Brexit deal clinched in last ... · IRVING, TX (TIP):Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Oct 6 delivered remarks at the 150th Birth Anniversary Celebration for Mahatma Gandhi in Irving,

IRVING, TX (TIP): Texas GovernorGreg Abbott on Oct 6 delivered remarksat the 150th Birth AnniversaryCelebration for Mahatma Gandhi inIrving, Texas. The Governor discussedthe enduring bond between India, Texas,and the Indian Americancommunity, andhighlighted the importance of Mahatma

Gandhi's teachings of peace in themodern world. As part of thecelebration, Governor Abbott also paidfloral tribute to Mahatma Gandhi, andtoured the Mahatma Gandhi MemorialPlaza - the largest memorial forMahatma Gandhi in the United States.

"The bond between India, Texas, and

the Indian-American community isdeeply rooted in our shared values offamily, community, and freedom," saidGovernor Abbott. "These are the samevalues that Mahatma Gandhi advocatedfor, and they are the foundation forgreater cultural understanding. As wecelebrate the 150th anniversary of

Mahatma Gandhi's birth, it is my hopethat all who visit this memorial today,tomorrow, and all the years to come willbe reminded of his teachings of peace,harmony, nonviolence, and unity."

www.theindianpanorama.news

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VOL 7 ISSUE 41 ● DALLAS ● OCT 18 - 24, 2019 ● ENQUIRIES: 646-247-9458

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Will bring out a profusely illustratedspecial edition to mark the

550th birth anniversary of Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the First Master of

the Sikhs, on November 8. Articles and advertisements

for thespecial commemorative editionare invited.

Please email articles by November 1 [email protected].

Advertisers are requested to bookspaceby October 30 and emailcreatives by

November 3 [email protected] more information, visit

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Call 646-247-9458.

Brexit deal clinched in last-ditch talks"We have a great new Brexit deal," U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted

BRUSSELS (TIP): UK and EU leadersstood on a stage in Brussels onThursday, October 17, and declared thata Brexit deal had, finally, been done.Negotiators from the U.K. and EUreached a draft Brexit deal in 11th-hourtalks Thursday, although there areserious doubts that the agreement willbe approved by U.K. lawmakers back inWestminster.

Sterling rose on news after the U.K.made concessions over the Irish border,an issue that had proven to be thebiggest obstacle to a deal. The poundwas 0.8% higher against the dollar, at$1.2929, reaching a five-month high butsoon trimmed those gains as oppositionparties in the U.K voiced their concerns.

contd on Page 20The UK and EU negotiators joined PM Boris Johnson (2nd L) and European Commission chief

Jean-Claude Juncker (2nd R) for a photo session with photographers

Congressman Elijah E.Cummings Dies at 68

WASHINGTON (TIP):Representative Elijah E. Cummings,a son of sharecroppers who rose tobecome one of the most powerfulDemocrats in Congress and a

contd on Page 32

One of the mostpowerful Congressmen

Elijah E. Cummingswho investigatedTrump, has died

Parts of Gurdwara Panja Sahib in

Pakistan gutted in Fire

HASAN ABDAL, PAKISTAN(TIP): A fire broke out at theGurdwara Panja Sahib in thePakistani city of Hasan Abdal onWednesday, October 16, Sajjad Azhar, afreelance journalist who hasextensively covered the news of theplace said. contd on Page 20

Indian ambassadorbriefs US lawmakers on

situation in Kashmir

WASHINGTON (TIP): India'sambassador to the US Harsh VardhanShringla on Wednesday, October 16,briefed lawmakers on the situation inKashmir and the steps taken to

contd on Page 20

BOSTON (TIP): India got anotherNobel laureate in Economics afterAmartya Sen when Indian AmericanMIT economist Abhijit VinayakBanerjee was named the winner of the2019 Sveriges Riksbank Prize inEconomic Sciences in Memory of AlfredNobel. His fellow MIT economist andwife Esther Duflo was named co-winnerof the Nobel, along with another co-winner, Harvard University economistMichael Kremer. Duflo, 46, is theyoungest economics laureate ever andthe second woman to receive the prize inits half-century history.

Incidentally Amartya and Abhijit,both Bengalis, also share the samecollege, Presidency Kolkata. Banerjee isthe sixth Indian with 'Kolkataconnection' to win a Nobel afterRabindranath Tagore, Sir Ronald Ross, CV Raman, Mother Teresa and AmartyaSen.

contd on Page 20

India Gets Second Nobel Laureate in Economics

Indian American MIT Economist Abhijit VinayakBanerjee Bags the Second Nobel Prize in

Economics after Amartya Sen (1998)

MIT economists Abhijit Banerjee and EstherDuflo stand outside their home after learningthat they have been named co-winners of the2019 Nobel Prize in economic sciences. Theywill share the prize with Michael Kremer of

Harvard University. Photo / courtesy MIT News

Gurdwara Panja Sahib in Pakistan is one ofthe most revered Sikh shrines in the world.

Shringla and otherdiplomats from the Indian

Embassy here and itsconsulates in New York,

Chicago, Atlanta, Houstonand San Francisco have

reached out to hundreds ofCongressmen and their

aides after abrogation ofthe state's special status.

Texas Governor Discusses Enduring bond with Indiaat Gandhi Birth Anniversary Celebration in Irving

Governor Abbottspoke highly of

Mahatma Gandhiat the 150th Birth

AnniversaryCelebration for

Mahatma Gandhiin Irving,

File photo

2 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2019NEW YORK

HOFSTRA UNIVERSITY, NEW YORK (TIP):The three-day Guru Nanak's Ek-Anek Visionconference was organized at Hofstra University from10 to 12 October by Dr Balbinder Singh Bhogal and DrFrancesca Cassio under the Sardarni Kuljit KaurBindra Chair in Sikh Studies and Sardarni HarbansKaur Chair in Sikh Musicology. The conference wasattended by over 30 scholars and artists from all overthe world. This was the eighth conference at Hofstraunder the Sardarni Kuljit Kaur Bindra Chair since itsinception in 2001.

Dr Balbinder Singh Bhogal welcome everyone tothe conference and laid out the aim which is toestablish Gur Sikh musicological and philosophicaldifference - a difference that not only includes butpreserves the other's voice as its own, making its ownhistory a shared history .

At the welcome dinner Tejinder Singh Bindracongratulated everyone on Guruji's 550th birthanniversary and spoke of secularism, universal loveand equality -equality whether it be among nations,castes , gender or wealthpreached and practiced byGuru Nanak . He thanked Hofstra university andboth Professors for selecting this wonderful topic andbringing so many renowned and distinguishedscholars and artists to the conference.

Mrs. Indie Singh spoke about the importance of

gurmat sangeet in their family and how happy herparents would be of seeing the progress of themusicology chair.

Both the Provost Dr Herman Berliner and DeanBen Rifkin thanked the generous support of lateSardar Ishar Singh Bindra and family and Dr HakamSingh for endowing the chairs andacknowledged the great contribution ofboth chairs in the department of religion atHofstra.

Hofstra is also home of Guru NanakInterfaith Prize, endowed by Sardar IsharSingh Bindra , where a $ 50,000 Prize isawarded every two years to a person ororganization that bring religions close. HisHoliness The Dalai Lama was the firstrecipient of this Prize.

Dr Cassio summarized the conference asan important and historic event - withsome intellectual substance, in terms of inserting theSikh voice in the debate about Indian music history,with the possibility of re-writing it, or at leastregistering our challenge to the way that historyeludes the Sikh voice and contribution.

Scholars from Harvard, Yale, Columbia andMichigan as well Banaras Hindu University, andGuru Nanak Dev University from India, began aconversation for the first time engaging directly withthe sonic evidence that Bhai Baldeep Singh (theKeynote speaker) presented. The initiation of thiscritical assessment and discussion was a majorsuccess in the field of Sikh studies and theethnomusicology of South Asia.

Being the focus of this conference is inclusivity,the organizers wanted to represent and celebrate notonly Guru Nanak's voice, with his pluriversal vision,

but also the multi-linguistic, multi-geographic, andmulti-authored compositions collected in Shri GuruGranth Sahib through the Sikh, Bhakti and Sufivoices.

The three concerts presented during theConference were, in fact, an integral part of theintellectual project that aims to showcase thepluriversality of Guru Nanak's message in its sonicform, and how the memory of heterodox traditionshas been retained through the songs collected in theSikh Scriptures, and preserved by the Sikh

community who sang these poems over the past 500years.

The first concert was entirely dedicated to GuruNanak. The prime exponent of the Gurbani kirtanparampara, Bhai Baldeep Singh sang compositionsthat have been transmitted within the pre-colonialGur-Sikh traditions as original compositions of thefounder of the Sikh faith. In this recital, BhaiBaldeep Singh proposed for the first time to retraceGuru Nanak's experience of the early (pre-colonial)Gurbani kirtan, accompanied by Daud Khan Sadozaion a rabab that is a replica of the rabab played by theFifth Sikh Guru, Arjan Dev Ji.

The second evening the audience had theopportunity to listen to a rendition of the Kabirbani presented by Padma Shri Prahlad Tiapanya, in

the traditional Malwistyle from MadhyaPradesh. Theconference ended withthe qawwali singerDhruv Sangariperforming lyricalhymns of Sheikh Farid.

The concerts weredesigned to heardifferences across theseperformative traditions,and as such, they werefunctional to the wholeargument of inclusivitythat the delegates havediscussed over the twodays of the conference.

550th Birth Anniversary of Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji

Conference on Guru Nanak’s Ek - Anek Vision of Inclusivity held at Hofstra University

Tejinder Singh Bindra welcoming scholars and guests Dr. Balbinder Singh Bhogal and Dr. Francesca Cassiowelcoming guests

Bhai Baldeep Singh (left) and Daud Khan (right) at theopening session of the conference.

