Slovak president wants PM Fico to try to form govt

June 14, 2010 By Leave a Comment

June 13 (Reuters) – Slovak President Ivan Gasparovic said on Sunday he wanted Prime Minister Robert Fico, whose leftist party SMER won the most votes in a general election on Saturday, to try to form a new government.

But four centre-right opposition parties won a majority in the election and have the greatest chance to form a cabinet. They have all rejected working with Fico.

“I want to ask the winner of the election to try form the government…It is a tradition which I will not break,” Gasparovic said. (Reporting by Martin Santa; writing by Jan Lopatka; editing by Michael Winfrey)

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Real-life ‘Juliets’ answering ‘Romeos’ letters get a reel makeover

May 11, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, May 11 (ANI): New film ”Letters to Juliet” is based on folks who reply to letters written to Shakespeare’s fictional heroine by lovelorn ‘Romeos’ across the world.

The volunteers, in Italy, who respond to sack load of letters written by people seeking advice on relationship, are popularly known as “Juliet”s Secretaries”.

The tradition has continued for the past half a century. The scribes work in an upstairs office overlooking the Verona balcony on which Juliet supposedly stood, when Romeo wooed her.

“Almost all of the letters contain the phrase, ”Juliet, I can only tell you. Only you can help me. Even if she is a literary figure, she has become real,” the Telegraph quoted Giovanna Tamassia, who has been working as ‘Juliet’s secretary’ for past 16 years, as saying.

The new film, starring Vanessa Redgrave and Amanda Seyfried, has been inspired by these volunteers.

The plot revolves around a young American tourist, Seyfried, who meets the volunteers who respond to the letters.

The film will hit screens in the UK on June 9. (ANI)

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Ambika Soni condoles journalist”s death

May 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

New Delhi, May 6 (ANI): Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Ambika Soni on Thursday condoled the death of Ajay Tiwari, a field reporter with Hindi News channel Sahara Samay, who died while covering a major fire that broke out in a factory-cum-godown in Dabri in South-West Delhi.

“In Tiwari”s death, Indian journalism has lost promising talent. Tiwari died in the line of his duty maintaining the highest tradition of television journalism,” said Ambika Soni in her message.

Thirty-four year old Tiwari died on Wednesday after getting trapped inside the debris of a portion of the factory wall that collapsed after a cylinder blast in the factory.

Madan Mohan, a cameraman working with India News, who was standing close to Tiwari at the time of the incident reportedly, received minor injuries on his hands. (ANI)

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Number may be up for NRL jerseys

May 5, 2010 By Leave a Comment

The NRL will consider a proposal to allow players to have their own individual numbers on the backs of their jerseys.

The idea was put forward at a meeting of club bosses in Sydney on Tuesday by Sydney Roosters chief executive Steve Noyce and was received warmly by the other clubs.

Noyce said it was time rugby league followed the lead of AFL and cricket teams and allowed fans to buy replica shirts with the name and numbers of their favourite player on the back.

“It allows fans to identify with a favourite player when they are at the game and when they purchase a jersey,” Noyce said.

“The way positions are today the numbers do not really reflect where people actually play and there is a better chance for people to better identify their favourite player.

“There are only two sports that retain numbers based on position and it is time we moved on.”

The plan also received tentative support from NRL boss David Gallop, who admitted although the idea would fly in the face of tradition, it was something that would be looked into.

“All of that stuff is part of the system used in AFL and cricket and there has been a push for it today and we will go away and look at it,” Gallop said.

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Australia’s Victoria Legislative Assembly denies Hindu opening prayer request

April 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Nevada (US), Apr 29 (ANI): A Hindu leader has been denied the request to read the opening prayer of Victoria Legislative Assembly of Australia.

