Excelsior... Nation

Army denies joint
operation with Myanmar
forces in Manipur

IMPHAL, Nov 8: Army today denied of carrying a joint operation with Myanmar forces to drive out rebels from Manipur and. .....more

Mystery beneath waters
of skeleton lake unearthed
in documentary

NEW DELHI, Nov 8: A mystery that has haunted scientists, historians and mountaineers from around the world for more than sixty years will be ......more

Sweets could cause cancer

LUCKNOW, Nov 8: Sweets, bright and tempting, may contain colours which are even carcinogenic, experts have warned. ....more

High-level committee
to probe alleged
irregularities in PTU

JALANDHAR, Nov 8: A high-level committee headed by deputy Chief Minister Rajinder Kaur .....more

Khurshid as UPCC
chief: fight for Muslim
votes to intensify

LUCKNOW, Nov 8: By handing over the reigns of its Uttar Pradesh unit to known Mulayam-basher Salman Khurshid, the Congress high command has ......more

Doctors "isolate" rare
tumor causing osteomalacia

LUCKNOW, Nov 8: Doctors at the prestigious Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute ......more

Kalam calls for including art in edicational curriculum

NEW DELHI, Nov 8: President A P J Abdul Kalam made a suggestion for including art as a subject in the educational curriculum .....more

Imran Khan meets Sonia

NEW DELHI, Nov 8: Pakistani cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan today met Congress president Sonia Gandhi and said she assured him of India’s ......more

Army denies joint operation with Myanmar forces in Manipur

IMPHAL, Nov 8: Army today denied of carrying a joint operation with Myanmar forces to drive out rebels from Manipur and said the security forces had been carrying out counter-insurgency operation as a "normal duty".

"Security forces had been carrying out counter-insurgency operation in several areas of Manipur as a normal duty and at least 13 militants had been killed, 34 ultras apprehended and 20 weapons recovered since September", Army PRO Maj S D Goswami said adding "no joint operation with Myanmar is being carried out to eject insurgents."

He said the Army was not aware whether Myanmar troops had been carrying out a similar operation on their side.

The spokesman said there was no particular name for the ongoing counter-insurgency operation although some papers had termed it as "operation all clear."

The Army PRO denied that he had ever said 6000 troops had been deployed in the interior region or 100 rebel camps had been attacked by the Army since Monday last in Manipur.

Two jawans had lost their lives in the present operation and one lieutenant was injured in a mine blast, he said.

Some senior civil and security officials told PTI that four brigades of Army besides Assam Rifles, CRPF, BSF and other Central forces in addition to state forces like police, Manipur rifles and India Reserve Battalion Forces, were engaged in the present counter-insurgency operation.

They said that there was no joint operation with Myanmar forces and a section of media were "concocting stories that a Bhutan-like operation against ULFA some months ago was being carried out in Manipur."

The officials said reports in a section of the media that Myanmar troops had closed its borders to cut off escape routes for insurgents "must have been based on assumption following the recent visit of Myanmar leader than shwe to New Delhi."

They said 44th Mountain Brigade of the Army had been posted at Chakpikarong area near Sajik Tampak in Chandel district about two months ago following which some militants had escaped to some other interior areas particularly neighbouring Bishenpur and Churachandpur districts. (PTI)

Mystery beneath waters of skeleton lake unearthed in documentary

NEW DELHI, Nov 8: A mystery that has haunted scientists, historians and mountaineers from around the world for more than sixty years will be unravelled in a television programme tomorrow, when skeleton lake probes the story of the Roopkund lake in Uttaranchal.

The findings will be telecast at 2200 hrs tomorrow night on the national geographic channel, to reveal the secret behind the lake’s mass grave in Uttaranchal based on the latest anthropological evidence that has been unearthed.

It all started in 1942, when a forest ranger accidentally unearthed a mass grave in Roopkund lake, an area 16,000 feet above sea level in Uttaranchal. With hundreds of skeletons strewn on the slopes of the Himalayas this colossal tragedy shook people worldwide. Several theories were put forth to explain this riddle, which were further perpetuated by local folklore. Questions were asked whether this was a royal pilgrimage, a vanquished army, a ritualistic suicide, an epidemic, or were they Tibetan traders who lost their way.

The film has been en produced by miditech, directed by Chandramouli Basu and written by Niret and Nikhil Alva. It will be a part of the channel’s latest series, forensic investigation report which began on November one. It is a long running series that uses a mix of science and investigative techniques to solve some of the most astounding, unanswered riddles of our times. Miditech chief executive officer Nikhil Alva told UNI that it was a film he had dreamt of making for over 15 years - when "I first heard about the skeletons and the various theories associated with them, while trekking in the region, .

