Flower farms a budding investment in India

A decade ago, Rahul Pawar made an unusual and risky choice, to grow flowers in the centre of India's biggest sugar-producing state Maharashtra. Now he's reaping the rewards of his 1.1 million rupee investment as increasingly affluent Indians want his bright blooms for their weddings and festivals.

"Every year we are seeing a rise in demand. People are using more and more flowers at functions like weddings," Pawar said.

"They are ready to pay for flowers like gerbera and gladioli, which are new to them," he added, holding a fluorescent bird of paradise bloom in his weather-beaten hands.

Pawar grows orange and red gerberas under polythene in climate-controlled conditions to shield them from Maharashtra's scorching summer, when temperatures can top 48 C.

The hardier birds of paradise plants flourish in the field and take three years to reach production of 30 flowers each. They will flash their orange and purple crests for 20 years.

The central belt of Maharashtra is prime sugar cane country, producing over nine million tonnes of the sweetener or about 40 per cent of India's total output.

The government guarantees minimum prices for farmers, currently at 139.12 rupees per 100 kilogrammes, for sugar cane. Sugar is an important source of food energy for a country where over 42 per cent of the 1.2 billion population are below the poverty line.

But farmers like Pawar are experimenting with crops such as flowers, a luxury item where more money can often be made.

"Flowers are giving much higher returns than other traditional crops. But the initial investment is very high. You have to wait for four to five years for breakeven," Pawar said.

Flower production has boomed in India, as its eight percent annual growth boosts incomes in the middle class. Wedding halls are often crammed with blossoms and frequent festivals are seen as an occasion for garlanding with hot-hued blooms.

"Previously, people had been using flowers only for big functions. But now, even for a small function they are buying," said Kiran Nanavare, a 31-year-old flower trader based in Pune in Maharashtra.

"Every year we are seeing a rise in demand."

Flower stalls dot every market and many street corners in India's big cities, selling loose stems or elaborate bouquets and set-piece presentation arrangements.

The amount of land dedicated to flower production in India jumped 55 percent to 183,000 hectares in the five years to 2009/10, according to the National Horticulture Board.

Cut flower production rose to 6,667 million stems in 2009/10, from 2,071 million in 2004/05.

Prices for out-to-please gerbera can rise to seven rupees in the peak wedding season, Nanavare said, but can fall to four rupees in mid-June during the monsoon months when heavy rains and sultry temperatures keep partying subdued.

"Interior decorators buy during the wedding season in large amounts, but throughout the year demand remains there from small vendors" who organise buffet functions and other ornamental occasions, Nanavare said.

Some farmers in the country's rugged rural expanses are now trying to explore the global market as well, mostly with Dutch roses, but their share in the world market is still tiny.

"We don't have cold storage facilities for exports. Once we get that we will test how demand is for Indian flowers in other countries, where prices are much higher," Pawar said.

Dada back IN IPL - 4

Rajini fans eat rice spread on floor for his recovery

As many as 50 fans of Tamil superstar Rajnikanth on Tuesday ate rice spread out on a bare floor at a temple in the industrial town of Hosur, praying for the actor's speedy recovery.

The 'Mann Soru' ritual was held in the Kalikamba temple in Chandra Chudeswara hill temple premises.

"Kalikamba is the favourite God of superstar Rajnikanth and hence we organised the pooja in this temple for his speedy recovery," a fan who participated in the pooja said.

Meanwhile, members of All Actors Fans Association in Hosur also organised special prayers near the Taluk office for the speedy recovery of Rajinikanth.

61-year-old Rajinikanth has been admitted to Chennai-based Sri Ramachandra Hospital in Chennai on May 13 for recurrent respiratory infection and gastro-intestinal problems.

Man posts Facebook messages on how he killed daughter

An Australian man who stabbed his two-year-old daughter to death and posted updates on Facebook pleaded guilty on Wednesday. One message read: "I've killed her... She's just lying there... and her guts are hanging out".

Ramazan ‘Ramzy’ Acar, 24, kidnapped his daughter Yazmina from outside her home. He then gave her mother Rachelle D'Argent updates about his plan to murder the child, the Herald Sun reported.

Yazmina was stabbed with a knife in November on last year and her body was dumped in a vacant plot in north Melbourne, a court in Melbourne said on Wednesday.

The accused used Facebook and mobile phone messages to inform D'Argent and said the murder was in revenge for her ending their relationship.

In one phone call, Acar told D'Argent: "I'm going to do it. Do you have any last words for her?"

Later, in a series of text messages he updated his murder of Yazmina.

While one read, "It's ova I did it", another said "I h8t you". A Facebook status update read "Pay bk u slut".

When the woman spoke to Acar on the phone, he claimed: "I've killed her. She's just lying there next to me in her leggings and her top covered in blood, and her guts are hanging out.

Clash in North-West Pakistan kills two police officers, 15 militants

Senior police official Liaquat Ali Khan said as many as 100 militants carrying rocket—propelled grenades and other weapons attacked the security forces overnight. But eventually the insurgents were pushed back.

Dozens of militants bearing rocket—propelled grenades attacked a key security checkpoint near the Pakistani city of Peshawar early Wednesday, sparking a three—hour clash that killed two police officers and 15 insurgents, police said.

The attack on the Sangu Mera checkpoint comes amid Taliban threats to avenge the May 2 U.S. raid that killed Osama bin Laden in the town of Abbottabad in Pakistan’s volatile northwest. But it is more likely tied to the Pakistani military’s offensives against militant groups in its tribal belt bordering Afghanistan.

Sangu Mera lies just along the border of Khyber tribal region, one of the areas where Taliban and other militants have hideouts and where the Pakistani army has staged multiple operations. The checkpoint is about six miles (10 kilometers) away from Peshawar, a strategically important city near Afghanistan.

