Govt hell bent to make us suffer: Sumo Drivers

Mushtaq Ahmad

Srinagar, September 01: Board of Professional Entrance Ex-aminations (BOPEE) is under scanner from the time it has conducted CET on 22 & 23 June 2013.Nowadays almost every paper publishes the wrong do-ings of the board. However this test was cancelled later on and re-conducted on 27 and 28 July 2013. On June 2013 while students had to appear in chemistry, the biology pa-

pers were leaked out that led to the miseries of thousands of students, because next day, biology and chemistry papers were cancelled by BOPEE au-thorities, and later whole test was cancelled even students had appeared in Mathematic paper also, thereby delaying the admission process in vari-ous medical and engineering colleges. This whole process gave rise to many questions, all against BOPEE and other of-ficials involved in the conduc-

tion of CET. On the examination day i.e 22nd June 2013, biology pa-pers were found in chemistry packets in three examination centres of Government Girls Higher secondary school Kothi bagh, Srinagar. Who is respon-sible for packing the wrong question papers in these pack-ets. Naturally there was deficit of papers at these centres. How BOPEE managed the situation there that is another story.The papers are printed with

colour coding .The packing of question papers used to be done by illiterate persons in order to preserve the confident status of the papers. But this year colour coding was avoided. Why this was done, it is beyond the scope of a common man.The question papers for CET should be sealed to preserve the confidentiality of the test but a big blunder that BOPEE did this year was that question pa-pers were stapled and not

See BoPEE on Pg. 11

Srinagar, September 01:

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president, Mehboo-ba Mufti Sunday said that the party’s roadmap for the resolution of Jammu & Kashmir issue, under the leadership of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, was clear, practicable and achievable in the present geo-political scenario.Addressing a public meet-ing at Kilam in Devsar constituency, she said the action in this regard was, in fact, started in 2002 it-self, even the party having only 16 members in the Legislative Assembly, and itis under implementation. “If the party gets a decisive mandate, it will carry for-ward its policies and agen-da for resolution, reconcil-iation and reconstruction with the help of people

only and hopefully leav-ing no role for discredited politicians who enriched themselves for decades over miseries of people,” she said.Mehbooba added it is PDP’s vision to get the

state out of this morass without indulging in hoax slogans and blood-bath. “The party stands for what is practically possible without emotionally black mailingpeople with the lofty prom-ises of plebiscite and au-

tonomy which were ulti-mately sold out for power. To bring Jammu & Kash-mir out of the uncertainty and resultant darkness that has engulfed it for the last65 years was the party’s core agenda, and we had attempted this during our brief tenure in the gov-ernment and achieved a breakthrough,” she said and added this process will be carried forward with support from people.The PDP president said any headway in Jammu and Kashmir issue is im-possible without people be-ing fully empowered; who have faced the maximum brunt of tumultuous times and of the present repres-sive regime, and PDP be-lieves it is possible to do in an environment, where there is no fear, threat to

See Mehbooba on Pg. 11

PSA slapped on Imam for inciting violence

Guwahati, September 01:

Ghulam Nabi Azad, Union Health Minis-ter launched various schemes worth 500 crores under NRHM for the strengthening of healthcare services in Assam. The new ini-tiatives that have been launched are: Free Ge-neric Drug Service, Rashtriya Bal Swasthya karyakaram(RBSK), National iron Plus Ini-tiative, Fleet of 359 New Ambulances for Nation-al Ambulance Service. In addition, Azad also inaugurated Mother & Child Tracking System Call Centre and Tele-Radiology Project that

have been set up under NRHM. Earlier, Azad laid foun-dation stone of 14 MCH Wings of various Dis-trict Hospitals which are being constructed at the cost of more than Rs. 320 crores to cater to the

increased demand of in-stitutional deliveries, as also improve the mater-nal & child health. These MCHs wings upon be-coming functional, will provide 1400 additional beds to the health system of Assam.

