Congratulations to Siddharth Varanasi from Canton Charter School

Siddharth Varanasi won The Detroit News 2010 Spelling Bee yesterday by correctly spelling "pugilist". It was closely contested competition as Siddharth (11), a sixth-grader from Canton Charter School in Canton Township, battled it out with 60 of the best spellers from across Wayne County for about 11 rounds before the final rounds. The event was held at Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History.

Congratulations to Siddharth and to the runner up Audrey Jones, 11, a sixth-grader from Our Lady of Victory school in Northville.

Siddharth now moves on to the Scripps National Spelling Bee to be held June 2-4 in Washington, D.C. He will face 300 of the nation's top spellers, and he said he feels nervous about that competition. But he said he will step up his studying for the national bee. "I try to do it year-round," he said. "I use note cards for practice."

Read more about this story in Detroit News.

Michigan launches Appliance Rebate Program

The Michigan State government has launched an appliance rebate program, for washers, clothes washers, refrigerators, furnaces and water heaters.

Rebate amounts under the "Michigan Energy Efficient Appliance Rebate Program" range from $25 on new energy efficient dishwashers to $1,200 on solar water heaters. The program covers purchases made after today and isn't retroactive. The program runs through the end of the year (2010).

From Detroit News

Consumers interested in getting cash back on an appliance should first reserve a rebate, which expires if the purchase isn't made within two weeks. To reserve a rebate on refrigerators, clothes washers or dishwashers go to www.MIrebates.com or call (866) 621-8782. For furnaces and water heaters www.michrebate.com or (888) 642-4674.

(via Detroit News)

Six Indians from Michigan die in a Pennsylvania Car Crash

Update from Detroit News:

The minivan carrying seven Troy employees was traveling in the far left lane of eastbound Interstate 90, then drifted over rumble strips and swerved several times before crossing into oncoming traffic, an eyewitness told the Pennsylvania State Police.

"According to this, it sounds like operator error," Cpl. Kevin Havern said Monday

The rented Dodge Caravan was weighted down with backpacks and food for a weekend getaway for the seven people aboard. Police said Monday that could have made handling the vehicle difficult.

Six Indians (4 were employees of Troy, MI based Syntel Inc.) from Michigan died in a Pennsylvania Crash on Saturday, May 10, 2008. They were traveling in a minivan heading to Niagara Falls. The minivan crossed a median on Interstate 90 and hit an oncoming car near West Springfield, Pennsylvania.

Detroit News is reporting that Minivan driver Kaushik Deb (26) of Troy, died on impact. Others who died are Manoj Jharia (35), Mili Jharia (28), Nitin Agarwal (29), Swati Singhal (25) and Subham Choudhary (24). They all appeared to live in communities throughout Oakland County.

Detroit News further states that the Jharias were married, as were Agarwal and Singhal. Neither couple had children. All of the victims’ families are primarily in India. Mili Jharia and Swati Singhal did not work for Syntel.

The only survivor, Nitin Gupta, 28, was sitting in the front passenger seat, police said. He was treated and released from a hospital Saturday.

Donations for funeral expenses can be sent to the Syntel Accident Fund, 525 E. Big Beaver Road, Suite 300, Troy, Mich., 48032.

Sita and Manisha Kaura of Bloomfield Hills devise a quick way to learn English, expand vocabulary

Detroit News is reporting that the Indian American, Dad and Daughter duo (Sita and Manisha Kaura) have come with a method to

revolutionize education, to expand vocabularies, to increase understanding, to help everyone feel as passionately about words as they do.

There approach to vocabulary and spelling improvement revolves around 1,500 word parts, most derived from Greek or Latin, that they have identified as the most useful.

According to Dad

If you spent two weeks with us, you would have words coming out your ears.

In fact they have a manuscript ready. It contains 377 pages covering probably 20,000 words, fleshed out to 550 or 600 pages with illustrations.

Dad and Daughter contend that

We should not simply be memorizing words . We should be trained to recognize the fragments that form it, one of the 1,500 word parts they have determined to be key

Here are some examples:

sesquipedalian (I have no idea what this means, but lets follow Sita and Manisha Kaura's approach)

You can break up sesquipedalian into 3 parts: Sesqui, meaning one and a half; remember when Michigan celebrated 150 years of statehood with its sesquicentennial celebration in 1987? Ped, meaning foot. Alian, as in pertaining to words.

Sesquipedalian: as a noun, the word that means, "a long word."

Let's try another word: incommensurable

Sita Kaura pieced together in (not), com (together or consistent with) and mensura (measurement) and correctly defined it as disproportionate, or impossible to measure or compare.

Sita and Manisha!! If you are reading this blog post, do let us know your book title. I am sure lot of us would find it very beneficial.

