Navi World News

Top spy reveals tricks to become a real-life Bond

2008-10-25T03:23:00.000-07:00

Your dreams of becoming a real life James Bond have just gone closer to reality, for an ex spy has revealed the skills necessary to succeed in the world of espionage.

Speaking at the unveiling of a wax-model of 007 actor Daniel Craig, Ex-MI6 agent Harry Ferguson enlisted seven secrets to being a real James Bond.

Harry was attending the new exhibition at London's Madame Tussaud's to mark latest Bond film Quantum Of Solace, set for an October 31 release, reports the Daily Star.

According to Harry, who also authored Spy: A Handbook, the 007 skills needed to become a real-life spy are:

Resourcefulness: "It might surprise people, but unfortunately in real life our gadgets often don't work when we need them, and so you have to be able to adapt."

Observation: "You have to understand what you see, like if someone has you under surveillance, or if you spot a face you saw in a briefing a few months earlier."

Empathy: "People must have trust in you, and you must protect them."

Weapon Skills: "In the past agents did not really have to use arms, but with the work now in Iraq and Afghanistan that has changed."

Coolness: "The ability to stay unshaken involves keeping your level of eye contact normal and retaining a relaxed body posture."

Social Skills: "You have to move in playboy lifestyle circles, and go to say Monte Carlo or drive a flash car, and to be able to carry it off like a natural."

Languages: "The more easily you can slip into a foreign country without drawing attention, the better". (ANI)

Delhi blast: Indian Mujahideen takes responsibility

2008-09-13T23:36:00.000-07:00

The militant outfit Indian Mujahideen has claimed responsibility of Delhi serial blast which went up on Saturday evening leaving at least 18 dead and scores injured.

Reportedly, in an e-mail to a private news channel the militant organisation that had earlier taken responsibility of July 26 Ahmedabad serial bombings made this claim, though the police is unsure about its involvement.

Meanwhile, the police had said that that they didn’t have any prior intelligence input on these blasts.

As per reports, the Islamic militant group had sent a mail to Zee News, which claimed that nine blasts would be strike Delhi within five minutes. The mail was sent by ‘Arbi Hind’ from the email id al-arbi_delhi@yahoo.com.

The five blasts that rocked the national capital in different busy market places have so far claimed 18 lives and injured over 100. The injured have been immediately rushed to the nearest Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital.

The blasts at Ghaffar market in Karol Bagh, Connaught Place and Greater Kailash took place in a quick succession, police said.

The first blast took place at Ghaffar market at 6.10 p.m. in which at least 20 people were injured.

Immediately after that, two explosions took place in Connaught Place in which at least 10 people were injured.

Another explosion rocked M-Block market in Greater Kailash-I.

Senior Police officials including Joint Commissioner of Police Karnail Singh had rushed to the spot in the central district and were assessing the situation.

President, Prime Minister condemn blasts

The Prime Minister, President, Vice President and Home Minister have strongly condemned serial blasts in the heart of Indian capital Delhi.

President Pratibha Devisingh Patil has been grieved by the tragic turn of events in Delhi. She has strongly condemned the serial blasts and condoled the loss of lives in this mindless act of violence. The President wishes speedy recovery to the injured and appeals to the people of Delhi to maintain peace and calm in the face of this adversity.

Prime Minister too expressed shock that the blasts have caused fatalities and casualties among innocent people. He said that such dastardly acts of violence are intended to disturb peace and harmony and should be thwarted. He appealed to all sections to maintain calm.

New US visa rules may hit temporary workers from India

2008-08-16T09:10:00.000-07:00

Washington, Aug 16 (IANS) US immigration authorities have sought a number of rule changes for hiring temporary non-agricultural workers under the H-2B visa programme that may affect nationals from India.

The changes proposed by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) among other things seek to deny H-2B visas to 'nationals of countries that are determined to be consistently refusing or unreasonably delaying repatriation' of workers under deportation orders.

India, China and Iran are among eight countries, which have been identified by lawmakers early this year as falling in this category. Other countries are Laos, Eritrea, Vietnam, Jamaica and Ethiopia.

The eight counties are said to have refused to repatriate a total of over 139,000 workers. Of this number more than 18,000 are said to be convicted criminals who have been released back into the streets.

The proposed plans for revision of rules for the H-2B programme are based on suggestions made by US lawmakers. Early this year, three Republican legislators had called for the suspension of visas to countries that have refused to accept deported nationals from the US.

The H-2B non-immigrant temporary worker programme allows US employers to bring foreign nationals to America to fill non-agricultural temporary jobs for which US workers are not available and India is one of the countries from where workers are sought.

USCIS will accept public comments for 30 days following publication of the proposed changes.

The proposed rule is designed to remove unnecessary limitations on H-2B employers while both preventing fraud and abuse and protecting the rights of temporary workers, the USCIS announcement said.

These changes would reduce from six months to three months the time H-2B workers must wait outside the US before they are eligible to re-obtain status under the H or L classification.

They would also require employer attestations on the scope of the H-2B employment and the use of recruiters to locate H-2B workers and seek a crack down on employers and recruiters who impose fees on prospective workers in connection with or as a condition of an offer of employment.

Other changes require an approved temporary labour certification in connection with all H-2B petitions preclude, with limited exception, the change of the employment start date after the grant of such certification and require employers to notify the Department of Homeland Security when H-2B workers fail to show up for work, are terminated, or abscond from the work site.

They would also change the definition of 'temporary employment' to provide that a job is of a temporary nature when the work will end in the near, definable future and to eliminate the requirement that employers show 'extraordinary circumstances' to be eligible to hire H-2B workers where a one-time need for the workers is longer than one year but shorter than three years.

A land-border exit system pilot programme would be established. This would require H-2B workers admitted through a port of entry participating in the pilot H-programme to also depart through a participating port and to present designated biographic and/or biometric information upon departure.

Thousands march in Kashmir to honour slain leader

2008-08-16T09:05:00.000-07:00

Enlarge Photo Kashmiri people atop a truck shout pro-freedom slogans during a march in Pampore, on the.. .

Sat, Aug 16 08:26 PM

By Navi arora

SRINAGAR (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of Muslims marched in Kashmir on Saturday to pay homage to a separatist leader killed by police in protests over a land row that is testing New Delhi's hold on the troubled region.

Sheikh Aziz was among at least 22 Muslim protesters killed when police opened fire this week during some of the biggest protests since a separatist revolt broke out in the region 20 years ago.

The dispute over land allocated to Hindu pilgrims visiting a shrine in Kashmir has snowballed into full scale anti-India protests, uniting separatists and reviving calls for Kashmiri independence.

The row pits Muslims in Kashmir against Hindus in Jammu, the two main regions which make up Jammu and Kashmir, in one of the toughest challenges facing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government since it took office in 2004.

On Saturday, protesters carrying black and green Islamic flags headed for Aziz's hometown, Pampore, about 12 km from Kashmir's summer capital Srinagar. Aziz was a leader of Kashmir's main separatist alliance, the All Parties Hurriyat (Freedom) Conference.

"There is no god but Allah, Indian forces go back," the protesters shouted.

Thousands of mourners, carrying photographs of the slain leader, flooded into Pampore by bus, car and motorcycle, witnesses said.

BORDER CLASH

The crisis has also raised tensions with nuclear rival Pakistan. India has criticised Islamabad for interfering in its internal affairs by calling for U.N. intervention in the region that both claim in full but rule in parts.

Late on Saturday, Indian soldiers shot dead two suspected militants when a group of guerrillas tried to sneak into Indian Kashmir from the Pakistani side, an army spokesman said.

He said an Indian soldier was also killed in the clash in Uri sector on the Line of Control, a ceasefire line dividing Kashmir between India and Pakistan.

The crisis in Indian Kashmir began after the state government promised to give forest land to a trust that runs Amarnath, a cave shrine visited by Hindu pilgrims. Many Muslims were enraged.

The government then rescinded its decision, which in turn angered Hindus in Jammu who attacked lorries carrying supplies to the Kashmir valley and blocked the region's highway, the only surface link with the rest of India.

Kashmiris, challenging the blockade, took to the streets.

"People have given their verdict that they won't tolerate oppression and injustice. It is time for New Delhi to act and solve the dispute," Hurriyat chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said on Saturday.

(For the latest Reuters news on India see: in.reuters.com, for blogs see blogs.reuters.com/in/)

Apply for a Permanent Account Number (PAN)

2008-08-02T11:09:00.000-07:00

Permanent Account Number (PAN) refers to a ten-digit alphanumeric number, issued in the form of a laminated card, by the Income Tax Department in India. It is a must to have a PAN number for all those who file their income tax returns, because from 2005 onwards, it has been made mandatory by the Income Tax Department to quote the PAN on return of income as well as on all correspondence with any income tax authority in the country.

