If it had flown on a standard trajectory designed to maximize its reach, this missile would have a range of more than 8,100 miles, said David Wright, co-director of the global security program at the Union of Concerned Scientists.
A missile with this range would be capable of hitting any city in the United States. Clearly, North Korea is advancing far more quickly than predicted.
Nepal vote set to favor China over India: The communist alliance has prioritized rail and road networks with China and has already vowed to revive the Budhi Gandaki Hydropower Project if they gain power. Harder stance against India, softer towards China.
Naxals using kids as shields: "I was in Class 5 at an ashram in Sameep village. Once, I had to stay home because of fever. The local militia commander Ramlal took me away,"
‘Loss of Night’: Serious effects on the Earth’s ecology as artificial light is depriving the planet of its nights.
Extreme Heat:
Los Angeles is painting its streets white. To lower the temperature by
3 degrees over the next 20 years. Black pavement absorbs heat from the
sun... Read more.
---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Rajiv Malhotra<rajivmalhotra2011@gmail.com> Date: Tue, Nov 28, 2017 at 3:11 AM Subject: History of Early Indian Immigration to USA Since the 1700s To:
Most ethnic and religious groups in America have taken great pains to research and explain their respective histories as American immigrants. They take great pride in sharing how their ancestors were pioneers and sacrificed a great deal to help build the USA.
Sadly, Indians have not done this. To open this line of inquiry and education, I am doing a mini-series on this important chapter of American history. This chapter concerns the history of people from India entering America since the 1700s.
This is a powerful, moving story that should not remain unknown.
In each episode of this mini-series, I interview Shefali Chandan, noted historian and educationist, to take advantage of many years of research on this subject. The first episode describes the following:
The new arrivals from India are called "Hindus", regardless of their faith.
Most of them are Sikhs.
They are considered exotic, strange, weird and interesting personalities. Their looks/clothes evoke many different reactions from White Americans.
They come by ship across the Pacific Ocean and arrive in California.
Surprising to many of us: Some of the Indians were brought to America by the officers of the East India Company as slaves or indentured laborers.
The Indian immigrants quickly adapt and become pioneers in the true American sense.
They live frugal lives, save a lot of money, and become very successful farmers.
Many Indians work as manual laborers to build railroads and other infrastructure.
Gradually, the White public and media become racist and Hinduphobic. They see Indians as an economic threat.
The inflow of Indians was numerically small compared to the influx of Whites from Europe, and yet this was often called the "Hindu invasion".
Indians started becoming stereotyped by Whites as dirty, scantily clad, poor, hungry, infected with contagious diseases, etc. Newspaper articles started describing them as "undesirable people", "public burdens", "inferior laborers", etc.
Indians were branded as caste-ridden, superstitious, and as a menace to "American civilization".
By the early 1900s, media campaigns had started to ban the Indian from entering the USA. The second episode will continue the fascinating story, one that every Indian child must be taught.
Please watch and post your comments on Facebook/YouTube.
To help us continue this innovative and provocative alternative to mainstream media please donate to our tax-exempt foundation in USA or in India: DONATE
We should raise the Quad dialogue to political level, intensify naval exercise with Australia bilaterally and make the Quad Malabar a reality opportunely.
India should strategically take-up to evaluate alternative structures for Indian Armed forces in general to achieve a Conventional Precision Strike capability at least in the regional scenario of say 5000 Km from the borders of India.'
New Delhi is now gradually shifting its approach to global governance and multilateralism. The primary objective of this new approach is to help shape the global rules and external realities in favour of India's economic growth and strategic interests
The message emanating from the Party Congress is loud and clear. China is in no mood to compromise, and any attempt to contain or check China would be effectively met. The reality also is that apart from its massive military build-up, China is positioned most advantageously as far as economic aspects are concerned.'
Significantly, the Indian government has recently included Nepal under its Leave Travel Concession (LTC) arrangement. As such, nearly five million central government employees of India who enjoy grant of leave and ticket reimbursement facilities under LTC while travelling in India could also get such facilities if they travel to Nepal. In order to encourage tirthatan/tourism industry in the region, such events as Janakpur Mahotsav could be organized in Ayodhya and Ayodhya Mahotsav and in Janakpur each year.
China is following the path taken by Japan's imperial govt in the lead-up to WW2, offering its own version of the Greater East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere:
Madrassas allegedly 'infested' with sexual abuse of minors
By News Desk Published: November 21, 2017
The AP found hundreds of cases of sexual abuse by clerics reported in the past decade, and officials suspect there are many more within a far-reaching system that teaches at least 2 million children in Pakistan.
