Minister Bernier Concludes Successful Meetings in India

January 12, 2008

The Honourable Maxime Bernier, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today concluded a three-day visit to India during which he explored ways of deepening relations between Canada and India. Parliamentary Secretary Deepak Obhrai accompanied Minister Bernier on this visit.

“I was very pleased with my first visit to India—the first by a Canadian foreign minister in five years. It has been very successful, and is in keeping with our government’s commitment to further strengthen our relationship with India,” said Minister Bernier.

During the visit, Minister Bernier met with Indian External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath.

“Minister Mukherjee and I had a very positive discussion about the Canada-India relationship, focusing on strategic, political and economic interests,” Minister Bernier said. “Canada and India share common values of freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law. It is vital that Canada maintain a strong relationship with India, the world’s largest democracy and an increasingly important international partner.”

Minister Bernier also discussed the case of Saul Itzhayek, a Canadian citizen incarcerated in India.

At their meeting, ministers Bernier and Mukherjee discussed enhanced trade and investment opportunities, the environment, science and technology, regional security and counterterrorism. “We agreed that we would continue to strengthen our joint efforts toward keeping our democracies safe,” said Minister Bernier.

During his meeting with Minister Nath, Minister Bernier highlighted areas where commercial relations between Canada and India could be expanded, notably through two-way investment and science and technology collaboration. The Minister expressed Canada’s particular interest in key sectors such as aerospace, agriculture and agri-food, infrastructure, information and communication technologies, energy, and oil and gas.

While in New Delhi, Minister Bernier also met with members of the Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce. During the meeting, eminent members of the Indo-Canadian business community shared their views with the Minister on future business opportunities in India. The Minister also visited the Delhi Metro, one of India’s most successful infrastructure projects. Last year, Bombardier won a US$590-million contract to supply 340 metro cars to Delhi Metro Phase II.

Minister Bernier also reiterated Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s invitation to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to visit Canada in early 2008, and confirmed Canadian funding of $3.5 million over five years for the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute.

The meetings took place during Minister Bernier’s visit to the Middle East and Asia from January 9 to 14, 2008.

Happy Sankranthi

Dear All,

Festivals are loosing their significance in the fast moving world, aren't they?

Sankranthi is most popular festival after Dasara and Deepavali. Other festivals we celebrate are Ugaadi, Sriramanavami, Vinayaka chavithi etc. Sankrathi is one of the few festivals which comes on a fixed date, Isn't it?.

"We are each of us angels with only one wing, and we can only fly by embracing one another"

With Love, Amma-Naana

If You Enjoy Writing, Give it a Shot - Pen Down Your Thoughts In A Journal

"Should you keep a journal? I think that anyone who enjoys writing should keep a journal. Whether you’re a student or experienced writer, give yourself a daily writing challenge.

A journal is the perfect medium to explore your own mind. You can use journal writing as pure relaxation and therapy.

For example, a student might benefit by writing a short composition each day, to improve skill and speed for English assignments. A more experienced writer may find persuasive pieces an asset in copy writing. A writer fascinated with character development as an element of the novel can use journal writing to explore different techniques.

Journal writing can serve many purposes. Journal writing can give you an opportunity to express yourself on topics you may not have the chance or inclination to talk about with someone else. This type of journal writing may, over time, give you a fresh perspective on yourself and others.

A journal can be stream of consciousness. After all, your audience is you. You can express yourself exactly as you feel. Journal writing is an uncensored activity, giving you an uncensored look at yourself.

You can also approach journal writing as a developmental exercise. If you’d like to improve your writing skills, keeping a journal helps you hone your skills.

A journal can be as simple as a spiral notebook or as elegant as a leather-bound formal journal or a cool web blog. If you enjoy writing, give it a shot. You may find you have a lot to say!"

A Few Edmonton Indian Associations

Dear Children, Good Morning.

Here are a few Edmonton Indian Associations. You can browse them at your leisure.

With Love, Amma-Naana

( 1 ) Alberta Gujarati Association (AGA)

http://agaonline.ca/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

( 2 ) Edmonton Bengali Association

http://www.eba.ab.ca/Master/home.htm

( 3 ) Alberta Hindi Parishad

http://www.albertahindiparishad.org/

( 4 ) Ankur
http://ankurcanada.org/

Idioms & Idiomatic Expressions

Morning, dear all.

Yesterday we discussed some English Idioms & Idiomatic Expressions in our class. We enjoyed the instruction well.

Our course book is a guide, not the Law. It’s really good to deviate and bring in - "student centered content". Real English is outside the classroom.

With Love, Nana

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1) "Quit beating around the bush! If you don't want to go with me, just tell me!"
beat around the bush: evade an issue; avoid giving a direct answer.

2) bent out of shape: needlessly worried about something.
"I know you're worried about your job interview, but don't get bent out of shape. You'll do just fine."

3) at the eleventh hour: at the last minute; almost too late.
"Yes, I got the work done in time. I finished it at the eleventh hour, but I wasn't late.

4) be on the road: be traveling.
"You won't be able to contact me tomorrow because I'll be on the road."

5) as easy as pie: very easy.
"I thought you said this was a difficult problem. It isn't. In fact, it's as easy as pie."

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A few links : http://www.eslcafe.com/idioms/id-mngs.html
http://teachers.teach-nology.com/index.html
http://www.sitesforteachers.com/index.html

Skin - An essay collected from our Vikram's library

Dear Children,

Here is an essay collected from Vikram Naana's library.

Have a Nice Day!
With Love, Amma-Naana

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The skin is the longest organ of the body. The most sensitive areas of our skin are our hands, lips, face, neck, tongue, finger tips, and feet. Our finger tips are the most sensitive parts of our body. The least sensitive part of our skin is the middle of our back. There are about 100 nerve endings in each of our finger tips.

Touch is a very important sense. Babies who are not touched, stoked, kissed, held and cuddled are less healthy than babies who are touched. Our sense of touch keeps us safe.

Our skin does not wear away because it is constantly renewing itself. The lowest layer of the skin is made up mostly of fat. This helps to keep us warm, and also acts as padding when we bump into something.

we can summarize 4 main functions of the skin:
1) It protects us from harmful aspects of the environment, keeping out things such as bacteria

2) It keeps the water in your body from drying up - The waterproof epidermis. The oil glands in the dermis produce oils that help keep the skin moist

3) It regulates the temperature of our body-Layers of fat help keep you warm. Sweat glands let the body give off moisture through the skin, which helps to cool you off.

4) The last function, which we will talk about next, is that skin is the sense organ of touch.

Skin also adapts to the demands made on it. Too much sun causes sunburn, which is harmful. Everyone's skin texture is unique. Some people have smoother or rougher skin than others.