METROVING

Chennai 'chickens' out
By James Hardy
CHENNAI: Bird flu edpidemic in West Bengal affects Chicken sales in the city; they have fallen by as much as 10 per cent.
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Feasting on the Season
By Murtaza Wardak
CHENNAI: “We want people to come again for all the music festivals organized at the Narada Gana Sabha, and our good food is a form of invitation for them to return,” said the Narada Gana Sabha manager, P. Murali.
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Dancing their way to success
By Jessica Mehroin Irani
CHENNAI: Choreographers are now on stage and on the small screen, at corporate shows and college events. Choreographers are showing off their salsa, hip-hop and jive moves and raking in the moolah
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Gods on the median
By Karthik Krishnaswamy
The Valmiki temple, sporting telltale red-and-white stripes, is now under the supervision of the nearby Marundeeswarar temple, built by the Cholas.
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NATION


Legalise drugs to avoid another Scarlett
By Vrinda Sharma
Cases like that of the death of Scarlett Keeling, raise a question; does prohibition of substances like tobacco, liquor and drugs do more harm than they themselves can?
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Small in number, big in spirit: The Parsis
By Jessica Mehroin Irani
“Nai nai, you are quoting too much for the tomatoes, Rs 14 is right. After all, yesterday you sold it at Rs 12, and today Rs 16. What nonsense!” argued Dilnaz, a 45-year-old housewife living in Cusrow baug in Colaba, Mumbai. Dressed in a pink flowery nightgown at eight in the morning, she is haggling over the vegetable prices with the tarkariwala (vegetable seller). This is a familiar sight at any Parsi baug in Mumbai.
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Regional expressions clash with political aspiration
By Swati Roy
Recently, the All India Moovendar Munnetra Kazhagam (AIMMK) led by founder N Sethuram, and the Vanniyar Peravai led by A K Natarajan, demanded the bifurcation of Tamil Nadu for “administrative purposes.” The Telangana Rashtra Samiti of Andhra Pradesh has also declared that all its elected representatives -16 legislators, six MLCs, four MPs and others in the local bodies - will resign on March 6 if the process for formation of a Telangana state is not initiated in the upcoming budget session of the Parliament.
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BUSINESS

Additives cos urge mandatory use for eco-friendly plastic
Manufacturers of additives for the plastic industry have urged government support to this sector given the highly fragmented nature of the industry. Stressing the use of additives to improve the recycling of plastics without environmental pollution, additives manufacturers at Plastec 2008 called for the government to make these mandatory. 
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A budget in the name of ‘vote bank’ politics
Finance Minister P. Chidambaram announced a Rs. 60,000 crore package for farmers in the Union Budget presented on Feb. 29. Marginal farmers with land holdings upto 1 hectare and small farmers with holdings of 1-2 hectares will have a complete waiver of their loans.
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CII for green youth
The Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) will host the fourth Yi (Young Indians) National Summit on Feb. 15 and 16 in Chennai. This year’s theme is “Wake up India,” with a special focus on climate change and its risks which could derail India’s economic progress.
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WORLD

Blame it all on the Taliban
by Murtaza Wardak
Does the word ‘Taliban” convey the same connotation that it used to seven years ago? The answer is no, since the word has now become a synonym for terrorism...
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LTTE at war against the civilians
By Ayeshea Perera
A bus bomb which injured 18 civilians in a Colombo suburb on Feb.23 marked the latest attempt in a series of bomb attacks specifically targeting civilians in the capital...
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SPORTS

“Genuinely fast bowlers are born, they don’t fall off trees”
Chennai: Standing next to the nets at the MRF Pace Foundation, the legendary Dennis Lillee still looked every inch the fast bowler – despite the greying moustache, and a midsection that doesn’t quite suggest the graceful side-on leap of the glory days. The Aussie legend shared his forthright opinions about fast bowling with Digantik’s Karthik Krishnaswamy.
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Serena bags 2008 Bangalore Open title
Bangalore: Winning her first title in 11 months, Serena Williams defeated Patty Schnyder 7-5, 6-3 on Sunday in the Bangalore Open final. She dominated the match with powerful serves and ground strokes. Schnyder on the other hand committed several unforced errors in trying to hit deep and keep Williams at the baseline.
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