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The Hindu : y>

The Bharat Scouts and Guides conducted an All India National Special Jamboree at Ahmedabad to mark the centenary of scouting in India. Scouts from Bangladesh also participated. The Oxford Institutions Scout Troop was selected from the South Bangalore district. Karan Ganna and Abhijith.P from the CBSE. section participated ,representing Karnataka. Abhijith won a Jamboree award certificate and Karan along with Saisundar of ICSE won the third prize all over India for Youth-forum. They were the only two scouts selected from Karnataka for this competition. The chief guests were:

Mr. Narendra Modi (Chief Minister of Gujarat), Mr. Naval Kishore Sharma (Governor of Gujarat), Mr.Rameshwar Thakur (Governor of Karnataka and the President of Bharat Scouts and Guides). The scouts were Karan Ganna and Abhijith.P. , (CBSE) Waqhar and Saisundar.H (ICSE),and Pavan Kumar, Venu Gopaland Nagendra.( State Board)

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The Hindu : SUDHINDR A.B.

Kids learn about the social and moral aspects of traffic rules.

PHOTO: K.MURALI KUMARDevelop road sense: To be safe.

As part of the Toyota Safety Education Programme (TSEP), various activities were conducted for the students of VVS Sardar Patel School recently. After screening an animation movie on road safety, the resource person said that minor mistakes cause major mishaps and asked the students between the ages of 6 and 12 years to list some of the mistakes committed by adults while driving. The replies given by the children stunned the audience.Interactive course

“They speak over the mobile phone, while driving”, “they don’t wear helmets”,“they stop vehicles on the zebra crossing”, “they over speed and jump signals”, “some youngsters ride two-wheelers on footpaths”, were some of their observations. A student also said that many college-going students don’t obey traffic rules.

Pankaj Gupta, general manager, Toyota Kirloskar Motor said that the company initiated the programme keeping in mind in India children and young adults are the most susceptible to accidents. The various initiatives include a traffic safety interactive course using classroom methodology. It is a 45–minute instruction session held during the social studies or moral science class in schools and covers about 500 children in each school in the first year. It covers various aspects of traffic safety, basic road signals and road sense.

Traffic booths installed in the school premises ensure the active participation of children. The booth displays messages on road safety and children can win T-shirts and caps through interactive quizzes.

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The Hindu : y>

Wild ride Catch all the action only on NatGeo

Wild-Caught In The Act brings a selection of unbelievable scenes depicting extraordinary animal behaviour, together with emotional accounts of filmmakers who witnessed them, that may make you rethink on your knowledge of the natural world. Catch allthe action on Nat Geo at 10 p.m. on Wild-caught In The Act on Nat Geo.

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Tak and the Power of Juju, a popular show across the globe on Nick will air on 5 p.m. on weekdays. Tak is a member of a jungle tribe and an ordinary assistant to a sage, until he is endowed with the ‘power of juju’. This gift is bestowed upon him by the magical spirits ‘Jujus’.

With his newly acquired abilities, Tak can cast spells, travel to the unexplored juju kingdom and summon the powerful peculiar jujus for advice. For most teens, juju powers would make everyday life a whole lot easier. But with Tak’s imagination and inexperience, the powers usually get him, his friends, and even the jujus into tons of trouble!

Catch all the action only on Nick.

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The Hindu :

When it comes to offering advice, are women naturally more empathetic and sympathetic than men?

Photo: K Murali KumarDIFFERENT APPROACH Men can be practical and compassionate too

When it comes to doling out advice, are men more practical and tough talking than sensitive? Does the image of the seemingly insensitive, clinical male hold good even today?Or, are the lines beginning to blur, what with no-nonsense, iron ladies peopling the work and home space?

M. Desikamani, director, Mentor Learning which manages learning and development for corporates, says: “Men by virtue of their position of authority at home and work are seen to behave that way. . Our research shows that, based on their personality, men and women can be hard-nosed, hostile and competitive or friendly, supportive and sensitive.”

Tracing it to differentiation of roles during childhood, Vijay Nagaswami, psychiatrist, relationship consultant and author, states: “Generally, men are more practical than sensitive while offering advice. This is largely on account of boys growing up believing that they will have to be more handy and practical.”

Lawyer Sudha Ramalingam argues that “Given the same exposure and education, women are the same as men. It was Kiran Bedi who brought about so many practical reforms in Tihar Jail, which had been a male bastion. I find women more practical and sensitive, while men are more materialistic and calculative, not necessarily more practical.”

Offering a scientific explanation, Prithika Chary, neurosurgeon and neurologist, explains: “Men are more left-brained, logical, sequential while solving problems, and hence more practical. This does not mean that they are any less sensitive, but they like quick solutions. Some men, however, can be more balanced. Since women use both sides of the brain more often for many tasks.”

