Alpha Times, Anna Nagar, March 22, 2009

For the week March 22-28, 2009 Over-enthusiastic people you live with may bother you with more demands at one time. Discourage them as it can upsety you.

A slow Venus could diminish your earnings. It’ll be difficult, with mounting living costs. If competing for a job, you will have to wait for sometime more.

A speeding Mercury makes it enjoyable for stay-at-home events, entertainment and socialising. Your skill can cover your drawbacks.

Moon brings good luck. You can develop close ties with people who have been ignoring you. These contacts can help in time of need.

An Aquarian Sun and Saturn will make you over-occupied. Serious matters will top your agenda. You will be in your desperate mood from Tuesday to Friday.

A majority of you would want a new accommodation or a fresh career. Keep the issues pending as current stars are inimical.

Your urge to spend on pleasantries and nonessentials will gain speed. It will be difficult keep your budget on sound footing.

With a rising Mars your financial fortunes are rising. You may desire to try luck through easy gains. You could succeed in whatever you lay your hands upon.

Vasantha Navarathri Vizha for Goddess Prathiyankira Devi V a s a n t h a N a v a r a t h r i Vi z h a f o r Goddess Prathiyankira Devi will be perfor med at Om Sri Skanda-sramam,1 Kambar St, Mahalakshmi Nagar, Selaiyur, Tambaram from March 27 to April 4. There will be a special Sri Prathiyankira Devi Mula Manthra Mangala Chandi Mahayagnam on all these days. The day starts with the Go puja at 7.15 am followed by Homa Sankalpam, Sri Ganapathy Homam, Sri Navagraha Homam and Sri Prathiyankira Devi Mula Manthra Homam at 9 am. There will be a special abhishekamat10amtoGod

dessPrathiyankira Devi and a special alankaram. 12 noon deeparadanai followed by annadanam. At 4 pm the Sri Prathiyankira Devi Mula Manthra Mangala Chandi Mahayagnam resumes a n d t h e M a h a purnahuddhi will be at 7.30 PM. At 8 pm there will be a special abishekam to Sri Chakra Purna Mahameru follwed by Prasad distribution. All devotees can participate in the vizha and get the divine blessings of Sathguru Shrimath Santhananda Swamigal and Goddess Prathiyankira Devi.

Donate Blood Save Life

Keep your city clean

A debility-prone Jupiter could dampen spirits. You may lose cool and feel cut off from main stream. Do overcome your hangups.

No minus points in your solar chart. You are well-versed in winning over people. Your qualities of head and heart deserve praise.

Swami Haridhos Giri School Of Music Narada Gana Sabha Trust is setting up the Swami Haridhos Giri School Of Music on its premises at 314, T.T.K. Road, Alwarpet, Chennai, from April 14. The school will provide advanced course in Carnatic music (vocal) to young talented musicians — boys and girls — in the age group of 15 to 20 years, who aspire to become performing artists.

V i d w a n P . S . Narayanaswami is the honorary director of the school. He will guide the teachers and students towards achieving high levels of excellence in Carnatic music. Application for admission to the advanced course in music may be submitted to the Narada Gana Sabha in the prescribed form, which can be obtained from the Sabha office.

Saturn’s relationship with your sign is a great asset. This development is a never-to-be repeated opportunity. Don’t hesitate to cash it.

Pursue goals without bothering about biased approach of your rivals. The situation demands firmness on your part. - Dr. Anuj Vikram Sharma

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Fast track cardiac operations in Chennai With the support of advanced technology, high precision drugs and intensive patient monitoring, a city hospital is successfully performing ‘ F a s t Tr a c k C a r d i a c Surgeries’ and discharging patients in a span of five days. Doctors at Billroth Hospitals, who have been performing this fast track surgery, which allows patient to be on their feet within four days after a cardiac surgery, claim 99 per cent success. In the last two and a half years, the hospital has done around 500 such surgeries, “said Dr K Nedumaran, cardiac anesthesiologist and intensivist, Billroth Hospital. In this system, the patient will be shifted to the ICU immediately after the surgery and a doctor who had performed the surgery will be there to take care of the patient at the ICU also. “Hence, there is continuity. There is no requirement of

