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Bank insurance for Amarnath pilgrims (SEE PILGRIMAGE) Caution against unlicensed river rafting agencies in Manali Manali, June 29: Owners of many private river rafting companies in the hill resort of Manali have urged the district authorities to take stock of adventure sport companies operating without licence. The picturesque Himachal Pradesh with its gurgling rivers, vast dam reservoirs and natural lakes offers ideal destination for water sports and water-based adventure tourism. Beas, Sutlej and Ravi rivers make good water fields for white river rafting. The cool water of the rivers attracts adventure tourists who flock the state to escape the scorching heat of the plains. Many feel that the government should be enthusiastic about developing river water tourism in the state but not at the cost of safety. They criticise the government for issuing licences to private instructors without keeping safety in view. "We want the government to keep a check on the unwanted and the unprofessional river rafting adventure companies which are slowly mushrooming here, before some mishap occurs," said Manoj, owner of a local river rafting company. Officials say the state department of tourism has prescribed certain guidelines for all the adventure companies coming up. British visa application centre in Ahmedabad (Go to Top) Ahmedabad, June 28: It's good news for the people of Gujarat. From now on, those wanting to visit the United Kingdom will not have to travel to Mumbai for filing a visa application. They can do this in Ahmedabad itself. The British High Commission has come up with a visa application centre in this city. While inaugurating it at the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce here, Howard Parkinson, British High Commissioner for the Western region, said the aspiring candidates will be visiting Mumbai only if preliminary rounds are cleared in Ahmedabad. "You can now make the application here in Ahmedabad and if we need to see you in Mumbai, we are going to tell you the date and the time according to your and our convenience and discuss how to resolve the issue", Parkinson said. He added that by taking this step, the High commission has brought themselves closer to the people of the state. "So I think we take away your uncertainty and we certainly brought our service closer to the people here in Gujarat". The the High Commission has three offices in western region - Mumbai, Pune and Ahmedabad. Last year there were 81,000 visa applications from Gujarat alone, of which only eight per cent were rejected. With such a huge number of people applying for visas in the state, the facility will definitely help them. Most of the students and businessmen applicants can carry out with the process from their home state itself. UK issues safety advice for rape victims overseas (Go to Top) London, June 27: The Foreign and Commonwealth Press Office has launched a new information leaflet that gives personal safety advice to British travellers on ways to minimise the risk of rape and sexual assault overseas. The leaflet also provides advice and guidance for victims of rape and sexual assault overseas. In 2002, 129 rapes were reported to British consular staff. However, it is likely that many more cases go unreported. Foreign Office Minister Baroness Symons said: "The summer holiday season is underway. Most visits abroad are trouble-free but we are concerned that the number of reported incidents of rape and sexual assault is on the increase. We want to help minimise the risk of attack by giving British travellers clear advice on the steps they can take to increase their personal safety." "Rape can, and does, happen to people from all backgrounds - women and men, young and old. It is a devastating experience, and the trauma can be made even more difficult to deal with when it happens away from home. Often people simply do not know where to turn. British consular staff overseas are there to be as helpful as they can in these situations. These guidelines are designed to give victims clear advice on how to seek help." Elizabeth Lyell of the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, which supports the FCO initiative, said: "The best way to protect yourself on holiday is to be in control. That means being aware, taking stock of your behaviour and knowing where the dangers may lie. This kind of information is vital in helping reassure holiday-makers. It is also an essential guide for travellers who find themselves victims." Floods uproot 50,000 people in Bihar (Go to Top) Muzzafarpur, June 26: About 50 villages have been affected by the flooded rivers in Bihar forcing more than 50, 000 people to shift to higher ground. With water entering the roads, traffic has come to a halt. "We have been trapped here since two days. There is no facility here. The roads are under 4-5 feet of water. The traffic has come to a standstill. The vehicles are immobile for the last two days," said Julum Rai, a truck driver. Displaced villagers have so far received no help from the state government. "Our houses have been flooded. We are displaced. The government is not helping us. We are dying of hunger. There is no facility of food or whatsoever," said Sukhdev Shah, a villager.