Speaking on the occasion Azad said that the aim of UPA Govt is to upgrade and strengthen health-care systems at all levels across the country and to achieve that objective of providing accessible, equitable and afford-able health care services across the country. He said that so far more than Rs 96000 crores have been released to the States under NRHM and more than 54000 new constructions or renova-tions of public health fa-cilities have been taken up in the country. Highlighting the achievements of Assam in health sector, Azad

See Azad on Pg. 11

Police evicts Sumos from TRC

Srinagar, September 01:

Resenting the action of District administration, TRC sumo stand members Sunday said that govern-ment is hell bent to make them and their families suffer. “It was a cowardice act on part of the government to vacate off us during the dead of the night. They knew that it would be dif-ficult for them to vacate us from the stand dur-ing the day. We condemn this action of the govern-ment,” one of the drivers

told CNS. Pertinently, the district administration in presence of DC Srinagar, Farooq Ahmed Shah and Senior Superintendet of police Srinagar in a late night operation sealed TRC Sumo stand and va-cated off all the sumo’s and other cabs. A police official said that they acted on Court directions. “The Court has clearly directed us to shift the stand to Pan-tha Chowk. We did noth-ing but followed court di-rections,” a police official told CNS.

See Sumos on Pg. 11

Srinagar, September 01:

While appreciating the works of the J&K Bank for the upliftment of eco-nomic sectors in the state, the Valley hoteliers have asked the Bank to come clean on the recent reports of high rate of interest be-ing charged by the bank from local investors.Kashmir Hotels and Restaurant Association (KHARA) said when other banks including national-ized banks have minimal contribution towards de-veloping economy of the state and helping the local industries, the J&K Bank has come forward in a big way.

“We appreciate the works of the J&K Bank in the state and towards helping local industries. But at the same time it should not overcharge local borrow-ers,” said KHARA Presi-dent Showkat Chowdhary.Notably, Kashmir Eco-nomic Alliance had re-cently accused the J&K Bank of charging high in-terest rates of around 15 to 16 per cent from the locals while charging low rate of interest from outside cus-tomers.KHARA said that if J&K Bank was not charging high rate of interest from locals it should not have maintained silence so far.“We can’t rule out the con-

tribution of the J&K Bank for boosting the J&K’s eco-nomic sectors. But it also owes responsibility to lay bare its policies towards its own investors and bar-rowers. The locals have reposed faith in the J&K Bank and their faith has to be respected,” said Chowd-hary.KHARA said J&K Bank has an important role to play for the economic development of the state while also taking locals on board in all its policies.“If this is the people’s bank, then people should also have right to know ev-erything about the bank’s policies towards

See KHARA on Pg. 11

Srinagar, Sep 01:

Scores of people staged a protest in Chowgam Qazigund against po-lice for booking the Imam of the area un-der Public Safety Act. Reports said that Imam Jamia Masjid Chowgam Qazigund, Hafiz, Syed Kifayat from Dhandal Doda was arrested by police for his alleged role in instigating people against Kishtwar com-munal violence. People said that Imam is innocent and he was targeted on the behest of few political work-ers having affiliation

with the ruling party. “We demand his im-mediate release as he is innocent. The day Chowgam witnessed protests against com-munal violence in Kishtwar area, Imam Hafiz Kifatyat had gone to his native vil-lage in Doda. He is in-nocent and has noth-ing to do with all these protests,” Hafiz Abdul Rehman Ashrafi of Da-rul Aloom Syed Almar-suleen told CNS.Reports said that Imam has been booked for instigating people to protest and indulge in stone pelting. A

See PSA on Pg. 11

CMYK

CMYK

CMYK

CMYK

MONDAY September 02 | 2013 | 25 Shawal 1434 AH | PAGES 8 | VOL NO: 3 | ISSUE NO: 217 | RS: 2/- (AIR SURCHARGE FOR JAMMU /DELHI/LEH 50 PAISA)Pen For JusticeLargely Circulated, No. 1 Bilingual Daily of J&K

Union Health Minister G. N Azad visits Guwahati

Shopian, September 01:

Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah Sunday em-phasized the need of nurturing horticulture industry and the growers associated with it to nur-ture State’s economy. He said horticulture, handi-crafts and tourism are the resourceful sectors in Jammu and Kashmir which can catapult finan-cial status of the State and uplift the lot of the people associated with these sectors.Addressing a function af-ter laying foundation of a

Controlled Atmosphere Storage and inaugurat-ing a similar one estab-lished in private sector at Lassipora Industrial Es-tate, the Chief Minister said that Controlled At-

mosphere Storage facil-ity would help regulating the market and ensuring remunerative price for Kashmir horticulture produce.

See Omar on Pg. 11

Nurturing horticulture means nurturing economy: Omar

http://www.zabarwantimes.com

KHARA asks J&K Bank to lay bare its policies towards local investors

WEATHER

TEMPERATUREMAXIMUM MINIMUMSUNSET ON(MONDAY)SUNRISE ON (TUESDAY)

06:57 pm06:07 am

18.6 0C27.1 0C

FORECAST FOR NEXT 24 HRS:

FORECAST OF SRINAGAR:

Light Rain/ Thundershowers may occur at isolated places over J&K division.

