Insurance Review and Repair Specialist 

Brisk Insurance won the ‘Best Small Business Award.’ Its Director Anand Srinivasan is seen 

here with (from left) PIC Insurance Brokers Head of Distribution Peter Mensah (Sponsor) with 

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Finalists: 

Focus Marketing | Loan Market Waitakere | West City Auto Group | 

STAAH | Legal Associates | Immigration Advice Ltd | 

Forever Shine Beauty Therapy | Brisk Insurance 

Winner: 


Legal Associates, founded by 

Raj and Ashima Singh, is based 

in Papatoetoe, South Auckland 

and offers a wide range of legal 

services to over 2000 clients. 

The staff is multi-national to 

reflect their client base and includes 

Indian, Japanese, Chinese, 

Samoan and Tongan. 

Legal Associates have 

addressed a lack of awareness of 

legal responsibilities, obligations 

and rights which create a gap 

between migrant communities 

and their ability to smoothly 

transition into settling in New 

Zealand. 

Customers and meeting 

customer needs are at the centre 

of what Legal Associates do – 

across many ethnic groups and a 

addressing a broadening range of 

needs. Innovation to Legal Associates 

means spotting customer 

needs that are not well serviced 

and developing solutions to meet 

those needs. 

There is a written marketing 

plan that includes new services 

to be delivered, new locations 

and the revenue growth and 

profit metrics. 

A significant amount of 

Raj Pardeep and Ashima Singh and their Legal Associates team, Winners the ‘Supreme Business Award’ with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Simon Bridges. 

community involvement means this 

business is very connected. Use of free 

seminars, free assistance on Saturdays 

and discounted services to those in 

dire need including referrals from a 

Consulate or MP is common. 

The Judges congratulate Raj and 

Ashima and their team for building a 

marvellous profitable Legal business 

with a genuine focus on community 

support and involvement. Their 

accomplishments are a fine example of 

Business for Good. 

Legal Associates is a worthy winner 

of the Supreme Business of the Year 

Award. 

Sponsor: 

Business Excellence in Retail Business 

Winner: 



uses a holistic approach to 

health and beauty, ensuring 

customers not only ‘look good’ 

but also ‘feel good within.’ 

The beauty clinic has a growing 

clientele comprising television 

personalities, actors, models, 

students and some Rugby players 

too. 

In July 2012, Director Ronita 

Sharma established the ‘International 

College of Beauty’ to teach 

beauty therapy to enthusiasts, 

keen to launch their career in this 

art. 

The Judges have been 

impressed with this company for 

a long time. 

Sponsor: 

Ronita Sharma receiving the Business Excellence in Retail Trade Award from Jenny Sales and David Parker. 

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Drive Excellence in style and comfort 

West City Auto Group General Manager Jimmy Tailor with (from left) Rrahul Dosshi, 

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Business Excellence in Innovation 

Finalists 

Ecobags NZ | TAAH | Legal Associates | Brisk Insurance | Forever Shine Beauty Therapy 

Winner: STAAH 

STAAH is a leading cloudbased 

platform that has 

been supporting the 

Accommodation industry since 

2008. In less than a decade, the 

company has become a key hospitality 

distribution technology 

specialist processing in excess of 

4.6 million room nights annually 

via more than 4300 partner 

properties across 70 countries 

and 200+integrations. 

Growth strategy is based 

around property numbers, new 

markets, and new countries. 

Innovation is a key pillar of 

strength for this organisation 

and they listen to their 

customers to determine what is 

needed. 

The Judges really liked that 

this established technology 

business still thinks like a 

start-up in its commitment to 

innovation. 

Judges’ Special Commendation 

Ecobags New Zealand: The Judges 

felt that Ecobags deserves special 

praise for significant innovation 

in reducing single use plastic bags 

from damaging our wildlife and 

countryside. 

A Special Award from 

Indian Newslink. 

Sposor: 

Gavin Jeddo, Founder-Director of STAAH, winner of the Business Excellence in Innovation 

Award with (from left) Singapore Airlines Commercial Manager (New Zealand) Kate Mayo, 

Simon Bridges and Grant Robertson 

Business Excellence in Marketing 

Finalists 

Focus Marketing | Legal Associates |Loan Market Waitakere |STAAH 

Winner: 


Legal Associates is based in 

Papatoetoe, South Auckland 

and offers a wide range of 

legal services to over 2000 clients. 

They identified a need for 

specialised legal services and 

legal education among migrant 

communities. 

Legal Associates have 

addressed a lack of awareness 

around legal responsibilities, 

obligations and rights which 

creates a gap between migrant 

communities and their ability to 

smoothly transition into settling 

in New Zealand. 

There is a written marketing 

plan that includes new services to 

be delivered, and new locations. 

Sponsorships and community 

involvement (pro bono) with 

many organisations – across 

many ethnicities are common. 

The Judges have been very 

taken with the way that Legal 

Associates have successfully 

merged their legal capability with 

a community need as a vital part 

of their marketing programme. 

Sponsor: 

Ashima and Raj Pardeep Singh, Directors, Legal Associates, Winners of the ‘Business Excellence in 

Marketing Award’ with Radio Tarana Managing Director Robert Khan and Jacinda Ardern. 

Business Excellence in Customer Service 

Finalists 

Legal Associates | Loan Market Waitakere | Forever Shine Beauty Therapy | STAAH | R Jay Financial 

Services | Brisk Insurance 

Winner: 

Loan Market Waitakere 

Loan Market Waitakere’s 

vision is to enable clients 

to gain financial literacy so 

they can make informed financial 

decisions. 

This approach walks the journey 

with clients by understanding 

and analysing their situation, 

then guiding them through 

customised advice to reach their 

financial goal. 

All clients are contacted at 

least quarterly to review their 

financial position. Many are on 

short-term mortgages and need 

advice on reducing their debt. 

The Judges acknowledged that 

Customer service is obviously a 

strength. 

Sponsor: 

Mercury Printz Directors Sakthi and Ilango Krishnamoorthy with (from left) Sanjiv Kohli, Phil Goff 

and Rachna Dave of Loan Market Waitakere, Winner of the ‘Business Excellence in Customer 

Service Award.’ 

Best Employer of Choice 

Finalists: 

Focus Marketing | R Jay Financial Services 

Winner: 

Focus Marketing 

Focus Marketing supplies 

door-to-door sales staff for 

mainly energy clients who 

are seeking customers to switch 

from other suppliers. 

The company’s growth is 

continuing, with an office just 

opened in Christchurch and one 

planned for Hamilton. Staff will 

reach 100 at the start of the next 

financial year. 

Four of the five original 

commission staff are still with the 

company in full-time positions as 

trainers and managers. 

Focus Marketing sees training 

as an investment in people getting 

on the first steps of a career 

ladder. 

The Judges were impressed 

with the focus on employee 

training and development. 

Sponsor: 

Kiran Arul, Winner of the ‘Best Employer of Choice Award’ with Grant Robertson and Link2 

Services Limited Chairman & Managing Director Indra Sirigiri.



13 

Reveal Your Inner Beauty with Forever 

Shine Skin & Beauty Therapy 

Ronita Sharma receiving the Business Excellence in Retail Trade Award from Jenny Sales and David Parker 

at the Eleventh Annual Indian Newslink Indian Business Awards 2018 held on November 26, 2018 at SkyCity 

Convention Centre. 

Ronita Sharma (Winner of the Best Small Business Award 2017) with Jacinda Ardern at the Tenth 

Annual Indian Newslink Indian Business Awards 2017. 

Beauty therapy is a global, 

billion dollar industry. Whether 

it’s simply a night cream or 

regular beauty treatment, we 

all subscri to these methods in 

one way or another. 