"The flooding has taken place due to an increase in the water level of Bagmati river as the monsoon has started. Muzaffarpur-Sitamari road is inundated. Traffic has been affected. Many low-lying areas are under water", said Amrit Lal Meena, Muzzaffarpur district magistrate. The densely populated eastern part of India is regularly flooded during the monsoon season that lasts from June to September as the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers and their tributaries overflow because of torrential rains. Landslides damage Darjeeling's toy train track (Go to Top) Darjeeling, June 25: Heavy rains triggered landslides in India's eastern Darjeeling on Tuesday, partially damaging the world famous toy train track. The 122-year old toy train, conferred the World Heritage status in 1999, runs on the Darjeeling-Jalpaiguri route. The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway route passes through Ghum, the second highest railway station in the world situated at a height of 7407 feet. The landslides also blocked stretches of a crucial highway, cutting off the Himalayan district from the rest of West Bengal. A number of houses were destroyed when tonnes of mud came crashing down on them. No casualties were reported. Eye witnesses said that six people were injured in the landslides. "Suddenly there was a landslide and six people got injured", said Gauri Pradhan, whose shop was destroyed in the disaster. The authorities, however, said normal traffic would be resumed shortly. "The present situation of landslide-affected areas is that blockades on the roads have been cleared all over, the blockade at Daliphatak is in the final stages of clearance. The basic traffic has been moving and we are just fine tuning that," Hridayes Mohan, District Magistrate of Darjeeling said. West Bengal has been receiving plenty of monsoon rains over the past fortnight, the showers being particularly heavy in areas adjoining the Himalayas in the north. Sunita Chaudhary, Delhi's first woman autorickshaw driver (Go to Top)
New Delhi, June 25: She loved autos so much that Sunita Chaudhary of Delhi chose auto driving as her career. This also fetched her the honour of being the first woman auto rickshaw driver in the national Capital and thus carving a niche in a male territory. "There were no jobs and I had to do something. Private car owners are reluctant to keep women drivers because they say that women don't have the required documents. I then decided to get a commercial licence. That was not easy. My documents were not accepted because I was a woman. I told the officials that in today's world, there is nothing that a woman cannot do. They asked me how will I go to different places and I told them that that was my responsibility. All they had to do was take the fees and the documents," says Sunita Chaudhary. Trained in Judo and Karate, Sunita's craving to be independent and a desire to work encouraged her to take up this profession. Women like Sunita Chaudhary have proved time and again that a woman is capable of taking up any challenge and walking step in step with their male counterparts Belly dancing a rage in Mumbai (Go to Top) Mumbai, June 24: The exotic oriental belly dancers are creating ripples in Mumbai as it gets a taste of an authenthic Arabic belly dance. Bringing an 'Arabian Night' experience to Indian audiences are several hotels organising belly dancing events as part of a summer package to attract clients. Belly dancers draped in glitzy and exquisite traditional clothes dancing to enchanting Arabian tunes, capture the audience's rapt attention. Several performers have been flown in from Egypt, Lebanon and other Middle East countries to perform at the show. Graceful hip shakes and erotic belly thrusts are an integral part of the dance. For some, these seductive, gyrating dance movements may seem like an act of deviation and indulgence but for many like Sanjay Malkani, Executive vice-president, Lotus Suites, and the man behind the show, belly dancing is rather an art than vulgar display of flesh. "If you actually see the movement of the body, it's very beautiful and there is nothing vulgar about belly dancing," said Malkani. Before the 19th century, belly dance also known as Oriental dance was performed