a new team at the ICU to pick up the details of the surgery and proceed as the doctor can guide them,” he added. The next day, the patient will be moved to the ward, where he can take juice and other food prescribed by the doctor. On the third day, he will be asked to walk around and climb the stairs. The next day, an observation will be done to find out how the patient responds and on the fifth day he will be asked to take a bath and the doctors will check the wound. Patients who have undergone this surgery are also happy. “Initially I was scared. But it got over in five days,” said a much relaxed Marzook. Another patient Sundararajan said that the cost of surgery was very less. Dr Nedumaran said that the surgery, as a package of seven days, costs Rs 1.15 lakh.

Journey towards Freedom Have you seen Martin Luther King Jr.and Mahatma Gandhi discussing the freedom movement. it's amazing that the exhibits displayed at Sri Krishna Sweets Purasawakkam speak of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. The expo which was inaugurated by the U S Consulate General, Andrew TSimkin, and features the ideological exchange between India and the USA. On display are rare pictures and frozen moments of history and a brief write-up about each, the exhibition marks 50 years since Martin Luther King Jr's pilgrimage to India The pictures are marked under various titles like Civil Rights Movement, Changing the Laws, Honouring King’s Legacy,

The Abiding Legacy, and so on. Interesting chronicles include letters by Martin Luther King to G Ramachandra, s e c r e t a r y, G a n d h i Smarak Nidhi, inspiring quotes by him and excerpts from his best speeches. Sri Krishna Sweets at Puraswalkam of late has a different mood to it. With its sides and corners adorned with exhibits of some of the most significant events in the history of the world, the sweet shop is no more merely about tempting the taste buds, it's a treat as much for your eyes. The expo is on at Sri Krishna Sweets 25E, Raja Annamalai Road Purasawalkam, till, March 31.

Hop-on-Hop-off tour ticket validity extended Ta m i l N a d u Tourism Development Corporation has extended the validity of ChennaiMamallapuram hop-onhop-off tour bus ticket by 24 hours with immediate effect, according to Tourism Commissioner M. Rajaram. TTDC operates the service from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily and the validity of the ticket is extended by 24 hours to those passengers intending to stay in Mamallapuram for a day.

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March 22, 2009

O w i n g t o popular demand, TTDC extended the validity of ticket for 24 hours for onward journey alone,” Besides, TTDC has also started issuing tickets from Marundeeswarar Temple for the hop-onhop-off tour, as it has emerged as the second best embarking point in the city. TTDC will continue to offer 25 per cent discount on the ticket charge for some more time.

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Wedding portal to promote Matrimony Day A matrimony portal has plans of adding to the list of commercialised celebrations by popularising the concept of Matrimony Day, which it intends to mark on April 14 to 'celebrate and glorify the institution of marriage'. Consim Info Pvt Ltd, the company that o w n s www.bharatmatrimony.c om, says the idea is to promote the concept of matrimony and encourage people to enter wedlock instead of live-in relationships. "Matrimony Day is our attempt to celebrate and glorify the institution of marriage. Couples can celebrate their wedding anniversaries on the d a y, " M u r u g a v e l Janakiraman, founder and chief executive of Consim Info Pvt Ltd, told news agency Asked why April 14 was chosen as the DDay, he said: "It was the day on which our portal was launched 11 years ago. The portal has brought millions of people under the institution of marriage." A c c o r d i n g t o Janakiraman, talks are on with a couple of greeting card companies to print cards for the

occasion. The company has also launched www.matrimonayday.org to promote the event and get ideas from the public on how it should be celebrated. Consim Info is also offering to carry product advertisements free of cost on www.bharatmatrimony.c om if the companies have taken space in newspapers specifically for Matrimony Day. "On Matrimony Day, we will send out gifts and greeting cards to those people who got married through our portal," Janakiraman added. A n o t h e r matrimony portal, www.simplymarry.com, celebrated Matrimony Day on Jan 31. "That portal had called its swayamvara as Matrimony Day. Our idea is entirely different," said Janakiraman. A m i r d h a Sriram, a middle-aged housewife, said: "I like the idea of Matrimony Day as it can be celebrated as a family." "Even though a wedding anniversary comes once a year, there is no harm in being reminded of the fact one more time," said newlyw e d R a m y a Raghunathan.