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sent from samsung galaxy note3 neo, so please excuse brevity
Why China's economic rise is an opportunity for India
China has so far belied all predictions of an economic apocalypse but a combination of factors can be disastrous for not only the country or the region but for the world economy.
OPINION Updated: Nov 21, 2017 15:28 IST
Seshadri Chari
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sent from samsung galaxy note3 neo, so please excuse brevity
SN – article tells why Madhav Rao Peshwa was probably amongst the greatest Peshwas and how he brought most of India under Maratha sway, even though for a limited period.
ISRO has published the first draft of the new "Space Activities Bill, 2017" which will set the framework under which Indian private space sector companies will operate. The future is coming - faster than we think!
First bid in 50 years seeks to define & regulate activities as new players enter
The draft of the country’s first Space Law, unveiled on Tuesday, stipulates licences for all space-related players and activities. The draft also sets out penalties of ₹1 crore and above and jail terms for violations.
The proposed Space Activities Bill, 2017 that will go before Parliament, also seeks to keep the government out of any liability arising out of harm that these commercial activities may cause — to people, environment, other countries or outer space.
So far, the national space agency Indian Space Research Organisation’s major works have related to satellites, launchers and applications. These were governed by the Satellite Communication Policy, 2000; the Remote Sensing Data Policy, 2011; and international treaty obligations on outer space activities as mandated by the UN Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space or UNCOPUOS.
New body proposed
The draft Bill defines objects, people and geography that will come under the future law. While all persons or entities engaged in space will now need a licence, the government will form a new authorised body for this purpose.
The Centre will keep a registry of all space objects.
The draft has been posted on the website of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Stakeholders have a month to send in their comments, according to a note signed by G. Ravi Shankar, Under Secretary in the Department of Space.
Explaining the need for a Space Law now, the notification says increasing applications of Space-based solutions have meant an increased participation of private sector industry and startups. “Commercial opportunities in space activities and services, nationally and internationally, demand a higher order of participation by private sector agencies. This situation demands a necessary legal environment for orderly performance and growth of space sector,” it said.
A.S. Kiran Kumar, ISRO Chairman and Secretary, Department of Space, stated at an industry event in Delhi on Monday that the country needed to at least double the number of its 42 functional satellites in order to meet national demands. ISRO has started the process of selecting industry teams to quickly build spacecraft and launch vehicles for it in the next two to three years. It also launches many foreign spacecraft for a fee on the PSLV launcher.
Multiple players
According to a senior DoS official who requested not to be named, “Until now, ISRO being the only player never felt the need for a separate law. Now, many Indian and foreign companies are setting up shops here as well as 20-odd Indian startups. It is very important now that to have a regulatory mechanism and law to govern these activities.”
Rafale decision: When Parrikar reached the PMO, the Prime Minister sprang a bombshell. Parrikar was told that, on Modi’s forthcoming trip to Paris, he and French President would announce an agreement for India to buy 36 Rafale fighters. Taken aback, Parrikar still caught his flight to Goa. Over the next week, he batted loyally on behalf of his PM, publicly defending a decision he neither understood nor agreed with, that was taken over his head. Parrikar told PTI in Goa that all 36 Rafale fighters would join IAF service within two years; in fact more than six years will elapse before the final delivery is made. India needs some 200-300 fighters to replace the MiG-21 and MiG-27 fleet that is being phased out of service. Just 36 Rafales provides little cover.... About the deal.
Long tail-pipe: Electric vehicles charged in China (and India) produce two to five times as much particulate matter and chemicals that contribute to smog versus petrol-engine cars. The hidden cost of electric cars!
Skill and Scale: Why Suzuki-Toyota alliance is a huge deal for India’s EV dream
I've been saying for years that instead of exporting (& paying for) our students abroad, we should make India a higher education hub. But how will that happen if all we do is play politics with quotas, entitlements & institutionalized incompetence?@PrakashJavdekarhttps://t.co/VvZLDJdmkG
The first interstellar object ever to be sighted passing through our solar system has been found to have a long and thin shape - unusual for an asteroid:
Boston Dynamics has posted the latest improvements in its Atlas humanoid robot - now featuring bajrangi backflips:
It's not clear why machines necessarily have to be shaped like people, but it looks entertaining.
Boston Dynamics is owned by Japan's Softbank, who bought it from Google's parent company Alphabet.
India plans to visit the moon a third time and also return, with Japan for company this time.
