Heard of the phrase 'walking dead'? That is exactly what happened at a funeral Gongzhuling, Jilin province. A woman apparently was declared dead due to lung cancer, but after 21 hours she woke up from dead in her coffin! The doctors say that this might have happened due to the advanced stages of cancer. The lady's husband and daughter were keeping a vigil beside her coffin when they heard a knock from inside the coffin, reports the China Daily. The unbelievable sight left the woman's daughter trembling with fear. It was a common practice centuries ago to construct a bell inside the coffins so that the dead could easily ring it when they arose, this was to be heard as a signal by the undertaker and the person could be rescued. This was practised during the era when the medical science was not advanced enough to accurately declare a body finally dead and many a times people arose from their graves, who were wrongly declared dead. But the similar incident occurring in the 21st century surely places the advanced age of Medical sciences in to serious questions.

Courtesy: www.oneindia.in, December 18, 2008

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A Radiant Victory has set a glow one of India's darkest corners. A tribal school in Orissa began playing the sport just a year ago, and went on to rout 10 international teams in London and won International School Rugby Tournament 2007.Orissa's tribal heartland, has produced a glorious and unexpected triumph of will and ability. 12 tribal students hailing from some of the most backward districts of Orissa won the Under-14 International School Rugby Tournament in London, defeating 10 teams on their way. The team almost didn't make it to London because the players didn't even have valid birth certificates, mandatory for passports. Only timely intervention by the Ministry of External Affairs helped them board the flight.

The boys are from the Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS), a residential institution for tribal students in Bhubaneswar, and are among some 5,000 tribal boys and girls who are given free residence and education from kindergarten to post-graduate level here. Founder Achyut Samanta, who set up the institute in 1993, glows with pride when he speaks of his team. "What makes their achievement even more remarkable is that they started playing rugby barely four months ago," he told mediapersons after the victory. For their part, all the players, coaches and team staff were unanimous in saying the victory was possible only because of the support Samanta provided. Rugby was introduced in KISS just a year ago, but the students have already demonstrated that even if the sport is foreign, resilience and determination are universal. The team sailed easily over the competition, defeating teams from countries including Cambodia, Rwanda, Zambia and Kazakhstan. The team was trained by Jungle Crows' English Rugby Association coach Paul Walsh and Kolkata-based Sellen Tudu and Sanjay Patra. Led by 14-year-old Bikash Chandar Murmu, the boys started as rank underdogs playing a foreign game on foreign turf. The 12 boys were - Chittaranjan Murmu, Babulal Malka, Rajkishore Murmu, Bukei Hansda, Niranjan Biswal, Hadi Dhanga Majhi, Sahadev Majhi, Gorang Jamuda, Narasingh Kerei, Barial Behera and Ganesh Hembramare. Martin Hansport, chairman of the England Rugby Association, had spotted talent when he visited KISS last year. He asked Samanta to provide the young players proper training and guidance. Ask Samanta why he introduced a sport like rugby in a tribal school, and he says, "The rugby coach found some wonderful naturally talented players among the boys. So we gave them more support. I am confident that our students will excel in other sports as well and make the country proud." He goes on: "The fact that our children have excelled at a predominantly Western sport tells us that we should not neglect anything. But providing proper training and education to children is the first duty." And it is not just rugby that is exciting the students. Following their selection for the London tournament, the students were made to undergo a crash course in English. Those lessons are still on, and the boys are busy practising their hip, hip, hurrahs and high-fives

Courtesy: www.tehelka.com, October 20, 2007

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The enterprising people of Punjab have proved their mettle once again and that too in a foreign land. Four Punjabis - Harinder Takhar, Vic Dhillon, Dr Kuldeep Kular and Amrit Mangat - have won the Canadian provincial polls, the results of which were declared on Thursday, for the second time in a row. Significantly, all of them are from the Liberal party and have achieved the feat of winning back-to-back elections after 70 years. Kuldeep Harinder Takhar, a minister for small business and entrepreneurship in the current Dalton McGuinty government, has won from Mississauga Erindale centre by trouncing progressive Conservative party nominee David Brown. Takhar had migrated to Canada in 1974 and was made provincial minister of transportation after his first win in 2003, but was later shifted to small business and entrepreneurship ministry. A Punjabi weekly 'Door Desh' editor Dr Sarabjit Ghuman told the TOI that Punjabis have contributed a lot to his win. Vic Dhillon, belonging to Bhogpur village in Punjab, has achieved victory for the second time at the age of just 38 years. Vic, presently parliamentary assistant to minister of government service, was elected in 2003 from Brampton West constituency, from where he has won again. Vic has contributed a lot towards relief activities for Tsunami-hit victims in Asia and earthquake-hit people in POK. Kuldip Kular has won from Bramalea-Gore-Malton constituency by trouncing another Punjabi, Pam Hundal, by a margin of more than 5,000 votes. Kular, belonging to village Bija in Punjab, had migrated to Canada in 1974. Prior to that, he had obtained a medical degree from Guru Nanak Dev university in Amritsar and later worked at Canadian Armed Forces hospital in Halifax.Amrit Mangat had migrated to Canada in 1992 and before that she was teaching in Punjab. Now working as a senior administrator with a leading law firm, Mangat has worked hard to start her political innings in an alien land.

Courtesy: www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com, October 12, 2007

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Well-known British comedian and theatre actor Alistair McGowan's search for his roots has led him to discover he is Anglo-Indian -- a fact his father tried to hide from him all his life. "My father's parents died before I was born and the only connection with India that I can remember are occasional telephone calls from an Indian woman asking to speak to 'George McGowan please'." "My sister Kay and I would hear him say 'Hello Auntie-ji' (or Aunty Jean, as we thought then), and vaguely hear him use some Indian-sounding words."

