SNAKE BOAT RACE - KERALA

Hi friends..Recently i got a chance to visit kerela and i felt very happy and the luckiest person too as i had a chance to look at the snake boat race-a traditional and interesting sport even we can say as festival there. I collected some information that the snake boat races in Kerala are the outstanding events that brings alive the calm backwaters. It is held in connection with Onam, the harvest festival in August-September. It is the largest team sport in the world and lead by colourful water parades. Thousands of people gather at lakes to cheer the huge black crafts as they slice through the waters to a spectacular finish. One of the oldest and most popular boat races in Kerala is Champakulam Moolam Boat Race which is connected to Sree Krishna Temple at Ambalappuzha. This race is conducted on Champakulam Lake on the moolam day of Midhunam, the Malayalam month. Some of the boat races held during the months of August–September are Rajiv Gandhi Boat Race, ATDC Boat Race, Neerettupuram Boat Race, Kumarakom Arpookara Vanitha Jalamela, Karuvatta Boat Race, Thazhathangadi Boat Race, Kottayam Mahatma Boat Race and Kumaranasan Smaraka Jalotsavam. Indira Gandhi Boat Race is held on the Ernakulam Lake during the Cochin Carnival in December last week. I hope you like it and will bring you many interesting facts later...

HIGH UNEMPLOYMENT IN U.K.

Unemployment is the hot topic prevails on most og the people of all ages. I read in article that it is at all time high in U.K as there was an increase of 281,000 in the number of unemployed people in three months to May. According to the Office of National Statistics, there are 2.38 million unemployed people in U.K. This is the highest unemployment in U.K. in more than 10 years with unemployment rate hitting 7.6%. The degree of the problem becomes more visible when we see an increase of 23,800, in the month of June, in the number of people who are taking unemployment benefits.

Highest unemployment growth has been in the group of young people. With 726,000 unemployed young people, this is the highest unemployment since last 16 years for young people. Another concern is that the number of young people out of work for over a year has gone up to 528,000, highest in last 11 years. I thinh this problem will get solved soon as lot of steps have been taken by US president that helps people staying all over the world. Lets wait and watch...

GOOGLE's EFFORTS TO STOP PORNOGRAPHY

Google would step up efforts to stop pornography reaching users in China after a mainland watchdog found the search engine turned up a large number of links to obscene and vulgar sites. It said that it had renewed efforts to keep the internet in China clean after noticing criticism by the China Internet Illegal Information Reporting Center. Google Inc. said that it would step up efforts to stop pornography reaching users in China. "We have been continually working to deal with pornographic content, and material that is harmful to children, on the Web in China," company said.

The watchdog said that despite official warnings, Google was still failing to "filter pornographic contents from its search engine results according to China's relevant laws and regulations." It said tests found that the search engine provided links to a large number of lewd and vulgar pictures, videos and articles, though it gave no specific examples.

China, which has the world's largest population of Internet users at more than 298 million, also has one of the world's tightest controls over the Internet. The government bans online pornography and this year launched a nationwide crackdown that led to the closing of more than 1,900 Web sites.Google, headquartered in Mountain View, California, has struggled to expand in China, where it says it has about 30 per cent of the search market. China's homegrown Baidu search engine remains the most popular, with about 60 per cent of the market.

SOLAR ECLIPSE WITNESSED FROM VARANASI

Solar eclipse starts at 5.31am in Varanasi which is being witnessed despite cloud cover. At 6am a lot of action Assi Ghat, Varanasi. The eclipse is at 60% at the moment. Thousands of bathers streaming in, chanting Hare Ram, Hare Ram. Meanwhile, Varanasi seems to be one of the only sites in the totality zone where the cloud cover is only partial, giving us breathtaking views of the sun through the naked eye as it passes through thin clouds. Sharply at 6.20am it's 4 minutes to totality. The sunshine has turned a pale yellow, it's suddenly gone dark and the noise from the bathers is reaching a crescendo and the air has suddenly turned cool.

