HEALTH & CANCER: SC may ban use of tobacco in food products!

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Shalini, CNN-IBN / ibnlive.in.com / Updated Aug 30, 2011 at 10:08am IST.

New Delhi: After a ban on plastic packaging for tobacco products, and harsher pictorial warnings that come into effect this December, the smokeless tobacco industry is facing the heat again. This time in the form of the new Food Safety Standards Act.

Under the new notification tobacco and nicotine cannot be used as ingredients in any food products.

This latest regulation could cost the Rs 8000 crore gutka industry, given that it has been held to be a food product by the Supreme Court in the Godhavat case ruling.

Rest at,

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/sc-may-ban-use-of-tobacco-in-food-products/179795-17.html

              

BANNED: Iran’s Controversial New Lesbian Film - a Review!

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David Ansen, thedailybeast.com / Aug 25, 2011 12:00 AM EDT.

Banned in Iran, a winner at Sundance, Maryam Keshavarz’s film ‘Circumstance’ stunningly captures the love affair of two 16-year-old Iranian girls. She details the film’s troubled gestation to David Ansen.

Maryam Keshavarz's stunning, sensual Circumstance has already been denounced, sight unseen, by the Iranian government, which got wind of it after the movie won the Audience Award at this year's Sundance film festival. The film, set in contemporary Tehran (though shot in Lebanon), will never be released in Iran, though you can be sure pirated DVDs will be a hot item on the black market. The Iranian-American writer and director, 36, who spent her childhood shuttling back and forth between the U.S. and the country of her parent's birth, knew even as she was writing it that making this movie would mean she could never return to Iran. Actually, that's not quite true, she explains with a laugh. "I can go back. I just can't leave."

The first but certainly not the only thing about Circumstance that the Islamic regime objects to is the love story at the center of the movie, between two beautiful, Westernized 16-year-old schoolgirls. Iran is a country, as we all know, where homosexuality doesn't exist—President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said so himself—so to depict a frankly erotic lesbian amour fou is a treasonable fantasy in itself.

Then again, it doesn't take much to break the law in Iran. Listening to pop music will do the trick. Circumstance shows us how anyone who goes against the fundamentalist grain is forced to lead a double life. In public, in the daytime, at school, Atafeh (Nikohl Boosheri) and Shireen (Sarah Kazemy) cover their hair in scarves and their bodies in drab clothes, rendering them indistinguishable from the other schoolgirls. At night, with their friends, the girls avail themselves of Tehran's many secret underground clubs. With the right password, you go behind a nondescript storefront and enter the city's youthful, strobe-lit counterculture. The girls shed their robes to reveal sparkling minidresses, the coke flows, the dance floor fills, and the party goes deep into the night—if it isn't raided by the self-appointed morality police.

Rest at,

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/08/25/maryam-kesharvarz-s-film-circumstance-tackles-iranian-repression.html

 Circumstance

VIDEO CLIPS: 10 Ads Too Hot for TV!

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Shannon Donnelly, thedailybeast.com / Nov 20, 2010 3:07 PM EST.

Beyoncé's sexy new perfume ad was banned from daytime TV in the U.K. From a bull-riding Kylie Minogue to Pamela Anderson's saucy PETA spot, watch 10 commercials too steamy for broadcast.

ALL TEN VIDEO CLIPS at,

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2010/11/20/beyonce-commercial-banned-and-other-controversial-ads.html

  

NAXAL MENACE: Centre challenges SC order on SPOs!

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zeenews.india.com / Last Updated: Saturday, August 13, 2011, 16:24.

New Delhi: The government has moved the Supreme Court asking it to review and recall two crucial clauses of the July 5 order banning Special Police Officers (SPOs) in the anti-Naxal operations in states like Chhattisgarh.

In the petition, which was filed yesterday, the Home Ministry sought the recall of the two paras, 75 (ii) and 76, on the ground that they were against the spirit of the Constitution.

Para 75 (ii) of the apex court's order asks the "Union of India to cease and desist, forthwith, from using any of its funds in supporting, directly or indirectly the recruitment of SPOs for the purposes of engaging in any form of counter-insurgency activities against Maoist/Naxalite groups".

Para 76 of the order held the "appointment of SPOs to perform any of the duties of regular police officers, other than those specified in Sections 23(1)(h) and 23(1)(i) of Chhattisgarh Police Act, 2007, to be unconstitutional".

Sources said, the Home Ministry has pointed out that under the Constitution, policing was exclusively in the domain of the executive and, judiciary could not interfere in it.

Full Story at,

http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/centre-challenges-sc-order-on-spos_725996.html

TECH NEWS: Patent court blocks sale of Samsung Galaxy Tab in EU!

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Josh Halliday, The Hindu / August 11, 2011.

