What women want in men?

Tall, dark, handsome, rich with a good sense of humour - this indeed forms the perfect package when it comes to choosing a potential male partner.

However, women at times, expect a little too in terms of what they want in a man. Be it physical appearance, behavioural traits or personality attributes, women can't stop asking for more!

Several studies in the past have shed light on the qualities that women look forward to in their Prince Charming and most girls tend to stick to these parameters when it comes to making their choice. Be it a man's intelligence, his voice tone, romantic nature, pricey possessions, dancing skills etc, women tend to relate to these qualities and pick the best out of the lot.

Relationship and marriage counsellor Dr. Gitanjali Sharma explains, "The evolution theory states that women seem to seek signs of resource acquisition in men to maximise prospects for their kids. They prefer older men who tend to be more advanced in their careers, or of higher status in society and are therefore likely to be a better bet in terms of providing resources."

Here's the complete guide for men to know what exactly it takes to impress a woman...

Be intelligent : Intelligence is a sure shot way to woo a woman, not only while talking to her, but also during lovemaking moments. A study confirmed that when it comes to picking a bed-mate, both for one-night stands and long-term relationships, women prefer intelligent men to dumb jocks.

Expert say : Marriage counsellor Dr. Kamal Khurana opines, "No matter how financially liberal a man is, intelligence still remains a quintessential quality. When it comes to taking decisions in emotional and physical matters, women expect men to be in the driving seat. Having an intelligent mate also brings women a certain reassurance that their needs and demands will be well satisfied with better communication and understanding."

Deep baritone : Masculinity comes alive in your voice, so if you have a softer pitch, which sounds feminine, isn't really a great thing to rely on. Women usually look out for men who can be assertive, tough and equally passionate using their voice. A research suggested that women prefer men with deep voices because it signals strength, dominance and good genes.

Expert say : Dr. Gitanjali Sharma says, "Women are approximately seven times more attracted towards a man who has a deeper voice and a superior position and a dominating work style. High-pitch voices hint towards a pro-social behaviour, so women find such men more reliable."

Be romantic not a rich : A simple recipe to win a woman's heart is to give her loads of love and keep up the romance. It's not always the case that a girl chases a guy for materialistic reasons, rather women seek romantic mates. A recent survey revealed that most women believe that their perfect man needs to be romantic and not rich.

Expert say : Dr. Khurana states, "The concept of nuclear family has off late become quite popular, so the love, care and affection that were missing earlier, a woman wants that feeling of fulfillment from her life partner. Romance enhances love and emotions, whereas money or wealth is only for materialistic comfort. Men may shower their female partners with money, but the luxuries of no use unless your mate is not there with you to enjoy the good times."

Drive a cool car : Women are keen to hang out with a self-made man with a secured future. Whether that stature comes from your bank balance or an expensive car - make the most of your dream wheels to flatter women. A study confirmed that driving a flashy car really does make a person more attractive to women.

Expert say : Dr. Gitanjali asserts, "Materialistic needs are priorities, depending on the woman's lifestyle Women are naturally drawn to men who can provide for them and ensure the survival of their children. Thus they are attracted to strong and vigorous men who exhibit behaviour that indicate high status."

Look sexy with more hair : A clean shaven body or a half bald look can be a turn-off for your female partner. A research found that ladies looking for love on dating websites are more likely to contact men with a full head than those who are thinning on top.

Expert say : Dr. Khurana adds, "In the past, men were never into makeovers and beauty treatments and they were simply crude. And women have grown up seeing their dads and brothers in a typical macho man look, so this orientation of preferring men with more hair has been there with them since childhood."

Dance like Travolta : It's not always that women get attracted to men who can do sensuous salsa or romantic ball dance, so let your flamboyance do the talking. According to a research, John Travolta's flamboyant dance style in the cult film 'Saturday Night Fever' is of the kind that is the most attractive to women.

Expert say : "Highly-coordinated, complex movements are attractive to women as they see dancing to be a co-ordination between a healthy body and a controlled mind. So a man who is able to dance in a flambouyant style is judged as a person who has control over his mind and likes to work on his mind. Your dancing style may reflect what is going on inside a person's head. If they are self-conscious, it will be reflected in the way they dance," explains Gitanjali.

Darsheel's my superhero: Aamir

After giving Darsheel Safary a dream launchpad with " Taare Zameen Par", actor-producer-director Aamir Khan has now praised and extended support to the child actor and his movie "Zokkomon".

Aamir showered praise and extended good wishes to Darsheel when the "Zokkomon" team, including director Satyajit Bhatkal and actress Manjari Phadnis, visited his Bandra house to invite him for a special screening of the movie.

"I am very excited to watch this action adventure by Disney which is known for quality films, and especially since it has Darsheel in a brand new superhero avatar. He will always be my superhero in real life too," said Aamir.

The actor also wished good luck to the director, and hopes the film gets a good reception at the box office.

"Satyajit has been a close childhood friend and I have known him since years. I was proud to have produced his National Award winning documentary and I wish him all the best for his debut! This is a very different kind of film and will be a special treat for kids in summer vacations and family audiences as well," added Aamir.

