NRI ( Page 81 of 82 )

Indian-origin student drowns in Canada May 07, 2011 05:45

Recalling their ordeal after their boat capsized, one of the survivors told the paper, "We were all struggling. The water was freezing. The canoe tipped over and I knew if we didn't call someone it would have been over for all of us." The survivor said he and Srinivasan tried to save their third friend who was struggling to stay afloat despite being the only one wearing a life jacket. He said that between shouts for help, he and Srinivasan took turns to prop up their sinking friend. But by the time neighbours in nearby cottages arrived in motorboats to save them, Srinivasan drowned. Gunjan Gite, Srinivasan's girlfriend of four years, told the newspaper that he was "completely selfless. His personality just shines out. You meet him once and you feel like you can open up to him... He cares so much for everyone around him". Recalling their ordeal after their boat capsized, one of the survivors told the paper, "We were all struggling. The water was freezing. The canoe tipped over and I knew if we didn't call someone it would have been over for all of us." The survivor said he and Srinivasan tried to save their third friend who was struggling to stay afloat despite being the only one wearing a life jacket. He said that between shouts for help, he and Srinivasan took turns to prop up their sinking friend. But by the time neighbours in nearby cottages arrived in motorboats to save them, Srinivasan drowned. Gunjan Gite, Srinivasan's girlfriend of four years, told the newspaper that he was "completely selfless. His personality just shines out. You meet him once and you feel like you can open up to him... He cares so much for everyone around him". - The University of Waterloo is a favourite institution with Indian students. Hyderabad-born Prem Watsa, who is known as the 'Canadian Warren Buffet', is the chancellor of the university.

Wrongfully held, diplomat's daughter sues NY for $1.5m May 07, 2011 05:45

NEW YORK/NEW DELHI: The Indian government on Wednesday came out in full support of 18-year-old Krittika Biswas, daughter of an Indian diplomat, after she sued the New York City government for $1.5 million for being arrested on false charges, handcuffed and confined with criminals. Krittika's harrowing experience began after she was accused of sending anti-semitic emails to her school teachers sometime in December 2010 — a charge that she repeatedly denied. She was arrested on February 8 and kept in jail for 24 hours before the Indian consulate and the embassy in Washington swung into action to secure her release from prison. Thereafter, despite the Queens district attorney dropping the charges and expunging her arrest from the record, school officials sent Krittika to a suspension centre. There, Krittika told Times Now, she was treated like a criminal and forced to spend time with "HIV patients and sex workers". Her arrest and confinement have raised questions of racial bias in the New York Police as well as the school authorities. The teenager told Times Now that when she told the cops to contact the Indian consulate, they asked her, "Are you a diplomat?" On Wednesday, lawyer Ravi Batra said Krittika, whose father Debashish Biswas is vice counsel at the Indian consulate here, has sued the New York City government claiming $1.5 million in damages. Indian consulate general Prabhu Dayal said Krittika deserved the compensation from the US government as "she has undergone mental and physical torture. This has scarred her mind for the rest of her life." Official sources in the Ministry of External Affairs told TOI, "We have taken this issue up with the US government. We have conveyed our anguish at the incident." They even said that the school's decision to not charge the real culprit, an "Asian" boy, spoke volumes of their "double standards". She alleged that she was not allowed to use the bathroom when she was in custody at the 107th precinct. "Eventually, I had to go in front of everyone," she said, referring to a small toilet in the cell occupied by other people.s Batra said that her more than 24-hour arrest violated international, federal, state and city laws. Batra said neither Krittika's father nor the consulate general were informed of her arrest on February 8. "They (the school) based my arrest on basically nothing," Krittika said, adding that the school did not suspend the Chinese student who sent the emails. "I don't know why he wasn't arrested... the principal pushed for my arrest." She said a cop told her that if she didn't confess, she would have to spend time in prison with prostitutes and people with HIV. She couldn't drink water from a water fountain because it had another person's vomit, and although it was really cold, she could not use the blanket because it stank. The New York Police Department is not responding to calls and an email seeking a response. Dayal later said that the incident would have no bearing on Indo-US relations. "This is an aberration... a wrongful act of local officials," he said. In addition to compensatory and punitive damages, Batra suggested that Mayor Bloomberg could perhaps give "a key to the City to Krittika as a token of heartfelt sorrow for the unbecoming pain inflicted upon her."

