“Life itself was only futility, vain words, a squabble of cap and bells. ”     VBA's Positive News Britain's Prince Charles and Duchess touring Jordan Prince Charles and his wife, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, are on a three-day official visit to Jordan as part of a regional tour. The visit is aimed at examining the plight of Syrian refugees and boosting cooperation with their country. The visit is part of a 10-day trip to the Middle East. In Jordan on their first stop, Charles addressed Muslim and Christian religious leaders during a visit to the King Hussein mosque in Amman on Tuesday. Camilla visited a children's museum and a local school renovated in a project of Jordan's Queen Rania.      Cisco to set up tech training centres in Myanmar Cisco Systems plans to establish two network training centres in Myanmar, as global technology companies begin to move into one of the least-connected places on Earth. The announcement came on the heels of a USAID-sponsored technology delegation to the fast-opening country. The technology delegation was geared toward technology education.      .     Former US President Clinton awards more than $700,000 to Haiti farms A charity for former US President Bill Clinton awarded more than $700,000 to develop the country's agriculture sector. Mr Clinton has been the United Nations' special envoy to Haiti since shortly before the devastating 2010 earthquake. 'The country has been beat down so long and the controversies are so familiar to people that it's sometimes too easy to see the down side. I'm not naive. I know what the down side is,' he told The Associated Press. But, even so, he said, 'This is a place of staggering potential.' Jewish museum in Poland unveils synagogue roof A Jewish history museum in Warsaw has unveiled a reconstructed synagogue roof with an elaborately painted ceiling modelled on a 17th-century structure, presenting the first object that will go on permanent display in the highly awaited museum. Museum developers and others say they expect the Museum of the History of Polish Jews to become one of the world's pre-eminent Jewish history museums. Poland was once home to the world's largest Jewish community.     Video of the Day:

World Round-Up

Political + BJP gears up to corner Sheila Dikshit government in Delhi Assembly today       New Delhi: The Delhi Assembly Budget Session will kick off on Wednesday and the BJP is gearing up to corner the ruling party on women's safety, hike in power tariff, water tariff and on delays in the regularisation of unauthorized colonies. The Opposition is also set to raise the spending of Rs 3,500 crore on cleaning of the Yamuna and how the courts have passed strictures against the Delhi Government in the matter. The Congress has said it would welcome a discussion on any issue of public interest raised by the BJP. The BJP on Tuesday had sought resignation of Speaker Yoganand Shastri citing "serious remarks" made against him by the city Lokayukta on a complaint of alleged corruption and misuse of public funds. Leader of Opposition in the Assembly VK Malhotra, in a letter to Lt Governor Tejendra Khanna, requested him to advise Shastri to step down "on moral grounds" in the wake of remarks by Lokayukta Justice Manmohan Sarin but the Speaker rejected the allegations and said he was ready for any kind of probe. The complaint against Shastri has been filed by former Secretary of Delhi Legislative Assembly Siddharth Rao in which he made allegations of corruption and misuse of public funds and amenities to the tune of several crores of rupees by the Speaker. Shastri vehemently rejected all the allegations and claimed that Rao was trying to "blackmail" him. "He (Rao) is trying to blackmail me. These allegations are motivated and totally baseless. I am ready for any kind of probe. I totally reject the charges," he said. Malhotra also said that the BJP will try to corner the government on law and order situation and "failure" of the Transport department to regulate public transport in the city even after massive public outrage in the wake of the December 16 gangrape. Malhotra said despite public protests following the incident, Delhi government has not done anything to regulate public transport so that women can travel safely in the city. The Congress, however, said it was ready to confront the opposition and they should not be shying away from participating in the discussions. "We are ready to discuss any issue in the House. We will be happy if BJP participate in the discussions. They are not interested in welfare of people of Delhi and always resort to theatrics on each and every issue," said Mukesh Sharma, Parliamentary Secretary of Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit. Dikshit, who is also holding the portfolio of Finance department, will present the Budget for the year 2013-14 on March 20. Addressing a press conference, Speaker of the Assembly Yoganand Shastri today said said notices for a total of 844 questions have been received by the assembly secretariat from the MLAs so far. Shastri said government will present a number of bills including "The Delhi Water Board (Amendment) Bill, 2013" in the House. Astrology Aries March 21 to April 19 You may want to watch the comments you make if you are involved with ongoing projects or other events that are reaching a conclusion. This would be a good opportunity to end on a high note, and you may have that potential if you can navigate the slippery slope of communications. This may be an excellent time to strive for clarity and compromise in all areas of your work and connections. With Mercury in retrograde, you may want to try to seek the middle way and allow all parties to have their say in all matters.                                             