The Indian Weekender, 22 October 2021

Jaggi 

Navi 

Insurance Adviser 

Principal 

128 1823 

022 

navi@vsureu.co.nz 

22OCTOBER2021 • VOL 13 ISSUE 33 

Diwali SSweets and SSnacks 

at 

Online Order | Home Delivery | Uber Eats 

www.chatorigali.net 

760A Dominion Road, Mt. Eden, Auckland – 1041 

www.iwk.co.nz /indianweekender /indianweekender 

Surya Phutane 

Chartered Accountant 

Financial Adviser 

O: 09 218 6206 | M: 021 202 0331 I EMAIL - surya.phutane@pasl.co.nz 

0879 0179 

021 

at our stores 

Pickup 

Gali 

Chatori 

Mt Albert Road, Royal Oak 

713 

Restaurant 

Nirvana 

Great SSouth Road, 

7/254 

Takanini 

WHY 

No obligation review 

PUNISH US? 

Partner visa 

holders ask 

Lockdown 

mental health 

issues spiral 

NZ’s closed 

borders benefit 

other countries 

ISHAN SIKKA 

021 072 6692 

WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT SELLING 

YOUR BIGGEST ASSET 

YOU EXPECT TO GET A GREAT PRICE 

WE'VE GOT YOUR COVERED! 

Call us today for a friendly and confidential chat. 

MANDEEP SINGH 

021 025 09006 

vsureu.co.nz 

Licensed under REAA 2008

Get ready to celebrate Diwali. 

Valspar 

Exterior Decking Oil 

Value Pail 

8L, Water based 

SKU: 319115 

was $89 

now $ 

69 

each 

Wattyl 

Fence Finish 10L 

Dark Chocolate/ Iron Ore 

SKU: 174969 

$ 

69 98 

each 

Lawnmaster 

Petrol Lawn Mower 

460mm 149cc 

SKU: 366544 

$ 

385 

each 

M Collections 

Iowa Clayfibre Bullet Pot 

SKU: 378347 

was $24.99 

now $ 19 99 

each 

Enrich with Nature 

Macrame Hanger 

12cm, White/ Black 

SKU: 367986 

was $12.97 

now $ 9 97 

each 

Nouveau 

Outdoor Bar Setting 

5 Piece 

SKU: !89969 

$ 

1599 

kit 

Nouveau 

Siena Outdoor Pod 

Setting 

3 Piece 

SKU: 336875 

now 

$ 

1299 

each 

Nouveau 

Cantilever Umbrella 

3.5 metre, Charcoal 

SKU: 337268 

$ 

699 

each 

Nouveau 

Malay Hanging Egg Chair 

SKU: 354067 

$ 

499 

each 

Nouveau 

Lyon Gazebo Hexagonal 

H: 260cm, D:400cm 

SKU: 202115 

$ 

199 

each 

Brighten your Diwali with us. 

Shop at mitre10.co.nz for Contactless Click & Collect or 

Home Delivery during Alert Level 3. 

T&C: Available till 25 October 2021. Due to seasonal demand, products are available while stocks last and may not be available in all stores. 

The offers may not be used in conjunction with any other offer or discount. Props not included. Availability may be affected by alert level restrictions.

The Indian Weekender Friday, October 22, 2021 

NEW ZEALAND 3 

Why are we being punished, ask 

partnership-based visa holders 

IWK Exclusive 

NAVDEEP KAUR MARWAH 

Those on partnership visas feel that 

it is unfair to leave them out of the 

recently announced One-off Resident 

Visa when many of them are working in 

skilled roles, earning at least or more than 

$27 an hour or working in a role on the 

Scarce List. These visa holders have made 

an immense contribution during Covid-19 

and faced the same challenges and anxiety as 

others who have been considered eligible so 

why have they been left out? finds out. 

In the third part of this Indian Weekender 

series on the One-off visa, Navdeep Kaur 

Marwah listens to the stories of those who 

are currently on a partnership visa, which 

is the reason for their ineligibility despite 

meeting the other criteria including spending 

years in NZ and contributing usefully to the 

economy. Interestingly, many of them have 

even held essential visas but just went on 

partner visas and are regretting that now. 

September 30, the day Immigration 

Minister Kris Faafoi announced the One-off 

2021 Resident Visa, brought immense joy to 

165,000 migrants who are all set to benefit from 

it. But it has brought stress, anguish, frustration 

and sadness to hundreds of migrants who have 

been ineligible for the visa just because of the 

visa category they are holding. 

Those holding partnership based visas are 

not on the eligible visa list to apply for this 

pathway. 

Ten years in NZ and no 

pathway in sight 

One such story is that of Variam Singh, 

the 32-year-old who has been in the country 

for more than a decade but is still ineligible 

as he is holding a partnership visa. Sharing 

his story, he says, “I have been staying in NZ 

since February 2011. 

"I have worked as a retail manager with 

Countdown as well as a Cafe Manager in the 

past. I was on an essential skill work visa until 

I got a visitor visa on a partner based one on 

1 September 2021, just weeks before the 

announcement. 

“My wife Tarandeep, is currently on a study 

visa. She is in New Zealand for 3.5 years and 

had worked in the Countdown online shopping 

department for 2.5 years. Following the same, 

as per immigration’s demand, she took the 

study of healthcare level 7 and started a parttime 

job in healthcare. 

"Unfortunately, we both are ineligible for this 

new visa. We are feeling helpless as its 10.5 

years of mine and 3.5 years on my wife in NZ 

seem totally wasted.” 

Sharing the same sentiment is Sameer (name 

changed on request), who arrived in arrived in 

NZ in November 2018 along with his wife and 

son and currently hold a partnership-based work 

visa. After reaching NZ, he was fortunate that 

he managed to find skilled employment paying 

the median wage, for which he did a part-time 

study to gain occupational registration. 

He says, “Once I achieved skilled 

employment I lodged my Expression of Interest 

(EOI) for the Skilled Migrant Category (SMC) 

with more than the minimum points requirement 

of 160 in August 2020 which we all know has 

been frozen since March 2020. Like others, we 

waited for the announcement for the new oneoff 

resident visa with bated breath. 

When we read the starting paragraph, which 

stated that the new visa is designed to focus 

on people whose primary purpose for being 

in New Zealand is to work and recognise the 

immense contribution made to the country 

during COVID and all the uncertainty faced. 

" 

My partner holds a poststudy 

open work visa, 

however, sadly does not meet 

one of the three requirements. 

This was the most terrible and 

gut-wrenching experience and 

to this day we cannot help but 

feel anxious and depressed 

“We thought – yes, finally the government 

has recognised our contribution and efforts. 

My wife worked as an essential worker right 

throughout the lockdown and felt that she will 

be valued. When we continued reading further 

we were shocked and anguished by the fact that 

the partner-based work visas were not part of 

the eligible visas. 

"My partner holds a post-study open work 

visa, however, sadly does not meet one of the 

three requirements. This was the most terrible 

and gut-wrenching experience and to this day 

we cannot help but feel anxious and depressed” 

• Continued on Page 4 

DEVELOP OR INVEST IT !! CORNER SITE 690SQM 

131 Coxhead Road, Manurewa, Manukau City, Auckland 

Price by negotiation | 2 Beds | 1 Bath | 80m² Floor | 690m² Land 

Property type: House 

Parking: 3 car space 

Broadband Availability: Fibre, ADSL, VDSL, Wireless 

If you are investor, a land banker or a developer, this property has something for you. Sitting on a 

freehold section of 690sqm (mol) this great property offers: 2 good size bedrooms, open plan lounge 

and kitchen, separate laundry and family bathroom. Services on and near. Easy access to motorway, 

train station and bus route. "Mixed housing Suburban Zone "under the Auckland Unitary Plan, could 

be ideal for developers. It has a potential to build two duplexes and a standalone ( subject to council 

approval). There is an opportunity to make this profitable for you. 

Rupinder Kaur- 021 971 233 

Tasreet Dhatt- 020 403 90543

4 NEW ZEALAND 

Friday, October 22, 2021 

The Indian Weekender 

• Continued on Page 4 

Sameer rues the fact that despite contributing to the economy 

and the country right through the Covid 19 pandemic and even 

now, the government has not considered those on partnership 

visas to be eligible for this new visa. 

“I meet one of the requirements, however, my work visa has 

been left out. I fail to understand the rationale behind not including 

this crucial group of work visa holders. The announcement 

mentioned that short term visas like a visitor, students etc were 

being left out of the eligibility, but the partner-based open work 

visa is not a short-term visa. 

"It is long term work visa where the primary purpose of the 

visa is to work full-time. Partners of post-study work visa holders 

and partners of essential skill work visa holders are granted visas 

for up to three years so why has this not been included when it 

is the same length as mid-skilled essential skills visas and longer 

than the work to residence visa (which is valid for 30 months)? 

“They should also be given a fair chance to meet one of the 

three requirements listed for other visa holders and this is all we 

are requesting the government for. Not giving us this chance is 

unfair and shows a lack of equality. 

"Also, under the new streamlined essential skills work visa 

policy, had we known that the new residence visa would exclude 

us, we could have easily switched to essential skills work visa 

without any documentation or evidence of recruitment if we are 

continuing their employment. 

According to the government, this new visa is a pathway for 

those migrants who have a longer connection to NZ and have 

contributed during Covid 19 and work in skilled roles. 

“I meet all these requirements, however, have still been left 

out! Many people who hold partner-based work visas have 

worked hard towards meeting the SMC requirements, working in 

skilled employments, and got to at least 160 points and submitted 

an EOI,” questions Sameer. 

“There was never a criterion that partner based open work 

visa holders cannot apply for residence so why have they been 

left out of the new resident visa. People in this situation feel 

cheated and betrayed. It seems that the government has penalised 

us for doing the right things and working within the ambit of 

immigration instructions. 

"Ideally, priority should have been given to those who have 

lodged their residence application and EOI before considering 

others who did not even lodge an EOI because they were not 

eligible. The new policy announced is not in line with the 

principles of fairness and natural justice which INZ is supposed 

to adhere to,” says Sameer. 

‘The announcement has shattered us’ 

Prachi Vats (name changed on request) also fails to understand 

why the government has excluded those on partnership visas to 

be eligible for this one-off residence and how it can be so harsh. 

She says, “The announcement seems to have gaps which leave 

some of us wondering what rationale was used. My reason for 

moving with my husband was to give our son a better future. 

Despite not being in NZ before September 2018 (one of the 

requirements for the one-off resident visa) we work hard and 

meet immigration requirements and submit an EOI under 

the Skilled Migrant category in October 2020 with me as the 

principal applicant. 

"However, all that hard work is null and void as I currently 

hold a partner of a worker visa. My husband is currently on the 

eligible visa but unfortunately not meeting the requirements to 

be eligible for the new visa.” 

She adds, “We did submit an EOI and even though we knew 

EOI selections were suspended it felt that submitting this 

EOI was bringing us closer to our goal of residence. Now it 

was only a matter of time before selections would start, or so 

we believed. The announcement made finally in September 

completely shattered us.” 

It is worth a mention here that that the announcement related to 

this new one-off resident visa on the Immigration New Zealand 

website states that it will be available to those who have already 

submitted a resident visa applications under the Skilled Migrant 

Category (SMC) and Residence from Work (RfW) category and 

those who have submitted an SMC Expression of Interest, as 

well as many other work visa holders who may not have been 

eligible through the current skilled residence pathways. But there 

is more to read between the lines. 

As Prachi points out, “The information on the website states 

– From 1 March 2022 all other eligible applicants can apply, 

including all others who have submitted a Skilled Migrant 

Category Expression of Interest. 

These sentences seem to imply that people who have an 

SMC application, residence from work to residence and EOIs 

submitted will be eligible, along with people who hold work 

visas who were unable to be eligible through the current skilled 

residence pathways.” 

But there is a catch and Prachi explains, “However, apparently 

as usual the information written is not as it reads. 

"The requirement is that people who have an EOI in the 

pool must have a principal applicant on an ‘eligible visa’ to 

be considered eligible for this resident visa. The ‘eligible 

visa list’ includes several work visas but excludes partners of 

workers, amongst others. I am struggling to understand why this 

category of visas has been neglected... The lack of transparency 

and rationale in the decision making is disappointing and 

we are hoping for some relief from the situation we find 

ourselves in.” 

Despite hundreds of people on partnership visas been at 

a disadvantage because of the new announcement, during a 

recent webinar, Immigration NZ has made it clear that people 

should not expect that there will be further additions to the 

eligibility criteria. 

Immigration experts too feel that it is unfortunate for those 

who have been left out but they should not feel dejected. 

“Announcing 2021 One-Off Resident Visa was a giant leap 

providing certainty to hard-working migrants and their families. 

This announcement comes with solace for the employers, 

relieving workforce pressures, especially for small and medium 

scale employers. 

"This announcement uses the term ‘Eligible Visa’ which 

covers most of the work visas acquired by the applicants 

based on their skills or eligibility upon completing 

certain studies in NZ. 

“Despite 165,000 migrants being eligible, there are still 

several skilled people who unfortunately could not qualify for 

this visa. These people should not be dejected because NZ still 

needs skills and skilled people and you may still be eligible to 

apply for a Residence under the Skilled Migrant Category,” says 

Ramandeep Kaur of Vaint Immigration. 

Onsite learning changes for senior secondary students in Level 3 

IWK BUREAU 

Onsite learning at schools in Level 3 

regions will start from next week 

for senior secondary school students 

to prepare for end of year exams, Education 

Minister Chris Hipkins has said. 

“Secondary schools in these regions will 

start onsite learning for years 11 to 13 on 

Tuesday 26 October,” Chris Hipkins said. 

The Minister said this was a complex 

issue requiring difficult trade-offs between 

improving education and increasing potential 

health risks for children and young people. 

“Learners in this age group are able to be 

vaccinated and are required to wear masks, and 

staff and volunteers working on site will need 

a negative test before attending. Government 

agencies have also continued to refine 

public health measures for school and early 

learning services. 