Indian-origin student drowns in Canada May 07, 2011 05:45

Chota Rajan ordered Dey’s murder June 28, 2011 12:37

Mumbai police, after claiming to have cracked the murder case of senior crime reporter of the Mid-Day tabloid Mr Jyotirmoy Dey, said today that it was a contract killing and the murder was committed on the orders of the underworld don Chota Rajan.Mumbai Police Commissioner Arup Patnaik however could not disclose the motive behind the murder. “We have an inkling of the motive and we will reveal it after making sure through proper investigations,” he told media persons at his office in Mumbai.The hit men conducted recces at Dey’s office and at his residence in Powai before they put their plan into action. The recces were conducted by Rajan henchman and main shooter Rohit Thangappan alias Satish Kalia who shot Dey with a sophisticated, foreign made .32 bore revolver. Kalia and his six accomplices received Rs 5 lakh totally for eliminating the journalist, said the officer adding that the shooters came to know that they have killed a journalist only after the act. “On the instructions of Rajan, the killers left for several places across India and the first arrests were made in Tamil Nadu.The arrested were produced before the criminal court in Mumbai and the court ordered them to police custody till July 4 for further questioning.

Rave mania, police arrest 200 boys, girls June 27, 2011 10:47

Raigad police in Maharashtra have raided a rave party last night and arrested 200 boys and girls for consuming narcotics and indulging in obscene dances and objectionable deeds. A senior police officer said that the arrested included Mr Anil Jadhav of the special cell dealing with drug trafficking.Most of those detained are in the age group of 20 to 25 and have been taken for medical examination, said the police. The raid was conducted on a tip off that a rave party was going on at the resort of the hotel Mount View at Karjat, 100 km off Raigad on Mumbai-Pune highway.The young boys and girls were caught red handed by the police on a day observed as the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.While the raiding teams arrested the participants in the rave party, the organizers absconded. Among the girls arrested, 59 girls are from very rich families. Police said they have seized contrabands like ganja, charas, cocaine besides articles used for consuming drugs and Rs 3.08 lakh in cash.

Indian diplomat faces forced labour case June 21, 2011 10:26

A 45-year old former domestic help of Indian Consul General in New York Mr Prabhu Dayal has accused him of treating her like a slave and making sexual advances towards her when she worked in his house.In a labor suit filed before the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, Ms. Santosh Bhardwaj, mother of four children, charged that Dayal had forced her to work for longer hours daily at $ 300 for month and confiscated her passport. She also accused him of letting her sleep in a storage room and making sexual advances towards her.Prabhu Dayal however rejected the charge as complete nonsense and described her statement as sheer lie.Bhardwaj said the Dayals brought her to the US promising an hourly pay of $ 10 and also overtime pay whenever worked. “But I was paid less than $1 per hour and he also confiscated my passport,” she complained.Dayal clarified that the lady had absconded in January 2010 following denial of permission to her to work out side the consulate as there was no permission under the terms of the Visa. He also said she always slept in a fifth floor room of the consulate which is equipped with phone and TV.When asked about the allegations, an Embassy staff member said she was bluntly lying. “Dayals treated her like their family member and with respect,” he said.

Temple treasure value revised to Rs.5 lakh Cr July 07, 2011 08:10

Fresh estimates of the treasure unearthed from the secret chambers of the Anantha Padmanabha Swamy temple in Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala has been revised to Rs. 5 lakh Cr. though no one was willing to state the value of the treasure officially. Supreme Court, based on a petition by the members of the Travancore Royal family, has directed all concerned not to reveal the value of the treasure to any one and also not to disclose the details of the treasure unearthed. The apex court also directed the members of the committee not to give interviews to media persons also during the unearthing of the treasure and their inventory. Naga Bhandam The special committee appointed by the Supreme Court is yet to open the chamber number 6 which has the symbol of a snake on its doors. Temple pundits say the chamber has a Nagabhandam and can’t be opened. “If it is opened, there may be some disaster or some unforeseen trouble,” some of the temple pundits said. “One of the counting staff members lost his leg and the mother of another counting member died while taking inventory,” said temple pundits. “So, it is not good to open the sixth chamber.” When there was a famine a century ago in Kerala, temple pundits wanted to open the chamber. But when they tried to open it, they heard the sound of water flowing from it and dropped the idea, according to some old people in the capital city of Kerala.

