Cabinet to review ‘Property tax’ proposal

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THURSDAY October 31 | 2013 | 18 Zul Hijjah 1434 AH | PAGES 12 | VOL NO: 3 | ISSUE NO: 273 | RS: 2/- (AIR SURCHARGE FOR JAMMU /DELHI/LEH 50 PAISA)Pen For JusticeLargely Circulated, No. 1 Bilingual Daily of J&Khttp://www.zabarwantimes.com

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FORECAST FOR NEXT 24 HRS:

FORECAST OF SRINAGAR:

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Local forecast for Srinagar dated:23.10.2013:- Light rain/ thundershowers. Maximum & Minimum tem-peratures will be around 16°C & 06°C respectively.

Central funds to UP disappear before people can benefit

Insurgency not ended completely but considerably less

Snoring ups BP risk in pregnant women

Srinagar 30 Octtober:

Close on the heels of being pulled up by the J&K High court for flouting rules and regulations in the admission of elemen-tary teacher training courses, and direct-ing severe action against those responsible for bungling, the BOSE has once again re-peated its history of blunders but this time causing death to a student of 12th class hail-ing from Ganderbal. The heinous crime has been committed by BOSE which prepared the mathematics paper that stunned even the brightest students because of being out of syllabus. Irshad Ahmad son of Nizamud-din of Sehpora Ganderbal who was a bright student was upset after he appeared in the examination of mathematics and told his parents that the paper was out of syllabus, so he wanted to end his life. According to CNS he consumed poison and was rushed to hospital first in Ganderbal and then to SKIMs Srinagar, where he was declared brought dead. It is not that the paper proved deadly to one student only, but hundreds of others gathered at press enclave and held

demonstrations alleging that the mathemat-ics paper was twisted and out of syllabus. They said that BOSE is playing with their future and has been doing the same once and again. The Board of School Education is a headless body run by adhoc arrange-ments and the minister incharge has not taken any initiative so far to overhaul the organisation. The Board Secretary, Rinoo Goswami’s assertion that an expert com-mittee has been constituted to probe the matter and submit its report within three days, is nothing but an eyewash as every-body knows the fate of such committees appointed in the past for probing various omissions and commissions in different de-partments. It is pertinent to mention here, that 12th Examinations are basis for all pro-fessional courses including Engineering, MBBS and others. This is a gateway where from a student starts his career and math-ematics plays a vital role in the process of fixing the future targets of a student. The marks obtained in this paper are vital and improve his standing in the overall merit. If BOSE sets an out of syllabus paper for

mathematics, it means axing of the future of the students and making it bleak for further studies especially for professional courses. It is because of this that students take ex-treme steps when they find out of syllabus papers. Their hard work for the whole of the year and the hopes pinned on them by their parents are dashed to earth. The question arises why should Board of School Educa-tion set the papers out of syllabus and then what is the use of fixing the syllabus itself. The second important question is who sets the paper and is there any expert committee which ascertains whether the set papers are according to syllabus? Though the student community was on streets a year back when the answer sheets of son of a minister were manipulated but no action was taken against the chairman and other officials involved in that scandal. This time it is not a routine blunder but the mis-endevour and inappropriate setting of mathematics paper has claimed a precious life of an innocent student. If such incident would have occurred anywhere in India other than J&K, the culprits would have

been behind the bars instantly, told a par-ent Mohd Subhan of Lal Bazar to Zabarwan Times. Another parent Mohd Issaq of An-antnag demanded a stern action and asked the chief minister at least to act in this case. An official of Board of School education on the condition of anonymity told Zabarwan Times that the Board is in shambles and is run by the people whose credentials are suspect and no action is being taken against any of them. Some months back a lady offi-cer of the board was suspended for allegedly working as outside producer for Doordar-shan but there are other officials particu-larly from the P.R.Branch who have earned lacs of rupees while working for Doordar-shan in different capacities without any permission but no action has been taken against them. The P.R section of the Board is run by a section officer who manipulates the things according to his own whims and likings. The examination wing and P.R wing needs a complete overhaul. The BOSE is committing blunder after blunder but the government is watching it like a silent spectator. BOSE and BOPEE

are always in the news but only for the nega-tivity, bunglings and the various omissions and commissions for which J&K High Court has pulled both of them and directed sever action against the responsible officials. But it is unfortunate, that both of them continue with the repetition of blunder after blunder and so far no official seems to have been pe-nalised. This time, the BOSE has done un-pardonable blunder for which it should be dealt sternly under law of the land. The people, in general, the parents and students expect justice in the hands of the present government. Let us hope, the same is delivered. It is shocking that the po-lice station Khir Bhawani has lodged a FIR No 41/2013 under section 309 which deals with the suicide committed by a person. The police has not gone into circumstances lead-ing to the suicide which is a gross injustice with the deceased who committed suicide because of certain, circumstances, created by a negligent organisation. This aspect needs to be kept in mind by the police also. They should probe the causes of suicide rather the suicide itself.

A young lad lost his life

Why did BOSE prepare it?Who is responsible for this death?

Out of syllabus Maths paper proved fatal for Irshad

Srinagar, Oct 30:

After facing severe criticism over the im-position of much hyped property tax in Jammu and Kashmir, the state govern-ment has finally decided not to go ahead with any such proposal before reviewing the same in the Cabinet.Sources in the government revealed to Kashmir News Service (KNS) Mir Saiful-lah, the minister for law and parliamen-tary affairs has raised serious objections over setting up of a Board that can levy property taxes.Sources told Kashmir News Service that Housing department had mooted out a pro-posal that a Board should be constituted till the Municipal Laws Amendment Bill is pending before the joint select committee of Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council. However, the minister expressed his serious reservations over the matter re-jecting the housing department’s proposal.

Sources told Kashmir News Service said that Saifullah later took the issue with the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.Saifullah is believed to have informed the Chief Minister that the imposition of prop-erty tax on the state subjects would have serious political repercussions for Nation-al Conference and the same should not be approved.Sources told KNS, that Omar was of the opinion that the property tax proposal needs to be reviewed by the Cabinet. Sourc-es told KNS, that after the cabinet approval for the ‘imposition of property tax’, the file was sent to the Law Minster for the final nod. “The file was pending in Law minis-ter’s chamber for more than two months and he did not even discuss the matter,” said the source close to Mir Saifullah, Law Minster.The law minister when contacted confirmed that the file is pending with him and that he has still

See Cabinet On Page 11...

Law Minister returns file, expresses serious reservations

Srinagar, Oct 30:

While welcoming the decision aimed at de-es-calation in tension on borders, Hurriyat Con-ference (M) on Wednesday called upon India and Pakistan to start a result-oriented mean-ingful dialogue on Kashmir dispute between all the stake holders which includes genuine lead-ership of Kashmir as well.This was remarked by the Hurriyat (M) execu-tive council members at a meeting convened by its Chairman, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq at party headquarters in Rajbagh.According to Kashmir News Service, the execu-tive council members said it has been the tradi-tional stand of Hurriyat (M) to resolve Kashmir including other issues through peaceful nego-tiations and that Hurriyat was always ready to act as a facilitator in any such process.Expressing concern over the continuous hu-man rights violations in Kashmir, arbitrary arrests by police, killings of youth, the partici-

pants said that administration is suing every dirty method to dislodge people from demand-ing right to self determination. The partici-pants said such tactics have failed on the past and would meet the same fate in future as well. The executive council meeting was attended by executive council members including Prof. Ab. Gani Butt, Bilal Gani Lone, Agha Syed Hassan Al Moosvi, Musadiq Adil and Mukhtar Ahmad Waza. Meanwhile head of Jammu Kashmir Council for Human Rights (JKHCR) Syed Nazir Gilani had a detailed meeting with Hurriyat leaders whereby he threw light on the different facets of Kashmir dispute.Gilani said UN and UNSC has to play impor-tant in connection with the solution of Kashmir issue.Meanwhile head of public contact programme Zaffar Akber Bhat along with other leaders in-cluding Syed Bashir Andrabi,

See Hurriyat On Page 11...

Hurriyat (M) welcomes de-escalation in border tensionUrges Indo-Pak to start result oriented dialogue on Kashmir

Srinagar, Oct 30:

Inspector General of police, Sh. A. G. Mir (IPS) has directed the Police administration of North Kashmir Range to deal with the drug peddlers with iron hands and at the same time has sought the help of the Imams, teach-ers and respectables in tackling the menace of drug addiction. Sh. A.G. Mir who was speaking at a Police Public meet at district Kupwara to-day said that we have lost one gen-eration to militancy and we cannot afford to lose another generation to addictions. Highlighting the drug de-addiction services provided by the police, he assured full help to the people affected by this menace and who want to get rid of it.In response to demands highlighted by the people on the occasion, IGP Kashmir announced opening up of police post at Aawora J/D of P/S Trehgam and as-sured that he will take up the demand of opening up

of SDPO office at Trehgam with authorities.The IGP Kashmir said that road traffic accidents are consuming more and more lives and many people die on roads these days. He directed the Police au-thorities to launch a special drive against the driv-

ers who are found over speeding, driving without license and other motor vehicle related crimes. He fur-ther advised that the minors should be discouraged from driving and the owners of such vehicles should be brought to the book.With regard to the verification con-ducted by the police for jobs or pass-ports the IGP Kashmir said that these services have been brought under the ambit of “Public Services Guarantee Act.” (PSGA) by the Gov-ernment and are to be completed within a stipulated time. If any of-ficial is found delaying the process, the people should bring it to notice of

his supervisory officer and the erring See Drug On Page 11...

Deal Drug Peddlers with iron fistPolicemen should be sensitive to needy

people: IGP Kashmir

Division Bench of High Court dismisses PIL challenging use of Pepper Gas in mob management

SRINAGAR, OCTOBER 30:

The Division Bench of High Court comprising Chief Justice, Mr. Justice M.M. Ku-mar, and Mr. Justice Ali Mohammad Magray, today dismissed public interest liti-gations regarding the use of pepper gas in mob management and use of pellet guns. The respondent-State contended that the instant petitions do not serve any public interest, but seem to be an attempt by the petitioners to gain publicity over a very sensitive issue, adding that the J&K Police stands committed to protect and preserve the life and property of the people and at the same time

See High Court On Page 11...

Jammu, Oct 30:

Observing that mis-governance and trust deficit are the main reasons of growing alienation among people, patron of Peo-ples Democratic Party (PDP) Mufti Mo-hammad Sayeed today said that five year achievement of National Conference led government is a big zero because this dis-pensation has failed on all fronts.“Encouraging corruption, supporting

nepotism and abusing state apparatus to deprive people of their democratic rights are only noticeable achievements of the present dispensation”, Mufti said and regretted that present regime has miser-ably failed to carry forward the process of peace and reconciliation which was initiated by the previous PDP-Congress government in the state.Addressing an impressive public meeting

See PDP On Page 11...

Prominent NC leader joins PDP

Present regime failed to carry forward agenda of peace, reconciliation: Mufti

4 Injured in road mishaps

Srinagar, October 30:

Four persons were injured in dif-ferent road accidents across the Kashmir Valley.A bike bearing registration number JK01Q/6823 skidded of the road at Solina, Srinagar, in the jurisdiction of police station Shergari, resulting in injuries to motorcyclist Majid Ahmad Khan son of Nizam-ud-Din Khan resident of Mandir Bagh. The injured was shifted to hospital for treatment. A case has been regis-tered in this regard.A Maruti car bearing registration number JKO1F/3724 hit and injured a pedestrian Fata Begum wife of Ghulam Mohammad Dar resident of Tankipora Budgam, near BSNL center Budgam in the

See Mishaps On Page 11...

Taj visits HospitalsSrinagar, Oct 30:

Minister for Medical Education, Youth Services & Sports, Mr. Taj Mohi-ud-Din today visited Bones & Joint Hospital, Srinagar and Institute of Traumatology (Super Specialty Hospital), Srinagar to take stock of the works being executed there.The Minister visited the new block of the hospital and also reviewed the modernization of facilities at the existing block. He directed the Prin-cipal, Government Medical College, Srinagar to prepare a proposal for further equipping the hospital with machinery and accessories so that the same would be taken

See Taj On Page 11...

The BOSE has once again repeated its history of blunders but this time causing death to a student of 12th class hailing from Ganderbal. The heinous crime has been committed by BOSE which prepared the mathematics paper that stunned even the brightest students because of being out of syllabus.

Owner , Printer, Publisher & Editor Chief-Suhail-Malik RNI NO. JKBII/2011/39764, Email: zabarwantimes@gmail.com Publised at Govt. Quarters ( M-13 Magarmal Bagh Srinagar-190001 J&K, Printed at:- Sangarmal Offset Press Humhama Sheikhpora Tele/Fax: 2478370 Cell No. 09999964750, 9796 787844

From the front page

Cabinet

Hurriyat

Drug

Mishaps

Taj

High Court

PDP

11 Thursday 31 October 2013 Zabarwan Times

PDP’s trifurcation just a matter of time: Rana

not discussed it with his colleagues. When asked for the reason, he said that the government is not willing to trouble the state inhabitants further. “People of the state are already over burdened, how could we agonise them further?”The political experts across state believe that the rejec-tion of the proposal would be in the context of the coming assembly polls. They further stated that the government cannot lock horns with its people that too when the polls are very near. Pertinently, Government in June this year came up with the proposal of imposing property tax to the winter and summer capitals of the state. It had earlier approved the constitution of property tax board, tasked to study property tax models in different states and come up with recommendations for the government.It was further decided by the government that in the coming time it would impose the tax on the commercial and residential properties of the state.(KNS)

visited Alshipora, Nagbal, Turkawangam, Imam sahib of Shopian district.The leaders paid rich tributes to recently martyred Ab-bas Reshi Wani of Alshi pora( whose one younger broth-er namely as Ishfaq Ahmed Wani and cousin Tawseef Ahmed wagey have been detained for the last one year) that matchless sacrifices given by people of Kashmir will not go waste.The leaders said the people of Kashmir will safeguard the sacrifices and will take mission of martyr to its logi-cal end politically.While condemning the arrest of Zahoor Ahmed Bhat under PSA including two other youths, the leaders said that martyrdom and arrests will not weaken the ongoing freedom movement. (KNS)

officials will be penalized. He said in the past we have penalized even SHOs under this Act.The IGP impressed upon the policemen to bring in them, attitudinal changes particularly at the police station lev-el. He said that the Station House officers and policemen should be sensitive towards the help and the assistance, sought by the general public who visit police stations when they are in distress and need.In this Awami Darbar respectables citizens of Kupwara district and chairmen of various associations put forth their demands before the IGP Kashmir. Among others DIG North Kashmir Sh. J.P Singh ,SP Kupwara Sh. Ab. Jabbar, DySsP and SHOs of the district were present.IGP Kashmir, later on, addressed a police Darbar. In this police darbar, he assured all possible help to the police men and said that he is well aware of the problems and grievances of his subordinates particularly the jawans. He directed the supervisory officers to take more and more jawan friendly measures. He impressed upon the jawans and officers to increase their professional compe-tence by honing all their skills in today’s age of transpar-ency and accountability. The IGP listened to the prob-lems put forth by the jawans and issued on spot redressal orders in some cases. The IGP Kashmir also chaired a security review meeting of the district. In this meeting DIG NKR Baramulla Sh. J. P. Singh(IPS), SSP Kupwara Sh. Abdul Jabbar (IPS), officers of Army/CRPF, DySsP and SHOs and other jurisdictional officers participated. (KNS)

maintains normalcy and peace in the State so that no hardship or disturbance is caused to the people. The ac-tions taken to achieve this goal are based solely on good faith and are backed by the mandate of law. It was further contended that to ensure minimum loss of life and damage to the property, the law enforc-ing agencies have procured for use various non-lethal munitions including Tear Smoke Shells and Oleoresin Grenades to disperse unruly mobs. These tear smoke and oleoresin grenades are internationally accepted non-lethal means of controlling unruly mobs to restore law and order. As such it becomes imperative for Police to use force for controlling the mobs by using non-lethal weapons like tear smoke gas and oleoresin grenades to avoid causalities. It was further stated that the members of stone pelt-ing mobs, besides pelting stones, also use catapults and petrol bombs to attack the security forces giving them the least chance to disperse those unruly mobs by means of lathi charge. While dismissing the PILs, Division Bench of High Court held that all these petitions are dismissed along-with the connected CMPs related the use of pepper gas and pellet guns in mob management.

to welcome Dr Harmesh Singh Slathia of Vijaypur, who along with hundreds of his supporters joined PDP here today, Mufti said that with just 16 MLAs in its kitty, PDP had changed political discourse of the state and also re-stored dignity and honour of the people by pursuing the pro-peace agenda.“The process of reconciliation is still incomplete because the present regime during the last five years has failed to connect itself with the common masses”, he said and added that alienation among people have been increas-ing with every passing day due to widening of the gap between the commoners and ruling elites.“What to say of further consolidating the reconciliatory and peace initiatives made by the previous PDP led gov-ernment, this coalition regime has even reversed by the whole process through its mis-goverance, mis-deeds and oppressive means”, he said while mentioning towards prevailing sense of insecurity among people and condi-tions on the borders.Mufti said that even after 2008 assembly elections it is only the PDP which has been pursuing agenda for estab-lishing lasting peace and tranquility. “It is result of the convictions and vision of our party that PDP has earned credibility and trust of the people of Jammu and Kash-mir”, he said, adding, “successfully connecting with people in the biggest achievements of PDP”. He added that his party has scripted a new chapter of peace and development in Jammu and Kashmir and successfully

implemented the pro-people agenda.Highlighting achievements of the previous PDP-Con-gress regime, he said, “Our party had convinced suc-cessive governments at Delhi, through our convictions, to initiate some bold Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) to restore lasting peace in this region”.He mentioned that PDP had entered into alliance with Congress by formulating a Common Minimum Pro-gramme (CMP) in which wishes of all people were incor-porated and pro-peace agenda was given first priority.He recalled that before 2002 there was a sense of fear and insecurity among the masses but after formation of PDP-Congress government peace was restored to a large extent. PDP was formed in the year1999 with an aim to restore peace and to uphold dignity and honour of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. “Aim of PDP is not to at-tain power but to address grievances of the people,” he said and observed that biggest achievement of his party was that it had connected itself with the common mass-es and restored confidence of the people in democratic institutions, a PDP statement issued to Kashmir News Service said.“Our party has not only restored peace in the state but also laid strong foundation for accelerating developmen-tal activities in all regions and sub-regions”, he said and reminded that it was only during the regime of PDP that equal treatment was given to all regions of the state.Speaking on the occasion, Dr Harmesh Singh Slathia said that he has decided to join PDP all due to the poli-cies and programmes of the party.Former Minister Rangil Singh, Yash Pal Sharma, MLC, Trilok Singh Bajwa, Shanti Devi, Daman Bhasin, Choud-hary Hamid, coordinator Jammu-Poonch Lok Sabha seat, Fallail Singh, Hussain Ali Wafa, Jagjit Singh Jagga, Abdul Rashid Malik Bharat Bhushan Gupta, Depinder Kour, Surjit Kour, Amrik Singh Reen, R K Bali, Pawan Dev Singh, Narinder Singh Raina, Jatinder Bhat, Ra-jinder Singh Manhas, Chander Slathia, Rafiq Malik, Ashok Jogi, Satpal Singh Charak, Surinder Singh, Kuljeet Jamwal, Balbir Singh, Salim Choudhary, Beli Ram, Anju Bhan, R K Pardeshi, E Peter, Rafiq Choud-hary, Badri Nath, Ashok Bhat and others.

jurisdiction of police station Budgam. The injured was shifted to Bones and Joint hospital Srinagar for treat-ment. A case has been registered in this regard. A vehicle bearing registration number JK03D/8600 hit and injured a pedestrian Waheed Ahmad Shah son of Reyaz Ahmad resident of Kangigund at Kangigund, National Highway Anantnag, in the jurisdiction of police station Bijbehara. The injured was shifted to hospital for treatment. A case has been registered in this regard. An unidentified Maruti car hit and injured Afreedi Sayar Mir son of Sayar Ahmad Mir resident of Kehnoo-sa, at Kehnoosa, Bandipora Sopore road, in the jurisdic-tion of police station Bandipora. The injured has been shifted to Bone and Joints hospital, Srinagar for treat-ment. A case has been registered in this regard.

up with Planning Department for funding.Mr. Taj also visited the Institute of Traumatology (Su-per Specialty Hospital), Srinagar. He exhorted for expe-diting the pace of construction works being undertaken there. He said he would be taking up the matter with the union government, particularly, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare to get the works done in a stipulated time frame.The Minister also visited the upcoming girls hostel at Government Dental College, Srinagar and directed for the completion of hostel within next two months. In the meantime, he asked the Principal of the college to make alternative arrangements for them.