Senior police official Liaquat Ali Khan said as many as 100 militants carrying rocket—propelled grenades and other weapons attacked the security forces overnight. But eventually the insurgents were pushed back.

Security checkpoints are frequently attacked by militants in Pakistan - sometimes through suicide bombings and other times involving large numbers of insurgents such as Wednesday’s incident. The clashes are often linked to ongoing military offensives in the tribal belt.

Pakistan’s army has carried out anti—insurgent operations in six of its seven tribal districts. The one place it has not mounted an offensive is the place the U.S. wants it to most - North Waziristan, a tribal area home to militants whose primary focus is attacking U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan.

The Pakistanis say they are too stretched battling insurgents who have attacked the Pakistani state to order a North Waziristan offensive right now. The U.S. relies heavily on its missile strikes to take out targets in North Waziristan.

Pakistan and the U.S. are struggling to improve their relations since the Navy SEALs raid that killed the al—Qaida chief in Abbottabad, a garrison city a few hours away from Peshawar.

Pakistani officials consider the surprise U.S. raid on bin Laden a violation of their sovereignty, and deny knowing he was staying in Abbottabad. The U.S. says the secrecy surrounding the mission was vital to its success.

Also on Wednesday, gunmen on a motorbike killed five minority Shiite Muslims in a minibus in what appeared to be a sectarian attack in Pakistan’s southwest Baluchistan province, police said. Six people also were wounded in the attack in Quetta, the provincial capital.

Police official Sultan Mohammed Gichki said the attack was likely carried out by Sunni Muslim extremists, but that no group has claimed responsibility so far.

Pakistan is a majority Sunni Muslim state. Although most Sunnis and Shiites in Pakistan live together peacefully, extremists on both sides often target each other’s leaders and activists.

Girls outshine boys in ICSE

Girls have outshone boys in the Indian Certificate of Secondary Examination, the results of which were declared on Tuesday. Girls notched up a pass percentage of 99.15 as opposed to 98.19 achieved by boys.

The overall pass percentage is 98.61 up by 0.30 percentage point from last year. A total of 1, 22,347 students appeared for the exam of which 44.11 per cent were girls and the remaining were boys.

South steals show

The Southern region in India has notched up the highest pass percentage of 99.72 followed by the Western and Eastern regions. The Northern region with 97.76 per cent came last. The maximum number of students also appeared from the Northern region and the least from the Southern region. The Southern region also has the highest percentage of girls who took the examination.

The capital has recorded a pass per cent of 98.72, up by 0.46 percentage point from last year. Girls have secured a pass percentage of 99 per cent while boys have achieved a pass percentage of 98.48.

A total of 203 students appeared in the “foreign region” category, all of whom passed.

The examination was conducted in 62 written subjects, of which 23 are Indian languages and 10 are foreign languages.

A total of 3,894 Scheduled Caste candidates took the examination achieving a pass percentage of 97.64 while 97.78 per cent of the 3,868 Scheduled Tribecandidates who took the examination passed. Of the nearly 14,000 candidates who appeared in the Other Backward Classes category, 98.49 per cent got through. Of the 459 dyslexic students, 43 achieved more than 90 per cent and of the 29 visually challenged candidates, eight secured over 90 per cent.

While the pass percentage recorded in English is 99.24 per cent, that for Mathematics is 94.36 per cent. The examination mark sheets will reach the schools by May 20.

Ragini MMS: Takes you high, then leaves you dry

Ragini MMS opens with rousing, breathless chanting of the Hanuman Chalisa and swiftly gets your pulse rate going.

By the time the credits end and you are knocking at Ragini’s doorstep (the film’s first scene), you are already in the mood — excited apprehension.

A neat trick, this. Tricks, in fact, are the stilts on which this Ekta Kapoor product rests. There’s the trick of the naughty title; the trick of stealing ideas and technique from The Blair Witch Project, Paranormal Activity, even Balaji’s own LSD, and adding soft porn to excite a mediocre horror film; and, finally, the trick of drip-drip PR.

Ektaji first announced that her film’s story is based on a real-life incident, then, a cute Delhi girl (allegedly the real Ragini) threatened to sue if she wasn’t shown the film before its release. She was not shown the film and there is no court case yet, a la Haji Mastan’s family drama before the release of Ektaji’s Once Upon a Time in Mumbai. The less confident Ektaji is of her film, the louder the hype.

Like you, I too am allergic to hype.

So, Ragini MMS. The first half of debutant director Pawan Kripalani’s Ragini MMS is worthy of the hype. The first half is so sleazy, so gripping, so scary that even if your bladder is bursting you won’t be able to get up and go. The second half, well, let’s say that you can go for the big job, and take your time while you are at it.

Ragini MMS’ basic storyline is fairly commonplace in the horror genre. Boy and girl go for a dirty weekend, are joined by friends, all get trapped in a haunted house and are killed. Only one lives to tell the tale. Which one? Like in all horror/slasher films, the lily-white virgin. She is chastened and returned.

This story is given some bite with a healthy dose of smut and scares. Boy, Uday Jhala (Raj Kumar Yadav), arrives with his hand-held camera and hustles his girlfriend Ragini (Kainaz Motivala) to get ready and leave for their dirty weekend.

He talks to her through his video-camera, so we hear him and watch her. She picks up biscuits, he buys condoms, and they set off. The plan is to spend the weekend at a bungalow where, unknown to her, he plans to shoot a dirty video.

That’s his route to landing some film roles. The bungalow has been readied by one Panditji whom we don’t meet but learn that he was keen on Ragini because she’s gorgeous, masoom and willing to put out.

Ragini adores Uday though he is rather brusque with her. She is an English-speaking, soft-spoken south Mumbai, girl; he is crude, and clearly not bred in her neighbourhood.

They arrive at the bungalow. He gets the bijli going and figures that the two-storeyed bungalow is covered by an impressive CCTV network. Our vision improves. Now we see both of them, through Uday’s hand-held and Panditji’s hidden cameras.