Sex Swami complains against Kalanidhi July 08, 2011 12:51

Swamy Nityananda, better known as the sex swami, today lodged a complaint against the Kalanidhi Maran, Sun TV network chairman and brother of the former textiles minister Mr Dayanidhi Maran, to Chennai police that the network had morphed his videos and photos and those of movie artiste Ranjitha linking them to sexual encounters. The complaint comes a day after Dayanidhi Maran had resigned his job as the textiles minister due to his involvement in the 2G Spectrum scam. The representatives of the Bangalore based Nityananda Dhyana Peetam met the City Police Commissioner JK Tripati in Chennai and handed over the complaint on behalf of the tainted Swami. “The Sun TV telecast a false footage to tarnish the image of the Swamiji and the Peetam,” said the complaint which also implicated the Sun TV’s chief operating officer Mr Hansraj Saxena. Mr Saxena was already arrested based on a cheating complaint by a distributor in Tamil Nadu.

Temple chambers last opened in 1931 July 08, 2011 09:17

(The following is the reproduction of an informative article published in the leading English daily the Hindu on the discovery of the huge gold treasure in the Sree Ananthapadmanabha Swamy temple in Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala.) Reports in 'The Hindu', and accounts provided in a book, detail how at least one vault at the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple was opened decades ago. Seventy-nine years ago, long before the latest discovery of phenomenal treasures in the Sree Padmanabhaswami Temple in Thiruvananthapuram, at least one of the several vaults of the temple had been opened and an inventory made of the precious objects found inside. The Hindu's correspondent, who witnessed the events, filed reports describing the scene and the finds. On Sunday, December 6, 1931, around 10 a.m., at an auspicious time chosen by the temple officials, one of the vaults was opened. Following special religious rites, "the key was applied to the old and rusty locks." Sree Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma, the Maharaja, himself was at hand. An ambulance waited outside to attend to any emergency. The locks failed to yield, and the doors were broken open after a two-and-a-half-hour struggle. Floodlights and torches were used to light up the space inside, and electrical fans were switched on to ‘pump air in and out' of the cellar. The temple officials found four chests made of brass which contained old coins. Next to them was “a granary like thing,” full of gold and silver coins. Over that there were several gold pots. There was a wooden chest fixed to the ground, and it had six chambers. In it were jewels with diamonds, rubies, emerald and other precious stones. In addition, there were over 300 gold pots and four vancheds, or coffers. The officials who got into the first cellar found that another one was behind it. It was believed, The Hindu report mentioned, that in all there were four cellars: Mahabarathakonathu kallara, Sree Pandarathu kallara, Vedavyanakonathu kallara and Sarswathikonathu kallara. By 3.30 p.m., the operation was stopped and the vault sealed. The four vancheds were taken to the Chellavagai, or palace treasury, “for counting and valuation.” It is not clear from the reports if any of the remaining cellars were opened in the following days. The reasons for opening the vaults too were not elaborated. However, Emily Gilchrist Hatch, who was in Trivandrum in 1933, offered an explanation in her book, Travancore: A guide book for the visitor (Oxford University Press, 1933). She not only recalled the 1931 opening of the vault, but also mentioned a similar but unsuccessful attempt that had been made in 1908. Ms. Hatch, who in the preface to her book profusely thanked the Travancore government for all the “help and counsel” extended to her, recorded that the temple had a vast amount of wealth ‘lain in vaults.' “About 25 years ago,” she wrote, “when the State needed additional money, it was thought expedient to open these chests and use the wealth they contained.” “A group of people” got together and attempted to enter the vaults with torches. When they found them “infested with cobras” they “fled for their lives.” However, in 1931 the temple officials were better prepared with “electric lights and system of fans,” she observed. The 1930s were difficult times. The princely state Travancore, like the rest of India, was facing an economic depression. Revenues had fallen and the prices of agricultural produce had come down. It was in these difficult times that Sree Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma was invested with ruling powers, T. Austin, an Englishman, succeeded Subrahmanya Aiyar as Dewan, and C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar was appointed legal and constitutional adviser to the Travancore government. However, in 1932, when the Dewan recalled the important events of the preceding year in his annual address to the Sri Mulam Popular Assembly, one of the two legislatures in Travancore then, there was no mention of any treasure being taken from the temple or used. Ms. Hatch's book provided a description of how large wooden chests were placed “ready to receive the daily offerings.” She mentioned that as and when the chests became full they were lowered into the vaults for safe-keeping. This may partially explain how votive offerings like gold coins reached the vaults. But the description does not throw much light on how large artefacts such as the golden icon that was recently discovered reached the vaults. Indeed, how such vast amounts of wealth and innumerable artefacts accumulated in the vaults, and remained safe without apparent pilferage for such a long period, remains a puzzle. (Reproduced as it is from The Hindu for the sake of our readers -Andhrawishesh.com)

