Revisiting
Mughal Retreats
M.B. Mughal
The historical Mughal Road in
ancient times had been a cart road as mentioned
in Raj Trangini. Abu-al-Fazal also mentions it in
his book "Ain-e-Akbari. Detailed description
of Mughal Road, however, finds its place in
famous "Tuzak-i-Jahangiri" which is
based on daily diary maintained by Emperor
Jahangir. Since the salt was the main item which
was imported from Punjab and West Bengal to
Kashmir Valley through this route, it was also
named as "Salt Road".
It was this route that was used by famous Chinese
ambassador Heiun Tsong in 633 A.D. Famous
historian "Burnier" also travelled
through this route and has described about the
highest peak "Tatta Kutti" and other
places of historical importance existing on
either sides of Mughal Road in his tour note.
Mirza Haider Beg Tughlaq crossed Pir Panchal pass
and descended in Kashmir Valley on November 21,
1540 A.D. Akbar the Great 1st came to Kashmir
using this route in 1586 and thereafter used this
route with Royal Carvan for three times. The
Emperor Jahangir used this route for eleven times
to reach Srinagar from Lahore. Subsequently
Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, Aurangzeb and Sultans
of Kashmir also followed this route.. ......more
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Celebrating
womanhood
Dr. Indu Swami
International
Women's Day (IWD) is a major day of
global celebration for the economic,
political and social achievements of
women. It is celebrated on 8 March every
year by women's groups around the world.
In India, International Women's Day is
all about celebrating a woman and paying
tribute to the multi-roles she plays in
life. This important day provides an
opportunity to celebrate the progress
made to advance women's rights and to
assess the challenges that remain. IWD
encourages us to consider steps to bring
about equality for women and girls in all
their diversity and to celebrate the
collective power of women past, present
and future. One can see a lot of
celebrations going on on this day. It is
observed as an occasion for men to
express their sympathy, love and honour
to the women around them or in their
lives… mom, sis, wife, girlfriend,
colleagues, etc. by presenting flowers
and small gifts. In some countries, it is
also observed as an equivalent of
Mother's Day and St. Valentine's Day
mixed together. This portrays the power
of women in the modern era and how vital
their role is in the society.
But what does International Women's Day
mean for millions of girls in India who
cannot attend or finish school because
they have to graze cattle, labour in the
house or fields, or are sexually harassed
and humiliated by their
teachers/principals? According to last
census held in 2001, the percentage of
female literacy in the country is 54.16
per cent. .
... .....more
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‘No
plans of joining politics'
 Sourav Ganguly has bid
adieu to international cricket but he still
remains passionate about the sport. IPL is high
on his agenda and that's why he has taken the
judge's seat to select cheerleaders for the
Kolkata Knight Riders in T.V. reality show
'Knights and Angels'. Ganguly speaks to Ritesh
Sharma on life post retirement, cricket, reality
shows and more. How did this show Knights And
Angels happen?
It's all because of IPL (Indian Premier League).
It's because of cricket I am here and no other
reason. And I am really enjoying it. It's a new
experience and I am here choosing cheerleaders.
And it's a good way to spend some time post
retirement.
Yes, of course. After so many years of continuous
cricket, I am finally relaxing. This is good way
to relax though because I am still keeping my
association with cricket.
What about politics? A lot of speculations are
being made that you might just join politics?
(Smiles) No way. I am not joining politics and
have no intentions in joining it in the near
future. I am happy with the way I am.
Okay, but it might be that you change your
opinion some day.
(Smiles again) As of now I am sure that my
decision of not joining politics won't
change… and I am really confident about it
that I won't join it.
So, how did this show happen?
As I said I am here for the sake of cricket. It
was Shah Rukh (Khan) who requested me to be a
judge and I also thought. ......more
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Rituparno
Ghosh plays gay in Bengali film
 Filmmaker
Kaushik Ganguly, whose current film Jackpot is
quite a winner at the box office, is now in the
news for his next film, Chhaya Chhobi. Based on
the subject of alternate sexuality, Ganguly has
convinced renowned filmmaker Rituparno Ghosh to
play the gay lead in the film. Shoma A. Chatterji
asks him some point-blank questions.Homosexuality
is a very challenging subject. What made you
choose it?
I always choose very challenging subjects for my
telefilms and feature films. Some years back, I
did a tele-film called Ushno-taar Jonno (For
Warmth) that dealt with two women who fell in
love and lived together till one of them, who was
bisexual, married and moved away. The television
audience accepted the film and some even liked it
a lot. So, I felt, why not a full-length feature
film on the same subject of alternate sexuality?
But in this new film you are featuring two men,
aren't you?
That's right. I am specially intrigued by what
goes on in the mind of a man who speaks and
behaves like a woman. Just because his behaviour
is against social norms that dictate how a man
should behave, anything different is either made
fun of or not tolerated in other ways. How does a
man with these traits cope with mainstream
society? There is a deep sense of pain that comes
through alienation and imposed loneliness. It is
not just homosexuality and gay relationships I am
dealing .. .........more
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Prevent Hair
from Holi - effect
Shahnaz Husain
 Holi is celebrated
at a time when Nature renews and
refreshes herself. With a little
care, we can do the same,
sustaining and protecting our
beauty.
The dry "Gulal" and the
wet colours of today are not
derived from natural sources.
They contain chemicals, shiny
particles of mica and even lead,
which not only irritate the skin,
but also collect on the scalp.
Since Holi is played out of
doors, sun-exposure can also have
a detrimental effect on the skin.
