Committee yet to issue guidelines for monitoring probiotics PEOPLE who buy probiotic drinks, ice creams and curds in India cannot really be certain of their health benefits. There is no monitoring mechanism for checking the genuineness of these products or verifying the claims on their labels. A committee set up under the Indian Council of Medical Research (icmr) to resolve this problem

Junk iron from scrap yards to clean polluted water IN 1983 the entire Mianus river bridge in Connecticut, US, collapsed when the bearings rusted internally. Rusting thus proved to be a bane. But a bane can be turned into a boon. A group of researchers from China used scrap iron to treat industrial wastewater. Pollutants of industrial wastewater include toxic materials like

Left and right unite to stall twin bills in Parliament THE land acquisition bill and the resettlement and rehabilitation bill, criticized for harming land rights of people living in rural areas, were turned down in the Rajya Sabha on February 26. This was a day after the twin bills were rushed through the Lok Sabha. The bills, that complement each other were the government

Rising temperatures push North American birds to the far north BIRDS usually fly south to warmer regions in winter. But birds in North America were found moving north to colder climes in early winter. Audubon Society, a leading US-based advocacy group for conserving wildlife and ecology, reported this unusual change in migratory patterns in February 2009 after a study over four decades.

Britannia goes for palm oil britannia Industries Ltd has decided to remove trans fats from its entire range of baked products by the end of this year. The reason, company officials said, was growing scientific evidence of trans fats affecting health adversely. It is reducing trans fats by switching from vanaspati to palm oil-based products. Palm oil is the cheapest oil in the market