SCRUTATOR’S

Transport firm to pay ₹156,000 for lost ‘Bengal cat’

A transport firm has agreed to pay Rs 156,000 compensation to the distraught owner for misplacing a 'Bengal cat' while transporting it from Delhi to Hyderabad Mohammad Alam from UP’s Bulandshahr has sent the cat for ferrying from Delhi to Hyderabad to the transport firm and it mysteriously went missing Alam said he had brought up the cat with “much love and care” after it was given to him by a friend in March 2021. But circumstances compelled him to sell Rose, his pet, to one Tabrez Khan in Hyderabad. He then hired a Gujarat-based transport company, which has a branch in Delhi, to deliver the cat to its new owner He handed over the cat in a basket to two employees of the transport company at Delhi’s Nizamuddin railway station from where they were supposed to catch a train and take Rose to Hyderabad Later, he was informed that the cat had escaped After much delay and filing of a police complaint, the transport firm finally agreed to pay Rs 156,000 to Alam. (Agency)

Record number of Indians take domestic flights

After the pandemic hit India, travel had been in a slump for a while As per reports, India experienced a boom in the aviation sector as 4,56,082 passengers flew on April 30, 2023 and it would be marked as the record-breaking day Post-pandemic hardships, the nation's economic recovery has resulted in an increase of travellers In just the first few months of 2023, domestic airlines handled more than 35 million passengers Due to the increasing demand, India has around 1,100 fleet deliveries pending over the next few years according to ratings agency ICRA (Agency)

US woman can rotate her feet back to front

Kelsey Grubb, a 32-year-old from New Mexico has set a Guinness World Record for the “largest foot rotation (female)” with a 171 4 degree twist She told Guinness World Records that she found out about the record when her colleague read about it, “I work at a library and the newest world record book (2021) had just come out A coworker was flipping through and randomly opened to the page with the largest foot rotation and said ‘ew! That’s so gross Naturally, I looked over her shoulder and said, ‘I think I can do that’ ” She further said, “I always knew I was flexible there but had assumed most people could turn their feet farther than 90 degrees out ” (Agency)

14 varieties of aam hang on this mango tree

A mango tree with 14 different species growing on each of its branches has been established by Ukabhai Bhatti, a farmer of Kesar mangoes in his sixties from Ditla village in the Dhari taluka of Gujarat Bhatti’s magical tree at his home can be ascribed as a celebration of fruits as it bears mangoes from Holi to Diwali! And Bhatti hasn’t stopped adding more variety to his magical tree He cultivated the tree with varieties that were cultivated during the Nawab era of Junagadh Varieties like Naliyero, Gulabiyo, Sindoriyo, Dadmo, Kalo Jamadar, Captain, Pilot, Variyaliyo, Badam,

Saradar, Shravaniyo, Ashadhiyo among others “There were more than 200 varieties of mangoes that were cultivated in the Nawab’s era Only Kesar has survived to this date and is as popular,” said Bhatti, who has christened a few mangoes with monikers that suit the fruit’s characteristics (The Times of India)

2,000-year-old ‘modern society’ unearthed

For the first time, a 1,500-yearold rock art as well as a 2,000-year-old water body and proof of a modern society have been discovered in Madhya Pradesh's renowned tiger reserve's Umaria district According to ASI superintending engineer Shivakant Bajpai, who is overseeing the explorations, the region that we now refer to as Bandhavgarh was likely a stop along a trade route where travellers would seek refuge “The presence of numerous (man-made) water bodies suggests a modern society The water bodies found this time were made at a height and used for collecting rainwater They could be roughly 1,8002,000 years old Evidence suggests some sort of renovation around 1,000 years ago, ” he said (Agency)

Woman dances to Punjabi song inside Delhi Metro

The way some passengers argue, shoot dancing videos or act inappropriately within the Delhi Metro coaches irritates many people That’s why the video of a woman making Instagram reels inside the metro has gone viral In the video a woman can be seen dancing to the Punjabi song sung by Kaka “Yes I know this is not allowed but I just did this, first time in Delhi Metro,” read the caption People who watched the video and commented on it were perplexed as to why the woman tried to make a dance reel despite knowing that doing so was against the rules while using the metro Many people emphasised how the Delhi Metro frequently advises riders not to bother others while they are travelling (Agency)