Assembly Speaker Jennifer Lindell, in a response to the request of Rajan Zed, president of Universal Society of Hinduism, said in a communiqué: “It has been a long standing tradition for the Speaker to read the Lord”s Prayer prior to the start of the proceedings of the day. The motion that the Speaker read the Lord”s Prayer was made by a resolution of the House on 9 October 1928. Since then no other person has read the prayer in the Victorian Parliament…”

“Lord”s Prayer” is a well-known prayer in Christianity. Legislative Assembly, created in 1855, is the Lower House of the Victorian Parliament and consists of 88 members. Victoria is the most densely populated state of Australia. (ANI)

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Meet the 12-year-old Indian headmistress!

April 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, April 19 (ANI): A 12-year-old Indian girl, who was abandoned at a railway station in Bihar as an infant, has become the head teacher at a school in Kusumbhara, her adopted village.

Bharti Kumari teaches Hindi, English and maths to 50 village kids who would otherwise receive no education.

She gives them lessons every morning and evening, under the shade of a mango tree.

In between, she attends a state school in Akhodhi Gola, a two-mile walk away.

In her school uniform, she passes on the knowledge gleaned from her lessons to the village children, aged between four and 10, in her own class.

“I have a long day. My school is from 10am to 3pm and I study late. This is what I love doing. I enjoy teaching children their ABCs as well as the Hindi alphabets,” Times Online quoted her as saying.

Kusumbhara is a poverty-stricken village 87 miles from Patna, the state capital.

Rampati, Bharti’s adoptive father, an impoverished farmhand, said he would not follow the rural tradition of pushing girls into early marriages but would allow her to continue her studies. (ANI)

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Meet the 12-year-old Indian headmistress!

April 19, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, April 19 (ANI): A 12-year-old Indian girl, who was abandoned at a railway station in Bihar as an infant, has become the head teacher at a school in Kusumbhara, her adopted village.

Bharti Kumari teaches Hindi, English and maths to 50 village kids who would otherwise receive no education.

She gives them lessons every morning and evening, under the shade of a mango tree.

In between, she attends a state school in Akhodhi Gola, a two-mile walk away.

In her school uniform, she passes on the knowledge gleaned from her lessons to the village children, aged between four and 10, in her own class.

“I have a long day. My school is from 10am to 3pm and I study late. This is what I love doing. I enjoy teaching children their ABCs as well as the Hindi alphabets,” Times Online quoted her as saying.

Kusumbhara is a poverty-stricken village 87 miles from Patna, the state capital.

Rampati, Bharti’s adoptive father, an impoverished farmhand, said he would not follow the rural tradition of pushing girls into early marriages but would allow her to continue her studies. (ANI)

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Djokovic to compete for Queen’s title

April 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

World number two Novak Djokovic has confirmed he will play at this year’s Queen’s tournament, the warm-up event before Wimbledon.

The Serbian, who has yet to win a grass court title, has been added to a field which already includes Rafael Nadal, Juan Martin Del Potro and Andy Roddick for the event which gets under way on June 7.

“It would mean a lot to me if I could go one step further than in 2008 and win … at Queen’s, and then to do well at Wimbledon,” the 2008 runner-p, said.

“The grass court season is unique and it is very exciting to play at Queen’s because the atmosphere is fantastic and there is so much tradition for tennis in England.”

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Good Friday footy push by West Adelaide

April 8, 2010 By Leave a Comment

The SANFL says it will wait for a formal request before it considers whether to allow football matches on Good Friday.

West Adelaide Football Club is keen to play a night game at Richmond Oval on Good Friday next year.

Club president Paul Sperling says the arguments are compelling for a break with the tradition of no football on the Friday of the Easter break.

“I was quite opposed to it initially. You know, when you work through all of the pros and cons you just think to yourself that ‘Well, on a Friday night when the whole day has passed and all of the different religious things that go on on that day and we respect the people that go through all of that process’ we just thought it was perhaps an opportunity for the Friday night to do something,” he said.

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Twenty20s move to Olympic stadium

March 31, 2010 By Leave a Comment

In a break with tradition, Sydney’s Olympic stadium is to host one international Twenty20 match a year for four years beginning in the 2011/12 season.

