NRI ( Page 70 of 83 )

Oman Telugu community felicitates Dr ABK on Ugadi March 27, 2012 18:51

The Indian Telugu community in Oman celebrated the festival of Ugadi with a mega event at Al Falaj Hotel on March 23rd, 2012. Dr A B K Prasad, hailed as the doyen of vernacular journalism of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, was among a number of well-known personalities felicitated on the occasion. In addition to his contribution to journalism, the stalwart was also recognised for his lifelong work in promoting Telugu culture. Speaking on the occasion, Dr ABK highlighted the significance of Telugu and dwelt on the traditions of the ancient Telugu people. “Brotherhood continues to be essence of life; only strong relations will enable people to live harmoniously,” he noted. The programme began with a classical kuchipudi dance performance by Koka Vijaya Lashmi depicting several thematic mythological illustrations. This was followed by a magic show by Altaf Ali, who is popularly known as Magic Ali. Prominent Telugu ghazal maestro Dr Srinivas enthralled the audience with his powerful renditions focusing on family and love. A legendary Indian classical vocalist who pioneered the art of Telugu ghazal singing, Dr Srinivas has set three Guinness World records and a Limca Record by singing ghazals on Gandhism in 125 world languages. The artistes were felicitated by an organising committee comprising Dr Rangaiah, Dr Keshav and Ramdas. Another dignitary feted on the occasion was fertility specialist Dr Rama Devi. The programme was co-ordinated by Prasanna Kumar, Rajendra Prasad, Guna Saida, Ramesh Babu, P V Srinivas, Bapi Raju, Madhusudhan, Naidu, Anil Kumar, Raja, Ganga Prasad, Padma Srinivas, Palepu Srinivas and Haribabu. Ramdas and Asma Khan were the emcees. The evening ended with the distribution of prizes to the winners of the rangoli, cooking, sports and elocution competitions. The entire programme was presented by Al Wiqayah Trading exclusively for members of the Telugu community residing in Oman.

Indian mother faces trial in Britain for suicide attempt March 27, 2012 18:31

An Indian woman is facing trial in Britain for allegedly trying to kill her child and attempt suicide by jumping before a train. The Snaresbrook Crown Court heard that Radhika Sharma, 35, jumped in front…

Indian student jailed in Visa scam in Australia March 27, 2012 18:11

A Perth-based Indian student was sentenced to 14 months in jail for his involvement in a bribery scam under which the English test scores to get Australian Visas. A Perth District Court on Monday sentenced Rajesh Kumar, 31, who had pleaded guilty to 10 counts of bribery between November 2009 and June 2010. The court heard that Kumar became an intermediary in the scam and personally received between 32,000 dollars and 44,000 dollars. Kumar also paid for his own International English Testing System (IELTS) results falsified by Kok Keith Low, an employee of Perth-based Curtin University. Nine others had been convicted and sentenced in relation to the bribery case, after the state's Corruption and Crime Commission charged 12 people with a total of 73 offences, according to the Australian Associated Press. Kumar arranged the payments through another Indian national, Pritesh Shah, who worked at a local service station. Shah, in turn, paid off another man, former Indian national Abdul Kader, who was living with Low, and arranged with him to have Kumar's IELTS results falsified to help him with a work visa application. The former Indian national Abdul Kader, who was living with Low, and arranged with him to have Kumar's IELTS results falsified to help him with a work visa application. Kumar then started "spruiking" the scheme to other Indian students and taking a cut of up to 6000 dollars per bribe. Low has already been jailed for two years on 15 counts of bribery, Kader to 18 months on 14 counts, and Shah one year on 14 counts. Others who were variously involved in the scam were jailed for between seven and nine months, suspended in each case, or received a fine of 20,000 dollars. Describing Kumar's role in the scam as that of a "spruiker", Judge Jeremy Curthoys said his actions compromised the integrity of Australia's migration scheme and made it more difficult for genuine visa applicants to be accepted where there were quotas in place. "It was greed - pure and simple," Curthoys said in handing down the sentence. Kumar's sentence was backdated to November 2 and he will be eligible for parole. Under Australian immigration laws, applicants for permanent residency, work or student visas are required to get a minimum 7.0 pass in four English subjects under the IELTS.