Also, it is now compulsory to quote PAN in all documents pertaining to financial transactions notified from time to time by the Central Board of Direct Taxes, such as sale and purchase of immovable property or motor vehicle or payments in cash, of amounts exceeding a certain limit to hotels and restaurants, or in connection with travel to any foreign country. It is also mandatory to mention PAN for obtaining a telephone or cellular telephone connection. Likewise, PAN has to be mentioned for making a time deposit exceeding Rs. 50,000/- with a Bank or Post Office or for depositing cash of Rs. 50,000/- or more in a Bank.

How to apply for a PAN ?
The Income Tax Department has ensured that applying for a PAN is a simple and convenient procedure. All you need to do is submit the requisite Application Form No. 49A. The PAN application can also be downloaded from the website of UTI Investor Services Ltd (the authorised agency to manage IT PAN service Centres in various cities) or from the website of National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL) or printed by local printers or photocopied (on A4 size 70 GSM paper) or obtained from any other source. The form is also available at IT PAN Service Centres and TIN Facilitation Centres.

You will need a recent colour photograph (stamp size: 3.5 cm x 2.5 cm) to attach on the form. You must mention the designation and code of the concerned Assessing Officer of the Income Tax department in Form 49A. You can get this from the IT PAN Service Centres mentioned in the websites listed above. Also, the application shall have to be accompanied by a proof of identity as well as a proof of residence.

The filled application form has to be submitted at your nearest IT PAN Service Centre or TIN Facilitation Centre along with the requisite fee. The location of such centres can be searched online by using the facility given below :

Applications for fresh allotment of PAN can also be submitted through the Net. Further, requests for changes or correction in PAN data or a request for a new PAN card (for an existing PAN) may also be made through the Internet. For more details visit http://www.tin-nsdl.com. If an application for allotment of PAN is submitted through the Internet and payment made through a 'nominated' credit card, the PAN is allotted on priority and communicated through email.
For more information, visit the FAQ section on Permanent Account Number on the Income Tax Department website.

Obtain Driving Licence in India

2008-08-02T11:07:00.001-07:00

Obtain Driving Licence

What is a Driving Licence and Why is it Necessary?

A Driving Licence is an official document certifying that the holder is suitably qualified to drive a motor vehicle or vehicles. Under the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 in India, no person can drive a motor vehicle in any public place unless he holds a valid Driving Licence issued to him, authorising him to drive a vehicle of that particular category.

In India, two kinds of Driving Licences are issued: Learner’s Licence and Permanent Licence. Learner’s Licence is valid only for six months. Permanent Licence can be availed only after the expiry of one month from the date of issuance of the Learner’s Licence.

What You Need to Do to Obtain a Driving Licence

A Learner’s Licence is essential for obtaining a Permanent Licence. The eligibility for obtaining a Learner's Licence for a private motor vehicle for a vehicle of 50 CC engine capacity and without any gear, is 16 years (if the applicant’s parents or guardians give their consent). The minimum age to apply for a permanent licence to drive a private motor vehicle is 18 years.

A person who is at least 20 years old and possesses a Learner's License can obtain a Licence for driving a commercial vehicle. Also, one has to be conversant with the traffic rules and regulations in all the cases.

For obtaining a Learner’s Licence, you will need to apply in the prescribed format to the Local Transport Office in your region, along with your passport-sized photographs, proof of your age and residence, declaration of medical fitness and the required fee. After verification of your documents, you will have to go through the Learner’s Test. Usually a handbook of traffic rules, signs and regulations is provided with the application form. On passing the Learner’s Test, you will be issued a Learner’s Licence. If you fail the test, you will be given a chance to take the test again.

For obtaining a Permanent Licence, you must have a valid Learner’s Licence, and must apply after 30 days and within 180 days of issue of the Learner’s Licence. You should be conversant about vehicle systems, driving, traffic rules & regulations. You will be put through a driving test, for which you must bring a vehicle with you. On passing the test, you will be issued a Permanent Driving Licence.

Links that might Interest You:

Obtain Birth Certificate : Delhi

2008-08-02T11:05:00.000-07:00

Every Birth is to be reported and registered within 21 days at the place of its occurrence in the prescribed reporting forms. The persons required to register Birth are:

(a) When the Birth has taken place in a house.

Head of the house or nearest relative of the head of the House or oldest person in the family

(b) When the Birth has taken place outside the house

(i) In a Hospital/Health Centre, Maternity Home or other like institutions	Medical Officer Incharge or any officer authorised by him.
(ii) In a Jail	Jail Incharge
(iii) In a Hospital, Dharmshala, Boarding House etc.	Person Incharge
(iv) In a Moving Vehicle	Person Incharge of the Vehicle
(v) Found deserted in a public place	Headman of the Village/Incharge of the local police station

Procedure

Birth Certificates in Delhi are issued by the Local Bodies namely MCD, NDMC, Delhi Cantonment Board, within 7 days from the date of receipt of application from the applicant, provided the birth has already been registered. The certificates are issued from the registration centres/Zonal Offices of the local bodies.

Concerned Authority

There are different centres of each local body in Delhi for such registration. The details as per jurisdiction of the local body are as below:-

MCD (188 Centres - Urban : 137 and Rural : 51)

Deputy Health Officer of each Municipal Zone is designated as Registrar of Births & Deaths. The vaccinator of the vaccination centre or paramedical staff of Health Centres/Sub Centres have been designated as Sub-Registrars and also at Citizen Service Bureau

(a) Domiciliary Cases

(i) Registration of Births occurring at home in an urban area is being done at the vaccination centre located in the area.

(ii) Registration of Birth occurring at home in a rural area is being done by vaccinators or paramedical staff. Registration Centres are located in Primary Health Centres, Dispensaries and Mother & Child Welfare Sub Centres in rural areas.

(b) Other Cases

Registration of Birth occurring in a hospital, nursing home and for other cases is being done at the offices of the MCD in the zones where these institutions are located.

N.D.M.C. ( 9 Centres ) :

Sub Inoculation Center, Mandir Marg Ph: 23362284	9.00 AM to 5.30 PM for cases which are current and not more than four years old. Certificate will be issued within 24 hours (for current birth & death registration). For older records the time will be 96 hrs.
B & D reg. centre, Aurangzeb Lane Polyclinic, NDMC S.B. Marg. Babar Road Maternity Center, Palika Maternity Hospital 42- south Market (Kidwai Nagar), MCW -Sarojini Nagar. Charak Palika Hospital, Moti Bagh. A-5 Pandara Road.	9.30 PM to 12.30 PM. Certificate will be issued within 96 hours after receiving records from hospitals.

Registration of Birth where institutional or domiciliary is being done at the Vaccination Centre located in the NDMC area. The vaccinator of each vaccination centre has been designated as Sub Registrar. Medical Officer Incharge of the International Inoculation Centre, Mandir Marg has been designated as Registrar of Births/Deaths for the entire area of NDMC.

Delhi Cantt. ( 1 Centre ) : Registration of Birth (institutional/domiciliary) is being done at the Registration Centre located in the Cantt. General Hospital.

Case of Moving Vehicle : Registration of Birth occurring in a moving vehicle will be done at the registration centre of the area of first place of halt of the vehicle.

Papers/documents/fees

Application on a plain paper.
Proof of Birth of the person in respect of whom the certificate is required.
Affidavit specifying place, date and time of birth/death of the person. For proforma of affidavit for
- Birth Certificate Click here
Copy of Ration Card.
School leaving certificate, if any, showing date of birth (in the case of birth certificate only).
All documents to be attested by a Gazetted Officer.

Criteria Used for deciding the case

After receiving the completed application, a draft order is made and sent to the concerned police station for verification. (However, no such verification is required where a birth certificate is requested to be issued on the basis of a school leaving certificate showing the date of birth.)

After receiving the positive verification report from the police station, an order is issued to the MCD for birth registration.

Additional Information:

Fee for obtaining the copies of certificate

Rs.15/- per copy plus service charges of Rs.5/-.

Rule for registering after due date

There is a prescribed rule and fee structure for late registration and submission of required documents, and permission from a competent authority has to be obtained.

Documents to produce for late registration

a) A birth can be registered after 21 days but before 30 days of occurrence on payment of late fee.
b) A birth can be registered after 30 days but before 1 year of occurrence after obtaining written permission from the Registrar and on payment of late fee.
c) A birth can be registered after 1 year of occurrence after obtaining an order from the Area Magistrate (i.e. SDM of the first class or a Presidency Magistrate) and on payment of late fee.

Fee structure for registration

a) Registration within a period of 21 days of occurrence - No fees
b) Registration after 21 days but before 30 days of occurrence - Rs.5/-
c) Registration after 30 days but before 1 year of occurrence - Rs.10/-
d) Registration after 1 year of occurrence - Rs.20/-
e) Service charge of Rs.5/-.

