The inauguration of the Conference commenced with the invoking of God’s blessings and the lighting of the lamp by His Excellency Ranjeet Mushahari, the Governor of Meghalaya along with Rt. Rev. Dr. Dominic Jala the Archbishop of Shillong, Mr. Michael Shiromani IAS, Director of RGNIYD, Rev. Fr. V.M. Thomas sdb, Executive Director of DBI and Sr.Edleburgh BS ICYM, NYLA.

Dr. Joe Arimpoor sdb, Director Don Bosco Animation and Research Kendra, Delhi enlightened the youth directors with an overview on the situation of Youth in India.  Dr. P. Basak, Scientist and Ford Fellow in the second session shocked the gathering with the statistics on Youth in the unorganized sector who if not catered could be revolutionaries of tomorrow.

Coffee Table discussions were held in different groups on the challenges and the problems of the youth viz.  migration, employment and entrepreneurship,  youth in unorganized sector, health, gender justice and equity, violence, education, local governance and poverty which was moderated by Dr. Devendra Agochia a consultant to the Government of India Youth Policy. After the coffee table discussion, presentations were held on the above issues from the perspective of ‘Dimensions’ on issues, challenges and action plans that have to be implemented at the local level.

On day two, Fr. Jerry Thomas sdb, Director, Bosco Institute, Jorhat dealt with ‘Vision for Youth in India’ He visualized the youth ministry to make the youth – Informed, Articulate, Creative, Competent, Enterprising and Sensitive citizens.

Mr. Michael Siromani informed the gathering about the ‘National Vision for Youth from the Government Perspective. This was followed by discussion on draft statement on youth development which resulted in the final statement on Youth Policy.

The conference was concluded by a short cultural programme presided by Rev. Fr. Joe Almeida sdb, the provincial superior of SDB province, Guwahati.

The ICYM members who participated and benefited from this conference were:

Rev. Sr. Edleburgh BS (NYLA)

U.P. Region: Rev. Frs. Vincent Pereira, Elias Cardoza and Archibald D’Silva

West  Bengal Region :Rev. Frs. Sukumar Sarkar, Gnana Peppin,

North East Region Rev. Frs. Markus Lakra,  C.P. Anto, Srs. Regina Mareem msmhc, Maria Paula Marak msmhc

A.P. Region: Rev. Frs. A. Balaswamy, Fatima Reddy

Western Region: Rev. Fr. A. Lawrence

M.P. Region: Rev. Frs. Shellmon , Roger Jones, Silven

Bijaan Rgion: Rev. Fr. Sushil Modi

Reported by: Rev. Fr. Vincent Pereira, Diocesan Youth Director-ICYM Allahabad

Last year, Lauper flipped the switch to turn the Empire State Building green for National Runaway Prevention Month (NRPM). She also recorded a public service announcement promoting NRS’ services. Additionally, Lauper has been supporting the end of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and questioning (GLBTQ) homelessness through her True Colors Fund.

“The fastest growing problem identified by callers to NRS over the past year was GLBTQ issues with an increase of seven percent,” said Maureen Blaha, NRS executive director. “Thanks to the positive partnership NRS has with Cyndi Lauper and her True Colors Fund, individuals who want to talk about GLBTQ issues may feel more comfortable calling 1-800-RUNAWAY now than in the past.”

Past Spirit of Youth award recipients have included Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Chef Charlie Trotter, the Chicago Cubs, actors Tim Matheson and Sharon Lawrence, and Greyhound Bus Lines, Inc.

Tonight’s event raised funds for NRS programs and services that benefit runaway homeless and at-risk youth and their families throughout the country.  The Platinum Sponsor was United Airlines, and the Gold Sponsors were Carlton Technologies, Chicago Tribune, Greyhound Lines and Radio Flyer.

The National Runaway Switchboard, established in 1971, serves as the federally-designated national communication system for homeless and runaway youth.  Recognized as the oldest hotline of its kind in the world, NRS, with the support of more than 150 volunteers, handles an average of 100,000 calls annually – more than 3 million calls since the organization’s inception.  Through hotline and online services, NRS provides crisis intervention, referrals to local resources, and education and prevention services to youth, families and community members throughout the country 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.  Over 14,000 youth have been reunited with their families through the NRS Home Free program done in collaboration with Greyhound Lines, Inc.  The NRS crisis hotline is 1-800-RUNAWAY.  For more information, visit http://www.1800RUNAWAY.org.

Dr DV Gopal Reddy, Divisional Commissioner, Nagpur, was the guest for the function. Appreciating the idea of organizing such an informative and an interesting fest, he said, “It was an opportunity for students to develop their personality and skills. It will also inculcate cultural and social awareness in them.”

You ran 160 km in 24 hours on a treadmill outside a sports store in Gurgaon. Why would you want to run so much? Actually, I ran a little more – around 164 km, so that there would be no confusion later about whether I’d actually run a 100 miles or not. Why do I run so much? I know this is a cliche , but I used to be a sickly child. I weighed only 35 kg when I was in class XII, the result of recurring bouts of malaria. I wanted to change that, be an inspiration to my children .

