Page 412 - Human Interest
K'taka spiritualist Swamiji declines Padma Shri
Spiritual leader Siddheshwar Swamiji of Jnana Yogashram, who is often referred to as the 'Walking God of North Karnataka', has respectfully declined to accept the Padma Shri award.In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Vijayapura-born spiritualist, popularly known as Buddiji, wrote, "I am very grateful to the Government of India for awarding me the prestigious 'Padma Shri'. But will all respect to you and the government, I want to convey my unwillingness to accept the great award".He added that he was a simple man living a simple life, adding, "being a Sanyasin I am little interested in awards"."I hope you appreciate my decision of not accepting this highly valued Padma Shri award", the letter concluded.His preaching is often described as hard teachings delivered in a pleasant and enjoying manner.
Meet Lakshmikutty, the 75-yr-old Padma Shri awardee from Kerala
A 75-year-old tribal woman from Kallar forest area has received the country's fourth highest civilian honours Padma Shri Award for her breakthrough in practising traditional medicine.Lakshmikutty Amma, who is a famous poison healer practicing traditional medicine, told ANI, "I feel happy that my country accepted me. I haven't felt happier. The District Collector called and informed me that I was selected for Padma Shri. I am in this field for last 50 years and the Kerala government recognized my work and awarded me as well. A few of the people had claimed that I would win the Padma Shri award".Amma, who also writes poems, dramas and is a teacher in folklore academy, revealed that she got this knowledge from her mother who was a traditional midwife.She belongs to Kaani tribe and can remember more than 500 varieties of medicine. She has attained the education of 3rd forum and knows Sanskrit.Amma, whose husband died two years back, stays alone in the forest and grows medicinal plants ...
Modi pays tribute to Lala Lajpat Rai on his birth anniversary
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday paid tribute to freedom fighter Lala Lajpat Rai on his 152nd birth anniversary.
Tamil Nadu university bars 'bachelors' from entering garden
Tamil Nadu Agricultural University here has started banning bachelors from visiting its famous Botanical Gardens after authorities allegedly received reports of "immoral" activities taking place inside the garden.People entering the gardens would have to show their ID cards to the authorities as there were reports of immoral acts taking place in the garden, said an official."Almost 50 percent visitors have reduced since the new rule has been enforced. One of the reasons for imposing the restriction is that we have grown medical plants for educational purposes in the garden. But, we have been receiving a lot of complaints about the couples crowding the garden which made us take this decision," Prof. Kannan, Botanical Garden in-charge and horticulture scientist told ANI.However, the decision has received backlash from youngsters who say the rules are too harsh."We all are a group of girls, but they are not letting us in as we do not have proper ID proof. Some relaxation should be ...
Hilaria Baldwin flaunts baby bump in brassiere
Fitness expert and actor Alec Baldwin's wife Hilaria Baldwin stunned her fans with her latest Instagram selfie that shows her posing without knickers.
Bjiu Patnaik deserves Bharat Ratna: Deve Gowda
Recommending Bharat Ratna for the late Biju Patnaik, former prime minister H D Deve Gowda today said the legendary Odisha leader had played a key role in making him the chief minister of Karnataka and also the prime minister of the country. Gowda made the suggestion after former President Pranab Mukherjee and other leaders unveiled a pictorial biography on the former Odisha chief minister titled "The Tall Man Biju Patnaik," here. "Keeping in view his all-round activities and achievements, I strongly feel that Biju Patnaik deserves the country's highest civilian award (Bharat Ratna)," Gowda said to a loud applause from the audience here. He said Biju Patnaik has already been conferred with the "Bhumi Putra" honour by Indonesian government. Deve Gowda, while lauding the life and actions of the legendary leader said: "Biju Patnaik played a major role in making me the chief minister of Karnataka as well as the prime minister of India." Recalling his personal experience, ...
IPL Auction 2018 Day 1: Who got sold, who went unsold
Day 1 of the 2018 Indian Premier League (IPL) auction at the ITC Gardenia in Bengaluru on Saturday was full of surprises.India opener K L Rahul and middle-order batsman Manish Pandey became the most expensive buys of the ongoing 11th edition, bagging bumper deals of Rs 11 crore each.Pandey, who played for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) last season, was bought by Sunrisers Hyderabad while Rahul was snapped up by Kings XI Punjab.Meanwhile, Australian middle-order batsman Chris Lynn stayed with KKR for Rs 9.60 crore.Also, players from the marquee list went for bidding where England's Ben Stokes was sold for a whopping Rs 12.5 crore to Rajasthan Royals (RR), while Glenn Maxwell was taken by Delhi Daredevils (DD) for Rs 9 crore.Chris Gayle, Lasith Malinga, Ishant Sharma, Joe Root, Mitchell Johnson, among others went unsold in the first roundIn total, 109 players went under the hammer, 78 were sold and 31 remained unsold.Here's a list of sold players-1. Shikhar Dhawan sold to Sunrisers ...