primarily in family-oriented situations. At weddingsand other auspicious occasions, women would dance of joy, said Noora, a belly dancer from Egypt. "Normally Arabic dancers dance at weddings and when the new babies are born. After a girl child is born and grows up, she starts learning this form of dance from a master. This dance makes her stronger and makes her more flexible and more beautiful but not all the girls become dancers," said Noora. Dalai Lama's Dharamsala a tourist-puller (Go to Top) Dharamsala, June 24: Dharamsala town in Himachal Pradesh is witnessing a huge tourist inflow. Nestled in the Dhauladhar Himalayan Ranges, this place, the home of Tibetan spiritual head the Dalai Lama, is famous for its scenic beauty. Also known as 'Mini Lhasa', Dharamsala, with its large number of monasteries and a centre of Buddhist learning, attracts over 600,000 foreign tourists every year. But this year the place has witnessed a a record number of 1,00,000 tourists, both domestic and foreign. For some of the tourists, Dharamsala also offers spiritual solace. "I think they (tourists) are chasing their spiritual quest. His Holiness the Dalai Lama is here and for many others like Panchem Lama are also here. So they think they will get some kind of solution for their spiritual quest. And, secondly you cannot bear heat in the plains of India. So it is also the time that they come come in the foothills of Himalayas," said Xen, a domestic tourist. For Mary, an Australian, it was her love for the mountains that brought her to Dharamsala. "I think because it's nice in the mountains and during monsoon it's a good place to roam around. And I think Dalai Lama's place attracts a lot of people. We get to know Tibetan culture and all," said Mary. Tour operators said the inflow has increased over the weeks as people have cancelled their holidays in south Asia due to outbreak of SARS. "We have been continuously observing that quality tourists have started coming here from the Indian side in particular. People who were just planning their holidays in Thailand or other parts of south Asia thought it is better to go to the mountains of India. So it has contributed a lot," said Erling Tanseh, a tour operator. WHO removes Hong Kong from SARS list (Go to Top) Hong Kong, June 23: The World Health Organization removed Hong Kong from its list of SARS-infected areas Monday, but warned the territory to keep up its guard against future outbreaks that might put it back on the list. Hong Kong's great concern is to avoid a repeat of what happened in Toronto, where a new outbreak was discovered after Canada's largest city was taken off the WHO's list. Hong Kong's removal from the list was expected. Sunday was the 20th day since the last confirmed SARS patient in Hong Kong was put in isolation in hospital, the condition that qualified the territory to be removed from the list. Only Beijing, Taiwan and Canada's largest city, Toronto, remain on the list now that the SARS crisis has ebbed from its peak in March and April. WHO has credited old-fashioned quarantines with breaking the back of the outbreak. SARS has killed more than 800 people, most of them in Asia, since the disease emerged in southern China last November. More than 8,400 people were infected in more than two dozen countries before the outbreak was controlled worldwide with officials isolating patients and screening travellers for the SARS symptoms of fever, dry cough and aches. Manali chock-a-block with tourists (Go to Top) Manali, June 23: Tourists are making a beeline for Manali to escape the severe heat in the plains. They are mainly from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi and UP. The weather in this hill resort of Himachal Pradesh is making all the difference. Said Raju who has come from Jaipur: "It is very cool here and that's why we chose Manali." For Gunjan, a tourist from Delhi, the clean environment is her main attraction. "I am feeling great here. It's very nice. There is no pollution here like Delhi and the greenery is lovable. Coming here is an experience of a lifetime," she said. More than 1,000 people died all over India due to heat wave conditions which preceded pre-monsoon showers earlier this month. Abhijay Verma, manager of an upmarket hotel in Manali, said he expected the rush of tourists to last till the end of June. "Manali seems to be having a boom after a very long time. There are over 600 hotels here and all are packed. In fact, our hotel has been full since May 10 and this will remain so till about end of this month. We do not have any vacancies as of now. As you can all see, the streets are crowded. Everybody seems to be heading for Manali. The weather is excellent out here," said Verma. Tourism is the mainstay of the state's