Dating back to the 9th century AD, the Roopkund riddle has troubled scientists and historians. The national geographic channel sent a team of Indian and international scientists led by cultural anthropologist Dr William Sax (head of the anthropology department at Heidelberg university in Germany) to reveal the truth. The other key members included forensic scientist, prof rakesh bhatt of India’s Garhwal university, paleopathologist Dr Pramod Joglekar of the deccan college in west India and Dr M P S Bhist, a Himalayan.

It started out as a regular excavation where the team retrieved several hundreds of bones strewn on the slopes, artifacts like glass fragments, conch shell fragments, bamboo pieces and parts of what looked like a parasol. Soon things turned exciting as a spear was also found. No one had found any weapons at the lake before.

However, the most remarkable find came a bit later when the team discovered a body. It proved to be a rich source of dna material. Over the period of a year, as the test results from different laboratories around the world started coming in, the various pieces of the jigsaw started falling into place. It is now believed that two ethnic groups involved. The large group included several women and children. The film attempts to answer questions of how these people died. (UNI)

Sweets could cause cancer

LUCKNOW, Nov 8: Sweets, bright and tempting, may contain colours which are even carcinogenic, experts have warned.

Industrial Toxicology Research Centre (ITRC) deputy Director and food toxicology division head Dr Mukul Das and his group recently conducted a random sampling of sweets and snacks in Lucknow and adjoining rural areas and found that the sweets, particularly those coloured brightly in red, green, purple, yellow and orange, contain non-permissible synthetic dyes.

Dr Das told UNI that the tests showed the presence of Azo (nitrogen-based) dyes including rhodamin (pink in colour), malachite green (green), orange-2 (orange), metanin yellow (yellow, commonly sold as ‘Gau Maar Ka Rang’) and blue vrs (blue).

He said the dyes are not only non-permissible but have also been found to cause ill-effects like growth retardation, indigestion, anaemia, allergies to skin, damage to liver and kidney and in some cases also cause cancer.

The usage of these dyes increased during the festival time like Diwali, Eid and Holi as the demand for sweets and ready made snacks was more,he added.

"We collected samples of sweets including ‘Laddoos’, brightly coloured ‘Barfis’, ‘Imartis’, sweets being made in shapes of fruits like apples, pears, oranges, etc, snacks like sago papad and fryums, ice candies and sugar toys. A number of these food items were so brightly coloured that one look at them could easily tell that the colours used were not natural but artificial, and had been put in a large quantity," Dr Das said.

He said even in roasted chicken, mutton, paneer curries, sheer maal (a delicacy prepared on eid) and in biryanis and fried rice a distinct use of metanin yellow and orange-2 was found.

Dr Das said among the 30 per cent of the samples, the usage of harmful synthetic dyes was found to be more in the rural areas and in the roadside sweet shops rather than the big shops. "We guessed this may be because big shopkeepers take into consideration their credibility in the market more than the roadside ones.

Moreover, the synthetic dyes were more readily available and cheaper than the natural colours at the colour shops as they had varied uses in the leather, textile and furniture industry, the ITRC scientist said. Besides,the shopkeepers tried to create new colours to attract the buyers to sell their sweets, he added.

He said though the use of synthetic colours was more earlier with as much as 60 per cent in 70s, the trend was now showing a decline.

Also, the metanin yellow, which was commonly sold as ‘Gau Maar Ka Rang’ was being used in abundance by the shopkeepers without any check despite its can carrying a warning that it was not fit for consumption.

A number of other samples during the tests were also found to be containing the permissible colours in more than the specified limit of 100 ppm (parts per million).

With no concrete checks in place to prevent such sales, it was up to the people to remain cautious and not being allured by the bright colours of the food items which may cause severe illnesses to them, he said adding that simple and homemade delicacies were still a better option during festivals. (UNI)

High-level committee to probe alleged irregularities in PTU

JALANDHAR, Nov 8: A high-level committee headed by deputy Chief Minister Rajinder Kaur bhattal would probe the alleged irregularities in the appointment of 95 employees and doling out of a large sum to a company as an advance for an e-governmence project by the Punjab Technical University (PTU).

"We have received complaints of alleged irregularities adopted by the PTU in the appointment of 95 employees and in doling out crores of rupees to a company, which was awarded the job to initiate the university’s e-governance project," Bhattal, who holds the technical education portfolio also, said today.

"The committee, headed by me, will meet on Novmeber 20 to probe the allegations," the Punjab deputy Chief Minister, who was here to inaugurate PTU-Inter Zonal Youth Festival, said.

When pointed out that the appointment of these 95 employees, declared +tainted+ by the State Vigilance Bureau which even booked former Akali Minister Jagdish Singh Garcha for the alleged irregularities, was reportedly being "regualrised" by PTU, Bhattal assured that she would look into the matter.

