Bharatpur bird sanctuary falls off tourist map !

Gone are the days when the famous bird sanctuary here seasonally drew over 300 species of winged visitors, bringing in thousands of tourists from all over the world.

With barely 50-80 bird species arriving this year at the virtually dry sanctuary, located 175 km from New Delhi, tourists have either started skipping it or have been cutting short their stay here.

'I came here to watch birds and stay here for at least five to seven days. I am a bird lover, but there is nothing, almost nothing, to see here. So I am curtailing my number of nights and I plan to go back in a day or two,' Robert Bell, a tourist from England, told IANS.

Some bemoan that the government is doing nothing to save the bird sanctuary while others are critical of tour operators who are marketing Bharatpur as a bird haven despite knowing the true state of affairs.

'I am surprised. Why can't the government do something for it? I had come here around five to six years back at the same time around October and November, and there were lots of birds to see. But the place is now pathetic. Does the government want a famous place to die?' asked Diana, another tourist from Britain.

The bird sanctuary, known officially as the Keoladeo Ghana National Park, wears a deserted look with very few birds and tourists in sight .

Registration application filed for Darjeeling Tea !

The Tea Board of India filed an application at Brussels on Monday to register Darjeeling as a Geographical Indication (GI) in the European Union (EU).
GI is a sign used on products, which have a specific geographical origin. The use of a GI often acts as a certification that the product possesses certain qualities, or enjoys a certain reputation, due to its geographical origin.
Darjeeling was the first GI to be registered in India and is the first application for registration of a tea in Europe.
The distinctive characteristics of Darjeeling tea are due to both its geographic origin and the way in which the tea is processed in Darjeeling.
A major portion of the annual production of Darjeeling tea is exported, the key markets being Japan, Russia, the US and the EU countries.
India is one of the world's largest producers of tea, with a total production of over 900 million kg in 2006. India supplies about 30 percent of the world's tea.

Indian sailor jailed in UK for sexually assaulting teenager !

An Indian sailor has been jailed by the Southampton Crown Court for 15 months for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old passenger on his ship when it was in the Mediterranean.

Cajetan Fernandes, 30, who hails from Mumbai, reportedly befriended the girl while he waited on her family's table during a trip on the Southampton-registered ship named Aurora. The ship is owned by the cruise major P & O.

Fernandes persuaded the girl to follow him while she was waiting for a friend outside the restaurant one evening. Prosecuting lawyer James Kellam said he led her around the ship to a toilet cubicle, locked the door and sexually assaulted her.

Kellam said the girl described her ordeal as 'feeling horrible' and talking about it as 'acutely embarrassing'. The girl eventually confided in a friend she met on the cruise ship who persuaded her to talk to a youth worker.

Fernandes was arrested when the liner docked in Southampton, according to a report in the Daily Echo, a leading daily published from Hampshire.

Megan Toplis, lawyer for Fernandes, said he was a man of good character who had pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity. Fernandes had worked on cruise ships for nine years and there had 'never been a problem or question as to his integrity', she said.

Toplis said Fernandes had not used force, nor used coercion or made threats to the girl. He had 'lost sight of rights and wrongs', she said and added that he had shown genuine remorse and was extremely sorry for what he had done.

She said he had received no visitors while in custody and had been too ashamed to let his family know what he had done. Fernandes sobbed and clutched a crucifix close to his chest as the judge sentenced him to 15 months. He declined to make a recommendation for deportation to India.

How safe are Silicon Breast Implants ?

Acomprehensive review of research on the safety of silicone breast implants has revealed that the practice does not increase the risk of cancer, connective tissue diseases, or other serious chronic diseases.

Lead authors Joseph K McLaughlin, PhD, and Loren Lipworth, ScD, of the International Epidemiology Institute, Rockville, Md, and the Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tenn, performed the review to evaluate the risk of cancer after cosmetic breast implants. The results have been “remarkably consistent” in showing no evidence of an increase in breast cancer or other cancers among women with breast implants.

One study reported an increased risk of lung cancer, but that was explained by the much higher rate of smoking among women with implants. Another concern has been that implants would interfere with the detection of early-stage breast cancers by mammography. Some studies suggest that mammography may in fact be less sensitive in women with implants. However, no study till date has found evidence that breast cancer survival rates are lower in women with breast implants.

An all-star salute to Julia Roberts !

That famous Julia Roberts smile was flashing more than usual Friday night at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, where the American Cinematheque honored the actress with its 22nd annual award.
The ceremony, to air Dec. 5 on AMC, featured her co-stars past and present sharing memories of working together and introducing themed montages from her films.

The montage that got the biggest laugh most likely will never air on AMC. Introduced by Sally Field, who noted their mutual fondness for expletives, the package featured clips of Roberts using various curse words.

Tom Hanks did a bit equating Roberts to the letters in QUAKE: Q, for the question he always gets: "What's it like working with Julia Roberts? U: Upstaging. A: Asterisk, as in actors' credits punctuated by a "* worked with Julia Roberts." K: The Knowledge that Julia will be going home to a husband who is way better looking than you will ever be. And E: Everybody loves Julia Roberts.

‘Yes, I’m going international’ -Bipasha

Bipasha is going to Hollywood, but only on her own terms. “Within a month, I’ll be signing my first international film,” she reveals. And what kind of roles is she looking at? “I’m going to oppose any effort to slot me as an Indian with a sing-song voice in any international project. If I was willing to play the stereotypical Indian, I’d have done Wes Anderson’s The Darjeeling Ltd and so many other projects that have come my way. But I want to play mainstream, normal characters in the West, not ethnic Asian people.” Even John Abraham is playing a non-Indian in Deepa Mehta’s Luna. “Well, having a global diction certainly helps. Any film-maker that I’ve met abroad has liked my voice. Everything is in-sync sound out there. So, a correct voice and diction is a major battle won.” Elaborating further, Bipasha adds, “There’re so many beautiful actors from Korea and China who have failed to make the grade abroad because of their thick accents. I think India can work there.”