Indian Americans 3rd-largest growing Asian group in US March 27, 2012 17:42

Asians are the fastest growing race group in the United States, reflecting a surge in immigration from the entire region over a decade, according to the Census Bureau. The third largest Asian group after the…

Desperate Indian couple might lose custody of children March 22, 2012 12:58

Frequent change of statements and internal disputes may be a major setback for the Indian couple stranded in Norway to regain the custody of their children. The Bhattacharyas in a legal tussle with the Child…

Gays join protest against verdict in NRI studnet's case March 22, 2012 12:42

Some members of the LGBT community have joined in protesting against the conviction of Indian American student Dharun Ravi, accused of spying on his gay roommate Tyler Clementi for a hate crime. Ravi, a former…

Russian court dismisses case seeking Gita ban March 22, 2012 12:22

A court in Russia has dismissed a case that sought a ban on the Bhagwad Gita. Hindus in Russia Wednesday won the case when Tomsk city court in Siberia dismissed the plea from state prosecutors. The court rejected the appeal against a Dec 27 verdict given by a lower court in Tomsk. “We have won the case. The court has dismissed the state prosecutors’ appeal,” an elated Sadhu Priya Das, a devotee of the ISKCON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness) in Russia told IANS over phone from Tomsk. The case relates to Tomsk state prosecutor’s filing a petition in June 2011 seeking a ban on a Russian translation of “Bhagwat Gita As It Is” written by A.C. Bhaktived Swami Prabhupada, founder of ISKCON, claiming that it was “extremist” in nature and spread “social discord”.

Voices rise against 'unfair' verdict in NRI student's case March 21, 2012 12:58

As an online petition to the White House suggesting Indian American student Dharun Ravi was "prejudged and declared guilty" by media gathered momentum, more voices were heard across the US against what is seen as…