“Children, young people and staff at 

higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19 

should stay at home unless fully vaccinated, 

face coverings are mandatory for staff and 

learners in years 9 to 13, and records must 

be kept for contact tracing purposes. Face 

coverings on school transport will also be 

mandatory,” he said. 

Staff and volunteers in all regions will need 

to receive their first vaccine by 15 November. 

“For years 1 to 10 the picture is more 

complex. I’m not completely ruling out these 

" 

There was never a criterion that partner 

based open work visa holders cannot 

apply for residence so why have they been 

left out of the new resident visa. People in 

this situation feel cheated and betrayed. It 

seems that the government has penalised 

us for doing the right things and working 

within the ambit of 

immigration instructions. 

students in level 3 regions being able to return 

before the end of the year but if they do, 

we’ll need to be satisfied there are sufficient 

processes in place to minimise any risk,” the 

Minister said. 

“We’ve got to acknowledge that any settings 

where there are groups of children under 

12, it’s higher risk – as they are not yet able 

to be vaccinated. But there are mitigations 

that can be put in place to keep the risk as 

low as possible. 

"We can consider rostered attendance 

to reduce the number of students on site 

at any given time. The warmer summer 

months also provide more opportunities 

for learning outdoors where the risk of 

COVID-19 spreading is lower. Cabinet will 

consider the latest health advice and the 

"Learners 

in this age 

group are able to 

be vaccinated and are 

required to wear masks, 

and staff and volunteers 

working on site will need 

a negative test before 

options on Tuesday.” 

Notes to editors 

There will no longer be 

attending." 

bubbles of up to 10 students 

required when all senior 

students return on-site, including for those 

students already on-site in years 1 - 10. 

Wherever practicable a 1 metre distance 

should be kept from all others on-site, 

particularly between staff, and a two metre 

distance from people you don’t know. 

Requirements for secondary schools: 

• staff and children who are unwell must stay 

at home, and get tested for COVID-19 

• children at higher risk of severe illness 

remain home, where possible 

• staff who are not fully vaccinated and 

at higher risk of severe illness must 

remain home 

• mandatory mask wearing for staff and 

students in years 9 - 13 

• only essential visitors will be permitted 

onsite, and all visitors on-site will need to 

wear a face covering 

• good hand hygiene and cough and 

sneeze etiquette 

• classrooms to be well ventilated 

• high touch surfaces will be cleaned and 

disinfected each day 

• physical distancing will be adhered 

to wherever practicable, particularly 

between adults 

• physical distancing of two metres 

will be in place from people you 

don’t know 

• QR code posters for the COVID app 

will be displayed 

• a contact tracing register in place for 

everyone coming onsite including students 

and staff, through the attendance register, 

timetable and visitor register. 

• face coverings will be required on school 

transport for people aged 12 and over 

• time outdoors for students and staff will be 

maximised, including breaks, lunchtime, 

before and after school (unless the weather 

does not allow), and rooms will be aired 

during breaks 

• exercising and singing will take 

place outdoors 

• groups meeting indoors, including 

assemblies or staff meetings, 

will be avoided.


NEW ZEALAND 5 

Lockdown, restrictions causing mental 

health issues in first-time patients 

Warning: This article references mental health issues and suicidal thoughts. 

IWK Exclusive 

PRITI GARUDE KASTURE 

Family violence and mental health 

service provider, Roopa Aur Aap has 

experienced a surge in mental health 

referrals since the start of the lockdown, 

as Auckland continues to battle the latest 

Covid-19 outbreak. 

Roopa Suchdev, Chief Executive of the 

community-based non-profit organisation 

that focuses on South Asian families, said the 

agency has seen a spike in cases related to 

depression and anxiety. 

“People have reached the end of their 

tolerance. We have seen an increase in fights 

among family members, and an increase in 

frustration, that have led to cases of depression 

and anxiety,” she said. 

Dr Anil Channa, mental health specialist and 

psychiatrist said, “Because of lockdown and 

restrictions, we have received more cases, both 

among those who never had any mental health 

issues and those who have suffered a relapse in 

their illness.” 

Last week, Lifeline Aotearoa said calls and 

texts to its helpline skyrocketed in the past 18 

months - up 88 percent compared to 2019. 

Lifeline operations manager Helena de 

Fontenay said the increase in calls shows New 

Zealanders are actively seeking mental health 

support through conversations, “which is a 

good thing”. She added, however, that the stress 

Dr Anil Channa 

" 

What we have found is 

that we are doing a lot of 

counselling through zoom, 

which is alright but it’s not 

ideal. The results are not as 

good as with face to face 

because we are counselling 

and treating the patients 

of Covid-19 is showing up in more complex 

calls involving suicidal thoughts, self-harm and 

risk to others. 

Helena said the first week of the current 

lockdown saw Lifeline receive about 8,500 

calls and texts, which rose to 8,700 in week 

Roopa Suchdev 

two, 10,900 in week three, 11,167 in week four, 

and 10,713 in week five. 

Roopa Aur Aap manages at least 10 referrals 

per week, which includes interventions as well 

as multiple counselling sessions with more than 

one family member. The agency has seen over 

70 cases of counselling in a month since the 

start of the lockdown. 

“There is an increased amount of anxiety 

in people, not just among those who are not 

working and are at home, but also those who 

are working from home”, said Dr Channa. 

“Lately, we are seeing a lot of patients who are 

suffering from depression. Part of the depression 

is due to anxiety and loneliness. Many people, 

students have been away from their families, 

they are feeling depressed, and some actually 

need to be treated for depression with medication 

along with counselling,” he continued. 

Dr Channa also noted a relapse in patients 

suffering from psychotic illness due to 

increased stress. Recent University of Otago 

research findings suggest that many people 

with mental health histories struggle and 

are disproportionately affected during these 

lockdowns. 

In July last year, the residential mental health 

inpatient unit at the Counties Manukau District 

Health Board reported a marked increase in the 

length of stay of patients during the lockdown. 

Dr Channa remarked that there is a 

deficiency in the number of counsellors that 

are needed as well as accessibility to patients 

for these counsellors. He said, “What we have 

found is that we are doing a lot of counselling 

through zoom, which is alright but it’s not 

ideal. The results are not as good as with 

face to face because we are counselling and 

treating the patients.” 

In Asian cultures, mental illness often carries 

stigma and discrimination. Dr Channa believes 

there needs to be greater awareness among the 

Indian community about mental health issues 

and reaching out for help. He said, “The more 

we talk about it, the more people will come 

out and speak openly. We need to talk and give 

a platform to have conversations on mental 

health. We need to also reiterate that whatever 

is spoken during a session is all confidential. 

If we do these three things, it will give our 

community the confidence to come forward and 

seek help, rather than suffer.”

6 NEW ZEALAND 



NZ’s strict border controls bring 

windfall to distant countries 

Travellers to New Zealand from India drop by more than 96 

percent, get introduced to other enticing destinations enroute. 

IWK Exclusive 

NAVDEEP KAUR MARWAH 

New Zealand has always been a dream 

tourist destination for people across 

the globe. 

The natural beauty of the country has 

always attracted tourists for decades. But 

the Covid 19 pandemic and the subsequent 

border closure by the NZ government in 

March 2020 has changed this scenario. 

Undoubtedly, tourism in NZ has taken a 

setback due to the border closure coupled with 

strict immigration policies and the difficulty in 

acquiring a MIQ voucher. 

According to Stats NZ, the total arrival in NZ 

in the year ending August 2019 (pre Covid-19) 

was 7,077,335, it was 4,203,263 for the 

year ending August 2020, and was 

just 400,256 for the year ending 

August 2021. 

In the August 2021 

year compared with the 

August 2020 year, the 

number of overseas visitor 

arrivals was 211,000, down 

by 2.2 million. 

Moreover, In the August 2021 

year compared with the August 

2020 year, the number of NZ-resident 

traveller arrivals was 139,000, down by 1.6 

million. 

Indian Weekender spoke to industry experts 

to find out more about this precipitous decline 

and what they think this government should do 

to bring back tourism’s past glory. 

Sijo Abraham of Sehion Tours & Travels 

says, “Tourism is the most affected industry in 

NZ due to the Covid pandemic. Many travel 

agencies and tour operators are finding other 

jobs to sustain themselves. Tourism industries 

are on the verge of extinction.” 

Mortgages: 

• Home loans 

• Commercial Property loans 

• Business Loans 

• Top up & Debt consolidation 

• Re-Finance and Refixing 

• Investment Property loans 

• Restructuring of loan 

• Construction & Renovation 

Nimish Parikh 

Registered Financial Advice Financial Provider Adviser 

M. 021 236 7070 

nimish@saffronfinance.co.nz 

"Tourism 

is the most 

affected industry 

in NZ due to the Covid 

pandemic. Many travel 

agencies and tour operators 

are finding other jobs to 

sustain themselves. Tourism 

industries are on the 

verge of extinction." 

Trust Saffron Finance for 

expert Mortgage/ Insurance 

advice backed by years 

of experience 

Risk Insurances: 

• Life & Trauma 

• Key Person Cover 

• Medical / Health 

• TPD and Income Protection 

• Mortgage Repayment cover 

• New to Business & 

• Business Continuity Cover 

• Redundancy Cover 

Contact for 

free assessment 

18B Kirby Street, Glendene, 

Auckland 0602 

P O Box - 69263 , Glendene, 

Auckland 0645 

www.saffronfinance.co.nz 

Mukesh Mann of Mann Travels, 

says, “Before Covid-19, travel and tourism had 

become one of the most important sectors in 

the NZ economy. NZ is a tourism-dependent 

country, and this pandemic impacts the travel 

industry severely. 

"There is still ambiguity with regards to 

the timeliness of opening the borders for 

international tourists and for Indians who can 

travel to NZ without taking a stopover from 

another country.” 

There is no denying that the border closure, 

along with other issues like MIQ as well as 

travelling to green countries 

such as Serbia, Maldives 

or Dubai from high-risk 

countries including India has 

played its part in the decline 

of tourism in New Zealand. 

If one looks at the drop in 

people travelling to NZfrom 

India, it may be noted that 

while overseas visitor arrivals 

from India in the year ending 

August 2019 was 64,899, it 

went down to 44,299 in the 

year ending August 2020 and 

just 1390 in the year ending 

August 2021. 

It means there is a decline 

of 96.9 percent between the 

year ending August 2020 and 

the year ending August 2021. 

In terms of NZ residents 

arrival from India, while it 

was 80,655 in the year ending 

August 2019, it dropped to 

64,499 in the year ending 

August 2020 and just 2808 in 

the year ending August 2021. 

On being asked about how 

the business has dropped 

especially from India, Mukesh says, “Our 

business from India has declined by 95 percent. 

We have managed to bring back around 

150-200 people through Dubai, Maldives 

and Serbia. 

However, due to each country’s borders, 

visa and entry restrictions, most people are 

not eligible to visit NZ. Some of those who 

are eligible cannot spend the money because 

the prices coming through the third country 

(transiting country) are quite high. Due to 

this, they are facing financial hardship and 

stress to be outside India or in other words 

in a third country (transiting country) before 

entering NZ.” 

Undoubtedly, many countries have now 

opened their borders for tourists and are 

benefiting from it. And for these countries, the 

restriction that NZ has imposed is proving to be 

a blessing in disguise. 

According to current NZ travel advisory, 

apart from NZ citizens and their immediate 

family members, New Zealand residents and 

other eligible visa holders are required to spend 

14 days in a low-risk country such as Serbia, 

Maldives and Dubai, when travelling from a 

high-risk country such as India as well as 14 

days in a MIQ facility. 

The Statistical Office of the Republic of 

Serbia gives an insight into this development: 

in August 2021, compared to August 2020, the 

number of tourist arrivals was 32.6 percent 

greater, while the number of tourist overnight 

stays was 23.3 percent greater. In August 2021, 

compared to August 2020, while the number 

of overnight stays of foreign tourists was a 

whopping 359.7 percent greater 

Talking about how the tourism of these 

countries has taken a boost, Mukesh says, 

“Serbia, Maldives and now Dubai became the 

transit point of the Indian travellers heading to 

NZ after they banned their direct entry from 

April. Indians are taking these routes and 

spending a huge amount on air tickets and 

accommodations. 

It has certainly given a boost to tourism in 

Dubai, Serbia and Maldives. Not only for the 

transit during this covid period but in general, 

the elite class of Indians is also known to spend 

big money on holidays. 

As tourists are not allowed to travel to NZ, 

the opportunity to boost the economy is lost to 

other countries.” 

Sijo, too, agrees: “Some countries like 

Serbia, Maldives, and Dubai allow people in 

those countries with proven vaccination status 

and they already promoted tourism and the 

people who are travelling there are benefitting 

their tourism. 

"Whereas in NZ tourism is 100% decline due 

to covid border restrictions.” 

So, What do they think the NZ government 

should be doing to increase tourism in NZ? 

“The NZ government has to adopt the 

same strategy which Canada, UK and other 

countries are following. With the speed of 

vaccinations in India and other countries, and 

most know that to travel they need to get a 

double dose, for WHO-approved vaccines like 

Astrazeneca’s Covishield, the NZ government 

can start the process like home quarantine for 

fully vaccinated NZ citizens, PR holders and 

relatives of these category citizens, who want 

to visit for short term stay for tourism, and also 

a pre and post covid test before and after flight 

travel,” opines Mukesh. 

Sijo agrees to the same and signs off by saying, 

“The government could take some measures to 

bring tourists to NZ, which will boost tourism 

and ultimately the economy. Border restrictions 

need to be loosened for vaccinated travellers. 

People who had two doses of vaccination should 

be allowed to enter New Zealand, or those 

people should be allowed home quarantine.”


NEW ZEALAND 7 

Your questions about Covid-19 vaccine answered 

IWK BUREAU 

accurate records. Only those people 

managing this vaccine programme 

can see, add, or change the 

information held in the CIR. 

