Washington, March 20
The US has barred employers from filing more than one H-1B visa application for a worker in a fiscal year, amid a growing clamour to raise the cap to allow more skilled professionals from India and other countries to work here.

“To ensure a fair and orderly distribution of available H-1B visas, USCIS will deny or revoke multiple petitions filed by an employer for the same H-1B worker and will not refund the filing fees submitted with multiple or duplicative petitions,” the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS ) said in an announcement.

The Congress has set a limit of 65,000 for H-1B workers for the fiscal 2009.

The changes will ensure that companies filing H-1B petitions subject to congressionally mandated numerical limits have an equal chance to employ an H-1B worker, it said.

This rule does not preclude related employers (such as a parent company and its subsidiary) from filing petitions on behalf of the same worker for different positions, based on a legitimate business need.

There has been growing pressure from US companies to raise the H-1B visa quota with Microsoft chairman Bill Gates describing the cap as “arbitrary and counterproductive”.

“Microsoft has found that for every H-1B hire we make, we add on average four additional employees to support them in various capacities,” Gates, who once said that if he had his way he would scrap the H-1B visa system entirely, told a House of Representatives Panel on Science and Technology.

The USCIS has said that in last August, President George W Bush announced that the Administration would be undertaking a series of immigration and border security reforms and changes to the H-1B filing process under this rule are an important part of that initiative.

According to the agency from April 1, 2008, employers can file petitions requesting H-1B workers for fiscal year 2009 employment starting on October 1, 2008.

Additionally, the first 20,000 H-1B workers who have a US Master’s degree or higher are exempted from the cap.

Under current procedures, which are not changed by this rule, once USCIS receives 20,000 petitions for aliens with a US Master’s degree or higher, all other cases requesting the educational exemption are counted toward the 65,000 cap.

Once the 65,000 cap is reached for a fiscal year, USCIS will announce that the cap has been filled and reject further petitions subject to the cap. The rule also stipulates that if USCIS determines the number of H-1B petitions received meets the cap within the first five business days of accepting applications for the coming fiscal year, USCIS will apply a random selection process among all H-1B petitions received during this time period.

“If the 20,000 advanced degree limit is reached during the first five business days, USCIS will randomly select from those petitions ahead of conducting the random selection for the 65,000 limit. Petitions subject to the 20,000 limit that are not selected in that random selection will be considered with the other H-1B petitions in the random selection for the 65,000 limit,” the agency said.

The rule further clarifies that USCIS will deny petitions that incorrectly claim an exemption from any H-1B numerical limits and those filing fees will not be returned. — PTI

The most affected districts are Badulla, Mannar, Trincomalee, Ampara, Monaragala, Ratnapura, Gampaha, and Puttalam. — PTI

Beijing, March 20
Rattled by the massive scale of protests, China today rushed more troops to restive Tibet and neighbouring provinces to contain the pro-independence movement and arrested 24 persons in a stepped up crackdown, while asking the Dalai Lama to create conditions for talks.

China has ordered its “largest mobilisation” since the unrest began on March 10, media reports said, adding that a big convoy of military vehicles with troops was on the move in Tibet.

About 400 troop carriers and other vehicles were seen on the main road in the Tibetan capital, Lhasa.

Two dozen suspects had been arrested in Lhasa for “endangering national security”, looting, arson and “other grave crimes”, the state-run Tibet Daily reported today.

The Tibet regional government also claimed that 170 persons had “surrendered” in response to an ultimatum to troublemakers to give in by midnight of Monday promising leniency and warning of harsh action against those who failed to do so.

For the first time since riots erupted in Lhasa claiming 13 lives in the worst ever protests against the Chinese rule in two decades, media reports said Tibetan inhabited areas of Sichauan and Gansu provinces were also affected.

Shops and government offices were attacked in the counties of Aba, Xiahe, Magu, Lugu and Jone and Hezuo city in southern Gansu. Lhasa, Gannan and Aba were struggling to recover, local officials said.

Meanwhile, as global pressure piled on Beijing to hold direct dialogue with the Dalai Lama, China asked the top Tibetan monk to undertake “a thorough review” of himself to create conditions for talks.

“We request the Dalai Lama to truly give up his proposition for Tibet independence and stop separatist activities to split the motherland. He should undertake a thorough review of himself so as to create conditions for the dialogue,” foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang said.

The Chinese reaction came after British Prime Minister Gordon Brown spoke to his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao and discussed the riots in Lhasa.