Children’s Science Academy Award: Last date extended The last date for submission of student projects for Children’s Science Academy Award, instituted by Science City, has been extended to April 17. A press release from Science cioty said. "Students from classes IX to XII can take part. The projects should be in the form of theory, either in English or Tamil. It can be an analysis, survey report or a study. The project must be endorsed by the principal or headmaster of the school. The projects may be submitted by the

students individually or as a team. Students can submit their project in p h y s i c s , c h e m i s t r y, biology, mathematics, social science and information technology or computer science. Best three projects in each discipline will be presented the award. It will be conferred on May 11, marking the National Technology Day." Science City, an agency of the government of Tamil Nadu, instituted the award in 2000, in an attempt to kindle the spirit of science among students.

Can-Stop's " Stree Spandan" Can-Stop, an out reach programme of Sundaram Medical Foundation, a voluntary organization for Cancer A w a r e n e s s i n association with Rotary Club of Madras, is organizing a unique dance concert “Stree Spandan” by 3 leading artists Smt. Gopika Varma, Smt. Sharon Lowen and Smt. Shovana Narayan on 28th March ’09, Saturday at the Narada Gana Sabha at 6.00 pm as a part of its 10th anniversary celebrations. T h e performance will be a blend of different classical styles of dance. Smt. Gopika Varma, a master of Mohiniyattam and Abhinaya has performed extensively and has won laurels abroad. Smt. Sharon Lowen is a leading

international artist in Odissi, Chhau and Manipuri. Smt. Shovana Narayan is a venerated Kathak Maestro who has blazed a trail in Kathak, redefining its ethos and vocabulary. The proceeds of the event will go to the ‘Drug Bank’ to purchase medicines, which is distributed free to children on a daily basis. Can-Stop has completed 10 years of service to patients of lower socio-economic background. Can-Stop organizes free screening camps for the lower strata of society on a regular basis, since they are on a mission to detect cancer early, which then is curable in most cases.Donor passes of Rs. 1000, Rs. 700, Rs. 500, Rs. 300 and Rs. 100 are available at Landmark, Amethyst and Can-Stop. For further information please contact 2628 4256.

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Alpha Times

March 22, 2009

Tamil Nadu Bhargawa Sangam given fresh lease of life The nearly 100y e a r - o l d Ta m i l N a d u Bhargawa Kula Sangam has been given a fresh lease of life with the constitution of a highpower committee to convert the non-political outfit into a political party. Ta l k i n g t o newspersons, SRM University Chancellor and Sangam Parliamentary Board Chairman T R Pachamuthu and Sangam State Working President and film director Kovaithambi said since the election schedule was announced, the Sangam could not be converted into a political party now. H o w e v e r, t h e

General Council of the Sangam, held here

among the community people favoured the

Photo S. Mohan

r e c e n tl y, w a n te d to launch a political party. The fresh enthusiasm

launch of a political party. Since the time is too short and the election dates

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were announced, we cannot launch it now.'' The Council, however, resolved to consolidate the vote bank of Udayars, Moopanars and Nainars, which forms the backbone of the Sangam, and appeal to political parties to give due representation to the community in the elections, in line with their vote bank. Stating that the community had been neglected over the years, despite a population of more than one crore, the Sangam also decided to back its community candidates, if they chose t o c o n t e s t a s

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Independents to show their strength in the ensuing Lok Sabha polls. ''Political parties should make use of the Sangam's vote bank, which has strong presence in nine P a r l i a m e n t a r y constituencies, namely, Kallakurichi, Perambalur, S i v a g a n g a , Ramanathapuram, Trichirapalli, Thanjavur, C h i d a m b a r a m , Mayiladuthurai and Namakkal'', Mr Pachamuthu said. The Sangam organised a youth wing rally recently at Perambalur and would be organising a massive rally at Kallakurichi on March 29 to show their community's strength to the political parties. ''More than three lakh people are expected to attend the rally'', Mr Pachamuthu said and added that after the elections, the Sangam would meet to decide on future course of action, including converting it into a political party. ' ' I f o u r demands, which included conferment of MBC status to their c o m m u n i t y, w a s conceded by the Government, then we will decide on whether to convert the Sangam into a political party or not'', he added. -Staff Reporter

