26th of Aug 09
Officials said that NHS staff had a duty to take the jab, to ensure they did not pass on the virus to those who were already sick.
The warning follows a spate of surveys which suggest that many healthcare workers will refuse the vaccine, despite being on the Government's “priority list”.
Up to half of GPs and one in three nurses say that they do not plan to take the vaccine, some because of concerns over safety.
Vivienne Parry, a member of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, (JCVI) who advise ministers on vaccines, said that health professionals should protect “vulnerable patients” from the virus.
She said: “This (protection) aspect does not seem to feature at all in medical staff responses about flu vaccination, which is extremely concerning.
“Indeed the word ‘patient’ hardly seems to figure at all in responses in this and other surveys of healthcare workers, even though 75 per cent of deaths from swine flu are in those with serious underlying medical conditions who are in regular contact with healthcare workers.”
Prof David Salisbury, the Department of Health's director of immunisation, told GP magazine, which carried out the poll, that frontline health workers had a “duty” to have the vaccine.
“They have a duty to their patients not to infect their patients and they have a duty to their families,” he said.
More than two thirds of GPs who told Pulse magazine that they would turn down the jab believe that it has not undergone enough tests.
Doctors have been warned to look out for possible signs of Guillain Barre Syndrome, a rare neurological condition, which can cause paralysis and even death.
A vaccine used against flu in America in 1976 caused a number of cases of the condition.
However, the World Health Organisation (WHO) insists that the production of vaccines has become much safer since then.
Human trials are currently underway and will be scrutinised by the regulatory authorities before the vaccines will be licensed for use, probably in October.
Earlier this month a poll of almost 1,500 Nursing Times readers revealed that one in three said that they would not have the swine flu vaccine.
Uptake of the seasonal flu vaccine among NHS staff has been traditionally low, and just 16 per cent of all those employed by the health service took the vaccine last year.
Another study published online by the British Medical Journal shows that half of 8,500 healthcare workers in Hong Kong say that they would refuse a swine flu vaccine, because of safety concerns and worries that it would not work very well.
Researchers said that the figures were surprisingly low given the impact the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) virus had on the area.
However, some experts insisted that the polls did not prove that NHS staff were “irresponsible” or had serious concerns about the safety of the vaccine.
Prof Robert Dingwall, Director of the Institute for Science and Society at the University of Nottingham, said that it was important not to blow the apparent reluctance of healthcare workers to have the vaccine “out of proportion”.
He said: “(These polls) identify a communication challenge for those managing the pandemic but they are not evidence of a crisis of confidence in the vaccine or of professional irresponsibility by health workers."
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Sensex extends winning streak, ends 81 pts up
26th of Aug 09
The positive close on Wall Street overnight on the back of some encouraging economic data and the resultant surge in Asian markets buoyed up stock prices on the major Indian bourses this morning. Though it moved in tight band for the next two hours and very nearly slipped into the red a little past noon after the latest data from the government revealed a slowdown in infrastructure growth.
However, the market bounced back and closed on a firm note today thanks to hectic buying in information technology majors and a few old economy stocks. European markets were struggling today and most of the Asian markets settled off their highs but the bulls stayed put and kept lapping up stocks on hopes economic reforms will significantly boost growth. Some short-covering ahead of derivatives expiry too contributed to the positive close.
The Sensex, which rose to 15,831.49 in afternoon trade, ended the day with a gain of 81.38 points or 0.52% at 15,769.85, while the Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange closed at 4680.85, netting a gain of 21.50 points or 0.46%.
Amid hopes the world's largest economy will be back on track soon, participants picked up information technology stocks with renewed vigour. Mirroring sharp gains posted by sector heavyweights, the BSE IT index moved up by 3.35% today. BSE Teck ended stronger by around 2.5%.
Select realty, pharma, power, oil and metal stocks ended on a firm note. There were gains for a few capital goods stocks as well. Auto, bank, consumer durables and FMCG stocks remained quite subdued today.
Several midcap and smallcap stocks rallied sharply and ended with notable gains. The BSE Midcap index advanced by 1.1%, while the Smallcap barometer ended nearly 2% up over its previous closing mark.
IT bellwether Infosys Technologies, which ended stronger by over 4%, was the top gainer in the Sensex today. Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro moved up by 3.75% and 2.35% respectively.
Sterlite Industries ended nearly 4% up. Reliance Communications, Tata Motors, Tata Power, DLF, Sun Pharmaceuticals and ACC gained 1% - 2%. Reliance Industries, Reliance Infrastructure, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Steel, Jaiprakash Associates and ICICI Bank posted modest gains.
Tata Communications, Axis Bank, Suzlon Energy, Reliance Capital, Reliance Power, Unitech, Nalco and Ambuja Cements were among the prominent gainers in the Nifty index.
Hindustan Unilever, HDFC Bank, Hero Honda, Grasim Industries, Maruti Suzuki, ITC and ONGC ended with sharp losses. Jindal Steel, Ranbaxy Laboratories, HCL Technologies and GAIL India lost 1.5% - 3%.
Aban Offshore soared to Rs 1565 and signed off with a hefty gain of nearly 27% at Rs 1536.35. The counted attracted heavy buying today on big order wins. On Monday, the company had informed that a contract has been signed for the deployment of 3 newbuild jack-up rigs in the Middle East for a period of 3 years each. The firm will generate a revenue of around Rs 2925 crores from this contract.
Further, a contract has also been signed for the deployment of a newbuild jack-up rig in Latin America for a period of 25.5 months and the estimated revenues from this contract is said to be around Rs 446 crores. The Aban Offshore counter on the National Stock Exchange clocked a volume of around 11.63 million shares today. The stock topped the turnover chart as well, recording Rs 1,717.57 crore for the session.
Reliance Natural Resources (up 9.5% to Rs 89.25) also moved up on strong volumes. HDIL (1.5%) and Satyam Computer Services (2.2%) also ended up on strong volumes.
The market breadth was strong today. Out of 2687 stocks traded on BSE, 1943 stocks closed higher. 851 stocks declined and 73 stocks ended flat.
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The positive close on Wall Street overnight on the back of some encouraging economic data and the resultant surge in Asian markets buoyed up stock prices on the major Indian bourses this morning. Though it moved in tight band for the next two hours and very nearly slipped into the red a little past noon after the latest data from the government revealed a slowdown in infrastructure growth.
However, the market bounced back and closed on a firm note today thanks to hectic buying in information technology majors and a few old economy stocks. European markets were struggling today and most of the Asian markets settled off their highs but the bulls stayed put and kept lapping up stocks on hopes economic reforms will significantly boost growth. Some short-covering ahead of derivatives expiry too contributed to the positive close.
The Sensex, which rose to 15,831.49 in afternoon trade, ended the day with a gain of 81.38 points or 0.52% at 15,769.85, while the Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange closed at 4680.85, netting a gain of 21.50 points or 0.46%.
Amid hopes the world's largest economy will be back on track soon, participants picked up information technology stocks with renewed vigour. Mirroring sharp gains posted by sector heavyweights, the BSE IT index moved up by 3.35% today. BSE Teck ended stronger by around 2.5%.
Select realty, pharma, power, oil and metal stocks ended on a firm note. There were gains for a few capital goods stocks as well. Auto, bank, consumer durables and FMCG stocks remained quite subdued today.
Several midcap and smallcap stocks rallied sharply and ended with notable gains. The BSE Midcap index advanced by 1.1%, while the Smallcap barometer ended nearly 2% up over its previous closing mark.
IT bellwether Infosys Technologies, which ended stronger by over 4%, was the top gainer in the Sensex today. Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro moved up by 3.75% and 2.35% respectively.
Sterlite Industries ended nearly 4% up. Reliance Communications, Tata Motors, Tata Power, DLF, Sun Pharmaceuticals and ACC gained 1% - 2%. Reliance Industries, Reliance Infrastructure, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Steel, Jaiprakash Associates and ICICI Bank posted modest gains.
Tata Communications, Axis Bank, Suzlon Energy, Reliance Capital, Reliance Power, Unitech, Nalco and Ambuja Cements were among the prominent gainers in the Nifty index.
Hindustan Unilever, HDFC Bank, Hero Honda, Grasim Industries, Maruti Suzuki, ITC and ONGC ended with sharp losses. Jindal Steel, Ranbaxy Laboratories, HCL Technologies and GAIL India lost 1.5% - 3%.
Aban Offshore soared to Rs 1565 and signed off with a hefty gain of nearly 27% at Rs 1536.35. The counted attracted heavy buying today on big order wins. On Monday, the company had informed that a contract has been signed for the deployment of 3 newbuild jack-up rigs in the Middle East for a period of 3 years each. The firm will generate a revenue of around Rs 2925 crores from this contract.
Further, a contract has also been signed for the deployment of a newbuild jack-up rig in Latin America for a period of 25.5 months and the estimated revenues from this contract is said to be around Rs 446 crores. The Aban Offshore counter on the National Stock Exchange clocked a volume of around 11.63 million shares today. The stock topped the turnover chart as well, recording Rs 1,717.57 crore for the session.
Reliance Natural Resources (up 9.5% to Rs 89.25) also moved up on strong volumes. HDIL (1.5%) and Satyam Computer Services (2.2%) also ended up on strong volumes.
The market breadth was strong today. Out of 2687 stocks traded on BSE, 1943 stocks closed higher. 851 stocks declined and 73 stocks ended flat.
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Interpol seeks Pakistani militant wanted in India
NEW DELHI, Aug 26 09
The international police agency Interpol has issued a "red notice" alert for a Pakistani Islamist wanted in India in connection with attacks in Mumbai that strained relations between the nuclear-armed rivals.
India says Hafiz Saeed, founder of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant group, was the mastermind of November's attacks in India's commercial hub in which 166 people were killed.
Saeed was detained in Pakistan in December, after a U.N. Security Council resolution put him on a list of people and organisations supporting al Qaeda.
But in June, a court released him on grounds of insufficient evidence, prompting the Pakistani government to lodge an appeal with the Supreme Court for his re-arrest. That case is pending.
India has been insisting that Pakistan act against Saeed and other members of the LeT, which is banned in Pakistan. Pakistan says it has insufficient evidence against him.
Interpol says a red notice is not an international arrest warrant but is issued after authorities in a country issue a warrant to help with the identification or location of a suspect with a view to their arrest or extradition.
India's foreign minister, S.M. Krishna said the world had to take notice of the Interpol alert against Saeed.
"I think the world should take note of these developments and then you know they will have to come to their own conclusions," Krishna told reporters on Wednesday.
The international police agency Interpol has issued a "red notice" alert for a Pakistani Islamist wanted in India in connection with attacks in Mumbai that strained relations between the nuclear-armed rivals.
India says Hafiz Saeed, founder of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant group, was the mastermind of November's attacks in India's commercial hub in which 166 people were killed.
Saeed was detained in Pakistan in December, after a U.N. Security Council resolution put him on a list of people and organisations supporting al Qaeda.
But in June, a court released him on grounds of insufficient evidence, prompting the Pakistani government to lodge an appeal with the Supreme Court for his re-arrest. That case is pending.
India has been insisting that Pakistan act against Saeed and other members of the LeT, which is banned in Pakistan. Pakistan says it has insufficient evidence against him.
Interpol says a red notice is not an international arrest warrant but is issued after authorities in a country issue a warrant to help with the identification or location of a suspect with a view to their arrest or extradition.
India's foreign minister, S.M. Krishna said the world had to take notice of the Interpol alert against Saeed.
"I think the world should take note of these developments and then you know they will have to come to their own conclusions," Krishna told reporters on Wednesday.
Mulayam says it is for Jaswant to decide on joining SP
New Delhi, Aug 26 (PTI) Making overtures to expelled BJP leader Jaswant Singh, Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav today said he "liked" the former union minister and it was up to him to join his party."I like him," Yadav said, adding, that it would be for Singh to decide on joining SP.Asked whether he would like the expelled BJP leader to join his party, Yadav said "It is entirely his decision...It is up to him what he decides for his future.""I share a good relationship with Jaswant Singh though he is in the BJP. He is not a fundamentalist. He is a good leader with a good heart. He has the qualities of a good leader," Yadav said and lamented that the BJP sacked him unceremoniously.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
H1N1: When will the States wake up?
22nd Aug 09
NEW DELHI: Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Friday accused State governments of not doing enough to contain the spread of H1N1 virus,
resulting in incensed State ministers to castigate him for his ‘unparliamentary language’. “Bloody, we are working 20 to 24 hours. And you people are enjoying yourselves,” Azad told 19 State health ministers at a meeting in Delhi on the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM). The outburst resulted in stunned silence, but Azad was unfazed and continued to scold the gathering. After speaking on NRHM for a few minutes, Azad went on to discuss swine flu. He told the meeting that it was the Centre which had been doing everything, including contact tracing, procuring medicines, looking for vaccines and training doctors. “You must wake up. For the past three months, we have been tolerating you people ,” said the health minister after completing his written speech. “In fact, you should chase me rather than I chasing you. There is a limit to everything.” When told that his language had angered some minister, Azad said, “It is between us.” Reacting angrily to Azad’s remark, Gujarat Health Minister Jaynarayan Vyas said, “This is wrong language and not befitting a Union minister.” When Vyas asked the Union health minister ‘why he used such language, he replied that it was not meant for all (State governments)’. “Even if a State is the biggest defaulter, why use such language? The Union health minister could have briefed us over a cup of tea. ” Madhya Pradesh Health Minister Anup Mishra said, “The Central and State governments must cooperate. The language was not right. I believe controlling the pandemic is a joint responsibility. No one can shift the blame.” Bihar Health Minister Nand Kishore Yadav said, “Cooperation is more important than conflict. I don’t know about others, but Bihar is fully geared to control the pandemic. Blame game is not a good thing.” As many as 159 fresh flu cases were reported from various states till Thursday, taking the total number of those afflicted by the disease to 2,401, a health ministry official said in Delhi.
NEW DELHI: Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Friday accused State governments of not doing enough to contain the spread of H1N1 virus,
resulting in incensed State ministers to castigate him for his ‘unparliamentary language’. “Bloody, we are working 20 to 24 hours. And you people are enjoying yourselves,” Azad told 19 State health ministers at a meeting in Delhi on the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM). The outburst resulted in stunned silence, but Azad was unfazed and continued to scold the gathering. After speaking on NRHM for a few minutes, Azad went on to discuss swine flu. He told the meeting that it was the Centre which had been doing everything, including contact tracing, procuring medicines, looking for vaccines and training doctors. “You must wake up. For the past three months, we have been tolerating you people ,” said the health minister after completing his written speech. “In fact, you should chase me rather than I chasing you. There is a limit to everything.” When told that his language had angered some minister, Azad said, “It is between us.” Reacting angrily to Azad’s remark, Gujarat Health Minister Jaynarayan Vyas said, “This is wrong language and not befitting a Union minister.” When Vyas asked the Union health minister ‘why he used such language, he replied that it was not meant for all (State governments)’. “Even if a State is the biggest defaulter, why use such language? The Union health minister could have briefed us over a cup of tea. ” Madhya Pradesh Health Minister Anup Mishra said, “The Central and State governments must cooperate. The language was not right. I believe controlling the pandemic is a joint responsibility. No one can shift the blame.” Bihar Health Minister Nand Kishore Yadav said, “Cooperation is more important than conflict. I don’t know about others, but Bihar is fully geared to control the pandemic. Blame game is not a good thing.” As many as 159 fresh flu cases were reported from various states till Thursday, taking the total number of those afflicted by the disease to 2,401, a health ministry official said in Delhi.
