Part_1 - South Asian Daily

Transcription

MidWeek
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
TUESDAY, MARCH 25, 2014
AAP CONVENTION RECEIVES
OVERWHELMING RESPONSE IN CANADA
1
Quebec Separatism
WILL CANADA
BREAK?
WITH INPUTS FROM SHAZIA MALIK
T
DETAILS ON PAGE 6
Canada's Housing Market Healthy
Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver - How is your City doing ?
C
anadian house prices may be headed for a modest decline
nationally and in some local markets, but fears of a housing
bubble are exaggerated, according to The Conference Board
of Canada's initial Housing Briefing: Bubble Fears Overblown.
"Mortgage costs, not just house prices, are the principal deciding
factor for potential homebuyers," said Robin Wiebe, Senior
Economist, Centre for Municipal Studies. "Mortgage rates are
expected to rise this year, but not dramatically, because the Canadian
economy remains in a slow-growth mode.
"The housing market may be undergoing a correction in some regions
and market segments, but it is more likely to be a soft landing than a
bubble bursting."
Highlights
" Mortgage costs remain relatively low, which maintains affordability
for home buyers.
" Resale markets in major Canadian cities are generally balanced.
" A soft landing in the Canadian housing market is the most likely
scenario.
Fears of a housing bubble hinge on the ratio of house prices to
apartment rents and house prices to incomes. The Conference
Board's view is that while these ratios are high, they are also
misleading. Better indicators of affordability are the ratio of mortgage
payments to rents and mortgage payments to incomes, and neither
presents much cause for alarm about a housing bubble.
In addition, Canadian employment continues to increase, albeit
modestly, and the national population is growing. In general, housing
starts are in line with demographic requirements, and markets do not
appear to be overbuilt. Total housing starts in Canadian cities with
at least 10,000 residents ended 2013 at just below 170,000 units.
Although down from nearly 194,000 starts in 2012, this is in line with
Canada's 25-year average.
Furthermore, a low proportion of Canadian mortgages are in arrears.
As a result, a market downturn in Canada would not be amplified by
a wave of "distressed" home sales, as occurred in the United States
in the 2000s.
Over the medium-term, a modest market correction, particularly in
market segments in Ontario and Quebec as projected rising interest
rates potentially crimp affordability, could produce a moderate decline
in the national average housing price.
The outlook provides assessments of six major Canadian markets.
" Vancouver's resale market moved back into balance last spring.
DETAILS ON PAGE 5
BONNIE CROMBIE REGISTERS TO
RUN FOR MAYOR OF MISSISSAUGA
‘
MISSISSAUGA RESIDENTS WILL ELECT
THEIR FIRST NEW MAYOR IN 36 YEARS
BY SHAZIA MALIK
Mississauga - Bonnie Crombie, 54, a former MP, has officially registered as
a candidate at Mississauga City Hall to run in the city's race to replace Mayor
Hazel McCallion and is expected to face a stiff competition from Mahoney, a
former councilor, MPP and MP who registered last week. Mahoney has
spent about 25 years in politics at the municipal, provincial and federal levels.
The city's residents will elect their first new Mayor in 36 years after Hazel
McCallion took the reins three decades ago and was re-elected time and
again with strong mandates. Before entering politics in 2008, Crombie has
worked and volunteered with a range of non-profit organizations. She served
as fundraising chair of the Ontario Brain Injury Association and was a board
member with Arts Umbrella, a non-profit arts education centre. According to
her official biography, Crombie co-founded Cargo Cosmetics, a company that
started up in Toronto in 1996 and grew into a multi-million-dollar corporation.
DETAILS ON PAGE 4
he idea to break Canada will take a backseat sooner
than later. This was pointed out by Yudhvir Jaswal
during the recent Southasian PULSE Radio show. He
said Marois has been talking very vehemently of a
sovereign Quebec but for the time being has changed her tone
in wake of upcoming elections. Dr Ranvir Sharda said as twothirds of pollsters showed remorse to the idea of separation
from Canada, she has put this issue on the back burner knowing
she has made a mistake and might not get enough votes. Thus
she is backing off and evading journalist questions though
earlier she made it very clear that she would like to hold a
referendum if elected on April 7. Yudhvir said issues like
economy, Jobs and Healthcare will always take prominence in
voters mind sooner or later and political par ties have to base
their strategies accordingly.
A new poll has given the Liberals a five-point lead over the
Par ti Québécois. The poll, conducted by Ipsos Reid for CTV and
released last Wednesday afternoon showed 37% of voters
would suppor t the Liberals in an election, compared with 32%
for the PQ, 16% for Coalition Avenir Québec, and 10% for
Québec Solidaire. Option Nationale garnered 3% of the vote, and
all other par ties also made up three per cent.
Conducted online between March 14 and 18, the poll showed
the PQ to be losing suppor t among francophones with 38%
saying they would vote PQ, compared with 29% who would vote
Liberal. Quebecers appear to be generally dissatisfied with the
PQ government, with 67% saying the province is going in the
wrong direction, compared with 33% who say Quebec is on the
right track.
DETAILS ON PAGE 8
Canada wants more
Immigrants from China
Canada's Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris
Alexander has concluded a successful visit to China during
which he highlighted the many oppor tunities that exist in
Canada for Chinese skilled workers, travellers,
businesspeople and students.
Alexander visited Hong Kong and Shanghai to position Canada
as a destination of choice for leisure travel, business and
study. He highlighted the many pathways to Canada for aspiring permanent residents, reiterated the Government of
Canada's commitment to doubling the intake of international
students, and promoted the active recruitment model known
as the "Expression of Interest" (EOI) system. The EOI will
result in faster visa processing for newcomers who have the
skills and attributes that Canadian employers need, in the
event that Canadians cannot fill available jobs.
In Hong Kong, Alexander met with government officials for
the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, as well as
with business leaders-par ticularly those involved in research
and development, venture capitalism and angel investing.
The Minister reiterated Canada's intention in Economic Action Plan 2014 to replace the Immigrant Investor Program
with new pilot programs.
While in Shanghai, Alexander met with the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and spoke at numerous events related to
international education to underscore China's position as one
of the top source countries for students coming to Canada.
The Minister also attended the public funeral service of Bishop
Joseph Fan Zhongliang, who devoted his life to his faith.
Canada will continue to work with faith groups in China to
advance freedom of religion and belief.
CIRCULATED THROUGH : TORONTO, MARKHAM, SCARBOROUGH, RICHMOND HILL, VAUGHAN, WOODBRIDGE, ETOBICOKE, NORTH YORK, MALTON, REXDALE, BRAMPTON, MISSISSAUGA, OAKVILLE, HAMILTON, MILTON, STONEY CREEK, BURLINGTON
2
MidWeek
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
page 3
MidWeek
3
ANUPAM KHER HITS
OUT AT GUL PANAG
FOR HER TWITTER
REMARKS ABOUT
KIRRON
SONAKSHI SINHA DENIES LINK-UP WITH SHAHID KAPOOR
When she entered the film world, Sonakshi Sinha brought curves back and was known for her girl-next-door look. But now, after
having lost oodles of weight, the young star seems like a new person.
In this interview, Sonakshi talks about her new look, style statement and the rumours of a link-up with Shahid Kapoor.
How are you dealing with the link-up rumours between you and Shahid?
I’m not dealing with them. I sit at home, read what’s written and then forget it. Frankly, people should stop
making it awkward because there’s nothing to it.
But you’ve been working out with his trainer...
So? I’ve been working out with him since November. What has that got to do with him? It’s not like the trainer
is bound to Shahid. I can workout with whoever I want to.
Tell us about your new look.
I’ve been under pressure for a while. People have been writing about my weight. But it never really bothered me earlier because
it didn’t come from within. I’m doing it now (losing weight) for myself. I’ve been consistently working out since November. You can
see the results now. That’s is why everyone thinks I’m suddenly looking different.
Even at events you’ve started experimenting with fashion.
My stylist, who is also my friend, studied fashion designing with me. I was the one topping all the classes
while she was the naughtier one. But frankly, she’s the best stylist I have worked with. She understands my
style and body type. Because of our friendship, she puts in the extra effor t. Plus, now that I have lost weight,
I have many more options. What didn’t look nice on me earlier looks good now because of my changed body.
Karisma looks
younger than any
Bollywood actress:
Kareena Kapoor
Bollywood actress Kareena KapoorKhan
feels her elder sister Karisma looks
younger than any contemporary female
stars today. "She (Karisma) has two kids,
but she doesn't look like a mother of two.
She looks younger than any Bollywood actress even today. She is the most beautiful
girl as her heart is of gold. When you see
her she looks radiant as ever," Kareena said.
Kareena, 33, feels Karisma is lucky to have
a toned body. "She has very toned body
and she is genetically blessed. I am more
of a Kapoor, but she is more like my
mother," Kareena said.
The Jab We Met star said she might also
open her own fashion label after being the
face of many fashion labels. "It is not a plan
or thought in my mind as of now. May be
yes, sometime later," she added.
I will never enter
politics: Abhay Deol
A number of Bollywood celebrities may be
making their political debut in time for the
upcoming Lok Sabha elections, but Abhay
Deol says he has no such aspirations.
“I would never enter politics, but I will go out
and vote. If there are people who want to get
into the system and bring about some change,
they can go ahead. There is nothing wrong
with that. People from everywhere have to
participate to clean the system from inside,”
says the actor. However, the 38-year-old actor’s
resume mostly boasts of films with distinct
social and political elements — be it Shanghai (2012), which dealt with the issue of land
displacement; Chakravyuh (2012), which dealt
with the Naxal movement or Raanjhanaa
(2013), where he played a young student
leader and socialist.
Anupam Kher hits
out at Gul Panag
Actor Anupam Kher has hit out at actor Gul
Panag for making some unsavoury remarks about his wife, actor Kirron Kher’s
age. Gul and Kirron are both contesting the
forthcoming Lok Sabha elections from
Chandigarh. While Gul is fighting on an Aam
Admi Par ty (AAP) ticket, Kirron is the
Bhartiya Janta Dal (BJP) candidate.
And, even before the political battle, a Twitter battle had unfolded between the two of
them. On Thursday, Gul, 35, had tweeted,
“Doubt if I’ll have the energy to run around
like this and serve my people, when I’m
60. I guess that’s why there’s normally a
retirement age.” In a strong reply to Gul’s
tweet, Kirron Kher had tweeted, “My father
is 101 years old and still happening. He
said, ‘Good Luck Puttar. You have Always
been winner.’ For me, life starts at 60.”
4
MidWeek
special report
Will movie stars shine
bright in elections 2014?
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
short
stories
shortstories
Linda Jeffrey to Run for
Mayor of Brampton
Linda Jeffrey, MPP Brampton-Springdale and Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing has resigned from her position and
announced that she will
be running for the Mayor
in Brampton.
Jeffrey was first elected
as an MPP in the October
2003 election, when the
governing Liberals won
their first majority. She
was re-elected in 2007
and 2011.
During her second term as
an MPP, Jeffrey served as
the province's minister of
natural resources. More
recently, she had served
as labour minister and the
minister responsible for seniors, before she took on the municipal affairs and housing por tfolio.
Jeffrey's attempt to become the next mayor of Brampton will
mean that she is challenging the incumbent mayor, Susan
Fennell, for her job. Fennell has been the mayor of Brampton
since 2000. She is already up against five other candidates.
IPL fixing scandal: SC
asks Srinivasan to step
down for fair probe
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
GUL PANAG
F
HEMA MALINI
ilm stars' flir tation with politics is not new but so far it has not
been successful in Nor th India as much as in the South. People
in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh show an unmatched pas
sion for their movie stars and have voted matinee idols like N
T Rama Rao and M G Ramachandran to power but in the Nor th big
names like Amitabh Bachchan, Rajesh Khanna, Dharmendra and
Govinda got into politics with great fanfare but only to leave it halfway.
It is to be seen whether the current lot of celebrities manage to convert their
star appeal for a long haul in the heat and dust of politics or fade out as quicky
as they came.
This year, Chandigarh is set for an interesting battle between two celebrities- Panag, who is fighting from Aam Admi Party and veteran actress Kirron, a
Lok Sabha candidate from Bhartiya Janta Party.
When Panag's name was announced, she seemed to have an edge due to her
youth appeal but BJP changed the equation by pitching its own star in Kirron,
who has had an acclaimed career behind her. Congress candidate Pawan
Kumar Bansal, who had to quit the Raiway Ministry under a cloud, is caught
in the fight of the dimpled beauties.
AAP, led by Arvind Kejriwal, had many sympathisers in Bollywood during his
pre-political, Anna Hazare days but many have drifted away post his political
debut. The party may still throw some surprises from Bollywood.
Congress is relying on regional appeal by fielding Bhojpuri superstar Ravi
Kishan (Jaunpur), actress Nagma (Meerut) with veteran actor Raj Babbar
(Gaziabad).
BJP, led by Narendra Modi, is also going with old faithful in Sinha (Patna
Sahib), Hema Malini (Mathura) besides adding newcomers Paresh Rawal
(Ahmedabad East), Joy Banerjee (Birbhum), Babul Suprio (Asansol) in the
mix.
The party with the most star-studded list, however, is Trinamool Congress.
The Mamta Banerjee-led party has Suchitra Sen's daughter Moon Moon
fighting from Bankura, Sandhya Sen from Midnapore, Biswajit from New
Delhi, superstar Dev from Ghatal and singers Soumitra Roy and Indranil Sen
among others.
A celebrity face ensures eyeballs and in turn, the stars get a ready space in
political parties but they have their own detractors within the system as
many feel they get an easy ride while genuine people are marginalised.
Ravi Kishan agrees that stars face more scrutiny.
"Movie stars are human beings. We do movies about social problems and
you want to contribute to society but still we face tougher scrutiny in politics.
This is why many stars quit because artistes are sensitive people. Why treat
them like outsiders," Kishan told PTI.
He disagrees that films stars don't do well in politics.
"In south we have great actor-leaders in N T Rama Rao, M G Ramachandran,
who have left a legacy in politics. Similarly, we had Sunil Duttji and then there
is Shatrughan Sinhaji who is doing great politically," he added.
Abhay Deol too believes that actors willing to do good for the country should
join politics.
"If there are people (from Bollywood) who are willing to make a change in the
system, then they can go ahead. There is nothing wrong with that. People
from everywhere should participate in cleaning the system."
The names that successfully traded their movie fame for great political power
mostly belong to the South. In fact, Tamil Nadu has been ruled by film-stars
and personalities from Tamil cinema since the late 1960s.
MG Ramachandran (MGR), who had his origins in DMK, formed his own
party AIADMK (All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam) and took it to
great heights. He had an uninterrupted stay in power for 10 years that ended
only with his death in 1987.
