The Bhima Club

Shocking example of the quality of people(in power) in the land which said 'Tat Tvam Asi'!

2009-08-27T11:53:00.000-07:00

The shocking proof of what is happening every day in Kerala.
ONLY because of the total failure in the part of the state & the
central Govt.which are ignoble.
The cows in this photographs are brought in from Tamil Nadu crammed in
lorries often hanging out of the space.

>Chilly is rubbed on to their eyes and their tails twisted or bitten by
these satanic agents to make them move being in their die-able situation.

>They are subjected to all shameful,horrible, heartbreaking, and cruel
actsbefore hey finally get the boon of passing away as it is TOTALLY
better than living on this place filled with these hell-hounds.

WHO WILL

just stamp me as a fundamentalist trying to induce racial hatred in the
society if I try fight them and get support from the same primitive
so-called govt in the local-level and the pseudo-secularists at a higher
level with the tacit support of the media due to the involvement of the
same certain hell-hounds' community that believes in killing and
eating.There will be no change at this local-level until a total change
of scenario happens in the country as a whole.

HERE IS A BRIEF PIECE OF INFORMATION OF WHAT
GOES ON (BEWARE!-It's horrible):

If you wake up in the early morning at 3:00 and walk out to any
market placein Kerala, you can see horrible, heartbreaking,
and cruel scene of cow slaughtering.

Cows are tied up in a short rope to prevent moving. Then a water
pipe with steel wire is inserted into the mouth of the cow deep into
its stomach.Calcium oxide(commonly known as lime) and other
chemical added water are pumped into the cow’s stomach for
3 to 5 minutes to increase its weight forprofit. It is an inhumane
and unhealthy practice inflicting pain on the cowand disease for
the meat eaters.

The helpless cow routinely suffer broken bones and feel terrible
pain from callous handling when butchers roughly grab the cow by
their legs andshackled down prior to slaughtering.

After flooding the stomach with water added with calcium oxide
(lime),the cow is knocked on the head with a big iron hammer,
then dismembered while still conscious. Other cows waiting in
line for slaughtering watch and moan loudly. Do butchers and
meat eaters ever think of the pain cows sufferwhen they are
dragged, mishandled and beheaded while still alive?

The unethical, cruel and brutal killing of cows is painful to watch.
The cows are being butchered in the illegal slaughter houses
mushrooming in everynookand corner of Kerala. Sources reveal
that there are more than 7,000 illegal, unhygienic,primitive cow
slaughter hoses in Kerala.

The slaughter of cows is already banned in most Indian states,
but persists in Kerala, that has significant non Hindu population.
The open, cruel and inhumane slaughter of cows is a painful
scene,an immoral and brutal criminal act. Thousands of
malnourished, mistreated cows are openly slaughtered in public
view illegally and unethically every day in Kerala and West Bengal.

The cruel process of transporting malnourished, unhealthy cows
for early morning slaughter for food is the worst form of human
activity one can undertake. The cruelty toanimals which causes
unacceptable harm is one of the sadistic forms of human behavior.

Psychological studies have demonstrated that individuals deliberately
inflicting suffering on animals are more prone to do harm on humans.

People with criminal personality, anti-social personality disorder have
a history of torturing animals,a behavior disorder known as zoosadism.

Criminal recordsindicate that a history of cruelty to animals is one of
thetraits that regularly appear in the records of rapists and murderers.
Cruelty to animals is one of the components of behavior traits
violent criminals. No wonder, murder, rape and violent crimes are on
the increase in Kerala.

Also,How do you know whether the same hell-hounds are using the poor
animals not just for slaughter but for practice(Like the Jehadis in Kerala
using dogs to practice killing people-TOI article)!
The place is very notorious and known for such activities.

Long ago when there was a riot between the same hell-hounds' Christians
& Muslims in that area,it has been reported that they even attacked
temples and other people who were not involved just for the sake of
inflicting torture.

According to the reports as brought out by a saint and social-reformer,
Jagadguru Swami Sathyananda Saraswathi who led the innocent to victory,
they even came to the homes of people and beheaded their pet dogs & placed
the cut-off heads of the dog at the doorsteps to be the first sight after
wake-up as they blew the clarion of their dirty heathen fundamentalist hunt!

India has the rich culture which said as the title suggests 'Tat Tvam Asi',
the same views that saw god in all organisms,but due to the failure in
upkeeping the laws of the same culture,this is just one of the millions of
things that we see to day that would have never happened in this country.

The existence of the Govt. is direcly based on us.
Do we need this Govt. ruling us?
Do we?

Doctors Warn: Avoid GM Food

2009-07-17T08:17:00.000-07:00

GM Tomato

It is increasingly evident how dangerous genetically modified food is. The American Academy of Environmental Medicine has recently called upon physicians to inform their patients about the list of health dangers involved with GMOs. After many studies and tests of GM foods fed to animals, scientists reached the conclusion that there is a direct relationship between GM foods and disease. The health of Americans is deteriorating at an astounding rate, and upon reviewing over six hundred scientific journals, world renowned biologist Pushpa M. Bhargava claims that GMOs are a major factor in the issue.

Doctors and physicians across the country are prescribing their patients GM-free diets. They understand the dangers behind these toxic foods. The alarming results of repeated GM food testing in lab animals unveil a stark list of harmful, and even fatal, side effects. The consistencies among the results of sterility, miscarriages, death of newborns, and premature deliveries involving the GMO-fed lab animals are disturbing. Many animals also experienced significant alterations of their DNA. It is no surprise that the US population has been experiencing a rise in low birth weights, infertility, and even infant mortality.

The GM food studies are proof that a leading factor in these staggering health issues is GMOs. The food itself is engineered to produce toxins to kill any predatory bugs by modifying it to produce a built-in pesticide. The geniuses of the Biotech industry state that the widely used pesticide Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) is safe because organic farmers have been using Bt spray for years as insect control. While this assumption is somewhat true, that does not mean that genetically altering a plant's DNA to produce the toxic chemical will be as safe for consumption. The difference is in the fact that the sprayed-on pesticide can be washed off, whereas the same toxins produced within the GM plant cannot be.

In addition to the aforementioned effects that GMOs have on reproduction, studies also show that many immune system complications are on the rise. Otherwise healthy animals that have been grazing on organic plants for years are suddenly dropping dead after being fed GM plants. As if all of these facts were not horrifying enough, here is another one to wrap your head around. Just because you are not currently eating GM foods, it does not mean that you are not currently suffering side effects from past experiences with GMOs. The nature of GMOs is to transfer its pesticide-ridden proteins into insects and bacteria that are feeding on the plant.

As one could imagine, it has the same effect when the GM food enters our bodies. The toxic gene of the GM plant transfers into the DNA of bacteria that we have living inside our digestive system. The danger here is the fact that the toxic genes continue to function, and take over the original DNA of our intestinal bacteria, potentially causing them to produce their own pesticides within our bodies. Unfortunately for us, unless we have been eating GMO-free food since birth (which is highly unlikely), we are all potentially at risk of these side-effects. A good way to remedy the situation before it worsens is to begin using MMS, a natural detoxification supplement available through our sponsor. These problems have been mentioned in warnings from the FDA and scientists since as early as the 1990s, and the agricultural industry has been urged to implement thorough, long-term testing on GM foods. Despite the warnings, our public 'servants' have tabled any opposition.

Instead of taking concern, the White House was promoting biotechnology and allowed biotech companies, such as Monsanto, to determine the safety of their own products. Another fact to keep in mind is that the gentleman that implemented this GM food safety policy (still in effect today) was Monsanto's former attorney, Michael Taylor, who later went on to become Monsanto's vice president, and all the while long, denying any knowledge of scientists' health concerns. So where does that leave us? Here we are, almost two decades later, finding out that we have been living completely at the mercy of biotech companies, and are now suffering greatly for it.
Click here for more information on genetically modified foods >>>

http://blogs.healthfreedomalliance.org/doctors-warn-avoid-genetically-modified-food-2/

Dog-killers again!

2009-06-26T12:31:00.000-07:00

On the 20th of this month the dog-catchers and their filthy with poo rickshaw were found outside a veterinary hospital in Thiruvallom,Trivandrum.There was a dog in there bleeding from the head which most probably had distemper.When I asked the man who was almost attacking me by that time,why isn't a vet attending on the dog as its state was terrible with the bleeding and shaking of the bottom part?,he said to me that he(dog catcher with no vet training) had just given it an anaesthesia.Two dogs had stitches and were half-dizzy and it seemed that they have been operated.I pleaded to him to give the gasping dogs some water but they did not listen and drove off their rickshaw.

If a Dog was your 'Guru'!

2009-04-13T09:26:00.000-07:00

If a dog was the
teacher you would learn stuff like: When
loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
Never pass up the opportunity to go for a
joyride. Allow the experience of fresh air and the
wind in your face to be pure ecstasy. When it's in
your best interest, practice obedience. Let others
know when they've invaded your territory.

Take naps.
Stretch before rising.
Run, romp, and play daily.

Thrive on attention
and let people touch you.

Avoid biting when a simple growl will
do.. On warm days, stop to lie on your back in the grass..

On hot days, drink
lots of water and lie under a shady tree. When you're happy, dance around and wag
your entire body.

No matter how often
you're scolded, don't buy into the guilt thing and pout .... Run right back and
make friends.

Delight in the simple joy of a long
walk. Eat
with gusto and enthusiasm. Stop when you have had enough.

Be loyal.. Never
pretend to be something you're not. If what you want lies buried,
dig until you find it.
When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit
close by and nuzzle them gently.

BE THANKFUL!

And never trust anyone until you have
sniffed their butt....

The Lawlessness in Kerala

2009-03-29T21:12:00.000-07:00

These syringes are too small for administering Therapentine
that too which has to be by a vet.