"Zokkomon" is an action adventure film full of special effects.

Salman's 'Character Dheela' in Ready

Remember the song ' Kabhi Tu Chhalia Lagta Hain ' from Patthar Ke Phool where Salman Khan and Raveena Tandon paid a tribute to Raj Kapoor and Nargis. It seems like history is going to repeat itself with Salman paying another tribute to Raj Kapoor. And why just Raj Kapoor, there's more in store this time.

Insiders have been raving about a particular song called ' Character Dheela ' from Salman's forthcoming film Ready , which has more than one attraction to look forward to! "The groovy song has a special guest appearance by Zarine Khan who will be seen shaking a leg with Salman. Also the song will see Salman and Zarine playing different hit Hindi movie jodis of the past", says a source associated with the film.

"Salman will be seen playing ' Shahzada Saleem ' along with Zarine playing the beautiful Anarkali in one act. In another act, we will see Salman and Zarine in the black and white era playing tribute to the showman Raj Kapoor along with Nargis! Yet another sequence will see the two recreate the magic of Viru and Basanti on screen", adds the source.

This song has been uniquely choreographed by Mudassar Khan who has previously choreographed Salman in the superhit ' Dabangg ' as well.

IIT-JEE reform panel moots single entrance test, to seek public opinion

T Ramasami Committee on reforms in IIT Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) has decided to have a single entrance examination for admission to engineering course, but is yet to firm up how specifically it would be done.

The panel has decided to seek public opinion before finalizing its recommendation. In the next few days, a dedicated website would be created to draw public opinion. It remains to be seen if IIT Council agrees to be a part of engineering entrance examination that would also be for admission to non-IIT engineering colleges. Even state governments would have to come on board.

Sources said, to begin with even if an all-India single entrance examination is not introduced; JEE would definitely be reformed. Reform in JEE is one of the pleas sought by Rajiv Kumar, professor of IIT-Kharagpur, in his petition in the Supreme Court.

On Thursday, Ramasami gave a short presentation of three ways in which single entrance examination can be conducted. HRD minister Kapil Sibal, directors of IIT-Kanpur, Delhi and Roorkee were present. Few IIT directors have raised queries about the methods suggested by Ramasami.

Since 2008, Ramasami Committee is the fourth attempt to reform JEE. The first was an internal committee under V G Idichandy of IIT-Madras. He suggested scrapping of JEE, and considering Standard XII marks for IIT admission. Recommendations were neither made public nor discussed.

In October 2009, IIT Council suggested increasing eligibility cutoff from the existing 60% to 80% in Standard XII. Then, a committee of secretaries of department of science & technology, department of bio-technology and department of science and industrial research was set up to suggest IIT-JEEreforms. No proposal came from them.

This was followed by the Acharya Committee of four IIT directors to suggest JEE reforms. It submitted an interim report for admission, based on weighted sum of normalized Standard XII marks along with proposed SAT-like examination. It was rejected by most stakeholders like IIT faculty, state board chiefs etc.

Mallika Sherawat meets Barack Obama.

The actress apparently was invited for tea with Obama during his campaign visit in Hollywood. According to a source, the Indian star who likes to make her presence felt is said to have discussed her stay in LA and spoken about her upcoming film `Politics of Love, Barack' with the President Believe it or not, Obama told Mallika make sure you invite me to the premiere of the film.

A source close to the actress said, ``Its been Mallika's dream to meet America's President since his historic first election besides during her work on the new film she has learnt a lot about the man himself and U.S politics.''

Incidentally her film directed by William Dear is a romantic comedy inspired by publicly documented election love stories that happened during Obama's presidential election campaign

Lokpal panel members have advised me not to quit: Santosh Hegde

Justice Santosh Hegde on Friday said he will take a final decision on quitting the Lokpal panel on Saturday. He said panel members have advised him not to quit, according to TV channel Times Now.

In less than a fortnight of its formation, the joint committee for drafting the Lokpal Bill is falling apart. Even as civil society representatives Shanti Bhushan and Prashant Bhushan are battling attacks on their integrity, another civil society leading light, Justice N Santosh Hegde on Thursday said he was thinking of quitting the panel.

Stung by Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh's references to his ineffectuality in dealing with corruption in Karnataka, Hegde, who is the Karnataka Lokayukta, told TOI: "I'm angry and hurt. I came to know through the media thatDigvijay Singh said I was trying to protect Karnataka CM B S Yeddyurappa on corruption charges. I've tried to be honest in my entire career."

He said he was reconsidering his decision to join the committee, but would take a final decision on Saturday after meeting the other civil society activists. He said there was a concerted campaign to discredit the civil society members of the joint committee. It would appear he was not prepared to face up to the campaign.

While Hegde seemed to be wilting under the pressure, Anna Hazare himself appeared to be distancing himself from the controversy. He was heard saying on TV that he had nothing to do with the Bhushans.