They start making out. While they are struggling with belt buckles, our attention is diverted by a bloating polythene bag. There is someone in the house, we figure. We know, they don’t, so we fear for them.
But Uday and Ragini are busy — smooching, grabbing, caressing, and so are we, the excited, guilty voyeurs, looking at them through strange and intimate camera angles.

This adult action is interrupted by Ragini’s friend Pia and her boyfriend Vishal. Uday wants them to leave. They do, but only after Vishal tells Uday the story about this house — a Marathi woman was killed here by her family because they said she was a churail. She then killed her entire family — and Pia does a sexy number that annoys the resident aatma a great deal. Now we begin to catch glimpses — hazy, vaporous bits of an apparition.

Uday and Ragini return to the first-floor bedroom and resume petting. After some dirty talk — “Show no. Dikha na” — Uday handcuffs Ragini to the four-poster bed and while he is exploring her slender frame and she is giggling, he says in Marathi, “Main churail nahin hoon”. We see a lady in the mirror.

Telling you more would kill the fun. Suffice to say that phones are out, the key to the pink furry handcuffs can’t be found, there’s a lot of bending, twisting, screaming and the rotten ones are all punished before we reach a rather vague end.

Ragini MMS’ first half is full of exciting action. We are busy figuring out the characters through their actions, keeping one eye on the aatma and one on the sexy scenes. We want bad boy Uday to be punished, and the girl’s izzat safeguarded, but we are also hooked by guilty pleasure.

After the interval, with the first murder, the film drops several notches. And then there is dizzy night-time hand-held action, confusion about which camera we are looking through and what’s happening.

Uday’s character is very interesting. He cares for Ragini, but loves himself more. Raj Kumar Yadav, last seen in LSD making an MMS and succeeding, has gotten better.

His dialogue delivery is exceptional and if he had stayed on longer, the film would have been better.

Kainaz Motivala is good too, and pretty, but she lacks Yadav’s brilliance.

For RaNa, music is essential to living

The 6.3 footer, export from the South is creating waves in Bollywood in his Hindi debut Dum Maaro Dum with his portrayal of a complex guilt-ridden coward turned hero. The actor says that he didn’t find it hard to leave his comfort zone in Hyderabad and venture into an alien Bollywood. “I have grown up in a film set,” says RaNa who belongs to a strong film lineage in the South. He adds, “The only difference is the language, but I took Hindi diction lessons to overcome that barrier.”

Besides Hindi, RaNa had to take guitar lessons also, to play the character of a Goan DJ. “Without music there’s no life,” says the avid music lover. Probe him about rumours linking him and Bipasha and he says, “This is baseless news and one should let it die a natural death.”

Taapsee’s Telugu, a big hit

Taapsee Pannu is one delighted girl. The Punjabi actress, who’s basking in her popularity in Tollywood, is pleased about the rave reviews she has received for her latest release Mr. Perfect with Prabhas.

Speaking to this newspaper from Hyderabad, an ecstatic Taapsee said was that her decision to dub her own voice for the movie has paid off. “My mobile inbox is overflowing with congratulatory messages ever since the film got released,” she gushes.

“It’s heartwarming to see, from the kind of comments they send me, that audiences are noticing even small details and minute aspects of a film! I am so happy that my voice was liked by all. I played a bike racer, a short-tempered, bratty NRI, so my director did not want the typical Telugu lingo spoken in Andhra. I have a rather bass voice and he felt it should match the character I played.”

On her role in Vaandhan Vendran, she said it was a total contrast to the characters she had played in her earlier flicks. “You will find an abrupt transformation in the looks and dialogue delivery of Anjana, the daughter of a multimillionaire that I portray in VV. There are pages of Tamil dialogues and I am really looking forward to it.”

Taapsee and Jiiva will be flying to France soon to shoot two songs.

100% Love (Telugu)

Genre:Romance| Comedy
Directed by: Sukumar
Movie Cast: Naga Chaitanya, Tammanah, Naresh, K R Vijaya, Vijayakumar,

After tasting success with Ye Maaye Chesave, Gen X star Naga Chaitanya returns as a vulnerable lover with a big attitude.

He gives a reasonably good performance, depicting human weaknesses like envy, ego and the common insecurities of a college student used to topping the class who loses his position to the lowly-ranked Tammanah.

His inability to deal with defeat sets up the tension between the two. Tamannah, a village girl, becomes the topper in the college which annoys Naga Chaitanya.

Even though an understanding begins to grow between them, one day he insults her and throws her out of the house when she casually praises another student.

Finally they both choose other partners, to teach a lesson to the other.

After a racy and interesting first half, the director loses his way and the clichés and improbable coincidences pile up and the tame resolution hampers any attempt at a credible romantic comedy with the hint of a message.

There are just two hummable numbers and the comedy track of Dharmavarapu Subramaniam is not-so-impressive.

Naga Chaitanya does well as a moody collegian while Tammanah who is making a comeback to T-town after 18 months, charms with her good looks and performance.

Actors Naresh, K. R. Vijaya and Vijayakumar turn in adequate performances.

Rana dropped?

The film Rana has been in the news for not exactly the right resaons.

Initially there was speculation about the story, the female leads and finally the launch of the film in Chennai.

Just a few hours after the launch, came the big news that the Superstar had been hospitalised. Even as the election results were at their peak, the rumour mills were busy spreading news about the superstar’s health.

Now, amidst all the uncertainty, comes confirmed news that Rana may be dropped. It seems Rajini and his family were not prepared emotionally to go ahead with it and there were lots of obstacles to starting the film.

Reportedly Deepika Padukone has flown back to Mumbai from Rana’s sets.

After all the hype and promotional buzz, will Rana really be dropped? That’s a question that can only be answered within the coming weeks. We hope for Soundarya’s sake and for Rajini’s billions of fans, the film does see the light of day.