Bhattal said that she had received complaints of doling out of Rs three crore as an advance to a company by PTU. "The allegations will be thoroughly probed and whosoever is found guilty, will not be spared," she said.

She said steps would be taken to make the courses at PTU job-oriented.

"New courses will be introduced after discontinuing the dead ones and a five year plan will be formulated to improve the standard of PTU," Bhattal said, adding arrangement for extra coaching would be made for candidates from rural areas.

Asked about the reports published in a section of media claiming that the Chief Minister had overridden her by issuing no-objection certificate to some nursing institutes, Bhattal denied it and said whatever the Chief Minister had done was in the interest of the nursing students. (PTI)

Khurshid as UPCC chief: fight for Muslim votes to intensify

LUCKNOW, Nov 8: By handing over the reigns of its Uttar Pradesh unit to known Mulayam-basher Salman Khurshid, the Congress high command has made it clear that it is not interested in "shadow boxing" with ruling SP and the fight for Muslim votes is likely to "intensify" between the two parties.

"Now the fight for Muslim votes between the SP and the Congress will intensify," state BJP president Kesri Nath Tripathi said.

"By appointing Salman Khurshid as UPCC president, the Congress has made it clear that it will play communal politics in the state to revive its fortunes," he claimed.

The recent Lok Sabha polls had witnessed a high voltage campaigning by the Congress and the Samajwadi Party leaders to woo the Muslims with the former emerging victorious by bagging 36 Lok Sabha seats, several of them in the Muslim dominated areas.

With the SP’s resounding victory in the recent Vidhan Sabha bypolls, the equations in the house too have changed and it no longer depends on the Congress for its survival.

The policy of the Congress, which was instrumental in the installation of the Mulayam Singh Yadav Government in the state vis-a-vis the Samajwadi Party had not being finding favour with the party workers, who were exerting pressure on the high command to withdraw its support.

SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav and its general secretary Amar Singh’s diatribe against the Congress and latter’s continuous threat to review its support as also criticism of the law and order situation in the state added to the existing problems between the two parties.

Incidentally Salman, who had donned the mantle of UPCC presidentship earlier also, was removed after a section of the partymen had pleaded that his removal was essential to lend strength to the SP for dislodging the then Mayawati regime.

The ruling party leaders have, however, dubbed Salman’s arrival as "old wine in new bottle" and opined that he would prove to be a "failurongress victory at 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state," state SP chief Ram Saran Das said.

Besides, Salman would also have to confront the rampant groupism in the state unit of Congress and placate various factions to ensure a smooth seems certain that the relations between the SP and the Congress would come under further strains during his tenure. (PTI)

Doctors "isolate" rare tumor causing osteomalacia

LUCKNOW, Nov 8: Doctors at the prestigious Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGIMS) have claimed to "isolate" the tumour, a rare cause of bone pains, fractures and osteomalacia.

"One of the rare causes of bone pains, fractures and osteomalacia could be a tumor, whose diagnosis is difficult and the duration of the disease before the diagnosis could be upto 20 years," associate professor in the Department of Endocrinolgy at the Institute Dr Sushil Gupta said.

"Since the tumor is very small and can occur anywhere in the body, it is extremely difficult to localise," associate Professor in the Department of Endocrine Surgery, Dr Amit Agarwal said, adding the tumor localization requires extensive investigation and usually not available even in the best of medical centres in the country.

In this condition when the serum phosphorus is very low leading to reduced bone formation, the usual treatment of osteomalacia like vitamin-D and calcium replacement, are not effective, Agarwal said.

The fact that only 130-140 cases of osteomalacia caused by a tumor had so far been reported in the world, is an ample proof of how difficult its detection is, Agarwal said adding incidently none of those reported cases was from India.

Agarwal said more often the patients suffering from this rare form of osteomalacia approach the orthopaedic surgeons but the treatment like putting nail/plate suggested by them, though very common, are not effective.

He claimed that as the diagnosis is very difficult the number of people suffering from this kind of osteomalacia could be extremely large.

Osteomalacia, a crippling disease of bone and muscles, which results in muscle weakness is mainly caused by Vitamin-D deficiency, which was common in the country due to poor sun-exposure, lack of dietary sources in vegetarian diet and poor calcium intake, Gupta said.

The disease could result in multiple fractures and deformed bones and affects all ages, Gupta said adding that diagnosis is often missed for many years, thus delaying the treatment. (PTI)

Kalam calls for including art in edicational curriculum

NEW DELHI, Nov 8: President A P J Abdul Kalam made a suggestion for including art as a subject in the educational curriculum to make the education process complete and asked the National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA) to identify the young talents in different form of arts through the hallowed ‘guru-shisya’ (teacher-taught) tradition.

In his inaugural address to mark the 50th year celebrations of the NGMA, Dr Kalam also charted out six new projects for the museum which it could undertake as its golden jubilee missions.