Addition of the name of the child in Birth record

a) Within 1 year of the birth the name can be added at any Citizen Service Bureau or through the internet. An application form has to be submitted.
b) After 1 year but within 15 years, the same can be added at any Citizen Service Bureau, on payment of late fee and submission of an application form.

Time Taken

The registration of birth will be made on the day the physical form of reporting the birth is submitted.

Changes in the Certificate

Changes in the certificate can be undertaken at any of the CSBs on a written request along with an affidavit and undertaking from the informant.

Response Time

Normally you should be getting a response within 21 days.

For more information, visit http://mcdonline.gov.in ; http://ndmc.gov.in

Treasury income pulls down ICICI Bank net profit in Q1

2008-07-26T23:06:00.000-07:00

Rs. 594 crore
set aside for
mark-to-market
Capital adequacy ratio stands
at 13.42 %

Chanda Kochhar, JMD and CFO, ICICI Bank

MUMBAI: Despite the negative impact on the bank’s treasury income, ICICI Bank on Saturday reported a net profit of Rs. 728 crore for the first quarter of 2008-09 as compared to Rs. 775 crore in the corresponding quarter of 2007-08.

Core operating profit (operating profit excluding treasury) for the quarter increased by 74 per cent to Rs. 2,308 crore from Rs. 1,330 crore. Net interest income increased by 41 per cent to Rs. 2,090 crore from Rs. 1,479 crore and fee income by 37 per cent to Rs. 1,958 crore from Rs. 1,428 crore.

High interest rates and adverse market conditions significantly affected the bank’s trading portfolio and SLR Securities portfolio and its treasury income during the quarter, ICICI Bank’s Joint Managing Director and Chief Financial Officer, Chanda Kochhar, told reporters here.

“High interest rates have had an impact on our quarter results. However, the corporate and international segments grew by nearly 65 per cent in the quarter and we expect it to grow by around 25 per cent moving ahead,” Ms. Kochhar said. The bank made a total mark-to-market provisioning of Rs. 594 crore during the quarter owing to the depreciation in its bond and equity portfolios, she said.

Savings account deposits increased by 35 per cent to Rs. 43,465 crore from Rs. 32,121 crore. Current and savings account (CASA) deposits constituted 27.6 per cent of total deposits as at June 30, 2008, as compared to 22.4 per cent as at June 30, 2007.

Consolidated advances of the bank and its overseas banking subsidiaries and ICICI Home Finance Company increased by 20 per cent to Rs. 257,287 crore from Rs. 215,293 crore. The bank’s capital adequacy was 13.42 per cent (including Tier-1 capital adequacy of 11.29 per cent). Its net non-performing assets constituted 1.74 per cent of net customer assets.

Obama meets Brown

2008-07-26T23:05:00.000-07:00

London: U.S. Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama wound up his week-long overseas tour with a flying visit to Britain on Saturday, providing Prime Minister Gordon Brown with a much-needed distraction from the political crisis he is facing in the wake of Labour Party’s catastrophic defeat in a crucial parliamentary by-election. After a two-hour meeting with Mr. Brown, which included a carefully choreographed stroll in a public park behind Downing Street, Mr. Obama emphasised the importance of British-U.S. relations in what was seen as an attempt to respond to speculation about the future of the controversial “special relationship” that led the former Prime Minister, Tony Blair, to join the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

Compared with the “rock star” reception Mr. Obama got in Berlin, his London visit was a low-key affair. He made no public appearance and gave no media interviews. His only interaction with the British media was a brief chat on the steps of Downing Street after his meeting with Mr. Brown. Even as he spoke, a crowd gathered outside the gates of Downing Street trying to catch a glimpse of America’s putative next President. Some called out his name and said they wanted him to win.

Mr. Obama said he had a “terrific” meeting with Mr. Brown and discussed a wide-range of issues, including the situation in West Asia, terrorism, climate change and the difficulties in Iraq and Afghanistan. He said a strong trans-Atlantic relationship was important to deal effectively with these issues.

Thanking Britain for its support to conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, Mr. Obama said: “I know that the troops here in Great Britain have borne a heavy price for wars in both Iraq and Afghanistan and I think the American people are grateful for all the help that has been provided.”

Mr. Obama also met Mr. Blair, who is now the international West Asia envoy, and Tory leader David Cameron.

Iran: West has accepted limited U-enrichment

2008-07-26T23:03:00.000-07:00

The West agreed to allow Tehran to use 5,000-6,000 centrifuges: Ahmadinejad

DUBAI: Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said the West has agreed to accept that Tehran could carry out a limited quantity of uranium enrichment amid reports that the two sides are working on a new formulation to ease their tensions.

Mr. Ahmadinejad said the West had agreed to allow Iran to enrich using 5,000 to 6,000 centrifuges. His comments follow talks that the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany held with Iran on July 19. Iran had earlier reported that it could carry out enrichment using 3,000 centrifuges.

While Iran’s interlocutors have said they wanted Tehran to suspend uranium enrichment in return for a package of incentives, suggestions have been made that tensions could be eased if the freeze-for-freeze proposal was pursued.

Under this interim proposal, Iran should not expand enrichment from the current level for six weeks in return for a western commitment that it would not further tighten economic sanctions against Tehran for a similar period.

Iran on Friday warned western countries that pressuring it with artificial deadlines over its nuclear programme would hamper progress in talks.

The former President and current chairman of the Assembly of Experts, Ali Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani, said on Friday American and Israeli officials “must learn that an ultimatum will not help the nuclear standoff [between Iran and the West]”.

The Ayatollah was referring to the “two weeks” deadline that European Union (E.U.) foreign policy chief Javier Solana had announced following the Geneva talks. Mr. Solana had said Iran had a fortnight to accept the path of negotiations proposed by the West or face further isolation.

“Iran will continue talks to reach a mutual agreement in the nuclear dispute. Issuing ultimatums, setting timetables, and threatening Iranians with sanctions are not pragmatic,” said Ayatollah Rafsanjani.

Israel’s campaign

Meanwhile, Israel is leading a campaign that emphasises the use of military force as an option to counter Iran’s nuclear programme. But, Ephrahim Halevy, former chief of Israel’s external intelligence Mossad, said in an interview to Time magazine that an Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities could affect Israel “for the next 100 years.” Cautioning that a military strike against Iran should be launched only as a “last resort,” he said the use of such measures “will have a negative effect on the public opinion in the Arab world”.

Mr. Halevy had earlier stressed that Iran’s missile capability should not be taken lightly.

“I don’t think they are bluffing,” he said after Iran recently test-fired an array of missiles during a military exercise codenamed Great Prophet III.

Gilani heads to U.S. to shore up anti-terror policy

2008-07-26T23:01:00.000-07:00

Maintenance of law and order is
our aim: PM
U.S. to allow Pakistan to upgrade its F-16 fighter jets

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, on Saturday, left on an official visit to the U.S., where he is expected to face tough questions on the government’s policy on tackling terrorism and militancy in the north-west frontier areas bordering Afghanistan.

His visit, at the invitation of U.S. President George W. Bush, comes at a time of international concern that the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP)-led government is in such a state of “leaderless drift” — the New York Times description — that it has not yet been able to formulate a coherent policy on dealing with the Taliban’s challenge.

The two leaders are scheduled to meet on Monday.

Recent weeks have seen the U.S., Afghanistan and India telling Pakistan that “elements” in the state apparatus are assisting the Taliban mount attacks inside Afghanistan. In addition, the U.S. and Afghanistan have been blunt in their criticism of the government’s strategy of opening peace agreements with militants.

NATO-ISAF forces in Afghanistan have reiterated several times that the peace deals have helped the Taliban carve out safe havens in the tribal areas from where they are making cross-border incursions to launch attacks.

Since it came to power, the PPP-led alliance has gone from a policy of “only talks” with the militants to “selective use” of military force, and as that came under fire at home, to a decision that force would be used as a “last resort” and Parliament would forge a consensus on how to deal with the growing challenge presented by the Taliban. Before his departure, Mr. Gilani attempted to address some of these concerns while speaking to media at the airport. “We have a clear stance on the issue of terrorism and extremism. This is our own fight. This is our own cause. I have lost my own leader because of terrorism,” he said, referring to the assassination of PPP leader Benazir Bhutto in December 2007.

Priorities

He said maintenance of law and order, and enforcing the authority of the government was the main priority. “My priority number one is to maintain law and order in the country and I want that writ of the state should not be challenged,” he added.

The visit began on an encouraging note with the Bush administration’s decision to divert $230 million of the annual $300-million “war on terror” assistance to Pakistan to allow it to upgrade its F-16 jets.

The Dawn described the move as a sign of “maturity” in U.S.-Pakistan relations, and said it bode well for “building trust” between the two countries.

Mr. Gilani said before his departure he wanted to “further enhance” cooperation between the two countries. His visit also times with a World Bank-organised investors’ conference on Pakistan’s power sector, to which at least two Indian companies — Reliance and Essar — have also been invited.

