The Indian Panorama

Month: July 2013

  • UK HEATWAVE KILLS 760 IN 9 DAYS

    UK HEATWAVE KILLS 760 IN 9 DAYS

    LONDON (TIP): A severe and prolonged heatwave is believed to have killed up to 760 people in England in the past nine days. Temperatures in parts of the country reached as high as 32 degree celsius on Thursday, four degrees short of the government announcing a Level 4 alert marking a national emergency.

    Thursday was the sixth consecutive day with a recorded daytime temperature of over 30 degrees celsius marking Britain’s longest heatwave in seven years. Research by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine has estimated the death toll for the first nine days of the heatwave at between 540 and 760 people in England alone. With high temperatures likely to remain till the end of next week, the number of heatrelated deaths is expected to double.

    A Level 3 heatwave alert means people should be aware of the actions to protect themselves from the possible health effects of hot weather, and social and healthcare services are advised to take specific actions that target highrisk groups. Ambulance services have already seen a 30% increase in past three days. A Level 3 is triggered as soon as the Met Office confirms there is a 90% chance of heatwave conditions, when temperatures are high enough over threshold levels to have a significant effect on health on at least two consecutive days.

    Following this latest Met Office alert, Public Health England (PHE), an executive agency of UK’s department of health, is continuing to remind people to be aware of the health risks of hot weather. “… try to keep out of the sun between 11am and 3pm, avoid physical exertion, wear light, loose fitting cotton clothes, drink plenty of cold drinks, if you have a health problem, keep medicines below 25 °C or in the refrigerator and never leave anyone in a closed, parked vehicle, especially infants , young children or animals ,” it has said.

    Dr Angie Bone, Heatwave Plan lead for PHE, said: “In this continued hot weather, it’s important to remember that high temperatures can be dangerous, especially for yulnerable people like older people , young children and those with serious illnesses.” Professor Dame Sally C Davies , chief medical officer in the department of health, said: “Although it seems we barely saw the sun last summer in England, last year’s Climate Change Risk Assessment clearly indicated that we are increasingly likely to experience summer temperatures that may be harmful to health.

    For example the temperatures reached in 2003 are likely to be a ‘normal’ summer by 2040, and indeed globally, countries are already experiencing record temperatures.” Declaring a Level 4 alert indicates a major incident. The government will decide whether to go to Level 4 if there is a very severe heatwave that will last for a considerable period of time and will also affect transport, food and water, energy supplies and businesses as well as health and social-care services.

    The hottest July temperature in Britain was 36.5°C, recorded in Surrey in 2006. The hottest ever in Britain was 38.5°C in Kent in 2003. July is also expected to become the driest July since records began in 1766 and may beat the record set in 1955 when only one inch (30mm) of rain fell.

  • 4 Dead, 42 Injured As Mob Raids BSF Post In J&K

    4 Dead, 42 Injured As Mob Raids BSF Post In J&K

    Curfew in Ramban district; BSF says fired in self-defense
    SRINAGAR (TIP): A curfew was imposed in Ramban district around 5.30 pm (India Time) July 18 after widespread protests broke out across the region in protest against the BSF opening fire in “self-defense” in the Gool area this morning. Four persons were killed and 42 injured in the firing. “Four persons died in the firing, while 42 were injured,” Ramban Deputy Commissioner Sham Vinod Meena told the media.

    “There is no communal tension, yet considering the volatile situation, I issued orders for imposing a curfew around 5.30 pm,” he said. Two border guards were also injured in the incident; one of them sustained firearm injury in the stomach. He has been admitted to Government Medical College and Hospital here. Following the incident, a batch of 1,061 Kashmir-bound Amarnath pilgrims was stopped at Batote and Patnitop before it could reach Ramban.

    “They have been kept in community halls at Batote and Patnitop,” said Meena. The trouble started last night following allegations of desecration of a holy book in the Dharam area, near Gool, around 190 km north of Jammu, allegedly by some BSF personnel-a charge outrightly denied by the BSF. BSF Jammu Frontier IG Rajeev Krishna said the BSF camp of 76 Battalion having a weaponry store was attacked by a violent mob around 6.30 am and then around 9.30 am.

    “We are not a trigger-happy force and had exercised maximum restraint, but the mob, which might had some anti-social elements in it, attacked the BSF camp having ammunition depot and our personnel acted in self-defense,” he said. It all started on the evening of July 17 when a patrol party of 76 Battalion intercepted a person around 9.45 am and enquired about his identity (as it was part of their duty), he said.

    “That person started arguing and didn’t take the queries in the right spirit. In the meantime, 15 to 20 persons assembled at that place and the BSF party came back to its post. That person later leveled a false allegation of desecrating a holy book,” he said. “Soon a crowd of around 400-500 persons gathered and started hurling stones at the BSF post. We informed the police that came there and dispersed the crowd.

    Around 6.30 am today, a mob started building up again and tried to force entry into the Company Operating Base (COB) Dharam campus while hurling stones. The police tried to disperse the mob and fired three-four rounds. In the melee, our constable Ram Hari suffered bullet injury in the stomach. It was learnt that two civilians also suffered bullet injuries. All the injured were evacuated to a nearest hospital in the government vehicles.

    Again around 9.30 am, a mob of 700 to 800 men attacked the BSF post with stones. The police and BSF men had to fire in self-defense,” he said. The Union Home Ministry has ordered an inquiry into the firing incident on Thursday. “(If it is found) that there was any use of excessive force or irresponsible action, it shall be dealt with strictly,” said Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde.

  • Petitions Supporting A Commemorative Diwali Stamp Presented To Deputy Postmaster General

    Petitions Supporting A Commemorative Diwali Stamp Presented To Deputy Postmaster General

    WASHINGTON, DC (TIP): Reps. Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY), Ami Bera (D-CA), Grace Meng (D-NY) and representatives of the Indian- American community today presented Ron Stroman, Deputy Postmaster General, with petitions signed by thousands of supporters of a commemorative stamp honoring the Indian holiday Diwali.

    Maloney is sponsor, and Reps. Meng and Bera are cosponsors of, H. Res 47, a resolution which requests that the U.S. Postal Service issue a commemorative U.S. stamp in honor of the Indian holiday Diwali, the five-day “festival of lights,” celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains around the world. “Today’s meeting with the Deputy Postmaster General is another important step on the road to a Diwali stamp,” Rep. Maloney said.

    “I am optimistic that the Citizens Stamp Advisory Commission will respond favorably to the 1300 signatures presented today, and the 400,000 signatures presented in the online campaign.” “I appreciate Deputy Postmaster General Stroman meeting with my colleagues and me today to discuss the US Postal Service issuing a Diwali stamp,” said Rep. Bera. “Introducing a Diwali stamp makes business sense, giving the USPS more revenue at a time when it’s sorely needed, and is also the right thing to do, giving this holiday-and the India American Community-the equal recognition that it deserves.”

    “The Postal Service has issued stamps for Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and Eid and now it’s time for one to honor Diwali,” said Rep. Meng. “Diwali, the festival of lights, is observed by 1.2 billion people in over 120 countries including the United States and India. These include thousands of constituents who reside in my district which includes one of the largest South Asian populations in the country.

    Issuing a stamp would be an outstanding way to salute the tremendous contributions of Hindu and Indian Americans, and it would give Diwali the recognition that it deserves. I thank the Deputy Postmaster General for meeting with us and we will continue to keep up the fight.” Ranju Batra, chair of Diwali Stamp Project, said “I’m truly excited by today’s meeting with Deputy Postmaster General Stroman. Rep. Carolyn Maloney’s durable national leadership is bearing fruit.

    I’m also grateful for the support of Rep. Grace Meng along with Rep. Ami Bera for attending today. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has worked hard to support Carolyn’s HR47. I was delighted to have the letter-petitions presented to DPMG Stroman and have Carolyn read out loud Ambassador Mulay’s poem, ‘Towards Diwali Stamp,’ now the official poem of the Diwali Stamp Project.We are closer than ever before, and we will not stop until our Diwali Stamp is issued.