NATA fund raising over one million mark March 21, 2012 12:25

The North American Telugu Association (NATA) conducted several funding-raising events in many cities in the US and raised over one million dollars for its mega convention, which will be held in Houston from June 29th to July 1st, 2012. This is a record amount for a new Telugu organization in such short-time, said Advisors Dr. Malla Reddy and Dr. Prem Reddy. All BODs, RVPs, SC chairs, RCs, conference advisers, and chairs worked together as a team and produced results beyond our imaginations, said President AVN Reddy and President-elect Dr. Sanjeeva Reddy.The regional distribution of the amount collected so far is chronologically outlined below: NY team fund-raising event: In the NY/NJ areas alone, NATA team under the advisorship of Dr. Pailla Malla Reddy collected about $500,000 including the magnanimous $100,000 donation made by Dr. Malla Reddy himself, who many hail as the true philanthropic leader of Telugu community. The NY team held its fund-raiser on March 9th at Akbar Hotel, New York. This event was hosted by Dr. Malla Reddy to promote Houston Conference and raise funds for the conference. The team collected a whopping$300,000 from local donors. Thanks to Dr. Malla Reddy's inspiration and motivation of donors. This event was attended by 350 NATA members from New York and Connecticut. NATA President AVN Reddy, Advisory Council Dr. Malla Reddy, President-elect Dr. Sanjeeva Reddy, EVP Rajeshwar Reddy, Convener Jithender Reddy, Secretary Pradeep Samala, Treasurer Ramsurya Reddy, Jt. Treasurer Chinnababu Reddy, BODs Dr. Stanley Reddy and Phani Bhushan Tadepalli, Venkat Vaddadi, RVP Alla Rami Reddy, RCs Vikram Jangam, Krishna Maddipatla, Linga Reddy, Narasimha Reddy, Prabhu Goud, Sridhar Kumbala, Swetha Reddy and Vishnu Kumar Kotimreddy were present. Thanks to NATA Conference Finance Committee Chair Dr. Raghava Reddy Ghosala and convention team members Anna Reddy and Sekhar Konala for their presence. The event started with a grand welcome speech by Dr. Malla Reddy and Dr. Stanley Reddy. President AVN Reddy thanked Dr. Malla Reddy and the New York team for organizing such a big event and explained the reason for fund-raising in his speech. Convener Jithender Reddy assured that the conference team is taking all measures to make the Houston Conference a memorable event for everybody. TLCA President Nagender Gupta spoke on this occasion and encouraged the participants to donate for the Convention. Singer Vamsi Priya entertained the audience with great melodious songs and RC Prabhu Goud entertained the audience with his mimicry. BOD Phani Bhushan Tadepalli and community leader Mahesh Saladi were the MCs for this event and promoted the fund-raising. Local community leaders from TLCA were present and donated money for the conference. All participants and NATA leaders thanked Dr. Malla Reddy for hosting this dinner and making it a big success. Dallas team-fund raising event: NATA Dallas chapter has raised over $100,000 in a grand fund-raiser in Dallas-Fort Worth for the Convention. This event was hosted by Drs. Ramana and Jyothi Reddy, who cordially welcomed the guests to their beautiful residence in Fort Worth. The event was attended by over 50 Telugu community leaders, physicians and business owners and IT Professionals from the Dallas- Ft Worth metropolitan areas. Regional Vice-President Mr. Rao Kalvala welcomed members and shared his views on conventions and the impact NATA leadership has made for over 30 years to the progress of Telugu Communities in United States, with the enrichment of Telugu Literature, Culture, Music and Spiritual Practices. Mr. AVN Reddy shared progress of NATA community services such as recently conducted medical camps, educational programs, scholarships and drinking water projects in India, and requested DFW community for their support for NATA convention. Convener Jithender Reddy strongly urged DFW community leader for their support. Mr. Prasad Thotakura, TANA President, reiterated the richness of Telugu culture and the relentless support from Telugu communities across the nation. He pledged full cooperation for NATA events. Dr. AllaSrinivas Reddy (BOD) appreciated the efforts of NATA teams involved in community services and the need and requested for the support.Other