GO TO SOURCE NEW DELHI, INDIA: The Union Cabinet on Thursday decided to introduce the Indian Divorce (Amendment) Bill, 2000, ostensibly to remove discrepancies in the grounds for Christian men and women to seek divorce. Christian organizations have criticized the move, saying they were not consulted. The bill intends to amend the Indian Divorce Act, of 1869, since its provisions…
Source: India Today News Service, November 17, 2000 BEIJING, CHINA: According to a survey done by Chinese scientists, the world’s tallest peak, Mt. Everest, is moving into China at a speed of six to seven centimeters per year from its position on the Nepal-China border. This is nothing new, of course, as the entire India subcontinent–once separated from Asia by…
Source: Hinduism Today, November 21, 2000 SEATTLE, WASHINGTON: Lamar Van Dyke, one of two partners of Sittin’ Pretty Designs, offered an unconditional apology to the Hindu community for placing images of Lord Ganesha and Goddess Kali on toilet seats. The company said they would withdraw the items from sale. In her apology for offending the sensibilities of the community, Lamar…
Source: Reuters, November 17, 2000 NEW DELHI, INDIA: More than half of Indian women believe that wife-beating can be justified under certain circumstances, a survey on population and health published this week said. The survey of 90,000 women across the country — conducted by the International Institute for Population Sciences at the initiative of the Health Ministry — found that…
GO TO SOURCE AYODHYA, INDIA: After lying dormant for several years, the temple town of Ayodhya in India’s largest state, Uttar Pradesh, is once again simmering with tension. Eight years ago, Hindu zealots tore down the ancient Babri mosque in Ayodhya, which stands upon the birthplace of Lord Rama. Bloody Hindu-Muslim riots followed. Icons of Lord Rama and Sita were…
GO TO SOURCE LONDON, ENGLAND: A rare collection or pre-Harappan ceramics and sculptures being exhibited for the first time in London have been described by dealers as the oldest high quality treasures of their kind anywhere in the world. This collection of pots, figurines and tablets is from a site in the upper Indus, near Mehrgarh in the Pakistani province…
Source: Hindustan Times, November 11, 2000 PATNA, INDIA: In the state capital of Patna, India around the Sahara Indian building on Boring Road, monkeys are accosting smokers who venture into their territory. They have become the moral judge and jury of anyone caught smoking. After getting a few quick slaps, smokers quickly relinquish their fares to the persistent band of…
GO TO SOURCE MUMBAI, INDIA: Call it the latest victory for Chatrapati Shivaji. The Maharashtra state government decided Wednesday to rename Mumbai’s Prince of Wales museum after the legendary Indian warrior and king. Shivaji already reconquered the main railway terminal, Victoria Station, and the city’s name itself was returned to “Mumbai” from the Anglicized “Bombay.” There are complaints about the…
Source: The Indian Express, November 17, 2000 VADODARA, INDIA: Increasing popularity of the ancient Indian disciplines like vastushastra (architecture), ankjyotish (numerology), hastrekha (palmistry) and ayurveda (medicine) have come to the rescue of Baroda Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya where enrollments had declined over the past decades. As a result of offering these courses, the college’s enrollment has begun to increase. The very name,…
GO TO SOURCE MADURAI, INDIA: The Indian government has requested ten American missionaries, now staying on Rameswaram Island at the tip of South India, to leave the country by November 19. The ministry said they had not renewed their visas as they are required to do every six months. The American evangelists were working for the Meyyampul church in Rameswaram.…