Ayurveda to fight flu
New Delhi, Aug. 20:
The health ministry indicated today it wanted to add traditional ayurvedic prescriptions to its arsenal against the pandemic flu virus which has so far infected 2,401 people in India.
Traditional ayurveda and unani interventions can be used to increase immunity to fight flu-like conditions, the ministry said after consulting experts from private and public institutions and research councils of traditional medicines.
The ministry said traditional medicine interventions may be used by healthy persons and patients with mild symptoms such as cold and cough.
But patients with severe symptoms, as well as persons at high risk of developing complications, should approach government screening centres for standard management with antiviral oseltamivir and other supportive therapy.
Among the prescriptions the ministry has listed are consumption of decoctions of tulsi, turmeric and pepper each morning, avoiding cold drinks, fermented food and ice creams, and drinking hot water instead of cold water.
The ministry has also cited a number of ayurvedic and unani preparations that traditional medicine experts believe increase the body’s immunity.
A PTI report tonight put the number of deaths at 44.
A senior doctor at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences said the ministry should initiate research on the impact of traditional interventions on flu-like illnesses.
The ministry has also asked hospitals screening patients with flu symptoms to apply triage, a battlefield and emergency practice aimed at allocating resources to patients who need it the most.
The health ministry indicated today it wanted to add traditional ayurvedic prescriptions to its arsenal against the pandemic flu virus which has so far infected 2,401 people in India.
Traditional ayurveda and unani interventions can be used to increase immunity to fight flu-like conditions, the ministry said after consulting experts from private and public institutions and research councils of traditional medicines.
The ministry said traditional medicine interventions may be used by healthy persons and patients with mild symptoms such as cold and cough.
But patients with severe symptoms, as well as persons at high risk of developing complications, should approach government screening centres for standard management with antiviral oseltamivir and other supportive therapy.
Among the prescriptions the ministry has listed are consumption of decoctions of tulsi, turmeric and pepper each morning, avoiding cold drinks, fermented food and ice creams, and drinking hot water instead of cold water.
The ministry has also cited a number of ayurvedic and unani preparations that traditional medicine experts believe increase the body’s immunity.
A PTI report tonight put the number of deaths at 44.
A senior doctor at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences said the ministry should initiate research on the impact of traditional interventions on flu-like illnesses.
The ministry has also asked hospitals screening patients with flu symptoms to apply triage, a battlefield and emergency practice aimed at allocating resources to patients who need it the most.
Bhutia-Chettri combination to start against Kyrgyzstan
22nd day of Auf 09
NEW DELHI: As anticipated, ace striker Sunil Chettri will partner skipper Bhaichung Bhutia in the crucial ONGC Nehru Cup match against Kyrgyzstan on
Sunday. India coach Bob Houghton said Saturday the Chettri-Bhutia pair will get their first start after a long time since Chettri was recovering from an ankle injury. Chettri, however, replaced Sushil Singh in the second half against Lebanon in the opening match at the Ambedkar Stadium. Houghton admitted that the 0-1 loss against Lebanon has forced India to win all their remaining three matches. "It is a daunting task for us. From here on we have to win all our remaining matches. We have to comeback well in the tournament to defend our title and hopefully we can do it tomorrow," Houghton told reporters after the team's practice session. The Englishman hoped that the Bhutia-Chettri combination can work wonders for India as it did in the 2007 edition and the AFC Challenge Cup last year. "Chettri will make his start tomorrow after a long time. He hasn't played for 45 minutes in the past few months," said Houghton. Asked whether Chettri can play for 90 minutes, Houghton said: "Hopefully he would be able to spend longer time on the field. We can also use Abhishek Yadav or Syed Rahim Nabi." Houghton was also relieved as his key defender Anwar, who bruised his thigh against Lebanon, has recovered well due an extra rest day and will be available for the Kyrgyzstan match. "Anwar's availability is good news and Mahesh (Gawli) will also start," he said.
NEW DELHI: As anticipated, ace striker Sunil Chettri will partner skipper Bhaichung Bhutia in the crucial ONGC Nehru Cup match against Kyrgyzstan on
Sunday. India coach Bob Houghton said Saturday the Chettri-Bhutia pair will get their first start after a long time since Chettri was recovering from an ankle injury. Chettri, however, replaced Sushil Singh in the second half against Lebanon in the opening match at the Ambedkar Stadium. Houghton admitted that the 0-1 loss against Lebanon has forced India to win all their remaining three matches. "It is a daunting task for us. From here on we have to win all our remaining matches. We have to comeback well in the tournament to defend our title and hopefully we can do it tomorrow," Houghton told reporters after the team's practice session. The Englishman hoped that the Bhutia-Chettri combination can work wonders for India as it did in the 2007 edition and the AFC Challenge Cup last year. "Chettri will make his start tomorrow after a long time. He hasn't played for 45 minutes in the past few months," said Houghton. Asked whether Chettri can play for 90 minutes, Houghton said: "Hopefully he would be able to spend longer time on the field. We can also use Abhishek Yadav or Syed Rahim Nabi." Houghton was also relieved as his key defender Anwar, who bruised his thigh against Lebanon, has recovered well due an extra rest day and will be available for the Kyrgyzstan match. "Anwar's availability is good news and Mahesh (Gawli) will also start," he said.
Bhutia-Chettri combination to start against Kyrgyzstan
22nd day of Auf 09
NEW DELHI: As anticipated, ace striker Sunil Chettri will partner skipper Bhaichung Bhutia in the crucial ONGC Nehru Cup match against Kyrgyzstan on
Sunday. India coach Bob Houghton said Saturday the Chettri-Bhutia pair will get their first start after a long time since Chettri was recovering from an ankle injury. Chettri, however, replaced Sushil Singh in the second half against Lebanon in the opening match at the Ambedkar Stadium. Houghton admitted that the 0-1 loss against Lebanon has forced India to win all their remaining three matches. "It is a daunting task for us. From here on we have to win all our remaining matches. We have to comeback well in the tournament to defend our title and hopefully we can do it tomorrow," Houghton told reporters after the team's practice session. The Englishman hoped that the Bhutia-Chettri combination can work wonders for India as it did in the 2007 edition and the AFC Challenge Cup last year. "Chettri will make his start tomorrow after a long time. He hasn't played for 45 minutes in the past few months," said Houghton. Asked whether Chettri can play for 90 minutes, Houghton said: "Hopefully he would be able to spend longer time on the field. We can also use Abhishek Yadav or Syed Rahim Nabi." Houghton was also relieved as his key defender Anwar, who bruised his thigh against Lebanon, has recovered well due an extra rest day and will be available for the Kyrgyzstan match. "Anwar's availability is good news and Mahesh (Gawli) will also start," he said.
NEW DELHI: As anticipated, ace striker Sunil Chettri will partner skipper Bhaichung Bhutia in the crucial ONGC Nehru Cup match against Kyrgyzstan on
Sunday. India coach Bob Houghton said Saturday the Chettri-Bhutia pair will get their first start after a long time since Chettri was recovering from an ankle injury. Chettri, however, replaced Sushil Singh in the second half against Lebanon in the opening match at the Ambedkar Stadium. Houghton admitted that the 0-1 loss against Lebanon has forced India to win all their remaining three matches. "It is a daunting task for us. From here on we have to win all our remaining matches. We have to comeback well in the tournament to defend our title and hopefully we can do it tomorrow," Houghton told reporters after the team's practice session. The Englishman hoped that the Bhutia-Chettri combination can work wonders for India as it did in the 2007 edition and the AFC Challenge Cup last year. "Chettri will make his start tomorrow after a long time. He hasn't played for 45 minutes in the past few months," said Houghton. Asked whether Chettri can play for 90 minutes, Houghton said: "Hopefully he would be able to spend longer time on the field. We can also use Abhishek Yadav or Syed Rahim Nabi." Houghton was also relieved as his key defender Anwar, who bruised his thigh against Lebanon, has recovered well due an extra rest day and will be available for the Kyrgyzstan match. "Anwar's availability is good news and Mahesh (Gawli) will also start," he said.
Driving water under ground
22nd day of Aug 09
Nasa's twin GRACE satellites orbitting the earth in formation at a height of 300 miles and roughly 137 miles apart are tasked with an ambitious
mission: They track the world's freshwater reserves, including those hidden far from the naked eye under thick rock in vast underground aquifers spanning transnational boundaries. As Nasa scientist Mark Rodell and his colleagues trawled data on Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, states the Indian government accepts are affected by groundwater depletion, they discovered water was vanishing at the rate of 17.7 cubic km of water (+- 4.5 km) every year as against the official estimate of 13.2 cubic km. Clearly, estimates of replenishment or usage, or both, had been incorrectly calculated. According to GRACE, India's food bowl, with a paddy coverage of 38,061 sqkm, is losing groundwater at the rate of 1 metre every three years or a foot each year. The science behind the GRACE mission is fairly simple. The satellites map shifts in the gravitational pull of large underground water reservoirs, in this case the 560,000 km Indus River plain aquifer, straddling the India and Pakistan border, to check groundwater. The findings are quite undeniable but have been met with a surprising lack of official response in India, particularly to the argument that more than 90% of underground water is used for irrigation. What the satellites revealed ought not to be a surprise. Central groundwater board studies point to a worrying country-wide trend. Data relating to 2006 shows a staggering fall of 2 metres in several Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka districts in comparison to previous years. Tamil Nadu was worse with levels dropping by 2-4 metres. Water fluctuation in January 2007 in comparison to the average — between 1997-2006 — revealed more than 20% of monitoring wells in Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Bihar, West Bengal, east Madhya Pradesh and east Rajasthan registered a decline of more than 2 metres. Only parts of UP and the hilly areas of the north registered improved groundwater use. The 2007 CGWB report states 18% of assessed units in Andhra Pradesh, 78% in Delhi, 49% in Haryana, 75% in Punjab, 59% in Rajasthan, 37% in Tamil Nadu, 14% in Gujarat and 12% in Uttarakhand are "over-exploited." Its projections of groundwater availability for irrigation in 2025 — not surprisingly — show negative figures for Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan. Only in some areas, like the hilly terrain of West Bengal, Assam, parts of Meghalaya, Tripura and Jharkhand, there is rise in water levels by more than 2m as in the case in parts of the sub-Himalayas. But this year, with the drought now covering nearly 250 of the country's 500-odd districts, the stress on groundwater has increased manifold. Now, even in the hills of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, drinking water needs are being rationed through tankers. In Punjab, out of the 138 blocks, 103 have over exploited groundwater, five have reached critical levels and another four are nearing the red zone. The groundwater development in Punjab is 145% which means that water is being used at a rate of 45% more from underground sources than natural systems or artificial recharging can replenish. A planning commission report records number of critical blocks grew from four per cent in 1995 to 15 per cent in 2004. With crop productivity declining, there has been a shift to use of more and more fertilizers and pesticides requiring larger quantities of water. With the government planning to combat drought by sinking in hundreds of tubewells, the pressure on groundwater is bound to increase. As a hydrological cycle, groundwater replenishment sees a percentage of water that falls on the ground seeping through to fill underground aquifers. When a well or a diesel pump pulls out water it begins to deplete the water bank underneath. Normally rains and river water recharge the ground. But clearly, agriculture and drinking water is taking a serious toll. These signs have been visible in green revolution states for more than a decade now with the diesel costs running higher each year as pumps have to be sunk deeper. The crop boom in Haryana and Punjab helped achieve food security but this has come at an ecological cost even as sustaining agriculture became more difficult as productivity tapered off. The green states of the north are now witnessing a situation where extensive irrigation required is not adequately met by the surface water alone. A bad monsoon has only shown how close to the edge we live.
Nasa's twin GRACE satellites orbitting the earth in formation at a height of 300 miles and roughly 137 miles apart are tasked with an ambitious
mission: They track the world's freshwater reserves, including those hidden far from the naked eye under thick rock in vast underground aquifers spanning transnational boundaries. As Nasa scientist Mark Rodell and his colleagues trawled data on Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, states the Indian government accepts are affected by groundwater depletion, they discovered water was vanishing at the rate of 17.7 cubic km of water (+- 4.5 km) every year as against the official estimate of 13.2 cubic km. Clearly, estimates of replenishment or usage, or both, had been incorrectly calculated. According to GRACE, India's food bowl, with a paddy coverage of 38,061 sqkm, is losing groundwater at the rate of 1 metre every three years or a foot each year. The science behind the GRACE mission is fairly simple. The satellites map shifts in the gravitational pull of large underground water reservoirs, in this case the 560,000 km Indus River plain aquifer, straddling the India and Pakistan border, to check groundwater. The findings are quite undeniable but have been met with a surprising lack of official response in India, particularly to the argument that more than 90% of underground water is used for irrigation. What the satellites revealed ought not to be a surprise. Central groundwater board studies point to a worrying country-wide trend. Data relating to 2006 shows a staggering fall of 2 metres in several Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka districts in comparison to previous years. Tamil Nadu was worse with levels dropping by 2-4 metres. Water fluctuation in January 2007 in comparison to the average — between 1997-2006 — revealed more than 20% of monitoring wells in Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Bihar, West Bengal, east Madhya Pradesh and east Rajasthan registered a decline of more than 2 metres. Only parts of UP and the hilly areas of the north registered improved groundwater use. The 2007 CGWB report states 18% of assessed units in Andhra Pradesh, 78% in Delhi, 49% in Haryana, 75% in Punjab, 59% in Rajasthan, 37% in Tamil Nadu, 14% in Gujarat and 12% in Uttarakhand are "over-exploited." Its projections of groundwater availability for irrigation in 2025 — not surprisingly — show negative figures for Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan. Only in some areas, like the hilly terrain of West Bengal, Assam, parts of Meghalaya, Tripura and Jharkhand, there is rise in water levels by more than 2m as in the case in parts of the sub-Himalayas. But this year, with the drought now covering nearly 250 of the country's 500-odd districts, the stress on groundwater has increased manifold. Now, even in the hills of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, drinking water needs are being rationed through tankers. In Punjab, out of the 138 blocks, 103 have over exploited groundwater, five have reached critical levels and another four are nearing the red zone. The groundwater development in Punjab is 145% which means that water is being used at a rate of 45% more from underground sources than natural systems or artificial recharging can replenish. A planning commission report records number of critical blocks grew from four per cent in 1995 to 15 per cent in 2004. With crop productivity declining, there has been a shift to use of more and more fertilizers and pesticides requiring larger quantities of water. With the government planning to combat drought by sinking in hundreds of tubewells, the pressure on groundwater is bound to increase. As a hydrological cycle, groundwater replenishment sees a percentage of water that falls on the ground seeping through to fill underground aquifers. When a well or a diesel pump pulls out water it begins to deplete the water bank underneath. Normally rains and river water recharge the ground. But clearly, agriculture and drinking water is taking a serious toll. These signs have been visible in green revolution states for more than a decade now with the diesel costs running higher each year as pumps have to be sunk deeper. The crop boom in Haryana and Punjab helped achieve food security but this has come at an ecological cost even as sustaining agriculture became more difficult as productivity tapered off. The green states of the north are now witnessing a situation where extensive irrigation required is not adequately met by the surface water alone. A bad monsoon has only shown how close to the edge we live.
