Member of Parliament Nina Grewal (Fleetwood-Port Kells) is calling on the Quebec Soccer Federation torevisit its decision to ban Sikh religious headwear. The Quebec organization is refusing to follow the lead of the Canadian governing body and other provincial soccer federations and permit Sikh soccer players to play while wearing turbans, patkas, or keskis.

“I am deeply disappointed that the Quebec Soccer Federation has chosen to maintain its ban on Sikh religious headwear,” declared Ms. Grewal. “Children and their families shouldn’t have to choose between their religion and playing organized sports.”

“I have always been proud of our country’s diversity and that kids, no matter their religion or ethnicity, could play together free from discrimination of any kind. I therefore hope that the Quebec Soccer Federation amends its stand and lifts the restriction so that Sikh children can return to the soccer field.”

The Conservative Government has been a strong defender of diversity, multiculturalism, and religious freedom both in Canada and abroad. In fact, it was our government that created Canada’s first Office of Religious Freedom. We are committed to a person’s right to freedom of religion or faith. We have made it a priority to protect and promote this universal right and to promote pluralism generally as it binds our diverse peoples together and allows individuals to retain their cultural, linguistic and religious heritage within a framework of shared citizenship.

“I am not a soccer player, but I’ve watched many games, and I simply cannot understand how a turban could be seen as a safety risk,” continued Grewal. “Turbans are soft fabric and they’re not going to harm anyone. I can see no valid reason for a ban on the wearing of turbans or other religious headwear by soccer players in Canada.”

“Turbans are religiously significant to Sikhs. Sikhs have fought in both World Wars,they have sacrificed their lives for freedom and democracy, and won the highest recognitions and honours. It is time to put an end to unnecessary controversies regarding the wearing of turbans,” concluded Grewal.

In the House of Commons Jasbir Sandhu, NDP MP for Surrey North, demanded that the Minister of Transportation and the Conservative government take steps to ensure that there are no tolls for the proposed upgrades to the Pattullo Bridge.

“Residents in Surrey North agree that the upgrade is long overdue, however they are also rightly concerned about the proposed toll to pay for the upgrade”, said Sandhu. “With a toll already in place on the new Port Mann Bridge, residents of Surrey are being unfairly targeted and are running out of options to commute without being charged at every pass. The upgrade is more than what municipalities and Translink can afford. Stephen Harper and the Conservative government need to step up to the plate on infrastructure funding, and the federal government needs to pay their fair share”.
This is not the first time that Sandhu has addressed the issue of lack of infrastructure funding for British Columbians. In April, in a question posed to the House of Commons about the Conservative Budget 2013, Sandhu mentioned that cuts to infrastructure will disproportionally affect the growing areas of British Columbia.

Sandhu will be paying close attention to the outcome of the joint Pattullo Bridge Review taking place over the month of June in Surrey and New Westminster, and will be pushing hard for an outcome where Surrey taxpayers do not have the added burden of paying for another toll bridge.

Since 1910 fairgoers from across BC and around the world have made The Fair at the PNE their beloved annual end-of-summer tradition and the largest ticketed event in the province. This year The Fair at the PNE is proud to unveil a multi-million dollar entertainment lineup, including exciting new features, returning fan favourites and one of the best Summer Night Concert lineups to date. To top it all off guests of the 2013 Fair will see a 20% reduction in pricing of general admission and parking at the Fair – running August 17th to September 2nd (except Mondays August 19th and August 26th).

This year’s Summer Night Concerts lineup has something for everyone, featuring legendary classics, electronic pop, country, rock, and indie-folk music. With their smooth harmonies and catchy lyrics, The Beach Boys found early success as “America’s Band.” After numerous hits over the years, including “Good Vibrations,” “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” and “Surfin’ U.S.A.,” the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Fellow inductees, The Jacksons, shot to fame with Motown favourites, “I Want You Back” and “Who’s Loving You,” and for the first time will be bringing their funky sound to the Fair. Canadian group Sam Roberts Band will have fans singing along to their Juno Award winning hit, “Bridge to Nowhere.” Melissa Etheridge’s powerful vocals will sound through the fairgrounds as the singer-songwriter takes the stage. Electronic pop artist Lights will be sure to attract the younger generation while country singer Dean Brody will have his female fans swooning. Rounding up the lineup and musical genres are Great Big Sea and blues singer-songwriter, Colin James. The Summer Night Concerts will run every evening from August 17th to September 2nd (except Mondays August 19th and August 26th) at 8:30pm on the WestJet Concert Stage.

Pakistan-Canada Association held its Annual General Body Meeting on Sunday May 5th, 2013 at Vancouver Jamia Masjid.

The following individuals were elected without contest for the following positions:

Community Trust:
President: Haroon A. Khan, Vice‐President: Ihsan Malik, General Secretary: Akhtar Raza
Mirani, Treasurer: Saif Mehmood Pannun, Public Relations: Liaqat A. Khan, Director: Farrukh Alam, Director: Kamran Hayat, Director: Imran Gehlen, Director: Shaukat Khan Past‐President: Mohd. Arfan Malik

Islamic Trust:
Trustee: Sabir Ali Pannun, Trustee: Jamil Chaudhry, Trustee: Saleem A. Gehlen.

The newly elected board and trust look forward to serving the Pakistani community this year and will be announcing details of Pakistan‐Canada Association’s 50th Anniversary celebrations.

The first event will be the annual Canada Day Picnic taking place at King George Park in Surrey on July 1st starting at 11 am. Details on upcoming events will be provided in the weeks ahead.