KEA protests, demands action against officers who facilitated

violation of Master PlanSubmit a positive policy before HC

to facilitate de-sealing: KhanSrinagar, Oct 30:

Kashmir Economic Alliance (KEA) today staged a pro-test demonstration at Lal Chowk, against the sealing of commercial complexes, hotels and business estab-lishments in the valley by the different agencies of the government.In a statement issued to Kashmir News Service (KNS) the protest was attended by a large gathering of the constituent members of KEA which includes traders, hoteliers, transporters , contractors and other sectors of the business community , besides the owners and the staff members of the sealed properties .The chairman KEA, Mohammad Yaseen Khan, ad-dressed the gathering and urged on the government particularly the chief minister Omar Abdullah to submit a clear and positive policy before the High Court which will facilitate the de-sealing of affected proper-ties at the next date of hearing in the Court.He said the sealing has led to the closure of large number of establishments and self employed ventures leading to increase in unemployment in a valley which is already faced with serious unemployment problem among the educated youth. He cautioned that if the process of sealing goes on it will certainly lead to di-sastrous consequences, the statement received by KNS said.The Chairman KEA questioned the role of the Officials of Srinagar Development Authority (SDA) , Srinagar Municipal Corporation, LAWDA, other Developmental Authorities, etc who had authorized the construction of sealed structures. He demanded stern action for the acts of omission and commission committed by officials responsible for the present state of affairs. He added that it is an irony that the very departments/ officials who allowed these constructions are in the forefront in sealing them. He added that most of these properties have been charged fee at the commercial rate and the fee for other connections is also being charged as per commercial tariff.Khan expressed apprehensions that it is only the val-ley which is being targeted on every front on different issues This seems to be a designed conspiracy against Kashmir and its people to crumble the Kashmir econo-my and leave the people in a state of desperation. The chairman also wondered that the present Master plan has not been reviewed for the last more than ten years leaving no scope for carrying out the commercial activities for the growing population particularly youth of the valley, as the said Master plan is defective and full of loop holes which ought to have been subjected to modifications to accomadate commercial areas.

Jammu, Oct 30:

Anticipating trifurcation of Peoples Democratic Party ahead of 2014 elec-tions, Provincial President National Conference Devender Singh Rana on Wednesday said that the process has already begun with its senior func-tionaries deserting the party as was predicted by him a year back.“PDP is suffering from crisis of faith with its patron publicly sending wa-vering signals”, Rana said at a func-tion held at Sher-e-Kashmir Bhavan this afternoon held to welcome new entrants from Bajalta area into the party fold.“Mufti is a classic case of political opportunism, who feels proud in tracing his roots to Congress, pro-claims having liking for Bharatya Janta Party and pretending to be the Messiah of the people of Kashmir”, Rana said, adding that the inherent contradictions, duplicity and alle-giance to multiple power centres has exposed the PDP leadership.The Provincial President said a group of over half a dozen disillu-sioned legislators is waiting in wings to bid adieu to PDP to complete the final stage of desertion which will come ahead of the Assembly elec-tions.The Provincial President described PDP as a bubble of water that takes no time in getting vanished. Amid applause by the party workers, he declared that the PDP leadership is expediting this process and the day is not far when the party will disap-pear from the political scope of Jam-mu and Kashmir.Rana, however, expressed concern

over the emergence of fascist forces across the country and said this is a bad omen for the unity and secu-lar ethos of the nation. “The giant of communalism is raising its ugly head and if it is not fought politically and unitedly by the secular forces, it will spread tentacles in the length and breadth of the country”, he said and urged the people to strengthen secular and democratic forces to retain the unique grandeur of the country.In an oblique reference to those who claim and forecast their emergence as largest group in forthcoming as-sembly elections, Rana said that un-dermining the strength of National Conference amounts to political na-ivety. “National Conference was, is and will continue to be the premier party of Jammu and Kashmir at the strength of its committed cadre and presence in all the three regions of Kashmir, Jammu and Ladakh”, he said, adding that it is not just a politi-cal party but a mass movement that has worked tirelessly for the single entity, prosperity and progress of the State. He said all political analysts have predicted and rightly so that National Conference will emerge as a single largest party after the elec-tions. He said National Conference is committed to maintaining the co-alition spirit but at the same time it expects the political class of the State to understand the truth, which may appear as bitter to them.“Like Kashmir, we will triumph in Jammu and Ladakh regions as well in the ensuing elections and es-tablish the supremacy the party of Sher-e-Kashmir is known for,” the

Provincial President said, adding that the report card of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is key to steering to mammoth victory for years to come. He exhorted the party workers for working towards this direction right from now. In this context, he empha-sized the crucial role of women who form the substantial part of his par-ty’s strength.Rana said that joining of new en-trants will further strengthen the party at grass roots level and urged them to fan out in their respective areas and work for the welfare and emancipation of the underprivileged segments of society. He attached im-mense significance to the women power, saying their role is impera-tive in decision making and the growth of harmonious society. Provincial President National Con-ference Women Wing Mrs Vijay Laxmi Dutta, MLA Mrs Bimla Lu-thra, Provincial Secretary Sheikh Bashir Ahmed and the leader of the group of women who joined National Conference Razia Begum also spoke on the occasion.Among others present on the occa-sion included ex-Legislators Babu Rampaul, Pt. Govind Ram Sharma, Haji Mohammad Hussain, Bhushan Lal Bhat, besides party leaders Jugal Mahajan, S. Peter, Dhramveer Singh Jamwal, Mohd Ayub Malik, Abdul Gani Teli, Surinder Singh Bunty, Rashida Begum, Dilshad Begum, Ramsaroop Sharma, S. Kair Singh, Ch. Rehmat Ali, Sukha, Mudasar Zargar, Pardeep Bali, Pakaj Kohli, Rohit Bali, Anju Grover, Veena Obe-rai, Manveer Kour, Mohsin Salaria, Gurnam Singh and others. (KNS)

Cautions against giant of communalism

SRINAGAR, OCTOBER 30:

Minister for agriculture Ghulam Hassan Mir today said that Govt is always committed to safeguard the interests of consumers as well as producers by making use of latest technology and expertise of scien-tists during the process of saffron cultivating in Kashmir.The Minister was addressing a seminar on “Kong-Posh Fight Against Counterfeiting and Smuggling”,organised by FICCI Cascade Space Communication at SKICC today.Stressing for observing great care and precaution during Post Harvest Management of saffron, Mr. Mir said that Govt is producing 8 gm seed through Tissue Culture in collabora-tion with SKUAST-K. He said scientists work hard to provide hi-tech facilities besides test-ing lab to farmers and packing facility at Konibal free of cost.The Minster appealed farmers to rise to the occasion, main-tain quality and put in sincere efforts to boost saffron crop, keeping in view the competitors of Spain and Iran where saffron is grown on a large scale.Appreciating FICCI for organis-ing the seminar, Mr. Mir asked farmers to set up their coopera-tive for making collective ef-

forts in producing quality saf-fron crop. He also asked them to set up their publicity wing for bringing awareness among masses not only at state or na-tional level but also gobally.Expressing his strong concern over the ungrateful attitude of a section of farmers towards the efforts of Govt Mr. Mir said that central , and state Govt’s only objective is to bring prosperity among the farmers by extend-ing them financial as well as technical support in propaga-tion of quality saffron crop.Prof. & Head Division of PHT SKUAST (K) Shalimar, Dr. H.R. Naik through a power point presentation educated farmers about Post Harvest Manage-ment and Value Addition Strat-egies in saffron processing on the occasion.Advisor FICCI CASADE P.C. Jha, CEO Space Communica-tion, Dr. Amit Wanchoo, Econo-mist, Salman Soz, Gen. Secy. All Saffron Growers Associa-tion, Ab. Majid Wani and Tour and Travel Players addressed the function.On this occasion, genuine and pro-gressive farmers were awarded with trophies while as Travel and Tour Operator were also felicitated for their strenuous efforts in pro-motion of tourism in the State.

FICCI Organises Seminar on KONG-POSH at SKICC

Govt. Committed to safeguard interests of consumers, producers: G. H.Mir

Malik condemns slapping of PSA on

Zahoor BhatSrinagar, Oct 30:

Chairman Jammu Kashmir Libera-tion Front Mohammad Yasin Malik has strongly condemned the arrest and slapping of black law PSA on Zahoor Ahmad Bhat (JKLF leader and younger brother of father of Kashmiri Nation Shaheed Moham-mad Maqbool Bhat).Zahoor Ahmad Bhat was arrested a few days back and after slapping PSA on him has been shifted to Sub-Jail Hira Nager today. Yasin sahib while strongly condemning the arrest and PSA on Zahoor Ahmad Bhat said that rulers who always portray themselves as democrats have actually used arrests and black laws to suppress the voices of freedom and resistance, a statement of Front issued to KNS said. He said that a family which sacrificed their four sons during freedom struggle cannot be frightened by measures like these. Yasin sahib said that jails, tortures and Sufferings are a part of struggle. JKLF and its leader-ship have suffered because of these oppressive measures but have not and will never shun its path of truth and rightness, the statement of JKLF received by KNS said. Yasin sahib said that JKLF stands by the family of Zahoor Ahmad Bhat in this hour of suffering and hopes that this black period will end and the chains of slavery and prisons will break soon. Meanwhile JKLF has expressed its condolences at the sad demise of fa-mous social activist of Radio Colony Ikhraj Pora Srinagar Jenab Abdul Ahad Khan.

THURSDAY OCTOBER | 31| 2013Daily ZABARWAN TIMES NEWS

The next task on your road to success may be a pill that’s hard to swallow. Perhaps it involves interacting with some-one you don’t want to deal with. You know that you have to adopt some sort of false persona in order to get what you want. You’re sensitive to this dilemma, and you may feel emotional about it, making you hesitate to go through with the plan.

Debilitating indecision may plague you. You’ve been coasting along letting your good luck see you through to prosperity. It’s like you’re tied to a rope and constantly test-ing its limits. Unfortunately, you could hit a snag and feel you can go no further. Emotional issues suggest that you didn’t take your feelings into account. It’s time to reevaluate your approach.

You may feel like you’re doing all the work in a project or relationship and if you pull out for even a minute, the whole thing will fall apart. Be careful of putting so great a burden on yourself that you grow resentful of everyone else. You’re good at criticizing other people’s actions, but maybe the per-son you need to talk to about these issues is you.

It’s important to remain flexible, but not so much that you can’t make a decision about anything. Your head says one thing while your heart says another. When you give both of them free rein in an effort to be as flexible as possible, they go in opposite directions. Postpone making any important decisions until your path becomes clearer.

You feel emotionally strong, even though certain peo-ple may be getting in the way of your plans. You can ac-complish a great deal. You’re only responsible for yourself. You feel a drive to work harder than usual. Even though you may be working very hard, your general mindset is good. You should enjoy your day regardless of the circum-stances.

You may feel like there’s a big opportunity waiting for you but your head is too muddled to take advantage of it. Perhaps you’re afraid that if you accept this offer now, you’ll miss an even better one later. Don’t delay. Change is prog-ress. Go after the things that catch your eye and draw you in. These opportunities won’t last forever. Stop dreaming and start doing.

In order to maintain peace and harmony, you may wear many different masks. By doing this, you may forget your in-ner truth and what it is you truly believe. Friction between your lively, communicative outside and your soft, vulnerable inside may make it difficult for you to find the solution you seek. You have the answers you need. Trust yourself when you find them.

Your sensitive nature is attractive. People who come to you for advice and guidance aren’t disappointed. You have a solid, practical perspective, yet you’re also receptive and understanding. People with flashy ideas and a reckless way about them might try to sell you a pig in a poke. Don’t be thrown off. Stay strong within yourself and confident about what you believe in.

You may feel like you’re riding a fast train to success. Suc-cess can be measured in different ways. Today it’s impor-tant that you consider your emotional success and how your feelings fit into your life. You may discover that the train you’re on isn’t the train you should be on. Don’t be afraid to get off at the next station and transfer to a dif-ferent line.

You may feel like a snail emerging from its shell. When no one is looking, you slowly and cautiously stick your head out and put up your antennae to take a reading on the out-side world. When you see a creature like you, you feel com-fortable and come out of your shell a bit more. Be careful about letting your defenses down too much, because a big, hungry bird may be looking for dinner.

Your boisterous, generous attitude is inspiring and wel-comed by others. There are also some people who consider your behavior ostentatious or arrogant. You may wonder how this is possible, since your intentions are good. You want people to share in the love and good times. You’re at-tentive to others’ feelings. Sit down and talk with people one-on-one to understand how they feel.

Just as soon as you taste success, something comes along to make you feel badly about it. Perhaps another person is jealous of you, and so does or says things that make you feel uncertain. Perhaps the doubt comes from an internal source that says that you don’t deserve pros-perity. Don’t be thrown off course by this. Move forward with your plans.

Government of Jammu and Kashmir

OFFICE OF DISTRICT SHEEEP HUSBANDRY OFFICER SRINAGARSubject:, Tentative Short list of Candidates for Class IV posts of Sheep Husbandry Department, District Srinagar.

PRESS NOTICE‘A’ TENTATIVE SHORT LIST OF CANDIDATES FOR INTERVIEW FOR THE POST OF ASM

Reference:- This office advertisement notice No. DSHO/Estt/361-64 dt:04/10/2011 and corrigendum No.: DSHO/Tech/2013-14/737-38 dated: 5/08/.2013.

The criterion for short listing of candidates is as per the terms of Govt. order No: 35 ASH of 2013 issued in 02/2013 under DSHK’s endoresement No: DSHK/Estt-58/2010-11/17676-87 dt: 05-03-2013 as shown below:* Matric= 90 points( Pro-rata basis) * 10+2= points (pro-rata basis).

Cutt off points for different categories1. Open Mertit= 65.47 2. ST= 37.08 3. Sheduled Caste= 38.44 4. RBA= 41.94 5. ALC=0 SHORT LIST OF CANDIDATES FOR THE POST OF ASM(CATEGORY OM) NO OF POSTS=6

S.NO Form No.

Name of Applicant with parentage and address Date of Birth Category %age of marks in matricw

Points out of 90

%age of marks in 10+2

Points out of 10

Total Points out of 100

1 110 Abdul Abbass S/O Gh. Mohd . Tali R/O Check Saderbal 10.04.1993 OM 86.40% 77.76 69.60% 6.96 84.72

2 15 Masroor Lateef S/O Mohd Lateef Bhatr R/O Nayak Bagh, Nowgam

04.08.1989 OM 83.00% 74.7 62.50% 6.25 80.95

3 197 Aabid Farooq Shola S/O Farooq Ahmad Shola R/O Namchibal Fateh Kadal

19.02.1992 OM 80.40% 72.54 68.50% 6.85 79.39

4 323 Omer Bin Ali S/O Ali Mohd. Malik R/O Upper Zewan 15.05.1987 OM 80.40 % 72.36 69% 6.9 79.26

5 176 Mir Junaid ul Hassan S/O Mir Gh. Hassan R/O House No. 03 Hyderia Colony Bemina

26.01.1990 OM 78.80% 70.92 74.90% 7.49 78.41

6 91 Mohsen Ahmad Wani S/O Gh. Ahmad R/o Umerhair Buchpora

27.02.1989 OM 79% 71.1% 61.60% 6.16 77.26

7 45 Muzaffar Ahmad S/O Mohd Sultan Chopan R/O Murinder Bagh Gantal

09.12.1989 OM 78.40% 70.56 64% 6.4 76.96

8 67 Irfan Ahmad Qazi S/O Abdul Hamid Qazi R/O Umer haira Buchpora

05.03.1988 OM 76% 68.40 63.10% 6.31 74.71

9 88 Raies Mehraj S/O Mehraj-ud-din R/O Dangerpora Nawakadal

10.05.1992 OM 74.80% 67.32 65.50% 6.55 73.87

10 34 Nasir Ahmad Khan S/O Nazir Ahmad Khan R/O Solina Payween

11.10.1987 Om 75.60% 68.04 57% 5.7 73.74

11 11 Amir Ayoob Khan S/O Mohd Ayoob Khan R/O Kathi Maidan Zadaibal

22.03.1991 OM 73.40% 66.06 74.40% 7.44 73.5

12 154 Mudasir Rashid S/O Abdul Rashid Ganai R/O Diyar-wani, Batamaloo

17.10.1987 Om 75% 67.5 57% 5.7 73.2

13 287 Ajaz Ahmad Kundoo S/O Mohd Maqbool KundooR/O Shallbaff Mohalla Anchar, Soura

26.01.1989 OM 73.80%^ 66.42 67.20% 6.72 73.14

14 65 Mubashir Ahmad Zargar S/O Manzoor Ahmad Zargar R/O H.No. 59 Firdous Colony Buchpora

01.08.1889 OM 74% 66.6 54.10% 5.41 72.01

15 16 Mansoor Lateef S/O Mohd. Lateef Bhat R/O Nayak Bagh Nowgam

01.10.1991 OM 72.20% 64.98 66.90% 6.69 71.67

16 326 Vilayat Husssain Akhoon S/O Ali Mohd Akhoon R/O Mohamadia Colony Badamwari