The party is currently led by Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, a former moviestar
who acted with MGR in many films and inherited his legacy.
DMK leader M Karunanidhi, a former scriptwriter and AIADMK chief
Jayalalithaa have taken turns to rule the state since 1989.
Legendary N T Rama Rao too rode to power in just 10 months after forming
the Telugu Desam in 1982.
In the present generation Telugu superstar K Chiranjeevi tried to emulate
SHATRUGHAN SINHA
KIRRON KHER
‘
FROM OLD-TIMERS LIKE SHATRUGHAN SINHA,
RAJ BABBAR AND HEMA MALINI TO NEW
ENTRANTS--KIRRON KHER, GUL PANAG, MOON
MOON SEN, PAWAN KALYAN - SEVERAL STARS
HAVE JUMPED INTO ELECTORAL POLITICS THIS
TIME TO TRY THEIR LUCK, ADDING GLAMOUR
TO THE BATTLE FOR POWER.
MGR and NTR by launching his political career with a new party Praja
Rajyam but he could not make progress and had to merge it with Congress.
Now, his younger brother Pawan Kalyan has founded Jana Sena party and
has taken a vow to defeat Congress, his brother's party.
Contrary to the South where politics and showbiz are intermixed, North has
not been very faithful to its stars and their politics is often seen as an indulgence than a serious commitment.
Bachchan, one of the biggest stars of Hindi film industry defeated a heavyweight like Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna from Allahabad in 1984 in his political debut from Congress.
But his political career was short-lived and Bachchan quit after his name
was dragged into Bofors case. The megastar has often alluded to this phase
of his life with much pain. It also ended his relationship with the Congress
party's first family.
However, it did not deter his wife Jaya Bachchan from taking a political
plunge. She first got into SP through Amar Singh but when he left the party
acrimoniously, Jaya persevered. She is now a Rajya Sabha member on SP
ticket.
Bachchan's contemporary Rajesh Khanna too entered politics at the insistence of Rajiv Gandhi. To his credit the superstar did give L K Advani a difficult
time in 1991 elections for New Delhi seat despite the latter riding high on the
wave of Ayodhya.
Advani won by a narrow margin but Khanna claimed he had been cheated out
of victory and when the BJP leader vacated the seat, Khanna defeated
Shatrughan Sinha in a by-election.
After losing out to BJP's Jagmohan in 1996, Khanna quit active politics. It is
said that Khanna wanted to be nominated to Rajya Sabha, a wish that remained unfulfilled.
There are stars who stuck to politics despite initial hiccups. Both Sinha and
late actor Sunil Dutt became cabinet ministers. Dutt remained a politician till
his last days while Sinha continues to battle on. He is currently fighting for
BJP from Patna Sahib where he is pitted again Congress candidate and
Bhojpuri actor Kunal Singh.
Apart from Bachchan, actors who beat a hasty retreat from politics are Govinda,
Dharmendra and Sanjay Dutt.
Govinda made his political debut from Virar on a Congress ticket. He was
elected as an MP for Mumbai North constituency in 2004 elections after
defeating Ram Naik of the BJP.
He was criticised for not being there for his voters and staying away from
parliament during his political stint. His film career also suffered during this
period. Bollywood's former wild-child Sanjay Dutt's political stint was equally
short-lived. Dutt shocked his family and by joining SP. But, after Amar Singh
was given the exit door, Dutt too realised that he was better off being
'Munnabhai' in films.
Actor Dharmendra's entry to politics too fizzled out soon. He followed
wife Hema Malini to BJP and became an MP in the 2004 general
elections from Bikaner in Rajasthan.
Criticised for being absent from Parliament, Dharmendra has regretted his decision to enter politics.
Director Prakash Jha vowed never to return to politics after he lost out
twice in his native West Champaran from Lok Jan Shaki Par ty. The
filmmaker is now trying his luck a third time as a JD(U) Candidate
from Bettiah after Chief Minister Nitish Kumar convinced him to join
the battle again.
Source - PTI.
NEW DELHI: Coming down heavily on BCCI president N
Srinivasan, the Supreme Cour t on Tuesday asked him to step
down for a free and fair probe in the betting and spot fixing
scandal involving his son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan and some
cricketers, failing which it would pass an order.
After going through the contents of a report filed in a sealed cover by apex
court-appointed probe panel into the scandal, a bench headed by Justice A
K Patnaik said there are "very very serious" allegations made in the report
and unless the BCCI president steps down, no fair probe can be conducted.
"In our opinion, Srinivasan has to step down if proper probe is to be done in
the case," the bench said.
"We don't like to damage people's reputation but unless the BCCI president
steps down, no fair investigation can be down.
"Why is he sticking to the chair? It is nauseating," the bench said.
"If you would not step down, we will pass the verdict," an enraged bench
said.
It said that the contents of the report, which also raised suspicion on the role
of six India-capped players in IPL betting and spot-fixing scandal, cannot be
revealed in open court and asked BCCI counsel to go through certain
paragraphs of it. "See and go through the report to get to know the seriousness of the allegations but not as an advocate of Srinivasan or BCCI," the
bench said. It said that the gist of the report is such that the allegations have
to be probed and asked the BCCI counsel to take instructions.
It posted the case for hearing on March 27.
During the hearing, BCCI pleaded before the court not to disclose the
contents and names of players mentioned in the report.
TOP INDIAN MUJAHIDEEN
OPERATIVE TEHSIN
AKHTAR ARRESTED
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
NEW DELHI: Wiping out the top leadership of terrorist outfit
Indian Mujahideen (IM), the special cell of Delhi Police arrested
Tehsin Akhtar alias Monu on Tuesday.
Sources said he was nabbed near the Nepal border but there
was no official confirmation yet. Akhtar was apprently trying to
sneak into Pakistan via Kathmandu.
Delhi Police will hold a news conference at 4pm to elaborate on
the operation.
Tehsin, for all practical purposes, took over the reins of IM in
India after its then operations chief Ahmed Siddibappa alias
Yasin Bhatkal was arrested by Intelligence Bureau in Nepal in
August 2013.
A highly motivated and slippery IM operative, Tehsin was wanted
for a series of blasts across the country, including the October
27, 2013 attack on a Narendra Modi rally in Patna.
Bonnie Crombie Registers To Run
For Mayor of Mississauga
CONTD. FROM PAGE 1
Yudhvir also announced that Premier Kathleen Wynne is in dire
straits as she will be losing another cabinet member - Linda Jeffrey, Municipal Affairs Minister to bid for the mayor of Brampton
along with Sanderson. Speculations for Jeffery's resignation from
the cabinet to par ticipate in Brampton mayoral elections have
been rife for weeks now but a formal announcement is still awaited.
Jeffrey, who has been greatly disenchanted by Fennell's policies,
will join House Leader John Milloy and Attorney General John
Gerretsen in not seeking re-election. Meanwhile, Fennel has called
Jeffery's appointment as mayor "too risky" and she is the best
choice as under her Brampton has received a Triple A credit rating
and its economy has grown.
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
MidWeek
breaking news
CANADA LEADS TO EXPEL RUSSIA FROM
G-8 & SUPPORT UKRAINE
5
course and the environment comes back to where the G-8 is able to have a
meaningful discussion and will meet again in G-7 format at the same time as
planned, in June 2014, in Brussels, to discuss the broad agenda we have
together. We have also advised our Foreign Ministers not to attend the April
meeting in Moscow. In addition, we have decided that G-7 Energy Ministers
will meet to discuss ways to strengthen our collective energy security.
7. At the same time, we stand firm in our support for the people of Ukraine
who seek to restore unity, democracy, political stability, and economic prosperity to their country. We commend the Ukrainian government's ambitious
reform agenda and will support its implementation as Ukraine seeks to start
a new chapter in its history, grounded on a broad-based constitutional reform,
free and fair presidential elections in May, promotion of human rights and
respect of national minorities.
8. The International Monetary Fund has a central role leading the international
effort to support Ukrainian reform, lessening Ukraine's economic vulnerabilities, and better integrating the country as a market economy in the multilateral system. We strongly support the IMF's work with the Ukrainian authorities and urge them to reach a rapid conclusion. IMF support will be critical in
unlocking additional assistance from the World Bank, other international
financial institutions, the EU, and bilateral sources. We remain united in our
commitment to provide strong financial backing to Ukraine, to co-ordinate
our technical assistance, and to provide assistance in other areas, including
measures to enhance trade and strengthen energy security.
Canada's Housing Market Healthy
Prime Minister Stephen Harper holding a meeting with other G-7 leaders during the Nuclear Security Summit.
THE HAGUE DECLARATION
The Hague, Netherlands
1. We, the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States, the President of the European Council and the President of the European Commission met in The Hague to reaffirm our support
for Ukraine's sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence.
2. International law prohibits the acquisition of part or all of another state's
territory through coercion or force. To do so violates the principles upon
which the international system is built. We condemn the illegal referendum
held in Crimea in violation of Ukraine's constitution. We also strongly condemn Russia's illegal attempt to annex Crimea in contravention of international law and specific international obligations. We do not recognize either.
3. Today, we reaffirm that Russia's actions will have significant consequences.
This clear violation of international law is a serious challenge to the rule of
law around the world and should be a concern for all nations. In response to
Russia's violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and to
demonstrate our determination to respond to these illegal actions, individually and collectively we have imposed a variety of sanctions against Russia
and those individuals and entities responsible. We remain ready to intensify
(PMO photo by Jason Ransom)
actions including coordinated sectoral sanctions that will have an increasingly significant impact on the Russian economy, if Russia continues to
escalate this situation.
4. We remind Russia of its international obligations, and its responsibilities
including those for the world economy. Russia has a clear choice to make.
Diplomatic avenues to de-escalate the situation remain open, and we encourage the Russian Government to take them. Russia must respect Ukraine's
territorial integrity and sovereignty, begin discussions with the Government
of Ukraine, and avail itself of offers of international mediation and monitoring
to address any legitimate concerns.
5. The Russian Federation's support for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine is a step in the
right direction. We look forward to the mission's early deployment, in order
to facilitate the dialogue on the ground, reduce tensions and promote normalization of the situation, and we call on all parties to ensure that Special
Monitoring Mission members have safe and secure access throughout
Ukraine to fulfill their mandate.
6. This Group came together because of shared beliefs and shared responsibilities. Russia's actions in recent weeks are not consistent with them.
Under these circumstances, we will not participate in the planned Sochi
Summit. We will suspend our participation in the G-8 until Russia changes
CONTD. FROM PAGE 1
Sales were up briskly from a year earlier in each of the last three
months of 2013. Prices are also growing strongly, although the
current pace is unsustainable and slower advances are expected in
2014.
" Calgary's resale market is approaching sellers' conditions. Sales have
not fallen on a year-over-year basis since April 2011, and price growth
accelerated sharply last year.
" Edmonton's resale market is balanced. Sales rose briskly in 2013 and
price growth is picking up along with sales.
" Toronto's resale market is balanced. Sales stabilized in June 2013, and
rose on a year-over-year basis during each of the six months leading up
to the end of 2013. Price growth remains healthy and a major price
correction is hard to envision, given solid employment and population
growth. While the condominium market is at some risk, a soft landing
appears to be the most likely scenario.
" Ottawa's resale market is balanced. Falling employment is contributing to sluggish resale conditions. Sales were largely flat last year, but
prices continue to rise gently. Total housing starts remain soft by historical standards.
Montréal's resale market is flirting with buyers' territory. Sales and
average prices were largely below year-earlier levels in 2013. Both
single-detached and multi-family starts slowed last year.
Source - Conference Board Of Canada
6
MidWeek
community
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
AAP convention receives overwhelming response in Canada
Brampton - The recently concluded
convention of Aam Aadmi Par ty
(AAP) received an overwhelming
response from community members. This was announced by Yudhvir
Jaswal, Editor-in-Chief of Y Media,
during his show.
According to details the party conducted its much awaited convention
successfully in Brampton that was
attended by approximately 1,100
NRIs that helped this novice par ty
raise a handsome amount of donation from suppor ters online.
Many others pledged to donate in
coming days. A large number of
suppor ters registered as volunteer to suppor t a state program,
others offered their premises to
be used as office space till election. A par ty organizer informed
that the main motive of this convention was to forge direct interaction with the community living
in Canada, discuss ailing issues
ailing confronted by the country,
explain the impor tance of bringing AAP at the helm, seek suggestions to achieve its anti-corruption goal and mobilize their
opinion in favour of the par ty.
He pointed out that AAP is the only
par ty where a common man can
directly talk to the top political
brass of AAP and converse not
only about their grievances
openly but give valuable propositions. He claimed that before
elections an AAP leader will be
invited from India to announce the
future course of action for the party.
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
community
ALBERTA REGAINS TOP SPOT
IN PROVINCIAL ECONOMIC
GROWTH IN 2014
A
lber ta finds itself in an enviable position. Both its expor ts
and domestic economy are expanding rapidly and the
province is expected to have the fastest growing provincial economy this year, according to The Conference Board of
Canada's Provincial Outlook - Winter 2014.
"The economic outlook for the rest of the provinces is mixed.
Solid growth in the U.S. economy and a slightly weaker Canadian dollar will help expor ters, but growth prospects in the
resources sector are uneven across the country," said MarieChristine Bernard, Associate Director, Provincial Forecast.
Highlights
" An estimated 61,000 new jobs will be added to Alber ta's
economy in 2014.
" Growth in Ontario is expected to break the 2 per cent mark
this year for the first time since 2011.
" Economic prospects are brightening in Nova Scotia compared
to last year, and to a lesser degree in Manitoba and British
Columbia.
The strength in Alber ta's energy sector will spread throughout
its economy. A total of 61,000 new jobs are forecast in 2014,
which will continue to attract newcomers to the province, in
turn boosting consumer spending and housing demand.
Alber ta's real gross domestic product (GDP) is forecast to rise
by 3.2 per cent in 2014. A risk to the forecast is the delay in
pipeline development. Oil pipeline capacity remains a challenge for Alber ta and without the construction of new pipelines,
future investment in the oil and gas sector could be cur tailed.
British Columbia's forestry and manufacturing sectors are
benefiting from a rebound in home construction in the United
States. These sectors will help B.C.'s economy grow by 2.4 per
cent this year, an improvement from less than 2 per cent growth
in 2013.
Saskatchewan's economic growth is expected to moderate this
year from 4.1 per cent in 2013, due to cuts in potash production
and muted prospects for the agriculture sector. However, gains
in metal mining, construction and manufacturing will help
suppor t growth of 2.1 per cent in 2014.
Manitoba's economy is forecast to expand by 1.8 per cent in
2014. Growth in construction, manufacturing, and in the service
sector, will help boost employment and disposable income in
the province.
