School going children have developed a culture of taking junk foods in the name of fast food although such junk foods that contain excessive fat and carbohydrate are bad for health.

Taking vitamin D supplements in infancy may help a youngster ward off Type 1 diabetes, according to a review of the evidence released on Thursday in a specialist journal.

At this time of year, Jasabi village in Lhuentse is calm and quiet. There is not much activity as farmers serenely prepare for the spring season which heralds yet another busy farming cycle. But the farmers from about 15 households in this village dread summer. They fear summer not because of the drudgery of farm life, but for a common problem they share every summer - the Jasabi bridge. The suspension bridge over the Kurichhu river in Kurtoe gewog, which is a lifeline for the village, is about 23 years old and about to fall apart, according to farmers. Over the years, the river has eaten into the foundation of the bridge, which was built in 1985. "I think the bridge will not survive the swelling river, forget a flood,' said a worried farmer. There is enough reason for concerns. Jasabi is a two- to three-hour walk from the nearest farm road in Dungkhar. It is the only bridge that connects the village to the dzongkhag headquarters, the hospital, and the gup's office. "Even to sell a few village products, we have to cross that bridge,' said another farmer. "If the bridge breaks down, our children will miss one academic session because the school is on the other side of the river.' "We'll be isolated,' said the village tshogpa, Pema Wangchuk. According to him, there is no other means to get to Lhuentse if the bridge is washed away. "During winter, we can wade through but, with the Kurichhu swelling in summer, there's no other way to get across.' However, Dzongkhag officials are aware of the concerns of the Jasabi farmers. According to the dzongkhag engineer, Tshering Chophel, the bridge would be renovated in the first year of the 10th Plan. "The bridge is risky and we've already made plans to renovate it,' said the engineer. "We'll provide protection to the foundation of the bridge, so there's no need for a new bridge,' he said. "The wooden deck will also be repaired.' The Kurtoe gup added that the importance of the bridge was long realized and included in the Plan. Contributed by Tashi Yetsho

A violent hailstorm, accompanied by rains, yesterday hit Sadar upazila of the district, leaving 13 people injured and over 200 houses damaged. Locals said the hailstorm that struck at about 6:30pm also damaged standing crops on a vast track of land during its fury. The 13 people, including five children, were injured as their thatched houses collapsed during the storm. Kamarjani, Kunderpara, Prodhaner Bazar, Jhakurer Bhita, Goghat, Kharjani, Dariapur, Karaibari, Counciler Bazar and Nayagai were among the worst affected 19 villages in the hailstorm.

About 5.6 per cent of the country's adults and a large number of children are suffering from diabetes, and the number of diabetic patients is increasing alarmingly with more than 20,000 new patients in a year. According to the Diabetic Association of Bangladesh, various causes increase the prevalence of diabetes, while unbalanced food habit, lack of physical exercise, regular intake of energy-dense fast food and soft drinks are mainly blamed for diabetes. According to the data available at the association, 22,559 new patients of diabetes were registered in financial year 2005-2006, 22,324 in 2004-2005, 21,462 in 2003-2004, 20,883 in 2002-2003, 20,607 in 2001-2002 and 17,045 in 2000-2001. A total of 3,57,418 patients were registered in financial year 2005-2006, 3,34,859 in 2004-2005, 3,12,535 in 2003-2004, 2,91,073 in 2002-2003, 2,70,190 in 2001-2002 and 2,49,587 in 2000-2001, according to the association's data. Such patients were registered with the DAB-run BIRDEM hospitals in Dhaka, 13 national healthcare network centres in the city, 10 diabetic healthcare development centres and 56 affiliated bodies across the country. The DAB president, AK Azad Khan, told New Age on Wednesday

The Minister for Railways, Mr Lalu Prasad, flanked by the Ministers of State, Mr Naranbhai Rathwa (left), and Mr R.Velu, arriving to present the Rail Budget on Tuesday. Review of Performance: 2007-08

The state cabinet on Monday revised the starting amount for the Ladli scheme to Rs 10,000 from the existing 5,000 at the birth of a girl child in a family with an annual income of less than Rs 1 lakh. While the move is obviously aimed at wooing Congress's traditional votebank in the slum clusters and unauthorised colonies, the irony is that the rules of the scheme, which is supposed to be effective from January 1, 2008, are yet to be notified three months after the cabinet had given its initial nod to the project. Under the present form of the scheme, every eligible girl child is entitled to Rs 10,000 at the time of birth and then onwards, Rs 5,000 each at the time of admission to classes I, VI, IX, X and XII. The money will be kept as a long term fixed deposit in the name of the child who can encash it when she turns 18 and the money she will thus get in hand will be Rs 1 lakh. Chief minister Sheila Dikshit, after the cabinet meeting said: