FICA Celebrates India’s 64th Republic...

A Monthly Publication of the Federation of India Community Associations (FICA) Since 1967INSIDE

Free Monthly Subscription - A Non-Profit & Tax Exempt Organization - Tax ID# 34-1215066

February 2013 - Volume 0213Non-Profit

OrganizationU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDCLEVELAND,

OHIOPERMIT NO.

1051

FEDERATION OF INDIA COMMUNITY ASSOCIATIONINDIA COMMUNITY CENTER12412 CEDAR ROADCLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OH 44106

Or Current Resident

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FICA Current Events 2Community NewsPhoto with Santa 3 Dean’s Chair 4Swami Vivekananda Birth Anniversary 5General Body Meeting 6

Health and WellnessCarbohydrates are important 7

Did You Know ? Interesting Trivia 8Flax 9

LOTUS TEAM

Editor-in-ChiefSangita Bafna [email protected]

EditorsCheryl DmelloKookie LambaKanta Singh

Public Relations/CreativeParamjit [email protected]

Project Sevawww.projectseva.com

FICA Mission

To preserve the rich cultural heritage and values of India by effective participation in civic forums, economic growth and devel-opment of the region, provide opportunity for growth by partnering with the larger community to promote goodwill and under-standing for people of India who have emi-grated to the USA.

FICA Vision

To be recognized as an organization that fos-ters strong citizenship family values of India founded in a civilization 6000 years old. FICA will be a valued resource and leader of the community contributing to the economic de-velopment, cultural enrichment and commu-nity responsiveness.

Cleveland, OH – More than 330 people attended the annual India Republic Day celebrations organized by the Federation of India Com-munity Associations. The gala event was held at the Embassy Suites in Indepen-dence, Ohio on January 26, 2013.

The evening started with a social hour followed by a for-mal event with sit-down dinner. Kathy Ghose, Vice-President of FICA welcomed the audience to the program. Swati Reddy opened the evening with a rendition of the US National Anthem, followed by the recital of the Indian National Anthem by Anasua Bandyopadhyay, Ushashi Datta, Debolina Ghosh, Sristhi Ghosh, Suranjit Ghosh, and Ayan Nath. Antara Datta read a letter addressed to the Prime Min-ister of India and the Indian Ambassador to the US, to protest against the tragic incident in New Delhi that happened on De-cember 16, 2012. The letter was drafted by Antara for FICA and calls for not only the strictest enforcement of existing laws but also a thorough review of the Indian legal system. It requested severe punishment for the rapists in this case so that it will re-main an example for years to come and serve as a deterrent for any future sexual crime. Following the special remarks by Antara Datta, the FICA Awards Committee, comprising of Sujata Burgess, Hira Rane, and Venky Venkatesh took the stage to present two awards to distinguished community members. The 2013 Service to FICA and/or the Indian Community Award was presented to Dr. Darshan Mahajan for his exemplary service to the Asian Indian community in north-east Ohio. The 2013 Friend of FICA Award was presented to Radhika Reddy for the significant contribution she made to FICA, with time, talent, and unlimited resources. In addition, this year a special award was presented to Anamika Veeramani recognizing her as the Outstanding Youth of North East Ohio for receiving a perfect score of 2400 on the SAT. These awards were felicitated by former Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher. FICA thanks all the nominators and the other nominees and wishes the very best to all the recipients of this year’s award winners.

“I am proud to embrace your cultural traditions and teachings, and I hope that you will continue to encourage civic involvement and cultural understanding in your communities, throughout the state, and across the country” said Ohio Governor Kasich in a statement. This year a unique video and live presentation took cen-ter stage in place of the traditional speech and entertainment program. The theme of the program was “Our Legacy”, which focused on the substantial contribution made over the past fifty years by the India community in north-east Ohio. The proud leg-acy of Asian Indians spans the entire spectrum of human effort including medicine, science & technology, education, business, performing arts, entrepreneurship, politics and philanthropy. The following leaders, entrepreneurs, and officials at-tested to the proud legacy of Asian Indians via video and live presentation - Senator Sherrod Brown; Alex Machaskee, Former Plain Dealer Publisher; Ron Berkman, President of Cleveland State Universtity; Monte Ahuja, Entrepreneur & Philanthropist; David Franklin, Director, Cleveland Museum of Art; Barbara Snyder, President of Case Western Reserve University; Massoud Saidpour, Curator, Cleveland Museum of Art; Dr. Toby Cos-grove, President & CEO, Cleveland Clinic Foundation; Peggy Zone Fisher, President & CEO, Diversity Center; Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald; and Yin Tang of the Cleveland Asian Festival. As part of the “live” presentation, Krishna Pasumarthy played the flute, Sujatha Srinivasan danced to Vande Mataram, and Raj performed “Bollywood” dances.Authentic Indian cuisine was catered by Saf-fron Patch for this event. The evening ended with energetic dancing of the crowd to many of the popular music by DJ Kris Koch.

FICA Celebrates India’s 64th Republic Day

Continued on Page 4

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Message from the President - Asim Datta

An open letter to the Leaders in India

FICA Current Events

On the 26th of January, we got together, about 340 of us from the Indian community, to Salute the Republic that is our beloved India, the very Republic that gave us life, shaped our values and the way we live, with compassion for all and respect for equality. A system of government that is called democracy, in the land of our birth, India!!We brought our talents to our new home, and in the proud tradition of our heritage, settled in to make a difference to the community that embraced us. So, on the 26th, as we celebrated India’s 64th Republic Day, we watched a series of video messages from many of the leaders in Greater Cleveland community share with us the their admiration and respect for the many ways we impact life. They talked about our contributions and talents in medicine, science, education, art, culture, entrepreneurship, philanthropy and more. While all that we heard and watched in the video messages were certainly not new to us, it was still nice to receive the acknowledgements.Friends, we are doing well, being productive and responsible, and greater days are ahead of us, for sure.

FICA StaffAdministration

Chittaranjan Jain, Chair

Board of Trustees

[email protected], 440/942-4369

Executive BoardAsim Datta, President


Kathy Ghose, Vice President


Sapna Reddy Kumar, Secretary

[email protected], 216 /236 -3727

Rupal Dhruv, Treasurer


Mona Alag , Past President


Sangita Bafna

Publisher, The Lotus


Sujata Burgess

[email protected]

Anjan Ghose

India Community Center


Meera Kansal

[email protected]

Kenneth Kovach

[email protected]

Vinod Nagpal

[email protected]

Michael Sreshta

[email protected]

Sister OrganizationsMarathi Mandalwebsite : www. neomm.orgPresident: Hira Rane, email : [email protected],Phone: 440-567-8793Vice president: Tanymee Dixit, tel 216-926-4264

Bengali Cultural Society of ClevelandPresident: Sadhan C. Jana phone: 330-665-9921,e-mail: [email protected] President: Bijon Roy phone: 330-666-0281, email: [email protected]) and Mithu Majumdar phone: 216-231-9547, email: [email protected]

AIPNO :President - Dr. Appachi Phone : 216.312.3869e-mail : [email protected]. Beejadi MukundaPhone : 440.488.2300e-mail : [email protected]

Deeply saddened by the recent incident of sexual crime against a young woman in New Delhi and dumb-found-ed by the sheer brutality of it, we have decided to speak our hearts out. Words are powerless to fathom the depths of our pain and outrage. A dark shadow of collective shame hangs over our heads. The rape of any woman anywhere in the world is the worst incident of barbarism and a heinous crime against humanity. What has happened in New Delhi is a total and absolute dishonor of womanhood. Forgetting that he him-self has been brought to the world by a woman, when a rapist commits a beastly crime against another woman, he is desecrating God Himself. A society that lacks the judicial power and the law-enforcement infrastructure to protect its women from frequent incidents of such predatory crime can hardly be called civilized. It is ironic that a society that idolizes femininity by worshipping Durga, Kali and Sita seems unwilling or unable to prevent female infanticide and unspeakable sexual crimes against women. As non-resident Indians, we find it difficult to be proud of such a society. As we often find, the victims of such crimes are too ashamed to come forward, are dissuaded by their family members from going forward, or are humiliated and ridiculed by the very law-enforcement officials who are responsible for protecting them in the first place. Even if charges are brought against the perpetrators and lawsuits are filed, many such cases wade painfully slowly through the muddy waters of the Indian justice system while the victims languish. Yet, we all know that justice delayed is justice denied. So it is imperative for India to have a fast- track judicial system that delivers in real time. In addition, it is absolutely necessary to educate those in a position to assist victims of sexual violence (or harassment) about the importance of their responsibility and raise greater awareness in the society about the utter disgrace and social exclusion that the victims routinely experience. A crime this barbaric does not come out a vacuum, but rather it is an inexorable outcome in a society where less physically damaging attacks on a woman’s honor go unchecked, thereby providing indirect encouragement to all would-be perpetrators. We hardly react to the shameless advertising of female infanticide in billboards that say “ Dowry 5 lakhs, Abortion 5000”. We simply ignore the real implications of what is lost and fail to internalize the grav-ity of the situation when Delhi achieves the sobriquet of “the rape capital of India”. It is as if we have all subscribed to a passive culture of “do nothing, feel nothing and ask nothing from our elected leaders”. We know in our hearts that almost every woman in India at one time or another has suffered a humiliating treatment of catcalls and leering, op-portunistic sexual advances in a crowd or some form of subtle or overt coercion. And that is precisely why our reactions to this latest incident have been so spontaneous, universal and strong. For far too many of our mothers, sisters and daughters, this was the moment of “There, but for the grace of God, go I”. We at FICA (Federation of Indian Cultural Associations), on behalf of all the social, cultural and religious Indian organizations in Ohio, would like to join the spontaneous and heartfelt protest against the tragic incident in New Delhi that happened on December 16, 2012. It calls for not only the strictest enforcement of existing laws but also a thorough review of the Indian legal system. In other words, it calls for a fair amount of soul searching --- especially since the casual apathy and the insensitivity with which the Government initially responded to this incident was appalling. The punishment for the rapists in this case should be so severe that it remains exemplary for years to come and serves as a deterrent for any future sexual crime. We, therefore, request you to convey our collective disgust and revulsion to the Government of India and remind them that we, the millions of non-resident Indians all over the world, are watching. We will not let this issue be relegated to the backburner and will use all our means to keep it front and center in the 2013 legislative agenda of India’s elected officials. Thanking you in advance,Sincerely,Antara Datta

Newsmakers!

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Community News

Project Seva Blanket Drive - By Satish Parikh In spite of the windy, chilly and snowy weather, Proj-ect Seva has achieved their goal to distribute the 1,100+ blankets to 20+ shelter homes because of the dedicated volunteers.I salute to all volunteers for their courage and dedica-tion to support this worthy cause in this kind of bad weather. Allow me to thank all of you (Volunteers) for your kind support.We were fortunate to have some volunteers travelled from out of town to support this distribution drive

“Project Seva (FICA) organized the annual “Photo with Santa” event at the United Method-ist Church on Dec 22, 2012. At this event, photos were taken of children and seniors with Santa and were later delivered to its rightful owners. During the event, children from the Indian com-munity volunteered their time and energy for this wonderful event. Following are some their comments from their experience of this event.”

Children’s views: From Disha Rathod:“My name is Disha and I am 12 years old. I had a good time and felt good about helping people take their pictures with Santa. It was fun and the joy in the air made it even better. I will definitely be doing this again.” From Avi Rathod: “My name is Avi and I am 10 years old. I liked helping those people take pic-tures with Santa and being there with my friends and having fun at the same time. It made me feel good inside. I liked to see people laugh and smile while taking pictures and that made me smile too. I would like to go again next year. “From: Dhruv Ghiya“It was a cold, white day in Cleveland, Ohio. Three days before Christmas and everyone was mailing Santa something. Little kids love Christmas and hope that they will get something special from Santa on Christmas day. Christmas is the day that everyone expects something for themselves. Taking pictures with Santa is one of the best moments for everyone in Christmas time. Every year, Project Seva helps the people who do not have an opportunity to go to big mall or any other places where they can have their picture taken with Santa. On December 22, 2012, one of the sister organization of FICA, Project Seva, host “PICTURE WITH SANTA” at Methodist United Church. This was not my first time. I have been helping at this event for couple of years. I was

ready and excited to help. I knew my task. When we reached the church, there were lot of people waiting to get their picture taken with Santa. Mr. Manoj Parikh and Mr. Sunil Desai who love photography in their free time, were at the Church helping during this unforgettable moment. They were taking pictures of everyone and my job was to print their picture and hand it to the right per-son. I felt that my task was priceless because when I printed the picture and give it to the individual person, the smile on their face was priceless and that is where I see the real Santa - on their face. I was fortunate to help with this wonderful “seva”. I believe that every citizen should serve the community each year as a part of their responsibility. I per-sonally encourage all the kids in our community to come and be a part of heart touching “seva” and engrave this unforgettable moment in your life.” From Aryan Parikh:“This was my 2nd year helping at the event called Photos with Santa. Once again I was glad that we helped them anyway we could. All the people who came enjoyed eating different food and taking pictures with Santa and also listening to the Christmas Carlos. When I show the smile on their face it made me happy. If asked I will definitely come again next year for help. Thank you Satish uncle.”From Shlok Ghiya:“My name is Shlok Ghiya and I am 8 years old. I am in 3rd Grade. I went to Church with my brother and my other friends to help people taking picture with Santa. It was really fun. Two of my dad’s friends Manoj uncle and Sunil uncle were taking pictures and I was helping my brother giving memory stick so that he can print the pictures give it to the right people. People are really helpful. We stayed 4 hours and it was really fun and good time. Helping people is a good thing. This is my second year and I feel proud that I help people on Christmas time. “

One of PROJECT SEVA’s many successful projects : “Photo with Santa”

Chagan and Indu BapnaDinesh and Sangita BafnaVimla and Raja ShekharVijay and Neeti ShamaRajesh and Seema SharmaRajendra and Usha MehtaBharatkumar PatelAtul and Shuva MehtaMina and Indra ShahAnsuyaben and Raman GohelSipra and Gopal SahaSantosh and Satish KalhanParvathi and Vishvanathan Na-rayanSeva InternationalPravin an Aruna ShahRavi & Sushma GuptaDevesh & Mina PatelDhaval & Sonal GhiyaDhaval & Nisha ChokshiManoj & Viraj ParikhShailesh & Bina ShahSatish & Pragna Parikh

Dilip & Smita ShahMr. & Mrs. Sudarshan SatheAshwin & Mala ShahOm JulkaSuresh & Dipti MendparaMr. & Mrs. Joe ThomasDivyakant and Pratima ParikhSanjay and Rupa ParikhMr. & Mrs. Sanjay GargRamesh & Dipika PandyaYogesh & Harsha ChokshiGhanshyam & Mital RathodJayraj & Binita ShethAshwin and Achla PatelJignesh & Pragna ShahMr. & Mrs. Bhupendra PatelMr. & Mrs. Venky Venketesh

Project Seva 2012 Donors List

Newsmakers!4 Community News

Mr. Monte Ahuja gifts $3.5M to Ohio State, Creates Dean’s Chair - By A Staff Reporter

COLUMBUS, Ohio, United States, Monte Ahuja, an alumnus of Ohio State University and founder of Transtar Industries in Cleveland, recently do-nated $3.5 million to Ohio State University to support student success and cre-ate the Monte Ahuja Endowed Dean’s Chair, which will be used for the benefit of the College of Engineering. Ahuja, who earned his master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Ohio State in 1970, wanted to give back to his alma mater. “I began Ohio State as an international student with a dream, deter-mination, and empty pockets,” Ahuja said in a press release. “What I learned through my studies and from the university community played a significant role in my entrepreneurial journey and accomplishments. My gift to the Col-lege of Engineering is an investment in students and success.” Born in India and educated at Punjab Engineering College, the Indi-an American entrepreneur came to Columbus in December 1968 for graduate school. While studying at Ohio State, he met his wife, Usha. He earned his master’s from the College of Engineering and she earned her Ph.D. from the College of Math and Physical Sciences. Ahuja then went on to earn his MBA at Cleveland State University and establish his internationally successful automotive parts business, Transtar. Always generous with his success, Ahuja’s gift to the College of Engi-neering creates an endowed chair. David Williams, dean of the college, will be officially appointed the Monte Ahuja Endowed Dean’s Chair and will use the funds to grow and develop the engineering programs at Ohio State. The College of Engineering has more than 8500 undergraduate and graduate students, and offers 17 undergraduate and 20 graduate degree pro-grams through its 10 departments and the Knowlton School of Architecture.Ahuja, currently chairman and CEO of MURA Holdings, L.L.C., founded Tran-star Industries in 1975. Transtar, now owned by Friedman, Fleischer & Lowe, soon became the leading worldwide company in the distribution of automo-

tive transmission replacement parts to the aftermarket, and earned dozens of awards for its outstanding growth and community involvement under Ahuja’s leadership. Numerous awards are credited to Ahuja’s name, including a Distin-guished Alumni Award from Cleveland State University in 1990; an Ellis Island Medal of Honor for Outstanding American Citizens in 2001; and an Interna-tional Executive of the Year Award by the World Trade Center of Cleveland in 2002, among others. Ahuja and his wife Usha have been married for 40 years and have two daughters, Manisha and Ritu. In related news, the US News & World Report has ranked the Mobile Accelerated MBA program at Cleveland State University’s Monte Ahuja Col-lege of Business number 57 in the nation for Online Graduate Business Pro-grams, said a press release from Cleveland State University this month.Launched in August 2012, the AACSB-accredited Mobile MBA is the newest addition to the Monte Ahuja College of Business’ programs. Upon enrollment students receive Apple’s iPad 4G, where all course materials including e-text-books can be accessed. They complete the accelerated program in one year. Course requirements, such a quizzes and tests, are completed online through an e-learning platform. “We are extremely excited about this extraordinary achievement. After its first year in existence, our Mobile MBA program ranked higher than some which have been operating for many years,” said Dr. Elad Granot, director of the Executive, Accelerated and Mobile MBA Programs and special assistant to the Provost – eLearning Development. In June 2011, CSU alumnus Ahuja donated $10 million to CSU to fund scholarships and an endowed professorship in business. At that time, CSU’s College of Business was renamed the Monte Ahuja College of Business.

FICA President Asim Datta and his team of volunteers worked hard to bring a very unique program this year and a memorable evening. This program was made possible due to generous donations by the friends of the community, well wishers, sponsors, and corporate donors. FICA is extremely thankful for all their support. FICA appreciates all the volunteers who helped make this a wonderful event. FICA recognizes the following individuals for their signifi-cant contributions to the success of this program - Ken Kovach and Johnny Wu for creating the video presentation; Anjan Ghose for the audio-video manage-ment; Venky Venkatesh and his committee for the awards presentation, Sujatha Burgess and her team for the registration; and Sapna Kumar for her help with the program brochure. FICA extends special thanks to Katie Bulter and James Greenberg (with assistant Josh) from Embassy Suites who provided tremen-dous help with the event. About FICA: FICA is an organization dedicated to serving the needs of the Asian Indian Community in Northeast Ohio. From its humble beginnings as a student association in 1962, it has grown to be the voice of a diaspora of over 20,000 and on the increase. FICA helps Asian Indian families assimilate into the mosaic of greater Cleveland. Its community service arm, known as Project Seva, and the India Cultural Garden have been instrumental in building bridges and in promoting greater understanding of Indian culture. For addi-tional information, please visit FICA online at www.ficacleveland.org or con-tact via email – [email protected].