In days to come, an H1N1 explosion?
22nd of Aug 09
NEW DELHI: The world could see an explosion of H1N1 swine flu cases in the next few months, the WHO has said. Warning that the virus was likely to
spread at a faster pace, thanks to favourable climatic conditions in some parts of the world including India, WHO on Friday said most countries would see swine flu cases "double every three to four days for several months until a peak transmission period is reached". According to the global health body, the influenza virus could endanger more lives with the way it is spreading. Countries therefore have been urged to prepare for a likely second wave of the H1N1 pandemic, expected to strike anytime during the upcoming winter months. Responding to the warning, the health ministry said it had already started seeing a steep rise in the number of new H1N1 infections. According to data presented at the state health ministers' conference in Delhi on Friday, India saw an average 150 new cases of H1N1 every day over the past week. While the minimum cases in one single day has been 90, the country recorded a maximum of 220 positive H1N1 cases in a single day. Around 81% of all cases of H1N1 till now are from eight cities — Pune (28%), Delhi (16%), Mumbai (17%), Bangalore (7%), Hyderabad (4%), Chennai (5%), Gurgaon (2%) and Ahmedabad (2%). Health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said India was now reporting indigenous cases with no travel history abroad. "This is all the more reason for us to gear up for a large scale pandemic in the country," he said. According to the WHO, till now, there have been more than 1.82 lakh laboratory confirmed cases of H1N1 infection and 1,799 deaths in 177 countries. As most countries have stopped counting individual cases, particularly of milder illness, the case number is significantly lower than the actual number of cases that have occurred. "Areas of tropical Asia are reporting increasing rates of illness as they enter their monsoon season, as represented by India, Thailand, Malaysia and Hong Kong," WHO said. WHO director general Margaret Chan said, "We cannot say for certain whether the worst is over or the worst is yet to come. We need to be prepared for whatever surprises this capricious new virus delivers next. Constant random mutation is the survival mechanism of the microbial world. We also need to prepare for a second or third wave of spread as typically seen in past pandemics." Another worrying trend has been that WHO has also been notified of 12 cases of oseltamivir resistant virus. These isolates have a mutation that confers resistance to oseltamivir or Tamiflu, the anti-viral of choice globally against H1N1.
NEW DELHI: The world could see an explosion of H1N1 swine flu cases in the next few months, the WHO has said. Warning that the virus was likely to
spread at a faster pace, thanks to favourable climatic conditions in some parts of the world including India, WHO on Friday said most countries would see swine flu cases "double every three to four days for several months until a peak transmission period is reached". According to the global health body, the influenza virus could endanger more lives with the way it is spreading. Countries therefore have been urged to prepare for a likely second wave of the H1N1 pandemic, expected to strike anytime during the upcoming winter months. Responding to the warning, the health ministry said it had already started seeing a steep rise in the number of new H1N1 infections. According to data presented at the state health ministers' conference in Delhi on Friday, India saw an average 150 new cases of H1N1 every day over the past week. While the minimum cases in one single day has been 90, the country recorded a maximum of 220 positive H1N1 cases in a single day. Around 81% of all cases of H1N1 till now are from eight cities — Pune (28%), Delhi (16%), Mumbai (17%), Bangalore (7%), Hyderabad (4%), Chennai (5%), Gurgaon (2%) and Ahmedabad (2%). Health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said India was now reporting indigenous cases with no travel history abroad. "This is all the more reason for us to gear up for a large scale pandemic in the country," he said. According to the WHO, till now, there have been more than 1.82 lakh laboratory confirmed cases of H1N1 infection and 1,799 deaths in 177 countries. As most countries have stopped counting individual cases, particularly of milder illness, the case number is significantly lower than the actual number of cases that have occurred. "Areas of tropical Asia are reporting increasing rates of illness as they enter their monsoon season, as represented by India, Thailand, Malaysia and Hong Kong," WHO said. WHO director general Margaret Chan said, "We cannot say for certain whether the worst is over or the worst is yet to come. We need to be prepared for whatever surprises this capricious new virus delivers next. Constant random mutation is the survival mechanism of the microbial world. We also need to prepare for a second or third wave of spread as typically seen in past pandemics." Another worrying trend has been that WHO has also been notified of 12 cases of oseltamivir resistant virus. These isolates have a mutation that confers resistance to oseltamivir or Tamiflu, the anti-viral of choice globally against H1N1.
The Associated Press: Hurricane Bill scatters sand, debris in Bermuda
22nd of Aug 09
HAMILTON, Bermuda — Tourists and residents in Bermuda are waking up to debris
scattered across roads, some power outages and minor flooding as Hurricane Bill
skirts past the island.
At 8 a.m. EDT Saturday, the center of Bill was about 235 miles west-northwest of
Bermuda and about 410 miles east of Cape Hatteras, N.C. Bill was bringing bands
of rain and big waves to Bermuda as well as high surf and the threat of rip
currents to the East Coast of the U.S.
Bill has maximum sustained winds of 105 mph. The storm mostly spared Bermuda's
pink shores but some of the sand, palm tree debris and coral is sprinkled across
the roads.
On the East Coast, a tropical storm warning is in place for parts of
Massachusetts. Forecasters say the storm could regain intensity over the
weekend.
HAMILTON, Bermuda — Tourists and residents in Bermuda are waking up to debris
scattered across roads, some power outages and minor flooding as Hurricane Bill
skirts past the island.
At 8 a.m. EDT Saturday, the center of Bill was about 235 miles west-northwest of
Bermuda and about 410 miles east of Cape Hatteras, N.C. Bill was bringing bands
of rain and big waves to Bermuda as well as high surf and the threat of rip
currents to the East Coast of the U.S.
Bill has maximum sustained winds of 105 mph. The storm mostly spared Bermuda's
pink shores but some of the sand, palm tree debris and coral is sprinkled across
the roads.
On the East Coast, a tropical storm warning is in place for parts of
Massachusetts. Forecasters say the storm could regain intensity over the
weekend.
Slumdweller is latest flu death - Mumbai
22nd of Aug 09
MUMBAI: In an indication of how swine flu-which apparently first
came from abroad-has spread through a variety of economic
backgrounds in the city,
a flower-seller from a Ghatkopar slum became Mumbai's third official
death on Thursday.
The 35-year-old Dattatraya Gawde passed away at Kasturba Hospital in
Chinchpokli last evening after being on a ventilator since Tuesday.
He had developed Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) and
high-blood sugar levels due to diabetes, said additional municipal
commissioner Manisha Mhaiskar. "He came to us after a delay of
almost four days since his symptoms began,'' she said, adding that
his H1N1-positive report came from the National Institute of
Virology on Wednesday.
Since August 8, Mumbai has recorded two other deaths-Jogeshwari
resident Fehmida Panwalla and seven-month-old Moida from Byculla.
Neighbouring Thane district registered an H1N1 death when
63-year-old Mumbra resident Syeda Dorjiwala passed away at Byculla's
Noor Hospital on August 10. While the BMC does not count Dorjiwala
among Mumbai's victims, the Centre does because it accounts for
Mumbai and Thane districts together.
Incidentally, Gawde's family physician Dr Jatin Soni told TOI that
he had referred his patient to Rajawadi Hospital, Ghatkopar, last
week itself. "But they didn't take his swab. When he returned to me
on August 18 with breathlessness, I sent him to the private Satyam
Hospital,'' said Soni.
At Satyam Hospital, doctors immediately suspected swine flu and sent
him to Kasturba Hospital in their ambulance. "He was with us for
barely an hour, but it was obvious to us that he had swine flu,''
said a medical officer at Satyam.
Admitting that Gawde had come to Rajawadi for a swab test earlier,
BMC executive health officer Dr J Thanekar said, "He had no fever or
cold when he came to us. Let us not make this a blame game. H1N1 is
a new entity and it will take the medical community some time to
completely understand it.''
However, he pointed out that Gawde's descent to ARDS within three
days shows how immuno-suppressed he was. "The virus must have
multiplied aggressively as his sugar levels were shockingly high at
450 when he came to us,'' he said. Mhaiskar said that Gawde's
condition was so acute when he reached Kasturba that he was put on a
ventilator before his swab samples were collected.
MUMBAI: In an indication of how swine flu-which apparently first
came from abroad-has spread through a variety of economic
backgrounds in the city,
a flower-seller from a Ghatkopar slum became Mumbai's third official
death on Thursday.
The 35-year-old Dattatraya Gawde passed away at Kasturba Hospital in
Chinchpokli last evening after being on a ventilator since Tuesday.
He had developed Adult Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) and
high-blood sugar levels due to diabetes, said additional municipal
commissioner Manisha Mhaiskar. "He came to us after a delay of
almost four days since his symptoms began,'' she said, adding that
his H1N1-positive report came from the National Institute of
Virology on Wednesday.
Since August 8, Mumbai has recorded two other deaths-Jogeshwari
resident Fehmida Panwalla and seven-month-old Moida from Byculla.
Neighbouring Thane district registered an H1N1 death when
63-year-old Mumbra resident Syeda Dorjiwala passed away at Byculla's
Noor Hospital on August 10. While the BMC does not count Dorjiwala
among Mumbai's victims, the Centre does because it accounts for
Mumbai and Thane districts together.
Incidentally, Gawde's family physician Dr Jatin Soni told TOI that
he had referred his patient to Rajawadi Hospital, Ghatkopar, last
week itself. "But they didn't take his swab. When he returned to me
on August 18 with breathlessness, I sent him to the private Satyam
Hospital,'' said Soni.
At Satyam Hospital, doctors immediately suspected swine flu and sent
him to Kasturba Hospital in their ambulance. "He was with us for
barely an hour, but it was obvious to us that he had swine flu,''
said a medical officer at Satyam.
Admitting that Gawde had come to Rajawadi for a swab test earlier,
BMC executive health officer Dr J Thanekar said, "He had no fever or
cold when he came to us. Let us not make this a blame game. H1N1 is
a new entity and it will take the medical community some time to
completely understand it.''
However, he pointed out that Gawde's descent to ARDS within three
days shows how immuno-suppressed he was. "The virus must have
multiplied aggressively as his sugar levels were shockingly high at
450 when he came to us,'' he said. Mhaiskar said that Gawde's
condition was so acute when he reached Kasturba that he was put on a
ventilator before his swab samples were collected.
Roof flies off at IGI's new terminal in Delhi
22nd of Aug 09
NEW DELHI: It took half-an-hour of heavy rain for things at Delhi airport to unravel. On Friday evening, 31.8 mm of rain and a wind speed of 91.2 kmph saw part of terminal 1D's roof fly off. The new terminal, that became functional earlier this year and has suffered from occasional problems of a leaking roof, had rain water pouring in this time, causing many essential services to come to a halt. There was almost knee-deep water at the boarding level and many parts of the ground floor were also inaccessible due to waterlogging. The arrival terminal was completely flooded.
Meanwhile, with the approach roads to the airport severely waterlogged and massive traffic jams all over the city, several passengers ended up missing their flights. Many flights had to be rescheduled as the crew also reported late.
Rita Verma, an executive who had to catch an 8 pm flight to Chennai, was stuck at Race Course Road till 9.15 pm. Mohit Basu, who was to fly to Bangalore, missed his 6.45 pm flight as he was stuck in a traffic jam at Pragati Maidan for over 45 minutes.
Meanwhile, terminal 1D's condition left `officials at a loss for words. The situation became so critical that they were considering shutting down the terminal and shifting operations to 1A. DIAL COO Andrew Harrison claimed it was "unprecedented rainfall of 77 mm'' that caused the mess. "Our challenge was to ensure that passengers did not face daily problems as was the case at the old terminal. I think we have achieved that,'' he said. As ministry of civil aviation officials called the situation "ridiculous'', secretary M Nambiar said: "We are aware of the situation. Such an incident should not be repeated.''
As runway visibility fell to 100-300 m, no operations could take place for almost 45 minutes. The main runway had been taken up for regular maintenance at 3.30 pm, shortly before the weather changed, leaving only one runway operational. The heavy downpour between 4.10 pm and 4.40 pm led to 10 flights being diverted. "The rain was almost blinding and the wind was extremely strong. So, we were unable to carry out any boarding while arrivals also could not take place. Almost all evening flights were delayed by 1-3 hours,'' said an airline official.
P K Bannerjee, a passenger stranded at 1D during the storm, reported that once it started raining, panels of the roof fell off and water gushed in. "Most of the terminal was waterlogged and there were many foreigners taking pictures of the mess. Boarding had to be stopped as that level was full of water,'' he said.
Another passenger reported that the bathroom drains had started overflowing. X-ray machines had to be closed down and covered with plastic sheets while shortcircuiting led to the information display system switching off. Passengers, wading in water, were left without any flight information for almost two hours.
NEW DELHI: It took half-an-hour of heavy rain for things at Delhi airport to unravel. On Friday evening, 31.8 mm of rain and a wind speed of 91.2 kmph saw part of terminal 1D's roof fly off. The new terminal, that became functional earlier this year and has suffered from occasional problems of a leaking roof, had rain water pouring in this time, causing many essential services to come to a halt. There was almost knee-deep water at the boarding level and many parts of the ground floor were also inaccessible due to waterlogging. The arrival terminal was completely flooded.
Meanwhile, with the approach roads to the airport severely waterlogged and massive traffic jams all over the city, several passengers ended up missing their flights. Many flights had to be rescheduled as the crew also reported late.
Rita Verma, an executive who had to catch an 8 pm flight to Chennai, was stuck at Race Course Road till 9.15 pm. Mohit Basu, who was to fly to Bangalore, missed his 6.45 pm flight as he was stuck in a traffic jam at Pragati Maidan for over 45 minutes.
Meanwhile, terminal 1D's condition left `officials at a loss for words. The situation became so critical that they were considering shutting down the terminal and shifting operations to 1A. DIAL COO Andrew Harrison claimed it was "unprecedented rainfall of 77 mm'' that caused the mess. "Our challenge was to ensure that passengers did not face daily problems as was the case at the old terminal. I think we have achieved that,'' he said. As ministry of civil aviation officials called the situation "ridiculous'', secretary M Nambiar said: "We are aware of the situation. Such an incident should not be repeated.''
As runway visibility fell to 100-300 m, no operations could take place for almost 45 minutes. The main runway had been taken up for regular maintenance at 3.30 pm, shortly before the weather changed, leaving only one runway operational. The heavy downpour between 4.10 pm and 4.40 pm led to 10 flights being diverted. "The rain was almost blinding and the wind was extremely strong. So, we were unable to carry out any boarding while arrivals also could not take place. Almost all evening flights were delayed by 1-3 hours,'' said an airline official.
P K Bannerjee, a passenger stranded at 1D during the storm, reported that once it started raining, panels of the roof fell off and water gushed in. "Most of the terminal was waterlogged and there were many foreigners taking pictures of the mess. Boarding had to be stopped as that level was full of water,'' he said.