Apart from harmful UV radiation,
sun-exposure makes the skin dry
by causing depletion of moisture
and also. People with dry skins
can really suffer, even causing
skin sensitivity, with itching,
flaking and rough patches. Both
the skin and hair can become dry
and dull after playing holi.
Remember to apply a sunscreen and
moisturizer 20 minutes before
going out to play holi. Use a
sunscreen of SPF 15 and above. If
your skin is prone to pigmented
patches, select one with a higher
SPF. Most sunscreens have
built-in moisturizers.
The real problem is removal of
colours after playing holi.
Before your bath, use a cleansing
gel or cream, applying it on the
face and massaging it gently on
the skin. A cleansing gel helps
to dissolve the colours and
facilitates their removal. Then
wipe the face with moist cotton
wool . . . ......more
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Asthma
Myths
Dr. Sanjeev Narang
 Various myths prevail among
people regarding asthama. Improper treatment of
Astma causes lot of sufferings to patients and it
becomes a centre of anxiety for the entire
family. Both the family members and the patient
himself keep on search for the other kind of
unscientific remedies for cure of Asthma or they
keep on changing doctors and usually Asthmatics
get easily trapped by quacks or unqualified
persons and such helpless patients are willing to
spend any amount to 'cure' there Asthma. Moreoer,
remain prone to various mysths that have been
created around this disease.
* Asthma is a curable disease: The diagnosis of
Asthma is unacceptable to many people because of
the stigma associated with it. Large number of
Indians still think that Asthma is a curable
disease and the magic lies in other system of
medicine or 'Desi' medicines. This misconception
is the biggest hurdle for Asthma management.
Truth is 'Asthma is not curable' but can be
controlled by proper medicines, avoidance of
triggering factors of Asthma and health education
of patient.
* Asthma is a contagious disease: This is a
common notion but totally wrong. It might be an
inherited disease and there is a 30% chance of
having Asthma if one parent is suffering from
same and 70% .....more
Managing
Time
Md Vazeeruddin
 How can you
manage time which is always fleeting and flying?
This question, posed to me by Ms. Revathi Turaga
of the Meta Mind Management, was baffling, to say
the least, because just a day earlier I had
attended a workshop on time management that she
had conducted on behalf of Meta Mind Management
at Hyderabad. How could she have conducted a
workshop on a concept that she did not seem to
believe in?
That is no paradox, she explained to me patiently
during the interview. "People tell me that
they want to be coached to manage their time
better. But we cannot manage time which just
keeps ticking away, no matter what we do or do
not do. Therefore, what we can do is manage
ourselves based on two concepts of Meta Mind
Management: mindsets and skill sets." This
conversational gambit convinced me that her
observations would qualify for inclusion in any
anthology of management sagacity. A sure-footed
ability to communicate with the audience was as
much in evidence during the interview as it had
been during the workshop.
But how do we do that? I asked rather testily.
"The answer is simple: we plan. To plan is
to prioritize, learn to be free, to take action
and keep working on ever new things, and ever new
ways of doing even old things," she said
very much in the manner of a school teacher
dealing with . ...more
The
Future Lights
G V Joshi
 A new way of making cheap
Gallium Nitride (GaN) light emitting diodes (LED)
may see household lighting bills reduced by up to
75% within the next five years.
Gallium Nitride (GaN), a man-made semiconductor
used to make LEDs, emits brilliant light but uses
very little electricity. Until now high
production costs had made GaN lighting too
expensive for wide spread use in homes and
offices.
Now, the scientists working at the Cambridge
University, UK have developed a new way of making
GaN LEDs for a tenth of current prices. Since the
1990s, GaN is made in laboratories on expensive
sapphire wafers, but it can now be grown on
silicon wafers. This low-cost method could mean
that cheap mass produced GaN LEDs might become
widely available for lighting homes and offices
in the next five years.
This could cut the proportion of electricity used
for lights from 20% to 5%. That means that the
power shut periods experienced by us routinely
could be a thing of the past.
A GaN LED can work for 100,000 hours so, on
average, it only needs replacing after 60 years.
And, unlike currently available energy-saving
tube lights or compact fluorescent lamps (CFL),
GaN LEDs are also eco-friendly because they do
not contain harmful mercury. GaN LEDs also have
the advantage of turning on instantly and being
dimmable. .......more
Anger
: An Obstacle
Gani Rajendra Vijay-
 Anger is the biggest
hindrance in the development of a person. It
shows the weakness of mind. In a state of anger,
man cannot discriminate right from wrong and does
not indulge in rational behaviour. This not only
weakens man's potentialities to work but affects
his family and social life too. In today's world
anger free life is impossible. We all succumb to
anger some or the other other time. It is easy to
understand the semblance of anger externally but
difficult to recognize its inner form.
According to Mahavir's philosophy, anger is a
volcano, which expresses itself in burst through
infinite ages. According to the environment of
psychology, anger is an infectious parasite,
which spreads disease around along with infecting
the victim. According to the aegis of demeanour,
anger is that madness which gives birth to lunacy
and kills life's sweetness and peace within
moments. According to the karma theory, anger is
born out of the intensity of the actions alluring
the character magnetism. In the language of
anatomy-imbalanced secretion of hormones and
neurotransmitters create anger.
Anger affects digestion, heart, respiratory
system, nervous system, muscles, every part of
the body. Anger distorts the nervous system.
Heart's weakened energies bring about changes in
the blood circulation in body resulting in brain
haemorrhage, ulcer, acidity, arthritis, diabetes
and a person becomes prone to heart attack. The
intensity of anger poisons our blood.
Scientifically it has been proven that an angry
mother, breast-feeding her child .....more
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