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5 Community News

HSS - Cleveland Celebrates 150th Birth Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda! January 16, 2013, (Cleveland), Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh USA Inc. (HSS) concluded its inaugural event forits year-long “SV150” celebration of Swami Vivekananda’s 150th birth anniversary on January 12, 2013. HSS held inaugural events at over 100 locations nationwide attended by more than 7,000 par-ticipants and guests.The inaugural

event marked Swami Vivekananda’s actual birthday on January 12, 1863. The SV-150 year long activities were formally launched in Cleveland on January 13th, 2013 was held in the city of Willoughby Hills.The program took place at the local public library community hall and joined by several local organiza-tions and community members. Mr. Prakash Sinha, the editor of India International was the chief guest for the program. During his address, Mr. Sinha emphasized on the need of ap-plying Swamiji’s thoughts in today’s world. He also gave several examples on how little deeds of kindness can go a long way. “Universal peace can only be achieved by dharma and yoga” Said Prof. Sree Sreenath, the president of SEWA International and the lead speaker of the program. He shed light on the life and appreciation of Swamiji work in Western world. While appreciating vi-sion and leadership of HSS, he sent his greetings wishing the best for universal peace and harmony. He encouraged the attendees to follow Swamiji’s message of universal peace. Dr. Tej Kumar Pareek, joint secretary of HSS, Ohio, said that Swami Vivekananda’s idea of social reform through individual reform is HSSmain motto. He further elaborated how HSS is working worldwide to help every individual to recognize his/her own unique potential and then channel-izing it for the betterment of humanity. He had very informative and inspiring thoughts about the activities HSS is planning to undertake all over the country in 2013. He highlighted the details of SV-150 programs happening throughout the year, specially the upcoming Dharma Bee quiz. An activity which had the program stand unique was, the performances by kids aged 3 and above. The performances were related to Hindu culture such as Shlokas, speech about Swamiji. Notable performances were by Ojas Sathe - who dressed up as Swamiji and recited the complete speech, as is, which Swamiji gave at the Parliament of Religions at Chicago. Also, Roshini Sharma (13 years) and Anshul Sharma (5 years) gave a duet performance where Ro-shini played a Bhajan and Anshul performed a Kathak dance on it. Mr. Subodh Chandra, a renowned lawyer in Ohio State was the spe-cial guest for the program. He awarded tokens of love and gratitude to the children who performed in that program. Mr. Prasad Bakshi, the program co-

ordinator was then paid the vote of thanks. At the end of the program all participants made a “Sankalpa” (resolu-tion) for SV150 year. Launch of Dharma-Bee Contest! As part of the inaugural event, HSS also opened the registration por-tal for its first-ever Dharma-Bee, a nationwide quiz con-test for children between kindergarten and eighth grade, at www.dharma-bee.org. This edition of the DharmaBee will have questions on Bhagwan Sri Krishna along with the life and teachings of Swami Vivekananda. The winners will receive the prize up to $ 50,000. The inaugural event also included the premier of a twenty-minute vid-eo produced by HSS on the life and teachingsof Swami Vivekananda. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Ebs-FZVmaeE HSS - Cleveland will conduct other events in 2013 as part of its obser-vance of Swami Vivekananda’s 150th birth anniversary. These will include programs for high school and college students, such as a traveling exhibit on Swami Vivekananda’s life visiting major university campuses and “Vacation with Vivekananda” excursions to locations where Swami Vivekananda visited during his travels in the United States; and a culminating “Dharma and Yoga Fest,” scheduled simultaneously on a regional basis to commemorate SwamiVivekananda’s groundbreaking address at the World’s Parliament of Religions in Chicago on September 11, 1893. HSS conducts a structured values education program through its 150 chapters nationwide to develop strong character and teamwork and leadership skills and to organize a dynamic and flourishing Hindu- American community. For more informa-tion, please visitwww.hssus.org/sv150 and www.hssus.org. For more details please feel free to contact:Ajita and Prasad Bakshi (SV-150 Pro-gram coordinator-Greater Cleve-land) Email: [email protected] Ph: 224-392-9768

We have been hearing about Corruption in all walks of life, more so in India. It is the greatest sin in the administration and government of a coun-try which must be curbed. The recent case of 23-year-old Delhi gang-rape vic-tim’s death on December 29, 2012, highlighted the case of corruption shook the whole nation. People vented their anger and demanded stricter laws to protect women, whose cases of rape have been lightly handled. Mourners vented their fury against the administrative machinery where such cases also face corrup-tion. The Government of India was vehemently shaken and compelled to deal with that particular case at once to meet the ends of justice and to quickly punish all the accused perpetrators of this crime. Hopefully the convicts will eventually be adequately punished. Now let us consider the larger issue of Corruption, which has sullied the image of the country. Imagine the suffering of the common man in day-to-day life of a country where corruption is ram-pant. What really is corruption? It is the abuse of entrusted power among the administrators of a country, for private gain. It is also defined as moral deprav-ity and influence through bribery or family connections. It hurts everyone who trusts but is denied justice by authority. Some of the diverse factors that cause corruption to erode the moral fiber of a country can be easily met by simple ac-

tions of the Government as below: - introduce least amount of red tape, form filling, etc. and single window clearance of cases. Enforce accountability. Re-form the Police and other administrative offices. They should help the common man rather than create impediments. Exemplary punishments to offenders in even minor cases reported by people. Laws should be so modified that any person convicted of criminal activity or corruption should never be eligible for election to the House of Parliament. The pernicious role of “black or white” money power in elections also needs to be stopped. Let each one of NRI’s also help in cultivating the value of honesty, truthfulness and integrity in their chil-dren who are the future leaders of a nation. Those who visit India should never indulge in any kind of bribery even if they suffer monetarily. Let us all help in eradicating the malady of corruption.