Hegde said, "There is a concerted effort to scuttle the Lokpal Bill, which has been pending for 42 years. It's something like former CM HD Kumaraswamy giving me suo motu powers for prosecution but governor Rameshwar Thakur declining sanction. Politicians do not like their conduct to be examined."

He added, "I am apolitical and committee members from civil society don't belong to any political party. First, they targeted Anna Hazare. When that did not stick, their focus has been on Shanti Bhushan. While Arvind Kejriwal was too smart for them, I am their latest target."

Lasith Malinga announces Test retirement

Injury-prone Sri Lanka pacemanLasith Malinga on Friday quit Test cricket in a bid to prolong his career in one-day internationals and Twenty20 matches.

Malinga is playing for Mumbai Indians in theIndian Premier League and had recently made himself unavailable for Sri Lanka's tour of England, attracting criticism that he had chosen to play for club over country.

"In January this year I wrote a letter to Sri Lanka Cricket and released a statement to the media confirming that I planned to reassess my Test future after the World Cup," he said in a statement.

"I decided that I needed to make myself unavailable for Test cricket in an effort to prolong my career as a national cricketer for Sri Lanka.

"Although I am sufficiently fit to play both ODI and T20 cricket, I have a long-standing degenerative condition in my right knee that needs to be carefully managed."

The 27-year-old Malinga, known for bowling accurate yorkers, bagged 101 wickets in 30 Tests with his slinging action since making his debut against Australia in Darwin in 2004.

He took a three-year break from Test cricket until coming back to the format when he figured in a home series against India in 2010. He has three five-wicket hauls in a Test innings to his credit.

"I did try to return to Test cricket after a three-year absence last year following requests from the team management and the selectors, but it left me unfit nursing severe knee pain for two months," Malinga said.

"I have realised that the heavy workload of Test cricket, which requires a fast bowler to be able to bowl more than 15 overs, sometimes on consecutive days, could lead to permanent injury.

"I have carefully considered my options and have decided that not playing Test cricket will help me achieve my goal of representing Sri Lanka in the 2012 World Twenty20 and the 2015 World Cup."

Govt look forward to working with Anna Hazare & his colleagues: Pranab Mukherjee

Union finance minister after attending the Congress core group meeting on Friday clarified that working of Lokpal Bill drafting panel won't be affected by controversies over some members.

Mukherjee further said that committee's govt members will work with Anna Hazare and colleagues to draft a strong Lokpal bill.

Earlier Digvijay Singh, who is in the thick of a controversy over his remarks on the Bhushans and Justice Santosh Hegde, said the Congress and the government were in no way connected with the alleged smear campaign against civil society representatives and would not hamper the work of the joint committee to draft the Lokpal Bill.

Unfazed by criticism that he was targetting Anna Hazare and his colleagues, Singh said he was only voicing the party line as a disciplined soldier and there is no party gag on him.

The Congress general secretary, who has raised questions over Shanti Bhushan and his son getting prized land in Noida and alleged evasion of stamp duty in Allahabad, said he had no objection to their continuance in the committee but left it to their conscience whether they should remain in it.

He also made it clear that he had at no time attacked Justice Hegde, a member of the joint committee, but had only raised a question that if the best Lokayukta in Karnataka cannot stop "rampant corruption" in the state then a serious thought should be given to the system.

India Against Corruption

India wins again, Anna Hazare ends fast Govt issued a gazette notification constituting a 10-member joint committee of ministers and civil society activists to draft the Lokpal Bill.

Anna on fast: Wary govt buckles in season of protests "It is not the specifics of the bill, but frustration about the political class being corrupt and governance maladies from broken roads to price rise that is spilling out," conceded a political source.

Corruption denting India's image: Narayana Murthy Infosys chief mentor N R Narayana Murthy on Friday said the India glowing story overseas was being dimmed by mushrooming scams and scandals.

Personal probity no comfort for PM PM Manmohan Singh's image as an honest man who just happens to head a corrupt government does not seem to be cutting much ice with the 'aam aadmi' any more if banners at the fast are anything to go by.

Anybody can be CVC, but only if babus are willing The department of personnel and training (DoPT) has opened the field to non-civil servants but has left it to babus to nominate those from outside the government for the country's top anti-corruption watchdog's job.

18 peacock carcasses found, poisoning suspected

AURAIYA (Uttar Pradesh): The carcasses of 18 peacocks have been recovered from a village near here. The deaths were not natural and appear to have taken place due to poisoning, a forest official said.

The peacocks were found dead Monday in Basantpur village, around 160 km from state capital Lucknow.

The peacock, the national bird of India, is protected under Section 51, 1-A of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and its killing is strictly prohibited.

"A team of forest officials came across the carcasses while they were on a routine inspection," RK Mishra, a sub-divisional forest officer (SDO), told reporters Tuesday in Auraiya.

Even as the exact cause of the peacock deaths is yet to be ascertained, forest officials said the deaths were "not natural".

"While we are waiting for the post-mortem reports, prima facie it appears the deaths took place because of poisoning," Mishra said.

"We have detained the man in whose fields the carcasses were recovered. Investigations are being carried out," he added.

According to officials, peacocks are killed for their meat and feathers.

