World Breastfeeding Week - 1 to 7 August 2011

With a goal to boost the health of infants worldwide and encourage mothers to breastfeed, nearly 120 countries around the world celebrate World Breastfeeding Week from 1-7 August every year.

Breastfeeding is the best way to provide newborns with the nutrients they need. World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends exclusive breastfeeding until a baby is six months old, and continued breastfeeding with the addition of nutritious complementary foods for up to two years or beyond.

“Losing a child is a parent’s worst nightmare, especially when it can be avoided. Why let this happen when you can protect the health of your child simply by breastfeeding him or her?” asked Dr RK Agarwal, a paediatrician.

The World Health Organisation declared the first week of August as World Breastfeeding Week in a bid to ensure that children are not denied of the right to live simply because of lack of awareness on the part of the care takers.

Breastfeeding is known to reduce deaths among children aged below 5 by 13%.

According to statistics, out of 27 million babies born in India each year, close to 1.2 million babies do not get past the first one month. This is due to poor neonatal care and malnutrition which are the main reasons for infant mortality in India.

One million infant lives can be saved by just breast feeding in the 1st Hour following the birth of the child. If mothers and families comprehend the benefits of breast feeding for six months, it can save the lives of 250,000 babies annually.

World Breastfeeding Week - 1 to 7 August 2011

With a goal to boost the health of infants worldwide and encourage mothers to breastfeed, nearly 120 countries around the world celebrate World Breastfeeding Week from 1-7 August every year.

Breastfeeding is the best way to provide newborns with the nutrients they need. World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends exclusive breastfeeding until a baby is six months old, and continued breastfeeding with the addition of nutritious complementary foods for up to two years or beyond.

“Losing a child is a parent’s worst nightmare, especially when it can be avoided. Why let this happen when you can protect the health of your child simply by breastfeeding him or her?” asked Dr RK Agarwal, a paediatrician.

The World Health Organisation declared the first week of August as World Breastfeeding Week in a bid to ensure that children are not denied of the right to live simply because of lack of awareness on the part of the care takers.

Breastfeeding is known to reduce deaths among children aged below 5 by 13%.

According to statistics, out of 27 million babies born in India each year, close to 1.2 million babies do not get past the first one month. This is due to poor neonatal care and malnutrition which are the main reasons for infant mortality in India.

One million infant lives can be saved by just breast feeding in the 1st Hour following the birth of the child. If mothers and families comprehend the benefits of breast feeding for six months, it can save the lives of 250,000 babies annually.

Trojan asteroid detected in the Earth's orbit

Unraveling of the wonders in outer space continues with the latest discovery of an asteroid that is expected to keep company with earth, for several hundred years.

A team of Canadian scientists have discovered a "Trojan" asteroid that is caught in a synchronized orbit with the Earth.

Trojans are asteroids that share an orbit with a planet, locked in stable orbits by a gravitational balancing act between a planet and the Sun. Neptune, Mars and Jupiter are known to have Trojans.

Two of Saturn’s moons share orbits with Trojans. Scientists had predicted Earth should also have Trojans, but they have been difficult to find because the Trojans are relatively small and appear near the sun from Earth’s point of view.

This diminutive asteroid has a diameter of just 300 metres but is called a Trojan because of its particular position in a stable spot — either in front of a planet or behind it. Because the asteroid and planet are constantly on the same orbit, they can never collide.

Currently, it is about 50 million miles away, and should come no closer than about 18 million miles.

Trojan asteroid detected in the Earth's orbit

Unraveling of the wonders in outer space continues with the latest discovery of an asteroid that is expected to keep company with earth, for several hundred years.

A team of Canadian scientists have discovered a "Trojan" asteroid that is caught in a synchronized orbit with the Earth.

Trojans are asteroids that share an orbit with a planet, locked in stable orbits by a gravitational balancing act between a planet and the Sun. Neptune, Mars and Jupiter are known to have Trojans.

Two of Saturn’s moons share orbits with Trojans. Scientists had predicted Earth should also have Trojans, but they have been difficult to find because the Trojans are relatively small and appear near the sun from Earth’s point of view.

This diminutive asteroid has a diameter of just 300 metres but is called a Trojan because of its particular position in a stable spot — either in front of a planet or behind it. Because the asteroid and planet are constantly on the same orbit, they can never collide.

Currently, it is about 50 million miles away, and should come no closer than about 18 million miles.

WHO report - India named world's most depressed nation

According to a study conducted by the World Health Organization, India has the highest rate of major depression in the world.