Corruption - By Om Julka

6 Community News

2013 FICA ANNUAL2013 FICA ANNUALGENERAL BODY MEETING & ELECTIONSGENERAL BODY MEETING & ELECTIONS

Saturday - March 23, 2013 - 2:00 p.m.

INDIA COMMUNITY CENTER12412 Cedar Rd., Cleveland Hts., OH 44106

PROGRAM2:00PM - 2:30PM – Tea/Coffee & Snacks

2:30PM - 4:30PM - General Body Meeting & Elections, Recognitions & Annual Reports

FICA ELECTIONS

FICA invites Nominations to the FICA Executive Board. FICA Executive Board Member Term is 3 years.

One must be a current member of FICA to be nominated. Contact SujataBurgess at [email protected] for membership information.

Please send in your Nominations to serve on FICA Executive Board. Nominations must be received by March 13thth, 2013 by contacting the

Nomination Committee Members Listed below.

Chittaranjan Jain, Ph:440/942-4369, email: [email protected] Ghose, Ph:440/248-3563, email: [email protected]

Vinod Nagpal, Ph:440/821-0479,email: [email protected] Dutta, Ph: 440/779-4447,email: [email protected]

Ashok Shendure, Ph:440/666-6282

FICA - Making The Difference For Our Community

FICA is a 501© (3) not-for-profit community service organization.

7 Health & WellnessWhy Carbohydrates Are Important for Your Diet - By Chris Iliades, MD

Carbohydrates are an essential part of any diet. Learn about the best carbohy-drate choices for diet and weight loss.Medically reviewed by Pat F. Bass III, MD, MPH

Carbohydrates are all about energy and are found in foods like fruits, vegetables, breads, pasta, and dairy products. Your body uses these foods to make glucose, which is your body’s main energy source. Glucose is a type of sugar that can be used right away for energy or stored away to be used later. “Carbohydrates provide the body with the energy it needs and are a good source of many vitamins and minerals. However, not all carbohydrates are cre-ated equal,” says Donna Logan, RD, a registered dietitian at the University of Texas Medical School in Houston. According to the U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005, the best carbohydrates are those that contain a lot of fiber, like vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. These types of carbohy-drates take longer to break down into glucose and give you the most nutrients along with your calories. Refined carbohydrates are sometimes referred to as “bad” carbohydrates. These are carbohydrates that have been processed to re-move parts of the grain and have had sugar added. Common examples of re-fined or processed carbohydrates are white bread, cakes, and cookies. Low-Carb Diets and Weight Loss “One of the best weight-loss guidelines is to eliminate sources of simple sugars such as soda, sweets, candies, cakes, cookies, and similar snack foods,” says Logan. “Choose foods with few or no grams of sugar. Foods high in fiber are best because they provide optimal nutrition while giving a sense of full-ness.” If you choose a low-carbohydrate diet for weight loss and take in fewer calories, you will lose weight. Generally these diets involve eating less bread and pasta and more vegetables, fruits, and meat. Although low-carbohydrate diets work well early on, after six months they do not work any better than any other diets for weight loss. “If you stop eating carbohydrates, you rapidly lose water weight as your body breaks down the stored carbohydrates,” explains Darwin Deen, MD,

senior attending physician at Montefiore Medical Center’s Department of Fam-ily and Social Medicine in the Bronx, New York. “The problem is that a low-carbohydrate diet is not a normal balance of physiologic nutrition. As soon as you start eating carbohydrates again, your body replenishes your carbohydrate stores and your weight comes back,” says Dr. Deen. Eat the Right Carbohydrates for Weight Loss “Eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, which can add variety, col-or, and flavor to meals. Whole grains such as whole wheat, corn tortillas, and brown rice are great sources of healthy carbohydrates. Check the nutritional label for carbohydrate information, including total carbohydrates, dietary fiber, and sugars,” says Logan. Here are ideas for getting the right carbs in your diet: Start your day with a breakfast of whole-grain cereal and fruit. Add an extra serving of veg-etables to lunch and dinner. For easy between-meal snacks right at your finger-tips, keep raw, cut-up vegetables in the refrigerator. Substitute beans as a main course in place of meat once every week. Eat a whole fruit as your dessert. Get Your Personal Carbohydrate Guidelines U.S. guidelines suggest that between 45 and 65 percent of your calories come from carbohydrates. At the USDA Web site, you can enter your age, sex, height, weight, and activity level to find out exactly how many calories in your diet should be from carbohydrates. You will also find the “Easy Fiber Estima-tor,” which will tell you how many grams of fiber ought to be in every 1,000 calories you eat. For example, if you are on a diet of 2,000 calories, you will want to get 28 grams of dietary fiber.

