Price of diesel hiked again, KSRTC in deep trouble

HIRUVANANTHAPURAM:  The Indian Oil Corporation has again hiked the price of diesel for KSRTC which will put the corporation into deeper trouble.

The IOC has hiked the price of diesel by Rs 1.20 ps. They say that the price has been hiked as part of re-examination in every two weeks.

When the KSRTC received a bill of Rs 2.79 crores as price of the fuel yesterday, a bill of Rs 2.86 crores was obtained today. When enquired, the IOC said the price of the fuel has been increased.

When they bought the fuel for Rs 62.12 per litre yesterday, they had to pay Rs 63.32 today. This means the corporation will need an amount of Rs 7 lakhs daily.

An extra amount of Rs 11.53 had to be paid after the KSRTC was inducted in the list of bulk consumers.  

When the price was hiked earlier, the state government had taken over the additional liability of Rs 28 crores.

Price of diesel hiked again, KSRTC in deep trouble

HIRUVANANTHAPURAM:  The Indian Oil Corporation has again hiked the price of diesel for KSRTC which will put the corporation into deeper trouble.

The IOC has hiked the price of diesel by Rs 1.20 ps. They say that the price has been hiked as part of re-examination in every two weeks.

When the KSRTC received a bill of Rs 2.79 crores as price of the fuel yesterday, a bill of Rs 2.86 crores was obtained today. When enquired, the IOC said the price of the fuel has been increased.

When they bought the fuel for Rs 62.12 per litre yesterday, they had to pay Rs 63.32 today. This means the corporation will need an amount of Rs 7 lakhs daily.

An extra amount of Rs 11.53 had to be paid after the KSRTC was inducted in the list of bulk consumers.  

When the price was hiked earlier, the state government had taken over the additional liability of Rs 28 crores.

Now, puffed rice that's high on protein

Washington: A super-nutritious, protein-rich form of puffed rice could make it to the breakfast table soon, say researchers in New York.

The current process of making puffed rice by steam can destroy heat-sensitive nutrients. So Syed S.H. Rizvi, professor of food process engineering at Cornell University, New York, looked for a way to avoid that loss and enrich rice with protein and other nutrients during the puffing process.

Rizvi and colleagues turned to a process that uses supercritical carbon dioxide, which has been used for making decaffeinated coffee and in other applications, the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry reports.

The process helped them make puffed rice with three times more protein and eight times more dietary fibre than commercial puffed rice, according to a Cornell statement.

The puffed rice made by Rizvi and colleagues also contains calcium, iron, zinc and other nutrients that conventional puffed rice lacks. Their puffed rice was crispier than commercial products, giving it better taste and crunch.

The new rice is 'ideally suited for consumption as breakfast cereal, snack food and as part of nutrition bars for school lunch programmes,' the report said, adding: 'The balanced nutritional profile and use of staple crop byproducts such as broken rice makes these expanded crisps unique.' 

Now, puffed rice that's high on protein

Washington: A super-nutritious, protein-rich form of puffed rice could make it to the breakfast table soon, say researchers in New York.

The current process of making puffed rice by steam can destroy heat-sensitive nutrients. So Syed S.H. Rizvi, professor of food process engineering at Cornell University, New York, looked for a way to avoid that loss and enrich rice with protein and other nutrients during the puffing process.

Rizvi and colleagues turned to a process that uses supercritical carbon dioxide, which has been used for making decaffeinated coffee and in other applications, the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry reports.

The process helped them make puffed rice with three times more protein and eight times more dietary fibre than commercial puffed rice, according to a Cornell statement.

The puffed rice made by Rizvi and colleagues also contains calcium, iron, zinc and other nutrients that conventional puffed rice lacks. Their puffed rice was crispier than commercial products, giving it better taste and crunch.

The new rice is 'ideally suited for consumption as breakfast cereal, snack food and as part of nutrition bars for school lunch programmes,' the report said, adding: 'The balanced nutritional profile and use of staple crop byproducts such as broken rice makes these expanded crisps unique.' 

Bangladesh violence toll rises to 42

Dhaka: The toll in fierce clashes in Bangladesh between activists of an Islamist party and law enforcers over a war-crime trial verdict has risen to 42, the authorities said.

Dozens were injured in about a dozen districts of Bangladesh, Xinhua reported citing an agency.

It was not known whether all the victims were engaged in party politics. 

To thwart any further untoward incidents, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) personnel have been deployed in violence-hit cities and towns. 

BGB personnel also patrolled some important areas in the capital city from Thursday night. 

Clashes, arson, vandalism and detention have also been reported in parts of capital Dhaka and elsewhere in the country since Thursday. 

The incidents of violence erupted soon after the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT)-1 pronounced the verdict Thursday afternoon, awarding death sentence to Delwar Hossain Sayeedi, a leader of the Jamaat party. 

Jamaat says Sayeedi is the victim of political vendetta. 

In the violence since Friday, over a dozen people including Jamaat men were dead and scores including policemen and journalists injured in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country. 

Jamaat says Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Bangladesh Awami League party has targeted the party to split the ex-prime minister Khaleda Zia-led 18-party main opposition alliance in which Jamaat is a key ally.

Bangladesh violence toll rises to 42

Dhaka: The toll in fierce clashes in Bangladesh between activists of an Islamist party and law enforcers over a war-crime trial verdict has risen to 42, the authorities said.

Dozens were injured in about a dozen districts of Bangladesh, Xinhua reported citing an agency.

It was not known whether all the victims were engaged in party politics. 

To thwart any further untoward incidents, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) personnel have been deployed in violence-hit cities and towns. 

BGB personnel also patrolled some important areas in the capital city from Thursday night. 