Taurus April 20 to May 20 Financial talks and prospects may tempt you during this cycle as Jupiter moves through that sector of your life. This may be a time of collaboration with others where your combined contributions make an otherwise impossible investment possible. As you may already know, the details will inevitably hold the truth, so be certain to review your obligations and expectations before you agree to any long term commitments. The plan that comes up for consideration may require some further explanation before you move on it, so step cautiously.                                    Gemini May 21 to June 20 You may have a lot to say regarding work matters, so keep that in the back of your mind as you enter into meetings and negotiations with others. You have strong points to make but you may want to be diplomatic and spend as much time listening as you do presenting. Your willingness to absorb others' views may work well in your favor in the long run. With your ruling planet in retrograde, you may want to review what's being said before you act, just to be on the safe side of things.                             Cancer June 21 to July 22  There may be much for you to gather while you are on a trip or deep into an educational pursuit. The day seems to have expansion written all over it, and this may really speak to your intuitive side. You may be particularly open to absorbing new concepts and putting away those that may not serve you anymore. You may feel ideas and concepts at a very real, gut level and may be fascinated by new knowledge that comes your way.                                                     Leo July 23 to Aug. 22  That bold creative part of you may be eager to extend your reach in a manner that involves organizations or maybe a charity. This may be where your influence and leadership really has an opportunity to shine. You may want to ensure that your ideas are taken seriously and with complete accuracy, especially with Mercury in retrograde. This little planet rules communication, and sometimes things get scrambled, so bear that in mind for a few weeks.                                BUSINESS+VE                                                                              World Bank president steps into 'world of the poor'         The district administration here made best of efforts to present a pretty picture. But the World Bank chief Dr Jim Yong Kim was obviously not moved. What touched him instead was the rampant poverty that he saw everywhere. "People here are extremely poor. They don't have access to clean drinking water, roads, sanitation and electricity," he said after visiting a Gwaltoli slum in Kanpur. "They (the people) struggle for two morsels of bread," he added. Kim was in the city on Tuesday as part of his endeavour to help India and Uttar Pradesh fight extreme poverty, boost shared prosperity and help in making urban centres more livable. Shunning his motorcade, he chose to walk straight into the slums and was swayed by the plight of the people. Assuring the underprivileged of all assistance, Kim appeared dissatisfied with the use (read diversion) of funds released by the World Bank for poverty alleviation. He said the utilisation of the financial help would be reviewed. He also expressed his displeasure at the condition of the Ganga. "I haven't seen such a big river in such bad state. It looks more like a drain than a river." Calling for immediate measures to improve the river's health, he said all help was being extended for cleaning the river and if needed a special package could be considered. "Making it pure should be a collective responsibility." In his six-hour long halt in the city, he first traversed the length and breadth of Dilsahri Khurd - a village in Sarsaul block that was decked up overnight. Here he had an intense interaction with villagers, particularly women. This was followed by a visit to the Gwaltoli slums, where, amidst a shower of flower petals, he was given a traditional welcome with aarti and tilak. "My dream is to bring happiness and end poverty. The World Bank is working on poverty alleviation and changing the living conditions of many," Kim told reporters. "I am honoured to be in Kanpur where I saw the world of the poor so closely," he added.  HEALTH+VE                                                              'Eating wisely calls for self-control'       People who successfully control their diet eat fewer unhealthy foods because they are satisfied sooner, a study shows.   Some people can exercise real self-control when it comes to eating while others overindulge on unhealthy cookies and candies.   