At 6.26am, it was pure magic. Seconds before totality, a diamond ring formed in the sky sparkling with stunning beauty. Seconds later, all went dark. The sun was totally eclipsed. It's the end of the eclipse at 7.2am. From the position at the rooftop of a hotel at Assi ghat, i can see hundreds of bathers still swarming in for a dip in the Ganga. The most expected areas Taregana, Patna, Sasaram  all missed the totality to clouds, except for Sasaram where it was visible for 10 seconds. I guess, I am incredibly lucky to have seen the sight of century. I've attached some of its images...enjoy

AJITH's 50th film produced by Aascar Ravichandran

Followed by grand success of ‘Dasavatharam’ and ‘Vaaranam Aayiram’, Aascar Ravichandran witnessed average success with ‘Aanandha Thandavam’. Now, he has signed deal with Vijay’s 51st film that is to be directed by Jeyam Raja. Meanwhile, here’s great news for all the fans of Ultimate Star ‘Ajith Kumar’.

It has been confirmed that Aascar Ravichandran would be producing the 50th film of Ajith too that is yet to be titled. Well, when it comes to the director, Ajith isn’t straining himself like Vijay who has fixed his filmmaker for next couple of films much before ‘Vettaikaaran’. Ajith has all the focus set on ‘ASAL’ directed by Saran and would then choose the filmmakers. Sources closer to him have been reporting that it would be SJ Suryah, A.R. Murugadoss or Venkat Prabhu wielding

WORST MEDIA BLOOPER

Times Of India yesterday shamelessly published a news saying Vinod Kambli in a TV interview said Sachin let him down when he could have helped him to make a comeback to the Indian team.This made a huge headlines and worst reality show is that no one even confirmed the news and this is shameful from a national media because the truth is it was a and Vinod Kambli was asked some questions and he was connected to lie detector and the lie detector showed that he answered negatively for those questions asked by the particular reporter.Now this is ridiculous.Because the lie detector narco analysis is just to frighten criminals but they have not cracked a single case including the Abdul Karim Telgi stamp paper scam.So its just a gimmick and if this finds a place in national newspaper I am afraid there is no need for media.

There can't be a humble person than Kambli and he has every right to file a defamation suit against all people who shamelessly tarnished him and trying to create ripples between one of the natural pairs in Indian cricketing history.Forget all these is this the way you treat a national icon like Sachin by accusing a friend as a traitor.

SULTAN THE WARRIOR - TRAILER

Sultan The Warrior is a forthcoming Indian feature computer- animation film.The film is expected to be released worldwide in July 2009 with 3,500 prints, the highest amount yet in Indian cinema, and is expected to be released in eighteen different languages, including english, tamil, hindi and telugu.The film stars an animated version of Rajinikanth in the lead role, which will also be voiced by him. It will be produced and directed by Soundarya Rajinikanth, daughter of Rajinikanth.

Google’s Free SMS tips in Africa

Google has announced the launch of Google SMS in Africa, where cell phones are prevalent but the internet penetration is low. Google SMS is a suite of mobile application, which will allow people to access information, via SMS, on a diverse number of topics including health and agriculture tips, news, local weather, sports and more. Most mobile devices in Africa only have voice and SMS capabilities, and so they are focusing our technological efforts in that continent on SMS.

Another service Google SMS Tips enables a mobile phone user to have a Web search-like experience. You enter a free form text query, and Google's algorithms restructure the query to identify keywords, search a database to identify relevant answers and return the most relevant answer.

The Internet search and advertising giant expects to improve search quality and the breadth and depth of content on Google SMS, especially on Tips and Trader. Google SMS is by no means a finished product, but that's what's both exciting and challenging about this Endeavour, the company says.

DIRECTORS MARCHING TOWARDS BOLLYWOOD

Directors-Actors Sasi Kumar and Samudrakani are best friends who make it a point to cast the other in the film that one of them directs. Having starred in the Samudrakani-directed Nadodigal, which has turned out to be a huge hit, Sasi Kumar is all set to direct a film soon. He made an announcement a few days ago. However, the latest news we have is that the film will be made in Hindi too. Sasi Kumar has already instructed his buddy Samudrakani to tone down his weight for this film. He also plans to sign up Abhinaya, the speech and hearing impaired girl, who played an important role in Nadodigal. After the actresses, the directors are marching towards Bollywood!!

BUSINESS OF WRITING CRICKET BOOKS

Every Australian cricketer ends up writing a few autobiographical books. Each book has a liberal dose of controversial things written about Indian cricket and its cricketers. The news hungry Indian media laps up the controversy and rakes up a storm (I wouldn’t be surprised if the publishers and media are hand in glove here).The controversy involving their beloved cricketers takes a cricket crazy nation by storm. Then a lot of books sell in India. Probabaly more than the numbers sold in Australia itself. After all few Australians would be interested in reading so much about Indian cricketers. (I am really interested in knowing the sales numbers split between the two countries). Australian cricketers make easy money. Wonder why cricketers from other nations haven’t gotten into the act yet?

