Lord Rama is in the news, again.
In their report submitted to the court, the government and the Archaeological Survey of India questioned the belief, saying it was solely based on the Hindu mythological epic Ramayana.
They said there was no scientific evidence to prove that the events described in Ramayana ever took place or that the characters depicted in the epic were real.
By definition, there is myth in mythology. However, mythology is the primary basis for the very existence of Hinduism. So, when science tells you that there is no proof that Rama built a bridge between India and Sri Lanka, what would you do?
Click here to read this very interesting news article from BBC.com
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( 2.9 / 26 )
An apparent attack by pro-Taliban elements aimed at destroying a 2nd century statue of Buddha in Manglore, located in remote Swat district of Pakistan [pictured on the right].Militants drilled holes in the rock and filled them with dynamite and blew it up," provincial archeology department official Aqleem Khan told Reuters news agency.
"The explosion damaged the upper part of the rock but there was no damage to the image itself." [Full story via BBC]
The attack is reminiscent of the destruction of Banyan Buddhas by the Taliban government in Afghanistan, included among them is the beautiful 175-feet tall statute of the Buddha [pictured on the left]. When this destruction took place in March 2001 I was very upset. Just a few months after this incident happened the 9/11 attacks happened. I guess when people are blinded by religion no reasoning goes to their heads. [Archived Story from USA Today.]
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( 2.8 / 12 )
Nepali women also fast for the welfare of their husbands. This got to be the Nepali version of Vara Lakshmi Vratam, a famous ritual in Andhra. Not only that, they apparently wear red to show that they are happily married. They don't look that happy to me! :) [Full story via BBC.com][ 1 comment ] ( 2 views ) | permalink |
( 2.9 / 28 )
Well, it is official! the wholesale inflation rate in India for the Sept 06-Aug 07 period is a mere 3.5%. The economists are expecting a 5% rate. Hooray! If you are living in India and are frustrated with the price of onions and cooking oil shooting through the roof - don't believe your wallet. Believe the government statistics! Long ago the dismal scientists, a.k.a. economists, in the US invented a way to sugar-coat the inflation rate. They discovered the so called "core-rate" of inflation. They take the "volatile" food and energy prices out of the inflation goods basket and toss at you this "core-rate" and want you to believe that everything is alright. I don't know what exact measures Indian government uses to compute this rate. Forget food and energy. Housing should be a part of inflation measure. I wonder if they checked real-estate prices lately. By real estate prices I mean both buying and renting! I don't believe this number. Period.
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( 3 / 26 )
1. Return and 2. Success.
We want the soldiers to RETURN from Iraq, with SUCCESS. Bingo! The Republicans, are good at tossing catch phrases at us. The President just announced his "Return on Success" message.
- You can put a lipstick on the pig, but it is still a pig.
- You can put a dog on the throne, but it still a dog! [Kanakapu simhaasanamuna oka sunakamu koorchunda tagunaa?]
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( 3.3 / 25 )
Protest rallies have been held across India by hard-line Hindus to campaign against a proposed shipping canal project between India and Sri Lanka.Massive traffic jams were reported in many places and trains delayed in many parts of the country.
Protesters say the project will destroy a bridge they believe was built by Hindu God Ram and his army of monkeys.
Scientists question the belief, saying it is solely based on the Hindu mythological epic Ramayana. [more via BBC.com]
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( 2.8 / 16 )
Are you surprised that Ram Gopa Varma went down in flames in his own [Ram Gopal Varma ki] Aag? I am not! Often people use the phrase utter-flop to depict a film failed at the box-office. If there is one movie that is an iconic representation of an utter-flop, it would be RGV ki Aag. Apparently they are pulling the movie from the theaters in the second week itself. I certainly don't take any delight in somebody's misery, but feel like RGV asked for this and got exactly what he deserved. There are few movies I am passionate about - Sholay [Hindi] and Maaya Bazaar [Telugu] are at the top of this list. When I first learned about RGV going ahead with remaking of Sholay, I wrote some strongly worded script to denounce his project and his overall rhetoric. I wanted to deliver it as a special commentary on my show back in April. But, for whatever reason, I backed off from delivering it. On the Sept 20 Mohana Muralee Gaana Lahari I will deliver this special comment on RGV. Stay tuned.