Another passenger reported that the bathroom drains had started overflowing. X-ray machines had to be closed down and covered with plastic sheets while shortcircuiting led to the information display system switching off. Passengers, wading in water, were left without any flight information for almost two hours.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Heavy rains lash Delhi
21 Aug 2009
NEW DELHI: Strong winds and heavy rains blew off a part of the roof of the newly constructed Terminal 1D of the Delhi's Indira Gandhi International
Heavy rains lash DelhiAirport. The water filled the terminal and flight operations were disrupted due to heavy rains in the capital on Friday. The Airport terminal was constructed by a JV headed by GMR Infrastructure. A DIAL (Delhi International Airport Limited) spokesperson said that over 20 flights got delayed and ten flight were diverted. The maintenance team is working on the war footing to clear the water and restore the displaced sheets of the roof, he added. Just last month, IGI airport faced a trying when as result of heavy downpour, there was water logging of the airport approach roads and into the domestic arrival terminal as well. DIAL is a joint venture of Bangalore headquartered GMR Group, Airports Authority of India, Fraport and Malaysian Airport Holdings. Just last month, DIAL had assured of proper steps being taken ahead of monsoon to prevent flight disruptions.
NEW DELHI: Strong winds and heavy rains blew off a part of the roof of the newly constructed Terminal 1D of the Delhi's Indira Gandhi International
Heavy rains lash DelhiAirport. The water filled the terminal and flight operations were disrupted due to heavy rains in the capital on Friday. The Airport terminal was constructed by a JV headed by GMR Infrastructure. A DIAL (Delhi International Airport Limited) spokesperson said that over 20 flights got delayed and ten flight were diverted. The maintenance team is working on the war footing to clear the water and restore the displaced sheets of the roof, he added. Just last month, IGI airport faced a trying when as result of heavy downpour, there was water logging of the airport approach roads and into the domestic arrival terminal as well. DIAL is a joint venture of Bangalore headquartered GMR Group, Airports Authority of India, Fraport and Malaysian Airport Holdings. Just last month, DIAL had assured of proper steps being taken ahead of monsoon to prevent flight disruptions.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Eight more test positive for flu
18th of Aug 09
Eight more swine flu cases were detected on Monday, taking the number of people in the city infected with the H1N1 virus to 46. Among the latest victims was 10-year-old Sneha Ganguly, daughter of Snehashis Ganguly and niece of former Team India skipper Sourav Ganguly. Sneha, a student of La Martiniere for Girls, was admitted to MR Bangur Hospital where her condition was stated to be stable. Another child — five-year-old Priyanka Ghosh — tested positive during the day and was admitted to the same hospital. Health officials were in for a shock when they tried to contact Ganesh Mallick, one of the eight who tested positive. “The address and phone number he had provided were incorrect,” said an official. Following repeated announcements on television, Mallick got in touch with the health department from his house in Krishnagar, Nadia. Officials said he would be admitted to Infectious Diseases Hospital, in Beleghata. Akash Chowdhury, a two-and-a-half-year-old swine flu victim who was admitted to RG Kar Medical College and Hospital a few days ago, is on ventilator. Doctors said the child could not be shifted to the Beleghata hospital till his condition improved. Dharti Ben Naumit Lal Parmar, a 23-year-old woman from Ahmedabad, was admitted to the Beleghata hospital with swine flu symptoms on Tuesday morning after she arrived in the city from Bangkok. Prominent city schools said they were taking all possible steps to prevent the spread of swine flu. A spokesperson for La Martiniere for Girls said: “We have no confirmation about whether the student (Sneha Ganguly) has swine flu but we are taking all precautions as suggested by doctors. We cannot be irresponsible with the lives of so many children.” Several schools such as La Martiniere for Boys, South Point and St James have issued circulars asking parents to not send children suffering from fever and cold to class till doctors certify them fit. A teacher of St Xavier’s Collegiate School said: “We are not panicking but taking all necessary measures to prevent the spread of the disease.”
Eight more swine flu cases were detected on Monday, taking the number of people in the city infected with the H1N1 virus to 46. Among the latest victims was 10-year-old Sneha Ganguly, daughter of Snehashis Ganguly and niece of former Team India skipper Sourav Ganguly. Sneha, a student of La Martiniere for Girls, was admitted to MR Bangur Hospital where her condition was stated to be stable. Another child — five-year-old Priyanka Ghosh — tested positive during the day and was admitted to the same hospital. Health officials were in for a shock when they tried to contact Ganesh Mallick, one of the eight who tested positive. “The address and phone number he had provided were incorrect,” said an official. Following repeated announcements on television, Mallick got in touch with the health department from his house in Krishnagar, Nadia. Officials said he would be admitted to Infectious Diseases Hospital, in Beleghata. Akash Chowdhury, a two-and-a-half-year-old swine flu victim who was admitted to RG Kar Medical College and Hospital a few days ago, is on ventilator. Doctors said the child could not be shifted to the Beleghata hospital till his condition improved. Dharti Ben Naumit Lal Parmar, a 23-year-old woman from Ahmedabad, was admitted to the Beleghata hospital with swine flu symptoms on Tuesday morning after she arrived in the city from Bangkok. Prominent city schools said they were taking all possible steps to prevent the spread of swine flu. A spokesperson for La Martiniere for Girls said: “We have no confirmation about whether the student (Sneha Ganguly) has swine flu but we are taking all precautions as suggested by doctors. We cannot be irresponsible with the lives of so many children.” Several schools such as La Martiniere for Boys, South Point and St James have issued circulars asking parents to not send children suffering from fever and cold to class till doctors certify them fit. A teacher of St Xavier’s Collegiate School said: “We are not panicking but taking all necessary measures to prevent the spread of the disease.”
BSNL engineers on an indefinite strike - India
18th of Aug 09
New Delhi: More than 10,000 BSNL engineers today went on an indefinite strike. Other employees of the state-run telecom provider would also cease work alongwith the engineers for the next two days from midnight Tuesday, affecting its services across the country.
The All India Graduate Telecom Officers Association (AIGETOA) of engineers went on an indefinite strike demanding that officers on deputation from the department of telecom be absorbed into the company so that they become more accountable.
The United Forum of seven BSNL Unions of 1.5 lakh non-executive employees will begin their strike at 0000 hrs on August 19 over a demand for wage revision and implementation of a promotion policy.
The strike by the engineers would impact operations of the telecom firm as most of the striking engineers are head technical teams in different zonal offices. Customer services like collections and fault repairs would also be affected from tomorrow because of the participation of the non-technical staff, according to the unions.
The BSNL management was not available for comments on the impact of the strikes. However, to ensure that the strike does not disrupt operations, BSNL has set up a control room for managing the system during the strike.
More Stories from this section PM's remarks not intended to impugn Pak actions: Tharoor Swine flu: 111 positive cases in TN, four in Puducherry 'Sweet alchohol' liqueur gains popularity
New Delhi: More than 10,000 BSNL engineers today went on an indefinite strike. Other employees of the state-run telecom provider would also cease work alongwith the engineers for the next two days from midnight Tuesday, affecting its services across the country.
The All India Graduate Telecom Officers Association (AIGETOA) of engineers went on an indefinite strike demanding that officers on deputation from the department of telecom be absorbed into the company so that they become more accountable.
The United Forum of seven BSNL Unions of 1.5 lakh non-executive employees will begin their strike at 0000 hrs on August 19 over a demand for wage revision and implementation of a promotion policy.
The strike by the engineers would impact operations of the telecom firm as most of the striking engineers are head technical teams in different zonal offices. Customer services like collections and fault repairs would also be affected from tomorrow because of the participation of the non-technical staff, according to the unions.
The BSNL management was not available for comments on the impact of the strikes. However, to ensure that the strike does not disrupt operations, BSNL has set up a control room for managing the system during the strike.
More Stories from this section PM's remarks not intended to impugn Pak actions: Tharoor Swine flu: 111 positive cases in TN, four in Puducherry 'Sweet alchohol' liqueur gains popularity
The Associated Press: Small company's swine flu vaccine works in animals
18th of Aug 09
A small study conducted by federal scientists shows Novavax Inc.'s experimental vaccine against swine flu, produced in just weeks versus several months for standard methods, is effective in animals, the company said Tuesday.But it won't be approved and ready for commercial use in the U.S. for at least a couple years, meaning the vaccine won't be available to help here in the current epidemic of novel H1N1 influenza, company officials said.Novavax, based in Rockville, Md., makes vaccine using what's called virus-like particle technology to build a structure like a virus, but without the genetic material inside that a virus needs to reproduce. The particles — sets of proteins assembled through genetic engineering — are injected and attach to immune cells, which recognize the particles like they would a virus.That stimulates a strong immune response, the company said.Traditional influenza vaccines, which have their key ingredient incubated in chicken eggs, take several months to produce.Chief Medical Officer Dr. Penny Heaton told The Associated Press that Novavax was able to produce its vaccine in less than four weeks."It demonstrates what might be possible in the next pandemic" — or in this one if the virus became much more lethal and the government deemed it an emergency, she said.Three of the five companies that supply seasonal flu vaccine to the U.S. market have begun testing swine flu vaccine on people in recent weeks. All those makers have been taking orders from governments in wealthy countries, and the companies have promised the World Health Organization that some of their vaccines will be reserved for poor nations.Heaton said there still will be need for swine flu vaccine in poor countries, and her company is in talks with some about possible sales sometime in the future.Because Novavax does not yet have any vaccines licensed in the U.S., the company would have to go through a lengthy process to get both its products and manufacturing facilities approved before it could sell its first product here.That would take at least two to three years, Heaton said.Novavax plans to begin testing its vaccine in people later this year, said Tom Johnston, vice president of strategy.According to the company, scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tested its vaccine at different doses in ferrets, which react to influenza much like people do.Ferrets injected with a high vaccine dose that then had H1N1 virus inserted in their nose did not develop flu symptoms and had no detectable virus in respiratory secretions three days after being exposed to the virus. Ferrets that got a low dose had no detectable virus after five days, but those that got no vaccine developed fever, became lethargic and had flu virus in their secretions for up to six days.
A small study conducted by federal scientists shows Novavax Inc.'s experimental vaccine against swine flu, produced in just weeks versus several months for standard methods, is effective in animals, the company said Tuesday.But it won't be approved and ready for commercial use in the U.S. for at least a couple years, meaning the vaccine won't be available to help here in the current epidemic of novel H1N1 influenza, company officials said.Novavax, based in Rockville, Md., makes vaccine using what's called virus-like particle technology to build a structure like a virus, but without the genetic material inside that a virus needs to reproduce. The particles — sets of proteins assembled through genetic engineering — are injected and attach to immune cells, which recognize the particles like they would a virus.That stimulates a strong immune response, the company said.Traditional influenza vaccines, which have their key ingredient incubated in chicken eggs, take several months to produce.Chief Medical Officer Dr. Penny Heaton told The Associated Press that Novavax was able to produce its vaccine in less than four weeks."It demonstrates what might be possible in the next pandemic" — or in this one if the virus became much more lethal and the government deemed it an emergency, she said.Three of the five companies that supply seasonal flu vaccine to the U.S. market have begun testing swine flu vaccine on people in recent weeks. All those makers have been taking orders from governments in wealthy countries, and the companies have promised the World Health Organization that some of their vaccines will be reserved for poor nations.Heaton said there still will be need for swine flu vaccine in poor countries, and her company is in talks with some about possible sales sometime in the future.Because Novavax does not yet have any vaccines licensed in the U.S., the company would have to go through a lengthy process to get both its products and manufacturing facilities approved before it could sell its first product here.That would take at least two to three years, Heaton said.Novavax plans to begin testing its vaccine in people later this year, said Tom Johnston, vice president of strategy.According to the company, scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tested its vaccine at different doses in ferrets, which react to influenza much like people do.Ferrets injected with a high vaccine dose that then had H1N1 virus inserted in their nose did not develop flu symptoms and had no detectable virus in respiratory secretions three days after being exposed to the virus. Ferrets that got a low dose had no detectable virus after five days, but those that got no vaccine developed fever, became lethargic and had flu virus in their secretions for up to six days.
The Associated Press: Forces capture Pakistani Taliban's top spokesman
18th of Aug 09
Security forces captured the Pakistani Taliban's top spokesman, and he acknowledged the death of the group's leader in a recent U.S. missile strike, officials said Tuesday — further signs the militants are in disarray since the American attack.U.S. and Pakistani officials have said they were almost certain that the chief, Baitullah Mehsud, had been killed in the Aug. 5 strike, but at least three Taliban operatives, including the detainee, Maulvi Umar, had called media organizations following the attack to say he was still alive.Umar's comments — relayed by an intelligence official who took part in the questioning — would be the first admission by the Taliban that Mehsud was dead. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.The spokesman's capture was the second arrest of a prominent Taliban figure in 24 hours, dealing another blow to the network blamed for scores of bloody attacks on Western and government targets gnawing at the stability of the nuclear-armed country.As the official spokesman for Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, the umbrella organization formed in 2007 for various regional and tribal militant movements, Umar frequently called journalists to claim responsibility for terrorist attacks in Pakistan.As well as being the movement's mouthpiece, Umar was an influential aide to Mehsud and ranking member of the Taliban.Umar initially operated relatively openly — a reflection of the former government's reluctance to tackle the group.Reporters had his home and cell phone numbers. Umar would occasionally summon Pakistani reporters stationed in Khar, the main city in Bajur tribal region, for news conferences at his headquarters in nearby Mamund town.But after the army began an offensive in April, Umar changed phone numbers frequently. He never appeared in public, but still continued to telephone the media with messages from the Taliban leadership.He was captured along with two associates in a village in the Mohmand tribal region Monday night while he was traveling in a car to South Waziristan, a Taliban stronghold, said Javed Khan, a local government administrator."Maulvi Umar is in our custody, and he is being questioned," Khan told The Associated Press without giving any further details.Earlier, three intelligence officials said local tribal elders assisted troops in locating Umar in the village of Khawazeo. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to media.Umar's capture came a day after police arrested militant commander Qari Saifullah, another close Mehsud aide, as he was being treated in a private hospital in Islamabad, the capital.Saifullah, who is reportedly linked to al-Qaida, told police he had been wounded in an American missile strike in South Waziristan, said two police officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information. It was unclear if it was the same strike believed to have killed Mehsud.Saifullah appeared Tuesday before a special anti-terrorism court along with Zaid Ikram, an aide arrested along with him. Both were ordered held for four days for investigation, prosecutor Raja Yaseen said, but he would not elaborate on what charges they would face.The two men were being questioned for possible roles in attacks on U.S. and allied forces in Afghanistan as well as terrorist attacks in Pakistan, said Islamabad police operations chief Tahir Alam Khan.Saifullah is affiliated to Harkat Jihad-e-Islami, an al-Qaida-linked group that recruits militants to fight foreign forces in Afghanistan, Khan said. Ikram — who is Saifullah's younger brother — played a major role in a bomb attack on Islamabad's Marriott hotel in 2004, in which one guard was killed in the parking lot, he said.Pakistan's Western allies are desperate to see a crackdown on militants threatening the country as well as the success of the U.S. and NATO-led mission in neighboring Afghanistan, where violence is surging ahead of elections later this week.Visiting U.S. envoy Richard Holbrooke on Sunday praised recent gains against the militants, including the reported death of Mehsud and the retaking of the Swat Valley, 100 miles (160 kilometers) from Islamabad, from the Taliban in July.___
Security forces captured the Pakistani Taliban's top spokesman, and he acknowledged the death of the group's leader in a recent U.S. missile strike, officials said Tuesday — further signs the militants are in disarray since the American attack.U.S. and Pakistani officials have said they were almost certain that the chief, Baitullah Mehsud, had been killed in the Aug. 5 strike, but at least three Taliban operatives, including the detainee, Maulvi Umar, had called media organizations following the attack to say he was still alive.Umar's comments — relayed by an intelligence official who took part in the questioning — would be the first admission by the Taliban that Mehsud was dead. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.The spokesman's capture was the second arrest of a prominent Taliban figure in 24 hours, dealing another blow to the network blamed for scores of bloody attacks on Western and government targets gnawing at the stability of the nuclear-armed country.As the official spokesman for Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, the umbrella organization formed in 2007 for various regional and tribal militant movements, Umar frequently called journalists to claim responsibility for terrorist attacks in Pakistan.As well as being the movement's mouthpiece, Umar was an influential aide to Mehsud and ranking member of the Taliban.Umar initially operated relatively openly — a reflection of the former government's reluctance to tackle the group.Reporters had his home and cell phone numbers. Umar would occasionally summon Pakistani reporters stationed in Khar, the main city in Bajur tribal region, for news conferences at his headquarters in nearby Mamund town.But after the army began an offensive in April, Umar changed phone numbers frequently. He never appeared in public, but still continued to telephone the media with messages from the Taliban leadership.He was captured along with two associates in a village in the Mohmand tribal region Monday night while he was traveling in a car to South Waziristan, a Taliban stronghold, said Javed Khan, a local government administrator."Maulvi Umar is in our custody, and he is being questioned," Khan told The Associated Press without giving any further details.Earlier, three intelligence officials said local tribal elders assisted troops in locating Umar in the village of Khawazeo. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to media.Umar's capture came a day after police arrested militant commander Qari Saifullah, another close Mehsud aide, as he was being treated in a private hospital in Islamabad, the capital.Saifullah, who is reportedly linked to al-Qaida, told police he had been wounded in an American missile strike in South Waziristan, said two police officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information. It was unclear if it was the same strike believed to have killed Mehsud.Saifullah appeared Tuesday before a special anti-terrorism court along with Zaid Ikram, an aide arrested along with him. Both were ordered held for four days for investigation, prosecutor Raja Yaseen said, but he would not elaborate on what charges they would face.The two men were being questioned for possible roles in attacks on U.S. and allied forces in Afghanistan as well as terrorist attacks in Pakistan, said Islamabad police operations chief Tahir Alam Khan.Saifullah is affiliated to Harkat Jihad-e-Islami, an al-Qaida-linked group that recruits militants to fight foreign forces in Afghanistan, Khan said. Ikram — who is Saifullah's younger brother — played a major role in a bomb attack on Islamabad's Marriott hotel in 2004, in which one guard was killed in the parking lot, he said.Pakistan's Western allies are desperate to see a crackdown on militants threatening the country as well as the success of the U.S. and NATO-led mission in neighboring Afghanistan, where violence is surging ahead of elections later this week.Visiting U.S. envoy Richard Holbrooke on Sunday praised recent gains against the militants, including the reported death of Mehsud and the retaking of the Swat Valley, 100 miles (160 kilometers) from Islamabad, from the Taliban in July.___
Jaswant's views on Jinnah not ours, says BJP
18th of Aug 09
NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Tuesday disassociated itself from senior party leader Jaswant Singh's praise for Pakistan's founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah, saying it "does not represent the views of the party".