Guv congratulates two Padma awardees of Bihar
Bihar Governor Satya Pal Malik today congratulated folk singer Sharda Sinha and scientist Manas Bihari Verma on being named as Padma awardees. In his message, Governor Malik has conveyed his greetings to Sharda Sinha and Manas Bihari Verma. Sinha, a noted folk singer, will get Padma Bhushan and Verma, who was associated with the light combat aircraft Tejas project, Padma Shri. In another message, the Governor also remembered Indian Air Force 'Garud' commando and martyr Jyoti Prakash Nirala for being honoured with the "Ashok Chakra" posthumously.
Ayrs Pet ridden by Dasrath Singh
Ayrs Pet ridden by Dasrath Singh won THE REPUBLIC CUP (abt 1100m) the feature events of the races held here today afternoon in Kolkata. The winner is owned Mr.B.K.Agarwal & Mr.Rajat Agarwal rep. Guru Sports Media Pvt.Ltd., Dr.Bhaskar Roy and Mr.Peter C.Dsouza The Winner is Trained by Bharath Singh.
3 arrested under Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act
Police arrested three persons today for allegedly carrying a black flag with symbols resembling that on Pakistan's flag during a 'Tiranga Yatra' organised at Shujalpur, 65 km from here, on Republic Day. Three others were absconding, said Shujalpur police station in-charge D K Prajapati. 'Tiranga Yatra', a motorcycle rally to honour the national flag, had been organised in the town yesterday. Devkaran Parmar, a local resident, lodged a police complaint after a video of some men on motorbikes carrying a black flag when the procession was passing through Mandi Bus Stand area went viral. Symbols on the flag, as seen in the video, resembled that on Pakistan's national flag. An offence under the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971 was registered against six persons, Prajapati said, adding that three men, who were identified from the video, were arrested, and three others were absconding.
HDFC Chairman Deepak Parekh, singer Vani Jayaram honoured
HDFC Chairman Deepak S Parekh and renowned play back singer Vani Jayaram were honoured with 'Sankara Ratna' and Dr M S Subbulakshmi awards respectively by the city-based Sankara Nethralaya here today. The 'Sankara Ratna' award was presented to Parekh for his consistent and generous monetary support to the Nethralaya in the form of loans and personal donations from his institution, a press release from Sankara Nethralaya said here today. Hailing Sankara Nethralaya for the contributions in the field of ophthalmology, Parekh said it had done a large number of free treatment to the poor people. Vani Jayaram said she was humbled for being chosen to receive the Dr M S Subbulakshmi Award. The singer said she was grateful to Sankara Nethralaya for having chosen her for the illustrious and prestigious award instituted in the name legendary artist (late) Dr M S Subbulakshmi, whom she respected. The awards comprise of a citation and memento was presented by Larsen and Toubro ...
Hyderabad woman falls to death while playing with dog
A young newly-married woman died after she fell from the terrace of a five-storey building while apparently playing with her pet dog here but her parents suspect foul play, police said on Saturday.
U.N.'s rights chief rejects Trump speech as 'script of the 20th century'
DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - The United Nations human rights chief expressed alarm after a speech by U.S. President Donald Trump in Davos on Friday, saying Trump's call for countries to pursue their own self-interest would take the world back to the eve of World War One.
Manas Bihari Varma expresses gratitude for Padma Shri
Scientist Manas Bihari Varma on Friday expressed happiness for being conferred the Padma Shri award."This was surprising to me that President selected me for this honour. I felt extremely happy that someone recognised my work", Varma said.Earlier on Thursday, a total of 85 people belonging to various disciplines have been named for the Padma Awards in three categories - Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri - on the eve of Republic Day.These awards will be conferred by President Ram Nath Kovind at the ceremonial functions which will be held at Rashtrapati Bhawan in March or April.