Bush: Congress could take steps to ease gas prices

2008-07-19T11:24:00.000-07:00

CRAWFORD, Texas (AP) — Responding to Americans' anger over gas prices and the housing bust, President Bush is stepping up pressure on Congress to open up offshore oil exploration and work to restore confidence in the housing finance industry.

"This is a challenging time for families across our nation," Bush said Saturday in his weekly radio address. "I know many families are worried about rising prices at the pump and declining home values."

Bush recently lifted an executive ban on offshore oil drilling. He said it's Congress' turn to act.

"The only thing now standing between the American people and the vast oil resources of the Outer Continental Shelf is action from the United States Congress," he said.

With soaring gas prices, public opinion on energy issues is shifting in favor of a more permissive stance on drilling, even though resistance remains to the idea of opening the Atlantic and Pacific coasts or the eastern Gulf off Florida's beaches to oil and gas companies.

There is unrelenting GOP pressure to open up the Outer Continental Shelf to exploration, and Bush kept the pressure on during his radio broadcast.

"The need for congressional action is urgent," he said. "The sooner Congress lifts the ban, the sooner we can get these resources from the ocean floor to the gas pump."

Democrats say they have a different plan to combat record-high gas prices, but that Bush and the Republicans in Congress are blocking it. They argue that oil companies should drill in about 68 million acres of federal land they have already leased for such use — a move the Democrats say would nearly double U.S. production.

They also want the president to tap into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve — a stockpile set aside for emergencies — and work with Democrats to crack down on Wall Street traders who are driving up oil prices by buying huge quantities of oil just to resell at a higher price.

"I don't know what President Bush thinks, but four-and-a-half dollar-a-gallon gas is an emergency for America's families," Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., said Saturday in the Democratic radio address. "When was the last time the president filled his own tank?"

Bush also addressed the public's concerns about the housing industry, which has been in a slump for more than two years. The industry is struggling to cope with record levels of unsold new and existing homes — a glut being expanded by rising foreclosures, which are dumping even more houses on the market.

Buyers are reluctant to purchase a home with home prices still falling sharply and even those buyers who are ready to commit are having trouble qualifying for loans, as lenders tighten standards in response to soaring mortgage delinquencies.

Banks and other financial institutions are struggling to cope with billions of dollars of losses on bad mortgages.

The Bush administration and the Federal Reserve recently announced a support program for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to try to stave off serious troubles for the two mortgage giants, which hold or guarantee more than $5 trillion of the nation's mortgages — nearly half the total.

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is lobbying Congress for quick approval of a plan that would temporarily empower the government to extend unlimited lines of credit to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and to buy their stock, if needed, to bolster their reserves against losses. The companies' shares have plummeted because of fears about their financial stability.

"I urge Congress to swiftly enact this plan into law," Bush said.

All the housing and financial market turmoil has raised fears that the country could be pushed into a recession.

Bush worked to ally those fears, saying the U.S. economy has demonstrated resilience.

"Exports have continued to grow, productivity growth has remained strong, and while economic growth in the first quarter of this year was slower than we would have liked, it was growth, nonetheless," he said.

McCain jabs Obama on Iraq, Afghanistan

2008-07-19T11:22:00.000-07:00


John McCain

WASHINGTON (AFP) — John McCain on Saturday asked if his Democratic rival Barack Obama would be wrong about Afghanistan as, in the Republican presidential hopeful's view, he had been about Iraq.

"Senator Obama announced his strategy for Afghanistan and Iraq before departing on a fact-finding mission that will include visits to both those countries.

"Apparently, he's confident enough that he won't find any facts that might change his opinion or alter his strategy. Remarkable," McCain said in a radio address, released by his campaign as Obama visited Afghanistan.

"This is similar to the mistake Senator Obama made when he confidently declared that the surge in Iraq could not possibly reduce sectarian violence there, and might well increase violence," McCain said.

"He was so certain the surge would fail that he called for our troops to retreat as quickly as possible."

The Arizona senator noted that Obama's previous statements opposing the "surge" of some 30,000 additional US troops to Iraq last year have been removed from his camapaign website.

"But we all remember quite well that he said the surge would fail, and today we know that he was wrong," McCain argued.

McCain said that while "the situation in Iraq is much improved, the war in Afghanistan has taken a bad turn that must be quickly reversed.

"Security in that country has deteriorated, and our enemies are on the offensive. And it is precisely the success of the surge in Iraq that shows us the way to victory over the Taliban.

"Sending more forces, by itself, is not enough to prevail. What we need in Afghanistan is exactly what General David Petraeus brought to Iraq: a nationwide civil-military campaign plan that is focused on providing security for the population.

"Today no such integrated plan exists. When I am commander-in-chief, it will," McCain said.

He added that "a cardinal rule in any military operation is unity of command, and this has been lacking in our Afghan campaign. ... This is not a smart military practice, and it is not how wars are won. As commander-in-chief, I will work with our allies to ensure unity of command."

Obama arrived in Afghanistan Saturday to visit troops and assess efforts against extremist violence at the start of a major international tour, officials said.

Obama will meet Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai on Sunday, the Afghan government said. He will also visit some of the 36,000 US soldiers in Afghanistan, many of them in the east of the country along the border with Pakistan.

He is due to travel on to Iraq Monday and then to Jordan, Israel, Germany, France and Britain. The Illinois senator said in the days building up to the tour that Afghanistan needs more help as it battles the Taliban-led insurgency.

If he wins the November elections, he plans to commit at least two more combat brigades, up to 10,000 men, to Afghanistan while downscaling the size of the force in Iraq.

In a Shift, U.S. Joins Nuclear Talks With Iran

2008-07-19T11:20:00.000-07:00

GENEVA — After years of refusing to do so, the United States on Saturday participated for the first time in international talks with Iran over its nuclear program. The move confirmed a shift in American diplomacy and was viewed by officials here as a sign that the Bush administration wanted to avoid a military confrontation with Iran.

Pool photo by Denis Balibouse

The Iranian and American representatives Saeed Jalili, left, and William J. Burns, third from right, in Geneva on Saturday

But the drama of the moment was undercut when the Iranian side handed the other side a written document that failed to address the key issue of a freeze on the enrichment of uranium, officials involved in the negotiations said.

The officials at the meeting, which involved the United States under secretary of state for political affairs, William J. Burns, as well as representatives from Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China, said that Iran essentially reiterated its past positions and said that the two sides should focus on areas where there was common agreement, not discord.

“There was a lot of smoke — but there was no gesture,” one official said. “It puts no requirements on Iran. It’s not very surprising, but it is disappointing.”

Javier Solana, the European Union foreign policy chief, told a news conference after the meetings that Iran has been given two weeks to formally respond to a proposal by the six powers known as “freeze-for-freeze” — under which Iran would not add to its nuclear program, and the United States and other powers would not seek new international sanctions. But the officials said that when they repeatedly pressed the Iranians to say whether they could accept the idea, the question was evaded every time.

Mr. Solana acknowledged, “We have not got a clear answer,” adding, “We didn’t get an answer ‘Yes’ or ‘No.’ ”

Mr. Burns told his colleagues following the disappointing outcome that the United States will push for new punitive sanctions at the United Nations Security Council in September, one participant in the meeting said.

Even before the talks started, Keyvan Imani, Iran’s ambassador to Switzerland and a member of the Iranian delegation, said Iran would not accept a freeze. “It is not in Iran’s agenda to discuss this issue,” he told reporters.Certainly, there were no grand illusions going into the meeting of a sudden breakthrough. But negotiators said they had hoped for a more serious initial Iranian response.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity under normal diplomatic rules.

After all, the Iranian side, led by Iran’s chief negotiator, Saeed Jalili, had requested that Mr. Solana, who represents the six powers at the table, schedule the meeting in the first place after a new proposal by the six powers presented in Tehran last month.

At the news conference, Mr. Jalili refused to answer whether Iran would accept a freeze, however temporary, of its uranium enrichment program, but called the negotiating process a “very beautiful endeavor” with a result that he hoped would eventually be “beautiful to behold.”

Saturday’s meeting at Geneva’s Town Hall was arguably the most important public encounter between an Iranian and an American official since diplomatic relations were broken after Iran’s seizure of the American Embassy in 1979.

There have been other authorized meetings. Madeleine K. Albright, as Secretary of State, for example, once sat at the same table with then Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi and other emissaries at the United Nations to discuss Afghanistan. Colin L. Powell, as secretary of state, once shook Mr. Kharrazi’s hand. American and Iranian officials have met episodically in Baghdad to discuss Iraq’s security.