Putting the issue into its sociological context, Sujata Ramanathan, head of the department of Sociology, Stella Maris College, has this observation to make: “Men see themselves as taking charge of situations…More

The Hindu :

Carry a clutch for the chic minimal look and gain an aura of grace

A class CLUTCH act Aishwarya Rai

Clutch it and see your style quotient go up. You saw the Hollywood sirens clutching on to them at the Oscar hoopla. You find your local socialites serenading the party circuit clasping them. Even college girls have forsaken the capacious tote bags for a clutch for social occasions.

Check out the bags and accessories’ shops in the city and you’ll discover what we’re talking about. A gown or a sari, a dress or just jeans and a tee, a clutch looks good with anything and everything. With clutches in vogue this season, a mind-boggling variety is there at shops. They come in leather and faux and patent leather, satin and silk, even cane, tissue and denim, every versatile fabric that a designer can conceive of. A mixed bag of embellishments, trimmings and add-ons complete the look. There is an assortment of looks and shapes for this much-sought-after accessory. If you want to pick up a classy, elegant and tasteful clutch, zone in on Hidesign and various craft emporia, not necessarily the government-owned or NGO-controlled ones. You will find the prices quite astonishing too. Hidesign has them sober and stylish and surprisingly reasonably priced. And, it’s real leather. Neutral shades and sober pastels are part of this range. The handicraft shops, especially the privately owned ones, with their own in-house designers, have excelled themselves with paintings and tastefully done embroidery to complete the elegant look. If you’re the kind who would love to flaunt bright and bold, gaudy and glitzy clutches, venture into exclusive bags and accessories shops.Sequins and Swarovski, colourful stones and shimmering crystal, crochet, thread work and digital printing, metal studs and chains, beads, laces and pale gota, animal prints and abstract motifs, the options are aplenty.

The myriad hues include aqua hues…More

The Hindu : y>SOUND OFF! Meera Balaganesan protests the humiliation obese people face in a figure-conscious world

Sapna, a 13 year-old girl does not like going to school. What initially began as a few sporadic remarks cracked by friends has transformed into offending comments such as, “Hey, look at the road roller”, “Don’t walk fast, we don’t want earthquakes” etc. She has not been able to reduce weight and has not been able to ignore the offensive remarks These remarks have forced Sapna to withdraw into a shell.The situation that Sapna faces is surely not an isolated case and many people are faced with ridicule and exclusion from social groups, just because they are fat. The phenomenon of belittling and teasing fat people, especially among youngsters has dramatically increased. Many girls place their physical appearance even before academics to win admiration from their counterparts; boys look down upon fat girls with derision. Though fat people from both sexes suffer taunts, girls are harassed more.

Today, even eight to ten year old children have become conscious of their weight and appearance.The madness to lose weight has increased so much that even being healthy is considered secondary to having a perfect shape/figure. Statements such as “I am going to skip dessert in the party, else I should be in the gym for the next two days” influence children more than the adults think. The kids are not as naïve as some grownups imagine them to be. The words ‘obesity’, ‘fat’, and ‘cholesterol’ are the most over-used words in today’s world.

Parents rarely take time to read the ingredients or the nutrition label on packaged foods they buy their kids.

Moreover we lead very sedentary lives. And then we adopt fitness and diet programs that take a long time to help us shed all the extra pounds we put on through negligence. The need of the hour is not only…More

The Hindu :

When it comes to offering advice, are women naturally more empathetic and sympathetic than men?

Photo: Murali Kumar K.DIFFERENT APPROACH Men can be practical and compassionate too

When it comes to doling out advice, are men more practical and tough talking than sensitive? Does the image of the seemingly insensitive, clinical male hold good even today?Or, are the lines beginning to blur, what with no-nonsense, iron ladies peopling the work and home space?

M. Desikamani, director, Mentor Learning, which manages learning and development for corporates, says: “Men by virtue of their position of authority at home and work are seen to behave that way. . Our research shows that, based on their personality, men and women can be hard-nosed, hostile and competitive or friendly, supportive and sensitive.”

Tracing it to differentiation of roles during childhood, Vijay Nagaswami, psychiatrist, relationship consultant and author, states: “Generally, men are more practical than sensitive while offering advice. This is largely on account of boys growing up believing that they will have to be more handy and practical.”

Lawyer Sudha Ramalingam argues that “Given the same exposure and education, women are the same as men. It was Kiran Bedi who brought about so many practical reforms in Tihar Jail, which had been a male bastion. I find women more practical and sensitive, while men are more materialistic and calculative, not necessarily more practical.”

Offering a scientific explanation, Prithika Chary, neurosurgeon and neurologist, explains: “Men are more left-brained, logical, sequential while solving problems, and hence more practical. This does not mean that they are any less sensitive, but they like quick solutions. Some men, however, can be more balanced. Since women use both sides of the brain more often for many tasks.”

Putting the issue into its sociological context, Sujata Ramanathan, head of the department of Sociology,says: “Men see themselves as taking charge of situations (this cuts across age too), and provide advice…More

The Hindu :

This fortnight at seventymm.com

Dial M for Murder (1954)

Cast: Grace Kelly, Ray Milland

Director: Alfred Hitchcock

Screenplay: Frederick Knott

While this film is not considered one of Hitchcock’s finest, “Dial M for Murder” is a jolly thriller nevertheless. Adapted from Frederick Knott’s phenomenally successful play, “Dial M for Murder” is claustrophobically set in a flat with a few outdoor shots for much-needed relief.