These are the latest photos of the Trivandrum Corporation's so-called
vet-volunteers who have no veterinary training killing the stray dogs
by injecting cyanide.
The Govt. is doing this therefore making the punishment grave.
The Corporation pays Rs.20/- per dog to these people who have
been through the press(in Govt.'s control) expressing their plight.(!)

According to the law:(If in case of very diseased dogs) Dogs should be
put to sleep using Theraupeuntine that too by a vet.)

What these people do in the name of ABC-AR(Animal Birth Control)
Programme is:

* Kill the strays with cyanide often openly asking the people who
complained about 'menace' for Rs.50/- to buy Cyanide and area
for burial.

*Bury the dogs in some open land near where they are cruelly
caught and killed.

*Sell the Pedigree Dogs found on the streets.

When complained,the police(who have no idea what the law is!)
comes and supports the Corporation.And asks the noble citizen(s)
to write a complaint up and give it at the Police station.Anyway,
that noble citizen can fix his death anniversary as the case would
come up on court on that very day,years after his death.

Meat Intake and Mortality

2009-03-27T20:58:00.000-07:00

INTRODUCTION

Meat intake varies substantially around the
world, but the impact of consuming higher levels
of meat in relation to chronic disease mortality
is ambiguous.1- 6 To increase sample size, pooled
analyses of meat intake have been carried out in
Seventh-Day Adventists in the United States1-2
and other vegetarian populations in Europe.3-6
Vegetarian diets differ from nonvegetarian diets
in several respects. The main sources of protein
in a vegetarian diet are legumes, grains, and
nuts. Vegetarian diets also include higher
intakes of vegetables, unsaturated fats, dietary
fiber, and antioxidants (carotenoids and vitamins
C and E), although they contain lower amounts of
iron, zinc, and vitamin B12. Furthermore, other
lifestyle factors, such as smoking, physical
activity, and alcohol consumption among
vegetarians and members of select religious
groups can differ substantially from the general
population.

We prospectively investigated red, white, and
processed meat intakes as risk factors for total
mortality, as well as cause-specific mortality,
including cancer and cardiovascular disease (CVD)
mortality in a cohort of approximately half a
million men and women enrolled in the National
Institutes of Health (NIH)-AARP (formerly known
as the American Association of Retired Persons)
Diet and Health Study.7 This large prospective
study facilitated the investigation of a wide
range of meat intakes with chronic disease
mortality.

STUDY POPULATION

Individuals aged 50 to 71 years were recruited
from 6 US states (California, Florida, Louisiana,
New Jersey, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania) and
2 metropolitan areas (Atlanta, Georgia, and
Detroit, Michigan) to form a large prospective
cohort, the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study.
Questionnaires on demographic and lifestyle
characteristics, including dietary habits, were
mailed to 3.5 million members of AARP in 1995, as
described in detail elsewhere.7 The NIH-AARP Diet
and Health Study was approved by the Special
Studies Institutional Review Board of the US
National Cancer Institute. Completion of the
baseline questionnaire was considered to imply
informed consent.

DIETARY ASSESSMENT

A 124-item food frequency questionnaire
(http://riskfactor. cancer.gov/ DHQ/forms/ files/shared/ dhq1.2002. sample.pdf)
was completed at baseline. The food frequency
questionnaire collected information on the usual
consumption of foods and drinks and portion sizes
over the last 12 months. The validity of the food
frequency questionnaire was estimated using two
24-hour recalls,8 and the estimated
energy-adjusted correlations ranged from 0.36 to
0.76 for various nutrients and attenuation
factors ranged from 0.24 to 0.68. Red meat intake
was calculated using the frequency of consumption
and portion size information of all types of beef
and pork and included bacon, beef, cold cuts,
ham, hamburger, hotdogs, liver, pork, sausage,
steak, and meats in foods such as pizza, chili,
lasagna, and stew. White meat included chicken,
turkey, and fish and included poultry cold cuts,
chicken mixtures, canned tuna, and low-fat
sausages and low-fat hotdogs made from poultry.
Processed meat included bacon, red meat sausage,
poultry sausage, luncheon meats (red and white
meat), cold cuts (red and white meat), ham,
regular hotdogs and low-fat hotdogs made from
poultry. The components constituting red or white
and processed meats can overlap because both can
include meats such as bacon, sausage, and ham,
while processed meat can also included smoked
turkey and chicken. However, these meat groups
are not used in the same models; thus, they are
not duplicated in any one analysis.

To investigate whether the overall composition
of meat intake was associated with mortality, we
created 3 diet types: high-, medium-, and
low-risk meat diet. To form these diet variables,
red and white meat consumption was energy
adjusted and split into 2 groups using the median
values as cut points. Individuals with red meat
consumption in the upper half and white meat
consumption in the lower half got a score of 1
(high-risk meat diet), those with both red and
white meat consumption in the same half got a
score of 2 (medium-risk meat diet), and those
with red meat consumption in the lower half and
white meat consumption in the upper half got a
score of 3 (low-risk meat diet).

COHORT FOLLOW-UP AND CASE ASCERTAINMENT

Cohort members were followed-up from the date
the baseline questionnaire was returned
(beginning 1995) through December 31, 2005, by
annual linkage of the cohort to the National
Change of Address database maintained by the US
Postal Service and through processing of
undeliverable mail, other address change update
services, and directly from cohort members'
notifications. For matching purposes, we have
virtually complete data on first and last name,
address history, sex, and date of birth.
Follow-up for vital status is performed by annual
linkage of the cohort to the Social Security
Administration Death Master File in the US
verification of vital status, and cause of death
information is provided by follow-up searches of
the National Death Index (NDI) Plus with the
current follow-up for mortality covered until
2005.

CAUSE-SPECIFIC CASE ASCERTAINMENT

Cancer (International Classification of
Diseases, Ninth Revision [ICD-9] codes 140-239
and International Statistical Classification of
Diseases, 10th Revision [ICD-10] codes C00-C44,
C45.0, C45.1, C45.7, C45.9, C48-C97, and D12-D48)
mortality included deaths due to cancers of the
oral cavity and pharynx, digestive tract,
respiratory tract, soft tissue (including heart),
skin (excluding basal and squamous cell
carcinoma), female genital system and breast,
male genital system, urinary tract, endocrine
system, lymphoma, leukemia, and other
miscellaneous cancers.

Cardiovascular disease (ICD-9 codes 390-398,
401-404, 410-438, and 440-448 and ICD-10 codes
I00-I09, I10-I13, I20-I51, and I60-I78) mortality
was from a combination of diseases of the heart;
hypertension without heart disease;
cerebrovascular diseases; atherosclerosis; aortic
aneurysm and dissection; and other diseases of
the arteries, arterioles, and capillaries.

Mortality from injuries and sudden deaths (ICD-9
codes 800-978 and ICD-10 codes U01-U03, V01-Y09,
Y35, Y85-Y86, Y87.0, Y87.1, and Y89.0) included
deaths due to unintentional injury, adverse
effects, suicide, self-inflicted injury,
homicide, and legal intervention.

All others deaths included mortality from
tuberculosis, human immunodeficiency virus, other
infectious and parasitic diseases, septicemia,
diabetes mellitus, Alzheimer disease, stomach and
duodenal ulcers, pneumonia and influenza, chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease and allied
conditions, chronic liver disease and cirrhosis,
nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis,
congenital anomalies, certain conditions
originating in the perinatal period, ill-defined
conditions, and unknown causes of death.

Total mortality is a combination of all of the
aforementioned causes of deaths.

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS

A total of 617 119 persons returned the baseline
questionnaire; of these, we excluded individuals
who moved out of the 8 study areas before
returning the baseline questionnaire (n = 321),
requested to be withdrawn from the study
(n = 829), died before study entry (n = 261), had
duplicate records (n = 179), indicated that they
were not the intended respondent and did not
complete the questionnaire (n = 13 442), provided
no information on gender (n = 6), and did not
answer substantial portions of the questionnaire
or had more than 10 recording errors
(n = 35 679). After these exclusions, we further
removed individuals whose questionnaire was
filled in by someone else on their behalf
(n = 15 760). We excluded 4849 subjects reporting
extreme daily total energy intake defined as more
than 2 interquartile ranges above the 75th
percentile or below the 25th percentile and 140
people who had zero person-years of follow-up.
After all exclusions, our analytic cohort
comprised 322 263 men and 223 390 women.

We estimated hazard ratios (HRs) and 95%
confidence intervals (CIs) with time since entry
into the study as the underlying time metric
using Cox proportional hazards regression models.
Quintile cut points were based on the entire
cohort, and multivariate- adjusted HRs are
reported using the lowest quintile as the
referent category. The violation of the
proportional hazard assumption was investigated
by testing an interaction between a
time-dependent binary covariate, which indicated
if follow-up was in the first 5 years or in the
second 5 years, and the quintile terms for meat
consumption. Dietary variables were energy
adjusted using the nutrient density method, and
meat variables in each model added up to total
meat (addition model). For example, one model
contained both red and white meat, while the
processed meat model also contained a
nonprocessed meat variable.