Bollywood actor Lara Dutta during the launch of Samsung Galaxy Tab 750 and Galaxy Tab 730 in New Delhi. Photo: PTI.

European customs officers have been ordered to seize shipments of Samsung’s Galaxy Tab computers after Apple won a preliminary injunction against the Korean electronics giant in an acrimonious patent dispute.

Samsung on Wednesday said it would act immediately to lift the blockade, which prevents sales of its flagship tablet computer in the European Union, except the Netherlands.

Tens of thousands of Samsung Galaxy Tabs are thought to have been seized after the ruling late on Tuesday by a German patents court.

Apple has accused Samsung’s Galaxy range of smartphones and tablet computers of “slavishly” copying the design and functionality of its popular iPhone and iPad lines.

Apple was to apply to have the injunction extended to the Netherlands later yesterday.

A Samsung spokeswoman said yesterday morning: “Samsung is disappointed with the court’s decision and we intend to act immediately to defend our intellectual property rights through the ongoing legal proceedings in Germany and will continue to actively defend these rights throughout the world.

“We will take all necessary measures to ensure Samsung’s innovative mobile communications devices are available to customers in Europe and around the world. This decision by the court in Germany in no way influences other legal proceedings filed with the courts in Europe and elsewhere.”

Full Story at,

http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/article2347408.ece

CONTROVERSIAL MOVIE: Prakash Jha moves SC to lift ban on 'Aarakshan'!

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CNN-IBN / Updated Aug 12, 2011 at 01:32pm IST.

New Delhi: Filmmaker Prakash Jha on Friday moved Supreme Court to lift the ban on his movie 'Aarakshan' that released on Friday across India, except for some states. The court will hear Jha's plea at 2 pm on Friday. While Uttar Pradesh has banned the screening of the movie, Punjab and Andhra Pradesh have imposed an interim ban on the movie.

Both states have formed a committee to look into any anti-Dalit references that the film may have, before giving it a green signal. In Punjab, the screening of the film for government officials turned into a family outing, even though it was supposed to be a restricted preview.

The seven-member panel in Punjab extended the ban on the film in the state on Friday till further notice.

Full Story at,

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/prakash-jha-moves-sc-to-lift-ban-on-aarakshan/175038-8-66.html

KARNATAKA MINING SCAM: Lakhs jobless after SC ban on Bellary mining!

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Abhirr V P, CNN-IBN / Updated Aug 12, 2011 at 08:40am IST.

New Delhi: The mining operations in Karnataka's Bellary district have stopped after a Supreme Court order but nearly 17 lakh workers have been left jobless as a result. They say their cultivable land has become infertile and jobless farmers are dependent on a pittance.

Mountains being blasted, iron ore furiously dug up - Bellary district accounted for 20 per cent of India's iron ore. But now instead of the chaos there is utter silence.

Bellary without, mining, without money and without the mafia is a different place. After the Supreme Court's blanket ban on mining, nearly 17 lakh people in the district are contemplating their future.

Workers are the first to feel the heat. The protest march by the truck drivers association in Bellary says it all. There are nearly 30,000 trucks in Bellary district alone employing almost 50,000 people, with no iron ore to transport and with vehicle loans to pay they are desperate and angry.

"Drivers, truck owners, labourers, nearly three lakh people have no work, we will all be in poverty soon. Our demand is that the Supreme Court should punish the guilty. The miners should be allowed to work," said Raju, Karignur Truck Drivers Association.

The ban has also created major social upheavals in Bellary district. In Karagnur village, it's the men that look after the children because the women are busy searching for jobs. With the mines closed, the men in the village are finding it difficult to find other jobs. Days are now spent arguing over traditional board games.

"We'll all be in poverty soon, there is no work for us for the past few weeks, I have a loan to pay for my truck and with no work, I think I'll lose my truck very soon," said Lakshmanan, Truck Driver, Karignur Village, Bellary District.

Full Story at,

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/bellary-lakhs-jobless-after-sc-ban-on-mining/174995-3.html

CONTROVERSIAL MOVIE: Uttar Pradesh and Punjab ban ‘Aarakshan’!

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zeenews.india.com / Updated on Thursday, August 11, 2011, 13:17.

Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh and Punjab government Wednesday late evening ordered a ban on Prakash Jha multi-starrer ‘Aarakshan’ across the state saying some dialogues in the film were provocative and could incite violence.

The Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP government said the ban will remain in force till screening committee constituted by the state previews the movie and submits its report.

"The decision to ban the film was taken after prolonged discussion and debate on the movie after is was viewed by a high level committee of top officials of the state," said an official press release issued late night here.

The release said, "After due deliberations, the high level committee came to the conclusion that several exchange of dialogues between different characters in the film were quite provocating and could incite civil disorder and violence."