community members Mr. Ramakrishna Lavu (NATS), Mr. Gurram Srinivas Reddy, Mrs. Shyamala Rumalla, Dr. Pudur Jagadeeshwaran, Dr. Viswanadham Puligandla shared their views and pledged support. Due to such great effort by the Dallas team, the DFW community donated over $100 thousands for the 2012 NATA convention. Over 50 members participated in this event, including Ramasurya Reddy (Treasurer), Dr. Samba Reddy (Media chair), Dr. Raghava Reddy (BOD), Sridhar Reddy Korsapati (BOD) and several regional coordinators. The team worked effectively in making this event successful. Los Angeles team fund-raising event: The Los Angeles, CA team held its fund-raiser on February 24th at Dr. Prem Reddy's guest house in Newport Beach, CA and promoted the Convention. With the help of local donors, NATA raised over $200,000in contributions, including the magnanimous donation of $100,000 by Dr. Prem Reddy, an advisory council member and great philanthropic leader of Telugu community. A health fair and a grand star-night, sponsored by Dr. Prem Reddy, were conducted by the CA south team.Advisory council Dharma Reddy, BOD Mallik Banda, RVP Anil Errabelli, RVP Nageshwar Rao Ankamma, RC Veera Reddy and many others participated in these events. Many NATA leaders from other cities including Dr. Malla Reddy, AVN Reddy, Dr. Sanjeeva Reddy, Dr. Samba Reddy, Jithender Reddy, Rajeshwar Reddy, Dr. Sreedhar Reddy Korsapati, Srinivas Ganagoni and many others also participated in these events. Houston team fund-raising event: The Houston team held fund-raisers and the team is still working on few more fund raisers within the next few weeks. With help from local donors, the team is expecting to raise decent contributions. Several leaders including President AVN Reddy, Convener Jithender Reddy, Co-convener Harinath Medi, Coordinator Dr. Janaradhana Reddy, Media Chair Dr. Samba Reddy, RVP Manohar Medi and BOD Chitten Raju hail from the greater Houston metropolitan areas. NATA board meeting fund-raisers: A grand cultural program and fund-raiser was conducted as part of the NATA board meeting in Dallas on October 1, 2011. The meeting was attended by many BODs and all advisory members Dr. Prem Reddy, Dr. Malla Reddy, Dr. M.S. Reddy, Dr. Mohan Mallam and Dharma Reddy participated in the board meeting and inspired the team and the attendees. NATA Day celebrations were a grand success. The team felicitated Dr. Prem Reddy and Dr. Malla Reddy with a grand flower garlands. Thanks to both leaders for helping to raise an additional $100,000 for the conference. Thanks also to Sridhar Reddy Korsapati, Rao Kalvala, local NATA leaders, volunteers and sponsors for all wonderful arrangements at these events. At Washington board meeting, NATA has received over $300,000 in pledges mainly from advisory members, board members, RVPs, committee chairs, regional coordinators and other members. Part of Drs. Malla Reddy and Prem Reddy's donations ($50,000 each) were announced that day. Dr. M.S. Reddy & Shyama Reddy and Dr. Haranath Policherla announced $25,000 followed by several generous donors who made donations in the amount ranging from $1500 to $25,000. Atlanta team fund raiser event: RVP Bala Indurti and NATA team has organized a fund raiser event in Atlanta on 7/30/11. They raised over $63,000.The fundraising dinner was attended by close to 300 people. 'We are glad that the community responded well to the event,' said Bala Indurti. It was a team effort by a great team we have here who has diligently worked for several months. We were glad that executive committee President AVN Reddy, Dr. Sanjeeva Reddy, Rajeshwar Reddy,Dr. Adisesha Reddy (NATA Foundation Chair) and South BOD Ramesh Appareddy were able to attend and provide the support. We are glad that Sri Ghantasala Ratnakumar was able to attend and make it a memorable event. He enthralled the audiences with some of golden melodies from bygone era. The Team thanked Srinivas Reddy Vangimalla, Ravi Kandimalla, Srinivas Kottlur, Ramana Dodla Phani Dokka, Venkat Chennubhotla and Ramesh Duvvuri. Take away the other names. Future fund raisers: NATA teams are planning fund-raising events in Oklahoma City,OK (March 24th), Hanford, CA (April 13th), San Jose, CA(April 14th), Berkeley, CA (April 15th), New Orleans, LA (April 29th), Detroit, MI (May 5th) and Canada (May 6th).