Padma Shri Prahlad Tipanya and his group sang Kabir Bani

Dhruv Sangari sang hymns of Sheikh Farid

Mrs. & Mr. Tejinder Singh Bindra, Dr. Bhogal and Dr. Cassio with scholars and artists at theconference

3THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2019 INDIANS ABROAD

Indian MasterWeightlifter dies incar accident near

Grand Canyon

LAS VEGAS (TIP): Retd. ColSudhakar Jayant, who was thePresident for Indian MastersWeightlifting Federation (IWLF),died in a car accident near GrandCanyon on Oct 9. He and four otherMaster Weightlifters met with anaccident near Vegas when the carthey were travelling in, collidedhead-on with another car injuringthree of them seriously. Sudhakarsuffered critical injuries and wasadmitted to the hospital where hesuccumbed to his injuries. SantokhSingh and Archana Jain sufferedserious injuries in the mishap. RajivSharma, another Indian weightlifter,was lucky to escape unhurt.

"India mourns noted weightlifterCol Sudhakar Jayant, who passedaway in a tragic car accident nearthe Grand Canyon shortly afterwinning the World Masters Gold inSan Diego. Heartfelt condolences tothe bereaved family" IndianConsulate in San Francisco tweetedafter his demise.

"A sad day for Indian MastersWeightlifting community as we lostone of our own to an unfortunate caraccident. Retd. Col Sudhakar Jayantwas the National Head for IndianMasters Weightlifting and createdthis community from ground up inIndia. As many may recall, he wasalways jovial, helping andimmediately made connections witheveryone he met. He has beencompeting at the World MastersChampionship for quite some timeand has a gold medal to show foralmost every competition that hewas in. Most recently he won a Goldat Worlds Masters WeightliftingChampionship in Montreal followedby a Gold Medal in San DiegoMasters Open Cup. Col Sudhakaralso has few world records to hisname. He had big dreams for thiscommunity and we intend to keepthem alive. He was and will be aninspiration to all of us. May his soulrest in peace and condolences to hisfamily and friends", the IWLF wroteon their social media.

Indian American named Chair ofMIT’s New Committee

BOSTON (TIP): Chair of the FacultyRick Danheiser and Provost MartinSchmidt have announced the creation oftwo related committees that willexamine MIT's external engagementsand review its policies and processes onsoliciting and accepting gifts. Thecommittees are charged withrecommending new guidelines for the

Institute's relationships with fundingsources.

The first of the two new committees, tobe chaired by Tavneet Suri, an associateprofessor of applied economics at theMIT Sloan School of Management, willadvise on the principles governing MIT'sacceptance of gifts and funding, and itsengagement with outside entities and

individuals.In addition to Suri, two Indian

Americans named members of thiscommittee- they are Arup Chakraborty:Robert T. Haslam Professor of ChemicalEngineering, Physics, Chemistry, andBiological Engineering and YogeshSurendranath: Paul M. Cook AssociateProfessor of Chemistry.

The first of the two new committees, to be chaired by Tavneet Suri have two Indian Americans Arup Chakraborty and Yogesh Surendranath as members.

Retd. Col Sudhakar Jayant was theNational Head for Indian Masters

Weightlifting Weightlifting

Indian American Suparna RajaramReceives 2019 Clifford T. MorganDistinguished Leadership Award

NEW YORK (TIP): The PsychonomicSociety has named Indian American

professor Suparna Rajaram a recipient ofthe 2019 Clifford T, Morgan DistinguishedLeadership Award, which honorsindividuals for their significantcontributions to the field of cognitivepsychology. Dr. Rajaram is a professor inthe College of Arts and SciencesDepartment of Psychology at Stony BrookUniversity.

Dr. Rajaram's research focuses onexperimental study of social transmissionof memory and emergence of collectivememory. Her aim is to understandcomplex, large-scale group memoryphenomena in terms of well-groundedpsychological processes. Other lines ofresearch interests over the years includememory and emotion, the distinctionbetween repeated testing and repeatedstudy, the distinction between explicit andimplicit memory, new learning in amnesia,and the nature of recollective experience.

Dr. Rajaram along with other 2019 awardrecipients will be honored during thePsychonomic Society's 2019 AnnualMeeting in Montréal in November.

Dr. Rajaram is a professor in the College ofArts and Sciences Department of Psychology

at Stony Brook University.Photo / Courtesy SBU

Indian American LeadsResearch for Developing

Defenses to ProtectArtificial Intelligence

from Hackers

PRINCETON, NJ (TIP): Machines'ability to learn by processing datagleaned from sensors underliesautomated vehicles, medical devicesand a host of other emergingtechnologies. But that learning abilityleaves systems vulnerable to hackers inunexpected ways, a team of researchersled by an Indian American at PrincetonUniversity have found.

Prateek Mittal the lead researcherand an associate professor in theDepartment of Electrical Engineeringat Princeton is a pioneer inunderstanding an emergingvulnerability known as adversarialmachine learning. His research drawson techniques from data science,network science, distributed systems,and applied cryptography. His work hasinfluenced the design of widely usedsystems such as the Tor network foranonymous communication, and theLet's Encrypt Certificate Authority.

Arjun Nitin Bhagoji anIndianAmericanPh.D. student in Mittal's laband Liwei Song, graduate students inelectrical engineering, are developingdefenses to protect artificial intelligencefrom hackers. (Read full story onwww.theindianpanorama.news)

Prateek Mittal thelead researcher

and an associateprofessor in theDepartment of

ElectricalEngineering at

Princeton

Indian American Students Awarded UpakarFoundation 2019 Scholarships

Eight high-achievingIndian Americanstudentsawarded UpakarScholarships;twoawarded Upakar Textbook Scholarships.

GAITHERSBURG, MD (TIP): Upakar announced , October 16, partnerships withmultiple donors to create memorial scholarships. Included in the 2019 awardsarethree Khuba Watumull Scholarships, one Virginia for Education Scholarship, oneIndia Development and Relief Fund (IDRF) Scholarship, one Bob and ManiNarasimhan Scholarship, and one Kaushalya Butail Scholarship. Each UpakarScholar will receive up to $8,000 tuition scholarship over their four years ofundergraduate studies.

(Read full story on www.theindianpanorama.news)

4 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2019US

Indian American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi IntroducesBipartisan Resolution Celebrating Gandhi's 150th Birthday

WASHINGTON (TIP): On Oct 11,Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthiintroduced a resolution celebrating

Mahatma Gandhi's 150th birthday andhis enduring legacy.

"Mahatma Gandhi is one of mypersonal heroes," said CongressmanRaja Krishnamoorthi. "Gandhi'sdedication to public service is aninspiration, and even when faced withincredible hardship and injustice, henever wavered in fighting for freedom,dignity, and equality for all. Every day, Iam grateful for the profound examplehe set not just for lawyers and publicservants like myself, but for all ofhumanity. As an Indian Americansserving in Congress, I am proud to playmy part in honoring his legacy throughthe introduction of this bipartisanresolution honoring Mahatma Gandhi'slife and legacy."

"Every day I am working tostrengthen the U.S.-India relationshipin my capacity as Co-Chair of the IndiaCaucus," said Congressman BradSherman. "I'm proud to be an originalco-sponsor of this congressionalresolution to recognize the important

contributions of Mahatma Gandhi bycommemorating the 150th anniversaryof his birth. As Chair of the HouseForeign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia,I will continue to use my platform topromote the important values promotedby Gandhi, such as protecting religiousfreedom and seeking peacefulresolution to conflict throughdialogue."

"Mahatma Gandhi is among the mostrevered and impactful leaders of ourtime," said Congressman GeorgeHolding. "His lifelong commitment tohuman rights, civil liberty, and freedominspired countless millions across theglobe. As we mark the 150thanniversary of Gandhi's birthday, let ushonor his enduring legacy andcelebrate his monumental impact topeace, justice, and freedom worldwide."

The Ambassador of India to theUnited States, Harsh Vardhan Shringlaalso weighed in on the importance ofthis resolution:

"As we commemorate the 150th birth

anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, weare once again reminded that hisstruggle for the pursuit of freedom,equality, and dignity for all throughsatyagraha finds resonance acrossgenerations and boundaries. TheResolution introduced in the U.S. Houseof Representatives by CongressmanRaja Krishnamoorthi supported bymany bipartisan cosponsorsemphasizes the shared influence ofGandhi's teachings on civil rightsleaders around the world, including Dr.Martin Luther King and reflects theshared values of the people of India andthe United States of America."

Fourteen cosponsors from bothpolitical parties, including manymembers of the India Caucus, joined insupporting this resolution. Theyinclude Representatives GeorgeHolding, Brad Sherman, Joe Wilson,Gerry Connolly, Peter King, Ami Bera,Ro Khanna, Frank Pallone, BrendaLawrence, Pete Olson, Pramila Jayapal,TJ Cox, David Price, and Ted Yoho.

-"Mahatma Gandhi is one of my personalheroes," said Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi

Stanford University CelebratesGandhi and King’s Global Legacies

New India Philanthropy AllianceLaunched to Advance Humanitarian

and Development Goals

WASHINGTON (TIP): Last weekendthe Gandhi King Global Initiative atStanford University celebratedGandhi's and King's global legacies atthe 150 year anniversary of Gandhi'sbirth. A symposium featured thedescendants of Gandhi, Martin LutherKing, Jr. and Cesar Chavez sharing thestage together.

The international Gandhi-Kingconference from Friday, October 11 toSunday, October 13, 2019 featured threedays of lectures and panel discussionsat Stanford University by prominentscholars and activists who reassessedthe legacies of Gandhi and King in acontemporary global context. ElaGandhi and Rajmohan Gandhi

(grandchildren of Mahatma Gandhi),Martin Luther King III and his family,Anthony Chavez and Juanita Chavez(the grandson of Cesar Chavez and thedaughter of Dolores Huerta,respectively), Sister Helen Prejean, andJames Lawson were among the honoredguests.