Elaborating, it added, "Some of the dialogues were potentially so dangerous that they could even provoke a person to commit some crime; hence in the larger interest of maintenance of law and order, peace and tranquility, the decision to ban the film."

Full Story at,

http://zeenews.india.com/entertainment/articles/story94038.htm

Chennai police to hotels: Ban Lankans!

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August 8, 2011 / By Sindhu Kannan, DC, Chennai.

The Chennai city police has in a shocking move instructed hotels in the city not to accommodate pilgrims from Sri Lanka after two attacks on visitors from the island nation.

The knee-jerk reaction by the police has led to pilgrims cancelling their plans to visit the Maha Bodhi Society in Chennai.

“A few hotels and lodges in North Chennai are denying rooms to the pilgrims from the Maha Bodhi Society, citing orders from the police,” said officials of the society.

With season for pilgrimage commencing from the end of July, the Maha Bodhi Society, a religious centre which can accommodate only 250 people, is now struggling to find place to accommodate the overwhelming pilgrims. Now that hotels are turning them away, the pilgrims say they have no place to stay.

The Lankan nationals say the police action is like insult added to injury.

When contacted, additional commissioner of police (law and order) Thamarai Kannan denied that the police had issued instructions to hotels not to take Lankans as guests.

Hotels say they were ordered by cops

While the Chennai police has in an outrageous step allegedly instructed hotels and lodges not to provide accommodation to Sri Lankan pilgrims and then denied that any such instruction had been issued, officials at a hotel in Egmore who refused to give rooms to the pilgrims last week told them that they were acting on the directions of the city police.

01)  Attacking Sri Lankan Pilgrims in Chennai is like Islamist Terrorists angry with U.S. hegemony killing innocent and unconnected people, most of the time their own!

02)  It is a fact that under Rajepakshe's leadership, Sri Lankan Army has indulged in mass-scale genocide against Tamil Citizens of Sri Lanka and the common Sri Lankan citizens have no role in that massacre!!

03)  Now, Chennai Police instructing Hotels not to accommodate Sri Lankans is an insult to injury and a gross inhospitality to the visiting tourists!!!

04)  I, firmly, believe, this kind of selective discrimination against Sri Lankans is a grave violation of Constitutional Provisions accorded to the visitors to India!!!!

05)  Hope, Jayalalitha would stop her Police committing such inhuman violations to vent their anger against the Sri Lankan Administration!!!!!

Full Story at,

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/nation/south/chennai-police-hotels-ban-lankans-185

Italian town mayor bans 'smelly' kebabs!

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August 6, 2011 / AFP, Rome / DC.

The mayor of a northern Italian town announced a ban on shops selling kebabs and sandwiches from Friday, saying he objected to their smell and complaining they were not part of Italian tradition.

Massimo Botocci, a member of the populist Northern League and the mayor of Cittadella, near Padua, said such shops were banned from the centre of the medieval walled city.

This kind of food production was "not suited to our historic centre (because of) the way in which the foods are eaten, the smell they give off...", said Bitocci, citing health and sanitation regulations.

"If someone wants to eat a kebab, he can do it at home or outside of the historic centre," he added.

"They aren't part of our tradition."

Full Story at,

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/world/europe/italian-town-mayor-bans-smelly-kebabs-752

HARMFUL CHEMICAL FARM INPUTS: Endosulfan ban stays, says SC!

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August 6, 2011 / DC, New Delhi / DC.

In view of the plea for permitting export of Endosulfan, the production and sale of which has been banned, the Supreme Court (SC) sought clarification on Friday from the monitoring panel on aspects, including international conventions, before the demand could be considered.

A committee set up by the top court earlier to examine the adverse effects of the pesticide was directed to furnish details in three weeks to enable it to take a decision on the plea.

Full Story at,

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/nation/north/endosulfan-ban-stays-says-sc-700

Kerala for ban on Endosulfan: Health Minister Adoor Prakash

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Roy Mathew, The Hindu / THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, August 5, 2011.

An endosulfan victim handing over a memorandum to Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy during the latter's visit to Kasaragod district recently - PTI.

Health Minister Adoor Prakash said here on Friday that the Government would be taking a strong stand in favour of ban on Endosulfan. However, he parried questions whether the State government would implead as a party in case seeking ban before the Supreme Court.

The Minister said that the Chief Minister Oommen Chandy had clearly articulated the stand of the State government in the matter. (Mr. Chandy had said that the State government disagreed with the submissions of the Central government before the Court.). It had cancelled the licence of the Hindusthan Insecticides to manufacture Endosulfan at its factory in Kochi.

Mr. Prakash said that the government was examining how the health problems faced by the people exposed to Endosulfan could be solved.

Full Story at,

http://www.thehindu.com/health/policy-and-issues/article2324801.ece