Note:

Sita Kaura is a doctor who grew up in northwest India, lives in Bloomfield Township and runs a general practice in Southgate. Manisha Kaura is a sophomore at Detroit Country Day who likes tennis, go-karting and mountain biking, and bragged to her close friends about her fifth-grade graduation present -- the 2,662-page, 4-inch-thick, 12 1/2 -pound Webster's Third New International Dictionary.

Golden Gate a new Indian Restaurant in Rochester, MI

Molly Abraham writes in Detroit News about a new Indian Restaurant named "Golden Gate" in Rochester, Michigan.

Molly Abraham writes

Golden Gate is the creation of Qureshi Akkas Hussain, originally from Bangladesh, who spent some time in New York and also in Newcastle, England (where the natives don't need much persuasion to dig into Indian fare) before arriving in Michigan in 2000.

His Michigan experience includes being a professional waiter at two very upscale restaurants, for six years at Opus One, then moving on to Morton's the Steakhouse in Troy for a few months.

Having his own restaurant was always in the back of his mind, and when he found a suitable spot in Rochester, he decided the time was right.

Signature dishes include a number of lamb treatments, from a mild curry made with boneless lamb to ground lamb curry, and nearly as many vegetarian choices made with lentils, peas, potatoes, cauliflower and eggplant.

Those who like the convenience of the lunchtime buffet will probably appreciate the set dinners for two or four, either vegetarian or with meat, typified by this dinner combination for four ($68): an array of mixed appetizers such as samosas and pakoras, or a choice of soup, followed by chicken tikka masala, lamb karahi (boneless lamb, cooked with fresh ginger, onion, tomato, green pepper and black pepper), rice pilaf, flaky naan (the bread made in the tandoor oven), as well as dessert and coffee or spiced tea. A vegetarian dinner for four is $58.

Golden Gate is not much different from many of the modest Indian restaurants that dot the area. What sets it apart is the care and concern of its well-traveled proprietor.

More details from Detroit News:

• Address: 125 S. Main St.,Rochester 48307
• Phone: (248) 601-7000
• Hours: Lunch buffet 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Tues.-Sun.; dinner 5-9:30 p.m. Tues.-Thurs., 5-10 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 5-9 p.m. Sun. Closed Mon.
• Prices: Lunch buffet $8; appetizers $2-$6; breads and side dishes $1.50-$4.50; main dishes $8-$16; desserts $2.25-$3
• Credit cards: All major
• Liquor: No
• Smoking: No
• Parking: Rear lot
• Wheelchair access: No barriers

Hindus Angry over Canton Township Commissioner's Urination Remark

Catherine Johnson a Canton Township, MI planning commissioner asked during a debate whether Hindu women urinate in public as part of their faith. This was said on December 3rd, 2007 at a meeting over a $5 million plans to expand the Hindu Temple of Canton. Asian Indians were very...very angry at this and their anger resulted in Catherine Johnson quiting her post.

This from Detroit News:

many Asian Indians said the question was an unfair characterization of their culture and a lie. Others complained the remark underscored stereotypes about cleanliness in India, where poverty is rampant.

About the Hindu Temple expansion plans:

The Hindu temple's expansion plans have caused controversy because neighbors claim the project would look out of place next to $300,000 homes. Members want to demolish the 20-year-old temple and build an ornate, 35,000-square-foot, double-domed replacement deeper on property at Cherry Hill near Canton Center. Planners delayed a decision this month.

Rabid Fox attacks residents in Plymouth Township, MI

Detroit News is reporting that

A rabid fox is still on the loose today after biting a township woman and her beagle near Ann Arbor Trail and McClumpha last night.

Around 9 p.m. Thursday, the crazed animal "came out of nowhere," nipped at the woman's ankle and broke the skin, said Plymouth Township Police Chief Thomas Tiderington.

The woman's dog then chased the fox and was also bit. Both sought medical treatment, he said.

The incident is the latest following several attacks occurring in the same area over the last month.

"There's not much we can do…except notify the public to be on the lookout," Tiderington said. "We've contacted professional animal control and we're discussing what capabilities they have."

Careful out there when jogging or taking your dog for a walk!

Fragrant Chicken Curry With Coconut Milk

A reader writes in to Detroit News (Eats and Drink Section) with the following question

How does one cook recipes that call for dairy-based ingredients when you are not to have dairy products

Lynne Rossetto Kasper answers the question

Don't make yourself crazy. Skip those recipes. With all the nondairy recipes out there, you don't have to struggle. I think out this kind of thing by looking at the parts of the world where the food that needs to be avoided (dairy in your case) is rarely used.