MARUTHANAYAGAM - THRILLING TRAILER

Hi friends.. This is the trailer video of a legendary film-Maruthanayagam which was conceived by Kamal Haasan after his vivid research from the pages of ancient history. The film was launched by Queen Elizabeth before few years and Kamal Haasan was on seventh cloud with extreme happiness. But due to financial constraints, producers of the film backed off and the project got shelved. After many many years now, Kamal Haasan gets new hopes with India-UK Film Corporation getting collaborated. The agreement was signed between British Government and various Countries where talented filmmakers are unable to produce their works. This treaty will not alone turn dream projects into reality but get them sold internationally by making western countries aware about those projects. So, when ‘Marmayogi’ dropped off, it’s ‘Maruthanayagam’ brimming him up with more hopes.

GOOGLE LAUNCHES OS

Google Inc. is planning to hit Microsoft Corp. where it hurts by challenging the software giant's dominance in the world of computer operating systems. The search firm said that it will begin offering its own operating system, called Chrome, in the second half of 2010. While Google already offers a host of products that compete with Microsoft, the new operating system is a direct challenge to Microsoft Windows, which is the most widely used operating system in the world.The new system will initially be targeted at netbooks which are small, inexpensive laptop computers used mostly for Internet access.

Google said the new operating system will make use of open source programming, which allows third-party developers to design compatible add-onsMany netbooks currently run a version of Linux, or Microsoft's old operating system, Windows XP. Microsoft has said its current Vista operating system is too big to run on the scaled-down laptops, but it said netbooks will be able to run its Windows 7 OS, set to debut in late October. The new operating system comes after Google launched its Chrome Internet browser late last year.

DEEPIKA PADUKONE LOST TO AAMIR KHAN

Deepika Padukone recently faced defeat at the hands of Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan. No, it wasn’t a box-office face off or even a war of words. The actors played a badminton match against each other at the Cricket Club of India (CCI) last week. Padukone teamed up with her father, badminton pro Prakash Padukone, and Aamir partnered with badminton player Aparna Popat, at an exhibition game before the final of the Tata Open Badminton Tournament. Though it was a close match, Aamir and Aparna bagged the win. But Deepika wasn’t upset.

For the 23-year-old actress, success and failure are all part of the game. The daughter of a badminton ace, Deepika feels that her background has equipped her to balance the highs and lows in the film industry. “I know how to deal with success and failure. I have learnt this as a sportsperson myself and from my father,” Deepika said. She added “she does not regret making her relationship with Ranbir Kapoor public. If you deny or accept that you are a couple, there is a problem. But we have learnt to keep details of our relationship private. Speculation and controversies are other side of being an actor”.

TENNIS QUEEN TURNS QUEEN SOHRAB

India’s tennis queen, Sania Mirza broke many hearts as she got engaged to childhood friend Sohrab Mirza in a private ceremony here at hotel Taj. It was attended by a few special and close invitees, close to 300, including Indian tennis ace Mahesh Bhupathi, south movie star Chiranjeevi and some political personalities. Sohrab will pursue MBA in Britain and his father owns a chain of bakeries in the city.

The engagement of the Indian tennis' poster girl also put to rest all the speculation about her romantic links with sport stars and bollywood actors.The 22-year-old Hyderbadi has been linked with Pakistani tennis player Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi and bollywood actor Shahid Kapur and also Telugu superstar Navdeep in the recent past.

Sania's father Imran Mirza had earlier made it clear that Sania would continue playing the game after her engagement and the wedding would take place a couple of years later. Sania, India's first female player to win a Grand Slam title, is likely to leave for America later this month to participate in the US open and other competitions.

IRFAN PATHAN TO MARRY SHIVANGI

It is a decision that could ruin millions of hearts. Baroda bomb man" Irfan Pathan (24) is set to marry long time friend Shivangi Dev, daughter of an Indian diplomat in Australia . Pathan, who has known Shivangi in six years, "said That their parents had finally given its recognition for wedding. "We know each other very well now. I first met his lady love in Canberra in 2003.It will take some time, but in Vadodara, there will be a traditional wedding" he said.