A day after Jaswant Singh's book "Jinnah - India, Partition, Independence" was launched at a function in the capital, BJP president Rajnath Singh said the views expressed by the former external affairs minister were not that of the party.
"The book authored by Shri Jaswant Singh does not represent the views of the Bharatiya Janata Party. In fact the party completely dissociates itself from the contents of the book," Rajnath Singh said in a statement issued here.
Eulogising Jinnah in his book, Jaswant Singh has said that the founder of Pakistan was "demonised" by India, while it was actually Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first prime minister, whose belief in a centralised polity had led to the partition of the country in 1947.
Contradicting Jaswant Singh's view, the BJP president said: "Jinnah had an important role to play in the division of India, which led to a lot of dislocation and destabilisation of millions of people. This is too well-known.
"We cannot wish away this painful part of our history."
He also contradicted Jaswant Singh's view that Sardar Patel along with Nehru had "conceded" Pakistan to Jinnah.
"Jinnah did not win Pakistan, as the Congress leaders Nehru and Patel finally conceded Pakistan to Jinnah, with the British acting as an ever helpful midwife," Singh has said in his 669-page book.
The BJP president said: "Sardar Patel played a historic role in the unification and consolidation of India amidst serious threats to its unity and integrity. The entire country remains indebted and proud of the profound vision, courage and leadership of Sardar Patel."
Speaking to a news channel channel, Jaswant Singh had said: "Nehru believed in a highly centralised polity. That's what he wanted India to be. Jinnah wanted a federal polity. That even Gandhi accepted. Nehru didn't. Consistently, he stood in the way of a federal India until 1947 when it became a partitioned India."
Jaswant Singh strongly contested the popular Indian view that Jinnah was the villain of the 1947 partition or the man principally responsible for it. Asked if he thought this view was wrong, Jaswant Singh said: "It is. It is not borne out of the facts... we need to correct it."
"I think we have misunderstood him because we needed to create a demon... We needed a demon because in the 20th century the most telling event in the subcontinent was the partition of the country," Jaswant Singh said.
NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Tuesday disassociated itself from senior party leader Jaswant Singh's praise for Pakistan's founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah, saying it "does not represent the views of the party".
A day after Jaswant Singh's book "Jinnah - India, Partition, Independence" was launched at a function in the capital, BJP president Rajnath Singh said the views expressed by the former external affairs minister were not that of the party.
"The book authored by Shri Jaswant Singh does not represent the views of the Bharatiya Janata Party. In fact the party completely dissociates itself from the contents of the book," Rajnath Singh said in a statement issued here.
Eulogising Jinnah in his book, Jaswant Singh has said that the founder of Pakistan was "demonised" by India, while it was actually Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first prime minister, whose belief in a centralised polity had led to the partition of the country in 1947.
Contradicting Jaswant Singh's view, the BJP president said: "Jinnah had an important role to play in the division of India, which led to a lot of dislocation and destabilisation of millions of people. This is too well-known.
"We cannot wish away this painful part of our history."
He also contradicted Jaswant Singh's view that Sardar Patel along with Nehru had "conceded" Pakistan to Jinnah.
"Jinnah did not win Pakistan, as the Congress leaders Nehru and Patel finally conceded Pakistan to Jinnah, with the British acting as an ever helpful midwife," Singh has said in his 669-page book.
The BJP president said: "Sardar Patel played a historic role in the unification and consolidation of India amidst serious threats to its unity and integrity. The entire country remains indebted and proud of the profound vision, courage and leadership of Sardar Patel."
Speaking to a news channel channel, Jaswant Singh had said: "Nehru believed in a highly centralised polity. That's what he wanted India to be. Jinnah wanted a federal polity. That even Gandhi accepted. Nehru didn't. Consistently, he stood in the way of a federal India until 1947 when it became a partitioned India."
Jaswant Singh strongly contested the popular Indian view that Jinnah was the villain of the 1947 partition or the man principally responsible for it. Asked if he thought this view was wrong, Jaswant Singh said: "It is. It is not borne out of the facts... we need to correct it."
"I think we have misunderstood him because we needed to create a demon... We needed a demon because in the 20th century the most telling event in the subcontinent was the partition of the country," Jaswant Singh said.
Doctor, nurses among swine-flu suspects in Meghalaya
Shillong, Aug 18 (PTI) A doctor working in New Delhi and two nurses of Shillong Civil Hospital here were among the five persons suspeted of having swine flu-like symptoms and their throat swab samples were today sent for H1N1 tests.All the five have been kept in isolation and necessary treatment is being given, state's Director of Health Services K H Lakiang said.Dr Natasha Sangma, who had recently returned from New Delhi, and two nurses of Shillong Civil Hospital who had come in contact with the two H1N1 patients admitted at the hospital, have been admitted with flu-like symptoms.A 26-year-old youth, who returned from Bangalore and a girl, who had come from Vellore, also showed suspected flu-like symptoms."We are screening people having travel history to places where the flu is prevalent. We have sent the samples today to the laboratory at Dibrugarh in Assam," Lakiang said.
The Associated Press: Small company's swine flu vaccine works in animals
18th of Aug 09
A small study conducted by federal scientists shows Novavax Inc.'s experimental vaccine against swine flu, produced in just weeks versus several months for standard methods, is effective in animals, the company said Tuesday.But it won't be approved and ready for commercial use in the U.S. for at least a couple years, meaning the vaccine won't be available to help here in the current epidemic of novel H1N1 influenza, company officials said.Novavax, based in Rockville, Md., makes vaccine using what's called virus-like particle technology to build a structure like a virus, but without the genetic material inside that a virus needs to reproduce. The particles — sets of proteins assembled through genetic engineering — are injected and attach to immune cells, which recognize the particles like they would a virus.That stimulates a strong immune response, the company said.Traditional influenza vaccines, which have their key ingredient incubated in chicken eggs, take several months to produce.Chief Medical Officer Dr. Penny Heaton told The Associated Press that Novavax was able to produce its vaccine in less than four weeks."It demonstrates what might be possible in the next pandemic" — or in this one if the virus became much more lethal and the government deemed it an emergency, she said.Three of the five companies that supply seasonal flu vaccine to the U.S. market have begun testing swine flu vaccine on people in recent weeks. All those makers have been taking orders from governments in wealthy countries, and the companies have promised the World Health Organization that some of their vaccines will be reserved for poor nations.Heaton said there still will be need for swine flu vaccine in poor countries, and her company is in talks with some about possible sales sometime in the future.Because Novavax does not yet have any vaccines licensed in the U.S., the company would have to go through a lengthy process to get both its products and manufacturing facilities approved before it could sell its first product here.That would take at least two to three years, Heaton said.Novavax plans to begin testing its vaccine in people later this year, said Tom Johnston, vice president of strategy.According to the company, scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tested its vaccine at different doses in ferrets, which react to influenza much like people do.Ferrets injected with a high vaccine dose that then had H1N1 virus inserted in their nose did not develop flu symptoms and had no detectable virus in respiratory secretions three days after being exposed to the virus. Ferrets that got a low dose had no detectable virus after five days, but those that got no vaccine developed fever, became lethargic and had flu virus in their secretions for up to six days.
A small study conducted by federal scientists shows Novavax Inc.'s experimental vaccine against swine flu, produced in just weeks versus several months for standard methods, is effective in animals, the company said Tuesday.But it won't be approved and ready for commercial use in the U.S. for at least a couple years, meaning the vaccine won't be available to help here in the current epidemic of novel H1N1 influenza, company officials said.Novavax, based in Rockville, Md., makes vaccine using what's called virus-like particle technology to build a structure like a virus, but without the genetic material inside that a virus needs to reproduce. The particles — sets of proteins assembled through genetic engineering — are injected and attach to immune cells, which recognize the particles like they would a virus.That stimulates a strong immune response, the company said.Traditional influenza vaccines, which have their key ingredient incubated in chicken eggs, take several months to produce.Chief Medical Officer Dr. Penny Heaton told The Associated Press that Novavax was able to produce its vaccine in less than four weeks."It demonstrates what might be possible in the next pandemic" — or in this one if the virus became much more lethal and the government deemed it an emergency, she said.Three of the five companies that supply seasonal flu vaccine to the U.S. market have begun testing swine flu vaccine on people in recent weeks. All those makers have been taking orders from governments in wealthy countries, and the companies have promised the World Health Organization that some of their vaccines will be reserved for poor nations.Heaton said there still will be need for swine flu vaccine in poor countries, and her company is in talks with some about possible sales sometime in the future.Because Novavax does not yet have any vaccines licensed in the U.S., the company would have to go through a lengthy process to get both its products and manufacturing facilities approved before it could sell its first product here.That would take at least two to three years, Heaton said.Novavax plans to begin testing its vaccine in people later this year, said Tom Johnston, vice president of strategy.According to the company, scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tested its vaccine at different doses in ferrets, which react to influenza much like people do.Ferrets injected with a high vaccine dose that then had H1N1 virus inserted in their nose did not develop flu symptoms and had no detectable virus in respiratory secretions three days after being exposed to the virus. Ferrets that got a low dose had no detectable virus after five days, but those that got no vaccine developed fever, became lethargic and had flu virus in their secretions for up to six days.
Russia arrests 8 suspects in Arctic Sea hijacking
MOSCOW — The Russian navy has arrested eight men accused of hijacking the Arctic Sea freighter near Sweden and forcing the crew to sail to West Africa — the latest twist in a puzzling maritime mystery.
Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said Tuesday the suspected hijackers were detained by a Russian naval vessel that reached the Russian-crewed freighter Monday about 300 miles (480 kilometers) off Cape Verde in the Atlantic Ocean. That is thousands of miles (kilometers) from the Algerian port where the ship was supposed to dock two weeks ago.
The suspected hijackers — citizens of Estonia, Latvia and Russia — were arrested without a shot being fired, state news agencies quoted Serdyukov as saying. The ship's 15 Russian crew members were safe and were taken aboard by the navy for questioning.
The motive for seizing the aging freighter and its alleged cargo of timber remained unclear. Security and maritime experts said the Arctic Sea's mysterious four-week journey pointed to something other than piracy, with some suggesting state involvement or a secret cargo, possibly of nuclear materials.
The Arctic Sea left the Finnish port of Pietarsaari on July 21. On July 30, Swedish police said the ship's owner had reported that the crew claimed the vessel was boarded by masked men on July 24 near the Swedish island of Gotland. The attackers reportedly had tied up the crew, beat them, claimed they were looking for drugs, then sped off about 12 hours later in an inflatable craft.
Serdyukov said the hijackers boarded the freighter under the pretext that there was a problem with their inflatable craft. The hijackers, who were armed, then forced the crew to change course and turned off the Arctic Sea's navigation equipment, he was quoted as saying.
By the time the Swedish report of the attack had emerged, the ship had already passed through the English Channel, where it made its last known radio contact on July 28. Signals from the ship's tracking device were picked up off France's coast late the next day, but that was the last known trace of it until Monday.
The ship's signal going dead coincided with news of the reported attack.
The disappearance of the 98-meter (320-foot) freighter had perplexed experts and officials across Europe.
Mikhail Voitenko, the editor of the online Maritime Bulletin-Sovfracht, said Tuesday he had spoken overnight with some of the Arctic Sea's sailors and was more puzzled than ever.
"The vessel had all the necessary modern means of communication and emergency alarms, and was located in waters where regular mobile telephones work," he said at a news conference. "To hijack the vessel so that no one makes a peep — not one alarm goes off — can you imagine how that could be? I can't."
Voitenko, whose company Sovfracht specializes in anti-piracy security consulting, said the hijacking was beyond the means of ordinary pirates.
"The operation cost more than the cargo and ship combined," he said. The 18-year-old freighter officially had a cargo of timber worth only euro1.3 million ($1.8 million).
Voitenko said he suspected the freighter was carrying an undeclared cargo and that state interests were involved. He refused to elaborate.