Brown, who plans to meet the Dalai Lama during the latter’s visit to the UK in May, said in London that he appealed to Wen to apply restraint in dealing with protests.

However, Beijing expressed “grave concern” over Brown’s plans to meet the Tibetan leader.

“During the conversation (with Brown), Wen reiterated China’s position on the dialogue” that the Dalai Lama must abandon the “proposition of independence” of Tibet and cease his “separatist activities,” Qin told reporters here.

“It is only under these preconditions will the (Chinese) central government talk to him. It is only on that basis that the doors of the dialogue will be open,” he said, making it clear that Beijing held on to its well entrenched position.

Asked why China is reluctant to hold direct talks with the Dalai Lama despite his categorical statement that he was not for Tibet’s independence and speaking against violence in Lhasa, he said, “We should not only listen to what he says but also pay attention to what he does.”

China yesterday said it was locked in “life-and-death battle” in Tibet and accused the Dalai Lama of inciting the riots while calling him a “wolf in a monk’s robes”. — PTI

Baghdad, March 20
The US-led war on Iraq that toppled the torturous regime of dictator Saddam Hussein entered its sixth year today with millions of Iraqis still battling daily chaos and rampant bloodshed.

Five years ago, on March 20, 2003, US planes dropped the first bombs on Baghdad, and within three weeks toppled Saddam’s regime, but left US forces battling a resentful and rebellious people.

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani said the invasion ended Saddam’s era of “torture and tyranny”, although he acknowledged it brought with it the challenges of terrorism and corruption.

During the iron-fisted rule of his all-powerful predecessor, he said, the prisons were full of “innocent prisoners. These cells were Saddam’s theatres for torture and brutal crimes.”

But five years since then, Iraqis and the US and allied forces still face daily attacks from insurgents and Islamist militants, and fighting between armed factions from both sides of Iraq’s Sunni-Shiite sectarian divide goes on.

The war has killed more than 4,000 US and allied soldiers and tens of thousands of Iraqi civilian between 104,000 and 223,000 died between March 2003 and June 2006 alone, according to the World Health Organization. — AFP

President George W. Bush on Wednesday defended the Iraq war as "noble, necessary and just" and predicted victory even as anti-war groups demonstrated across the U.S. on the fifth anniversary of the start of the invasion.

Speaking at the Pentagon,Bush admitted the war had taken a huge toll in lives and money but stood by his decision to start it.

”Five years into this battle, there is an understandable debate over whether the war was worth fighting, whether the fight is worth winning, and whether we can win it," he said.

"The answers are clear to me. Removing Saddam Hussein from power was the right decision, and this is a fight that America can and must win."

He added: "Because we acted, the world is better and the USA is safer."

In the years since the invasion, the chief premise for the war - that Iraq under Saddam Hussein had stockpiled weapons of mass destruction - has been discredited.

Bush warned that, "The terrorists who murder the innocent in the streets of Baghdad want to murder the innocent in the streets of America.Defeating this enemy in Iraq will make it less likely that we'll face the enemy here at home."

Bush said the "successes we are seeing in Iraq are undeniable -- yet some in Washington still call for retreat."

He complained that war critics "can no longer credibly argue that we're losing in Iraq -- so now they argue the war costs too much. In recent months, we've heard exaggerated estimates of the costs of this war."

But he acknowledged: "No one would argue that this war has not come at a high cost in lives and treasure -- but those costs are necessary when we consider the cost of a strategic victory for our enemies in Iraq."

According to the Washington Post, one widely noted calculation by a Nobel Prize-winning economist puts the conflict's long-term price tag at $3 trillion or more.

Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said, "The cost to our national security has been immense -- our military is stretched thin and our reputation in the world is damaged."

With presidential elections set for November, the Iraq war has become a hot talking point on the campaign trail. Unlike the two Democratic presidential candidates – Senator Barack Obama of Illinois and Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York – who both want to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq, Bush urged caution.

"Any further drawdown will be based on conditions on the ground and the recommendations of our commanders," Bush said, "and they must not jeopardise the hard-fought gains our troops and civilians have made over the past year."

Obama criticised the Bush Administration's motives for starting the war. "There was a President for whom ideology overrode pragmatism and there were too many politicians in Washington who spent too little time reading the intelligence reports and too much time reading public opinion," Obama said in a speech in North Carolina.