    ” Ravi Batra said, “Ron Stroman is a serious public official, who comprehends the compelling need to issue the Diwali Stamp, consistent with CSAC’s necessary merit-driven independent judgment, and I applaud Carolyn Maloney’s tireless leadership and Ranju’s limitless work ethic in driving the Diwali Stamp to critical mass – with scores of members of congress supporting, including Tulsi and Ami – and now an official poem too.

    When the USPS decides, sooner rather than later, to issue the Diwali Stamp ‘E Pluribus Unum’ shall include Hindu-Americans too.” As part of the campaign for the Diwali stamp, Maloney asked Dnyaneshwar M. Mulay, the Consul General of India in New York, to write the following poem, “Towards Diwali Stamp” in support of the campaign: “Towards Diwali Stamp” Brighten up the world Light up the nearest Lamp Stamp out clouds of darkness Bring in the Diwali Stamp.

  • Countdown For The Second India Day Parade Of Long Island Begins

    Countdown For The Second India Day Parade Of Long Island Begins

    HICKSVILLE, NY (TIP): The preparations for the second India Day Parade of Long Island (IDP) scheduled for August 11 seemed to be shaping up well for the 66th anniversary of India’s Independence with the kick off held here on July 17. The organizers expect over 25,000 people to march with the parade or witness it as it starts from Patel Brothers Plaza on South Broadway and proceeds towards North Broadway.

    A fabulous cultural bonanza is planned as the culmination of celebrations of India’s independence. Information made available said 15 floats and 25 booths have already been booked. Miss USA 2005 Chelsea Cooley, the Guest of Honor at the 2013 IDP, was introduced at the kick off by Bobby Kumar, a co-Founder of IDP. The other co-founders, as claimed in the flyer, are Kamlesh Mehta and Harendra Singh.

    Indu Jaiswal, the Chairperson of IDP was away to India and could not take part in the kick off. Introducing Cooley, Bobby Kumar said Ms Cooley’s participation will add ‘East Meets West’ factor to the parade and build bridges between Indian and other communities. “She has committed to be present throughout the parade and even sing a few songs,” he said. The tall beauty from North Carolina, who is a member of the BQ Girls pop/R&B group, sang a few lines and said she was excited and honored to take part in the parade.

    The organizers claimed that Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano will walk in the lead as in the 2012 parade. Key volunteers & committee chairs announced include Flora Parekh, Sunita Sadhnani, Mala Bakshi, Dr Sukhwinder Ranu, Ajay Batra, Vijay Goswamy, Ashok Varshney, Dr Parveen Chopra, Animesh Goenka, Jaya Bahadkar, Tina Shah, Rajesh Kumar and Gobind Munjal.

  • Motorcycle bomb kills two in KhyberPakhtunkhwa in Pakistan

    Motorcycle bomb kills two in KhyberPakhtunkhwa in Pakistan

    PESHAWAR (TIP): At least two people were killed and five others injured july 11 when a powerful motorcycle bomb exploded near a mosque in Pakistan’s north-western province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, police said. The bomb was planted in a motorcycle parked outside the mosque in Kacha Pakka area in Kohat district, about 50 kilometres south-west of provincial capital Peshawar. The bomb exploded as the worshippers came out after noon prayer on the first day of holy month of Ramzan. Two people were killed and five others injured in the attack, said police official Muhammad Siddique from district police control office. Rescue and law enforcement agencies rushed to the site of the blast. The dead and injured have been rushed to a nearby hospital. It was not clear whether it was a time bomb or detonated with a remote control device. The identity of those killed is not known. So far nobody took responsibility of the attack but Taliban are active in the areas and frequently target the civilians and law enforcing agencies. Pakistan is facing rising militants’ threat. President Asif Ali Zardari’s chief of security was killed in a suicide attack in southern port city of Karachi on july 11.

  • ISUZU TO ASSEMBLE SUV, TRUCK AT HM PLANT

    ISUZU TO ASSEMBLE SUV, TRUCK AT HM PLANT

    KOLKATA (TIP): Japanese automobile manufacturer Isuzu Motors’ local subsidiary Isuzu Motors India entered into an agreement with Hindustan Motors (HM) on Friday for contract manufacturing of Isuzu sports utility vehicles (SUVs) and pickup trucks. According to the agreement, the components for producing these vehicles will be imported by Isuzu Motors from Thailand and assembled in HM factory at Thiruvallur, near Chennai.

    The move is expected to help the Japanese major increase sales of its recently launched MU-7 SUV and DMAX pickup truck even before its proposed plant in Andhra Pradesh becomes operational, an Isuzu official said. “The collaboration with Hindustan Motors will support us by carrying out assembly of our products at Thiruvallur, which is about 70 km from Sri City, Andhra Pradesh, where our own local manufacturing facility is planned to come up,” said Takashi Kikuchi, president of Isuzu Motors India.

    He said the company is confident about the growth prospects of the SUV and LCV markets in India, notwithstanding the current slowdown, and is also very happy with the positive feedback of the market to its MU7 SUV and DMAX pickup trucks. These products were launched in Coimbatore and Hyderabad in March by importing them as CBUs from Thailand. “With this agreement, we can advance the scope of our sales operations and increase the scale of supply volumes without waiting for our local manufacturing facility to be ready,” he added.

    HM Managing Director Uttam Bose said the contract manufacturing agreement will enable HM to optimally utilise its spare capacity at its Thiruvallur plant, which rolls out Mitsubishi Motors’ SUVs. “The move makes business sense, especially at a time when the Indian economy and the automobile industry, in particular , are passing through trying times. The agreement with Isuzu is a strategic move to keep HM on the growth path,” he added.

    Incidentally, HM has decided to demerge and transfer its Chennai car plant manufacturing premium Mitsubishi passenger vehicles as a going concern to its fully owned subsidiary, Hindustan Motor Finance Corporation (HMFC). Asked if HM would induct Isuzu as a partner for the demerged entity, Bose refused to comment on the issue. It may be noted that the media statement was silent on the volumes that HM would assemble for Isuzu Motors India or the duration of the agreement

  • USAID To Bring In $100mn For India’s Clean Energy Sector

    USAID To Bring In $100mn For India’s Clean Energy Sector

    Chennai (TIP): The US Agency for International Development (USAID) and US-based institutional investor Northern Lights Capital Group will together bring in $100 million investment in India’s clean energy sector via Nereus Capital. This is the first time USAID has partnered with a private investment fund to facilitate targeted investment. The Agency will provide a 40% credit guarantee for a $100 million limited partner commitment to Nereus Capital’s India Alternative Energy Fund managed by Northern Lights Capital Group, a statement from the US Consulate General in Chennai said.

    The investment will be disbursed through the Agency’s Development Credit Authority. The investment decision was made at the fourth annual US-India Strategic Dialogue, during Secretary of State John Kerry’s visit to India. “This investment could eventually create as much as 300-400 additional megawatts of sustainable energy capacity, which is equivalent to lighting the homes of tens of thousands of Indian families. It will help to facilitate access for US entrepreneurs to this emerging market,” Raj Shah, administrator of the Agency said.

  • INDIA-ISRAEL TRADE PACT WILL BOOST VOLUME BY $2 B : ENVOY

    INDIA-ISRAEL TRADE PACT WILL BOOST VOLUME BY $2 B : ENVOY

    Hyderabad (TIP): The India-Israel free trade agreement, which is close to being concluded, will have far reaching implications on both the countries going beyond trade volumes, according to Alon Ushpiz, Israeli Ambassador to India. Speaking to reporters here, he said that the parleys between the two countries on FTA are currently under way in New Delhi. The agreement is likely to be concluded at the earliest.

    “In fact, we were hoping to conclude this a few months ago. The FTA negotiations are pretty complex and take time to conclude as both the parties tend to be firm on their respective stands,” he explained. The bilateral trade had shot up to about $5 billion in 2011, excluding services, with similar volumes both sides. This registered a slight slowdown in 2012. But the moment the FTA is signed, it could help accelerate trade volumes by at least $2 billion, he said.