However, it can be hard to 

distinguish which products 

and treatments are effective 

and which ones are ineffective 

or, in some cases, even harmful 

to our skin 

and body. 

At Forever Shine, the 

sincere trust is apparent 

as soon as you enter the 

door. Forever Shine is an 

award-winning beauty therapy 

clinic that takes a holistic approach 

to skincare and senses 

of their clients. This is achieved 

through natural and traditional 

skin care and medical ayurvedic 

treatments whilst constantly 

putting the safety and welling of 

customers first. 

A Skin and Beauty Specialist 

with over 20 years experience, 

Owner-Operator Ronita Sharma 

holds a range of International 

Qualifications and is a graduate 

from the Australian Association 

of Beauty Therapists, a registered 

member of the NZ Association 

of Beauty Therapy and 

a qualified Teacher and Trainer 

for Hito NZQA. However, it is her 

passion and care for 

her clients combined with 

Forever Shine’s holistic approach 

to beauty that has earned them 

accolades and success. 

Ronita strongly believes that 

true beauty comes from the inside. 

With this as Forever Shine’s 

guiding principle, Ronita and her 

team focus on how their clients 

feel about themselves. The results 

speak for themselves, with Ronita 

being the recipient of many 

awards for her dedication to the 

industry. 

This includes Best Businesswoman 

of the Year at the Indian 

Newslink Business Awards for 

2014, 2015 and Best Business 

Award 2017. Indian Newslink is 

the oldest and most widely circulated 

Indian newspaper in New 

Zealand and these awards recognise 

and reward business successes 

across the country. Alongside 

these awards, Ronita and Forever 

Shine have received rave reviews 

in the media and from client testimonials. 

This is not just due to 

the wealth and experience 

Ronita brings but also the genuine 

love and care she has for her 

clients’ skin and wellbeing. 

“We want everyone to use our 

best services. We want to continue 

to look after more people and 

their beauty and skin needs and 

our goal is to help them feel more 

beautiful,” says Ronita. 

Ronita is also continually bringing 

in new and innovative treatments 

into Forever Shine. One 

of the latest treatments is their 

“We want everyone to use 

our best services. We want to 

continue to look after more 

people and their beauty and 

skin needs and our goal is to 

help them feel more beautiful.” 

popular plant pigment eyebrow 

feathering and microblading. 

Using only natural plant pigmentation 

for the microblading, 

eyebrows are handcrafted 

and structured with detail and 

precision to create the ultimate 

brow and transformation. This 

unique technology gives you the 

privilege of having sparse brows 

delicately re-shaped. The 

procedure is safe, 100% cruelty-free, 

and derived from plant 

material that is made in Australia 

Ḟirstly, you come in for a consultation, 

an allergy test and your 

eyebrows are measured and 

drawn according to your face 

shape. Once the procedure is 

completed, you can walk 

out with confidence and only 

come back for any follow-up appointments 

to touch up any fading. 

Another new treatment that 

uses natural products is Forever 

Shine’s natural lash growth oil 

which lengthens lashes in just six 

weeks as well as their semi-permanent 

makeup for lips and eyes. 

For those seeking anti-ageing 

treatments, Ronita and her team 

provide vaginal tightening along 

with a range of skin treatments 

such as Multipolar RF Skin Tightening, 

a chemical- free treatment 

that removes fine lines and wrinkles. 

The RED phototherapy stimulates 

the production of collagen 

while slowing down the collagen 

breakdown. This provides firmness 

and suppleness and improves 

healing of damaged skin, 

leaving you with new, glowing 

skin. 

These treatments are offered 

alongside their popular staples 

such as waxing, laser hair removal, 

weight loss, pigmentation and 

mole treatments, to name a few. 

However, it is the genuine care, 

experience and trusted professional 

advice from Ronita and 

her team that has led to Forever 

Shine’s awards and accolades. 

Ronita helps bring out her clients’ 

inner beauty through trusted 

advice, treatments and products. 

Her extensive experience 

has helped countless men and 

women increase their self-confidence 

through visible results 

and personalised care. For Ronita 

and Forever Shine, this is the true 

measure of their success. 

forevershinebeauty.com 

A holistic approach to 

caring for the skin and 

the senses 

We use personalised organic products for skincare and lash growth. Visit our website for before 

and after photos of our amazing products. 

Book in with us today and FInd your glow. 

29C MT EDEN ROAD, EDEN TERRACE • (09) 358 0830 •info@forevershinebeauty.com 

forevershinebeauty.com

14 



Wenceslaus Anthony Commemorative Award 

Best Employer 

Stewart Sherriff, Chief Executive, 2degrees Mobile Limited 

The Wenceslaus Anthony 

Commemorative Award 

is presented to a company 

or an individual with proven 

expertise in management, 

acknowledged for distinguished 

services to foster productivity 

and profitability through innovative 

concepts and novel 

approach. 

Stewart Sherriff, Chief Executive 

of 2degrees Mobile Limited, 

has built a highly competent 

and motivated staff who are 

constantly challenged to deliver 

higher standards of products 

and services in an extremely 

competitive market. 

Mr Sherriff will shortly step 

down to perform a lesser role as 

a Director of the Company but 

the direction that he has given 

2degrees Mobile Limited will 

keep it several degrees above the 

rest. 

Sponsor: 

2degrees Mobile Limited Chief Executive Stewart Sherriff received the ‘Wenceslaus Anthony 

Commemorative Award for Best Employer.’ He is seen here with Sneha Anthony and Jacinda 

Ardern 

Best Small Business 

Finalists: 

Brisk Insurance |R Jay Financial Services |Vision Sales & Marketing 

Winner: 

Brisk Insurance 

Brisk Insurance has developed 

a unique approach 

to insurance planning for 

clients to help them better understand 

their insurance choices. 

They have strong processes, get 

outstanding results and are very 

passionate about their work and 

clients. The key differentiator is 

to focus on ensuring any claims 

can be paid – rather than selling 

policies. 

The overall business focus is 

strong, and Brisk has taken a 

measured approach to expanding 

the business, ensuring they do not 

compromise any key principles. 

The Judges approved of Brisk’s 

business growth strategy, without 

compromising principles. 

Sponsor: 

Brisk Insurance won the ‘Best Small Business Award.’ Its Director Anand Srinivasan is seen 

here with (from left) PIC Insurance Brokers Head of Distribution Peter Mensah (Sponsor) with 

Stuart Nash and Simon Bridges. 

Best Medium-Sized Business 

Winner: 

Immigration Advice Ltd 

Immigration Advice New 

Zealand Ltd represents 

clients with Immigration New 

Zealand and helps them to get 

temporary visas, business visas or 

permanent residence. 

Within 10 years of operations, 

it has now grown into one of the 

most trusted Immigration service 

providers. 

As of year-end 2018 the company 

employs 13 staff. Through 

regularly sharing Immigration 

related news and updates on 

social media Immigration Advice 

have over 14,000 followers on 

Facebook and online reviews are 

close to 100% positive which has 

assisted bring in new business. 

The Judges commended 

Immigration Advice in achieving 

longevity and a good reputation 

in a crowded market. 

Sponsor: 

Ana and Saif Sheikh, Directors of Immigration Advice (NZ) Limited won the ‘Best Medium-Sized 

Business of the Year Award.’ They are seen here with (from left) 2degrees Mobile Limited Chief 

Executive Stewart Sherriff, Jenny Salesa and Carmel Sepuloni. 