01.05.1990 OM 72.40% 65.16 61.60% 6.16 71.32

17 111 Sajad Ahmad Shah S/o Mohd Maqbool Shah R/o Habak Kushki

26.01.1990 OM 71.20% 64.08 70.40% 7.04 71.12

18 37 Mohammad Younis S/O Abdul Rashid Mir R/O Old Natipora near Ration Depot

01.12.1988 Om 70.20% 63.18 70.10% 7.01 70.19

19 317 Rocky Maandi S/O Hans Raj R/o Deoli, Bishnath , Jammu

02.10.1992 Om/Shedule Caste 71.40% 64.26 58.60% 5.86 70.12

20 205 Adil Majeed Akhoon S/O Abdul Majeed Akhoon R/O Malla Bagh Naseem Bagh

27.09.1991 OM 70.40% 63.36 61.40% 6.14 69.5

21 153 Suhail Ahmad Wani S/O Mohd Rajab Wani R/O Main Road Buchpora

18.06.1990 OM 69.20% 62.28 71% 7.1 69.38

22 297 Rakesh Kumar S/O Sham Lal R/O Budwal Jammu 03.10.1992 OM/Shedule Caste 69.40% 62.46 66.60% 6.66 69.12

23 316 Anil Kumar S/O Ashok Kumar R/O Tabala Samba 15.03.1992 OM/ Schedule Caste

70.80% 63.72 50.50 5.05 68.77

24 172 Umer Rasool S/O Gh. Rasool Beigh R/O Firdous Colony Ali Masjid Iddgah

15.02.1984 OM 69% 62.1 57.80% 5.78 67.88

25 292 Javeed Ahmad Chopan 11.12.1983 OM 68.80% 61.92 58.60% 5.86 67.78

26 30 Ummer Ahmad Khanday S/O Mohd. Sultan khanday R/O Dana-Mazar Safa Kadal

01-11-1987 OM 69.80% 62.82 48.80% 4.88 67.7

27 52 M. Ahsan Allaie S/O Mohd Yaseen Allaie R/O Sekidafar, Safakadal

11.03.1991 OM 69.40% 62.46 51.50% 5.15 67.61

28 155 Umer Rashid S/O Abdul Rashid Ganai R/O Diyarwani, Batamaloo

02.01.1991 Om 68.80% 61.92 56.60% 5.66 67.58

29 241 Tariq Ahmad Akhoon S/O Mohd. Afzal Akhoon R/O Malla bagh Naseen Bagh

23.01.1990 OM 68.80% 61.92 56.19% 5.61 67.53

30 342 Abdul Aamir Aslam S/O Mohd Aslam Najar R/O Kalam-danpora Nawa Bazar

11.09.1991 OM 68.20% 61.38 61.30% 6.13 67.51

31 183 Abdul Hanief Sheikh S/O Ab. Majeed Sheikh R/O 268-69A/c Nundreshi Colony, Bemina

31.03.1976 OM 68.30% 61.47 52,80% 5.28 66.75

32 180 Tanveer Ali Mir S/O MOhd Ishaq Mir R/O Koolipora, Bemina

09.12.1986 OM 67% 60.30 55% 5.50 65.80

33 70 Arshid Ahmad Sofi S/O Abdul Rehman Sofi R/O Tarabal Nawakadal

14.05.1984 OM 65.60 59.04 64.30 6.43 65.47

SHORT LIST OF CANDIDATES FOR THE POST OF ASM (CATAGORY SCHEDULED TRIBE) NO. OF POST=1

1 58 Shabir Ahmad Khatana S/O Mohd. Yaqoob Khatana R/O Dardkhower, Dara Faqirjugri

01.11.1992 ST 51.40% 46.26 0 46.26

2 228 Mukhtar Ahmad Khatana R/O Dard Khower Dara 01.03.1992 ST 46.60% 41.94 0 41.94

3 148 Mohd Ashraf Phamda S/O Habib-ullah Phamda R/O Faqir Gujri Dara

01.01.1991 ST 44.60% 40.14 0 40.14

4 149 Noor Mohd Bara S/O Jamma Bara R/O Dard Khower, Check Dara

03.08.1991 ST 41.80% 37.62 0 37.62

5 99 Gh. Fareed Kasana S/O Ab. Karim Kasana R/O Mulnar New Theed Harwan

04.07.1991 ST 41.20% 37.08 0 37.08

SHORT LIST OF CANDIDATES FOR THE POST OF ASM (CATEGORY SCHEDULE CASTE) NO OF POSTS=1

1 192 Ajay Dadool S/O Sh. Dawarka Nath R/O Jasath P/O Ghagwal, Saamba

20.04.1986 Schedule Caste 57.06% 57.06 60.40% 6.04 63.1

2 96 Pardeep Kumar S/O Bua Ditta Mangotra R/O Pandori, Manhasa Jammu

10.02.1985 Schedule Caste 62.40% 56.16 64.10% 6.41 62.57

3 373 Suresh Kumar S/O Dalip Chand R/O Panthan Doda 26.04.1983 Schedule Caste 54.40% 48.96 0 48.96

4 170 Darshan Lal S/O Sh. Babu Ram R.S Pura, Jammu 10.04.1974 Schedule Caste 41.50% 37.35 41.60% 4.16 41.51

5 365 Rajider Panday S/O Lt. Sh. Amar Nath R/O Nanak Chackt Samba

28.03.1886 Schedule Caste 37.40% 33.66 47.80% 4.78 38.44

sHORT lIST OF CANDIDATES FOR THE POST OF ASM(CATEGORY BRA) NO. OF POSTS =1

1 163 Showkat Ahmad Khan S/O Lt. Gh. Ahmad Khan R/O Check Dara

18.03.1987 RBA 46.60% 41.94 0 41.94

SHORT LIST OF CANDIDATES FOR THE POST OF ASM(CATARORY ALC) NO. OF POSTS+ 1Note: No application form was received from the candidates belonging to Actual Line of Contral (ALC).‘B’ TENTATIVE SHORT LIST OF CANDIDATES FOR INTERVIEW FOR THE POST OF CHOKIDARCUT OFF POINTS, OM= 63.79SHORT LIST OF CANDIDATES FOR INTERVIEW FOR THE POST OF CHOWKIDAR

1 26 Mudasir Rashid S/O Ab. Rashid Ganai R/O Batamalloo 17.10.1987 OM 75% 67.5 57% 5.7 73.2

2 50 Vilayat Hussain Akhoon S/O Ali Mohd Akhoon R/O Badamwari Hawal

01.05.1990 OM 72.40% 65.16 61.60% 6.16 71.32

3 21 Umer Rashid S/O Abdul Rashid Ganai R/O Batamaloo 02.01.1991 OM 68.80% 61.92 56.60% 5.66 67.58

4 13 Baha-ud-din S/O Noor-ud-din R/O Hyderia Colony Bemina

01.12.1974 OM 66% 59.4 50.16% 5.016 64.416

5 49 Qaisar Ahmad Hajam S/O Gh. Mohammda Hajam R/O Batapora

03.08.1989 OM 64.40% 57.96 58.20% 5.82 63.78

Note: 1. Objections, if any with regard to the above short list should reach the office of the undersigned within 30 days fromthe publication of this noitice in the daily newspaper and no objection shall be entertained after the lapse of stipulated time.2. Shortlisted candidates shall have to produce the affidavit duly attested by first class judicial magistrate within the stipulated period to the effect that they do not possess the qualification higher than the prescirbed for the post i.e. Matric and 10+2 .3. Any candidate found guilty of impersonating or submitting fabricated/tampered documents and possessing higher qualificatioon than the prescirbed one, shall be alliable for criminal prosecution under article 420 of Rambir penal code in the court of law besides cancellation of his interview /selection.4. in case any catergory candidates shown in the open merit list fails to qualify for selection, he shall be alternatively considered in his own catergory on the basis of his merit.5. The tentative date for interview is scheduled on 16th and 17th of December 2013 and the final dates of the interview shall be communicated separetely .

Sd/District Sheep Husbandry Officer, Srinagar (Chairman District Recruitment Board For Class IV) DIPK NO:9266 Sheep Husbandry Department,District Srinagar

JAMMU, October 30 –

Stressing on people par-ticipation in effective imple-mentation of development programmes, Deputy Chief Min-ister Tara Chand said in order to strengthen grass root democ-racy and make Panchayats more vibrant the government has de-valuated power to the PRIs.

“The plan formulation and implementation has been decentralized to the level of lo-cal panchayats with the aim to ensure that representatives of Panchayati Raj bodies get direct-ly involved in the development process”, he added.

He was chairing a one day long convention of Pan-chayati Raj Institutions at Chak Malal, Khour today.

“The government has identified fourteen departments for devolution of power and it has to be ensured that PRIs are actively involved in plan prepa-ration as well as in supervision and execution of the activities of these departments,” he added.

Detailed deliberations on various activities of PRIs and status of development works were held during the conven-tion and on spot directions were issued for promptly addressing the issues raised by the respec-tive panchayat members with regard to development in their respective areas.

The Dy CM directed the rural development authorities not to start works without tak-ing gram Sabha into confidence and actively involve PRI func-tionaries in deciding the priority of development works initiated in respective panchayats.

Besides Sarpanchs and Panchs of the area, the conven-tion was attended by Sub-Divi-sional Magistrate, Officers and Engineers of Rural Development Department and other line de-partments.

The Deputy Chief Minister called upon sarpanchs and panchs to play major role in making people aware of various schemes and programs

launched by the government from time to time and make sure that more and more people get themselves registered for avail-ing benefits under prestigious schemes of SKEWPY, Labour schemes, kissan credit cards and other welfare schemes.

“Mega registration camps have been organised in the area but response from peo-ple is not up to the expectation, now it is duty of each panchayat sarpanch and panch to motivate people and make sure that bene-fit reaches to maximum number of beneficiaries,” he enjoined.

Tara Chand said ex-emplary development initiatives have been taken for the purpose of upgrading rural infrastructure and focused attention is being paid to core areas of roads, en-ergy, water supply, health and education.

He said mega-projects have been launched all across the state to develop rural pack-ets on modern lines and to take the development revolution to every nook and corner, adding that exemplary development initiatives taken by the govern-ment clearly show seriousness of the current dispensation to-wards all round development of the state.

Detailing develop-ment projects launched in the area, the Deputy Chief Minister said Khour block is among top in the country with regard to connectivity by road links as ev-ery village has been interlinked with more than one road and three mega rural development projects have already started in the area. Special cluster model village projects at Pargwal, Pal-lanwala and Sainth have been undertaken for over all develop-ment of the villages falling un-der them, he added.

“All those associated with these projects should gear up their activities so that the works get completed within stipulated time frame and strict vigil be maintained on the exe-cution to ensure zero pilferage,” he added.

Actively involve PRI mem-bers in development pro-

grammes: Dy CM to officers

RAMBAN, OCTOBER 30:

District Development Com-missioner, Ramban, M H Malik, inaugurated the District Level Exhibition cum Kissan Mela, or-ganised by the Sheep Husband-ry department Ramban under ATMA at Maitra on Wednesday.

While speaking on the occasion, the DDC instructed the Agriculture, Horticulture, Animal Husbandry, Sheep Hus-bandry and fisheries depart-ments to organize awareness programme jointly at block level so that farming community gets information about all schemes launched by these departments.

He also stressed upon the farmers to come forward and adopt the Sheep farming as well as poultry and fish pro-

duction on commercial lines. He directed the District Sheep Hus-bandry Officer to recheck the data about the sheep population and its mutton as well as wool production and submit report.

Agriculture and allied department participated in the mela and installed their stalls disseminating the information about the schemes including RKVY, IDSRR, Women insurance Schemes, NMPS Units and Mini sheep Farming etc.

They also exhibited latest machinery of farming. ADDC, Pardeep Kumar, DSHO, DR. Rafiq Ahmed Akhoon, CAO, VK Bhushan, DIO, Dr. Ashwani Hansa and officers and officials of different departments, Sar-panches, Panches and farmers attended the programme.

District Level Exhibition cum Kissan mela held

UDHAMPUR, OCTO-BER, 30:- To generate aware-ness among masses on the issue of female foeticide, a seminar cum film show on “Save the Girl Child” was organized by Department of Information & Public Relations, Udhampur at Government Girls High School, Udhampur.Medical Superinten-dent District Hospital, Dr. Chan-der Parkash was the chief guest on the occasion. While speak-ing on the occasion, Dr. Chander Parkash urged upon the need for creating wide awareness among the masses about the sin of female foeticide and called for strict implementation of Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diag-nostic Techniques (PC & PNDT) Act.Expressing concern over declining sex ratio in the state, Dr. Chander hoped that such

programmes would go a long way to spread a message among the people. During the semi-nar, awareness lecture was also delivered by the Social Worker, Advocate Swatantar Dev Kotwal who urged upon the students to spread the awareness among the general people in their sur-rounding for uprooting the men-ace of female foeticide from the society.The students of the host school including Priya Devi, Madhu Bala, Sheetal Dogra, Joti Devi and Surbhi Devi also ex-pressed their views on the topic.

Headmaster of the host school, Mirdula Sharma in her speech thanked the Informa-tion Department for organizing a valuable seminar on save the girl child in our school and said that such programmes should be held on regular basis.

Seminar, film show on Save the Girl Child held

MLA lays foun-dation stone

of road under PMGSY

UDHAMPUR, OCT, 30:- MLA Udhampur, Mr.

Balwant Singh Mankotia, to-day laid foundation stone of 8.525 Km road Ossu to Dhar-gadian road being construct-ed with a cost of Rs. 474.65 lakh under PMGSY.

The road would ben-efit over 700 souls belonging to Schedule Tribe community of the adjoining villages.

Complementing the people of the area for having fullfiled their long pending demand delayed due to for-est clearance, Mr. Mankotia said that the facility of road in this area would uplift the socio economic status of the people of the area.

Government of Jammu & Kashmir

OFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE ENGINEER (R&B) DIVISION CHADOORAABBREVATED FRESH TENDER NOTICE

Fresh N.I.T No. 43 CD of 2013-14Dated: 28 of 10/2013

Due to poor response to this office NIT No. 40 of 09/2013 issued under NO. 6208-6223 dated 25-09-2013, & Extension No. 6717-32 dated 11-10-2013 Fresh tenders are invited for and on behalf of the Governor of J&K State, affixed with Rs 2/- revenue stamp fro the below mentioned works from the Govt. Approved contractors as shown which should reach office of the Executive Engineer (R&B) Division Chadoora on or before 08-11-2013 upto 2.00 PM.

S.NO Name of the Work Approx. Cost incl. c/o Deptt Stores (Rs in lacs)

Earnest Money

Class of Contractor

Period of Completion

Major Head of the Account

Cost of Ten-der Document

01 Construction /Upgradation of Darul Aloom link road at Nagbal Yousmarg by way of construction of cement concrete drain, GSB Nallah Muck filling P/L WBM G-II and laying of RCC spun pipes.

3.53 lacs 7060/- DEE 15 days Protecti-zation

200/-

` one Work onlyPosition of Funds:- Demanded1. Teh Bidders/tenderers shall be at liberty to send their tenders either in person or through registered post in the sealed envelopes and shluld write the following on the evvelop.i) Name of the Work ii) Cost of Work iii) Full name of Contractor iv) Ref. To CDR No. & Dated v) Date of receipt of Tenders vi) Ref. To NIT No. 2. The Tender documents shall be issued by this office against Non-refundable cash payment as mentioned in the NIT to eligible contractors on proiduction of valid registration Card

including TIN Number, Income Tax and Service Tax clearence certificate ending 03/2013 on any working day upto the 07/11/2013 during office hours. Further deatils can be had from the office of the undersigned on any working day. Sd/ Executive EngineerDIPK NO.: 9227 R&B Division Chadoora

Daily Zabarwan TimesEDITORIAL/ OPINIONEDITORIAL/ OPINIONDaily Zabarwan Times Thursday 31 October 2013

Daily Zabarwan Times Thursday 31 October 2013

Education to Physically Challenged Persons

Disclaimer : The contents and comments appearing in any article published in this paper are purely the personal opinion of the writer

The continuous firing in violation of cease-fire on international borders and line of control compelled In-

dia and Pakistan to arrange a flag meeting so that these in-cidents are not repeated in fu-ture. During the meeting India lodged a strong protest with Pakistan against frequent cease-fire violations from across the borders. The flag meeting was held at octroi border outpost in R S Pora Jammu. The two sides are believed to have agreed to halt the firing incidents and do away with hostilities so that the damages to life and prop-erty are avoided. If the two countries observe the ceasefire strictly, it will on one side help the villagers to cultivate their lands all along the borders and on the other hand will help in minimizing the recent spurt in hostilities. It is a matter of con-cern for the people of sub con-tinent as also for international community that the two neigh-bours are on war path despite the fact that Shimla agreement exists which provides a frame-work and mechanism to solve all outstanding issues between the two countries. Last decade saw a rapid improvement in the relations of the two coun-tries and several confidence building measures were signed to normalize bilateral ties. It is certainly in the interest of this sub continent and internation-al peace that the two countries shun the path of animosities and help in stabilizing the peace efforts. If the two increase the differences the exploiters on in-ternational level will get bene-fitted and they will encash their worsening relations for their vested interests. The leadership of both the countries should understand the conspiracies hatched at international level against them and should not do anything which will make these conspiracies a success and will drain out the resources of the two countries for unproductive things like purchase of lethal arms and weaponary. The two have seen the repercussions of their animosities which have claimed the lives of thousands of people but have not yielded any results. The two countries are the best judges and can sort out their differences amicably and in a friendly and cordial at-mosphere.