To address confounding, we used forward stepwise
variable selection to include covariates to
develop the fully adjusted model. Smoking was the
largest confounder of the association between
meat intake and mortality. Physical activity and
education were also important covariates, but not
to the same degree as smoking. The final model
included age (continuous) ; education (<8 years or
unknown, 8-11 years, 12 years [high school], some
college, or college graduate); marital status
(married: yes/no); family history of cancer
(yes/no) (cancer mortality only); race
(non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic black,
Hispanic/Asian/ Pacific Islander/American
Indian/Alaskan native, or unknown); body mass
index (18.5 to <25, 25 to <30, 30 to <35, 35
[calculated as weight in kilograms divided by
height in meters squared]); 31-level smoking
history using smoking status (never, former, or
current), time since quitting for former smokers
and smoking dose; frequency of vigorous physical
activity (never/rarely, 1-3 times/mo, 1-2
times/wk, 3-4 times/wk, 5 times/wk); total energy
intake (continuous) ; alcohol intake (none, 0 to
<5, 5 to <15, 15 to <30, 30 g/d); vitamin
supplement user (1 supplement/mo) ; fruit
consumption (0 to <0.7, 0.7 to <1.2, 1.2 to <1.7,
1.7 to <2.5, 2.5 servings/1000 kcal); vegetable
consumption (0 to <1.3, 1.3 to <1.8, 1.8 to <2.2,
2.2 to <3.0, 3.0 servings/1000 kcal); and
menopausal hormone therapy among women in the
multivariate models.

In subanalyses, we investigated the relation
between meat intake and mortality by smoking
status. We used median values of each quintile to
test for linear trend with 2-sided P values. We
also calculated population-attribut able risks as
an estimate of the percentage of mortality that
could be prevented if individuals adopted intake
levels of participants within the first quintile.
This was computed as 1 minus the ratio consisting
of the sum of the estimated HR (derived from the
Cox proportional hazard regression models) of
each member of the cohort divided by the sum of
the estimated HR for which meat exposure was
assigned to the lowest or highest quintile,
depending on which quintile was the ideal level
of meat consumption. The population-attribut able
risk was multiplied by 100 to convert them to a
percentage. All statistical analyses were carried
out using Statistical Analytic Systems (SAS)
software (SAS Institute Inc, Cary, North
Carolina).

During 10 years of follow-up, there were 47 976
male deaths and 23 276 female deaths. In general,
those in the highest quintile of red meat intake
tended to consume a slightly lower amount of
white meat but a higher amount of processed meat
compared with those in the lowest quintile.
Subjects who consumed more red meat tended to be
married, more likely of non-Hispanic white
ethnicity, more likely a current smoker, have a
higher body mass index, and have a higher daily
intake of energy, total fat, and saturated fat,
and they tended to have lower education and
physical activity levels and lower fruit,
vegetable, fiber, and vitamin supplement intakes
(Table 1).

Table 1. Selected Age-Adjusted Characteristics
of the National Institutes of Health-AARP Cohort
by Red Meat Quintile Categorya

RED MEAT

There was an overall increased risk of total,
cancer, and CVD mortality, as well as all other
deaths in both men (Table 2) and women (Table 3)
in the highest compared with the lowest quintile
of red meat intake in the fully adjusted model.
There was an increased risk associated with death
from injuries and sudden death with higher
consumption of red meat in men but not in women.

Table 2. Multivariate Analysis for Red, White,
and Processed Meat Intake and Total and
Cause-Specific Mortality in Men in the National
Institutes of Health-AARP Diet and Health Studya

Table 3. Multivariate Analysis Red, White, and
Processed Meat Intake and Total and
Cause-Specific Mortality in Women in the National
Institutes of Health-AARP Diet and Health Studya

WHITE MEAT

When comparing the highest with the lowest
quintile of white meat intake, there was an
inverse association for total mortality and
cancer mortality, as well as all other deaths for
both men (Table 2) and women (Table 3). In
contrast, there was a small increase in risk for
CVD mortality in men with higher intake of white
meat. There was no association between white meat
consumption and death from injuries and sudden
death in men or women.

PROCESSED MEAT

There was an overall increased risk of total,
cancer, and CVD mortality, as well as all other
deaths in both men (Table 2) and women (Table 3)
in the highest compared with the lowest quintile
of processed meat intake. In contrast, there was
no association for processed meat intake and
death from injuries and sudden death in either
sex.

A lag analysis, excluding deaths occurring in
the first 2 years of follow-up, produced results
consistent with the main findings in Table 2 and
Table 3. For example, the HRs for total mortality
in men for red meat was as follows: second
quintile HR, 1.05 (95% CI, 1.01-1.09); third
quintile HR, 1.13 (95% CI, 1.09-1.17); fourth
quintile HR, 1.20 (95% CI, 1.16-1.24); and fifth
quintile HR, 1.30 (95% CI, 1.26-1.35). For women,
the HRs were as follows: second quintile HR, 1.07
(95% CI, 1.02-1.12); third quintile HR, 1.15 (95%
CI, 1.11-1.21); fourth quintile HR, 1.27 (95% CI,
1.21-1.33); and fifth quintile HR, 1.35 (95% CI,
1.28-1.42). Furthermore, we investigated our
models for a violation of the proportional hazard
assumption. Proportional hazard assumption was
not rejected for all analyses except one, the
model with red and white meat among the women for
total mortality (P = .008). On further
examination in that model of the relative HR
between the first 5 years of follow-up and the
second 5 years of follow-up, the red meat results
were consistent between the 2 follow-up periods.
However, for white meat, the second 5-year period
showed less of an inverse trend compared with the
first 5-year period (data not shown).

We investigated whether people who consumed a
high-risk meat diet had mortality risk profiles
that were different from people who consumed a
low-risk meat diet. Both men and women who
consumed a low-risk meat diet had statistically
significant lower HRs compared with people who
consumed a high-risk meat diet for all-cause,
cancer, and CVD mortality, as well as all other
deaths; for example, for all-cause mortality, the
HR for a low-risk meat diet was 0.92 (95% CI,
0.80-0.94) for men and 0.80 (95% CI, 0.78-0.84)
for women.

To further explore possible confounding by
smoking, we analyzed meat intake and mortality in
2 subgroups-never smokers (15 413 deaths among
190 135 never smokers) and former/current smokers
(n = 52 754 deaths among 335 036 former/current
smokers). For men, the risks in the fifth
quintile of red meat intake for never and
former/current smokers were as follows: for total
mortality, HR, 1.28 (95% CI, 1.19-1.38), and HR,
1.25 (95% CI, 1.20-1.30), respectively; for
cancer mortality, HR, 1.16 (95% CI, 1.02-1.33),
and HR, 1.17 (95% CI, 1.09-1.24), respectively;
and for CVD mortality, HR, 1.43 (95% CI,
1.25-1.63), and HR, 1.17 (95% CI, 1.10-1.26),
respectively. In women, the risks in the fifth
quintile of red meat intake for never and
former/current smokers were as follows: for total
mortality, HR, 1.36 (95% CI, 1.25-1.48), and HR,
1.28 (95% CI, 1.21-1.35), respectively; for
cancer mortality, HR, 1.10 (95% CI, 0.95-1.27),
and HR, 1.16 (95% CI, 1.06-1.27), respectively;
and for CVD mortality, HR, 1.63 (95% CI,
1.38-1.93), and HR, 1.34 (95% CI, 1.18-1.51),
respectively. Risks were similar for the 2
smoking categories in most instances for
processed meat except for cancer mortality, for
which we found a null relation for both sexes in
never smokers (men: HR, 1.01 [95% CI, 0.88-1.15];
women: HR, 1.02 [95% CI, 0.89-1.17]), but in
former/current smokers we found higher risks
(men: HR, 1.12 [95% CI, 1.05-1.19]; women: HR,
1.11 [95% CI, 1.02-1.21]). Intriguingly, there
was increased risk with higher intake of white
meat for CVD mortality in never smokers (men: HR,
1.24 [95% CI, 1.10-1.40]; women: HR, 1.20 [95%
CI, 1.03-1.41]).

We calculated the population attributable risks,
representing the percentage of deaths that could
be prevented if individuals adopted red or
processed meat intake levels of participants
within the first quintile. For overall mortality,
11% of deaths in men and 16% of deaths in women
could be prevented if people decreased their red
meat consumption to the level of intake in the
first quintile. The impact on CVD mortality was
an 11% decrease in men and a 21% decrease in
women if the red meat consumption was decreased
to the amount consumed by individuals in the
first quintile. The median red meat consumption
based on men and women in the first quintile was
9.8 g/1000 kcal/d compared with 62.5 g/1000
kcal/d in the fifth quintile. For women eating
processed meat at the first quintile level, the
decrease in CVD mortality was approximately 20%.
The median processed meat consumption based on
men and women in the first quintile was 1.6
g/1000 kcal/d compared with 22.6 g/1000 kcal/d in
the fifth quintile.

References

We examined total and cause-specific mortality
in relation to meat consumption in a large
prospective study. We found modest increases in
risk for total mortality, as well as cancer and
CVD mortality, with higher intakes of red and
processed meat in both men and women. In
contrast, higher white meat consumption was
associated with a small decrease in total and
cancer mortality in men and women.

The principal strength of this study is the
large size of the cohort, which provided us the
ability to investigate the relationship of many
deaths (47 976 male deaths and 23 276 female
deaths) within the context of a single study with
a standardized protocol and a wide range of meat
consumption. In contrast, other reports
investigating meat intake in relation to
mortality have pooled data from different studies
conducted in California, the United Kingdom, and
Germany because the numbers of events were
limited in each study.1-6,9- 14 The protocols and
questionnaires in these studies were different,
as were the populations: Seventh-Day Adventists
in California and vegetarians and nonvegetarians
in Europe. Pooled analyses of specialized
populations with distinct healthy lifestyles are
subject to unmeasured confounding. Furthermore,
recall bias and reverse causality were minimized
in our study because diet was assessed prior to
the diagnosis of the conditions that led to death.