Best Large Business 

Winner: 

Focus Marketing 

Sponsor: 

Charles Pandey 

Group of Hotels 

Focus Marketing saw an 

opportunity in door-to-door 

sales (the “Unwanted Child 

of Sales”) with Guidance and 

mentorship of Yogesh Chand (GM 

Pulse Energy) and Michael Skates 

(Director, Prime Energy), Focus 

has transformed into a high performing 

Outsourcing company. 

Focus supplies door-to-door 

sales staff for mainly energy clients 

who are seeking customers 

to switch from other suppliers. 

Last year, the Company 

handled 18,000 customer “turns” 

in an industry where the monthly 

churn rate is quite high. 

The Company’s growth is 

continuing, with an office just 

opened in Christchurch and one 

planned for Hamilton. 

The Judges liked the focus, 

capability and ambition of this 

company. 

Focus Marketing Limited won the ‘Best La rge Business Award.’ Its Director Kiran Arul is seen 

here with (from left) Ronnie Ronalde, Group Operations Manager, Charles Pandey Group of 

Hotels, Jacinda Ardern and Carmel Sepuloni



15 

Business Excellence in Innovation Award, 

Indian Newslink Indian Business Awards 2018. 

Thank you STAAH partners and team for making 

this a reality. 

From a Kiwi start-up to more than 80 countries in less than a decade, we are proud to be 

powering the online growth of more than 6,000 partner properties. 

We have an unwavering belief in continuously evolving technology. Innovation is firmly seated 

at the heart of this evolution and everything we do. We’re committed to being the preferred 

technology partners for hospitality businesses not just with our innovative solutions, but 

excellent customer service. 

STAAH, proudly leading the way in delivering hotel technology that works. 

www.staah.com

We have always h 

Now, they h 

16 



Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern honours Ashima and Pradeep Singh with the 

‘Business Excellence in Marketing Award,’ watched by Radio Tarana Managing 

Director Robert Khan, Sponsor of the Award 

Fiji Consul General & Trade Commissioner Australia and New Zealand Zarak 

Khan (Sponsor of the Award) with India’s High Commissioner to New Zealand 

New Zealand, congratulating Haseeb Ashraf, winner of the ‘Best Young Entrepreneur 

of the Year Award,’ with Ethnic Communities Minister Jenny Salesa. 

Supreme Business of the Year Award: Pradeep Raj Singh and Ashima Singh, Directors of Legal Associates and their team w 

Monday, November 26, 2018 at SkyCity Convention Centre, Auckland. The picture also shows Rrahul Dosshi and Bhavini Do 

As we proudly accepted the ‘Supreme 

Business of the Year 

Award’ at the Eleventh Annual 


Awards held on Monday, November 

26, 2018 at SkyCity Convention Centre, 

we dedicated it to our staff, customers, 

well-wishers and peo 

with a resolve to serv 

We were also humb 

‘Business Excellence i 

for Legal Associates, w 

rister & Solicitor Hase 

oured with the ‘Best Y 

Mahesh and Tejal Ranchhod presented the Raman (Ray) Ranchhod Commemorative 

Award for distinguished services to Shyama Sharma, Barrister & Solicitor 

at Legal Associates. They are seen here (from left) with Prime Minister Jacinda 

Ardern, Shyama Sharma and Ethnic Communities Minister Jenny Salesa 

email: office@legalassociates.co.nz 

Raj 

L 

E: raj@ 

Ph: (09) 2799439 | Level-1, 31 East Tamaki Road, Papatoetoe, Aucklan



17 

eld our customers and staff Supreme. 

ave returned the compliment. 

ith Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Leader of the Opposition Simon Bridges after winning the ‘Supreme Business of the Year Award’ at Eleventh Annual Indian Newslink Indian Business Awards held on 

shii, Managing Director and Chief Executive of the Rainbow Corner Group of Companies, the Title Sponsor, 

ple of New Zealand, 

e them better. 

led to receive the 

n Marketing Award’ 

hile our young Bareb 

Ashraf was honoung 

Entrepreneur 

Pardeep Singh 

Principal 

LB/BA( Hons.) 

legalassociates.co.nz 

of the Year Award.’ 

Shyama Sharma, our Barrister & Solicitor 

received the Raman (Ray) Ranchhod 

Commemoration Award as the Best Businesswoman 

for her distinguished services 

to the Community. 

Partner 

LLB/MIT/B.Com 

E: ashima@legalassociates.co.nz 

Comments by the Independent Panel of Judges 

Legal Associates, founded by Raj and Ashima Singh, 

is based in Papatoetoe, South Auckland and offers a 

wide range of legal services to over 4500 clients. 

The staff is multi-national to reflect their client base 

and includes Indian, Japanese, Chinese, Samoan and 

Tongan. 

Legal Associates have addressed a lack of awareness 

of legal responsibilities, obligations and rights 

which create a gap between migrant communities 

and their ability to smoothly transition into settling in 

New Zealand. 

Customers and meeting customer needs are at the 

centre of what Legal Associates do – across many 

ethnic groups and a addressing a broadening range of 

needs. Innovation to Legal Associates means spotting 

customer needs that are not well serviced and developing 

solutions to meet those needs. 

The Judges congratulate Raj and Ashima and their 

team for building a marvellous profitable Legal 

business with a genuine focus on community support 

and involvement. Their accomplishments are a fine 

example of Business for Good. 

Legal Associates is a worthy winner of the Supreme 

Business of the Year Award. 

d 2025|P OB ox 23445 Hunters Corner, Papatoetoe, Auckland 2155

18 



Dr Robert Lateef Khan (Senior) 

Commemorative Award 

Vinod Patel Group, Fiji, New Zealand and Australia 

The Robert Lateef Khan 

(Senior) Commemorative 

Award is presented to a 

company or individual excelling 

in Management principles of 

ethics, growth, staff advancement 

and social responsibility with 

good governance at its core. 

The late Dr Khan raised the 

debate on goodness among 

humans and believed that individual 

talent can be harnessed 

for collective benefit provided 

that such talent was allowed to 

flourish freely. He believed in 

self-dependence, self-governance 

and self-discipline. 

The Vinod Patel Group, with 

its well-established offices 

throughout Fiji, New Zealand and 

Australia is a good example of 

good governance. Dr Khan would 

have been pleased that Mr Vinod 

Patel, Founder of the Group is 

being honoured for his distinguished 

services to the business 

community and the society. 

The Award is being received by 

Business Excellence in Health & 

Safety (New Category) 

Winner: 

West City Auto Group 

West City Auto Group has 

been well known for 

Holden, and Kia and 

Suzuki cars, in West Auckland for 

23 years. 

There is a formal Health and 

Safety plan in place with documented 

processes and reporting 

systems. All health and safety 

issues or accidents are reported to 

the General Manager, and Managing 

Director for serious issues. 

Regular departmental meetings 

take place reporting to the health 

and safety Coordinator. All 

suggestions from these meetings 

are acted upon. 

Induction processes with 

supporting documentation is 

provided for all new staff. 

The judges who visited were 

very impressed with the Health 

and Safety processes at West City 

Auto Group. 

his son and Executive Chairman 

of the Group Mr Daksesh Patel. 

Sponsor: 

Sponsor: 

Daksesh Patel, Executive Chairman, Vinod Patel Group (Fiji, New Zealand and Australia) was 

honoured with the Dr Robert Lateef Khan (Senior) Commemorative Award for Business Excellence. 

He is seen here with Robert Khan and Jacinda Ardern 

West City Auto Group General Manager Jimmy Tailor with (from left) Rrahul Dosshi, Bhavini 

Doshii and Jenny Saleas. 

Indian Newslink Commemorative Award 

Health & Safety (New Category) 

Link2 Services Limited 

Link 2 Services was established 

in year 2000 by Indra 

and Manasa Sirigiri with 

a vision to provide outsourced 

labour solutions to logistics 

customers and large retailers. 