Concentrate on Calories and Nutrition The USDA’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005 recommends a balanced eating pattern. If you need to lose weight, you should decrease your calories gradually and increase your physical activity. Choose fiber-rich carbohydrate foods and avoid added sugars. Making healthy carbohydrate choices while re-ducing calories and increasing physical activity is the healthiest path to weight loss.

Name ContributionBengali Cultural Society $31,250Bafna, Mohan $6,000Marathi Mandal of Northeast Ohio $5,000Sathe, Sudarshan and Swati $5,000Bafna,Suresh and Guniya $2,500Pagedar, Ajit and Saroj $1,050Patil, Ashok and Sulochana $1,001Bafna, Dinesh and Sangita $1,000Church, In Cleveland Heights $1,000Gidwani, Gita $1,000Haria, Chandra and Hansa $1,000Jain, Chittaranjan and Nisha $1,000Joshi, Vinod and Manju $1,000Kansal, Sunil and Meera $1,000Mahajan, Darshan and Carlee $1,000Menthia,Hemant and Kusum $1,000Modi, Batuk and Anita $1,000Pakrashi, Brojesh and Subha-Sen $1,000Patel,Mahesh and Taru $1,000Pillai, Rajshekhar and Latha $1,000Kampani, Surinder and Shanta $750Patel, Jivan and Meena $750

Bengali Puja Group $700Daga, Manohar and Chandra $700Jagetia, Lal and Shanta $700Stamos, George and Kathy $700Modi, Satish and Tarlika $600Wadhwa,Tripta $525Bapna, Chhagan and Indu $501Dutta, Sunil and Kabita $501Adhia, Bharat and Sucharita $500Agarwal, Munna and Archana $500Gavhane, Ramesh $500Lakshminarayana C Rao and Family $500Nagpal, Vinod and Neelum $500Patel,Rajni C and Jyoti R $500Punwani, Purshotam and poonam $500Shah Ramesh and Jaya $500Shah, Baiju and Koyen $500Sharma, Vijay and Neeti $500Singh, Arun and Annapurna $500Turakhia, Piyush and Nayna $500Vibhakar, Shardul and Nella $500Chandra, Subodh and Meena Morey $250Ebrahim, Zeyd E $250

Khambatta Parvez $250Maheshwer, Conjeevaram & Bhanu $250Masurekar, Jaywant $250Trikha, Rajiv and Mona $250Chatterjee, Soumya & Tamali Bhattacharyya $200Garg, Sanjay and Mala $200Patel, Bharti and Bhupendra $200Singh, Paramjit and Linda $180Guruswami, Giridhar and Anuradha $108Kothari, Shankuntala and Deepak Sharma $101Malhotra, Bimla $101Nagpaul, Hans and Kamla $101Pai, Shantaram and Nivedita $101Banerjee, Amiya $100Chatterjee, Arup and Sugatha $100Dhamija, Jagdish and Usha $100Suri,Sushil and Joyce $100Wright Bill $100Zimmerman, Ned $100Dhruv, Rahul and Rupal $51Wheeler-Cooper,Lisa $50Monica Jain $20Vardhman Bowri $20

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INTERESTING TRIVIA - Hey did you know?-By Kanta Singh Source Unknown

1.When the moon is directly overhead, you weigh slightly less.

2.Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, never telephoned his wife or mother because they were both deaf.

3. A psychology student in New York rented out her spare room to a carpenter in order to nag him constantly and study his reactions. After weeks of needling, he snapped and beat her repeatedly with an axe, leaving her mentally retarded

4. “I am.” is the shortest complete sentence in the English language.

5.Colgate faced a big obstacle marketing toothpaste in Spanish speaking countries because Colgate translates into the command “go hang Yourself.”

6. Like fingerprints, everyone’s tongue print is different.

7. “Bookkeeper” is the only word in English language with three consecutive double letters.

8. Right handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left handed people do.

9.The sentence “the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog” uses every Letter in the English language.

10. If the population of China walked past you in single line, the line would never end because of the rate of reproduction.

8

“During temporary suspension of the print version of Lotus, Ad rates will be 50% off ”

Ekadasi Fasting - February 6Pradosh Vrat - February 7Amavasya - February 10Basant Panchami - February 15 Saraswati Puja - February 15 Ratha Saptami - February 17Purnima or Full Moon Day - February 25