This historic gathering was the firstevent of the Gandhi-King GlobalInitiative (GKGI), an effort to build aninternational network of organizationsand grassroots groups committed to thenonviolent struggle for human rights.This network will seek to enhance therich history of intellectual and politicalcollaboration between activists inspiredby Gandhi and King.

The Martin Luther King, Jr., Research and Education Institute at Stanford Universitycommemorated the 150th anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi's birth by presenting a major,

international Gandhi-King conference Photos / Courtesy Indiaspora Forum

WASHINGTON (TIP): Elevenorganizations announced the formation ofa new India Philanthropy Alliance (IPA) tofurther advance humanitarian anddevelopment goals in India throughincreased collaboration which wasofficially launched on Oct 2 in WashingtonDC.

The IPA comprises of 11 members:Akanksha Fund, American IndiaFoundation, Arogya World, CRY America,Dasra, Ekal USA, Foundation forExcellence, Indiaspora, Magic Bus USA,Pratham USA and VisionSpring. Theseorganizations collectively raise $125million annually in philanthropicdonations, including more than $50million from the United States. They haveimpacted 67 million people with theirevidence-based programs spanningeducation, health care, livelihood support,and other essential services. They countamong their most generous donors, IndianAmerican entrepreneurs andprofessionals as well as companies doingbusiness in both the United States and

India. Together, these 11 organizationshave cumulatively impacted more than 67million people with their evidence-basedprograms spanning education, healthcare, livelihood support, and otheressential services

The initiative for creating the IndiaPhilanthropy Alliance began two yearsago, organizers said, "To help Indiameeting its United Nations SustainableDevelopment Goal commitments, theorganizations that are part of the Alliancewill work more closely together in theirconstituency building efforts in the UnitedStates and in their work in India."

"We're excited about this effort to joinforces today as a new alliance committedto the ideal of making a collective impact.Working together, using our combinedphilanthropic reach and innovative ideas,we can help India in far greater ways thaneach of us could accomplish working onour own," said Deepak Raj, a New Jersey-based entrepreneur and investor.

(Read full story onwww.theindianpanorama.news)

Seen in the picture, from L to R : Bala Venkatachalam (Pratham USA), Meenakshi Mahan(Magic Bus), Ranjani Saigal (Ekal Vidyalaya), Shefali Sunderlal (CRY America), Swati Chaudhary(Arogya World), Gouri Sadhwani (Akanksha Fund), Rahul Saxena (Vision Spring)

Photo / courtesy CRY America

5THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2019 US

Under pressure fromUS, Mexico authorities

deport 311 IndiansThe people were presented to

the immigration authority in thestates of Oaxaca, Baja

California, Veracruz, Chiapas,Sonora, Mexico City, Durango

and Tabasco.WASHINGTON (TIP): In a first,

Mexico's migration authoritiesdeported 311 Indians, including awoman, from various parts of thecountry amidst its stepped-up effortsto check people illegally crossing itsborders following pressure from theUS.

According to a press release issuedby the National Migration Institute(INM) on Wednesday, October 16, theIndian nationals, who did not have acondition of regular stay in thecountry, were deported from theToluca City International Airport on aBoeing 747 aircraft to New Delhi.

The people were presented to theimmigration authority in the states ofOaxaca, Baja California, Veracruz,Chiapas, Sonora, Mexico City, Durangoand Tabasco, it said.

The move comes after US PresidentDonald Trump in June threatenedtariffs on all Mexican imports if thecountry did not put a check on peopleentering America through Mexico'sborders.

Mexico had agreed to boost upsecurity on the border and expand itspolicy of taking back migrants.

(Read full story onwww.theindianpanorama.news)

Ambassador Shringla Visits Sikh Association of Baltimore Gurdwara

WASHINGTON (TIP): India's Ambassador to the USHarsh V Shringla visited the Sikh Association ofBaltimore Gurdwara on October 13, 2019 and took partin Sikh Ardas (prayers).

Addressing the gathering, Ambassador Shringlaspoke about the significant steps taken by theGovernment of India to address the longstandingconcerns and grievances of the Sikh community.

He also highlighted the programs being organized bythe Embassy and various Consulates in USA to

commemorate the 550th Birth Anniversary of GuruNanak Dev Ji. The representatives of the Sikhcommunity felicitated the Ambassador and lauded theinitiatives undertaken by the government for thebenefit of the Sikh diaspora.

Dr. Surinder Singh Gill, Secretary of the SikhAssociation of Baltimore Gurdwara in a conversationwith the editor of The Indian Panorama appreciatedthe efforts of Ambassador Shringla in resolving someof the issues which have been the cause of a lot of

inconvenience and unhappiness for the Sikhcommunity. He said the visit of the Ambassador to theGurdwara belied the propaganda of some elementsclaiming themselves to be leaders of the Sikhcommunity about a community ban on entry intoGurdwaras of Indian diplomats . He said diplomats atthe embassy and consulates should establish frequentcontact with the Sikh community which has alwaysstood for the integrity and honor of India.

Ambassador Shringla visited the Sikh Association of BaltimoreGurdwara on October 13, 2019 and took part in Sikh Ardas(prayers). He is seen paying obeisance at the gurdwara.

Photos / courtesy Indian Embassy, Washington Ambassador Shringla presenting Rumala for Shri Guru Granth

Sahib at the Gurdwara

Ambassador Shringla presented to the Gurdwara managementa book on Sikh Art. Seen in the picture, from L to R: Kanwaljit

Singh Soni, Jasbir Singh Jassi, Baljinder Singh Shammi,Ambassador Shringla, Ratan Singh (president of the gurdwara),

and Dr. Surinder Singh Gill (Secretary of the gurdwara)

Hindu American Foundation HostsOfficial Delegation from India

WASHINGTON (TIP): The HinduAmerican Foundation welcomed adelegation of local elected officials, civilsociety leaders, and journalists fromIndia to HAF's Washington, DC officeearlier this month. The delegation is inthe United States as part of the USDepartment of State's InternationalVisitor Leadership Program focused on"Pluralism in US Society," and to learnabout the ethnic, religious, linguistic,and racial diversity in US culture.

Objectives of the IVLP includeexploring the underlying values of USpluralism and their constancy in thechanging face of political, economic,and social circumstances; examining USpolicies, stakeholders, and key playersrelated to immigration and citizenship;illustrating the civic programs thatsocially, politically, and/or economicallyempower immigrants, youth, andminority groups in marginalizedcommunities; and highlighting thecontributions made and challengesfaced by minority groups in the UnitedStates.

The delegation was welcomed by HAFExecutive Director Suhag Shukla, Esq.who introduced the delegates to HAFstaff, shared the organization's missionand vision, and discussed the historyand primary work of HAF in the fields ofeducation, policy, and communityrelations.

"We were honored to host thedelegation, share about our work, anddiscuss some of the shared challenges in

advocating for peace and pluralism inboth the US and India," said Shukla."And the conversations contrasting thedifferent understandings of secularismand free speech in our respectivedemocracies were mutually enriching,"she added.

Next, Dr. Shereen Bhalla, HAFDirector of Education, presented HAF'simportant education initiatives likeHindu American Awareness andAppreciation Month, which wasofficially proclaimed in California thismonth, as well as showcased HAF's

educational materials such as theGandhi toolkit to mark the occasion ofhis 150th anniversary of birth. She alsodiscussed her role in working witheducators and administrators toadvance an accurate and appropriateportrayal of Hinduism in Americanclassrooms.

"This visit was very special becausewe were able to share our efforts withthe delegates and hear their concernsand the work they are doing tostrengthen education and civil society inIndia," stated Dr. Bhalla.

The delegation is in the United States as part of the US Department of State's InternationalVisitor Leadership Program

6 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2019INDIA

J&K UPPER HOUSEABOLISHED

JAMMU (TIP): Ahead of attaining the status ofUnion Territory on October 31, the bicameral (two-tier) legislature in Jammu and Kashmir came to anend today with the government abolishing 62-year-old Legislative Council, the Upper House ofLegislature, and directing its staff to report to thegeneral administration department (GAD).

The council was abolished under Section 57 of theJammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2019,introduced in the Rajya Sabha on August 5 andsubsequently passed by both Houses of Parliament.

According to the government order, the councilstaff would report to the GAD by October 22. Thecouncil had the staff strength of 116 officials,including an Additional Secretary, three DeputySecretaries and three Under Secretaries.

As per the Reorganisation Bill, J&K will bebifurcated into two UTs — J&K and Ladakh — onOctober 31. J&K will have a State Legislative and willget to elect its own representatives, while Ladakhwill be run by a Lieutenant Governor who will act asan administrator.

BSF jawan killed in rare firing by Bangladesh trooper

KOLKATA/NEW DELHI (TIP): A BorderSecurity Force (BSF) jawan was killed and anotherinjured on Thursday after a Bangladeshi borderguard fired from his AK-47 rifle during a ‘flagmeeting’ along the international border of the twocountries in West Bengal, officials said.

The “apparent high-handedness” of the BorderGuard Bangladesh (BGB) troops has led to tensionbetween the two sides with BSF chief VK Johricalling up his counterpart Major General ShafeenulIslam over hotline. The BGB Director General hasassured a thorough probe into the incident, theysaid.

The relations between the two forces that guard the4,096-km long international border have been verycordial and no bullet has been fired between them fordecades. Efforts are being made to ensure thesituation does not deteriorate, sources said.

The incident has rung an alarm in the top securityestablishment in New Delhi with the Home Ministryand Ministry of External Affairs being briefed by theBSF.

ED gets PC’s remand till Oct 24NEW DELHI (TIP): A

Delhi court on Thursdaysent former FinanceMinister P Chidambaramfor custodialinterrogation by the EDtill October 24 in the INXmedia money launderingcase “to facilitate properinvestigation in the caseto reach a logical end”.

Special judge AjayKumar Kuhar allowed the Enforcement Directorateto quiz Chidambaram for seven days.