Counties Manukau Health 

Consultant Nephrologist, 

Dr Hari Talreja is doing 

everything he can to dispel myths 

about the Covid-19 vaccine by 

sharing information in Hindi for 

Auckland’s Indian community. 

With eight years’ experience 

at Counties Manukau Health and 

previous international experience 

in Canada, Dr Talreja cares for 

patients with kidney disease and 

renal transplantation – which puts 

them at a higher risk of developing 

complications from Covid-19. 

“Therefore, as a nephrologist, I 

have been advocating my patients to 

get vaccinated,” Dr Talreja said. 

To expedite this, he and his 

colleagues have been working with 

vaccinators to get them to the dialysis 

units so patients can be vaccinated in 

one go. Dr Talreja not only works 

with his own patients, but has been 

helping to educate members of the 

wider Indian community. 

“I have been sharing information 

about the Covid vaccine, busting 

myths about it and addressing the 

concerns that people have raised. 

“I do weekly radio programs on 

Apna Radio and have also been 

doing videos in Hindi about the 

vaccine roll out.” 

Dr Talreja said for most part many 

people he comes across have been 

keen to get vaccinated. 

“They seem to understand the risks 

associated with the infection, and the 

importance of vaccination. 

“Having said that, there are some 

myths about Covid-19 vaccines in 

some, which we have tried to address 

and bust. One of the main concerns 

people have is the risk of side effects, 

understandably so. But for most 

part, it is due to misinformation 

because of unreliable and unverified 

information sources. I address these 

by providing them actual information 

about the vaccine and directing them 

to reliable information sources. 

“A few in our community were 

a bit reluctant to get vaccinated. 

However, I see this changing now.” 

Dr Talreja said what he is 

most impressed about is how the 

community is supporting each other. 

“Some volunteers are doing groceries 

for older members of the community 

for whom it has been difficult to get 

out during lockdown and the local 

temples have been providing ready 

meals to the needy. 

“From little gestures to big, it is 

heartening to see people coming 

forward to help others.” 

Q&As 

How do I book a vaccination in 

my language? 

If you call the COVID Vaccine 

Healthline (0800 28 29 26) to book 

your vaccine, the team can arrange to 

talk with you in your language. When 

your call is answered, say you would 

like an interpreter and the language 

you would like to speak in. 

You can also download a how to 

book your vaccine guide translated 

into 39 languages here 

Do I need an NHI number to 

make a vaccination booking? 

When booking your vaccination, it 

is a good idea to have your national 

health number (NHI) ready to make 

the booking process quicker, but it is 

not essential to provide one. You will 

find your number on a prescription, 

x-ray or test result, or a letter from 

the hospital. 

Do I need to show identification? 

And will my details be 

disclosed to immigration? 

You may be asked to produce 

identification to make sure that we 

have correctly recorded your details. 

We will not ask for proof of visa 

status. To have the vaccine, we need 

to collect people’s information and 

record it on the COVID Immunisation 

Register (CIR), because it is the 

clinical record of immunisation. It 

cannot be accessed by immigration. 

By law, all health services are 

required to keep complete and 

Where can I get a COVID-19 

Vaccination? 

You can make a vaccination 

booking at one of our community 

vaccination centres and selected 

general practices (GP) and 

pharmacies. 

Where can I get translated 

information? 

COVID-19 vaccination 

information is available in 39 

different languages. This includes 

information about booking an 

appointment, what to expect, travel 

restrictions and more and they are 

available here 

Who can get the vaccine? 

Everyone in New Zealand (over 12 

years) can receive their COVID-19 

vaccinations regardless of visa 

status. Everyone means everyone 

on New Zealand soil - this means 

international students and foreign 

workers. If you have an underlying 

health condition, you’re more at risk 

of getting very sick from COVID-19. 

We highly recommend that you have 

the vaccine. The vaccine is highly 

effective and does not interact with 

medications. 

The vaccine is safe in pregnancy, 

and we encourage you to get the 

vaccine if you are pregnant or 

planning a pregnancy. 

If you are concerned about the 

vaccine, please talk to your GP or 

call Healthline on 0800 26 28 29. 

About the vaccine 

The vaccine is proven to be safe 

and effective- and it’s free. People 

need two doses of the vaccine, the 

second will be given at least 21 days 

after the first. The Pfizer vaccine is 

highly effective in protecting against 

serious illness and death from 

COVID-19. If you have had two 

doses of a vaccine overseas, you are 

considered fully vaccinated. 

Like all medicines, the vaccine 

may cause side effects in some 

people. These are usually mild and 

don’t last long. 

The Pfizer vaccine has been 

thoroughly assessed for safety by our 

own Medsafe experts. Medsafe only 

grants consent for using a vaccine in 

New Zealand, once they’re satisfied 

it has met strict standards for safety, 

efficacy and quality. 

Trusted information 

When looking for information ask 

yourself where the information is 

coming from, and what the author 

wants you to believe. Just because 

an article looks good or reads well 

does not mean the quality of the 

information in it is reliable. 

COVID-19 vaccination 

information is available in 39 

different languages. This includes 

information about booking an 

appointment, what to expect, travel 

restrictions and more and they are 

available. 

Happy tummies 

for 9000 years 

For thousands of years, people have been drinking goat’s milk 

for gut health. It turns out they were on to something. Its natural 

calcium helps digestive enzymes * which promote good bacteria 

in your gut. And thousands of years later, we’ve been producing 

a delicious goat’s milk right here in New Zealand. So if you’re 

wanting to enjoy the oldest family drink in a new way, 

why not have it in your morning coffee, cereal or smoothie? 

beforecow.co.nz 

@bc_beforecow 

*With calcium supporting digestive enzymes. Use as part of a healthy, varied, balanced diet.

NEW ZEALAND / OPINION 

Friday, October 22, 2021 The Indian Weekender 

8 

Why criticism of National’s ‘Back 

to Business’ plan is disingenuous 

SANDEEP SINGH 

The criticism of the National’s “Back 

to Business” plan by experts and 

government is not only unfounded but 

is downright disingenuous. 

On October 20, Judith Collins announced 

National’s ‘Back to Business’ plan in 

Wellington, ahead of the government’s new 

Covid-19 approach announcement scheduled 

for Friday, making a bold statement of ending 

lockdowns and opening up New Zealand by 

December 1, with vaccination targets of 85-90 

percent across the country. 

The unimpressed government has hit back 

on National’s proposed financial support 

plan, sighting “financial illiteracy,” and found 

support from experts – a group that it has itself 

ignored in recent times by marching ahead in 

opening up Auckland’s lockdown under its 

own confusing stage system within Alert Level 

3 – who blamed National’s plan would risk 

vulnerable Māori and Pacifica communities. 

The fact that the government’s criticism 

of National’s plan was aimed at what has 

almost become the latter’s Achilles’ heel in 

recent times – tax cuts – clearly shows how 

muddled the government’s focus and priorities 

have been lately. 

The tax cut was not the central focus of 

National’s Back to Business plan, despite a 

poor attempt by the party in flogging a dead 

horse and seeking to revive the proposal for 

tax cuts. The key emphasis was on ending the 

lockdowns and opening New Zealand to the 

rest of the world by December 1. 

If the government is not prepared and ready 

to end lockdowns and open New Zealand by 

December 1, then it should come out and say 

when it will be ready to do so. 

New Zealanders want to know when this 

long strenuous wait in lockdown will be over, 

Back in Business – National’s plan to unleash the economy 

ANDREW BAYLY 

New Zealand is shifting 

to a new period in our 

Covid response. We are 

no longer pursuing a strategy of 

elimination. We need to rethink our 

economic strategy. 

National has today released ‘Back 

in Business’ – the plan that we 

believe the Government should be 

implementing immediately, given the 

unwelcome return of Covid into the 

community. 

National believes the business 

sector should play a much bigger role 

in our Covid response. As we head 

towards our 85-90% vaccination 

milestone, business needs a clear 

plan for moving away from blanket 

restrictions to a more sophisticated 

model based on trust and technology. 

Reopening the economy to allow 

businesses to trade is the best way 

to ensure their survival. We need to 

back our businesses to get back on 

their feet. We need to help Kiwis 

regain the confidence to take a punt, 

to start a business, to work hard and 

employ others. 

Some businesses, particularly in 

the export economy, have been able 

to do well despite Covid, but many 

others have been decimated by 

multiple lockdowns, either forced to 

stay closed or otherwise constrained 

especially with the government already having 

given up on its ‘elimination strategy’ and 

pursuing a ‘suppression strategy’ in managing 

the Delta outbreak. 

Till date, New Zealanders do not know 

clearly what the government’s approach toward 

the Delta virus is – does it want to stamp out the 

virus completely or accept the reality that it is 

here to stay for some foreseeable future. 

As of today, 85 percent of people aged (12 

and over) have had at least one dose of the 

Pfizer vaccine, and it is expected that in the next 

six weeks by December 1, the total number 

with both doses will be between 85-90 percent 

– when National’s proposed Back to Business 

plan is asking for ending lockdowns. 

If the government would not end lockdown 

and open New Zealand by then, with that 

level of vaccination, then what is their target 

for vaccination rates and the date by which it 

proposes to achieve that and let New Zealanders 

come out of lockdown and more importantly, 

let a million-strong Kiwis living overseas 

return home and reunite with families? 

Is the government alluding to suggestions 

by some experts that even with 90 percent 

vaccination an abandonment in restrictions 

would result in 1500 deaths and 13,000 to 

14,000 hospitalisations over the next year? 

in their ability to operate, despite in 

many cases it being safe for them to 

do so. 

In the two months before the 

latest outbreak, more than 11,000 

businesses closed their doors for 

good. Without urgent action, this 

lockdown will see many more 

businesses and their workers go the 

same way. This can be avoided with 

the right plan – and National has it. 

Our economic approach involves 

two phases – one that would take 

effect now, and the other that looks 

to the long term. 

Phase 1 – Provide immediate 

support 

This includes a raft of initiatives 

that National would implement 

to provide immediate support 

to struggling businesses. This 

includes fixing the wage subsidy, 

implementing a cash rental support, 

and extending the loss carry-back 

scheme. 

We would provide clarity around 

public health rules for businesses, 

including vaccination requirements. 

We would develop smarter rules for 

operating under alert levels, and fix 

the alert level regional boundaries. 

We would also reduce the burden on 

businesses and workers by providing 

tax relief to small businesses and 

high-impact tax cuts for workers. We 

would freeze any new regulations 

for two years, provide incentives 

for business investment, and deliver 

mental health support for small 

businesses. 

Finally, we would deliver targeted 

support to save highly affected 

industries, including hospitality, 

accommodation, tourism and 

event businesses, and establish an 

insurance scheme for major events. 

Phase 2 – Evolve the approach 

Once we reach a target vaccination 

rate of between 85-90%, we need 

to stop imposing hugely damaging 

So, what is the vaccination rate target those 

experts are proposing beyond 90 percent, 

when they think that removing restrictions 

would become risk-free? And how far is New 

Zealand, at current rates, to achieve that level 

of vaccination target? 

Clearly, there is not much meat in criticism 

coming from a lot of experts these days, who 

are busy suggesting what is not feasible instead 

of proposing what is doable and achievable, 

thus leaving all decision-making on changing 

Alert levels to mere gut-feeling and risk-taking 

appetites of the political leadership. 

This explains why Prime Minister Jacinda 

Ardern has been finding ways to not abide by 

some experts’ repeated suggestions of putting 

Auckland in snap lockdown under Alert Level 

4 – as she is politically savvy enough to read 

that Aucklanders are becoming jaded under 

lockdowns. 

National under Judith Collins is 

demonstrating a little more adventurism in 

taking the risk of putting out a clear date and 

target, which is easily achievable at current 

rates of vaccination, for ending lockdowns and 

opening up New Zealand. 

Both Ardern and Collins are demonstrating 

a risk-taking appetite in managing the Delta 

outbreak going forward, except that Ardern is 

lockdowns and move towards a 

strategy of vigorous suppression 

of the virus, with safe, vaccinated 

workplaces that have a culture of 

regular testing. 

This also means we can reopen the 

border and reconnect to the world. 

We would allow Kiwis to come 

home, and the need for isolation will 

depend on them having a negative 

Covid test and the risk profile of the 

country from where they are coming. 

It also means giving priority to 

skilled migrants and Kiwis, such as 

ICU nurses. Given the few numbers 

of people here under the Working 

Holiday visa, we would immediately 

increase the RSE quota by 5,000 

people to assist our farmers and 

horticulturists. 

Our economic plan follows the 

release of Opening Up: National’s 

plan to tackle COVID-19, end 

lockdowns and reopen to the world, 

which was released in late September. 

National believes that getting 

vaccination rates up and filling in 

the gaps in our Covid defences is 

a vital first step to saving jobs and 

businesses. Placing the country in 

and out of lockdown and limiting the 

flow of people to and from our shores 

is not a credible long-term strategy. 

New Zealand faces some broader 

economic challenges over the long 

term, such as our low productivity 

choosing to remain more conservative while 

Collins is willing to be more adventurous. 

So why is one approach better than the other 

when both are treading away from experts’ 

advice? 

On the contrary, there is more certainty and 

a clear plan in National’s bold adventurism and 

hope of coming out early from long strenuous 

lockdowns and minimise the collateral damage 

on the small businesses sector. 

Whereas Ardern’s conservative approach is 

not only keeping Aucklanders in long strenuous 

lockdowns and families divided by closed 

borders, which are now at 18 months, and yet 

is seeing that Delta is not stamped out of the 

community. It is time for the government to 

take decisive actions under strict deadlines, 

particularly around increasing vaccination rates 

within our vulnerable communities. 

The vaccination rates of Pacifica and Maori 

communities are hovering around 81 per cent 

and 66 per cent, respectively with one dose, 

clearly showing where more efforts are required 

by the government to boost vaccination rates. 