BJP appeals to Patil against president's rule in Karnataka

A BJP delegation on Tuesday met President Pratibha Patil and appealed to her that Karnataka Governor H.R. Bhardwaj's recommendation for president's rule in the state should not be implemented.

The delegation led by party president Nitin Gadkari also included Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley, Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa and 114 party MLAs. They reached Rashtrapati Bhavan at 5.30 p.m.

"We have told president that the governor's decision was undemocratic and unconstitutional and president's rule should not be imposed on the state," Gadkari told reporters after the meeting. He said the BJP-led government in the state has the support of 122 MLAs.

With the Supreme Court on May 13 striking down the disqualification of 11 BJP and five Independent legislators of Karnataka, Bhardwaj is reported to have recommended to the central government president's rule in the state.

However, the 11 BJP legislators have extended their unconditional support to the Yeddyurappa government, effectively taking the party's strength in the state assembly to 121.

The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government at the centre and the Congress party are reportedly not very keen on imposing president's rule in Karnataka or dismissing the state government, as it may lead to a sympathy vote for the BJP when the next assembly polls are held.

The Prime Minister also gave an assurance that 'nothing unconstitutional' will be done.

The Centre, yesterday, gave out clear indications it may not be acting on the recommendation of the Governor in a 'special' report he sent yesterday for imposing President's rule in the wake of the Supreme Court verdict quashing the disqualification of 11 rebel BJP MLAs.

On a day of hectic activities in the capital and in Bengaluru, an NDA delegation headed by L.K. Advani met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and told him that the Governor's report yesterday was unconstitutional and should not be acted upon.

The delegation demanded that the government should initiate the processs of recall of the Governor whom, it said, had repeatedly 'violated' the Constitution in letter and spirit. After the meeting, Advani told reporters that, 'the Prime Minister assured us that nothing unconstitutional will be done in Karnataka'.

We cannot find replacement for Ratan Tata: Search pane

Eight months after it was set up to find a successor to Tata Sons chairman Ratan Tata, the search panel has concluded that it cannot find a ‘replacement’ for the group chief.

"Our committee has come to the conclusion that we cannot find a replacement for (Ratan) Tata," said Tata Sons Director and one of the members of the committee R. K. Krishna Kumar in an interview published on the company's website.

Group holding company Tata Sons in August last year had set up a five-member panel to find a successor to Tata, who is due to retire in December 2012 when he turns 75.

Apart from Kumar, other panel members are Tata Sons former vice-chairman N. A. Soonawala, group director Cyrus Mistry, group adviser and lawyer Shirin Bharucha and influential British businessman Lord Bhattacharya.

Showering lavish praise on Tata, Kumar said the search panel might have to lower the benchmark to find a successor to the head of $71 billion business empire.

"He (Tata) is a born leader and you can see this wherever he goes ... He has a place in the history of post-independence India", he said, adding "we may have to change and re-arrange the model in terms of what we are looking for".

"We are now considering people — from within the group and outside, including expatriates — who can fill the role we have in mind. There are challenges but we will soon come to a conclusion", he said.

Tata was the inspiration behind the launch of small car Nano. An astute business leader, he was driving force behind Tata Steel acquiring Anglo-Dutch steel maker Corus as well as Tata Motors buying luxury British auto brands Jaguar and Land Rover.

Well respected Tata's reputation, however, took a beating after his conversation with corporate lobbyist Niira Radia was leaked. Both Tata and Radia recently appeared before Parliament's Public Accounts Committee (PAC) that is looking into the 2G spectrum allocation scam.

While announcing the search panel last year, Tata Sons had said the group would require someone with experience and exposure to direct its growth amidst the challenges of the global economy.

"The selection process for a prospective candidate would consider suitable persons from within the Tata companies and other professionals in India as well as persons overseas with global experience," it had said.

India, Pakistan to resume cricket ties

India and Pakistan have agreed to resume direct sporting ties, reports said on Thursday, and an Indian cricket tour of its neighbour could be on the cards.

The decision comes two weeks after Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani watched together as their teams played in the semifinal of the Cricket World Cup in northwest India.

Several Indian newspapers cited unidentified government sources as saying the question of precisely when and where the first cricket series between the rivals might take place would be decided by the two national cricket boards.

Although the Indian and Pakistani cricket teams have played each other in international and regional tournaments in recent years, their last series was in 2007-08, when the Pakistani team visited India.

India broke off diplomatic and sporting links after 10 gunmen launched coordinated attacks on targets in Mumbai, killing 166 people in November 2008. India blamed Pakistan-based militants for the assault.

The head of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Thursday welcomed the ‘positive signals’ from India and said series details would be finalised by June.

"Getting positive signals on the resumption of a bilateral series is a good omen and Prime Minister Gilani has directed us to arrange the series as soon as possible," Ijaz Butt told local media.

India last toured Pakistan for the Asia Cup in 2008, despite reservations about security in a country where more than 4,200 people have been killed in suicide and bomb attacks since July 2007.

"We have to find a time slot and the series can be held in two phases, Twenty20 and one-day matches first and then the Test matches," said Butt, who ruled out any question of staging the series at a neutral venue.

"The prime minister has directed us to host this series in Pakistan so we are not looking at the option of a neutral venue," said Butt, hoping India's visit would pave the way for more teams to tour Pakistan.

In India, the Mint newspaper quoted one government source as saying India's cricket team would tour Pakistan next year, with a return series in India the year after.

No international cricket team has visited Pakistan since militants launched a gun and grenade assault on the visiting Sri Lankan cricket team on March 3, 2009.

The attack saw Pakistan stripped of its right to co-host the just-concluded Cricket World Cup.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said it had yet to be formally notified of the decision to resume cricket ties.

"We have not received any government announcement as yet, so the board has not discussed the matter," BCCI chief administrative officer Ratna Karshetty said.

