Toxic Litchis behind Bihar’s encephalitis outbreak !

Toxic Litchis behind Bihar’s encephalitis outbreak !

The outbreak of ‘encephalitis’ among Muzaffarpur’s children, may actually be caused by Muzaffarpur’s famous litchis (lychees), say a team of virologists led by Dr T. Jacob at the Christian Medical College (CMC), Vellore, in Tamil Nadu. The findings were published in Current Science last month (December 2015). Jacob and his team confirm that a toxic […]

Pope Francis to Central Africa: ‘No to hatred and violence!’

Pope Francis to Central Africa: ‘No to hatred and violence!’

Pope Francis is the first Vatican prelate ever to visit conflict zones. He walks the talk of peace in Bangui , the capital of the volatile Central African Republic, a place fraught with sectarian violence and division: Christian versus Muslim. “Allah ho Akbar, God is great” the jubiliant crowds called out in Arabic to Pope […]

Viki-leaks: Italian Journalists vs the Vatican

Viki-leaks: Italian Journalists vs the Vatican

The Committee to Protect Journalists has called on the Vatican to drop charges against Italian journalists Gianluigi Nuzzi and Emiliano Fittipaldi. The journalists are due to face a trial Tuesday over claims they pressured a source to “obtain and publish confidential information” in their respective books alleging corruption, according to a statement by the Vatican. […]

American ‘Sugar Daddy’ gets bitter pill in Calcutta

American ‘Sugar Daddy’ gets bitter pill in Calcutta

Calcutta : A suspected pedophile has been arrested and remanded to judicial custody, when a 14 year old boy complained of molestation. The sessions court on Saturday (Nov 28) remanded an American citizen in custody for 14 days over allegations he molested a teenaged boy in his hotel room, police said. The 51-year-old US national […]

Tipplers brace for dry Spring as Bihar bans Booze

Tipplers brace for dry Spring as Bihar bans Booze

Patna: A jolt for beer drinkers throughout Bihar! A dry spring is coming! Thanks to Chief Nitish Kumar, booze will be banned in Bihar. One of India’s poorest states is set to get poorer, by about Rs 4,000 crore annually. Chief minister Nitish Kumar will stick to a promise made in July this year by […]

No toilet? Can’t contest Bihar election!

No toilet? Can’t contest Bihar election!

Patna: You don’t have a toilet in your village home? You can’t contest Panchayat elections! Nobody will be able to contest elections under the three-tier panchayati raj system in Bihar if they do not have a toilet at home. Bihar, has 1.63 crore families without access to toilets, according to the public health engineering department […]

James Bond kiss snipped by Indian censor board

James Bond kiss snipped by Indian censor board

New Delhi: 007 cannot kiss for too long in India, thanks to the dictates of chief censor Pahlaj Nihalani had also “unofficially” reviewed the film “Spectre” and suggested the cutting the length of the kissing scenes! In yet another ‘nanny act’, Indian censors have shortened the lengths of two kissing scenes in the latest James […]

He said RSS and ISIS were both idiotic, repeats stance!

He said RSS and ISIS were both idiotic, repeats stance!

ALIGARH: He said that under the RSS, India is becoming mirror image of Pakistan. Irfan Habib is unfazed that he’s stirred up the hornet’s nest by his comparison of RSS and ISIS, in which he had claimed that both organizations were just as idiotic and ignorant. The historian, who is professor emeritus at Centre of […]

Village Chiefs may declare war on Meghalaya Chief Minister

Village Chiefs may declare war on Meghalaya Chief Minister

Shillong: Tribal village chiefs in Meghalaya have threatened storm the main secretariat in Shillong early next month if the Mukul Sangma-led coalition government continued to poke its nose into their business. The announcement was made at a public rally which was attended by over a lakh people here coming from at least six Khasi Jaintia […]

Private coal mining to continue in Meghalaya?

Private coal mining to continue in Meghalaya?

Shillong: Private coal miners in Meghalaya were a bit jittery, because of rumours that the Modi government might just decide to shut down their operations. Meghalaya is the only state in India with privately owned mines, operated by the locals. Not long ago, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) recommended the banning of coal mining in […]

Paskistan quake survivors desperate as winter approaches

Paskistan quake survivors desperate as winter approaches

“Winter is Coming” is more than a catch-phrase from a popular TV show. It’s a horrific reality for those ruined by the latest earthquake to hit Pakistan and Afghanistan. Desperate survivors bracing for a fourth freezing night in the rubble of their earthquake-flattened homes have appealed for aid as the Pakistan government said thousands more […]