food Light too affects drinks Conventional methods to test the shelf life of products, say on retail displays, focus on heat and ignore the effect of light. Scientists exposed a soft drink containing saffron to different levels of light at rising temperatures. They found that the beverage grew lighter in colour as the intensity of the light increased, confirming that light can cause a

As against scathing attack hurled at Government by the opposition political parties as well as the left allies over galloping inflation in the country, the ruling party at the Centre does not find enough reasons to be so much worried since the weather forecast of meteorological department suggests a near-normal monsoon in the current year that could lead to increased farm production in 2008-09 successively after good harvest of the previous fiscal.

The farmers of Dhansiri subdivision have been maintaining their families by cultivation of rabi crops. More than 90 per cent people here are mainly dependent on agriculture. The areas of Assam-Nagaland border namely Nowjan, Beelgaon, Urinmghat, Sungajam, Tengani, Da-Pather, Doyang, are cultivating sugar cane, jute, mustard, potatoes, carrot, cauliflowers, onion, chillies, bringals and other green vegetables.

In the backdrop of high inflation and global food shortage forcing the likes of Wal-Mart to consider rationing of food products, Indian retail chains are trying to maintain prices of agri products at the base levels and are wooing consumers with combo-offers. Indian modern retail stores maintain that there is no shortage of food and agri products and have denied any kind of panic situation among consumers or traders.

One of the hardest concepts for a new student of monetary economics to grasp is that of a "bank run'

India, and the world, have experienced food crises before - and tackled them.

Even under adverse conditions, Punjab farmers have produced bumper crop Farmers of the state epitomise the true Punjabi spirit. Producing bumper crop year after year and surpassing national average have become a habit for Punjab, right from the days of Green Revolution. Punjab alone produces nearly 20 per cent of the entire country's wheat. The spirit and the hard work put in by the Punjab farmers have firmed up country's food security even under adverse conditions of inclement weather, militancy, diseases, pest attacks or drought.