Under a deal struck between the New South Wales State Government and Cricket NSW, international matches in Sydney will be played away from the Sydney Cricket Ground for the first time, with the four international Twenty20 fixtures to attract crowds of up to 80,000 each.

The SCG has seating capacity of 46,000.

The international clashes at the Olympic stadium could include Australia v India in 2011/12, Australia v South Africa in 2012/13, Australia v England in 2013/14, and Australia v India in 2014/15.

Cricket NSW chief executive David Gilbert, said holding international Twenty20 games at the Olympic stadium would help further showcase the popular form of the game.

“We look forward to staging exciting, world class cricket in front of local fans, along with the visitors from around the world we expect these matches to attract,” he said.

Cricket New South Wales says there are no plans to move Test or one-day matches away from the SCG.

-AAP

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Klum and Seal’s vow-renewal bash to see guests dressed as brides and grooms!

March 17, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Mar 17 (ANI): Heidi Klum and hubby Seal are set to renew their vows in a party with a unique dress theme—all the guests will dress as brides and grooms.

And the supermodel and Project Runway host didn”t give any explanation for the bizarre plan.

“It”s going to be all brides and all grooms. All of the women will be brides and all of the men will be grooms,” Us magazine quoted Klum as telling E! News.

“Just one day, I woke up and I was like, ”Oh, I know what I am going to do this year”…I like to have fun and I like to make it fun for my family and friends,” she added.

Klum, 36, wed Seal, 47, on May 10, 2005, and the couple have made a tradition of renewing their vows in a big way.

In 2009, they threw a “white trash” renewal ceremony, in which Klum”s hair was in cornrows, her singer husband sported a mullet, and the officiant was dressed as Elvis Presley. (ANI)

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US Masters to be broadcast in 3D

March 17, 2010 By Leave a Comment

In an unprecedented broadcasting move, the 2010 US Masters will be produced and broadcast live in 3D, Augusta National Golf Club chairman Billy Payne has announced.

Multiple 3D cameras will be strategically placed across the famed course, resulting in views never before seen of the former nursery site that has become the home of the first major championship of each year in early April.

The production, which will primarily focus on the back nine, will be distributed live to US 3D capable television sets and computers.

“Innovation has always been part of Masters tradition,” Payne said.

“Utilising this technology marks another important milestone in allowing our at-home patrons to better experience the beauty of our course and excitement of our tournament.”

Two hours of live afternoon 3D coverage will be available starting with the Masters Par 3 Contest on April 7 and each day of the April 8-11 event.

- AFP

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405th installation anniversary of Sri Guru Granth Sahib

September 20, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Agra, Sep 19(ANI): People of all religions and communities gathered to celebrate the 405th anniversary of the installation of the Sikh holy scriptures, Sri Guru Granth Sahib, at Gurudwara Maithan in Agra.

This was a significant landmark for the Sikhs, as the 275-year-old handwritten scripture, whose front pages are written with gold, was put on display for the devotees.

“The Guru Granth Sahib has the preaching or ‘bani’ of famous poets like Kabir ji, Guru Ravidas ji and Baba Farid ji. It is symbol of humanity and so people of all the religions have gathered here to celebrate the ‘Prakash Parv’, the installation ceremony together,” said Kanwldeep Singh, President of Sri Gursikh Sabha.

Also on display was a miniature scripture of Guru Granth Sahib, which has been preserved at the Gurudwara Maithan for the past 15 years.

“We have Guru Granth sahib of 1 X 1 inches long. The British for the convenience of Sikh soldiers especially designed the holy book during the First World War, as they could not carry a normal sized book in the battlefield. The miniature Guru Granth Sahib was printed in Germany. It was kept in a silver box,” said Gyani Kashmir Singh, head Granthi of Gurudwara Maithan.

To mark the anniversary of the installation of Guru Granth Sahib, special prayers were also held in the Gurudwara premises, which once the house of Mai jassi that was visited by Guru Sri Tegh Bahadur.he gurudwara is currently undergoing renovation and will be expanded to facilitate the large number of devotees visiting the shrine.

