NRI Top Stories ( Page 16 of 32 )

Indian-origin teacher suspended for shooting water at Trump’s Image January 31, 2017 07:36

An Indian-origin, school teacher has been suspended after a controversial classroom stunt video which went viral on social media, that shows her shooting water from a squirt gun at an image of President Donald Trump and yelling "die". Payal Modi is an art teacher at Adamson High School in Dallas, Texas; she was caught shooting a squirt gun as a video of President Trump at his Inauguration ceremony projected onto a whiteboard. In an eight second video which was posted on an Instagram account on 20th January, the day of Donald Trump’s Presidential Inauguration, showed Payal holding a squirt gun. Pointing it at an image of Trump projected onto a whiteboard, and yelling "Die!" as she shoots the gun. The video has been watched by thousands of people since it was posted online, that prompted an investigation from the officials at the Dallas Independent School District. The Spokesperson of Dallas Independent School District Robyn Harris was quoted by the Dallas Morning news as saying that Modi was placed on leave. However, Harris said DISD would not comment as the investigation was still going on. The statement said “DISD was made aware of a social media posting being circulated involving a teacher at W H Adamson High School, the teacher has been placed on administrative leave and the district has opened an investigation. This is a personnel matter and, as such, we cannot comment." However, that has not stopped parents from voicing their concerns. A Facebook user said “Five of her grandchildren go to Dallas ISD schools, do they have a venue where the concerned voices are heard.” Few students admitted that the teacher’s actions were inappropriate, but the majority believes that she was just making a joke. Leslie Jaimes a junior of Adamson High School said she was in Payal’s second period class, when she pulled out a squirt gun. “When Trump came out she shot at him, but like it was just a water gun,” Jaimes said. “It is not a big deal.” Trump fires Sally Yates for defying him on travel ban AMandeep

Indian-origin faces fraud charges in Singapore January 28, 2017 11:54

A Singapore based Indian-origin has been charged with multiple counts for helping others to fraudulently obtain cash payouts and bonuses amounting to $760,000. S Chandran a 35 year old was charged yesterday (27th January) with 58 counts of helping 49 claimants to fraudulently get state-funded Productivity and Innovation Credit (PIC) cash payouts and bonuses amounting to 1.1 million Singapore dollars ($760,000). A new agency reported the case as one of the biggest case of its kinds involving an alleged PIC promoter in the country. Chandran is the owner of firm Paradize Consultancy and was offered bail for 200,000 Singaporean dollars. Chandran will return to court on February 3rd. Chandran was the winner of “International Magicians Society’s Merlin Award” in the year 2014; he acted as a PIC broker and received about 400,000 dollars from the payout. He also holds a doctorate in the magic studies from the United States, the report said. The alleged offenses occurred between June 2013 and November 2014. The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) has conducted extensive investigations into a number of suspicious PIC claims. The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore investigated the case and found many of the suspicious claims were linked somehow to Chandran. Around 200 people were called up to help in the investigations. The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore scheme offers tax deductions or cash payouts to all the companies that invest in fields such as staff training, information technology or automation equipment to boost their productivity. If convicted, Chandran will face a mandatory penalty of four times the amount of cash payout or PIC bonus. He could also face a fine of up to 50,000 dollars or a jail term of up to five years per charge. Singapore man fined for abusing pet dog AMandeep

Indian-origin Lawmakers slammed Trump’s immigration policy January 27, 2017 04:56

Indian-origin lawmakers have slammed President Trump for signing executive orders to reshape the country’s immigration policies and described the move as “anti-immigration” that will “tear apart” families. Senator Kamala Harris, the first Indian-origin to be elected to the upper chamber of the United States congress said, President Trump has escalated his anti-immigrants stand with a series of executive orders that will “tear families apart,” and the policy will also weaken the public safety and national security. "Creating a deportation force to target immigrant families who are contributing to our society is not a show of strength. Asking taxpayers to pay for an unrealistic border wall is not a solution. And telling cities to deny public safety, education, and health services to kids and families is irresponsible and cruel," said Harris. She also said that the United States was “less safe” now because of the anti-immigration policies followed by the president. Immigrant people will report few crimes, families will be in fear and our communities and local economies will suffer. Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal who is also the representative of Indian-American Seattle has slammed President Trump for moving forward with his "divisive agenda" that will do nothing to solve the real immigration issues. Donald Trump’s Immigration policies Jayapal said “President Trump has doubled down his agenda that pits mother against mother, neighbor against neighbor, tearing apart the fabric of our communities”. "We must take on enacting comprehensive and humane reform of our broken immigration system - to support the country’s economy, communities and families - but President Trump offers zero leadership in this area," she said. Jayapal said that "Instead of building a wall, they should address the underlying systemic issues that drive immigration and fix the country’s outdated immigration system. Instead of banning refugees and people based on their religion, they should welcome them with open arms." Senator Chuck Schumer and Democratic Whip Congressman Steny H Hoyer joined the lawmakers in opposing Trump's immigration policies. Senator Chuck Schumer said that “Donald Trump’s plans are totally based on alternative facts and will do nothing to keep people safe or fix the immigration system in a humane, pragmatic and effective way.” India true friend, Donald Trump AMandeep