Prominent analyst Yulia Latynina also said she believed the ship had a secret cargo and noted that before setting sail the freighter was in the Russian port of Kaliningrad for repairs. Latynina, writing in the online Yezhednevny Zhurnal, said she suspected the involvement of special services.
She and others have reported widespread speculation that the Arctic Sea was smuggling nuclear materials.
Observers also have noted the Russian government's delay in taking action. President Dmitry Medvedev only sent the navy to search for the missing ship on Aug. 12 after relatives of the crew publicly appealed for government help.
The Arctic Sea, which flies under a Maltese flag, is operated by the Finnish company Solchart, which has Russian management and a sister company providing technical support in the Russian city of Arkhangelsk, the home of all 15 crew members.
Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said Tuesday the suspected hijackers were detained by a Russian naval vessel that reached the Russian-crewed freighter Monday about 300 miles (480 kilometers) off Cape Verde in the Atlantic Ocean. That is thousands of miles (kilometers) from the Algerian port where the ship was supposed to dock two weeks ago.
The suspected hijackers — citizens of Estonia, Latvia and Russia — were arrested without a shot being fired, state news agencies quoted Serdyukov as saying. The ship's 15 Russian crew members were safe and were taken aboard by the navy for questioning.
The motive for seizing the aging freighter and its alleged cargo of timber remained unclear. Security and maritime experts said the Arctic Sea's mysterious four-week journey pointed to something other than piracy, with some suggesting state involvement or a secret cargo, possibly of nuclear materials.
The Arctic Sea left the Finnish port of Pietarsaari on July 21. On July 30, Swedish police said the ship's owner had reported that the crew claimed the vessel was boarded by masked men on July 24 near the Swedish island of Gotland. The attackers reportedly had tied up the crew, beat them, claimed they were looking for drugs, then sped off about 12 hours later in an inflatable craft.
Serdyukov said the hijackers boarded the freighter under the pretext that there was a problem with their inflatable craft. The hijackers, who were armed, then forced the crew to change course and turned off the Arctic Sea's navigation equipment, he was quoted as saying.
By the time the Swedish report of the attack had emerged, the ship had already passed through the English Channel, where it made its last known radio contact on July 28. Signals from the ship's tracking device were picked up off France's coast late the next day, but that was the last known trace of it until Monday.
The ship's signal going dead coincided with news of the reported attack.
The disappearance of the 98-meter (320-foot) freighter had perplexed experts and officials across Europe.
Mikhail Voitenko, the editor of the online Maritime Bulletin-Sovfracht, said Tuesday he had spoken overnight with some of the Arctic Sea's sailors and was more puzzled than ever.
"The vessel had all the necessary modern means of communication and emergency alarms, and was located in waters where regular mobile telephones work," he said at a news conference. "To hijack the vessel so that no one makes a peep — not one alarm goes off — can you imagine how that could be? I can't."
Voitenko, whose company Sovfracht specializes in anti-piracy security consulting, said the hijacking was beyond the means of ordinary pirates.
"The operation cost more than the cargo and ship combined," he said. The 18-year-old freighter officially had a cargo of timber worth only euro1.3 million ($1.8 million).
Voitenko said he suspected the freighter was carrying an undeclared cargo and that state interests were involved. He refused to elaborate.
Prominent analyst Yulia Latynina also said she believed the ship had a secret cargo and noted that before setting sail the freighter was in the Russian port of Kaliningrad for repairs. Latynina, writing in the online Yezhednevny Zhurnal, said she suspected the involvement of special services.
She and others have reported widespread speculation that the Arctic Sea was smuggling nuclear materials.
Observers also have noted the Russian government's delay in taking action. President Dmitry Medvedev only sent the navy to search for the missing ship on Aug. 12 after relatives of the crew publicly appealed for government help.
The Arctic Sea, which flies under a Maltese flag, is operated by the Finnish company Solchart, which has Russian management and a sister company providing technical support in the Russian city of Arkhangelsk, the home of all 15 crew members.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
16th of Ayg 09
Wild festivities in Pakistan kill 16, injure hundreds
ISLAMABAD, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- At least 16 people were killed while hundreds injured across Pakistan as some revelers went wild celebrating the nation's 62nd anniversary of independence with traditional zeal and zest, local newspapers reported Saturday.
Reports said that in the southern metropolis of Karachi, seven were killed while more than 100 were injured in the festivities celebrating the Independence Day on Friday. Four of the dead were the motor-bikers showing crazy stunts.
In eastern province of Punjab, a 17-year-old youth was killed while performing stunts on his motorcycle and dozens others wounded in the capital of Lahore when they were celebrating the Independence Day.
Elsewhere in Punjab, three youths were killed and 150 others sustained serious injuries in motorcycle performances in Kasur, two young men in Multan and three picnickers in Chiniot were drowned when they were celebrating by bathing and boating.
Pakistan's Independence Day is observed on Aug. 14, the day on which Pakistan became independent from the British rule in 1947.
ISLAMABAD, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- At least 16 people were killed while hundreds injured across Pakistan as some revelers went wild celebrating the nation's 62nd anniversary of independence with traditional zeal and zest, local newspapers reported Saturday.
Reports said that in the southern metropolis of Karachi, seven were killed while more than 100 were injured in the festivities celebrating the Independence Day on Friday. Four of the dead were the motor-bikers showing crazy stunts.
In eastern province of Punjab, a 17-year-old youth was killed while performing stunts on his motorcycle and dozens others wounded in the capital of Lahore when they were celebrating the Independence Day.
Elsewhere in Punjab, three youths were killed and 150 others sustained serious injuries in motorcycle performances in Kasur, two young men in Multan and three picnickers in Chiniot were drowned when they were celebrating by bathing and boating.
Pakistan's Independence Day is observed on Aug. 14, the day on which Pakistan became independent from the British rule in 1947.
16th of Aug 09
NATO, Russia join forces in hunt for missing ship
By Orlando Rodrigues (AFP) – 41 minutes ago
PRAIA — As NATO and Russia joined forces in the search for the missing cargo ship Arctic Sea, commentators on Sunday said news the ship's owners had received a ransom demand augured well for the Russian crew.
Helsinki-based Solchart Management had received the demand, Finnish police confirmed on Saturday.
Finnish Detective Chief Superintendent Jan Nyholm told AFP the authorities there were keeping more than 20 countries informed of developments concerning the hunt for the ship.
A story on the website of the Financial Times Deutschland reported that the demand was for 1.5 million dollars (1.05 million euros), without citing its source.
The did not say whether the ransom was for the crew to be freed or for the ship itself.
But for Russian maritime expert Mikhail Voitenko, the development was good news for the 15-strong Russian crew.
"This is the first positive sign that there are intentions to bring back the crew," told AFP on Sunday. Voitenko declined to speculate on who might be behind a ransom demand.
Yulia Latynina, an anti-Kremlin political commentator and a radio host in Moscow, took a similar view.
"It appears they are looking for a way out of the situation and it appears to mean that the crew will return safe and sound, thank God -- and that's the most important."
For Latynina, the saga of the Arctic Sea's disappearance had all the trappings of a Frederick Forsyth thriller.
The mystery of the vessel -- and why somebody has gone to the trouble of hijacking it -- is attracting growing international attention.
The Maltese-flagged Arctic Sea left Finland for the Algerian port of Bejaia, carrying a cargo of about 6,700 cubic metres of sawn timber estimated to be worth 1.16 million euros (1.7 million dollars) on July 23.
A day later, eight to 10 masked men boarded the ship between the Swedish islands of Oland and Gotland in the Baltic Sea at about 0100 GMT, Swedish police later reported, several days after the incident.
Claiming to be anti-drugs police, they tied up the crew and conducted a thorough search of the vessel before reportedly leaving 10 to 12 hours later after freeing the crew.
The last definite trace of the ship was in the early hours of July 30, when its tracking system put if off the coast of northwestern France.
Then on Friday, EU Commission spokesman Martin Selmayr said the ship appeared to have been attacked a second time, this time off the coast of Portugal.
But he offered no further comment "in order not to hinder the ongoing law enforcement activities."
Recent reports by officials in Cape Verde and France that the ship had been sighted off the coast of west Africa have yet to be confirmed by Russia.
Cape Verdean military officials said Friday the ship was some 400 nautical miles (740 kilometres) off one of the archipelago's islands
One of its military officers told AFP on Saturday that the boat appeared to be heading south at a speed of between 15 and 20 knots (17 and 23 miles an hour, 28 and 37 kilometres an hour).
"A small Russian frigate that was located in the Mediterranean is currently headed toward the south, probably to meet up with the Arctic Sea," French Commander Jerome Baroe said Saturday.
Russia's envoy to NATO said late Saturday that the western military alliance was working closely with Moscow in the hunt for the missing ship.
"All information that is full and most likely objective, is instantly sent to Russian navy headquarters" from NATO headquarters in Brussels, Dmitry Rogozin told the RIA Novosti news agency.
NATO's cooperation with Russia -- and the fact that Moscow has deployed ships, submarines and satellites to the search -- will only fuel speculation about the hijacking, already a rare enough occurrence in these waters.
Experts have debated whether pirates, a mafia quarrel or a commercial dispute were behind the disappearance of the ship.
By Orlando Rodrigues (AFP) – 41 minutes ago
PRAIA — As NATO and Russia joined forces in the search for the missing cargo ship Arctic Sea, commentators on Sunday said news the ship's owners had received a ransom demand augured well for the Russian crew.
Helsinki-based Solchart Management had received the demand, Finnish police confirmed on Saturday.
Finnish Detective Chief Superintendent Jan Nyholm told AFP the authorities there were keeping more than 20 countries informed of developments concerning the hunt for the ship.
A story on the website of the Financial Times Deutschland reported that the demand was for 1.5 million dollars (1.05 million euros), without citing its source.
The did not say whether the ransom was for the crew to be freed or for the ship itself.
But for Russian maritime expert Mikhail Voitenko, the development was good news for the 15-strong Russian crew.
"This is the first positive sign that there are intentions to bring back the crew," told AFP on Sunday. Voitenko declined to speculate on who might be behind a ransom demand.
Yulia Latynina, an anti-Kremlin political commentator and a radio host in Moscow, took a similar view.
"It appears they are looking for a way out of the situation and it appears to mean that the crew will return safe and sound, thank God -- and that's the most important."
For Latynina, the saga of the Arctic Sea's disappearance had all the trappings of a Frederick Forsyth thriller.
The mystery of the vessel -- and why somebody has gone to the trouble of hijacking it -- is attracting growing international attention.
The Maltese-flagged Arctic Sea left Finland for the Algerian port of Bejaia, carrying a cargo of about 6,700 cubic metres of sawn timber estimated to be worth 1.16 million euros (1.7 million dollars) on July 23.
A day later, eight to 10 masked men boarded the ship between the Swedish islands of Oland and Gotland in the Baltic Sea at about 0100 GMT, Swedish police later reported, several days after the incident.
Claiming to be anti-drugs police, they tied up the crew and conducted a thorough search of the vessel before reportedly leaving 10 to 12 hours later after freeing the crew.
The last definite trace of the ship was in the early hours of July 30, when its tracking system put if off the coast of northwestern France.
Then on Friday, EU Commission spokesman Martin Selmayr said the ship appeared to have been attacked a second time, this time off the coast of Portugal.
But he offered no further comment "in order not to hinder the ongoing law enforcement activities."
Recent reports by officials in Cape Verde and France that the ship had been sighted off the coast of west Africa have yet to be confirmed by Russia.
Cape Verdean military officials said Friday the ship was some 400 nautical miles (740 kilometres) off one of the archipelago's islands
One of its military officers told AFP on Saturday that the boat appeared to be heading south at a speed of between 15 and 20 knots (17 and 23 miles an hour, 28 and 37 kilometres an hour).
"A small Russian frigate that was located in the Mediterranean is currently headed toward the south, probably to meet up with the Arctic Sea," French Commander Jerome Baroe said Saturday.
Russia's envoy to NATO said late Saturday that the western military alliance was working closely with Moscow in the hunt for the missing ship.
"All information that is full and most likely objective, is instantly sent to Russian navy headquarters" from NATO headquarters in Brussels, Dmitry Rogozin told the RIA Novosti news agency.
NATO's cooperation with Russia -- and the fact that Moscow has deployed ships, submarines and satellites to the search -- will only fuel speculation about the hijacking, already a rare enough occurrence in these waters.
Experts have debated whether pirates, a mafia quarrel or a commercial dispute were behind the disappearance of the ship.
16th Aug 09
US envoy praises Pakistan progress against Taliban
By ZARAR KHAN (AP) – 3 hours ago
ISLAMABAD — President Barack Obama's special envoy to Pakistan praised the country's "very significant" progress in taking back key territory from the Taliban and promised more weapons for the fight against extremists close to the Afghan border.
Richard Holbrooke began an official visit Sunday, his first since the reported death of the militants' leader, Baitullah Mehsud, in a CIA missile strike Aug. 5.
Heavy rain forced him to postpone a trip to the northwestern Swat Valley, where hundreds of thousands of refugees have begun to return after the military declared in July that it had ended Taliban control of the area, a U.S. Embassy official said on condition of anonymity citing policy.
On Sunday, residents in Swat reported finding 18 bullet-ridden bodies lying in the streets, some of them believed to be those of militants loyal to the local Taliban chief.
Holbrooke told reporters traveling with him Saturday that the Pakistani military's success in Swat was a sign of progress, along with the apparent death of Mehsud, which he described as a serious blow to the militants.
"I cannot tell whether the Taliban have been destroyed or dispersed as a result of this operation until I go myself," he said. "But one thing that is quite obvious is that security forces regained Swat and Buner from the Taliban, which itself is very significant."
Washington has reportedly been anxious for Pakistan to capitalize on the momentum by launching a ground offensive in the Taliban-controlled tribal areas west of Swat — including Mehsud's stronghold of Waziristan. However, Holbrooke said the timing was up to the Pakistani military, which has been launching aerial assaults against militant bases near the border.
"It is not for the U.S. to decide. It would be the decision of the Pakistan government as to when and how go against the terrorists in Waziristan," he said.
The Taliban takeover of Swat — a scenic alpine enclave that once boasted Pakistan's only ski resort — had become a symbol of the extremists' expansion in the nuclear-armed, mostly Muslim country of 175 million.
The government's various peace deals with militants in Swat and elsewhere had frustrated Washington, but three months ago, the army launched its largest offensive in years after the Swat militants broke a peace agreement and advanced into Buner district, just 60 miles (100 kilometers) from Islamabad, the capital.
Holbrooke said the U.S. planned to provide more helicopters and other equipment such as night-vision goggles to the Pakistani military to aid the fight, as well as give economic help for the cash-strapped government. He also said that Pakistan's shifting of its military focus from its eastern frontier near India westward to its border with Afghanistan was a positive sign.
Pakistani forces have been winding down their three-month offensive in Swat but still face pockets of militant resistance and violence. Hundreds of thousands of the roughly 2 million people who fled during the military offensive have been returning amid tight security.
On Sunday, residents in different areas of Swat woke up to find a total of 18 bodies lying in the streets. One body was in the main town of Mingora, seven in Kanju town and the rest in four other villages. Local police would not comment on the bodies, but residents interviewed on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation said they recognized some of the men as militants loyal to local Taliban commander Maulana Fazlullah.