A new study says the Pacific coast has experienced 22 major earthquakes over the last 11,000 years, and is due for another.

The study looked at sediment disturbance in Effingham Inlet, on the west coast of Vancouver Island.

Study author Audrey Dallimore, of Royal Roads University, says researchers using state-of-the-art radiocarbon dating determined the last so-called megathrust earthquake in the zone that stretches from northern Vancouver Island down to California happened more than 3,000 years ago.

The world’s largest earthquakes are all megathrust earthquakes, which occur when there is a slip along the fault between a subducting and overriding tectonic plate.

There has never been a megathrust earthquake along the west coast in the written history of Canada, but the study found that megathrust earthquakes occur about every 500 years in the region, although they can stretch out for up to 1,000 years.

“The last megathrust earthquake originating from the Cascadia subduction zone occurred in 1700 AD. Therefore, we are now in the risk zone of another earthquake,” Dallimore said in a statement.

“Even though it could be tomorrow or perhaps even centuries before it occurs, paleoseismic studies such as this one can help us understand the nature and frequency of rupture along the (zone), and help Canadian coastal communities to improve their hazard assessments and emergency preparedness plans.”

B.C. forms part of the Northern American portion of what is called the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” a 40,000 km horseshoe of ocean trenches and volcanic arcs where 90 per cent of the world’s earthquakes take place.

According to Natural Resources Canada, the Geological Survey of Canada records more than 1,000 earthquakes in western Canada each year. More than 100 magnitude-5 or greater earthquakes have been recorded in the ocean west of Vancouver Island in the past 70 years.

The research by experts at Royal Roads, the Geological Survey of Canada, UBC and the University of California is published in the current issue of the Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences.

On June 9th, 2013, a new Board of Directors was elected for a 3 year period (2013 – 2016) by members of Ayra Samaj Educational & Cultural Society of British Columbia. Mrs. Madhu Varshney was again elected as President with other members of the Board: Gyanendra Sundar, Satya P. Varshney, Vinod Sekhri, Rajeev Kumar, Kushwaha K. Singh, Yatindra Singh, Hari Varshney, Bob Yogendra Singh, Arvindh Gupta, Umesh Prasad, Manohar Naidu, Savitri Devi Singh, Satish Saxena and Yogesh Cheta.

Arya Samaj has its own prayer hall at 6884 Jubilee Avenue in Burnaby. In addition to regular programs of Havan and Bhajans every Sundays (10am to 12 noon), the Society conducts several special programs throughout the year including lectures by invited saints such as Sawmi Sampurnananda Sarswati, who is again visiting Vancouver in August, 2013.

The Society’s next main function is on Saturday, June 29th 2013 at its Hall from 6pm to 9pm with dinner titled “Indian Arrival: The Legend of our Ancestors”. It is a musical performance by Dr. Swami Satya Prakash who holds a Doctorate in Music.

With research showing South Asians being among the people most susceptible to heart diseases in Canada, a walk is being organised in the city of Edmonton to create awareness about the issue.

South Asians in Edmonton, the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta, will participate in the DIL Walk coming Saturday which will feature a free lunch, doctors on hand to check blood pressure, and advice from dietitians.

The event is being organised by the DIL Walk Foundation to create awareness about heart diseases and a healthy lifestyle.

Though DIL here is an acronym for Do It for Life, ‘dil’ also means heart in Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu.

Research shows that South Asians – people from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka – are five times more susceptible to cardiovascular diseases and develop heart diseases at an average of 10 years earlier than the Caucasian population in Canada, according to the Edmonton Journal.

Among the factors behind this, diet is one, say doctors.

“We often use breads such as roti or naan, the way many use a fork and knife,” Ken Kalia, a resident of the Mazankowski Heart Institute in Edmonton, was quoted as saying.

“Easily you’re putting in 100 to 200 calories per roti and some will go through six or eight of these, separate from their regular meal.”

According to Sudheer Sharma, a cardiologist at the CK Hui Heart Centre at the Royal Alexandra Hospital, it is not culturally prevalent among South Asians to work out in a gym or use a treadmill, which leads to them leading a sedentary lifestyle.

“In the olden days, the large belly of a South Asian was a sign of prosperity,” the report quoted him as saying. “If you were thin, you were poorer and worked harder.”

South Asians number around 50,000 in Edmonton and represent the largest ethnic group in that Canadian city.—IANS

To be inducted at the Surrey Board of Trade’s 49th Annual General Meeting and President’s Dinner on June 20th at Eaglequest Golf Course from 5:30-9pm is the new President of the Surrey Board of Trade, Bijoy Samuel.

Bijoy Samuel is the General Manager for REDFM 93.1FM. He will serve a one-year term from July 2013-end of June 2014. Bijoy will serve as the 50th President of the Surrey Board of Trade, in what is a high profile volunteer position that helps to positively impact Surrey’s business community at levels of government and advances the success of the Surrey Board of Trade.

Gerard Bremault, CEO, Centre for Child Development will be inducted as the 1st Vice-President.

The Surrey Board of Trade annual Board Director nomination process brought in the following new faces joining its Board of Directors by acclimation:

1. Steven Mo, District Vice President, TD Commercial Bank
2. Parm Sidhu, Director Airport Operations, Abbotsford International Airport
3. Steven Stew, Partner, B&B Contracting
4. David O’Sullivan, President, PW Trenchless
5. Ann Marie Walsh, Coordinator Health Promotion, Canadian Cancer Society – BC Chapter