Clinton reiterated her position on a troop pullout. "We have given [the Iraqis] the precious gift of freedom and it is up to them to decide whether or not they will use it. We cannot win their civil war. There is no military solution,"she said.

Cairo, March 20
Al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden has slammed the publication of drawings insulting to the Prophet Mohammad in a new audio message posted late last night and warned Europeans of a strong reaction to come.

The message, which appeared on a militant Website that has carried Al-Qaida statements in the past and bore the logo of the extremist group's media wing Al-Sahab, showed a still image of Bin Laden aiming with an AK-47.

"You went overboard in your unbelief and freed yourselves of the etiquettes of dispute and fighting and went to the extent of publishing these insulting drawings," said a voice believed to be Bin Laden's.

The tape came as the Muslim world marked the birthday of Prophet Mohammad and less than a week after the Danish intelligence service said the reprinting of a cartoon depicting the Prophet Mohammad had brought "negative attention" to Denmark and may have increased the risk to Danes at home and abroad. — AP

Pakistanis will learn who their next prime minister will be on Monday, when the National Assembly reconvenes to elect the leader of the incoming coalition government.

President Pervez Musharraf, who has few allies left in the assembly after their defeat in an election on Feb. 18, asked the assembly to meet on March 24, Musharraf’s spokesman Maj-General Rashid Qureshi conformed here Thursday.

“The president has been pleased to summon the National Assembly to ascertain the member who commands the confidence of the majority of members,” Qureshi said. Under the constitution, the President is required to invite a member of the National Assembly to form the government who commands the majority support in the assembly ascertained through a secret ballot.

Musharraf, who came to power as a general in a coup in 1999, appears increasingly isolated, and there is intense speculation over how long the US ally will be able to hold onto power.

The incoming government has pledged to pass a resolution to reinstate Supreme Court judges who Musharraf replaced in November out of fear that they could rule unconstitutional his own re-election by the previous assembly.

The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) of assassinated former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto will lead the coalition, but it has still to name its candidate for the premiership.

It could be a stop-gap prime minister, if Bhutto’s widower and political successor Asif Ali Zardari ultimately decides he wants the job himself.

Makhdoom Amin Fahim, a senior aide to Bhutto and Zardari’s deputy, had been favourite but his prospects dimmed after Sharif’s party objected to his contacts with Musharraf.

Other potential candidates include Yousaf Raza Gilani, Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhatar and Shah Mahmood Qureshi. They all hail from the central province of Punjab, whereas the PPP’s stronghold is the southern province of Sindh.

Gilani, PPP’s vice-chairman, spent at least four years in prison on charges of making illegal government appointments. Mukhatar defeated Musharraf’s ally Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, chief of Pakistan Muslim League, in the election. While Qureshi is president of the PPP in Punjab.

Bhutto’s 19-year-old son Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has returned to Pakistan and is expected to reveal the party’s choice on Monday. “We have time, so we can announce it either on Monday morning or just before the session,” said PPP spokesman Farhatullah Babar.

The February election saw the PPP emerging with the most seats in the 342-member National Assembly but not enough to rule alone.

Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s party came second, dealing a crushing defeat to the pro-Musharraf Pakistan Muslim League. Sharif, the leader Musharraf deposed, and Zardari signed an agreement this month to form a coalition with a small regional party and a religious party. Neither Zardari nor Sharif stood in the election.

There have been growing calls from within the PPP for Zardari to take up the job, but for now he is not eligible as he is not a National Assembly member. However, he could win a by-election to take his place in the assembly should he want to become prime minister.

Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan, president Supreme Court Bar Association, on Thursday said President Pervez Musharraf has no reason to continue in office after over two-third majority of the National Assembly elected a Speaker put up by the four-party anti-Musharraf coalition.

“Musharraf must see the writing on the wall and step down instead of engaging in conspiracies to thwart the overwhelming popular verdict delivered by the people in February 18 elections against him and his policies,” Ahsan said.

Talking to reporters before leaving for Abbotabad, to address a lawyers’ convention on Thursday, Ahsan said Musharraf is issuing various warnings and even obliquely threatening to dismiss the Assembly. “He is an avid car player and is used to making bluff,” Ahsan said adding: “It is time now to call his bluff.”

He said Musharraf knows that the coalition is committed to restore deposed judges, but is trying to delay the inevitable by deferring sessions of the new Assembly to elect Prime Minister. He has also not called sessions of provincial Assemblies even after passage of a month since elections.