The court permitted the request of Chidambaramthat he be allowed a separate cell, home-cooked food,western toilet, medicines, spectacles and visit by hisfamily members and lawyers half and hour daily,after the ED did not oppose it.

The court also directed the ED to get him medicallyexamined every 48 hours and to produce him onOctober 24. Chidambaram was interrogated andarrested on Wednesday in Tihar. In its order, thecourt noted that the case was being conductedconsistently and some witnesses had been examinedsince September 6 and fresh material brought onrecord.

“Interrogation is the prerogative of theinvestigating officer. It is for him to decide when aperson is to be arrested and when custodialinterrogation will be required so that it provesfruitful. Courts give due regard to the discretion ofIO about the manner in which he will conduct theinvestigation,” it said.

Ayodhya hearing ends, apexcourt order in a month

NEW DELHI (TIP): The SupremeCourt on Wednesday wrapped up the40-day hearing in the decades-oldtemple-mosque dispute in Ayodhya— the second longest proceedings inits history — and reserved itsverdict in the politically sensitivecase that is expected in a month’stime.

The concluding day of themarathon hearing during whichChief Justice Ranjan Gogoi headinga 5-judge Constitution Benchobserved “enough is enough” wasmarked by high drama when RajeevDhawan, a senior counsel for theMuslim parties, tore a pictorial mapprovided by Hindu Mahasabhapurportedly showing the exactbirthplace of Lord Ram in Ayodhyain Uttar Pradesh.

The high voltage hearing in theRam Janambhoomi-Babri Masjiddispute involving 2.77 acres of landis the second longest after thelandmark Keshvanand Bharti casein 1973 during which theproceedings for propounding thedoctrine of basic structure of theConstitution continued for 68 days.

The Bench, also comprising SABobde, DY Chandrachud, AshokBhushan and SA Nazeer, came outwith schedules for hearing morethan once and the arguments, whichwere first fixed to be concluded byOctober 18, was advanced to October17, but on Wednesday, the apex courtdecided to wrap up the hearing,saying “enough is enough”.

The 5-judge Constitution Bench isracing against time since the verdicthas to be delivered before ChiefJustice of India Ranjan Gogoidemits office on November 17.

It also granted three days tocontesting parties to file writtennotes on “moulding of relief” ornarrowing down the issues onwhich the court is required toadjudicate.

The hearing was marked byheated exchanges between thelawyers of the Hindu and Muslimsides and midway the issue ofsettling the dispute throughmediation once again cropped up.

The first mediation bid failed tofind an amicable resolution leadingto the commencement of day-to-dayhearing from August 6. Later, thepanel, which comprised FMIKallifulla, a former apex courtjudge, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, founderof Art of Living Foundation and

Sriram Panchu, an acclaimedmediator, was allowed to continuemediation proceedings.

The panel was believed to havesubmitted its report to the court onWednesday.

Dhavan, appearing for the Muslimparties, created a flutter after hetook strong objection to senioradvocate Vikas Singh, appearing fora faction of All India HinduMahasabha (AIHM), relying on asite map and books written byforeign and Indian authors tobuttress claims that the centraldome of the now demolishedstructure was the birthplace of thedeity and asked the bench as to whathe should do with it (map).

The bench said he can shred thedocuments into pieces. Dhavan thentore the pictorial map in thecourtroom.

The top court is hearing theAyodhya case, in which the firstlawsuit was filed way back in 1950 byGopal Singh Visharad, and it hasbeen an unique land dispute whererepresentative lawsuits wereallowed to be filed by Hindu andMuslim parties.

A battery of lawyers representingHindu litigants, including the deitythrough next friend, a Hinduworshipper and Nirmohi Akhararelied upon arguments which alsoincluded the faith and belief “sincetime immemorial” that Lord Ramtook birth under the central dome ofthe now demolished structure. BabriMasjid was demolished onDecember 6, 1992 by kar sevakssparking communal riots thatclaimed several lives.

Hindu parties, which argued for17 days at the start of hearing,

submitted that as the deity and birthplace were the juridical persons,they had the title over the entire 2.77acre disputed land and any divisionof property would amount tomutilation of deity itself.

Terming construction of mosqueby Babur nearly 433 years ago as a“historical wrong”, Hindu partiesled by former Attorney General andsenior advocate K Prarasaran andCS Vaidyanathan said this needed tobe reparated as Muslims can pray inany mosque in Ayodhya, but forHindus, this was only birth place ofLord Ram which cannot be altered.They also relied upon thearcheological evidence which hadfound that there were traces of 12thcentury temple beneath the disputedstructure.

Muslim parties, led by senioradvocates Rajeev Dhavan, ShekharNaphade, Zafaryab Jilani andMeenakshi Arora, vehementlyargued that the mosque was built byMir Baki on a vacant land andHindus do not

have any right over it, even if it isproved that there existed a templebefore the construction of masjid.

The key arguments of Muslimside have been — “once a mosque,always a mosque” — and thededication of the land as wakf to thealmighty was irrevocable and theyperfected the title by long use.

Hindu parties relied onarcheological evidence andresponded to Muslim parties bysaying “once a temple, always atemple” and claimed if Muslimshave pleaded adverse possessionthen it squarely amounted to theadmission that the temple or thedeity was the prior owner.

PAK ULTRAS TRYING TO ENTER VIA NEPAL: INTELNEW DELHI (TIP): Intelligence

agencies have alerted thegovernment that at least five ISI-backed Pakistan terrorists, highlytrained, are placed in Nepal toinfiltrate into India either throughUttar Pradesh or Bihar borderahead of Diwali, sources said.

Sources in the agencies saidtelephonic intercepts ofconversations between theterrorists in Nepal and their

handlers in Pakistan suggest theyhave a plan to strike in India in a bigway with the help of a few of thehome-grown Kashmiri militants,who will meet them in Delhi.

Their last location was found tobe near Gorakhpur on Nepalborder, but for a few days theystayed at Beerganj, near Raxaulborder in Bihar. Officials in theMHA said following the input, ahigh alert has been issued across

the country.On Wednesday, several defence

bases in Jammu and Kashmir andPunjab were put on orange alertafter intelligence inputs suggesteda group of terrorists is planning totarget these, they said, adding ageneral alert had already beenissued on August 5, when thegovernment took the decision to doaway with special status to J&Kunder Article 370.

7THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2019 INDIA

BILATERAL RELATIONSHIPWITH INDIA INDEPENDENT OFTIES WITH PAK: CHINA

BEIJING (TIP): China on Thursday indicatedthat its bilateral ties with India should be treated asindependent of its relationship with Pakistan,reiterating foreign minister Wang Yi’s recentstatement that Beijing’s bilateral links with SouthAsian countries could run parallel to each otherwithout being influenced by a third party.

Interacting with Chinese media last Sunday inKathmandu at the end of President Xi Jinping’sIndia and Nepal tours, Wang said: “…China’srespective relations with India, Pakistan and otherSouth Asian countries could run in parallel anddevelop together, neither targeting any third partynor being influenced by a third party”.

“As a common neighbour and friend of India andPakistan, China sincerely hopes that China-Indiarelations will be good, China-Pakistan relations willbe good, and India-Pakistan relations will be good,and everyone will work together to promote regionalstability and development,” the ministry said in awritten response.

“China attaches great importance to developingrelations with South Asian countries and iscommitted to carrying out friendly cooperation withall south Asian countries on the basis of the fiveprinciples of peaceful coexistence, sharingdevelopment opportunities and achieving commonprosperity,” the statement added.

The ministry reiterated that China is willing toplay a “constructive role” in resolving the Kashmirdispute between India and Pakistan.

Kartarpur Corridor to be ready31 Oct, registration from Oct 20

DERA BABA NANAK (TIP): The much-anticipated Kartarpur Corridor project for Indianpilgrims to visit the revered Sikh shrine across theborder in Pakistan is expected to be completed by theend of this month and online registration for thepilgrimage will begin from Sunday.

Land Ports Authority of India (LPAI) chairmanGovind Mohan confirmed the completion of work toIANS from the ground zero of the construction siteat Dera Baba Nanak in Punjab's Gurdaspur district.

Construction of the 4.2 km-long corridor will becompleted by 31 October, a week before thecelebrations to mark the 550th birth anniversary ofSikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev, Mohan said.

The Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara in Narowaldistrict of Pakistan's Punjab province, located 4.5km from the border near Dera Baba Nanak, is highlyrevered among Sikhs as it was the place where GuruNanak spent 18 years of his life and is his finalresting place.

Mohan said that pilgrims can apply online from 20October for visiting the historic gurdwara through awebsite that was launched recently.

"We are expected to sign a Memorandum ofUnderstanding (MoU) between India and Pakistan.From Oct 20, pilgrims can register at online portal,"said Mohand, who is also an Additional Secretary inMinistry of Home Affairs.

A passport is a must for devotees from Indiavisiting Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara to payobeisance, he added.

Fraud: ED files chargesheetagainst Kamal Nath’s nephew

NEW DELHI (TIP): The EnforcementDirectorate (ED) on Thursday filed a charge sheet ina Delhi court against Ratul Puri, nephew of MadhyaPradesh chief minister Kamal Nath, alleging thathe was involved in bank frauds amounting to Rs7,900 crore, according to people familiar with thematter.

The people cited above said that the centralagency, while probing an alleged fraud at CentralBank of India worth Rs 354 crore, came acrossdocuments of dealings between Puri’s firm MoserBaer India Ltd (MBIL) and several other banks.

Slowdown, govt apathy affectingeconomy, says Manmohan Singh

MUMBAI (TIP): Painting a grimpicture ahead of the October 21Maharashtra Assembly elections,former Prime Minister ManmohanSingh on Thursday said that thecurrent slowdown in the countrycoupled with government apathyhas badly hit the Indian economy.

"Slowdown, government apathyaffecting aspirations, future ofIndians," Manmohan Singh said.

