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By: Abhinav Malhotra, Bureau Chief ICN Punjab & Corporate Brand Manager ZDL Zodiacal Pharmaceutics Pvt Ltd Blending traditional and contemporary approach towards Life and Work CHANDIGARH : A former United States Senator Byron L Dorgan quoted “Working Hard and working Smart sometimes can be two different things” Well in my attempt to blend the two together, a portmanteau named “SMARD” was coined. Often, we come across famous quotes from the past where hard work was glorified and considered to be the only secret recipe for success. We were wired to believe that…

By : Prof Santosh Kumar ,CEO, IISSM, formerly, Director SAARC Disaster Management Centre & Chief Consulting Editor-ICN The Puzzle of Rationality NEW DELHI : Disaster loss data have no emotions. And hence, lack compassion and empathy in long term recovery and risk reduction. Why do we, as human beings, behave in ways that appear “irrational”? We face devastating disasters, mourn collective losses, question the system for a brief time — and then, once the dust settles, we slip quietly back into our comfort zones. Governments and institutions, too, learn little,…

According to the Ramayana, Ravana was finally killed in the Battle of Lanka with the help of his own brother Vibhishana, who was crowned new king of Lankapura by Lord Rama after the war. Sri Lanka is also important in the Dussehra celebrations because its historical name was Lanka which is considered to be the place where Ravana lived. Hence, the celebrations in this country are carried on in its full extent with the ritualistic burning of effigies. The inflammable statues of Ravana, Meghnad and Kumbhkaran are burned by the…

Durga Puja is one of the most famous festivals celebrated in West Bengal and particularly in Kolkata, in honour of Goddess Durga during the period of Navaratri.  KOLKATA : Durga is honored with extreme fervor during the annual Navratri festival, which marks the beginning of autumn and occurs typically in September or October. Durga puja is celebrated commonly by Bangladesh’s Hindu community. Some Bengali Muslims also take part in the festivities. In Dhaka, the Dhakeshwari Temple puja attracts visitors and devotees. In Nepal, the festivities are celebrated as Dashain.Beyond south Asia, Durga puja is organised by Bengali communities…

By: Kauser Khan, Editor-ICN Group The main attraction of the ten-day Mysore Dasara festival is the Mysore Palace which is illuminated daily with nearly 100,000 light bulbs from 7 pm to 10 pm on all days of the festival. Karnataka’s famous Mysore Dasara celebrations are in full swing. It is also called Jamboo Savari for its grand elephant procession taking place. Dasara festivities, which began with the Vijayanagar kings as early as the 15th century in Mysore City is all ready for the final day and this year it marks 408th edition. Vijayadashami,…

By: Dr. Mohammad Aleem, Editor-ICN Group NEW DELHI: Gandhi Jayanti is celebrated on October 2 every year marking the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi popularly know as Gandhiji. Fondly known as Bapu, he led the freedom struggle against British inspiring millions to take up the movement. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869, in Porbandar, Gujarat. Various events and functions remembering works of Gandhi are held at many places in the country. India’s secularism is ascribed in part to Gandhi, and it is certainly true that Gandhi wanted the Indian state…

By: Subhashini, Associate Editor-ICN NEW DELHI: It is known that the development of language as a medium of expression is the key factor of communication and is also responsible for the growth of a culture as well as education. History itself is the witness in case of Africa, where language originated initially. It is accepted in almost every part of the world that the language of Egypt influenced the Greek and Latin languages; even though these two languages are Indo-European. On a broader scale, the roots of most of the European languages…

By: Dr. Warija Seth, M.D. (Obstetrics & Gynaecology)& Sr. Associate Editor-ICN LUCKNOW: Human evolution is the result of valuable qualities like empathy, sympathy, compassion and wit. Man changed his nature from nomad to stationary living. During the course of evolution man developed interdependent communities. They indulged in trade, excessive accumulation of wealth. Indulgence in pleasure and selfish behaviour has risen the rivalry among themselves.If we examine the swarmed and cramped cities of today, the nimble human is lost somewhere and a scowl, shrugged man looking for sudden thrust to raise oneself and…

By: Barnali Bose, Editor-ICN World NEW YORK : In your daily interactions, various words and phrases you use and hear being used, a few of them more often than others. You might have come across some of them while reading. If you pause to think, you will notice that quite a few of these, you hardly use anymore or hear them being used. One plausible explanation is that they might have become obsolete or perhaps their use is confined to a particular subject or area and you have drifted away it. Despite…