But Saturday’s meeting is the highest-level meeting between the two countries during the Bush administration, which once branded Iran part of an “axis of evil” and has not ruled out military action against Iran because of its nuclear ambitions. It comes as the Bush administration, in its final months, has told some of its closest allies that the United States was moving forward with a plan to establish an American diplomatic presence in Tehran for the first time since the rupture in bilateral relations.

But for some, the Americans have made a diplomatic gesture with Mr. Burns’s participation at a moment that is hard to understand. America’s negotiating partners, particularly Britain, had wanted an American presence when they traveled to Tehran last month to present an enhanced package of incentives. That moment, officials said, would have been both meaningful and more logical.

Instead, Mr. Burns came to the table at a time when the Iranians were giving their reply, and there had never been a strong signal that it was going to be different from the past.

Pope apologises for sexual abuse by Australian clergy

2008-07-19T11:16:00.000-07:00

Pope Benedict XVI apologised on Saturday to victims of child sex abuse by Roman Catholic clergy, describing their acts as "evil" and a grave betrayal of trust. Support groups for victims of church abuse in Australia, whose numbers are not known but who activists say are in the thousands, had demanded the pope make a full and open apology for clergy abuse and do more to prevent future abuse.

"I would like to pause to acknowledge the shame which we have all felt as a result of the sexual abuse of minors by some clergy and religious in this country," Benedict said during an address at a Mass in Australia.

"I am deeply sorry for the pain and suffering the victims have endured," the Pope said.

"I assure them as their pastor that I too share in their suffering."

He said those responsible for these "evils must be brought to justice."

Support groups for victims of church abuse in Australia, whose numbers are not known but who activists say are in the thousands, had demanded the pope make a full and open apology for clergy abuse and do more to prevent future abuse.

The pontiff is in Australia to lead hundreds of thousands of pilgrims in the church's World Youth Day, a global celebration meant to inspire a new generation of Catholics.

There was no immediate word whether Benedict would meet with victims of clergy abuse, as he did during his trip to the United States in April, when he also expressed his shame for the scandal.

Idle brains shrink faster

2008-07-19T11:14:00.000-07:00

A study conducted by Australian researchers has revealed that people who do not engage in complex mental activity over their lifetime have twice the shrinkage in a key part of the brain in old age.

Michael Valenzuela of the school of psychiatry at the University of New South Wales has revealed that the finding results from an analysis of the brain scans used during the study.

He says that the finding sheds more light on the link between lifestyle and dementia.

The results of the study also add strength to the evidence that mental exercises, like puzzles and new languages, stave off ageing diseases.

“We’ve got strong evidence here that people who use their brains more have less brain shrinkage,” said Valenzuela.

“I hope people take this as a further call to arms to get out there and use their brains, get engaged in anything from tai chi to world travel, in the knowledge that it may help delay or prevent the onset of dementia,” he added.

Valenzuela and his colleagues wanted to determine how mental activity delayed the onset of the degenerative brain diseases, such as Huntington’s, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.

For the purpose, they studied the brains of 60-year-olds over three years, and tested their lifetime mental agility with questionnaires, and discovered that, of the 50 subjects, people who had been more mentally active over their lives had a larger hippocampus, an important memory centre in the brain. Among such subjects, the area shrank at half the rate of those who had lower mental activity over the period of three years. “This is a significant finding because a small hippocampus is a specific risk factor for developing Alzheimer’s disease,” said Dr Valenzuela.

Sensex trading over 320 points down early afternoon

2008-07-06T11:10:00.000-07:00

Thu, Jun 19 01:14 PM

Mumbai, June 19 (IANS) Indian equity markets extended their loss in early afternoon trade Thursday. Banking, realty and capital goods stocks were the worst hit.

At 1:00 p.m., the 30-share benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the Sensex, was at 15,101.40, down 320.91 points or 2.08 percent from its closing figure Wednesday. At the day's low it had touched 15,075.14 points.

The market breadth was negative. On BSE 708 shares advanced, 1,699 declined and 83 remained unchanged.

At the same time the broader based S&P CNX Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange was down by 78.50 points or 1.71 percent at 4,503.90.

IMPROVE YOUR EYE VISION .....Improve Eye Sight and remove your spectacles

2008-06-19T06:03:00.000-07:00

There are some natural methods to reduce eye-strain and strengthen eye sight, these are very simple. The hard part is remembering to do them, often.

Step 1: At least once every 45 minutes, look away from the computer.
      Look at something say, 20 feet away for about 10 seconds, focus on it.
      Then look at something say, 10 feet away for about 10 seconds, focus.
      Basic principle is to choose objects to focus on that are varied
      distances away, do this for about 1-3 minutes for every 45 mins on
      the computer, more often is not harmful.
      This helps reduce eye strain quite a bit.
Step 2: This is proven (in Japanese studies) to actually improve eyesight.
      However it must be done several times a day, every day.
      Basic concept: There is a simple drawing/picture on a piece of paper.
      The paper was placed on a type of old fashioned closeline and started
      about 1 foot away from the person doing the excercise.
      The person focused on the picture as it was moved somewhat fast
      back and forth on the clothesline. Starting distance was about 1 foot
      from the subject, and maximum distance was about 10 feet away.
      Sessions lasted about 5 minutes. Vision tests given immediately after
      this procedure showed significant improvement.
      Doing this with a picture held in your hand doesnt give you enough range
      for it to truely be effective, so try rigging up something simple.
      I do this somewhat religiously, 1-4 times a day, and I do notice objects
      tend to come into focus faster than they used too. I have been doing
      this for about 3 weeks, and I still need my glasses, but hey, its
      simple, non surgical, and free. Give it a shot.

Top 7 Good Habits for Good Eyesight

Having good eyesight greatly improves one's quality of life. Make a conscious effort to keep your eyes in their best condition by practicing the following good habits.

1. Protect Your Eyes With Sunglasses

Harmful ultraviolet light from the sun causes several known conditions to occur in the eye. Sunlight has been shown to speed up the development of cataracts and macular degeneration. It can also cause abnormal thickening or growths to form on the white part of the eye. Especially at risk are people who spend long hours in the sun, who have had cataract surgery or who are taking certain medications such as tranquilizers, tetracycline and diuretics. These drugs can cause sensitivity to sunlight. Furthermore, sunglasses reduce glare and bright light that may impede your vision and cause accidents.

2. Do Not Smoke

Smoking can cause you to develop cataracts and increases your risk for developing macular degeneration. People who smoke, have a poor diet and drink alcohol are prone to an optic nerve condition that can produce profound vision loss. Smoking is also a major irritant to patients with dry eye syndrome.

3. Limit Alcoholic Beverages

Drinking alcohol dehydrates the body, including the eyes. Dry eye symptoms are much more likely to develop if you drink alcohol. Drinking large quantities of alcohol may cause nutritional problems and may lead to toxic amblyopia, an optic nerve disease.

4. Keep Blood Sugar Within Healthy Limits

Continually challenging your body with foods that are rich in fat and sugar can put you at risk for developing large blood sugar fluctuations and eventually, diabetes. If you already have diabetes, keeping your blood sugar levels stable can prevent or delay the onset of diabetic eye diseases including diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma and cataracts. Blood sugar fluctuations can also make the natural lens inside the eye swell, resulting in large prescription changes. You may be nearsighted one day, then farsighted the next. When this occurs, a possible diagnosis of diabetes is usually considered.

5. Keep Blood Pressure and Cholesterol Under Control

High blood pressure can lead to hypertensive retinopathy, a condition that left untreated can result in blindness. In addition, high blood pressure has been found to increase your risk for eye diseases such as diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma and macular degeneration. High blood pressure in addition to high cholesterol places you at risk for developing a stroke or a central retinal artery occlusion. Strokes affecting one side of the brain often produce large blind spots in your vision. A central retinal artery occlusion is a "stroke to the eye" and usually produces profound vision loss.

6. Eat Antioxidant-Rich Foods

Foods containing antioxidants along with zinc have been shown to delay the progression of advanced macular degeneration by 25%. Although studies are controversial, antioxidants are believed to also delay cataract formation. Other nutrients, such as Vitamin A, play a vital role in good retinal health and aid in both color and night vision. Lutein and zeaxanthin, both carotenoid nutrients, have also shown positive side effects in macular degeneration patients. Omega-3 fatty acids were shown to help prevent recurrent styes and improve dry eye symptoms.

7. Have Regular Eye Examinations

Having a regular eye examination promotes eye health. It is easy to do, cost-effective and you might just learn a thing or two. Serious eye conditions are usually detected before vision or eye health is impacted. Regular eye exams also allow your doctor to measure your vision so that changes can be made to your prescription, ensuring your best possible vision. Your doctor will look deep inside of your eyes, checking for any signs of disease. Many eye diseases, if detected early enough, can be treated successfully without significant vision loss.

The Computer Health Nut's Guide to Vision Improvement

Shortly after I got my first computer 15 years ago, I got my first pair of glasses. Computers are hard work for the eyes. A few years ago, I was holding menus and business cards at arm's length and considering getting either longer arms or bifocals.