"There is gloom in theautomobiles hub of Pune; slowdownhas led to a large number offactories shutting down inMaharashtra. The state is hit bygrave economic crises, but thegovernment seems obsessed withtrying to fix blame."

The BJP governments at theCentre and in Maharashtra areunwilling to adopt people-friendlypolicies, he said.

The former Prime Minister saidthat from being No. 1 ininvestments, Maharashtra has nowbecome No. 1 in farmer suicides.

Singh urged for setting up labor-intensive industries, among othermeasures, to tackle the economiccrisis.

'Cong backed scrapping of Art 370'The Congress does not need a

certificate of patriotism fromanyone, former prime ministerManmohan Singh said, pointing outthat it voted in favor of theabrogation of Article 370, butopposed the high-handed way inwhich it was done.

He also said that agencies such asthe Enforcement Directorate (ED)should not be used to settle"political scores".

Singh's comments came at a timewhen prime minister NarendraModi and the BJP have beenattacking Congress on Article 370during the campaign for theMaharashtra Assembly polls,while NCP leaders, includingSharad Pawar and Praful Patel, arebeing investigated by the ED in

various cases.Addressing a press conference

here, Singh said the Congressopposes the "high-handedness"with which Article 370 of theConstitution-which gave a specialstatus to Jammu and Kashmir-wasintroduced in Parliament.

Earning goodwill of the peopleof Jammu & Kashmir wasnecessary before such a move, theformer Prime Minister said.

"The Congress voted in favor ofthe move (the abrogation) inParliament, not against it. TheCongress feels that Article 370 is atemporary measure, but if achange is to be brought, it has to bewith the goodwill of the people ofJ&K," he said.

The ED, under the NDA regime,has got more powers than ever, andshould not be used for politicalvendetta against leaders of"different hues", Singh said.

"Our hope is these powers will beused not to settle political scores,"he said, expressing confidence that

the government will do justice toPraful Patel.

Asked about the BJP's pollpromise to seek Bharat Ratna for VD Savarkar, who was an accused inthe Mahatma Gandhi assassinationcase but was acquitted, Singh saidthe Congress only opposesSavarkar's Hindutva ideology.

Referring to the HinduMahasabha leader with areverential "Savarkar-ji", Singhsaid the former Prime Minister,late Indira Gandhi, had issued apostal stamp in Savarkar's memory.

"(But) we are not in favor of theHindutva ideology that Savarkar-jipatronizedand stood for," Singhsaid.

Singh also hit out against theNDA government's CitizenshipAmendment Bill, calling it adivisive move that discriminatesagainst the Muslims by facilitatingIndian citizenship for persons ofall faiths except Muslims.

He also claimed that for the firsttime in the history of Parliamentsuch a divisive Bill has beentabled.

On the National Register ofCitizens (NRC) exercise in Assam,Singh said the BJP expected that itwould exclude Muslims, but 1.2million out of the 1. 9 millionpeople who could not establishtheir citizenship status wereBengali Hindus.

There is a need to look at thingsin objective manner in matterssuch as the NRC, and while peoplewould want to identify foreignnationals and ensure they do notget any benefits, we need to look atthe issue with full sympathy as a"human problem", Singh said.

The Congress does not needanyone's certificate about itspatriotic credentials, as its recordduring the freedom struggle iswell-known, he said, adding thatthe BJP or its parent RSS were notpart of the nationalist movement.

(Source: PTI)

“When I was in office what happeneddid happen. There were someweaknesses. But you can’t claim thatthe fault lies with the UPA always.You have been in office for five years.Mainly passing buck to UPA is notenough.”

Dr Manmohan Singh, former PM

Forget who wrote what, write historyfrom Indian point of view: Amit Shah

VARANASI (TIP): Union home minister Amit Shahon Thursday said there was a need to rewrite historyfrom the Indian point of view. He also saidthe First War of Independence in 1857would have been regarded as a revolt hadit not been for Veer Savarkar, who called itthe first freedom struggle. The BJPleader’s remarks about the Hindutva iconcame two days after the Maharashtra BJPunit said in its election manifesto that theparty would ask the Centre to confer theBharat Ratna, India’s highest civilianaward, on Vinayak Damodar Savarkar,popularly known as Veer Savarkar.

“Had it not been for Veer Savarkar, the1857 ‘kranti’ (revolt) would not have become history andwe would have been seeing it from the British point ofview,” the home minister said.

“It was Savarkar who gave the name First War ofIndependence to the 1857 ‘kranti’, otherwise, ourchildren would have known it as a revolt,” he said,

inaugurating a two-day international seminar on‘Guptvanshak-Veer: Skandgupta Vikramaditya’ at

Banaras Hindu University (BHU) inVaranasi. Bharat Adhyayan Kendra ofBHU organised the event.

Shah appealed to Indian academics tostop blaming British historians andLeftists for writing the ‘wrong history ofIndia’.

“How long you will keep criticising theBritish and the Leftists for injustice toIndian history? Who stopped you fromwriting history based on truth,” Shahsaid, adding that there was a need to writeIndia’s glorious history, which had

suffered injustice, based on facts and truth.He asked the historians to write the history of 25

such kingdoms and 200 such great personalities whowere overlooked by historians. “Forget who wrote what.Don’t get into controversy. Write history from theIndian point of view,” Shah said.

8 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2019EDITORIAL

TThe Mamallapuram Summitbetween President Xi Jinping andPM Modi appears to have cleared

the air for improving ties. This followedthe less-than-friendly approach of Chinain international forums on the issue ofJ&K in recent days. India and China,however, now appear committed toenhancing mutually beneficialcooperation, bilaterally, regionally andinternationally. One can look forward tocloser cooperation in forums like BRICS,G20, East Asia Summit hosted by ASEAN,and even in the UN, on issues rangingfrom global trade to climate change. TheWuhan Summit, last year, had led to anagreement on de-escalation of tensions inthe Doklam sector. India and China alsoagreed in Mamallapuram, to strengthenmeasures to ensure that tensions do notarise, or get out of hand, across our landborders.

China will, hopefully, take note of thefact that it damaged its own credibility byacting at the behest of Pakistan tointernationalize the Kashmir issue.Beijing found itself isolated in the UNSC.Not a single member backed Beijing's ill-advised move to involve the SecurityCouncil in the issue. The British, however,played their characteristically duplicitousrole. Chinese efforts to back Pakistan onthe Kashmir issue in the UNHRC met asimilar fate. Merely three of the 193members of the UNGA - China, Malaysiaand Turkey - voiced their support forPakistan.

The recent summit was cordial. Therewas agreement on the path for addressingdifferences, promoting cooperation inareas like trade and investment, andmanaging differences that ariseperiodically across the undemarcatedborder. There is, however, nothing tosuggest that there is going to be anychange in China's efforts to undermineIndian influence across its land bordersand in its immediate Indian Oceanneighborhood. China quietly, butcontinuously, interferes in the internalaffairs of all of India's neighbors, from the

Maldives and Sri Lanka to Myanmar andNepal. We will have to monitor how Chinabehaves in the prelude to the presidentialelections in Sri Lanka next month.

There should be no doubt aboutcontinuing military, economic anddiplomatic Chinese support for Pakistan.The growing economic woes compelIslamabad to hold out its begging bowl toeven distant lands and multilateral aidorganizationsacross the globe. Militarily,however, its navy is set to receive the latestChinese frigates and submarines.

What seems to be upsetting Chinapresently is not so much India'srelationship with the US, but itsblossoming relationship with Moscow.China did not anticipate that defying USsanctions, India would move ahead toacquire S400 air defense missile systemsfrom Russia. Moreover, both Rawalpindiand Beijing did not expect that Russianforeign minister Sergei Lavrov wouldbluntly tell his bumptious Pakistanicounterpart, Shah Mehmood Qureshi,that Moscow would resolutely oppose anymove by Pakistan to raise the Kashmirissue in the UNSC. Modi's visit to easternRussia and his offer of $1 billion for Indian

investment in this sensitive regionbordering China, where the Soviet Unionand China had a bloody conflict in 1969,has raised concerns in Beijing.

Referring to Modi's visit to easternRussia, Chinese government mouthpieceGlobal Times noted: 'The advance of India-Russia ties will push the multi-polarization of international relationsand reinforce India's role in Asia. It willalso add the leverage of Russia to counterwestern pressures on diplomacy andsecurity, empower Russia to effectivelyresist western countries' strategicblockade and defend its strategic andeconomic interests in South Asia.However, stronger Russia-India ties,especially their military-technicalcooperation, would have a negative impacton China's national security.Consolidating and developing ties withRussia implies India's strategic intentionto contain China's rise. It would pile moregeopolitical pressure on China andincrease instability in China's periphery.'

Both China and India have misgivingsabout many policies of the Trumpadministration. Beijing realizes that aftergetting a brief respite from Trump's trade

sanctions, there is little more they canexpect by way of Trump easing theremaining sanctions he imposed earlier.New Delhi is also not taken in by Trump'srecent bravado in backing the Afghangovernment, while claiming he would notnegotiate with the Taliban. He did thislargely due to pressure from both thePentagon and State Department to standby the Afghan government. But shortlyafter the Taliban (obviously underpressure from Pakistan) indicated that itwas ready to make peace in Afghanistan,Trump's envoy Zalmay Khalilzad rushedto Islamabad to get the Taliban to observea ceasefire and resume talks.

Trump is also appeasing anti-warsentiments in the US by withdrawing USforces from Syria. He hopes that ImranKhan will help him get a face-savingwithdrawal by persuading the Taliban toagree to a ceasefire. He will then claimthat he has pulled out US troops from allunproductive military engagementsabroad by ensuring they are all safelyhome, well before the election day -November 3, 2020. How all this plays out,in the midst of impeachment proceedingsthat Trump is facing in the opposition-dominated House of Representatives,remains to be seen. If Imran Khan thinksthat the US will be eternally grateful forhelping them, he would be seriouslymistaken.