The World Health Organization has released the findings of a survey that reveals India has the largest number of people who suffer from depression at some point in their lives.

The study, ‘Cross-national epidemiology of DSM-IV major depressive episode,’ based on interviews of nearly 90,000 subjects across 18 countries with different income levels, was published in the peer-reviewed journal BMC Medicine by Biomed Central.

The US, China, Japan, India, Brazil, Mexico, Ukraine and Spain, Germany, Lebanon, Mexico, and South Africa were included in the study.

Major Depressive Episode (MDE) is characterized by sadness, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt or low self-worth, disturbed sleep or appetite, low energy and poor concentration, besides feeling depressed.

Lowest prevalence of MDE was in China (12%). The average age of depression in India is 31.9 years compared to 18.8 years in China, and 22.7 years in the US.

WHO report - India named world's most depressed nation

According to a study conducted by the World Health Organization, India has the highest rate of major depression in the world.

The World Health Organization has released the findings of a survey that reveals India has the largest number of people who suffer from depression at some point in their lives.

The study, ‘Cross-national epidemiology of DSM-IV major depressive episode,’ based on interviews of nearly 90,000 subjects across 18 countries with different income levels, was published in the peer-reviewed journal BMC Medicine by Biomed Central.

The US, China, Japan, India, Brazil, Mexico, Ukraine and Spain, Germany, Lebanon, Mexico, and South Africa were included in the study.

Major Depressive Episode (MDE) is characterized by sadness, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt or low self-worth, disturbed sleep or appetite, low energy and poor concentration, besides feeling depressed.

Lowest prevalence of MDE was in China (12%). The average age of depression in India is 31.9 years compared to 18.8 years in China, and 22.7 years in the US.

Test on newborn babies believed to help predict teen trouble

The health test conducted on babies minutes after they are born may help detect whether a child will have trouble in school as a teenager, a new study has claimed.

The study appears in the August issue of the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Babies who get low scores on a test of heart, lung and brain function given just a few minutes after birth may be more likely to need special education as teenagers, suggests this new study from Sweden.

Researchers looked at 877,000 Swedish children and compared their school grades and graduation rates when they were teenagers with their Apgar scores and post-birth health. The Apgar test is a 10-point scale, and much research has shown that it reliably predicts how much medical care a newborn will need.

The researchers found that there is a relationship between having an Apgar score below 7 and having cognitive deficits later in life. They say better understanding the relationship may provide insights into what early problems might cause those deficits.

The Apgar system has been used in the delivery room since it was devised by American Dr Virginia Apgar in 1952.

The test is commonly used as a basis for looking at the long-term implications of a baby's health.

This is largest ever study to look at the link between cognitive ability in teenagers and the Apgar test.

Test on newborn babies believed to help predict teen trouble

The health test conducted on babies minutes after they are born may help detect whether a child will have trouble in school as a teenager, a new study has claimed.

The study appears in the August issue of the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Babies who get low scores on a test of heart, lung and brain function given just a few minutes after birth may be more likely to need special education as teenagers, suggests this new study from Sweden.

Researchers looked at 877,000 Swedish children and compared their school grades and graduation rates when they were teenagers with their Apgar scores and post-birth health. The Apgar test is a 10-point scale, and much research has shown that it reliably predicts how much medical care a newborn will need.

The researchers found that there is a relationship between having an Apgar score below 7 and having cognitive deficits later in life. They say better understanding the relationship may provide insights into what early problems might cause those deficits.

The Apgar system has been used in the delivery room since it was devised by American Dr Virginia Apgar in 1952.

The test is commonly used as a basis for looking at the long-term implications of a baby's health.

This is largest ever study to look at the link between cognitive ability in teenagers and the Apgar test.

Dadar Blast -- Amateur cellphone video

This video captures the first few seconds after a bomb exploded at Dadar on Wednesday (13-July-2011) evening.



Three explosions have killed 21 people and injured 113, in the biggest attack on the city since the 2008 assault.

Dadar Blast -- Amateur cellphone video

This video captures the first few seconds after a bomb exploded at Dadar on Wednesday (13-July-2011) evening.



Three explosions have killed 21 people and injured 113, in the biggest attack on the city since the 2008 assault.

Dilson murder case: Retired Army officer detained in Chennai

The CB-CID investigation into the killing of the 13 year old boy Dilshan inside an army residential complex in Chennai on July 3 was cracked in exactly a week's time.

A 50-year-old retired army officer was arrested on Sunday (10-July-2011) for the crime after he confessed that he was irritated by the boy's trespassing, police said.