Traffic comes to a halt as tiger sips water from puddle

Some clips show people misbehaving in front of the wild animals, others show how locals have tremendous respect for the majestic beings IFS officer Parveen Kaswan shares some of those videos that act as the perfect example of the harmony that should exist between humans and animals Shot at the Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary in Uttar Pradesh, the video shows a tiger perched on the side of a path running along a jungle The big cat can be seen drinking water from a puddle Cars can be seen parking a good distance away from the large cat, giving it some privacy Over 80,00,000 people have watched the video, and the number is quickly rising People were impressed with the rare sight and thanked the tourists or locals in the cars for maintaining composure and not disturbing the tiger (Agency)

Pak court saves Kapoor haveli from demolition

The Peshawar high court has dismissed a petition seeking ownership over legendary actor Raj Kapoor’s Haveli in the city The house was declared a national heritage by the provincial government in 2016 In view of a previous ruling by the same court concerning the acquisition of renowned actor Dilip Kumar's haveli in Peshawar, which has also been designated a national historic landmark, the court dismissed the plea seeking ownership The petitioner told the court that his family had purchased the mansion during an auction in 1969 His counsel claimed that there are no documents to prove that the late Raj Kapoor and his family ever lived or owned this property However, the court said the matter ought to be taken to civil court (Agency)

After rare jaw surgery, lion cub ready to roar in the wild

In a first, a lion cub with a jaw fracture successfully recovered after it was operated upon four months ago Doctors from College of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, Junagadh, who performed the rare surgery declared the seven-month-old cub fit for hunting and ready to be released into the wild This was likely the first surgery of its kind The cub was found three months old and in very bad condition, according to Junagadh forest officials On close examination, it was revealed that it had a jaw fracture because of which it was not able to eat It is assumed that the cub could have tried to chew on something hard or a barbed wire, resulting in the injury After being rescued from the Paniya range of the Gir (east) wildlife circle, the cub was brought for treatment to the Jasadhar animal care clinic, where it was kept under surveillance until it recovered (The Times of India)

VRS for boozing cops

About 300 Assam cops will lose their jobs due to one too many nightcaps This is the message CM Himanta Biswa Sarma uncorked when he said that such "habitual drinkers" inside the police force will be given the option of voluntary retirement

(VRS) The process has already started, and new hires will fill the positions "Three hundred officers and jawans are chronic drinkers, and their bodies have been harmed by excessive alcohol intake The government has a provision of VRS for them,” Sarma, who also holds the home portfolio, added Ahead of the second anniversary of the second BJP-led government in Assam on May 10, Sarma has embarked on a mission to overhaul the functioning of the administration and make the police a leaner, more honest force (Agency)

Galwan hero's wife commissioned as army officer

Rekha Singh, wife of Naik Deepak Singh who was killed in the Galwan Valley clashes in 2020, has been commissioned into the Indian Army as a Lieutenant, officials said She has been posted to a frontline base along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, they said Lt Singh completed her one-year training at the Chennai-based Officers Training Academy (OTA) Naik Singh was from the 16th Battalion of Bihar Regiment and he was posthumously awarded Vir Chakra in 2021 It said Deepak Singh made the supreme sacrifice during the Galwan Valley clashes (Agency)

Guest goes into labour at Mann Ki Baat conclave

Poonam Devi, a member of a selfhelp group in Uttar Pradesh attending the Mann ki Baat @100 Conclave, gave birth to a baby boy

Poonam Devi was among the special invitees for the Conclave at Vigyan Bhawan In one of the editions of the radio series Mann ki Baat, the Prime Minister discussed her work at a self-help group close to Lakhimpuri Kheri Poonam gave birth to a healthy baby boy at the Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital after going into labour in Vigyan Bhawan during the Conclave, according to an official The self-help group in Lakhimpur Kheri produces handbags, mats, and other items using fibre from banana stems, an initiative that provides an additional source of income for women in the village and also contributes to reducing waste Poonam was among the 100 invitees whose names had been mentioned by the Prime Minister in his previous Mann Ki Baat episodes for their exceptional contribution to society (Agency)