But when his father died in 2003, Alistair McGowan had to dig out his birth certificate in order to obtain the death certificate. "On the 74-year-old slip of paper, under the word 'caste', was the term 'Anglo-Indian'," the 43-year-old actor wrote in the Sunday Times. His discovery and a subsequent search for roots that takes him to Kolkata and Uttar Pradesh will be shown on television by a private channel. Although McGowan is white, his story is not entirely surprising. Relationships between British men and Indian women were commonplace -- even encouraged -- during the colonial years. But many modern-day Britons used to be less than forthcoming in acknowledging their Anglo-Indian roots. This was put down to a legacy of racism, the desire to 'fit in' and the somewhat fuzzy identities and allegiances of many Anglo-Indians themselves. McGowan's father, who was born in Kolkata, hid his Indian roots by telling his children that they were "an English family who happened to be living in India". And when he moved to Worcestershire in southeast England after marriage, he claimed he was slightly dark-skinned because he had spent the summer working in greenhouses. Visiting Kolkata and Chunar in Uttar Pradesh for the BBC film, Alistair McGowan says that once he had established his Anglo-Indian roots, he found out that he was the first McGowan to be born in Britain in more than 200 years. The previous 'Anglo' was John McGowan, who went to India in 1750, "clearly seduced not only by a local Indian girl (Maria de la Cruz) but by the fact that he would be paid to have children with her" -- a reference to a reported colonial policy to pay British soldiers to widen their genetic pool. The biggest shock for Alistair, however, lay in the discovery that John McGowan had sailed to India from Ireland -- whereas the family myth was that the McGowans were from Scotland. "We have no actual records of John's birth and family myth that says Scotland. My heart says Scotland. I will cling on to Scotland. And embrace India. Like a true Englishman."

Courtesy: www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com, October 02, 2007

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It's almost like a lesson in national integration taught in school. When Raveena Khatoon and her ailing husband Md Safdar Ansari fell on hard times and were forced to live on the streets, the vendors in the locality put them up at a Durga Puja mandap. Most of them are Hindus, and some are even Bajrang Dal activists. For a while, Raveena, her husband and their three children stayed outside Katrasgarh railway station. But soon, the vendors of the area decided a railway station was no place for a family to live. So, they got together and with the members of the Goods Shed Durga Puja Committee, set up a place for the family within the sanctified confines of a Durga mandap close by. "It's like a homecoming for me. After staying on platforms to pavements, I have finally found a home, thanks to my Hindu brothers. That they showed the courage to put us up at a place that is considered sacred speaks volumes about their humanity," Raveena told HT. Puja committee member Arun Kumar said: "Durga Puja, after all, is in praise of divinity, and divinity is another name for humanity. They needed help and we just offered them a place to stay," he said. Viplav Dey, a Bajrang Dal volunteer pointed out that Dal members had even donated blood to Raveena's husband, when he was sick. "Most shopkeepers in this Hindu-dominated locality are Bajrang Dal sympathisers, but they too have come forward to help the distressed family," he said. But what will happen when the Durga Puja festivities begin? "Snack seller Prakash Ram and tea vendor Debu have decided they will take the family to their homes," Dey said. Residents of the Railway Colony, next to the Durga Mandap offer food to Raveena's daughter Roshni. And every evening, before the vendors at the station go home, they make sure Raveena's family is fed. "What bothers us is how long this arrangement would last. Her husband is sick and needs to be treated at a good hospital. Raveena too is not very strong. Someone must take care of them," said Pappu, a snack vendor.

Courtesy: www.hindustantimes.com, Sept 17, 2007

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According to Hindu rites, women are not allowed inside crematoriums. But Shanti Behera, 49, spends most of her time inside the Sambalpur municipality crematorium. And whenever chants of "Ram naam satya hai" draw near, she knows that's her cue to start preparing yet another funeral pyre. Shanti goes about her job with a missionary zeal, digging holes, picking up logs and sizing them on the pyres. "I don't remember how many pyres I have prepared till now," she says. Shanti came to Sambalpur as a 15-year-old bride. Her husband, Gopal, worked in the crematorium as a non-muster roll (NMR) employee, preparing funeral pyres. The two lived near the crematorium with their four girls. Gopal's untimely death in 2003 forced Shanti to take up a job. Two of her daughters were married by then but she still needed to fend for herself and her remaining two children. "The future looked bleak. I had to feed my girls. The municipality would not give me a job because my husband was an NMR employee for more than a decade. So I had to take a bold decision," says Shanti. After her husband's last rites were over, she went to the crematorium and started doing what Gopal used to do -preparing funeral pyres. She and her daughters survived on whatever the relatives of the deceased gave her. Initially, seeing a woman doing what has always been considered a man's job did raise a few eyebrows. But that did not stop Shanti from doing her duty. After some months, the municipality too accepted her as an NMR employee. "Shanti impressed everybody with her sincerity and dedication," says Girish Patel, chairman of the Sambalpur Municipality. In the last four years, Shanti has prepared more than 5,000 funeral pyres. She is available in the crematorium around the clock, seven days a week. Initially, she used to be moved by the plight of the relatives. Now, she goes about her job stoically, accepting it as a fact of life and as God's wish. "Still at times, I cannot control myself when I have to prepare a pyre for children and young people," she said.

Courtesy: www.hindustantimes.com, September 17, 2007

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Are you single and lonely? Just find a pal to share your feelings, otherwise you might get sick and die young. Scientists in the US have uncovered a genetic reason why lonely souls are likely to die young solitude affects their immunity systems. Researchers from the University of Chicago used a "gene chip" to look at DNA samples of isolated people and found that those who described themselves as chronically lonely had weaker immune systems. The findings of the study have been published in the Genome Biology Journal, which suggest that lonely people can have unhealthy levels of chronic inflammation associated with heart and artery diseases, arthritis and Alzheimer's. According to lead author Steve Cole, a molecular biologist, "This study shows that the biological impact of social isolation reaches down into some of our most basic internal processes the activity of our genes." Cole and his team took blood samples and studied the gene activity of the immune system cells the white blood cells that protect from viruses and bacteria of 14 volunteers before coming to the conclusion.

Courtesy: www.hindustantimes.com, September 16, 2007

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Making a mark as a swimming champion is surely a daunting task for anyone, but for a mentally challenged boy, it is indeed an uphill drive. Who knows better than Achint Babbar who has surpassed all physical barriers to participate in the Special Olympics World Summer Games 2007, Shanghai, being held in October. Ask him about his fascination for the sport and he will flash a disarming smile and sway his arms frantically as he does in the pool. Though he is 17, his IQ level matches that of a seven-year-old. His journey from a small Delhi family to the squad for Shanghai was riddled with impediments. Having crossed his mental handicap and after ignoring dissuading remarks by relatives and neighbours, Achint is all set to do the country proud. Being the only boy from Delhi to represent India in the swimming event, he was felicitated by Delhi CM Shiela Dikshit and Vice-President Mohammad Hamid Ansari in the Capital recently. He took his first dip in a swimming pool five years ago when his mother Kanchan Babbar, who works with the DDA, took him to a DDA swimming pool. That day changed his life forever. There she gauged his desire to learn swimming. "The next day, I got him enrolled at a local sports academy to impart training to him," says Kanchan. After training for around three years, the results were conspicuous. In 2005, he won a gold medal at the Special Olympics Bharat National Games. It was not a cakewalk for a conservative family where everyone insisted on confining him within four walls. But now, even kids in the neighbourhood who were reluctant to play with him, feel proud to involve him in their games. His mother did a commendable job to enable Achint to make it big in life. She regularly contributes to the array of activities in the National Institute for the Mentally Handicapped, lending a helping hand to other Achints-in-the-making.