After the retired Lieutenant Colonel confessed today to killing the 13-year-old inside an Army residential compound in Chennai, the Crime Branch of the Criminal Investigating Department (CB-CID) of the Tamil Nadu Police has said they will now seek capital punishment for the ex-Army man.

The retired Lt Colonel, Kandasamy Ramaraj, has been remanded to 15 days judicial custody, after he was produced in a court this evening.

"We are happy with the arrest of Ramaraj. Ramaraj should be given punishment the way my son has died. He should feel the same pain as my son did. There is nothing to blame anyone, entire nation has struggled for my son, including the police department, press and television media, lawyers, doctors, college students and chief minister Jayalalithaa," Dilshan's mother Kalaivani said.

"I want to thank everyone including political parties who have struggled to bring justice for my son," she added.

CB-CID chief Mr R Sekhar said that though initially police came to know there were only three children at the time of incident it later came to light that there was a fourth boy who informed them about a senior Army man who tried to erase the evidence.

With the help of fourth boy, police could zero in on Ramraj who initially refused to admit that he owned a licensed weapon but later confessed that he had applied for renewal of license with the suburban police, he said.

Dilshan, a Chennai teenager, was killed by a bullet while picking almonds, with his friends, inside the Island Grounds Army Residential complex in Chennai.

After having narrowed down the list of suspects to just two, a serving officer and Ramaraj, the police conducted intensive interrogation. Confronted with discrepancies in his version of the events, Ramaraj, the police said, confessed to having killed the boy and thrown the weapon in the Cooum river near the Napier bridge. After intensive searches, the police recovered the 0.3 mm rifle.

“It is an imported and licensed weapon. Enquiries revealed that the retired Army officer opened fire using the rifle on Dilson after he was seen throwing stones on a tree…he lives in a residential block located close to the scene of firing,” a senior police official said. Ramaraj had retired in April 2011 from the Corps of Electrical and Mechanical Engineers.

Dilson murder case: Retired Army officer detained in Chennai

The CB-CID investigation into the killing of the 13 year old boy Dilshan inside an army residential complex in Chennai on July 3 was cracked in exactly a week's time.

A 50-year-old retired army officer was arrested on Sunday (10-July-2011) for the crime after he confessed that he was irritated by the boy's trespassing, police said.

After the retired Lieutenant Colonel confessed today to killing the 13-year-old inside an Army residential compound in Chennai, the Crime Branch of the Criminal Investigating Department (CB-CID) of the Tamil Nadu Police has said they will now seek capital punishment for the ex-Army man.

The retired Lt Colonel, Kandasamy Ramaraj, has been remanded to 15 days judicial custody, after he was produced in a court this evening.

"We are happy with the arrest of Ramaraj. Ramaraj should be given punishment the way my son has died. He should feel the same pain as my son did. There is nothing to blame anyone, entire nation has struggled for my son, including the police department, press and television media, lawyers, doctors, college students and chief minister Jayalalithaa," Dilshan's mother Kalaivani said.

"I want to thank everyone including political parties who have struggled to bring justice for my son," she added.

CB-CID chief Mr R Sekhar said that though initially police came to know there were only three children at the time of incident it later came to light that there was a fourth boy who informed them about a senior Army man who tried to erase the evidence.

With the help of fourth boy, police could zero in on Ramraj who initially refused to admit that he owned a licensed weapon but later confessed that he had applied for renewal of license with the suburban police, he said.

Dilshan, a Chennai teenager, was killed by a bullet while picking almonds, with his friends, inside the Island Grounds Army Residential complex in Chennai.

After having narrowed down the list of suspects to just two, a serving officer and Ramaraj, the police conducted intensive interrogation. Confronted with discrepancies in his version of the events, Ramaraj, the police said, confessed to having killed the boy and thrown the weapon in the Cooum river near the Napier bridge. After intensive searches, the police recovered the 0.3 mm rifle.

“It is an imported and licensed weapon. Enquiries revealed that the retired Army officer opened fire using the rifle on Dilson after he was seen throwing stones on a tree…he lives in a residential block located close to the scene of firing,” a senior police official said. Ramaraj had retired in April 2011 from the Corps of Electrical and Mechanical Engineers.

Dilshan shooting in Chennai - Army officials questioned by CBCID

The CB-CID on Tuesday (05-July-2011) began questioning military personnel and civilians on the shooting down of 13-year-old K Dilshan at the Army Cantonment in Chennai on July 3.