The efforts to reach out to every household in 

such communities and engage with community 

stakeholders to address the issue of vaccine 

confidence within a set rigid deadline should be 

made on a war footing. 

A lot is at stake, with millions of New 

Zealanders bogged down under long lockdowns 

and tens of thousands of Kiwi families 

remaining divided across closed borders. 

This has to end fast, especially because it has 

begun to end in the rest of the world. 

National has, probably for the first time 

since the beginning of the Covid pandemic, 

offered something that is believable, doable, 

achievable, and much needed by a majority of 

New Zealanders. 

growth, declining educational 

achievement, persistently higher 

Māori and Pacific unemployment, 

and a growing infrastructure deficit. 

In time, National will set out detailed 

plans to address these problems and 

more. 

But ‘Back in Business’ is about the 

here and now. It’s about the emerging 

crisis in business confidence and 

the need to address it. It’s about 

backing our hospitality businesses, 

our tourism sector, our retailers, 

our building trades, our farmers and 

growers. 

It’s about making sure that once 

we’re through this pandemic and 

safely reconnected to the world, we 

have an economy left that can seize 

the opportunities of a post-Covid 

world. Above all, it’s about acting 

now before it’s too late. 

Back in Business: National’s plan 

to save livelihoods and unleash our 

economy is available on the National 

Party website at www.national.org. 

nz/back-in-business. 

Andrew Bayly is the National 

Party’s Shadow Treasurer, 

Spokesperson for Revenue, 

Infrastructure and Statistics, and 

the MP for Port Waikato; he can 

be contacted at andrew.bayly@ 

parliament.govt.nz 

The views expressed in this article 

do not necessarily reflect the 

views of The Indian Weekender


NEW ZEALAND 9 

UK, NZ agree historic trade deal 

BRITISH HIGH COMMISSION/ IWK 

BUREAU 

• UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson seals free trade 

deal with New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern. 

• Boost to British and New Zealand exporters and 

small businesses as both countries remove tariffs 

and cut red tape. 

• More opportunities to live and work in each other’s 

countries, and deeper cooperation on digital trade 

and climate change. 

A 

comprehensive trade agreement between the 

United Kingdom and New Zealand will cut red 

tape for businesses, end tariffs on goods exports 

and create new opportunities for tech and services 

companies, while making it easier for professionals to 

live and work in both countries. 

The ground-breaking deal was agreed in a video call 

last night (20 October) between UK Prime Minister 

Boris Johnson and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda 

Ardern, after 16 months of talks by Department of 

International Trade negotiators. 

UK-New Zealand trade was worth £2.3 billion GBP 

last year and is set to grow under the deal. The deal will 

remove barriers to trade and deepen access for the UK’s 

advanced tech and services companies, while making 

it easier for smaller businesses to break into the New 

Zealand market. 

Tariffs as high as 10% will be removed on a huge 

range of UK goods, from clothing and footwear to 

buses, ships, bulldozers and excavators, giving British 

exporters an advantage over international rivals in the 

New Zealand import market-a market which is expected 

to grow by around 30% by 2030.High-quality New 

Zealand products loved by British consumers, from 

Sauvignon Blanc wine to Manuka honey and kiwi 

fruits, will be cheaper to buy. 

UK and NZ workers will benefit from improved 

usiness travel arrangements and professionals such as 

lawyers and architects will be able to work in the UK or 

New Zealand more easily, allowing companies to set up 

shop and bring their best talent with them. Both sides 

have also committed to a mobility dialogue outside 

the trade agreement that will consider how people-topeople 

links can be deepened further. 

The New Zealand trade deal follows advanced free 

trade agreements already struck with Australia and 

Japan and helps pave the way for UK to join Trans- 

Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), a free trade area of 11 

Pacific nations with a GDP of £8.4 trillion in 2020 

Auckland Santa parade cancelled 

Auckland’s Santa Parade 

and New Zealand’s 

largest cycling event 

are the latest events to be 

disrupted by the ongoing 

uncertainty caused by the 

Covid Delta outbreak. 

The Christmas parade in 

Auckland has been cancelled 

for the first time in decades. 

In a statement, organisers said Santa has been hit by Covid delays and cannot 

arrive earlier than Christmas Eve. 

Santa Parade chair Michael Barnett said the parade will be back bigger and 

better in 2022. 

Meanwhile, New Zealand’s largest cycling event, the BDO Lake Taupo Cycle 

Challenge, has been postponed because of ongoing uncertainty caused by Covid 

levels. It will now run mid-February rather than its usual slot late November. In 

a statement, the organisers say the current situation is too uncertain to go ahead 

this year. 

There were a record 102 new community cases reported in New Zealand today, 

including eight in Waikato. 

One of the new Waikato cases reported today travelled to Hawke’s Bay last 

Friday, but the Health Ministry says there is a low risk of infection. 

At today’s media conference, Director-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield 

said one of the Waikato cases undertook permitted travel to Hawke’s Bay on 

Friday, before being confirmed as a positive case. They returned to Te Awamutu 

before testing positive and Dr Bloomfield confirmed there were no known positive 

cases in Hawke’s Bay. 

People in the Te Awamutu are being urged to get tested if they or anyone in their 

household has symptoms, or if they have travelled out of Te Awamutu over the 

past week for work or other activities. 

Celebrate your Diwali with Moti Mahal 

Sweets & Snacks Indian Restaurant 

Come and enjoy free Tea without any obligation 

726 Great South Road, Manukau City Centre, Auckland. 

Ph- 09263 0664

10 NEW ZEALAND 

2023 census first to collect 

gender, sexual identity in NZ 

STATISTICS NEW ZEALAND/ IWK 

BUREAU 

The 2023 Census will be the first to ask 

everyone in New Zealand about their 

gender, sexual identity, and whether 

they have any variations of sex characteristics 

(also known as intersex status), Stats NZ said 

today. 

The confirmation came through the 

publication of the 2023 Census: Final content 

report, which confirms all the topics that will be 

collected in the 2023 Census. 

“People’s sense of their gender and sexual 

identity is really important to them and can 

impact on their lives and experiences. The 

census touches everyone and will provide a 

detailed picture of how people with diverse 

genders and sexual identities experience life in 

New Zealand. The data will also inform better 

decision making and provision of services for 

the Rainbow community,” social and population 

insights general manager Jason Attewell said. 

“We are already collecting sexual identity 

and gender in our other household surveys and 

that is going well. It is important that everyone 

is able to see themselves in – and take part in – 

the census.” 

Collecting information on gender and sexual 

identity in the census will allow more detailed 

geographic breakdowns of the data produced 

than may be possible for data collected in 

household surveys. 

The 2023 Census also marks the first time in 

any Stats NZ survey that information will be 

collected on variations of sex characteristics 

(also known as intersex status). 

“This is exciting because for the first time we 

will have data about the intersex community 

and just how many people in New Zealand are 

part of this community,” Mr Attewell said. 

Questions on sexual identity (for example, 

heterosexual, gay, or lesbian) and variations of 

sex characteristics will only be asked of people 

aged 15 years or older. 

Just as for other information collected in the 

census, it will be important to get good quality 

responses to these new questions. This will 

help ensure the data is of sufficient quality to 

be released and fit for use by communities and 

decision makers. If the data is not of sufficient 

quality, we may not be able to release it. 

“The most important thing people can do to 

ensure we can release data for every question 

is to fill in all of their census form. The more 

answers we collect, the better the quality of the 

data and the more useful and usable it will be,” 

Deputy Government Statistician and Deputy 

Chief Executive for Census and Collection 

Operations Simon Mason said. 

“We know we have a part to play too, by 

making the census accessible and easy for 

everyone to complete, and we’re working hard 

to do this.” 

Final decisions on the content for the 

2023 Census were informed by engagement 

and testing following the publication of the 

preliminary views on 2023 Census content in 

2020. 

Other changes to 2023 content 

Other changes to content for the 2023 Census 

are: 

• that the information collected on sex will 

now be sex at birth, whereas previously we 

collected information on sex without further 

clarifying what that meant 

• the collection of additional information on 

activity limitations/disability 

• the reinstatement of a question on phone 

number 

• the reinstatement of a question on the 

number of census night occupants. 

The additional information collected on 

activity limitations/disability will be whether a 

person has a disability, long-term condition, or 

mental health condition that limits their ability to 

carry out everyday activities. This will capture 


a larger group of disabled people, who may be 

missed by the existing questions on activity 

limitations (difficulty with seeing, hearing, 

walking or climbing steps, remembering or 

concentrating, washing all over or dressing, and 

communicating). 

This additional information will be used to 

select the sample for the 2023 New Zealand 

Disability Survey that will take place after the 

2023 Census. Reinstating the phone number 

question for the 2023 Census will enable us to 

contact people by phone to participate in this 

survey. 

The purpose of reinstating number of census 

night occupants is to help improve overall data 

quality for population and dwelling counts and 

for family and household data, and to make our 

collection processes more efficient. 

New Zealand’s census currently collects 

a wide range of information by international 

standards. One benefit of the limited content 

change for 2023 is that it helps to maintain data 

comparability over time, making it easier to do 

time series analysis. 

Another factor in the decision to limit 

content change for 2023 was the number of 

changes made to the forms between 2013 and 

2018. Significant consultation and review were 

undertaken before the 2018 Census, which 

informed these changes. 

Census data has many important uses such 

as allocating funding for health and education, 

making decisions on facilities needed in local 

areas, and understanding the wellbeing of 

population groups in New Zealand, including 

local, ethnic, and other communities. 


NCEA and NZ 

Scholarship Exams 

to proceed 

NCEA and New Zealand Scholarship 

exams will proceed, including in areas 

where Alert Level 3 has been in place, 

Education Minister Chris Hipkins said today. 

“The New Zealand Qualifications Authority, 

Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health 

have been working together to ensure exams 

can be managed in a safe way, so students have 

the opportunity to demonstrate what they have 

learned,” Chris Hipkins said. 

“In regions experiencing COVID-19 

disruption in Term 4 – when students are 

normally preparing for exams – NZQA has 

confirmed these students will be eligible for 

an ‘Unexpected Event Grade’, recognising the 

work they have done. 

“While students will be expected to attend 

exams where possible, this long-established 

Unexpected Event Grade process will reflect 

– at a larger scale – what happens in any year 

when a student’s attendance or performance in 

exams is affected by an illness or injury. 

“Students in these regions who cannot attend 

an exam because of a specific COVID-19 

disruption will receive their Unexpected Event 

Grade. 

"Where they do attend the exam, they will 

receive the better of their exam grade or their 

Unexpected Event Grade. 

“Unexpected Event Grades are based on 

evidence gathered by teachers during the 

year, and undergo a quality assurance process 

to make sure they relate to the standard being 

assessed. 

“NZQA will work with schools on measures 

that align with public health guidance to protect 

students and staff in exam rooms. Social 

distancing is, of course, a normal part of exam 

conditions. 

“While classroom teaching and learning 

was disrupted by COVID-19, students have 

continued to work hard, and deserve the 

opportunity to safely demonstrate what they 

have learned. 

"Today’s decision provides certainty, while 

ensuring those who are not able to perform at 

their best will have their specific circumstances 

recognised,” Chris Hipkins said. 

Alliance formed to fight supermarket power 

CONSUMER NZ/ IWK 

worse off in terms of price paid at the 

BUREAU 

checkout, choice and innovation. 

It’s an unlikely pairing, but 

"With the lack of any real 

Consumer NZ and The NZ 

competition between the two 

Food & Grocery Council have 

supermarket chains, they’ve been 

published a joint open letter to 

parliament today calling for a shakeup 

of the supermarket industry. 

“We are not always allies, but 

we both agree the concentration of 

market power in our supermarket 

sector is producing poor outcomes 

able to maintain staggering profit 

margins which are not enjoyed 

anywhere else in the world,” New 

Zealand Food & Grocery Council 

chief executive Katherine Rich said. 

Consumer NZ and the Food & 

Grocery Council are calling for 

and putting strain on New 

the following changes to benefit 

Zealand households. 

"Both consumers and suppliers are 

consumers and suppliers: 

• A mandatory Code of Conduct 

being held to ransom by the duopoly income. What we’re hearing from found concerns about the cost of 

for supermarkets to govern 

of Foodstuffs and Woolworths NZ,” many New Zealanders is that food and groceries have climbed in dealings between suppliers and 

Consumer NZ chief executive Jon they’re having to spend too much the past few months with grocery supermarkets, address the power 

Duffy said. 

of their weekly pay packet to keep cost concerns ahead of those about imbalance and make business 

Analysis of Stats NZ data show themselves fed. 

fuel, healthcare, energy, insurance relationships fairer. Similar codes 

the cost of an average shop for a "Whatever way you slice it, the and phone bills. Concerns about food are already in place in Australia 

typical household equates to 15- cost of groceries keeps going up and prices come in second to rent and and the UK. 

20% of income for median or lower the duopoly’s profits are persistently mortgage costs. 

• An increased role for the 

income earners. 

high. Each year households “Supermarkets are crucial to our Commerce Commission 

“The general consensus is that are getting squeezed further,” communities and economy – but including monitoring retail 

grocery expenditure should sit 

Duffy said. 

the duopoly are bullying suppliers, prices and store margins, 

between 5-15% of total household 

Consumer NZ’s Sentiment Tracker even large ones, and consumers are setting consumer information 

standards to require unit pricing 

and prevent confusing pricing 

and promotional strategies, and 

limiting the adverse effects of 

loyalty programmes. 

• Prohibiting restrictive land 

covenants and exclusivity 

covenants entered into for 

anticompetitive reasons, with 

immediate effect on existing 

covenants. 

• The right for suppliers to bargain 

collectively to redress the power 

imbalance between suppliers and 

supermarkets. 

• Increasing wholesale access 

to a wide range of groceries at 

competitive prices. 