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Alpha Times

March 22, 2009

Saravana Bhavan Rajagopal sentenced to life Founder of the famous Saravana Bhavan chain of hotels, R Rajagopal, received a stiffer punishment on Thursday when the Madras High Court convicted him of murder in a 2001 case and enhanced to life sentence the 10-year imprisonment awarded by a trial court. Allowing an appeal by the prosecution,

seeking higher punishment, a division bench held Rajagopal and five others guilty under Section 302 of IPC (murder). The bench, comprising justice PK Mishra and justice R Bhanumathi, also dismissed appeals by the convicts seeking acquittal in the case. In 2004, a fast track court in Poonamalle

near here had convicted Rajagopal and eight others under Section 304 of IPC (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) in the case of abduction and murder of Prince Santhakumar, husband of Jeevajothi, daughter of an employee of Saravana Bhavan that has strong presence in south India and overseas. Rajag opal and five others were sentenced to ten years' r i g o r o u s imprisonment, while three others to three years' RI. Accor ding to the prosecution, Rajagopal (59) wanted to m a r r y Jeevajothi as his third wife, but she didn't oblige him. Later the body of her husband Shanthakumar was found in a forest area in Kodaikanal on October 31, 2001. The bench observed, "we do not think that it requires much forensic knowledge or skill to hold without any hesitation that the accused had committed an offence under Section 302 of the IPC." "We have no

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doubt in our mind that the circumstances on record, including the statement of Jeevajothi which is amply collaborated by her mother as well as certain documentary evidence showing the presence of the accused near the scene of occurrence, clearly points out to only one conclusion that Shanthakumar was killed by the other accused on instructions from Rajagopal," the bench observed. "It is no doubt

true that there is no specific material available as to which of the accused actually caused the death. However, the intention of the accused who caused the homicidal death is apparent," the judges said, holding such culpable homicide would amount to murder. However, the court reduced fine of Rs 55 lakh imposed on Rajagopal by trial court to Rs 30,000, saying "we do not find any justification in imposing a

huge fine on Rajagopal." While the appeals by the accused challenged the April 26, 2004, order of additional sessions judge AR Selvakumar, the one by the state sought to punish them under Section 302 IPC and enhance the sentence from ten years to life. Jeevajothi had lodged a complaint with the police saying that her husband was missing and had been murdered by Rajagopal and others. Saravana

Bhavan, known for its south Indian delicacies, was rocked by a human trafficking scam last year, when Rajagopal's son and the hotel group managing director, PR Shivakumar, were arrested in November on the charge of securing US visas through fake documents for four of his employees. According to the hotel group's website, its outlets are located "12 in South India, three in the North and seven in other countries with 22 outlets across the globe".

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Discovery of new micro-organisms in the stratosphere Three new species of bacteria, which are not found on Earth and which are highly resistant to ultra-violet radiation, have been discovered in the upper stratosphere by Indian scientists. One of the new species has

These cylinders, after collecting air samples from different heights ranging from 20 km to 41 km, were parachuted down and safely retrieved. These samples were analysed by scientists at the Center

The balloon carrying scientific payload which discovered new micro-organisms. Discovery of new micro-organisms in the stratosphere. Photo: Courtesy ISRO

beennamed as Janibacter hoylei, after the D i s t i n g u i s h e d Astrophysicist FredHoyle, the second as Bacillus isronensis recognising the contribution of ISRO in the balloon experiments which led to its discovery and the thirdas Bacillus aryabhata after India’s celebrated a n c i e n t astronomerAryabhata and also the first satellite of ISRO. According to Mr. B R Guruprasad, PRO, ISRO, the experiment was conducted using a 26.7 million cubic feet ballooncarrying a 459 kg scientific payload soaked in 38 kg of liquid Neon, which was flown from the National Balloon Facility in Hyderabad, operated by t h e Ta t a I n s t i t u t e o f Fundamental Research (TIFR). The payload consisted of a cryosampler containing sixteen evacuated and sterilised stainless steel probes. Throughout the flight, the probes remained immersed in liquid Neonto create a cryopump effect.