Ontario's real GDP is set to increase by 2.1 per cent, thanks to
a rebound in expor ts and solid growth in commercial and
financial services. However, Ontario's expor ts will be limited
MidWeek
7
Ontario Proposing to
Freeze MPP Salaries
Until Budget is Balanced
PROVINCE CONTINUING TO MANAGE
COMPENSATION RESPONSIBLY
by trends in the Nor th American auto industry. Auto makers
have been shifting production to the southern U.S. and Mexico,
and that has reduced vehicle manufacturing in Ontario.
A more positive outlook for business investment will lift
Quebec's economy by 2 per cent in both 2014 and 2015. A
number of large investment projects have been announced,
which will stimulate investment spending on non-residential
structures, and machinery and equipment.
Prospects for New Brunswick's economy will remain dim for at
least one more year. Cuts in the potash industry, and the closing
of the Maple Leaf Food plant in Moncton, will limit economic
growth to 0.8 per cent in 2014.
Following three years of weak growth, Nova Scotia's economy
is set to pick up speed in 2014. The province's economy is
forecast to expand by 2.6 per cent this year, fuelled largely by
natural gas production from the Deep Panuke offshore field and
solid gains in business non-residential investment in structures.
Prince Edward Island's economy will see weaker growth of 1.2
per cent in 2014. The Island's manufacturing, construction and
agricultural industries are all expected to post slower growth
this year.
With work winding down on Vale's nickel processing facility,
construction activity in Newfoundland and Labrador is set to
slow down. Coupled with declining metal mining production,
overall real GDP is expected to grow by only 0.4 in 2014.
Source - Conference Board Of Canada
Ontario has introduced legislation that would, if passed,
extend the current freeze on MPP salaries until the provincial budget is balanced in 2017-18.
If passed, the MPP Salary Freeze Act would not allow pay
increases to take effect until April 1, 2019, after the Public
Accounts confirm a balanced budget.
Compensation costs account for over half of all Ontario
government spending, either paid directly through the
Ontario Public Service or as par t of the government's
transfer payments to universities, hospitals and other
public sector par tners.
The government has identified the management of public
sector compensation as an impor tant par t of its plan to
control costs while also maintaining public services that
families rely on like health care and education.
A measured, moderate and responsible approach to
balancing the budget is par t of the government's economic
plan that is creating jobs for today and tomorrow. The
comprehensive plan and its six priorities focus on Ontario's
greatest strengths - its people and strategic par tnerships.
QUICK FACTS
In 2004, a salary freeze for MPPs was implemented from
October 2003 until April 1, 2005. The 2009 budget announced that MPP salaries would be frozen for one year
beginning on April 1, 2009. That salary freeze was extended
in the 2010 budget for two years and in the 2012 budget for
an additional two years, bringing the total length of the
current pay freeze to five years.
In 1996, the defined benefit pension plan for MPPs was
wound up and members and beneficiaries were paid the
value of the benefits earned to that date. MPPs now have a
defined contribution pension plan.
Since 2009, Ontario has initiated compensation restraint
measures for members of the Ontario public sector and
broader public sector, and has indicated that compensation
costs must be managed within Ontario’s existing fiscal
framework.
Ontario public sector wage settlements continue to be
below the average of private sector, municipal sector and
federal public sector settlements.
8
MidWeek
opinion
Quebec Separatism
WILL CANADA BREAK ?
WITH INPUTS FROM SHAZIA MALIK
CONTD. FROM PAGE 1
The arrival of Pierre Karl Péladeau as a candidate in the StJérôme riding appears to have hur t the PQ's election hopes,
as 26% of respondents said it made them more likely to
vote against the PQ, compared with 11% who said it made
them more likely to vote for the par ty.
Suppor t for sovereignty was pegged at about 30%, with 51%
saying they would vote to remain in Canada. Only 18% of
respondents said they wanted a referendum to be held,
compared with 64% who didn't.
A similar survey done about 2weeks earlier showed Par ti
Québécois in the lead. The Leger Marketing poll of 1,500
Quebecers found Pauline Marois' sovereigntist par ty had 37
per cent suppor t of prospective voters to 35 per cent for the
federalist provincial Liberal par ty of Philippe Couillard. The
survey was conducted for the QMI Agency and published in
the Journal de Montreal and other newspapers around 5th of
March.
Yudhvir Jaswal fur ther added that he thinks Most of the
Canadian are fed up from the Separatism Debate and want
to discuss the real challenges facing Canada and Quebec.
With Pauline Marois also not confinming the date of
Referendum casts a doubt in the mind of suppor ters of
separatism. The suppor t of referendum is on a decline and
the way things look right now Liberals stand to benefit the
most in Quebec.
MidWeek
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Better GO Transit
Service for Markham
Commuters Ontario
Government Improving
Public Transit
MPPs Helena Jaczek and Michael Chan are pleased to
announce that Ontario is continuing to make life easier for
commuters in Markham. Star ting April 5, 2014, GO Transit
will be providing increased weekend service by adding 26
new trips on the Stouffville bus route.
Details are as follows:
? Two new Friday nor thbound express trips from Union at
1:30 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. They will arrive at Unionville GO at
1:55 a.m. and 2:55 a.m.
? Two new Saturday nor thbound express trips from Union at
1:30 a.m. and 2:30 a.m. They will arrive at Unionville GO at
1:55 a.m. and 2:55 a.m.
? Five new weekend (Saturday and Sunday) nor thbound
express trips from Union at 5:00 p.m., 5:30 p.m., 6:00 p.m.,
6:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. They will arrive at Unionville GO at
5:30 p.m., 6:00 p.m., 6:30 p.m., 6:55 p.m. and 7:25 p.m.
? Four new weekend (Saturday and Sunday) nor thbound
trips serving all stops from Union at 9:10 p.m., 10:10 p.m.,
11:10 p.m. and 12:10 a.m. will arrive at Lincolnville GO at
10:05 p.m., 11:05 p.m., 12:05 a.m. and 1:05 a.m.
? Two new weekend (Saturday and Sunday) southbound
express trips from Unionville GO at 10:00 a.m. and 10:30
a.m. will arrive at Union at 10:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.
Investing in modern infrastructure is par t of the Ontario
government's economic plan that is creating jobs for today
and tomorrow. The comprehensive plan and its six priorities
focus on Ontario's greatest strengths ? its people and
strategic par tnerships.
QUOTES
"Increased capacity on the Stouffville bus route is tremendous news for my constituents in Oak Ridges- Markham.
Improving GO service will make life easier for them, and
will give them more flexibility when taking public transit
into the city. - Dr. Helena Jaczek, M.P.P., Oak RidgesMarkham
"Improved GO service is always great news for MarkhamUnionville commuters. With these new bus trips, our
government is investing in more options that will get more
people moving on public transit and provide better convenience for our community residents." - Michael Chan, M.P.P.,
Markham-Unionville
"Our improvements to GO Transit suppor t our commitment
to bring two-way, all-day GO train service to commuters in
the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area. Our unprecedented
public transit investments are making transit a better choice
for commuters, reducing congestion on our roads and
contributing to a better quality of life for Ontario families." Glen Murray, Minister of Transpor tation and Minister of
Infrastructure
QUICK FACTS
? With the 15-minute GO Train Service Guarantee, riders
may get a credit if their train arrival is delayed 15 minutes or
more. ? Since 2003, Ontario has invested approximately $9.1
billion in GO Transit to improve service and expand routes.
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
LIBERALS
CALL FOR AN
INVESTIGATION
BY BOARD OF
INTERNAL
ECONOMY
OTTAWA - Liberal Open Government and Ethics Critic,
Scott Andrews, sent the following letter to the Board of
Internal Economy regarding taxpayer-funded NDP offices
outside of Ottawa:
Honourable Andrew Scheer, M.P.
Speaker of the House of Commons
Chair, Board of Internal Economy
Room 224-N, Centre Block
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6
Dear Mr. Speaker:
I am writing to you in your capacity as Chair of the Board of
Internal Economy as a follow up to my letter of March 18th,
in which I expressed our concerns with the NDP office in
Montreal which houses employees of several NDP
Members of Parliament as well as employees from the
Office of the Leader of the Official Opposition / NDP Caucus
Research Office.
I would like to draw to the Board's attention, a job posting
from the Office of the Leader of the Official Opposition /
NDP Research Office for an "Outreach Officer
(Saskatchewan), Permanent Full-Time Position," which is
posted on the NDP website. The job posting states that the
employee will be working in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
Applicants are asked to send their applications to NDP
caucus services at 131 Queen Street; a House of Commons
leased building in Ottawa.
The job description lists a number of responsibilities,
including:
o Assist Members of Parliament with outreach to their
constituents and in organizing outreach oppor tunities
across Saskatchewan.
o Coordinate with regional staff to develop strategic
outreach plans to assist Members of Parliament to best
represent their constituents
As you know, the NDP have no MPs elected from
Saskatchewan, so it is hard to imagine how the employee
could be assisting MPs with outreach with their constituents in that province.
Under the qualifications heading, the job posting states that
the candidate for the position needs to have "experience in
outreach, event planning, election or issue based campaigns." Given the context of the NDP having no MPs in
Saskatchewan, the qualification that the applicant needs to
have experience working on election campaigns is
troubling.
Any reasonable person who reads this job description may
come to the conclusion that the NDP is using Parliamentary resources to hire field workers to prepare for the next
federal election campaign, which would be a clear violation of the Members By-Laws of the Board of Internal
Economy.
Additionally, the NDP office in Montreal which houses
Parliamentary employees paid by the taxpayer to suppor t
MPs in their Parliamentary duties has been used in the
following manner:
o As the address for an NDP employee in Quebec who
organized an NDP recruiting day in Montreal, which was
adver tised in NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair's Outremont
Riding Association bulletin;
o As the public riding association address for the LouisSaint-Laurent, La Pointe-de-l'Île, Laurier-Sainte-Marie, and
the Pierrefonds-Dollard NDP riding associations;
o As the location of an NDP election training session;
o As a location that members of the public can drop off
membership forms and payment to become members of
the NDP.
All of this together is a disturbing pattern of possible use of
Parliamentary resources for par ty activities. I urge the
Board to factor this information into any investigation that it
launches on this issue.
Sincerely,
Scott Andrews, M.P.
Liberal Issues Advocate and Critic for Open Government
and Ethics
MidWeek
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
canada
PM MEETS WITH PRIME
MINISTER RUTTE DURING
HIS OFFICIAL VISIT TO THE
NETHERLANDS IP10
PM CONCLUDES VISIT TO UKRAINE
ANNOUNCES CANADIAN CONTRIBUTION TO OSCE SPECIAL MONITORING MISSION
P
rime Minister Stephen Harper today concluded a successful
visit to Ukraine where he met with Acting President Oleksandr
Turchynov and Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, and
reaffirmed Canada’s strong support for the new Government of
Ukraine as it undertakes the important steps of embracing the
economic and democratic reforms needed to restore stability and
prosperity in the country. The Prime Minister also condemned
Russia’s illegal military occupation of Ukraine and reiterated the call
for immediate de-escalation by Russia.
During his visit, the Prime Minister also announced Canada’s
contribution to a political and security monitoring mission to Ukraine,
led by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
(OSCE).
Canada’s support to the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission,
through Canada’s Global Peace and Security Fund, will assist the
OSCE to report on the security situation in Ukraine, foster peace
and stability, encourage respect for human rights, and enable an
environment for inclusive political dialogue in Ukraine.
Prime Minister Harper wrapped up his day in Ukraine with a
visit to Independence Square, where he laid a wreath as a symbol of
Canada’s respect for those who died while standing up for democratic
change.
Quick Facts
Canada has expressed its deep concerns over the situation in
Ukraine since the beginning of the crisis.
Canada has imposed travel bans and economic sanctions
against a number of Russian and Ukrainian individuals responsible
for threatening the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine.
In addition, Canada has provided support to help Ukraine
stabilize its economy, promote economic and social development,
and for urgent medical assistance for Ukrainians injured while
standing up for democratic change.
Canada, along with a number of other member countries
of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
(OSCE), has also taken part in a military observer mission
that will report on military activities in Ukraine.
Canada and Ukraine have enjoyed close bilateral
relations since Canada became the first Western nation to
recognize Ukraine’s independence on December 2, 1991.
Supported by the large (1.2 million) and active
Ukrainian-Canadian community, relations have grown to
encompass cooperation in the political, security and
commercial spheres.
“Canada strongly supports the Ukrainian people who
have spoken out courageously in calling for a free and
democratic Ukraine. Restoring political and economic stability
to the country is a priority for Canada and our allies.” – Prime
Minister Stephen Harper
“Canada is committed to helping Ukraine chart a new
course in history, one that is underpinned by democratic
principles, the rule of law, and a respect for human rights.” –
Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
PM announces changes to the Ministry
knowledge and experience, and
I am confident that they will
deliver results and provide
strong leadership in these
important portfolios.” – Prime
Minister Stephen Harper
P
rime Minister Stephen
Harper today announced
the following changes to
the Ministry at a swearing-in
ceremony at Rideau Hall:
The Honourable Joe Oliver,
as Minister of Finance, will
continue the Government’s work
to create jobs, strengthen the
Canadian economy and balance
the budget by 2015.
The Honourable Greg
Rickford, as Minister of Natural
Resources, will continue the
Government’s efforts to promote
prosperity through the country’s
abundant natural resources.
He
will
continue
his
responsibilities for the
Federal
Economic
Development Initiative for
Northern Ontario.
The Honourable Ed
Holder, as Minister of State
( S c i e n c e a n d Te c h n o l o g y ) ,
will
continue
the
Government’s leadership in
science and technology and
helping Canadian businesses
remain competitive.
“Our Government remains
focused on creating jobs, growth
and long-term prosperity for all
Canadians. Mr. Oliver, Mr.
Rickford and Mr. Holder bring
with them a wealth of skills,
9
THE GOVERNMENT OF
CANADA’S RESPONSE TO
THE SITUATION IN UKRAINE
The Government of Canada is taking impor tant steps to suppor t Ukraine and to impose sanctions against those responsible for the ongoing crisis.
January 26, 2014
Andrew Bennett, Canada’s Ambassador for Religious Freedom,
led a successful visit to Ukraine, during which he expressed
Canada’s ongoing concern about violations of basic freedoms
and reinforced Canada’s commitment to the Ukrainian people.
February 14, 2014
John Baird, Minister of Foreign Affairs, announced funding to
provide supplies, equipment and medical care for Ukrainian
activists through a contribution to the International Renaissance
Foundation, a Ukrainian non-governmental organization.
February 28, 2014
Minister Baird led a successful mission to Ukraine, where he
and the Canadian delegation of parliamentarians and representatives of the Ukrainian-Canadian community met with key
members of the new government.