I.S. Bindra, principal adviser to the International Cricket Council, said the resumption of direct cricket ties was a ‘welcome step.’

"It's a nice thing not only for India, but for world cricket as a whole that Pakistan will come into the mainstream of world cricket," he said.

Former Indian all-rounder Madal Lal also welcomed the move, but said the authorities would have to guarantee the safety of players touring Pakistan.

"It is always good for the game when India and Pakistan play each other," Lal said.

"But the Indian government must be very careful. They must ensure that the situation is conducive for cricket in Pakistan."

Separately, the ICC has formed a task force to find ways to restore international cricket in Pakistan.

Sri Lanka has also hinted they may tour Pakistan for three Tests and five one-day matches in October, but only after getting clearance from their government and the ICC's Pakistan task force.

‘Big bite’ burgers up for grabs

Two pieces of bun, chicken, onion, celery, garlic, a huge slice of cheese, one more layer of all these with beef served in a square plate, bordered by a pack of hot French fries and a bowl of mayonnaise sauce and here comes the yummy big burger!

It is double the size of a normal burger, you can picture the big bites you will have to take. Yes this is the big boy burger — the first item on the menu of the burger fest at Cocoa Tree, Avenue Regent, MG Road in Kochi.

With 15 to 20 burgers on the menu, the fest is catching on with every passing year as fresh items are being added on to the list. “This year, we have introduced the green lamb burger and the parmesan chicken burger,” says Rajith, F&B manager of the hotel.

The green lamb burger comes with peta bread slices, which, unlike the other thick coatings of bread and bun, are thin and easy on your mouth.

The other fast moving dishes are the chicken pesto burger, the barbeque chicken burger and the Mexican ham burger among the non-veggies. The veggies prefer paneer burger hariyali, labanese vegetable burger and veg supreme burger.

Chef Benny lists the ingredients breathlessly — lettuce, tomato, cheese, lamb, Greek bread, vegetable salad — he goes on from one menu item to another — paneer and mint leaves and coriander, it is all there.

The ingredients may seem no different from a regular menu but the burger fest manages to present some unique style of burgers.

The fest is on till May 22 from 11 am to 1 am in the night at Avenue Regent. It is also on at Avenue Centre from 11am to 11 pm.

Songs of the Earth

It’s a busy day at work. The sun is shining relentlessly, its sharp rays piercing through the window, making the office annoyingly bright. You are thankful that it is cool inside and that the air conditioner is working at keeping the heat at bay. What’s definitely not cool is your head, fretting that because of work, you are stuck once again in Hyderabad’s heat. Cheer up, help is at hand. All you need is a weekend — to get away from this hothouse of a city — to the green, pastoral valley of Araku.

This beautiful hill station with its picturesque scenery, lush grasslands and amazing weather is 112 km away from Visakhapatnam. It is perfect for a short holiday, to unwind and relax. Araku Valley spreads over an area of 36 sq. km and at a height of 900 metres above sea level. A train journey to the Valley is a memorable experience. It is also connected by road to Visakhapatnam. Coffee plantations, waterfalls and tunnels greet you on your way there.

There are many interesting places to visit in the vicinity. The Borra Caves, which are located 29 km away, are a great attraction, with their incredible stalactites and stalagmite formations. The Anantagiri Hills are well-known for their coffee plantations. Other attractions include the Padmapuram Botanical Gardens, Araku Tribal Museum and Government Silk Farm and Mulberry Gardens. From the Damuku viewpoint, you have a spectacular view of the whole valley spread out in front of you.

Araku has something for everyone. Adventure freaks can roll out their tents and camp here. The terrain is perfect for trekking. You can take your kids to the Tyda Park, giving them a taste of wildlife viewing and birdwatching. The Bheemunipatnam beach is one of the most beautiful beaches on the Eastern coast.

It is safe for swimming and its serene, calm beauty will definitely take your breath away. Even If you are not in the mood to do anything at all, just sit back and relax. Let the beauty of the valley weave its magic on you.

PIT STOP
The Araku Tribal Museum offers a unique gastronomical delight. After treating your mind to the amazing world of different tribal lifestyles, you can treat your taste buds too by indulging in a hot serving of Bamboo Chicken. The chicken, a tribal speciality, is an equivalent to the ultra-popular tandoori chicken. Hollow bamboo stems are stuffed with chicken and cooked over an open fire. It is ideal for health freaks as no oil goes into the dish. Besides, no salt is added to the masala as the bamboo renders enough salt for the chicken. You can have half a plate of chicken for Rs 130 and a full plate for Rs 500.

TRIVIA
The Araku Valley area is famous for its coffee plantations. The coffee produced here is exported not only to different parts of the country, but abroad as well. After the importance of this region was recognised, the Coffee Board started a “brown revolution” here to encourage the tribal farmers to practise environmentally-friendly methods of cultivation while helping them adopt better farming techniques and marketing to cater to the demands of developed countries desiring to import the coffee.

CURIO STOP
The Araku Tribal Museum houses artefacts related to the Eastern Ghats’ tribal culture. It gives us an insight into the lifestyle of the ancient tribes of the region by means of statues and installations. There is also a stall where one can purchase handicrafts produced by the tribals who continue to inhabit this area. You can buy dolls and small statues of animals here that are indigenously made out of moulded metal and carved wood.

Growers upset as watermelons shrink

The markets are flooded with them as people relish the cool sweetness of watermelons in a scorching summer.

While most growers are raking in the moolah, farmers of Ankola taluk, Uttar Kannada district, who usually produce the largest quantity of the fruit with its hard green cover and juicy red interior, have this year become disgruntled bystanders, watching others grow rich while their stunted and disfigured melons have few takers.

And most are blaming the low quality seeds they were sold by a merchant from Haveri.