A total of 20 million dollars will be spent on renovation and construction of new Gurudwara, a 100-bed hospital and a community hall.

Gurudwara Maithan also upheld the tradition of Langar, which has been followed over the centuries. Guru Arjan Dev and Mata Ganga set the precedent of preparing and serving food to the hungry, in the langar hall, where all social, economic and religious barriers collapse and all – the laborer, the lord, the peasant and the prince, are treated alike and served the same food in the same manner.

This is a practice of great social significance, and it is the key to the understanding of Sikhism. By Brijesh Sharma (ANI)

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Hundreds take part in ‘Ram Baraat’ in Agra

September 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Agra, Sept 17 (ANI): Hundreds of people here took part in ‘Ram Baraat’, which is a part of the Ramlila celebrations.

Jeetander Chauhan, a worker, who erected the decorations for the celebrations, said that people were happy that god was among them.

“We are feeling that Lord Ram has appeared among us. Hundreds of people have come to witness this famous god’s marriage,” said Chauhan.

Maya Sharma, a devotee, said that women were also excited about this deity marriage.

“I’m really feeling good that ‘Baraat’ procession of Lord Rama and Sita is taking place. We are feeling good that god himself is present here,” said Sharma.

Every year, a new locality is chosen in Agra and festivities last for three days and the area is elaborately decorated with lights and flowers. The area is given a major face-lift befitting the venue for the divine marriage.

The marriage procession sees marriage between saint Shaligram who represents Lord Ram and holy Basil plant, which represents Sita, his wife.

The place is lit up with thousands of lights and non-stop music. The cinema theatres run film shows throughout the night to accommodate the migratory crowd.

These three days are like a carnival when people from all walks of life come together to have a great time.

The history of Ram Baraat is said to be around 125 years old, when Lala Kokamal, a cloth merchant, started the tradition of three-day festivities, revolving around the royal wedding. (ANI)

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Nude blonde woman scares builders into running for safety!

September 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Melbourne, Sep 17 (ANI): A blonde woman is said to have scared a bunch of builders into running for safety, after she rushed up to a construction site in the nude saying “Who wants me?”

But instead of taking her up on her offer, the builders ran for cover and called up the police.

“We like to chat up girls as they walk past – it’s a tradition,” the Daily Telegraph quoted one builder on the site in Vienna, Austria, as saying.

“But this woman was too much to handle and we just ran and hid until the police got here. No one liked to think what would happen if she caught one of us,” he said.

Police spokesman Mario Hejl added: “It turned out no one wanted her. The woman was detained and was put under a doctor’s care.” (ANI)

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Jay Z, Beyonce’s pizza night out ‘tradition’

September 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Sept 16 (ANI): Singer Jay Z and Beyonce Knowles take time out of their busy schedules to eat pizza together every week.

The couple clear their hectic workloads on the weekend to spend quality time together sitting down at a small restaurant in the rapper’s native Brooklyn, New York.

“There’s a great pizza spot we go to every Sunday. It’s our tradition,” Contactmusic quoted Jay Z as saying.

“It’s a small place in Brooklyn – you can bring your own wine and there are candles there. It’s a nice date,” he added.

The couple married in a private ceremony in 2008. (ANI)

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Abandoned by children, inmates of an old-age perform ‘Shraadh’ in Bhopal

September 10, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Bhopal, Sep.10 (ANI): Abandoned by their own children, many elderly people at an old-age home in Bhopal, performed ‘Shraadh’ for themselves during the ongoing ‘Pitrapaksha’.

As per Hindu tradition, one’s children or family members perform the Shraadh, the ritual of remembering the deceased.

These elderly inmates took the unusual step, as they realised there was no one in their families to perform this ritual.

“They (children) will not do the salvation ritual for us after our death. We are doing it for ourselves. If today they are treating us in this manner, we don’t know what they will do after our death. What can we say?… There is no one to see us. There is no one to listen to our plight… We will die like this here one day,” said Murari Lal Saxena, inmate of Anand Dham old-age-home.

