India Media Centre, claimed to be the world’s first academic centre dedicated to research into one of the most diverse and dynamic media systems on the planet, has been launched at the elite Westminster University here.

Speaking on the occasion, the Westminster University Chancellor, Lord Swraj Paul, said the new centre “will promote and develop research and knowledge transfer on Indian media in a global context, and will attract high-quality research students from the sub-continent.

“It will also build collaborative links with international institutions, policy makers, NGOs and creative and cultural industries, as well as provide a platform for UK-based Indian media, arts and cultural organisations.”

Leading NRI industrialist Lord Paul, Chairman of the Caparo Group of industries, described the UK as a world leader in cultural industries, and said: “this University has a long and proud tradition of academic excellence in the study of media, arts and design.”

An NRI Violinist has won this year`s Gloucestershire Young Musician of the Year competition and is set to perform at major events. Therese DeSouza, a 16 year old violinist whose family is originally from Goa, won the event that included four other finalists on Wednesday. “I am over the moon. It’s a very surreal feeling to have won. We all played for about 15 to 20 minutes trying to show a range of music within our programmes,” Therese said after winning the event, according to PTI reports. “There was panel of judges. It was very nerve-wracking but it was just brilliant,” she added.

Therese, who attends Pate’s Grammer School in Cheltenham, wins the Oldbury Trophy, a 500 pounds prize and will now perform in her own concert series, including a concerto with the Gloucestershire Youth Orchestra and a solo performance as part of this year’s Cheltenham Music Festival. Gloucestershire County Council’s music service organised the event to discover the musical star of 2010. The other finalists were Elin White (violin), Alastair Roberts (classical guitar), Thomas Percy (violin) and Andrew McDade (tuba).

Prakash Narain, M.D. was elected the new Mayor for the city of Cypress, California on December 14, 2009. In 2009, Dr. Narain served as Mayor Pro Tem of the city. Cypress has population of almost 50,000 people of which South Asians comprise 0.2% only.

Dr. Prakash Narain has been very active in the community for many years, including serving on the Cypress Senior Citizens Commission for 8 years. This is his first term on the City Council. He was elected in November 2006 in his first attempt at public office. Cypress allows for a maximum of 2 four-year terms on the city council. Narain will be running for re-election to the city council in November 2010.

Dr. Narain is a physician with a specialization in internal medicine and geriatrics. He has been in medical practice at the Leisure World Health Care Center in Seal Beach, California for 22 years. While serving as a City Council Member, he has continued his medical practice and his affiliation with Los Alamitos Medical Center, in Los Alamitos, where he has served as Chief of Staff and as Chairman of the Governing Board of Directors.

Also in December, 2009, Harry Sidhu, an engineer turned businessman, was elected Mayor Pro-tem for City of Anaheim, home of Disneyland. Harry was re-elected as Anaheim City Councilman last year. Currently, he is contesting for the position of Orange County Supervisor.

David Dhillon, a third generation Indian American was the first to be elected mayor of a city in California. He was elected mayor three times of city of El Centro, Imperial County. Imperial and Riverside counties formed the Congressional district from where Indian American Dalip S. Saund was elected as congressman of the United Sates. Saund was the first among Asians elected as Congressman in the US.

An NRI activist, Kartar Singh Khaira, has alleged scam in the construction of a stretch of a Ludhiana-Ferozepur road between Jagraon bridge and Sidhwan Canal (RD 0 to 4755 metre) and demanded a high-level inquiry into it.

Addressing a press conference in Ludhiana on Monday, Khaira alleged, “It took me almost 180 days to get this information. The documents procured under the RTI Act show rampant corruption in the strengthening of roads in the city. The documents show the nexus among the contractors and officials of Ludhiana Municipal Corporation.”

He said hurdles were created from the very first day of filing of the RTI application, when the officers concerned did not even bother to respond to the application and it was the intervention of State Information Commission that made the PIO provided the information. It still took Khaira 180 days to get information as against 30 days’ time incorporated in the Act.

Nine NRIs were chosen for the Padma awards announced at the eve of the India’s Republic Day last month. The list includes Nobel laureate Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, Indian American journalist Fareed Zakaria and New York-based hotelier Sant Singh Chatwal, have been given the Padma awards this year for services to India. While Britain-based Ramakrishnan, who got the Nobel Prize for Chemistry last year, has got the Padma Vibhushan - the second highest award - for science and engineering, four have got the Padma Bhushan - the third highest award - and the rest the Padma Shri.