Today, however, I wear no glasses.

So, what's this all about? It all started with William Bates, ophthalmologist, who first published his ideas in Better Eyesight magazine, in the 1920's. As he treated his patients, Bates noticed that contrary to what he was taught in optometry school, people's vision did vary from day to day; astigmatisms did change or disappear.

Bates had been taught that vision problems stem from malformed eyeballs, or lenses, or even from the muscles of the eyes themselves being too long or too short. But since no problems of the eye remained static, Bates developed exercises that can help people change their eyes for the better.

The basic exercises are palming, sunning, swinging, and vision shifting.

Palming

Rub your hands together to make them warm. (You can shake them or hold them in front of a heat vent if you prefer.) Then close your eyes. Cover your eyes with your warm hands. Make sure your hands do not touch your eyelids and that you do not rest your cheekbones on your hands.

If you want to place the weight of your head on your hands, put the weight on the forehead. I like to lie on my back with a couple of tennis balls under the achy part of my upper back, and cover my eyes with my hands in that position.

Then -- this is the exercise -- LOOK at the dark. My mom likes to pretend she's looking at black velvet. If you see spots or zaps of light, so be it. Wait. You will see the dark. Don't hurry. Do this at least twice a day for 5 to 15 minutes (Hey, that's what 15-minute breaks are for!).

Also, be sure to drink lots of water. This isn't in the Bates method -- it's part of what works for me.

Sunning
Try to do this once a day. It requires a sunny day, or a good desk lamp with an incandescent bulb. The exercise is simple. Close your eyes. Look directly at the sun through your closed eyes. While facing the sun, slowly rotate your head from side to side as far as you can.

This gets the sunlight on the peripheral vision, and it helps bring more blood circulation to your neck. Do this for 3 to 5 minutes. It's amazing, even on a cold day, how warm the sun feels on your eyes.

Swinging

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, arms hanging loosely at your sides. Look out a window, or do this outside if possible. Shift your weight to your right foot, and swing your upper body to the right, letting the heel of your left foot come up off the floor.

Watch your surroundings as you swing. If you can see a tree out the window or in the distance, notice how it seems to move opposite to the direction you are swinging. This exercise is good for your eyes and your back.

Vision shifting
It's as simple as it sounds. Whenever it occurs to you that you've been spending too much time staring at that monitor right in front of your face, purposely shift your vision to look at the weave of the fabric on your sleeve, or the poster on the wall, or the tree across the street.

Exercises for healthy eyesight

And you thought only physical body requires exercise. There are instances when your eyes get strained and stressed. Like the days you spent staring at the computer screen and felt drained and tired. The toll is taken by not only your body but also your eyes.

The natural state of the body is to be at peace. When we read to understand and learn new information, the mind becomes tense and tries to catch hold. This agitation strains the entire body, including the eyes. This is precisely the reason why people often feel drained after studying or working, even though they have not physically exerted themselves.

Like physical exercise strengthens and de-stresses the body from fatigue, similarly a few simple exercises go a long way in strengthening eye muscles and provide relaxation. The following recommended exercises help counterbalance the effects of eyestrain. The key to doing these exercises is to completely relax and empty the mind as in meditation or yoga.

The following eye exercises are frequently suggested by most health care providers:

Improve Visual Concentration

The first step is to strengthen visual concentration. Sit comfortably with your back and neck straight but not stiff. Start by holding each below mentioned posture for a few minutes and gradually increase the time.

Focus your gaze on the tip of your nose without blinking. Remain in this position for as long as you can. Then close your eyes and relax.
Focus on your “third eye” without blinking. This is the area between the eyebrows above your nose. Then close your eyes and relax. It may feel uncomfortable or hard to do at first, but do not give up. Keep your focus on that area and with time, you will find this posture easier to do.
Without turning your head, focus both eyes on your left shoulder. Remain in this position for as long as you can. Then close your eyes and relax. Repeat this sequence with the right shoulder.

After you are finished, place the palms of your hands on your closed eyes and rest for some time. This will help eye muscles relax.

Imagination for better eyesight

This is another exercise to improve visual concentration. First lie on your back facing up. Your palms should face the ceiling and your legs should be about shoulder-width apart. If you are doing this exercise in your office then sit comfortably in your chair.

Close your eyes. Breathe into your stomach. Feel it expand as it fills with air. Continue breathing in and out for a few minutes and then open your eyes. Pick a stationary object to look at. Close your eyes again and continue “looking” at that object. This exercise helps to relax your eyes. It also balances mental focus with imagination.

De-stress your eyes

Like the previous exercise, lie on your back facing up with palms facing the ceiling and legs about shoulder-width apart. Sit comfortably in your chair if you are doing this exercise in office.
Close your eyes and place your palms over your closed eyes. Breathe into your stomach. Feel it expand as it fills with air. Continue breathing in and out for a few minutes and then open your eyes. Pick a stationary object to look at keeping your mind empty. Do not attach yourself to it or stare at it. This exercise teaches you how to focus without straining or depleting your eyes.

The above three exercises help in improving and strengthening visual concentration. However, these alone are not enough for effective eye strengthening. Eyes, as we all know, are subjected to so many ordeals that cause various forms of discomfort and sight problems the most common being headache. The following set exercises that form a part of yoga aim to provide relief and strengthen eye muscles.

Sit at the edge of your chair with your back straight. Close your eyes and place the palm of each hand over an eye, so you feel your palms warming your eyes.
Remove your hands, keeping your eyes closed. Inhale deeply through your nose. Exhale and let your head drop forward than rotate it from side to side. Then shrug your shoulders, making circles with them forward and backward.
Close your eyes tightly and lift and tighten your shoulders as much as you can. Hold for a few seconds and then exhale, suddenly releasing your shoulders and opening your eyes. Repeat this several times.
Blink repeatedly, fluttering your eyelids until your eyes become moist. Repeat this several times.
Breathing naturally and focus on an object far away from you for about half a minute. Try to maintain your focus, blink rapidly several times. Then focus on a nearby object for about 15 seconds. Try to maintain your focus and blink rapidly several times.
To counteract the tendency to squint, look up while exhaling with eyes half open.
This exercise helps the extrinsic muscles that move the eyes. Try to keep your head straight and in line with your spine. Roll your eyes into all of the directions below while exhaling. Hold for a few seconds and then return your eyes to the center while you inhale.
Keep your head straight and look at the object ahead. Exhale and look from side to side without turning your head. Now try to exhale and turn your head from side to side several times letting your eyes follow the head movement. Then turn your upper body from side to side and let your eyes follow the body movement.
Place your palms over your eyes to warm them. When you are ready, remove them and open your eyes.

All these exercises done at regular intervals with proper care on inhaling and exhaling of air provide satisfactory results. For safeguard eyesight and de-stress eyes from strain one should take a break from work for a few minutes that exposes to potential things that cause eyestrain.

Vitamins That Improve Vision

Learn which eye vitamins naturally improve eye health. The Rebuild Your Vision Ocu-Plus Formula was designed to improve vision and eye health, and help people with Macular Degeneration, Glaucoma, and Cataracts."

Essential Nutrient #1: Alpha-Lipoic Acid ( One of our vitamins included in OcuPlus)

2006 may as well have been the "Year of the Antioxidant." The latest research has discovered these substances, which prevent or impede cell oxidation (destruction) by free radicals, in everything from red wine to blueberries to chocolate - and now, red meat.

Red meat is the richest food source of alpha-lipoic acid (ALA), which has been called the "universal," "ideal," and "ultimate" antioxidant. According to the UC Berkeley Wellness Letter, "What makes ALA special as an antioxidant is its versatility - it helps deactivate an unusually wide array of cell-damaging free radicals in many bodily systems."
ALA also helps "recycle" vitamins C and E and other antioxidants, thus making them much more effective.

ALA is thought to be a powerful weapon in the fight against the oxidative stress we encounter as we age. The incidence of eye problems such as macular degeneration, cataracts and pterygium (a fleshy growth on the cornea that can impede vision) increase dramatically as we age due to free-radical damage from factors such as smoking, poor nutrition, and exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light.

Three new super-earths discovered

2008-06-19T05:59:00.000-07:00

European researchers said on Monday they discovered a batch of three ‘super-Earths’ orbiting a nearby star, and two other solar systems with small planets as well.

They said their findings, presented at a conference in France, suggest that Earth-like planets may be very common.

“Does every single star harbour planets and, if yes, how many?” asked Michel Mayor of Switzerland’s Geneva Observatory. “We may not yet know the answer but we are making huge progress towards it,” Mayor said.

The trio of planets orbits a star slightly less massive than our Sun, 42 light-years away towards the southern Doradus and Pictor constellations. A light-year is the distance light can travel in one year at a speed of 300,000 km a second, or about 9.5 trillion km.