Assembly Elections 2011

BJP is inclusive and secular: Alphons Bureaucrat-turned-MLA Alphons Kannanthanam, who till recently was a CPM-backed independent from Kanjirappally in Kerala, prefers to call himself "an innovative administrator who believes there is nothing impossible".

Kerala plays a guessing game The official position of both fronts-LDF and UDF- though is that their chief ministerial candidate will be selected only after the polls, howsoever strange that may sound.

Tiger whimpers in freebie fest The loudest pro-Tiger voice of Tamil Nadu, Vaiko, is off the electoral platform. And the AIADMK, routed in three successive polls, appears to have realized that in Tamil Nadu, the Lanka factor can't win polls.

Mamata canvasses for success "Change is the core of this election. No one can reverse the course," Mamata Banerjee says smothering her brush in a palette and making a strong, sweeping statement on the canvas.

Kerala church's silence puzzles The church raked up a controversy last year when it issued a clutch of such letters ahead of the local body polls telling the laity how to vote.

'Voting age 18, drinking age 21, why a blanket 'U' film rating?

What do you think you achieved as CBFC chief and what have you learnt?

I realized that we're far more transparent than the Americans. We speak to the press whenever they want to discuss a decision; we're not "all white"' nor all of "a certain age" . Their debate is about "why X, not A" ; ours is about "why UA, not U" . Except for "Ghajini" which fell through the net, we give 'UA' if there's violence, item songs, expletives... Tell me honestly , is "Kaminey" watchable by a 12-year-old ?

Sometimes a single dialogue tarnishes the dignity of women. One character in "Rajneeti" gave the impression that every woman sleeps around to get a ticket (in elections). Sometimes friendly relations with a country can't be jeopardized. As an insider, I understand the compulsions of both the industry and the audience. I also know that some people take advantage of our openness and go to the press for publicity. Still, and against advice, I opened up to the press. That helped build bridges.

An example?

A long article in a film journal had detailed the director's tension while "Love Sex aur Dhoka" was being censored. Describing the (CBFC) members, he wrote dismissively of "a burqa-clad woman" . I called up the editor and asked him, "Can't a burqaclad lady judge a film?" He had no answer, he kept repeating , "I'm listening madam, I'm listening."

In "No One Killed Jessica" , Tehelka pointed out that, in reality, they had held the candlelight vigils and sting operations. But the sponsors, NDTV, appeared to get the credit. So I spoke to producer Ronnie Screwvala, and he took measures to correct the impression. Such interventions have helped avert conflicts.

Tendulkar has been unbelievable in last two years: Kapil Dev

Iconic Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkarhas been "unbelievable" in the last two years and keeps getting better with age, feels 1983 World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev.

"Sachin in the last two years has been unbelievable. This genius is other way around, more he gets older more he plays like a champion," Kapil Dev, known as the Haryana Hurricane, told members of the Indian Journalists Association here last evening.

The former all-rounder was all praise for the current Indian team under Mahendra Singh Dhoni which won the World Cup last week in Mumbai.

"India has a team who can beat anybody. They still are not playing to their potential," he said.

"The Indian team is far better than any other team, without doubt."

Asked about the secret of the Indian team's success, Kapil said, "India's growth is seen in every championship - Commonwealth, Asian games and World Cup. We are definitely flying and flying very well and shining. Now India is the World Champions, besides being No 1 Team in the world in Test cricket.

"We have put money on the table and we have shown that we can play well too. That is what World Cup has done to India. Now only thing is when you reach the top position, your attitude changes."

Asked why the team had faltered in the run up to the final, Kapil said, "When you have such a strong batting line up, complacency sometimes sets in. Despite that they were winning. They are far far better players than they performed. Even Dhoni fired only when it needed most, in the final."

The former pacer was also lavish in his praise for India's dashing opener Virender Sehwag.

"He is a ruthless player. He changes the dynamics of the cricket altogether. He keeps the game so simple."

Kapil said India could improve further if the team gave more attention to its bowling department.

"Yes, bowling is a matter of concern," he said. Asked to compare the current team with the one that won the World Cup in 1983, Kapil said, "This cricket team is far better than the 1983 team. We did not have any experienced players in the 1983 team. We were absolutely raw, no big match temperament. But we combined better.

"But in the present team there are stalwarts like Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, M S Dhoni and Harbhajan Singh. In 1983, man to man, West Indies was far better than us."

Asked whether IPL had its effect on the Indian side, he said, "Everybody benefited from IPL. There is both positive and negative side. The positive is you start learning to win. The negative is you don't get enough rest."

Kapil said the BCCI should put money on junior cricket and Ranji.

"They have to make up their mind. If we want growth in sports, then school sports have to be given due attention. If we can give facilities we can have 10 Sachins and Dhonis in the country.

"During our time, Sunil Gavaskar was like a God and If we don't get another Sachin, it will be sad."

Asked whether cricketers should be exempted from tax for the prize they win, Kapil Devi said, "The law should be uniform for all sportsmen. Other sportsmen who have got laurels in athletics,badminton and other games must be given same exemptions."