Meal skipping, diet pills linked to minimal weight loss: Study

A new study analyzing data on over 20,000 US adults asso ci ates a healthier diet and i ncreas ed exerc is e w it h wei ght lo ss th at reduces heart disease risk It also linked skipping meals and taking prescription diet pills with minimal weight loss, weight maintenance or weight gain For many in the study sample, however, losing a “clinically significant” five per cent of their body weight did not eliminate their risk factors for cardiovascular disease

The average composite score on eight risk factors for heart disease was the same across the entirety of the study population, regardless of reported weight changes, up or down

The research was published recently in the Journal of the American Heart Association

The study is the first to compare weight-loss strategies and results in the context of the American Heart Association’s ‘Life’s Essential

8,’ a checklist promoting heart disease risk reduction through the pursuit of recommended metrics for body weight, blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, smoking, physical activity, diet and sleep

Senior study author Colleen Spees, associate professor of medical dietetics in the

Obesity increases the risk of colorectal cancer: Study

Research from the German C anc e r R es ea rc h C ent re (DKFZ) shares that the assoc iation between c olorectal cancer and obesity has likely been severely underestimated thus far The cause is that m any pe ople ac c id ent al ly lose weight before receiving a c ol on ca nc er diag nos is When studies consider body weight at diagnosis, the true link between obesity and the risk of colorectal cancer is ob s cur ed The new s tudy also demonstrates that inadv ert ent weight r educ tion may be a precursor to colorectal cancer

Herman Brenner, epidemiologist and prevention expert at the German Cancer Research Center, said, “However, these studies have so far not considered that many affected people lose weight in the years before their colorectal cancer diagnosis This has led to the risk contribution of obesity being significantly underestimated in many trials ”

The nearly 12,000 study participants included in the current evaluation had provided information on their body weight at diagnosis They reported their weight in the years preceding diagnosis (measured at 10-year intervals)

Based on body weight at the time of diagnosis, no indication of a relationship between body weight and colorectal cancer risk could be established However, the picture was quite different when the researchers looked at the participants' earlier body weight: A strong correlation between being over- weight and the probability of developing colorectal cancer was found, most pronounced 8 to 10 years before diagnosis

Study participants who were highly overweightreferred to as obese- during this period were twice as likely as those of normal weight to develop colorectal cancer "If we had only looked at weight at baseline, as has been done in many previous studies, we would have completely missed the link between obesity and increased risk of colorectal cancer, said Marko Mandic, the study's first author

Researchers discover new treatment strategy for damaged cartilage

A team of researchers from PO STECH , D ongguk

U nive rs it y Med ic al Cen tre , and Nature Gluetech in Korea ha ve de vise d a t hera peutic solution for damaged cartilage

It en ta il s us ing a visc ous immiscible liquid that, when combined with a sticky protein generated from mussels and hyaluronic acid, can assist in th e t ran s plan ting of s te m c el ls in to damaged tissue

Cartilage is a bone-protecting tissue that absorbs trauma and allows for fluid joint mobility Despite its poor inherent healing capacity, stem cell transplantation is a viable therapeutic technique for dealing with cartilage inflammation and injury, as well as promoting cartilage regeneration

The research, supported by the Korea Health Technology R&D Project through Korea Health Industry Development under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, has been published in the Chemical Engineering

Journal The researchers developed a novel bioadhesive material in the form of a viscous immiscible liquid phase to overcome the limitations of the conventional treatment strategy This was achieved by combining adhesion protein derived from mussels with high-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid, which exhibits opposing charges and thus facilitates electrostatic interactions between them

Professor Hyung Joon Cha, who led the research, stated, "The therapeutic effects of stem cells can be significantly enhanced by using mussel adhesion protein, an original biomaterial developed in Korea

He also noted that Because the liquid bioadhesive can be formulated for injection, it has the potential to be an effective treatment for damaged cartilage when used in stem cell transplantation via an arthroscope, similar to an endoscope ”

School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences at Ohio State, said, “The Life's Essential 8 is a valuable tool that provides the core components for cardiovascular health, many of which are modifiable through behaviour change ”

