Islamabad, February 16

Pakistan will “soon” ask India to allow its team of investigators probing the Pathankot terror attack to visit the site of the assault, the country’s Interior Minister said today.“We will soon ask India to let our special investigation team experts to visit Pathankot’s attack place,” Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan told reporters in Taxila near here.Khan said the officials who were part of the Special Investigation Team have held several meetings. The SIT was set up by PM Nawaz Sharif last month to work on the leads provided by India on the involvement of Jaish-e-Mohammed militants from Pakistan in the attack.Pakistan officials say the planned visit to Pathankot will help in the completion of the probe. Sharif had said last month that “the investigation into the Pathankot incident is underway and we will make its findings public soon.”Sharif had formed the six-member team headed by Additional Inspector General of Punjab’s Counter-Terrorism Department Rai Tahir to probe India’s claim that JeM was behind the attack. — PTI

Seven more students detained as govt firm against ‘anti-national activities’

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and CPI(M) leaders during a protest on the JNU campus in New Delhi on Saturday. — ANI

Tribune News Service,New Delhi, February 13

The row over the arrest of JNU students turned into a wider political battle with Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and CPI (M) leader Sitaram Yechuri joining the protest on the campus in Delhi on Saturday. Even as Union Minister Kiren Rijiju said the premier academic institute cannot be allowed to be a hub of anti-national activities, the Delhi Police detained seven more students.

Besides Rahul, several leaders of the Congress and Left parties, including Deputy Leader of Rajya Sabha Anand Sharma and CPI leader D. Raja, also gathered on the campus. The protesters, however, raised slogan “Rahul Gandhi go back” and waved black flags.

Communist Party of India-Marxist general secretary Yechuri earlier in the day met Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and demanded the release of student leader Kanhaiya Kumar arrested over sedition charges.

https://twitter.com/ANI_news

(Read: JNU sedition charge untenable: Experts)According to reports, the students, who were trying to protest at Indira Gandhi Kala Kendra, have been taken to Parliament Street police station for questioning in connection with the case.The police on Friday arrested Jawaharlal Nehru University Student Union (JNUSU) president Kanhaiya Kumar here on charges of raising anti-India slogans during a demonstration on the campus to mark the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru.”We apprised the Home Minister that whatever is happening is worse than that happened during Emergency. It should be proved that the 20 people, who are being targeted, are at fault,” Yechuri told media after meeting Singh.The BJP, meanwhile, said a section of JNU students are trying to destroy the dignity of a prestigious educational institution. The party also slammed political parties for “fuelling” the anti-national sentiments.“We will not allow anything wrong to happen to the students. At the same time, we will not allow anti-national activities in the country,” it said.”The Home Minister guaranteed us that action won’t be carried out on any innocent person. We demanded him to release the arrested student leader to which he assured us to look into the matter,” Yechuri said.

Meanwhile, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju said the premier academic institute cannot be allowed to be a hub of anti-national activities.

“We can’t allow JNU to be a hub of anti-national activities,” he told reporters here today.

The Minister of State for Home said freedom of expression cannot be absolute and unqualified and reasonable restriction has to be there.

“This was an unfortunate incident. But these are not small kids who don’t know what they do. In the name of freedom of speech, you can’t abuse the nation,” he said.

Ex-servicemen threaten to return degrees

Ex-servicemen who are alumni of JNU threatened to return their degrees on Saturday saying they did not want to be associated with anti-national activities on the university.

“We are constrained at the ongoing anti-national activities on the university campus like celebration of Afzal Guru day and consider it an affront to be equated with the present student fraternity of the university which is indulging in such anti-national activities,” ex-servicemen of 54th NDA course said in a letter to JNU vice-chancellor Jagdeesh Kumar.

“We feel that present activities in JNU campus negate the sacrifices made by past degree holders of the university and would therefore want to return our prized and well-earned degrees to your institution if such activities are allowed to be conducted inside the university campus,” it added.

JNU students on Tuesday had organised a meet to mourn the hanging of parliament attack convict Afzal Guru and Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) co-founder Maqbool Bhat, where anti-India slogans were raised.Another commemorative meeting was held at the Press Club of India in Delhi on Wednesday where also anti-India slogans and placards were raised.

With agency inputs

Manav Mander

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, February 10

A Punjabi dish is never complete without a dash of spice, which not only adds flavour, aroma and taste to any dish, but also changes the look and colour of food.Spices are composed of antioxidants, minerals, vitamins, phyto-nutrients, and essential oils, necessary for our wellness but little does a homemaker cooking in the kitchen knows that even spices can be adulterated.Spices available in the market are often adulterated. In the name of spices, one may actually be consuming ‘slow poison’ that can have an adverse effect on health in the long run if consumed regularly.Be it turmeric, black pepper, red chilli powder, coriander powder or saffron, everything is being adulterated by unscrupulous elements to earn some quick bucks. Adulteration is done to add weight to a product or enhance its colour.Harmful ingredients such as coloured crushed rice husk, and crushed wood were also used to increase the net weight of the packets.Turmeric powder or haldi is an indispensable spice in Indian and many Asian cuisines. But artificial colours and fillers such as corn flour (starch) yellow coloured talk or sawdust, lead chromite (used in paint), or melanil yellow are often used. Adulteration causes stomach disorder.Red chilli powder may be mixed with brick powder, saw dust, and artificial colours; these adulterants cause cancer and stomach disorders.Mustard powder (sarson) is mixed with argemone seeds. These adulterants cause epidemic dropsy and glaucoma.Black pepper powder (kali mirch) may be mixed with papaya seeds and light berries, which cause liver problems and stomach disorder.Cumin seed (zeera) and poppy seed (khaskhas) may contain artificially coloured foreign seeds, which are highly injurious to health.Asafoetida (hing) often comes mixed with foreign resins galbanum and colophony resin. These cause dysentery.Coriander powder (dhania) commonly used in Indian curries may be mixed with sawdust.Common salt is often found to be adulterated with white powdered stone, chalk and talc.Saffron (kesar) by weight is the most-expensive spice in the world. These can be made of coloured gelatine strands or stretched with dyed maize filaments (corn silk).“Turmeric powder is commonly found to be adulterated. People generally do not know that the turmeric powder they are using is adulterated. It is highly risky to consume turmeric powder mixed with metanil yellow. It is purely carcinogenic,” said Dr Deepak, a city-based gastroenterologist.Some people use turmeric in higher doses daily for health maintenance or for medicinal doses. These can vary from half a teaspoon to a tablespoon daily, but instead of giving you health benefits, it can result in damage.