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( 3.1 / 14 )
Jon Stewart will return as host of the Academy Awards.The star of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" will get his second shot at hosting Hollywood's premiere event, which will be held on Feb. 24 at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. He hosted the 78th annual awards show in 2006.
Stewart was "a terrific host" for that event, Oscar telecast producer Gil Cates said Wednesday, announcing the selection in a statement from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences.
The academy didn't indicate why it decided to go with Stewart after using comedian Ellen DeGeneres this year.
"I'm thrilled to be asked to host the Academy Awards for the second time because, as they say, the third time's a charm," Stewart joked. [full story via AP]
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( 3.2 / 11 )Are you following the immigration debate in the USA? The talking heads, especially the ones on Fix News channel, would have you believe that just about everybody who was born outside US and came to this country are illegal immigrants. A typical Indian who came to this country came here legally and live by the law of this land. Whether they come on F1 or H1, typically it takes 6 years or more to become a permanent resident. From INS' processing paperwork at a snail pace to curbing legal immigration by the Congress, the legal immigrants face a myriad of harassment for the establishment in this country. It is time to voice your frustration and make the law makers notice your concerns. www.immigrationvoice.org is organizing a peaceful rally by legal immigrants in Washington DC on Sept 18th, 2007.
The following is their announcement:
Peaceful Rally by Legal Immigrants in Washington DC on Sept. 18th, 2007
•Are you trapped in the quicksand of visa retrogression?
•Are you stuck in the labor certification backlog?
•Have you played by the rules only to suffer silently in probationary limbo for 6 to 12 years?
ACT NOW AND STAND UP FOR YOUR RIGHTS!
Ask congress to legislate and fix the system so that it works the way it was originally intended to work by joining this peaceful rally.
Location: Washington Monument, Washington, DC
When: Tuesday, Sept. 18th, 2007; 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
--------------------------------------------------
Employment Based (EB) Green Card (GC) Laws
1. The annual GC quota is 140,000 including for family members. On an average, GCs are given to about 60,000 families.
2. There is a per-country cap of 7% of 140,000 GCs which is equally distributed among EB-1, EB-2 and EB-3 categories plus any unused visa from other countries. For India, average numbers of EB GCs issued in last seven years were 32K (~12K families).
3. Between 2001-07, USCIS was not able process all applications and hence about 155,000 GCs were wasted as unused. This was most likely due to resource constraints.
4. About 500K-750K (yes 500K+) AOS applications were submitted between June 1 and August 17 2007.
5. There were about 200,000 pending EB Adjustment of Status (AOS) or I-1485 applications as of June 1st.
6. So far EAD renewal has been taking around 3 months. Due to the volume of applications, EAD renewal may take 3-9 months. Thus, you may have to apply for renewal more frequently.
7. EB Immigration reform does not have enough support in Congress (failure of SKILL, STEM etc/). As a matter of fact, it does not even get enough support to make it debatable, let alone final voting.
8. The laws need to be changed and the process improved to fix the situation.
What does it mean?
1. There will be around 1Million AOS/I-485) applications by Aug 17 which will take 1M/140K = 7+ years to clear the backlog. Thus, late priority dates will remain retrogressed for several years.
2. Some, who could not file AOS by 08/17, may have to wait for several years (5+ years)
3. Longer EAD/AP renewals cycle and 1 year validity may have the following affects.
4. You will have to stop working, if your EAD is not renewed in time.
5. Several employers (and rightly so) may view EAD as a temporary permit and may be reluctant to hire you.
6. You have to be in the same position with same job responsibilities for an indefinite time period, otherwise your GC application will be rejected.