    IT FUND
    Sectors such as information technology, research and development, high-tech areas have immense potential to grow bilaterally. In fact, there have been proposals to set up a separate fund for the IT sector between the two countries to encourage development of products. Already, several cooperative initiatives are now underway between the two counties and also with some States in the area of agriculture technology, water management, treatment of sewerage and desalination.

    ENERGY
    Israel has gained considerable expertise in the energy sector, including renewables. We are in talks with the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and expect to sign an agreement for mutual cooperation for sharing of technology, he said. Referring to the cooperation in the agriculture sector, he said several projects have been initiated with States focussing on water management and improving productivity.

    These include technology sharing for production of vegetables, mango, citrus fruits, pomegranates and flowers. “We are natural friends of water. We can offer technology and share learning with India. This could be through Government, public undertakings and also expertise in the private sector,” he said.

  • Easier Entry, Faster Registration For Foreign Institutions

    Easier Entry, Faster Registration For Foreign Institutions

    MUMBAI (TIP): Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) will now be able to enter Indian markets faster and register themselves more quickly with the regulator accepting the recommendations of the Chandrasekhar committee report. While the time required for registration is supposed to be a week or less, the need for documentation can push it to over six months, according to those in the know.

    The new norms are expected to significantly reduce the time required to do so. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has given its nod to the suggestions of the committee, which include lower Know Your Client (KYC) requirements for entities backed by governments and doing away with the need for registration with the regulator, according to a press release following a board meeting today.

    Sebi has said FIIs, sub-accounts and qualified foreign investors (QFIs) are to be merged into a new investor class to be termed “foreign portfolio investors” (FPIs). Neither FIIs nor their sub-accounts will require prior registration with the regulator. Instead, they would register themselves directly with designated depository participants (DDPs). The regulator has also adopted a risk-based approach to KYC, dividing it into three categories on the basis of perceived risk.

    The first will cover organisations backed by the government, such as sovereign wealth fund. The second will cover regulated entities such as foreign mutual funds, while all other entities would fall in the third category. Also, it has clearly defined foreign direct investment as any investment exceeds 10 per cent stake in the company. Richie Sancheti, senior associate at Nishith Desai Associates, indicated the move would do much towards rationalisation of foreign inflows.

    “The move to harmonise and streamline the KYC norms will ease the process of entry of foreign portfolio investors into India. Sovereign wealth funds and institutional investors can invest more easily on a disintermediated basis. While the complete committee report is awaited, the earlier press release did clarify that other investors that get categorised under category III portfolio investors on the basis of risk weightage, may not be permitted to issue participatory notes,” he said.

    Yogesh Chande, consultant, Economic Laws Practice, suggested entities already registered might have some leeway. “It will be good to see how existing FII and FII subaccounts would glide into the new regime. My sense is, perhaps they will be automatically grandfathered. The risk based-approach to KYC is a welcome move,” he said. Other recommendations would likely require a move from the government, according to the Sebi statement. I

  • ANDY MURRAY BEATS NOVAK DJOKOVIC TO WIN WIMBLEDON

    ANDY MURRAY BEATS NOVAK DJOKOVIC TO WIN WIMBLEDON

    LONDON (TIP): ooking at the scorecard – a 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 win over world No. 1 Novak Djokovic – you might think that he did it the easy way. Three sets. No tie breaks. What could be simpler? Yet in all probability you watched at least some of the match – early reports suggest that more than 20million people did – and if so you will appreciate that it was an intense trial of nerve, skill and physical resilience.

    The final game, which swung this way and that like a hammock in a hurricane, contained as much tension as many a fivesetter. “Winning Wimbledon is the pinnacle of tennis,” said a softly spoken and still slightly bemused Andy Murray afterwads. “The last game almost increased that feeling. My head was kind of everywhere. I mean, some of the shots he came up with were unbelievable. Mentally, that last game will be the toughest game I’ll play in my career.” Everyone on Centre Court knew Djokovic’s reputation for bouncing back from lost causes.

    So even when Murray led by a two sets and a break, it never felt comfortable. Perhaps that was a good thing, because the anxious fans kept urging their man on, and played a full part in this historic occasion. When Murray fizzed down an ace to secure the second set, they gave him a standing ovation. When that crazy final game entered a labyrinthine sequence of tit-for-tat winners, they kept Murray going by chanting his name.

    Murray had come into the tournament pleading for a little more home bias around the elegantly landscaped grounds of Wimbledon. While the influence of the fans is hard to quantify, he definitely feeds off their energy. “The atmosphere was incredible for him,” said Djokovic afterwards. “For me not so much.” After a gracious acceptance of Murray’s superiority, he also admitted that “I wasn’t patient enough – there were many points where I should have waited for a better opportunity.”

    The trouble, from Djokovic’s perspective, was that he was getting so little change in the long, almost drill-like baseline rallies that made up the majority of the points. Murray was showing no holes in his defence as he lunged out wide for the forehand and then rushed across to play the defensive slice on the backhand side. The quality of that slice backhand, more than any other, was the difference between the players.

    The first point of the match set the tone: a 20-shot rally in which both players were shuttling so smoothly from side to side that they could have been on rails. As the sun beat down on the hottest day of the year, Murray’s saturated shirt was soon clinging to his body. Between points, he was slumping his shoulders and almost staggering back to his starting position like a puppet with faulty strings.

    But then, as soon as the ball toss went up, he skipped back onto his toes and started floating over the turf again. Murray endured a couple of wobbly moments on his serve in the first set. With the sun right in his eyes, he sent down successive double-faults at the start of one game. But he took control with a sequence of five successive clean winners – an ace, a smash, a forehand and two backhands – that emphasised just how complete his game has become.

    “The story of my career is that I had a lot of tough losses,” he said afterwards, “but the one thing I would say is that every year I always improved a little bit. They weren’t major improvements, massive changes, but every year my ranking was going in the right direction.” As the spectators fanned themselves furiously in this ever more torrid atmosphere, Murray dropped behind early in the second set. Feeling the urgency of his plight, Djokovic worked his counter-intuitive magic and became more assertive, more self-confident.

    Up in the player’s box, Ivan Lendl was slumping lower and lower in his seat, shielding himself behind the balcony wall like a man hiding behind the sofa. The match was already moving past the duration of the women’s final – 81 minutes – yet it felt like we were still in the first act. On Twitter, a watching Andy Roddick warned that “These guys are killing each other … they won’t be able to stand if they play five [sets].” Had the first two sets been split, it would have been ominous – for Murray lost the Australian Open final in January in exactly that scenario.

    Djokovic is built like a road-runner, so lean and efficient that he seems to grow stronger the longer a match goes on. But grass-court tennis favours attackers over defenders, and Djokovic was struggling to bring his endurance into play. He wanted to establish the retrieving rhythm he found against Juan Martin del Potro in Friday’s semi-final, where he slides into his wide shots and keeps getting one more ball back until his opponent self-destructs.

    But Murray was just too clinical, and those desperate lunges were finding only air. As that crucial second set drew to a close, Djokovic’s equanimity was disturbed by a series of close calls that went against him. He used up all his Hawk-Eye challenges and then started laying into Mohamed Lahyani, the chair umpire, when another Murray slice caught the tiniest sliver of the back of the line.

    To the line judges’ credit, this was a superbly officiated final and there was only one clear error in the whole match. While Djokovic raged, Murray pounced, reeling off a sequence of eight games out of nine that carried him to 2-0 up in the third set. On the BBC’s broadcast, Andrew Castle was convinced that Djokovic’s focus had evaporated. “I’m getting excited!” cried Boris Becker, having hitched his colours to the British flag for the day. Yet Djokovic has never been known to go quietly.

    Flicking through his vast database of options, he found one tactic he had yet to try – the drop shot. And he played it again and again for the next few games, like a golfer reduced to taking an iron off the tee because his driver is spraying the ball everywhere. The surprising thing was that it worked, at least for a while. Djokovic was out-Murraying Murray with these little deft touches, and Murray’s legs looked heavier and heavier as he now had to move forward and back as well as side to side.