March 1, 2014
In response to the very serious developments in Ukraine, Prime
Minister Harper convened a meeting of Cabinet Ministers, preceded by a bilateral phone call with President Obama. In a
statement, the Prime Minister announced:
Canada suspended its engagement in preparation for the G8 Summit, currently planned for Sochi, and that the Canadian
Ambassador in Russia is being recalled for consultations;
Canada’s support for the immediate deployment of international monitors from the United Nations and the Organization
for Security and Co-operation in Europe to Ukraine; and,
Canada’s engagement in discussions aimed at developing a
financial aid package for Ukraine.
March 2, 2014
Canada and other G-7 leaders issued a joint statement condemning the Russian Federation’s clear violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. In addition, they announced that they will “suspend our participation in activities
associated with the preparation of the scheduled G-8 Summit
in Sochi in June, until the environment comes back to where
the G-8 is able to have a meaningful discussion.”
March 3, 2014
Prime Minister Harper issued a statement calling once again on President
Putin to immediately withdraw his military from Crimea, adding that the
situation in Ukraine remains extremely serious for global peace and security. He added that he has cancelled government representation at the
Paralympic Games and instructed officials to review all planned
bilateral interaction with Russia.
Prime Minister Harper spoke with Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Prime
Minister of Ukraine, about developments in Crimea and other
regions in the south and east of Ukraine. Prime Minister Harper
condemned in the strongest terms President Putin’s military
intervention in Ukraine.
March 4, 2014
Prime Minister Harper announced that, effective immediately,
all planned bilateral activities between the Canadian Armed
Forces and the military of the Russian Federation are suspended. This includes exercises, such as NORAD’s Exercise
Vigilant Eagle, and scheduled meetings.
I CONTD. ON PAGE 10
10
MidWeek
canada
PM MEETS WITH PRIME MINISTER RUTTE DURING
HIS OFFICIAL VISIT TO THE NETHERLANDS
PRIME MINISTER STEPHEN HARPER MEETS WITH MARK RUTTE, PRIME MINISTER OF THE NETHERLANDS, DURING HIS OFFICIAL
VISIT TO THE COUNTRY.
P
rime Minister Harper held meetings today with Prime Minister
Rutte. Prime Minister Harper is on an official visit to the
Netherlands prior to the Nuclear Security Summit.
The two leaders met for a tête-à-tête meeting, following which
Prime Minister Rutte hosted a working lunch for Prime Minister
Harper and members of their respective Cabinets. Prime Minister
Harper was accompanied by Foreign Affairs Minister Baird and
Industry Minister Moore. The Dutch Ministers of Economy, and
Trade and Development, were also present.
The leaders discussed the importance of growing trade and
investment ties between Canada and the Netherlands, and benefits
for both countries in a range of sectors particularly in light of the
recently concluded negotiations of the Canada-EU Trade Agreement.
They agreed to promote the benefits of the Agreement to their
respective business leaders.
They also exchanged views on foreign policy issues of mutual
concern. Prime Minister Rutte was interested to hear first hand of
Prime Minister Harper's meetings on March 22 in Kyiv, Ukraine.
They agreed on the importance of a coordinated response to Russia's
aggression in Crimea. The leaders also discussed Iran, Syria and
the challenges of cyber security.
Prime Minister Harper and Prime Minister Rutte also exchanged
views regarding the upcoming Nuclear Security Summit which the
Dutch Prime Minister is hosting in the days ahead (March 24-25).
Prime Minister Harper expressed his appreciation to Prime
Minister Rutte for the generous hospitality extended to the Canadian
delegation in the context of both the bilateral visit to the Netherlands,
and the upcoming Summit.
PREPARING NEWCOMERS FOR LIFE IN CANADA
Hong Kong: Canada's Citizenship and Immigration Minister Chris
Alexander spoke yesterday to graduates of the Canadian Immigrant Integration Program (CIIP) – an initiative with a strong
record of helping newcomers achieve success in Canada.
Alexander spoke with graduates of the CIIP who told him about
their achievements and how they hope that their experience in
the CIIP will help them find jobs when they arrive in Canada.
Graduates stated that the program has provided them with the
tools they need to contribute fully to the Canadian economy and
labour market.
During his remarks, Alexander announced an additional investment in the CIIP of $1.9 million over the next six months, and
highlighted the work that is underway with the Association of
Canadian Community Colleges (ACCC) to explore new ways
of delivering overseas services. This funding will help more
immigrants prepare for life in Canada.
The CIIP is managed by the ACCC, which was recognized last
month for its success with the Institute of Public Administra-
tion of Canada/Deloitte 2013 Public Sector Leadership Award.
The gold honour was presented in recognition of the
association’s work in developing and delivering the CIIP –
which assists newcomers in 25 countries through offices
located in the Philippines, China, India, and the United Kingdom.
Since 2010, the government has invested over $18 million in the
CIIP. For more information about this program, visit the ACCC
website.
Quick facts
·
More than 25,000 people have gone through the CIIP while
they are still in their home country.
·
A recent survey found that:
o 72% of CIIP graduates who responded to the survey were
employed within 12 months of arriving in Canada.
o 93% of the respondents achieved credential assessment
within six months of applying.
o 69% of the respondents found employment in their field (2013).
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
THE GOVERNMENT OF
CANADA’S RESPONSE TO
THE SITUATION IN UKRAINE
CONTD. FROM PAGE 9
March 5, 2014
Prime Minister Harper announced that, at the request of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine, Canada will freeze the assets of members of the Yanukovych regime. As a result, 18 people, including
members of the former Yanukovych regime, members of their
families, and their close associates, were listed in regulations
under the Freezing Assets of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act.
Canada also suspended its par ticipation in the Canada-Russia
Intergovernmental Economic Commission.
Prime Minister Harper announced that at Ukraine’s request,
Canada, along with a number of other member countries of the
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, will participate in a military observer mission that will repor t on military activities in Ukraine. Canada contributed two military observers.
March 6, 2014
Prime Minister Harper issued a statement saying that Russia's
invasion of Ukraine is an act of aggression, a clear violation of
Ukraine's sovereignty, and of international law. He further added
that Canada will not recognize a referendum held in a region
currently under illegal military occupation.
March 12, 2014
G-7 leaders issued a statement calling on the Russian Federation to cease all efforts to change the status of Crimea contrary to Ukrainian
law and in violation of international law. They call on the Russian Federation
to immediately halt actions supporting a referendum on the territory of
Crimea regarding its status, in direct violation of the Constitution of Ukraine.
March 13, 2014
Prime Minister Harper announced more than $220 million in support to help
Ukraine stabilize its economy and promote economic and social development. The support will be provided in the form of a loan or loan guarantee,
conditional on a broader package that includes International Monetary Fund
(IMF) support for Ukraine. Additional support will assist the IMF in delivering
technical assistance to help Ukraine manage its economic transition and
financial sector reforms.
March 16, 2014
Prime Minister Harper issued a statement on the results of the Crimean
“referendum”, reiterating that this “referendum” is illegitimate, has no legal
effect, and that Canada does not recognize its outcome.
March 17, 2014
Prime Minister Harper announced further economic sanctions under the
Special Economic Measures Act and additional travel bans against Ukrainian and Russian officials.
The Prime Minister also met with Vadym Prystaiko, Ambassador of Ukraine
to Canada, to discuss the ongoing situation.
March 18, 2014
Prime Minister Harper announced economic sanctions and travel bans
against an additional 17 Ukrainian and Russian officials responsible for
undermining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, and for facilitating Russian military action against Ukraine.
March 21, 2014
Prime Minister Harper announced economic sanctions against
14 additional Russian officials and one financial institution, Bank
Rossiya. Travel bans were also imposed on these 14 individuals.
March 22, 2014
Prime Minister Harper announced Canada’s contribution of $775,
000 to a political and security monitoring mission to Ukraine, led
by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.
MidWeek
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
india
JASWANT SINGH FILES
NOMINATION FROM
BARMER AS
INDEPENDENT
CANDIDATE IP13
DESPERATE CONGRESS UNVEILS NEW
SCHEME TO WOO BATTLE-SHY LEADERS
The Congress, which was ruling the state till last month is now left with no candidates even to contest on the party symbol.
HYDERABAD: The Congress is looking for candidates in the divided
state of Andhra Pradesh. After the bifurcation of the state and the
resignation of chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy from the par ty in
protest against it, the Congress par ty looks like a deser ted house.
Most of the sitting Congress MLAs are refusing to contest fearing a
total decimation in the Assembly polls. Some of them have already
defected to the YSR Congress and the Telugu Desam Par ty (TDP). A
few of them are planning to contest on their own.
The Congress, which was ruling the state till last month is now left
with no candidates even to contest on the par ty symbol. The
Seemandhra (AP) had been a stronghold of the Congress and it delivered the maximum number of MPs and MLAs for the Congress in
2009. With YS Jaganmohan Reddy forming his own par ty and the
11
division of the state, the Congress is facing extinction in Andhra
Pradesh. Most of the sitting MPs of the Congress are also refusing to
contest. According to some repor ts, just three sitting MPs have agreed
to contest. Remaining MPs are planning to stay away from electoral
politics for some time or planning to retire.
A local Congress leader claims that the desperate par ty is now offering 'get one, take one' scheme. If a candidate agrees to contest now,
the Congress is promising him or her par ty ticket even in 2019 elections. However, this scheme has failed to attract the candidates.
The Congress high command has appointed former agriculture minister Raghuveera Reddy as the new chief of Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee. The state has 175 Assembly seats and 25 Lok
Sabha seats. It is voting on May 7 in a single phase.
Congress defeat has never been so certain: L K Advani
New Delhi: Never has the defeat of Congress
been as cer tain as in the 2014 Lok Sabha poll,
veteran BJP leader L.K. Advani said on Tuesday.
"I have par ticipated in all general elections held
in independent India since 1952. In none of the 15
elections held till today, the Congress party's
defeat seemed as certain as it does this time, I
have been telling par ty colleagues," Mr Advani
said in a blog published on Tuesday.
He also recounted that he has been representing
Gandhinagar in the Lok Sabha since 1989, except
for the 11th Lok Sabha when he did not contest
following corruption charges.
Mr Advani was unwilling to contest from
Gandhinagar this time.
However, the par ty leadership managed to
convince him.
Amarinder Singh vs
Arun Jaitley in Amritsar
The decks have been cleared for what could be one of the most
exciting contests in this election with Congress announcing
former Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh as its candidate
to take on BJP leader Arun Jaitley in the Amritsar parliamentary
constituency. "Although I had explained to Sonia Gandhi about
my inability to contest for various reasons, it was the par ty's
opinion that I was the best candidate for Amritsar. As a disciplined soldier, I will go by the party's decision," Singh told media on Friday. Jaitley, who threw his weight behind Narendra
Modi and was instrumental in getting him proclaimed as the
BJP's PM candidate well ahead of the elections, is expected to
land a plum por tfolio in any potential Modi cabinet. Until Thursday, BJP workers were confident of an easy win for the leader.
Known for his aggressive political campaigns, Singh has taken
on the Parkash Singh-Sukhbir Singh Badal duo in the past, even
putting them behind bars in a dispropor tionate asset case when
he was CM in 2002-2007.
BJP had refused to give the ticket to Navjyot Singh Sidhu, who
has been representing the city that's home to the Golden Temple,
since 2004. Sidhu had added fuel to the fire by refusing to turn up
at Jaitely's 'homecoming' celebrations a few days ago in
Amritsar, although he had referred to Jaitley earlier as his guru.
KEJRIWAL VS MODI IN VARANASI
AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal announced on Tuesday that he will
challenge BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi in
the parliamentary election from Varanasi.
Speaking at a rally of AAP suppor ters, Mr Kejriwal asked if he
should contest the Lok Sabha polls from this Hindu holy city.
As the crowds at the Beniyabagh ground responded with a roaring "yes", the former Delhi chief minister declared: "I am ready
to accept the challenge."
Amid wild cheering and clapping, a par ty activist then garlanded
Mr Kejriwal, who had said days earlier that he would take on Mr
Modi if he got the approval of the people of Varanasi.
Mr Kejriwal dubbed Modi's development agenda as a farce and
said he had seen for himself the many holes when he visited
Gujarat recently. He also challenged Mr Modi for a public debate, saying the BJP star had the tendency to avoid the media
and public debates.
After eggs, ink was thrown at AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal while
he was under taking a road show in Varanasi on Tuesday following his visit to the Kal Bhairav and Kashi Vishwanath temples.
Mr. Kejriwal's face and shir t were splattered with ink by unidentified people. The U.P. in-charge of the par ty Sanjay Singh
and former Delhi Law Minister Somnath Bhar ti were also targeted by these people. The AAP leader also faced sporadic protests while under taking the road show.
12
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MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
DISLCAIMER: The above prices are subjected to change as these prices indicated above are online prices
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
MidWeek
india
JASWANT SINGH FILES NOMINATION FROM
BARMER AS INDEPENDENT CANDIDATE
13
Aam Aadmi Party
economic agenda: Speed
up gas-scam probes
AAP has made repeated claims in the past weeks over the
alleged undue benefits that Mukesh Ambani-owned
Reliance Industries was receiving from the govt.
JASWANT SINGH WILL FILE HIS NOMINATION ON MONDAY FROM RAJASTHAN'S BARMER CONSTITUENCY.
B
haratiya Janata Party (BJP) veteran Jaswant Singh on
Monday filed the nomination papers as an Independent
candidate for Barmer in Rajasthan.
"Whether as an independent candidate or not will depend on
the party's attitude," he had told PTI on Sunday, sending the ball in
the BJP's court.
The 76-year-old leader, who currently represents Darjeeling in
Lok Sabha, is upset because the BJP gave the Barmer election ticket
to ex-Congressman Sonaram Chaudhary, who is believed to be in
the good books of Raje. Jaswant, born in Barmer's Jasol village, had
wanted to contest from his home turf.
The Rajput and Muslim communities are rallying behind Jaswant
and could upset the BJP's game plan in Barmer. He attacked the
party leadership, saying, "BJP has been taken over by elements
who have never respected the party's ideology."
On party president Rajnath Singh's remarks that his services
would be utilised appropriately, Jaswant said, "I am not a piece of
furniture. The choice of the adjective 'adjust' itself is indicative of
the mentality behind it."
Jaswant, however, said he would not switch loyalties and join
the Congress. "I was born and brought up in BJP and never thought
of joining any other party." There was speculation that some
Congress leaders from Delhi were in touch with Jaswant.
His son Manvendra Singh, an MLA in the Raje government, is
likely to follow in his footsteps. But, Manvendra, who skipped a
meeting of legislators called by Raje, dismissed the reports
suggesting he had conveyed to the party his displeasure over the
treatment meted out to his father.