Mainly Clear Sky. Maximum & Minimum temperatures will be around 29°C & 17°C respectively.

Congress, NC two faces of the same coin

Qualifies for third round of US Open

1 8 4

Social jetlag may lead to obeisty

Launches various new health initiatives

PDP’s roadmap for K-resolution is workable, achievable: Mehbooba

Allegations against BoPEE & Government's silence thereof

‘Horticulture, handicrafts, tourism backbone of State’s economy’

Mysterious explosion injures two in SgrSrinagar, September 01: A mysterious explosion occurred in the residential house of Man-zoor Ahmad Khan at Ali Masjid, Eidgah near the CRPF camp, in the jurisdiction of Police Sta-tion Safakadal, Srinagar. Two persons Ashia and her daughter Arfa received injuries in the explosion.Both the injured were shifted to SKIMS Soura Srinagar for treatment. Safakadal police has registered a case in this regard.

5 injured in road mishaps Srinagar, September 01: Five persons including a SMC worker was injured in two separate road accidents across the valley.Four persons were injured when a Tata Sumo bearing registration number Jk01C/0841 and a Tata 407 bearing registra-tion number Jk04/1361 collided near Ompora, Budgam. Police has registered a case in this regard. Meanwhile, a Scorpio bearing registration number DL3CL/AJ2876 hit and injured a SMC worker Bashir Ahmad Malik resident of Watergam, Kreeri at Lawaypora, in the jurisdiction of Police Station Parimpora, Srinagar. Police has registered a case in this regard.

Conductor drowns in Kulgam Srinagar, September 01: A con-ductor of a trailer was drowned while washing clothes on a canal in Kulgam.40 years old Baja son of Bas-ant Singh Jatt resident of Kot Kapoor, Faridekot Punjab conductor of bearing registra-tion number PB04N/9813 was drowned in a Canal at Harnag railway crossing, in the juris-diction of Police station Kul-gam while washing his cloths. However, he was rescued and shifted to the hospital where he expired.

House damaged in fire

Anantnag, September 01: A residential house was damaged in fire in Achabal area of Anant-nag district last evening.Fire broke out in the residential house of Mohammad Maqbool Sheikh at Trehpoo Anantnag, resulting in partial damage to the house. Fire was brought under control with the help of fire tenders and local police.

Bung cultivation destroyed in Anantnag Anantnag ,September 01: Anantnag Police alongwith Revenue officials and locals destroyed Bung cultivation Ashmuqam area of Anantnag. SHO Ashmuqam, Mohammad Muzaffer Khan along with Naib Tehsildar Pahalgam and local respectable yesterday launched an anti bung cultiva-tion drive in Ashmuqam area. Bung cultivation spread over 40 Kanals of the land was de-stroyed in Hapathnard village. A case was also registered in this regard in police station Ashmuqam.

Monday | 02 SepteMber 20135

The King of Fruits has sev-eral benefits, so indulge your senses this season in some mangoes.

Not only do they taste great, but man-goes are also loaded with several qualities that are excellent for your health. They are rich in powerful antioxidants that are known to neutralise free radicals that cause dam-age to cells and lead to health problems like heart disease, premature aging and cancer among other things. Here's why you should consume them...

- With its high iron content, mangoes are excellent for pregnant women and those who suffer from anaemia. But do consult with your doctor beforehand on how much is suitable.

- Constantly complaining about clogged pores? Place mango slices on your skin and then wash off after 10 minutes.

- If you suffer from indigestion prob-lems, nothing will help you as much as a mango. They're known to give relief from acidity and aid proper digestion since they contain digestive enzymes that help break down proteins.

- Rich in potassium, mangoes reduce high blood pressure. They also contain pec-tin, a soluble dietary fibre that is known to lower blood cholesterol levels.

- Trying to put on weight? Include man-goes in your diet. Since it is rich in calories as well as carbohydrates, it could be the per-fect fruit to have.

- Some studies say that eating mangoes reduces the risk of kidney stone formation.

- In Chinese medicine, mangoes are considered sweet and sour with a cooling energy. They are useful for those suffering from anaemia, bleeding gums, cough, fever, nausea and even sea sickness.

- Studying for exams? This fruit is rich in glutamine acid- an important protein for concentration and memory. Instead of snacking on unhealthy chips and cookies, why not feast on slices of mangoes instead.