US help for India's superbug fight

The world's best-known institute for handling bad bugs — Atlanta-based Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — will helpIndia strengthen its laboratory and manpower capacity to better detect pathogens like NDM-1 and virus outbreaks.

India can boast of its own version of CDC — a full-fledged National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) — by next year, and the construction for it will begin within two months. The facility will be equipped with state-of-the-art infrastructure like wet and dry laboratories, highly-advanced bio-safety level-II and BSL-III laboratories. The authorities have set aside Rs 382.41 crore for NCDC.

A three-member high-level team from the Union health ministry — health secretary K Chandramouli, NCDC chief Dr L S Chauhan and joint secretary R S Shukla — was scheduled to visit Atlanta from April 9 to 15 "to study how the iconic institution functions, what are the technologies that will have to be replicated in India and how they carry out disease surveillance". The trip, however, got postponed on Friday.

Union health ministry sources told ToI, "One of the main departments in NCDC will handle microbial and antibiotic resistance. Our MoU with CDC (signed in 2010) entails that it will help us in strengthening our laboratory capacity and expand trained manpower to deal with new pathogens like NDM1 created superbug. CDC will help us in fighting drug resistance, surveillance for remerging infections and capacity building."

NCDC will have 15 exhaustive divisions, which will look at manpower, capacity building, outbreaks, laboratory technology, new pathogens, technology transfer, microbial resistance, drug-resistant TB, vector medicine, microbiology and biochemistry. The facilities at NCDC's eight out-station branches are also being upgraded.

Altogether, 245 additional posts — 210 technical and another 35 administrative openings — will be created for the new Centre by March, 2013.

The state-of-the-art laboratory is the seventh facility being set up by CDC, globally. The new Centre will share outbreak information, coordinate responses and support World Health Organization's Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network to allow rapid identification, confirmation and response to outbreaks of international importance.

The MoU entailed sharing best practices for detection and response to emerging infections, advanced training in field epidemiology, surveillance for deadly diseases and building laboratory capacity for their diagnosis, using CDC's reference materials.

A major focus for the India laboratory will be zoonotic diseases. Approximately 75% of recently identified emerging infectious diseases affecting humans are diseases of animal origin. Additionally, 80% of pathogens — with a high potential for bioterrorism — are zoonotic.

The 2004 programme was funded by Congress in the wake of SARS outbreak. Experience with SARS demonstrated that a highly pathogenic infectious disease in a remote region can spread around the world in a matter of days or weeks.

Sexual harassment row at Yale University

Yale University, which has taught five US presidents and 18 Nobel Laureates, is now facing a sexual harassment scandal, it was reported here.

Daily Telegraph reported that the US government has initiated a probe into a complaint by 16 students at the Connecticut college.

The students have alleged a string of serious assaults by groups of men that were not punished.

They have also claimed that Yale's management allowed the cultivation of a "sexually hostile environment".

A 26-page dossier also reveals many unpleasant incidents on campus.

Last October, a group of male students who were attempting to enter the Delta Kappa Epsilon (DKE) fraternity, had gathered outside the dormitories of new female students and chanted: "No means yes!"

The complainants say the "band of loud men shouting threatening and pornographic language" left the first year teenage girls terrified.

Doug Lanpher, the head of DKE, said the incident was "inappropriate".

"It's behind us now," Lanpher told The Daily Telegraph.

In another incident, a group of male students were at the entrance to a women's building at midnight as they held a sign stating: "We Love Yale Sluts."

Two years ago, an e-mail with the subject line - "pre-season scouting report" - rated 50 women by the number of drinks male students would need before taking them to bed.

US Vice President Joe Biden had even made a speech telling male students that if they forced themselves on women they were "flat-out cowards".

"No matter what a girl does, no matter how she's dressed, no matter how much she's had to drink - it's never, never, never, never, never OK to touch her without her consent," Biden was quoted as saying.

India wins again, Anna Hazare calls off fast

Veteran social activist Anna Hazareon Saturday broke his fast after over 90 hours of spearheading the campaign against corruption after government issued a gazette notification constituting a 10-member joint committee of ministers and civil society activists, including him, to draft an effective Lokpal Bill.

After a last-minute twist almost derailed a peace deal between Anna Hazare and the government, the Gandhian on Friday announced that he would call off his fast on Saturday morning with official negotiators accepting all his conditions.

Hazare first helped supporters break their fast before ending it himself. Thousands were waiting for Anna Hazare to break his fast. The 72-year-old took a few sips of juice offered to him by a little girl. Loud cheers erupted and the strains of Mahatma Gandhi's favourite hymn "Raghupati Raghava Raja" filled the air.

Social activists Swami Agnivesh, Medha Patkar and Kiran Bedi hailed Hazare's campaign as the Gandhian said he would to continue the fight for the "second struggle for independence".

Hazare, who began his fast Tuesday morning, congratulated the people for the success of the movement that saw Prime Minister Manmohan Singh issue a statement promising that the Lokpal (ombudsman) Bill, with more teeth to effectively counter corruption in public life, would be introduced this July in the Monsoon session of Parliament.