By performing their own ‘shraadh’ rituals, the elderly said they were preparing for their next life.

Parmanad Agrawal, whose family members have died, said in this age and time he couldn’t trust his relatives to do ‘Shraadh’ for him.

“I’m doing my own salvation ritual. So that I don’t suffer in my next life,” said Parmanad Agrawal, an inmate of Anand Dham, the old age home.

Meanwhile, the in-charge of the old-age home Madhuri Mishra said that the inmates did the rituals out of a sense of compulsion.

“All elderly members were worried and in a sad mood. They said since their children have left them in an old age home then why not do their own post-death ritual even if they were still alive. This will leave no burden on their sons after their death. The elderly performed the rituals in the early morning,” said Madhuri Mishra, In-charge, Anand Dham Old-Age-Home.

Hindus believe in reincarnation, or in the cycle of birth. They believe that the body changes with every birth but the soul remains the same.

According to the Hindu philosophy, this birth and death cycle can be broken and the soul can be liberated by performing “Pind Daan” (rituals for dead).

During ‘Pitrapaksha’, children perform the ceremony and pray that the souls of their ancestors should rest in peace. By Ram Chand Sahu(ANI)

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Sleeping with partner could be bad for health and relationship

September 10, 2009 By Leave a Comment

London, Sept 9 (ANI): The secret to a long, healthy and happy marriage might lie in having separate beds, claims a sleep expert.

A research has found that sharing a bed often led to poor quality sleep as people were regularly disturbed by their loved ones during the night.

Speaking at a special seminar on sleep at the British Science Festival, Dr Neil Stanley, a sleep expert at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, said: “A normal double bed is 4ft 6inches wide. That means you have up to nine inches less per person in a double bed than a child has in a single bed.

“Add to this another person who kicks, punches, snores and gets up to go to the loo and is it any wonder that we are not getting a good night’s sleep?

“To save your marriage and your health you should have a discussion about your sleep.”

However, despite the detrimental effects of snoring, teeth grinding and tossing and turning, people tolerated it because culturally sleeping together is considered a sign of intimacy, reports The Telegraph.

Stanley, who follows his own advice and sleeps in a different room to his wife, said that double beds are just not conducive to a good night’s sleep.

He said the tradition of the marital bed began with the industrial revolution, when people moved into cities and found themselves short of living space. Before the Victorian era it was not uncommon for married couples to sleep apart.

“Intimacy is good for emotional health but good sleep is good for physical and mental health,” he said.

Stanley, who set up the Sleep Lab at the University of Surrey, said: “Sleep is a selfish thing to do. No one can share your sleep. If you know that your partner is next to you, then you are awake. If you are sleeping together and it is all right then carry on. If not then you should do something about it, not just tolerate it. Getting a good night’s sleep is as important as diet and exercise.”

The expert also suggested various ways through which couples could improve their sleep, if sleeping in separate beds was too much of a leap.

They included buying a bigger bed, having separate duvets and having darker curtains. (ANI)

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The Brit couple who’ve frequented the same holiday hotel for 50 years!

September 7, 2009 By Leave a Comment

London, Sep 7 (ANI): A Brit woman and her husband, who fell in love with a holiday hotel 50 years back, have been returning for visits ever since.

Mary Hirst, 76, and her husband Michael, 79, first visited Hotel Phoenicia in Valleta, Malta, in 1959, and ever since they have been visiting the place with their family.

One of the snaps that had been taken in the 1960s showed their daughter Sarah, 47, as a little girl, and another taken in the 70s showed her as a teenager.

Sarah, too, visits the island regularly with her husband Richard, and children Lara, 12, and Giles, eight.

The tradition began when architect Michael had to regularly visit the island on business, but it soon became a holiday favourite for the couple from Harefield, West London.

“We grew to love the place. It’s a grand hotel. We’ve had so many happy holidays there. The staff all know us and it is like a second home,” the Sun quoted him as saying. (ANI)

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