for Cellular and M o l e c u l a r B i o l o g y, Hyderabad as well as the National Center for Cell Science (NCCS), Pune for independent examination, ensuring that both laboratories followed similar protocols to achieve homogeneity of procedure and interpretation. The Analytical findings are summarised as follows: In all, 12 bacterial and six fungal colonies were detected, nine of which,based on 16S RNA gene sequence, showed greater than 98% similarity with reported known species on earth. Three bacterial colonies, namely,PVAS-1, B3 W22 and B8 W22 were, however, totally new species. All the three newly identified species had significantly higher UV resistance compared to their nearest p h y l o g e n e t i c neighbours. Of the above, PVAS-1,identified as a member of the

genus Janibacter, has b e e n n a m e d Janibacterhoylei. sp. nov. The second new species B3 W22 was named as Bacillus isronensis sp.nov. and the third new species B8 W22 as Bacillus aryabhata. T h e precautionary measures and controls operating in this experimentinspire confidence that these species were picked up in the stratosphere. While the present study does not conclusively establish theextraterrestrial origin of microorganisms, it does provide positive encouragement to continue the work in our quest to explore the origin of life. This multiinstitutional effort had Jayant Narlikar from theInter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Pune as Principal Investigator and veteran Scientists U.R. Rao from ISRO and P.M. Bhargava from Anveshna supported as mentors of the experiment. S. Shivaji from CCMB and Yogesh Shouche from NCCS were the biology experts and Ravi Manchanda from TIFR was in charge of the balloon facility. C.B.S. Duttwas the Project Director from ISRO who was in charge of preparing and operating the complex payload. This was the second such experiment conducted by ISRO, the first one beingin 2001. Even though the first experiment had yielded positive results, it was decided to repeat the experiment by exercising extra care to ensurethat it was totally free from any terrestrial contamination. -Agencies

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March 22, 2009

Voter's Guide

India General Elections 2009 What is 49-O or protest vote?

What’s the minimum age for becoming an LS candidate? Not less that 25 years on the date of scrutiny of papers

Rule 49-0 :

I am not a registered voter. Can I contest the elections? No, you have to be registered as a voter in the current electoral rolls to contest the elections

The rule merely states that if the voter decides not to record his vote, a remark to this effect shall be made against the said entry in form 17A by the presiding officer and the signature or thumb impression of the elector (voter) shall be obtained against such a remark.

Can a non-citizen of India become a voter? A person who is not a citizen of India cannot be registered as a voter, says Article 326 of the Constitution.

Ever heard of a protest vote? Or a negative vote? How about a neutral vote or no vote? Okay, what about rule 49-O? Zapped? All of them are synonyms for a zero vote you can cast at the polling booth to indicate your poor opinion about all the candidates in the fray. “ B e y o n d ensuring your democratic right to vote, the rule also ensures that bogus voters are not cast,” Chief Electoral Officer Naresh Gupta told The New Indian Express. Though the facility has been in place since 1992, hardly a few know about it; and fewer still have actually exercised it. In fact, the rule was framed much earlier, in 1961. Yet, there is an amazing level of ignorance.

Sample this: In the recently held byelection to the Thirumangalam Assembly constituency, only one old woman exercised her right not to vote for any anyone under 49-O, Gupta said. He also recalled that during the last Assembly elections in the State, some of the polling officers had told voters who wished to invoke 49O that the provision did not exist. Besides, a writ petition seeking action against the erring officials is pending before the Madras High Court. As a result, the EC has decided to give special emphasis to rule 49-O during the training session for polling officers for the ensuing Lok Sabha elections,

Gupta said. I n t h e conventional ballot paper method, a person can cast a negative vote by dropping the ballot paper without marking his preference for any candidate. But the E l e c t r o n i c Vo t i n g Machines don’t have the facility. As a result, the secrecy of the individual who exercises a no-vote is not protected. The solution is simple: just specify a button on the EVMs for 49-O to maintain secrecy of ballot. This was recommended by the EC in 2001, but the matter is hanging fire as a case on the zero vote is pending before the Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court, the CEO said.