- Though they are traditionally not con-sidered as aphrodisiacs, mangoes contain Vitamin E which helps boost one's sex life. The vitamin works to regulate the body's sex hormones.

If nothing else, eat a mango just because it won't be in

season forever.

Mangoes are high on healthIncredible as it may seem, water is quite possibly the single most im-portant catalyst in losing weight and keeping it off.

Water supresses the ap-petite naturally and helps the body metabolize stored fat. Studies have shown that a decrease in water intake will cause fat deposits to in-crease, while an increase in water intake can actually re-duce fat deposits.

Here's why: The kid-neys can't function prop-erly without enough water. When they don't work to capacity, some of their load is dumped onto the liver. One of the liver's primary functions is to metabolize stored fat into usable energy for the body. But if the liver

has to do some of the kid-ney's work it can't operate at full throttle. As a result, it metabolizes less fat more fat remains stored in the body and weight loss stops.

Drinking enough wa-ter is the best treatment for fluid retention.

Diuretics offer a tempo-rary solution at best. They force out stored water along with some essential nutri-ents. The best way to over-come the problem of water retention is to give your body what it needs -- plenty of water. The more salt you eat the more water your sys-tem retains to dilute it. But getting rid of unneeded salt is easy -- just drink more water. The overweight per-son needs more water than a thin one.

Water can help relieve constipation. When the body gets too little water, it siphons what it needs from internal sources. How much water is enough? On the av-erage, a person should drink eight 8-ounce glasses every day. That's about 2 quarts.

8 Glasses of water a day keeps fat away

Not only is it safe for asth-matics to exercise, but doing

so could reduce their risk of asthma symptoms or

attacks, a new study has revealed.

Many people with asthma report avoiding exercise because they're afraid it could trigger symptoms includ-ing shortness of breath, wheezing or a full-blown asthma attack, said review author Kristin V. Carson.

These fears might be encour-aged from misread-ing their symptoms, their family's beliefs about exercise and asthma, or even from their physicians

Over time, Carson explained, patients can become out of shape, losing muscle mass and cardiovas-cular fitness. That makes any future attempts at physical activity significantly harder, increasing the chances that patients will become fatigued and breathless and further discouraging physical activity. "This results in a spiraling cycle," she said. To find out whether exercise was a danger to asthmatics, Carson and her colleagues reviewed previous studies that looked

at the effects of physical training on people

with asthma , comparing patients who received no or minimal physical activity to those who exercised for at least 20 minutes, twice a week, over the course of four weeks. The researchers discov-ered that the patients who had exercised using physical training as varied as run-ning outdoors or on a treadmill, cycling, swimming or circuit training were no more likely to have a serious asthma-related problem than those who weren't exer- cising or who did light exercis-

ing such as yoga.

Car-son further claimed that their find-ings

showed that patients

in exercise programs improved their cardiovascu-

lar fitness, which in turn could reduce asthma symptoms over time.

Besides this, some limited evidence from the included studies also suggested that exercise improved patients' quality of life, she added, which could contribute to other health benefits and improved .

exercising ‘may cut asthma attacks risk’

Though most people brush their teeth regular-ly, only one in ten does it in a way that effectively

prevents tooth decay, according to a study in

Sweden.Researchers at the Sahlgrenska

Academy, University of Gothen-burg say almost all Swedes regu-larly brush their teeth with fluoride

toothpaste, yet only few know the best brushing technique, how the toothpaste should be used and how fluoride prevents tooth decay.In two separate studies, Pia Gabre and her colleagues at the Sahlgrenska Acad-emy, University of Gothenburg, studied the toothbrushing habits of 2013 Swedes aged 15-16, 31-35, 60-65 and 76-80 - how often and for how long, how often fluoride toothpaste is used, how much tooth-paste is put on the toothbrush and how much water is used during and after the toothbrushing.The results showed that only ten percent of the population use toothpaste in the most effective way."Swedes gener-ally do brush their teeth, but mostly

because of social norms and to feel fresh rather than to prevent tooth decay," said Gabre.Swedes could

improve their oral health consider-ably by learning how to maximise the effect of fluoride toothpaste, she

asserted.However, the study found that 80 per cent are generally happy with how they take care of their

teeth."Most of the inter-viewed subjects learned to brush their teeth as children, by their parents.

Even if they have been informed about more effec-tive techniques later in life, they continue to brush their teeth like they always have," stated Gabre.The research-ers concluded that Swedes' knowledge about toothbrush-ing must be improved and

that the provided advice must be made simpler, clearer and more easy to use.