February 2013 Festivals

Did You Know? 9

The past couple of years have shown resurgence in the popularity of Flax and flax seed as a ‘new’ wonder or super seed. However this ‘new’ wonder of the plant world has been around since ancient times. It is thought to have origi-nated somewhere in the Mediterranean region and in regions of the Middle East circ 4000 BC, and there is some evidence that flax cultivation may have started even thousands of years earlier. Many

traditions are associated with this useful plant. Flax flowers were believed in the Middle Ages to be a protection against sorcery. The Bohemians have a belief that if seven-year-old children dance among Flax, they will become beautiful, and the whole plant was supposed to be under the protection of the goddess Hulda, who, in Teuton mythology, was held to have first taught mortals the art of growing Flax, of spinning, and of weaving it. The dictionary defines flax as: any of a genus (Linum of the family Linaceae, the flax family) of herbs; especially : a slender erect annual (L. usitatissimum) with blue flowers commonly cultivated for its bast fiber and seed. The “linum” part of this name sounds a lot like “linen,” which is a fabric that has been made from flax for over 3,000 years. The “usitatis-simum” part of its name means “of greatest use” in Latin, and that quality also rings true in our relationship to flax. This plant has served not only as a food source and source of linen, but also for the creation of sails on sailing ships, bowstrings, and body armor. Flax seeds come in two basic varieties: brown, and yellow or golden. Flaxseed contains all sorts of healthy components; but it owes its healthy reputa-tion to three of them:Omega-3 essential fatty acids-”good” fats that have been shown to have heart-healthy effects. Each tablespoon of ground flaxseed contains about 1.8 grams of plant omega-3s.Lignans –a type of phytoestrogen, which have both, plant estrogen and antioxi-dant qualities. Flaxseed contains 75 to 800 times more lignans than other plant foods. Fiber-Flaxseed contains both the soluble and insoluble types. It’s the omega 3s -- “good” fats -- that have researchers interested in terms of their possible effects on lowering cholesterol, stabiliz-ing blood sugar, lowering the risk of breast, prostate, and colon cancers, and reducing the inflammation of arthritis, as well as the inflammation that accompanies certain illnesses such as Parkinson’s disease and asthma. The flax seed is also high in most of the B vitamins, magne-sium, and manganese, phosphorous and copper. Flaxseeds can be purchased either whole or already ground. Because flaxseeds can be very difficult to chew, grinding of the seeds prior to consumption can usually increase their di-gestibility. Also, flaxseed, when eaten whole, is more likely to pass through the intestinal tract undigested, which means your body doesn’t get all the healthful components. On the other hand, pre-ground flaxseeds—while more convenient—also come with a shorter shelf life than whole flaxseeds. Store whole flaxseed in an airtight container in a dark, dry and cool place or place their airtight container directly in the refrigerator. Ground flaxseed, in general, is a great first choice, but there may be specific situations where flax oil or might be good. Grind flaxseeds in a coffee, seed, or spice grinder in order to enhance their digestibil-

ity and therefore their nutritional value. If adding ground flaxseeds to a cooked cereal or grain dish do so at the end of cooking since the soluble fiber in the flaxseeds can thicken liquids if left too long. Substitute ground flaxseed for part of the flour in recipes for quick breads, muf-fins, rolls, bread, bagels, pancakes, and waffles. Try replacing 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the flour with ground flaxseed if the recipe calls for 2 or more cups of flour Some things to remember when incorporating flaxseed in your diet: Drink plenty of water. There is so much soluble fiber in flax that it is important to drink plenty of water when eating flax products, otherwise constipation may result. Remember to start slowly if you aren’t used to a high-fiber diet. If you buy the flax seed, grind it to reap its benefits. How much flaxseed do you need? The optimum dose to obtain health benefits is not yet known but 1 to 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseed a day is currently the suggested dose.

Banana BreadJane Reinhardt Martin, RD,LD Preparation Time: 15 MinutesBaking Time: 50-55 MinutesYield: 16 Slices

Ingredients:1¼ cups all-purpose unbleached flour⅔ cup white sugar2 tsps baking powder¼ cup canola oil¼ tsp salt1 cup mashed bananas (about 3 medium or 2 large)¼ cup skim milk½ tsp vanilla⅓ cup chopped walnuts¾ cup stabilized ground flaxseed 2 Eggs

Directions:Preheat oven to 350ºF.In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together.In food processor or bowl, mash bananas. Then add eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla, and mix in well together.Fold in chopped nuts and ground flaxseed. Coat 8 ½ by 4 ½ inch loaf pan with non-stick spray.Pour the batter in loaf pan. Bake for about 50-55 minutes until dark brown, or until a tooth-pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan on a rack for at least 10-15 minutes before unmolding to cool completely on the rack.

FLAX

Quote of the Month“Be more concerned with your character

than with your reputationYour character is what you really are,

while your reputation is merely what others think of you.”

- John Worden

Joke of the MonthJim and Mary were both patients in a Mental Hospital. One day while

they were walking past the hospital swimming pool, Jim suddenly jumped into the deep end. He sank to the bottom and stayed there. Mary promptly jumped in to save him. She swam to the bottom and

pulled Jim out.When the medical director became aware of Mary’s heroic act he imme-

diately ordered her to be discharged from the hospital as he now con-sidered her to be mentally stable. When he went to tell Mary the news

he said, “Mary, I have good news and bad news. The good news is you’re being discharged because since you were able to jump in and save the life of another patient, I think you’ve regained your senses. The bad news is Jim, the patient you saved, hung himself with his bathrobe belt in the

bathroom. I am so sorry, but he’s dead.”Mary replied, “He didn’t hang himself, I put him there to dry.”

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