There is a possibility that some residual
confounding by smoking may remain; however, we
used a detailed 31-level smoking history variable
and repeated the analyses within smoking status
strata. Within smoking subgroups, we found
consistent results for red, white, and processed
meat intakes; however, there were some intriguing
differences that could be further investigated.
We found a positive association for processed
meat intake and cancer mortality among
former/current smokers but not among never
smokers. This may be because we were still not
able to fully statistically adjust for residual
confounding of smoking because people who eat
processed meat may also smoke. An additional
reason could be that in addition to being exposed
to N-nitroso compounds from processed meats,
smokers inhale carcinogenic chemicals. The
possible reason why there was an increased risk
with white meat consumption among never smokers
is not readily apparent.

Because our cohort was predominantly
non-Hispanic white, more educated, consumed less
fat and red meat and more fiber and fruits and
vegetables, and had fewer current smokers than
similarly aged adults in the US population,
caution should be applied when attempting to
generalize our findings to other populations, 7
although this caution is somewhat tempered
because it is unlikely that the mechanisms
relating meat to mortality differ quantitatively
between our study population and other white
populations older than 50 years. Furthermore, the
population-attribut able risks in our cohort may
be conservative estimates because red and
processed meat consumption may be higher in the
general population than in our cohort.

The inherent limitations of measurement error in
this study are similar to those of any
nutritional epidemiologic study that is based on
recall of usual intake over a given period. We
attempted to reduce measurement error by
adjusting our models for reported energy
intake.15 The correlations for red meat
consumption assessed from the food frequency
questionnaire compared with two 24-hour recall
diaries were 0.62 for men and 0.70 for women, as
reported previously by Schatzkin et al.7 The
problem of residual confounding may still exist
and could explain the relatively small
associations found throughout this study despite
the care taken to adjust for known confounders.

Overall, we did not find statistically
significant association between meat consumption
and deaths from injury and sudden deaths in most
instances. The relative HRs of meat consumption
with the other causes of death (total, cancer,
and CVD mortality) were similar in magnitude in
some cases to those of deaths from injury and
sudden deaths; however, the number of deaths from
injury and sudden deaths was less than the other
causes of deaths, and thus the HRs were generally
not statistically significant. We observed a
higher risk with the category that included "all
other deaths"; this is a broad category with many
heterogeneous conditions (eg, diabetes mellitus,
Alzheimer disease, stomach and duodenal ulcers,
chronic liver disease, cirrhosis, nephritis,
nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis), some of which
may be positively related to meat intake.

There are various mechanisms by which meat may
be related to mortality. In relation to cancer,
meat is a source of several multisite
carcinogens, including heterocyclic amines and
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, 16-21 which are
both formed during high-temperature cooking of
meat, as well as N-nitroso compounds.22- 23 Iron
in red meat may increase oxidative damage and
increase the formation of N-nitroso
compounds.24- 27 Furthermore, meat is a major
source of saturated fat, which has been
positively associated with breast28-30 and
colorectal cancer.31

In relation to CVD, elevated blood pressure has
been shown to be positively associated with
higher intakes of red and processed meat, even
though the mechanism is unclear, except that
possibly meat may substitute for other beneficial
foods such as grains, fruits, or vegetables.32
Mean plasma total cholesterol, low-density
lipoprotein cholesterol, very-low-density
lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglyceride levels
were found to be decreased in subjects who
substituted red meat with fish.33-34 Vegetarians
have lower arachidonic, eicosapentaenoic, and
docosahexaenoic acid levels and higher linoleate
and antioxidant levels in platelet phospholipids;
such a biochemical profile may be related to
decreased atherogenesis and thrombogenesis. 34-36

Red and processed meat intakes, as well as a
high-risk meat diet, were associated with a
modest increase in risk of total mortality,
cancer, and CVD mortality in both men and women.
In contrast, high white meat intake and a
low-risk meat diet was associated with a small
decrease in total and cancer mortality. These
results complement the recommendations by the
American Institute for Cancer Research and the
World Cancer Research Fund to reduce red and
processed meat intake to decrease cancer
incidence.31 Future research should investigate
the relation between subtypes of meat and
specific causes of mortality.

2009-01-17T04:47:00.000-08:00

Vote to Ban the cruel Game Of Jallikatu here:

www.jallikatu.com

The only fair argument they have is that they have

people associated with it who will become jobless;

You know the situation in India,

Can't they clean up the roads?

Fight Against -The War against Humanity!

2008-12-07T00:34:00.000-08:00

This is a very inspiring letter from one of our friends!
_______________________________________

Dear Friends,

Firstly I would like to thank you all for the love, support, prayers and good wishes extended to me over the last few days. I would like to reply to all you messages one by one but it will be impossible to do in such a short time frame. It was these messages that kept me going for the last few days giving me hope and comfort.

As many of you might know from email and newspaper articles my father was trapped in the Oberoi hotel for 36 hours. He was eating dinner with his two close friends Anand Bhatt and Pankaj Shah, both of whom have been father figures to me over the last several years. The three of them were trapped along with another fifteen people in the Kandhar restaurant when the terrorist arrived. They were all marched up fifteen or so flights of stairs up to a landing in the fire escape where two terrorists lined them up and opened fire with AK 47s. A bullet grazed my father's neck and he collapsed on the floor with all the bodies piling up on top of him. Some how he and 3 others managed to survive hiding among the dead bodies for the next two days. We lost both Anandbhai and Pankaj Uncle in the shooting.

My father is now safe at home with minor wounds, which will heal, but the damage of losing such dear friends and good people continue to haunt us. Somehow with the help of God and all our friends we hope that one day we can reclaim the innocence of life which is now so lost to us.

There are several stories I can tell you.... tales of near escape, luck and sheer heroism. I am inspired and touched by the many brave men and women who gave their lives to perform their duty and know that somewhere they are with God. To their families I give my deepest condolences and pray to God that somehow one day we can understand why they fell to such madness.

Today I attended the march outside the Gateway of India ... the press were calling it the gateway of anger and in many ways they are right. I saw the impassioned youth of India frustrated with the ineptness and impotence of our leaders. I saw a spark in their eyes that fills me with a hope that we can change this city and this country. The youth are educated and strong and believe in a better country for us all. Their strength will carry us forward into the next phase of our country.

I only wish to ask a few things of everyone that reads this... things that have become clear to me over the last few days. I shall list them down point by point.

The following is my action plan for the rest of my life... what I will take away from this experience.

1) Do not preach violence and war without first understanding its true nature. I spent 2 nights hearing the guns and grenades going off from outside the hotel and imagined my father in there. What I felt at that moment I would not wish on any family in the world. We must not let our passions take control of us and become the very same demons that held our city hostage. Our response must be measured educated and precise. Please do not ask for anything more from your leaders.

2) Corruption is the cancer of our society and has now shown how it can cripple us. Politicians are too busy making money to carry out their work. This again starts with you and me. From today I promise never to bribe another government servant. I will go to every businessman I know and ask him to do the same. Please let us collectively rid our nation of this poison.

3) Train yourself mentally and physically to protect yourself and your family. Learn a martial art or basic self-defense. If everyone in these hotels knew how to react to violence maybe we may have overcome this situation sooner. If you do not wish to learn to fight, learn basic first aid and lifesaving techniques. We are heading to a situation of war soon and these skills will serve us well in the future.

4) Be involved with an NGO/govt org/ prayer group. Connect with your society and help to uplift it with money and time. We now have to be concerned with what goes on outside the doors of our apartments and bungalows. Educate a poor child and he will be an asset in the future not an easy recruit for terrorists and criminals. Reach across communal borders and get to know other religions. It is only after we start this dialogue on the basic level will we be able to be undivided when the terrorists try to divide us.

5) Love and cherish your family and friends... even the ones who you think are weird and different. The sheer number of people who supported our family through this crisis has been amazing... people who I haven't spoken to for years have reached out with love support and prayers. It's only after incidents like these that you realize how petty your day-to-day problems are. The terrorists didn't check whether the people they shot were Hindu, Muslim, rich, poor, ugly, well dressed etc etc.... They just shot.... we should not differentiate between people when we share our love and support. If you can make a sad person smile for me you are a hero.

6) Fear nothing except fear itself.... your destiny is written.... if the bullet had been one centimeter off my father would have been dead.... never be scared.... be bold and be brave and when the time comes you will meet your maker with dignity.

7) Stand up for what's right... support those who do ...

8) Smile, dance, sing enjoy the beautiful world that god has given us. Plant a tree and give back to nature. Life is fleeting and if you don't enjoy it what's the point.

9) Confront your guilt and stand up to your fears. Apologize to those you have wronged and forgive yourself for the wrongs you have committed.

A few messages I wish to convey -

To the terrorists and people who committed this cowardly act I want to thank you for exposing our weakness so now we may become strong, for hurting our pride so that we may be humble, for scaring us to that we can be brave, for angering us so that we can unite. You have served as an alarm clock for a sleeping giant and I hope that one day I can meet you face to face and show you how wicked and weak you hearts are.

To the people of Pakistan ... I know that you have been victims of terror too and I pray to God that you have the strength and clarity to face the demons that exist in your country. Money and power mean nothing without the love of your friends and family and it is now time to stand up and fight for what's decent and right. Its time to stop letting the jihadis and self-serving govt officials fool you. Take control of your country - never forget that we were once one proud nation and the same breed of men split us apart. We are with you in body heart and spirit.

To fellow Indians.... never forget where you came from ... we have inspired the world before and the time has come again... never again is a casualty or death acceptable... be it a poor man in a train or a rich man in a five star hotel... We must protect our children and our motherland with blood, sweat and tears.

To my friends and family ... you are the most important part of my life and without you there is no meaning. I hope you are safe and happy wherever you may be and hopefully we will be together soon.

with all my love always,

Romil Parikh

--
---------
"If the doors of perception are cleansed, reality will appear to man as it truly is, infinite" - William Blake

George Fernandes's Letter condemning Dog Killings In Kerala

2008-04-29T21:08:00.000-07:00

bitter gourd grown on roof...houseplant??