Most people brush their teeth in wrong way

Before administer-ing an injection,

health profession-als commonly tell

us, "Don't look and it won't hurt," and

a new study has proved that this common advice

really does reduce pain.

A group of German in-vestigators has found that, in fact, your past experience with needle pricks, along with information you receive before an injection, shape your pain experience.

"Throughout our lives, we repeatedly experience that needles cause pain when pricking our skin, but

situational expectations, like information given by the clinician prior to an injec-tion, may also influence how viewing needle pricks affects pain," said lead author Mar-ion Hofle, a doctoral student in the research Multisen-sory Integration group led by Dr. Daniel Senkowski, at the Charite - Universi-tatsmedizin Berlin and the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf.

While watching video clips showing a needle prick-ing a hand, a Q-tip touching the hand, or a hand alone, study participants concur-rently received painful or non-painful electrical stimu-li applied to their own hand.

The clips were present-ed on a screen located above the participants' hand, giv-ing the impression that the hand on the screen belonged to them.

Participants reported that their pain was more in-tense and more unpleasant when they viewed a needle pricking a hand than when they saw a hand alone. In addition, observing needle

pricks increased the unpleas-antness of pain compared to viewing Q-tip touches.

These findings were paralleled by enhanced ac-tivity of the autonomic ner-vous system, as measured by pupil dilation responses. This demonstrates that pre-vious painful experiences with needles enhance un-pleasantness of pain when viewing needle pricks.

Situational expectations also influenced perceived pain intensity. Prior to the stimulation, participants were told that either the needle or the Q-tip clip was more likely to be associated with painful than with non-painful electrical stimula-tion.

The researchers found that presentation of clips that were more likely to be associated with pain lead to higher pain intensity experi-ences than the presentation of clips that were less likely to be associated with pain. This shows that expecta-tions regarding the painful-ness of medical treatments influence the intensity of

pain that the treatment ulti-mately produces.

Taken together, the study reveals several impor-tant findings.

"Clinicians may be ad-vised to provide information that reduces a patient's ex-pectation about the strength of forthcoming pain prior to an injection," Hofle noted.

She further stated that, "because viewing a needle prick leads to enhanced pain perception as well as to en-hanced autonomic nervous system activity, we've pro-vided empirical evidence in favour of the common ad-vice not to look at the needle prick when receiving an in-jection."

Their research has been published in the May issue of Pain.

How to avoid pain during injectionEarphones can kill youDespite the

number of fatalities from iPod oblivion (the act of walking on roads with ear-phones) Delhiites do not seem to be taking the menace seriously. We went out to explore...

It's human to err, but on the road, it can prove fatal. Especially when you have earphones on, and cannot hear approaching traffic. The menace of iPod oblivion, or the act of walking on road with your headphones on, is fast becoming one of the major causes of accidents on roads, and the capital too has seen its share of similar cases in the past couple of months. In November last year, 21-year-old DU student Priya Jain, was killed on Vikas Marg when she was hit by a bike and then a bus, since she had her earphones on and couldn't hear approaching traffic.

And the cases are only taking place more frequently now. Satyendra Garg, Joint CP, traffic, says that there has been a rise in such cases since the past

5-6 months, and even to the authorities, it is astonishing to see pedestrians risk their lives in such a manner. He adds, "It's astonishing how careless people can be, espe-cially with their life. Crossing roads while listening to mu-sic is dangerous not only for them, but also for others who are commuting on road. One such incident happened in Karol Bagh, where this guy, who was crossing the road while listen-ing to music, didn't hear the horn of an approaching car, which resulted in an accident. The car driver, while trying to save that guy, lost control and banged into a motorbike. These people are not only endangering their lives, but many others too." Fact is, say doctors that shutting themselves from the world through earphones, can make pedestrians oblivious to approach-ing traffic, and also reduce their re-

action time in case of an emergency situation. And the rise in the number of fatal mishaps happening due to earphone use on roads has also lead to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences' (AIIMS) Trauma Centre to conduct a study on it. But as far as taking concrete steps to generate awareness are concerned, Garg says not much can be done, adding, "Apart from creating awareness through ad-vertisements and campaigns, there is nothing else that can be done.

Earphones can kill you

Urgent appointments, tight work timetables

and hectic social sched-ules make-up modern

life and they quite often clash with our intrinsic

biological rhythms.The discrepancy results in

so-called social jetlag, which can damage one's health. Among other effects, it can contribute to the de-velopment of obesity, as a new LMU study has shown.

