1) Indian White Tiger
A rare ‘white tiger’ with a pale skin colour has been spotted for the first time in the Nilgiris by a wildlife photographer, arousing interest among conservationists and forest officials on whether it is a true genetic mutant.
The white tiger or bleached tiger is a pigmentation variant of the Bengal tiger, which is reported in the wild from time to time in the Indian states of Madhya Pradesh, Assam, West Bengal and Bihar. The scientific name of the White Tiger is Panthera tigers since it is merely a different coloured version of the Bengal subspecies. As expected, the White Tiger is far lighter in its colouring than the more common Bengal Tiger. The majority of its coat is a light cream colour, with very light brown or grey stripes.
A group of tigers is called a ‘streak’ or an ‘ambush’. In the wild, tiger is known for not staying in groups and are solitary animals. However, the man-made environment may force them into unnatural social groups. A tigress and her cubs may also be referred to as a streak or an ambush. Bengal tigers often live in the dense jungles of Asian countries like India and China, while Siberian tigers are found in Russia. White tigers are generally Bengal tigers born with a genetic defect that prevents the orange pigmentation for which tigers are typically known.
White tigers have been repeatedly inbred to preserve the colour of the coat. The White Tiger is a Bengal Tiger which is a species listed by the IUCN as endangered and therefore severely threatened in its surrounding environment. There are no White Tiger individuals known to be found outside of captivity.
The White Tiger (also known as the White Bengal Tiger) is a subspecie of Tiger found throughout the Indian subcontinent. Although the range of the White Tiger is historically very large, these animals are incredibly rare as their colourisation is dependent on a defective, recessive gene that is passed on from their parents. Over the past couple of centuries, the White Tiger has become even rare in the wild due to trophy hunting or capture for the exotic pet trade, with there having been no recorded sightings of these elusive predators for the past 50 years. Today, the White Tiger can still be found in a handful of zoos and animal sanctuaries around the world with these large and beautiful felines often being the star attraction. It is time to preserve the endangered species.
– C.K. Subramaniam
2) Karnataka CM weeps over compulsion of alliance-politics
It refers to Karnataka Chief Minister sobbing in public before TV-cameras crying about compulsion of alliance-politics making him uneasy. Is this a sign in repetation of Bihar-politics when Chief Minister may retain the post by changing alliance? If HD Kumaraswamy is so much upset with his assignment, he should resign from the post for enjoying peaceful personal life.
Alliance-politics is a politics of blackmail, opportunism, convenience and thus corruption for which is the only remedy is to elect Chief Minister together with Speaker, Deputy Speaker simultaneously on secret and compulsory vote through Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) on nominations signed by at least 34 per cent members of the lower House. Such elected persons may be removed by the same process but with a compulsion to name an alternate leader in the same motion. Legislators not participating in such election-procedure may lose voting-right in the assembly though retaining membership of the House.
Such a system can alone pave way for a permanent solution of simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and all state-assemblies eliminating the aspect of unstable governments and hung state-assemblies.
– Subhash Chandra Agrawal
3) Electric or CNG cremation should be encouraged in India
It refers to China banning the burial of dead bodies for people of all religions to save land being converted into grave-yards, even though China is three times bigger than India in terms of land. It is time that environment-friendly cremation through electricity and CNG may be encouraged in India. People follow political leaders as their role-models. A rule should be made that state-honour may be given only to those who are cremated through electricity or CNG only. It is significant that many prominent citizens following Islam and Christianity in India were cremated through electricity rather than traditional burial. The system will automatically eliminate demand for making samadhis or graves for departed leaders which unfortunately become a craze for family members of deceased leaders like in case of short-term Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral.
There also exists an unauthorised samadhi of former Delhi chief minister Sahib Singh Verma at Gheora-more (Delhi) at a public-park (government-land) where cremation of the departed leader was done against all rules. File-notings under RTI Act reveal that no written permission was taken for such cremation which was attended by all top dignitaries including the then president, the prime minister, chief minister and others seated on high posts becoming mute witnesses of such illegal cremation by attending the funeral ceremony. Even a Division Bench of Delhi High Court on December 27, 2017, rightly observed that no one has a right to indiscriminately use any open land (especially government-land) as a burial-ground. Delhi government or any concerned agency should take immediate action to remove unauthorised platform being encroached in the name of ‘samadhi’ of Sahib Singh Verma at a public-park on government-land.
– Madhu Agrawal
4) Blame game on bridge collapse
The blame game for the Gokhale over bridge has started and the onus was on Western Railways. The sudden collapse of the bridge at Andheri was reported to have caused due to the extra weight of nearly 124 tonnes, comprising of dry sand, paver blocks and cable wires that led to the collapse. Thus, the BMC was given a clean chit. This is the finding of a preliminary probe report submitted by the Commissioner of Railway Safety (CSR). We have heard of such blame games in the past as well. It is reliably learnt that all the bridges on railway premises though constructed by the BMC should be maintained by the Railways, which is obliged to conduct a safety audit as well. The Railways maintain bridges on a regular basis but they failed to have a safety audit of the Gokhale over bridge and so the blame was passed on to Western Railway. The blame was passed on to BMC as they loaded the extra weight on the bridge. The accident occurred due to deep corrosion and pitting of cantilever steel brackets supporting the pathway resulting in thinning down of section. Public life is lost because utter carelessness and the blame game is on the cards.
– Anandambal Subbu
5) Chennai horror tale puts the entire nation to shame!
Seventeen men raping an 11-year-old girl for 7 months in Chennai is a national shame that has shocked the entire country out of its senses. These insane men should be hanged without trial so that it acts as a stern lesson to other maniacs in future. They should be publicly lynched before they are silenced at the gallows. Rapes and molestations in our country have become the order of the day due weakening law and order situation in the country. Women are considered a commodity in most States of the country and only a handful of such cases get reported due to social taboo involved.
The government should not be a silent spectator to such injustice. Laws need modifications and security too should be strengthened so that such incidences do not occur in future. Prostitution too should be made legal and special place earmarked for that purpose so that the deprived satisfy their lust legitimately without committing sexual crimes on the innocent!
– S.N.Kabra
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
