Web Space Dedicated to my Odisha and Odia Language.
Welcome
This is Prabhat Nath from Odisha. Currently I live in Hyderabad (India) and work as a Software Developer. If you are not big enough to lose, you are not big enough to win.
Today is 14th November and is celebrated as Children’s Day in India.
However, while 20th November is universally celebrated as Children’s Day, in India this day has been preponed to 14th November, the date the marks the birth anniversary of independent India’s First Prime Minister – Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru.
The reason why his birthday has been chosen for the celebration of children is because of his love and passion for children. Pandit Nehru is also regarded as the country’s special child to have been the First Prime Minister, after his long struggle for independence.
The day is marked with a lot of activities for children. But the fact remains that only a section of the country’s children actually have an opportunity to celebrate their existence. Schools organize events and activities that their students thoroughly enjoy, but there is an entire populace of young ones that are left ignored on this special day – the downtrodden street children.
Instead of celebrating it with pomposity in schools and clubs and hotels, why not bring a difference into the lives of children who are unprivileged. While celebrating being a child, the fortunate ones should be reminded about their good fortune to have all that they are endowed with, while there are others who can barely feed or clothe themselves.
Thus, while this day was globally instituted to provide children with basic Rights, maybe one can make a difference to a child’s life by doing something special. Parties and celebrations happen all the time, but how about taking the fortunate children to homes that shelter street children and have them befriend those kids, donating clothes, toys, stationery, books, etc.
Another way of celebrating this day differently would be to have your children, whether as teacher or parent, organize a party for some underprivileged children. In fact, if this is done in every neighborhood, imagine how many smiles there will be across the nation.
Childhood is about innocence and playfulness. It is about joy and freedom. Maybe on this day you can make your own child sign up to sponsor the education of an unprivileged child, either through an NGO dedicated to educating and providing better living conditions for street children, or maybe you could do so for your employee’s child.
Celebrating Children’s Day is about giving children the right to enjoy and grow into healthy and educated citizens of the country, and if you can teach your child the value of sharing with others what they are lucky to have, then not only your child will grow into a responsible human being, but also another child who otherwise could have ended up being a delinquent, had it not been for your thoughtfulness.
Some Other Notes about Children’s Day Children's day was first celebrated worldwide in October, 1953, under the sponsorship of International Union for Child Welfare, Geneva. The idea of Universal Children's Day was mooted by late Shri V.K. Krishna Menon and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1954.
20 November is Universal Children's Day. First proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in 1954, it was established to encourage all countries to institute a day, firstly to promote mutual exchange and understanding among children and secondly to initiate action to benefit and promote the welfare of the world's children.
20 November is the anniversary of the day when the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child in 1959. The Convention on the Rights of the Child was then signed on the same day in 1989, which has since been ratified by 191 states.
Prathamastami is celebrated on the eighth day in the month of Margasira (November-December) and is one of the most popular festivals in Orissa. This is widely observed throughout the state.
In the year 2006 the festival falls today the 13 November 2006.
On this day, the eldest child of the family is honored. He or she is given new clothes to ware. The ritual includes the mother or any other elderly lady wishing the child long-life and good health by praying 'Sasthi Debi', the Goddess who protects children. A special variety of cake called ‘Enduri’ is prepared during this occasion. The cake is offered to the Goddess of Sasthi and then taken by all.
The Traditional way On this festival the eldest child of the family is honored. He or she is given new clothes and is made to sit on a wooden pedestal (Pidha). In front of him/her an earthen pitcher, full of water is placed on handfuls of paddy. Above it a branch of mango leaves and a cocoanut is placed. Then, the mother or any other elderly lady wishes him/her long-life and good health by praying Sasthi Debi.
Social Significance The social significance of this festival is that the first-borns are brighter and it is ultimately they who take up the burden of the family after the death of the parents. According to psychologists the first-borns are mostly healthy, obedient and tradition-bound. Therefore, the family tradition is maintained through them. For such obvious reasons the eldest child is honored to occupy the respectable place in the family after the death of the parents.
Importance at Lingaraj Temple, Bhubaneswar The festival is an important occasion at the Lingaraj Temple in Bhubaneswar. Here the festival is observed with great devotion. Here the deity of Lingaraj is taken out in a palanquin to a tank called "Papanasini" in the temple complex.