Those that have got the Padma Bhushan are Newsweek International editor Zakaria for journalism; Sant Singh Chatwal, hotelier and lobbyist, for public affairs and Arogyaswami Joseph Paulraj, who is also US-based, for science and engineering. Also in the list is Britain Manvinder Singh Bangal alias Vindi Banga for trade and industry.

Those receiving Padma Shri are Prof. Ponisseril Somasundaran of Columbia Univiersity for science and engineering and Dr. Sudhir M. Parikh, publisher of News India Times and other publications for social work. The United Arab Emirates’ J.R. Gangaramani has got the Padma Shri for social work and Bahrain’s B. Raveendran Pillai for trade and industry.

PepsiCo chief executive Indra Nooyi topped the list of what Forbes called “Eight Indian-Flavored CEOs”, who lead America‘s corporations with revenues of at least $2 billion. The premier business magazine has chronicled the rise of Indian Americans in corporate ranks in the United States.

“The chief executive of PepsiCo would be prominent no matter what. The fact that the current one - Indra Nooyi - is an Indian immigrant makes her all the more noteworthy,” Forbes said.

“It‘s not a surprise that we‘re seeing Indians rise in corporate Forbes quoted Richard Herman, co-author of a book on migrants to the U.S.titled Immigrant, Inc, as saying in an article published recently. “Of all the immigrant groups coming in today, Indians are head-and-shoulders above others, and this is partly because of their English language skills and also the advanced education that many of them are bringing to the U.S,” Herman said. Of the featured eight, PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi, 53, is part of a growing trend where U.S. companies are being created, or led, by foreign-born individuals who bring in something special, Herman said.

Vikram Pandit, the CEO of Citigroup, is the other prominent native Indian in the corner office, he said. Third on the list was Kenya-born Francisco D'Souza who heads Cognizant Technology Solutions, which outsources IT services for its clients in the West. D‘Souza, 40, whose grandparents hailed from Goa in India, joined the company in 1994 when it was founded. Within three years, he had gone up the ranks to become director of North American operations.

Next came Shantanu Narayen, 46, at the helm at Adobe Systems. The diversified software company’s flagship Internet video tool is Flash. “At least one top boss of Indian descent is plotting a growth strategy,” said Forbes of Quest Diagnostics‘ head Surya Mohapatra, fifth on the list. Also featured were Dinesh Paliwal of Harman International, Jai P. Nagarkatti of Sigma-Aldrich and Abhijit Talwalkar of LSI.

Paliwal, a native of Agra, joined Harman, a sound-systems company in Stamford, Connecticut, as chief executive in 2007. Prior to that, he spent 22 years at ABB Group and set up its operations in China and north Asia. Nagarkatti joined Sigma-Aldrich in 1976 as a development chemist, and after heading the company‘s scientific research business, was appointed COO, in 2004.Talwalkar was appointed chief executive of LSI of Milpitas, California, in May 2005. Earlier, he was at Intel's digital enterprise group. He joined Intel in 1993.

External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna on Wednesday held talks with his Australian counterpart Stephen Smith and pressed for 'effective steps' by Canberra to ensure the security of Indians in that country.

Smith updated Krishna about the measures taken by the Australian authorities, including close surveillance of areas where Indians stay in large numbers, and emphasized his government's zero tolerance for any racist attacks.

Pulitzer Prize-winning New York based author Jhumpa Lahiri has been appointed as a member of US President Barack Obama's Committee on the Arts and Humanities, along with five others.

“I am proud that these distinguished individuals will serve in my Administration. The arts and the humanities enhance the vibrancy of our society, inspire us and strengthen our democracy,” a statement read from the White House. “I look forward to working with them in the weeks and months ahead,” Obama said. Besides Lahiri, others appointed to the committee are Chuck Close, Fred Goldring, Sheila Johnson, Pamela Joyner and Ken Solomon. A fiction writer, Lahiri's debut collection of stories, ‘Interpreter of Maladies’, received the Pulitzer Prize, the PEN/Hemingway Award among other awards. Her novel, ‘The Namesake’, was turned into a film by Mira Nair starring Kal Penn, who is also currently serving the White House. Lahiri’s latest story collection, ‘Unaccustomed Earth’, continues to pick up literary prizes also.