With 150 farmers growing watermelon over 500 acres, the fruit dominates the fields in Ankola taluk. But instead of acres of healthy fruit, all you can see are the long faces of farmers left with a poor crop and huge losses. So angry are the growers that they have lodged a police complaint against the seed merchant, S.K. Patil.

“Every year we buy the Namdhari 295 variety of seed from Bidadi. But this year a merchant called S.K. Patil came to our doorsteps claiming to have a better variety of seed that would increase our yield. Because of its easy availability, about 90 per cent of the farmers in Ankola bought the seed, only to find that they had been cheated,” says Aravinda Vittobha Naik of Ankola who has filed a case with the police against the vendor.

Although the farmers paid Patil Rs 350 for 100 grams of the seed as against Rs 280 for 100 grams that they usually paid for the seeds in Bidadi, they got a crop of undersized watermelons. Their losses are huge as they are able to sell the watermelons for merely Rs 500 a tonne as against Rs 8,000 a tonne in the past.

Naik for instance has got a return of a mere Rs 10,000 on an investment of Rs 1 lakh, living him bitterly resentful and worried Some are in worse trouble than others as they had borrowed money from moneylenders at high interest rates to invest in their crop. They are now hoping for justice from the law.

Ganguly joins Pune Warriors, back in IPL

After going unsold in the players' auction, former India captain Sourav Ganguly on Tuesday made a dramatic return to the Indian Premier League by signing up for struggling franchise Pune Warriors as replacement for injured pacer Ashish Nehra.

"We were waiting for Ashish Nehra's fitness report and ultimately the report came yesterday. I was already in talks with Ganguly and we decided that the amount of experience that Sourav has in cricket will no doubt help the team. So we finalised Ganguly last night," Pune Warriors Team director Abhijit Sarkar said referring to the finger injury that Nehra has been nursing.

Ganguly, who played for Kolkata Knight Riders for three IPL seasons captaining them in two editions, went unsold in the January players' auction despite a rather modest base price of $400,000.

The 38-year-old refused a mentor's role with KKR after that and there had been speculation of a possible comeback through another franchise.

The left-handed batman was first sought by Kochi Tuskers Kerala but their application was rejected by the IPL's Governing Council.

However, he signed on the dotted line for Pune on Monday, giving a major fillip to the side which has lost six matches on the trot after starting promisingly with a couple of back-to-back wins.

Kenyan Olympic marathon champion Wanjiru dies: police

Reigning Olympic marathon champion Sammy Wanjiru of Kenya died overnight after falling from the second floor of his home in the town of Nyahururu, police said on Monday.

"He fell from the balcony of his home after a row with his wife. We found him lying on the verandah with a broken skull," local police chief Jasper Ombati said.

"The theory we are getting from his wife and a watchman is that he came home drunk from the bar and he was accompanied with a woman. When his wife asked why he came home with a woman, an argument ensued, and that is when he fell off the balcony and died," Ombati said.

"He was pronounced dead at the Nyahururu district hospital," he added.

He said police were also investigating whether the runner may have jumped rather than fell from the balcony.

"There is also another theory that during the argument, the wife ran away from their bedroom and as her husband ran after her, she locked the stair-case door prompting Wanjiru to look for an alternative way out... and that is when he jumped off the balcony to the ground and died," he said.

"These are the two theories we are investigating. We cannot conclusively say he committed suicide, or that he jumped down and died accidentally. All these are conclusions we will make once the investigation is completed," the area police chief said.

"For now we are going on with the investigations. Wanjiru’s wife has recorded a statement with us and their watchman as well. The woman Wanjiru went home with is at the station with us, assisting detectives with the investigations," he added.

Wanjiru, who over the past few months appears to have had marital problems, was involved in a serious car crash in January.

He was scheduled to appear before a Nyahururu court next Monday, accused of being in possession of an unlicensed firearm.

Bipasha gets more support in Amar tapes controversy

After Celina Jaitley, Bollywood personalities Pritish Nandy and Sonam Kapoor have expressed support for actress Bipasha Basu whose voice is alleged to have figured in taped conversations with former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh.

"I believe @bipsluvurself (Bipasha) when she says she is not in the Amar Singh tapes. Doesn't sound like her at all," Nandy posted on his Twitter page.

Sonam added: "I agree. A bunch of vicious losers are doing this! It doesn't sound like her at all. It's so improbable, it's almost funny."

Bipasha herself has denied that it's her voice in the controversial tapes, which were barred from publication in the media since 2006 until Wednesday when the gag order was lifted by the Supreme Court.

Former beauty queen-turned-actress Celina had also extended support to Bipasha. She said she had heard the tapes herself, and was confident that the girl in the tape was not Bipasha at all.

Big B to launch his voice blog in Britain

Almost a year after launching his voice blog called 'Bachchan Bol' in India, Amitabh Bachchan is all set to launch vogging or voice blogging in Britain on May 18 on Wednesday.

"Bachchan Bol gets all geared up in the coming days. We launch this in the United Kingdom on May 18. It's my Vog, or in simpler terms, my Voice Blog," Big B posted on his blog Bigb.bigadda.com.

The 68-year-old has reached London and is excited to be able to connect to his fans worldwide.

"Greetings from the United Kingdom, which as you may observe is where I have landed myself this morning... and which as you will observe in time will be where I shall be launching the Bachchan Bol Vog facility for the UK... and which in time to come, perhaps not very long, about a month, shall initiate the possibility of connecting to my Vog worldwide … excited !!," he posted.

Glenmark outlicenses development of molecule to Sanofi

MUMBAI: Glenmark Pharmaceuticals S.A (GPSA), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Limited India (GPL), has entered into an agreement with Sanofi to grant Sanofi a licence for the development and commercialisation of GBR 500, a novel monoclonal antibody for the treatment of Crohn's Disease (a form of inflammatory bowel disease) and other inflammatory conditions.

The transaction is expected to close in the coming month subject to customary closing conditions, including the expiration or early termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act.