The movie involves an ex pro tennis player (what’s with Hitch and tennis? Remember “Strangers on a Train”?) Tony Wendice who decides to do away with his rich wife Margot when he realises she has fallen in love with a writer Mark Halliday. Tony decides the only way to get Margot’s money to keep up his rather extravagant standard of living after “tennis has done away” with him is by killing her.

He ropes in a disreputable classmate of his to do the deed. The elaborate plan falls through and Margot kills the killer instead. Thinking on his feet, Tony moves to an even more audacious Plan B to destroy his wife.

More than half a century after its release, “Dial M for Murder” still manages to thrill. Grace Kelly, Hitchcock’s muse of the time (she went on to act in Hitchcock’s “Rear Window” and “To Catch a Thief”) looks quite like the princess in distress as Margot. Dressed in warm, rich colours in the beginning of the film her wardrobe progressively gets drabber.

Ray Milland plays the suave Tony while Robert Cummings plays the dashing Mark Halliday.

For those with a pronounced weakness for thrillers, like yours truly, “Dial M for Murder” seduces with its sleek lines and lascivious curves. There have been learned treatises on why we love detective fiction as much as we do. One of the reasons put forth is because the finale provides neat and tidy answers which we are always looking for in life. Be that as it may,…More

The Hindu :

Cooking has all the ingredients to keep kids engaged during holidays. And they can even eat the results

PHOTO: AFPBUDDING CHEFS Cooking can be a happy pastime for kids

Holidays? Get the kids to cook! All that mess and cleaning-up is seriously worth it, if it keeps you from roaring “get off my computer, NOW!”

About a week ago, I decided that I needed to seriously work on my mum-ratings. It had, unfortunately, hit an all time low… I was there, in the hall of shame, among mums who happily neglect their own flesh and blood, mums who ruthlessly farm their little waifs out to work, among excessively mean, cruel step-mums… And all this fuss because I issued a few “sensible” diktats at the start of the holidays…

“My mum says we must go downstairs and play hopscotch.”

But how unfair is this, really? The weather has been consistently lousy, the apartment is ridiculously tiny, and during term-breaks, I usually end up with a couple of pop-music crazy kids — one my own, the other typically borrowed for a play-date from a grateful full-time-working mum! HOW, I ask you, am I expected to go about my daily activities with…that…that drivel that passes off as music ricocheting off the walls? “My mum says we can play hide-and-seek, but we mustn’t hide inside the fridge/bathtub/cupboards”.

Naturally, I shoo them away. And they, sigh, get their own back by rating mums and ranking me with alongside those “unfun, uncool” types. Any surprise, then, that I was frantically browsing ‘fun things to do with your kids during school vacations’?

Typical of all searches, I came up with no less than a million results in about 0.21 seconds. Many were written by kind people with good intentions and they would’ve worked very well if I’d lived in Utopia (where, am fairly sure, kids are never heard, only seen, and when they speak-up,…More

The Hindu :

26/11 Mumbai Attacked is the first documentation of the Mumbai terror attacks that stunned India last year

NEW REVELATIONS Senior journalists, who covered the macabre 26/11 attacks, pitch in with untold stories and details of hushed up meetings

There are many stories of the nightmarish 26/11 that remain untold. “26/11 Mumbai Attacked” gives a blow by blow account of the worst terror attack India has ever seen.

“Reporters covering such events can’t use all the material that they gather. But they have vital information thatneeds to be shared. Different newspapers have different stories and readers don’t read all the papers. An attack of this magnitude needs to be recorded for posterity,” says Pramod Kapoor, publisher, Roli Books.

Kapoor got 10 journalists and columnists like Ashish Khetan, Rahul Shivshankar, George Koshy, Bachi Karkaria besides Julio Francis Riberio, the former Police Commissioner of Mumbai and DGP, Punjab, to revisit the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks that left the whole world stunned.

The book goes a little further to declare that India will be hit again and provides reasons too. “The book takes a 360 degree look at 26/11. The Mumbai attacks took the terror scenario to another level. The book has absolutely fresh bits of information. For example the chapter on investigation by Ashish Khetan has got details on the meeting between Mumbai Police and officials of The Taj Mahal hotel held on September 29 after Mumbai Police received an intelligence input from the IB about a possible terrorist attack on the hotel,” says Harinder Baweja, editor, news and investigations of Tehelka, who has edited the book. Baweja’s interview with the Lashkar-e-Toiba’s representative Abdullah Muntazir done inside the headquarters of Jamaat-ud-Dawa in Muridke, Pakistan, is also part of the book.Stories told afresh

Baweja is the only Indian journalist to have been allowed to visit Jamaat-ud-Dawa where Ajmal Amir Kasab, the lone surviving terrorist of 26/11, received training for…More