Three temporal cycles shape our lives. Our biological clock en-sures that fundamental physiologi-cal processes oscillate with a period of approximately 24 hours.

This internal timekeeper used the daily succession of light and dark to synchronize to the 24-hour day on our planet. Our social clock, on the other hand, often takes little or no heed of our natural needs and bio-logical rhythms.

The beat of the social clock is determined by the demands of our

work schedules and other extrane-ous timetables, and its timekeeper is the trill of the alarm clock.

"Our surveys suggest that in Western societies two thirds of the population are burdened with a sig-nificant discrepancy between their internal time and the demands im-posed by school and work sched-ules and leisure stress," said LMU chronobiologist Professor Till Roenneberg, who coined the term "social jetlag" to describe the phe-nomenon.

If the rhythms dictated by our lifestyles are persistently out of phase with our biological clock, the risk of illness, such as high blood pressure and even can-cer, rises.A team of researchers led by Roenneberg has now shown that social jetlag also contributes to an-other growing health problem, par-ticularly in countries with a Western lifestyle - obesity.Individuals who are overweight are at increased risk

for serious metabolic diseases, such as diabetes. Many factors, in addi-tion to excessive consumption of energy-rich foods, play a role in the development of obesity, and one of them is a lack of sleep.

In persons who get too little

sleep, the perception of hunger is perturbed, often leading to overeat-ing.And it is not just sleep duration that is important here. The LMU team has also found that social jetlag shows a significant association with increased body-mass index (BMI).

The BMI, which is based on a

quantitative relationship between weight and height, is used as a mea-sure of body fat, and varies depend-ing on age and sex. Individuals with BMIs above the normal range are regarded as being overweight or obese.

The results of the new study strongly in-dicate that a lifestyle that conflicts with our internal physiological rhythms can promote the development of obesity.

Moreover, it ap-pears that the incidence of social jetlag is itself increasing, perhaps as a consequence of a gen-eral reduction in sleep duration."The ongoing debate on the useful-ness of daylight-saving time (DST) should take note of our findings," re-marks Roenneberg."Just like conventional school and work schedules,

DST disrupts our biological clock and subjects us to more social jetlag with all its consequences," Roen-neberg added.The data used in the new epidemiological study are based on responses to a standardized set of questions, known as the Munich ChronoType Questionnaire.

The heatwave is cur-rently settling across many parts of India and it is quite distressing at many levels. But the sad news is, this is just the beginning.

So, in order to prepare for the heatwave, here are some valuable suggestions that will help you reduce the impact of extreme heat waves this summer season. All set? Let's begin...

Shield windows exposed to the sun. Make a note of the amount of direct sun-light you receive every day.

This will help you in understanding the amount of heat that contributes to the heat build-up from di-rect sunlight. Make sure you close the windows before you leave in the morning. Use awnings to block the sunlight in order to reduce the air circulation around the windows. One can also use reflectors, which can be conveniently removed as soon as the heat wave passes in the evening.

Check for air leaks and clean air conditioner filters. The air conditioners should

be well sealed so that there is no weather-stripping around the doors and window areas. The air-conditioning filter should be well cleaned be-fore the onset of the summer season for the best efficiency of air conditioners. Check for air leaks too. Also make sure that your ceiling fan is well repaired and cleaned.

Refrigerate bottles of drinking water.

It is a basic fact that we become more dehydrated during the extreme heat days, thus it is important to drink small amount of water throughout the day.

Always leave your house with a refrigerated bottle of clean and hygienic water. For the same, always store 8 to 10 bottles of clean water in the refrigerator, depend-ing upon the size of your family.

Drinking a healthy amount of water is a great way to beat the heatwave naturally.

Stock up on cool foods and be prepared for the heatwave. Make sure you stay away from eating heavy

and large meals as much as possible. Go for simpler, minimalistic cooking foods, which will keep your body temperature cool, especially when you're travelling.

Salads and cold fruits like cucumber, watermelon, pineapple, tomatoes are a great way to tackle the heat-wave.

Know the signs of heat stress. It is imperative to have hands-on knowledge about the triggers of heat-wave related health prob-lems and sicknesses.

Right from heat cramps (muscular pains and spasms due to heavy exertion), heat exhaustion (body tempera-ture rises, causes a decrease in the blood flow to vital organs) to heat stroke (ex-treme sweating, which leads the important body parts to stop working), are some of the deadly effects of a heat-wave.

Awareness of the signs, symptoms, prevention meth-ods and home treatments regarding these heat-related ailments will help you steer clear of any issues.

How to be prepared for the heatwave