Talk about their first meeting, Pathan told : "She was very shy and not talk much during our first meeting. It took a while before we were good with each other and got into context." So who proposed first? "I was the one who suggested her about three years ago. I was in Vadodara when I phoned her and asked her if she would marry me," he said. She said yes. Originally there was some opposition from both families. "Now, our families have accepted our relationship," he adds. Shivangi who visited Irfan home twice, works as an accountant in Australia and also teaches dance to children. "She is a very good dance teacher and has a large fan following in her dance school," said Irfan, who visited her at school.

WINDOWS ON SCREEN KEYBOARD

Did u know that you can put a keyboard on your computer screen and actually type with it? If that sounds interesting to you, then follow these directions. Go to start, run and type “osk” (without quotes). In Vista, just type it in the search bar. Click OK and a mini keyboard will pop on your screen. Now open up the program you want to write in and start clicking the letters on the keyboard with your mouse. The letters will appear and your typing will be done.

This may not be the quickest, but if you like to use your mouse & you don’t exactly like typing in keyboard. Once you the keyboard on your screen, you can even go to settings and choose your own font & size. Sound option also provided by choosing “ use clicking sound”. In the keyboard menu, you can also choose the number of keys you would like to have displayed, between 101,120 and 106. There’s also a help menu & if you need any further help figuring it all out… Happy Learning

What's cheaper, what's costlier ?

Presenting the Union Budget for 2009-10, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee proposed reduced customs duty on LCD TVs to 5 per cent from existing 10 per cent, making the product cheaper. Prices of thin flat screen TVs and monitors will come down as the government lowered the basic customs duty on LCD panels used in manufacturing of such electronic goods to 5 per cent from 10 per cent. Besides, the government extended the exemption from full 4 per cent CVD on accessories, parts and components that are imported for making mobile phones, by one year. He also announced reducing basic customs duty on permanent magnets -- a critical component for Wind Operated Electricity Generators -- to five per cent from 7.5 per cent. But I don’t know what is done for bringing food items prices down? Just see any Daal is not lesser than Rs60/- per kg. Normal rice are being sold at 30-40/- per Kg. What is Congress doing by showing LCD prices lower by 5%. I feel that it’s a Third Grade budget by fourth class FM.

HIGHLIGHTS OF RAILWAY BUDGET 2009-10

- No hike in passenger fares, freight charges

- Rs 1,102 crore allocated towards improving passenger amenities

- Kolkata metro to be extended

- Rs 50 billion increase in budgetary support in 2009-10

- Freight target for 2009-10 set at 882 million tonnes

- Target set in interim budget unrealistic

- Freight cargo increased 5% in 2008-09

- One doctor to be posted on each long distance train

- Rs.25 monthly pass for unorganised sector employees with income below Rs 1,500 for travel up to 100 km

- New "Yuva" fully air-conditioned train for youth

- Yuva fares Rs.299 up to a distance of 1,500 km and Rs 399 up to 2,500 km

- Student concession to be extended to madarssa students

- Student concession of 60 percent on Kolkata Metro

- Introduction of trains for women during peak seasons

- 12 non-stop trains

- New train information system to be started in Kolkata, Chennai, Delhi

- 50 mobile rail ticket vans to be introduced

- ATMs on 200 mid and small-sized stations

- Integrated security scheme for 140 vulnerable stations

- Setting up of a 1,000 MW power plant

- Special recruitment drive for the physically challenged, minorities

- Committee under Sam Pitroda to commercialise railways' optic fibre network

- Private operation of freight terminals to be encouraged

- New factory in West Bengal for making 500 state-of-the-art coaches annually

- "Janta khana" (peoples' food) to be provided at railway stations

- Railways will not be guided by economic viability, but by social commitment

- Seven nursing colleges to provide employment to railway spouses

- Medical colleges proposed to be opened through public-private partnership model

- Cold storages and cargo facilities to eliminate wastage of perishables

- 50 world class stations to be developed on public-private partnership model

- 309 out of 375 stations will be developed with modern facilities

- 50 stations at tourist, religious places to have integrated facilities

- Infotainment facilities on Rajdhani Express for long distance passengers

- Unreserved ticketing systems to be expanded from 5,000 to 8,000 terminals

- Passengers can buy unreserved tickets at 5,000 post offices

- Air-conditioned double-decker trains for inter-city travel

- SMS updates for wait-listed passengers

- 200 automatic vending machines at key stations for selling tickets

- Discount for press correspondents increased from 30 to 50%

- Discount of 60% on fare if press correspondents travel with spouse