Their lander and rover mission will bring samples back from moon, the chiefs of the two space agencies said on Friday.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) have started to work out the contours of their joint trip — which will be the third for both countries. They did not say when it would be sent.
The plans are in the early stages: ISRO Chairman and Secretary, Department of Space, A.S.Kiran Kumar, and JAXA president Naoki Okumura said the ‘implementation arrangements’ are likely be reached in a couple of months. The pre-phase studies to decide the scope of work — or the focus of the mission — should be clear in the next six months.
They were addressing a news conference in connection with the annual Asia Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum APRSAF-24 which met here over the last four days.
Dr. Okamura said that with this collaboration, “India and Japan will lead the space sector in the Asia Pacific region. We hope we can do it as soon as possible. It is not easy as we are understanding each other’s [goals and capabilities].”
Isro chairman AS Kiran Kumar on Friday announced a Indo-Japanese joint lunar mission.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of 24th Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF), he said that India and Japan have decided to take up a joint lunar mission.
"We've just now decided to work together in this regard. We will discuss modalities and clarity would emerge in about six months," he said.
Kiran Kumar clarified that there would not be any participation from other countries in the mission.
"We want to study traces of water which Isro established on the soil of the moon. We want to take some samples, bring them to earth for further studies," he said.
New Delhi: The Indian Space Research Organisation chief AS Kiran Kumar on Friday said that both India and Japan are working towards a joint lunar mission, which will hopefully take place soon.
"We are looking at a possible joint lunar mission which is still in a very preliminary stage. We are working on the details at the moment," state-run ISRO's Chairman told media persons here.
India and Japan will collaborate to send a joint mission to the moon, which includes landing a rover and bringing samples back to the earth, a feat that was last achieved over four decades ago.
Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) Chairman A S Kiran Kumar and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) President Naoki Okumara said on Friday that an implementation agreement for the collaborative mission will be finalised within the next two months.
"We can do as soon as possible," said Okumara on timelines, but did not elaborate much. Both the countries have increased cooperation due to efforts made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe. The space agencies plan follows the November 2016 agreement signed during PM Modi's visit to Japan, where they agreed on collaborating for deep space explorations.
They may try to get it done as soon as possible, so as not to lag too far behind China, if not beat it outright. China was due to launch its own lunar sample return mission Chang'e 5 this month, but that's been delayed until 2019 due to the crash a few months ago of their Long March 5 heavy lift rocket.
The eSamskriti effort to promote Indian Culture, Spirituality & Travel started in 2001. The site has over 1100 articles and 13,000 pictures today. So far site is funded by me with token contributions from well wishers.
To help us sustain and grow the effort we seek your support. Every contribution is valued.
You can remit through our account with Instamojo.com. Click on link https://www.instamojo.com/@eSamskriti. It accepts rupee payments only. Mail esamskriti108@gmail.com on transfer so can issue a receipt. Note that eSamskriti is not a charitable trust so tax break u/s 80G is not available.
3. Sikkim: Harmonious Himalayan Highland by Rajiv Malik. Author shares interesting insights on Sikkim. Covers culture, origin of tribes, places to see, threats and lots more.
As you know, by now every one has heard about the New York Times article on the connection between Sari and Hindu Nationalism. Below is an opinion piece that I wrote on the subject. I am not a writer by any measure. But I thought this article of NYT deserved some response from every one, including me. The more the merrier, I felt. So I did what I could. If you think it is ok, please distribute to your friends and email lists. I am very grateful to News India Times for publishing it on a busy day for them when many of their publications go to print. Thanks.
China's much-touted OBOR initiative will enable Beijing to dominate the sea lanes of the Western Pacific and Indian Oceans by extending credits which the recipients cannot repay. India must strengthen pact with other players.
Some Indian media started to boast about New Delhi's strategic significance to Washington after the quadrilateral talks, arguing that Trump's decision to shift his attention from the Asia-Pacific to "Indo-Pacific" is a signal that Washington was elevating New Delhi to the center of its Asia strategy. No matter how Indian media reports US-India relations and the country's democratic system, economic development is the determining factor for India's regional and international influences. '
Are Tatas so naive? Rumor has it that Tatas are paying $900 million for a 10% stake in Faraday Future, thus valuing the electric car startup at $9 billion.. Ridiculously overpriced, if true.
Bringing Bikes Back: Bikes are having a second coming in China — in the form of bike-shares.
