Faith Abounds

PICTURE SPEAK

Pilgrim progress

GOA The devout have begun converging on Goa for a once in a decade event-the exposition of the body of Saint Francis Xavier. The body of the Portuguese missionary saint who died and was buried in the Far East in 1552 is said to have been miraculously preserved in its grave after it was reopened a year later. It was hailed as a miracle and shifted to the cathedral of Bom Jesu in Old Goa.

What began as a one-off exposition some two centuries ago to dispel myths that the body had been spirited away, is now a two-month-long event and the 16th in the past four-and-a-half centuries. Over 30 lakh pilgrims will eventually shuffle past the glass coffin of the saint, whose body is now a relic having lost its struggle against the elements.

-By Sandeep Unnithan

Record Hit

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Aaj Tak achieves

DELHI Aaj Tak won the prestigious Best News Channel Award at the Hero Honda Indian Television Academy function for the fourth successive year, proving yet again what market dominance is all about. Its aggressive journalism, innovative programming and a more attractive new look enabled the 24-hour Hindi news channel (which belongs to the group that publishes India Today) to vanquish almost all competition this year. With the Abby, RAPA, Promax, and Indian Marketing Award in the bag, it proved to be "Sabse Tez" yet again, becoming the first news channel to cross the 30 million reach figure. The TV Today network (which also broadcasts Headlines Today) finds a mention in the Limca Book of Records as a business superbrand. Aaj Tak's channel share is higher than its nearest competitor by 40 per cent.

Bonhomie to Bickering

PICTURE SPEAK

NO MORE GRINS: Kidwal (left) and Chautala

CHANDIGARH Minutes after A.R. Kidwai was named as governor of Haryana, Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala was the first to make a congratulatory call, saying, "Our state is fortunate to have you at Raj Bhavan." Five months on, the bonhomie has turned into bitter bickering, with Chautala publicly deriding the governor's office as "unnecessary".

At the heart of the face-off is Kidwai's refusal to give the nod to the controversial Panchayati Raj Election Bill. Chautala had got it hurriedly passed by the Assembly to advance the elections to village and municipal bodies. Holding them before the assembly polls in March 2005 is part of his strategy to polarise the rural electorate and regain lost political ground before the bigger electoral sweepstakes.

Kidwai, sensing this, returned the bill to the Assembly for reconsideration-a move that raised Chautala's hackles. But he may yet have the last laugh for Kidwai returned the bill just before the last session of the Assembly-and Chautala could use his party's majority strength to get it passed, much to the opposition Congress' chagrin.

-By Ramesh Vinayak

Cutting-Edge Idea

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Barbers as AIDS counsellors

HYDERABAD After condom-selling booze counters, barber shops have now been chosen for Andhra Pradesh's aids campaign. Worried over increasing aids cases in the state (it is home to the country's second largest HIV population), the Andhra Pradesh aids Control Society has enlisted about 25,000 barbers as counsellors. They will chat up clients on the importance of safe sex and the perils of the disease. The barbers will also distribute condoms to customers. With men visiting the barber at least once a month, the authorities feel this is an effective strategy. "We had encouraging results when we utilised the services of 1,000 barbers in Hyderabad and so decided to extend it to the state," says K. Damayanthi, programme director. Truly, a cutting-edge idea.

-By Amarnath K. Menon

PICTURE SPEAK

Home affairs: Blunkett

Of Love and Labour

LONDON Home Secretary David Blunkett might have expected some trouble from human-rights activists in implementing the id scheme, but what he has ended up fighting is a battle of sex, paternity and moral issues. Blunkett, one of Britain's most powerful Labour politicians, is embroiled in a bitter wrangle with his former lover Kimberly Quinn, publisher of the right-wing Spectator magazine. Blunkett has been waging a battle with Quinn to prove by DNA testing that he is the father of her three-year-old son and a baby due in February. As the episode keeps the nation enthralled, the Labour Party-which entered office in 1997 on the promise of invincible morality-has a tough task ahead with general elections due in six months.

-By Ishara Bhasi

OBJECT OF DESIRE

SONY VAIO NOTEBOOKS Rs 80,000-Rs 1.05 lakh

Notable Arrival

Sony India has launched three models of the VAIO (video audio integrated operation) notebooks that combine audio, video and personal computing in a stylish package. The VGN-T16GP weighs only 1.38 kg and works on Intel Centrino mobile technology besides offering an eight-hour battery life on a single charge. The VGN-S26GP has a range of multimedia features and a unique VAIO application software. The VGN-B55G is a desktop usage notebook with extensive audio-visual capabilities for home entertainment.

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