Does running 24 hours nonstop actually mean that? Or are you allowed to take breaks in between? You stop when you need the toilet. Over a multi-day race, say three, six or 10 days, you have to run a minimum of 67.5 km a day. And you can’t stay away from the track for longer than six hours.

What do you eat after running for 24 hours? After running that much, you’re usually hungry enough to eat the fridge, but that’s not allowed. For an entire day after running, I drink only fluids. While you’re running, you drink water, juice and you eat a little – maybe a banana or potato chips.

At what point are the brain and the body at their weakest when you’re trying to run 24 hours at one go? If you start running at 12 in the afternoon , the body would be at its weakest almost 14 hours later, at 2 am in the morning. That’s when the battle between the brain and the body begins. It’s also when you’ve got to tell yourself to carry on. That’s what ultramarathon running is about.

You don’t sleep one night a week so you can run. Doesn’t your family get worried about you? Well, my wife used to complain earlier . She was worried about me running around all night long. Especially since I started running only at 31, after getting married. She thought she’d married a government servant, not some mad chap. But she’s okay with it now. So are the cops and the drunks loitering about. They all tell me ‘well done’ .

You work in a government office. Is it difficult to explain to your colleagues what you do outside of office? The people who understand, I don’t have to explain it to them. The others, I don’t have the time to explain it to them.

What’s the toughest race you’ve run? Loutraki, Greece, in 2006. It was a seven-day race run in a stadium that had been damaged in a recent earthquake. There were 11 turns in the track, 11 bumps like large speed-breakers , and one end of the track was six metres higher than the other. It was quite tough.

It has always been difficult to market a non-cricketing athlete in this country? How do you help with your own marketing? I try and leave the marketing to the marketing people. What I do, every time, is run the best I can. But running that 100 miles on a treadmill was my idea. It fit in well with the company’s motto as well.

In the middle of a race, what do you think of when you really, really want to quit?In Athens in 2007, I hurt my shin. Every time my foot hit the ground, it was like being hit with an iron rod. That went on and on. But I finished that race. I walked for six days of a seven-day race. I didn’t quit.

According to our sources in Egypt,“thousands were in street asking the army to define the date when they shall leave… and some decided to sit in till they hear an answer (sic)… Next day the police started to disperse them brutally.. and when people went down to defend civilians, the army stood with the police against them… More than 30 died, and 1500+ injured (some with very serious injuries, and some went blind since they were being shot at in the eyes) and that’s in less than 48 hours! The army doesn’t want to apologize.. and people are furious.”

Power corrupts, and a live example is what we see in Egypt today. It is heart wrenching to see photos and visuals of the daily struggle of hundreds of youth in the country, who are doing whatever they can to establish a democratic government to lead the country. This pure thought was long snatched away from them. Looking at the current condition of the country, it is only in the best interest of the economy and polity to have a freely and democratically elected government.

The atrocities of the Army are not contained to the level of hitting and killing people with gun shots. “They are throwing CR gas on us! an internationally declared chemical weapon!”.

CR causes intense skin irritation, particularly around moist areas, blepharospasm causing temporary blindness, coughing and gasping for breath, and panic. It is capable of causing immediate incapacitation. It is a suspected carcinogen. It is toxic, but less so than CS gas, by ingestion and exposure. However, it can be lethal in large quantities. In a poorly ventilated space, an individual may inhale a lethal dose within minutes. Death is caused by asphyxiation and pulmonary edema. The effect of CR is long-term and persistent. CR can persist on surfaces, especially porous ones, for up to 60 days.

Even though the Army is in control, youth in Egypt are certain that they will win this battle for freedom. “Well, though theoretically they have power, realistically we are 85 million civilians. While, at most, our army is half a million. I don’t think they can continue with such stupidity for long… people will over throw military power… we are kind of determined to do it once and for all”, said another source of Youth Ki Awaaz from Cairo, Egypt.

Source: Youth Ki Awaaz

The occasion was the beginning of anti-addiction campaign ‘Magic with a Mission’ aimed at creating awareness among the public about drug abuse. Minister K Babu inaugurated the initiative at Ernakulam Town Hall on Wednesday.

Magician Muthukad, who has been using his talent to make the public aware of various social issues, is confident that his mission would be a success. “Magic is a good tool to communicate as there is no language barrier. Anyone can understand the message conveyed without any difficulty,” he said.

“Alcohol and other drugs are the major reasons behind 90 per cent of domestic violence and suicides in our society. Many, especially youngsters, are least bothered about the ill-effects of substance abuse. The aim of this mission is to make those people aware of the hazards,” Muthukad told TOI.

This anti-addiction campaign is jointly organized by Muthukad’s magic academy, Kerala State Youth Welfare Board, excise department, Kochi corporation and the district administration. During the five-day campaign, that will conclude on Sunday, magic shows conveying messages on harmful effects of addiction will be showcased at Ernakulam Town Hall.