Terming the movement a second freedom struggle, he said the system had to be changed. "We have got a lot of strength from the people," the former soldier said, adding that there would be further revolutions on other issues confronting India.

"We have to keep our unity intact," he said. He said what was significant was that this movement had no religion. The youth were at the forefront of this campaign, he said.

The notification by the Ministry of Law and Justice said the Joint Drafting Committee to prepare a draft of the Lokpal Bill will have five ministers from the government and five nominees of Hazare, including himself.

The five ministers are finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, chairperson, home minister P Chidambaram, law minister Veerappa Moily (convenor), HRD minister Kapil Sibal and water resources minister Salman Khurshid.

The civil society will be represented by Hazare, former Supreme Court judge N Santosh Hegde, former law minister Shanti Bhushan (co-Ccairperson), lawyer Prashant Bhushan and RTI activist Arvind Kejriwal.

The notification said the Joint Drafting Committee will commence work forthwith evolving its own procedure to prepare the proposed legislation. The committee shall complete its work latest by June 30, it said.

For civil society protesters who had laid siege to Jantar Mantar, where Hazare had been on fast for the last four days, it was a decisive victory. After holding out over a formal notification of a joint committee of activists and ministers, the Centre on Friday agreed to issue a government order that was accepted by activists. Besides a joint panel with a 50:50 ministerial-activist composition, the Centre accepted Hazare's offer of the committee being co-chaired. This is the only compromise the activists agreed to after the Centre said it would concede the chair to Hazare's group but no minister would be on it. Hazare said the co-chair formula was a middle path as he was keen that ministers be on the panel. "Ministers will give the panel more weight, it will make the government more receptive to agreeing to the draft the committee draws up," Hazare explained.

But it was not all smooth sailing. Before Hazare told his supporters, "You will be happy with what the government has agreed to...ye janata ki badi jeet hui (this is a big victory for the people)," there were a few missteps. The deal that looked so tantalizingly close seemed to slip away. After the 6 pm meeting on Friday with HRD minister Kapil Sibal, minority affairs minister Salman Khursheed and law minister Veerappa Moily, Swami Agnivesh said an announcement would be made at Jantar Mantar by the Gandhian.

"You will be happy," he said. But at ground zero, backstage discussions seemed to stretch on forever before Hazare surprised the crowd by saying that he was still on fast and awaiting a draft.

Official sources said the draft agreement had been cleared by Hazare. But there were divisions in his camp, preventing him from calling off his fast. "The government has accepted all the conditions. It agreed that an official notification would be issued once he said his fast was over," a source said.

A Hazare group leader saw things the other way around. The Gandhian's breaking his fast, he said, was contingent on a satisfactory government order being issued. He said once the activists were satisfied that the terms agreed to had been honoured, the agitation would be over. Some activists in the Hazare camp have been insistent on a notification.

But after the thrills and some near spills, the surging crowd at Jantar Mantar and India Gate left no doubt about how the match had gone. Civil society had won hands down. It looked like an innings defeat for the government which had only on Monday frostily expressed its "disappointment" at Hazare's decision to fast and dismissed the stir as saffron inspired.

Hazare's handsome victory seems a significant political milestone, marking the impact of popular opinion in a media-influenced age. It is the culmination of a string of corruption scams that placed graft at the political centrestage. It saw the ruling party worrying about a "JP-type" stir that turned tables on Indira Gandhi in the 70s.

As has been the case in the past, the turning point came with Congress chief Sonia Gandhi's intervention on Thursday and her backing the demand for a strong anti-corruption law. On Friday, the peace moves gathered momentum after a meeting at Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's residence attended by Sonia. Soon, it was evident that the government was preparing to cut its losses and "stoop to conquer", as an official source put it. This saw Sibal telling the media that the government and civil society were on the same page and "this is a happy day for us. I express my gratitude to Annaji".

Seduce through your eyes...................Eye to eye!

All that talk about first impression and lasting ones... well, that's not all jazz you know. Whoever said it sure knew what they meant. And guess what, if you want to seduce someone, you've got to do more than just dress and speak the role, you have a secret yet powerful tool at easy disposal, your eyes. Making the right eye contact and giving the right signals via your eyes to the person you are interested in means about 50 per cent of your work done. The truth is that most of the communication that occurs between two people who are interested in each other is wordless, it's all about the looks.

Even the experts will vouch for this. In fact, communication and body language counsellors opine that the basic components of eye behaviour are easy to master once a person knows how they work. So, if you want to ensure that you always use your eyes fluently and with dazzling effect, here are four simple steps you need to follow.

Establish : The first thing you need to do when you meet is to look into the eyes of the other person. A confident look will create a positive first impression. Establishing eye contact is a specially handy tool when you're trying to gain the attention of an unknown hottie or cutie. In this case, don't keep staring at him/her, it may feel like you're stalking them. Instead, make short frequent glances. If the opposite person reciprocates your move and holds your gaze, it a silent signal that you have the 'permission' to go ahead and initiate a conversation. Start of with introducing yourself.