Black paint smeared on Narendra Modi posters in Varanasi
LUCKNOW: Samajwadi Party workers on Monday smeared black
paint on posters of BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi
in Varanasi following a row over a slogan. The slogan - "Har-har
Modi, ghar-ghar Modi" - has upset many religious leaders and political
parties including the Samajwadi Party; they say the slogan was disrespectful
to Lord Shiv. After the objection, Mr Modi himself requested his supporters
to refrain from using it. But, angry Samajwadi Party workers protested against
the slogan and accused the BJP of equating Mr Modi to Mahadev. SP
supporters and workers have also released posters mocking it. Their posters
said: "Thar-thar Modi, dar-Dar Modi (Modi is afraid, shivering)". These
posters by party leader Arun Gupta have been plastered all across important
places in Allahabad. While the BJP had been using the slogan in many of its
public rallies and election campaigns, state leaders abandoned the slogan
on Sunday in wake of the controversy. Shankaracharya of Dwarka Peeth,
Swaroopanand Saraswati, is the latest person to be offended by the slogan
and registered a strong protest with RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, asking him
to stop such 'vyakti puja' (eulogising of an individual). "I told him
that converting 'Har Har Mahadev' into 'Har Har Modi' must
be stopped. Instead of worshipping God, it is an attempt to
worship a particular human being, which is against the Hindu
religion," Swaroopanand said.
Union Minister Salman Khurshid also strongly opposed
t h e s l o g a n a n d r e q uested the Election Commission to take
cognisance of it.
NEW DELHI: After making the Reliance gas pricing an emotive poll
issue, AAP is likely to include speedy investigation of gas and coal
scams as part of its economic agenda. The economic policy — to be
made public soon — is likely to recommend better public oversight in
issues of gas and oil exploration to ensure energy security at low prices
for the country.
The party that is making its maiden bid in the upcoming LS elections has
made repeated claims in the past weeks over the alleged undue benefits
that Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance Industries BSE 1.92 % was receiving from the government for gas exploration in KG Basin.
As Delhi CM, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal had got the state's
anti-corruption bureau to lodge a FIR against Ambani and oil minister
Veerappa Moily. The allegations have been denied by the company.
Sources said that the economic policy is also likely to focus on combating price rise. "India has seen a high rise in food and fuel prices despite
good crop yield. AAP will focus on curbing the black market, cutting
down on middle-men and long-term investments in infrastructure and
services,'' a party source said.
Kejriwal in a recent meeting with industrialists spoke about how the
party was against corruption and crony capitalism rather than capitalism. Party leaders underlined the need for an enabling environment for
businesses. "Licence-raj, high cost of compliance and lack of transparency in business are hurting entrepreneurship.
Investments for the real economy are increasingly being diverted to
unproductive short term speculation and black economy,'' the source
said. Effective implementation of the Jan Lokpal will also be on the
agenda.
The country's seen an increasing rate of unemployment in the last two
decades, the economy having added merely two crore regular wage
jobs. AAP sources said the party was likely to focus on vocation skills
and selfemployment training too.
14
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world
MYSTERY REVOLVING
MALAYSIAN FLIGHT
MH370 RESOLVED
PLANE CRASHED IN INDIAN OCEAN, NO SURVIVORS FOUND
TORONTO - During a recent Southasian PULSE program,
Yudhvir Jaswal, Editor-in-Chief of Y Media, announced
that Malaysian Airline's Flight MH370 crashed in the
Indian Ocean with no trace of survivors among the 239
people on board. As soon as the news was received,
Malaysia Airlines started informing the family members of
the missing jetliner, saying: "Malaysia Airlines deeply
regrets that we have to assume beyond any reasonable
doubt that MH370 has been lost and that none of those
on board survived. As you will hear in the next hour from
Malaysia's Prime Minister, we must now accept all
evidence suggests the plane went down in the Southern
Indian Ocean."
Najib Razak, Malaysian Prime Minister during a press
conference on Monday said that the new data had shown
the plane's last location was in the Southern Indian
Ocean, southwest of Perth, Australia. He said: "It is
therefore with deep sadness and regret that I must inform
you that, according to this new data, Flight MH370 ended
in the southern Indian Ocean. This is a remote location, far
from any possible landing sites." It is worthy to note that
nearly 26 countries were roped in the search operations for
17 days and were asked to share any satellite data with
Malaysian officials.
Though the British satellite company Inmarsat had the
data one day after the plane went missing but this
information was not utilized for search until a week later.
Meanwhile, Yudhvir said that though the frustrating search
ended but as soon as the news of the missing plane came to
the fore, the grief-stricken family members broke down in
tears and prayed for the lost souls of their near and dear
ones.
RUSSIAN TROOPS SEIZE UKRAINE
MARINE BASE IN CRIMEA: OFFICIALS
Russian troops took over a Ukrainian marine base in Feodosia early
on Monday, one of the few military facilities that was still flying a
Ukrainian flag in Crimea after Russia's annexation, a Ukrainian
serviceman said. First Lieutenant Anatoly Mozgovoy told Reuters
on the phone from inside the base that there were shots fired and
that the Ukrainian soldiers were unarmed. Asked if the base had
been taken over, he said: "Yes". Vladislav Seleznyov, a Ukrainian
military spokesman in Crimea, earlier said Russian forces had been
forcing their way in and were assisted by helicopters.
Russian forces captured part of the base of the 1st separate
marine battalion, Ukraine's top military unit, earlier this month, as
Russia was seizing all of the Black Sea peninsula.
But Ukrainians had previously appeared to be in control of the
armoury, the barracks and other facilities within the compound.
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
short
stories
shortstories
EBOLA DETECTED IN
GUINEA VICTIMS, 50 DEAD
CONAKRY (Guinea): Samples from victims of a viral hemorrhagic fever that has killed more than 50 people in Guinea
have tested positive for the Ebola virus, government officials
said Sunday, marking the first time an outbreak among humans has been detected in this West African nation.
Government spokesman Damantang Alber t Camara said the
virus was found in tests conducted at a laboratory in Lyon,
France.
A health ministry statement on Saturday said 80 cases including 59 deaths had been repor ted, most of them in three southern prefectures near Sierra Leone and Liberia. Three cases,
including two deaths, were repor ted in Conakry, the capital,
according to the statement.
A team including the health minister had been dispatched to
the region, Camara said, and Doctors without Borders had set
up an isolation unit in Gueckedou to try to stop the disease
from spreading.
"In Guinea, a country with a weak medical infrastructure, an
outbreak like this can be devastating," Dr. Mohamed Ag Ayoya,
country representative for UNICEF, said in a statement Sunday
noting that three children had died in the outbreak.
Previous Ebola outbreaks have been repor ted in Congo and
Uganda, most recently in 2012. The only prior case of a human
contracting the virus in West Africa came in 1994, when a
scientist fell ill while responding to Ebola cases among chimpanzees in a national park in Ivory Coast, said Dr. Esther Sterk,
tropical disease adviser for Doctors without Borders. The scientist eventually recovered.
Sterk, who is coordinating the Doctors Without Borders response from Geneva, said the organization had confirmed 49
cases including 29 deaths. Samples from six victims had been
linked to Ebola, she said, though it was "quite likely" the others also contracted the virus.
"We see that a lot of people that died, they were all linked,
meaning they have been in contact with each other," she said.
"That is very typical for Ebola outbreaks. We see that there is
a transmission chain in families."
Officials have not been able to determine how Ebola was introduced, though that can result from contact with an infected
animal like a bat or a monkey.
Among humans the disease is transmitted through bodily fluids. Officials have also been unable to determine the subtype
of Ebola, which would give them a better idea of the fatality
rate, Sterk said. The fatality rate for Ebola can range from 25 to
90 percent.
Sterk said there were concerns the disease could spread to
neighboring West African countries Sierra Leone and Liberia.
Saturday's Health Ministry statement said one of the positive
cases had traveled to Liberia.
Liberian Health Minister Walter Gwenigale said officials had
been sent to regions bordering Guinea to increase surveillance and to educate health workers about how to protect themselves from harmful contact with the virus.
Netanyahu: No sign of
progress in diplomatic process
The Palestinians are refusing to budge on the issue of recognizing Israel as a Jewish state and forfeiting the “right of return,” Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said on Sunday.
It was impossible to say there was progress right now in the
diplomatic process, he said at Sunday’s weekly cabinet meeting, but “we are continuing to work with the Americans.”
US envoy Mar tin Indyk met over the weekend separately with
Justice Minister Tzipi Livni and PLO negotiator Saeb Erekat, to
look for ways to salvage the diplomatic process.
Indyk’s effor ts came a week before Israel is expected to release the four th and final batch of Palestinian security prisoners it agreed last July to let go as par t of the framework that
led to the PLO agreeing to restar t negotiations.
Livni last week questioned the wisdom of going through with
the talks if the Palestinians do not commit themselves to continuing the negotiations past the nine-month deadline for the
talks that expires on April 29.
“To move serious negotiations forward, all of us will have
to make decisions and show that we want an agreement
and true peace,” she said. “The burden of proof also rests
on the Palestinians’ shoulders. We will consider the prisoner matter in this light, so that the keys to the prison
doors are in the hands of Abu Mazen [Palestinian Authority
President Mahmoud Abbas] and the decisions he will take
in the coming days.”There was never an “automatic commitment to release prisoners unrelated to making progress
in negotiations,” Livni said.
Netanyahu has been silent regarding whether Israel will
go through with the release, despite calls from key ministers inside the government for him not to do so.
He is one of the five ministers who would have to convene
some 48 hours before a planned release to draw up the
names of another 26 prisoners to be released. No date for
that meeting has been announced.
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
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80 PERTOSA DRIVE, UNIT 12,
BRAMPTON ONT., L6X 5E9
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MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
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MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
PROMOTION OF MOVIE MAIN TERA HERO
17
NOTHING TO HIDE
SUNNY UNVEILS HER
LATENT DESIRE!
NARGIS FAKHRI, VARUN DHAWAN AND ILEANA D'CRUZ
CAN'T JUST DUMP MY KIDS AND
GO OFF TO WORK: KAJOL
For actress Kajol, who is set to feature in her husband and filmmakeractor Ajay Devgn's home production, her priority is her children and
she can't "dump them and go off to work".
Kajol and Ajay, who got married in 1999, are the parents of two
children - daughter Nysa and son Yug. After the birth of her daughter
in 2003, she has done very few films such as "Fanaa", "U Me Aur
Hum", "My Name Is Khan", "We Are Family" and "Toonpur Ka
Superrhero". In an exclusive interview, Kajol told IANS: "My only
reason why I am not doing films is my children. My children need
my attention and it's my duty to give them my time. I have not given
birth to them to just dump them and go off to work. I am not that kind
of a person." "I have my kids and I want to see them growing up and
turn out the way I always wanted them to be. Even kids expect that
kind of time from you, and my husband is always working. He does
four films in a year, so at least I have to be with them."
A strict mother, Kajol felt that certain guidelines should be laid
down to discipline children.
"Of late I have not been shooting; so I have been busy spending
time with my kids. I am a very strict mother and as a mother it's my
responsibility to guide my kids and tell them to go how far and no
further. There should be rules and guidelines for the kids and they
should know their limits," she said.
Aware of the fact that she has a fan following that wants to see
her on the screen, the actress said she likes to have her space.
"I know my fans are waiting to see me on the screen, but I like
my space and I like to do one film in a year or so and not more than
that. I was always choosy but now I have become more chooser and
picker when it comes to scripts," said the actress who has been
active in front to the camera since 1992 and has about 40 films to her
credit. The celebrity couple came together on the screen in
"Gundaraj", "Ishq", and "Pyaar To Hona Hi Tha", "Raju Chacha"
and "U Me Aur Hum", which was their last film together.
When asked about teaming up again with Ajay, Kajol said:
"Frankly speaking, Ajay and my tastes don't match when it comes to
films. We are poles apart when it comes to films. We don't agree with
the same kind of films; so it is very difficult that we agree on same
films and it only happens once in eight or nine years." Meanwhile,
the actress is also associated with "Help A Child Reach 5", which
aims to eradicate preventable deaths like diarrhea by teaching
lifesaving hand washing habits. She said: "I am spreading this
awareness and taking it nationally. I am pushing this campaign to
other countries this year. We hope to bring the change."
Indo-Canadian adult film actress Sunny Leone, whose latest Bollywood
project "Ragini MMS 2" has hit the screens, hopes that her performance in the movie will help people change their mindsets about
her acting skills.
"I don't know if I would be able to shut the mouth of those who
criticize my acting, speak bad about me, but I hope they watch my
this film and hopefully change their mind about my acting," Sunny
told repor ters here Friday at Gaiety Galaxy theatre, where she was present to
seek audience's response to her film.
Sunny made her Bollywood debut
with erotica "Jism 2" in 2012, and
then featured in "Jackpot" last year.
While both the films failed to do
decent business at the box office,
her per formance was hardly
lauded.
However, she feels that
with "Ragini MMS 2", she
has improved as an actor.
"I believe that my
acting in this film
has got better. I
am more comfortable now in
front of the
camera,"
Sunny said.
Talking about the
difficulty she faced
while shooting the climax scene for the film,
Sunny said: "I can't tell you
what all I had to do to shoot that
(climax) scene. My whole body
was exhausted.
"I didn't have a body double to do
bends and all that stuff. I was bruised,
cut and bleeding," she added.
Meanwhile, "Ragini MMS 2", produced
by Ekta Kapoor's Balaji Productions and
directed by Bhushan Patel, has got a
good start at the box office and Sunny
has so far received a mixed response
for her performance in the film.
Priyanka's special
connect with Manali
I DON'T HAVE A FACEBOOK PAGE: ALIA BHATT
"Highway" actress Alia Bhatt turned to her Twitter page Saturday to
set the record straight that all Facebook pages in her name are
"fake". "I do not have a Facebook page! All pages being handled
are fake. Please do not follow," Alia posted Saturday.
Her elder step sister Pooja also made the message about Alia's
fake accounts clear to her 'followers' on Twitter.
"Someone running Alia's FAKE 'verified page' quotes her as thanking a N.K. Productions Ltd for managing her account. Do the math
folks!
"Oh and all those subscribing to http://www.facebook.com/
AliaBhatt, prepare to be shattered. It's FAKE! All these cons on
Facebook should be dealt with," added Pooja, who is filmmaker
Mahesh Bhatt's daughter with Kiran Bhatt (original name Lorraine
Bright).
Alia is Bhatt's daughter with Soni Razdan.
Following Pooja's post, the Facebook link was made unavailable.