Tamil-Americans protest against ban on Jallikattu January 24, 2017 06:00

Hundreds of Tamil-Americans had held a rally at the Gandhi statue in Washington D.C in the support of their cultural festival, demanding to lift the ban on the bull taming sport. Where as in Norfolk, Virginia outside the headquarters of PETA dozens of people held protest. In the rally a large number of children and women holding posters raised their slogans in support of Jallikattu and vented out their anger again the animal rights group “People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), which is leading the support to ban the popular culture by stating it is a torture to the animal. Babu Vinayagam one of the anti-PETA protestors at the Mahatma Gandhi Statue outside the Indian Embassy in Washington said, that they love their animals and knows how to treat them. He also said the rally was to show their solidarity with their people how are back home fighting against ban on Jalikattu. Most of the slogans were written in Tamil, but at times the crowd shouted “Down, Down PETA,” venting their anger towards the animal rights group. The crowd also shouted “We want Jallikatu.” Vinod Kumar, an IT professional from Tamil Nadu, said, adding, expatriate Tamilians want a permanent solution and an ordinance route to lift the ban on Jallikattu. He also said that they want a legislative measure, so that this old tradition could be continued forever. The rally was one of the largest protest and demonstration in front of the Indian Embassy in recent years. Nalini Britto spoke on behalf of the Greater Washington Tamil Diaspora, which had organized the anti-PETA, pro-Jallikattu rally in Washington, she said that they may be away from home, but their home is always with them, she said they are Tamil people and are proud of their heritage; it was their pride which was being taken away from them. Jallikettu Tamilians pride activists envy Meanwhile a local news channel in Virginia reported a protest outside the PETA headquarters in Norfolk. The news channel reported that dozens of people travelled to Hampton Roads from all across the world to protest outside the PETA headquarters. Protesters stood outside of the headquarters in Norfolk and told to local news that they were protesting the organizations influence on the court decisions. Karthik Rangarajan one of the protest organizers said "What PETA has done is that there is a prevention of cruelty act in India, which was backdoor amended, through the lobbying that PETA did." In a recently released statement, PETA alleged that these protesters are anxious to overturn the court decision and they want to preserve a culture as heinous “as fox hunting was in the UK” and “Bull fighting is in Spain” Trump Administration pace to restrict H-1B Visa AMandeep

Indian Origin Convicted for Harassing US Officials January 23, 2017 06:46

A 56 years old Indian-American man made over three thousand harassing interstate phone calls to United State officials and some with death threats, has been convicted by a federal court in California. Kulwant Singh Sandhu was found guilty by Eastern California Federal Prosecutor Phillip A Talbert on 20th January (Friday) of two counts of making harassing phone calls. Assistant Federal Prosecutors ‘Nirav Desai and James Conolly’. Prosecuted the case before Judge Garland E Burrell. According to the prosecution Kulwant Singh Sandhu started making, harassing phone calls to the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission in Washington D.C. and to private individuals in 2012. In 2015 alone Sandhu made more than three thousand calls and left 350 voice mails. The Securities and Exchange Commission regulates the stock markets and the securities industry. The prosecutor's office said “Sandhu’s voicemails were profanity-filled with obscene language that repeatedly called for the Securities and Exchange Commission personnel and others, to be among other things, rounded up, publicly hanged, water-boarded, burned alive, shot, and blown up with rockets and tanks. "His comments were mostly sexually graphic and he always targeted individuals”. Sandhu is to be sentenced in April this year and can face a maximum of two years in prison along with a fine of $250,000 for the two charges, he was convicted for. Trump’s Administration Pace to restrict H-1B Visa AMandeep