Ahsan said Musharraf is afraid the new government cannot keep deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry and his other colleagues in detention. Similarly, the provincial governments that will be formed after Assemblies are convened would not pursue the policy of agitation and peaceful protest.

Both major coalition partners have pledged to release and reinstate the deposed judges through a resolution and the lawyers’ fraternity has faith in their pledge and sincerity. However, in case the coalition failed in fulfilling its promise, the lawyers would resume their campaign, he added.

Meanwhile, in an open debate on TV with Attorney-General Qayyum Malik on the constitutional validity of dismissal of judges, Ahsan said the army chief had no authority to declare emergency, suspend the constitution and sack sixty judges. He said Musharraf himself has admitted his actions of November 3 were illegal and unconstitutional.

He rejected Malik’s contention that the Supreme Court had validated these actions that would remain valid till the parliament revokes them through two-third majority. Ahsan said the judges of the new Supreme Court were creation of the Provisional Constitution Order (PCO) and a beneficiary cannot be his own judge.

Ahsan said there is no need to restore the deposed judges because they continue to be members of the court who are being prevented to perform their duty. The new government has simply to order withdrawal of such prohibition.

President Pervez Musharraf has warned that controversy and confrontation among state institutions would harm the democratic process.

"Politicking has to give way to good governance," the President said while addressing a farewell dinner for the outgoing caretaker cabinet and Prime Minister. "I am confident that the new government will consider Pakistan always first and counter the challenges it faces."

Musharraf's warnings came amid determination of the elected members to restore the deposed judiciary and strip him of the extra-ordinary powers that he has acquired through various constitutional amendments during the past eight years, including the power to dismiss the Assembly.

Musharraf said that he desired a good working relationship with the new government. He said that the new government should meet the challenges of terrorism, energy shortage and rising fuel and food prices through good governance and by keeping "Pakistan first".

He said the Parliament should complete its five-year term and democratic institutions should work without any friction or confrontation. "The country will make progress if new leaders looked forward and worked together for development of the country," he said.

He said the government had several major issues to tackle and he wanted them to be able to resolve them. "I hope the new government will meet and understand these challenges and move Pakistan forward on the path of progress, peace and prosperity," he said.

Islamabad, March 20
Eyebrows have been raised in Pakistan after the US appointed a controversial military official, who had earlier served as commander of the Guantanamo Bay prison, as its chief defence representative to Islamabad.

While Major-Gen Hood was the commander of the infamous prison in Cuba in 2005, an investigation conducted by the US military found that troops had mishandled Qurans of Muslim prisoners on at least five occasions.

Hood had also been criticised for his decision to force feed detainees who went on a hunger strike with the use of a restraining chair.

In a front-page article in The News today, leading Pakistani defence analyst Shireen M. Mazari wrote: “It is unfortunate that the US Army Chief of Staff has chosen to appoint such a controversial officer to Pakistan, especially given his record and linkage to abuse of prisoners and the holy Quran at Guantanamo.

“Guantanamo Bay itself has become a symbol of injustice, torture and abuse of Islam and sending a commanding officer from there to Islamabad begs the question: what is the message coming out of the Pentagon for Pakistanis by this insensitive act?”

Mazari also questioned the Pakistan government’s decision to “silently accept what the US military dishes out, with no thought to the sensitivities of its own people”.

She pointed out that “host governments always have a choice of refusing a nominee - and many Western countries have exercised that right in the diplomatic nominees of the Pakistan government”.

A US Embassy spokesperson said Hood was nominated by the US Army and “approved through the highest levels of the Department of Defence.

His assignment to Pakistan is not related to his previous assignment but rather is a reflection of his standing as a senior military officer”.

Noting that Hood was chosen for the assignment to Pakistan because he was a highly qualified officer, the US spokesperson said, “Assigning an officer at this level to this position reflects the continued US goal of cooperation with the armed forces of Pakistan.” — PTI

New York, March 20
The United Nations has asked the Nepalese government, security forces, political parties and electoral officials to make all efforts to stem resurgence of violence which could affect holding of free and fair poll next month.

The world body monitoring team noted a improvement in security and inclusiveness as the country heads towards the election but warned against fresh violence which could mar the April 10 elections.

The statement by the team came after its fourth visit to Nepal to assess the electoral process.

"Every effort should be made to guarantee that the current positive conditions prevail not only before and on election day, but also during the counting and announcement of results," the five-member team, appointed by secretary-general Ban Ki-moon and led by Rafael Lopez-Pintor, said.