Scholar to become monk
Mamtha Kataria, an MBA graduate from Chennai, has decided to renounce worldly pleasures and embrace monkhood.The 'deeksha' (initiation) ceremony to become a Jain monk will be held here tomorrow."I looked for peace everywhere but wasn't able to find anywhere until I decided to embrace Jainism. Only the life of a monk could provide me with that peace. That is why I am going to follow this path," Kataria said.Organiser of the ceremony, Sripal Kothari lauded Kataria's decision."When in today's world people run for the money. This lady has left everything and has decided to follow the path of Moksha. It is a matter of pride," he said.Earlier, a 34-year-old businessman from Surat, who owned property worth Rs 100 crore, gave it all up to be a monk.
Army jawan laid to rest with full military honours
Army jawan Jadgish Purohit, who was killed in ceasefire violation by Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir, was laid to rest at his native village in Chamoli district here with full military honours. The jawan's body, which was brought here from J-K's Rajouri district by the Air Force helicopter, yesterday reached his native village Gadasu as large number of people including leaders from different political parties paid their last respect. Jagdish's brother lit the funeral pyre. Jagdish Purohit, a member of the from Mahar Regiment, was injured during a ceasefire violation by Pakistan in Rajouri on January 20. He succumbed to his injuries on January 24 while undergoing treatment at a hospital. Purohit is survived by his two sons.
Mass baboon breakout shuts Paris zoo
Around 50 baboons escaped from their enclosure in Paris's main zoo today, forcing wardens to evacuate visitors while order was restored, the zoo said. A worker at the attraction in the Vincennes area of the French capital spotted the breakout in the late morning when the primates were seen gathering in a service corridor used by personnel. "Since then the baboons have been returned to their enclosure, except for four of them which have been located in this service zone and are being rounded up," the zoo said in a statement to AFP. The baboons did not reach public areas and the evacuation was ordered as a precaution, the zoo said.
Paltrow says ex Chris Martin is 'like her brother'
After consciously uncoupling, Gwyneth Paltrow has opened up about her divorce from Coldplay frontman Chris Martin and said he's now "like a brother".While appearing on 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert', the 45-year-old actress said that their official parting in 2016 was "terrible," "painful" and a "hard" experience.But she said that the exes are on great terms."He's really like my brother. We're very familial. It's really nice. It's great," she added.Noting her "wonderful relationship" with Martin, Colbert also inquired whether Paltrow's type of friendly camaraderie with an ex could work for everyone."Divorce is terrible, it was very painful, it was really hard. We really genuinely wanted our kids to be as unscathed as possible. We thought if we could really maintain the family even though we weren't a couple that was kind of the goal so that's what we've tried to do," noted Paltrow.Though they remain close, Paltrow and Martin have completely moved on from their romantic ...
9 prominent personalities from northeast conferred Padma Shri
Nine prominent personalities, including an internationally acclaimed weightlifter, an author of adventure novels and a Gandhian, from the northeast were conferred the Padma Shri on the Republic Day. Editor of Guwahati-based Assam Tribune, the most circulated English daily of the region,Prafulla Govinda Baruah, and educationist A Zakia from Mizoram were among the nine distinguished citizens who were honoured with the prestigious civilian award. Saikhom Mirabai Chanu, a female weightlifterfrom Manipur,who won gold in the 48-kg category at the 2017 World Weightlifting Championships, was also conferred the award. Assam's Arup Kumar Dutta,who has written 17 adventure novels for young and 14 books for adults, and Lentina Ao Thakkar, who has served for decades at a Gandhi Ashram in Nagaland's Mokokchung district, are also among the recipients. Lentina is married to Natwar Thakkar, a noted Gandhian freedom fighterandsocial reformer. Tennis player Somdev Devvarman from Tripura was
Republic Day: 34 J-K personalities receive state award
Thirty-four personalities, including Dangal actress Zaira Wasim, from Jammu and Kashmir were given the state award on Republic Day for their contribution in different fields. Fireman Abdul Majid Wani, singer Vijay Malla and educationist Atiqa Bano were awarded posthumously, an official release said here. Malla and Bano werehonoured for their contribution in performing arts and achievement in the field of literature, respectively, with a cash award of Rs 51,000, a medal and a citation, it said. The fireman, who suffered critical burn injuries during a fire-fighting operation in Srinagar in December, and later died during treatment, was honoured with a cash award of Rs 1 lakh, a medal and a citation. The award was also given to media persons. This included PTI's Jammu bureau chief Anil Bhat, Aaj Tak's Ashwani Kumar, Dainik Jagran's Abhimanyu Sharma and Hindustan Times' Toufiq Rashid. Senior editor of Greater Kashmir Arif Shafi and Deputy Director (News) Doordarshan ...
