HUMAN PLAY-NET

Sonepur  (Bihar): Away from the din and bustle of city life, rural women can be seen cooking food on hearths using cow dung cakes and dry wood under trees, some others dry their clothes in the open field after a taking dip in the nearby river, while some others can be seen just chatting and listening to popular Bhojpuri numbers on their mobile phones –- that's what the forlorn “Hathi Bazaar” (elephant market) at the famous Sonepur cattle fair looks like this time round. The ever-moving wheel of time has crushed past many traditions and conventions, burying those under the debris of modernisation and aspirations of new-age generations. And like many other traditional events and fests, “Sonepur Pashu Mela” or the cattle fair of Bihar also going the way to enter the pages of history. Spread over sprawling 500 acres along the confluence of the Ganga and Gandak rivers, the Sonepur fair has been known as Asia's largest cattle fair. But this year, the fair doesn't...

Given the present-day life fraught with uncertainties, all-round pulls and pushes, and human limitations to see the tomorrow, it is only natural that people nurse a desire to know what lies ahead for them. And this is true of one and all, without any exception, with only a difference of intensity to unravel the future. Although the ‘science’ of astrology, or the art of looking beyond the astrological data have been severely abused at the hands of ill-informed soothsayers, the authenticity of astro-predictions has been proven time and again. In this backdrop, the UGC approving the certificate diploma, undergraduate, postgraduate and Ph.D study programmes in Jyotish Vigyan is a welcome move. Once part of academia, this Vedic knowledge will get the right platform to prove the veracity of its claims and assertions. Let’s not forget that Ayurveda – the Vedic science of medicine – was also subjected to similar scepticism by vested quarters. But with the passage of time, t...

GOD was never before so easily accessible! If you feel like offering prayer, and don’t feel like walking up to the temple, all you are required to do now is just  SMS your wishes to the temple-managed electronic message box. After doing that tough, tedious and tiring job(!), you can rest assured that your prayer has reached the destination, the temple, the God’s abode! And if you thought it’s a joke, dear friend, you are utterly mistaken!  Shree Siddhivinayak Temple  in Mumbai, which is known to be frequented by celebrity-devotees, including aging-Don  Big B  and oft-in trouble  Sanjay Dutt , has struck a deal with a mobile phone service provider. Using this  mobile  service, now  couch potatoes  and those really hard-pressed for time can SMS their prayers to the “wish box” of the temple…to be heard (and acted upon?) by  Lord Ganesha  at His convenience. With around 1,000 SMSes lying to be attended to by the deity in just a week’s time, it seems hi-tech prayer is catching fast! Shree S...

A revelation: “All developing and underdeveloped countries have a large number of illiterates!” You are neither surprised nor amused...I bet! “Revelation? Joking or what...!” you might say. And one won't dispute you. It’s been a Third World truth since ages. But what if you were to hear that 11 million Americans can’t read English? You might say again, “Joking or what?” But now it's your turn to be truely surprised...that's another piece of TRUTH. However incredible it may sound, the fact remains that one out of every 20 American adults can’t make out the head and tail of English language, leave apart English literature, according to a federal study conducted some time back. This means that no less than 11 million Americans are unfit for performing even everyday tasks. The survey studied a varied sample of 19,000 adults, who are living in homes, college hostels and even those behind the bar. As many as 30 million adults have ‘below basic’ skills in English language. Their ...

INDIAN netizens have scored over their global counterparts. A recent study by the US-based ACNielsen says that a consistently increasing number of Indians is going for online shopping, and that the average percentage of Indians doing shopping through the Net is better than that of the rest of the world. The study, conducted in 38 markets and over 21,000 respondents, said that one-tenth of the global population does online shopping. However, while the most-preferred online shopping item worldwide is books, in India, it’s booking air tickets , with as much as one-third of the netizens buying air tickets online. Next to follow are electronic items, like CDs and DVDs, and apparel, at 24% and 20%, respectively. Given the fact that India houses a minimal 4% or 40 million of the internet-savvy people, the study’s findings are a revelation in true sense. Also See: Financial Express

RAJASTHAN is already one of the most favoured tourism hubs, both among domestic travellers and visitors from abroad. But we will not stop at just that,” says an upbeat Rajasthan Minister for Tourism, Usha Punia, enlisting her priorities. “We want tourism in the state to scale new heights, and that is why the state government has accorded due importance to this sector. Budgetary allocation in the current financial year for tourism-related projects has doubled,” she says, with determination in her voice. A clear-cut approach by the government towards the development of tourism infrastructure is also reflected in its decision to facilitate the progress of some projects through public-private partnership basis. Some of the major projects identified for this arrangement in the current year include the Jal Mahal Tourism Project, the construction of an International Convention Centre and an International Golf Course Project (all at Jaipur), developing the Tejara Fort as a heritage resort and...