The Army has said that it is providing full assistance to the local police that is conducting an investigation into the Dilshan shooting case.

Forty-eight hours after Dilshan, 13, died of a gunshot injury inside the army premises in Chennai, a lieutenant-colonel is in the dock.

The boy was shot at in the head on Sunday after he trespassed into the army officer’s enclave. At night he died of his injuries. While the police had ruled out any civilian role in the shooting, the army had maintained that its men were not involved.

Police sources have told media that an initial probe suggests that the shot was fired from a high-velocity weapon indicating the use of a rifle just like one that the Lt Colonel possesses. The police also say that soon after the crime took place, they cordoned the entire area, but the weapon was not found in the premises indicating that the suspect had shifted it to an armory in the vicinity. The movement of the Lt Colonel's vehicle also suggests, sources say, that he had gone out of the place and come back again.

Signals from the mobile tower also confirm the officer's presence at the scene of the crime, sources say, though he denied he was present when questioned. The police sources say all these factors along with some statements being found to be untrue are now adding up to make the Lt Colonel a key suspect.

The Army has reportedly given three names to the investigators, and asked the personnel to cooperate with the probe.

However, identification of the assailant may not be easy as the key witness may not have actually seen the perpetrator of the crime.

Dilshan's mother Kalaivani, a resident of Indira Nagar Colony near the Army enclave, on Tuesday told reporters that the man who killed her son should meet the same end. "He should not be put in prison, but shot like he shot my son," a distraught Kalaivani said.

Dilshan shooting in Chennai - Army officials questioned by CBCID

The CB-CID on Tuesday (05-July-2011) began questioning military personnel and civilians on the shooting down of 13-year-old K Dilshan at the Army Cantonment in Chennai on July 3.

The Army has said that it is providing full assistance to the local police that is conducting an investigation into the Dilshan shooting case.

Forty-eight hours after Dilshan, 13, died of a gunshot injury inside the army premises in Chennai, a lieutenant-colonel is in the dock.

The boy was shot at in the head on Sunday after he trespassed into the army officer’s enclave. At night he died of his injuries. While the police had ruled out any civilian role in the shooting, the army had maintained that its men were not involved.

Police sources have told media that an initial probe suggests that the shot was fired from a high-velocity weapon indicating the use of a rifle just like one that the Lt Colonel possesses. The police also say that soon after the crime took place, they cordoned the entire area, but the weapon was not found in the premises indicating that the suspect had shifted it to an armory in the vicinity. The movement of the Lt Colonel's vehicle also suggests, sources say, that he had gone out of the place and come back again.

Signals from the mobile tower also confirm the officer's presence at the scene of the crime, sources say, though he denied he was present when questioned. The police sources say all these factors along with some statements being found to be untrue are now adding up to make the Lt Colonel a key suspect.

The Army has reportedly given three names to the investigators, and asked the personnel to cooperate with the probe.

However, identification of the assailant may not be easy as the key witness may not have actually seen the perpetrator of the crime.

Dilshan's mother Kalaivani, a resident of Indira Nagar Colony near the Army enclave, on Tuesday told reporters that the man who killed her son should meet the same end. "He should not be put in prison, but shot like he shot my son," a distraught Kalaivani said.

Indian sailors come home after 10 months of captivity by Somali pirates

After nearly 10 months in captivity, six Indian sailors of MV Suez, owned by an Egyptian company, came home. The cargo ship had been hijacked by Somali pirates in August last year.

The joyful men freed after 11 months saw their return home Friday as a rebirth.

"The pirates would get drunk and beat us. They would use anything they could get their hands on to beat us. We were sure they would kill us," N.K. Sharma, one of the sailors, told reporters.

Tortured by a group of drunk pirates and starved for days together, freedom seemed distant for the six Indian sailors on board MV Suez, who had almost given up hope of meeting their families.

And when freedom dawned upon them after ten months in captivity of Somali pirates, they could not believe their nightmare was over and were going to be reunited with family and friends.

The 22-member crew of Egyptian merchant vessel MV Suez, which included 11 Egyptians, four Pakistanis, six Indians and one Sri Lankan, was taken captive after Somalian pirates attacked them last year. The sailors were freed after Pakistan human rights activist Ansar Burney raised money for their ransom after successfully negotiating their release.

Indian sailors come home after 10 months of captivity by Somali pirates

After nearly 10 months in captivity, six Indian sailors of MV Suez, owned by an Egyptian company, came home. The cargo ship had been hijacked by Somali pirates in August last year.