Courtesy: www.hindustantimes.com, September 16, 2007

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All 150 passengers of a Turkmenistan Airlines plane bound for its capital Ashqabad on Monday had a miraculous escape after one of its wings brushed against the airport building during the take-off. The incident occurred around 11.30 am when the plane was heading for the runway from the boarding bay, airport director Arun Talwar said. He said the plane was stopped forthwith and all 150 passengers and the crew members were asked to disembark. The damaged Boeing 757 flight of the Airlines was sent for repair after the incident and the passengers were asked to wait until further arrangements were made by the airlines.

Courtesy: www.sify.com, September 10, 2007

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Three thousand Indian tribal chiefs in one of the world's wettest regions have invited ex-US vice president Al Gore to pick up an award for creating awareness about climate change. The prize will be presented on October 6 near Shillong, capital of northeastern Meghalaya state, at a ceremony expected to be attended by 300,000 people, organisers said. Top Indian economists and green campaigners are also likely to be present. "We were greatly inspired after watching Gore?s Academy Award-winning documentary, 'An Inconvenient Truth', and decided to honour him for his concern about the dangers of climate change," federal lawmaker Robert Kharshiing told AFP. "The award is to draw global attention to the serious problem of environmental changes facing the world today, including our own region that is located in the Himalayan belt," Kharshiing said. There was no word from Gore?s office on whether he would turn up to receive the honour, which includes a certificate, a citation, traditional gifts and a small amount of cash. "We were told from Gore?s office that he was humbled after hearing about the award," Kharshiing said. Local leaders say that two tiny Meghalaya villages, some of the world's rainiest places, were already bearing the brunt of climate change and now receive scant rains.

Courtesy: http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5gBNFv74uDG2BzpSnccnJjSWLIylg, September 01, 2007

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It says a lot about Mehbub Basha's effort. Son of auto driver-daily wage earning couple Dastagiri and Noorjahan, Basha emerged the topper in an exam aimed at propagating Vedic knowledge among students. An elated Basha, who received a gold dollar of Lord Venkateswara along with a cash prize of Rs.4,000, attributes it to his understanding of the Hindu dharma. Among 70,000 who appeared for the TTD organized 'Purana prabodha'exam, Basha, hailing from Tadipatri in Anantapur district, stood first in the State, results of which were declared recently. Basha said he had prepared for the exam by imbibing the knowledge of 'Neeti Chandrika' and 'Basics of Hindu Dharma' books. Every year, 10-12 percent of Muslims, 15 per cent of Christians and 20 per cent of SC and ST students have been taking the exam and coming out first. Before Bhasha, students like Sharfuddin, Mohd Ahmed Khan, Haseena, Sara Hitavachani and Paul Aditya stood in the top proving that religion was no barrier. Talking to ToI, Hindu Dharma Prachara Parishat in-charge and special officer of Purana Itihasa project Samudrala Lakshmanaiah said: "Our aim is to propagate the Hindu sanatana dharma and enhance the zeal of national integrity and ethical values among the younger generation. This year, we are expecting over one lakh students to take the exam." The TTD had introduced the exam in 1980 and it was the brainchild of then executive officer PVRK Prasad. About 5,000 students from all over the state took the exam so far. In 2004-05, 19,127 students from 548 schools took for the exam. Of them, Ahmed Khan of Medak, Haseena of Kadapa, Hitavachani from Ongole stood first from their districts. With an overwhelming response for the exam, the TTD board has increased the budget to Rs. 1 crore from s.10 lakh. It has introduced awarding shields to schools that take the exam. The second and third toppers get a silver medal with Rs.3,000 and Rs.2,000 cash award respectively.

Courtesy: www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com, August 24, 2007

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Given a choice, the majority of Indians wish to be reborn in their motherland, even though the booming economy is yet to be translated into a better quality of life, a latest survey says. "While India is perceived to have made a significant progress as a country, only 15 per cent Indians feel their quality of life has improved," the AC Nielsen survey conducted on the occasion of the 60th year of Independence said. However, this did not hamper the patriotic feeling as 89 per cent respondents wished to be reborn as Indians if they were given a choice. The 11 per cent who did not wish to be reborn as Indians comprised mainly youth aged between 15-24 years. Young people today are more informed, curious about everything and are aggressive. It is not surprising that some would aspire to something new and different if they had a choice, Nielsen Company Measurement Science and Technical Training Director N S Muthukumaran said. The respondents felt India has improved its position in the past decades in the fields of business and commerce (57 per cent), science and technology (43 per cent) and education (19 per cent). Among the least progressed fields in Independent India, politics tops with 39 per cent, while 82 per cent respondents feel corruption needs to be eradicated. Poverty eradication programme and law and order follow politics as the least progressed areas.

Courtesy: www.hindu.com, August 14, 2007

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Pollution filled brown clouds may be causing as much warming as greenhouse gasses over southern Asia and threatening the water supply of Ganga, the Yangtze, and Indus with major adverse impact on the areas the rivers serve, researchers say. In a study supported by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), researchers found that the clouds of aerosol particle are contributing to the potentially devastating effects of retreating Himalayan glaciers. "The rapid melting of these glaciers, the third-largest ice mass on the planet, if it becomes widespread and continues for several more decades, will have unprecedented downstream effects on Southern and Eastern Asia," the study concludes. "This is a big topic of conversation in India. Much of the water supply of north and central india is from major rivers fed by glaciers in the Himalayas and the supply would be adversely impacted if the retreat of glacier continues," the author of the study David Winker of the Nasa Langley Research Center in Virginia said. The hope lies in reducing this pollution, which, combined with the heating effect of greenhouse gases, is enough to account for the retreat of Himalayan glaciers observed in the past half century, with serious implications for such famed rivers as the Ganga, Yangtze and Indus, the chief water supply for billions of people in India, China and other South Asian countries, the study notes.