The Company employs more 

than 200 staff working with 

35-40 different customers across 

Auckland and operating from 

their East Tamaki Office. 

New employees undergo an 

induction programme with a 

significant focus on Health and 

Safety systems as well as the 

required skills for customer 

deployment. 

The Indian Newslink Indian 

Business Awards Judges have 

been impressed with the progress 

of the Company in recent 

years as category and Supreme 

Business Award winner. 

Sponsor: 

Jacinda Ardern with Indra Sirigiri (Chairman & Managing Director, Link2 Services Limited) and 

Simon Bridges 

Business Excellence in 

International Business with India 

Winner: 

Independent Advisory Services – Ascent Group 

The Ascent Group of colleges 

opened its India Office in 

2017 to strengthen its relationship 

with the Indian market 

and to work with quality agents. 

Ascent has put strict processes 

in place which are aligned with 

the requirements of Immigration 

New Zealand for the Indian 

market and also ensures that 

risk management controls and 

processes are in place. 

This led to increased students 

numbers in 2018 by almost 25% 

and the visa approval rate increasing 

from 60% to over 75%. 

Independent Advisory Services 

also opened an office in India to 

operate as an offshore delivery 

centre. 

The Judges commended this investment 

for revenue generation 

from doing Business with India. 

Sponsor: 

Chandan Ohri, Managing Director of Independent Advisory Services which owns the Ascent 

Group of Colleges receiving the ‘Business Excellence in International Trade with India Award’ 

from Sanjiv Kohli and David Parker, watched by Peseta Sam Lotu-liga, Deputy Chief Executive 

(Pacifica) of the Manukau Institute of Technology.


Model of the Fortnight 


19

20 



Best Accountant of the Year 

Winner: 

Ragavan Rengachariar – United Industries Ltd 

Ragavan Rengachariar is a 

very experienced Finance 

professional. 

In his current role as Group 

Internal Auditor and National 

Credit Manager for United 

Industries Group, he has made a 

number of significant improvements 

to the “credit approval and 

credit recovery process.” 

The Judges commented that 

Ragavan has clearly added considerable 

value to the company 

and to his peers. 

Sponsor: 

Best Financial Advisor 

(Mortgage) of the Year 

Ragavan Rengachariar with Garrick Unverricht (National Sales Manager of SmartPayroll, Sponsor 

of the Award), Stuart Nash and Grant Robertson 

Finalists: 

Raman Chauhan – R Jay Financial Services |Satyan Mehra – iConsult- Finance & Risk 

Winner: 

Satyan Mehra – iConsult-Finance & Risk 

Satyan Mehra is a registered 

financial services provider 

who chose Mortgage broking 

because it is his passion. 

As a former Banker, he enjoys 

using his banking skills to solve 

loan issues for clients, and 

getting positive feedback. 

However, he also has a Commercial 

finance focus because 

he understands how banks 

treat cash flow lending, and the 

differences between the banks. 

Satyan’s competitive advantage 

is that he is also a business 

owner and has a better understanding 

of business issues. 

The Judges thought that Satyan 

has made great progress already 

in this young business. 

Sponsor 

Satyan Mehra with (from left) Vijay Singh (Director, Oaks Property Management, Sponsor of the 

Award),Jenny Salesa and Carmel Sepuloni.



From sales and marketing to growth and profitability, 

get the best from us. 

21 

Focus Marketing is a unique start-up which was founded in March 2015 by Kiran Arul in his Garage with three employees and a dream. A 

pragmatic, service-focused provider, the Company has more than 50 staff today with offices in Auckland, Christchurch and Dunedin. 

Focus Marketing was honoured with the ‘Best Employer of Choice’ and ‘Best Large Business’ Awards at the Eleventh Annual Indian 

Newslink Indian Business Awards Ceremony held on Monday, November 26, 2018 at SkyCity Convention Centre. 

As we humbly accept and dedicate these honours to our staff and customers, we pledge to improve our focus on providing innovative 

and quality services in an extremely difficult and challenging market. 

Focus Marketing Limited won the ‘Best Large Business Award.’ Its Director Kiran Arul is seen here 

with (from left) Ronnie Ronalde, Group Operations Manager, Charles Pandey Group of Hotels, Prime 

Minister Jacinda Ardern and Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni. 

Kiran Arul, Winner of the ‘Best Employer of Choice Award’ with Finance Minister Grant 

Robertson and Link2 Services Limited Chairman & Managing Director Indra Sirigiri (Sponsor). 

The strong and dedicated team at Focus Marketing Limited 

Kiral Arul - Director 

Level 1, 93 Dominion road , Mount Eden, Auckland 1024 Auckland 

Phone: (09) 3923455; Mobile: 022-5093455 

Email: kiran@focusmarketing.co.nz; Website: www.focusmarketing.co.nz

22 



Best Financial Advisor 

(Insurance) of the Year 

Winner: 

Raman Chauhan – R Jay Financial Services 

Raman Chauhan is an 

insurance and mortgage 

broker who works with his 

clients to develop a cost-effective 

insurance solution to suit their 

circumstances. 

He is deliberately not aligned 

with any insurance company 

and is able to recommend an 

Best Young Entrepreneur of the Year 

Finalists: 

Haseeb Ashraf – Legal Associates 

Raman Chauhan – R Jay Financial Services 

Kiran Arul – Focus Marketing 

insurance solution from a wide 

range of alternatives. 

The process he follows is the 

six- step financial advice process. 

The Judges admired Raman’s 

commitment to independence 

from insurance provider influence. 

Sponsor: 

AIA New Zealand Business Development Manager Jinnie Gill, Rick Garnham - National Group 

Relationship Manager (Sponsor of the Award) with Raman Chauhan, Simon Bridges and David 

Parker. 

Winner: 

Haseeb Ashraf – Legal Associates 

Haseeb Ashraf is an 

impressive young Barrister 

and Solicitor specialising in 

Immigration Law, with a business 

development focus. 

Keen, energetic, articulate, 

intelligent; he has applied himself 

to spotting opportunities to 

grow Legal Associates and has 

worked hard across geographic 

and cultural boundaries to make 

things happen. 

His achievements in a short 

space of time are impressive and 

he is not done yet. 

The Judges were impressed 

with Haseeb’s capability and 

commitment. 

Sponsor: 

Sydney-based Fiji Consul General & Trade Commissioner (Australia & New Zealand) Zarak 

Khan with Sanjiv Kohli, Haseeb Ashraf and Jenny Salesa 

www.unitedindustries.co.nz 

United Industries Limited Internal Auditor and National Credit Manager with the ‘Best Accountant of the Year 

Award’ with SmartPayroll National Manager Garrick Unverricht, Police Minister Stuart Nash and Finance Minister 

Grant Robertson at the Eleventh Annual Indian Newslink Indian Business Awards held on Monday, November 

26, 2018 at SkyCity Convention Centre, Auckland. 

United Industries Limited has been servicing the 

building and construction industry since 1991. 

The Group comprises 11 manufacturing and 

distribution companies located in 33 sites across New 

Zealand. 

Products include steel roofing, insulated panels, 

windows, timber frames and trusses, reinforcing steel, 

structural steel and steel pipe & fittings as well as door 

hardware and general building supplies and PVC pipe. 

United Industries Limited is indirectly helping you 

to build your homes, offices, factories, warehouses, 

hospitals, retirement homes – we are helping to build 

New Zealand, touching your lives. 