• If the commission is not satisfied 

that increasing wholesale access 

will work either now or in the 

future, then full enforced structural 

separation between wholesale 

and retail and/or compulsory 

divestment of a significant 

proportion of supermarkets to 

arm’s length third parties.


NEW ZEALAND 11 

‘Significant decline’ in twoway 

trade between Fiji, NZ 

FIJI TIMES 

The pandemic has had a huge effect on trade between New 

Zealand and Fiji, as the $1.1 billion(US$526 million) twoway 

trading relationship had dropped to around about $550 

million(US$263 million) in the year to June 2021. 

This was according to NZ Trade Commissioner to the Pacific 

David Dewar, who said a large part of that was explained by the 

obvious stoppage of travel because of the pandemic. 

“Tourism was such a huge part of the economy, not just for Fiji 

but also for NZ and the traders between the two,” he said. 

“And a lot of businesses were reliant on that tourism sector, travel 

bookings, people that service resorts, you know, manufacturing 

food and beverage providers. 

“So there’s been quite a significant decline in a large part of Fiji’s 

exports to NZ, but we’re really hoping I think that once that growth 

of people comes back, we’ll start seeing some of those opportunities 

materialise again.” 

Dewar said in the meantime, there had been some really 

innovative responses that a lot of companies had done, such as 

virtual delivery of training and courses of service providers such 

as engineering. 

He added, oversight of projects had been something that a lot 

of companies have brought in, which had been fantastic but no 

substitute for the face-to-face contact. 

“So we’re really looking forward to having people be able to get 

back over and to grow those business opportunities.” 

He said in the first year of his appointment as the trade 

commissioner to the Pacific, they will be looking quite hard at a lot 

of bigger building infrastructure type of projects. 

“There are a lot of NZ companies that are doing phenomenal 

work in the infrastructure sector, you only have to look at the road 

builders and the constructors to see some very familiar NZ brands 

out there doing some excellent high-quality work. 

“And I think what we’re really looking at this in the short term, 

as the Pacific Region positioned itself for the economic recovery, 

there’s a lot of investment going in from governments, Pacific 

governments, from foreign governments and aid donors around 

David Dewar is the New Zealand trade commissioner to the Pacific. 

Picture: SUPPLIED 

some of that infrastructure build. 

“And we’re really looking, I think, at trying to help both NZ and 

Pacific companies position themselves better to partner in on some 

of those bigger projects.” 

Dewar added part of it was giving these businesses a bit of 

visibility of opportunities that were coming up and part of it was 

about helping them build their capability. 

He also said part of it was around helping them identify partners, 

which is where the NZ Fiji Business Council was such critical 

enforcement of that. 

Half a million Kiwis 

have no savings 

CONSUMER NZ/IWK BUREAU 

New findings from the Consumer NZ sentiment 

tracker found that 15% of New Zealanders had 

no savings, and a further 27% were anxious about 

their level of savings and would like 

to have more tucked away. 

“Stagnant wage growth 

and the rising cost of living 

means that many people are 

living pay cheque to pay 

cheque - they just can’t get 

ahead. Unsurprisingly when 

we asked New Zealanders 

what they consider to be the 

most concerning issues, the cost 

of living came second only to the 

state of our nation’s housing,” Consumer 

NZ head of communications and campaigns Gemma 

Rasmussen said. 

“Many people are struggling to put money away, with 

only one in four satisfied with their level of savings. Many 

are doing it tough - over the past three months, half of New 

Zealanders had saved 5% or less of their income. 

“One in 10 respondents spent more than they saved, 

landing themselves in the red.” 

The nationally representative survey found a fifth of those 

aged 50-59 had no savings at all, more than any other age 

group. While respondents in this age group are struggling 

to save, their looming retirements are weighing heavily on 

mind. Six out of 10 noted retirement as being one of their 

saving priorities (along with 71% of those aged 60-69 years 

old). 

The standard of living for those in their 50’s and 60’s isn’t 

getting much better either. For both groups, only one in 10 

felt their standard of living had improved over the past year. 

Earlier this year, the Sentiment Tracker revealed that 

rising costs have rippled into the housing market. Three out 

of five property owners said they’d be unable to afford to 

buy the homes in which they currently live. 

पानी हमारी परवाह करता है, 

आइए पानी की परवाह करें 

WCL0014 Watercare Spring_PRESS_175x255mm_v6.indd 3 

21/10/21 2:16 PM

Editorial 

Time is running 

out – Friday is 

D-day 

Time is running out for the government to get its act together in coming up with and 

implementing a clear strategy and pathway out of lockdowns and other restrictions 

around the pandemic. 

Starting out with clear decisive action following the arrival of Covid-19 on New 

Zealand shores in February 2020, the government earned the world’s accolades for 

its deft management of the initial outbreaks with its “go hard, go early” mantra. New 

Zealand was the poster child on how to beat the virus for well over a year, enjoying the 

freedoms that were denied to most countries around the globe. 

That perhaps made the administration a bit too smug. 

The arrival of the Delta variant in August this year caught the government completely 

off guard, exposing the many chinks in its armour, causing it to ultimately let go of its 

much-vaunted elimination strategy, something nation after nation had been giving up 

because of the different reality of the Delta variant. 

And no one ought to be blamed for this state of affairs other than the government 

itself. It let the pesky virus get the better of all of us New Zealanders because of a mix 

of misplaced altruism, smugness at its early achievement, delays in taking a raft of 

vital decisions and even perhaps a tinge of hubris. 

Having dithered all along in correcting its woefully inadequate and leaky managed 

isolation and quarantine (MIQ) system, its unconscionably delayed vaccine rollout 

plan, its confused tinkering with the alert level system and its callous MIQ booking 

system for returning Kiwis, effectively shutting them out of their homeland, the 

government still can’t find its bearings in setting out a clear path out of this pandemic. 

Add to this its long-muddled immigration system that has kept more than a 

thousand vitally-needed health professionals from taking up roles in an already 

inadequate intensive care system which is feared to run out of capacity shortly not 

just because there are not enough ICU beds in the country, but also because there are 

no qualified staff to run them mainly because these professionals have been stuck 

overseas, unable to return either because of the broken MIQ system or because of their 

immigration status. 

In its attempt to almost hermetically seal New Zealand’s borders to protect us from 

Delta, the government has only succeeded in sealing it for New Zealanders wishing 

to return home and desperately needed health and intensive care workers – while 

allowing Delta to infiltrate into the community no thanks to its leaky quarantine system 

comprising unfit-for-purpose hotels often situated in busy urban areas. 

Now the government has not only all but abandoned the elimination strategy, but it 

also appears to be abandoning the uber cautious, almost doom and gloom advice of its 

modellers. Recent pronouncements appear to indicate that the government is set to part 

its ways with the idea of basing its entire pandemic response based on health advice. 

Quite clearly, realpolitik is beginning to kick in. 

Auckland, the country’s economic engine, is clearly fed up with the government’s 

non-strategy and continued dithering especially when they see the entire world 

including states across the ditch are opening up even though new cases are 

rising. It serves no one to keep the world shut when that in no way is going to 

help keep the virus away. 

The government has no choice but to open up – the question is when. 

The National Party has thrown the gauntlet by declaring that it would open up on 

December 1. 

It will be interesting to see how the government responds 

with its Friday announcement. 

While opening up is one thing, the government must also declare convincingly what 

its mitigating measures will be as cases undoubtedly begin to mount and put increasing 

pressure on the health system. 

Clearly, time is running out for this government. Friday is D-day. 

Thought of the week 

"Success is not final; failure is not 

fatal: It is the courage to continue 

that counts." — Winston S. Churchill 

22 October 2021 – 28 October 

Fri Sat Sun Mon Tues Wed Thu 

On-and-off 

rain and 

drizzle 

22° 

15° 

On-and-off 

rain and 

drizzle 

19° 

13° 

This week in New Zealand’s history 

Indian Weekender : Volume 13 Issue 33 

Publisher: Kiwi Media Publishing Limited 

Editor: Dev Nadkarni | dev@indianweekender.co.nz 

Chief Technical Officer: Rohan deSouza | rohan@indianweekender.co.nz 

Graphic Designer: Yashmin Chand | design@indianweekender.co.nz 

Accounts and Admin.: 09-2173623 | accounts@indianweekender.co.nz 

Media Sales Manager.: Leena Pal: 021 952 216 | leena@indianweekender.co.nz 

Sales and Distribution: 021 952218 | sales@indianweekender.co.nz 

Views expressed in the publication are not necessarily of the publisher and the publisher 

is not responsible for advertisers’ claims as appearing in the publication 

Views expressed in the articles are solely of the authors and do not in any way represent 

the views of the team at the Indian Weekender 

Kiwi Media Publishing Limited - 133A, Level 1, Onehunga Mall, Onehunga, Auckland. 

Printed at Horton Media, Auckland 

Clouds 

and 

sun 

19° 

14° 

Clouds 

and 

sun 

20° 

14° 

23 October 1869 

New Zealand ensign proclaimed 

Clouds 

and 

showers 

20° 

14° 

Copyright 2020. Kiwi Media Publishing Limited. All Rights Reserved. 

A few 

morning 

showers 

21° 

15° 

A few 

morning 

showers 

26° 

17° 

The design of the New Zealand ensign that was to be flown by ships owned by the colonial 

government was established by the publication in the New Zealand Gazette of a proclamation 

by the governor, Sir George Bowen. 


New Zealand nurses lost in Marquette sinking 

The sinking of the transport ship Marquette in the Aegean Sea in late 1915 added to the grief 

of a nation still reeling from the heavy losses at Gallipoli. Among the 167 fatalities were 32 

New Zealanders, including 10 members of the New Zealand Army Nursing Service. 


All Blacks win their second World Cup 

The All Blacks won the Webb Ellis Cup for the second time in seven attempts, defending 

grimly to hold onto an 8–7 lead over France in front of 61,000 spectators at Eden Park, 

Auckland. 


Foundation of IHC 

At a meeting in the British Medical Association (BMA) Rooms on the Terrace in Wellington, 

an interim committee for the Intellectually Handicapped Children’s Parents’ Association 

(IHCPA) – the forerunner to IHC – was formed. 


End of the line for steam railways 

The Christchurch–Dunedin overnight express, headed by a JA-class locomotive, ran the last 

scheduled steam-hauled service on New Zealand Railways (NZR), bringing to an end 108 

years of regular steam rail operations in this country. 


Women Jurors Act allows women to sit on juries 

The Act provided for women aged between 25 and 60 to have their names placed on the jury 

list on the same basis as men – if they so desired. 


First opposed New Zealand landing since Gallipoli 

Troops of 8 Brigade, 3 New Zealand Division, landed on Mono, one of the Treasury Islands 

in the Solomons group, to help clear it of Japanese forces.

The Indian Weekender Friday, October 22, 2021 FIJI 13 

New Zealand partners with 

Fiji to target illicit trade 

FBC 

Fiji’s border protection will 

be further enhanced with 

the introduction of new 

trace detection devices at the 

international borders.New Zealand 

Government has provided kits 

worth more than $44,000 with 

additional consumables worth more 

than $4,000. 

The trace detection device 

will support Fiji Revenue and 

Customs Services to conduct a risk 

Massive demand 

from overseas for 

Fiji travel 

Fiji Airways has so far received over 

19,000 bookings from people wanting 

to travel when the airline hits the skies 

on December 1. And this also includes those 

Fijians who reside in overseas countries and 

want to travel here to visit family and friends. 

This will also be the first time Fiji allows 

tourists back since April last year, when the first 

wave of COVID-19 hit us. 

There have been repatriation and freight 

flights happening and the excitement is now 

building with tourists ready to enjoy the Fijian 

hospitality.Fiji Airways Chief Executive and 

Managing Director, Andre Viljoen 

Fiji Airways Chief Executive and Managing 

assessment of cargo and passengers 

more effectively. 

Board Chair, Mahmood Khan 

says the assistance is a timely boost 

for Fiji’s border security system as 

Fiji is reopening its international 

borders. 

Khan says the FRCS will be able 

Director, Andre Viljoen says it is exciting times 

ahead. 

“We are now sitting on 19,000 bookings and it 

shows you that since the announcement to now, 

how this is just booming. 

"And many of those are holiday packages and 

a number of them are also their Fijian colleagues 

who wish to come back to Fiji and friends. 

"So we call it VFAR, visiting friends and 

relatives are coming back. So very exciting and 

it shows you there is a lot of interest not only in 

VFAR, and holiday makers are really booking 

to enhance its ability to manage 

potential risks of illicit goods being 

brought into the country. 

He adds it will help deter drug 

trafficking, transnational organized 

crime and ensure the facilitation of 

legitimate trade. 

The units were coordinated 

through the New Zealand High 

Commission in Fiji alongside the 

New Zealand Customs Service and 

Civil Aviation Authority of New 

Zealand and New Zealand Aviation 

Security Service. 

their tickets.” 

Apart from Fiji Airways, Qantas and Virgin 

Australia will also be flying here from December. 

“ 

We are now sitting on 19,000 

bookings and it shows you 

that since the announcement to 

now, how this is just booming. 

"And many of those are holiday 

packages and a number of 

them are also their Fijian 

colleagues who wish to come 

back to Fiji and friends 

Fiji’s international border will open to 

its partner countries such as Australia, New 

Zealand, United States of America, United 

Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Canada, 

Qatar, Germany, Spain, France, the Republic of 

Korea, Singapore, Switzerland, Japan and most 

Pacific Island Countries and Territories. 

India offers 

scholarships for 

Fijians 

Fijian students completing their 

secondary education this year have 

a chance to study in India under 

the Indian High Commission’s 2022 

Scholarship Program. 

While in Lautoka over the weekend, 

a team from the embassy highlighted 30 

scholarships available for Fijian students 

who wished to pursue careers in a wide 

range of fields. Indian High Commission 

second secretary Ashok Kumar Singh 

said the scholarships were available to 

students who were interested in studying 

in some of India’s prestigious institutions. 

“They can apply for most of the 

courses they want to pursue except for 

medicine,” he said. 