Under the agreement, Glenmark will receive an upfront payment of $50 million, of which $25 million will be paid upon closing of the transaction and $25 million, which is contingent upon Sanofi's positive assessment of certain data to be provided by Glenmark.

In addition, Glenmark could receive potential success-based development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments. The total of these payments could reach $613 million. In addition, Glenmark is eligible to receive tiered double-digit royalties on sales of products commercialised under the licence. Sanofi will have exclusive marketing rights for North America, Europe, Japan, Argentina, Chile and Uruguay. Sanofi and Glenmark will co-market in Russia, Brazil, Australia and New Zealand, and Glenmark will retain exclusive marketing rights in India and other countries in the rest of the world.

GBR 500 is an antagonist of the VLA-2 (alpha2beta1) integrin.

It is a first-in-class therapeutic monoclonal antibody and has established proof of concept in animal models across a range of anti-inflammatory conditions.

Glenmark has completed Phase-I dosing of GBR 500 in the U.S. and the drug has been well tolerated with a good pharmacokinetic profile. Plans are in place to initiate clinical proof of concept studies in Crohn's Disease. Sanofi has licensed the rights to all therapeutic indications.

“There continues to be a strong medical need for safer and more efficacious products for the treatment of inflammatory diseases,” said Elias Zerhouni, M.D., President, Global Research & Development, Sanofi.

“GBR500 brings an innovative approach to Sanofi's immuno-inflammation portfolio, which we believe may address a significant gap in treating inflammatory diseases which would be of huge benefit to patients”.

According to Glenn Saldanha MD and CEO of GPL, “This collaboration, on a novel first-in-class monoclonal antibody, validates Glenmark's world-class innovative R&D capabilities in the drug discovery arena. We are pleased to have this second licensing collaboration with Sanofi, one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world and the first one from Glenmark in the field of novel biologics”.

Glenmark is a leading player in the discovery of new molecules, both NCEs (new chemical entity) and NBEs (new biological entity). It has eight molecules in various stages of clinical development and is primarily focussed in the areas of inflammation and pain. It has 12 manufacturing facilities in four countries and five R&D centres.

Change lifestyle to prevent hypertension

Change lifestyle to prevent hypertension

HYDERABAD: Erratic lifestyle in these modern times is making hypertension (blood pressure) a common ailment among public. In fact, physicians in the Capital allude to the fact that these days, patients between the age group of 30 and 40 years, which was not the case till recently, are falling prey to hypertension. Thanks, largely to their apparent lack of control over lifestyle.

General physicians maintain that hypertension is a ‘silent killer' because it displays no symptoms and yet, has the potential to impact vital organs including heart, kidneys and brain. Significant changes in lifestyle will be good enough to get a firm control over hypertension, doctors suggest.

“Unofficial estimates suggest that hypertension prevalence is at 35 per cent among public in India while globally it is at 30 per cent. Earlier, patients above 50 years used to get hypertension, but now the patient demographic has changed and is now between 30 and 40 years,” says general physician and director of Surakshaka Hospitals Lily Rodrigues.

So, what exactly is high blood pressure? Heart pumps blood to the body through arteries. And when arteries become narrow or constricted due to various reasons, the heart starts pumping harder in order to move blood from the arteries to other parts of body. This leads to hypertension.

“That's why diabetes is closely linked to blood pressure. There is high level of cholesterol among diabetics and this cholesterol thickens the arteries. And this leads to hypertension among diabetics. Sedentary life and stress are major factors for hypertension,” Dr. Rodrigues points out.

Who are the high risk groups? Persons who are obese, lack physical activity, have ample abdominal fat and consume excess alcohol, have a family history of hypertension and diabetes form the high risk groups for hypertension. “Persons consuming large amounts of salt are also hypertensive.

Salt contains sodium, which constricts blood vessels leading to hypertension,” explains Dr. Ch. Jaya Kumari, District Medical Officer, Ranga Reddy. So what is the ideal amount of salt to be taken per day? “The vegetables that we consume already have some amounts of natural salt. So, on an average, a persons should not consume more than 5 gm of salt per day,” suggests Dr. Rodrigues.

When the patient should start worrying? Ideally blood pressure should be (120/80) mm (millimetres) of Hg (mercury). “Patients should start taking medication when their BP is more than 130/90. Here 130 Hg in mm is the contraction of the heart (systolic) and 90 is the heart relaxation known as diastolic,” says Dr. Rodrigues.

Easy win for Deccan Chargers

NAVI MUMBAI: Kumar Sangakkara enjoyed a high on his last night out in DLF IPL-IV, as his team Deccan Chargers chased down Pune Warriors' modest 136 in a methodical, no-frills manner for a six-wicket win with four balls to spare, scoring 138-4 in 19.2 overs. The Sri Lankan, whose calmness stands out in batting and keeping, amidst the hustle and bustle of T20 cricket, avenged a six-wicket loss against the same side in a home game.

Two back-to-back away wins (DC pulled the plug on Mumbai Indians earlier) allows the captain the satisfaction of knowing that his players have collectively begun to take responsibility for performances justifying the talent in the squad. Before leaving to join the Lankan squad in England, Sangakkara left his mark on the game, walking after his attempted cut off Rahul Sharma resulted in a snick behind. Uthappa appealed, the umpire deliberated and the captain walked back as the bowler saluted.

Chasing 137 on a slow turner, the visitor negotiated the first six overs with cautious batting. Shikhar Dhawan was pushed up to his regular opener slot, Sunny Sohal punished bowlers with audacious hitting against pace.

Deccan raced to 57 for no loss in six overs, inclusive of 10 from one over of Rahul Sharma's leg-spin. Yuvraj stepped up to effect a turnaround, slanted one wide on seeing Dhawan stepping out for Uthappa to whip off the bails in style.

Warriors sensed a comeback when Sharma's shout for leg-before was upheld after the ball sneaked through to strike Sohal on the backfoot.