United Industries Ltd. – Phone: 09-274 0408



23 

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24 



Best Businesswoman of the Year 

Finalists: 

Rachana Dave – Loan Market Waitakere | Shyama Sharma – Legal Associates 

Winner: 

Rachana Dave – Loan Market Waitakere 

Rachana’s vision is to enable 

her clients to gain financial 

literacy so they can make 

informed financial decisions. 

Her approach allows her to 

walk the journey with her clients 

by understanding and analysing 

their situation, then guiding them 

through customised advice to 

reach their financial goal. 

She speaks four languages 

(three of them Indian) and is very 

active on social media. 

In marketing, she is a master of 

detail and produces results. She 

is mindful of life/work balance, 

and most of her appointments 

are at night so that she is always 

available to pick up her children 

in mid-afternoons. 

The Judges found Rachana 

quite inspirational in her ability 

to manage a vibrant business 

balanced with family life. 

Sponsor: 

Rachna Dave with (from left) Alexandra Park Sales & Marketing Manager Joel Reichardt 

(Sponsor of the Award), Jacinda Ardern and Carmel Sepuloni. 

Raman (Ray) Ranchhod Commemoration Award 

Winner: 

Shyama Sharma- Legal Associates 

The Raman (Ray) Ranchhod 

Award is presented to 

a person who pursues 

business excellence with a heart 

for the community. The late Mr 

Ranchhod practiced business 

with honesty and self-discipline 

and was a man of social conscience 

and ethics. He believed 

in helping people in need and 

distress unconditionally. 

Shyama Sharma, a Barrister 

& Solicitor at Legal Associates, 

a legal firm in Papatoetoe, 

South Auckland, follows these 

ideals and principles without 

compromising her undeterred 

commitment to justice and the 

firm’s progress. She manages her 

personal and professional lives 

well and is raising her son as her 

husband works overseas. 

Legal Associates considers 

Shyama as an invaluable asset. 

Sponsor: 

Indian Newslink honoured Shyama Sharma, Barrister & Solicitor at Legal Associates the Raman 

(Ray) Ranchhod Commemorative Award for Business Excellence. She is seen here (from left) 

Mahesh & Tejal Ranchhod, Jacinda Ardern and Jenny Salesa. 

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Storepricesvaryfrom$550,000 to $600,000 depending on the location and sizeofthe outlet.Bank financeisgenerally available. 

CurrentOpportunities exist in: Auckland,Kaitaia, Palmerston North, Christchurch and other regional locations. 

Foraconfidential interviewand foraninformation memorandum. 

ContactAlan Brooks 

Franchise Manager,Restaurant Brands Limited |666 GreatSouth Road,Penrose,Building 7, Level3 

PH 09-525-8785 |Mob 021-2769769 |Email: alan.brooks@rbd.co.nz



25 

A proud moment for us. 

We are humbled to be honoured with the Best Medium-Sized Business 

Award at the Eleventh Annual Indian Newslink Indian Business Awards 

held at Sky City Convention Centre 

Monday, November 26, 2018 

A big Thank You to our entire team and clients 

who have always shown their support and love. 

Ana and Sarfraz (Saif) Shaikh with (from left) Stewart Sherriff, Chief Executive, 2degrees Mobile Limited (Sponsor of the 

Award), Ethnic Communities Minister Jenny Salesa and Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni. Also seen (seated) are 

Prime Minister Jessica Ardern (right) and Consul General and Trade Commissioner Australia and New Zealand for Fiji in 

Sydney Zarak Khan 

09 272 4424 021 144 6641 saif@ianzl.co.nz 

Level1-166 HarrisRoad, 

East Tamaki,Auckland 

www.immigrationadvicenz.com 

Like us on “Facebook 

” www.facebook.com/Immigration Advice

26 



Awards strengthen the New Zealand-Fiji bond 

Venkat Raman 

The Eleventh Annual 

Indian Newslink Indian 

Business Awards enunciated 

the current and 

emerging business and trade 

opportunities between New 

Zealand and Fiji, strengthening 

the bond that exists between 

the two countries. 

The Government of Fiji was 

the Major Support Sponsor of 

these Awards, sponsoring the 

‘Best Young Entrepreneur of the 

Year’ Category. 

The Award was won by Legal 

Associates Barrister & Solicitor 

Haseeb Ashraf. 

The Awards Ceremony was 

held on Monday, November 

26, 2018 at SkyCity Convention 

Centre with more than 800 

guests who included Prime 

Minister Jacinda Ardern, 




Minister Carmel Sepuloni, 

Export Growth & Trade 

Minister David Parker, Police 

Minister Stuart Nash, Ethnic 

Communities Minister Jenny 

Salesa, Auckland Mayor Phil 

Goff, Indian High Commissioner 

Sanjiv Kohli, New Zealand’s 


Jonathan Curr and Fijian 

Consul General and Trade 

Commissioner (Australia and 

New Zealand) Zarak Khan, 

Robert Khan speaking about the ‘Dr Robert Lateef Khan 

(Senior) Commemorative Award’ 

many top officials of ministries, 

government departments and 

leading businesspersons and 

professionals. 

Appropriate Sponsorship 

“Fiji has an extremely youthful 

population with 50% of our 

people less than 27 years of age. 

With free education, the literacy 

rate is on the rise. We have the 

University of the South Pacific, 

an internationally renowned 

institution. The government 

is providing incentives to our 

young people to become entrepreneurs 

and boost growth and 

production. It is therefore appropriate 

that we sponsor the 

‘Best Young Entrepreneur’ category,” 

Mr Khan said. 

Opportunity to visit 

The event provided an opportunity 

for Fiji to promote Fi¬jian 

Robert Khan introducing Daksesh Patel, Executive Chairman, 

Vinod Patel Group (Fiji, New Zealand and Australia) 

to Jacinda Ardern at the Awards 

Made products and encourage 

award recipients to visit Fiji 

and share their insights and experiences 

to support entrepreneurship 

in Fiji as well as Fijian 

Government initiatives such as 

the Young Entrepreneurship 

Scheme (YES). 

The Fiji Trade Commission 

had an exhibition booth at the 

Awards venue exhibited at the 

event to demonstrate to Kiwis 

the high quality of products that 

are manufactured in Fiji including 

several brands underA the 

Fijian Made banner. 

Fijian products including 

from Fiji Spice Queen, Bula 

Coffee and Fiji Coffee. Fiji 

Water, Pure Fiji, and Cacao Fiji, 

a premium chocolate brand, 

were given to some guests to 

sample. 

Zarak Khan, India’s High Commissioner to Fiji Sanjiv Kohli and Jenny 

Salesa with Haseeb Ashraf, Winner of the ‘Best Young Entrepreneur of the 

Year Award.’ 

Vinod Patel Group Honoured 

The Vinod Patel Group, which 

has a wide presence in Fiji, 

Australia and New Zealand 

was honoured at the Awards 

Ceremony, yet another highlight 

of the event. 

Daksesh Patel, the Group’s 

Executive Chairman and son of 

Founder Vinod Patel, received 

the Dr Robert Lateef Khan 

(Senior) Commemorative Award 

sponsored by Indian Newslink. 

Radio Tarana Managing 

Director & Chief Executive 

Robert Khan presented the 

Award along with Ms Ardern. 

About the Award 

This Commemorative Award 

is presented to a company 

or individual excelling in 

Management principles of ethics, 

growth, staff advancement 

and social responsibility with 

good governance at its core. 

The late Dr Khan raised the 

debate on goodness among humans 

and believed that individual 

talent can be harnessed 

for collective benefit provided 

that such talent was allowed 

to flourish freely. He believed 

in self-dependence, self-governance 

and self-discipline. 