“They can study in some of the best 

universities in India which is something 

that not even our citizens have access 

to.So these 30 scholarships are available 

to students who are completing their high 

school education and they want to study 

in very good universities while learning 

and experiencing our culture. 

“These scholarships will cover 

everything, including airfares when they 

begin their studies until they complete it. 

We have scholarships for Bachelor and 

even Masters programs so we want to 

really encourage our Fijian students to 

apply for them because this is a once in a 

lifetime opportunity.” 

The scheme has been administered 

by the Indian Council for Cultural 

Relations (ICCR) with the support 

of the High Commission of India 

and the Swami Vivekananda 

Cultural Centre. 

BOOK ADS IN 

NEWSPAPER 

The most widely circulated WEEKLY 

publication for Kiwi-Indians and the most 

popular news platform with a strong 

online, social media, and print. We deal 

with all major advertising: Digital, Social 

Media and Newspaper Print advertising. 

PROPERTY 

AUTOMOBILE 

EDUCATION 

Call us for a customised advertising 

solution with Indian Weekender 

021 952 216 

Email sales@indianweekender.co.nz / 

leena@indianweekender.co.nz 

www.indianweekender.co.nz 

IMMIGRATION 

MORTGAGE 

EVENTS 

NEW ZEALAND 

Over a ton of colour to be used at 

Krishna Holi 2021 event in Kumeu 

The Indian Weekender Friday, February 12, 2021 11 

RIZWAN MOHAMMAD 

T 

he biggest Holi event in the country 

on Sunday, February 14 at ISKCON 

Temple in Kumeu will put over one 

ton of colours for 10,000 visitors to play with 

celebrating the annual Hindu festival. 

Holi is one of the most popular and widely 

celebrated festivals for the Indian community 

after Diwali that is celebrated by the diaspora 

and the adjoining communities across the globe. 

The annual festival of colour falls on March 

28-29 this year, and the religious element of the 

festival signifies the triumph of good over evil. 

It is observed a the end of winter and advent of 

spring month (in the Indian subcontinent), and 

spiritual part of the festival starts with Holika 

Dahan (burning demon Holika) also known as 

Chhoti Holi and the following day as Holi. 

In its 9th year, Krishna Holi event at the 

iconic Hare Krishna Temple in Kumeu, West 

Auckland attracts thousands of people from all 

walks of life, different ethnicities and faiths to 

be a part of a colourful and joyous event. 

Speaking with the Indian Weekender, 

Krishna Chandra from the temple said they are 

excited to see the festive season of Holi back 

after a gloomy year of Covid-19 in the country. 

“Holi at the Krishna Temple is one of the 

most vibrant events in our calendar- we see 

families dressed white clothing visi the temple 

and then dance and drench in dry and wet 

colours from noon till early evening,” Krishna 

Chandra, secretary and spokesperson of Hare 

Krishna Temple said. 

The temple spread over 100 acres start the 

free event at 11 a.m. and will have stalls that 

distribute at least ten to 12 colours, and there 

will also be watercolours for the visitors. 

A giant LED screen is also installed on the 

stage with a DJ and live music for the attendees 

to dance and have fun. 

“It’s a family-friendly- tobacco and alcoholfree 

event. People of all ages can have fun as 

there will be colour stalls, water stations, food 

stalls, changing rooms, showering stations for 

people drenched in colour,” Mr Chandra said. 

He added tha the temple stocks colours to be sanitisers are in place for people, arrangements 

used at the festival at least 2-3 years at a time. for children activities, so that everyone gets to 

The temple will be used over a ton of colour at enjoy the even to its fullest. 

the event both in its dry form and with water. “We have volunteers, security to usher 

“We have given 200 kgs of colour to fire vehicles to park in the appropriate places, 

brigade who will mix it in their water tank manage the oncoming and returning traffic, 

and then splash it on the visitors at different and make sure visitors feel comfortable at the 

intervals. 

event,” Mr Chandra added. 

“Since this year’s event coincides with The event organisers have appealed the 

Valentine’s Day, we have kept valentine theme visitors to come in white dress as colours tend event like previous years will be high octane, 

gifts and gift station too at the venue for the to exhibit its vibrancy on white clothing, get full of energy and good vibes,” Mr Chandra 

public to celebrate the occasion there,” Mr spare clothing to change after playing with added. 

Chandra added. 

colour and food and water arrangements have ISKCON Temple is located on 1229 

Mr Chandra says all arrangements in been made a the venue. 

Coatesville-Riverhead Highway, Kumeu, West 

terms of Covid QR Code scanning and hand “Hol is always a fun event and Krishna Holi Auckland, and the event starts at noon to 5 p.m. 

Hare Krishna temple to host ‘Saatvik food festival’ 

RIZWAN MOHAMMAD 

T 

he Hare Krishna Temple in Kumeu, West Auckland 

is hosting its annual food festival event on Saturday, 

February 13, for the community. 

More than 3000 people are expected to attend the event 

where they will be served saatvik vegetarian food, tour the 

temple premises and have a relaxing family-fun day. 

“Our Hare Krishna Food Festival is very popular amongs the 

wider Kiwi community in Auckland, people from all faiths and 

ethnicities come to the temple, take a tour of the place knowing 

about the deities, the ISKCON establishment, its works for the 

community and have snacks and food during the day,” Krishna 

Chandra, secretary and spokesperson for Hare Krishna temple 

told the Indian Weekender. 

The event is said to be quiet, and exhibit a relaxing 

environment where people get to meet new people, make 

friends, experience the calmness being with nature, have 

Saatvik (pure) vegetarian food and have good family day. 

“This event is happening just one day before our most 

popular Krishna Holi event which is will be loud, full of energy, 

playfulness, music and dance,” Mr Chandra added. 

The events will start at 2 p.m. and end at seven in the evening. 

Besides the food festival, Krishna Temple organises lunch 

event every Sunday at its premises where 300-400 people 

come, chant mantras, meditate, spend some time with nature 

and dine with the community members. 

“It is a soothing atmosphere at the temple, chanting mantras 

with the community, knowing more about the religion, what 

can they do a the temple and how can they make a difference in 

the community by serving others and the less privileged. 

“There are also children’s activities 

organised so that they engage themselves 

and also have a good time at the temple,” Mr 

Chandra said.

14 INDIA 


India’s Sep domestic air 

passenger traffic rises over 79% 

Ongoing festive season as 

period of previous year thereby 

well as easing Covid travel 

registering annual growth of 20.54 

restrictions accelerated 

per cent and monthly growth of 

India’s domestic air passenger 

79.23 per cent,” the DGCA said in its 

traffic growth by over 79 per cent in 

September data report. 

September on a year-on-year basis. 

The report also said that the 

Pent-up demand and low base too 

overall cancellation rate of scheduled 

pushed the air passenger numbers 

domestic airlines for the month of 

higher during the month under 

September was at 1.17 per cent. 

review. According to the Directorate 

“During September 2021, a total 

General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), resumed on May 25, 2020 after the On a sequential basis, the sector of 366 passenger related complaints 

the country’s scheduled domestic suspension of operations caused had ferried 67.01 lakh passengers in had been received by the scheduled 

flight operations ferried 70.66 lakh by the Covid-19 pandemic in end- September this year. 

domestic airlines.” 

passengers last month. 

March. 

“Passengers carried by domestic “The number of complaints per 

In September 2020, the traffic However, during the second wave airlines during January-September 10,000 passengers carried for the 

numbers stood at 39.43 lakh. of the pandemic in 2021, limited civil 2021 were 531.11 lakh as against month of September 2021 has been 

Domestic flight services had aviation operations were permitted. 440.60 lakh during the corresponding around 0.52.” 

China’s ‘unscientific approach’ banning Indians from travelling to China 

For last more than one year-and-a-half, 

China has banned Indians travelling back 

to China. As a result, many students, 

businesspersons and family members are stranded 

in India. The Indian Ambassador has opened 

dialogue with China on this issue, as this is purely 

a humanitarian matter, nothing as complex as a 

bilateral diplomatic issue. 

Though it has its differences with China, India 

has strived to keep the commercial and trade 

relationships going, for example, issuing visas to 

Chinese businessmen to visit India. This approach by 

China is not correct. 

Around 23,000 Indian students were studying 

medicine in Chinese universities, who are now 

helpless and unable to return to their course in 

China. The online programmes organised by 

Chinese universities will not be sufficient to lay the 

foundation for the subjects, especially the handson 

clinics. Also, the students have been forced to 

download apps that are banned in India. India has 

banned around 250 Chinese apps over the insulate 

border stand-off. 

To continue with their courses, the students 

are alleging that they are being pressurised to 

download banned Chinese apps like WeChat, 

Ding Talk, Superstar and a video chat app. For 

the time being, the students, who are members 

of the Indian Students in China (ISC), have been 

COMMERCIAL CLEANING BUSINESS FOR SALE 

From $15k + 

Guaranteed revenue 

Stable client base 

Locally based 

Great team and support from the franchisor 

Be your own boss without the hassle and stress 

Call Aston on 021 848 483 

asked to ingress the Chinese app through VPN to 

manage their class. 

The students pleading have gone unheard by 

the Chinese authority. Under the banner of ISC, 

around 3,000 students sent a letter via email to 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, further pleading 

that they will follow all the required protocols like 

quarantine period, getting vaccinated and testing 

etc. It’s not only Indians who are barred from 

travelling to China. Even Chinese nationals are 

being denied visas on grounds of not meeting the 

health code required for boarding flights to China. 

The ban is also imposed on the family members 

who are staying as split families for the last oneand-a-half 

years. Some couldn’t visit their ailing 

relatives, while some families are travelling to 

third countries like Nepal, Sri Lanka and the UAE 

to meet each other. 

Scientists targeted with 

abuse, death threats 

during pandemic 

More than 60 per cent researchers faced negative 

experiences as a result of their media appearances 

or their social media comments about Covid-19 

pandemic, revealed a survey conducted by science 

journal Nature. 

About 22 per cent received threats of physical or sexual 

violence, while 15 per cent received death threats. The 

findings are based on a self-selecting survey of 321 people 

working in fields relevant to Covid. While six scientists said 

they were physically attacked, some were attacked indirectly 

-- their employer received complaints about them, or that 

their home address was revealed online, Nature reported. 

Much abuse happens on social media, particularly on 

Twitter. Among the 63 per cent who used the microblogging 

site to comment on aspects of Covid, around one-third said 

they were “always” or “usually” attacked on the platform. 

For such individuals, coping strategies include trying to 

ignore it, filtering and blocking e-mails and social-media 

trolls, or deleting their accounts. 

“It is very harrowing if every day, you open up your 

e-mails, your Twitter, you get the death threats, you get abuse 

every single day, undermining your work,” Andrew Hill, a 

pharmacologist at the University of Liverpool’s Institute of 

Translational Medicine. Hill has deleted his Twitter account. 

As a result, scientists who reported higher frequencies of 

trolling or personal attacks were also most likely to say that 

their experiences had greatly affected their willingness to 

speak to the media in the future. 

Single 

Indians doing 

something 

different when 

it comes to sex 

and intimacy 

this year 

The pandemic and lockdown 

restrictions have changed 

dating for single Indians and 

shaped the way single people in India 

are approaching sex and intimacy. In 

its Intimacy in a Pandemic Report, 

Bumble, the women-first dating app 

and social networking platform, 

shows how partner priorities are also 

seeing a seismic shift. 

There’s an increased openness 

towards sexual exploration among 

the dating app’s users globally right 

now as per the recent global survey 

conducted within the app. India had 

the highest percentage of Bumble 

users (34 per cent) who respond that 

they are more open to exploration 

when it comes to sex compared to the 

US, UK, Australia and Canada. 

The app’s recent nationwide 

survey showed 65 per cent of 

single Indians claim the pandemic 

has changed their approach to 

sex and intimacy. 

More than one in three (37 per 

cent) people surveyed claim they 

are being more open to sharing their 

boundaries and desires with someone 

they are dating right now. 

About one in three (33 per cent) 

people have ‘locked down’ and 

started living with someone they 

met on a dating app since the second 

wave hit India in March 2021.The 

new research and insights about the 

state of sex and intimacy for daters in 

India show: 

Confidence levels are at 

an all-time high 

The past year has been a time 

of reflection for singles to think 

about what they are looking for in a 

relationship. 

This time ultimately gave 

people an opportunity to define 

their relationship priorities and the 

confidence to take control of their 

dating lives. 

Nearly half of Indians surveyed 

on Bumble (47 per cent) are feeling 

more confident about what they 

want and need from a sexual partner, 

and we’re also seeing an increased 

openness to sexual experimentation. 

Over half of the users (60 per cent) 

surveyed in India indicated that they 

were looking to be more sexually 

active following ease in lockdown 

restrictions 

Compatibility is a top 

priority 

The app’s latest research shows that 

daters are prioritizing compatibility 

now more than ever as people start 

dating IRL with increased confidence 

in what they are truly looking for in a 

sexual partner. 

People are also expressing 

an increased openness to 

communicating their boundaries 

and desires when it comes to sexual 

health and preferences.


FEATURES 15 

Lemon-spiced chicken with chickpeas 

A spicy, filling one pot that has a bit of added zing. Make 

it a mid-week must 

Ingredients 

• 1 tbsp sunflower oil 

• 1 onion , halved and thinly sliced 

• 4 skinless chicken breasts , cut 

into chunks 

• 1 cinnamon stick , broken in half 

• 1 tsp ground coriander 

• 1 tsp ground cumin 

• zest and juice 1 lemon 

• 400g can chickpea , drained 

• 200ml chicken stock 

• 250g bag spinach 

Method 

• Heat the oil in a large frying pan, 

then fry the onion gently for 5 

mins. 

• Turn up the heat and add the 

chicken, frying for about 3 mins 

Healthy cooking every day 

Easy omelette Basic scrambled eggs 

Easier than it looks and a tasty, filling way to start the day! 