    What to do? On the sixth or seventh time of asking, Murray took a leaf from Lendl’s book and drove the ball from close range at Djokovic’s throat – the throat of his racket, that is, from where it bounced harmlessly to the floor. That was the end of the dropshots, and now Murray was closing in on his target with cold-eyed intensity. As he served for the match, Murray maintained his mastery of that awkward yellow ball through everything that Djokovic threw at him.

    It would have been so easy to slip back from the brink at that moment, as the first three match points evaded him. But he kept the faith, rushing boldly to the net wherever possible. Finally, Djokovic netted a backhand on the fourth match point. The 77-year-wait was over, and Murray bounced around the back of the court with his teeth gritted in a grimace of delight. His greatest moment was also one of his hardest-won, which is exactly as it should be. That curly-headed 18-year-old had fulfilled his destiny.

    Marion Bartoli beats Sabine Lisickito win Wimbledon 2013 women’s singles final
    Marion Bartoli might be a kooky French fruit-loop, but there could be no disputing her calibre on a grass-court on Saturday as she swept aside an emotional Sabine Lisicki to clasp the Venus Rosewater Dish and realise, in an expression of utter bewilderment, that she was the Wimbledon champion. Seizing her first grand slam title with this dominant 6-1, 6-4 victory, and barrelling through the entire tournament without dropping a set, this oddity from the Auvergne was the worthiest of winners.

  • TIRICHY- THE LAND OF TRADITION

    TIRICHY- THE LAND OF TRADITION

    Situated on the banks of the river Cauvery,Tiruchirappalli, the forth largest city in the state was a citadel of the early Cholas which later fell to the Pallavas. But the Pallavas never really managed to retain control of this strategic city and lost it to the Pandiyas several times. This tug of war finally ended when the Cholas reasserted themselves in the 10th century.

    The fort of Tiruchy continued to be in their possession until the decline of the empire after which it became a Vijayanagar stronghold. When this empire collapsed in 1565, Tiruchy came to be occupied in turn by the Nayaks of Madurai, the Marathas, the Navabs of Carnatic, the French and finally the British. But it was under Nayaks of Madurai that Tiruchy flourished and prospered in its own right and grew to be the city that it is today.

    Tiruchy is a fine blend of tradition and modernity built around the Rock Fort. Apart from the fort, there are several churches colleges and missions dating back to the 1760s. With its excellent infrastructure facilities, Tiruchy will serve as a good base to see central Tamilnadu.

    Places to see
    ROCKFORT
    The most famous land mark of this district is Rockfort Temple. This temple crowns a massive outcrop of rock, that soars 83 meters upwards, from the surrounding plains. It is reached by a step flight of 437 steps cut into the rock. Halway up is the Sri Thayumanaswamy Temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva. It has a 100 pillared hall, and a Vimana. From its summit we will get a fantastic view of the town plus its other main landmark, Srirangam, Cavery River, Coleroon River , Thiruvanaika Kovil

    SRIRANGAM
    Sanctity is accorded to a place on the basis of its threefold popularity of the presiding deity, the quality of the holy waters and its hoary past. The holy shrine of Srirangam has al l these attributes in rich measure. The township of Srirangam envelopping the shrine is situated on a tiny island formed by the bifurcation of the river Cavery at a place called Mukkombu (Upper anaicut).

    The southern distributary of the river retains the name Cavery, while the northern branch is called Coleroon. The abode of the Supreme Lord, Sri Ranganatha, the reclining form of Lord Vishnu is situated in Srirangam 8 kilometers from Trichy city.There are not less than 22 gopurams, one of which is the tallest in India. The 72m high 13-tiered Rajagopuram was built in 1987 while the remaining 21 gopurams were built between th 14th and 17th centuries.

    JAMBUKESWARA TEMPLE
    Thiruvanaikaval Jambukeswara Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva is situated 2 kms east of Srirangam, The temple is named after the elephant which is believed to have worshipped Lord Siva here. Installed under an ancient Jambu tree, the lingam is partially submerged by water and meant to represent God incarnate as water.

    ST. LOURDU’s CHURCH
    Built in 1812, this church has lovered doors, which when opened, turns the church into an airy pavilion. Its excellent setting and marvelous architecture, makes it a site worth visiting. It is in the heart of the Trichy city, surrounded by commercial markets.

    HAZRATH NATHERVALI
    It is ancient Durga more than 1000 years old. It is marvelous architecture , the doom is made up of shining marbles giving a great look to the Durga. It is also situated in the heart of Trichy City.

    MUKKOMBU
    A wonderful picnic spot,where the river Kollidam branches off from the river Cavery. It is 18 kilometer from Trichy City.

    Travel within city
    Travelling around Tiruchy is easy, as the city is well developed and has a good network of travel options. There are many buses and auto rickshaws available for travel in the city of Tiruchy, and a network of share auto rickshaws also ply through the city.

    BUS
    While travelling in Tiruchy, opting for bus travel can be a wise choice as the buses comprehensively cover all parts of the city. Travelling through bus in Tiruchy is also relatively safe as buses as always moderately crowded even during night time. The bus fares are also cheap and travelling in bus may cost you around Rs 3 to 9.

    AUTO-RICKSHAW
    You can also opt for auto rickshaws in the city of Tiruchy, and these do not run on meter. Auto rickshaw drivers are bound to demand for a rate that is higher than the actual amount, so you should be aware of the local rates from the start. Talking to the locals and finding out the basic rates can help. Make sure you bargain for a good rate as fares will never go beyond Rs 70.

    SHARED AUTO RICKSHAW
    You can also opt for share auto rickshaws while travelling in Tiruchy. A trip in a share auto rickshaw will cost you only around Rs 5 to 7, and this mode will be less crowded than a bus.

  • World’s Most Powerful Radio Telescope Sees Birth Of Biggest Ever Star In Milky Way

    World’s Most Powerful Radio Telescope Sees Birth Of Biggest Ever Star In Milky Way

    NEW DELHI (TIP): Using ALMA, the most powerful radio telescope in the world, scientists have for the first time observed details of how a massive star is born within a dark cloud core about 10,000 light years from Earth. ALMA (Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimetre Array) located in Chile was able to penetrate the gigantic cloud of gases thought to be 500 times the mass of the Sun and many times more luminous, and see the star forming in its womb.

    This is the largest star to be seen forming ever. The researchers saw how matter is being dragged into the centre of the gaseous cloud by the gravitational pull of the forming star – or stars – along a number of dense threads or filaments. These threads extend to upto 3.26 light years, that is over 30 trillion kilometers.

    The international research team of British, German, Italian and French astronomers will publish their findings in a forthcoming issue of the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics. “The remarkable observations from ALMA allowed us to get the first really in-depth look at what was going on within this cloud,” said lead author Dr Nicolas Peretto, from Cardiff University.

    “We wanted to see how monster stars form and grow, and we certainly achieved our aim. One of the sources we have found is an absolute giantthe largest protostellar core ever spotted in the Milky Way.” “Even though we already believed that the region was a good candidate for being a massive star-forming cloud, we were not expecting to find such a massive embryonic star at its centre.

    This cloud is expected to form at least one star 100 times more massive than the Sun and up to a million times brighter. Only about one in 10,000 of all the stars in the Milky Way reach that kind of mass.” Different theories exist as to how these massive stars form but the team’s findings lend weight to the idea that the entire cloud core begins to collapse inwards, with material raining in towards the centre to form one or more massive stars.

    Co-author Professor Gary Fuller, from the University of Manchester, said: “Not only are these stars rare, but their births are extremely rapid and childhood short, so finding such a massive object so early in its evolution in our Galaxy is a spectacular result.” “Our observations reveal in superb detail the filamentary network of dust and gas flowing into the central compact region of the cloud and strongly support the theory of global collapse for the formation of massive stars.”