Maj. Nasir Khan of army's Swat Media Center said the military had nothing to do with the deaths and theorized that local residents who suffered under the Taliban's harsh rule — in which they banned music, burned down girls' schools and killed anyone who resisted their harsh interpretation of Islamic law — were taking revenge.
"It could be outcome of personal enmities in those areas," he said.
On Saturday, a suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden car into a police checkpoint in Swat, killing at least five people. It was the first suicide attack there since July, when the military declared it had regained control of the valley.
Pakistan has said troops will remain in Swat until the fighters of Fazlullah — a notorious Taliban leader whose thousands of followers are blamed for the violence — are eliminated. Although the military says it has killed or captured a number of Fazlullah's commanders, he has evaded capture.
By ZARAR KHAN (AP) – 3 hours ago
ISLAMABAD — President Barack Obama's special envoy to Pakistan praised the country's "very significant" progress in taking back key territory from the Taliban and promised more weapons for the fight against extremists close to the Afghan border.
Richard Holbrooke began an official visit Sunday, his first since the reported death of the militants' leader, Baitullah Mehsud, in a CIA missile strike Aug. 5.
Heavy rain forced him to postpone a trip to the northwestern Swat Valley, where hundreds of thousands of refugees have begun to return after the military declared in July that it had ended Taliban control of the area, a U.S. Embassy official said on condition of anonymity citing policy.
On Sunday, residents in Swat reported finding 18 bullet-ridden bodies lying in the streets, some of them believed to be those of militants loyal to the local Taliban chief.
Holbrooke told reporters traveling with him Saturday that the Pakistani military's success in Swat was a sign of progress, along with the apparent death of Mehsud, which he described as a serious blow to the militants.
"I cannot tell whether the Taliban have been destroyed or dispersed as a result of this operation until I go myself," he said. "But one thing that is quite obvious is that security forces regained Swat and Buner from the Taliban, which itself is very significant."
Washington has reportedly been anxious for Pakistan to capitalize on the momentum by launching a ground offensive in the Taliban-controlled tribal areas west of Swat — including Mehsud's stronghold of Waziristan. However, Holbrooke said the timing was up to the Pakistani military, which has been launching aerial assaults against militant bases near the border.
"It is not for the U.S. to decide. It would be the decision of the Pakistan government as to when and how go against the terrorists in Waziristan," he said.
The Taliban takeover of Swat — a scenic alpine enclave that once boasted Pakistan's only ski resort — had become a symbol of the extremists' expansion in the nuclear-armed, mostly Muslim country of 175 million.
The government's various peace deals with militants in Swat and elsewhere had frustrated Washington, but three months ago, the army launched its largest offensive in years after the Swat militants broke a peace agreement and advanced into Buner district, just 60 miles (100 kilometers) from Islamabad, the capital.
Holbrooke said the U.S. planned to provide more helicopters and other equipment such as night-vision goggles to the Pakistani military to aid the fight, as well as give economic help for the cash-strapped government. He also said that Pakistan's shifting of its military focus from its eastern frontier near India westward to its border with Afghanistan was a positive sign.
Pakistani forces have been winding down their three-month offensive in Swat but still face pockets of militant resistance and violence. Hundreds of thousands of the roughly 2 million people who fled during the military offensive have been returning amid tight security.
On Sunday, residents in different areas of Swat woke up to find a total of 18 bodies lying in the streets. One body was in the main town of Mingora, seven in Kanju town and the rest in four other villages. Local police would not comment on the bodies, but residents interviewed on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation said they recognized some of the men as militants loyal to local Taliban commander Maulana Fazlullah.
Maj. Nasir Khan of army's Swat Media Center said the military had nothing to do with the deaths and theorized that local residents who suffered under the Taliban's harsh rule — in which they banned music, burned down girls' schools and killed anyone who resisted their harsh interpretation of Islamic law — were taking revenge.
"It could be outcome of personal enmities in those areas," he said.
On Saturday, a suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden car into a police checkpoint in Swat, killing at least five people. It was the first suicide attack there since July, when the military declared it had regained control of the valley.
Pakistan has said troops will remain in Swat until the fighters of Fazlullah — a notorious Taliban leader whose thousands of followers are blamed for the violence — are eliminated. Although the military says it has killed or captured a number of Fazlullah's commanders, he has evaded capture.
16th Aug 09
Prez 'at home': Space crunch has guests in a huddleMohua Chatterjee, TNN 16 August 2009, 02:30pm IST
NEW DELHI: While President Pratibha Patil may have a reason to be happy that Delhi finally got some rain, a day after she spoke of the looming drought situation, the ‘at home’ in Rashtrapati Bhavan to celebrate the 63rd Independence Day was a washout. It had to be shifted indoors from the usually wellkept expanses of the Mughal Gardens. The tea party lost much of its charm as the guests had to be huddled into the various halls on the first floor of Rashtrapati Bhavan with hardly any place for the invitees to mix around. While the President herself walked through the corridors leading to Ashoka Hall and remained seated for 45 minutes as she met her guests, flanked by PM Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi , there was a certain stiffness about the 'at home'. The jostling at the tables where the tea and snacks were laid out was also unusual because of the lack of space.
NEW DELHI: While President Pratibha Patil may have a reason to be happy that Delhi finally got some rain, a day after she spoke of the looming drought situation, the ‘at home’ in Rashtrapati Bhavan to celebrate the 63rd Independence Day was a washout. It had to be shifted indoors from the usually wellkept expanses of the Mughal Gardens. The tea party lost much of its charm as the guests had to be huddled into the various halls on the first floor of Rashtrapati Bhavan with hardly any place for the invitees to mix around. While the President herself walked through the corridors leading to Ashoka Hall and remained seated for 45 minutes as she met her guests, flanked by PM Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi , there was a certain stiffness about the 'at home'. The jostling at the tables where the tea and snacks were laid out was also unusual because of the lack of space.
16th August 09
Focus will be on 9% growth: Manmohan
16 Aug 2009, 0235 hrs IST, ET Bureau
NEW DELHI: As drought stares the country in the face, Prime Minister Manmohan on Saturday assured all possible assistance to farmers to deal with
the crisis arising out of the deficient monsoon, while at the same time allaying any apprehensions regarding shortage of foodgrain or a further spurt in their prices. In his Independence-Day address delivered from the ramparts of the Red Fort, Mr Singh said his government’s efforts would be focused on nursing the economy back from its current 6.7% growth rate to a robust 9%, be it by increasing capital flows into the country, encouraging exports or increasing public investment and expenditure. “We expect that there will be an improvement in the situation by the end of this year, but till that time we will all have to bear with the fall out of the global economic slow down,” he said while enlisting the help of all businessmen and industrialists to “tackle this difficult situation.” Conceding that the insufficient rains would “definitely have some adverse impact on our crops,” the Prime Minister said the government had already initiated steps to bring relief to farmers by easing the terms for repayment of agricultural loans. Mr Singh also reached out to the common man by assuring him not only of adequate foodstocks but also of “all efforts” by his government to control the rising prices of foodgrain, pulses and other items of daily use. Also stressing upon the need for another Green Revolution, he said the “we would try our best to make it possible” as “our goal is 4% annual growth in agriculture.” He hoped this target would be achieved in the next five years. In his first speech after returning to power for a second consecutive term, Mr Singh also extended an olive branch to political parties, saying it would be the UPA government’s “endeavour to carry everyone with us to lead the country ahead on the path of development by creating an environment of consensus and cooperation.” Also touching upon the concern caused by the outbreak of swine flu in parts of the country, the Prime Minister said the Centre and state governments would together make all necessary efforts to stem the spread of the H1N1 infection. At the same time, he assured the citizens that the swine flu situation was not alarming enough “to warrant a disruption of our daily lives because of fear and anxiety.” Dwelling on the 26/11 terror strikes in Mumbai, the Prime Minister said several steps against terrorism had been taken since by his government. “To root out terrorist activities, our security forces and intelligence agencies are being constantly upgraded,” he noted. Also referring to the menace of Left-wing extremism, Mr Singh said efforts would be redoubled to deal with Naxalites. “Those who think that they can seize power by recourse to the gun do not understand the strength of our democracy,” he noted. According to him, the Centre would offer all necessary assistance to the affected states to strengthen their police forces, while also providing its own Central forces to counter the Naxalites. At the same time, he said the government would try and remove the causes of social and economic dissatisfaction associated with the rise to Naxalism. Interestingly, the Prime Minister made no reference to Pakistan in his 45-minute speech, only speaking of India’s intention to live in peace and harmony with all its neighbours. Referring to the recent elections in Jammu and Kashmir, Mr Singh said it had demonstrated that separatist ideology has no place in the state. He said the Centre will ensure that citizens of the state lead a life of peace and dignity with their human rights being respected. Emphasising that it was government’s solemn duty to take special care of the deprived sections of the society, Mr Singh rejected the contention that it amounted to appeasement. “Our government would give its full attention to the well being of our brothers and sisters belonging to the minority communities,” he said adding that the many schemes started under his regime would be taken forward. Asserting that the government was committed towards providing 33% reservation to women in Parliament, Mr Singh said: “We are trying to make a law through which women will be given 50% reservation in rural and local bodies so that they get equal representation.” The Prime Minister also announced the launch of a National Female Literacy Mission, which will aim to reduce female illiteracy by half in the next three years.
13th Aug 09
IANS 13 August 2009, 06:32pm IST PrintEmailDiscussBookmark/ShareSaveCommentText Size:
NEW DELHI: Information and broadcasting ministry officials have cautioned TV channels not to create panic about the H1N1 influenza that is rapidly spreading across India.
"We have conveyed our concerns to leading media organisations, including TV channels. We have no issue with creating awareness, but we have told them not to create panic about swine flu," an official of the information and broadcasting ministry said.
"There is no advisory as such. We have informally conveyed our message," the official said.
The officials of the ministry have conveyed to the News Broadcasting Association, an industry group of news channels, the need to observe restraint in reporting about swine flu.
Twenty people have died of swine flu in India so far, with the maximum number of 12 casualties reported from Pune in Maharastra. Earlier, the swine flu scare was confined to Pune after the first Indian victim of the disease last week.
There have been two deaths in Mumbai, and one each in Nashik, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Vadodara, Chennai and Thiruvananthapuram.
The scare of an epidemic outbreak is spreading fast in India.
The constant updates on the spread of the disease on TV news channels have, in the views of the information and broadcasting ministry, aggravated the sense of panic.
Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad recently said the government may set up a war room to deal with the viral disease.
NEW DELHI: Information and broadcasting ministry officials have cautioned TV channels not to create panic about the H1N1 influenza that is rapidly spreading across India.
"We have conveyed our concerns to leading media organisations, including TV channels. We have no issue with creating awareness, but we have told them not to create panic about swine flu," an official of the information and broadcasting ministry said.
"There is no advisory as such. We have informally conveyed our message," the official said.
The officials of the ministry have conveyed to the News Broadcasting Association, an industry group of news channels, the need to observe restraint in reporting about swine flu.
Twenty people have died of swine flu in India so far, with the maximum number of 12 casualties reported from Pune in Maharastra. Earlier, the swine flu scare was confined to Pune after the first Indian victim of the disease last week.
There have been two deaths in Mumbai, and one each in Nashik, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Vadodara, Chennai and Thiruvananthapuram.
The scare of an epidemic outbreak is spreading fast in India.
The constant updates on the spread of the disease on TV news channels have, in the views of the information and broadcasting ministry, aggravated the sense of panic.
Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad recently said the government may set up a war room to deal with the viral disease.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Devangshu Dutta: google Earth's desi version 15th August 09
De
Software is one industry where it is feasible to release experimental products in the hopes that user-feedback will help iron out bugs. This is what an open beta release seeks to do. “Beta” carries large built-in disclaimers.
The beta user-community sees bugs and instability as the price of indulging curiosity. Ideally, beta-user feedback leads to upgrades that eventually make programs more stable, useful and interesting for aam users.
If however, the beta is directly comparable to a popular, freely available product, then the standard of comparisons is unfortunately, much higher. ISRO’s new beta Bhuvan that launched on Wednesday suffers heavily vis-a-vis Google Earth and associated programs like Wikimapia. The image-mapping software from ISRO is clunky. It has many potentially useful and impressive features but it is being delivered in a condition that makes even hardened beta-users sweat.
The political imperative to releasing Bhuvan on or around I-Day (on Dr Sarabhai’s 90th birthday actually) may have been strong. It was behind schedule — there’s been a buzz about it since November 2008 at least. Nevertheless, it may have been better to wait or to release a “closed” beta without exposing Bhuvan as it stands to public view.
Bhuvan promises to do a lot more than G-Earth for India-specific users. It offers quicker data refreshment (the satellite pictures will be newer). It offers better street-by-street (indeed house-by-house) coverage with resolutions that will eventually be significantly better.
It also offers a load of useful metadata ranging across climate, weather, demographics, and the historical values of above. These could empower an endless range of commercially useful apps as well as research tools. It allows easy measuring and scaling and one-click snapshot of maps. This is brilliant. Once the next version incorporates Chandrayaan-data, including shots of the dark side of the moon, the geek community will have collective orgasms.
But let me list some of the frustrations. Bhuvan requires an 10.7Mb download from the ISRO site. The site has not been mirrored and it has been down near-continuously due to high traffic since the launch. That was three days ago, and 72 hours is long enough for even bureaucracies to take corrective action. The GoI has both the technological ability and the bandwidth. The Election Commission and the Railways, for instance, handle humongous traffic.
Anyway let’s assume a user gets there when the site is working, goes through the tedious registration (I’m the Phd who lives in Maradona-Nagar), downloads and completes set-up. Bhuvan can only be run off the site, post-login. This means permanent traffic jams. You will get kicked off regularly. The user-interface has good, deep menus but lacks much in the way of help though this is common to most beta-releases.
What is more, Bhuvan can only be used off Windows platforms, through an Internet Explorer browser with DirectX and MS.Net installed. It is not a “full-screen” app since it sits inside IE. It can only be run off broadband connections that are at least 756Kbps in speed.
All this ignores India’s realities in terms of user-preferences and of broadband penetration. Very few home-users have connections anywhere near that fast (default “broadband” is 256Kbps). India’s beta-users include a thriving Linux and Mac community while browsers like Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Safari, etc are popular. DirectX is also not a safe environment. If ISRO does get hacked, DirectX will help to spread the pain.
Net-net, Bhuvan is a technically brilliant product with many innovative features. But it could fail to win widespread adoption due to the inability to consider the user perspective. It is possible to address all these issues. That’s what beta is supposedly about. Let’s hope that this is corrected in the stable release, whenever that is.
Software is one industry where it is feasible to release experimental products in the hopes that user-feedback will help iron out bugs. This is what an open beta release seeks to do. “Beta” carries large built-in disclaimers.
The beta user-community sees bugs and instability as the price of indulging curiosity. Ideally, beta-user feedback leads to upgrades that eventually make programs more stable, useful and interesting for aam users.
If however, the beta is directly comparable to a popular, freely available product, then the standard of comparisons is unfortunately, much higher. ISRO’s new beta Bhuvan that launched on Wednesday suffers heavily vis-a-vis Google Earth and associated programs like Wikimapia. The image-mapping software from ISRO is clunky. It has many potentially useful and impressive features but it is being delivered in a condition that makes even hardened beta-users sweat.
