The Importance Of Being Brajesh
The Opposition and the Sangh Parivar launch an attack on the Prime Minister's Office by targeting the Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister Brajesh Mishra. The Vajpayee camp finds itself fighting a grim political battle to retain credibility even as the Establishment tries to discredit the Tehelka allegations. An analysis.

Supercrat In His Labyrinth
There are 240 secretaries to the Government, but N. K. Singh is always a cut above-in style, networking, and power. The economic policy wizard gets defensive.

The Ways And Means Of Ranjan
Ranjan Bhattacharya's role as nursemaid to Atal Bihari Vajpayee gives the fun-loving foster son-in-law
the image of one who dabbles in government decisions.

Congress' Coalition Flight Grounded
With sceptic constituents, Congress President Sonia Gandhi's
plan to form an alliance just before the assembly elections in five states, may backfire.

Desperately Seeking loopholes
The Bharatiya Janata Party and Samata Party find discrepancies
in the charges levelled against them by Tehelka. But it's just details.

Nursery Of Hate
The week-long violence in Kanpur has cooled down, but the spectre of the Students Islamic Movement of India still looms large. A look at the reach of India's in-house Taliban.

Vroom Service
The four-stroke motorcycle overtakes middle-class India's greatest icon since the valve radio set, as sales of the doughty old scooter stagnate in spite of a spirited fightback.

George Cross
The FIR against Sonia Gandhi's private secretary is a plain corruption issue says the CBI. But, an embarrassed Congress complains of vendetta.

Nothing Official About It
The payment crisis is temporarily stemmed, but clandestine financing ticks like a time bomb.

HEALTH WATCH

Soya Strength For Women

Isoflavone, a plant estrogen, may help combat problems associated with menopause

Here's some good news for women struggling to fight uncomfortable, even dangerous menopause symptoms. The magic mantra? Consuming substantial amounts of the "meat of the world"-soya. It is reported to possess the potential to become the natural alternative to ERT (Estrogen Replacement Therapy)-so far the most common medical method for alleviating menopause symptoms. And unlike ERT which might increase cancer susceptibility, soya does not have such risks. Ongoing research since 1990 has revealed that eating more of this isoflavone (plant estrogen)-packed food can fight the single most critical consequence of menopause-dropping estrogen levels, to which all other symptoms like mood swings, hot flushes, insomnia and osteoporosis are closely linked.

In Japan, for instance, the consumption of soya is approximately 200 mg per day and the incidence of hot flushes, hormone-related cancers and osteoporosis perhaps the lowest in the world. The secret lies in the dual effect of soya estrogens, which mimic the body's own estrogen. Researchers believe that the soya-based estrogen can lower breast cancer risk in pre-menopausal women, while benefiting the heart and bones and lowering hot flushes and mood swings in post-menopausal women. Further, soya protein raises the quotient of "good" HDL cholesterol which protects against heart disease, while lowering "bad" LDL cholesterol. Says Dr Paola Albertazi, Centre of Metabolic Bone Disease, Hull, who has done extensive research on this correlation: "Eating about

60 gm of soya flower a day might help, depending on the percentage of isoflavone present. Hopefully, companies will soon state this on their packages." In India, organisations like fogsi-Federation of Obstetric and Gynaecological Society of India-and Foreva have started spreading awareness about soya's benefits.

Dr Hitesh Parikh, a Mumbai-based obstetrician, recommends soya as a dietary supplement to his patients. As with most hypotheses though, there is a flipside. Consuming too much of certain soya foods can have adverse health implications. Guess the ideal recommendation to Indian women then is a "balanced" and yet higher soya intake.

By Natasha Israni

IN SMALL DOSES

Blues Bad for the Heart: Depression devastates the heart in many ways. A five-year- long study published in March conducted among 55-to-85-year-olds shows that heart disease nearly quadrupled among patients with major depression, compared to those who did not suffer depression. The reasons cited were numerous. Depression has been shown to interfere with blood-cell function and decreases the variability of heart rate. Depressed people also have higher levels of stress hormones that increase blood pressure. The most likely reason could probably be the simplest-depressed people simply do not care about themselves and lead an unhealthy lifestyle.

Viva Viagra? Men on sildenafil (Viagra) can heave a sigh of relief. A study of more than 5,500 patients, reported in the British Medical Journal, finds no proof that the incidence of fatal heart attack or ischaemic heart disease increases due to the drug. Doctors had previously warned that heart disease was a possible side-effect of Viagra. They were asked to fill medical details five months after the first dose. Only 10 heart-ailment related deaths were reported. However, this is only a pilot study that needs to be examined thoroughly.

Strained Workplace, Sore Eyes: The eye can betray a strained work ambience, according to the recent research reports from Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Studies show that a third of complaints of eye strain among bank employees, attributed to computer monitors, is really about employee dissatisfaction with working conditions. None of the employees studied had any history of eye problems. Workers who felt supported were less likely to report itchy, sore or heavy eyes, unlike those who also reported low levels of work satisfaction, underuse of skill and low self- esteem. A happy workplace, it seems, literally makes the world brighter.

MetroScape
The Itch For Kitsch
When Kitsch Kitsch Hota Hai opened to an overflowing house at Delhi's India Habitat Centre last week, people didn't quite know what to expect.
more...

Looking Glass


Delhi Exhibition: Unbuilt India-Vision 2001

Delhi Music:
Shriram Shankarlal Music Festival, 2001

Delhi: Showroom
Interiors Espania

The 457-acre estate of the Roerichs near Bangalore is in a pathetic condition. But does anyone care, asks INDIA TODAY's Principal Correspondent Stephen David in Despatches.