Negotiations-best way of addressing problems

Minorities Development in IndiaI

ndia is a democratic country where people of all community live in peace and harmony. All major religions of the world are found in India. As such, Hindus

are the majority community and the minority community includes Mus-lims, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists and Zoroastrians (Parsis) as notified under the National Commission for Minori-ties Act, 1992. Minorities are playing a very vital role in India’s political and social uplift-ment, contributing significantly in the development of our country. Govern-ments from time to time have formulat-ed programmes and schemes for socio-

economic upliftment of minorities. For this purpose Government of India created the Ministry of Minority Af-fairs, which aims at empowering the minority communities and creating an enabling environment for strength-ening the multi-racial, multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, multi-lingual and multi-religious character of our nation. It also aims at improving the socio-economic conditions of the minority communi-ties through affirmative action and in-clusive development, so that every citi-zen has equal opportunity to participate actively in building a vibrant nation. To facilitate an equitable share for minority communities in education,

employment, economic activities and to ensure their upliftment, Prime Min-ister’s New 15-Point Programme for the Welfare of Minorities was announced in June, 2006. It provides programme specific interventions with definite goals which are to be achieved in a time bound manner. The objectives of the programme are: (a) Enhancing opportu-nities for education; (b) Ensuring an eq-uitable share for minorities in econom-ic activities and employment through existing and new schemes, enhanced credit support for self-employment and recruitment to State and Central Gov-ernment jobs; (c) Improving the condi-tions of living of minorities by ensuring

an appropriate share for them in infra-structure development schemes; and (d) Prevention and control of communal disharmony and violence. An important aim of the programme has been to ensure that the benefits of various government schemes for the underprivileged reach the disadvan-taged sections of the minority commu-nities. In order to ensure that the ben-efits of these schemes flow equitably to the minorities, the programme envis-ages location of a certain proportion of development projects in minority con-centration areas. The schemes included in the New 15-Point Programme are as under;

Presently Sarva Shiksha Abhi-yan (SSA), which is the main vehicle under the Ministry of Human Resource Devel-opment for implementation

of the provisions of The Right of Chil-dren to Free & Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009 is providing inclusive education wherein children with spe-cial needs are mainstreamed in regular schools. Under SSA, over 32 lakh CWSN have been identified till March, 2013. Out of this, over 85% are enrolled and 1.5 lakh are enrolled in home based edu-cation and 28 lakh aids and appliances have been distributed under SSA since inception of the programme. While large number of children with disabilities are enrolled under SSA as part of inclusive education, State Governments are also running special schools for children with disabilities. The Ministry of Social Justice and Em-powerment is providing financial assis-tance to NGOs to set up special schools under Deendayal Disability Rehabilita-tion Scheme (DDRS). The Government's approach continues to be one of promoting inclusive educa-tion, but special education is also made available to those who need it. The Right of Children to Free & Com-pulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009 came into force from April 1, 2010. The RTE Act provides for free & compulsory education to children including chil-dren with disabilities as mentioned in Persons with Disabilities (Equal Op-portunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) (PwD) Act, 1995 and the National Trust for the Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Dis-abilities Act, 1999 namely, i) Blindness, ii) Low vision, iii) Leprosy cured, iv) Hearing impairment, v) Locomotor dis-abilities, vi) Mental retardation, vii) Mental Illness, viii) Autism, and ix) Cerebral Palsy, and eventually cover Speech impairment, Learning Disabili-ties, etc. in the age group of 6-14 years at elementary level in a neighbourhood school. The Government is implement-ing Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) as main programme for universalizing, ed-ucation for all children for the age group of 6-14 years. SSA provides Rs. 3000 per

child per annum as a budgetary or fund-ing norm. The major interventions under SSA for education of physically challenged children are identification, functional and formal assessment, ap-propriate educational placement, prep-aration of Individualised Educational Plan, provision of aids and appliances, teacher training, appointment of re-search teachers, therapeutical support, establishing research rooms to provide support to children with disabilities, provision of ramps and handrails.

The Scheme of Inclusive Education for Disabled at Secondary Stage (IEDSS) was launched in 2009-10 replacing the earlier scheme of Integrated Educa-tion for Disabled Children (IEDC). It provides assistance for the inclusive education of the disabled children in classes IX-XII. The aim of the Scheme is to enable all students with disabilities, af-ter completing eight years of elementary schooling, to pursue further four years of secondary schooling (classes IX to XII) in an inclusive and enabling environment. The scheme covers all children passing out of elementary schools and studying at secondary and higher secondary stage in Government, local body and Govern-

ment-aided schools, with one or more disabilities as defined under the PwD Act, 1995 and the National Trust for the Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999. The components of the scheme in-clude : i) assessment of medical / educa-tional needs, ii) provision of student spe-cific facilities, iii) development of learning material, iv) support services like special educators, v) construction and equipping of resource rooms, vi) training of general

school teachers to build their capacity to fulfill the needs of children with spe-cial needs vii) make schools barrier free. Setting up of Model inclusive schools in every State is also envisaged. Girls with disabilities receive special focus and ef-forts made under the scheme to help them gain access to secondary schools, as also to information and guidance for develop-ing their potential. There is a provision of a monthly stipend of Rs.200/- for the disabled girls. Central assistance for all items covered in the scheme is on 100 per cent basis. The School Education Depart-ment of the State Governments/ Union Territory Administrations is the imple-menting agency. They may involve Non

Governmental Organisations having ex-perience, in the field of education of the disabled, in the implementation of the scheme. Under the National Scholarship Scheme which is funded from Trust Fund for Em-powerment of PwDs financial assistance is provided to students with disabilities to enable them to pursue professional or technical courses from recognized insti-tutes and get employed/self employed. Under the Scheme till last academic ses-sion 1000 scholarships were provided to the students with disabilities through out the country and from the academic session 2013-14 this number has been increased to 1500 students. 30% scholar-ships are reserved for girls. Only Indian nationals are eligible for scholarships. Under the National Fund for People with Disabilities (National Fund) 500 new scholarships to be awarded each year are equally distributed (125 each) for the four major categories of disabilities viz. (i) Or-thopaedic (ii) Visual (iii) Hearing and (iv) Others. Further, 40% of the scholarships in each category are reserved for girls. Ra-jiv Gandhi National Fellowship Scheme for students with disabilities has been launched for providing them scholarship to pursue M.Phil/Ph.D courses. Section 33 of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) (PwD) Act, 1995 pro-vides for reservation not less than 3% of vacancies in government establishments for persons with disabilities of which 1% each shall be reserved for persons suffer-ing from (i) blindness or low vision; (ii) hearing impairment and (iii) loco motor disability or cerebral palsy. Accordingly, reservations are made in various Govern-ment Establishments including Public Sector Undertakings (PSU). Further, with a view to encourage employment of Per-sons with Disabilities in private sector, the Government provides the employer’s contribution for Employees Provident Fund (EPF) and Employees State Insur-ance (ESI) for 3 years, for employees with disabilities including visually im-paired persons employed in the private sector on or after April 1, 2008, with a monthly salary upto Rs.25, 000 under its Scheme of Incentives to the Private Sec-tor for Employment of Physically Chal-lenged Persons.

Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme by providing services through Anganwadi Centres {Ministry of Women & Child Development}.Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya Scheme (KGBV) {Ministry of Human Resources Development}Aajeevika{Ministry of Rural Development}Swarnajayanti Shahari Rojgar Yojana (SJSRY) {Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation}Upgradation of Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) {Ministry of Labour & Employment}Bank credit under priority sector lending {Department of Financial Services}Indira Awas Yojana (IAY) {Ministry of Rural Development}

Also acting on the Sachar Committee report, the Government has initiated several measures as:

Universalization of access to quality education at secondary stage called Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA).One model college each would be set up in 374 educationally backward districts (EBDs) of the country. Of 374 EBDs, 67 are among identified minority concentration districts.Preference to be given by the University Grants Commission for provision of girls' hostels in universities and colleges in the areas where there is concentration of minorities especially Muslims.Area Intensive & Madarsa Modernisation Programme has been revised and bifurcated into two schemes. (a) Scheme for Providing Quality Education in Madarsas (SPQEM). It was attractive provision for better teachers' salary, increased assistance for books, teaching aids and computers and introduction of vocational sub-jects, etc and the other scheme which provides financial assistance for Infrastructure Development of Private aided/unaided Minority Institutes (IDMI).Academies for professional development of Urdu medium teachers have been set up at three Central Universities namely, Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Jamia Milia Islamia University (JMIU), New Delhi and Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MAANU), Hyderabad.

Also, the Government has launched the Multi-sectoral Development Pro-gramme (MsDP) in 2008-09. The pro-gramme aims at improving the socio-economic and basic amenity facilities for improving the quality of life of the people and reducing imbalances in the Minority Concentration Districts (MCDs). Identified 'development defi-

cits' are addressed through a district specific plan for provision of better in-frastructure for school and secondary education, sanitation, pucca housing, drinking water and electricity supply, besides beneficiary oriented schemes for creating income generating activi-ties. Absolutely critical infrastructure linkages like connecting roads, basic

health infrastructure, ICDS centers, skill development and marketing facili-ties required for improving living con-ditions and income generating activi-ties and catalyzing the growth process are eligible for inclusion in the plan. The Ministry of Minority Affairs is also providing several scholarships to the minority communities to empower

them educationally and socially across the country. These include: (a) The Pre-matric scholarship scheme. (b) Post-matric scholarship scheme. (c) The Merit-cum-Means Scholarship Scheme. (d) The Maulana Azad National Fellow-ship (MANF). (e) The Free Coaching and Allied Scheme. (f) Leadership De-velopment of Minority Women scheme.

HEALTH AND FITNESS

ZABARWAN TIMES Tuesday 15 October 2013

Blame the hustle bustle of daily life for your

extreme levels of fatigue and exhaustion, but at

times the reasons behind your feeling tired all the time go beyond a hectic

schedule.Looking at the sedentary lifestyle

of an average Indian office worker, at times it becomes difficult to pinpoint a single reason as to why fatigue is such a big part of daily life. If you feel ex-hausted every day, why not try some lifestyle changes or new habits for a week or two to see if your energy levels change?

Adjust your social calendar, stop working overtime, eat nutritious foods, sleep at regular intervals and try and trim down on alcohol and caffeine intake. However, if you still feel no change, then here are 5 most common

problems that might be the reasons be-hind your fatigue:

DiabetesDiabetes is one of the most com-

mon health conditions prevalent in India. People who suffer from diabetes are unable to use glucose in their body leading it to build up in the blood. It’s symptoms include extreme fatigue much beyond regular exhaustion, acute levels of thirst, weight loss, con-stant hunger, vaginal yeast infections, frequent urination and blurred vision.

There are two basic tests for dia-betes - the plasma glucose test, and the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). The plasma glucose test evaluates an individual’s blood glucose levels on an empty stomach, while the OGTT re-quires blood samples before and after drinking glucose syrup.

ThyroidWhen one suffers from thyroid

problems, even daily activities that involve minimal physical involvement seem daunting. Both hyperthyroid-ism (the over-production of the thy-roid hormones), and hypothyroidism (the under-production of thyroid hor-mones), greatly affect energy levels.

Hyperthyroidism symptoms in-clude extreme weakness, muscle fa-tigue, difficulty in strenuous physical movement, drop in weight, increased heart rate, extreme thirst and reduced menstrual flows. Hypothyroidism symptoms include extreme fatigue, difficulty in concentration, water re-tention and subsequent weight gain, heavier menstrual flow, inflammation of the muscles and constipation. These thyroid conditions are easily detected with a blood test.

AnemiaAnemia causes extreme fatigue

mainly due to low red blood cell counts amongst other hemoglobin related ab-normalities. One may feel extremely weak and short on breath. This con-dition is more prevalent in women than in men, especially women who undergo heavy periods or who don’t consume recommended levels of iron. Experts suggest that pregnant women need extra amounts of iron in their daily food intake.Extreme fatigue, poor quality sleep, low concentration, rapid chest pains and headaches are some of the prominent symptoms of anemia. Go for a detailed examination if you think you suffer from anemia.

Feeling exhausted? It could be serious

Foods for strong bonesNo matter how old or young you may be, tak-ing care of your bones is a must. While most of us take them for granted, thinking they’re the stron-gest and hardest body part, over time bones can dete-riorate in quality. Osteopo-rosis, which is marked by a condition where bones be-come soft and crack easily, is no longer just a disease of the older generation. More and more youngsters are falling prey to this due to poor eating habits.

Milk There is reason why

your mother told you to drink your glass of milk daily. Milk is a vital source

of calcium as well as vita-min D. Research suggests that other dairy products like cheese and ice-cream are also good alternatives but while they contain cal-cium, most do not have vi-tamin D. You can always opt for a nonfat variety so that you get all the health benefits.

Nuts and seeds

Don’t underestimate your favourite nuts. Those like pumpkin seeds are rich in magnesium, which help with calcium metabolism. Other nuts like almonds and pistachios could also be consumed.

Walnuts Walnuts are full of

omega-3 fatty acid, which has numerous benefits. They also contain alphalin-oleic acid, which strength-ens the bones.

Carrots These vegetables boast

of alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, and betacrypto-xanthin. Eat them raw in the form of salad.

Maternal obesity, diabetes lead to autism in kids (Thinkstock photos/Getty Images)

Diabetic and obese mothers are likely to give birth to a child with autism or another devel-

opmental disability, says researchers.

A major study conducted by researchers affiliated with the UC Davis MIND Institute found that mothers who were obese were 1-2/3 times more likely to have a child with autism as normal-weight mothers without diabetes or hypertension, and were more than twice as likely to have a child with another developmental dis-order.

Mothers with diabetes were found to have nearly 2-1/3 times the chance of having a child with develop-mental delays as healthy mothers. However, the proportion of mothers with diabetes who had a child with autism was higher than in healthy mothers but did not reach statisti-cal significance.

The study also found that the autis-tic children of diabetic mothers were more disabled -- had greater deficits in language comprehension and production and adap-tive communication -- than were the chi-dren with autism born to healthy mothers.

However, the children without autism born to diabetic mothers also exhibited impairments in socialization in addition to language comprehension and production, when compared with the non-autistic chil-dren of healthy women.

Children without autism of mothers

with any of the metabolic conditions dis-played mild deficits in problem solving, lan-guage comprehension and production, mo-tor skills and socialization.

“Over a third of U.S. women in their childbearing years are obese and nearly one-tenth have gestational or type 2 diabetes during pregnancy.

Our finding that these maternal condi-tions may be linked with neurodevelopmen-tal problems in children raises concerns and therefore may have serious public-health implications,” said Paula Krakowiak, a bio-statician affiliated with the MIND Institute.

The study included 1,004 mother/child pairs from diverse backgrounds enrolled in the Childhood Autism Risks from Genetics and the Environment Study (CHARGE), most of them living in Northern California, with a small subset living in Los Angeles.

The children were between 24 and 60 months old, born in Cali-fornia and resided with at least one biological parent who spoke either English or Spanish.

There were 517 children who had autism; 172 with other develop-mental disorders; and 315 were de-veloping normally. The participants were enrolled between January 2003 and June 2010.

The researchers obtained de-mographic and medical information

for the mothers and their children using the CHARGE Study Environmental Exposure Questionnaire, a telephone survey, the study participants’ birth files and medical records. The primary metabolic conditions of inter-est were type 2 diabetes or gestational diabe-tes. Women were considered diabetic if the condition was noted in their medical records or if during the telephone surveys they an-swered yes to the questions

Among children whose mothers were diabetic during their pregnancies, the study found that the percentage of children with autism born to women with type 2 diabetes or gestational diabetes -- 9.3 per cent -- or developmental disability -- 11.6 per cent -- was higher than the 6.4 per cent of children born to women without these metabolic conditions.

Maternal obesity, diabetes lead to autism in kidsScientists are trying to build hu-man brain using the world’s most powerful computer.It is intended to combine all the information so far uncovered about its mysterious workings -- and replicate them on a screen, right down to the level of indi-vidual cells and molecules.If it works it could be revolu-tionary for understanding dev-astating neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Par-kinson’s, and even shedding light into how we think, and make decisions.Professor Henry Markram, based in Switzerland, is lead-ing the project and will be working with scientists from across Europe including the Wellcome Trust Sanger Insti-tute at Cambridge.They hope to complete it within 12 years.“The complexity of the brain, with its billions of interconnected neu-rons, makes it hard for neurosci-entists to truly understand how it works. Simulating it will make it

much easier -- allowing them to manipulate and measure any as-pect of the brain,” he said.Housed at a facility in Dusseldorf in Germany, the ‘brain’ will fea-ture thousands of three-dimen-sional images built around a semi-

circular ‘cockpit’ so scientists can virtually ‘fly’ around different ar-eas and watch how they commu-nicate with each other.It aims to integrate all the neuro-science research being carried out all over the world -- an estimated

60,000 scientific papers every year -- into one platform.The project has received some fund-ing from the EU and has been shortlisted for a 1 billion euro EU grant, which will be decided next month.When complete it could

be used to test new drugs, which could dramatically shorten the time required for licencing them than human trials, and pave the way for more intelligent robots and computers.There are inevi-tably concerns about the conse-quences of this ‘manipulation’ and creating computers, which can think for themselves. In Ger-many the media have dubbed the researchers ‘Team Franken-stein’.But Prof Markram said: “This will, when successful, help two billion people annually who suffer from some type of brain

impairment.”This is one of the three grand challenges for hu-manity. We need to understand earth, space and the brain. We need to understand what makes us human,” he added. Our brains have 100 billion neurons.

Human brain to be built using supercomputer

10 Foods you can’t live withoutYes that’s right! Here’s a list of healthy and

nutritious foods that you simply cannot ignore. These foods are tasty, aid fitness, and should be consumed on a regular basis to ensure you eat a well-balanced, all-round healthy diet.

The vegetarians among you will need to find alternatives and substitutes for a few, but don’t worry - there are plenty of plant based healthy foods in this list of 10 foods you can’t ignore.

Lots of fish rich in Omega 3 - A fatty fish rich in Omega 3 is really important to get your ratio balance to 1:1 (Omega 3 : Omega 6). The top 5 fish for this purpose are - Mackeral, Trout, Her-ring, Tuna, and Salmon. Vegetarians should take Omega 3 supplements, if a fish oil supplement is a no no. Here is the low-down on the supplements.

Broccoli - The benefits of broccoli are many. This is one vegetable that is a tasty addition to your salad if cooked well and can be a fun addi-tion to your daily dinner. And absorbent broccoli does a great job of soaking up fats and helping flush excess out of your system.

Eggs - This is one addition to the diet that even vegetarians should partake in. With healthy fats and proteins, eggs are great for a filling break-fast and if you eat these you won’t need to eat again in a hurry. Eggs can be enjoyed in a spicy masala curry as well as a great dish for dinner, for

those who cant stand to eat them along. Here are some recipes for unique ways to cook eggs.

Spinach - Another must have vegetable made popular by Popeye, this fictional character got it right! Spinach offers calcium and magnesium in plenty, pairs well with meat of any kind, can be sauteed, steamed, thrown into soups, or eaten raw, and provides roughage. As flexible as they come, this green vegetable has so much nutrition that it’s hard to ignore.

Berries - So rich in antioxidants and so low in sugar, most berries are right up there with foods we should try to get out hands on as often as possible. These are the most nutritionally dense fruits you can eat. Read more about the best fruits here.

Nuts - Macadamia, almonds, pistas, most nuts are great because they are a great filler be-tween meals, they actually keep you full, and they are rich in proteins and good fats. Keep some nuts handy on you and they will prevent you from reaching for that bag of chips. Read more about the best snacks to keep you full.

Tomatoes - Is it a fruit? Is it a vegetable? The fact is that tomatoes are loaded with nutrients that’ll complete any breakfast, lunch or dinner - making each meal healthier and more filling. Tomatoes have lycopene and red orbs which are

well known for their cancer-defending proper-ties. They are full of Vitamin A and Vitamin K, which help in keeping your blood pressure levels under control.

A good steak or bacon now and then - Every once in a while it’s good to have a good chunk of red meat. This is because red meat contains ani-mal fats and proteins and on the whole makes for an extremely wholesome and satiating meal. And unless you are properly satiated with your food, you are not eating well. A nice rack of lamb will do very well too.

Dark chocolate - For that sweet tooth it is important to keep some dark chocolate handy. This will help you overcome the urge for reaching for some unhealthy, sweet dessert that it’s best you say away from whether you are skinny, fat, or somewhere in between. Dark chocolate that contains at least 60% cocoa is good for heart and liver health.

Red wine - You will be doing your body a lot of good if you switch from your favourite drink to red wine because of its antioxidant properties. Good health doesn’t have to be about neglecting all indulgences, and if you think of red wine as an indulgence, it’s time you didn’t. In fact, red wine is a clever alcohol choice.