Do the former have more willpower? Or are they simply satisfied more quickly? In a series of experiments, researchers from Texas A&M University found that people with poor self-control were able to establish greater control when they paid close attention to the quantities of unhealthy foods they consumed because simply paying attention made them more quickly satisfied, the Journal of Consumer Research reported.     In one interesting study, a group of people were asked to eat either a healthy or an unhealthy snack. Some of them were asked to count how many times they swallowed while eating the snack, according to a Texas A&M statement.   People who counted the number of times they swallowed were satisfied more quickly even if they otherwise had a low level of self-control.   Monitoring how much they ate made consumers with low self-control behave like those with high self-control. "One way is to keep better track of the quantity of unhealthy foods they eat," wrote authors Joseph P. Redden ( University of Minnesota) and Kelly L. Haws (Texas A&M University).   "Although self-control is typically viewed as a battle between willpower and desire, consumers can't rely entirely on willpower to control their eating.   They also need to create situations that will make them lose interest in food," they concluded.     Virgo Aug. 23 to Sept. 22  You may be making plans that involve your career and they may have an impact on your significant relations. It may be that you are looking for a promotion or that one has been offered to you. Of course with new opportunities come added responsibility. Those new duties may shift your free time, which may actually help your time together with your partner.                               Libra Sept. 23 to Oct. 22 This may be a particularly productive time for you to help out others. A personal sacrifice or advice that you are able to share with educational organizations or classes that you teach may prove to be extremely beneficial to you and to all involved. One of the more important aspects of this may be your intention and willingness to help out since that may be at the root of this idea. You may find it necessary to state your ideas emphatically so that there is no ambiguity about why you are eager to help.                               Scorpio Oct. 23 to Nov. 21 If you are working your way through some in depth research project, you'll be in luck as Jupiter drifts through your organizational sector. This may indicate that you are able to peel away layers of confusion and find real value in the process. Jupiter tends to expand and illuminate where ever it lands in your own pathway. In this case you may find it very useful.           Sagittarius Nov. 22 to Dec. 21 You may be making adjustments around your primary residence. Redecorating or simply reorganizing rooms may occupy much of your time especially if it involves your partner. You may be making room for a new person in your home or even making plans for an upcoming event such as a wedding or other transition. You will do far better if you can be pro-active about all the details.                                              Capricorn Dec. 22 to Jan. 19 You may be working on a research project and find an abundance of topics to discuss. This may be an especially fruitful time for gathering information and using it to help others. Personal experience, background information, and careful observations may be particularly useful for this type of work, so be certain to take plenty of notes. Topics of health and well-being may be favored under this influence, so keep that idea in the back of your mind and be careful with facts and figures until Mercury goes direct next week.                             Aquarius Jan. 20 to Feb. 18  Expect lots of financial conversations since that sector of your life appears to be especially active lately. You'll likely be working on budgets or finding creative ways to allocate your funds and investments. Your work may be purely speculative, but worthwhile nonetheless. You can't work out a solution if you don't know the details, and this may be an ideal time to do just that. A word of caution, though, to simply check your figures before you act.                        Pisces Feb. 19 to March 20  You may be especially assertive with all matters that involve the family or at least the house. You will have four powerful planets in Pisces, and the quality they bring to you may be quite thrilling. You may be ready to make a big decision regarding your living arrangements or with family members in particular. Since Mercury will still be in retrograde motion, it may be worthwhile to ensure that everyone is on the same page when it comes to the facts and details.       Moral Story     SMS   “Life has a value only when it has something valuable as its object.”      LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS   "True love doesn't mean being inseparable; it means being separated and nothing changes."   LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS      “No man will make a great leader who wants to do it all himself or get all the credit for doing it.”      In an interview, Interviewer: How does an electric motor run? Sardar: Dhhuuuurrrrrrrrrr. ..... Inteviewer shouts: Stop it. Sardar: Dhhuurrrr dhup dhup dhup...."