    The University of Manchester hosts the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC)- funded support centre for UK astronomers using ALMA, where the observations were processed. Team member Dr Ana Duarte-Cabral, from the Universite de Bordeaux, said: “Matter is drawn into the centre of the cloud from all directions but the filaments are the regions around the star that contain the densest gas and dust and so these distinct patterns are generated.”

    Dr Peretto added: “We managed to get these very detailed observations using only a fraction of ALMA’s ultimate potential. ALMA will definitely revolutionise our knowledge of star formation, solving some current problems, and certainly raising new ones.”

  • NASA SET FOR 2020 MISSION TO MARS

    NASA SET FOR 2020 MISSION TO MARS

    MUMBAI (TIP): The Mars 2020 rover will play a key role in a human mission to the Red Planet, apart from searching for signs of past life, says Nasa’s “Mars 2020 Science Definition Final Report.” With a 699 Martian days’ life span, the mission, which will incorporate a number of technologies from the Curiosity flight, is slated for lift-off either in July or August 2020 and will reach Mars in January or March 2012.

    The launch vehicle will belong to the Atlas V class. The 154-page report dated July 1, 2013 but released early on Wednesday states that the mission will also have a major part in planning a future sample return mission. Calling it as a worthy successor to Curiosity , the report says that “for the first time, humanity would seek to collect samples with possible evidence of past Martian life for analysis on earth, where cutting edge techniques available now, as well as awaiting future development could be applied to the search.’

    ‘ The four primary objectives of the mission: Explore an astrobiologically relevant ancient environment on Mars to decipher its geological processes and history. Assess the biosignature preservation potential within the selected geological environment and search for potential biosignatures. Demonstrate significant technical progress towards the future return of scientifically selected , welldocumented samples to earth. Provide an opportunity for human exploration compatible with the science payload and within the mission’s payload capacity.

  • Mobile Dead? Try Solar Headphones

    Mobile Dead? Try Solar Headphones

    LONDON (TIP): A pair of headphones that can harness solar power to charge mobile devices when you are on the move has been designed in the United Kingdom. Andrew Anderson, a Glasgow-based designer , launched the OnBeat headphones on crowdfunding site Kickstarter and hopes to have them on sale by early next year. The headphone band is fitted with a flexible solar cell with a charge capacity of 0.55 watts.

    “The headphones have an integrated flexible solar cell that covers the full headband which capture solar energy whilst out and about,” Anderson said on Kickstarter . “The energy is stored in two light-weight Lithium Ion batteries held within the two ear cups for a balanced weight and fit on the head. “For those rainy days we have also developed the headphones to be able to be charged via USB directly from your computer or mains socket,” he said.

    Anderson hopes to raise £200,000 to get the headphones into production. “We are still working on the design and prototype. We need to improve the headphones — people want to know about noise cancellation ,” he told the BBC. He admitted that his father Frank had come up with the idea. “It’s really simple — you would think it had already been done. You can buy solar chargers for phones but the thing is it’s like you’re carrying two phones around,” he said. The idea of using renewable sources to charge devices is proving popular among developers.

    Many inventors have been looking at harnessing the energy generated by walking too. One project seeking crowdfunding via Kickstarter in the US is a shoe insole that can be used to charge batteries . A walk of between 2.5-5 miles is required to charge an average iPhone battery, says the team at Solepower, which developed the prototype at Carnegie Mellon University. “We developed a proof-of-concept prototype for lighting up shoes so students could easily see where they were walking at night,” say its website.

  • For Fast Texting, Australian Businessman Invents Symbol For ‘The’

    For Fast Texting, Australian Businessman Invents Symbol For ‘The’

    MELBOURNE (TIP): An Australian businessman has invented a new letter of the English alphabet to replace the word ‘the’ because he thinks it is more efficient. Paul Mathis from Melbourne has developed the replacement of the word ‘the’ — an upper-case ‘T’ and a lower-case ‘h’ bunched together so they share the upright stem.

    He has also developed an app that puts it in everyone’s hand by allowing users to download an entirely new electronic keyboard with his symbol — which he pronounces “th” . The keyboard also has a row of keys containing the 10 or 15 most frequently typed words in English, ‘The Age’ reported. So far, Mathis who has opened over 20 restaurants and hotels across Australia, has invested about $75,000 in the project.

    “The word ‘and’ is only the fifth-most used word in English and it has its own symbol — the ampersand. Isn’t it time we accorded the same respect to ‘the’ ?” Mathis said. “It is something that might be useful for people? I think so,” he said. Typing the symbol will save time mainly in the context of Twitter. “The main functionality of this is in the texting space,” Mathis said.

    He has faced criticism on Twitter from people who say he is attempting to trademark a symbol that has long been in use as part of the Serbian Cyrillic alphabet (pronounced “tshe” , the letter represents the “ch” sound found in the word “chew” ), the paper reported.

  • Ultimate Reality And Divine Beings

    Ultimate Reality And Divine Beings

    One of the most commonly retold Hindu myths is that which describes the creation of the world involving the so-called “Hindu Trinity”— Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. There are many variations of this basic myth. Here is one of the most popular: In the beginning the entire universe was pervaded by Brahman, the abstract divine force. There was no earth, no heaven, nothing.

    At a particular time—when the time was “right”—a vast ocean washed over the cosmos, and a huge serpent emerged from the waters. Vishnu appeared, sleeping on the serpent. As Vishnu slept, floating on the waters, the sound “om” began to vibrate throughout the universe. Vishnu awoke, and out of his navel grew a lotus. When the lotus opened, Brahma was sitting there. Vishnu said to him that it was time to create the world.

    Brahma then set about creating the world. He broke the lotus into three pieces, and with the first made the heavens, with the second the skies, and with the third the earth. He then populated the earth with all living beings. Shiva often does not appear in this myth, although in some versions he appears later when the world has been engulfed in chaos. He begins to dance, and in the process creates tremendous religious heat that engulfs the world in flames, destroying it but at the same time purifying it (much like what the sacrificial fire does).

    The cosmos is then once again void, until the waters reappear, and the whole cycle begins again. Just as human beings are born and reborn over and over again, so too is the cosmos. This is samsara. Accordingly, Brahma is often understood to be the creator, Vishnu the preserver, and Shiva the destroyer. This, however, is only part of the story. The Hindu idea of the gods is complex.

    Though in one sense there is only one god, Brahman, this god is not really a single, manifest entity but the divine principle that animates the entire cosmos. Each of the individual gods, in this sense, is thus a manifestation of Brahman. Vishnu, for instance, takes many, many forms. Sometimes he is just Vishnu, often depicted as a royal god who resides in the heavens with his consort, Lakshmi, and maintains the order, or dharma of the cosmos.

    But Vishnu also manifests himself in the human realm when dharma has broken down; he sends himself down to earth in the form of an avatara. Krishna is an avatara of Vishnu, as is Rama. But these forms of the gods are not understood to be “lesser” versions of Vishnu. They are each fully and completely Vishnu, as are all of the other manifestations of Vishnu or, for that matter, Shiva or Brahma (although he typically does not have multiple forms). This is related to the concept of Brahman.

    Brahman is the overarching, allencompassing divine principle that contains all beings—all of the gods, all humans, all demons, and even all animals. Thus each individual god is at once a particular god with particular characteristics and “personality” traits, and at the same time a complete manifestation of Brahman. Thus Hinduism is polytheistic in the sense that there are many, many different gods—classically there are said to be 330 million! Hindus often worship a particular form of the god or goddess, what is called an “ishtadevata” in Sanskrit, a chosen or personal god.

    Some of these forms are pan- Indian, such as Krishna or Shiva or Ganesh, while others are local, often only known at the village level. There are thousands of goddesses in the Hindu pantheon: Lakshmi, Parvati, Saraswati, Kali, Durga, and so on. These goddesses can be quite distinct. Lakshmi, the embodiment of grace and good fortune, is a “cool” goddess, Vishnu’s consort, who is motherly and utterly benign. Kali, in contrast, is often a ghastly figure with flaming eyes and a lolling tongue and earrings made of severed heads.