The political imperative to releasing Bhuvan on or around I-Day (on Dr Sarabhai’s 90th birthday actually) may have been strong. It was behind schedule — there’s been a buzz about it since November 2008 at least. Nevertheless, it may have been better to wait or to release a “closed” beta without exposing Bhuvan as it stands to public view.
Bhuvan promises to do a lot more than G-Earth for India-specific users. It offers quicker data refreshment (the satellite pictures will be newer). It offers better street-by-street (indeed house-by-house) coverage with resolutions that will eventually be significantly better.
It also offers a load of useful metadata ranging across climate, weather, demographics, and the historical values of above. These could empower an endless range of commercially useful apps as well as research tools. It allows easy measuring and scaling and one-click snapshot of maps. This is brilliant. Once the next version incorporates Chandrayaan-data, including shots of the dark side of the moon, the geek community will have collective orgasms.
But let me list some of the frustrations. Bhuvan requires an 10.7Mb download from the ISRO site. The site has not been mirrored and it has been down near-continuously due to high traffic since the launch. That was three days ago, and 72 hours is long enough for even bureaucracies to take corrective action. The GoI has both the technological ability and the bandwidth. The Election Commission and the Railways, for instance, handle humongous traffic.
Anyway let’s assume a user gets there when the site is working, goes through the tedious registration (I’m the Phd who lives in Maradona-Nagar), downloads and completes set-up. Bhuvan can only be run off the site, post-login. This means permanent traffic jams. You will get kicked off regularly. The user-interface has good, deep menus but lacks much in the way of help though this is common to most beta-releases.
What is more, Bhuvan can only be used off Windows platforms, through an Internet Explorer browser with DirectX and MS.Net installed. It is not a “full-screen” app since it sits inside IE. It can only be run off broadband connections that are at least 756Kbps in speed.
All this ignores India’s realities in terms of user-preferences and of broadband penetration. Very few home-users have connections anywhere near that fast (default “broadband” is 256Kbps). India’s beta-users include a thriving Linux and Mac community while browsers like Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Safari, etc are popular. DirectX is also not a safe environment. If ISRO does get hacked, DirectX will help to spread the pain.
Net-net, Bhuvan is a technically brilliant product with many innovative features. But it could fail to win widespread adoption due to the inability to consider the user perspective. It is possible to address all these issues. That’s what beta is supposedly about. Let’s hope that this is corrected in the stable release, whenever that is.
14th August 09
Groundwater vanishing in North India, says NASA
BANGALORE: Groundwater levels in Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi are falling dramatically — by one foot a year — a trend that could lead to “extensive socio-economic stresses” for the region’s 114 million residents, says a scientific paper based on the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s satellite imagery.
A staggering 109 cubic km of groundwater has been lost in just six years (2002-08) — a figure twice the capacity of India’s largest surface reservoir Upper Wainganga and “much more” than the government’s estimation, says the paper published in the latest issue of international journal Nature.
The depletion is caused entirely by human activity such as irrigation, and not natural climatic variability, concludes the study co-authored by Matthew Rodell, a hydrologist with NASA. Groundwater is being pumped out faster than it is being replenished.
The finding is based on images from NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE), a pair of satellites that sense changes in Earth’s gravity field and associated mass distribution, including water masses stored above or below the Earth’s surface.
Between August 2002 and October 2008, the region lost 109 cubic km of groundwater, almost triple the capacity of the largest man-made reservoir in the U.S., Lake Mead. If measures are not taken to ensure sustainable groundwater use, consequences may include collapse of agricultural output and severe shortages of potable water, said Professor Rodell.
Depletion is likely to continue until effective measures are taken to curb groundwater demand which could propel severe shortages of potable water, reduced agricultural productivity, conflict and suffering, the research paper added. Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi are semi-arid or arid. The region has benefited from the Green Revolution “fuelled largely by increased production of groundwater for irrigation.”
BANGALORE: Groundwater levels in Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi are falling dramatically — by one foot a year — a trend that could lead to “extensive socio-economic stresses” for the region’s 114 million residents, says a scientific paper based on the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s satellite imagery.
A staggering 109 cubic km of groundwater has been lost in just six years (2002-08) — a figure twice the capacity of India’s largest surface reservoir Upper Wainganga and “much more” than the government’s estimation, says the paper published in the latest issue of international journal Nature.
The depletion is caused entirely by human activity such as irrigation, and not natural climatic variability, concludes the study co-authored by Matthew Rodell, a hydrologist with NASA. Groundwater is being pumped out faster than it is being replenished.
The finding is based on images from NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE), a pair of satellites that sense changes in Earth’s gravity field and associated mass distribution, including water masses stored above or below the Earth’s surface.
Between August 2002 and October 2008, the region lost 109 cubic km of groundwater, almost triple the capacity of the largest man-made reservoir in the U.S., Lake Mead. If measures are not taken to ensure sustainable groundwater use, consequences may include collapse of agricultural output and severe shortages of potable water, said Professor Rodell.
Depletion is likely to continue until effective measures are taken to curb groundwater demand which could propel severe shortages of potable water, reduced agricultural productivity, conflict and suffering, the research paper added. Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi are semi-arid or arid. The region has benefited from the Green Revolution “fuelled largely by increased production of groundwater for irrigation.”
Friday, August 14, 2009
15th August 09
NE silk finds place in global map
15 Aug 2009, 0106 hrs IST, Bikash Singh, ET Bureau
GUWAHATI: Entrepreneurs from the North East have started making their presence felt in the international markets. Silk products from the region have
started getting attention on the world stage. Assam based Fabric Plus, which also has units in West Bengal, is exporting designer fabrics for fashion and home fashion, including made-ups like stoles, ties, curtain panels cushions, corporate gifts to European and US market. The company is using natural silks and silk mixed with natural fibres like linen, wool, cotton for making these products. The company already has three units and is setting up the fourth one in Chhaygaon near Guwahati. The unit will be inaugurated by Union minister of textiles, Dayanadhi Maran, on August 19. The company is investing around Rs 5.50 crore in setting up a fully integrated project to manufacture spun silk yarns, dyed yarns, weaving (both handloom and shuttle less) and fabric processing at Chhaygaon Industrial Growth Centre. The company is promoting golden muga, eri and pat silk. Dilip Barooah, managing director of the company, told ET: “We are producing around 50,000 liner meters of fabric annually. Once the fourth unit is commissioned, our annual production will be 1,20,000 liner meter fabric. In addition, we will have 90,000 metric tonnes of yarn, 60,000 of which will be eri and muga and rest will be blended like silk and bamboo.” Mr Barooah added: “The turnover of the company is around Rs 4 crore annually and the unit gets commissioned it will increase to 14 crore. Around 70% of the products are exported to European market and 30% to US. There is huge demand; we are not able to meet the demand.” He further said in setting up the fourth unit company is getting financial support from Silk Board, government of Assam and North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Limited.
8th August -09
12 Goa mines near wildlife sanctuaries face closure
Panaji (IANS): Twelve mines, including one owned by Sesa Goa, face closure because of their proximity to wildlife sanctuaries.
Director of Environment Michael D'Souza directed the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) through a letter dated August 6 to stop mines which "have not obtained any clearances from the statutory authorities".
The list of mines includes Sesa Goa mines at Codli village, two mines operated by Shantilal Khushaldas Bros at Rivona, which do not have the required clearances and sanctions from the forest department.
Another mine belonging to Damodar Mangalji, which is also under investigation, is located in a lease area which is a protected site which has ancient rock carvings.
The administrative action follows an assurance given to the state assembly Thursday by Environment Minister Aleixo Sequeira that all mines near wildlife sanctuaries would be ordered to stop operations.
"The undersigned has assured the august house that in case alleged illegalities are found to be true, the department of environment will immediately ensure necessary action to stop all such activities," Mr. Sequeira wrote in a note to the environment secretary a few hours after the assurance to the Assembly.
"The note from the honourable minister for environment is self explanatory, along with it is a list of 12 mines which are operating without fulfilling the requisite conditions or without having obtained any clearances from other statutory authorities," Mr. D'Souza has said.
The issue of illegal mining has been one of the main features of the monsoon session of the Goa legislative assembly. A high level committee appointed by the chief minister has also thrown light on several instances of illegal mining in the State.
The opposition has repeatedly alleged that several Cabinet ministers were involved in illegal mining.Leader of opposition Manohar Parrikar had also alleged that nearly 18 per cent of Goa's mining exports was fed by illegal mining.
Panaji (IANS): Twelve mines, including one owned by Sesa Goa, face closure because of their proximity to wildlife sanctuaries.
Director of Environment Michael D'Souza directed the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) through a letter dated August 6 to stop mines which "have not obtained any clearances from the statutory authorities".
The list of mines includes Sesa Goa mines at Codli village, two mines operated by Shantilal Khushaldas Bros at Rivona, which do not have the required clearances and sanctions from the forest department.
Another mine belonging to Damodar Mangalji, which is also under investigation, is located in a lease area which is a protected site which has ancient rock carvings.
The administrative action follows an assurance given to the state assembly Thursday by Environment Minister Aleixo Sequeira that all mines near wildlife sanctuaries would be ordered to stop operations.
"The undersigned has assured the august house that in case alleged illegalities are found to be true, the department of environment will immediately ensure necessary action to stop all such activities," Mr. Sequeira wrote in a note to the environment secretary a few hours after the assurance to the Assembly.
"The note from the honourable minister for environment is self explanatory, along with it is a list of 12 mines which are operating without fulfilling the requisite conditions or without having obtained any clearances from other statutory authorities," Mr. D'Souza has said.
The issue of illegal mining has been one of the main features of the monsoon session of the Goa legislative assembly. A high level committee appointed by the chief minister has also thrown light on several instances of illegal mining in the State.
The opposition has repeatedly alleged that several Cabinet ministers were involved in illegal mining.Leader of opposition Manohar Parrikar had also alleged that nearly 18 per cent of Goa's mining exports was fed by illegal mining.
15 August 09
India's swine flu toll goes down, not up!
Umesh Isalkar & Sarang Dastane, TNN 15 August 2009, 12:20am IST
PUNE/NEW DELHI: In a bizarre turn of events, India's official death toll from H1N1 went down on Friday despite two people dying due to swine flu
during the day. That's because a trigger-happy administration had wrongly ascribed three deaths in Pune on Wednesday and Thursday to the virus without waiting for the test results.
At a time when every death is adding to a sense of panic in Pune, in particular, and the country at large, you would think this could not happen. But it did. Pune district collector Chandrakant Dalvi formally announced on Friday that the toll in the city was down from 15 to 12: ``The throat swab reports of the three — Gautam Shelar (48 years), Swabhiman Kamble (9 months) and Bharati Goel (70 years) — have tested negative for H1N1 influenza. Therefore, they won't be considered as casualties of H1N1 influenza. And the death toll of the H1N1 viral infection in the city has come down to 12,'' he said.
As a result, the national toll, which had officially reached 24 by late afternoon on Friday, fell to 21 by the evening, one short of the figure when the day began.
The health authorities had earlier included these three in the H1N1 death toll reported from Pune on the grounds that they were suffering either from acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) or severe breathlessness, symptoms often associated with an H1N1 infection.
``All three had died before the throat swab reports were given by the National Institute of Virology (NIV). Hence they were considered as suspected H1N1 death cases. But now since their throat swabs have tested negative, we can not count them as casualties of H1N1 influenza,'' said Dalvi.
Even the Centre did not bother to confirm whether these cases had indeed tested positive. A ministry official currently camped in Pune told TOI: ``It was a mistake locally. The information that reached the Centre mentioned them as H1N1 deaths. The emergency medical relief control room in charge of keeping a tab on positive cases and deaths went by what the state told them,'' he said.
Joint director of state health services, Ashok Ladda, said, ``As per the new guidelines, any suspected case having ARDS or severe breathlessness is given Tamiflu tablets. We followed the treatment guidelines and had put them on Tamiflu along with other supportive medicines.'' He failed to explain why this should have led to their being automatically counted among the victims of swine flu.
NIV director A C Mishra explained, ``As the NIV is receiving throat swabs in bulk, over 600 on any given day, it is becoming increasingly difficult to carry out testing of all the samples the same day. Hence, as per the new testing protocol, any patient suffering from acute respiratory distress syndrome or severe breathlessness is administered Tamilfu without waiting for the throat swab report. Administering Tamiflu to such a patient whose throat swab report is awaited, does not mean that he or she is positive.'' Clearly this elementary fact was lost on those responsible for keeping count.
Meanwhile, a Central team that visited Pune on Friday concluded that the virus was widespread in the city and was no longer confined to specific areas. ``It is worse than clusters, almost every locality now has it,'' one of the members of the team told TOI.
Umesh Isalkar & Sarang Dastane, TNN 15 August 2009, 12:20am IST
PUNE/NEW DELHI: In a bizarre turn of events, India's official death toll from H1N1 went down on Friday despite two people dying due to swine flu
during the day. That's because a trigger-happy administration had wrongly ascribed three deaths in Pune on Wednesday and Thursday to the virus without waiting for the test results.
At a time when every death is adding to a sense of panic in Pune, in particular, and the country at large, you would think this could not happen. But it did. Pune district collector Chandrakant Dalvi formally announced on Friday that the toll in the city was down from 15 to 12: ``The throat swab reports of the three — Gautam Shelar (48 years), Swabhiman Kamble (9 months) and Bharati Goel (70 years) — have tested negative for H1N1 influenza. Therefore, they won't be considered as casualties of H1N1 influenza. And the death toll of the H1N1 viral infection in the city has come down to 12,'' he said.
As a result, the national toll, which had officially reached 24 by late afternoon on Friday, fell to 21 by the evening, one short of the figure when the day began.
The health authorities had earlier included these three in the H1N1 death toll reported from Pune on the grounds that they were suffering either from acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) or severe breathlessness, symptoms often associated with an H1N1 infection.
``All three had died before the throat swab reports were given by the National Institute of Virology (NIV). Hence they were considered as suspected H1N1 death cases. But now since their throat swabs have tested negative, we can not count them as casualties of H1N1 influenza,'' said Dalvi.
Even the Centre did not bother to confirm whether these cases had indeed tested positive. A ministry official currently camped in Pune told TOI: ``It was a mistake locally. The information that reached the Centre mentioned them as H1N1 deaths. The emergency medical relief control room in charge of keeping a tab on positive cases and deaths went by what the state told them,'' he said.
Joint director of state health services, Ashok Ladda, said, ``As per the new guidelines, any suspected case having ARDS or severe breathlessness is given Tamiflu tablets. We followed the treatment guidelines and had put them on Tamiflu along with other supportive medicines.'' He failed to explain why this should have led to their being automatically counted among the victims of swine flu.
NIV director A C Mishra explained, ``As the NIV is receiving throat swabs in bulk, over 600 on any given day, it is becoming increasingly difficult to carry out testing of all the samples the same day. Hence, as per the new testing protocol, any patient suffering from acute respiratory distress syndrome or severe breathlessness is administered Tamilfu without waiting for the throat swab report. Administering Tamiflu to such a patient whose throat swab report is awaited, does not mean that he or she is positive.'' Clearly this elementary fact was lost on those responsible for keeping count.
Meanwhile, a Central team that visited Pune on Friday concluded that the virus was widespread in the city and was no longer confined to specific areas. ``It is worse than clusters, almost every locality now has it,'' one of the members of the team told TOI.
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