economy, generating about 100 million dollars. Over the last few years, Himachal Pradesh has become the preferred destination for tourists since the other attractive spot, Jammu and Kashmir, is a victim of separatist violence giving rise to a sense of insecurity. Travel tips for constipated travellers (Go to Top) London, June 23: Globe trotters, especially women, often experience constipation while on a trip due to dehydration and insufficient fibre intake, among other factors, a recent study pointed out. Transformed eating habits and non-routine schedules are also responsible for causing constipation in travellers, constantly on the move. This can, however, be avoided. According to a dietician, with planning, women can easily enhance their digestive health when travelling. "First, prepare your body for the trip by increasing your water intake and slowly increasing your fibre intake before you leave," she says. Since rich vacation cuisine often doesn't give enough dietary fibre, extra fibre can be gathered from quick and convenient snacks. Sumptuous breakfasts like peanut butter sandwiches on whole-wheat bread, snack packs of melba toast, fibre-rich cereals and home-made trail mix made with dry cereal, dried fruit and nuts will also help to keep constipation at bay. Lots of water must be taken to help maintain regularity. Corbett Park sees increase in tourist inflow (Go to Top) Dehra Dun, June 17: The Corbett National Park, famous for its tiger reserve, saw a jump in tourist arrivals during the season ending June 2003. The 1,000-square miles park in Uttaranchal, open to tourists from November to June, remains closed during the monsoon season. During the seven-month season, at least 83,000 tourists visited the national park. DS Khati, director of the park, said though the number of foreign tourists had decreased, that was more or less compensated by the increase in domestic tourists. "Last year around 73,000 tourists came to the park, this year the number has increased to 83,000. Although the number of foreign tourists has decreased this year due to Iraq war and SARS fear, that has been compensated by the domestic tourists," Khati said. The revenue earnings crossed 12 million rupees in the season. Many tourists say the infrastructure in the park needs to be further developed to attract more tourists. "I had last come here around 15 years back. The population of wildlife, specially spotted dear, has increased manifold over the years at this place. I feel the resting area inside the park is not very well maintained and more facilities can be provided inside the park," said Kulbir, a tourist. Khati said the park authorities are laying emphasis on providing more facilities, specially with regards to the rest houses, to attract more tourists next season. He said they had also written to the federal government to increase the number of elephants for tourism purposes. Located on the foothills of the Himalayas, the Corbett Park, the country's first national park, was established under "Project Tiger" in 1973. Famous as tiger reserve with a count of 92 tigers, the park is also home to leopards, jungle cat, fishing cat, Himalayan Palm civet, tuskers, crocodiles and gharials. Endless wait for water (Go to Top) Shivpuri, June 15: Soaring temperatures and a severe water crisis has made life miserable for people in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Millions of villagers depend on erratic water supply and most of the tubewells have dried up. In Shivpuri village, near Gwalior, just three tubewells cater to the needs of over 10,000 people. People form queues at night and wait for eight to nine hours to get a bucket or two of water. Angry villagers said they were tired of the endless wait for water. "This is our everyday routine. Whole day we work and at night we sit here for water. Despite this it is not enough," said Mansa Singh, a villager. Shari, a middle-aged woman, alongwith her four daughters and three daughters-in-law trek for nearly 17-18 kms daily to fetch water. "We are here since morning waiting for water. No food, no work. It is very difficult. Finally when my turn came the power supply was cut off," Shari said. In Rajasthan which has been hit by a continuous sixth year of drought the situation is no better. Nearly 45 million people in 40,000 villages have been affected. In Chittorgrah region people have to trek miles for water and the few areas which have tanker supply say the water is just not enough. The district administration, however, says that they are helpless as there was a heavy shortfall in the rainfall, an alarming factor for the heavily rain-dependent region. "Under normal circumstances, by this time of the year over 20,000 mcf (million cubic feet) water is collected through rains. But this