    Despite their very different personas, however, they are often understood to be different manifestations of Devi, the great goddess who is one. Humans are often only able to see the outward form of the gods and goddesses, because our vision is limited and because we are enmeshed in the illusion that the world we see is the “real” world. This is the effect of maya, illusion. It is maya that makes us think, for instance, that we are individual selves, or atmans. Certainly on one level we exist–we have bodies, we have feelings, thoughts, personalities.

    But ultimately all of these things are only just illusions. Ultimately, we are all part of Brahman (according to Advaita and Vishishtadvaita and other monist schools, but not Dvaita Vedanta and other dualist schools). Indeed, there is nothing that is “us” that is not Brahman. However, we are ignorant and deluded (by maya), and thus we think we think we are individuals. The individual forms of the gods and goddesses are often understood to be simply the forms that we perceive, while the reality behind or beyond these forms is Brahman.

    Kali appears to be hideous and fierce, because our human vision is conditioned by maya; in reality, she is a benign, protecting, nurturing mother. And, on an even more ultimate level, she can be understood to be no different than Brahman. Again, when one worships an individual god or goddess, one is both worshipping that particular deity and, at the same time, interacting with the ultimate reality that is Brahman.

  • SRI GURU GRANTH SAHIB

    SRI GURU GRANTH SAHIB

    CONTD FROM Vol 7 ISSUE 26 || 6 || The self-willed manmukhs are hit over the head, and consumed by conflict. The cheaters are plundered by falsehood; they are chained and led away. || 7 || Enshrine the Lord Master in your mind, and you shall not have to repent. He forgives our sins, when we practice the Teachings of the Guru’s Word.

    || 8 || Nanak begs for the True Name, which is obtained by the Gurmukh.Without You, I have no other at all; please, bless me with Your Glance of Grace. || 9 || 16 || AASAA, FIRST MEHL: Why should I go searching in the forests, when the woods of my home are so green? The True Word of the Shabad has instantaneously come and settled in my heart. || 1 || Wherever I look, there He is; I know no other.Working for the Guru, one realizes the Mansion of the Lord’s Presence.

    || 1 || Pause || The True Lord blends us with Himself, when it is pleasing to His Mind. One who ever walks in accordance with His Will, merges into His Being. || 2 || When the True Lord dwells in the mind, that mind flourishes. He Himself grants greatness; His Gifts are never exhausted. || 3 || Serving this and that person, how can one obtain the Lord’s Court? If someone embarks on a boat of stone, he shall drown with its cargo.

    || 4 || So offer your mind, and surrender your head with it. The Gurmukh realizes the true essence, and finds the home of his own self. || 5 || People discuss birth and death; the Creator created this. Those who conquer their selfhood and remain dead, shall never have to die again. || 6 || Do those deeds which the Primal Lord has ordered for you. If one surrenders his mind upon meeting the True Guru, who can estimate its value?

    || 7 || That Lord Master is the Assayer of the jewel of the mind; He places the value on it. O Nanak, True is the Glory of that one, in whose mind the Lord Master dwells. || 8 || 17 || AASAA, FIRST MEHL: Those who have forgotten the Naam, the Name of the Lord, are deluded by doubt and duality. Those who abandon the roots and cling to the branches, shall obtain only ashes. || 1 || Without the Name, how can one be emancipated? Who knows this? One who becomes Gurmukh is emancipated; the self-willed manmukhs lose their honor.

    || 1 || Pause || Those who serve the One Lord become perfect in their understanding, O Siblings of Destiny. The Lord’s humble servant finds Sanctuary in Him, the Immaculate One, from the very beginning, and throughout the ages. || 2 || My Lord and Master is the One; there is no other, O Siblings of Destiny. By the Grace of the True Lord, celestial peace is obtained. || 3 || Without the Guru, no one has obtained Him, although many may claim to have done so. He Himself reveals the Way, and implants true devotion within.

    || 4 || Even if the selfwilled manmukh is instructed, he stills goes into the wilderness.Without the Lord’s Name, he shall not be emancipated; he shall die, and sink into hell. || 5 || He wanders through birth and death, and never chants the Lord’s Name. He never realizes his own value, without serving the Guru. || 6 || Whatever service the Lord causes us to do, that is just what we do. He Himself acts; who else should be mentioned? He beholds His own greatness.

    || 7 || He alone serves the Guru, whom the Lord Himself inspires to do so. O Nanak, offering his head, one is emancipated, and honored in the Court of the Lord. || 8 || 18 || AASAA, FIRST MEHL: Beautiful is the Supreme Lord and Master, and beautiful is the Word of the Guru’s Bani. By great good fortune, one meets the True Guru, and the supreme status of Nirvaanaa is obtained. || 1 || I am the lowest slave of Your slaves; I am Your most humble servant. As You keep me, I live. Your Name is in my mouth.

    || 1 || Pause || I have such a great thirst for the Blessed Vision of Your Darshan; my mind accepts Your Will, and so You are pleased with me. Greatness is in the Hands of my Lord and Master; by His Will, honor is obtained. || 2 || Do not think that the True Lord is far away; He is deep within. Wherever I look, there I find Him pervading; how can I estimate His value? || 3 || He Himself does, and He Himself undoes. He Himself beholds His glorious greatness. Becoming Gurmukh, one beholds Him, and so, His value is appraised.

    || 4 || So earn your profits while you are alive, by serving the Guru. If it is so pre-ordained, then one finds the True Guru. || 5 || The self-willed manmukhs continually lose, and wander around, deluded by doubt. The blind manmukhs do not remember the Lord; how can they obtain the Blessed Vision of His Darshan? || 6 || One’s coming into the world is judged worthwhile only if one lovingly attunes oneself to the True Lord. Meeting the Guru, one becomes invaluable; his light merges into the Light.

    || 7 || Day and night, he remains detached, and serves the Primal Lord. O Nanak, those who are imbued with the Lord’s Lotus Feet, are content with the Naam, the Name of the Lord. || 8 || 19 || AASAA, FIRST MEHL: No matter how much one may describe the Lord, His limits still cannot be known. I am without any support; You, O Lord, are my only Support; You are my almighty power. || 1 || This is Nanak’s prayer, that he may be adorned with the True Name.When selfconceit is eradicated, and understanding is obtained, one meets the Lord, through the Word of the Guru’s Shabad.

    || 1|| Pause || Abandoning egotism and pride, one obtains contemplative understanding. When the mind surrenders to the Lord Master, He bestows the support of the Truth. || 2 || Day and night, remain content with the Naam, the Name of the Lord; that is the true service. No misfortune troubles one who follows the Command of the Lord’s Will. || 3 || One who follows the Command of the Lord’s Will is taken into the Lord’s Treasury. The counterfeit find no place there; they are mixed with the false ones.

    || 4 || Forever and ever, the genuine coins are treasured; with them, the true merchandise is purchased. The false ones are not seen in the Lord’s Treasury; they are seized and cast into the fire again. || 5 || Those who understand their own souls, are themselves the Supreme Soul. The One Lord is the tree of ambrosial nectar, which bears the ambrosial fruit. || 6 || Those who taste the ambrosial fruit remain satisfied with Truth. They have no doubt or sense of separation – their tongues taste the divine taste.

    || 7 || By His Command, and through your past actions, you came into the world; walk forever according to His Will. Please, grant virtue to Nanak, the virtueless one; bless him with the glorious greatness of the Truth. || 8 || 20 || AASAA, FIRST MEHL: One whose mind is attuned to the Lord’s Name speaks the truth. What would the people lose, if I became pleasing to You, O Lord? || 1 || As long as there is the breath of life, meditate on the True Lord. You shall receive the profit of singing the Glorious Praises of the Lord, and find peace.