2008-04-05T12:07:00.000-07:00

This is on the rooftop

of The Bhima Club where you can see a bittergourd

(very very bitter thing,of course you can make criss

out of them or pickles) plant coming up on a pot

of ornamental palm plant..apprently it had grown

the remains of a overripe bittergourd which

Abhed put on the pot as a manure>>>"i will let

them grow...till where they reach-i've put up

somesticks;eventhough they make my

look awful from outside..that's okay..."

says him

2008-03-20T21:07:00.000-07:00

Monday, March 10, 2008

Dhoni sacrifices Goat in a Ranchi Temple

Indian ODI skipper M S Dhoni is in news again, but not for cricket.

Dhoni today visited a temple in Ranchi and sacrificed a

goat as part of temple rituals. He was seen performing all religious

functions along with the temple priest.

He did so in the presence of some political leaders and officials.
Although animal sacrifice is very common in Jharkhand,

the issue might snowball further, as Dhoni is associated with

national pride and millions of cricket fans look to him as an idol.

He has become a symbol of 'youth icon' in a very short period.

However, the latest development could put him in trouble.

The live footage of this ceremony is being telecasted by Star

News, Aaj Tak and INDIA TV again and again.

Save our companimal friends in Kerala

2008-03-19T22:22:00.000-07:00

Kerala has been BRUTALLY Killing,
Dogs, Turtles, Rabbits,
and all animals for a long time now.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/boycott-kerala-tourism-to-save-animal-slaughter

The government, local Environment & Forest Department
and the representatives of the government entrusted with
PROTECTING the wild life and animals are themselves flouting
the laws.The ILLEGAL act happens in the open in front of children
, people and tourists.
The barbarism with which the people, government and
everybody is KILLING, SKINNING ALIVE & TORTURING
the poor animals is indescribable.

The following links have proof enough to substantiate
our claims :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mj00Q3n_ADU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4W78O29U5h4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbddYO-Rjw
http://picasaweb.google.com/rishidev000/KeralaTurtleFarming2007
http://picasaweb.google.com/rishidev000/Kerela
http://picasaweb.google.com/rishidev000/KerelaDogKillingsPressCoverage

This PETITION AIMS AT "BOYCOTTING" KERALA by appealing to
all countries and their citizens not to visit Kerala as a TOURIST,
till all this stops.

This petition would be submitted to the :

1) Ministry of Tourism
2) State Government of Kerala
3) Central government of India

and other authorities to let them know that
KERALA'S MAIN SOURCE OF REVENUE,
i.e. T O U R I S M INDUSTRY is being
targetted by the people of this world.

Please do sign this petition and ask others to do,
this will directly tell the authorities, that people have
participated actively by choosing not to come to Kerala.
Please remember if tourism comes down in Kerala,
the whole state economy is affected severly.

This is the only way of making them see our concern and the pain of the speechless animals.

Plz do sign this petition!!!!!Save our friends!!!

Save Kerala's turtles

2008-02-26T22:36:00.000-08:00

An investigation by animal welfare volunteers at the Vizhinjam fishing Harbour in Trivandrum, Kerala proved that the local fishermen are still selling marine turtles and there had been more than a hundred catches in the past few weeks/months.We could spot more than 150-200 shells and carcasses of the turtles.On the same day when we went there there were 2 exhibited to be sold at the local market shed just behind a police outpost.We had also visited the marine aquarium run by the govt. where there were aquariumtubs with no plants and withexotic dead fishes.The state of the turtles at the aquarium was the most piteous as there were ket in a tank in the hot sun with water level just upto their noses and no visible food provided.The water was hot and the poor ones would have been suffering much.There were also two small tubs made of plastic/fibre which would hold much heat in which more baby-turtles were there. An animal protected by laws and international treaties including CITES sold right under the noses of policemen.

Please watch the following video:(turtle carcasses scattered around the place)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EOMSVU-hVoQ
Turtles are skinned alive without any pity:[SOME PEOPLE MAY FIND THIS DISTURBING]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mj00Q3n_ADU

Please join hands to save the turtles in keralaFor pictures..visit- www.saveturtleskerala.blogspot.com email- saveturtleskerala@live.com
Hoping to get good support from all,
R.Abhed Kiran
The BHIMA Club
Trivandrum
www.freewebs.com/thebhimaclub
thebhimaclub@aol.in

Save The Padmathirtha...

2008-01-01T08:00:00.000-08:00

The Vriksha Team's investigation led to a very disturbing result..on the Padmathirtha Pond of Shree Padmananabhaswamy Temple in Trivandrum city that attracts lakhs of tourists from around the globe per year..the photo that folows shows the piteous state of the former majestic pond

Our organization on behalf of responsible citizens demand to the Padmanabhaswamy temple trust :

> To completely stop the system of allowing public to bathe in the pond with soap which is athreat to the wildlife and also pollutes the eco-system

> To stop giving of popcorn which is fed to the fish in plastic covers which are thrown into the pond by the public and causes damage and death of fishes by suffocation,Instead it can be given to the public in newspaper bits and should be strictly be put into wate bins after use

>They should also make a regulation to check the dumping of wastes from shops and restaurents in the fort area around the pond and wrong-doers should be striclty punished

CLEAN INDIA 2007 CONFERENCE

2008-01-01T07:37:00.000-08:00

The Conference conducted by CLEAN India funded by European Union and managed by Development Alternatives in India 2007 was attended by Charioteer Abhed representing the county and the organization...

>>>A stall exhibit was also put up by us (3rd pic)

>>>>Solar powered eco-car was drove by our charioteer around the public garden to popularise susutainable transport(4th pic)

ARK

2007-12-26T08:40:00.000-08:00

The mare at Animal Rescue Centre

puppies at ARK

The Bhima Club- International Animal Day 2006 Conference

2007-11-21T23:03:00.000-08:00

The Bhima Club Animal Day 2006 Quiz Competition And Finals

2007-11-21T21:54:00.000-08:00

The Bhima Club International World Animal Day functions At Trivandrum City

The Killing of Dogs in TMC has begun again

2007-11-06T19:48:00.000-08:00

The Killing of stray dogs in Trivandrum Municipal Corporation has begun again...Even though it is illegal by law in India to kill dogs and other stray animals,the poisoning of street dogs has begun by the corporation. All of you who are reading this please join hands to save our Indian DOG(s) from brutal killing.

The Dogs Are poisoned/given sedative injections and buried in open pits just after it.

All Those interested in direct protest to this/fundraising activity or awareness programme plz mail me at rakbhima @rediffmail.com

ARK-Animal Rescue Kerala

2007-11-06T10:35:00.000-08:00

Animal Rescue Kerala

Animal Rescue Kerala (ARK) is a charitable organisation , founded in 2002 by Avis Lyons. The centre has charitable trust status (trust number 187-2005).

This charity is recognised by The World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) and The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI).When we started working in Kerala there was a tremendous problem of stray, sick and injured dogs and cats. The centre has a fully equipped treatment clinic, kenneling for up to 200 dogs, a cattery and an education centre. We employ six full time staff, a veterinary doctor, veterinary nurse, two dog handlers and two kennel staff. We carry out sterilisations, and deal with all emergencies that come into the centre, such as dogs from road accidents, or wounds that are infected. A regular stream of people visits throughout the day, usually the poor seeking medical help and advice for their animals. People come from miles around to bring their sick animals to the centre for treatment.

Sterilisation Programme

We run an Animal Birth Control Programme (ABC) and Anti-Rabies (AR) Vaccination Programme approved by the Animal Welfare Board of India. Each month, ARK sterilises up to 75 dogs and 20 cats and vaccinates them against rabies. This programme aims to establish a healthy, friendly and rabies free stray animal population which ultimately benefits local communities. In certain parts of India where ABC-AR Programmes have been implemented, rabies has been eradicated.

It is statistically proven that sterilisation is more effective for controlling dog population levels than the killing of the dogs by local government bodies in a cruel and inhumane manner. Killing or the removal of stray dogs has proved completely ineffective in controlling stray dog population’s, rabies and other diseases. This is because the dogs that are removed are easily replaced by other dogs that have not yet been sterilised and vaccinated. Sterilisation ensures bitches benefit from the available food instead of producing unwanted litters of puppies and also helps to stop male dogs fighting over bitches in season. Many male dogs get injured in fights, their wounds quickly become infested with maggots and this can lead to a slow lingering death.

It costs about Rs.600 to sterilise and vaccinate a dog or cat.

Helping animals and people

We work closely with various government and non-governmental organisations to ensure the continuation of our sterilisation and vaccination Programme. Through our educational work at local schools and community projects we are raising awareness about animal welfare issues and promoting responsible pet ownership.

Our work in Kerala is having a beneficial impact not only on animals, but on humans too. Local communities and tourists no longer find large numbers of sick and injured dogs and cats on the streets and beaches, cases of dog bites and human rabies have significantly been reduced.

Expanding our work

We aim to expand our work to cover new areas and constantly strive to improve the services we provide. Improvements have been made to the lives of animals here and large numbers of dead and dying puppies and kittens in local villages and on the beaches are thankfully no longer regular occurances. Since we are expanding rapidly our overheads are increasing at an alarming rate, funding is always our main concern.

A helping hand

ARK is supported by volunteers and animal lovers. We always need volunteers with medical experience such as veterinary doctors, veterinary students and nurses. We also need non-medical volunteers for walking dogs, grooming, fundraising, increasing awareness of our work and befriending stray dogs that we need to catch to sterilise.

We encourage people to help us by arranging for animals to be sterilised. Apart from this, food is obviously essential, and the animal should also be wormed and treated for fleas.