The Vinod Patel Group, with 

its well-established offices 

throughout Fiji, New Zealand 

and Australia is a good example 

of good governance. Dr Khan 

would have been pleased that 

Mr Vinod Patel, Founder of the 

Group is being honoured for 

his distinguished services to the 

business community and the 

society.



Success planning 

starts here 

27 

Satyan Mehra, Winner of the ‘Best Financial Advisor (Mortgage) of the Year 

Award,’ at the Eleventh Annual Indian Newslink Indian Business Awards held 

on Monday, November 26, 2018 at Sky City Convention Centre, Auckland City. 

Satyan Mehra poses with his ‘Best Financial Advisor (Mortgage) of the Year Award’with (from left) Oaks Property Management Managing 

Director Vijay Singh, Ethnic Communities Minister Jenny Salesa and Social Development Minister Carmel Sepuloni at Eleventh Annual Indian 

Newslink Indian Business Awards held on Monday, November 26, 2018 at SkyCity Convention Centre, Auckland City. 

I can help you with complete Finance Solutions* 

• Bank and Non-Bank Lending 

• First home buyer lending 

• Residential property investment lending 

• Construction loans - building or extending 

• Business lending 

• Commercial property lending 

• Property development funding 

• Refinance or re-fix existing loans 

• Top up and debt consolidation 

• General, life, medical and commercial insurances Satyan Mehra received a Special Commemorative Award for 

Entrepreneurial Excellence from the then Managing Director & Chief 

Executive of BNZ Anthony Healy at the Tenth Annual Indian Newslink 

Indian Business Awards 2017. 

*Subject to lending criteria. Disclosure statement available on request 

Contact Satyan Mehra CA 

10 years in NZ Banking 

m: 021 157 0404 

t: 09 815 1382 

e: satyan@iconsult.nz 

w: iconsult.nz

28 


Viewlink/Indian Newslink Indian Business Awards Special 2018 

Independent Panel of Judges 

The English Fortnightly (Since November 1999) 

ISSUE 405 | DECEMBER 1, 2018 

Indian Newslink is published by Indian 

Newslink Limited from its offices 

located at Level 1, Number 166, Harris 

Road, East Tamaki, Auckland 2013 

and printed at Horton Media Limited, 

Auckland. All material appearing 

here and on our web editions are 

the copyright of Indian Newslink and 

reproduction in full or part in any 

medium is prohibited. Indian Newslink 

and its management and staff do not 

accept any responsibility for the claims 

made in advertisements. 

Managing Director & Publisher: 

Jacob Mannothra; Editor & General 

Manager: Venkat Raman; Marketing & 

Sales Manager: Ronny Kumaran; 

Production Manager: Mahes Perera; 

Financial Controller: Uma Venkatram 

CA; Phone: (09) 5336377 Email: 

info@indiannewslink.co.nz 

Websites: www.indiannewslink.co.nz; 

www.inliba.com; www.inlisa.com 

Chad Wilkie Nevil Gibson Steve Corbett Tony Bacon 

Chip Dawson Ray Knight Mike Skilling Maria Taylor 

Jeffery Nathan, Ratna Venkat and Ambika Krishnamoorthy 

Rrahul Dosshi and Bhavini Doshii and others at the Rainbow Corner Exhibition Booth 

Master of Ceremonies Jackie Clarke jokes with Carl Jackson, winner of the Oaks Property 

Monique Bradley, who won the AIA Hamper including an Apple Watch, with AIA New Zealand 

A Section of the audience at Indian Newslink Indian 

Management raffle (two return tickets to Fiji with accommodation for two nights at Hilton 

Business Development Manager Jinnie Gill 

Business Awards 2018 

Doubletree, Sonaisali Island, Fiji), watched by Managing Director Vijay Singh (second 

Judges and Sponsors 

from right) 

enhance Awards value 

And entrants, entertainers and many others underscore it 

Having organised the Indian 

Newslink Indian Business 

Awards for eleven years, 

we take stock with pride 

and acknowledge that the Project, 

unique and inimitable as it is, has 

grown in stature because of a number 

of unconditional contributors. 

The most significant among these 

have been our fiercely Independent 

Panel of Judges, our friendly and 

supportive Sponsors, and most 

important of all, our enthusiastic 

entrants, nominees and people who 

offer professional and expert advice 

to participants. 

Our ebullient team 

There are of course scores 

of others, our entertainers, the 

musical band (‘Gurus of Groove’) 

that we created in 2008 putting 

together varied talent, our graphic 

designers, photographers, printers, 

professionals who provide high 

quality audio-visual services, our 

Masters of Ceremonies, our Front 

of House people and of course our 

dedicated, extremely hard working 

and competent staff. 

Each of them has given in no less 

a measure in promoting and taking 

our Business Awards to the height of 

popularity that it has reached today. 

Our Judges 

When we requested Chad Wilkie, 

a taxation and business consultancy 

expert to create a Panel of Judges 

in 2008, he readily accepted and 

has successfully led a team of eight 

(sometimes ten) highly-respected 

professionals from various fields 

of activity, capable of judging the 

variety of entries that they receive 

every year. 

This year’s panel comprised 

Chad Wilkie (Chair), Nevil Gibson 

(Editor-at-Large, The National 

Business Review), Steve Corbett 

(Director Commercialisation, AUT), 

Tony Bacon (M2M Consultant), 

Chip Dawson (Managing Director, 

International Business Management 

Limited), Ray Knight (Managing 

Director, Tree Knights), Mike Skilling 

(Management Consultant) and Maria 

Taylor (Consultant). 

After distinguished services as 

Chair for eleven years, Mr Wilkie 

has expressed his desire to retire. 

We express our gratitude to him 

and wish him continued health and 

happiness. 

Our Sponsors 

Sponsors form the single most 

important aspect of our Awards 

Programme and are in fact the heart 

and soul of it. For a newspaper that 

is not owned by wealthy people who 

can underwrite all expenses, every 

dollar must be earned before it can 

be spent. 

We are extremely thankful to our 

Sponsors of the Eleventh Annual 


Awards 2018. Among them are 

The Rainbow Corner Group of 

Companies (Title Sponsors- Rrahul 

Dosshi and Bhavini Doshii), The 

Fiji Consulate General and Trade 

Commission of Australia and New 

Zealand based in Sydney (Major 

Support Sponsor- Zarak Khan), 

2degrees Mobile Limited, AIA New 

Zealand, Charles Pandey Group of 

Hotels (Hotel Grand Windsor), Link2 

Services Limited, Singapore Airlines, 

PIC Insurance Brokers, Manukau 

Institute of Technology, Oaks Property 

Management, SmartPayroll, 

Alexandra Park, Mercury Printz, 

Radio Tarana and our Support 

Sponsor, the New Zealand Human 

Rights Commission. 

We hope to have their continued 

patronage in the years to come. 

Our Graphic Designer, Printer and 

Webmaster 

Indian Newslink was the first point 

of contact for Narendra Bedekar in 

2003 as he migrated to New Zealand 

with his young family. We have been 

working together since then; Naren 

has been our exclusive photographer, 

having taken more than 15,000 

pictures of various events that we 

conducted, created scores of logos 

(including those of our Awards, 

Scholarship, Lecture and other 

brands) and designed hundreds 

of our in-house advertisements. 

He continues to be a part of our 

team, despite being pressurised by 

time and demand from others. He 

has demonstrated his loyalty over 

the years, assuring us that Indian 

Newslink will always be his priority. 

Mercury Printz has been our 

world-class printer, creating a series 

of print jobs including invitations, 

posters, tickets, booklets and other 

stationery, not just for our Business 

Awards but also for all our brands 

and events. We express our thanks 

to Ilango Krishnamoorthy (Managing 

Director), Chandrabhan Singh 

(Production & Graphics Manager) 

and Kavita Kumar (Administration) 

for their support and for helping us 

with difficult schedules. 