time we have only 1,000 mcf. So you can imagine the water crisis, we have only one-twentieth of the water available," said Dhukal Ram, district collector of Chittorgrah said. Last year also Rajasthan received scanty rainfall, causing food shortages and widespread migration among villagers. Cellphones to operate in J and K, people excited (Go to Top) Srinagar, June 14: People in Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday welcomed the government's decision to allow the operation of mobile phones in the region. The services were not permitted earlier for security reasons. The people of the state hailed the decision to introduce cellphones, saying it would help strengthen their business. "Insha Allah (God willing,) mobile phones will start in the valley. Our business will increase by 95 percent. With mobile phones, we can be in touch everywhere," said Farooq Ahmed, a businessman. President APJ Kalam will launch the mobile phone service in the state on June 26, provided by Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited which has started erecting satellite towers in Srinagar. "The government has given us clearence. Accordingly the equipments have come and we have commissioned the main switch, that is, the exchange where this mobile services is going to work. and subsequently the erection of towers. You must have seen so many towers in the Valley," said Rafiq Ahmed, an electronic dealer. BSNL has ordered for 11,000 mobile phone sets for the first four months. An official said another lot of 5,000 sets would be brought from New Delhi after three months when the capacity increases. Though long distance services were restored earlier this year, Internet access would still not be available in the region. Observers said mobile phones would not pose a security threat in the region as separatist guerrillas are generally known to rely on their own communication network which are difficult to tap. "I don't think that mobile phones can be a security threat because even the security force officers have confessed that militants don't use mobile phones for communication. They have their own wireless systems, satellite phones. They don't depend on mobile phones," said Tahir Moinuddin, a journalist with a local Kashmiri newspaper. Two dead in train derailment at Hathras (Go to Top)
Hathras (UP), June 14: Two people were killed and 20 injured when three bogies of Gokul Express, a passenger train, derailed at Hathras, 25 km from Mathura, on Friday. Tejveer Singh, a legislator from the region who visited the site, said there were sudden jolts before the derailment. Officials blamed the derailment on human error. RS Verma, Additional Divisional Railway Manager at Agra Cantonment station, said apparently the engine driver applied brakes suddenly resulting in the mishap. "I think in this case there has been a sudden braking because there could be some people who were crossing the tracks. The engine titled a bit and other bogies hit the engine", he added. This was the sixth train accident in India in four months. Severe water scarcity in many Rajasthan villages (Go to Top) Melawas (Rajasthan), June 12: Because of soaring summer temperatures, people of many villages like Melawas, Phulera and Dudu, and Phagi and Chaksu districts of Rajasthan are practically living without water. "There is no water here. Whatever little water is there is salty. How do you expect us to drink that?" asked Jamuna, a villager who treks 20 km daily to fetch water (that too not potable) for her family. She said the local authorities never sent water tankers. "What tanker? There has been no help from the government," Jamuna remarked. Shari, another middle-aged woman who, along with her four daughters and three daughters-in-law, trek for nearly 17-18 kms daily for fetching water, said the cost of a private water tanker was beyond her reach. Government officials were, however, not available for comment. AP Jain, a retired scientist working in the desert state for more than 20 years, said drinking water with salt concentrations could prove to be fatal. "The situation is very grave right now and the people here are fighting the drought and scorching heat on their own. Whatever natural sources of water are there, because of heat they are gradually drying. At the low levels, there is some water and if that water is not used for more than 10 days, then it will evaporate leaving the salt contents behind. The concentrations of those salts is increasing and if even animals or birds drink that water, they could die," said Jain. Last year Rajasthan had received scanty rainfall, causing food shortages and widespread migration among villagers. Nearly 45 million people in 40,000 villages have been hit by the state's sixth consecutive year of drought. Thousands