Author: Anil Malik

As we age, nothing is more comfortable psychologically than being in the same house we have been in for many years. There is a feeling of belonging, knowing where what is, having trusted neighbours, and so on. However, it is also true that as we age, we become less flexible and mobile with more chances of falls and may need assistance with certain activities. Often, kids request their parents to leave behind their home, city, or even country to come and stay with them so that they can take care of their parents. However, this is not an easy option for most parents. They prefer to continue living in their own house. So, to live in their house seniors will have to make some changes so that they can live safely, and securely. What are the changes Seniors may need in their homes in near future: Are doorways wide enough…

Most of the senior citizens in our country are not aware that there is a NATIONAL POLICY ON SENIOR CITIZEN in place, and this was announced by Atal Bihari Bajpayee led NDA government in the year 1999. The policy envisages State support to ensure financial and food security, healthcare, shelter and other needs of older persons, equitable share in development, protection against abuse and exploitation, and availability of services to improve the quality of their lives. As compared to the Western world, in India, the family still plays the first institution to take care of its elderly members. Moreover, the Government of India is implementing various schemes and programmes , through different Ministries and  Departments for the care and welfare of senior citizens.  These include shelter, food, healthcare, financial security, social security, awareness, recreation etc. The details are listed below: 1 The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment implements a…

Yesterday a controversy erupted in the Indian political scene on the statement of the Chairman, of Indian Overseas Congress Sam Pitroda who while speaking on the topic of ‘wealth distribution’ that India should have an ‘Inheritance Tax’. Immediately there was a reaction from the BJP leadership criticising the Congress party of Sam Pitroda’s comment on inheritance tax, the leader further added that this exposed Congress Party’s true intentions and called for clarity on their stance regarding the wealth distribution. The Congress spoke person said,  “What Sam Pitroda says are his personal views, and they are not the views of the Congress party”. What is Inheritance Tax This is a tax which is levied on property inherited when a person dies. According to experts, estate and inheritance tax are broadly similar because both are generally triggered by death. Estate taxes are levied on the net value of property owned by a…

There is one news item that has caught my eye for the last two days, and it is the ‘West Bengal Teacher  Hiring Scam’. The Calcutta High Court on 22nd April 2024 declared as null and void the recruitment process of State Level Selection Test-2016 (SLST) in West Bengal government-sponsored and aided schools, ordering the cancellation of all appointments made through it. Over 23 lakh candidates appeared for the 2016 SLST for 24,640 vacant posts. This has become a big setback to the West Bengal government of TMC led by Mamata Banerjee. As many as 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff who were appointed through SLST are set to lose their jobs and have been asked by the HC to return their salaries along with 12% interest. HC further directed CBI to probe the appointment process and submit a report in three months. This SLST was meant to fill vacancies for…

Lok Sabha elections otherwise known as General Elections  generally happens after every 5 years.  For the first time Lok Sabha Election took place in the year 1951/52. Presently the elections for 18th Lok Sabha are going on. There have been many winners who won the elections without even contest, as there were no candidate opposing them for the contest. From the first elections of 1951/52 to current elections of 2024 there have been instances of UNCONTESTED WINNERS in the Lok Sabha elections. Yesterday, the Election Commission of India has declared that a BJP candidate from Surat Mukesh Dalal’s has won the election unopposed, the reason being that the nomination form of Congress’  candidate was rejected, because the signature of proposers were found forged, as the proposers themselves acknowledged that the signature on the nomination form were not theirs. Similarly the nomination form of the Congress’ substitute candidate was also rejected…

Recently there has been a case in the Supreme Court (SC) regarding a petition filed by the Indian Medical Association (IMA) against Patanjali and its brand ambassador Baba Ramdev, saying that ads released by Patanjali are spreading misinformation about modern medicine products. The trigger was a series of Patanjali advertisements in Indian newspapers in July 2022 claiming that ayurvedic products could cure chronic conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, heart diseases, and autoimmune conditions. The IMA petition alleged that such claims violated India’s Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act. During the hearing, the two-judge bench of the SC asked Patanjali Company and Baba Ramdev to tender a public apology for the misleading information given in the ads. Further, the SC has temporarily banned Patanjali from advertising certain items due to a history of false claims. The issue is getting a political touch also- it is well known fact that…

When we have all our body parts present and working fine, rarely do we think about how it would be if it were not so. People may be born with anomalies or can lose some body parts to accidents or diseases. Thanks to the advances in medical technology, PROSTHETICS or the art of making various body parts make it possible for people to live better life. Prosthesis refers to the artificial body parts used by people, like hands, legs, eyes, etc. Even the dentures we use are kind of prosthetics, one may say. The prime utility of prosthetics devices is providing people with a better quality of life making them mobile and independent. Of course, there are some pros and cons, and we look at them here: PROS Many people opt for a prosthesis to look normal and not out of place. It also gives them a boost of self-esteem….

Friends, the General Election fever is slowly gripping the nation. The main campaigning plank of all the opposition parties is to anyhow defeat  PM Narendra Modi in this election, and for this they are giving statements which are ridiculous. One of the statement issued by the them is that  “if a given a chance for 3rd time to Modi, he is going to change the Indian constitution”. As  if changing the constitution is a child’s play. Till date BJP and their leaders have always said that they and their party will always abide by the constitution, then why the opposition is creating this doubt in public mind, that Modi will change the constitution. As per the law the Indian Constitution can be amended, and there are certain parliamentary procedures for the same. The first type of amendments includes that can be passed by ‘simple majority’ in each house of the…

Here is some food for thought. When did you last go DEWORMING for yourself? Your  most probable answer would be that you don’t remember, and there will be a rejoinder question saying that ‘deworming is for kids, right?’ This is a myth that we have been believing for the ages where deworming is concerned. However, the truth is that people of all ages need deworming. This becomes must if you have been experiencing some abdominal symptoms attributed to gastric issues. If these symptoms do not seem to relieve as expected and keep recurring, then maybe it’s time for a checkup for worms, and get a deworming done. Let us understand deworming and why everyone needs to do it periodically. Understanding Deworming The deworming process refers to the killing and eliminating of parasites or worms from our bodies through appropriate medication. Mostly, we follow this process judiciously  for children till a…

In today’s weekend blog, I am writing on cricket, and this time is about Test Cricket. Many of us do not know that test cricket started 148 years back in 1876 between Australia and England. Umpteen records were created by many players over the years, and here are a few interesting records of test cricket: 1 Sachin Tendulkar (India)- He holds the record of scoring maximum runs 15921. 2 Don Bradman (Australia)- Highest Batting Average of 99.94. 3 Brian Lara (West Indies)- Scoring highest runs in an inning- 400 runs. 4 Graham Gooch (England)- Most runs in a test match 456 (333+123) runs. 5 Don Bradman (Australia)- Most runs in a test series- 974 runs. 6 Jasprit Bumrah (India)- He is a pace bowler, but still he smashed most runs in an over while batting- 35 runs. 7 Mohd Yousuf (Pakistan)- for scoring most runs in a year- 1788 runs…