Raghu Kuncha Koorthy has been 

our webmaster managing our three 

websites for more than 15 years. He 

began with us while in Auckland 

and continues his good work from 

Melbourne, which has been his 

home for the past eight years. 

Our Artistes and Performers 

Ratna Venkat has been a star 

performer at each of our Awards 

programmes since 2008, presenting 

Bharata Natyam, Kuchipudi, Folk, 

Fusion and other types of dances. 

Innovative and enterprising, her 

partnership with the members of 

the ‘Gurus of Groove,’ comprising 

Carlyle Fernandes (Bass Guitar), 

Elvis Claremont (Lead Guitar), 

Hemant Thaker (Keyboards), Joscel 

Alexander (Electronic Drums) and 

Joseph Alexander (Octopad) has 

been providing quality entertainment. 

Teenager Ambika Krishnamoorthy 

joined us this year to present 

a Bharata Natyam number, while 

Jeffery Nathan returned after an 

interlude. 

We hope this partnership will 

grow. 

We have also had the privilege of 

timely help and unconditional support 

from Viraf & Pearl Todywalla, 

Prince Kumar, Amrita Gillard and 

Kartika Singh. 

The Managing Director & 

Publisher of Indian Newslink Jacob 

Mannothra has been a great source 

of strength, while the management 

and staff including Production 

Manager Mahes Perera, Financial 

Controller Uma Venkatram and 

Sales & Marketing Manager Ronny 

Kumaran have been of invaluable 

assistance. 

Indian Newslink has just stepped 

into its 20th Year of Publication. 

We salute all of you and hope that 

we will continue to deserve your 

patronage and help.


Personal risks mount as 

lending criteria ease 


Businesslink 

Auckland’s Queen Street 

for pedestrians only 

29 

The New Zealand Property market has always 

displayed seasonal trends; winter is cooler, 

and summer is hotter; so, what is different 

about this seasonal heat? 

All the usual main drivers of activity and demand 

across the market are present. 

Spring through Summer is when vendors typically 

like to bring their properties to market and while 

that is no different, consumers are now able to access 

home loan rates not seen for 70 years. 

Easing restrictions 

Add to that the recent second easing by the Reserve 

Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) of the Loan-to-Value restrictions, 

not just for owner-occupied residential but 

also for residential investment. 

Banks will now be able to provide 20% of their owner-occupier 

loans to borrowers with a deposit of less 

than 20%. 

Lenders will be able to allocate 5% of new investor 

loans to borrowers with less than 30% deposit. In addition, 

consumer demand for housing remains high, 

particularly as prices in the Auckland market have 

come off over the last 12 months. 

The above is well-known and well-reported. 

Market challenges 

What is less known is that despite these positive indicators 

from a borrower’s perspective, it is a challenge 

to get the mortgage you want in today’s market 

than it was two years ago. 

The main underlying lending criteria and UMI 

(Uncommitted Monthly Income) calculators mean 

that borrowers must present themselves as much better 

‘risk’ to the lender than before. Where lenders’ 

UMI calculators would have indicated a probable approval 

for a loan in the past, the same income (run 

through a UMI calculator) today may not see the loan 

be approved. 

Credit Checks 

It is important to get access to quality independent 

advice early when seeking a mortgage. 

Many people do not realise that every time they 

make an application to borrow, it generates a personal 

credit check. 

Every such check puts a negative dent in your credit 

score which influences your credit rating. The rating 

gets worse with increasing applications, with 

increased likelihood of further rejections. 

The right advice will guide you only to the lenders 

who are likely to support your loan application, 

based on your unique circumstances and needs. 

Low interest rates 

While interest rates are at historic lows and lenders 

certainly compete for customers on price, there are 

more things that should be taken into consideration. 

The fine print counts. 

All lenders advertising on rate pricing will clearly 

state “Lending criteria Ts and Cs apply.” 

A good adviser will be very clear on those Ts and Cs 

behind the price and ensure that the mortgage solution 

for you is sustainable and in line with what you 

are seeking to achieve without backing you into a 

corner. 

So, the summer looks to be a good one. 

Our advice is to stay safe in the Sun. 

Global Finance – your best interest. 

The above article, was sent to us by Global Finance 

Auckland’s Queen Street Image Courtesy: Wikipedia 


Auckland’s Queen Street for pedestrians only 


The Auckland Council has voted unanimously to 

move towards pedestrianising Queen Street and trialling 

an open streets initiative in the City Centre and suburbs. 

Mayor Phil Goff said that further pedestrianisation of Queen 

Street would change Auckland’s main street from a traffic route 

to a place people can enjoy, and open streets trials would close 

off limited areas of the City and suburbs from vehicles to enable 

streets to be used for people and events. 

He issued the following Statement: 

Place to enjoy 

We want Queen Street to be a great place to walk, gather, relax 

and enjoy. We want it to change from an area with one of 

the worst levels of vehicle pollution to a place that is pleasant 

and healthy. 

With a resident population of 57,000 people and more public, 

open space being developed in our City centre, we are taking a 

bold step towards increasing pedestrian areas on Queen Street 

and turning it into a destination rather than a through road. 

Changing City 

The nature of our City Centre is changing. There are over 

118,000 people working in the Central City and 70,000 students 

and teachers. Hotel blocks are soaring bringing increasing numbers 

of tourists. Light rail and the City Rail Link will increase 

public transport capacity by 370% and bring thousands more 

pedestrians into the City Centre. 

CHRISTMAS CAN COME EARLY! 

Better rate 

of interest 

Cashback 

Lending criteria T’s and C’s apply. 

Offer valid for a limited period 

info@globalfinance.co.nz 

19/203 Kirkbride Road, Airport Oaks, Auckland 

103 Lincoln Road, Henderson, Auckland 

WWW 

www.globalfinance.co.nz 

09 255 5500 

09 836 5555

30 


Auckland’s Santa Parade 

faces an uncertain 

future as the City’s event 

Agency withdraws 

funding past this year because of 

a new policy. 

While next week’s 85th 

instalment of the Annual Parade 

will go ahead as planned, it is set 

to make a $100,000 operating loss 

without the help of eleventh hour 

financial aid. 

Despite the support of several 

commercial sponsors and help 

from more than 1000 volunteers, 

it is the second year in a row that 

the Parade will run at a major 

deficit, having fallen short last 

year by $78,000. 

Combination of factors 

Farmers Santa Parade General 

Manager Pam Glaser said that 

a combination of rising costs 

and diminishing support from 

some major sponsors had made 

it increasingly difficult to secure 

funding for the event which attracts 

around 100,000 spectators 

to downtown Auckland. 

She said that while the Auckland 

Children’s Christmas Parade 

Trust was still well supported by 

naming rights Sponsor Farmers, 

the Parade organisers are 

frustrated to lose ATEED funding 

under the Agency’s new 2018- 

2025 Major Events Strategy. 

ATEED’s General Manager of 

Destination Steve Armitage said 

that the renewed framework 

came as Auckland’s Mayor and 

Communitylink/Classifiedlink 

Auckland Santa Parade to lose public events funding 

Vanita Prasad (Newsroom) 

The Auckland Children's Christmas Parade T(Published by Newsroom 

Council look for alternative 

revenue streams to reduce the 

dependency on ratepayers. 

The Agency says that the new 

strategy has been designed to 

deliver what Auckland needs 

under its long-term ‘Destination 

AKL 2025 Strategy,’ which aims 

to grow tourism and the local 

economy in a sustainable way. 