Under IT Scan the elections. “Officials from the income tax will be posted on poll duty and will report to the Election Commission” for follow up action, Chief Election Commissioner designate Navin Chawla said.

A c e l l comprising experts drawn from the Income Tax Department would be set up in the commission to deal with information on poll expenses of candidates

Bachelor brigade Contrary to popular belief that most of our Parliamentarians is not an educated lot, official records show that nearly 80 per cent of them have graduation as their minimum academic qualification. As many as 428 out of 543 lawmakers

A person is convicted for some offence and is sentenced to imprisonment for 2 years. Can he contest the elections? No, says Section 8 (3) of the Representations of People Act, 1951 Can a person confined in jail vote? No, a person cannot vote in any election if he is confined in a prison, whether under a sentence of imprisonment or transportation or otherwise or is in the lawful custody of the police I changed my residence recently. How do I get enrolled as a voter at my new place of residence? In case the new residence is in the same constituency, fill Form 8A, otherwise Form 6, and submit it to the ERO (SDM) or the AERO of the area concerned. l I am a tenant and my landlord does not want me to get enrolled. What should I do? To get enrolled in the voter list is your statutory right. Check the electoral rolls of your area. If your name is not included, fill Form 6 and deposit it with the ERO. What are the advantages of the EVM? Eliminates the possibility of invalid votes, makes the counting process faster and reduces the cost of printing What is the maximum number of candidates an EVM can cater to? Sixty four

Top 10 ''inventions''

For your information

Income tax officials will be deployed for poll duty during the general election and keep a watch on expenses incurred by candidates in an attempt by the Election Commission to check illegal use of money during

Can one be enrolled at more than one place? According to Section 17 and 18 of the RP Act, 1950, a person cannot be enrolled as a voter in more than one place.

have graduation or above as their educational qualification as per Lok Sabha records. While 157 Parliamentarians are post-graduate, 22 are doctorates.The official data show that while there was a decrease in

the number of undermatriculate MPs from 112 in the first Lok Sabha to 19 in the present Lower House, there was a substantial increase in the number of those having post-graduate degrees from 85 to 157.

Thus Spoke the 'Nethas' Manmohan is the Prime Minister only in name. He has office but no authority. Sonia has authority but no accountability. — LK Advani at Nagercoil We cannot simply sit idle and pass comments on what our leaders should do. We have to step into politics. — Kabir Suman Cultural crusader of West Bengal who has decided to contest We want a federal state. We are against the centralisation of power in Delhi. — CPM general secretary Prakash Karat The BSP slogan on the chest of criminals and stamp on the elephant) has changed to “Gunde chad gaye hathi par, goli lagegi chhati par” (Criminals are riding the elephant and bullets will hit your chest) “Chad gundon ki chhati par, mohar lagao hathi par” (Stand on the chest of criminals and stamp on the elephant) has changed to “Gunde chad gaye hathi par, goli lagegi chhati par” (Criminals are riding the elephant and bullets will hit your chest) — SP general secretary Amar Singh

Credit cards, trainer shoes, social networking sites, and GPS technology have made it to the list of things that have changed the world. To mark the National Science and Engineering Week, a panel of 20 experts from the British Science Association have drawn up a list of the top 10 things that have changed the world, reports The Telegraph. Here is the list in full: 1. GPS Technology Originally developed as a navigation system by the United States military, the Global Positioning System is now used in cars, aircraft and boats. 2. The Sony Walkman In 1979 Sony spawned the era of wearable technology with its iconic personal stereo. The Walkman quickly changed listening habits and became hugely popular as jogging culture took the 1980s by storm. 3. The Bar code The boring sets of black and white lines can now be found on almost every single item bought from a shop. Norman Woodland first developed an early form of the bar code in 1949 by combining ideas from movie soundtracks and Morse code to help him speed up store checkouts. And now