Indian Origin Body Found In Suitcase January 20, 2017 08:02

A 46 year old Indian origin woman’s body was found inside a suitcase, which was dumped in an alleyway by a man believed to be her ex-husband. Kiran Daudia was a resident of Leicester whose body was found by a member of the public in a walkway off Cromer Street in Leicester on 17th January. Kiran was the mother of two children and she was working at UK’s popular retail call center ‘Next’. According to the police Ashwin Daudia a 50 year old of Lyme Roadm Leicester was charged with the murder of Kiran Daudia and will appear at Leicester Magistrates Court on 26th of January. The man who was arrested, is believed to be Kiran's ex-husband. Leicestershire Police had said in a statement that a 50 year old man was arrested and charged with murder, he has been remanded into custody and will appear at Leicester Magistrates' Court on Thursday. Cromer Street and a nearby property on Mayfield Road remained cordoned off on Wednesday while police examined the scene. Police has asked the local people to contact force if they have seen anyone pulling suitcase in the area of Lyme Street and the alleyway Cromer Street in the late afternoon or early evening on 16th January. Kiran’s family said in a statement that, Kiran was a loved mother, daughter, sister and aunt, she will be missed by all of them. And they also requested for their identities not be revealed. Kiran’s former workplace also expressed shock at her death. A spokesperson for Next said that, “Company was shocked to learn of the tragic death of its colleague Mrs Kiran Daudia in such horrific circumstances. She was a long-standing, highly respected and much loved, she had worked at Next for 17 years and our thoughts are with her family, friends and co-workers at this saddest of times. Kiran will be sorely missed. India told UK no role for third party on Kashmir AMandeep

NRI Donates $25,000 to Shiridi Sai Baba January 11, 2017 13:01

The executive officer of the trust ‘Bajirao Shinde’ at Shiri Sai Baba temple said that an NRI based in the United States of America has donated $ 25,000 to the Shri Sai baba Sansthan Trust (SSST) for its Anna Daan scheme. Seeta Hariharan stays in the USA, she made the donation when she visited Shiridi temple, last week along with her family. Which is one of the most famous shrines in the country. Shinde also said, that Hariharan has paid the amount through three post-dated cheques, which will be utilized for serving free meals in coming months of April, July and September. Based in North Carolina, Seeta Hariharan said that she was fortunate enough to do her bit for the Saibaba trust and devotees. "Everything is his (Saibaba), I do not consider anything as mine, so I do not think this is a donation. Whatever I have is because of Baba. It gives me the greatest joy to come to Shirdi whenever Baba gives me the opportunity," she said. Barack Obama chose four Indian Americans AMandeep

Indian origin Shopkeeper Hailed as “Brave” January 03, 2017 05:25

An Indian origin shopkeeper is being hailed as "brave" after he wrestled a knife-wielding thief to the ground in northern England. Sandeep Yadala a 30 year old man from Indian was injured after he grappled a robber to the ground in the second attack on his shop in Timperley, Greater Manchester, has seen in a matter of months. During the incident that occurred last week, Yadala suffered slashes of wounds on his right hand as he caught the intruder, disarmed him and pinned him down to the ground until the police arrived, the Sun reported. The local police arrived within three minutes to the incident location and they arrested a 15 year old intruder and praised Yadala as "brave". The intruder is alleged to have asked for cigarettes, but when Yadala asked for an ID proof to check the age of the suspect, suspect threatened Yadala with a knife. The suspect has now been released on bail. Yadala previously tackled a group of four masked burglar’s, when they got into his shop in February last year. According to a footage recorded on CCTV camera, Yadala was seen struggling to fight with one of the four as they stole cigarettes worth 3,000 pounds. Sandeep Yadala, came to the England to pursue a post graduate degree and he manages the store part time. Indian Origin British received a Knighthood AMandeep

