555 pilgrims leaves for Amarnath

The 33rd batch of pilgrims comprising 555 people today left for the Amarnath shrine from here amid tight security, police said. As many as 304 men, 100 women, 7 children and 144 sadhus left from the Bhagwati Nagar base camp early this morning in a cavalcade of 18 vehicles for the 13,500-feet-high cave shrine situated in the south Kashmir Himalayas.

With today's batch, 76,283 pilgrims have left Jammu in 33 batches for their onward journey to the cave shrine.

Lok Sabha adjourns till Tuesday

Confrontation appears imminent in the Monsoon Session of Parliament beginning on Monday with a combative Prime Minister Manmohan Singh telling the opposition bluntly of having “too many skeletons in its cupboard”, a remark that raised the hackles of the BJP.

“We are not afraid of discussing issues of corruption. The opposition also has too many skeletons in its cupboard. We are not afraid of discussing any issue,” Dr. Singh told reporters after an all party meeting convened by Speaker Meira Kumar on the eve of the Monsoon Session.

Dr. Singh’s remark came in response to a question whether the government was apprehensive of a tough session ahead in view of the Left and the Right making common cause on the issue of corruption and price rise. Virtually accepting Singh’s challenge, Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj dared the government declaring “let us see who attacks whom from Monday.

She also accused Dr. Singh of starting a confrontation even before the start of the five-week long session. “See he has started it. The government is free to bring out all the arrows in its quiver. Let us see who has more arrows in its quiver,” she countered. "Hope 2G is not pre-judged"

With the BJP and the Left set to mount pressure on the 2G issue, Singh sought to take the sting out of Opposition attack, saying Parliament should not “pre-judge” it as the matter was before court. “The matter is before court. It should be left to be decided by the court and Parliament should not pre-judge the issue,” he said.

On Anna Hazarae’ threat to go on a fast from August 16 in protest against a “weak” Lokpal Bill, Dr. Singh said the Lokpal Bill’s fate will be decided by Parliament. As you know, we are ready with the Lokpal Bill. Lokpal Bill’s fate will be decided by Parliament. In a democracy, Parliament is a sovereign body, it should be allowed ti function and discharge its duty,” he said.

On Telangana MPs and MLAs resigning over the statehood demand, Dr. Singh hoped that the government would overcome the issue. The session is expected to be tumultuous with the Opposition raring to have a go at the government on a host of issues ranging from corruption and price rise to Telangana and terrorism.

Bike helmets may make you deaf

Motorcycle helmets may be protecting bikers’ brains but they could also be leaving them vulnerable to hearing loss. Kennedy O Adetifa, M Carley, N Holt and I Walker, researchers in mechanical engineering, management and psychology from the universities of Bath and Bath Spa, Britain, mapped the airflow and noise patterns to find out why.

The distinctive roar of a Harley’s engine is loud, but studies have revealed the biggest source of noise for motorcyclists is actually generated by air whooshing over the riders’ helmets.

Do you drink sewage water?

Your tap water may be unsafe - even if it is filtered - an official survey has revealed. A joint inspection by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi and Delhi Jal Board has found that of the 200 areas surveyed by them 67 major water pipelines had micro cracks and were being contaminated by sewage as related stories the lines cross each other.

The findings of the report have been sent to the Delhi government for action. MCD officials said the DJB has fixed only six pipelines so far.

Mother of all jams at Noida

It was not an another jam that has created a havoc here on Monday . After Sunday and end of kanwwar yatra that was responsible for long jams for couple of days last week, nobody knew or expected that they would witness such a long jam when sun was on fire.

Right from the entry point of Noida,where the life size Statue of Buddha stands,jams starts. For each and every inch,thousand of officer-goers it was nothing short of hell. There was no cop trying to ensure that the pace of traffic improves. What was all the more baffling was the fact right from the entry point of Noida to roads that leads you to film city,there was no vehicle struck up on road. Then why the jam ? Nobody knew. All said and done, thousands of office goers in cars,buses and other vehicles had to bear the brunt of jam.

In the route,one could see kids crying inside those cars without AC. One can easily imagine the plight of their parents at that time. Unlike the jams that one face and witness in capital,here no cop or cops came forward to ensure smooth sailing of traffic. Given the fact that there is a office of SSP,Noida on this very important road stretch, it is shocking to say the least.
Driving on this very road is a nightmare experience for all those who use it in order to reach to their offices. It looks that Noida`s traffic police department is hardly concerned about the traffic jams that becomes routine here. Will this very stretch ever become worth driving ? Let`s hope.

Thousands of chemists on strike

Thousands of chemists on Monday morning went on strike to protest against the government order to make prescriptions compulsory for the sale of 74 listed antibiotics. The strike, called by the All India Chemists and Distributors Federation (AICDF), is against the government decision to replace Schedule H by Schedule Hx in the Drugs and Cosmetics Act-1940.

Under the amendment, doctors have to make double prescriptions for the sale of antibiotics, one for patients and other for chemists. Chemists have to keep a record of these prescriptions for the sale of these antibiotics for the next financial year.

Talking to reporters president of the chemists’ association, Kailash Gupta says, “As much as 60 per cent of our sales is based on antibiotics, and maintaining such detailed records for a year is practically impossible. Also, from the patient’s point of view, all the drugs in a prescription are mostly not found in the same chemist shop. This will inconvenience them.”

SC panel on Kerala temple treasures to meet today

The expert committee set up by the Supreme Court to evaluate the treasures hid in the vaults of the famed Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple here will have its first meeting Monday to evolve an action plan on how to go about the sensitive task.

The committee, headed by senior bureaucrat and Director General of National Museum C V Ananda Bose, has as its members one representative each from RBI, Archaeological Survey of India, state government and the temple executive officer and a nominee of the Travancore royal family.

  
Today's meet would primarily chalk out the strategy to go about the task and evolve a work plan to proceed with the delicate job, official sources told reporters.
The meeting would also review work already been done by the earlier seven-member committee which had opened four of the six inner chambers and inventoried the precious articles of great intrinsic and heritage value locked up in the inner chambers of the ancient shrine, sources said.
The first meeting would be more of a fact-finding one and would review what had already been done so that duplication could be avoided, sources said.

Earlier, the seven-member committee, which included two former judges of the Kerala High Court, had opened four of the six vaults, which were found to contain a glittering pile of priceless treasures like gold jewels, stone-studded crowns, rare idols, rubies, diamonds, piles of gold coins and stacks of gold and silver ware.

A division bench of the Supreme Court comprising justices R V Raveendran and A K Patnaik had on July 21 ordered the formation of the panel while considering the temple case.