fall for 'herbal fish' cure for asthma (Go to Top) Hyderabad, June 9: Hundreds of thousands of people thronged Hyderabad on Sunday for a strange cure for their respiratory ailments. People suffering from asthma waited patiently for their turn in a vast city ground where a herbal medicine stuffed in a special variety of Murrel fish was given to them. Hyderabad's Bathini family has been giving away the medicine for the last 157 years. Bathinis say a saint gave the wonder cure in 1845 to Bathini Veeranna Gowd, a generous farmer, and asked him to treat all who came to him free of cost. "We arrange for the therapy once in a year and that too for free. We have been told that if we charge from people, then it won't cure anyone. Millions of people have been cured by this therapy. We will continue this practice," said B.Harinath Goud, eldest member of the family. For patients to be cured, they have to buy a two-inch-long Murrel fish, and swallow it live after the Bathinis stuff their secret herbal mixture inside its mouth. The fish helps clear the patient's oesophagus as it makes its way down to the stomach, and later releases the medicine. It survives for about 15 minutes inside the body, reportedly helping to clear phlegm in the lungs as it flaps about. Rammurthy Kumar, a first-time visitor, expressed hope of being cured of asthma. "I've heard that it really helps those who are affected by asthma. That's why I brought my wife and uncle for the first time here," said Kumar. The medicine is distributed to patients during the auspicious Mrigasira solar phase, an astrological phenomenon which occurs once a year for two days. Complete treatment requires an annual dosage for three years. Varanasi camp offers children lessons in Gita and Vedas (Go to Top) Varanasi, June 9: A unique summer camp is currently under way in Varanasi where school childern are being imparted knowledge of the Bhagwad Gita and verses from the Vedas. More than 60 school children from across the country are busy learning the rich Indian culture in the six-week camp which runs till June 30. The children are also being introduced to Yoga at the camp. Indu Saraswat, organiser of the camp, says they aim to instill the knowledge of India's vast cultural heritage into the children. "We believe that these children should be given values through vedas and yoga, which is slowly becoming extinct. We feel really happy when a three-year old child sings such good shlokas. I think when these kids can sing English rhymes so fluently, why not Bhagwad Gita," she said. And for the children, the opportunity to learn about Vedas and the cultural heritage, apart from the normal sports activities in the camp, has been truly exhilarating. Many say the activities offered in the camp are very different from what they usually do in school. "There are a lot of activities that are being taught to us like dance, swimming, yoga and Vedas in this summer camp unlike our school where there are only competitions," said Ishita, a girl attending the camp. What is catching the fancy of parents, whose kids are attending the camp, is the formal introduction of their kids to the culture of India. Organised by a local non-government organisation, the camp also offers lessons in skating and karate. Humidity, dust haze and loo add to woes (Go to Top) Bikaner, June 8: A scorching heat wave continues to sweep across India as temperature soared above 42 degrees Celsius. Increased humidity, dust haze and hot winds added to woes of the people reeling under an oppressive heat wave in most regions. India's meteorological department said the much awaited monsoon rains arrived in Kerala on Sunday, almost a week behind schedule, but most of peninsular India and northern plains continued to bake in the hot sun. A severe dust storm lashed Rajasthan on Sunday affecting normal life in the desert state. The dust storm was so strong that it fully covered the national highway linking Bikaner city with the rest of the area. Labourers were pressed into service to clear the thick blanket of dust and sand dunes encroaching on the road link. The situation was no better in Amritsar where the world famous Sikh Gurdwara, the Golden Temple, witnessed lesser pilgrims due to the unbearable heat wave conditions. Volunteers washed with water the Golden Temple's sun-drenched floors periodically to keep them cool and laid footmats for visitors not allowed footwear inside the premises. In Andhra Pradesh, where the unrelenting heat wave has claimed the bulk of over 1,300 deaths due to sunstrokes and dehydration, people were disillusioned by late arrival of monsoon over Kerala. The advance of monsoon over Andhra Pradesh would get delayed consequently and is not likely before third week of this month. In the state