Ingredients: 

• 2 eggs 

• 2 tablespoons low-fat milk 

• pinch black pepper 

• 2 tablespoons each grated cheese, 

chopped tomato, chopped ham 

and sliced mushroom 

Method 

• Whisk together eggs, milk and a 

little black pepper. 

• Lightly oil a small non-stick 

frying pan and heat until hot, but 

not smoking. 

• Pour egg mixture into pan and 

gently shake to distribute the eggs 

evenly over pan. 

• Cook over a medium heat until the 

entire base is set. Use a spatula to 

lift omelette at the edges to see if 

the base is set and cooked all over. 

• Sprinkle the grated cheese, 

chopped ham, chopped tomato, 

and sliced mushrooms over 

omelette. 

• Use the spatula to fold the 

omelette in half. Then use the 

spatula to cut the omelette in half. 

• Carefully slide omelette onto two 

plates. Serves: 2 

until golden. 

• Stir in the spices and lemon zest, 

fry for 1 more min, then tip in the 

chickpeas and stock. 

• Put the lid on and simmer for 5 

mins. 

• Season to taste, then tip in spinach 

and re-cover. 

• Leave to wilt for 2 mins, then stir 

through. 

• Squeeze over the lemon juice just 

before serving. 

Lighter Takes 

& Easy Tips 

Learning how to make easy scrambled eggs can be fun! 

Ingredients: 

• 4 eggs 

• ¼ cup milk 

• Salt and pepper as desired 

• Butter 

Method: 

• Beat eggs, milk, salt and pepper in 

medium bowl until blended 

• Heat butter in large non-stick 

skillet over medium heat until hot 

• Pour in egg mixture. 

Ingredients 

• 1tbsp tamari 

• 1tsp medium curry powder 

• ¼tsp ground cumin 

• 1 garlic clove, finely grated 

• 1tsp clear honey 

• 2 skinless chicken breast fillets (or use turkey breast) 

• 1tbsp crunchy peanut butter (choose a sugar-free 

version with no palm oil, if possible) 

• 1tbsp sweet chilli sauce 

• 1tbsp lime juice 

• sunflower oil, for wiping the pan 

• 2 Little Gem lettuce hearts, cut into wedges 

• ¼ cucumber, halved and sliced 

• 1 banana shallot, halved and thinly sliced 

• coriander, chopped 

• seeds from ½ pomegranate 

Method 

• Pour the tamari into a large dish and stir in the curry 

powder, cumin, garlic and honey. Mix well. Slice 

• As eggs begin to set, gently pull 

the eggs across the pan with a 

spatula, forming large soft curds 

• Continue cooking – pulling, lifting 

and folding eggs – until thickened 

and no visible liquid eggs remain. 

Do not stir constantly. 

• Remove from heat. Serve 

immediately. 

• Serves: 2 

Tamarind prawn curry 

Our tamarind prawn curry will quickly become a family 

favourite. It's quick, healthy and low in fat and calories 

Ingredients 

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil 

• 1 onion, chopped 

• 1 red chilli, finely chopped 

• 2 garlic cloves, crushed 

• 1 tbsp grated ginger 

• 1 tsp turmeric 

• 1 tsp cumin seeds 

• 1 tsp ground coriander 

• 400g can cherry tomatoes 

• 1-2 tbsp tamarind paste (see tip, 

below) 

• 250g raw king prawns 

• 250g cooked basmati rice 

handful of coriander leaves, to 

serve 

Method 

• Heat the oil in a frying pan over a 

medium heat and cook the onion 

for 5-8 mins until light golden. 

Stir in the chilli, garlic and ginger, 

and fry for another minute before 

adding the spices. 

• Tip in the cherry tomatoes, swirl 

the can out with a splash of water 

and stir that into the pan as well. 

• Simmer for 5 mins until the 

tomatoes burst and the sauce 

thickens. 

• Stir in the tamarind and prawns, 

and simmer for 2-3 mins until the 

prawns are cooked. 

• Serve the curry on top of the rice, 

with the coriander scattered over. 

Chicken satay salad 

Marinate chicken breasts, then drizzle with a punchy peanut satay sauce 

for a no-fuss, midweek meal that's high in protein and big on flavour 

the chicken breasts in half horizontally to make 4 

fillets in total, then add to the marinade and mix 

well to coat. Set aside in the fridge for at least 1 hr, 

or overnight, to allow the flavours to penetrate the 

chicken. 

• Meanwhile, mix the peanut butter with the chilli 

sauce, lime juice, and 1 tbsp water to make a 

spoonable sauce. 

• When ready to cook the chicken, wipe a large nonstick 

frying pan with a little oil. Add the chicken and 

cook, covered with a lid, for 5-6 mins on a medium 

heat, turning the fillets over for the last min, until 

cooked but still moist. Set aside, covered, to rest for 

a few mins. 

• While the chicken rests, toss the lettuce wedges with 

the cucumber, shallot, coriander and pomegranate, 

and pile onto plates. Spoon over a little sauce. 

• Slice the chicken, pile on top of the salad and spoon 

over the remaining sauce. Eat while the chicken is 

still warm. 

Pomegranate 

chicken 

with almond 

couscous 

Jazz up chicken breasts in 

this fruity, sweetly spiced 

sauce with pomegranate 

seeds, toasted almonds 

and tagine paste 

Ingredients 

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil 

• 200g couscous 

• 1 chicken stock cube 

• 1 large red onion, halved and 

thinly sliced 

• 600g chicken mini fillets 

• 4 tbsp tagine spice paste or 2 tbsp 

harissa 

• 190ml bottle pomegranate 

juice (not sweetened; we used 

Pom Wonderful) 

• 100g pack pomegranate seeds 

• 100g pack toasted flaked almond 

• small pack mint, chopped 

Method 

• Boil the kettle and heat the oil in a 

large frying pan. Put the couscous 

in a bowl with some seasoning 

and crumble in half the stock 

cube. 

• Add the onion to the pan and fry 

for a few mins to soften. 

• Pour boiling water over the 

couscous to just cover, then cover 

the bowl with a tea towel and set 

aside. 

• Push the onion to one side of the 

pan, add the chicken fillets and 

brown on all sides. Stir in the 

tagine paste or harissa and the 

pomegranate juice, then crumble 

in the rest of the stock cube and 

season well. 

• Simmer, uncovered, for 10 mins 

until the sauce has thickened and 

the chicken is cooked through. 

Stir through the pomegranate 

seeds, saving a few to scatter over 

before serving. 

• After 5 mins, fluff up the couscous 

with a fork and stir through the 

almonds and mint. Serve the 

chicken on the couscous with the 

sauce spooned over.

16 ENTERTAINMENT 


Most popular movies on Netflix right now 

Venom 

a frightening adventure that forces him to 

confront the demons of his past. 

Joker 

Vivo 

Fresh out of college and starting her 

first job in New York, Alice (Dakota 

Johnson) splits from her longtime 

boyfriend to discover herself and to learn ‘How 

To Be Single’. Helping her along the way is her 

hilarious colleague Robin (Rebel Wilson) and 

her big sister Meg (Leslie Mann). 

The Water Man 

If you’re a Marvel Comics fan, then you’ll 

want to line up a viewing of Venom stat. It 

follows Eddie (Tom Hardy), a journalist who 

is investigating a company called the Life 

Foundation, whom he suspects is doing a series 

of illegal—and very deadly—human trials. 

The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf 

This psychological thriller based on the DC 

Comics character of the same name was 

one of the biggest movies of 2019—scoring 

11 Oscar nominations, winning Best Actor for 

Joaquin Phoenix. The plot goes like this: In 

1981 Gotham City, a struggling, mentally ill 

comic Arthur Fleck (Phoenix) battles to be seen, 

walking the streets seeking human connection. 

Sweet Girl 

This animated musical adventure featuring 

songs from Lin-Manuel Miranda 

(Hamilton and In the Heights) follows Vivo, 

a one-of-kind kinkajou (a rainforest “honey 

bear,” voiced by Miranda), who spends his 

days playing music to the crowds in a lively 

square with his beloved owner Andrés. Though 

they may not speak the same language, Vivo 

and Andrés are the perfect duo through their 

common love of music. 

How To Be Single 

Gunner (Lonnie Chavis) sets out on a quest 

to save his ill mother (Rosario Dawson) 

by searching for a mythic figure who possesses 

the secret to immortality, the Water Man. After 

enlisting the help of a mysterious local girl, 

Jo, they journey together into the remote Wild 

Horse forest—but the deeper they venture, 

the stranger and more dangerous the forest 

becomes. 

Rocketman 

The world of The Witcher expands in this 

anime origin story: Before Geralt, there 

was his mentor Vesemir—a swashbuckling 

young witcher who escaped a life of poverty 

to slay monsters for coin. But when a strange 

new monster begins terrorising a politically 

fraught kingdom, Vesemir finds himself on 

Everyone’s favourite action man Jason 

Momoa is back with this action thriller that 

will get your heart racing. Sweet Girl follows 

devoted family man Ray Cooper, who vows 

justice against the pharmaceutical company 

responsible for pulling a potentially life-saving 

drug from the market just before his wife dies 

from cancer. 

Rocketman follows the life of one of the 

world’s greatest showmen, Elton John, from 

his early days performing rock music at empty 

pubs to the moment his world changed—when 

he met music manager John Reid and was 

catapulted to a world of fame and chaos. 

Most popular movies on Amazon Prime right now 

Jennifer's Body 

The Descent 

Cassius Clay, Eli Goree), Sam Cooke (Leslie 

Odom Jr.), and Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge) spent 

a night in a quiet Florida hotel room. 

Coming 2 America 

Regard prize and earned widespread acclaim 

as a robust and old-fashioned melodrama 

willingly rooted in the traditions of the Old 

Hollywood genre. 

The Neon Demon 

It took a decade and some change, 

but Jennifer’s Body is finally being 

vindicated as a cult classic and ahead-of-itstime 

horror-comedy thanks to the power of the 

internet (and, in all honesty, the rise of Megan 

Fox on social media). Which was far, far too 

long for this movie to get the credit it deserves. 

The Social Network 

Before Neil Marshall started directing 

action-packed episodes of your genre 

favs a la Game of Thrones and Westworld, 

the filmmaker delivered two of the great 

monster movies of the 21st century with Dog 

Soldiers and The Descent, the latter of which 

is destined to go down in the books as a horror 

classic of its time. 

Do you love Coming to America? Good 

news, so do the folk who made Coming 

2 America, the new sequel arriving exclusively 

on Amazon Prime Video this month. 

Invisible Life 

One Night in Miami 

The Social Network was already an 

exceptional, fascinating film when 

it arrived in 2010, but in the aftermath of 

Cambridge Analytica, “Pivot to Video,” and all 

the other society-changing scandals that have 

plagued Facebook in the decade since, now it’s 

an absolutely essential film. And it arguably 

plays better, hits harder, and grows ever more 

impressive with each passing year. 

Regina King makes a commanding 

directorial debut with One Night in Miami, 

an understated historical drama set during a 

meeting of extraordinary minds, when Malcolm 

X (Kingsley Ben-Adir), Muhammad Ali (then 

Looking for a lush, sumptuous melodrama? 

Set your sights on Invisible Life, the new 

Amazon original that follows two close-knit 

sisters torn apart by life and the patriarchy in 

1950s Brazil. Invisible Life debuted at Cannes 

last year, where it took home the Un Certain 

N 

icholas Winding Refn certainly 

knows how to make a divisive movie. 

Like Only God Forgives before it, Refn’s Neon 

Demon was jeered at Cannes and met with 

split response from critics and moviegoers 

alike. That's not too surprising. It's explicit and 

nebulous, and seemingly dedicated to make the 

audience as uncomfortable as possible as often 

as possible. It's also staggeringly beautiful, but 

leave it to Refn to make a shallow movie about 

the pitfalls of being shallow.

18 

TIME OUT 


CROSSWORD FreeDailyCrosswords.com 

NO: 90 

ACROSS------------, 

1) Life of_ (carefree 

existence) 

6) Flat-bottomed open boat 

11) "Shogun" sash 

14) Apparently amazed 

15) Country of over 1 billion 

16) Car tracking digits (abbr.) 

17) Gain experience 

20) Doubter's outbursts 

21) Like most NBA players 

22) Calorie-rich pastry 

23) 67.5 degrees, on a compass 

24) Retail center 

25) Fence repairer 

26) Bronco catcher 

28) Deafening noise 

29) Find in a mine 

30) Hole in your head 

34) Bums of documentaries 

35) Provider of wide-angle 

shots 

KEEP WATCH 

37) One way to get the gravy 

38) Former or previous 

39) Affectionate utterance 

40) Cape_ (cottage style) 

41) Olympic prize 

45) Greyhound alternative 

4 7) Crossing the Atlantic 

50) Day before a holiday 

51) Dutch shoe 

52) "_ go bragh" 

53) Hai ry jungle creatures 

54) Maryland state flowers 

57) Be in pain 

58) Model of perfection 

59) "Beetle Bailey" character 

60) "2001" mainframe 

61) From Oslo, e.g. 

62) More likely 

28th February 

DOWN 

1) "Friends" female 

2) Big lizard 

3) Woodworker's machines 

4) Classic poetry 

5) Japanese currency 

6) Twine fiber 

7) Bell sound 

8) Short poem (var.) 

9) "Fee_ foe furn" 

10) Enrich 

11) Goes too far 

12) Marsh heron 

13) "Psst!" follower 

18) Airport stat. 

19) Billion years 

24) Cow sounds 

25) Prefix meaning "one thousandth" 

27) Quick cut 

28) Attempt to lose weight 

31) Prepared Bond's martini 

32) Work the bar 

33) "The Catcher in the _" 

34) Santa's seat? 