TFAS to a grand Celebrate Ugadi Utsavalu on April 7 March 20, 2012 10:22

The Telugu Fine Arts Society (TFAS) is busy planning a grand celebration of the Sri Nandana Nama Sumvastra Ugadi utsavalu. Plans are being finalized to hold the event at the East Brunswick Middle School on…

Delhi high court bars Indian maid from pursuing case in US March 19, 2012 16:09

The Delhi High Court has restrained an Indian domestic help, awarded nearly $1.5 million relief for alleged “ill-treatment” by an Indian consulate employee in the US, from pursuing her case in a New York court till further orders. The court’s interim order came in response to a petition filed by the central government seeking to restrain domestic help Shanti Gurung from pursuing her case in the US. Justice Kailash Gambhir said the whole concept of anti-suit injunction would be defeated if the foreign court was allowed to decide the issue at this stage. “An Indian diplomat enjoys sovereign immunity and any order passed by the court of the US would tantamount to interfering in the rights of the government of India to determine the terms and conditions of the employment of its diplomatic officers posted abroad,” the court said. A New York judge last month had recommended that Gurung deserved nearly $1.5 million for her “barbaric treatment” by Neena Malhotra, who in 2006 served as press counsellor at the Indian consulate in the US, and her husband Jogesh. Gurung in her complaint in the US alleged that Malhotra made her work without pay, seized her passport and visa, restricted her ability to leave her apartment and constantly warned her that if she travelled on her own, without their permission, she would be arrested, beaten and raped. Justice Gambhir asked the government to establish personal contact with Gurung through its diplomatic channels to ascertain the veracity of the allegations made by her before the next date of hearing. If Shanti Gurung has been a victim of any barbaric conduct, as held by the US court, at the hands of the Neena Malhotra, then the central Government has the prime responsibility of taking care of her rights as well, she also being an Indian citizen, the court said. The government March 12 approached the court seeking directions to restrain Gurung from pursuing the case in the New York court. It also sought the court to direct Gurung to withdraw the complaint. The court would next hear the matter May 3.

Indian Americans Are Influential Players in American Media March 19, 2012 13:18

With two of them governors, four billionaires and over a score sitting in high places in government, Indian Americans not only keep making news but have also emerged as major players in American media. Take Indian-born Aparism Bobby Ghosh, for instance, who was last week named by Time magazine as 'Editor-at-Large'. In naming Ghosh, Time Managing Editor Richard Stengel, called him "one of Time's greatest assets and this past year was one of his best yet." Then there is Fareed Zakaria, who too was introduced as Editor-at-Large of Time Magazine in October 2010 after spending 10 years overseeing all of Newsweek's editions abroad. Called "the most influential foreign policy adviser of his generation" by Esquire Magazine, Zakaria hosts what has been dibbed one of the most intelligent shows on American TV, 'Fareed Zakaria GPS' on CNN every Sunday. Equally ubiquitous is Sanjay Gupta, the multiple Emmy-award winning chief medical correspondent for CNN. A practicing neurosurgeon, Gupta has reported from earthquake- and tsunami-ravaged Japan, earthquake devastated Haiti and covered live the unprecedented flooding in Pakistan. Vinnie Malhotra, a former programme development executive at ESPN and long-time ABC News producer, has just joined CNN as senior vice president for development and acquisitions. Last month, Raju Narisetti, credited with creating Mint, the successful business daily out of Delhi, returned to the Wall Street Journal, where he had spent 23 years earlier, as Managing Editor of its Digital Network. Nisid Hajari, Managing Editor of Newsweek is busy writing "Midnight's Furies," a dramatic history of the Partition of India and Pakistan, told through the characters of Gandhi, Jinnah, Nehru, Churchill, and Mountbatten. Rajiv Chandrasekaran is the National Editor of The Washington Post, where he has worked since 1994. His first book "Imperial Life in the Emerald City:Inside Iraq's Green Zone" published in 2006 won the 2007 Samuel Johnson Prize and was a finalist for the 2006 National Book Awards for non-fiction. ESPN's sports anchor Kevin Negandhi is the first anchor of Indian-American descent to be on a national sports network in American Television history and Ali Velshi, son of Murad Velshi, the first Canadian of Indian origin elected to the legislative assembly of Ontario, serves as CNN's chief business correspondent. Other names include Davan Maharaj, managing editor of the Los Angeles Times; Stephanie Mehta, Fortune magazine Executive Editor overseeing technology, and Nikhil Deogun, Senior Vice President and Editor in Chief Business News, CNBC, the most-watched business TV network in the world. Peter Bhatia, editor of The Oregonian, one of America's top regional newspapers, is the first South Asian to run a major US daily. Hundreds of lesser known Indian Americans are among the producers, reporters, copy editors and production assistants, bringing Americans their daily news -showing how far Indian-American have come in the media world where only a few of them commanded bylines in the 1990s.