Clashes, arson, vandalism and detention have also been reported in parts of capital Dhaka and elsewhere in the country since Thursday. 

The incidents of violence erupted soon after the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT)-1 pronounced the verdict Thursday afternoon, awarding death sentence to Delwar Hossain Sayeedi, a leader of the Jamaat party. 

Jamaat says Sayeedi is the victim of political vendetta. 

In the violence since Friday, over a dozen people including Jamaat men were dead and scores including policemen and journalists injured in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country. 

Jamaat says Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's Bangladesh Awami League party has targeted the party to split the ex-prime minister Khaleda Zia-led 18-party main opposition alliance in which Jamaat is a key ally.

Animals help autistic children interact better

Sydney: Interaction of autistic children with animals can enhance their social skills like talking, smiling, laughing and also enable them to connect well with others, according to an Australian study.

The presence of an animal can significantly increase positive social behaviours in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), according to research published February 20 in the open access journal PLOS ONE by Marguerite E. O'Haire and colleagues from the University of Queensland, Australia.

They found that in the presence of animals, children with ASD demonstrated more social behaviours like talking, looking at faces and making physical contact. 

They were also more receptive to social advances from their peers in the presence of the animals than they were when playing with toys.

The presence of animals also increased instances of smiling and laughing, and reduced frowning, whining and crying behaviours in children with ASD more than having toys did, reports Science Daily.

According to the authors, the ability of an animal to help children with ASD connect to adults may help foster interactions with therapists, teachers or other adult figures.

They add that animal-assisted interventions may have applications in the classroom as well, saying 'For children with ASD, the school classroom can be a stressful and overwhelming environment due to social challenges and peer victimization. 

'If an animal can reduce this stress or artificially change children's perception of the classroom and its occupants, then a child with ASD may feel more at ease and open to social approach behaviours

Series of explosions in Iraq kill 22

Baghdad:A series of bombings struck Baghdad and towns south of the Iraqi capital today, killing at least 22 and wounding dozens in areas that are home to mostly Muslim Shiites, the latest evidence of rising sectarian discord in Iraq.The attackers struck a day before tens of thousands of Sunni Muslims are expected to take to the streets in what have become weekly protests against the Shiite-led government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. The deadliest attack occurred around sunset when a pair of bombs exploded nearly simultaneously in Shula in northwestern Baghdad. One was a car bomb that was detonated outside a fast food restaurant and the other blast occurred near a soccer field. The twin bombings killed 15 people and left at least 40 wounded, officials said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but car bombings in Shiite areas are a favourite tactic of Sunni extremists such as al-Qaeda's local affiliate. The group, known as the Islamic State of Iraq, considers Shiites to be heretics and accuses them of being too closely aligned with neighbouring Shiite powerhouse Iran. Earlier in the day, a car bomb tore through the crowded
livestock market in the town of Aziziyah, 55 kilometers southeast of Baghdad. That attack killed three people and wounded eight.

A few hours later, a roadside bomb missed a passing police patrol in western Baghdad but killed a bystander and wounded eight people. In the evening, explosives hidden beneath produce in the back of a pickup truck exploded in the town of Mahmoudiya, about 30 kilometers south of Baghdad. That blast killed three policemen and wounded six. (AP)

Series of explosions in Iraq kill 22

Baghdad:A series of bombings struck Baghdad and towns south of the Iraqi capital today, killing at least 22 and wounding dozens in areas that are home to mostly Muslim Shiites, the latest evidence of rising sectarian discord in Iraq.The attackers struck a day before tens of thousands of Sunni Muslims are expected to take to the streets in what have become weekly protests against the Shiite-led government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. The deadliest attack occurred around sunset when a pair of bombs exploded nearly simultaneously in Shula in northwestern Baghdad. One was a car bomb that was detonated outside a fast food restaurant and the other blast occurred near a soccer field. The twin bombings killed 15 people and left at least 40 wounded, officials said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but car bombings in Shiite areas are a favourite tactic of Sunni extremists such as al-Qaeda's local affiliate. The group, known as the Islamic State of Iraq, considers Shiites to be heretics and accuses them of being too closely aligned with neighbouring Shiite powerhouse Iran. Earlier in the day, a car bomb tore through the crowded
livestock market in the town of Aziziyah, 55 kilometers southeast of Baghdad. That attack killed three people and wounded eight.

A few hours later, a roadside bomb missed a passing police patrol in western Baghdad but killed a bystander and wounded eight people. In the evening, explosives hidden beneath produce in the back of a pickup truck exploded in the town of Mahmoudiya, about 30 kilometers south of Baghdad. That blast killed three policemen and wounded six. (AP)

Animals help autistic children interact better

Sydney: Interaction of autistic children with animals can enhance their social skills like talking, smiling, laughing and also enable them to connect well with others, according to an Australian study.

The presence of an animal can significantly increase positive social behaviours in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), according to research published February 20 in the open access journal PLOS ONE by Marguerite E. O'Haire and colleagues from the University of Queensland, Australia.

They found that in the presence of animals, children with ASD demonstrated more social behaviours like talking, looking at faces and making physical contact. 

They were also more receptive to social advances from their peers in the presence of the animals than they were when playing with toys.

The presence of animals also increased instances of smiling and laughing, and reduced frowning, whining and crying behaviours in children with ASD more than having toys did, reports Science Daily.

According to the authors, the ability of an animal to help children with ASD connect to adults may help foster interactions with therapists, teachers or other adult figures.

They add that animal-assisted interventions may have applications in the classroom as well, saying 'For children with ASD, the school classroom can be a stressful and overwhelming environment due to social challenges and peer victimization. 

'If an animal can reduce this stress or artificially change children's perception of the classroom and its occupants, then a child with ASD may feel more at ease and open to social approach behaviours