capital Hyderabad, sales of air coolers and air conditioners has been brisk with residents claiming this as the worst summer in recent years. Meanwhile, the Bay of Bengal monsoon showers have hit the eastern parts of the country bringing some respite. Millions of Indians have been praying for rains and searching for water as wells dried up. Villagers in Fatehpur Sikri have not a drop of water to drink (Go to Top) Fatehpur Sikri, June 8: In remote villages near historic Fatehpur Sikri town in Uttar Pradesh, villagers are forced to trek miles to fetch drinking water. Fatehpur Sikri is situated some 26 miles west of Agra and was built by the Mughal Emperor Akbar. Nearly all the canals and rivers have dried up in the villages of Gothara, Madoli and Panchakki. The villagers depend on a single well in Madigud that has some water left at the bottom. They complained they did not receive any help from the local administration. "All the water sources, wells have dried up. There is not a drop of water to drink, are facing extreme difficulty. No, the administration is doing absolutely nothing to help us," said Shyam Babu, a villager. Some said they would die of thirst if the present situation continued. "There is great difficulty. There is absolutely no water. People, animals are all dying of thirst. We are not even getting salty water...so you can imagine the extent of our difficulty. There is just no water." Large parts of India are critically short of water after rivers, lakes and wells dried up because of a drought that followed last year's failed monsoon. Tens of thousands of people have been forced to trek for miles in search of wells or wait for hours in the blistering sun for water tankers. Heat wave unabated, Varanasi residents under `gamcha' protection (Go to Top) Varanasi, June 5: The severe heat wave continued to sweep across the country for the 20th consecutive day on Thursday. Weather officials have warned there will be no respite what with the arrival of the southwest monsoon being delayed until Sunday at the earliest and temperatures likely to hover around 47 degrees Celsius over the next 24 hours. People in Varanasi, where maximum temperature on Wednesday was 46 degrees Celsius, were out with their faces covered. The sale of the cloth, locally known as "gamchas", have now increased with the rise in temperatures. "My sale has increased due to rising temperature. This cloth is used for various purposes. It protects the users from sun during scorching heat wave," said Shiv, a shopkeeper. Large parts of India are also critically short of water as rivers, lakes and wells have dried up due to a drought caused by last year's failed monsoon. In Rajasthan, where the temperatures have risen to 48 degrees Celsius, the handicraft industry is on the verge of ruins as tourism has been badly affected by drought and famine. Artisans, who have already lost Rs 3billion last year due to drought in the desert state, are a worried lot. "Due to severe heat wave and drought in the state, our business is going very, very low. We are unable to make both ends meet," said Buddhiram. Almost 2.5 million people in more than 7,000 villages in parts of Rajasthan are still reeling from the effects of last year's drought which was the worst in a decade. In Andhra Pradesh, more than 1,209 people-mostly rickshaw pullers, street hawkers and the homeless-have died of sunstroke and dehydration. On Tuesday, the temperature hit 49.6 degrees Celsius in Bolangir district of Orissa where the authorities closed schools and colleges. Chennai temple to have tallest Hanuman statue (Go to Top) Chennai, June 5: The tallest Anjaneya (Hanuman) statue in India is being sculpted in Kelambakkam near Chennai. It will be installed in a temple being constructed at Panchavatee on the Tindivanam- Pondicherry National Highway. The temple is being built as a result of a reported divine ordainment to Anjaneya devotee Brahmasari Ramani Anna. Brahmasari Anna was invited by one, Santhanam, to visit and grace his land. No sooner had he stepped on to the land than a vision of a magnificent temple of Lord Anjaneya rose before his eyes, it was claimed. The statue is 36 feet heigh with five different faces, 10 hands and ornamentation and objects appropriate to each facet of the Lord's grace. The sculptor is Padmasri Muthiah. It is difficut to sculpt on a single stone. The statue has ten hands with objects held. It was quite a challenge. It took 36 sculptors 26 weeks. The labourers worked 24 months to complete the statue and the holy yantram. The gold plated yantram weighs 11 kg. The statue is being sculpted out of a single piece of granite. It will be installed at Panchavatee, 9 km from Pondicherry, on 11 June. -ANI |
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