Santa Parade not fit 

Armitage said the Farmers 

Santa Parade no longer fits. 

“This is based on the fact that 

it is not a big driver of domestic 

tourism into Auckland, unlike 

the Chinese Lantern Festival 

and Diwali where we have a 

programme of activity which 

is sustained for a period, for 

Lantern, around a week. 

“We are able to package up a 

whole lot of things that happen 

around the City and promote that 

and attract visitation.” 

When asked for data on 

Farmers Santa Parade visitor 

nights, ATEED could only provide 

Newsroom with figures from 

the 2016/2017 financial year for 

which 1380 visitor nights were 

attributed to the event. In the 

same year Auckland’s Diwali 

Festival and Lantern Festival 

attracted 1450 and 2810 bed 

nights respectively. 

No comparison 

The Events Agency says that the 

data cannot be compared like-forlike 

as the criteria for funding the 

events is different, but Glaser says 

it is a case of ATEED prioritising 

its own events stable. 

He says the Farmers Santa 

Parade better fits into Auckland 

Council ’s event funding model. 

“The Santa Parade is a one-off 

event that takes place over a 

few hours on one weekend a 

year and is not really targeted 

to attract people in from out of 

the city, it’s more about allowing 

local residents the opportunity to 

celebrate Christmas. 

“So in that regard it’s more of 

a community event than a major 

event. It’s about engaging residents 

and providing experiences 

for Aucklanders.” 

Pride Parade ticked 

However, based on those same 

distinctions, Armitage has not 

ruled out continuing funding for 

the 2020 Pride Parade. 

“The Auckland Pride Parade is 

continuing to see solid growth in 

terms of attendance at the parade 

and attracting visitors from 

outside of Auckland which we 

believe also has good potential to 

expand further. 

“The event is an important celebration 

of Auckland’s diversity, 

creating an opportunity to showcase 

Auckland to an international 

and domestic audience.” 


the above Report and Picture 

under a Special Agreement 

with www.newsroom.co.nz 

Classifieds 

Change of Name 

I Jobanpreet Singh, residing 

at 292 Ellerslie Panmure 

Highway, Mt Wellington, 

Auckland, have changed my 

father’s name from Sukhjeet 

Singh to Sukhjit Singh for all 

present and future purposes. 

Space for Rent 

Space for Rent in South Auckland 

(Otara). A 6.1 x 2.6 sqm 

empty room in an existing 

pharmacy available for lease 

as an office space or abeauty/massage 

parlour and/or all 

medical related services e.g. 

acupuncture and therapy/ 

counselling. If interested and 

for more info, please contact 

Dan on 0212703424. 

Space for Rent 

Space for Rent in South 

Auckland (Otara). A secure 

80 sqm, self-contained first 

(Mezzanine) floor with 

four rooms and a newly 

refurbished bathroom available 

for lease as an office or 

residential space. Located 

on a busy thoroughfare road 

with easy motorway access 

and opposite a Town Centre 

and MIT; above a Pizza Hut 

Takeaway and a Pharmacy. 

If interested and for more 

info, please contact Dan on 

0212703424. 

A Time of Celebration • A Chance of Exploration 

CHRISTMAS 

WONDER PARK 

Barry Curtis Park, Flat Bush 

Saturday 15 December 2018 

12pm to 6pm 

International Food Stalls 

Interactive Activities 

Multi-cultural Performances 

Fun for Everyone!


Communitylink 

From sadness comes a ray of hope and new beginning 

31 

Sadhguru 

Isha Foundation 

Question: Sadhguru, you 

were telling us how 

one can either come 

out broken or come out 

wiser from calamities. Can you 

elaborate on how sadness can 

be a means of growth? 

Sadhguru: Most people do not 

know what it means for misery 

to strike in the form of life. 

But for certain people, when 

it really strikes, everything that 

they valued in their life is taken 

away, and a deep sadness 

settles. 

Handling sorrow 

There are many ways to handle 

this sadness. 

Some people just sit in a corner 

and drive themselves mad, 

making everyone miserable. 

There are others, who, when 

they become sad, find away of 

doing some useful work. 

Usually, it is people who have 

been hurt like this who become 

great Karma Yogis. 

A grieving teacher 

Let me give you an example. 

There was a certain person 

who was a teacher in a primary 

school in Maharashtra. He 

lived in a village just off the 

Sahayadri Mountains with his 

wife and two children. Then, 

some dreadful disease took his wife 

and children, and he was left alone. 

The man was shattered because his 

whole life was built around those 

three people. 

He was on the verge of madness. 

He simply did not know what to 

do, so he walked into the Sahayadri 

Mountains and sat there. 

He remembered these mountains 

as they were when he was a child. 

They used to be green and full 

of trees. Now, when he was walking 

in the mountains, it was hot, 

and unbearable. 

He sat there for many days, 

picking fruits and nuts, eating 

them and just being there. 

After some time, he decided 

that only because this mountain 

had become barren, his life had 

been made barren. 

Creating a new world 

Whether it is true or not is 

not the point. He decided to do 

something about this. He lived 

there like a saint, single-handedly 

picked up seeds wherever they 

fell from the trees, and without 

anybody’s support, planted about 

400,000 trees and made them 

grow. He saw them through for 

25 years. Today, 400,000 trees 

are standing on the Sahayadri 

Mountains because of this one 

man. He is a Yogi, though nobody 

taught him any Yoga. 

From Sadness to Compassion 

One can make any emotion 

into a creative force in their life. 

There is no negativity in the 

existence. 

We may think something is negative 

and something else is positive, 

but a light burns because 

of negative and positive wires 

together. 

Negative is not something to get 

rid of; but is as important as the 

positive. 

If your sadness reminds you 

that you are incomplete, it is good. 

Make use of your sadness to 

grow. 

When sadness sets in, if you become 

more compassionate, more 

caring, and more loving, you have 

some sense in you. 

When you get sad, if you get irritable 

and angry and think that 

the whole world is wrong, you are 

a fool. At that moment, if someone 

meddles with you, your sadness 

can very easily become anger. 

Will you make this sadness 

into anger or will you make this 

sadness into love and compassion? 

It is very easy to become 

compassionate when you are 

sad. 

Learning to use all your 

emotions creatively is very 

important. 

It is not just happiness that is 

important. 

If you have not known sadness, 

you will not mature. 

Only if you have known sadness 

and pain, you can be a mature 

person. Otherwise you will 

never understand what is happening 

with you, nor will you 

understand what is happening 

with anyone else around you. 

Ranked among the Fifty Most 

Influential People in India, 

Sadhguru is a Yogi, Mystic, 

Visionary and Best-Selling 

Author. He was conferred, 

‘Padma Vibhushan,’ the second 

highest civilian honour by the 

Indian Government in 2017. 

Isha Foundation New 

Zealand conducts Isha Inner 

Engineering and Hatha yoga 

Programmes. It also offers free 

Isha Kriya and Isha Upa yoga 

practices for the General public 

regularly. For more information, 

please call 022-4637811 

or visit www.ishayoga.nz 

Rem 

after 

(it sh 

there 

Foun 

on th 

RESTAURANT 

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to open in Sugartree Lane, a convenient pedestrian lane linking 

Union and Nelson Streets in Auckland’s CBD. 

The Sugartree Lane dining precinct has a range of spaces 

perfectly suited to your cafe or restaurant with beautiful outdoor areas 

and garden, courtyard or city views. 

Don’t miss out, call today to view. 

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022 639 3028 | julie@sugartree.co.nz 

SUGARTREELANE.CO.NZ

32 


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If you’re not with ANZ, open an Everyday account 

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