Courtesy: www.zeenews.com, August 03, 2007

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Changpool - The farmer, a quiet man with an easy smile, has spent a lifetime eating a chilli pepper with a strange name and a vicious bite. His mother stirred them into sauces. His wife puts them out for dinner raw, blood-red morsels of pain to be nibbled - carefully, very carefully - with whatever she's serving. Around here, in the hills of north-eastern India, it's called the "bhut jolokia" - the "ghost chilli". Anyone who has tried it, they say, could end up an apparition. "It is so hot you can't even imagine," said the farmer, Digonta Saikia, working in his fields in the midday sun, his face nearly invisible behind an enormous straw hat. "When you eat it, it's like dying." If you think you've had a hotter chilli pepper, you're wrong. Outsiders, he insisted, shouldn't even try it. "If you eat one," he told a visitor, "you will not be able to leave this place." The rest of the world, though, should prepare itself. Because in this remote Indian region facing bloody insurgencies, widespread poverty and a major industry - tea farming - in deep decline, hope has come in the form of this thumb-sized chilli pepper with frightening potency and a superlative rating: the spiciest chilli in the world. A few months ago, the Guinness Book of World Records made it official. If you think you've had a hotter chilli pepper, you're wrong. The smallest morsels can flavour a sauce so intensely it's barely edible. Eating a raw sliver causes watering eyes and a runny nose. An entire chili is an all-out assault on the senses, akin to swigging a cocktail of battery acid and glass shards. For generations, though, it's been loved in India's north-east, eaten as a spice, a cure for stomach troubles and, seemingly paradoxically, a way to fight the crippling summer heat. Now, though, with scientific proof that barreled the bhut jolokia into the record books - it has more than 1 000,000 Scoville units, the scientific measurement of a chilli's spiciness - north-east India is taking its chilli to the outside world. Exporters are eagerly courting the international community of rabid chilli-lovers, a group that has traded stories for years about a mysterious, powerful Indian chilli. Farmers are planting new fields of bhut jolokias, government officials are talking about development programmes.- Sapa-AP

Courtesy: www.iol.co.za, August 01, 2007

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Sixty one year old Iqbal Ahmed is a class nine drop out but today holds the Guinness World Record for constructing the smallest working stationary steam engine. On Friday evening, Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal gave him a plaque, appreciating his work, while giving away the India Innovation Pioneers Challenge Awards for 2006-07.Guinness World Records has given him a certificate stating, "The smallest working stationary steam engine was constructed by Iqbal Ahmed of Nagpur, India, and has a flywheel measuring just 6.8 mm (0.267 inch) across. The machine stands at 6.8 mm (0.267 inches) high, and is 16.24 mm (0.639 inch) long and weighs 1.72 gm (0.06 oz)."In an interview to the Hindustan Times, Dr Iqbal said, "With steam generated by 10 cc water, this engine can run for about two minutes. There is a separate boiler (45 mm high and 15 mm in diameter) which has to be connected to the steam intake nipple through a 1.5 inch pipe. The boiler is heated with an alcohol burner."The tiny engine has a cylindrical body of brass with built in crankshaft bearings, piston, connecting rod and valve mechanism. While the smallest part is the 0.7 mm connecting pin, the largest is the 6.8 mm diameter flywheel. Its total length is 16.24 mm. He said, "Watching the moving wheels of steam locomotives and toy Swiss electric train which my grandfather gave me when I was just seven year old, I had always dreamt of making engines one day."

Discontinuing studies due to family circumstances Iqbal worked in the lathe machine workshop set up by his father."Inspired in 1975 by a friend from England who sent me a book on model making with diagrams I slowly started making models of various steam engines, internal combustion engines which developed into a hobby," he said.As a person fascinated by new challenge, Mr Iqbal said, "While the model making book gave dimensions of an eight inch stationary steam engine model, I created a four inch model in 1978 and thereafter went ahead and created a two inch one."In 2001, Mr Iqbal made a one inch steam engine model and sent it for Guinness World Record but failed to make it. He was informed that the world record is held by a engine which is 17 mm high and weighing just 1.8 gm in weight. "I took it as a challenge and same year constructed a smaller engine achieving the Guinness World Record."Mr Iqbal's models have also been getting awards at the Sherline Machinist Challenge Competition, USA, since 2001. In 2001, he got special recognition for miniature vertical steam engine. In 2004, he got third position and a special award for making miniature lathe machine working model. In 2005, he got second prize for making the four stroke four cylinder water cooled internal combustion engine without any design or blue print.This year for the first time in the 16 year history of Sherline Machinist Challenge Competition, he got both the first and second prize award for a miniature 4.5 inch milling machine and a miniature 4 inch lathe machine respectively.Mr Ahmed said that the prize winning lathe machine had been donated by him to Joe Martin Foundation at Vista, California, USA.Mr Iqbal said, "Miniature models can be made but it is virtually impossible to make miniature models work. The model for which I hold the Guinness record cannot be made smaller than 5mm… I made all my miniature models and precision tooling on my big six feet lathe machine.""Though, it's my hobby but miniature engines may generate electricity or be used for pumping water," he added.

Courtesy: www.hindustantimes.com, July 21, 2007

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Mahatma Gandhi, Winston Churchill, Martin Luther King and Adolf Hitler have been cut from a list of key historical figures recommended for teaching under a radical new secondary school curriculum in the UK. Under the new curriculum to come into force next year, schools in UK will no longer be advised to focus on Churchill, Gandhi, Hitler, Joseph Stalin or Benito Mussolini in their lessons on 20th century history. Specific periods such as the Wars of the Roses have been cut from the notes accompanying the curriculum. Pupils aged 11 to 14 will, however, study broad topics including the First and Second World Wars, the Holocaust, the British Empire and slave trade. The new list of recommended authors for 11 to 14-year-olds includes contemporary writers such as Douglas Adams and Alan Bennett, 20th century writers including T S Eliot and George Orwell and earlier writers such as Jane Austen and Charles Dickens.