Omega-3 fatty acid supplements may not help patients with relapsing-

remitting multiple sclerosis, according

to a new study. Multiple sclerosis is a

chronic, incurable disease of the central nervous system that affects about 2.5 million people worldwide. Some pa-tients use, or have tried, ome-ga-3 fatty acids supplemen-tation to control the disease because the essential fatty acids could theoretically have anti-inflammatory and neu-roprotective effects in mul-

tiple sclerosis, the authors wrote in their study back-ground. Oivind Torkildsen, M.D., Ph.D., of Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway, and colleagues in-cluded 92 patients with mul-

tiple sclerosis in their double-blind, placebo-controlled trial to examine whether omega-3 fatty acid supple-mentation as a monotherapy (single therapy) or in com-bination with subcutaneous (under the skin) interferon beta-1a could reduce disease

activity. Half of the patients (46) were given omega-3 fat-ty acids - 1350 mg of eicosa-pentaenoic acid and 850 mg of docosahexaenoic acid daily - and the other half (46) were administered placebo. Af-

ter six months, all patients received interferon beta-1a three times a week for another 18 months. Research-ers used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to measure disease activity by the number of new T1-weighted gado-

linium-enhancing lesions in the brain. “The results from this study did not show any beneficial effects of omega-3 fatty acid supplementation on disease activity in multiple sclerosis as a monotherapy or in combination with in-terferon beta.

Omega-3 fatty acids do not help sclerosis patients

New way to treat prostate cancer in men A new treatment for

prostate cancer can free the disease for nine in ten men without debilitating side effects, say scientists.

The result offers new hope for tens of thousands of men with prostate cancer.

It is hoped the new treatment, which involves heating only the tu-mours with a highly focused ultra-sound, will mean men can be treated without an overnight stay in hospital and avoiding the distressing side ef-fects associated with current therapies.

In a study, the scientists found that focal HIFU, high-intensity fo-cused ultrasound, provides the ‘per-fect’ outcome of no major side effects and free of cancer 12 months after treatment, in nine out of ten case,” the Telegraph reported.

Traditional surgery or radiother-apy can only provide the perfect out-come in half of cases currently.

Experts have said the results are ‘very encouraging’ and were a ‘para-digm’ shift in treatment of the disease.

It is hoped that large-scale trials can now begin so the treatment could be offered routinely on the NHS within five years.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence will say in new guidance next week that the treatment is safe and effective and larger scale trials should go ahead.

Focal HIFU involves careful selec-tion of tumours, as small as a grain of rice, within the prostate gland and tar-geting them with highly focused ultra-sound to heat them and destroy them.

The advantage over previous HIFU and other treatments is that damage to surrounding tissue is mi-nimised, meaning there are far fewer

side effects. In the study, 41 men were treated

with focal HIFU. After 12 months, none were incontinent and one in ten suffered impotence. The majority, 95 per cent, were free of cancer after 12 months

“This changes the paradigm. By focusing just on the areas of cancer we reduce the collateral damage to surrounding tissue,” said Dr Hashim Ahmed, who led the study at Univer-sity College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and University Col-lege London. “Our results are very encouraging. We’re optimistic that men diagnosed with prostate cancer may soon be able to undergo a day case surgical procedure, which can be safely repeated once or twice, to treat their condition with very few side-effects. That could mean a sig-nificant improvement in their quality of life.

“This study provides the proof-of-concept we need to develop a much larger trial to look at whether focal therapy is as effective as the current standard treatment in protecting the health of the men treated for prostate cancer in the medium and long term,” he stated.

The Gallbladder is a vital part of one’s body. This pear-shaped organ is situated right under the liver and stores bile - the digestive enzyme pro-duced by the liver.

The main function of gallbladder in the body is to digest the fats. However, problems with the gallblad-der and biliary system are very common and might consist of swelling of the bile ducts and gallbladder, stones forming in the gallbladder, lack of free flow of the bile and muscular spasms of the bladder. Dr Kapil Kochhar - Senior Consultant Minimally Invasive & Bariatric Surgery at Artemis Health Institute -

takes us through gallbladder problems and helps us un-derstand them in detail.

Gall bladder stone is also known as cholelithiasis. The stone can slip into the bile duct leading to jaundice, pancreatitis and renal failure. Secondly, cancer of the gall-bladder is a major complica-tion. Because the gallbladder is closely attached to the liver, it spreads very easily to the liver and in 90% of the cases the diagnosis is so late that the hope for cure is lost.

Symptoms of a gallblad-der attack are:

Regular upset stom-ach after eating heavy/fatty meals.

If someone experiences/feels acidity or heaviness in the upper part of the abdo-men or centre of chest regu-larly.

Acute pain in chest. Vomiting. The pain fever and vom-

iting along with occasional

mild jaundice is what is com-monly called a gallbladder attack.

However, symptoms of cancer of the gallbladder are few and range from dull ache to jaundice which is usually severe. It might be associated with weight loss and even

itching all over the body due to jaundice.

The commonest cause of aggravation of gallbladder disease, or a gallbladder at-tack, is eating fatty meals. It happens mostly after eating out, and eating deep fried or cheese-heavy foods.

A simple ultrasound is the most effective tool for di-agnosis of gallbladder stone. For difficult diagnosis and es-pecially cancer, a gallbladder CT scan and even MRI may be needed.

The only and most ef-fective treatment for extreme cases of gallbladder stone dis-ease is removal of gallbladder by surgery.

Expert advice: Understanding gallbladder attack

Sunday, 20 October 2013HEALTH7Lake City Times

Monday 04 - 10 February 2013

Weekly

Failure is not losing a race by 0.22 seconds, but not passing a dope test is. And don’t sportsmen already know that. Yet, more and more names join the ‘cheat-ers hall of infame’. Recently some teenaged sportsmen tested positive for banned substances, at the National School Games held in New Delhi between December 28 and January 3.The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) collected 81 samples during the event of which 11 tested positive for banned sub-stances including marijuana. The results shocked many; including NADA itself, as the results revealed that doping is

prevalent in high numbers at the school level.Muscle ma-nia Substance abuse is usual-ly fanned by social pressure, explains Dr Mirchandani. “In the gym, when you see people with good bodies flexing muscles, some get tempted to turn to hormonal drugs to enhance cardio-vas-cular strength, and work out more.”

However, these teens are playing with their bodies. “Personality disorders like depression and rage attacks, even fertility issues could arise,” warns Dr Mirchandani.

There’s serious risk of hyper-tension, tachycardia, stroke, seizures and even death.Be confident and cautious Dr Mirchandani says that most

often it’s the coaches and gym trainers who influence and suggest the use of such drugs. It’s easy for athletes to

may feel pressurised into tak-ing something if they are to level the playing field. Like a top cyclist once explained, “It is impossible to finish in the

top five of a Tour de France without doping.” But if you are caught, it will never be worth it. Athletes also need to be cautious to prevent inadvertent doping. Players need to know what they can and cannot take and also the medicines that require prior notification such as inhalers for asthma. For instance, many athletes

don’t know that caffeine is also banned in sport; a level greater than 12 micrograms/ml constitutes an offence.

Many of the over-the-counter analgesics contain caffeine as do beverages and sports drinks. Nutritional supple-ments, that are aggressively marketed to athletes and even gym enthusiasts, are totally unregulated. The la-belling of such preparations does not always reflect their actual content. Update your-self on all requirements and mandates if you are partici-pating at a National or Inter-national event.Sports and di-etetics Your performance can surely be enhanced through a good diet and correct nutri-tion required for your activi-ties, says sports nutritionist Deepshikha Agarwal.

E ++HHEAAL L HH5 ZABARWAN TIMES

friday | may 116

Research says tart cherry juice can aid the sleep cycle and increase shut-eye

timeForget the hot chocolate, chamo-mile tea and other ‘relaxation’ bev-erages. If you have had a problem sleeping, you might take heed of this...word has it that tart cherry juice is the new mantra for those seeking a better night’s sleep!What the study says:A research conducted by Britain’s Northum-bria University, saw healthy adults who drank two servings of tart cherry juice concentrate or a non-cherry fruit drink for seven consecutive days, one serving each in the morning and at bed-time. Researchers tracked the participant’s sleep habits and af-ter drinking the cherry juice, they

found significant improvements in sleep behaviour, most notably longer sleep time, less daytime napping and increased overall sleep efficiency. They attribute the sleep benefits to the melatonin content of the red super fruit - a powerful antioxidant critical for

sleep-wake cycle regulation, ac-cording to a university statement. Each serving of the tart cherry juice concentrate was estimated to contain the equivalent of 90-100 tart cherries, providing a significant level of melatonin in the juice and ultimately in the

bodies of the participants.Dietician’s advice:Though sleep patterns are built into our DNA and often are governed by exter-nal factors like stress and work behaviours, they can also large-ly be helped with aids, believe experts. Says dietician Priya

Karkera, “An in-creasing number of people suffer from insomnia today and while there are sev-eral remedies for this, food and drink has shown to have a profound effect on how effectively one sleeps. As Indi-ans we tend to have warm milk at night, but tart cherry juice

is also good as the melatonin in it helps induce sound sleep. It’s recommended to have a glass of cherry juice (from natural fruit) or then warm milk half an hour before sleeping. Plain but-termilk (thin version) from fresh curd is an option for diabetics.

Many people hate hospi-tals, the needles, the sad-ness and the medical bills. It seems they’re not alone. Many seek healing outside

hospitals. Borne from ancient secrets to modern

techniques, many such alternative remedies exist today. Most proclaim that they can heal any ailment. While they might interest you from time to time, do they really have the healing powers that even science can-not fathom? Let’s delve into the mystery and culture of these alternative therapies.

Angel therapyWhat is the therapy about: Connecting

with your angel to be guided in the right di-rection to help you heal from any physical, emotional and mental issues. Angel thera-pists claim, ‘The reason why Angel Therapy stands out from other therapies is because angels are substances of pure light and have unconditional love, and provide guidance and healing to anyone who needs assistance.’

Here angels and miracles go together.History: Angel Vision ignited the flame

of angel therapy in Dr. Doreen Virtue, its pioneer. Angel Therapy’s origins came from the US. If this alternative remedy interests you, then read Dr. Doreen’s book A Walk With The Angels.

Crystal therapyWhat is the therapy about: The reason

for your ill fortune, this therapy claims, is that your mind and body are not in harmony and balance. Crystal therapy offers you nir-vana by re-aligning your chakras. In this therapy, different colour crystals are placed on different parts of the body as you relax your body. The energy is vibrated from the crystals into your body, apparently easing you from heartaches.

Crystal shopping: You need the 3 most multi purpose crystals - Rose quartz, ame-thyst and clear quartz. Major cities have sev-eral crystal shops that sell various crystals.

History: Several cultures have used crystal therapy over centuries.

A few amongst them were - the Arizo-nians, Hawaiian islanders, Egyptians, Chi-nese and Indians.

Origin: It is hard to trace back, since the therapy has been passed on from generation to generation. Countless books on crystal therapy exist. These claim to teach you how to perform healing sessions.

Thought pattern or cognitive behaviour therapy

What is the therapy about: It is a psy-chotherapeutic treatment to help individu-als trace and understand their phobias, addiction, depression and anxieties. That’s not all, the treatment helps to recognize the destructive and disturbing thought patterns and convert these into a positive output.

Pioneers: Edward Thorndike, Aaron Beck and Albert Ellis combined their knowl-edge to create CBT.

Psychology: Though medical scientists are not gung-ho about psychology, CBT has been used clinically to treat several disorders like anxiety disorder, personality disorder, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and a wide range of diseases.

Clubbing: CBT includes different thera-pies like Rational Emotive Behavior Ther-apy, Rational Behavior Therapy, Rational Living Therapy, Cognitive Therapy, and Dialectic Behavior Therapy.

Atlas OrthogonalWhat is the therapy about: It is part of

chiropractic technique, but the treatment is only concerned with the upper cervical. Atlas Orthogonal uses light force along with gentle percussion instruments to align the spine. You can witness the result in a couple of weeks of therapy, it is claimed; it is also based on how chronic the problem is.

Children who get up at night and sneak into bed with their parents may be healthier as they are less likely to become over-weight, a new study has revealed.

Disturbed sleep is as-sociated with obesity be-cause it interferes with hunger hormones but research conducted in Denmark suggested the opposite may be true for children.

A study of 497 chil-dren between the ages of two and six found children who always stayed in their own beds were three times more likely to be over-weight than children who got into bed with their par-ents every night, the Tele-

graph reported. Dr Nanna Olsen, at

the Research Unit for Di-

etary Studies, Institute of Preventive Medicine, at Copenhagen University Hospitals said it might be

because these children have a greater sense of security by cuddling up to

their parents. The findings were presented at the Eu-ropean Congress on Obe-sity in Lyon, France.

Drug attack in the gym Kids who sleep with parents tend to be slimmer

Sip on cherry juice to sleep better

How to help your child avoid summer ailmentsSummer is synonymous with school

summer holidays, kids yelling and screaming - ruining your afternoon si-

esta, mothers switching over from their saas-ba-hu shows to cartoon shows, broken windows and vehicles damaged, yet we love these kids.

Morning or evening, you are bound to find children playing outdoors. This makes children prone to summer diseases, especially if they avoid certain protocols and warning signs. Here’s how you can help your child avoid common ailments this summer.

Sunstroke: Summer may be paradise for children, no

studies and only fun, with this excitement burst-ing in them they tend to drink less water and they tend to lose their appetite. This results in dehy-dration and weakness leading to fever. Not a good way to spend your summer vacation.

Nausea, vomiting, headaches, weakness and cramps are some of the sunstroke symptoms you must routinely check your child for. Quick treat-ment can help avoid a full fledged flu break-out.

Boils: Summer also brings along with it several ‘hot’

foods that youngsters love. Adding to that, kids

perspire while playing, which allows bacteria to enter the pores. This, along with dirt and grime, raging hormones involved in the child’s develop-

ment, and many other causes, results in painful boils. The only way to avoid boils, or at least the only method that lies in your control, is to main-tain hygiene and keep your child’s skin dry.

Water borne diseases: No one can resist paani puri, gol guppas,

chat masala and Chinese bhel, especially if you’re a child on a summer holiday. While you might be

able to control what they eat at home, you can’t control what they eat outdoors. Hence, children are far more prone to water borne diseases like jaundice, dysentery, typhoid and cholera. We can-not protect them from what they eat with their al-lowance but we can educate them on health haz-ards from eating at roadside vendors.

Malaria: Heat is an insulator that increases the breed-

ing of insects. The worst kind of insects at that. When your child plays outdoors, he or she is es-pecially prone to mosquito bites since summer sweat will wipe out the best of mosquito repel-lant creams. Mosquitoes are the main culprits, but ticks and other hemoglobin-feeding insects too love fresh blood. A good solution would be to ensure that the areas your child plays in are rou-tinely disinfected.

Precautions: Hydrate your children and include high fiber

food in their diet. Stick to veggies and fresh fruits, avoid spicy and oily food. Make sure your kids always wear lose fitting clothes preferably cot-ton. Invest in good anti-bug sprays, creams, and immunity-building foods and ingredients. Teach your child how to deal with excessive sweating.

does your child get enough Vitamin d?Are you one of those who

believe plain milk is enough for your child’s nutritional

needs? Have you ever thought about your child’s

Vitamin D levels? These find-ings are an eye-openerMark ‘yes’ if these situations are rel-

evant to your child:1. Your child barely plays out in the

sun.2. Off late your child tends to get tired

easily & seems listless at times.3. Your child complains of pain in his

joints without reason.If your answers are predominantly ‘yes’,

then this recent 11-city survey conducted by Ipsos Research will be an eye-opener for you. The purpose was to understand the level of awareness about Vitamin D among moth-ers - whether they considered it important

enough for their child, the misconceptions about it and the harm that would befall the child if they are found to be Vitamin D defi-cient. The response from the 2000 mothers who were spoken to for the survey, threw up some compelling insights.First the good news. General awareness levels among the mothers were high: most of them correctly mentioned sunlight as a source of Vitamin D. They were aware that lack of this vitamin would result in weak bones in children. The good news however, ended there!

More worrisome were several startling disclosures, viz:-Only 50 per cent of the mothers were aware of the crucial nutrition-al link between calcium and Vitamin D.

-Only 14 per cent mothers felt their children were calcium-deficient. The major-ity of them believed the milk they were pro-viding their children was enough to store up Vitamin D levels in the body.

-Their awareness about other sources of Vitamin D (fish, fish liver oils, egg yolk, fortified dairy and grain products) was also very low.

-They didn’t know that apart from weak bones, lack of Vitamin D also results in skin-related issues, tooth cavities and poor con-centration levels. -Majority said they give milk daily to their children and in addition

also provide them fruits, milk food drinks (MFDs) and interesting home-made food. Most mothers preferred MFDs over plain milk and also felt the quantity of milk their child was consuming was sufficient for calcium absorp-tion. So what les-sons and questions does this insightful survey throw up? For starters, there is an urgent need to shore up awareness levels among mothers because most of them feel that the source of Vitamin D is restricted largely to absorption of natural sunlight. The truth is that this vi-tamin can be and needs to be made available to children in many other ways as well, giv-en the kind of lifestyles many of them lead. Mothers also need to be educated about the health hazards that calcium deficiency leads to, and the right quantity of milk that needs to be consumed everyday for calcium

absorption in the body.The findings of the survey should prompt you to stop, take note and become more aware. After all, it is awareness that leads to empowerment.

This is the first of a 10-part series that will focus on the importance of Vitamin D for children. Keep watching this space for more (If you have any queries, call us on the Cadbury Bournvita helpline number : 1800 22 8530 from 9 am to 5 pm on week-days).

Single drug to treat brain diseases

UK researchers have put forward a tantalising prospect of treating a range of brain diseases, such as Al-zheimer’s and Parkinson’s, all with the same drug.

In a study, they pre-vented brain cells dying in mice with prion disease.

And it is hoped the same method for preventing brain cell death could apply in other diseases.

The findings are at an early stage, but have been heralded as “fascinating”.

Many neuro-degener-ative diseases result in the build-up of proteins, which are not put together cor-rectly - known as misfolded proteins. This happens in Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s as well as in prion diseases, such as the human form of mad cow disease.

Researchers at the Uni-versity of Leicester uncov-

ered how the build-up of proteins in mice with prion disease resulted in brain cells dying.

They showed that as misfolded protein levels rise in the brain, cells respond by trying to shut down the production of all new pro-teins.

It is the same trick cells use when infected with a virus. Stopping production of proteins stops the virus spreading. However, shut-ting down the factory for a long period of time ends up killing the brain cells as they do not produce the proteins they actually need to func-tion. The team at the Medi-cal Research Council labora-tory in Leicester then tried to manipulate the switch, which turned the protein factory off. When they pre-vented cells from shutting down, they prevented the brain dying.

Healing with invisible powers

Most people find it difficult to deal

with needles - particularly when it comes to facial

injections. Dr. Jon Turk, a facial

plastic surgeon in New York City, asserted that for his patients, the answer is a new technology dubbed ‘Ouchless Needle.’

“This is an instant type of anesthetic that allows you to have no preparation time for the patient,” Fox News quoted Turk as say-ing.

“...and yet still get rid of that pain associated with the needle itself.”