Then Lynne, as an example gives out the recipe of "Fragrant Chicken Curry with Coconut Milk" which is a dish from southern India which is based on a "milk" that's never seen a cow and can be made in about 15 minutes.

Here's the recipe:

Curry paste:

1 large onion, cut in half
5 large garlic cloves
1 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled
1/2 teaspoon each ground cumin, coriander, cinnamon, salt and black pepper
2 medium-sized ripe tomatoes, or 3 to 4 canned tomatoes
Bottom 2 inches of a lemon grass stalk, trimmed of rough outer leaves (optional)
1 to 2 jalapenos, stemmed and seeded (or not, if you like it hot)
1/2 cup water

Chicken:

Cold-pressed vegetable oil
2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces (organic if possible)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 cup water
1 cup canned coconut milk
2 tightly packed tablespoons fresh mint leaves, chopped

In a food processor, puree together half the onion, all the garlic, the ginger, spices, salt, pepper, tomatoes, lemon grass (if using), jalapeno and the 1/2 cup water. Set aside.

Thinly slice the other onion half. Film the bottom of a straight-sided 12-inch saute pan with the oil. Heat over medium high, add the onion, and saute until it begins to color. Add the curry blend, reduce the heat to medium and saute 10 minutes, stirring often with a wooden spatula, until the oil separates from the curry. Don't rush this step; it sets up the foundation of the dish.

Stir in the chicken and 1 cup water. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Bring the mixture to a slow simmer. Cook, uncovered, for 8 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and tender.

Lift the chicken out of the pan with a slotted spoon into a serving bowl. Raise the heat until the sauce is boiling. Boil it down until once again it is so thick that the oil separates from the curry paste. Taste the sauce for seasoning, stir in the coconut milk and heat another 3 to 4 minutes. Pour the sauce over the chicken. Sprinkle it with the mint and serve hot. Serves 4.

Per serving: 488 calories; 32 g fat (17 g saturated fat; 59 percent calories from fat); 14 g carbohydrates; 124 mg cholesterol; 437 mg sodium; 38 g protein; 4 g fiber.

Bharatiya Temple in Troy, MI to double its size

Detroit News is reporting (story by reporter Catherine Jun) that

A $9 million expansion of the temple on North Adams and South Boulevard is finally scheduled to begin within a week, with final building permits in hand that will allow excavation and foundation work on 17 acres.

The project has been in the works for nearly a decade. By the end of 2009, builders will erect a 60,000-square-foot structure, with a grand rotunda, a sky-lit worship hall and three shikharas, similar to steeples, pointing to the sky.

The new structure will fuse architectural styles of northern and southern India, in keeping with the temple's inclusive approach to worship, rather than focusing on one region's religious traditions.

Indians are the largest Asian Population in Metro Detroit

Detroit News (09/12/2007) is reporting that Asians have overtaken Hispanics to become the 2nd largest Minority Group in Metro Detroit. Indians make up more than a 3rd of the Asian Population followed by the folks from China, Philippines, Japan and Korea.

Detroit News interviewed Ramana Mudeganti of Rochester Hills a native of Southern India. Quoting Detroit News:

"I never imagined coming to Detroit, if not for the job" said Ramana Mudeganti, a 34-year-old native of southern India who left Raleigh, N.C., for a technology job at Compuware six years ago.

He was comforted by the fact that many classmates and a neighbor from India were already here. Now a contract worker at Chrysler, he settled in Rochester Hills and got married. On Sunday, his son was born.

"When I moved here, it felt good. If you can bear the winter, it's not that expensive here," he said. "It's a very big community. There's Middle Eastern, Asian; all communities here. A very diversified community."

Detroit News also interviewed Vijyesh Saxena who along with his teammates beat a rival team of Chrysler workers in the game of Cricket this past Monday at Auburn Hills. Quoting Detroit News:

Saxena, the tournament MVP and a Chrysler information technology worker, and his fellow cricket players are the flesh and blood behind the influx of Asians.

"The funny thing is, I never played that much cricket in India," Saxon, 33, said Monday, scooping up his MVP trophy before heading home. But he does now, thanks to Chrysler's 12 cricket teams and organized groups like the Detroit Cricket League, which has nearly doubled the number of teams since 2001.

Saxena's immigration story is emblematic of most foreign-born workers moving into Detroit.

The Jaipur, India, native enrolled in a master's degree program at Eastern Michigan University in 2001, got a job at Chrysler and a temporary work visa that expires in 2011. He has applied for a green card and would like to stay, especially since he is now married and his wife is expecting a baby in April.

He is far from home, but doesn't always feel that way because several friends also live and work in Metro Detroit.

"I never really felt out of country," he said.