Maintain : Now that you've started a conversation, it's time for step two. Yes, we agree you can't keep looking into each others eyes forever, but try to maintain eye contact for as long as it's possible. Studies say the average gaze time for an average listener is a minuscule three seconds. But you need to go a tad further, try to hold your partner's gaze for at least five to seven seconds. This will make it look like you're paying attention and care about what the other person is saying. How does this work? It's a two-way effect. While is makes the person opposite feel important, it will make you more 'attractive' in their eyes. Mission accomplished!

Maximise : You know your mission and you know that it's your eyes that are going to be in focus. Hence, it's most important that you pay attention to how your eyes look. Ladies, don't hesitate to do them up to best effect, there are tons of products available in the market to help you. And it is a know fact that kajal gives the eyes a certain depth while clearly defining one's eyes.

Widen : There's something about large eyes that catches the attention of the person opposite. And ladies, though it may be a tad exaggerated in movies, fluttering your eyelashes does have that devastating effect on the opposite sex. There's also a technique that will help you make your eyes appear larger; raise your brows and slightly lower your eye lids. If reports are to be believed,Marilyn Monroe herself often used this highly successful technique.

There you have it, now that you've mastered the formula, it's time for you to try it out.

Be her perfect man................Don't forget to say those three magical words ‘I love you’

They say women can be quite a difficult lot to please, but it isn't so. All you need to do to make a lasting impression is target her heart. Once that's done, the rest will be a relatively smoother ride.

Most guys think that going overboard in the gifting department is the only way to please their lady love. Yes, gifts are good, but they pale in comparison to a real show of one's emotions and love.

The easiest way to start winning over her heart is by understanding her for the person that she is. Men often complain that it's difficult to decode a woman, but that's not true. Apart from understanding her, one also needs to bond with her on an emotional level. Women have a tendency to communicate in an indirect way, while men prefer to get straight to the point. You need to find a successful meeting point for both.

Lastly, guys, you need to keep your 'sexpectations' on the back burner for a while. While sex will definitely help deepen your bond, let it not become the focus of your relationship. Portraying that the physical connect is the only thing that matters to you isn't going to help win her over.

There are numerous ways to deepen your connection with your woman. Remember this...

1. Women want a sense of security and safety from their man. That doesn't necessarily mean that he has to be a new age version of He-Man. Remember, a man of his words and more importantly, one who can take a stand, is what will attract her the most.

2. It's not just about the drop dead handsome looks or the ultra hot sex quotient or the wealth you display, women dig guys who exuberate a sense of self confidence and believe they can do things.

3. Trust is the most important binding factor in a relationship. Unfortunately, it cannot be bought but has to be earned. Hence, do not hesitate to put in that bit of extra effort to reassure her that she can trust you, no matter what.

4. Honour and respect her. Any woman will be more than happy to be with a guy who respects her, her tastes and opinions and also treats her with the love and tenderness she deserves. Also, a display of some old-fashioned chivalry when out on a date will do no harm.

5. Variety is the the spice of life, especially in a relationship. Forget about the tried and tested, sometimes just put in a bit of extra thought and effort to doing something routine differently, be it in bed or helping her out unexpectedly in the kitchen or with household chores or even planning out a surprise evening just because you felt like pampering her.

6. Expressing feelings and emotions is not only the woman's department, guys, you need to be just as expressive and vocal. Even if it's something as simple as telling her how that new outfit suits her perfectly or how gorgeous her hair is, go ahead and say it out loud without waiting for her to ask for your opinion.

Tigers bounce back, 16% rise in population

The endangered Indian tiger seems to be back from the brink. The striped predator, whose population touched a low of 1,411 in the last census, has shown a 16% rise in numbers with the latest count released on Monday showing an estimated 1,706 tigers in the country – including 70 found in Sundarbans, which was not part of the 2006 count.

The census report, the second counting exercise to use scientific sampling methods, shows India's tiger population is stabilizing and even thriving in many big reserves. The most impressive surge in numbers was from the Nagarhole-Wayanad-Mudumalai belt (across Karnataka, TN and Kerala), which with an around 382 tigers has shown a 36% rise from the previous count.

Increase in tiger numbers was also reported in Uttarakhand, Maharashtra and Assam, while Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh showed a decline. Among the well known tiger reserves, Corbett, Ranthambore and Bandhavgarh saw an impressive rise in the number of tigers.

The tiger census methodology has come a long way since the pre-2006 counts, when pugmarks used to be the only indicator of tiger numbers. The method was highly inaccurate and for the last two tiger counts, the government moved to a more scientific process that involved video trapping and use of satellite data.

The latest tiger count, while being similar to the 2006 census in most ways, is more accurate than the previous exercise, experts involved the census said.

"The monitoring exercise was carried out between December 2009 and December 2010. The three phases of the tiger estimation procedure included field data collected at the beat-level by trained personnel using a standardized protocol in the first phase. The second phase was analysis of habitat status of tiger forests using satellite data and the third phase dealt with camera trapping," said Y V Jhala from the Wildlife Institution of India.

