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Showing posts from September, 2006

Models banned for being too thin

A good one ! Madrid: Five models hoping to be booked for Madrid's major fashion show which begins on Monday were banned from participating because they are too thin, Spanish media reports. This is the first time organisers of a fashion show have applied weight limits set by the world health organisation and those of the 44th "Pasarela Cibeles" said their decision was also based on a Spanish regional law aimed at fighting anorexia, a sometimes fatal disease in which women starve themselves to be thin.The 68 international models stepped on the scales, like boxers, on Saturday and five Spanish "featherweights" failed. The girls had a body mass index, calculated on a height-weight ratio, of under 18 (56 kilograms for 1.75 metres or 123 pounds for five feet eight inches), the limit set by the regional government of Madrid which co-finances the event.The girls were weighed by volunteer doctors recruited for the occasion by the Spanish society of endocrinology and nutr

'Hysterical' curse

Very interesting news items.. though reported at.. two different places.. quite inter-related.. NEPAL - ‘Snake god curse’ creates hysteria KATHMANDU: While psychologists explained it as mass hysteria triggered by fear and tension, an alarmed Nepal town began ritual worships to propitiate a dead snake whose curse was said to be causing dozens of school students to faint, weep and scream. The Laxmi Secondary School in Lekhnath town in Kaski district, west of the capital city Kathmandu, presented a strange sight for two days in a row. Students, mostly girls aged 14 to 17, began falling down in a dead faint, weeping loudly, kicking and screaming and making signs of extreme fear and distress. The first fits began on Tuesday, when nearly two dozen students displayed the symptoms. The alarmed school authorities and parents were nonplussed by the phenomenon and at a loss as to what to do. Nearly two dozen more students, including some boys as well, displayed the same bizarre behaviour on Wedne

Parsi woman sparks furore over funeral rites

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Amazing customs and rituals of India! Sometimes.. quite disgusting too!! DC story.. Sept 8, 2006 Pictures of rotting corpses piled at a centuries-old Zoroastrian funeral ground, secretly snapped by a Parsi woman, have sparked a furore over ancient rituals. For centuries, the Zoroastrian dead have been wrapped in white muslin and left at a leafy, funeral ground in Mumbai’s Malabar Hill, where they are devoured by vultures. But with only a handful of the critically-endangered birds remaining in the city, authorities installed solar panels three years ago to dry out the bodies and speed up decomposition. The sun’s rays are bleary, though, during the threemonth monsoon season. When Ms Dhun Baria, 65, learned her mother’s corpse would take at least a year to decompose, she slipped into the funeral ground to take her shocking photographs of a place that few people are even allowed to enter. Orthodox Parsi elders said that the funeral system is working fine. But Ms Baria is challeng

Vande mataram controversy

Was anyway.. planning to vent out the same sentiments. This one reached me by mail. Almost the same idea.... We are Hindu or Muslim or of any other religion because our parents follow that religion. There is no contribution on our part ! The religion which doesn't respect Mother Earth has no right to stay on that land. Also religion that does not respect or supress women can only produce terrorist! God is one we gave different name to them. God does not tell anyone to do something. When master artist Bismillah Khan fell ill, all over India many Hindus performed 'havan' and 'yagna' for his speedy recovery. Similarly, a seven-year-old Muslim girl from Agra, Praveen, was on fast for seven days to appease Hindu God Indra - so as to get rains.We often hear about Muslims taking care of Hindu temples and Hindus managing tombs of Muslim saints. At many places, Muslims make effigies of Ravana and also help organize Ganesh festivals. Our President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam p

Vande mataram

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Rarely has a composition given rise to such a diverse range of debates or has been subjected to such a close scrutiny as India's National Song Vande Mataram. Glorified by many as the last word in patriotic manifestation, the song was composed by Bankim Chandra in an inspired moment and was set to tune and sung by nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore. It has been translated into all major Indian languages and set to music by Rabindranath Tagore and recently by A R Rahman. Know your Vande Mataram. Given below are the lyrics: Vande maataram, vande maataram, sujalam suphalam malayaja sheetalam shasyashyamalam maataram - vande mataram Shubhra jyotsna pulakitayaaminim, phulla kusumita drumadalashobhinim suhaasinim sumadhurabhaashhinim sukhadaam varadaam maataram - vande mataram sapta koti kantha kalakalaninaada karale nisapta koti bhujaidhruta karakarvalea balakeno maa eto bale bahubaladhaarinim namaami tarinim ripudalavarinim maataram- vande maataram tvam hi durga dashapraharanadhaarini k

Ten Unusual Cell Tower Sites

An excellent one. Cell towers at all odd spots. read more  |  digg story