Test yourself

• Cumin powder: Take a small amount (1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon) cumin powder and sprinkle it in a glass of water. The spice will sink and the sawdust will float.
• Pepper powder/ peppercorns: Take a small sample of peppercorns and drop them in a glass of water. The peppercorns will drop to the bottom and the papaya seeds will float. For ground pepper, the test is similar. If sawdust or ground papaya seeds are present, they will float.
• Saffron: Drop a few strands in cold water. If you see the colour quickly and the strands appear a little gummy when rubbed with fingers, it is gelatine. Real saffron will continue to release its colour in water. And there is no scent.
• Turmeric: In a small container such as a shot glass or mini bowl, place a small amount of turmeric. Add a little alcohol, stir well or cover well and shake (test tubes are good for this). Then add good shot of an acid such as vinegar. If it turns pink or violet, it has been adulterated.
• Salt: Stir a spoonful of salt in a glass of water. The presence of chalk will make the solution white and other insoluble impurities will settle down.

The only solution

• Buy spices from reliable sources and be aware of the possibilities of spice adulteration and test it. Buy organic things when you can and look for trusted labelling or the best way is to return to traditional methods. Buy whole spice and grind or grate or crush on your own.

New Delhi: The army on Wednesday sought public assistance for locating an officer who went missing while travelling by train from Katihar in Bihar to Delhi.

In a public appeal, the army said Captain Shikhar Deep, posted in Jammu and Kashmir, was travelling by Mahananda
Express (15483) from Katihar to Delhi on 6-7 February.

“The officer did not reach his destination and went missing during transit. Any information with regard to the
whereabouts of the officer may please be conveyed to Lt Col Anant Kumar on mobile number 9128724351,” it said.

The 25-year-old officer’s relatives had registered a case of suspected abduction with the railway police on Tuesday.

His father, Lt Col Anant Kumar, who is posted in Ranchi, has claimed Sikhardeep’s disappearance could be linked to some terrorist organisation.

According to the police, while his luggage was found intact in the train coach he was travelling in, the officer
was nowhere to be found and his mobile was also switched off.

The ticket examiner and the man, who provided bedsheet in the coach, said he was last seen at Kanpur during the journey.

Ajay Banerjee,Tribune News Service,New Delhi, February 10

The next 48 hurs prove crucial for the Army jawan who was miraculously found alive after being buried under 25 feet of snow following an avalanche atop the Siachen glacier.

A medical bulletin of the Indian Army on Tuesday said Lance Naik Hanamanthappa K, who was evacuated to Delhi, was camatose but had no frostbite. However, the bulletin said: “He remains critical and is expected to have a stormy course in the next 24 to 48 hours due to complications by rewarming and establishment of blood flow to the cold parts of the body”.

He had been airlifted to Delhi on Tuesday morning. He was shifted on board a helicopter from the 19,600 feet high ‘sonam post’ on the Siachen glacier to the Siachen base came. An Indian Air Force C-130-j transport plane specialised with a medical emergency room was stationed at Thoise (next to the base camp) and it flew with him to Delhi for further treatment and observation at Army run Research and Referral hospital in Delhi Cantt.

In the wee hours on Tuesday, Lt Gen DS Hooda, Northern Army Commander, had confirmed that Hanumanthappa was found alive. The other nine are dead.

Sources in Delhi said the jawan was trapped between two block of ice forming a ‘pocket’ of 25 square feet. Hanumathappa survived as he was clad in alpine clothing and high quality snow boots.

Army officials clarified that a video of rescue running on social media was not of this operation.

A Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) and nine other ranks of Madras Regiment were buried after their post was hit by the avalanche on February 3.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed Hanumanthappa saying he is an “outstanding soldier” whose “endurance and indomitable spirit” cannot be described in words.

Modi went to Army’s Research and Referral Hospital here to see Hanumanthappa soon after he was airlifted from Siachen and prayed for his best.

“No words are enough to describe the endurance & indomitable spirit of Lance Naik Hanumanthappa. He is an outstanding soldier,” he tweeted.

“Team of doctors is attending to Lance Naik Hanumanthappa. We are all hoping & praying for the best,” Modi added.

Siachen is the world’s highest active battlefield, contested by India and Pakistan since 1984 when India launched Operation Meghdoot and captured the peaks.

Jaya announces Rs 10 lakh each to kin of 4 TN jawans

• Chennai: Tamil Nadu government has announced Rs 10 lakh each to the families of four army jawans from the state killed in the avalanche in Siachen.
• Chief Minister Jayalalithaa expressed grief over the death of Havildar M Elumalai of Vellore, Havildar S Kumar of Theni, Sepoy G Ganesan from Madurai and Sepoy N Ramamurthy from Krishnagiri district. — PTI