Modi can derive satisfaction from thefact that despite Chinese actions and Sino-Pakistan collusion, India has successfullyridden the storm of external pressuresafter the revocation of Article 370. NewDelhi can now move ahead to fulfil itscommitment to maintain the country'sstrategic autonomy. The recent measuresfor improving the daily lives of people inKashmir by the restoration of telephonelinks will hopefully be suitably followedup by further measures to restorenormalcy in the Valley.

(The author is Chancellor, Jammu CentralUniversity & former high commissioner to

Pakistan)

AS I SEE IT

FOR NOW, A SENSE OF EASE By G Parthasarathy

But politicians,businessmen keep

control, too

TThe nomination of SouravGanguly, the former Indiacaptain, to be the next president

of the Indian cricket board (BCCI) is awelcome development, though the'election' process had several worryingaspects. One, the election was donethrough negotiations rather than voting- this means that there was a lot of give

and take among the politicians,businessmen and powerbrokers whocontrol BCCI. Two top officials wereelected on the basis of their blood tieswith ministers in the UnionGovernment, not on the basis of theiraffinity with and services to cricket.Finally, Ganguly's elevation could endup being ineffectual and merelysymbolic because he would be presidentfor less than one year before demittingoffice and undergoing a compulsorythree-year cooling-off period.

Jay Shah, the son of Union HomeMinister Amit Shah, is set to be BCCIsecretary, while Arun Singh Dhumal,brother of Minister of State Anurag

Thakur, will be the treasurer. Theseappointments are significant for theyshow that politicians have not lostinterest in running cricket, and thatcricketers might well be used as pawnsin efforts to keep control of theinfluential and super-rich BCCI. As inold India, the inheritance of powerremains hereditary in new India. Theideal of cricketers running BCCI byhiring professional managers - as isdone in international golf or tennis, forinstance - remains out of reach.

Yet, the symbolism of a former topcricketer, who led the Indian team withdistinction, becoming BCCI president isvery strong indeed. It's a departure from

the past when princes, businessmen andpoliticians held the position. Anothervery important development is theformation of a cricketers' associationand election of two of its members tothe BCCI's apex council. Thus, finally,player representatives will sit in BCCImeetings and have a say in how thegame is run. If they remain united andcommitted to cricket rather than powerand their personal interests, cricketersmight well succeed in edging outpoliticians and businessmen, who woulddo well to focus on the much morecritical job of running the country andits economy.

(Tribune, Chandigarh)

GUESTCOMMENT

Sourav Ganguly to be BCCI president

Modi can derive satisfaction from the fact that despite Chinese actions and Sino-Pakistan collusion, Indiahas successfully ridden the storm of external pressures after the revocation of Article 370. New Delhi can

now move ahead to fulfil its commitment to maintain the country's strategic autonomy.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Informal Summit inMamallapuram. Photo / Courtesy Xinhua

9THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2019 PERSPECTIVE

By Vappala Balachandran

Between 60 and 80million Americanssaw movies once a

week during thedays of the GreatDepression. Filmswere based on the

realities of that era,"dragged directly

from the grimpages of

contemporarynewspapers."

Large-scale moviewatching continued

even during thefinancial crisis of2008, which sawthe collapse of theLehman Brothers,

that set in motion aglobal economic

collapse.

Does movie boom indicate stronger economy?Therapeutic diversion: Movie watching soars during an economic crisis

because people want to forget their troubles.

UUnion Law Minister Ravi ShankarPrasad had to withdraw hisOctober 12 statement in Mumbai,

citing Bollywood successes while tryingto refute the charge that our economywas in a crisis. The argument he chosewas the success of three Bollywood filmsat the box office which netted Rs 120crore in a day. A senior politician likePrasad should have realized that oneshould not judge the health of a hugeeconomy like ours by selectivelyexamining a small sector like Bollywood.

Also, the BJP government would havefaced international embarrassment hadit persisted with this argument. This isbecause a study of the history ofcommercial films in America wouldprove that the film industry performedwell during the 'Great Depression',which started with the October29, 1929 Wall Street Crash,setting in motion the financialcrisis which lasted till 1941when America startedmobilizing for World War II.

The Hollywood boom was aresult of fortuitouscircumstances and sharpcommercial instinct.American movie curator JohnFarr says that the Crash tookHollywood by surprise while itwas in transition from "TheSilent" to the early stages of"The Sound". Huge investmentwas made to convert shootingsets and theatres to "Sound".Hollywood moguls urgentlyneeded to recoup theirinvestment.

Hence, they swung allenergies to market this new entertainmentinstead of looking to the federalgovernment like the rest of America. Theytook advantage of the relative weaknessesof their competitors which were radio andstage shows. Also, they had full controlover their assets, like studios, stars,directors, writers and theatre owners."They had to catch up with theirtechnology fast, creating a cinema of sightand sound, images and words."

To achieve this, they managed tocreate a new business package ofshowing movies cheap (10 to 25 cents),beating plays which were expensive. Itwas a "therapeutic diversion" to themillions of American people who neededto forget their misery. They were like theearly Raj Kapoor films or the presentdhushum-dhushum David and GoliathIndian language movies. Also theyestablished a show protocol which existseven this day: starting with news reels,cartoons, advertisements, serials andending with the main movies, awholesome entertainment for thecommon man for two-three hours.

To quote John Farr, "American filmsreached a pinnacle of influence at a timewhen most other industries werestruggling mightily." It was during thisperiod that Hollywood produced some ofthe best classics, deliberately choosing

Depression era comedies which madefun of the rich. The list includeschoreographer Busby Berkeley's 42ndStreet, Broadway dancing star FredAstaire's Flying Down to Rio and MarxBrothers' Anarchic, and humor movieslike A night at the opera and A day at theraces. Also popular were King Kong andDr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

Between 60 and 80 million Americanssaw movies once a week during thosedays. The Depression films were basedon the realities of that era, "draggeddirectly from the grim pages ofcontemporary newspapers." Also thrownin liberally by Columbia and WarnerBrothers were crime and gangstermovies starring Paul Muni, Edward GRobinson and James Cagney.

In 1934, Frank Capra, till then

unknown, was allowed to make ItHappened One Night at Columbia's'Poverty Row Studios', starring ClarkGable who was 'loaned' by MGM. Itturned out to be a great success as Gablecould win his only Oscar. Stars like CaryGrant and Katherine Hepburn bloomedduring this period. "Comedies, gangstermovies and musicals helped peopleforget their troubles." This 'Golden Age'boom continued till after the SecondWorld War, until the "idiot box"challenged the might of Hollywood,leading to its decline.

Large-scale movie watching continuedeven during the later financial crises.The year 2008 saw the collapse of theLehman Brothers, which set in motion aglobal financial crisis. Its effect on theUK was shattering. The pound collapsed.Bovis, Britain's giant builder, warnedthat the property market would collapseunless the interest rates were cut.HBOS, the UK's biggest mortgage seller,was under strain.

However, this did not affect the filmindustry. A New York Times report onFebruary 28, 2009 said that movie ticketsales in the US surged by 17.55 per cent to$1.7 billion, not merely due to higherticket prices but also due to attendancewhich was 16 per cent higher. TheEntertainment page of the Independent

(UK) conveyed on October 4, 2008 that thefilms in the UK, the US and Australiawere doing well despite a generalapprehension of another 'BlackTuesday', when leading economies werefacing a downturn since the summer of2008. It said that in the UK, the movieattendance was at a "40-year high".

During the Great Depression, the USfederal government had to intervene toalleviate the adverse effects ofHollywood's success on other areas ofentertainment. The boom had adverselyaffected even "big bands" like DukeEllington and Benny Goodman. As manyas 30,000 musicians were out of job when'The Sound' was introduced. This planwas called 'New Deal: Federal TheatreProject 1935-1939'. Hallie Flanagan, atheatre professor, was chosen by

President FD Roosevelt to head theproject over the claims of commercialprofessionals. Thousands of unemployedtheatre professionals were rehabilitatedthrough government intervention.

For the first time, an African-American theatre group emerged. A newbreed of theatre artistes like ArthurMiller, Orson Welles and Elia Kazan rose.Burt Lancaster, the famous latter dayHollywood hero, joined the FederalTheatre Circus when he was 19. Duringits four years of existence, the FederalTheatre Project entertained over 30million Americans, renting theatres,parks, churches and schools. However,the project had to be closed in 1939 due toobjections from the right wingCongressional lobby for allegedlyencouraging "leftist" ideas and racialintegration. Also, America was inchingtowards the Second World War.

In 2009, the New York Times quotedMartin Kaplan, of the Norman LearCenter for the Study of Entertainment,saying why movie watching had soaredduring the economic crisis: "People wantto forget their troubles, and they want tobe with other people." Is this what ishappening in India?

(The author is former Special Secretary,Cabinet Secretariat, Government of India)

10 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2019SOUTH ASIA

15 killed, 16 injured inclash between two rival

gangs in northwestPakistan

PESHAWAR (TIP): At least 15people were killed and 16 othersinjured in a clash between two rivalgangs in northwest Pakistan onOctober 17, police said. The incidentoccurred at Mulazai Amakhel area inTank district bordering SouthWaziristan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwaprovince. Members of Inam Marwatgroup opened indiscriminate firing ata van on Daraban Road and killedseven persons of the Bittani gang onthe spot, police said.

The firing by the Inam Marwatgroup was done to take revenge of thekilling of two of their members earlierin the day by the Bittani gang, theysaid. Later the Inam Marwat gangkilled six more members of the rivalgroup on the same road.

Sixteen other people were alsoinjured in the clash, police said.

Following the gang war, the districtadministration declared emergency inthe area. Army troops were rushed tothe site to control the situation. — PTI

21 members of bannedNepal Communist Party

arrested near Indo-Nepal border

KATHMANDU (TIP): Police inNepal have arrested 21 members of theoutlawed Nepal Communist Party(NCP), including six of its centralmembers, from a forest area near thecountry’s border with India.