EDUCATION +VE Banaras Hindu University to have campus in Maharashtra             VARANASI: Banaras Hindu University will have a campus in Maharashtra by 2014. Maharashtra government had announced to provide 200 acres of land to the university to set up its campus in Amravati district. BHU spokesman said that the proposal for a campus in Maharashtra was given by the alumni association of BHU Mumbai chapter. It has been accepted and was also announced in the alumni meet of the association held in Mumbai on March 10. Shiv Sena leader Uddav Thackerey was present as chief guest on the occasion. He praised the government's initiative for construction of a BHU campus in Maharashtra. The campus will basically have an agriculture college. Formal procedures in this regard are yet to be made. The name of Shatabdi Municipal Hospital in Mumbai was also changed to Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya Hospital. There are over 800 alumni registered with Mumbai chapter of the association. Director, Institute of Medical Sciences, BHU, Dr RG Singh was present as the special guest in the alumni meet. General secretary, alumni association, Mumbai chapter, GS Agrawal and over 200 alumni were also present on the occasion. Soon, BHU to have its own visual identity: Banaras Hindu University (BHU) is gearing up to create its own visual identity. According to chairman, Press Publication and Publicity Cell, BHU, Prof Rajesh Singh, university's name will soon be written in a definite font, colour and style of writing and will be used uniformly by all the faculties and institutions of the university. It means all the boards, notice boards, letterheads, visiting cards, applications forms and objects will be bearing university's name in a similar fashion. "The design of writing university's name is being prepared by staff and students of faculty of visual arts, BHU. It has been already passed by university's academic council. However, planning and procedure to make the idea of visual identity sustainable is still under pipeline," he informed. According to Singh, no university in the country have its own visual identity so far. "The trend of visual identity is however common in many western countries," he said further. Inauguration: Vice chancellor, Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Dr Lalji Singh inaugurated a 60-cabin air conditioned hall at journal section of Central Library, BHU on Tuesday. The hall has been built with a budget of Rs 60 lakhs. SPORTS +VE Tide turns against Shane Watson in Australia's 'homework-gate'          SYDNEY: After 24 hours of the most withering abuse directed at Australia's management for excluding Shane Watson and three other cricketers from the Test team, the tide turned on Wednesday with a flurry of support for the "line in the sand". Australian cricket was plunged into crisis on Tuesday after Watson, James Pattinson, Mitchell Johnson and Usman Khawaja were banished from the team for the third Test in India for failing to provide their thoughts on how Australia could improve. Former Test greats lined up to pour incredulous scorn on coach Mickey Arthur and captain Michael Clarke for taking such strong action for an offence likened by many commentators to a schoolboy forgetting to do their homework. Watson, the most senior of the players and the team's vice captain, arrived back in Australia to be with his pregnant wife late on Tuesday and dubbed the punishment "extremely severe". The 31-year-old sometime all-rounder's assertion that he still wanted to play Test cricket for his country was reassuring with back-to-back Ashes series coming at the end of year. After the recent retirements of former skipper Ricky Ponting and Mike Hussey, the prospect of losing a third top batsman, albeit one as injury-prone as Watson, for such a trivial offence was startling to many. Word from team management on the sub-continent that the punishment was not isolated but the culmination of a build-up of minor disciplinary issues helped start the turning of the tide. DEFINING MOMENT? Arthur, in his blog on the Cricket Australia website, said his team had given a fair amount of "laxity and flexibility" to the players because of their youth and inexperience. "This decision was about sending a strong message that it is about time all players had some accountability for their actions," he wrote. "Being late for a meeting, high skinfolds, wearing the wrong attire, back-chat or giving attitude are just some examples of these behavioural issues that have been addressed discretely but continue to happen. "If we're deadly serious about getting back to number one in the world, all players need to raise the bar and lift their game. "This is a line in the sand moment," he added. "A point we'll look back on in a couple of years' time when we're back to number one in the world and say was a defining moment." Well-respected cricket journalist and author Gideon Haigh had already laid out his views in a column entitled "Coddled boys who expect it all laid on", in which he said it was no surprise that Watson had been one of those punished. "Probably more coaching and management resources have been poured into him than any cricketer of his generation - for the dividend of two centuries in 40 Tests," he wrote in the Australian. "He is a handsome player of abundant talent. He is also wealthy, pampered, immature and self-involved. That's what a life in modern professional sport can make of you." Richard Hinds in the Age said the failure of the quartet to perform the simple task of offering, via e-mail, their opinion on team improvements would invite questions as to whether they would follow more important instructions. "If it has a positive impact on long-term performance, this might be considered