The device attaches

onto a syringe and numbs the skin just long enough to do away with the discomfort of that initial ‘prick.’ “So to be able to dull that associa-tion of the needle going in and have the patient not worry so much about that pain - it has actually re-duced the anxiety level a lot in patients,” Turk said.

Earlier, the only way to help with needle pain was with topical cream that

would have to be applied about 30 minutes before the procedure.

“Patients would often forget to put it on, and the staff sometimes wouldn’t get to put it on in time,” Turk said.

“It really wasn’t a prac-tical way of numbing the face.” The ‘Ouchless Needle’ is usually used with facial fillers like Botox and Juva-derm, but it is also effective for mole removal or for chil-dren’s shots.

Turk insisted that it helps reduce redness and bruising immediately in the days following the pro-cedure. Lisa Levine, a regu-lar patient at Turk’s office, revealed that she has had procedures with the use of the new device and really notices a difference.

“This was definitely much easier. It was more comfortable, you don’t feel

the prick as much of the needle when it goes into your face,” Levine said.

Needles that eliminate pain of initial prick

Monday, 28 October 20135

E ++HHEAAL L HH5 ZABARWAN TIMES

SATURDAY | APRIL 28

A major study conducted by researchers affiliated with the UC Davis MIND Institute found that mothers who were obese were 1-2/3 times more likely to have a child with autism as normal-weight mothers without diabetes or hypertension, and were more than twice as likely to have a child with another developmental dis-order.

Mothers with diabetes were found to have nearly 2-1/3 times the chance of having a child with develop-mental delays as healthy mothers. However, the proportion of mothers with diabetes who had a child with autism was higher than in healthy mothers but did not reach statistical significance.

The study also found that the autis-tic children of diabetic mothers were more disabled -- had greater deficits in language comprehension and production and adap-tive communication -- than were the chidren with autism born to healthy mothers.

However, the children without autism born to diabetic mothers also exhibited impairments in socialization in addition to language comprehension and production, when compared with the non-autistic chil-dren of healthy women.

Children without autism of mothers

with any of the metabolic conditions dis-played mild deficits in problem solving, lan-guage comprehension and production, mo-tor skills and socialization.

“Over a third of U.S. women in their childbearing years are obese and nearly one-tenth have gestational or type 2 diabetes during pregnancy.

Our finding that these maternal condi-tions may be linked with neurodevelopmen-tal problems in children raises concerns and therefore may have serious public-health implications,” said Paula Krakowiak, a bio-statician affiliated with the MIND Institute.

The study included 1,004 mother/child pairs from diverse backgrounds enrolled in the Childhood Autism Risks from Genetics and the Environment Study (CHARGE), most of them living in Northern California, with a small subset living in Los Angeles.

The children were between 24 and 60 months old, born in Cali-fornia and resided with at least one biological parent who spoke either English or Spanish.

There were 517 children who had autism; 172 with other develop-mental disorders; and 315 were de-veloping normally. The participants were enrolled between January 2003 and June 2010.

The researchers obtained de-mographic and medical information

for the mothers and their children using the CHARGE Study Environmental Exposure Questionnaire, a telephone survey, the study participants’ birth files and medical records. The primary metabolic conditions of interest were type 2 diabetes or gestational diabetes.

Women were considered diabetic if the condition was noted in their medical records or if during the telephone surveys they an-swered yes to the questions

Among children whose mothers were diabetic during their pregnancies, the study found that the percentage of children with autism born to women with type 2 diabetes or gestational diabetes -- 9.3 per cent -- or developmental disability -- 11.6 per cent -- was higher than the 6.4 per cent of children born to women without these metabolic conditions.

Worse case scenario, your girl-friend threatens to walk out if you don’t quit. That the ban on smok-ing in public places has a lot of support from the masses should be clue enough; smoking affects you and the people around you. Even if your child, friend, wife, husband, girlfriend or boy friend has no issue with you puffing smoke, you are actually killing him/her softly.Children: Smoking around your little ones is not a good idea; firstly you’re a bad example. Secondly, you will be the perpetrator for in-ducing asthma, pneumonia, bron-chitis, middle ear infection and sudden infant death syndrome or unexplained death. Research sug-gests that girls are prone to health hazards due to passive smoking. You definitely don’t want your better half nagging you about this. When it comes to your chil-dren, the responsibility is in your hands.Health risks: We all know second-hand smoke can lead to cancer and asthma. But it has the same

effect on your body as smokers. Involuntary smoke can spike heart diseases, respiratory infec-tion, it can be the cause of lung and ear infection. When pregnant women inhale it, you can count on low birth weight that has other

repercussions in the future as well. Passive smoking also increases chances of stillbirth. No amount of passive smoke is safe.How to avoid: If you live to smoke, isolate yourself so non smokers are not inconvenienced

Spring onions add great nutritive

and taste value to a dish and can be used in different

ways.Spring onions were

grown in Chinese gardens 5000 years ago! Do you know the onion bulb was worshipped as the symbol of the universe by ancient Egyptians? Nutritionally, green onions have a com-bination of the benefits of onions and greens. They

are an excellent source of vitamin K and vitamin C, and a very good source of vitamin A too.

Spring onions can be added to dal and make it a much tastier dish. Simi-larly, you can add it to veg-etables like cauliflower and potatoes and it will make an excellent dish. Mush-rooms go very well with spring onions and interest-ingly spring onions can be added to soy nuggets while making a Chinese dish. Spring onions are used in salads as the flavor tends to be milder than other onions. It is used widely in oriental food both as an in-gredient and as a garnish.

Spring onion is a nu-

tritious plant, and there-fore it provides a host of health benefits to us. It is a rich source of vitamins and minerals which aids in cur-ing the various ailments. It is seen to have helped in reducing the harmful im-pacts of various diseases.

Some of the health benefits of spring onions are as follows:

- Spring onion lowers the blood sugar level.

- It is a support against gastrointestinal problems.

- It is often used as a medicine for common cold.

- It is used as an appe-tizer as it helps digestion.

- It speeds up the level of blood circulation in the body.

Top 10 myths about going bald Health benefits of spring onions

Secondhand smoke can kill your loved ones

How stress affects humansBy studying social stress that

moulds monkey immune system, researchers have shed light on how the stress of low socioeco-

nomic status may impact human health and how individuals’

bodies adapt after a shift in their social environment.

Researchers, who conducted the study with rhesus macaques at the Yerkes Nation-al Primate Research Center, insisted that if a monkey’s social status changes, her immune system changes along with it. Researchers led by Jenny Tung, PhD, said they can pre-dict a rhesus macaque’s rank within a small group by examining gene expression levels in her immune cells. Primate researchers can tell macaques’ social rank by watching them engage in competitive interactions, such as grooming and accessing food and water. Tung and her colleagues studied 10 groups of female macaques (five each) in which researchers could manipulate indi-

viduals’ social rank. Before being placed into new groups, all of the macaques started out as middle rank.

“In the wild, macaques inherit their so-cial rank from their mothers” Tung said.

“But in our research, the order of in-troduction determines rank; the newcomer is generally lower status. When some ma-caques’ status changed after a newcomer arrived, so did their patterns of immune system gene activity.” The researchers used microarrays, a technology that allows them to scan thousands of genes and read the ex-pression levels, to look at the macaques’ im-mune cells. The gene activity that changed the most depending on social rank was what controlled inflammation. Previous studies have found lower status macaques have higher levels of inflammation and have changes in their levels of hormones that in-dicate they’re under more stress.

10 Foods you can’t live withoutYes that’s right! Here’s a list of healthy and

nutritious foods that you simply cannot ignore. These foods are tasty, aid fitness, and should be consumed on a regular basis to ensure you eat a well-balanced, all-round healthy diet.

The vegetarians among you will need to find alternatives and substitutes for a few, but don’t worry - there are plenty of plant based healthy foods in this list of 10 foods you can’t ignore.

Lots of fish rich in Omega 3 - A fatty fish rich in Omega 3 is really important to get your ratio balance to 1:1 (Omega 3 : Omega 6). The top 5 fish for this purpose are - Mackeral, Trout, Her-ring, Tuna, and Salmon. Vegetarians should take Omega 3 supplements, if a fish oil supplement is a no no. Here is the low-down on the supple-ments.

Broccoli - The benefits of broccoli are many. This is one vegetable that is a tasty addition to your salad if cooked well and can be a fun addi-tion to your daily dinner. And absorbent broccoli does a great job of soaking up fats and helping flush excess out of your system.

Eggs - This is one addition to the diet that even vegetarians should partake in. With healthy fats and proteins, eggs are great for a filling break-fast and if you eat these you won’t need to eat again in a hurry. Eggs can be enjoyed in a spicy

masala curry as well as a great dish for dinner, for those who cant stand to eat them along. Here are some recipes for unique ways to cook eggs.

Spinach - Another must have vegetable made popular by Popeye, this fictional character got it right! Spinach offers calcium and magnesium in plenty, pairs well with meat of any kind, can be sauteed, steamed, thrown into soups, or eaten raw, and provides roughage. As flexible as they come, this green vegetable has so much nutrition that it’s hard to ignore.

Berries - So rich in antioxidants and so low in sugar, most berries are right up there with foods we should try to get out hands on as often as possible. These are the most nutritionally dense fruits you can eat. Read more about the best fruits here.

Nuts - Macadamia, almonds, pistas, most nuts are great because they are a great filler be-tween meals, they actually keep you full, and they are rich in proteins and good fats. Keep some nuts handy on you and they will prevent you from reaching for that bag of chips. Read more about the best snacks to keep you full.

Tomatoes - Is it a fruit? Is it a vegetable? The fact is that tomatoes are loaded with nutrients that’ll complete any breakfast, lunch or dinner - making each meal healthier and more filling.

Tomatoes have lycopene and red orbs which are well known for their cancer-defending proper-ties. They are full of Vitamin A and Vitamin K, which help in keeping your blood pressure levels under control.

A good steak or bacon now and then - Every once in a while it’s good to have a good chunk of red meat. This is because red meat contains ani-mal fats and proteins and on the whole makes for an extremely wholesome and satiating meal. And unless you are properly satiated with your food, you are not eating well. A nice rack of lamb will do very well too.

Dark chocolate - For that sweet tooth it is important to keep some dark chocolate handy. This will help you overcome the urge for reaching for some unhealthy, sweet dessert that it’s best you say away from whether you are skinny, fat, or somewhere in between. Dark chocolate that contains at least 60% cocoa is good for heart and liver health.

Red wine - You will be doing your body a lot of good if you switch from your favourite drink to red wine because of its antioxidant properties. Good health doesn’t have to be about neglecting all indulgences, and if you think of red wine as an indulgence, it’s time you didn’t. In fact, red wine is a clever alcohol choice.

HIV – 1 infection cure lies in vaccinationScientists may have

taken a major step forward for the treatment of HIV-1 infection with the discovery of an effective way to elimi-nate a notoriously persis-tent form of the virus that does not respond to current therapies.

The research de-scribes a vaccination strategy that may be essential for success-ful eradication efforts and should therefore be considered for future clinical trials.

Current antiretro-viral therapies suppress the ability of HIV-1 to copy itself, but they cannot completely elimi-nate the virus. Under these treatment conditions, HIV-1 enters a silent, or “latent”, state that rapidly becomes active again as soon therapy is stopped.

“Because of the stabil-ity of latent HIV-1 inside of infected T cells, lifelong antiretroviral therapy is required, raising concerns

about adverse affects over decades of therapy, the evo-lution of resistance, and the financial burden of treat-ment,” explained senior study author, Dr. Robert F. Siliciano, from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

“Therefore, there is an urgent need for strategies to eradicate HIV-1 from infect-ed individuals,” he noted

Previous research has suggested that reactiva-tion of the latent HIV-1 is an important first step for complete elimination of the virus, but it is not clear whether the activated vi-rus or the host immune

response will then lead to elimination of the infected cells.

In the current study, Dr. Siliciano and colleagues observed that infected T cells survived after the la-tent virus was reactivated. However, when the immune

response of the host T cells was heightened before the virus was reactivated, the infected cells were effi-ciently eliminated.

“Our results suggest that reactivation of latent HIV-1 will not purge the latent viral reservoir and that stimulation of HIV-1--specific T cell responses prior to virus reactivation

may be essential for viral eradication,” said Dr. Sili-ciano.

“Therefore, an appro-priately timed vaccination that boosts the response of the immune system to HIV-1 may be critical for therapies that move be-yond suppression of HIV-1 to true elimination,” he added.

Secondhand smoke can kill your loved ones

Passive smoking can be annoying and repulsive for two reasons - you hate smokers, or you’re trying to quit.

Worse case scenario, your girlfriend threatens to walk out if you don’t quit. That the ban on smoking in public places has a lot of support from the masses should be clue enough; smoking affects you and the people around you. Even if your child, friend, wife, husband, girlfriend or boy friend has no issue with you puffing smoke, you are actu-ally killing him/her softly.

Children: Smoking around your little ones is not a good idea; firstly you’re a bad example. Secondly, you will be the perpetrator for inducing asthma, pneumo-nia, bronchitis, middle ear infection and sudden infant death syndrome or unex-plained death. Research

suggests that girls are prone to health hazards due to passive smoking. You defi-nitely don’t want your better half nagging you about this. When it comes to your chil-dren, the responsibility is in your hands.Health risks: We all know secondhand smoke can lead to cancer and asthma. But it has the same effect on your body as smokers. Involuntary smoke can spike heart diseases, re-spiratory infection, it can be the cause of lung and ear infection. When pregnant women inhale it, you can count on low birth weight that has other repercussions in the future as well. Pas-sive smoking also increases chances of stillbirth. No amount of passive smoke is safe.

How to avoid: If you live to smoke, isolate your-self so non smokers are not inconvenienced.

Maternal obesity, diabetes lead to autism in kidsMaternal obesity, diabetes lead to autism in kids (Thinkstock photos/Getty Images)

Diabetic and obese mothers are likely to give birth to a child with autism or another devel-

opmental disability, says researchers.

Discover the health benefits of honey

A toast with honey. That’s a perfect way to start your day. Apart from its great taste, honey has lots of health and nutrition benefits. Honey is a great natural source of carbo-hydrates which provide strength and energy to our bodies. If you are suffering from fa-tigue, then honey can help you a lot. Honey is known for its effectiveness in instantly boosting the performance, endurance and reduce muscle fatigue of athletes. The glucose in honey is ab-sorbed by the body quickly and gives an immediate en-ergy boost. It is known that

honey has also been found to keep levels of blood sugar fairly constant compared to other types of sugar. So, it’s time to include honey in

your diet.- If you are feeling low

and lethargic in the morn-ing, don’t try those energy drinks. Instead have a toast with honey or add honey to your corn flakes. It will be refreshing for you.

- One of the better known health benefits of honey is that it is able to help treat sore throats honey not only soothes throats but can

also kill certain bac-teria that causes the infection.

- Next time before you go for a workout, take a spoon of honey to enable you to go for the extra mile.

- Its antiseptic properties inhibits the growth of certain bacteria and helps keep external wounds clean and free from

infection. Honey has been used

as a natural cure in first aid treatment for wounds, burns and cuts. Its antibac-terial properties prevent in-fection and functions as an anti-inflammatory agent.

Honey is rich in health

Passive smoking can be annoying and repul-sive for two reasons - you hate smokers, or

you're trying to quit.

One of the biggest problems that bald people face is the fact that there are

endless strange myths, odd cures, bizarre ideas and mysterious tales

surrounding them.

It is said that your hair says a lot about your personal health, care, style and groom-ing, but does this mean that all bald men have health and grooming issues? We think not! Here’s taking a look at the top 10 myths about going bald..

Stress leads to baldness. High level of emotional stress is often observed as a factor, which accelerates baldness in genetically vulnerable in-dividuals. But stress is not a leading cause behind male-pattern baldness. As a mat-ter of fact, it is a symptom of male-pattern baldness and not a cause.

Hair loss is caused by

decreased blood flow to the scalp. Medically it is believed that when your hair is grow-ing, you do need a significant amount of blood flow reach-ing your scalp, but once you lose your hair, blood flow to the scalp decreases. Thus, advertisements that claim that their hair-care product contains ‘nutrients’ and ‘vita-mins’ to promote blood flow to the scalp in order to bid baldness goodbye, shouldn’t be believed entirely. Please note that decreased flow of blood to the scalp is a result of hair loss, but not a cause of it.

Level of testosterone and baldness is closely linked. Yes, in a way. But let us un-

derstand this further. It is be-lieved that people with a high level of testosterone will not inevitably experience genetic hair loss. Please note that hair loss is caused by DTH (dihy-drotestosterne). Some people tend to produce more of DTH than the others; however this is not directly linked to the amount of testosterone in the body. Also, if high amounts of testosterone were the prob-lem, the hair present in other parts of the body would also be expected to fall out.

Certain shampoos can make hair grow faster. Sci-entifically speaking, there is no shampoo or oil, which can make your hair grow faster.

Shampoos and oils might work, only if you want to give your hair more body and pro-tection from scanty growth. You should always go for doc-tor-recommended products.Tight hats can cause baldness easily. It is often seen that bald men wear hats, but this is a complete myth. Wearing tight hats may slightly dam-age your hair, but it can in no way affect the follicles of your scalp. Hats do not cause hair breakage and if the hat is not cleaned well, it can lead to an oily scalp, but not hair loss. Also note that hair follicles, which help in hair growth, get oxygen from our blood stream and not from air.

Thursday 31 October 2013

Veganism, ahead of vegetarianismImagine surviving on a diet that excludes chicken, cheese, milk and all your favourite food. Most of us would yell out 'no-way'. But going vegan is the new fad among the ordinary as well as the admired.Let's find out more...For some, it's the lat-est key to staying fit and toned and for the rest it's the new eco-friendly and animal-protection mantra. With vegan diet receiving a lot of response, vegan-ism has moved on to being something more than just a diet. It is a lifestyle that you choose to live. The old idea that only long-haired hippies nibble carrots and lettuce in their mountain homes no longer applies.Veganism — a step ahead of vegetarianismVegetarians do not eat meat, fish, or poultry. Veg-ans, in addition, do not consume any products that are derived from ani-mals — eggs, dairy prod-ucts, honey etc. Moreover, many vegans do not use leather, fur, silk, wool, cos-metics, and soaps derived from animal products.Be a healthy veganThe key to a nutrition-

ally sound vegan diet is variety. For a healthy and varied vegan diet, opt for fruits, vegetables, plenty of leafy greens, whole grain products, nuts, seeds, and legumes. High-fat foods such as oils, margarine, nuts, nut butters, seed but-ters,avocado, and coconut should be eaten sparingly.Pros and consFruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and nuts have protective

characteristics against ma-jor chronic diseases. At the same time, lower intake of calcium and vitamin D can lead to a higher risk of bone fractures in vegans. Eliminating dairy from the diet removes a good source of calcium. Hence, consume calcium-fortified foods. Also, iron and vita-min B12 deficiencies are a major concern among vegans. While a plant-based diet lowers the risk of age-related problems,

unwise selection of food can lead to adverse health outcomes.When eating out...Go for pizza without cheese, Chinese moo shu vegetables, Indian curries and dal, eggplant dishes without cheese, bean tacos without lard and cheese, Middle Eastern hummus and tabouli, Ethiopian in-jera (flat bread) and lentil stew and Thai vegetable curries.