The joyful men freed after 11 months saw their return home Friday as a rebirth.

"The pirates would get drunk and beat us. They would use anything they could get their hands on to beat us. We were sure they would kill us," N.K. Sharma, one of the sailors, told reporters.

Tortured by a group of drunk pirates and starved for days together, freedom seemed distant for the six Indian sailors on board MV Suez, who had almost given up hope of meeting their families.

And when freedom dawned upon them after ten months in captivity of Somali pirates, they could not believe their nightmare was over and were going to be reunited with family and friends.

The 22-member crew of Egyptian merchant vessel MV Suez, which included 11 Egyptians, four Pakistanis, six Indians and one Sri Lankan, was taken captive after Somalian pirates attacked them last year. The sailors were freed after Pakistan human rights activist Ansar Burney raised money for their ransom after successfully negotiating their release.

Google can now translate more Indian languages

Internet search engine giant Google on Tuesday (22-June-2011) announced the expansion of its translation services to include five more Indian languages -- Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Tamil and Telugu -- thus increasing its reach to a potential half a million population.

With the inclusion of new languages, the total number of languages supported by Google Translate has risen to 63. Google says these languages are presently in experimental phase, noting that Indian languages are pretty different from English language. It also highlights that the new languages supported by its online translation service are spoken by over 500 million people in India and Bangladesh.

According to Google research scientist Ashish Venugopal, Indian languages often use the Subject Object Verb (SOV) ordering to form sentences, unlike English, which uses Subject Verb Object (SVO) ordering.

"This difference in sentence structure makes it harder to produce fluent translations; the more words that need to be reordered, the more chance there is to make mistakes when moving them. Tamil, Telugu and Kannada are also highly agglutinative, meaning a single word often includes affixes that represent additional meaning, like tense or number," Venugopal says.

Google can now translate more Indian languages

Internet search engine giant Google on Tuesday (22-June-2011) announced the expansion of its translation services to include five more Indian languages -- Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Tamil and Telugu -- thus increasing its reach to a potential half a million population.

With the inclusion of new languages, the total number of languages supported by Google Translate has risen to 63. Google says these languages are presently in experimental phase, noting that Indian languages are pretty different from English language. It also highlights that the new languages supported by its online translation service are spoken by over 500 million people in India and Bangladesh.

According to Google research scientist Ashish Venugopal, Indian languages often use the Subject Object Verb (SOV) ordering to form sentences, unlike English, which uses Subject Verb Object (SVO) ordering.

"This difference in sentence structure makes it harder to produce fluent translations; the more words that need to be reordered, the more chance there is to make mistakes when moving them. Tamil, Telugu and Kannada are also highly agglutinative, meaning a single word often includes affixes that represent additional meaning, like tense or number," Venugopal says.

Parents play role in teens drinking

A new report has suggested that parents having a regular gin and tonic or bottle of wine in the home are more likely to see their children becoming binge drinkers.

Children who see their parents drunk are twice as likely to regularly get drunk themselves, a survey of young teenagers has suggested.

A new 91 page report released this week by The Joseph Rowntree Foundation, United Kingdom delves deeper into this issue.

Youths who are left unsupervised are also more likely to drink, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation report found.

Researchers for Ipsos Mori questioned 5,700 teenagers in England and found one in four 13- to 14-year-olds had been drunk more than once, compared to just over half of children (52 per cent) aged 15 to 16.

The most common age for a first drink was 12 to 13 and this was usually within the setting of a special occasion and in the company of an adult.

The survey found that in Year 9, students were drinking mainly alcopops, beer or lager. By Year 11, they were also drinking spirits or liqueurs.

Parents play role in teens drinking

A new report has suggested that parents having a regular gin and tonic or bottle of wine in the home are more likely to see their children becoming binge drinkers.

Children who see their parents drunk are twice as likely to regularly get drunk themselves, a survey of young teenagers has suggested.

A new 91 page report released this week by The Joseph Rowntree Foundation, United Kingdom delves deeper into this issue.

Youths who are left unsupervised are also more likely to drink, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation report found.

Researchers for Ipsos Mori questioned 5,700 teenagers in England and found one in four 13- to 14-year-olds had been drunk more than once, compared to just over half of children (52 per cent) aged 15 to 16.

The most common age for a first drink was 12 to 13 and this was usually within the setting of a special occasion and in the company of an adult.

The survey found that in Year 9, students were drinking mainly alcopops, beer or lager. By Year 11, they were also drinking spirits or liqueurs.