The NCP leaders were picked upfrom Rajpur Rural Municipality nearthe Nepal-India border when they wereholding their highest-level politburomeeting on Wednesday night, officialssaid. The detained include ChandraBahadur Chanda, the older brother ofNCP chief Netra Bikram ChandBiplav. Bahadur Chanda, is the chief ofthe NCP’s western division. PTI

Many feared killed incar bomb blast in

AfghanistanMEHTARLAM (TIP): Several

people were feared killed and injuredafter a car bomb blast rocked outsideadministrative office in Alishingdistrict in Afghanistan’s easternLaghman province on October 16, aprovincial government spokesmansaid, reported Xinhua news agency.

“The initial information provided byAfghan National Police (ANP) foundthe explosion occurred roughly at 5.50am local time. The ANP isinvestigating circumstances of theincident to determine more facts anddetails will be shared with media asappropriate,” Spokesman AssadullahDawlatzai told reporters. Theexplosion affected several people anddamaged buildings while securityforces cordoned off the area forprecautionary measures, according tolocals. IANS

Pakistan to remain in FATF’s GreyList till Feb 2020: Reports

ISLAMABAD (TIP): The FinancialAction Task Force (FATF) has decided, inprinciple, to keep Pakistan in its GreyList till February 2020, directingIslamabad to take extra measures forcomplete elimination of terror financingand money laundering, according tomedia reports on October 16.

The FATF is an inter-governmentalbody established in 1989 to combatmoney laundering, terrorist financingand other related threats to the integrityof the international financial system.

In a meeting in Paris on Tuesday, theFATF reviewed the measures thatPakistan has already taken to controlmoney laundering and terror financing,reported Dawn News.

The Paris-based task force has urgedPakistan to take extra measures forcomplete elimination of terrorfinancing, it quoted Aaj TV.

The FATF will take a final decision onPakistan’s position in February 2020.

A formal announcement about theinterim developments will be made onFriday, which is the last day of theFATF’s ongoing session, the report said.

However, Pakistan’s Finance Ministryspokesperson Omar Hameed Khanrejected the reports of the countryremaining in the Grey List, saying “it isnot true and nothing before October 18(can be confirmed)”.

The FATF has decided to give respite offour months to Pakistan to help it inimplement remaining recommendationsof the task force, Aaj TV reported.

Earlier at the FATF meeting in Paris,Pakistan’s Minister for EconomicAffairs Hammad Azhar had explainedhis country’s positive performance in 20

of the 27 parameters to check terrorfinancing.

China, Turkey and Malaysia“appreciated” the steps taken byPakistan, Dawn News reported. Thesupport of at least three countries isrequired to not blacklist any country.

At Tuesday meeting, Indiarecommended the blacklisting ofPakistan citing Islamabad permittingHafiz Saeed to withdraw funds from hisfrozen accounts, the report said.

The meeting is being attended byrepresentatives from 205 countries, theIMF, the UN, the World Bank and otherorganisations.

Concerns were also raised on the taxamnesty scheme offered in Pakistan, thereport added.

Pakistan was placed on the Grey Listby the Paris-based watchdog in June lastyear and was given a plan of action tocomplete it by October 2019, or face therisk of being placed on the black listwith Iran and North Korea.

If Pakistan continues in the ‘GreyList’, it would be very difficult for thecountry to get financial aid from the IMF,the World Bank and the European Union,making its financial condition moreprecarious.

Islamabad is obligated to report itsperformance to the group every threemonths. — PTI

Transgender councillor elected in

Bangladesh firstDHAKA (TIP): A transgender

candidate has been elected as councillorfor a rural Bangladeshi town, the first inthe ultra-conservative Muslim-majoritynation where laws still discriminateagainst sexual minorities.

Pinki Khatun was elected as vicechair of a town council in the country’swest on Monday after beating hernearest rival by more than 4,000 votes,local police chief Mahbubul Alam said.

“I am very delighted. I campaigneddoor-to-door and people have respondedpositively,” the garment shop owner toldAFP.

“I did not face any discrimination orhate campaigns.” Bangladesh hasallowed transgenders, known as hijra—an umbrella term referring to someonewho is born male but does not refer tothemselves as a man or woman—toidentify as a separate gender since 2013.

This year, they were allowed toregister to vote identifying as thisgender. The 37-year-old councillor is ayouth wing official of the ruling AwamiLeague and campaigned as anindependent candidate in the 200,000-population town of Kotchandpur afterthe party did not back anyone.

“My aim is to work for the bettermentof women and protect their rights,” saidthe councillor, who previouslyidentified as a woman. “I’ll work forhijras so they can live honourably insociety.” AFP

UK media gushes over Kate’s salwar-kameez

ISLAMABAD (TIP): The UK mediaon October 15 was splashed with imagesof Kate Middleton’s traditionalwardrobe choice for her maiden officialtour of Pakistan with husband PrinceWilliam. The 37-year-old Duchess ofCambridge was praised for evoking

memories of her late mother-in-lawPrincess Diana with her choice ofkurtas, similar to ones worn by Dianaduring her last visit to Pakistan in 1997.William and Kate touched down at anairbase outside Islamabad on October 14at the start of their five-day visit. PTI

11THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2019 WORLD

35 foreigners dead inSaudi bus crash

RIYADH (TIP): Thirty-fiveforeigners were killed and four othersinjured when a bus collided withanother heavy vehicle near Medina onOctober 17.

Those involved were Arab and Asianpilgrims travelling from Medina toMecca, according to local media,which carried pictures of the busengulfed in flames and with itswindows blown out.

The Okaz newspaper said that thevictims were expatriates who lived inthe kingdom and who were performingthe umrah. — AFP

3 kids among 4 killedas earthquake hits

southern PhilippinesManila (TIP): Three children were

among four people killed after apowerful earthquake hit the southernPhilippines, authorities said onOctober 17.

The 6.4-magnitude quake struck theMindanao region, which makes up thesouthern third of the Philippines, onWednesday night.

On Thursday morning, localauthorities confirmed four people hadbeen killed but said the death toll wasnot expected to rise significantly withno casualties reported in Mindanao’smajor cities.

Two of the children reported killedwere in houses that collapsed, while amother and her five-year-old son diedafter being buried in a landslide, localauthorities told AFP.

The Philippines is part of the Pacific‘Ring of Fire’, an arc of intenseseismic activity that stretches fromJapan through Southeast Asia andacross the Pacific basin. AFP

15 killed in Mexicoarmed clashes

MEXICO CITY (TIP): At least 15people were killed in a gunfightbetween Mexican military and armedmen in the southern state of Guerrero,authorities said.

The shootout occurred on October 15after local police received anemergency call which reported thepresence of a group of armed men inthe community of Tepochica in themunicipality of Iguala, according to areport released by Roberto AlvarezHeredia, security spokesperson forGuerrero state, reported Xinhua newsagency.

The report indicated that the armedmen attacked the military and then aconflict broke out.

The incident took place just one dayafter armed assailants killed at least 13police officers in an ambush inAguililla, a town in west-centralMichoacan state.

Guerrero is one of the states inMexico with high rates of violence anddrug trafficking activities, and morethan 20 armed groups operate in thestate, including community police,self-defence groups and drug cartels,according to Mexican governmentreports. IANS

French supermarkets under fireafter food found in trash

PARIS (TIP): Two Frenchsupermarket chains came under fire onOctober 16 after a lawmaker staged raidson Paris trash cans that uncoveredpackages of food within their use-bydates as France marked its national anti-food waste day.

Arash Derambarsh, a city councillorin the Paris suburb of Courbevoie, toldAFP he intended to file lawsuits againstthe Carrefour and Franprix chains fornot respecting a 2016 law that prohibitsstores throwing away edible food.

“Big distributors have to follow thelaw: Those that do are our allies, thosethat refuse will be our adversaries, andwe will force them to act,” saidDerambarsh, a lawyer who has longrailed against food waste.

Picking through trash containerswithout gloves and accompanied by ajudicial officer, he found loaves of breadand unopened packages of cheese,shrimp and salads at a Carrefour storespecialising in organic foods, and at a

Franprix outlet.A homeless man at the scene who gave

his name as Christian said he came awaywith enough for a meal.

“You can still eat this... You make alittle salad with some shrimp, you have abit of yoghurt for dessert. I can’tunderstand why they put all this in thetrash?” he told AFP.

The French agriculture ministryestimates the cost of food waste eachyear at 12 to 20 billion euros (USD 13-USD22 billion), representing 10 milliontonnes of lost food.

Bertrand Swiderski, sustainabilitydirector at Carrefour, one of the world’sbiggest retailers, said the groupdistributed several tonnes to charitiesand aid groups each year, in line withFrance’s anti-waste law.

“In 2018, this represented theequivalent of 93 million meals inFrance,” he told AFP on Wednesday.

But he cited several cases whereCarrefour was obliged to throw away

non-expired food.“There are three types of food we

cannot give away because it is no longersafe: anything that has fallen on the floor,or anything made with eggs,” Swiderskisaid.

“And then there is what we call cases of‘temperature increases’,” he said, forexample a client who picks up a packageof shrimp but sets it down outside arefrigerator after deciding not to buy itafter all.

In 2020, Carrefour will begin offeringcut-rate prices on items beyond their so-called “best by” dates, which Swiderskisaid was a source of confusion for clientswho mistake them for expiration dates—even though the goods are still perfectlysafe to eat.

Franprix, owned by the retail groupCasino, said it had created an app thatlets clients buy unsold food cheap atdozens of stores, while partnering withassociations to provide unsold items. —AFP

HK NOT BECOMING A POLICE STATE: LAM

HONG KONG (TIP): Hong Kong’sleader said Tuesday that “it’s totallyirresponsible and unfounded” to suggestthe semi-autonomous Chinese territoryis becoming a police state as hergovernment grapples with protests nowin their fifth month.