Courtesy: www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com, July 14, 2007

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Less than ten days after India acquired a rare manuscript of Mahatma Gandhi before it was to be auctioned, handwritten drafts of a series of articles and autographed letters of the 'Father of the Nation' went under the hammer. Gandhi's manuscript and letters, written between the 1920s and the 1940s, were auctioned by auction house Sotheby's on Thursday as part of its English Literature and History sale. The lot, which included 33 pages of handwritten drafts of a series of articles for Young India from 1921 and 11 autographed letters by Mahatma Gandhi, sold for 45,600 pounds. The lot had been expected to sell for between 25,000 pounds to 35,000 pounds. The papers, which were mounted in a 79-page album included 12 autographed letters of Muhamad Iqbal, Sri Aurobindo and Sarojini Naidu. The manuscript of the Young India articles, written by Gandhi in 1921, discussed a range of political and cultural subjects like the caste system, the khadi campaign, the colonial education system, non-violent protests and a temperance campaign. The series of articles were written during the Satyagraha campaign of non-cooperation (1920-22) as Mahatma Gandhi visited Gujarat. The Gandhi letters included six written to Badrul Hasan, a young Congress activist apparently working for Young India, three written to other members of the Hasan family, including one letter on the death of Hasan. Leading auction house Christie's had withdrawn a priceless Gandhi manuscript from an auction of letters from the Albin Schram collection on July two. After detailed negotiations, the India House acquired the manuscript. In the manuscript, written for Urdu Harijan 19 days before his assassination, Gandhi pleaded for tolerance of Muslims in India.

Courtesy: www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com, July 13, 2007

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While the world is observing Population Day, a non-descript village in Rajasthan has set a trend in the stabilisation of population. The village Jaton Ka Kheda has been maintaining its population figure of 296 since 1971. "We are in pain, no one bothers about us while sanctioning roads and other developmental projects as we are a small population," said Gopal Jat of Jaton Ka Kheda. Jaton Ka Kheda falls under south Rajasthan's Chittorgarh district. "It started two decades ago when the villagers realised the importance of small families," said Rameshwar Jat, ex-sarpanch of the village. "No one has more than two children, whether it is a daughter or son," he said. The slogan "Hum Do Hamare Do", coined to promote small families, had appealed to this isolated village. "I have only one son and my son too has one. It does not matter whether you have a son or a daughter," he said. The village, dominated by the farming community of jats, has reason to complain about administrative apathy. "We don't have a proper road," said Ramgopal Jat, a villager. "Whenever the administration issues a development project, they keep in mind the population and hence we lose out," said Ramgopal Jat. The government runs a one-room school in the village and the villagers are demanding better status for the school. Sub-divisional officer Ramchandra said he would give top priority to the development of the village. "The problems of the village have been brought to our notice. We will help the villagers," he said. Most of the villagers are literate and a dozen villagers have cell phones. Since 1971 the village witnessed an up and down trend in population data. In 1981 it recorded a population of 274, in 1991 it was 269, and in 2001 the village registered a figure of 296. "Our example of population control also inspires neighbouring villages. People have realised the dangers of shrinking agriculture land and poverty," said Rameshwar Jat, the ex-sarpanch.

Courtesy: www.asianage.com, July 12, 2007

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While India's vast farms remain a fertile ground for economic lament, tiny Nagaland is in the middle of an agricultural boom. According to the recent district-wise data compiled by Indicus Analytics, farm output in Nagaland's eight districts has grown at double-digit rates over 2000-05. The highest rate was recorded in Tuensang, at 17.7 per cent. The lowest growth was in Phek, at 11.8 per cent year-on-year. This lowest is, however, nine percentage points higher than the national average of 2.6 per cent. Tuensang and Mon recorded the highest value of output per hectare in the country at Rs 1.73 lakh and Rs 1.59 lakh, respectively. On an average, every district in the state has output worth Rs 75,385 per hectare in each crop season. This is primarily due to a shift in crop patterns. "There is a change in the farming pattern with cultivation shifting from paddy to ginger, tapioca, passion fruit, pineapple, banana and other horticultural crops," said Tekatushi, project officer of the State Agriculture Research Station, Mokokchung. The move from paddy has been primarily motivated by higher yield in horticultural crops. Tapioca, for example, yields 24-27 tonnes per hectare. For rice, the state's productivity is 2.5 tonnes per hectare on an average, lower than the national. High growth is, however, not translating into high incomes. In Tuensang, where the productivity of each farm worker is Rs 26,476 per year, the per-capita income remains Rs 5,390. This is chiefly due to lack of market access and relevant infrastructure. "The farmers say it (current output) is too much for us," said Tekatushi. "We cannot fly everything out by airplane; there are not enough roads to reach the markets. There isn't enough power to preserve the harvest," he said.

Courtesy: www.indianexpress.com, July 12, 2007

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Members of the Bijapur Zilla Alpasankyatara Abhivridhi Samiti, mostly members of the Muslim community, held a demonstration here on Thursday condemning M.F. Hussein's paintings depicting Hindu Gods in an "obscene" way. The protesters led by samiti president Hashimpeer Walikar took out a procession from Gandhi Chowk to the Deputy Commissioner's office complex. Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Walikar and other samiti office-bearers said that Mr. Hussein's paintings had hurt the religious feelings of a large section of Indian society. No one had the right to hurt the belief of others. The Islam religion would not tolerate any of its followers to indulge in any such act. They said it was unpardonable act on the part of Mr. Hussein under the disguise of freedom of expression. It had spoilt communal harmony among Muslim and Hindus. The artist should be arrested, they said. They handed over a memorandum addressed to President APJ Abdul Kalam to a district official.

Courtesy: www.newsanalysisindia.com, July 11, 2007

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Life was never easy for Tuni Muduli, 16. The daughter of daily wagers Padlam Muduli and Nabina, she and her three siblings learned to fend for themselves from a very young age as their parents spent most of the year working in the brick kilns of Hyderabad. When her mother died, she dropped out of school and became a child labourer herself, working in road construction sites to supplement the family income But by then, she had been bitten by the academic bug and she had to get back to school. She did just that, much to her father's displeasure. Today, Tuni is all set to pursue science at the Junior Science College of the Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences in Bhubaneswar after recently passing her Class X exams. Her dream now is to pursue a career in medicine. "I want to be a doctor," she says. Tuni, who belongs to the Paraja tribe, recalls that all the while she was working, she never forgot her days at the Government Residential Girls High School in Balda, Nandapur block, in 2002. She was then in Class V, her mother was still alive and those were the happiest days of her life. She also remembers how she longed to be back in class while she worked at the construction site. "I saw children my age going to school, wearing uniform, and my desire to study grew stronger." Determined to get an education, she joined her old school. The turning point in her life was when the Koraput district administration selected her to represent tribal girls at a UNICEF campaign for the education of girls in Belgium in 2006. Padlam is a proud father today. "Initially, I opposed her plans to continue studies due to our poor economic condition. But now I realise how wrong was I. Thanks to her, I have learnt to write my name and sign in Oriya," he says.

