A large fire has ripped through a residential skyscraper in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates – for the second time in two years.
Category: Lifestyle
Gender pay gap in Europe
by Alexandra Scheele Though the two principles “equal pay for equal work” and “equal pay for work of equal value” have been legally fixed with the European Treaty of Rome 1957 as well as with the subsequent Equal Pay Directive…
The Stuttgart Indian Film Festival
From Monowara Begum Moni The 14th Indian Film Festival, organised by Filmbuero Baden Wuerttemberg was held in Stuttgart between 19 and 23 July last.
‘Breakthrough’ mosquito trap uses human smell and heat
London – A mosquito trap that uses a person’s smell combined with warm water and a dark cylindrical shape could transform how the insects are caught in developing countries, say its creators. The trap, developed at the University of Greenwich…
Prime Now makes first foray into South East Asia
Amazon has taken its first foray into South East Asia, launching its Prime Now service in Singapore. The move is seen as the start of an aggressive expansion in the region, which has a population of about 600 million people.…
The extraordinary life of a 91-year-old beauty queen
Krystyna Farley is a 91-year-old beauty pageant queen in the US state of Connecticut, but her life was not always this glamorous. Although she grew up in a loving home in rural Poland, her childhood was cut short by the…
Electric vehicles form future of auto industry
Electric cars constitute less than 0.1 percent of the vehicle market today, but the market and regulatory forces all but ensure electric vehicles will be the future of the auto industry. According to the 2016 Global Electric Vehicle Outlook from…
Wash your pillow covers now
If you wash your pillow covers once a week then you are not doing it enough, a leading hygiene expert has warned. In the UK recent research found that a mere 35 percent of adults changed their bed linen once…
Prince George photo marks fourth birthday
An official portrait of Prince George has been released to mark his fourth birthday. The picture, taken at Kensington Palace ahead of his birthday on Saturday, captures a smiling future king. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were “delighted” to…
Saudi women arrested for wearing mini scart in public freed
A woman named Khulood was interrogated yesterday in Riyadh and handed over for prosecution. Her transgression? Wearing “indecent” clothing. But the same night, Saudi authorities released her without charge. A brief Snapchat video of Khulood appeared over the weekend with…
Could slow fashion improve your health
You need to slow down, stat! We have trouble with the concept of slow, don’t we? Given the frenetic pace of modern life, it’s not surprising. We are feeding the lie that busier lives are better lives, and in doing…
World Pop Day: What we can learn from Bangladesh?
by Maitreyi Bordia Das Tuesday marked World Population Day and this year’s theme is “Family Planning: Empowering People, Developing Nations”. It is an opportune moment to reflect and continue the conversation on demographic trends that I started through my blog…
Promoting sustainable pop growth, key to raising HR standards
By Dr. Hanif Hassan Al Qassim Geneva, Switzerland, Jul 11 (IPS) – The world population has witnessed a remarkable growth during the recent decades. In 1965, it stood at 3.3 billion people. In 2017 –52 years later– the global population…
1997 Asian Crisis lessons lost
By Jomo Kwame Sundaram Kuala Lumpur (IPS) – After months of withstanding speculative attacks on its national currency, the Thai central bank let it ‘float’ on 2 July 1997, allowing its exchange rate to drop suddenly. Soon, currencies and stock…
3-zone biosecurity offers new hope to Indonesian farmers
By Kanis Dursin Jakarta, Indonesia, Jul 10 (IPS) – Poultry farmer Bambang Sutrisno Setiawan had long heard about biosecurity but never gave serious thought to it, even when the highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 forced him to cull thousands of…
Mud bricks best for cool, green houses, says study
Simple mud concrete bricks provide the most affordable and sustainable houses in the tropics, a Sri-Lankan study suggests.
UAE princesses guilty of servant abuse in Belgium
Eight princesses from the UAE have been convicted of human trafficking and degrading treatment of their servants by a Brussels court.
Democracy must prevail, always
by Thorvaldur Gylfason Diversity is desirable in human affairs, as in nature. Most countries strive toward economic and political diversification. Economic diversification is a way of escaping dependence on a narrow economic base so as to spread risk. Political diversification…
When women have land rights, the tide begins to turn
By Manipadma Jena New Delhi, June 12 (IPS) – In Meghalaya, India’s northeastern biodiversity hotspot, all three major tribes are matrilineal. Children take the mother’s family name, while daughters inherit the family lands.
Overfed and underfed: Global food extremes
By Joseph Chamie New York, June 12 (IPS) – Global food extremes of chronic undernourishment and obesity have brought about a bipolar world of hundreds of millions of underfed and overfed people. Of the world’s population of 7.5 billion the…
10 organising hacks for every working woman
Whether it’s your personal closet, kitchen countertop or your office cubicle that needs a good decluttering, these organising hacks will make your life a lot more easier. An old CD rack/holder can serve as a letter slash note organiser on…
Konica Minolta gives Asia’s fragrance-cosmetics distribution porocess a facelift
Singapore, 12 June – Konica Minolta Business Solutions Asia (BSA), an integral value provider with customer-centric solutions has been awarded a contract of $405,000 to provide business process automation for an established fragrance and cosmetics distributor’s invoice processing needs.
Solar tents improve nutrition in highlands villages of Bolivia
By Franz Chávez Phuyuwasi, Bolivia, Jun 7 2017 (IPS) – In this remote highlands valley community in central Bolivia, a group of Quechua indigenous women have learned how to combat the intense frosts and the shortage of water in solar…
An egg a day may spurt growth in kids, finds study
Eating an egg a day can significantly increase growth and reduce stunting by 47% in young children, finds a study. “Eggs can be affordable and easily accessible. They are a good source of nutrients for growth and development in young…
African Commission on HR tackles sexual orientation
The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights has taken on issues of sexual orientation and gender identity, topics that some may have considered too “controversial” but that fall squarely within the ambit of human rights. I represented Human Rights…
Taiwan top court rules in favour of gay marriage
Taiwan’s top judges have ruled in favour of gay marriage, paving the way for it to become the first place in Asia to legalise same-sex unions. The highest court ruled that current laws preventing members of the same sex from…
Indonesian men caned for gay sex
Two men have been caned 83 times each in the Indonesian province of Aceh after being caught having sex. The men stood on stage in white gowns praying while a team of hooded men lashed their backs with a cane.…
40 pc women remain indoors for lack of good transports
Around 56 percent women in the capital city are unwilling to go outside their respective homes for lack of good transport system, while 43.5 percent say they limit their free movement due to the absence of adequate facilities for them,…
35% working moms don’t want second child: Study
A new study by ASSOCHAM has found that 35% working mothers do not want a second child, citing job pressures, stress and cost of raising kids as the main reasons. As many as 35% working mothers in urban India avoid…
Bangladesh co introduces natural sugar substitute
Dhaka – In an effort to minimize regular consumption of synthetic and various types of artificial sweeteners a Bangladeshi company has come up with first natural sugar substitute in the country named ‘CHINI GO’ for the health conscious consumers.