    || 1 || Pause || True is Your Service; bless me with it, O Merciful Lord. I live by praising You; You are my Anchor and Support. || 2 || I am Your servant, the gate-keeper at Your Gate; You alone know my pain. How wonderful is Your devotional worship! It removes all pains. || 3 || The Gurmukhs know that by chanting the Naam, they shall dwell in His Court, in His Presence. True and acceptable is that time, when one recognizes the Word of the Shabad.

    || 4 || Those who practice Truth, contentment and love, obtain the supplies of the Lord’s Name. So banish corruption from your mind, and the True One will grant you Truth. || 5 || The True Lord inspires true love in the truthful. He Himself administers justice, as it pleases His Will. || 6 || True is the gift of the True, Compassionate Lord. Day and night, I serve the One whose Name is priceless.

    || 7 || You are so sublime, and I am so lowly, but I am called Your slave. Please, shower Nanak with Your Glance of Grace, that he, the separated one, may merge with You again, O Lord. || 8 || 21 || AASAA, FIRST MEHL: How can coming and going, the cycle of reincarnation be ended? And how can one meet the Lord? The pain of birth and death is so great, in constant skepticism and duality.

    || 1 || Without the Name, what is life? Cleverness is detestable and cursed. One who does not serve the Holy True Guru, is not pleased by devotion to the Lord. || 1 || Pause || Coming and going is ended only when one finds the True Guru. He gives the wealth and capital of the Lord’s Name, and false doubt is destroyed. || 2 || Joining the humble Saintly beings, let us sing the blessed, blessed Praises of the Lord. The Primal Lord, the Infinite, is obtained by the Gurmukh.

    || 3 || The drama of the world is staged like the show of a buffoon. For an instant, for a moment, the show is seen, but it disappears in no time at all. || 4 || The game of chance is played on the board of egotism, with the pieces of falsehood and ego. The whole world loses; he alone wins, who reflects upon the Word of the Guru’s Shabad. || 5 || As is the cane in the hand of the blind man, so is the Lord’s Name for me. The Lord’s Name is my Support, night and day and morning.

    || 6 || As You keep me, Lord, I live; the Lord’s Name is my only Support. It is my only comfort in the end; the gate of salvation is found by His humble servants. || 7 || The pain of birth and death is removed, by chanting and meditating on the Naam, the Name of the Lord. O Nanak, one who does not forget the Naam, is saved by the Perfect Guru. || 8 || 22 || AASAA, THIRD MEHL, ASHTAPADEES, SECOND HOUSE: ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD. BY THE GRACE OF THE TRUE GURU: The Shaastras, the Vedas and the Simritees are contained in the ocean of Your Name; the River Ganges is held in Your Feet. The intellect can understand the world of the three modes, but You, O Primal Lord, are totally astounding. || 1

    || Servant Nanak meditates on His Feet, and chants the Ambrosial Word of His Bani. || 1 || Pause || Three hundred thirty million gods are Your servants. You bestow wealth, and the supernatural powers of the Siddhas; You are the Support of the breath of life. His beauteous forms cannot be comprehended; what can anyone accomplish by discussing and debating?

    || 2 || Throughout the ages, You are the three qualities, and the four sources of creation. If You show Your Mercy, then one obtains the supreme status, and speaks the Unspoken Speech. || 3 || You are the Creator; all are created by You. What can any mortal being do? He alone, upon whom You shower Your Grace, is absorbed into the Truth. || 4 || Everyone who comes and goes chants Your Name.When it is pleasing to Your Will, then the Gurmukh understands. Otherwise, the self-willed manmukhs wander in ignorance.

  • FAT BURNERS

    FAT BURNERS

    Triggering your body’s fat burning ability is not a herculean task. There are ample ways to perk up your weight loss efforts. Mike Jackson – Nutritional Consultant and Physique Transformation Specialist gives 20 best ways on how to lose unwanted body fat.

    Run everyday
    Running is one of the simplest ways to burn fat easily. Every day running not only helps to burn fat but also boost your metabolism, so that your body keeps on burning calories and melting.

    Sleep well
    Efficient sleep every day is another important thing to burn fat easily. Improper sleeping habits can ruin your entire efforts to lose fats, as it produces more ghrelin and thus triggers cravings for sugar and other fatbuilding foods. Besides improper sleeping can also alter your hormone production that can cause belly fat.

    Sip on green tea
    Sipping at least two cups of green tea, will not only help to burn fat but also reduce your risk on developing cancer. Green tea is rich in catechins, which helps boost the level of metabolism speeding brain chemicals – norepinephrine, this further boosts your metabolism and helps in burning calories.

    Load up on protein
    To get your desired lean muscle body, load up on your protein intake. Fill your diet with serving of 3 ounces of lean meat, nuts, low-fat yoghurt, to every meal and snack. Besides a protein rich diet will also help you to stay full for a longer duration and thus help to curb your food cravings.

    Avoid alcohol
    In your journey to burn fat, stay away from alcohol, because consuming even a glass of alcohol will invest approximately 90 calories in your body and make your fat loss task even more difficult.

    Take the stairs
    Take up the simplest things in your fat burning journey i.e. skip the elevator and take up stairs. This easy mode will help your burn fat in a hurry, without many efforts.

    Eat Less, but Don’t Starve
    Consuming fewer than 1000 calories a day tells your body to start storing food and slowing metabolism to prepare for starvation. This may help you lose some initial weight, but as soon as you start consuming a healthy portion of calories again, you will gain it all back. You will also be completely drained of energy. When your body stores nutrients, you don’t have anything left to burn for energy. Decreasing your caloric intake is important for weight loss, but don’t take it too far. Instead, eat healthier foods with lower calorie counts that fill you up and leave you energised.

    Keep your dinner the smallest
    In order to burn body fat effectively, keep your evening meal the smallest of all. You should be eating your smallest meals in the evening and eating your largest meals in the middle of your day.

    Love fishes
    Most types of fishes are loaded with Omega-3 fatty acids, which help in wide variety of ways, including burning quick fat. So add all types of fishes in your diet and experience the full range of benefits.

    Choose solid rather than juices
    If you want to burn fat, then choose apple rather than apple juice. However, juices are good for health, but they are not good if fat burning goal is in your mind. Having a fruit is more beneficial than drinking juice because, this will help to fill you up more efficiently and you will be ingesting far fewer calories and carbs.

    Eat the right foods
    Your diet also has a lot to do with your metabolic rate. Eating a well-balanced diet ensures you have the nutrients necessary to properly process and regulate incoming carbs. Protein, for example, is an important part of your diet. Calcium is another area to watch for. Calcium-rich foods actually help the body metabolise fat more efficiently.

  • Good Sleep Protects Against Heart Disease

    Good Sleep Protects Against Heart Disease

    Anew study claims that a good night’s sleep can increase the benefit of exercise, healthy diet, moderate alcohol consumption and nonsmoking in their protection against cardiovascular disease (CVD). According to results of a large population follow-up study, it showed that the combination of the four traditional healthy lifestyle habits was associated with a 57 per cent lower risk of cardiovascular disease (fatal and non-fatal) and a 67 per cent lower risk of fatal events.

    But, when “sufficient sleep” (defined as seven or more hours a night) was added to the other four lifestyle factors, the overall protective benefit was even further increased – and resulted in a 65 percent lower risk of composite CVD and a 83 per cent lower risk of fatal events.

    “If all participants adhered to all five healthy lifestyle factors, 36 per cent of composite CVD and 57 per cent of fatal CVD could theoretically be prevented or postponed,” the authors said. “The public health impact of sufficient sleep duration, in addition to the traditional healthy lifestyle factors, could be substantial,” they said.

  • Turmeric Protects Against Lung Damage In Infants

    Turmeric Protects Against Lung Damage In Infants

    Anew study led by an Indian researcher has found that a substance in turmeric, curcumin, may provide lasting protection against potentially deadly lung damage in premature infants. Premature infants often need the assistance of ventilators and forced oxygen therapy because they’re frequently born with inadequate lung function. These therapies can cause the infants to suffer lasting lung damage and even death.