The planets are bigger than Earth — one is 4.2 times the mass, one is 6.7 times and the third is 9.4 times.

They orbit their star at extremely rapid speeds — one whizzing around in just four days, compared with Earth’s 365 days, one taking 10 days and the slowest taking 20 days.

Mayor and colleagues used the High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher or HARPS, a telescope at La Silla observatory in Chile, to find the planets. More than 270 so-called exoplanets have been found. Most are giants, resembling Jupiter or Saturn. Smaller planets closer to the size of Earth are far more difficult to spot.

None can be imaged directly at such distances but can be spotted indirectly using radio waves or, in the case of HARPS, spectrographic measurements. As a planet orbits, it makes the star wobble very slightly and this can be measured. “With the advent of much more precise instruments such as the HARPS spectrograph ... we can now discover smaller planets, with masses between 2 and 10 times the Earth’s mass,” said Stephane Udry, who also worked on the study. The team also said they found a planet 7.5 times the mass of Earth orbiting the star HD 181433 in 9.5 days. This star also has a Jupiter-like planet that orbits every three years.

Another solar system has a planet 22 times the mass of Earth, orbiting every four days, and a Saturn-like planet with a 3-year period.

“The analysis of all the stars studied with HARPS shows that about one third of all solar-like stars have either super-Earth or Neptune-like planets with orbital periods shorter than 50 days.”

TV viewing linked to obesity

2008-06-19T05:58:00.000-07:00

Too much television viewing makes you not only dull but also obese, according to a Canadian study.

The study, `Sedentary Behaviour and Obesity', has found a strong link between the number of hours spent watching television and the likelihood of being obese.

Based on the 2007 Canadian Community Health Survey involving 42,600 men and women aged 20 to 64, the study found that more time spent watching television increased obesity among both sexes.

"When factors such as age, marital status, education, household income, immigrant status and urban-rural residence were taken into account, the odds of obesity among men and women who reported watching television 21 or more hours a week were almost twice the odds for men and women who averaged five hours or fewer in front of the tube," Statistics Canada said, quoting the study.

The study also found link between time spent on computer and obesity among both sexes. It concluded: "Frequent computer users (11 or more hours per week) of both sexes had increased odds of obesity, compared with those who used computers for five or fewer hours per week."

It also found that even leisure-time computer use contributed to obesity among men and women.

"When age and other socio-demographic characteristics were taken into account, those who used computers for at least six hours a week had increased odds of being obese, compared with those who averaged no more than five hours," the study reported.

Curiously, the study found no link between reading (another sedentary activity) and obesity for either sex.

The study is line with other previous studies that have linked television viewing to obesity, irrespective of physical activity and dietary intake.

Mosquito breeding: Govt offices put on notice

2008-06-19T05:57:00.000-07:00

When it comes to breeding mosquitoes, government offices seem to lead the race. Sena Bhavan and UPSC Buildings are the latest in a long row of government offices to be served notices after being found to be breeding mosquitoes that cause diseases like malaria and dengue.

Karkardooma Courts and most of the city’s police stations were also found to be happy breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

When the raiding teams of the city’s civic agencies visited government offices this year, it was the same old story of neglect.

“Mosquitoes breed all over these offices, in water coolers and overhead tanks that are rarely checked,” said a health
department official.

Among residential colonies, RK Puram government flats were found to be the worst offenders with the dengue causing aedes aegypti mosquitoes breeding in the overhead water tanks.

With Delhi not experiencing the usually intense summers this year, health officials are worried about the early outbreak of vector-borne diseases.

Mosquito breeding is usually contained in summers because of the high temperatures.

“We have asked the MCD and NDMC to deploy the 3200 domestic mosquito breeding detectors from Friday. We have also asked civic agencies to meet RWA members and hold awareness campaigns in 272 wards of the city. We have also given directions for fogging in all areas,” said Yoganand Shastri, Delhi health minister.

The health department has also directed that every government office appoint a nodal officer who would be responsible for preventing mosquito breeding in the particular premises.

“We will supply them with Tamiphos, a drug which prevents mosquito breeding,” added Shastri. The city has already experienced 24 cases of cholera and the department has asked DJB and MCD to carry out joint sampling of drinking water.

“We have also arranged drinking water to be supplied by rickshaws in tail-end areas of the Walled City that do not get a proper supply,” added Shastri.

Indian kids to attend Disney's education series

2008-06-19T05:56:00.000-07:00

Eleven groups of Indian school students will fly to the United States from this summer to see Disney's magic.

This will be the first time that the students will participate in the numerous educational offerings of Disney Youth Education Series (YES) at the Walt Disney World Resort. The 11 school groups represent Amritsar, Phagwara, Jalandhar, New Delhi and Surat.

Some of the programmes the groups will enjoy include "Disney Production Arts and Sciences" which demonstrates the art of movie making from storyboarding to marketing a production; "Disney Animation Magic" where students learn the history of animation and the impact that Walt Disney had on the medium.

"Dynamics of Technology" shows how technology has advanced society, and "Properties of Motion: Energy and Waves" will explain how visual effects are used in Disney attractions. "Ocean Discoveries," "Making Waves with a Marine Career," and "Disney Leadership Excellence," are also part of the groups' itineraries.

Traditionally, travel agencies from the region offered student packages to the Northeast and California. With the increased demand for specialized trips to Florida, Smithsonian Travel in New Delhi worked with Receptively Yours travel in Ocoee to create packages for Central Florida.

The packages include several days at the Walt Disney World Resort, including a minimum of two Disney YES programmes. Disney YES areas of study include physical and natural science, culture and leadership, art, humanities and history.

Debate on Indo-US nuke deal on Wednesday

2008-06-19T05:55:00.000-07:00

The House of Representatives Rules Committee will meet on Capitol Hill on Tuesday afternoon to formulate a rule on "United States and India Nuclear Cooperation Promotion Act of 2006," slated for floor debate and vote on Wednesday.

HR 5682, sponsored by House International Relations Committee (HIRC) Republican Chairman Henry Hyde, the ranking Democrat on the Committee Tom Lantos, is the legislation seeking to amend the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to "specifically exempt India from certain requirements of the Act for a proposed nuclear cooperation agreement.

The legislation for implementing the accord between the two countries was overwhelmingly endorsed by two key congressional panels last month.

It will now go before the House tomorrow and after the summer recess before the Senate sometime in September.

According to indications from Congressional sources, the House will vote overwhelmingly for the deal, since "unprecedented lobbying effort" went into the smooth sailing of the legislation through the two panels of the House and Senate.

Large corporate houses, the business lobby, the US Chamber of Commerce and various Indian American groups undertook a massive lobbying efforts to ensure that India gets the civilian nuclear technology.

Those who did their part in lobbying efforts included top executives of JPMorgan Chase & Co, General Electric(GE) Co and Boeing Co, testifying to India's political clout.

"Last month's vote by the Congressional panels was influenced by pleas from the companies, US business groups and Indo-American business executives," sources said.

The lobbying was "a very impressive organisational effort," according to Representative Jim Leach, an Iowa Republican, who voted against the measure, saying it would not do anything to stop proliferation of nuclear-weapons technology.

Senator Barack Obama, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said there appears to be a very coordinated effort to have every Indian-American, that I know, to contact me before the vote by the Senate panel. Obama, a Democrat from Illinois, said "prominent investment banker" called as well.

Lalu Yadav bats for Indo-US nuclear deal

2008-06-19T05:51:00.001-07:00

Pitching for the Indo-US nuclear deal, RJD chief Lalu Prasad on Thursday said it is necessary for the country's development and it would be "unfortunate" if the agreement falls through.

As senior CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury met Prasad, the Railway Minister said the government needed to take the allies along as "we need both (the deal and the Left)".

"Government comes and goes. Nuclear power is a requirement and assets must be created for our next generation," he told reporters here.

Seeking to allay apprehensions of Left allies, Prasad said by signing the deal with the US, "we are not becoming a slave of America."

Contending that the Left has right to express their views, he said, "I am hopeful the deal will come through and if not, it will be unfortunate for the country."

To a question, he said "anyway we all are preparing for elections."

When asked whether the deal will be an election issue, he said "the controversy has been raised unnecessarily."

50 office-speak phrases you love to hate

2008-06-19T05:49:00.000-07:00

PLAY BOSS-SPEAK BINGO

Management speak - don't you just hate it? Emphatically yes, judging by readers' responses to writer Lucy Kellaway's campaign against office jargon. Here, we list 50 of the best worst examples.