35) Gridiron game 

36) Mme. Bovary 

37) Hom of Africa nation 

39) "Rock the_" (The Clash hit) 

40) Birch tree spike 

42) Make an exit 

43) Exact retribution 

44) Not as great 

46) Legendary elephant eater 

4 7) Vicinities 

48) Move like a crab 

49) Coast Guard officer (abbr.) 

52) You right now, theme-wise 

53) " ... and make it fast!" 

55) Tokyo, long ago 

56) Place with a president 

ANSWERS CROSSWORD NO: 90 

FreeDailyCrosswords.com 

ACROSS------------, 

1) Life of_ (carefree 

existence) 

6) Flat-bottomed open boat 

11) "Shogun" sash 

14) Apparently amazed 

15) Country of over 1 billion 

16) Car tracking digits (abbr.) 

17) Gain experience 

20) Doubter's outbursts 

21) Like most NBA players 

22) Calorie-rich pastry 

23) 67.5 degrees, on a compass 

24) Retail center 

25) Fence repairer 

26) Bronco catcher 

28) Deafening noise 

29) Find in a mine 

30) Hole in your head 

34) Bums of documentaries 

35) Provider of wide-angle 

shots 

KEEP WATCH 

1R 21 3L 4E S y 

1A G A 

1i: u T 

,.. A 

N 

AB 

LA 

I L 

,.. A L 

58 

1 

37) One way to get the gravy 

38) Former or previous 

39) Affectionate utterance 

40) Cape_ (cottage style) 

41) Olympic prize 

45) Greyhound alternative 

47) Crossing the Atlantic 

50) Day before a holiday 

51) Dutch shoe 

52) "_ go bragh" 

53) Hai ry jungle creatures 

54) Maryland state flowers 

57) Be in pain 

58) Model of perfection 

59) "Beetle Bailey" character 

60) "2001" mainframe 

61) From Oslo, e.g. 

62) More likely 

N 

E 

------- 

D E A 

6 

N OR s 

HITORI NO: 90 

I N 

T H 

T E 

E R 

N E 

s lJ SAN s 

5 

SARGE 

6 

hP TE R 

28th February 

DOWN 

1) "Friends" female 

2) Big lizard 

3) Woodworker's machines 

4) Classic poetry 

5) Japanese currency 

6) Twine fiber 

7) Bell sound 

8) Short poem (var.) 

9) "Fee_ foe furn" 

10) Enrich 

11) Goes too far 

12) Marsh heron 

13) "Psst!" follower 

18) Airport stat. 

19) Billion years 

24) Cow sounds 

25) Prefix meaning "one thousandth" 

27) Quick cut 

28) Attempt to lose weight 

31) Prepared Bond's martini 

32) Work the bar 

33) "The Catcher in the _" 

34) Santa's seat? 

35) Gridiron game 

36) Mme. Bovary 

37) Hom of Africa nation 

39) "Rock the_" (The Clash hit) 

40) Birch tree spike 

42) Make an exit 

43) Exact retribution 

44) Not as great 

46) Legendary elephant eater 

47) Vicinities 

48) Move like a crab 

49) Coast Guard officer (abbr.) 

52) You right now, theme-wise 

53) "... and make it fast!" 

55) Tokyo, long ago 

56) Place with a president 

Eliminate numbers until there are no duplicates in any row or 

column. Eliminate numbers by marking them in Black. You are 

not allowed to have two Black squares touching horizontally or 

vertically (diagonally is ok). Any White square can be reached 

from any other (i.e. they are connected). 

SUDOKU SOLUSIONS AND ANSWERS NO: 90 

GENERAL KNOWLEDGE 

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 

1. Which planet has the most moons? 

Saturn 

2. What part of a plant conducts 

photosynthesis? Leaf 

3. How many elements are in the periodic 

table? 118 

4. Where is the smallest bone in the 

human body located? Ear 

5. How many hearts does an octopus 

have?3 

22 October to 28October 2921 | By Manisha Koushik 

ARIES (MAR 21-APR 20) 

You are likely to remain in control of whatever 

you are involved in. Misunderstandings 

threaten to colour your mind, if you take them 

to heart. Solemnising the wedding of a sibling 

or child cannot be ruled out. A property matter, 

pending for long, will proceed smoothly and get 

your dream house registered in your name. You 

may visit someone who had been very close to you in childhood. 

Celebratory mood prevails at home and will prove infectious! 

Lucky No.: 2 / Lucky Colour: Electric Blue 

6. Who discovered penicillin? Alexander 

Fleming 

7. Queen Elizabeth II is the longest 

reigning monarch of the UK, followed 

by Queen Victoria – but who is third? 

George III 

8. Which two houses were involved in the 

War of the Roses? York, Lancaster 

9. Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, 

beheaded, survived – who was Henry 

VIII’s last wife? Catherine Parr 

10. Which year did the European Union 

first introduce the Euro as currency? 

1999 

11. What is the capital of Bulgaria? Sofia 

12. What is the capital of New Zealand? 

Wellington 

13. Beirut is the capital of which country? 

Lebanon 

14. What is the capital of Canada? Ottawa 

Manisha Koushik is a practicing astrologer, tarot card reader, numerologist, vastu and 

fengshui consultant based in India with a global presence through the online channels. She is 

available for consultations online as well. E-mail her at support@askmanisha.com or contact 

at +91-11-26449898 Mobile/Whatsapp: +91-9716145644 • www.askmanisha.com 

LEO (JUL21-AUG 20) 

You are likely to enjoy the company of your loved 

ones. Yoga and meditation promise to counter 

moodiness, so go for it. Innovative ideas at work 

are likely to win the week for you. You will 

remain on solid ground, as far as academics are 

concerned. Profits increase for those pursuing a 

business venture. Don’t be too trusting of anyone on the romantic 

front. Those driving will be better off avoiding heavy traffic.Lucky 

No.:5/ Lucky Colour: Olive Green 

15. Hanoi is the capital of which country? 

Vietnam 

16. What is the capital of Argentina? 

Buenos Aries 

17. The capital of Iceland is? Reykjavik 

18. Slovakia’s capital is? Bratislava 

19. What’s the capital of Belgium? 

Brussels 

20. What is the capital of Brazil? Brasilia 

SAGITTARIUS (NOV 23-DEC 21) 

Someone who is close to you may seek your 

support. Those awaiting exam results can expect 

to do well. An award or recognition awaits 

those in the media industry. Money will pose 

no problems despite your splurging! You will be 

able to convince the family on your ideas and get 

full support. Person you are in love with will offer you something 

you just can’t refuse! A break in your busy schedule will be most 

welcome. Lucky No.: 6 / Lucky Colour: Magenta 

TAURUS (APR 21-MAY 20) 

This week you had been waiting for has finally 

arrived, so look your best. Getting tied up in holy 

matrimony is strongly indicated in your stars. 

Other commitments may not allow you to devote 

full time at work, so delegate what you cannot 

carry out. Something may prove a drain on your 

finances, but little you can do about it. Your near 

and dear ones may compel you to change your plans, so get set for a 

rollicking time! Lucky No.: 9 / Lucky Colour: Maroon 

GEMINI (MAY 21-JUN 21) 

This proves to be a special week for you on 

the social front. Something that you have 

accomplished on the academic front will come 

in for praise. You are likely to enjoy good rapport 

with everyone on the professional front, due to 

your helpful attitude. Domestic harmony prevails 

and will give you an opportunity to let your hair 

down. Promising investment opportunities come your way on the 

financial front. A physical activity will keep you fit. Lucky No.:11 

/ Lucky Colour: Purple 

CANCER (JUN 22-JUL 20) 

The events unfolding week may leave you beaming 

and smiling from ear to ear! You will manage to 

impress one and all by your planning and eye for 

detail. People will extend a helping hand, even 

without your asking for it. Attending or organising 

a wedding or function is on the cards. You will 

manage to get the paperwork completed for acquiring property. 

Financial stability can only come, if you start cutting corners. 

Keep up your exercise regimen. Lucky No:8 / Lucky Colour: 

Dark Grey 

VIRGO (AUG 23-SEP 23) 

This week has finally dawned when you need to 

look your best. You are likely to be surrounded 

by friends your well wishers. A few surprises are 

in store for you on the social front. You are likely 

to impress everyone around you by your quick 

wit and mild manners. Wedding for the eligible 

is indicated and will be a gala affair. Much sharing and caring is 

foreseen on the romantic front. Health remains excellent. Lucky 

No.: 3 / Lucky Colour: Lemon 

LIBRA (SEP 24-OCT 23) 

You will be on the right lines, as far as making 

a choice is concerned. Going on a vacation 

with family will prove immensely exciting. 

Neglecting professional or academic front may 

prove most unfavourable. You can be ticked off 

for your extravagant ways. Your weakness for 

junk food is likely to tell on your health. Someone you are attracted 

to is likely to make the first move. Your interfering nature is likely 

to upset friends. Lucky No.: 22 / Lucky Colour: Turquoise 

SCORPIO (OCT 24-NOV 22) 

An opportunity to meet your near and dear ones 

may present itself. You are likely to reorganise 

yourself at work. Completing a challenging 

task successfully will add to your professional 

reputation. Family will be more than responsive 

to your needs. Monetary condition is likely to 

improve for some. An outing with friends and family is in the 

pipeline. You may show the right path to someone going wayward. 

Expect total bliss on the romantic front. Lucky No.: 8 / Lucky 

Colour: Dark Blue 

CAPRICORN (DEC 22-JAN 21) 

This is the time to go all out for something you 

want desperately to achieve. You can expect 

an excellent time with family on a vacation. 

Shopping for exotic things will be fun. You will 

enjoy spending time with loved ones. Your talents 

are likely to be recognised at work. Romantic 

bonds are set to become stronger through your 

own efforts. A change in eating habits is required to remain 

energetic. You may pick up an interesting hobby. Lucky No.: 1 / 

Lucky Colour: Crimson 

AQUARIUS (JAN 22-FEB 19) 

You may have to keep someone at an arm’s length, 

if you want to retain your peace of mind. Those 

in the upper tax bracket will need to manage their 

finances well. Finding a superior in good mood 

can encourage you to project your request. A lot 

of wedding-related activities will soon happen on 

the domestic front. You will win over lover by your gift of the gab. 

A chance to accompany someone on a journey is possible. Lucky 

No.:9 / Lucky Colour: Red 

PISCES (FEB 20-MAR 20) 

Something you have started will need your time and 

energy for completion. Hurdles on the professional 

front cannot be ruled out. You will be able to reap 

rich dividends in an overseas investment. Spouse 

can feel burdened and may not appear his or her 

happy self. An office love can distract you and 

make you lag behind at work. Those travelling abroad will need 

to be careful of their belongings. Don’t rake up the past under any 

pretext. Lucky No.:4 / Lucky Colour: Indigo


FEATURES 19 

Technology 

Apple unveils 

MacBook Pro 

powered by M1 Pro, 

M1 Max chips 

Apple has unveiled a completely reimagined MacBook 

Pro powered by the all-new M1 Pro and M1 Max -- the 

first pro chips designed for the Mac -- in 14- and 16-inch 

models. 

The new 14-inch MacBook Pro model starts at Rs 194,900, 

and Rs 175,410 for education and the 16-inch MacBook Pro 

model starts at Rs 239,900, and Rs 215,910 for education. 

experience is simply unrivaled, the company said. 

The new MacBook Pro joins the 13-inch MacBook Pro with 

M1 to form the strongest lineup of pro notebooks ever. 

M1 Pro and M1 Max are the next breakthrough chips for the 

Mac. 

The CPU in M1 Pro and M1 Max delivers up to 70 per cent 

faster CPU performance than M1, so tasks like compiling 

The new MacBook Pro, powered by M1 Pro and M1 Max, enables 

workflows that were previously unthinkable on a notebook. 

The new MacBook Pro models with M1 Pro and M1 Max are 

available to order today on apple.com/in/store. They will begin 

arriving to customers and will be available at select Apple stores, 

starting October 26. 

MacBook Pro delivers ground breaking processing, graphics, 

and machine learning (ML) performance whether running 

on battery or plugged in, as well as amazing battery life, the 

company said in a statement. 

“The all-new MacBook Pro adds a breath taking XDR display, 

more ports like MagSafe 3, an advanced 1080p camera, and 

a sensational six-speaker sound system, all in a stunning new 

design. The new MacBook Pro simply has no equal and is by 

far the best pro notebook we’ve ever built,” said Greg Joswiak, 

Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. 

The new MacBook Pro also features a stunning Liquid Retina 

XDR display, a wide range of ports for advanced connectivity, 

a 1080p FaceTime HD camera, and the best audio system in a 

notebook. 

Combined with macOS Monterey, which is engineered down 

to its core to take full advantage of M1 Pro and M1 Max, the user 

projects in Xcode are faster than ever. 

The GPU in M1 Pro is up to 2x faster than M1, while M1 Max 

is up to an astonishing 4x faster than M1, allowing pro users to 

fly through the most demanding graphics workflows. 

Powering the all-new MacBook Pro, new chips feature up to 

a 10-core CPU, 32-core GPU, 64GB of unified memory, ProRes 

acceleration, and industry-leading power efficiency.

GET IT NOW! 

top quality rice from our village to yours! 

fortune classic basmati rice 

Aged naturally, these rice grains acquire the best 

attributes of basmati. On cooking they elongate over 

2 times, become fluffy and flavourful providing a 

royal touch to your most special rice recipes. 

fortune everyday basmati rice 

Grown in the Himalayan foothills of India and 

specially aged to help every grain acquire the 

best basmati characteristics. Ideal for plain 

rice and dishes like Jeera Rice, Fried Rice, 

Kheer, Khichdi, etc. 

Fortune is one 

of the most trusted 

brands in India, and 

we are also proud to 

have the support of 

Mr Akshay Kumar, 

one of Bollywoods 

biggest stars! 

Ask your favourite Rice wholesaler to order Fortune from Goodman Fielder 

or call 0800 482 783 to learn how to become a Goodman Fielder trade customer. 

www.getfood.co.nz

The Indian Weekender, 22 October 2021

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?