Opening of temple chamber deferred by SC July 08, 2011 08:17

The Supreme Court today directed its special committee of observers not to open the chamber B of the Sree Anantha Padmanabhaswamy temple in Thiruvananthapuram of Kerala till July 15 and asked the former Travancore royal family and the Kerala government to come out with proper suggestions to protect and preserve the sanctity and wealth of the ancient temple. King Marthanda Varma, senior member of the erstwhile royal family, told the apex court that the treasure belonged to the God Sree Anantha Padmanabhaswamy and no body else can lay a claim over it. “No member of our family is claiming any right over the temple wealth as it belonged to the temple and the God residing in it,” Raja Marthanda Varma told the judges through his counsel and senior advocate KK Venugopal. The apex-court appointed observers have unearthed gold treasure from the five chambers of the temple cellars but one more chamber is yet to be opened. The estimated value of the gold treasure unearthed is put roughly at Rs.1 lakh Cr. Security beefed up for the temple The Kerala government today announced a budget of 1 Cr for the security of the temple and its wealth. Finance Minister KM Mani said in the assembly that already three battalions of Kerala Armed Police and some commandos of the National Security Guards have taken over the security of the temple and more measures are being planned for the preservation of the temple and its wealth. The government is also considering creating a special security zone around the temple and a decision will be taken soon after studying all related aspects, he said.

Rahul takes on Maya during Padayatra July 06, 2011 13:19

Congress general secretary and MP Mr Rahul Gandhi, who launched his Padayatra in UP on Tuesday to rejuvenate and take his party towards political fortunes, had continued with his Yatra on second day today. After launching his Yatra from Bhatta-Parsaul village, Rahul left for Tappal as early as 6.20 am today and visited several villages on the way in the western parts of the state. He ate four rotis and slept in the open on a charpai (blanket) along with others at a farmer’s house in Rampur village last night but was on his feet in the early morning. The 41-year-old AICC general secretary will culminate his Yatra with the proposed ‘kisan mahapanchayat’ in Aligarh district on July 9. Rahul Gandhi has been making impromptu stops and interacting with villagers in his Padayatra to know their problems. During his Padayatra, he was telling the farmers that they were being looted in the Mayaraj. Despite the imposition of Section 144 in the area by the officials at the instance of the chief minister, Rahul Gandhi was braving the prohibitory orders to make a common cause with the farmers by fiercely criticizing the state government's land acquisition policy.

Ram Dev’s condition worsens June 11, 2011 06:48

The health condition of yoga guru Baba Ramdev has worsened further as his indefinite fast against corruption and black money has entered the 7th day today and doctors have suggested his immediate hospitalization.Chief Medical Officer Yogesh Chandra Sharma who examined him this morning said both blood pressure and pulse rate of the Baba are very low at 104/40 and 58 per minute respectively. “His health parameters continue to remain worrisome,” he said. The CMO said he has sent his report to the District Magistrate and response is yet to come from the authorities. “Ramdev has dehydration and has been advised to break his fast immediately but he has rejected my advice,” he said.Meanwhile, the Baba’s aides had announced that the four Trusts founded by Ram Dev are worth Rs.1100 Cr and the Trusts have spent nearly Rs.750 Cr till date since their inception.