Apart from the magic shows, there will be training sessions for 1,500 students from various schools in the city on a daily basis. “After the training sessions, these students will take part in anti-addiction campaigns conducted in various parts of the district,” Muthukad said. The magic academy also intends to run the campaign in all the districts.

Kochi: As the awestruck public looked on, two piece of paper deposited in a crystal bowl turned to a skull following an announcement that this is the result of drug addiction. The paper pieces, encrypted alcohol and drugs, were deposited by Minister K Babu as a part of the magic show to mark the beginning of a mission led by magician Gopinath Muthukad.

The mission aimed to create awareness among the public was inaugurated by excise minister K Babu in Ernakulam Town hall on Wednesday. Through the mission to curb substance abuse spreading in the society, magician Muthukad is in the arena with his magic that persuades minds sans borders.

Magician Muthukad who has been using his talent to make the public aware of various social issues is confident that his mission will be a success. “Magic is a good tool to communicate as there is no language barrier. Anyone can understand the message conveyed without any difficulty and this is the point that I am making use of in this mission,” said the magician.

“Alcohol and other drugs are the major reasons for about 90 per cent domestic violence and suicides in our society. Many in our society, especially youngsters, are least bothered the ill effects of substance abuse. The aim of this mission is to make those people aware of about the hazards,” he told TOI.

The anti-addiction campaign, Magic with a Mission, is jointly organised by Muthukad’s magic academy, Kerala State Youth Welfare Board, excise department, Kochi Corporation and the district administration. During the five-day campaign that will conclude on Sunday, magic shows conveying strong messages on harmful effects of addiction will be showcased at the Ernakulam Town Hall.

Apart from the magic shows, there will be training sessions for 1500 students from various schools in the city on a daily basis. “After the training sessions, these students will carry out anti-addiction campaigns among the public in various parts of the district,” Muthukad said.

The magic academy also intends to run the campaigns in all the districts in the state. The campaign that will be run in district headquarters during the first stage will be later extended to the remote villages across the state.

Source: Times of India

A cow has four stomachs: the rumen, reticulum, omasum and abomasum. The rumen is the largest stomach and acts as a fermentation chamber. The abomasum is last of the four and is comparable in both structure and function to the human stomach.

Cows and global warming

With all its grazing and many stomachs, it is no wonder that cows are one of the main contributors to the hole in the ozone layer. Apart from CFC, the biggest culprit is hydrocarbon emissions from cars and cows. Yes, cows! Cows release some 100 million tons of hydrocarbon annually – by releasing gas. To give you an idea of how much gas a cow emits: if the gas of 10 cows could be captured, it would provide heating for a small house for a year.

But unlike what you think, cows release hydrocarbon mostly by burping.

Cow factoids

The average lifespan of a cow is 7 years but when left to roam the average lifespan of a cow is 15 years. The oldest cow ever recorded was Big Bertha. She reached 48 in 1993. She also holds the record for producing 39 calves.

The average height of a cow is around 55 inches but Dexters are 36 to 42 inches. The smallest cow in the world is Swallow, a Dexter cow from New Yorkshire, England. She stands only 33 inches (84 cm) from hind to foot. Swallow (b. 1999) is a normal healthy cow that already had nine healthy (normal size) calves.

There are more than a billion cattle in the world, about 200 million in India.

Cows that are called individually by name and cows that are played classic music to provide more milk.

Twelve cows are known as a “flink.”

Of the 11,040 vacancies, 4,505 posts were for candidates in Assam, said the chief of the SSC which will be conducting the recruitment for Constables (General Duty) and Riflemen in central police organisations. The single recruitment will be conducted for six central paramilitary forces (CPMF), including the Assam Rifles, BSF, CRPF, (Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) under union home ministry, he said.

Only candidates domiciled in the states were eligible for the vacancies in the respective states, he said, adding, Union Home Minister P Chidambaram was categorical that the recruitment remained state-specific. Chidambaram underscored it did not extend to the rest of India if suitable local candidates were not available for the vacancies, but instead would roll over to the next year, he said. To overcome the difficulty of access to application form by candidates in remote rural areas, border districts, militancy and naxalite-affected areas, N-E states, Kashmir and Ladakh, the Commission will distribute application forms, free of cost, in local vernaculars through the state government and units of CPMFs in remote localities.

State Co-ordinators with minimum experience of 6-7 years, education in social work, rural management and rural development – who will be mobilizing the BPL youth towards gainful employment of such candidates in jute manufacturing. Candidate should have experience of working at block level and must have worked in livelihood/skill development projects . Preference will be given to candidates with prior experience in similar capacities.

Candidates should be well versed with local language and should be willing to travel in the region. Remuneration will be as per present industry norm.

Candidates with similar experience should send in their updated profile with photograph within 07 days, at hrd1@email.com