Sangakkara, leading Chargers for the last time before joining Sri Lanka in England, was content with placements and taps into vacant areas for sharp singles. Duminy escaped a run-out at the non-striker end. Shrill whistles from Pune supporters mocked at the visitor's tactics. Chargers reached 78-2 in 10 overs without the fireworks expected by T20 fans eager for a dose of thrills and spills.

Earlier, brute force by Mitchell Marsh in the death overs helped Pune Warriors reach a respectable total after the top order failed to get going. The Aussie stepped out against the slow bowlers for huge straight sixes. He top-scored with 37 off 28 balls, an exception in a side where strokeplayers came and went.

Yuvraj stuck around for 17 balls then left without the blast from his blade. The damage was done by slow bowlers.

Medium-pacer Dan Christian (two for 13) underlined his utility value with Ganguly's scalp. Left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha (two for 35) set off a chain reaction when opener Pandey chopped a ball onto his stumps. Amit Mishra's double blow in his first over almost knocked over the home team, disrupting plans the way he had done to Mumbai Indians two days ago.

Mishra, confident of troubling batsmen with his bag of tricks, claimed two critical wickets in his first over (1-1-0-2). Uthappa tapped a ball pitched on the leg-stump back to the bowler. The leg-spinner bounced in joy as teammates joined in celebration.

The next ball to Mithun Manhas was a googly, Mishra raised his arms in glee as the batsman fell for the bait, shaping for a late cut through slips and getting an inside edge onto the stumps

Duminy claimed a wicket too, reducing Warriors to 92 for seven by the 15th over before Marsh played a cameo.

Pune Warriors: J. Ryder c Ravi Teja b Steyn 18 ( 14b, 1x4, 1x6), M. Pandey b Ojha 23 ( 20b, 3x4, 1x6), S. Ganguly c Ojha b Christian 0 ( 5b), R. Uthappa c & b Mishra 4 ( 5b, 1x4), Yuvraj c Sangakkara b Christian 23 ( 17b, 3x4, 1x6), M. Manhas b Mishra 0 ( 1b), C. Ferguson c & b Duminy 11 ( 13b, 1x4), M. Marsh b Ojha 37 ( 28b, 1x4, 3x6), W. Parnell (run out) 16 ( 16b, 1x6), B. Kumar (not out) 1 ( 1b); Extras (lb-1, w-2): 3; Total: (for nine wkts. in 20 overs): 136.

Fall of wickets: 1-31, 2-35, 3-45, 4-45, 5-45, 6-73, 7-92, 8-127, 9-136.

Deccan Charges bowling: Duminy 2-0-19-1, Steyn 4-0-23-1, Ishant 3-0-19-0, Christian 3-0-13-2, Ojha 4-0-35-2, Mishra 4-1-26-2.

Deccan Chargers: S. Sohal lbw b Rahul Sharma 34 ( 28b, 2x4 2x6), S. Dhawan st. Uthappa b Yuvraj 28 ( 25b, 4x4), , K. Sangakkara c Uthappa b Rahul Sharma 25 ( 21b, 2x4, 1x6), J.P. Duminy b Parnell 23 ( 26b, 1x6), D. Christian (not out) 14 ( 12b, 1x4), B. Chipli (not out) 5 ( 4b, 1x4); Extras (w-9): 9; Total (for four wkts. in 19.2 overs): 138.

Fall of wickets: 1-67, 2-73, 3-108, 4-126.

Pune Warriors bowling: B. Kumar 2-0-10-0, Parnell 3.2-0-27-1, Rahul Sharma 4-0-25-2, M. Marsh 3-0-30-0, Yuvraj 4-0-27-1, Manhas 3-0-19-0.

Man-of-the-Match: Amit Mishra .

RCB can spike Kings' aspirations

DHARAMSHALA: With the all-play-all phase of the Indian Premier League-IV entering its last week, Kings XI Punjab finds itself in a tricky situation.

Unlike the five teams below it on the points table, Kings is in contention for a place in the playoffs. But like the four teams placed ahead, it is not sure of making the playoffs solely on the strength of a victory or victories in the remaining matches.

Permutations

For Kings to secure a place in the top-four teams, it not only has to win against an already-qualified Royal Challengers Bangalore on Tuesday and Deccan Chargers on May 21 but also wish that fourth-placed Kolkata Knight Riders loses to Pune Warriors and Mumbai Indians.

Currently, Kings has 12 points, two points behind KKR that enjoys a far superior net run-rate.

At best, Kings can reach 16 points. In case of a tie at 16 points, Kings' low net-run rate will come in the way of securing a place in the playoffs. For the moment, Adam Gilchrist and his men can do only what they can — try and win.

RCB, obviously keen for a top-two finish in the league, will not be taking Kings lightly although it had posted a crushing 85-run win in their previous meeting.

The arrival of Chris Gayle has dramatically changed the fortunes of RCB.

Upfront, Gayle's savage attack on the new-ball bowlers has settled many contests much before the last ball was bowled. Even before Gayle arrived on the scene, RCB was already among the more balanced teams in the fray.

And even after skipper Daniel Vettori and Tillakratne Dilshan are not available for different reasons, the team has plenty in the reserve to go all the way.

Vettori has gone home to attend to a knee injury and Dilshan joins Sri Lanka for the tour to England.

On the other hand, Kings has taken time to make its presence felt in the competition.

The batting line-up now has a settled look with Gilchrist, Paul Valthaty, Shaun Marsh and Dinesh Karthik giving the opposition something to think about.

David Hussey is yet to play to his potential while Mandeep Singh is looking increasingly confident.

The bowlers, including Praveen Kumar, Ryan Harris, Shalabh Srivastava, Bhargav Bhatt, Piyush Chawla lacks the power to intimidate the batsmen.

But they have done reasonable well so far.