a vital moment for a team in transition," he wrote. "One that has struggled to adapt to an age when a team is a collection of similarly gifted individuals with often different outlooks. "Not the joined-at-the-hip band of mates who wouldn't dare shave a hair off a moustache for fear of being considered a freak or a lone wolf." Clarke has shown a marked ruthless streak in his bid to take Australia back to the top of the world rankings since assuming the captaincy in the wake of the 2010-11 Ashes drubbing. Far from being forced into a conciliatory position by the abuse he has suffered over the last two days, the 31-year-old was strident in his view that punishing the four players was the correct decision. "This game owes us, the players, nothing. We owe it everything," he wrote in his column in Sydney's Daily Telegraph. "It's time we showed it the due respect for all the opportunities it has given us. I hope that in time this will be viewed as the boot up the backside we needed."      Mere Dad Ki Maruti Mere Dad Ki Maruti  Movie Name :   Mere Dad Ki Maruti   Release Date :   15 March 2013 Genre :  Drama Producer : Ashish Patil Director :   Ashima Chibber Music Director :  Sachin Gupta Cast : Saqib Saleem, Rhea Chakraborty, Ram Kapoor, Prabal Panjabi, Ravi Kishan.   Synopsis: Y-Films are ready with their latest release Mere Dad Ki Maruti, which stars Saqib Saleem and Rhea Chakraborthy, with Ram Kapoor as the Dad. It looks to be a fun caper during the wedding season in Chandigarh where the Maruti goes missing and it is up to Saleem to get it back.   The album is expected to be the baap of all music albums, with Sachin Gupta at the helm and Panjabi MC making a guest appearance with his song ‘Haay’.   The album is unabashedly entertaining and there’s not a dull moment throughout these tracks. Sachin Gupta has created an album that works with the young-theme and managed to do something new with the stock Bhangra numbers that we often here. I was immediately excited from the initial trailer to hear the full, Punjabiyan Di Battery, and it’s a funky track that launches you on the dance floor from the opening tumbhi strands. Honey Singh chimes in with his safer rap verses, and then the real star of the show emerges – Mika. This is a much better song where Mika can show off his vocal prowess and some of the usual swagger. It’s a real feat to have Singh and Mika on the same track and they don’t sound like they are trying to outdo each other too much. The arrangements are fabulous, and the tempo keeps the party going right until the bridge where it speeds up. Kumaar’s lyrics are quirky and celebrate all that Punjabi spirit which is complemented by Mika and Honey Singh’s vocals. Keep this on your most played list.   the smallest bones in the human body are found in your ear " INSPIRING STORY "   The story of Rantideva    A hand is odorned with daanam rather than with kankanaas. Daanam must be done expecting absolutely nothing in return, admiring the greatness of the dana-grahita, for giving the daata an opportunity to help the grahita.   Stories of great Daatas are huge in number in our Indian history, who gave away everything they had. King Rantideva is well known not only in Bhuloka, but also in the urdhva lokas for his daana gunam. Rantideva never endeavored to earn anything for himself. He would enjoy whatever he got by vidhi and when atithis came he would give them what they needed. He gave away everything he had to the poor and underwent considerable suffering, along with the members of his family.   Finally, he and his family members did not even get food and water, yet Rantideva always was always satisfied — a sthita pragnya. One morning, after fasting for forty-eight days, Rantideva received some water and some paramaannam (paayasam with rice, milk and ghee). Just when about to eat them, a brahmana atithi arrived. Because Rantideva perceived the presence of the Paramaatma everywhere, and in every living entity, he received the atithi with faith and respect and gave him a share of the paramaannam.   The brahmana ate his share and left the place satisfied. Thereafter, having divided the remaining paramaannam with his family, Rantideva was just about to eat his own share when another atithi, a shudra arrived.   Seeing the shudra in relationship with the Purushottama, King Rantideva gave him also a share of the paramaannam. When the shudra went away, another atithi arrived, surrounded by dogs, and said, “O King, I and my company of dogs are very hungry. Please give us something to eat.”   With great respect, King Rantideva offered the balance of the paramaannam to the dogs and the master of the dogs, who had come as atithis.   Thereafter, only the drinking water remained, and there was only enough to satisfy one person, but when the King was just about to drink it, a chandaala appeared and said, “O King, although I am lowborn, kindly give me some drinking water.”   Aggrieved at hearing the pitiable words of the poor fatigued chandaala, Rantideva spoke the following madhura vaakyas. “I do not pray to the Lord for the ashta siddhis, nor for vimukti from samsaara saagaram.     I want to stay among all the living entities and suffer all distresses on their behalf, so that they may be freed from suffering.   By offering my water to maintain the life of this poor chandaala, who is struggling to live, I have been freed from all hunger, thirst, fatigue, trembling of the body, moroseness, distress, lamentation and illusion”.   Having spoken thus, King Rantideva, although on the verge of death because of thirst, gave his own portion of water to the chandaala without hesitation, for he was naturally very kind.

“Never tell your problems to anyone...20% don't care and the other 80% are glad you have them.”