Courtesy: www.hindustantimes.com, July 10, 2007

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Olympics in sight but still some way to go
He is a five-and-half-year-old whose father begged on the streets of Bhubaneshwar and whose mother worked as a maidservant. He was sold twice for Rs 800 and almost had his left leg amputated following a freak accident. Yet, he is one of the country's best-known child prodigies. As it often happens, Budhia Singh's incredible talent was discovered by sheer accident. As punishment for abusing a resident judoka, Budhia, then three-and-half-year-old, was ordered by his coach Biranchi Das (now his adopted father) to run till he returned from an important assignment. Having completely forgotten about the punishment, Das returned after seven hours to find the little boy still running. Resident judokas told him Budhia didn't stop running even for a minute. "A couple of days later, I was watching a TV programme on the marathon when I realised Budhia, too, could become a top-class marathon runner. And that's how it all started," says Das. And then we all know how Budhia caught the nation's imagination in 2005 when he ran a staggering 60 km from Puri to Bhubaneswar in 5 hours 16 minutes. I just love to run. When Sir (Das) takes me out for a run every morning, I enjoy myself the most," says Budhia. What comes second? It's running again: "I love to chase down my friends in a running contest." Budhia's running ability was further confirmed when he ran himself into the Limca Book of Records on May 2, 2006 after running 65 km, again from Puri to Bhubaneswar, in 7 hours 2 minutes. Budhia's timings have certainly improved - he now does 12 km in one hour where he started off with 6 km in the same time a couple of years ago. And he's aiming higher. "I want to run in international half-marathon competitions to get the experience and then try for the big marathon," says Budhia. Das has his schedule worked out for the next year and both are eyeing the junior world athletic championships after Budhia turns 15. And after that he has his sight set on the 2020 Olympics. Budhia declares, "I will win a medal for India in the Olympics."

Courtesy: www.hindustantimes.com, July 10, 2007

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Wing Cdr Monga with the Microlight just before taking off on June 1 at the Hindan Air Base near Delhi (TOI Photo) The IAF Round the World Expedition entered USA around 0345 hrs IST on Friday and in the process, Wing Cdr Rahul Monga became the first Indian to fly solo across the Bering Sea in a microlight aircraft. Monga took off from Provideniya, Russia around 0300 hrs IST and headed towards Nome in Alaksa, USA, a distance of 387 KM. After a brief halt in Nome, he would head off to MCGrath, another 513 KM and then on to Anchorage, a further 359 KM. The expedition is supposed to be flown by a duo that also consists of Wing Cdr Anil Kumar. However, in the Russian leg, since it is mandatory to have a Russian speaking navigator, Kumar, as a co-pilot had to opt out and hop a commercial flight to USA. The expedition has so far been hamstrung with extremely bad weather encountering typhoons in China and poor visibility in Russia. At some places, the pilots have encountered extreme elements and even continued where bigger aircrafts with far sophisticated gadgets have opted to stay off. All this has resulted in it being delayed by about 12 days so far. The pilots are expected to make up a few days in due course by skipping some rest days. The expedition was flagged off on June 1 from the Hindan Air base near Delhi with the aim of completing the expedition in 64 days, which would be a new World Record. Although even now they are on course to a new world record, it may not happen in 64 days, which was originally planned.

Courtesy: www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com, July 06, 2007

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In a clearing within Kauai Aadheenam's lush gardens, the ping, ping, pinging of metal chipping at stone can be heard as a half-dozen artisans from India put the finishing flourishes on the Hindu monastery's legacy for the ages. Hand-carved in granite and shipped in pieces to the island from India, the Iraivan Temple is faithful to the precise design formulas defined by South Indian temple builders a thousand years ago. The $8 million temple of Lord Shiva is the first all-stone Hindu temple outside of India, according to the Kauai monks. The project is a rarity. The ranks of skilled carvers from India have dwindled in recent centuries, as stone has yielded to concrete and steel. Design modifications in new temples outside India have become a necessity to make worship at the traditionally open-air spaces bearable during the winters in Canada or New York City. Lush, tropical Kauai, known as Hawaii's Garden Isle, doesn't have that problem. "Actually it's the first all-stone temple made anywhere in quite a while. I think our architect in India said he's made two in 50 years," said Sannyasin Arumugaswami. Construction began in 1990 and could take another 10 years to finish because of the mass of the structure and the skill needed to build it. The temple has already incorporated 80 shipping containers worth of stone and is surmounted by a gold-gilt cupola carved over three years by just four men. The temple is the vision of a former ballet dancer and Californian who founded the monastery back in 1970, Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami. Subramuniyaswami, who died at 74 in 2001, embraced Hindu monasticism in the late 1940s. The partially constructed temple now stands at the edge of small valley that plunges down to the Wailua River, a pond and a few rushing waterfalls, and against a distant backdrop of soaring green mountains. Complete with tropical flowers and other plants some purchased from the National Tropical Botanical Garden headquartered on Kauai the monastery's landscaped gardens are awe-inspiring. "Part of the object is to place the temple in just the most beautiful Hawaiian environment possible," said Arumugaswami, explaining that the temple's surroundings are a "natural" temple. Among the primary tenets of the order which has about 8,000 temple supporters and several hundred close disciples is the belief that Shiva is in everything and everyone. The goal is to understand one's oneness with Shiva, and therefore be freed from the eternal cycle of death and rebirth into the physical world.

Courtesy: www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com, July 01, 2007

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A special letter written by Mahatma Gandhi just days before his assassination is set to be auctioned by Christie's in London on July 3. Its ownership currently rests with a Switzerland-based collector. The news has created a flutter among Gandhians, and the government is under immense pressure to acquire the letter instead of allowing it to pass into private ownership again. Reports suggest that word has been sent out to the Indian high commission in London that all efforts must be made to bring the letter back to India. The question is, with the letter expected to go for around 12,000 pounds, whether it would be advisable for the government to get directly involved in the bidding process. Is it even such a terrible thing if a letter like this stays in private hands? Does the government have a presumptive right on documents like this? Private collections have preserved many important bits of paper. That is an especially important point when one considers official India's detachment from the personal papers of its leading public figures. In 1998, a similar situation arose when 18 letters written by Gandhiji were to go on auction. That dilemma was resolved by the involvement of NRIs who bought the letters and gifted them to the government. Dilemma, because then too the idea of the government bidding directly for them came with a few difficulties. The government's involvement in auctions raises issues of administrative account keeping. That's not an insurmountable problem in itself but were it to be government policy to bid for papers of national figures, private owners of such material would be encouraged to enter the market with raised estimates. The question of the proper use of taxpayers' money then comes in. There is a lot of archival material in private ownership at the moment, and the government, if it is keen to bring them to public space, should think more intelligently, not ask embassies to find ways to obtain them. This involves separating the issues of ownership of the actual pieces of paper and the content. On Gandhi, for instance, it is simple. He left the copyright of all his writings with the Navjivan Trust. But India has been sorely lacking in managing personal papers. The task of separating personal papers and those, which were part of a person's public/official interface has not been completed for leading figures of our early years of independence. And what is available has not been adequately catalogued. The matter must go beyond the ownership details of this letter.