Five steps to stronger bones1. Eat properlyGetting 1,000mg of calcium a day is the first step — and you're much better off doing this through diet if you can.The best food sources are low-fat dairy such as semi-skimmed milk and yoghurt, as well as bony fish, such as tinned salmon and sardines.Leafy green veg such as kale, broccoli and spinach are also rich in calcium.Dried fruits such as figs and currants and breakfast cere-als fortified with calcium are also good sources. 2. Get more vitamin dVitamin D helps the body absorb calcium. Although some is found in oily fish, our main source comes from the effect of sunlight on your skin.It's estimated that half of us have a deficiency because we don't get outside enough or because we always use sunblock. As part of its Sunlight Campaign, the Na-tional Osteoporosis Society is advising people to catch some rays between May and September to keep their vi-tamin D levels topped up.Just 10 minutes of sunlight a day on bare arms and your face can cut your risk of

bone fractures by a third. 3. The right movesAnother vital way to boost your bones is weight-bear-ing exercise —basically anything that has you up-right and stretching your muscles.Good choices include aer-obics, dancing or brisk walking."Research shows that if you don't exercise you end up weeing out all the calcium you take in in-stead of storing it in your

bones," warns Prof Skel-ton. "Ideally we should aim for 150 minutes of moderate activity per week."Put simply, the more hours we spend on our feet, the fewer bone breakages we should have in later life." 4. Quit the cigs and boozePeople who smoke have significantly lower bone density, while drinking more than seven alco-

holic drinks a week can prevent your bones from absorbing the maximum nutrients from your food. 5. Watch your stress levels"High levels of stress make the body produce the hormone cortisol, which causes bone loss," says Prof Skelton."Over a long period this can increase your risk of osteoporosis. Yoga, walking the dog or lis-tening to music can all help bust stress.

Snoring ups BP risk in pregnant womenWomen who begin snoring during pregnancy are at greater risk of developing high blood pressure and preeclampsia, a new re-search from the University of Michigan has revealed. The research showed preg-nancy-onset snoring was strongly linked to gesta-tional hypertension and preeclampsia, said lead author Louise O'Brien, Ph.D., associate professor in U-M's Sleep Disorders Center. "We found that frequent snoring was playing a role in high blood pressure problems, even after we had accounted for other known risk factors. And we already know that high blood pressure in pregnan-cy, particularly preeclamp-sia, is associated with smaller babies, higher risks of pre-term birth or babies ending up in the ICU," said O'Brien. The study is believed to be the largest of its kind, with more than 1,700 partici-pants. It is the first study to demonstrate that pregnan-

cy-onset snoring confers significant risk to maternal cardiovascular health. Habitual snoring, the hall-mark symptom of sleep-disordered breathing, was defined as snoring three to four nights a week. About 25 per cent of women started snoring frequently during pregnancy and this doubled the risk for high

blood pressure compared to non-snoring women. O'Brien writes that these results suggest that up to 19 per cent of hypertensive disorders during preg-nancy might be mitigated through treatment of any underlying sleep-disor-dered breathing. Pregnant women can be treated for sleep-disordered

breathing using CPAP (con-tinuous positive airway pressure). It involves a ma-chine, worn during sleep, which uses mild air pres-sure to keep the airways open. It is possible that use of CPAP may decrease high blood pressure in pregnant women, and O'Brien has such a study currently un-derway to test this hypoth-

Even 5 year olds suffer heart damage

The study found that blood pressure of obese kids is 40 per cent higher than that of healthy youngsters and they have up to nine times more cholesterol in their blood, the Daily Mail reported.Oxford academics warned that even in children as young as five, their arter-ies have become lined with fatty deposits so their hearts have to work harder to pump blood.The study that involved nearly 50,000 five to 15-year-olds found the hearts of obese children were enlarged compared with those of youngsters who were a healthy weight.And the blood pressure and cholesterol of some was already so high that unless they change their lifestyles, they could be 40 per cent more likely to die from a heart attack or stroke in adulthood."It's almost like a ticking time bomb of damage go-ing on in their hearts and

blood vessels," the pa-per quoted Dr Matthew Thompson, one of the study's authors, as saying.Although researchers have long known that obese children tend to have slightly higher blood pres-sure and cholesterol levels, they were shocked at the differences compared with those of normal weight -particularly in obese girls, who had far higher blood pressure than healthy youngsters.The researchers also found cholesterol levels, measur-ing fatty deposits in the arteries, were between 7.5 and nine times higher than normal."The relationship between obesity in children and cardiovascular risk fac-tors such as blood pres-sure was much greater than we anticipated," said Researcher Dr Carl Heneghan, reader in evidence-based medi-cine at the University of Oxford.

Don't discount doctor's gut feeling'

Don't discount a doctor's gut feeling when it comes to serious illness, especially those affecting children, a new study suggests. A clinician's intuitive feeling that something is wrong, even after examination that suggests otherwise, seems to have even greater diagnostic value than most symp-toms and signs. Serious infection can easily be missed in young children and making a diagnosis has been described as "like find-ing a needle in a haystack." Studies have suggested it should be seen as highly important in its own right but there is lack of under-standing about whether it can be seen as useful, British Medical Journal reported. The gut feeling hinges on a doctors 'sense of reassurance or alarm,' bearing on their degree of certainty about the prognosis (future outcome) of the disease. Alarm implies that he perceives an uneasy feeling about a pos-sible adverse outcome, according to an Antwerp state-ment. The team of researchers which also included Paul Van Royen, University of Antwerp, Belgium, therefore carried out an observational study on 3,890 children aged between 0 and 16 years who reported for primary care in Flanders, Belgium in 2004. Out of the 3,369 children assessed as having a non-severe illness at the time of consultation, six were later hospitalised with a serious infection. Results show that acting on gut feeling had the potential to prevent two of the six cases being missed at the cost of 44 false alarms, but that these were not "unmanage-able." In fact, 21 out of the 3,890 children were eventu-ally admitted to hospital with a serious infection and nine were not referred at first contact. However, in four of the nine children, the doctor had a gut feeling that something serious was wrong. The feature most strongly associated with gut feeling was a history of convulsions and the child's overall ap-pearance and breathing. The authors also found that gut feeling is strongly influ-enced by parental concern that the illness is different. Finally, less experienced clinicians reported it more frequently than their more senior counterparts. How-ever, the diagnostic power of gut feeling was no better in experienced than non-experienced clinicians.

With a success rate of nearly 40 per cent, in- vitro fer-tilisation (IVF) has been steadily gain- ing pop-ularity among r u r a l couples suffer-ing from infertil-ity, an expert said here Wednesday. "On an average, one out of every 14 couples suf fers from in-fertility in the country. With a success rate of nearly 40 percent, IVF has been a boon for infer-tile couples and the treatment has been steadily gaining popularity among the rural population," said gynecologist and IVF expert Gautam Khastgir. Khastgir associated withthe city-based Bengal Infertility and Reproductive Ther-

apy Hospital (BIRTH) said that of all his patients nearly 60 percent came from ru-ral areas of the state. "With drastic life style changes, pollu-tion and lack of hygiene, infertility has been on the rise in rural areas. However, the good thing is people are

now be-coming

m o r e

aware and conscious and are opting for IVF to get rid of infertility. Rural popu-lation across the country suffering from infertility is now opting for IVF," said Khastgir. On the urban front also infertility has also been on the rise with obesity, strenuous life and drinking and smoking being the

Improve posture for a flat tummyAll of us wish for a washboard tummy but the very thought of all those sit-ups and stomach crunches put us off, right? Well, there are other means of reducing your paunch, or rather, of stopping it from getting bigger, without even stepping into the gym. Check them out:

Improve your posture If you spend long hours sitting at a desk, in front of a screen, chances are that you slouch, thus leaving the stomach loose and bulging. The first step towards a taut tummy is to nev-er slouch, whether sitting, standing or walk-ing. Says Merin, physiotherapist, Biorhythm fitness centre,"Weak back muscles affect the abs as well. Something you can do while at your desk is to maintain a straight back, yet comfortable position. A chin up, shoulders back, stomach in posture while walking not only makes you look fitter but makes your tummy look flat-ter."

Do stretch exercises at work While at your workseat, stretch your back and pull in the stomach. Hold your breath and re-lease. Sway from side to side a few times. Rest

your arms on the armrest of the chair and lift your feet, one at a time. Hold for a few seconds and release. Repeat every half hour or as of-ten as you can. There are also forced breath-ing techniques for the stomach which you can learn from a professional.

Walk to work "A common misconception is that stomach crunches are the only way to a flat stomach. Stomach fat is just one part of general body fat; only it shows more," points out Merin. She recommends walking or cycling instead of driving if your workplace is near, and tak-ing the stairs instead of the elevator wher-

Low calorie cranberry juice may help cut BPDrinking low-calorie cranberry juice regularly may help get your blood pressure under con-trol , suggest new f indings. In a study that measured the effects of drink-ing low-calorie cranberry juice, participants drank either low-calorie juice or a placebo drink every day for eight weeks as part of a controlled diet . Blood pressure was measured at the begin-ning, mid-point and end of the study. After eight weeks, blood pressure values had sig-nif icantly dropped from an average of 121/73 mmHg to 118/70 mmHg for those drinking the low-calorie cranberry juice. The placebo group showed no change. Researchers noted that cranberry juice is r ich in anti-oxidants — naturally occurring molecules in fruit , tea, wine and other foods — which have been associated with lower blood pressure in other studies. The study was presented at the American Heart Association's High Blood Pressure Re-search 2012 Scientif ic Sessions.

Why eat three bananas a dayBritish and Italian researchers have found that eating three ba-nanas cuts the risk of a stroke. They said that having one banana for breakfast, one for lunch and one in the evening would provide enough potassium to reduce the chances of suffering a blood clot on the brain by around 21 per cent. The findings suggest that

thousands of strokes could be prevented by the consumption of other potassium-rich foods such as spinach, nuts, milk, fish and lentils, reports the Daily Mail. Although some previous studies have suggested bananas could be important for controlling blood pressure and preventing strokes, results have not always been on-

sistent. In the latest research, sci-entists analysed data from eleven different studies - dating back to the mid-Sixties - and pooled the results to get an overall outcome. They found a daily potassium intake of around 1,600 mg, less than half the UK recommended daily amount for an adult of 3,500mg, were enough to lower

stroke risk by more than a fifth. The average banana contains around 500 milligrams of potas-sium, which helps to lower blood pressure and controls the bal-ance of fluids in the body. Too little potassium can lead to an irregular heartbeat, irritabil-ity, nausea and diarrhoea. Researchers from the Univer-

sity of Warwick and the Univer-sity of Naples said, "Potassium intake in most countries is well below the recommended daily amount." But if consumers ate more potassium-rich foods and also reduced their salt intake, the annual global death toll from strokes could be cut by more than a million a year.

Agencies

RANCHI, OCT 30: Jharkhand High Court

today reserved its order on the bail petition moved by RJD supremo and ex-Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, who is serving a five-year sentence after be-ing convicted in a fodder scam case.

After conclusion of the hearing by the CBI counsel against Lalu’s bail plea, the bench of Justice R R Prasad reserved the order for to-morrow.

The court had on Octo-ber 25 granted provisional bail to another former Bi-har chief minister Jagan-nath Mishra.Lalu, Mishra and 43 others were on

September 30 convicted by the special CBI court Judge Pravas Kumar Singh in the fodder case involving fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 37.7 crore from Chaibasa Treasury during the Lalu-

led RJD regime.The CBI court had pro-

nounced varying prison terms to the convicted on October 3.Lalu and others have also moved the high court against the verdict.

THURSDAY OCTOBER | 31 | 2013ZABARWAN TIMES 7

Gujarat court rejects Asaram’s

bail pleaA Gandhinagar court on

Wednesday rejected self-styled godman Asaram’s bail application in the sexual assault case lodged against him by one of the two Surat-based sisters.Sessions judge D.T. Soni rejected Asaram’s bail plea on the grounds that the inves-tigation in the case lodged against him is at a “crucial juncture” and the allegations against him are of “serious nature.”Recently, the Surat police registered two com-plaints -- one against Asaram and another against his son Narayan Sai -- for rape, sexual assault, ille-gal confinement and other charg-es, as alleged by the two sisters.

In her complaint, the elder of the two sisters accused Asaram of repeated sexual assault between 1997 and 2006 during the time she lived in his ashram on the out-skirts of Ahmedabad city.

The 72-year-old Asaram was brought to the city earlier this month on a transit remand from a Jodhpur court.

BJP, Congress put up a brave front ahead of Assembly elections

Agencies

With less than a month to go for the Assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh, both the ruling BJP and Opposition Congress have exuded confidence of winning the elec-tions. “There is no doubt that the BJP will win next month’s Assem-bly elections,” BJP Vice President Prabhat Jha said. “The Congress is no where in the picture and is heading for a definite defeat, while the BJP is moving fast in the direc-tion of a certain win,” claimed Jha, the former president of the state party unit. BJP, Congress put up a brave front ahead of Assembly elections However, the Congress does not subscribe to the views of its main rival party as Leader of Opposition in state Assembly, Ajay Singh is equally confident of his party’s win in the November 25 As-sembly elections. Confident of his party’s win, Ajay had recently told reporters here that “Congress will win 136 out of the total of 230 seats in the state Assembly.” The BJP’s hopes of a victory rest on what it claims to be the massive develop-

ment undertaken in the state ever since it came to power in 2003. On the other hand, the Congress is not impressed with the tall claims of the saffron party and their leaders say that Chief Min-ister Shivraj Singh Chouhan did nothing but made announcements most which did not translate into reality. The Congress has also al-leged that there is poor law and order situation, higher atrocities

against women, concerning level of malnutrition and to top it all ram-pant corruption in the state. Before December 2003, Madhya Pradesh was thought of as a ‘Congress state’ where no non-Congress government had ever completed five-year term in office. But, the scenario changed after the BJP’s win in 2003 with the party now nearing completion of two consec-utive full terms in the state.

Fodder scam: HC reserves or-der on Lalu Prasad’s bail plea

NHRC for removal of restrictions on Irom

Sharmila

45 burnt alive as bus catches fire in AP

Agencies

The National Human Rights Commission has recom-mended that the Manipur government immediately remove the “arbitrary restrictions” on Irom Sharmila, who has been fast since November 2000 seeking repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act from the State, an official statement said on Wednesday.

The commis-sion, in a com-munication to the State Chief Secretary, said Ms. Sharmila must be permit-ted to receive visitors as do all people in judi-cial custody. Ms. Sharmila was arrested by the

Manipur government soon after she began her fast and has ever since been in custody, where she is being force fed.

The NHRC asked for a report by December 6, 2013 on the steps taken on its recommendation.

The commission issued the recommendation after the state government denied permission to its special rapporteur, a retired director general of police, and to special rapporteurs of the United Nations to visit Sharmila.

“It is unlikely that the government gives others access to her. It appeared they were keeping her alive as her death would create problems for the state government. It is trying to break her spirit through this enforced isolation, for which there is no judicial mandate, though she is in judicial custo-dy,” the NHRC statement said.

Agencies

MEHABUBNAGAR (AP), OCT 30: Forty five passengers were charred to death as a private

luxury bus burst into flames after its fuel tank caught fire in Mahbubnagar district of Andhra Pradesh early today.

“Charred bodies of 45 persons have been retrieved from the bus,” Deputy In-spector General (Hyderabad Range) V. Naveen Chand told PTI.

The accident occurred at 5.10 a.m. when the diesel tank of the Hyderabad-bound bus from Bangalore hit against a culvert near Palem in Mahabubnagar, around 140 km from Hyderabad on NH-44 (Bangalore-Hyderabad), police said, adding that the entire bus was engulfed in flames in a mat-ter of minutes.Fifty two persons, including 50 passengers, were travelling in the Volvo bus when the accident occurred. Initial reports had said that some software engineers were among the victims.The bodies have been burnt beyond rec-ognition and it is difficult to ascertain how many of the dead are men or women, Chand said.

Five passengers, the driver Feroze Khan and cleaner Ayyaz,

managed to escape with burn injuries and were undergoing treatment at different hospitals, another police officer said.

Mahabubnagar District Collector Girija Shankar and Dis-trict SP D. Nagendra Kumar, who were supervising the rescue operation, said: “The identification of the deceased will be

determined after conducting DNA tests and collecting blood samples of the relatives.“The mortal remains will be handed over the kin of the deceased after the DNA tests,” the Collector said.

A team of doctors from Gan-dhi Hospital and Osmania General Hospital and forensic experts from Hyderabad rushed to the spot to conduct post-mortem of the bodies.The bus started from Bangalore at 11 p.m. last night.

“It seems the bus was travelling at a high speed when its fuel tank hit the roadside culvert and caught fire and got burst.The passengers in the bus were burnt beyond recogni-tion.The entire bus has been gutted,” Wanaparthy DSP, Srini-vas Reddy, said.Police said that they had collected the list of passengers from the private bus operators and found that the online booking list had the names of 33 bus passengers.

Patna serial blasts: Police arrest third suspect

Agencies

The National Investigation Agency (NIA), along with Bihar Police, has arrested one more person on sus-picion of involvement in Sunday’s serial blasts in Patna, said police on Wednesday.Police had earlier arrest-ed two men in connection with the blasts.

Arshad Alam, 24, a resident of Alauli village in East Champaran dis-trict , was arrested by a team of NIA and Bihar Police on Tuesday.

“Arshad was arrested on the basis of information provided by Moham-mad Imtiaz Ansari, one of the two suspected Indian Mujahideen op-eratives arrested from Patna junction soon after the first bomb exploded,” said police officials.

“Arshad was interrogated by NIA and IB (Intelligence Bureau) officials

in Patna on Wednesday for his in-volvement in serial blasts here,” said a police official.

Arshad, a graduate in psychology who runs a coaching centre at Ranchi in Jharkhand, returned to his native village Monday, a day after the serial blasts.

The NIA suspects that Arshad had close links with Imtiaz.

Patna Superintendent of Police Jayant Kant said police would take Arshad on remand on Thursday for interrogation. Police have taken Im-tiaz on remand. A second terror sus-pect who was injured in the blasts is battling for life at a government hospital in Patna.Imtiaz, a resident of Ranchi, is suspected to be the brain behind the blasts. He was arrested from Patna railway junction after a bomb exploded on platform No.10 Sunday morning, ahead of the rally of

the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which was, hours later, addressed by the party’s prime ministerial candidate, Narendra Modi.

Ainul alias Tarique, the second sus-pect, was apprehended while he cried in pain at the Patna railway junction toilet soon after a bomb which he was trying to fit with a timer exploded. Six people were killed and 83 others injured as seven bombs exploded in Patna last Sunday.

The first of the blasts ripped through a toilet around 10:00 a.m. at the railway station in the heart of the city, killing one person and wound-ing another.After an hour, by which time Modi had reached Patna but was not yet at Gandhi Maidan, the venue of the rally, four explosions occurred inside the maidan. Two bombs ex-ploded in the vicinity of the maidan, spreading panic.

Agencies

Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Wednesday claimed that insurgency-related activities had not ended completely but had come down considerably in the state.