Health insurance insures us and our family against sudden medical expenses. A health insurance policy is a contract between an insurer and an individual or a group, in which the insurer agrees to provide specified health insurance at an agreed-upon price the premium. Depending on the policy, the premium may be payable either in a lump sum or in instalments. Health insurance usually provides either direct payment or reimbursements for expenses associated with illnesses and injuries.
Why do we need Health Insurance
Health insurance has become a necessity in today’s life considering the rise in the cost of medical care and treatment. The increase cost of medical treatment today is beyond the reach of the common man. Even if an individual is healthy and has never had any major problem, it is not possible to predict what may happen in the future. In case of a medical emergency, cost of hospital room, doctor’s fees, medicines and related health services all add up to a huge sum. In such times, health insurance provides the much needed financial relief.
Who can avail this facility
Health insurance can be availed by people aged between 5 to 75 (may vary depending on the policy). The health insurance scheme could either be a personal scheme or family protection scheme or may be a group scheme sponsored by our employer.
Even if we covered under any health insurance plan of your employer still we need to check out whether our dependents are included under the cover or not? If not, then we need to find a solution for our dependents. Even if we are cover by our employer it has its own flip side.
The flip side (If covered by the employer) - We are covered only for the period we are employed. - If we change job or retire, we and our family will be left behind in case of medical contingency. - Our employer may not cover our entire family.
Indian companies offering Mediclaim Health Insurance policies - Oriental Insurance Corporation - National Insurance Corporation - United India Insurance Corporation - National India Assurance Corporation - ICICI Lombard - Bajaj Allianz - Royal Sundaram
What we need to know
We should understand the policy, and become familiar with common health insurance provisions, including limitations, exclusions, and riders. It is very important to know what your policy covers and what you have to pay yourself. Health Insurance policies generally cover boarding, nursing and diagnostic expenses, which include room rent charged at the hospital or nursing home, fees of the surgeon, doctor, etc. It also covers pre and post hospitalization expenses. Some policies even offer fixed cash amount for each day we stay at any hospital for treatment.
Note (very important): We also need to know the list of Network Hospitals, in our area, that the insurance company covers. Because more the number of hospitals in network it is better for us. We can also go for other hospitals that are not in the list of insurer, but in this case we have to go for reimbursement option. But in case of Network hospitals the treatment will be cash-less.
Note: Expenses on hospitalization, incurred in the first 30 days after taking a policy are also not entitled, except in case of an injury from accident.
Note: Treatment of certain diseases is not covered during the first year of your policy.
Note: If you have a persistent health problem and then decide to take insurance, it might not be covered.
Points to Ponder
Ensure that you renew your policy continuously since it will cover you for medical conditions that may be diagnosed over the years. Make sure that you renew your policy without a break as the renewed policy after a lapse is a fresh proposal and has its own limitations.
Dengue fever is an acute infectious viral disease, caused by all four types of dengue virus 1, 2, 3 and 4. It is transmitted by the bite of mosquitoes, most commonly Aedes aegypti found in tropical and subtropical regions.
What are its symptoms
- Fever, with a sudden onset, often rising to 40-40.5 degrees centigrade. - Rash, which shows up 3-4 days after the start of the symptoms, starting from the trunk region and spreading to the face, arms and legs. - Muscle aches. - Joint aches. - Headache.
How is it diagnosed
- Total white blood cells count: In case of dengue, this test will reveal less than normal number of leukocytes (4000-10,000/cm) or white blood cells in the blood. - Thrombocytopoenia: Total platelets count in the blood may be very low in dengue fever. - Serum tests measure the antibody produced against dengue virus.
Who are at risk
Dengue has become the most notable mosquito-borne disease of the 1990s. Each year tens of millions of people are affected by the disease. About 2.5 billion people live in areas that are at risk of an epidemic transmission.
The highest incidence of dengue is in Southeast Asia, India and the American tropics where Aedes aegypti can be found. Outbreaks are more common in tropical countries.
What is the treatment
Treatment is only supportive in case of dengue fever, which means rest, plenty of fluids and acetaminophen to keep the temperature down. Hospitalisation may be required in severe cases to monitor the platelet count. If platelet count falls below a critical level (40,000/cm), it may be necessary to transfuse fresh blood or platelet rich plasma (PRP).