7. If you were unmarried at the time of filing and planning to bring spouse to the USA upon marriage, you will need to continue on current status (e.g. H-1B) or wait till your PD become current.
Immigration Voice (IV) Executive and Legislative Efforts
* Lobbying is an efficient tool to influence law and rule making.
* IV was very active in lobbying for CIR 2006, which was passed in senate.
* IV grass-root effort (flower campaign + San Jose Rally) was an important reason for retraction of July Visa Bulletin.
* Due to upcoming presidential elections, next congress session in October’07 may be our only window of opportunity for several years to influence the lawmakers.
Your options: a) Struggle for several years b) Leave USA c) Help yourself by joining IV
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( 3 / 28 )My goal in organizing this blog is to bring to focus some of the topics of interest to Telugu community living abroad, especially in the USA. I will not be the sole poster here. More posters will be added to the roster as the time passes by.
As they say, a typical blog has one reader: the blogger himself (or herself). There is no dearth of free information on the web via millions of blogs and news sites.
Is one more blog like this one necessary? If you do think that this blog is not a bad idea, answer this simple question: what type of news and commentary you would you like to see here? Through the add comment link below, tell me what you think.
Thank you.
Mohana Muralidhar
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( 3.1 / 17 )Today in the Costco store I met a prominent person of the local Telugu community. He and his family are packing and returning to India for good. He works in the IT sector but that is not where he could be working when he returns. In the last 3 months, at least two other people I know in the Washington DC area have returned to India. Times of India says this is a trend.
Excerpts from this article:
The survey conducted by Indus Entrepreneurs, an association of Indian IT professionals settled in the US, found that around 60,000 professionals have returned to India in recent years, Michael M Bala, Business Head of recruitment portal clickjobs.com, said.
Several couples in age group of 27 to 35 were looking forward to come back to India, he said, quoting the survey.
"Most young Indian couples preferred to return to India to protect their kids from the Western culture and to educate them in Indian atmosphere," he said.
Infrastructure development and job opportunities at the more or less same salary in India were cited as the factors behind the trend.
Bala, who recently conducted a job fair in New Jersey to recruit personnel for multi-national companies, said more and more Indians were coming forward to return to their motherland with the country becoming a favoured destination of several MNCs, financial institutions and IT companies.
"The growth of these institutions in India have thrown open the doors to talented people, who had so for thought that the West was their only resort," he added.
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( 3 / 27 )
SECULAR ENGINEER: How a Muslim Billionaire Thrives in Hindu India
Mr. Premji Has Wealth And Clout as Wipro Chief; The Imam Disapproves
By YAROSLAV TROFIMOV
September 11, 2007; Page A1
BANGALORE, India -- The world's richest Muslim entrepreneur defies conventional wisdom about Islamic tycoons: He doesn't hail from the Persian Gulf, he didn't make his money in petroleum, and he definitely doesn't wear his faith on his sleeve. (Full story via Wall Street Journal] (registration required)
The article focuses on the economic disparity among Muslims and Hindus in India. The following are some excerpts:
..Yet, to many in India's Muslim community, Mr. Premji's enormous wealth, far from being inspiring, shows that success comes at a price the truly faithful cannot accept. They resent that Mr. Premji plays down his religious roots and declines to embrace Muslim causes -- in a nation where people are pegged by their religion and where Hindus freely flaunt theirs. "If you are a Muslim and want to be rich in India, you have to show you are very secular," says Zafarul Islam Khan, secretary-general of the All-India Muslim Majlis e Mushawarat, an umbrella group...
...Illiteracy is higher among Muslims than among Dalits in the key 6-to-17 age group. Although Muslims account for more than 13% of India's population, they make up only 1.7% of undergraduates in India's version of the Ivy League, the seven Indian Institutes of Technology. The underrepresentation is just as severe in the nation's bureaucratic elite: Muslims make up 3% of staff in the Indian Administrative Service and 1.8% of the diplomatic corps....