    Researchers at Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center (LA BioMed), using disease models, found curcumin provided longterm protection against this damage. Their study found that curcumin provided protection against bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BDP), a condition characterized by scarring and inflammation, and against hyperoxia, in which too much oxygen enters the body through the lungs, for up to 21 days after birth.

    A previous LA BioMed study found curcumin provided protection for up to seven days after birth. “This is the first study to find long-term benefits of using curcumin to protect lung function in premature infants,” Virender K. Rehan, MD, the LA BioMed lead researcher who authored the study, said. “Curcumin is known to have potent antioxidant, antiinflammatory and anti-microbial properties, making it a promising therapy for premature infants who require oxygen therapy after birth,” he added.

  • DECORATE YOUR CHILD’S ROOM

    DECORATE YOUR CHILD’S ROOM

    Decorating your kid’s room can be fun and exciting. You can totally indulge your inner child with the colours and prints you get to play around with. However, it’s important to remember that the occupant is going to be a kid. As interior designer Renu Chainani says, “It can also be a very challenging task. Since kids are in their growing years, they need all the space in the world to run, jump and play without hurting themselves.”

    While you focus on making the room look all cute and beautiful, you also need to pay absolute attention to safety. Actor Sudhanshu Pandey — father of two young and boisterous sons — Nirvaan and Vivaan says, “Kids will be kids. No matter how much you try to protect them, they will run, jump, fall and hurt themselves. As parents it is our responsibility to ensure that there is nothing in the room that can cause them bodily harm.”

    So what are the most important factors that you need to heed while planning out your kids room? “Safety, space and storage,” says Renu adding, “There’s just no excuse where safety is concerned. No sharp corners and edges.” That was precisely what TV actress Gouri Tonnk did in her daughter Pari’s room. “She’s a growing girl and would often have her friends over. Hence, we decided to give her a dedicated room.

    Safety was our first concern. All her furniture- bed, study table, cupboard, etc have rounded corners and the walls, soft, rounded edges. The floor has skid proof tiles,” she says. Still on the point of safety, electrical fittings are an extremely important consideration. “Keep plug points at safe heights. Also, ensure that you go in for safety sockets so kids cannot push their pencils or toys into them,” Renu warns.

    Another important factor, as Sudhanshu points out, is window heights. “Windows in kids rooms should either be placed relatively higher or should be well shielded with a properly fitted grill,” he says. Space is another big consideration. “In cities, space is the biggest constraint. An ideal way to ensure space in a kid’s room is to opt for compact beds— pull-out, bunk or wall-mounted.

    This way, during the day time, there is plenty of space for them to play,” says Renu. That’s exactly what Gouri and Sudhanshu have done. While Gouri got the room equipped with a sliding bed, Sudhanshu opted for bunk beds for his boys. “Personally, this is the best feature of their room. The boys have so much fun in them,” says the actor. Last, but definitely no less in importance, is the consideration for storage space. Says Renu, “For kids no space, however big it is, seems enough.” And Gouri couldn’t disagree.

    “We have made a lot of provision for space. There are plenty of drawers in Pari’s room that are placed at her level,” she says. There’s pride in her voice when Gauri talks about her daughter’s room. So we can’t resist but ask her what part of the room she personally loves. “There’s a small cabinet over her study table filled with all her Barbie dolls and one Barbie Prince dolls. It’s my favourite because even I love dolls,” she says laughing.

  • MOVIE REVIEW – THE ICEMAN

    MOVIE REVIEW – THE ICEMAN

    Cast: Michael Shannon, Winona Ryder, Ray Liotta,
    Chris Evans
    Direction: Ariel Vromen
    Genre: Crime
    Duration: 1 hour 45 minutes
    STORY: Can you ever escape who you really are? The film is a crime biopic on hitman Richard Kuklinski, who adored his family, but didn’t regret killing over 100 people, for money, out of anger or just to cover up his own crimes! MOVIE REVIEW: The film gives a disturbing account of Kuklinski’s life from being a porn distributor to becoming one of the most diabolical contract killers in American history.

    Since he kept his family in the dark, they continued to live off his blood money until he got arrested in 1986 in an undercover operation. How he led a double life all those years – by playing a doting family man and a cold-blooded killer – is what forms the story. The Iceman is grim, dark and gritty. A certain sense of paranoia engulfs the proceedings, which helps build the psychological tension. Vromen manages to capture the period setting required. The background score is unsettling and does complete justice to the film’s creepy theme.

    Michael Shannon is outstanding as the devilishly smooth deadpan psychopath, as passionate about the wellbeing of his family as about staring at his victims before he brutally murdered them. He gives a solid performance as the soulless, unsmiling man who solely cared for his family and had no qualms about confessing he felt that way, either. Shannon arrests your attention and sends shivers down your spine with his impeccable portrayal, especially in scenes where he struggles to hide his inner monster from his family.

    However, the film becomes sluggish after a while as the script relies heavily on Shannon’s acting. The story runs out of steam as you sit through a series of generic mafia wars and killings. The scenes start looking repetitive and events monotonous. Fortunately, it all culminates in a gripping climax. Winona Ryder as Kuklinski’s wife and Ray Liotta are effective.

    Chris Evans and James Franco make special appearances, making you wonder why they did so! The film works as a documentary. However, it fails to dramatise the character in order to evoke an audience reaction, which is what is usually expected from crime thrillers.

  • KELLY BROOK NAMED BEST MOVIE BIKINI BABE OF ALL TIME

    KELLY BROOK NAMED BEST MOVIE BIKINI BABE OF ALL TIME

    Kelly Brook has been voted as the hottest bikini babe in movie history, according to a recent survey. Brook, who reportedly is going out with English rugby player Danny Cipriani, beat stars like Halle Berry and Jessica Alba in the poll conducted by the Sun.

    She won 22 percent of the 17,000 votes cast by the publication’s readers for her role in ‘Piranha 3D.’ The second place was bagged by Alba for her role in ‘Into The Blue’, while the third spot went to model Brooklyn Decker for ‘Just Go With It.’ The fourth place was nabbed by Berry for her Bond flick ‘Die Another Day’. Salma Hayek completed the top 5 for her part in 1996’s From Dusk Till Dawn. Iconic bikini fillers Ursula Andress and Raquel Welch, had also competed for the top spot.

  • KATE HUDSON TO LAUNCH AFFORDABLE SPORTSWEAR

    KATE HUDSON TO LAUNCH AFFORDABLE SPORTSWEAR

    Oscar-nominated actress Kate Husdson will launch a new sportswear line, Fabletics in collaboration with an online retailer Just Fab. It will hit markets in October. Hudson, who has a two-year-old son Bingham with her fiance Matt Bellamy, and Ryder, 9, with her ex-husband Chris Robinson, said that the collection is aimed at working professionals and mothers onthe- go.

    “I’ve always lived an active lifestyle, and with two boys, life has only gotten busier,” femalefirst.co.uk quoted Hudson as saying. “As a working mom, I know what it’s like to be on the go and running around from one activity to the next, sometimes you just don’t have time to change, but you still want to look cute – whether you’re taking a yoga class, running errands or meeting up with friends before you pick the kids up from school,” she said.

    The 34-year-old said that she wanted to create outfits that are not only fashionable, but also functional and affordable. “I co-created Fabletics with Don Ressler and Adam Godenberg, (JustFab co-CEOs), to offer busy women quality activewear that is fashionable, functional and affordable,” said Hudson.

  • Zareen Khan Sheds 10 Kgs

    Zareen Khan Sheds 10 Kgs

    After facing flak for her weight ever since she made her debut in Bollywood, Zareen Khan seems to have had enough. We heard the actress, who is currently shooting for an action film with Rajeev Khandelwal, has lost almost 10 kgs to look the part as it involves stunts. Interestingly, in an interview to a newspaper, she had clarified “A woman should look like a woman.

    I will never become size zero as I am a Pathan…We are not in Hollywood where actresses do stunts.” However, now that she is doing stunts, weight loss seems to be the need of the hour. She has been focusing on getting into shape with the help of power yoga, cardio, boot camp and weight training.