Carrie Lam has defended Hong Kong’s30,000-strong police force, now widelydetested by protesters for its riot-controlmethods and nearly 2,600 arrests.

Responding to criticism from visitingUS senators, Lam said she challengesevery politician to ask themselves whatthey would do if faced by the scale ofviolence seen in Hong Kong.

The protests started in June over acontested extradition bill that wouldhave allowed some criminal suspects tobe sent for trial in mainland China andhave snowballed into an anti-government, anti-police and anti-Chinamovement.

The protests have increasingly endedin violence between hardcoredemonstrators and police.

An 18-year-old was to appear in courtTuesday facing a charge of intentionalwounding for a slashing attack Sundaywith a sharp blade, described as a boxcutter by Hong Kong media that cut apolice officer’s neck and severed anerve.

The teen was initially detained on apreliminary charge of attemptedmurder. Police said the wounding chargeis punishable by life imprisonment.

Despite repeated government appealsfor people not to take the side of thoseinvolved in vandalism, throwinggasoline-bomb and other violence, theprotest movement is still rousing.

On Wednesday, Lam will deliver anannual policy speech to address someunderlying problems in Hong Kong that

have also fueled discontent, including itswealth gap and shortage of affordablehousing. — AP

Students take part in an anti-government demonstration. AFP

The protests started in June over acontested extradition bill that would haveallowed some criminal suspects to be sent

for trial in mainland China and havesnowballed into an anti-government, anti-

police and anti-China movement.

DEEPIKA DOESN’T WANT BABIESRIGHT NOW & SHE HAS A

LOGICAL REASON FOR THIS

ALIA BHATT ROPED INFOR MOVIE BASED ONSUDHA MURTHY?

Alia Bhatt has one of the mostinteresting lineups of films to hercredit which includes Brahmastra,RRR, Sadak 2, Takth & GanguBai. Thelatest news is Alia has expanded the list ofher varied upcoming projects, to add onemore to it.

There was a news that suggested Aliawas on a constant lookout for a biopic andit seems she has got one. Director ofBareilly Ki Barfi, Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari iscoming up with a biopic on the life ofSudha Murthy.

A source close to Times Of Indiainformed, “Alia Bhatt is being consideredto play the character of ‘Sudha’ inAshwiny Iyer Tiwari’s film that has beentitled, ‘Murthy’. The official list of thecast and crew of the film are yet to beannounced.”

Sudha Murthy has lived a veryinspirational life to be the Chairperson ofInfosys. It would be really interesting tosee how Alia will get into this characterto convince the audience.

12 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2019BOLLYWOOD

IF I LIKE A FILM, IT DOESN’T MATTERWHAT GENRE IT IS: RADHIKA APTE

Radhika Apte is known for playing variedcharacters and pouring life in them. With back toback OTT release and big-screen feature films,Radhika was all over the space in 2018 and we are not

complaining. The actress who will be seen inShantaram spoke about how shew chooses her projects.

Radhika’s craft is widely scattered be it on the silverscreen with projects like Padman, Andhadhun or overthe OTT platform with Ghoul, Sacred Games, Luststories and she has created a niche for her in theindustry- being the omnipresent across. With herpathbreaking performance in Sacred Games and Ghoul,the credit must be given to Radhika for raising the barof Indian shows over the digital platform and carryingthe baton!

Always paying heed to the writing of the character,the Indie star had definitely savoured over the successuniformly, across the international sector as well. Asher impressive career creates a league of her own,Radhika Apte is surely the buzz of the town with everypick of hers. Seen in the international project titled,‘Wedding Guest’ earlier, the breakthrough artiste willbe seen in Apple Tv’s upcoming series “Shantaram”where she portrays the character of an Indianjournalist.

Talking about her varied choice of roles what shelooks for she said, “If I like a film, it doesn’t matterwhat genre it is. I like drama, comedy, action, thriller,romance, horror—all genres. I also don’t think thatfilms should fit into one category exclusively. It’s alwayseasier to be part of films that are in the same languagethat you speak; you get to improvise when youunderstand what’s happening on the sets. The languagealso helps you understand the nuances of the culturebetter.”

Ever since Deepika Padukone andRanveer Singh tied the knots last year,fans have been eagerly waiting for thecouple to become proud parents to a babysoon. However, Deepika Padukone has saidthat though they too would love to havebabies of their own, now is not the time.

Deepika who has been a pioneer of sortsof mental health awareness in India andBollywood has said that family plays acrucial role in helping a person overcomedepression. And now, during her recentinteraction with Hindustan Times, Deepikahas opened up about starting her ownfamily.

The Bajirao Mastani actress has beenquoted saying, “I think it’s sad that societykind of puts itself and people in this rutthat okay you are dating for so long tohshaadi kab hogi, shaadi ke baad bacche andthen grandchildren. It’s almost like it’s thesaid expectation. I’m not surprised (by therumours), we’re not surprised by it at all.”

She further said, “ Do we intent on havingchildren? Of course, we do, we both lovekids. But do we intend on having childrenanytime soon? Absolutely not! We’re tooselfishly at this point focused on our careersand I don’t think it would be fair to havekids at this point. We’re not even thinkingabout kids.”

On the professional front, Deepika willnext be seen in Meghna Gulzar’s Chhapaakwhich also features Vikrant Massay as themale lead. Apart from that, DP also hasKabir Khan’s ’83 alongside hubby RanveerSingh in the making.

KATRINA KAIF LAUNCHESHER OWN BEAUTY LINE

Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif has come out withher own beauty line called Kay by Katrina. OnWednesday, the actress shared a sneak-peek ofher beauty line on Instagram and captioned the video:It’s finally ready… Arriving October 22, 2019.”

Katrina said she dreamt about the beauty line twoyears ago. “Two years ago I dreamt of creating a beautyline. So excited to finally share it with you… Can’t wait.And it’s all on @kaybykatrina #kaybykatrina#kayxnykaa,” she added.

The actress, who was last seen on screen in Bharatshared a letter. She wrote: “For as long as I canremember, makeup has been an innate part of myjourney- from the runway to the big screen, and now Ihave rendered my love for it to Kay Beauty, my first everBeauty Brand!”

JENNIFER ANISTON JOINSINSTA; EX-HUBBY JUSTIN

THEROUX WELCOMES HER

Zoe Kravitz will playCatwoman in new film

US actor Zoe Kravitz will playCatwoman in the new Batman filmstarring Robert Pattinson, a WarnerBros. source told AFP on Monday. Kravitz,who recently starred in HBO’s hit TVdrama Big Little Lies and is the daughterof rock musician Lenny Kravitz, willportray the whip-wielding cat burglar whois both Batman’s foe and love interest inthe comics.

She follows A-listers such as Halle Berry,Anne Hathaway and Michelle Pfeiffer inportraying Catwoman -- alter ego SelinaKyle -- in The Batman, which is due forrelease in 2021.

Kravitz, 30, has previously voicedCatwoman in 2017’s The Lego BatmanMovie, and also appeared in Warner’sFantastic Beasts films, set in the HarryPotter universe.

I’VE ALWAYS BEEN DRAWN TOSTRONG WOMEN: JESSICA ALBA

Actress Jessica Alba has alwaysgravitated towards strongfemale characters, and said it isvery important to represent complexwomen who aren't perfect or have flawson screen, and show that they can stillbe heroes.

"I have always been drawn to strongwomen in characters that I played. Youknow, I dabbled in playing somecharacters that were a little morepassives and I don't know I pulled it offthat well to be honest with you," Albasaid when asked how important it is topresent strong female role modelsonscreen.

"I naturally have that sort of, I guessthat sort of, approach and that's myenergy and my vibe. So I always thinkand I feel like when I started as anactress that was kind of my thing was,like, why can't you be strong and

intelligent and self-sufficient. Youknow, even if you are a woman thatshouldn't mean that you need to beweak and saved constantly," added theactress.

"I feel like I have always played thoseroles. Being a mother of a daughter,you realise how important or howimpressionable media and pop culturecan be on men. So it's just kind ofmakes the damage more important andadd actually as an executive producerto the push that message forward andto make sure that we shape a show thathas complex women that aren't perfectand that have flaws but can still beheroes," she said.

At present, the actress is earningplaudits for police procedural drama,which also stars Gabrielle Union. Sheis also backing the show as anexecutive producer.

13THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2019 HOLLYWOOD

Avengers actor Scarlett Johanssonis totally up for an all-womenMarvel movie stating that anysuch film would be "explosive andunstoppable."

"I don't know what my future is in thatworld. Obviously, it's a little more opaquefor my character," the actress stated.

However, pressing on the fact thatpowerful women are associated with theMarvel Cinematic Universe, she added,"that group of actresses is so incrediblypowerful and when they come together,it's explosive and unstoppable."

Johansson has played Black Widow inthe last Marvel film, 'Avengers:Endgame' and now she is pushing for afemale-centric film.

"So, yes, I'm pushing for that. I thinkaudiences want it and I'm definitely oneof them," the 'Lucy' actor expressed.

It's not only Johansson but her'Avengers' co-star Brie Larson who hasalso batted for the idea.

"I will say that a lot of the female castmembers from Marvel walked up toKevin and we were like, 'We are in thistogether, we want to do this,'" Larson hadsaid.

The 'Captain Marvel' star continued,"You know, I'm not in charge of thefuture of Marvel, but it is something thatwe're really passionate about and welove, and I feel like if enough people outin the world talk about how much theywant it, maybe it'll happen."

SCARLETT JOHANSSON: ALL-WOMENMARVEL MOVIE WOULD BE ‘EXPLOSIVE, UNSTOPPABLE’

Hollywood star Jennifer Aniston finally joinedInstagram on Tuesday and she had nearly 200kfollowers within the first hour of joining the socialmedia app.

Aniston is known to be fiercely private about her life, soher decision to join Instagram has pleasantly surprisedmany of her fans.

Quite in sync with what fans have most loved most abouther, the first picture she posted on