Rare eye ailment afflicting only males; Will Indians make beeline for Big B's double bounty this time?; Natwar allays Bangladesh's fears on border fencing; India Travel Times, Indian News, Tourism, Hotels, Airlines, Tour, Travel, Ayurveda, Yoga, Festival, Hindu, Taj Mahal, Kathakali, Dance,

Home Contact Us Dateline New Delhi, Sunday, Aug 7, 2005

Rare eye ailment afflicting only males
by Ravindra Dubey

Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh): A rare eye ailment is consistently afflicting the male members of Lokhande family, living in Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh. The males of this family, once they reach their twenties, begin suffering from a progressive eye disease; Likoma simple syndrome( commonly known as Kachia Bind). They are prone to Haemophilia. The sons have inherited the disease from their father, who was 65 years of age at the time of his death. "After my father lost his vision we had started taking up the responsibility of looking after the family.But after my father, this problem affected me, so I got it operated" says,Vinod, the 32-year-old son. "I operated the father in the year 1984 and then I operated these two brothers. They were suffering from' developmental simple chronic glaucoma' along with another disease Haemophilia" said Dr. Mita Srivastav, Head of the department, Medical college Jabalpur. It has become a challenge for the eye-specialists to find a permanent cure for such a disease. With Haemophilia the problem of loss of vision is rare. But doctors say, if the disease is found in males, generation after generation will have to face this problem. Those who area suffering from the disease are being referred to the All India Institute of Medical Scineces (AIIMS), said Sanjay Dubey, the District Collector and Chairman of Andhatva Nivaran Samiti.

Will Indians make beeline for Big B's double bounty this time? (Go To Top)
by Vrishti Beniwal

New Delhi: Thank God it's Friday (TGIF) is not only famous in the United States, but now also in India. It was not an ordinary Friday for the country of millions of middle-class families, this week. Something had come to them, not from the God, but from the 'Star'. Again the dreams of becoming a millionaire had come out of a three-year long tunnel. Yes, on August 5, the super Friday was here - 'Big B' Amitabh Bachchan was back with 'Kaun Banega Crorepati' (KBC). Housewives got the dinner ready and their husbands returned home unusually on time. Kids also finished off their homeworks earlier than the usual, and the phones were put off the hook. Streets were deserted and even dogs had stopped barking. It was everywhere the 'signature tune of KBC' and Bachchan's famous 'lock kar diya jaye' which one could hear coming out of houses while walking down the road of one's colony. Even before the clock could show 9 pm, everybody tuned in to Star Plus and became glued to their TV screens. Thanks to Big B, who is back with a bang.

The 'angry young man of the 70s' and the 'romantic star of Silsilay' is all set to recreate the history with the programme that became everybody's favourite in 2001. KBC - the Indian adaptation of American show 'Who wants to be a Millionaire' - dominated the TV scene at that time, by outshining the 'Saas- Bahu' soap operas. Programme director Siddarth Basu found his target audience in almost everybody from a seven-year school going kid to a 70-year retired professor. Vishal Vadhera, a businessman, and his family, not only desperately waited for the KBC, but also actively participated in the show from home. As soon as Amitabh said, 'Pick up your cell phones and type...', they followed the instructions and sent their reply to make it to the much sought after "HOT SEAT". "Amitabh Bachchan, a sum of two crores, viewer's participation and programme content combined make the show worth-watching. The whole family can sit together and watch KBC. We are thrilled that Big B is back with KBC," Vadhera said. Promising to give one crore rupees for correctly answering 15 multiple choice questions, Amitabh not only changed the fortunes of participants through this programme, but also changed his own destiny. KBC helped him clear his debt and 'regain from the ashes'.

The superstar of Bollywood became the sole King of the small screen, and stars like Manisha Koirala, Anupam Kher and Govinda also couldn't beat him with similar programmes of Star's rival channels Sony and Zee. So was his charm, so was his glory, so was his persona. But but but......, will KBC generate the same effect this time? Amitabh is sporting a new look, cashing in his popularity of musical 'Kajarare Kajarare.......' in movie 'Bunty and Babli'. He is also promising double the amount this time, i.e. two crores, and unlike last time the telecast time of the programme doesn't clash with the family soap operas. But, the big question is - Will Amitabh be able to arouse the same level of inertest in the viewers this time? And if he does, will he be able to retain that interest for a longer period of time, because last time also viewer's interest in KBC had gradually decreased, and they again became loyal to Ekta Kapoor's 'K'-series. When Amitabh was making people millionaires on Star Plus this Friday, Jassi of Sony's trump card 'Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahin' was gearing up for her marriage to fight the TRP battle. While many opted for the 60-year-old host, there were others who thought Jassi's wedding was more important than anything else. After all, they had waited for the destined day for one long year.

"We can watch KBC some other day, but 'Jassi..' can't be missed. She is finally getting married to Armaan. Big deal, if we don't watch KBC," said Neeru Ahuja, a housewife. Neeru's husband, Vivek Ahuja, seconds with his wife, and says that programmes like KBC are not about family entertainment, and make people money-minded and materialistic. Does that mean that Big B's charisma has diminished? Or it was Jassi's charisma that outshined the outstanding host last Friday? Bachchan's avatar as anchor in KBC 2 may be more like a cool dude, but probably the young and energetic Jassi still fascinates many. Perhaps, from their past experiences the programme bosses have learnt that KBC can't compete with family soaps in the long run, that's why unlike last time, the show is telecast from Friday to Sunday. KBC 2 will run for 85 episodes till February 2006 as per Bachchan's contractual obligations. Siddarth keep your fingers crossed! Hope audiences don't lose interest in your show. Keep making Indians millionaires!

Natwar allays Bangladesh's fears on border fencing (Go To Top)
by Nazrul Islam

Dhaka: Relations between India and Bangladesh are on the mend after a long spell of coldness marked by exchanges of allegations between the two countries about Bangladesh being the home to separatist groups from the North-East. Indian Foreign Minister K Natwar Singh, who is on a two-day visit to Bangladesh, has been able to allay the reservations of Bangladesh on many issues including the objectives of India fencing the border as per the 1975 guidelines under which defensive structures within 150 yards of the borders have to be demolished. The proposal to build a pipeline from Myanmar to West Bengal through Bangladeshi territory has not been making progress for a long time. Following discussions between Natwar Singh and Bangladesh Finance Minister, the latter has agreed, in principle, to allow the 290-km gas pipleline to pass through its territory but has expressed some concerns. In an interview with Bangla daily 'Jugantor', Natwar Singh said," The border management authorities in both our countries share the common objectives of ensuring peace and tranquility and facilitating interaction between our two friendly people while doing their utmost to prevent illegal corss-border activity."

Singh further said that Indian exports were making efforts to work out the most efficient and feasible ways of importing gas from Myanmar. "The gas pipeline through Bangladesh is one of the options being actively considered. This is a commercial project to be implemented by an international consortium," Singh said. Bangladeshi Finance Minister Saifur Rahman said that experts from India and Bangladesh will hold discussions to make the pipeline project a reality and also accomodate Bangladesh's concerns on the issue. Bangladesh wants India to construct a direct road linking Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan and also to address the issue of trade imbalance. Natwar Singh also confirmed that the twice-deferred SAARC Summit would be held as per its schedule in November and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh "is eagerly looking forward to visiting Dhaka for the Summit."

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