'What can India teach us' by Max Müller: I remember one of our masters (Dr. Klee) telling us, that there was a language spoken in India, which was much the same as Greek and Latin, nay, as German and Russian. At first we thought it was a joke, but when one saw the parallel columns of numerals, pronouns, and verbs in Sanskrit, Greek, and Latin written on the blackboard, one felt in the presence of facts, before which one had to bow. The concept of the European man has been changed and widely extended by our acquaintance with India, and we know now that we are something different from what we thought we were. The study of Sanskrit has not only widened our views of man, and taught us to embrace millions of strangers and barbarians as members of one family, but it has imparted to the whole ancient history of man a reality which it never possessed before.
Consciously quantum: Perhaps the most renowned of Quantum mechanics' mysteries is the "observer effect" -- the fact that the outcome of a quantum experiment can change depending on whether or not we choose to measure some property of the particles involved. This deeply troubled the early pioneers of quantum theory. It seemed to undermine the basic assumption behind all science: that there is an objective world out there, irrespective of us. If the way the world behaves depends on how – or if – we look at it, what can "reality" really mean?
A bitter harvest: Low prices leave farmers seething. “The farm crisis is worsening by the year”.
Something In The Air: Why does India lead the world in deaths from TB? The rise of TB infections has coincided with the dismal air quality index in many Indian cities.
Smog shortening lives. Patient numbers have more than tripled in Delhi hospitals since pollution levels spiked.
Indian students in US dwarf America's FDI in India, spend whopping $6.54 bn
Indian students spent a massive $6.54 billion in the US in 2016-17, up 30% from the previous year, dwarfing the North American country's foreign direct investment (FDI) of $2.37 billion in India.
Indian students spent a massive .54 billion in the US in 2016-17, up 30% from the previous year, dwarfing the North American country's foreign direct investment (FDI) of .37 billion in India. (Image: Reuters)
Indian students spent a massive $6.54 billion in the US in 2016-17, up 30% from the previous year, dwarfing the North American country's foreign direct investment (FDI) of $2.37 billion in India. Of course, a large part of US FDI routed through low-tax jurisdictions like Mauritius is not counted here, although recent changes in tax treaties have made the route a bit less attractive. Among large countries, India was outstripped by China in 2009-10 to become the largest place of origin of students coming to the US, with correspondingly high spending. However, in recent years India has been bridging the gap with a scorching pace of growth in students it sends to the US — 29% in 2014-15, 25% in 2015-16 and 12.3% in 2016-17. Between 2010-11 to 2012-13, when the global financial meltdown hit the US economy badly, there was negative growth in Indian students going to that country. Chinese students spent $12.55 billion in the US in 2016-17, up about 10%.
"The American higher education system introduces international students to networks and contacts that provide benefits and advantages over a lifetime," said Karl M Adam, deputy cultural affairs officer at the US embassy in India. Most of the Indian students in the US pursue graduation courses in mathematics, computer science and engineering. For the record, the US was the fifth largest source of FDI for India in 2016-17, behind Mauritius, Singapore, Japan and Netherlands. Though services FDI fared better, US investments in India's manufacturing sector needs to grow, officials here feel.
According to Open Doors, a study by the Institute of International Education along with the US government's education department, students from India and China now represent approximately 50% of the total enrolment of 1.08 million international students in the US. Indian students comprise 17.3% of all international students in the US, it added. The continued growth in international students coming to the US for higher education has had a significant positive impact on its economy. About 1.08 million international students studying at US colleges and universities contributed $36.9 billion and supported more than 450,000 jobs to its economy during 2016-2017, said NAFSA, an association of international educators.
Open Doors reported that about two-thirds of all international students receive the majority of their funds from sources outside of the US, including personal and family sources as well as assistance from their home country governments or universities. Interestingly, the number of US students coming to India to study for academic credit at their home university has been on the decline since 2013-14 and it fell by 5.8% to 4,181 in 2015-16, as they increasingly prefer European countries. India's rank in terms of outbound destination for US students also declined to 15 from 13.
The US President had two principal issues to flog with China — reducing America's massive trade deficit and countering the North Korean nuclear threat. By seeking China's crucial support for defanging Pyongyang of its nuclear teeth, Trump has weakened his hand on pummelling Beijing on trade issues. He cannot solicit Chinese cooperation on one vital issue and threaten China on another. This implies absence of any recognition that its muscle flexing is causing unwanted tensions in the region. In sum, it remains unclear at the international level how forcefully Trump wants to respond to China's challenge to US power.
Indian students spent a massive .54 billion in the US in 2016-17, up 30% from the previous year, dwarfing the North American country's foreign direct investment (FDI) of .37 billion in India. (Image: Reuters)