He said the NGMA can create a virtual art gallery with a digital walk-through for placement in the website so that people from different parts of the country can visit the galleries from homes and get inspired from the exhibits.

Secondly, it should create a data base of researchers who have used the national art gallery for carrying out research on different topics and the latest results of these researches.

Thirdly, the NGMA should convert the summer painting workshops to identify the young talents in different form of arts and introduce them to a noted master of painting so that the talent can be nurtured and allowed to blossom. It should also consider granting scholarship for providing financial assistance in deserving cases.

Fourthly, it should undertake a project on cost-effective preservation and renovation of paintings including the application of nano-technology as a means of preserving its future acquisitions.

Fifthly, the NGMA should digitize all the acquisitions of NGMA progressively along with the researched data on the art and painting, which will enable bringing out a comprehensive document on ngma for use by eminent artists and students.

Lastly, the president said, the museum should conduct seminars with new technology exposure to the young artists and also create a agencies, business experts to visit and see the inherent potential of the country’s artists.

Heard in rapt attention by Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee, Information and Broadcasting and Culture Minister S Jaipal Reddy, NGMA Director Rajiv Lochan, Culture Secretary Neena Ranjan and a distinguished gathering of eminent painters, Dr Kalam said young talents should be allowed to nurture the natural artistic strength in different areas of the country.

"There are a number of arts and artistic expressions hidden in our ancient village culture which have not been brought to usage by the modern generation. It is necessary to carry out research...Document them and bring them as curriculum to the students.

"This is how we will be able to hand down the civilizational heritage to our future generations," he said, adding that the art gallery should request leading artists to deliver weekly inspirational lectures in the gallery for motivating the children to develop a taste for modern art.

Noted art personalities Satish Gujral, Amarnath Sehgal, Jehangir Sabavala, Krishan Khanna and Manjit Bawa were among those present on the occasion.

Dr Kalam, on the occasion, inaugurated "signposts of the times: the golden trail (1954-2004), which seeks to showcase not only the landmark works in the collection of NGMA, but also charts the development of modern Indian art from 1850 onwards.

M F Husain S Zameen (1953), which won the first national award and was bought by the NGMA in the fifties, is among the 250 works on display. It also features works of painting legends like Nandlal Bose, Jamini Roy, Ram Kinkar, S B Palsikar, A N Tagore, J Swaminathan, Tyeb Mehta, Krishan Khanna and Manjit Bawa.

The President also released four slick portfolios containing ten reproductions each of Nandlal Bose and Jamini Roy.

On sale will be six coffee mugs, each with the reproduction of a famous painting. In addition, there will be two tee shirts, one with the reproduction of a Rabindra Nath Tagore painting and the another with the reproduction of a Ram Kinkar painting.

The President called for the use of nano powder for providing preservative qualities to the paintings and sculpture. "The various technological options in creation, preservation and promotion should form part of the art education," he suggested.

In the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the Kajar painting in the Ashoka hall was temporarily replaced with a digital print of the original.

Candidly admitting that he was not well-versed with the domain of art, Speaker Somnath Chatterjee, however, took pride in the fact that his Parliamentary constituency included Shantiniketan, the famous seat of art and learning.

"I represent the great constituency of Shantiniketan, which has made tremendous contributions to art and culture in the country," he said.

Mr Reddy, while lauding the NGMA for its historic journey spanning 50 years, said the occasion was "both to celebrate and cerebrate" in the field of culture.

"The NGMA has retained its youthfulness during the five decades of its existence by depicting socio-economic and emotional realities of our times with unprecedented vigour."

He said the museum, set up in 1954 at the initiative of the then Vice-President S Radhakrishnan and the then Education Minister Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, should hammer out suitable strategies to give impetu to artists and evolve into a "true global powerhouse of modern art."

NGMA Director Rajiv Lochan, taking pride in the Indian art being arguably the most vibrant in Asia, said when the curtains were lifted on the gallery in 1954, it had less than 200 works in its inventory. The number had now swelled up to around 17,000 paintings, scultures, graphics and photographs.

He said the NGMA had the honour of organising the shows of works of Rodin’s sculptures, photographs by Henri Cartier-Bresson and original graphics by Piccaso, Matisse, Braque, Chagall and De Kooning.

Mr Lochan said the NGMA had spread its wings in 1996 with an operational branch at Mumbai while the Bangalore branch, located in Manikyavelu mansion, a heritage building, is likely to be operational by 2005.

About the new wing of the NGMA, he said it would be fully functional by 2006. "It will be equipped with state of the art technology support services in the form of CCTV, environmental control, intrusion alarm system, automatic fire detection and protection system."

He said the NGMA had reached an agreement with Hewleet Packard which would enable visitors to get a print of any important work of art on display. (UNI)