1. "When I worked for Verizon, I found the phrase going forward to be more sinister than annoying. When used by my boss - sorry, "team leader" - it was understood to mean that the topic of conversation was at an end and not be discussed again."
Nima Nassefat, Vancouver, Canada

2. "My employers (top half of FTSE 100) recently informed staff that we are no longer allowed to use the phrase brain storm because it might have negative connotations associated with fits. We must now take idea showers. I think that says it all really."
Anonymous, England

3. At my old company (a US multinational), anyone involved with a particular product was encouraged to be a product evangelist. And software users these days, so we hear, want to be platform atheists so that their computers will run programs from any manufacturer."
Philip Lattimore, Thailand

4. "Incentivise is the one that does it for me."
Karl Thomas, Perth, Scotland

5. "My favourite which I hear from the managers at the bank I work for is let's touch base about that offline. I think it means have a private chat but I am still not sure."
Gemma, Wolverhampton, England

6. "Have you ever heard the term loop back which means go back to an associate and deal with them?"
Scott Reed, Lakeland, Florida, US

7-8. "We used to collect the jargon used in a list and award the person with the most at the end of the year. The winner was a client manager with the classic you can't turn a tanker around with a speed boat change. What? Second was we need a holistic, cradle-to-grave approach, whatever that is."
Turner, Manchester

9. "Until recently I had to suffer working for a manager who used phrases such as the idiotic I've got you in my radar in her speech, letters and e-mails. Once, when I mentioned problems with the phone system, she screamed 'NO! You don't have problems, you have challenges'. At which point I almost lost the will to live."
Stephen Gradwick, Liverpool

10. "You can add challenge to the list. Problems are no longer considered problems, they have morphed into challenges."
Irene MacIntyre, Courtenay, B

11. "Business speak even supersedes itself and does so with silliness, the shorthand for quick win is now low hanging fruit."
Paul, Formby, UK

12. "And looking under the bonnet."
Eve Russell, Edinburgh

13-14. "The business-speak that I abhor is pre-prepare and forward planning. Is there any other kind of preparedness or planning?"
Edward Creswick, Exeter

15-16. "The one that really gets me is pre-plan - there is no such thing. Either you plan or you don't. The new one which has got my goat is conversate, widely used to describe a conversation. I just wish people could learn to 'think outside the box' although when they put us in cubes what do they expect?"
Malcolm, Houston

17. "I work in one of those humble call centres for a bank. Apparently, what we're doing at the moment is sprinkling our magic along the way. It's a call centre, not Hogwarts."
Caroline Garlick, Ayrshire

18. "A pet hate is the utterly pointless expression in this space. So instead of the perfectly adequate 'how can I help?' it's 'how can I help in this space?' Or the classic I heard on Friday, 'How can we help our customers in this space going forward?' I think I may have caught this expression at source, as I've yet to hear it said outside my own working environment. So I'm on a personal crusade to stamp it out before it starts infecting other City institutions. Wish me luck in this space."
Colin, London

19. "The one phrase that inspires a rage in me is from the get-go."
Andy, Herts

20. "'Going forward' is only half the phrase that gets up my nose - all politicians seem to use the phrase go forward together. 'We must... we shall... let us now... go forward together'. It gives me a terrible mental image of the whole country linking arms and goose-stepping in unison, with the politicians out in front doing a straight-armed salute. Is it just me?"
Frances Smith, Toronto, Canada

21. "I am a financial journalist and am on a mission to remove words and phrases such as 360-degree thinking from existence."
Richard, London

22. "The latest that's stuck in my head is we are still optimistic things will feed through the sales and delivery pipeline (ie: we actually haven't sold anything to anyone yet but maybe we will one day)."
Alexander, Southampton

23. "I worked in PR for many years and often heard the most ludicrous phrases uttered by CEOs and marketing managers. One of the best was, we'd better not let the grass grow too long on this one. To this day it still echoes in my ears and I giggle to myself whenever I think about it. I can't help but think insecure business people use such phrases to cover up their inability for proper articulation."
Leon Reilly, Ealing, London

24. "Need to get all my ducks in a row now - before the five-year-olds wake up."
Mark Dixon, Bridgend

25. "Australians have started to use auspice as a verb. Instead of saying, 'under the auspices of...', some people now say things like, it was auspiced by..."
Martin Pooley, Marrickville, Australia

26. "My favourite: we've got our fingers down the throat of the organisation of that nodule. Translation = Er, no, WE sorted out the problems to cover your backside."
Theo de Bray, Kettering, UK

27. "The health service in Wales is filled with managers who use this type of language as a substitute for original thought. At meetings we play health-speak bingo; counting the key words lightens the tedium of meetings - including, most recently, my door is open on this issue. What does that mean?"
Edwin Pottle, Llandudno

28-29. "The business phrase I find most irritating is close of play, which is only slightly worse than actioning something."
Ellie, London

30. "Here in the US we have the cringe-worthy and also in addition. Then there's the ever-eloquent 'where are we at?' So far, I haven't noticed the UK's at the end of the day prefacing much over here; thank heavens for small mercies."
Eithne B, Chicago, US

31. "The expression that drives me nuts is 110%, usually said to express passion/commitment/support by people who are not very good at maths. This has created something of a cliche-inflation, where people are now saying 120%, 200%, or if you are really REALLY committed, 500%. I remember once the then-chancellor Gordon Brown saying he was 101% behind Tony Blair, to which people reacted 'What? Only 101?'"
Ricardo Molina, London, UK

32. "My least favourite business-speak term is not enough bandwidth. When an employee used this term to refuse an additional assignment, I realised I was completely 'out of the loop'."
April, Berkeley, US

33. "I once had a boss who said, 'You can't have your cake and eat it, so you have to step up to the plate and face the music.' It was in that moment I knew I had to resign before somebody got badly hurt by a pencil."
Tim, Durban

34. "Capture your colleagues - make sure everyone attends that risk management workshop (compulsory common sense training for idiots)."
Anglowelsh, UK

35-37. "We too used to have daily paradigm shifts, now we have stakeholders who must come to the party or be left out, or whatever."
Barry Hicks, Cape Town, RSA

38. "I have taken to playing buzzword bingo when in meetings. It certainly makes it more entertaining when I am feeding it back (or should that be cascading) at work."
Ian Everett, Bolton

39. "In my work environment it's all cascading at the moment. What they really mean is to communicate or disseminate information, usually downwards. What they don't seem to appreciate is that it sounds like we're being wee'd on. Which we usually are."
LMD, London

40. "At a large media company where I once worked, the head of human resources - itself a weaselly neologism for personnel - told us that she would be cascading down new information to staff. What she meant was she was going to send them a memo. It was one of the reasons I resigned - that, and the fact that the chief exec persisted on referring to the company as a really cool train set."
Andrew, London

41. "Working for an American corporation, this year's favourite word seems to be granularity, meaning detail. As in 'down to that level of granularity'."
Chris Daniel, Anaco, Venezuela

42. "On the wall of our office we have a large signed certificate, signed by all the senior management team, in which they solemnly promise to leverage their talents, display and inspire 'unyielding integrity', and lots of other pretentious buzz-phrases like that. Clueless, the lot of them."
Chris K, Cheltenham UK

43. "After a reduction in workforce, my university department sent this notice out to confused campus customers: 'Thank you for your note. We are assessing and mitigating immediate impacts, and developing a high-level overview to help frame the conversation with our customers and key stakeholders. We intend to start that process within the week. In the meantime, please continue to raise specific concerns or questions about projects with my office via the Transition Support Center..."
Charles R, Seattle, Washington, US

44. "I was told I'd be living the values from now on by my employers at a conference the other week. Here's some modern language for them - meh. A shame as I strongly believe in much of what my employers aim to do. I refuse to adopt the voluntary sectors' client title of 'service user'. How is someone who won't so much as open the door to me using my service? Another case of using four syllables where one would do."
Upscaled Blue-Sky thinker, Cardiff

45. "Business talk 2.0 is maddening, meaningless, patronising and I despise it."
Doug, London

46. "Lately I've come across the strategic staircase. What on earth is this? I'll tell you; it's office speak for a bit of a plan for the future. It's not moving on but moving up. How strategic can a staircase really be? A lot I suppose, if you want to get to the top without climbing over all your colleagues."
Peter Walters, Cheadle Hulme, UK

47. "When a stock market is down why must we be told it is in negative territory?"
Phil Linehan, Mexico City, Mexico

48. "The particular phrase I love to hate is drill down, which handily can be used either as an adverb/verb combo or as a compound noun, ie: 'the next level drill-down', sometimes even in the same sentence - a nice bit of multi-tasking."
B, London

49. "Thanks for the impactful article; I especially appreciated the level of granularity. A high altitude view often misses the siloed thinking typical of most businesses. Absent any scheme for incentivitising clear speech, however, I'm afraid we're stuck with biz-speak."
Timothy Denton, New York

50. "It wouldn't do the pinstripers any harm to crack a smile and say what they really felt once in a while instead of trotting out such clinical platitudes. Of course a group of them may need to workshop it first: Wouldn't want to wrongside the demographic."
Trick Cyclist, Tripoli, Libya