However, there is another account in Alia's name, which is doing
the rounds.
Earlier in the day, Pooja, an actress-filmmaker had lambasted a
person named Rajeev Malhotra for masquerading as her casting
agent and misleading young aspirants via a Facebook account.
Actress Priyanka Chopra, who jetted off to Manali for a film's
shoot, is missing her late father Ashok Chopra there.
According to repor ts, she is in Manali in Himachal Pradesh to
shoot for a biopic on Olympic medal-winning boxer Mary Kom.
"I love outdoor shoots. Something so comfor ting about a
routine... have such wonder ful memories of Manali with my
dad. It was our favourite thing to do... drive to the mountains
and stop at every fruit stall and dhaba on the way, loud music
and singing in the car," she tweeted Sunday.
"Getting off at the snow collected on the sidewalk and playing
competitive snowball! And it hur t! Collecting pine cones and
making a fire. Cooling fruits in the cold river and making a
picnic wherever we wanted... my dad's sense of adventure was
so spontaneous and fun. I miss you dad," she added.
18
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hollywood
KIM KARDASHIAN DRESSES IN
WHITE FOR CIARA'S BABY SHOWER
Kim Kardashian got in some practice donning head to toe white
ahead of her upcoming wedding
to Kanye West as she attended
singer Ciara's white-themed baby
shower on Saturday.
Kim and her beau are all set to be
featured on the covered of Vogue
for next month's edition and this
decision didn't go too well with
several Americans - including
influential people who found the
couple's picture on the cover unsuitable to the readership.
So much so Sarah Michelle Gellar
(of Buff y The Vampire fame)
blasted the magazine's editor for
her controversial decision by
tweeting, `Well......I guess I'm
canceling my Vogue subscription.
Who is with me???` Interestingly,
she wasn't the only one
harbouring this opinion. There
were others too.
However, all that was last week.
During the weekend, Kim seemed
to have moved on as she arrived
at a private Beverly Hills resi-
My family
takes up a lot
of my time:
Julia Roberts
Oscar-winner Julia Rober ts
says in order to spend
greater time with her family
she only accepts one movie
a year.
The 46-year-old actress has
nine-year-old twins Hazel
and Phinnaeus and sixyear-old Henry with
husband Daniel Moder,
repor ted Contactmusic.
"I make one film per year
and that's a good balance.
My older kids have just
turned nine and my son is
six; they still need me. My
family takes up a lot of my
time and my creative
energy, but I'm lucky to
have worked enough
already to allow myself to
take time off," Rober ts said.
"When I see my friends
struggling to juggle both, I
feel very privileged. I act
less, but better; I've always
been demanding (of a role),
now I'm difficult," she
added.
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
Will.i.am plans to quit 'The
Voice' if Kylie Minogue leaves
Will.i.am has revealed that he will quit 'The Voice' if Kylie
Minogue leaves the show. 'The Voice' coaches Will.i.am, Sir
Tom Jones and Ricky Wilson have called for TV bosses to pull
out all the stops to prevent Minogue from leaving the show, the
Daily Express repor ted.
Kylie Minogue recently revealed that she could quit the BBC hit
show because her commitments were likely to clash with a
new series. The news came just before the first live episode of
the show which is attracting eight million viewers, beating Ant
and Dec on ITV.
dence for the festivities without a
hint of apprehension. While the
33-year-old's fiance and nine-
month-old daughter may not have
been with her, she kept them
close by wearing her gold name-
plate necklace and, of course, her
dazzling 15-carat Lorraine
Schwar tz engagement ring.
Shakira becomes Facebook's
'most popular' with 86.3m likes
Angelina Jolie helps design 'Maleficent'
costumes for kids with Stella McCartney
Angelina Jolie has collaborated with Disney and designer Stella McCar tney on a
kids costume collection
inspired by her upcoming flick
'Maleficent'.
Named after the film itself, the
collection will offer eight
styles for kids aged 4 to 14,
and will include sparkly
princess dresses, bowadorned sandals, dragon-print
tees and cool sneakers,
People magazine repor ted.
The collection, which will
range from 75 to 145 dollars,
will be available worldwide at
Stella McCar tney Kids stores
as well as Disney stores and
online staring April end.
WILL.I.AM SAYS JUSTIN BIEBER
DOESN'T HAVE TO BE A 'ROLE MODEL'
Will.i.am has come to defend
controversial stars like Justin
Bieber, who he thinks face a
lot of pressure since they
grow up in spotlight.
While talking to a UK publication, the Black Eyed Peas star
said he feels that the 20-yearold pop star had a hard time
growing up since the magnifying glass is on him,
Contactmusic repor ted.
The 39-year-old singer added
that it isn't impor tant that pop
stars should be role models
and there are no rules on how
a pop star should act.
Shakira has become the most popular person on Facebook with
86.3m fans. The 'Hips Don't Lie' hitmaker is closely followed by
Rihanna, who has 86.2m "likes", while Eminem secured the
third position with 83.9 "likes", Metro.co.uk repor ted.
Shakira also took to her page on the social networking site and
said that she always wanted to have a lot of friends, but never
imagined that it would be so many.
The top 10 'most popular persons' on Facebook are:
1. Shakira - 86,420,722 likes
2. Rihanna - 86,271,591 likes
3. Eminem - 83, 935, 160 likes
4. Cristiano Ronaldo - 76,148,074 likes
5. Michael Jackson - 71,605,480 likes
6. Vin Diesel - 70,112,311 likes
7. Katy Perry - 65,694,061 likes
8. Will Smith - 64,732,390 likes
9. Justin Bieber - 64,167,464 likes
10. Lady Gaga - 63,776,647 likes
LEO IS THE LOVE OF MY
LIFE, SAYS KATE WINSLET
Kate Winslet shares a special bond with her 'Titanic' co-star
Leonardo DiCaprio. Their love will go on.
Though Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio's onscreen romances have always ended in tragedy - at least in the movies
they have starred together so far - the two actors have nothing
but love for one another off the set.
The British actress had only kind words about DiCaprio during a
recent interview. When a repor ter asked if she preferred her
latest co-star, Theo James's character over Leonardo DiCaprio's
Jack in 'Titanic', the Oscar winner quickly made her decision,
saying that there was absolutely no competition between the
given leading men.
`Leo is the love of my life,` she told, before adding, `How
could you possibly ask me that question? If I said Theo over
Leo, he would never stay the night at his house ever again.
Ever. No, he can't have that.`
MidWeek
bollywood
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
19
Movie Review
Upcoming
BOLLYWOOD Movies
LEONE, PARVIN
CAST: SUNNY
YA MRIDUL,
DABAS, SANDH
KARAN MEHRA
DIVYA DUTTA,
SHAN PATEL
DIRECTOR: BHU
RATING: **
DISHKIYAOON
RELEASE DATE: Mar 28,2014
Sunny Deol,Harman Baweja,Aditya
STAR CAST:
Pancholi,Prashant Narayanan,Anand Tiwari,Rajit Kapoor
Sanamjit Talwar
DIRECTOR(S):
PRODUCER(S): Sunil Lulla,Shilpa Shetty
MUSIC DIRECTOR(S): Sneha Khanwalkar,Palash
Muchhal,Prashant Narayanan
Decorated with sleaze and bland
horror 'Ragini MMS 2' is hardly scary
T
here is no denying the fact that sex and sleaze are two such
relevant condiments of cine-biz which can make even a
poppycock kind of cine idea secure a decent opening at BO.
And this fact is once again proved by the kind of response which
Sunny Leone starrer Ragini MMS 2 received at its opening. Eversince the movie went on floor its makers started clamouring that this
is the first Horrex of Bollywood, and that's probably in order to fuel
the curiosity of the viewers and to prove that unlike its predecessors
belonging to the same ilk, concept of Ragini MMS 2 is something
out of the box. But all those who have grown up seeing Ramsay
Bros' horror masterpieces and have seen last year's spooky superhit of Hollywood "The Conjuring" will right-away discard these
claims of Ekta and party.
Anyhow coming to the clumsy premise of "Ragini MMS 2", the
movie advances from where its prequel Ragini MMS concluded,
top
10
songs
1
Film: Ragini MMS 2
BABY
DOLL
FILM
SONG
2
Queen
London Thumakda
3
Bewakoofiyaan
O Heeriye
4
Ragini MMS 2
Maine Khud Ko (Reprise)
5
Bewakoofiyaan
Bewakoofiyaan
6
Youngistaan
Mere Khuda
7
2 States
Offo
8
Youngistaan
Suno Na Sangemarmar
9
2 States
Chaandaniya
10
Kaanchi
Tu Sab Kuch Re
MOVIE COLLECTIONS
HIT OR FLOP MIDWEEK
BEWAKOOFIYAAN
AVERAGE
QUEEN
HIT
GULAAB GANG
BELOW AVERAGE
SHAADI KE SIDE EFFECTS
SEMI-HIT
where a dirty weekend plan of Ragini (Kainaz Motivala) and her
boyfriend Uday (Rajkumar Rao) at an isolated bungalow goes awry.
And subsequently Uday gets killed and Ragini ends up being in a
mental asylum.
This time with Ragini MMS 2, the tale rolls ahead where this
entire inexplicable incident grabs the attention of a cine director
Rocks (Pravin Dabas) who decides to cash upon the potency of
Ragini MMS mystery and opts to paint it on celluloid. And in order
to fulfil his hankering he ropes in Sunny (Sunny Leone) to portray
the character of Ragini and Satya (Saahil Prem) to write the
screenplay of his ambitious project. And what turns nightmarish for
this pervert sort of a director and his entire crew is former's decision
of shooting his movie in that same haunted and isolated villa where
the actual incident took place. And yeah there's another story running
parallel to this main plot where a New York returned psychiatrist Dr
Meera Dutta ( Divya Dutta) is trying to decode the mystery behind
Ragini's mental state and Ragini MMS scandal.
There is no denying the fact that when Ragini MMS made it to
celluloid in 2011 it offered a very genuine dose of spooky
entertainment to the viewers, but as far as storyline of its sequel is
concerned then this time creators of the story Suhani Kanwar and
Tanveer Bookwala have religiously kept themselves detached from
novelty and didn't interject even a pinch of innovativeness to create
an alluring cine narrative.
In fact it won't be wrong to say that from inception till culmination
the writer duo looked totally possessed by the "Jetkin" (witch) of
doing "Parrot Job", where they generously borrowed the premise
from Hollywood super hits like The Conjuring and Blair Witch 2.
Although Suhani and Tanveer tried to blend all the , necessary
flavours like sleaze, eroticism, horror and toilet humour required for
making a, "Horrex" but unfortunately this effort of their looks so
half hearted that entire premise of Ragini MMS 2 ends up being a
parody of a sort where even spookiest moment looks hilarious and
coated with shoddiness.
What further adds to the rotten luck of the narration is
asymmetrical distribution of all the relevant condiments. First half
with a sound dose of erotica and double entendre looks more focused
towards satiating the carnal fantasies of those watching. Whereas
in the second half toilet humour gets replaced by horror, in nut shell
storyline of, Ragini MMS 2 is about everything weird under this
sky, except horror.
And if we talk about dialogues, then after seeing Ishita Moitra
penning some marvellous rhetoric gems for the movies like Mere
Dad Ki Maruti, it's quite disappointing to see this magnificent
magician of words dish out something thoroughly below her level.
Dabbled in the treacle of double entender even the dialogues of
Ragini MMS 2 seem to be thoroughly disproportionate.
In screenplay department Suhani and Tanveer have once again
failed miserably in covering up the flaws of their writing. Be it pace
of narration or the length of the movie, everything seems to be done
with intent of reaching the mark of almost two hours run-time. While
being in director's chair Bhushan Patel has also failed in recreating the
magic which Pawan Kriplani's (director of Ragini MMS) which latter
created with his cine saga. Besides in the absence of so many must
haves even the cinematography and editing of Naren Gedia and Tushar
Shivan respectively seems to be a humdrum affair. Decorated with
magnificently peppy songs like Baby Doll and Chaar Bottal Vodka the
music of the Ragin MMS 2 is a perfect Gen X delight.
YOUNGISTAAN
RELEASE DATE:
STAR CAST:
Mar 28,2014
Jackky Bhagnani,Neha Sharma,Farooq
Sheikh,Boman Irani,Kayoze Irani,Mita Vashishth,Shah
Rukh Khan
DIRECTOR(S):
Syed Ahmad Afzal
PRODUCER(S):
Vashu Bhagnani
MUSIC DIRECTOR(S):
Jeet Ganguly,Sneha
Khanwalkar,Shiraz Uppal,Shree Isshq
JAI
RELEASE DATE:
Apr 04,2014
STAR CAST: Purab Kohli,Tannishtha Chatterjee,Kir ti
Kulhari,Saidah Jules,Mukul Dev,Yashpal Sharma,
Ravi Gosain
DIRECTOR(S): Girish Malik
BHOOTHNATH RETURNS
RELEASE DATE:
STAR CAST:
Apr 11,2014
Amitabh Bachchan,Boman Irani,Parth
Bhalerao,Usha Jadhav,Sanjay Mishra,Brijendra Kala
DIRECTOR(S):
Nitesh Tiwari
Language no bar for Nargis
Actress Nargis Fakhiri, who is still struggling to speak Hindi
fluently, has dubbed in her own voice in her for thcoming film
"Main Tera Hero" and says the language is not blocking offers.
"There is no less offers because of my language problem. If I get
a script, I understand it when I read it," said the actress and
added that script reading sessions with co-stars help too.
"You get time to sit with your co-actors and prepare, but to improvise in Hindi is tough. (Initially) I had to stick to my lines, but
now I can understand and that's a great
progress," said the actress who entered the
Hindi film industry with "Rockstar", a musical hit.
In her her first film her voice was dubbed
by someone else due to her poor Hindi
diction, but Nargis proudly says that
"it's my own voice in 'Main Tera Hero'."
"It was hard, but it was fun. I am proud
of myself because it's difficult. It's not
easy to learn a new language," she
added.
Directed by David Dhawan, the fun
film will see his actor son Varun romancing two beauties - Nargis and
Ileana D'Cruz - when it hits screens
April 4.
When asked did Ileana's presence
make her insecure, Nargis said: "Why
would anyone be insecure with someone else if you know who you are?
There is no need to fight or being
insecure. I am blessed my co-actress is a lovely lady. We got along
well. The experience was lovely and
no cat fights.
20
MidWeek
bollywood
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
Is Jacqueline just a puppet in
SAJID KHAN'S HANDS?
P
artners often depend
on each other to take
big decisions in life.