...While India's Muslim groups complain about facing daily discrimination, Mr. Premji says the only time he has been singled out because of his Muslim heritage wasn't in India but at a U.S. airport shortly after 9/11. In doing business in India, he maintains, "I don't think being a Muslim or being a non-Muslim has been an advantage or disadvantage. It's just been based on the merits of the opportunities."...
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( 2.9 / 29 )
Why is Osama Bin Laden still around, free and still producing terrible quality videos such as this one? Answer: He is mocking Americans and the world. "Hey, I am still alive and kicking. You can't catch me!"
As we all know, September 11th, 2007 marks the 6th anniversary of 9/11 attacks on American soil. On this sober anniversary of 9/11, I will not only remember those fallen innocent citizens, but also remember the incompetence of a government which failed to protect the citizens on 9/11.
What can you expect to accomplish in these 6 years?
1) If were just born in Sept 01, you would have successfully graduated kindergarten and entered 1st grade.
2) If you were a Freshman in Fall 2001, you would have graduated and had a couple of years of experience under your belt.
3) If you joined a Ph.D. program in 2001 you would have had a Dr. before you name.
4) If you were a small Willow Hybrid plant, you would have grown to your mature height of 75 feet.
5) If you are an average American, you would have bought at least one new car and retired or sold one old car; and
6) If you are an Indian tech worker living in US, you would have changed your job twice, increased your pay by at least 50% and gotten your green card or in the process of getting one.
7) If you are President Bush, NOT MUCH, other than championing some of the worst non-accomplishments to become the worst President ever.
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( 3.1 / 27 )[Photo courtesy: Eenadu.net]
In less than a month since the twin terrorist bombings rocked Hyderabad, the city was struck by another tragedy today. A flyover bridge under construction in the Panjagutta area collapsed. About 15 people are feared dead. Poor quality construction is being blamed even before any investigation started. Opposition blames the ruling party. The ruling party blames terrorists and/or promises swift action against the culprits. The CM takes pictures at the scene and with the victims. Days go by, and everybody forgets the victims. What else is new? Full story via Eenadu.
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( 3.1 / 14 )
Lakshman Mishra, deputy director of the agriculture department, is facing suspension for wearing "bottu" to work. He is accused of breaching a new government dress code. No, this is not in a western country where they don't understand the Indian sentiments. This happened in Indian state of Bihar. CK Anil, the officer who tried to discipline Mr. Mishra is a new "no-nonsense" civil servant (an IAS officer). This is one of the reasons the constitutions in many democracies prohibit people younger than 35 to become the counties premier leader. Hello, Mr. Anil - there must be civility in civil service! Click here to see the full story via BBC.com [photo courtesy: BBC.com]Mr Mishra says he has no intention of giving up the practice.
"I've been sporting the red holy dot on my forehead for the last 30 years of my career," he told the BBC.
Mr. Mishra has support of his fellow employees. They laid siege to Mr Anil's office and demanded he withdraw his recommendation that Mr Mishra be suspended.
"The officer's move has hurt our religious sentiments and as our protest against his order we've come to the office today adorning our foreheads with the red dot. Let him suspend all of us now," said union leader Baidyanath Yadav.
The tension surrounding the incident will definitely ease once they realize how stupid this law is. It is interesting to note that this is happening nearly 20 years to the date after the "Dot Busters" phenomenon in the USA. In 1987 a group of nearly 15,000 people who called themselves "Dot Busters," riled against Indian immigrants. They threw eggs at Hindus, harassed women from the subcontinent, vandalized Indian businesses. The groups harassment peaked with the death of an Indian teenager. Eventually law and order prevailed in Jersey City (where the murder happened.) But not before the Indian community in NJ got terrorized for a while.
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( 2.9 / 18 )
Calendar