Meanwhile, the UN mission in Nepal, which helps monitor human rights in the country, expressed "deep concern" over the killing of Rashtriya Jana Morcha candidate, Kamal Adhikari, last evening in the mid-west region. — PTI

United Nations, March 20
India has asked international community to act as one in denying terrorists, their ideologues and financiers access to arms, funds, means of transportation of deadly goods as well as safe havens.

The first step is for the United Nations to adopt a comprehensive convention something India has been advocating for more than a decade to fight terrorism which has grown through the last century to become one of the "leading strategic, political and development challenges," Indian Ambassador to UN Nirupam Sen told the 15-member Security Council yesterday.

Addressing the day-long council debate on threat to international peace and security by terrorism, Sen also stressed the need to strengthen democratic and secular forces across the world to stem the scourge.

One of the reasons the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT) is held up is that the member-states have not agreed on the definition of terrorism. But Sen said the world does not need a philosophical definition of terrorism.

"Current proposals address effectively the question of offences governed by the international humanitarian law and those governed by the Convention," he said, stressing that what is now needed is the political will to conclude the Convention.

Stating that the political and socio- economic programme of fundamentalists was always "deeply reactionary and exploitative," he told the council that history teaches that to prevent fundamentalist forces from occupying space for dissent, democratic and secular forces must be strengthened and not weakened. — PTI

New York, March 20
A draft text on the expansion of the UN Security Council(UNSC) was rejected by most of the 50 countries who participated in discussing the proposals, with India saying the paper did not have an "unambiguous" formulation for expansion of the group's permanent membership.

During a closed-door meeting here yesterday, several developed and developing countries as also small island states said the proposals were unacceptable as a basis for jump-starting negotiations on the thorny issue as they did not include all viewpoints, diplomats said.

India on its part pointed out that the paper did not have the core elements of the position of the Group of Four (G-4) comprising India, Japan, Germany and Brazil or have a "categorical and unambiguous" formulation on expanding the permanent membership of the council, the diplomats said.

India also said the paper did not have a formulation on increasing the representation of developing countries.

The drafters would, therefore, have to substantially revise it before presenting it to the President of the UN General Assembly, who would then start the process of negotiations.

The protracted issue of UNSC reform has been debated by the UN for more than a decade without much progress.

Recently, several countries, including India, had suggested that instead of a working group discussing the issue endlessly, the Assembly should begin inter-governmental negotiations on the elements put forward by various groups.

For that purpose, it was agreed to draft a paper putting down various options. But several diplomats said the new proposals, prepared by a few West and East European countries and Malaysia, did not meet the requirements.

The paper was, therefore, flawed and hence unacceptable as a basis for negotiations, they said. — PTI

Washington, March 20
External affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee will arrive here on Sunday for crucial talks with top US officials that are likely to be dominated by the civilian nuclear deal which he has said India can neither "mend" nor "end".

The two-day trip will be Mukherjee's maiden bilateral visit in his capacity as the external affairs minister. It is also the first visit at this level since Natwar Singh came here in April, 2005.

"Since then there has been no bilateral foreign minister visit,hence this is highly important," a senior official told PTI.

Mukherjee will hold talks with US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice and other cabinet and administration officials, including those of the National Security Council.

Rice and Mukherjee will be meeting at the State Department on Monday morning for a wide ranging discussion on several aspects of the broadening and deepening bilateral relations which will include the civilian nuclear initiative.

Though the nuclear deal is expected to dominate the parleys, an official said "a meeting at this level is not restricted to one or two issues".

Amid speculation that the civilan nuclear agreement, touted by the US as the "centrepiece" of its ties with India, has been put on backburner following threats from the Left parties to pull the rug, Mukherjee yesterday told Parliament that the government can neither "mend" nor "end" the nuclear deal.

"We are in a stage where neither we can mend it nor end it. We are in the dialogue stage," Mukherjee said.— PTI

Washington, March 20
The Bush Administration has said it wants officials from its Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to be stationed in India to check the safety of food products bound for the US, and has started initiating talks with New Delhi on the issue.

The regulatory body's presence in India was necessary given the fact that more FDA approvals are coming out of India than any other country in the world other than the US, secretary of health and human services Mike Leavitt said here, adding "It won't happen overnite. But it is a high priority."

Speaking at a meeting hosted by the USA India Business Council, Leavitt, who was recently on a five-day visit to India, announced that the FDA was to begin carrying out checks on Chinese food products.