Courtesy: www.newindpress.com, June 29, 2007

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While the present day politicians declare assets worth crores, the balance amount of a savings account once held by the country's first president Rajendra Prasad is a meagre Rs.1,432. The account in the Exhibition road branch of the Punjab National Bank here has not been closed by the authorities even after four decades of Prasad's death as a mark of respect to the Bharat Ratna awardee. No one has come forward till date to withdraw the amount. His descendents have already migrated out of Bihar. Bank officials said that the account was an asset and a matter of pride for the bank. The balance signifies his (Prasad's) honesty and integrity in public life, they said. Other prominent leaders like Jay Prakash Narayan and Maulana Mazharul Haque also had accounts in Punjab National Bank branches, the officials said. Rajendra Prasad was born on Dec 3, 1884 at Zeradei in Bihar's Siwan district and died on Feb 28, 1963 in Patna.

Courtesy: www.dnaindia.com, June 27, 2007

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Vivek Suri

The age-old harmony between Hindus and Muslims in Kashmir is still alive and demonstrated by people like Ghulam Mohammad Shiekh, who has been performing the duties of a priest in a famous Shiva temple for the last 17 years.

IN THIS MILITANCY stricken valley, where some 'outsiders' are leaving no stone unturned to widen the divide between Muslims and Hindus, a Muslim has been looking after a Shiva temple for the last 17 years. By uttering verses from the Quran and shlokas from the Gita with same fluency and devotion everyday, he presents a unique example of secularism and communal harmony in Kashmir. Ghulam Mohammad Shiekh is the priest of the 92-year old Shiva temple at Gulmarg. The temple houses a Shiv Lingam and idol of Goddess Parvati. Everyday Shiekh performs all the rituals of a pujari including performing aarti and distributing prasad among devotees, who throng this ancient temple in big numbers, especially in summers when the place comes alive. For him there is no difference between 'Allah' and 'Bhagwan'. Being a Muslim he never forgets to perform namaz daily.

How a Muslim became the 'pujari' of a temple?
Shiekh's father Gulam Rasool Shiekh was the Chowkidar of the temple and he rendered his services for about 40 years. Due to militancy when Kashmiri Pandits fled Kashmir, the temple was left abandoned; Shiekh started performing the duties of a pujari. From that point of time he has been looking after all the affairs related to the famous temple. Shiekh had to pay the price for becoming the priest of temple. It was not an easy task for him. He was targeted by terrorists many a times in past, who threatened him to leave the job of priest. He was once kidnapped by the ultras, but it was his sheer good luck that he was released later on by them.

About the temple
This Shiva temple was actually the royal temple of Dogra kings of Jammu and Kashmir. Also known as "Rani Temple" or "Maharani Temple", this is situated on a small hillock in the centre of Gulmarg. The unique thing about this royal temple is the fact that it can be seen from all the corners of Gulmarg. The Maharani temple also known as Mohineshwar Shivalalaya was built by Mohini Bai Sisodhia, the wife of the erstwhile ruler of Kashmir Maharaja Hari Singh (the last king of Kashmir) in 1915. Mohini Bai Sisodhia was the daughter of Maharaja Mohandev of Dharampur. When the last Dogra king was spending his time in Gulmarg in his royal palace, a couple of kilometers from the temple, his queen used to come here to worship Lord Shiva. Infact, she stayed here for months and worshiped Lord Shiva in this temple. The temple remains open everyday from 6am to 9pm. Aarti is performed twice a day for devotees. The Dagger Division, headquartered at Baramulla renovated the temple in 1998. Now this is being managed by the Jammu and Kashmir Dharmarth Trust headed by Dr Karan Singh, son of Maharaja Hari Singh.

Courtesy: www.merinews.com, June 27, 2007

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Malaria can trigger a rare form of cancer called Burkitt's lymphoma, according to latest research. Some cases have already been reported from India. In Burkitt's lymphoma, the immune cells turn cancerous and tumours develop in the lymph nodes, often making the tongue swell and cheeks bulge. The deformities make it increasingly difficult for patients to eat. Burkitt's lymphoma proves fatal in parts of sub-Saharan Africa where access to necessary medication remains limited. Cases have also been reported from New Guinea, Colombia and India. Scientists believe that Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), a common virus that most kids are exposed to at some point while growing up, commonly causes mononucleosis, reported the online edition of the New Scientist. This infection produces flu like symptoms and usually goes away on its own in a few weeks with the help of plenty of fluids and rest. But the virus typically remains dormant, and thus relatively harmless, in the body. Arnaud Chêne and colleagues at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm reported the findings.

Courtesy: www.newkerala.com, June 9, 2007

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An Indian American has created a new social networking and community website specifically designed for the large Indian population in the US. Palani Velusamy, creator of myindianplace.com, realised that the Indian community in the US, which is mostly highly educated and affluent, did not really have a central meeting place totally devoted to their culture. "Despite the fact that there is a large Indian community in the US, there are not a lot of sites that are dedicated to the Indian community. After visiting MySpace.com, it occurred to me that a site specialising in various ethnic groups might be really beneficial," he said. The site is designed for Indians living in the US who want to keep up ties with some traditional ways and are eager to meet with other compatroits who share similar feelings. Visitors can create profiles, share pictures, socialise, and keep abreast of news that is important to the Indian community, a press release said. The site has already registered thousands of hits and is becoming increasing popular among the Indians living and working in the US. "It is so great that someone has created this kind of site for Indians," said Rakesh Ahuja, a member. "I mean, just knowing that the majority of people that you are going to be meeting on the myindianplace.com site are going to be familiar with my culture means a lot to me. It is really cool and I really like it. It is my hope that word spreads quickly about this site and that Indians here in this country all use it," he said. The motto on the website is: Be Indian. Be Proud. "As a culture, Indians who have grown up in the states are a unique people," said Palani. "We love America, and most of us really enjoy the way of life here, " he said. "However, most of us also want to keep our ties with some of the old ways and certainly want to meet other Indians in order to socialise. In some areas of the country, that can be very difficult if the Indian community is not all that large," Palani added.