Indian origin British Professor received Knighthood January 02, 2017 13:45

An Indian-origin British professor of chemistry and DNA expert at Cambridge University, had received a Knighthood along with the Olympic super stars Andy Murray and Mo Farah among others by Queen Elizabeth II. Shankar Balasubramanian a 50 year old, Herchel Smith Professor of Medicinal Chemistry at Cambridge University, had been recognised for his work as a co-inventor of Next Generation DNA sequencing, which is described as the most advance method in biology and medicine for decades. Parents Grapple with Schools in Dubai "Solexa sequencing, allows one individual genome to be sequence in mostly two days at a cost of less than one thousand pounds; before, sequencing a human genome took years of hard work and costed billions of pounds. Balasubramanian’s work had spawned an entirely new discipline of Bioinformatics." "Most recently, he had made a major contribution into understanding the character of DNA-quadruplexes in cancer and invented a method for the sequencing of epigenetic modifications," his citation reads. Andy Murray, Farah and British track and field athlete Jessica Ennis-Hill are among the others who were honoured Knighthood in the 2017 New Year Honours list, which also includes big names in the world of Entertainment, including actor Mark Rylance and Patricia Routledge. Rio 2016 men's tennis champion Andy Murray and double gold-winning athlete Farah receive Knighthoods, while heptathlete Ennis-Hill becomes a Dame. Neena Gill, Member of the European Parliament for the West Midlands for parliamentary and political service, Ravindra Pragji Govindia of Wandsworth Borough Council for services to local government and the community in Wandsworth, London and Anita Thapar from the Institute of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences at Cardiff University for services to child and adolescent psychiatry are also included in the list. - AMandeep

South Indian Bank launches mobile banking app for NRIs! December 30, 2016 11:10

A full-fledged NRI-focused mobile banking app named ' SIB Mirror+ across major mobile platforms' has been launched by the South Indian Bank. The new application was introduced after the path-breaking 'E-Lock' feature which provided a single tap solution to fully secure all digital transaction from frauds. The SIB Mirror+ allows the customers to perform almost all banking transactions from their smart phones. The app comes with self-registration facility for ease of activation and utilizes NEFT facility for interbank fund transfers. It also features bill payment facility, cheque book request, 24x7 ‘within bank’ fund transfer and instant mobile/DTH recharge. V G Mathew, MD & CEO, said that, "By launching this latest technology product, South Indian Bank has yet again delivered on its promise of offering next generation banking services to its customers, especially the NRIs." The innovative feature ‘Social Money’ allows customers to transfer money from and to their friends through social media channels like Whatsapp and Facebook. Punjab launched Punjabi learning website for NRIs! Nandini

Indian-origin surgeon receives prestigious UK professorship award! December 19, 2016 05:25

The United Kingdom's Royal College of Surgeons has awarded a British-Indian orthopaedic surgeon with the prestigious Hunterian Professorship and Medal for 2017 for his research on stem cells in articular cartilage repair. The renowned knee surgeon in the UK, Anan Shetty is a Chair and Director of stem cell research at Canterbury Christ Church University. The citation reads that, "The Hunterian Professorship is considered one of the proudest traditional honours of the college bestowed on surgeons of eminence who have richly contributed to the field of surgery by original research or innovations. The honour of delivering the Hunterian lecture is regarded by surgeons around the world as a great privilege and high accolade awarded to recognize their work." Shetty is leading world class research in knee surgery and also trains orthopaedic surgeons at the Royal College of Surgeons of England. Indian-origin Shetty is the founder and director of the Kent Knee Unit based at the Spire Alexandra Hospital in south-east England. It was established in response to the requirement and management of knee disorders. Britain to reduce student visas by almost half! Nandini

Britain to reduce student visas by almost half! December 13, 2016 06:01

The recent media reports say, the British Home Office is planning to cut down international student numbers at universities and institutes in Britain, by nearly half. The threat was being greeted with dismay by university heads, who say some good overseas applicants were already being refused visas on spurious grounds. The Guardian reported that, a vice-chancellor at one Britain's university, said that the judgments being made by Britain Visas and Immigration have changed significantly in the past few months. Indian students, in particular, seem to be having a tougher time. Another vice-chancellor said that, "They are telling some students there is exactly the same quality of course available in India so why are you coming here." "That is outrageous." Sir Keith Burnett of Sheffield University, one of the vice-chancellors who accompanied PMTheresa May on a recent trade delegation to India, said that, "If we genuinely want to be open to the world and a global leader in free trade, we can only do so by welcoming talent." "This cannot simply be our own assessment. International students need to feel welcome and that accessing Britain to study and for a period of work experience is easy. Even a hint that students are unwelcome and they will go elsewhere," Burnett added. Professor Colin Riordan, Vice-Chancellor of Cardiff University, said that, "The Home Office seems to have decided that cutting international students is the only way of delivering the manifesto target of getting net migration down to the tens of thousands. But it does not address people's concerns about immigration." "The problems people are seeing on the ground are certainly not caused by international university students or staff," he said. Also Read: Trump says H1B visa holders can not replace American workers! Nandini