stores can instantly access product details, prices and stock levels with a sweep of a laser. 4. TV Dinners Convenience food really took off in the 1970s and transformed the way families ate meals, the high-street, the countryside and national health. Traditional family dinners around the table disappeared and prepackaged "ready meals" eaten on the sofa became the norm. 5. PlayStation Although games consoles had been around for some time, Sony's PlayStation took gaming out of spotty teenager''s bedrooms and into adult living rooms when it was released in 1994. 6. Social Networking Everyday, more than three billion minutes are spent by computer users on Facebook. Along with other social networking sites such as MySpace a n d Tw i t t e r, i t h a s completely changed the way we interact and who we interact with. Millions of p e o p l e n o w communicate tiny details of their professional and personal lives by poking, twittering and posting. Online social networking has allowed people to rekindle friendships with friends they lost touch with years ago.

7. Text messages Te x t m e s s a g i n g h a s created a new vocabulary and new grammar that is almost incomprehensible to those who do not use it. LOL and FYI have now passed into everyday English. 8. Electronic Money Credit cards gave us greater convenience for spending, greater security and the ability to spend money anywhere in the world. 9. Microwaves M i c r o w a v e s electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths ranging between 1 millimetre and one metre - are used by mobile phones, wireless broadband internet and satellite television. They also gave us a new way of cooking food while the US military has developed a "less-thanlethal" weapon that can blast victims with a heat wave. 10. Trainers Trainers changed fashion and the feet of generations ever since the Goodyear Metallic Rubber Shoe Company first used a new manufacturing process to meld rubber to cloth in 1892. With the help of celebrity endorsements by sporting superstars such as basketball legend Michael Jordan, trainers turned from being purely practical clothing for sport into a fashion item.

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March 22, 2009

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YMCA Coaching Camp Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) will conduct a coaching camp from April 13 to May 12 in tennis, badminton, table tennis, billiards, kung-fu and karate for boys and girls below 17 years at YMCA Kilpauk, 52, Halls Road, Kilpauk, Chennai-600 010. Contact: 26472231.

Cricket Tournament The Blue Sky Cricket Academy will conduct TBSCA Platinum Cup 2009, a 30-over league tournament is open to firms, private clubs, coaching camps, institutions, colleges and schools. The matches will be played on Saturdays, Sundays and Government Holidays. Entries close on March 30 with the organising secretary, The Blue Sky CA, No.3, Sourashtra Nagar, 1st Street, 1st floor, Choolaimedu. Ph: 98409 60992/ 9841590992.

Building plan approval goes online Bouyed by the technological advances and stung by the implementation of egovernance, Chennai Corporation has launched an automated building plan approval system - reading the computer aided design (CAD) drawings and sanctioning plans online. "All the 700-odd licenced surveyors of the corporation have been directed to avail of the CAD drawings and submit online applications mandatorily. The programme is aimed at curbing bribery," said a senior official. The new software, Auto DCR (development control rules) that will screen preformatted CAD drawings costs Rs 30 lakh. One needs to log onto the corporation's official website www.chennaicorporation.g ov.in and click building plan permission. Data like building category, type of proposal (residential, commercial, institutional or recreational), application p r o c e s s e d f o r ( n e w, alterations, demolitions, additions, demolition and reconstruction, change in use etc.) and zone need to be filled in. "The applicant is also required to give his/ her mobile number or e-

mail id mandatorily, without which the application will not be processed," sources said. Unlike earlier, where the applicants had to wait for several weeks, the automated system will approve drawings in eight hours. In case of errors, the applicant is intimated and he/ she has to resubmit the plan using an exclusive drawing reference number. Though online approval is given, the applicant will have to submit the same to the local corporation office and the title deed of the land will be verified by authorities in person, The commissioner said. T h e automated plan approval is expected to help the corporation in many ways. The CAD drawings will support ongoing geographic information system (GIS) using digitised maps of buildings; property tax collection may improve since no one can deny the change of land use; and it will also check irregularities such as duplicate drawings for availing of home loans.

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