South Asia Investor Review

Thick  smog enveloping Pakistan's Punjab  province has seriously disrupted road and air traffic and created significant health emergency for the people, according to Pakistani media reports. Indian cities, including the nation's capital New Delhi, are also suffering from it. I s India Responsible? Pakistani officials have blamed "the incursion of smoke and particle matter from the burning of crop stubble in the Indian Punjab." Particulate matter of 2.5 microns or larger as measured in micrograms per cubic meter is up to  80 times higher  than the upper limit of 10 micrograms per cubic meter considered safe by the World Health Organization. Is the Pakistani claim supported by data? Let's try and answer this question with  satellite images  of the area released by the United States' National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Crop Burning Incidents Seen from space. Source: NASA Earth Observatory NASA Satellite Images: Here's how NASA...

Brightly colored festival gift displays at major retail stores and poor air quality in Silicon Valley are reminding Indian-Americans this year of  Diwali celebrations  at home. Big box retailers like Costco know their customers. Merchandizers working for them are stocking up their local Silicon Valley stores with products most in demand before Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, to cater to a  sizable population  of Indian-Americans in the Valley.  A variety of Indian mithais (sweets) and spicy snacks are on display at major mainstream retail stores that are competing with the traditional Indian supermarkets for business. Stores like Costco are now also carrying raw or prepared daals, rice, vegetables, flour, naans and chapatis. Diwali Gift Display at a Silicon Valley Costco Adding to the ambiance is the particulate matter from multiple major forest fires in the San Francisco Bay Area that are still not under control after several days of fire fightin...