And looks like Sajid Khan
alone has been calling the
shots, when it comes to
sweetheart Jacqueline
Fernandez's professional
life. Our sources say that
Sajid, who also co-judges
the show, apparently ruled
out Jacqui coming there to
promote her next film. An
informer says, Ìnitially, Saif
Ali Khan, John Abraham,
Deepika Padukone, Anil
Kapoor and Ameesha Patel
were to come on the show.
But their dates were not
matching, so finally it was
just Jacqueline and Deepika
Padukone who were slotted
to come.` However, Jacqui
pulled out at the last
moment and it was only
Dippy who promoted the
film on the show.
The source adds, `Sajid
didn't want Jacqui to come
on the show.
It was mutually decided
between them that they
shouldn't appear on the
show together, as it may not
prove to be good for them in
the public eye.`
Jacqui's car-nama
Jacqueline Fernandez has
developed a passion for
high-end automobiles after
shooting for her next thriller
Jacqueline Fernandez was
never into cars. It was
always a guy-thing for
her. But after having
worked in AbbasMustan's upcoming
thriller, the actress feels
her knowledge about
automobiles has
increased manifold.
As she had to shoot at
some exotic locations
with a wide range of
luxury cars in the film,
Jacqui now feels she is
well versed about wheel-
I look young, because I am still
young in my heart: Anil Kapoor
The Stylized, The Handsome, The Smart, The Sexy.. The Star who
never get's old.. Age No Bar.. Generation No Bar.. The Actor who
plays 'Younger' roles and stays 'Young', Day by Day.. With his one
'Glimpse', Every heart says 'Jhakaaaaaaaas'.. The one and only Anil
Kapoor speaks straight from the heart to Faisal Saif. You still look so
young, Even at this Age (Laughs) Thank you for the compliment.
Every day i hear this compliment umpteen number of times. I look
young, Because i am still young in my Heart. I have noticed that
when audiences all over the world starts appreciating you and work,
When you are satisfied with the amount of good work you have
done, There's a particular 'Glow' that comes on your Face. That
particular glow keeps you Young and Going. And also my Family
Life, My children are the reason.
Are you 'Spiritual'?
I am trying to be one. I am also trying to meet people who are much
more Intelligent and Superior. I try to surround myself with the people
who are superior then me. Be it my Watchman or my Security Guard.
What is Superiority according to you?
It can be anything. Intellectual or Physicality, It can be General
Knowledge.
You have been seen experimenting with your 'Looks'.
Yes, I have done that constantly. In each and every film of mine, I
have tried to experiment with my looks. Sometimes with Long hair,
Sometimes with Beard, Sometimes with short hair. Nowadays, Every
actor tries to do it. But i am doing it from such a
long time.
So how big is 'Race 2'?
Obviously Race 2 is big. Or else we wouldn't had
done it. Abbas Mustan wouldn't had directed it.
At least the effort had to make it more Bigger and
Entertaining. More Glamour, More action. We have
tried hard and we have done our best.
Does it has a new Story?
Yes the story is new. But the character's continue.
Especially my Character and Saif Ali Khan's character
continues. In the sequel, I have become Richer,
Glamorous, Stylish like how i am in my real life (Laughs).
I have resigned from the Police Force and i am now an
owner of a Club in the film. But i still love Fruits. I love
them more then Sexy Girls. All i will say the film is more
interesting this time.
Why do you select Pacy-Thrillers?
I don't select them, They select me. Sometimes you do
a film for various reasons. It could be the Producer, The
script, The money. Sometimes you do films to 'Tag'
yourself and when that film is a success, You try and
carry forward that legacy. It was you who started the
100 Crore club with your earlier films, Now the younger
lot is screaming about it. I agree the business has gone
up. In those days, The money had a different value.
Today the money is different. Yes i do believe in 100
Crore business, But mark my words, 5 years from now
people may start screaming about their films doing 500
Crore business.
deals. Says a source,
Àny one who travels
with Jacqueline now has
noticed that when any
high-end car passes by,
she is the first one to
notice the model, the
edition and its
approximate price. She
now seems to know it all.
She feels she is now one
of the guys and can talk
about cars with them.`
The actress was really
impressed with the car
sequences in the film and
was excited to be part of
them as well. Às AbbasMustan is known for their
elaborate chase scenes,
Jacqueline had an
opportunity to step up the
accelerator as well.` The
actress, who grew up in
Bahrain where her folks are
based, may have been used
to fancy cars on the streets
but after shooting for this
film her technical knowledge
has upped a great deal.
'I regret not working
with Amitabh Bachchan'
As Subhash Ghai speaks to Subhash K Jha
You turn a year older on 24 January.
How do you look back on your amazingly eventful
life, and which events would you consider
landmarks in your life?
Yes, just a year old wiser by mind and one year
younger by heart. I have had the most amazingly eventful journey. I've
enjoyed every bit of my life so far. I've seen the worst fall and the best
rise. I am now writing a book with utmost truth about me and the others
who had been and have been part of the agony and ecstasy of my life..
I feel the book would be hilarious, enlightening and full of surprises and
inspiring. Every event was a landmark in my life. So I can't choose one
event as special
You've had one of the longest innings as a filmmaker. How would you
assess your growth as a filmmaker from Kalicharan in 1976 to Yuvraaj
in 2008?
My films themselves speak of my growth as a person and as an artist in
me. I've evolved as an individual during these 35 years of my professional
life. The best part in me is that I am a great student of life and I learn
something new everyday, be it be on technology, content, people, youth,
nation and cinema. I am clued in. As a film maker I am always ahead of
times, whether it was KARZ, TAAL or KISNA or YUVRAJ or BLACK N
WHITE.
Megastar Amitabh Bachchan
won the title of India's Prime Icon
Gosh that is far too far fetched for me ... and to have Sachin
(Tendulkar), Lataji (Lata Mangeshkar), Aamir, SRK, Modi
(Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi), Nitish (Bihar Chief
Minister Nitish Kumar)... as contenders," he further posted.
Also present at the event were director Sudhir Mishra,
a c t r e s s N e e t u C h a n d r a a n d M r. A n a n d C h a k r a v a r t h y,
business head - BIG CBS. "We couldn't have asked for a
better grand finale to the show, with the most deserving,
Mr. Amitabh Bachchan, being conferred the title of the
India's first ever Prime Icon. Epitomizing the word Icon, we
are happy that India has selected the most commendable icon,"
Chakravarthy said in a statement
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY
S
MidWeek
bollywood
unny Leone-starrer 'Ragini MMS 2', pro
moted as a 'horrex' -- a combination of
horror and sex, had a good star t at the
ticket counters and exper ts are also
recommending 'Lakshmi' and 'Ankhon
Dekhi' as a must see.
'Ragini MMS 2' has collected about Rs.16 crore
in two days.
`'Ragini MMS 2' has a solid star t at the ticket
window. Despite India versus Pakistan cricket
match making a dent in business, Friday total is
impressive. 'Ragini MMS 2' (earned on Friday) Rs.8.43
crore, Saturday Rs.7.50 crore. India business only,`
tweeted trade analyst Taran Adarsh.
The movie hit the screens March 21, a day when most of the
people were glued to their television sets to watch the IndiaPakistan match in Bangladesh as part of ICC World Twenty20
tournament.
`'Ragini MMS 2' has sex, horror, comedy and hit music to
ensure that it will prove a hit at the box-office,` trade analyst
Komal Nahta tweeted.
Quirky drama 'Aankhon Dekhi', directed by filmmaker-actor
Rajat Kapoor, has been lauded for its content, but its chances
of box office success seem to be bleak.
21
HAS GAUAHAR KHAN
SUDDENLY GOTTEN PRICEY?
After Effects: 'Ragini MMS 2' collects 16 cr in two days
Ìn two days, it must have collected less than
Rs.15 lakh,` Thadani said. Nahta is also not expecting it to hit the bull's eye. He tweeted:
`'Ankhon Dekhi' is not commercial but has superb acting, ambience of mid-class family and
excellent dialogues.`
Nagesh Kukunoor's 'Lakshmi' opened to rave
reviews, but commercially it's not so viable. One
hopes word of mouth helps the film as celebrities are lauding the movie on child prostitution,
inspired by a real life story.
LET BYGONES BE BYGONES
GAUAHAR KHAN, WHO RECENTLY TASTED FAME AGAIN, IS
APPARENTLY GIVING A TOUGH TIME TO HER PRODUCERS
Gauahar Khan, who has been
in the news for her relationship with fellow Bigg Boss inmate Kushal Tandon, apparently gave a hard time to the
makers of her film, Fever. Directed by Rajeev Jhaveri and
produced by Ajay Chhibber, it
has Rajeev Khandelwal playing the lead role.
A
crewmember
says,
`Gauahar was supposed to
shoot for this film even before
she took par t in Bigg Boss. In
fact, she did not inform the
film's producers about this
show; she just went ahead and
did her own thing. The makers, on the other hand, could not do
anything about this as her contract doesn't feature any clause
that stops her from taking on other projects.`
Interestingly, Gauahar's popular has now soared thanks to her
love affair with Tandon. After she winning the latest season of
Bigg Boss, she went on a break, only to come back and par ticipate in another reality show, Khatron Ke Khiladi. `Gauahar was
not been keen to allot dates for this film. Post her successful
stint on Bigg Boss, she felt that she had signed this film in a
hurry. She has told her friends about the same.`
However, the source adds that the actress has now given her
dates to the makers. Àfter a lot of convincing, Gauahar went
back and for th on her schedule and finalised dates for the film.`
PRIYANKA CHOPRA IN
'BAJIRAO MASTANI'
DP and Kat have no time for history
‘
BOTH DEEPIKA PADUKONE AND KATRINA
KAIF HAVE TURNED DOWN THE DIRECTOR
ASHUTOSH GOWARIKAR'S UPCOMING FILM
Actress Deepika Padukone has apparently said no to director Ashutosh
Gowarikar's upcoming film. Says a source, "Deepika is busy shooting for films she has already signed, including 'Happy New Year',
'Shuddhi', and 'Window Seat'.
She doesn't have any dates for the next two years and thus had to turn
down a role in Gowarikar's film, Mohenjo-daro."
The source adds that the director was keen on signing Deepika for
this film. "Deepika is a popular choice among filmmakers now. But
the actress has no dates and will be busy shooting for the entire year,"
says the source.
Rumour also has it that Gowarikar had approached actress Katrina
Kaif for the same role. "But she too said no to him on account of a
packed schedule," says the source.
On the other hand, Hrithik has given a green signal to the filmmaker;
they had last worked together on the period film, Jodha Akbar. It may
be pointed out here that Deepika has earlier worked with Gowarikar
on the film, Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey. However, the film didn't create
any waves at the box office.
Gowarikar was not available for comment while Katrina's manager
confirmed that she has no dates to spare for the upcoming film.
PRIYANKA CHOPRA APPARENTLY FEATURES IN SANJAY LEELA
BHANSALI'S NEXT PLAYING BAJIRAO'S WIFE
Priyanka Chopra has apparently bagged a role in Sanjay Leela
Bhansali's long-in-the-planning film, 'Bajirao Mastani'. If the
latest buzz is to be believed, the actress will be seen as Bajirao's
wife Kashibai in the film.
A source says, `Priyanka has agreed to essay Kashibai's character. It may not be the title role, but it is vital to the story.`
Another source adds, Àn impor tant role if por trayed with an
amazing per formance will always have more weightage and
appreciation than that of a lead role. So looking at PC's acting
prowess, one can go beyond just the length of her role.`
Bhansali has finally star ted working on his dream project
'Bajirao Mastani' with the production house, Eros, apparently
as producers. Priyanka remained unavailable for comment.
BOWLERS GIVE INDIA EASY WIN
Schedule T20 World cup
(Toronto time)
CHRIS GAYLE PLAYED HIS SLOWEST 30-BALL INNINGS.
W
est Indies have been in Bangladesh for a week, but they still
looked jetlagged in a bizarre innings of 129 for 7, which set
up another comprehensive win for India, who were excellent with the ball. From the moment Bhuvneshwar Kumar surprised
Dwayne Smith with a first over full of outswingers, West Indies sleepwalked through most of their innings, failing to make India pay for
some sloppy fielding. India will be only mildly annoyed with that
because of the stupendous work done by their bowlers.
Bhuvneshwar set the template with the most economical figures in
Twenty20 internationals - 3-0-3-0, Shami kept the pressure up at the
other end, R Ashwin bowled out pretty early to make sure that pressure pushed West Indies to the breaking point, and then Amit Mishra
applied the coup de grâce with the wickets of Marlon Samuels and
Dwayne Bravo off successive deliveries.
Without taking away from how well India bowled, it was an incredibly
passive effor t from West Indies. Despite a generous helping of extras,
West Indies were 46 for 1 after 10 overs, Chris Gayle's 34 off 33 was
his slowest 30-or-more-ball knock, Dwayne Smith prodded and
fumbled around for 11 off 29, and the rest crumbled under the pressure of needing more than 100 in the last 10 to even be competitive
when the dew would come in. All this despite two dropped catches:
Gayle on 0 and 19.
There was something special about India's bowling at the top, especially Bhuvneshwar. Every time he bowled full to Smith, he looked
like he would get a wicket. In the lead-up to the match, Suresh Raina
had spoken about how West Indies struggle to get the runs when the
big sixes are not for thcoming. Darren Sammy said, okay stop us
hitting the sixes. Only six sixes were hit in the innings, and the singles
were miserably low.
When those sixes were hit, as Gayle did as soon as legspinner Mishra
was introduced, it involved a huge risk. Be that as it may, when you
are 24 after six overs, with your par tner struggling to get bat on ball,
‘
INDIA 130 FOR 3 (ROHIT 62*, KOHLI 54)
BEAT WEST INDIES 129 FOR 7 (GAYLE
34, JADEJA 3-48, MISHRA 2-18,
BHUVNESHWAR 0-3) BY 7 WICKETS
you are under the pressure to take those risks. The first one brought
Gayle a six, but Mishra's wrong'un next ball should have had him.
Yuvraj Singh joined Ashwin as Gayle's benefactor, but an extended
spell of disciplined bowling from Ashwin - overs 6, 8, 10 and 12 for 24
runs - made sure Gayle didn't benefit much at all.
With no bad balls on offer, both Gayle and Marlon Samuels were
handcuffed. The two are the last pair you want in the middle when you
are hoping for quick running because boundaries are not available.
Quite a few twos were turned into ones before Gayle was run out not
even trying to make it to the striker's end. Dhoni could have gone
off and finished his media interviews and come back to take the
bails off; Gayle would still have not made it. At 62 for 2 in 13
overs, with Samuels struggling, they may as well have finished
the interviews then.
Mishra put paid to all hopes of a Colombo-final-like comeback with a
sharp legbreak that provided his captain his 127th stumping in all
international cricket. Nobody has more. Bravo was next beaten comprehensively by the googly, and the game was practically over.