Where to find us

We are happy to welcome visitors to the centre. We are located in Channelkkara road, Muttakadu, 5 minutes by rickshaw from Kovalam beach. All rickshaw drivers should be able to find us easily. (Ask the rickshaw driver for K.S. road from Kovalam junction then ask for Animal rescue Kerala).

Finding sick and injured animals

If you find a sick or injured animal you can telephone ARK on 0471 2796202 and we will do our very best to help.

We appeal to you to make an effort on behalf of the animals and raise funds or donate to help us achieve even more in the future

Volunteers needed....ANIMAL RESCUE KERALA

2007-11-06T10:27:00.000-08:00

Animal Rescue Kerala
+91-(0471)-2796202

Stop Press A second vet is urgently needed to help with the increased work load
Please contact us if you can help.

Volunteers are very welcome and always needed. We particularly invite trainee vets. who may want to have some experience in this field or just offer their skills for a good cause.

Of course anyone is welcome regardless of experience as there is always lots to do at the centre. A very important and necessary job is to distribute our leaflets to people on the beach to raise awareness of the centre and hopefully donations, if you can spare just some of your time whilst on holiday we would be very grateful.

Accomodation is at the centre in the volunteers cottage

Approximately 60 dogs are sterilised per month, plus 30 to 40 being cared for in the kennels, that doesn't include the 25 or so dogs that live at the centre.

Additionally there are a number of puppies, cats and kittens .

Kerala is also one of Indias most popular destinations so there are lots of reasons to come along.

Interested PERSONS PLZ>>> Mail me - rakbhima@rediffmail.com

Plzzz click here.....

2007-11-04T01:40:00.001-07:00

View this....just takes 5 seconds plzzzzz!!!!

http://www.petadishoom.com/ecard/vsk_flash/index.asp

From .
The Bhima Club Team

Exclusive Interview With B4U Music VJ Shamita Singha

2007-11-04T01:09:00.000-07:00

Most people recognise Shamita Singha from her days as Miss India Earth 2001 and walks down the runway. But before Shamita dove head first into the world of professional modelling, she was already an accomplished animal rights activist and outspoken vegetarian. Now a popular host on B4U Music, Shamita continues her work in behalf of animals and agreed to sit down with petaDishoom to talk about how she makes compassion a part of her everyday life.

How long have you been vegetarian, and why did you make the switch?
I turned vegetarian when I was quite young because I realised that if I really love animals, then I can’t eat them – and I was not very fond of meat even before, as it’s not fresh. It’s dead, and you don’t want to eat something which is dead, as it is not healthy and not good for your body. So, I somehow realised that 12 years ago. And since then, I have been promoting vegetarianism.

Does being vegetarian help you keep your body fit in the competitive modelling field?
People are always asking me, “How do you maintain yourself, and how are you glowing all the time, happy and energetic all the time, with such hectic work hours?” So I tell them that firstly, I’m a veg and so I eat a lot of veggies, salads and fruits, and those foods are alive, so I’m alive! And in terms of working out, I get all my energy from my veggies and fresh stuff.

Do you wear leather?
I don’t wear leather at all. I wear the false leather Rexene. And I always make sure all my shoes and bags are non-leather, because the way leather is made is horrible. I don’t even do fashion shows which use leather in them. Also, if my stylist gets me anything in leather, I refuse to wear it, so I don’t associate with that at all.

Tell us some incidents in which you have helped an animal.
I have been associated with many animal organisations – long before I got into modelling – so I have done many rescues and animal raids. I have rescued birds in cages. My favourite is rescuing snakes from snake charmers. Initially, I was scared of snakes, but later I realised that they are so harmless and such lazy animals and so beautiful, especially when you feel them in your hands. Also, I’m a member of the Animal Welfare Board of India, and to get that membership, you need to go through this course where you learn first aid for animals like horses, dogs and cats. I have also rescued a lot of stray kittens.

What is your message to young people who are just learning about animal rights?
No matter where you live – even in a crazy city like Mumbai – you can always be kind to animals. In your everyday life, try not to eat meat; try to live on vegetarian food. Trust me; try it for only two months – there are a lot of options, and it is more healthy and tasty. I’m sure you wouldn’t want to eat meat ever again. Secondly, if you ever see an animal in distress on the road, try to help; contact any animal welfare group that will come to do a rescue, or you can do it yourself. First aid is very simple. Like you would give first aid to a child at home who falls and is cut or wounded, you can give first aid to an animal in the same way.

And just remember that you share the planet with animals – it is not for us only. Since we share the world with them, be a little compassionate; be a little kind to them and help them. If there is a lost puppy or kitten, try to find a home so that the animal is safe. Just be kind to animals – they are always kind to us, so we should be kind to them.

The Horror of the Indian Leather Trade

2007-11-02T23:41:00.001-07:00

Abuse and Murder
For seven years, PETA India and its affiliates have conducted undercover investigations into the transport and slaughter conditions that are endured by the cows, buffaloes, sheep and goats who are used in the Indian leather trade. The leather produced from the skins of these animals is exported throughout the world, including to the US and Europe.

The investigators have gathered graphic evidence of the widespread illegal abuse of these animals as well as evidence of unhygienic and dangerous conditions in slaughter facilities. The animals are subjected to cruelty that includes being crammed into lorries in such large numbers that many become severely injured when they are crushed or gouged by the horns of other animals. Many of them die en route. The evidence also reveals that most of the animals are dragged into abattoirs before they are cut open – often with dirty, blunt knives and in full view of one another – on floors that are covered with feces, blood, guts and urine. Some animals are even skinned and dismembered while they are still conscious.

Broken Promises
A downed cowThe investigations have also brought to light the fact that – despite the directives that top Indian government officials gave to state governments and the assurances that they made to the public regarding improvements in animal welfare six years ago – virtually no improvements in the treatment of animals have taken place. Abattoirs continue to be unsanitary and to pollute the environment; unlicensed, illegal abattoirs remain in operation; animal-transport conditions remain deplorable; and even though it is required by law to do so, the government has failed to form enough branches of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to enforce the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act of 1960 and its rules governing the transport and slaughter of animals.

Blatant Crime
India’s own minimal animal protection laws regarding transport and slaughter are blatantly ignored, and although it claims to have an Animal Welfare Reform Programme, the Indian Council for Leather Exports (CLE) refuses to take any action to prevent leather-selling businesses from obtaining hides and skins from unlicensed, illegal abattoirs. Animals of all ages, including small calves, are illegally killed and used in the leather trade.

The Supreme Court
PETA India has a case pending before the Indian Supreme Court against the Union of India, each state-level government and the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) for their failure to enforce animal protection laws and for allowing the unnecessary and extreme suffering of animals who are used for leather and meat. The Court has publicly expressed its shock at the evidence of cruelty that PETA India has submitted.

In fact, more than one year ago, the Supreme Court directed the AWBI to inform it, within a month, about steps that the Board was taking to prevent cruelty to animals.

The AWBI was then to set up an inspection plan for abattoirs throughout the country. To date, there is still no suitable abattoir-inspection system in India. The Supreme Court has also directed the government of Tamil Nadu to address and rectify the illegal abuse of animals used for meat and leather there, but it has not done so.

The Skin Traders
The CLE’s supposed Animal Welfare Reform Programme lacks the vigour and commitment that are required in order for concrete and long-lasting improvements to be made in animals’ lives. Almost one year ago, PETA India and its affiliates called upon the CLE to come to the negotiating table by offering it a draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

Animals are slaughtered with blunt knives and in full view of each other.The MoU raises issues that are considered crucial to animal welfare. It asks that the Indian leather industry end its support of abattoirs that are operating illegally; end its support of municipal abattoirs that have been condemned for animal welfare violations; undertake at least three reform projects a year in order to improve the animal-handling process from the market through transport and slaughter; and move towards procuring hides and skins only from markets, transporters and abattoirs that adhere to India’s animal protection laws.

After sitting on the MoU for nine months, the CLE ultimately refused to even negotiate with PETA.

Support for Animals Abused in the Indian Leather Trade
When PETA’s campaign to alleviate the suffering of animals used for leather was first launched in 2000, about 40 major companies stated that they would not use leather sourced from Indian animals. An estimated US$68 million was reportedly lost by the Indian leather industry as a result of these companies’ decisions not to support unlawful cruelty. The campaign also gained the support of celebrities all around the world, including His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Sir Paul McCartney, Pamela Anderson, Jackie Chan and others.

Recently, US retailer Liz Claiborne – which has annual sales of US$4.8 billion – has assured PETA US that it will not use leather from India. Kenneth Cole, another US retailer, which has annual sales of US$518 million – has also weighed in, giving its commitment to PETA US that it will not sell leather produced from Indian animals.

You Can Help

* The best thing that you can do to help animals is not to eat or wear them. Let others know about the abuse that animals endure and ask them to say no to meat and leather too.
* Write to the CLE and ask that Indian leather traders stop supporting the illegal treatment of animals who are used in leather production and that the organisation initiate and adhere to a plan that will have a real and positive impact on the lives of the animals used in this trade:

Dr K. Elangovan, IAS
Executive Director
Council for Leather Exports
3rd Floor, CMDA Tower II
Gandhi Irwin Bridge Road
Egmore, Chennai 600 008
+91-44-28594367
+91-44-28594363/64 (fax)
cle@cleindia.com; cle@vsnl.com

* Write to government officials and ask them to take steps to stop the illegal cruelty that animals endure during transport and slaughter:

His Excellency Manmohan Singh
Prime Minister of India
Room 152
South Block
New Delhi 110 001
+91-(0)11-23012312
+91-(0)11-23016857 (fax)
http://pmindia.nic.in/write.htm (e-mail available via Web site)

Shri Kamal Nath
Minister of Commerce & Industry
Government of India
Udyog Bhawan
New Delhi 110 011
+91-(0)11-23061008
+91-(0)11-23061492 (fax)
commerce.hub@nic.in

Rakhi Sawant Strips Down to Stripes for Circus Animals

2007-11-02T23:34:00.000-07:00

When well-known item girl and Bigg Boss housemate Rakhi Sawant learned how animal “performers” are bullied and beaten under the “Big Top”, she pounced on the chance to pose for a new PETA India anti-circus ad. In the provocative ad, Rakhi – who was transformed into a tiger by body-paint expert Al Alva – crouches in a small cage holding a sign reading, “Circus: No Fun for Animals”.