Camera trapping, promoted by tiger experts like K Ullas Karanth, has become the primary mode if identifying individual animals. In the 2010 census, 550 individual tigers were captured and identified using their unique stripe patterns.

In the Sunderbans, where the census took place for the first time, five tigers were tagged with Iridium satellite collars and camera trapping was carried out in an area of 250 sq km.

In the entire project, 800 camera traps were used, covering an area of 10,500 sq km. "Based on the tiger numbers recorded in sampled sites, an estimate for other contiguous tiger-occupied landscapes was made. For this, additional information such as tiger signs, prey availability, habitat conditions and human disturbance was used. The final estimates provide a comprehensive and statistically robust result," added Jhala.

The same process was used in 2006 though experts say that the figures thrown up then might not be as accurate as they are likely to be for 2010. "The system was new then and we suspect that not all procedures were followed. This year, the people were more comfortable with the process and we are confident that an accurate estimate has been prepared," said sources.

The 2010 National Tiger Assessment partnered with Wildlife Trust of India, Aaranyak and World Wildlife Fund-India. Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology gave technical imputs while local communities were involved in data collection and analysis, genetic analysis of fecal samples, assessment of co-predators, prey and habitat quality of tigers.

2G spectrum scam

2G scam: CBI chargesheet challenges PM's defence on spectrum pricing The CBI has challenged government's defence against the charge that it gave away 2G spectrum cheap with the agency strongly supporting auction of airwaves.

Government ignored intelligence inputs on Shahid Balwa's D-links There were inputs to show that intelligence agencies had cautioned the government against permitting UAE's Etisalat to invest in Swan.

Sadiq Batcha was under pressure to turn approver, claims friend "He told me that his wife was asking him to be an approver and put an end to the 2G case," Batcha's friend N Chellathurai has told TOI.

Batcha's last interview to TOI: Probe will prove my innocence One of Sadiq Batcha's last media interviews was with TOI. This was in December third week at his Green House Promoters office at Teynampet in south Chennai. He was far from apologetic about his alleged role in the 2G scam.

Raja aide Sadiq Batcha found dead at Chennai residence Ex-telecom minister A Raja's aide and realtor Sadiq Batcha was found dead at his Chennai residence. CBI had questioned him in 2G scam.

Google to overhaul YouTube

Google's popular video sharing website YouTube will soon be overhauled and turned into a premium content competitor with organised channels and professionally produced video.

YouTube is trying to position itself to better handle the age of Internet-connected televisions, a report said, citing people familiar with the matter.

YouTube is reorganising its home page around "channels," or topics, such as sports and arts.

The website is working to include about 20 "premium channels" that would showcase five to 10 hours of professionally produced, original programming each week.

The changes, which reportedly will cost YouTube about USD 100 million, should start to be phased in by the end of the year.

The YouTube is looking to align itself with the growing trend of Internet-connected television.

YouTube designers are working to develop channels that would make it easier for users -- who would be viewing the site on their computers and on their TVs -- to find the content that they want to watch.

Analyst say that this is the time when You Tube need to make changes as not much has changed since it started.

The report says that YouTube will now will have categorised channels ("such as arts and sports"), and that premium-grade content is on its way.

"YouTube is looking to introduce 20 or so 'premium channels' that would feature five to 10 hours of professionally-produced original programming a week," an insider told WSJ.

These changes are slated to roll in by the end of the year, and Google is looking for new recruits to work on the project.

And Google isn't simply working on adding organisation to YouTube; meetings with reputableHollywood talent firms would suggest it's serious about nabbing some famous personnel, be those behind or in front of the camera.

YouTube certainly is enough of a household name to command at least some attention, and if it plans to keep and grow its user base and make the type of money it wants to off advertising, this is a natural step.

With such massive change, there's always the possibility of isolating passionate YouTubers who have been there since its start, but it's probably worth it for Google to further break into our living rooms.

Indian teachers in demand in Singapore..........

Indian teachers are most sought after in Singapore schools with increasing number of teachers being recruited to teach not only Indian languages but also other subjects.

Over 70 teachers from India have been hired in the past four years and another 10 teachers from the country are set to teach in the city schools later this year as the education ministry seeks out international educationists to boost its teaching force, The Straits Times reported today.

"It's logical to hire from India because they are culturally much closer to us," Singapore's Academy of Principals dean Belinda Charles was quoted as saying by the daily.

Kolkata-based 'Academy for Professional Excellence', a recruitment agency for Singapore's Education Ministry since 2006, had recruited eight teachers in 2007 and the number increased to 30 in 2009 and 25 last year. Most of the teachers were from Kolkata.

The paper, citing the education ministry, said the numbers of international teachers still remain small, under 2 per cent or less than 620 of the 31,000-strong teaching force in Singapore.

The ministry said it has been looking for teachers overseas for 20 years to "inject diversity and perspective" into the education system here.

Singapore is facing shortage of teachers, particularly of economics as local teachers specialising in the subject left for lucrative jobs in the commercial sector during the economic boom four years ago.