Some indiscipline from India towards the end took West Indies to 129,
and despite a poorly called lbw of Shikhar Dhawan, this wasn't going
to challenge India. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma saw India through
with calm half-centuries, even though a struggling Yuvraj Singh manufactured some late drama. The only thing missing on another satisfying night for India was a push for a big net run-rate boost. If they play
like they have been playing, they might not even need to think of the
net run-rate.
Pakistan hold on in high-voltage game
‘
PAKISTAN 191 FOR 5 (UMAR AKMAL 94)
BEAT AUSTRALIA 175 (MAXWELL 74, FINCH
65) BY 16 RUNS
SHAHID AFRIDI CONSOLES UMAR AKMAL AFTER THE LATTER
WAS OUT FOR 94, AUSTRALIA V PAKISTAN.
I
f ever proof was needed that Pakistan are world cricket's most
mercurial side, take this match as exhibit A. Bilawal Bhatti's first
over cost 30 runs, Pakistan dropped two catches in three balls,
they conceded an 18-ball half-century to Glenn Maxwell and in their
own innings stumbled to 25 for 2 in their fifth over. Oh, and they
won. Comfor tably, in the end. So relaxed was Mohammad Hafeez
by the end that he trusted Bhatti with the final over, with Australia
needing 23. They managed six.
This really was a split personality of a game. The fielding from
both sides was poor, as was some of the bowling. But the striking
from Umar Akmal and Maxwell was breathtaking, and a couple of
wonder ful overs from two of Pakistan's spinners, Zulfiqar Babar
and Saeed Ajmal, meant more than Bhatti's dir ty 30-r un over.
Perhaps the most impor tant feature of the match was the lopsided nature of Australia's scorecard; nobody but Maxwell and
Aaron Finch reached double figures.
And yet while they were at the crease together, Australia rocketed into favouritism. Chasing 192, they had come together at 8
for 2 at the end of the first over, after Babar's quicker ball rattled
David Warner's stumps and his turner caught the edge of Shane
Watson's bat on the way through to Kamran Akmal. But from there,
Maxwell and Finch lifted Australia to 126 for 2 in the 12th over, a
position from which they could have and should have won.
Had Maxwell stayed there they would have. As he struck six after
six with conventional strokeplay, it was hard to work out why he
had tried to reverse-sweep Hafeez from the first ball of his innings. Nerves, perhaps. But when he stood still and played the
ball on its merits, he was almost impossible to stop. He clubbed
Hafeez over midwicket and square leg for two sixes in an over
and struck another as Shahid Afridi leaked 15 in his first over.
Afridi seemed Scrooge-like compared to Bhatti, who was thumped
for two consecutive sixes that brought Maxwell his half-century,
the equal fastest in a T20 international by an Australia player. The
record was set by David Warner, who struck an 18-ball fif ty against
West Indies in 2009-10 at the SCG, where the Arizona Diamondbacks and the LA Dodgers are playing Major League Baseball this
week. Some of Maxwell's strikes belonged there.
He was put down on 70 by Ajmal in the deep - two balls earlier
Kamran had failed to glove Finch's edge behind off Ajmal's doosra
- but on 74 Maxwell fell when he picked out deep midwicket off
the bowling of Afridi. And magically, the r uns dried up. The rest of
the Australians struggled to force the pace against Pakistan's spin;
George Bailey was bowled by Afridi for 4 off nine balls and after
Brad Hodge was well caught in the deep by Ajmal off Umar Gul,
Ajmal got rid of the other main danger, Finch.
Australia needed 31 off the final three overs when Ajmal was
given his last over, and it was a brilliant one. Finch, settled but
still a little scratchy, was bowled by an Ajmal straight ball for 65
off 54 balls, and the over brought one run and one wicket. And,
more or less, one Pakistan victory. Because 30 off two overs was
too much for Australia's lower order; Gul and Bhatti picked up
wickets and there was a run out, and Australia were bowled out
from the last ball for 175.
It meant that Umar Akmal's batting had not been in vain. That
Pakistan reached 191 for 5 was a remarkable effor t given that
they were struggling at 25 for 2 in the fif th over. But the Akmal
brothers combined to give Bailey a headache for the next three
quar ters of an hour.
They scored at 11.29 during their 96-run par tnership and although
Kamran has an excellent record against Australia it was Umar
who really did the damage this time. Power ful through and over
midwicket, especially during an 18-run over from par t-time spinner Finch, who was twice dispatched dismissively over deep
midwicket, Umar was also able to rocket the ball down the ground
straight back past the bowler Nathan Coulter-Nile.
Kamran struck four fours during his run-a-ball 31 but the par tnership ended when he tried to lift a cut over deep point off CoulterNile but was well taken by Warner running around on the boundary. Coulter-Nile picked up a second wicket when he yorked Sohaib
Maqsood for 5, but Umar remained at the crease and seemed
destined to become the first Pakistan batsman to reach a century
in a Twenty20 international.
That was not to be. In the final over of the innings, on 94 from 53
balls, he tried to clear the long-on boundary off Mitchell Starc and
was caught in the deep by Maxwell. A quick unbeaten 20 from
Afridi helped Pakistan to 191 for 5, but the Australians were left
wondering what could have been had they been a little less sloppy
in the field.
Umar had been dropped on 22 when he lifted Coulter-Nile to deep
square leg and Brad Hogg put down a catch that was coming to
him at pace, but should have been taken comfor tably. Afridi was
also put down by Hodge at point and Kamran was grassed by
Doug Bollinger at shor t fine leg, although the umpire called a noball against the bowler Shane Watson in any case.
Bollinger's first international for two and a half years had star ted
more promisingly - he struck in the second over of the match
when Ahmed Shehzad top-edged a pull and was caught by Bollinger
himself. When Hafeez played on off Watson in the fifth over, Australia could dream of a small chase. In their dreams.
Steyn delivers last-ball win for South Africa
DALE STEYN IS ELATED AFTER DISMISSING KANE WILLIAMSON, NEW ZEALAND V SOUTH AFRICA
No team had successfully chased 170-plus against South Africa and
Dale Steyn single-handedly ensured it stayed that way. The pace spearhead led the defence of 29 off the last three overs and seven off the final
one to keep South Africa in the hunt for a semi-final spot.
After Steyn conceded just five runs in his first two overs, the third and
14th of the innings, Faf du Plessis held him back for the final squeeze and
it proved a master move. With 18 balls of New Zealand's innings left,
Steyn stepped up and exorcised the ghosts of Dhaka 2011 by putting the
choke on new Zealand.
Corey Anderson scored six runs off the first two balls but could have been
out off the second - a top-edge that Quinton de Kock got his fingers to.
Anderson tried to hit the third delivery over long-on but did not have
enough power behind it and found the fielder. Steyn sniffed an opening
and went back to his default ball for the next two. They were short, curled
away and beat Ross Taylor as he fished outside the off stump. Taylor got
bat on ball to end the over with a couple but New Zealand still needed 21
runs.
Morne Morkel was having that kind of day. He could easily have conceded all 21, having gone for 36 in his first two overs, and he almost did.
His lengths let him down as he bowled an over laced with full tosses that
cost 14 runs. Ross Taylor had his way and New Zealand entered the final
over needing only seven.
Steyn started with a full ball. Luke Ronchi tried to play a cross-batted
shot through the off side but got an edge instead. De Kock dived to his
right and held on. New Zealand still needed seven but Steyn had planted
doubt in their minds. He followed up with two fireballs at 143 and 148 kph
and beat Nathan McCullum with pace. McCullum caught up by the third
‘
SOUTH AFRICA 170 FOR 6 (DUMINY 86*,
AMLA 41, ANDERSON 2-28, SOUTHEE 2-46)
BEAT NEW ZEALAND 168 FOR 8 (TAYLOR 62,
WILLIAMSON 51, STEYN 4-17) BY 2 RUNS
and hit it over extra cover for four. New Zealand only need three.
Shortish and wide, like the next ball was, should have given it to them but
McCullum hit it with the bottom of his bat. The shot was miscued and du
Plessis took the catch to leave New Zealand needing three with just a ball
remaining.
Taylor was on strike. The field on the leg side was mostly up, plugging the
gap there with boundary-riders on the off-side. Steyn pitched it up, Taylor
only managed a push back to him but ran anyway. Steyn ran faster. Taylor
was run out.
It didn't have to be that tense for New Zealand. They had gotten off to a
solid start in pursuit of their target and stayed mostly on track throughout
their innings. Martin Guptill and Kane Williamson put on 57 for the first
wicket and scored most of those runs in the powerplay overs. Williamson
anchored the first half of the innings after Guptill and Brendon McCullum
were dismissed in the space of two overs, and with Ross Taylor at the
other end, New Zealand threatened to take the game away. Taylor tore
into Morne Morkel, smacking him for three sixes in succession - over
long-on, a top-edge over the wicketkeeper's head and the last over square
leg. Just before that, Williamson had brought up his maiden T20 fifty, off
31 balls. Incidentally, JP Duminy's half-century for South Africa had come
up in the same number of deliveries.
Sri Lanka consign Netherlands to record low
‘
SRI LANKA 40 FOR 1 BEAT NETHERLANDS 39
(MATHEWS 3-16, MENDIS 3-12) BY 9 WICKETS
Perhaps no team in world cricket puts weaker sides away so emphatically as Sri Lanka. Since becoming full-fledged graduates
from the easy-beats category in the mid-90s, they have spared no
thought to their former peers, and on Monday they added two more
world records to the small pile they have accumulated against
easy-beats over the past 20 years. Netherlands' 39 all out is the
lowest ever Twenty20 score. Sri Lanka chased the target in a record
five overs. Their domination of Netherlands was, strangely, almost
as casual as it was unyielding. Nuwan Kulasekara's opening over
was full of the kind of swing away from left-handers he generates
almost every time he has early use of the white ball. Yet, this time,
it would set in motion the most dramatic collapse the format has
seen, as Stephan Myburgh outside-edged him to third man. Next
over, Angelo Mathews delivered two unremarkable half-trackers
back-to-back, and found himself on-a-hat-trick, as Michael Swar t
and Wesley Barresi fell attempting to attack. The floodlight malfunction that caused a nine-minute break in play seemed a greater obstacle to a Sri Lanka victory than their opponents did, with the bat.
The number of runs did not exceed the number of wickets until the
20th ball of the innings.
Mathews would trap Peter Borren in front with an indipper in his
next over - bringing about one of four ducks in Netherlands' innings
- and that was all before Dinesh Chandimal sent his heavy cavalry
in. Lasith Malinga struck the base of the middle stump twice, both
times with the slower yorker. Ajantha Mendis had an expensive first
over, but the Netherlands lower order played exactly like batsmen
who have never faced his brand of mystery spin before. The googly
accounted for two of his three wickets. Netherlands were all out in
the 11th over.
Sri Lanka were given a harder time with the bat, as Kusal Perera
was rapped painfully on the thumb by Timm van der Gugten before
he fell for 14, but the chase was always going to be a formality.
Tillakaratne Dilshan would have hoped to bat himself into form against
a weaker attack but he only faced 11 balls. Sri Lanka will take the
two points and the massive boost in net run rate, but even they may
be disappointed at how quickly it all ended.
FOR BEST DEALS AND INFORMATION SEE PAGE 32
BROAD FINED FOR
UMPIRE CRITICISM
England captain Stuar t Broad has been fined 15% of his match
fee for comments following his team's rain-affected defeat against
New Zealand. England lost on the Duckwor th-Lewis method and
Broad questioned the timing of the umpires' decision to take the
teams off the field. He pleaded guilty to a Level One charge of
publicly criticising match officials.
Lightning was seen above the ground in Chittagong before five
overs of the New Zealand innings had been completed - the
amount required to constitute a match - but Aleem Dar and Paul
Reiffel elected to keep the players on until the arrival of rain,
which came after 5.2 overs, a decision that Broad described as
"decidedly average".
It has also emerged that the ECB has urged the ICC to revise its
regulations and ensure that players are taken off at the first sign
of lightning in future. Decisions on when to suspend play due to
adverse weather are currently in the hands of the umpires but
Giles Clarke, the ECB chairman, has asked ICC chief executive,
David Richards, to institute a rethink.
"We have been having discussions of a very serious nature,"
Clarke told the Daily Mail. "These were extraordinary circumstances, and the umpires were in a tricky position. But if that had
been a golf tournament, everyone would have been off.
"I completely see Stuar t Broad's point. The safety of both the
players and the crowd should be paramount if there's an electrical storm. If it happens again, they're almost cer tainly going to
have to go straight off."
Broad's comments were, according to match referee Javagal
Srinath, in breach of section 2.1.7 of the code of conduct for
players. "Umpires are the final judges of the fitness of the ground,
weather or light for play," Srinath said. "Weather decisions are
the most difficult to make, but the umpires make the best decision possible, taking all factors into account.
"Such public criticism is not good for the spirit of the game.
Mutual respect between players, match officials and administrators is paramount to the game of cricket."
'Here to give teams a
hard time' - Mushfiqur
Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim has said his team has
nothing to lose ahead of the Super 10 and that the aim should be
to give other teams a hard time, star ting from Tuesday's game
against West Indies. After drawing a Test against Sri Lanka,
Bangladesh lost two T20s and seven consecutive ODIs, spanning the Asia Cup at home, before bouncing back in the World
T20 qualifiers. "Even though we had played badly during the Asia
Cup and the Sri Lanka series, I didn't expect it to be so bad
[against Hong Kong]," Mushfiqur said. "It is alarming. The only
message to the team is that we have nothing to lose so we better
give 200%. "The opponent must feel that we are here to give them
a hard time. If we can do that, I am sure we have the ability to win
a few of the four matches."
Bangladesh could add a spinner to their line-up, although
Mushfiqur felt a better hitter down the batting order would boost
the team too. The allrounder Ziaur Rahman was included following Rubel Hossain's injury and he is an option as a lower-order
finisher. "We have two specialist spinners, plus a few allrounders.
We will decide after seeing the wicket, and if there's some help,
then why not take the extra spinner? They (West Indies) are a
little weak against spin, like to play big shots and not rotate
strike," Mushfiqur said.
"Zia bhai has returned, because we need a big-hitting finisher.
Sohag Gazi has a strong chance of playing because of his success against [Chris] Gayle in the past. Both could be playing this
game." Ziaur meanwhile has said that he is accustomed to being included
late in a squad. "It doesn't surprise me anymore. It is in my fate that
I will come in and go out like this," Ziaur said. "I always dreamt
of playing in a World T20 so when it didn't happen, I was focusing
on playing well and returning to the side strongly.
24
MidWeek
MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

Part_1 - South Asian Daily

Transcription

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