Why is Rakhi fighting mad about animal acts? Animals used in circuses lead miserable lives. Animals do not voluntarily ride bicycles, stand on their heads or jump through rings of fire. They do not perform these and other confusing tricks because they want to; they perform because they are afraid not to. Trainers use whips, bullhooks, prods and other torturous tools to beat animals into submission and obedience. There is no such thing as “positive reinforcement” – only varying degrees of punishment and deprivation.

Even though regulations prohibit animal performances unless the exhibitor registers with the Animal Welfare Board of India, many circuses blatantly disregard the rules. Since no government agency monitors or regulates training sessions, animals are often beaten, whipped, chained and confined to tiny cages behind the scenes.

In May 2001, the Supreme Court of India upheld a 1998 central government notification banning circus owners from training or exhibiting bears, monkeys, tigers, panthers and lions. In spite of this, many circuses continue to make these animals perform ï¿½ in blatant violation of the law. If you see that any of these species are forced to perform, contact your local law enforcement agency and demand that it intervene.

2007-10-05T03:42:00.000-07:00

Shilpa Shetty Speaks Up About Cruelty to Animals in Circuses
In a hot new ad for petaDishoom, Shilpa Shetty – stripped down to stripes – crouches in a small cage with a look of despair on her face to illustrate the misery of animals used by circuses. Shot by ace photographer Atul Kasbekar, the ad encourages the actor’s legions of fans to boycott circuses with animal acts. Shilpa makes the case dressed in a figure-hugging bodysuit, her make-up compliments of glamour make-up artist Cory Walia.

Download the poster and make it your wallpaper. And be sure to stick it on any computer that you come across – we suggest starting with the ones on campus and in Internet cafés.This month marks the anniversary of the gruesome incident in which 21 animals, including sea lions, dogs and cats, belonging to the Russian circus burned alive in Mumbai. Shilpa is reminding everyone who might be tempted to go to a circus that animals in circuses are sorely abused, often inadequately fed and routinely hit with whips and rods and even electric shock pods to make them obey commands for a few moments of unenlightened public amusement.
Shilpa and petaDishoom remind people that circuses portray a distorted view of wildlife. In contrast to the glittery image the circus tries to project, the lives of animals who are forced to perform repetitious, confusing and often painful tricks are miserable. Animals do not naturally ride bicycles, stand on their heads or jump through rings of fire, so circus handlers use whips, electric shock prods and other tools of torture to train them. Circus animals work based on fear, knowing they will be hurt badly if they do not obey. Tigers do not jump through rings of fire in the wild – they are afraid of fire and avoid it desperately. Bears may have their noses broken during training or their paws burned to force them to stand and walk on their hind legs, and their toes are beaten in training if they do not “dance”. Even the animals’ access to basic necessities such as clean water, sufficient food and vital veterinary care is often ignored or severely limited.

Shilpa says, “By no means was I comfortable during the photo shoot crouched in that small cage. But what were a few fleeting moments of discomfort for me compared to what life must be like for the precious animals held captive in the circus? These once dignified animals only leave their cages, which are barely larger than the size of their bodies, for a few minutes each day to be forced into the ring to perform tricks which make no sense and are upsetting to them. The best way to help animals suffering in circuses is to boycott the circus”.
Using bears, monkeys, tigers, panthers and lions in circuses is not only cruel, it is also in violation of a 1998 Central Government notification, which was upheld in May 2001 by the Supreme Court. The notification specifically bans circus owners from training or exhibiting the five named species, yet circuses throughout India continue to display these animals in direct contravention of the law.

The use of animals in entertainment has been restricted or banned in Sweden, Finland, Switzerland and Denmark, and in England, circuses with animal acts are often denied public space. Several local governments in the US have also banned exotic-animal acts, and if these places can move towards animal-free circuses, why can’t India?

2007-10-05T03:38:00.000-07:00

Following an 18-month campaign by PETA, the city of Mumbai has announced that elephants will no longer be allowed in the city. The campaign featured high-profile advertisements against elephants in captivity starring actors Rahul Khanna and Celina Jaitley; letters written by MP Shatrughan Sinha and MP Maneka Gandhi; and a petition signed by Dilip Kumar, Saira Banu, John Abraham, MP Priya Dutt, Sanjay Leela Bansali, Isha Koppikar, Mahesh Bhatt, Yana Gupta and Gulshan Grover. Mumbai's compassionate decision will spare many elephants a lifetime of abuse and neglect. It has sent a powerful message to other towns and cities across the country to reexamine their local laws and enforcement regarding the care, use and treatment of elephants and the very example of this is the state of Assam. On receiving the order, PETA rewrote to other states asking them to follow Mumbai's compassionate decision. In response to this, Mr MC Malakar – Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Chief Wildlife Warden – Assam, issued a circular asking his officials to enforce the Wildlife Protection Act 1972, and confiscate all elephants who are being used for begging. For a copy of this circular, please click here. To see the letter written by PETA on why elephants should not remain in captivity, please click here.The ban comes on the heels of a report – which PETA presented to the Mumbai commissioner of police and the chief conservator of forests, Thane Circle pointing out many of the problems associated with allowing elephants on roads and outside temples in the city, including cruelty to animals, the threat to human life and property, and the possible transmission to humans of tuberculosis and anthrax. PETA also pointed out the violations of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960; the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972; the Performing Animals (Registration) Rule, 2001; the Bombay Prevention of Begging Act, 1959; and the Bombay Police Act with regard to the importation and use of elephants in Mumbai. Click here to read PETA's letter. Elephants in Mumbai are forced to walk on scorching-hot, pothole-ridden roads in busy traffic amid a cacophony of horns and engines. When they are not working, they are chained by their legs – unable even to move a single foot. They suffer from skin and foot ailments, eye infections and cataracts. In 2006, an elephant named Laxmi was hit by a water tanker in Mumbai. Because proper medical attention could not be provided, Laxmi suffered with her injuries for more than a day before dying. Another elephant in Mumbai was frightened by a fire cracker and fell onto a car. The mahout fled the scene, and the elephant went on a rampage, requiring an entire platoon of SRPF and 60 police personnel to subdue her. Elephants are social animals; in the wild, females live in close-knit family groups. They spend about 18 hours a day walking, feeding, bathing in water holes and interacting with other elephants. They are known to mourn the loss of relatives, just as humans do. In captivity, elephants are separated from their families as babies and are sentenced to a lifetime of boredom, loneliness and abuse. Last month, John Abraham, Mike Pandey and PETA met with Shri Babbanrao Pachpute, Maharashtra's minister of state for forests. At the meeting, the minister gave his assurance for setting up an elephant sanctuary in Maharashtra for the captive elephants in the state. We are now asking other states to follow suit and not only ban the usage of captive elephants but set up elephant sanctuaries so that captive elephants in the states will be able to get a lifetime of care. Of course, we also are insisting that no one should be allowed to get any more captive elephants. Apart from this, the elephants in some of the temples in Kerala have also found some relief. Veterinary officials say the elephants, which are decorated with heavy ornaments and large idols, get upset because of the big crowds which attend the festivals and the long hours that they must spend under the scorching sun. The elephants often run amok, trampling people. In Kerala, 40 elephant handlers or mahouts and 45 onlookers died in 2006 and 15 mahouts and six members of the public have been killed already this year.

2007-10-05T03:26:00.000-07:00

Alicia Silverstone’s New Vegetarian Ad and Cruelty-Free Giveaway

Alicia Silverstone wants you to go vegan. In fact, she'll stop at nothing to convince you that ridding your life of animal products is really the best thing you can do for animals – and for your health, too, in case you care about that. Why, she even appears in our new ad to show you just how sexy vegans can be. As if that weren't enough, she also has a special message for you about what being vegan means to her and how it's changed her life – obviously she's doing something right; she wasn't crowned World's Sexiest Vegetarian in 2004 for nothing!

Like most people, I wasn’t always a vegetarian, but I’ve always loved animals. If you ever have a chance to meet a cow, pig, turkey or goat, you will see that they are just as cute and funny as your dogs and cats and that they, too, want to live and feel love. They don’t like pain. Now when I see a steak, it makes me feel sad and sick because right away, I see my dog or the amazing cows I met at a sanctuary. I’ve been vegan for nine years, and it’s the single-most important and helpful decision I have ever made. Physically, the effect has been amazing. Once I went vegan, I lost the weight I wanted to lose, my nails were stronger and my skin was glowing. I feel great. Being vegan truly is the secret to my life’s joy and peace. I feel physically and spiritually better than I could have ever imagined knowing that I am doing everything I can to reduce animal suffering with simple lifestyle choices like being vegan, never wearing any products made from animals (like wool and leather) and buying only from companies that NEVER test their products or ingredients on animals. Join me – won’t you? Together, we can make the world a more peaceful place for animals.