Courtesy: www.gulf-times.com, June 09, 2007

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While the death of a tiger or a lion attracts worldwide attention, small winged beauties like butterflies, which are an indespensable pollinator for vital agricultural crops, are becoming extinct unnoticed. Illegal trade in these small species is as much thriving as in tiger parts and ivory. One butterfly fetches Rs 500 to the poacher. Thailand is the hub of the international trade in butterflies, which are killed and dried to be used in greeting cards, books and other decorative purposes. 'Once There Was a Purple Butterfly'--a film produced under the United Kingdom Environment Film Fellowship--focusses attention to the threat to survival of these species. The film made by Sonia Kapur was screened here yesterday on the occasion of the World Environment Day. Sonia's trail of the butterflies led her first to interiors of Kerala and then to north east, regions which have a large number of people making their living out of killing butterflies. ''I was led on their trail after reading an article about them. The interior parts of Kerala and areas in the North east were once home to a large variety of butterflies but now out of the 1500 species, about 400 have already become extinct due to large scale poaching for commercial purposes,'' she told UNI. The trade in butterflies is absolutely illegal both in India and Thailand but it goes on unchecked, which was a great pity, said Sonia. ''During our research, we found that besides poaching, one more cause of threat to their survival was the use of pesticide on plants, she said. Sonia feels it was high time that the authorities and the civil society in general recognised the importance of the existence of butterflies, without which no foodgrain production was possible as they were the prime pollinators for agricultural crops. ''One should take lesson from the case of America which had to import live butterflies to release them in their environment for acting as pollinators,'' she said. She said the main aim of her documentary, which she shot within a month, was to shake the government into action to save the species from extinction. Sonia took the help of various NGOs like the Wildlife Protection Society of India (WPSI) and experts in the fieldlike Dr Chandrashekhar of Bangalore in her research for the film. The film on butterflies is the first wildlife work of Sonia. She has earlier made films on the problem of terrorism in the Nortn east and women undertrials in the Tihar Jail. Besides Sonia's films, other works produced under the UK Environment fellowship and screened yesterday were ' The Last dance' by Ashima Narain, the Hunted by Jay Mazoomdar, 'Turtle ia Soup' by Kalpna Subramaniam, 'The Silenced Witness' by P Balan and Radha R, 'Diminishing Resources' by Himanshu Malhotra and Sabina Kidwai and 'Leopards in the Lurch' by Gurmeet Sapal.

Courtesy: www.newkerala.com, June 06, 2007

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Meghalaya Governor B L Joshi has urged governments in North Eastern states to improve the quality of life for people in the region, while taking into account the growth rate of population in the area.''The man-power planners must look at this problem on term basis and accordingly Human Resources must, now, receive the high priority,'' Mr Joshi said at seminar on 'Population Dynamics in North East India' here today. Mr Joshi said the improved quality of life would depend on adequate health and nutrition, planned expansion of population high percentage and higher standard of education, cultural growth and secure a social security base. Pointing out that the population growth in the region is higher than the national average, the Governor said micro-surveys are necessary for understating the growth of population in the region.''This high growth rate of population is a serious concern with its social and economic ramification. The decadal (1991-2001) growth rate of population of the region was 22.16 per cent as against all India rate of 21.31 per cent,'' he asserted. Mr Joshi said the new settlement pattern, particularly in Asom and Tripura, reflects heavier concentration in bordering districts, resulting demographic change in the population distribution and a change in the ecology of the borders. The two-day seminar was organised by the North East India Council for Social Science Research and attended by senior social scientists from all over the country.

Courtesy: www.newkerala.com, June 04, 2007

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A well-organized poaching network covering the entire North-east and having links with international operators in the clandestine trade of animal body parts is intensifying its depredations in the State. The revelations have come to light following the recent arrest of a poacher in Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary. The poacher, a Manipuri who had bases in Nagaland and Mizoram as well, was arrested inside the sanctuary when he had entered it with three-four accomplices for poaching rhinos. Pobitora, incidentally, has a very high concentration of the rhino with 81 numbers in an area of just 38.8 sq km. "The arrested poacher is more of a veteran sharp-shooter hired by other operators. It seems he has been a much sought-after man for his shooting prowess. Though he hails from Manipur, his area of operation covers several north-eastern States, and he has confessed to killing rhinos in Kaziranga as well," Surajit Dutta, DFO, Guwahati Wildlife Division, told The Assam Tribune. Dutta added that the poacher, Lung Khai Go, was most likely to have links with the illegal racket of international smugglers of animal body parts. "He is scheduled for more questioning by a joint team of police and forest officials, which should throw more light on the nefarious practice," he said.

It is an open secret that a majority of the animal body parts smuggled from the North-east, a biodiversity hotspot, end up in South East Asia where rhino horn, tiger bone and other parts, etc., have a huge demand. Dutta said that Go had been staying near Pobitora with arms along with his accomplices for several days - something that reflects the poor vigilance on part of the police as well. "It is due to the dedication of our staff, especially the frontline personnel, and cooperation from the local people, that we could nab him even though his accomplices managed to escape," he said, adding that there had been no case of poaching in Pobitora for the past one-and-a-half years. Poaching of the rhino has witnessed a sharp rise in the State this year, with six rhinos already killed in the famed Kaziranga National Park. Wildlife experts believe that there is far greater coordination among the poaching rackets than is generally perceived. A recent workshop in the city by Traffic India on wildlife crimes noted that poaching in the North-east and Nepal indicated a certain pattern, suggesting that there existed a greater level of coordination among the depredators of forest wealth. Dwindling staff strength and inadequate infrastructure apart that have been perennial irritants in the State's forest management, the low level of intelligence input has adversely affected the fight against forest crimes. "The level of preparedness of the Forest Department to deal effectively with forest crimes is questionable. International smugglers of animal body parts, including poachers, have a sophisticated network, which often catches the forest authorities unawares," a forest official admitted. Except Kaziranga, most of the national parks and wildlife sanctuaries of the State have poor infrastructure and logistics, which impedes fast movement of the forest personnel, so essential to tackle forest criminals. Pobitora, for instance, has just an old vehicle that often remains out of order. "Besides a vehicle, we urgently need a few motorcycles for patrolling the boundaries of the sanctuary," a sanctuary official said, adding that more frontline personnel were another crying need in view of the fact that the rhinos often strayed out of the sanctuary in search of food and space.

Courtesy: www.assamtribune.com, June 01, 2007