"Based on the findings in this study, we have a lot of work to do as a country," she said "Even though there were significant differences on several parameters between the groups, the fact remains that as a whole, adults in this country are not adopting the Life's Essential 8 behaviours that are directly correlated with heart health ”

"Clinically significant weight loss results in improvements in some health indices," Spees said "People should feel hopeful in knowing that losing just 5% of their body weight is meaningful in terms of clinical improvements This is not a huge weight loss

It's achievable for most, and I would hope that incentives people instead of being paralyzed with a fear of failure ”

A greater proportion of people who did not lose at least five per cent of their weight reported skipping meals or using prescription diet pills as weight-loss strategies Additional strategies reported by this group included low-carb and liquid diets, taking laxatives or vomiting, and smoking

"We saw that people are still gravitating to non-evidence-based approaches for weight loss, which are not sustainable What is sustainable is changing behaviours and eating patterns," Spees said

"We have fantastic research, we have incredible educators," she added "What we don't have is a policy that promotes optimal health across the lifespan, from pregnancy through older adulthood ”

Summer-friendly grains to add to your diet and how to consume them

Summer is around the corner, and the change in season can affect your appetite and overall health Adding weather-appropriate foods to your diet is important, as foods that seemed tempting in winter may no longer appeal to your taste buds Health experts suggest adding certain summer grains to your diet for the right nutrition and prevention against summer illnesses

Certain whole grains and millets are ideal for the summer season as they have cooling properties and are a storehouse of nutrients Millets can help protect from heat exhaustion, migraines and sunstrokes In her recent Instagram post, nutritionist Juhi Kapoor shared four grains perfect for summers regarding nutrients and potency

1 Jau (Barley)

Rich in many amazing nutrients, barley is the perfect grain for summer A diuretic, barley helps with UTI and replenishes essential nutrients lost due to heat Barley is used to make soups, stews, and breads, among other dishes

Soaking time: 4 hours

Recipe: Use it in pulao or salads or as atta to make rotis

2 Ragi (Finger Millet)

Also known as Mandua atta, ragi is high in fibre and calcium and is a superfood for people with diabetes Babies are often fed ragi porridge for easy digestion The grain is also useful for weight loss and keeps the body cool in the summer

Soaking time: 8 hours

Recipe: Use it in dosa or use it as atta to make porridge or roti

3 Sama (Barnyard Millet)

Barnyard millet or Sama rice is rich in protein, calcium, iron, minerals, and vitamin B It is also gluten-free and low in carbs It is also beneficial for people with Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases

Soaking time: 8 hours

Recipe: Use it to make dosa or pulao, or khichdi

4 Jowar (Sorghum)

This is another nutritious millet that you can consume during summer Good for the brain, jowar is also rich in Vitamin B1, iron, and fibre, which can aid in fat loss

Soaking time: 10 hours

Recipe: Use it to make roti (with atta) or khichdi

GlyNAC supplementation improves cognitive decline in older people

As people age, they want to live healthy lives as free from age-related cognitive los s as f eas ible Thi s decrease is a natural aspect of ageing

Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine are developing food progra mm es to prom ote healthy brain ageing and studying the biochemical reasons of age-related cognitive decline

The study is published in the journal Antioxidants, researchers found that supplementing with GlyNAC, a compound made up of the amino acids glycine and N-acetylcysteine, which act as precursors to the naturally occurring antioxidant glutathione, improved or reversed age-related cognitive decline in old mice and corrected multiple associated defects in the ageing brain

Corresponding and senior author Dr Rajagopal Sekhar, professor of medicineendocrinology, diabetes and metabolism at Baylor said, "For over two decades, my lab has been studying natural aging in older humans and aged mice "

"Our work provides an understanding of how ageassociated cognitive decline in older humans is linked to glutathione deficiency, increased oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, abnormal glu- cose metabolism and insulin resistance, inflammation and low levels of neurotrophic or neuronsupporting factors, and that supplementing GlyNAC reverses these defects and improves cognition "

This study is significant for a variety of reasons, including the fact that it examines whether agerelated cognitive decline that occurs naturally can be reversed as opposed to cognitive decline brought on by introducing gene defects; that getting older is the biggest risk factor for Alzheimer s disease; and that these naturally occurring defects were examined in the brain