2007-10-04T02:56:00.000-07:00

Cut Out Cruelty With Sapna >>>>>

Sapna Bhavnani leads a colourful life. And it's not just because the tattooed trendsetter has more ink than your school's library! Voted the "Most Tattooed Mumbaikar" by Time Out magazine, Sapna is – first and foremost – Mumbai's hairstylist to the stars. As the owner of the hot Mad-O-Wot hair salon, Sapna routinely clips the coifs of a bevy of Bollywood celebrities, including John Abraham, Hrithik Roshan, Sanjay Dutt, Bipasha Basu, Kareena Kapoor, Koena Mitra and Yana Gupta. Besides being one of the most sought-after stylists around, Sapna also pens a popular weekly column for the Mumbai Mirror and starred in the hit comedy film Pyaar Ke Side Effects. From her body art to her fashion sense to her thoughts on how animals should be treated, Sapna is always on the cutting edge. She recently chatted with us:

You went to HR College of Commerce?
Yes. Well, I only went to HR College of Commerce for two years and then moved to America for 14 years, where I studied in Los Angeles. When I was in LA, I worked with [animal] rescue groups.

When did you move back to India?
I actually moved back here three years ago. I used to star in music videos in LA … and when I moved here, I decided I would pursue my other favourite passion, which was cutting hair. So I got trained in cutting hair, and then I worked at a salon for a year and a half. I got pretty bored of the salon environment. I even worked on a movie set, but I didn't like it. I finally decided to do something at my own place, where I would just have fun every day.

We heard you have around 50 or 60 tattoos.
Yeah, I can't even count them anymore, because now they're becoming one big tattoo. You see, I am in the process of tattooing my whole arm. So I guess then it would just become one, but if I were to count them individually, then yes, it would be like 50-something.

You obviously have a fashion philosophy which goes beyond just looking good. What is your fashion philosophy? What are the tattoos all about?
I think that all designers get their inspiration from the street. I think it is wrong to pay more for fashion, especially since it changes all the time. I wear anything and everything. I don't believe in night-time/daytime fashion. I wear whatever I am in the mood for, so if it is gold sequence in the daytime while I am cutting hair, so be it. And it's also how you carry it off. If you feel confident and think you can rock it, then rock it!

You come across as a person who is against oppression of any kind. What do you think about animals who are kept in cages in zoos for their entire lives, who cannot engage in any of their natural activities?
Ah! I definitely think that is wrong because it is unnatural to be caged for life. I think everyone should have freedom, and unfortunately, animals in zoos aren't given freedom.

Would you like to share any interesting stories involving your animal friends?
My own dogs are all from the shelter. I had nine cats at one point, who were all from shelters, all neutered or spayed. I think every moment with them is so much fun. In America, I used to go on road trips with my dogs every summer. The pet culture over there is so huge – like, there are motels that are specifically geared for your animals and there are restaurants that allow you to take your dog inside. So there was never a place where I wanted to go but couldn't because I had pets. The best road trip that I ever took was with my dogs Elvis and Bingo and my cat, Purple. I remember it was really late and I was getting sleepy from driving, so I thought, "I will just spend the night here". Only truckers hung out there. I was the only girl. I fell asleep, and all of a sudden, I heard Bingo going crazy barking. I woke up and saw a man walking towards my car. Bingo just sensed that there might be danger. The guy came closer and closer to my car. I was kind of scared, so I told the guy, "Dude, you come over here and my dog's going to kill you", and he's like, "Ma'am, I just wanted to tell you that you have a flat tire". It was quite embarrassing!

Do you think it's important that people spay or neuter their dogs?
It's very important. The last thing we need is more strays on the street. And spaying/neutering is healthier for the dogs.
I am also against breeding animals. It would be beautiful if people would adopt strays. When people see Missy Senior and Missy Junior, they are like, "What breed is that?" And when I tell them they are [mutts], they are surprised. They are so beautiful!

What do you think about circuses that use animals? I actually went to an Indian circus just to check out how the animals are treated, and when I walked in, it was so depressing. I saw malnourished elephants. Just looking at the way they were being treated was really frustrating. This was the case with all the animals, so I definitely think it is wrong. It's basically centuries of ignorance that we need to break through. Persistence is the only way that you are going to get there.

What would you like to say to young people about animal protection?

[I]f you are not very responsible, then please don't adopt an animal, because that is the worst thing you could do. Please don't go to a breeder and get these big dogs just because you think it is cool. An animal is a responsibility and commitment which you should be prepared to take up. If you're ready for an animal, adopt a stray.

[Courtesy-PETA (People For Ethical Treatment of Animals]

www.petadishoom.com

2007-10-04T01:45:00.000-07:00

PUNDIT RAVI SHANKAR CALLS ON FANS TO BOYCOTT KFC OVER CHICKEN ABUSE

New Delhi – For decades, his musical influence has spanned the globe. Now, renowned musician Pundit Ravi Shankar is urging KFC – which serves more than 850 million chickens each year – to end the worst abuses its chickens suffer and is asking his fans to boycott the fast-food chain until it does so.
As Pundit Ravi Shankar points out in a letter sent on behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India to David Novak – CEO of KFC’s parent company, Yum! Brands – PETA investigations in India, the United States, Germany, Australia and the United Kingdom have documented the routine and sadistic abuse of chickens by KFC suppliers, showing that conscious birds were maimed by killing machines and scalded to death in defeathering tanks and that they had their heads torn off and their faces spray-painted for "fun".
KFC has consistently ignored recommendations made by its own animal welfare panel, prompting five members to resign.
"Chickens are inquisitive animals who are at least as intelligent as cats, dogs and even some primates", writes Pundit Ravi Shankar. "When in their natural surroundings, rather than on factory farms, they form friendships and social hierarchies, recognise one another, care for their young and enjoy a full life of dust-bathing, making nests, roosting in trees and more."
He continues: "You have the ability and the opportunity to decrease the shocking abuse of these interesting, sensitive individuals. … Until you do, I will be calling on all compassionate people across the world to boycott KFC".

Pundit Ravi Shankar joins a growing list of celebrities urging KFC to eliminate the worst abuses its chickens suffer, including his daughter, Anoushka Shankar – who wrote to KFC in 2004 – Pamela Anderson, Sir Paul McCartney and His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
For more information, please visit http://www.petaindia.com/. Pundit Ravi Shankar’s letter to Yum! Brands CEO David Novak follows.

Stop SETHUSAMUDRAM PROJECT.............!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-10-03T09:04:00.000-07:00

In the wake of Sethu Samudram Project, it is a known fact that the historically and religiously important Rama’s Bridge would be demolished to make way for a new shipping canal between India and Sri Lanka. A few political parties have raised security concerns over this idea and a few other experts have raised eyebrows on the economic benefits this project could offer. However, I have done no research on that subject and would not speak about security concerns and economic benefits. Besides security issues and economic viability the said project is attached to an extremely sensitive issue of history and religion.It is highly surprising how the said project was approved and cleared by various departments (especially geology and archeological departments). It is understandable that the said project has not gone to their purview because no archeological activity or geological research is happening in the current site. However, in the wake of said allegations by various political parties, non-governmental organizations and religious institutions, these departments could have made a suo moto response to the Union Ministry of Shipping & Transport to halt the project till a research is commenced and concluded in the said site. The ministry in a self-confession in the parliament has come out with a statement saying that ‘no archeological work has been done in the said Rama’s Bridge site’. In that case, it is highly inappropriate to demolish a structure which has a historical and religious importance without a proper justified research backing the decision.Relevant to this case, there are a few questions that are still unaddressed, say,

1) First and foremost question is that whether the said bridge is man-made or a geological phenomenon.

2) If it were a geological phenomenon it would assume a great importance for geologists and scientists, making it very important for us to preserve it. It would probably become the oldest natural rock formation in India and the biggest and oldest natural rock formation of the world and the only one under the sea.

3) If it were man-made but not built by Rama, still it is of extreme importance as an archeological site. Probably it would classify as one of the man-made wonders of the world and the oldest ever man-made bridge to exist.

4) If archeologists and theologists can prove it to be anywhere closer related to Shri Rama, the importance would be the greatest, since it has a religious connotation and probably the biggest find relating the religion (especially Dharmic) and also of archeological importance attached with religion.

Answers to these questions would certainly direct us to only one conclusion – the Rama’s Bridge should not be touched for demolition. It might/might not be a religious site, but it is certainly beyond even what we call as “precious”. It is a natural phenomenon which has surprised scientists and geologists by its sheer existence.If Indian government tries demolishing Rama’s bridge for enabling a shipping canal project, I might probably even think that the government might take Qutab Minar off the place because it disrupts traffic. I do not think the UPA government would want themselves to be equated with the Taliban who destroyed Bamiyan Budhas while the whole world witnessed. In both cases of Taliban and UPA government the action is the same, destroying of world heritage, while only the motive is different.

After all, it should And will be preserved!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

JAI Shri Rama Chandra Mahaprabhu ki!!!!!!!!!

A Messiah for Animals.. That's Madam Avis Lyons>>>>

2007-10-03T08:39:00.000-07:00

Avis was born in London, and lived there until 1990 when she moved to Romford in Essex.In december 2000, whilst on holiday in Kerala with her daughter,she became extremlyupset and moved by the condition of the beach dogs, she noticed that all the female dogshad had pups, but there were no puppies to be found.When she returned to England she was determined to do something about the situation.
She approached International Animal Rescue, I.A.R., an organisation based in Goa, Indiawith head offices in the U.K. As a result she set up a centre in Kovalam, Kerala under their umbrella.In 2002 she rented a former private hospital which became both home and clinic for Avis and her animals.Owing to the success of this venture,and the overwhelming need for a permenant centre of this kind Avis sold her house in the U.K. andstarted this charity (ARK)in its own right. She has brought some land and had built a centre with 60 kennels.
There is a fully equiped treatment clinic, and an education centre. Across the road are the much needed living quarters, that also home many of the disabled animals that can't fend for themselves and have become permanent residents.The land is about an acre and also has the puppy house.

The Bhima Club- International Organization for Students

2007-10-03T08:26:00.000-07:00

THE BHIMA CLUB

welcomes you to ur blog ................................