He said the FDA would create eight new positions at US diplomatic missions throughout China over the next two years which would be contingent upon final approval from Beijing.

"We have also initiated conversations with the Indian Government on the need to have similar kinds of officers in India," Leavitt said.

"We did not reach agreement; we did not seek an agreement; we are not actively negotiating. But we did make clear that part of our plan in the future would be to work toward that..." the senior administration official said.

He said product-safety problem was the natural consequence of a maturing of the global marketplace and a direct reflection of the profound growth in the amount of trade between nations. — PTI

Moscow, March 20
India and Russia will speed up their joint Multi-role Transport Aircraft (MTA) project by one year with the signing of a USD 8.5 million deal next month for starting work on design of the aircraft.

Russian arms exporting monopoly Rosoboronexport (ROE) and India’s Hindustan Aeronautical Ltd (HAL) will ink a deal in April for developing a draft design of the MTA, Kommersant daily said, quoting Russian sources.

The deal will accelerate the USD 600 million MTA project by one year, said Viktor Livanov, director of aircraft manufacturer MAK Ilyushin, the Russian partner in the project.

Russia and India signed an intergovernmental agreement on the MTA project in January 2007.

“In February, we agreed with India not to wait for creating a joint venture — which our and Indian bureaucracy will take exactly a year — but sign in April a direct intermediate contract of HAL and Rosoboronexport for elaborating the MTA draft design,” Livanov was quoted as saying by Kommersant.

“The contract budget is about USD 8.5 million; the draft design is to be detailised in two years. The plans are that the jet takes off in 2013 and is certified in 2015,” Livanov said.

Earlier, the initial Russian partner in the 50-50 venture, ‘Irkut’ corporation walked out of the MTA project, after which Ilyushin was roped in.

Analysts say Ilyushin, which is short on qualified personnel, could be a risky partner although its Il-214 transport plane has been picked as the prototype of the Indo-Russian MTA.

A delegation of HAL is expected in Moscow next week to study the draft design of the Il-214. —PTI

Dubai, March 20
Dubai-based Emirates airline today said it has become the first airline in the world to commercially launch an in-flight mobile phone service.

The first authorised mobile phone call was made from a commercial flight en route to Casablanca, Morocco.

The call was made onboard an Emirates Airbus A340-300 aircraft - the first in the airline’s fleet to be equipped with the AeroMobile system, an airline statement said.

The airline will be investing $27 million to fit its fleet with the AeroMobile system, which ensures that passenger mobile phones operate at their absolute minimum power, thereby allowing their safe use on the aircraft.

A second Emirates aircraft, a Boeing 777-300, has already been installed with the AeroMobile system and will be in operation very shortly, it said.

In addition to calls, the service will also allow passengers to send and receive text messages, with charges in line with premium international roaming rates.

Users will be billed on their regular phone bills by their own service providers as with any other roaming call. — PTI

BRIEFLY

Kids of stressed parents prone to illness
London: Stressed parents don’t only make themselves susceptible to various diseases but also do the same for their kids, says a new University of Rochester study. According to this first of its kind study, sickness levels were found to be higher in children of anxious or depressed parents. Links between stress and immune system activity in the children was also indicated through the findings of this study. — ANI

Blue LEDs can reset body clocks
London: A new study by US researchers has suggested that blue LEDs (light-emitting diodes) in truck cabs and truck stops can help to increase the alertness of drowsy drivers by resetting their body clocks. According to a report in New Scientist, scientists are testing blue LEDs that shine light at particular wavelengths, which convince the brain that it is morning, therefore, resetting the body’s natural clock. — ANI

Oestrogen patches for schizophrenia cure
Sydney: Researchers at the Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre at Monash University, led by an Indian origin boffin, have found that Oestrogen patches could be used to reduce the symptoms of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder in women. Lead researcher Professor Jayashri Kulkarni said women with schizophrenia who were given the oestrogen patches during the study showed a dramatic reduction in auditory hallucinations, reports ABC Online. — ANI

Prince Charles to meet Dalai Lama
London: Prince Charles has stepped into a diplomatic row over China’s treatment of Tibet by agreeing to meet Dalai Lama when he visits here in May. “For many years, the Prince has been concerned about the situation of the people in Tibet. He has met the Dalai Lama on several occasions and has been greatly impressed by his spiritual leadership,” Paddy Harverson, the communications director for Prince Charles said. — PTI