“Assam government has over the last few years initiated sev-eral strong measures to end in-surgency in the state and though there has been considerable im-provement, violence has not end-ed completely,” Mr. Gogoi said here while paying homage to vic-tims of serial blasts of October 30, 2008 which claimed 96 lives and injured more than 300 people.

The Chief Minister appealed to militant outfits still indulging in violence to give up this path, join the mainstream and help in establishing peace and develop-ment.

“October 30 is a black day in Assam’s history where many peo-ple lost their near and dear ones,” the Chief Minister said at the me-morial service organised below Ganeshguri Flyover here which bore the brunt of the blast killing at least 50 people.

The Chief Minister assured people that his government was committed to the develop-ment of the state which was only possible with the cooperation of the people.

The memorial service was attended among others by family members of the victims, So-

cial Welfare Minister Akon Bora, Congress MLAs Chandan Sarkar, Captain Robin Bor-doloi, Bismita Gogoi, Arati Hazarika Kachari, Director General of Police J N Choudhury and senior state government officials.

Twelve high intensity blasts were carried out by the Ranjan Daimary led NDFB in Gu-wahati, Kokrajhar, Barpeta and Bongaigaon on October 30, 2008.

Family members of the victims had ex-pressed their anguish on the release of NDFB leader Ranjan Daimary from jail this year for negotiations and some of them refused to at-tend Wednesday’s memorial service.

Insurgency not ended completely but considerably less: Gogoi

Azam Khan’s staff demand transfer, allege abuse

Agenceis:

The personal staff of Azam Khan, Uttar Pradesh’s urban development, parliamen-tary affairs and minority affairs minister, has sought transfer from his office saying the minister is abusive towards them, authori-ties said. An official of the ‘Sachivalaya Pra-shasan’, the nodal department for all such staff, said two personal secretaries and five additional secretaries have petitioned the department to relieve them of their duties with the minister. Alleging that despite their best efforts and round-the-clock work at the minister’s office, Azam Khan was abusive and harsh in his treatment towards them. Azam Khan’s staff demand transfer, allege

abuse The staff wrote in their letter: “On most occasions, the minister’s behaviour to-wards them was ‘ashobhaneey’ (unbecom-ing) and that in anger, he makes uncharitable remarks and gets abusive.” The staff mem-bers also said that they were leading a “very tense life” because of this, and they were not in a position to continue with their duties with the cabinet minister. They have also requested the department to immediately relieve them of their duties. Azam Khan is known for his proximity with the Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Mulayam Singh Yadav. React-ing to the accusations of the minister’s per-sonal staff, the secretariat employees union has opened a front against Azam Khan and urged the chief minister to sack him.

Row over negligence in giving treatment to CM

Agencies

The row over the alleged absence of a government medical team to examine Chief Minister Oommen Chandy after he suffered injuries in stone-throwing by suspected Left Democratic Front (LDF) here on Octo-ber 27 has left Health Department of-

ficials at the receiving end of criticism. However, they deny any negligence on their part in attending to the injured Chief Minister and offering him prop-er medical care.

There are media reports of medical negligence by the Health Department here in providing proper treatment to the Chief Minister immediately after he suffered injuries. Mr. Chandy was examined in a private hospital here over two hours after he sustained in-juries on his forehead and chest. He had attended the closing ceremony of the State police athletic meet and

a rally of the Congress soon after the attack.

Immediately after the incident, District Collector Rathan Kelkar spoke over phone to District Medical Officer (DMO) K.J. Reena, who was then on board a train to Thiruvananthapuram to attend a meeting. She told the Col-lector that the superintendent of the

government hospital here would be immediately instructed to en-sure treatment to the injured Chief Minister.

When contacted, Mr. Kelkar told The Hindu that he was informed by the DMO that a medical team was accompanying the Chief Minister’s convoy. He was told by the DMO that a doctor on duty had exam-ined the Chief Minister at the ven-ue of the athletic meet.

Dr. Reena, when contacted, said that she had sought explanation from the hospital superintendent in the wake of the controversy. She

said a government doctor attached to the Kerala Armed Police Battalion IV, who was present at the venue, had examined the Chief Minister and rec-ommended dressing for the bruises and X-ray. As the X-ray unit at the hos-pital could not be operated that day because of the absence of the staff, the Chief Minister had been urged to go to a private hospital, she said. The Chief Minister declined dressing saying the bruises were not serious, she said add-ing that he was not interested in going to a private hospital for undergoing X-Ray examination.

Central funds to UP disappear before people can benefit: Rahul Gandhi

Agencies:

Rahul Gandhi today attacked Samajwadi Party govern-ment in Uttar Pradesh for failing to deliver on the develop-ment front, alleging that crores of rupees sent by the Cen-tre to it "disappear" before people can benefit.

Claiming that SP and BSP neglected UP during the last 25 years of their rule while Congress brought develop-ment to the states which voted for it, he said, "Your dreams are small, dream big.

"You are asking for less. Demand industrialisation and jobs. You do not lack anything. Ask them to bring Ban-galore and Delhi to Bundelkhand.... We will take Bun-

delkhand forward, but for that the vision should be wide. Strengthen Congress and we will bring change."

Addressing a party rally here, the Congress Vice Presi-dent said "The Central government sent Rs 3000 crore package for the development of backward region of Bun-delkhand from the Centre, but its benefit did not reach the people".

"Congress government is sending thousands of crores of rupees for development, for roads. But it doesn't reach here. It disappears. The day you bring bring Congress gov-ernment, the work we are doing in Rajasthan, Kerala, Ma-harashtra and other states, we will be able to do it in Uttar Pradesh," he said.

Agencies

Johannesburg and Durban will host India for an ODI and a Test each in December, while Centurion will also stage a one-dayer. Cape Town has not received a single fixture in the itinerary for the three ODIs and two Tests, which the BCCI and Cricket South Africa announced today, end-ing months of uncertainty over In-dia’s tour to South Africa.

India will arrive in South Africa on December 2 and play the first ODI at the Wanderers on December 5. They will play a two-day game in Be-noni after the one-dayers as a warm-up to the first Test, which begins on December 18, also at the Wanderers.

“After the completion of our two Test matches against India we will have a further three Tests against Australia,” CSA president Chris Ne-nzani said. “This will allow all of our five premier Test match venues to host a five-day match. I would also like to assure all our stakeholders that we are working on plans to fill the gaps in our international itiner-ary for the 2013-14 season.”

His remarks referred primarily to Cape Town missing out on a Test -

Newlands traditionally hosts the tra-ditional New Year’s Test, which has now been scrapped. A CSA spokes-man said: “Because of the truncated nature of the tour it was necessary to centralise venues as much as pos-sible. We are working on alternative plans to fill the gaps in our home international summer. This will not necessarily be at the New Year.”

However, the decision seemed

to have caught Western Province, the region where Cape Town is located.”To go from having Sachin Tendulkar’s 200th test to nothing is a big shock to us,” Andre Odendaal, CEO of Western Province, said. “We lose several million [rand] in revenue.”One of the primary reasons the BCCI did not want India’s tour of South Africa to spill over into 2014 was the lack of a team sponsor. The

current contract with Sahara ends on December 31 and neither Sahara nor the BCCI is keen on extending the decade-long association.

Had India played a New Year’s Test in South Africa, the BCCI would have had to either request Sahara to continue as the sponsor for the entire series, or change sponsors midway. The Sahara option was not viable be-cause of its dispute with the board, which resulted in the termination of the Pune Warriors IPL franchise.

The itinerary announced today gave the BCCI a two-week window in January to invite and open bids for a new title sponsor between the South Africa and New Zealand tours. India are scheduled to leave for New Zea-land on January 14.The shortened tour of South Africa will also allow the BCCI to keep their promise of giv-ing the India players a break between two overseas tours, a point the board secretary Sanjay Patel had empha-sised through the impasse with CSA. Some players will now also be able to play in the Ranji Trophy quarter-finals from January 8 to 12.While the BCCI didn’t mention the sponsorship issue during their negotiations with CSA.

Ponting tips England's days of dominance nearing end

Agencies

Ricky Ponting says Aus-tralia can belie their status as Ashes outsiders by re-gaining the urn this sum-mer and is not discounting the prospect of the hosts in-flicting a remarkable white-wash against an England team he believes is past its prime.

Ponting stopped short of declaring a 5-0 score line, which is Glenn McGrath’s trademark prediction be-fore each series, but says anything is possible from a developing Australian team, particularly if it can shock England at its Gabba fortress.The Australians have not lost a Test in Bris-bane since 1988 when they were no match for a Viv

Richards-led West Indies side at the peak of its pow-ers. And former champion Adam Gilchrist says Aus-tralia can end their run of three Ashes series defeats if they play to their potential.Asked at a breakfast in Perth pro-moting his autobiography whether Michael Clarke’s team could emulate the feats of his side in 2006-07 after its Ashes loss in 2005, Ponting said: ‘’We’ve got a great record at the Gabba, we don’t lose at the Gabba. If we happen to win the first Test then I think that’s pos-sible.Advertisement ‘’I be-lieve right now the England team might be slightly past

their absolute peak and the Australian team are only going to go up and improve. Sometimes in sport when you have those sort of con-tests happening some funny things can happen. I know this group of players are go-ing to have to play unbeliev-ably well to win the Ashes but I think they can.’’

Two major reasons Pon-ting is confident of Austra-lian success is their stock-pile of fast bowlers.

THURSDAY OCTOBER | 31| 2013Zabarwan times6

Agencies

Kolkata: West Indies might have played their last Test more than six month ago, but coach Ottis Gibson says his team is high on confidence as it gets ready to take on India in two-Test series next month.

“We know we have a lot of talented players in our team. We are a spirited team. ‘One team, one goal’ is the focus of our side. The spirit and con-fidence in the team is high. “There’s a lot of camaraderie going around in the camp. We hope that shows when we get on the field,” Gibson said while addressing the media here on Wednesday.

Ottis Gibson says his team is high on confidence as it gets ready to take on India in two-Test series next month. The coach, however, admitted that their preparation was not ideal, although they had an intensive one-week team building exercise in Miami in the US before coming to India. “It was not ideal

obviously... We were kind of getting ready for New Zealand and when this tour came about, we went to Miami last week for a team build-ing. A lot of guys were playing around and the Champions League just finished,” he said.

West Indies will be playing a warm-up game against Uttar Pradesh here, commencing on Thurs-day. “We have been playing cricket, not red ball cricket though. We now have the op-portunity here in Kolkata and we’re looking forward to get into the mode of red ball crick-et,” Gibson told reporters. “We

have a great mix of experienced players and youngsters. Quite a few guys played here dur-ing the ‘A’ team’s tour only last month. We have been playing a lot of cricket all around the world. This week is an important week for us to get back into the mode,” he added. Asked whether the facilities in US were ade-quate, the 44-year-old said: “There’s a brand new stadium... the pitch was under prepared when we got there.

West Indies team is high on confidence: Ottis Gibson

Darren Lehmann staying out of Ricky Ponting

Cape Town misses out on India fixtures

Agencies

AUSTRALIAN coach Darren Lehmann has declined to officially ‘mediate’ in the great captain tiff between Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke � saying grown men can sort out their differences.

Former Test skipper Ponting this week said he would extend an olive branch having not spoken to Clarke over references to his successor in his autobiography.Ponting said model Lara Bingle had been a distraction while he wished Clarke had played more of a leadership role as vice-captain and noted “Pup” had gone away from what he knew was right.Clarke countered saying he was disappointed with Ponting’s sentiment.

“They are old enough to work that out I am sure,” said Lehmann when asked if he would in-tervene.Test great Mark Taylor has already scold-ed Clarke and Ponting for airing dirty laundry in the public sphere.

Lehmann offered to give up his Test spot to Clarke on Australia’s triumphant 2004 Test tour of India and was also a mentor for Ponting when

he assumed the one-day captaincy in 2002. He knows and respects both men.It’s the saga that has overshadowed the build-up to the Ashes se-ries and now former Aussie skipper Mark Taylor has had his say on the feud between Ricky Pon-ting and Michael Clarke.(88) made a successful return to the crease for New South Wales against Tasmania in Sydney striking a half century having been sidelined since the Ashes with a chronic back complaint.Ponting was encouraged by Clarke’s display and believes he won’t be distracted by the Ponting feud ahead of the November 21 Ashes

opener against England at the Gabba.“He is really driven in what he wants to do, he

will just be getting ready for the Ashes and I am sure those two will sort that out,” said Lehmann of Clarke.“The important thing is he gets ready for the Ashes and plays the best brand of cricket he can play.“He is going well, batting, and playing again is important for a pretty big series.”

Lehmann backed chairman of selectors John Inverarity’s edict that two spots were up for grabs in the Test side – the No.6 batting slot and a pace berth. George Bailey is favoured to take up the middle order slot in an Ashes debut with Lehm-ann saying the Tasmanian had done all that was asked as one-day skipper in India averaging 106.

“George led really well in Michael Clarkes’s ab-sence and has been making runs which is all you can ask of your leaders,” said Lehmann.

“We are looking at all the guys in state cricket to see how they will play.“It is going to be a re-ally big series, we have seen some really good per-formances from domestic players in the Ryobi. Shield performances count as well.”

Indian challenge ends in World Billiards Championship

Agencies

LEEDS: It was a case of so near yet so far as the two veteran Indian cueists, Alok Kumar and Ashok Shandilya, fell just before the last hurdle in the World Billiards Championship.

Curtains came down on Indian campaign with Alok and Shandilya los-ing their respective semifinal matches in the ‘Long up’ format on Tuesday at the Northern Snooker Centre.

After winning the World Cham-pionship 150-up format last week, England’s David Causier overcame a weighty challenge from Shandilya 1250-710 in the first semifinal, while Peter Gilchrist knocked out Alok 1250-916 in the another last-four match.

In 1250-Up format semifinal, Alok maintained a lead of more than 100

points till 900 mark figure but after that Gilchrist showed his class by pro-ducing three consecutive breaks of 112, 265 and unfinished 135 to register a 334 points win over the Indian.

In the other semifinal, Caus-ier produced showers of breaks and maintained a substantial lead throughout the match. Whenever Shandilya tried to narrow down the lead, Causier stood up and produced another break to keep pushing his opponent down.

Lastly, Shandilya went down to Causier by a difference of 440 points.

Earlier, Point Format finalist Alok had defeated Nalin Patel of England 1000-490, while Shandilya got the better of compatriot Sourav Kothari 1000-989 in their respective quarter-finals.

Asian Champions Trophy will help assess junior WC preps, says Gregg Clark

Agencies

New Delhi: With focus firmly on the FIH Junior Men’s World Cup in December, In-dia is sending a relatively junior team for the Asian Champions Trophy in Japan and chief coach Gregg Clark said the upcoming tour-nament will give him a chance to assess all the arsenal at his disposal ahead of the qua-drennial event. Hockey India has included as many as 13 players from the Sultan of Johor Cup-winning junior squad in the 18-man touring party announced for the third Asian Champions Trophy (ACT) to be held in Kaka-migahara, Japan from November 2-10. “The Junior World Cup is merely five weeks away so the preparations are mainly aimed at that. We are testing out some new combinations. It’s all part of the process to try and make sure that come December 6 we are in the best place as a team,” Clark told reporters at the

Major Dhyan Chand Sta-dium on Tuesday before de-parting for Japan. The chief coach said the upcoming tournament will give him a chance to assess all the ar-senal at his disposal ahead of the quadrennial event. “We will just try to build on what we did previously in Johor Cup in terms of all our structures. We scored some good penalty corners there but we need to better our conversion rate. Gurjinder Singh is in the team, he wasn’t in Johor. He is very effective in penalty corners. So the tour-nament will be a test for him. Our main focus will be to see how complete as a team we are by the time ACT gets over,” he added. The South African said the ACT is an opportunity for some regular members of the senior side

like Mandeep Singh, Akashdeep Singh to mix with the junior set up. “The strength of the team is that we have got 13 players from the Sul-tan of Johor Cup team. We can build on that. Hopefully, the players who are coming in can add really good values. For guys like Mandeep

and Akashdeep who have joined the team, it is an opportunity to learn from Greg Clark and Baljit Saini, may be slightly different from Roelant Oltmans’ coaching in the Asia Cup,” Clark said. Satisfied with the prepara-tion of his side, Clark is aiming to repeat the success of Sultan of Johor Cup in the ACT. “I think the build up has been good. We had good three weeks of training here in Delhi.

We are in the back of success in Johor. We have the bulk of the team that was in Johor. So, I am happy with the preparation,” the South African said. “We will play each op-ponent on their merit. For me it’s about how well the team can guard on each day and execute our plans as effectively as possible.” Midfielder Manpreet Singh, who captained the junior team during the Sultan of Johor Cup, has been given the honours to lead the senior team that will be without regulars Sar-dar Singh, VR Raghunath, PR Sreejesh and Rupinderpal Singh, who have been rested to allow juniors a chance to prepare for the Junior World Cup to be held here from De-cember 6-15. “I am little bit nervous because its a big responsibility. I hope I follow Sardar bhai’s footsteps,” Manpreet said. “There is lit-tle pressure on me as a captain because it is a senior tournament. But I will give my 100 per cent and try to keep the team together.

IHC bars Najam Sethi to work as chairman PCB

Agencies

Islamadad High Court (IHC) has barred Najam Sethi to continue to perform his duties as chairman PCB.

The decision was taken by Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui during the hear-ing of contempt of court case against the caretaker chairman of the PCB.

The IHC has also suspended the interim management committee formed to look into the PCB affairs and has issued notices to its members.

The court appointed Justice(r) Munir Shaikh as chairman election committee to supervise the election of the chairman PCB and ordered the elections to be held in November.

The Secretary PCB will be incharge of the organizations affairs until the elections are held next month.

Virat Kohli smashes 17th ODI ton as India chase

Australia's 350/6Agencies

Virat Kohli delivered for India in a crunch situ-ation yet again, smashing a hundred of 61 balls in the 6th ODI against Aus-tralia in Nagpur. The cen-tury was studded with 16 fours and a six. Chasing 351 for victory in a must-win game, Kohli picked up from where Shikhar Dhawan (100) left. Kohli was in a punishing mood right from the start. Com-ing in at 178/1 after the loss of Rohit Sharma (79), he launched a calculated attack on the bowlers. George Bailey's men were left wondering where to bowl as the Delhi right-hander smashed his way to a 31-ball half-century, his 27th.

In no mood to let up after his fifty, Kohli hardly changed gears as he pushed towards his hundred. He lost Shi-khar Dhawan, who de-parted just after reach-

ing his century, but that did not affect his style of play. Even the wickets of Suresh Raina and Yu-vraj Singh, both falling to Mitchell Johnson, did not deter him from reaching his 17th ODI hundred in 118 games. It was his sec-ond hundred in the series, after he hit 100 not out off 52 balls in the second

ODI in Jaipur when India chased down 360 to win. In the course of that in-nings, he had also become the fastest Indian to score a hundred in ODIs.

Australia had amassed 350/6 after MS Dhoni opt-ed to field, with skipper George Bailey (156) and Shane Watson (102) both hitting centuries.