How can dengue be prevented
Personal protection against mosquito bites should be done by using mosquito repellents, netting and wearing clothes that cover the body while going out. Care should be taken to see that there are no stagnating water bodies around the living areas and the surroundings are kept clean.
Chikungunya is a relatively rare form of viral fever caused by an alphavirus that is spread by mosquito bites from the Aedes aegypti mosquito. The name is derived from the African word meaning “that which bends up” in reference to the stooped posture developed as a result of the arthritic symptoms of the disease. Chikungunya is not considered to be fatal. Chikungunya virus is highly infective and disabling but is not transmissible between people.
In 2006, there was a big outbreak in the Andhra Pradesh state in India. Nearly 200,000 people were affected by this disease in the districts of Praksham and Nellore in the state. A separate outbreak of chikungunya fever was reported from Malegaon town in Nasik district, Maharashtra state resulting in over 2000 cases. In Orissa state, amost 5000 cases of fever with muscle aches and headache were reported. In Bangalore, there was an outbreak of Chikungunya with arthralgia/arthritis, rashes. So also in the neighbouring state of Andhra Pradesh. The latest outbreak in Tamilnadu, India, 20,000 cases were reported.
How do humans infected
The chikungunya virus is spread by the bite of an infected mosquito. Mosquitoes become infected when they feed on a person infected with the chikungunya virus. Monkeys, and possibly other wild animals, may also serve as reservoirs of the virus. Infected mosquitoes can then spread the virus to other humans when they bite.
Aedes aegypti (the yellow fever mosquito), a household container breeder and aggressive daytime biter which is attracted to humans, is the primary vector of chikungunya virus to humans. Aedes albopictus (the Asian tiger mosquito) may also play a role in human transmission is Asia.
What are the symptoms
After an incubation period of 3-12 days there is a sudden onset of flu-like symptoms including a severe headache, chills, fever (>40°C, 104°F), joint pain, nausea, vomiting and a rash involving the limbs and trunk. The joints of the extremities in particular become swollen and painful to the touch. Some can suffer for joint pain for months. Children may display neurological symptoms.
How is it diagnosed
Sudden severe headache, chills, fever, joint and muscle pain are the commonest symptoms.
How is it treated
While supportive or palliative medical care with anti-inflammatory drugs and analgesics is available, there is no specific treatment for chikungunya. The illness is usually self-limiting and resolves with time. There is no vaccine currently available.
How to prevent Chikungunya
Prevention is possible by controlling proliferation of mosquitoes in stagnant water. Water collection should be avoided by: - Eliminating any still water found on roofs - Seeing to it that water pipes are not clogged - Properly covering all water tanks so that mosquitoes cannot get in - Getting rid of any container capable of retaining water in the outdoor surroundings (like used tyres, food cans, garbage, saucers under flower pots, etc) - Renew water in flower vases at least once a week
Other precautions:
- Wear clothes that suitably cover arms and legs - Use mosquito nets and mosquito repellent products (coils, sprays, topical lotions and creams) - Have secure screens on windows and doors to keep mosquitoes out. - A person with chikungunya fever should limit their exposure to mosquito bites in order to avoid further spreading the infection, and should stay indoors or under a mosquito net.
In some of my article I have written to "Subscribe to my RSS feed". After that I got many emails from my friends asking details about RSS. So I have decided to write the answer here in my Blog.
What Is RSS?
RSS (Really Simple Syndication) provides a convenient way to syndicate information from a variety of sources, including news stories, updates to a web site or even source code check-ins for a development project. Regardless of the purpose for which the RSS file is being used, by watching this XML file, you can quickly and easily see whenever an update has occurred.
RSS refer to the following standards: Really Simple Syndication (RSS 2.0) Rich Site Summary (RSS 0.91, RSS 1.0) Site Summary (RSS 0.9 and 1.0)
RSS formats are specified in XML (a generic specification for data formats). RSS delivers its information as an XML file called an "RSS feed", "webfeed", "RSS stream", or "RSS channel".
Viewing the RSS feed in Internet Browser and hitting F5 every few minutes is not the most efficient use of your time, so most people take advantage of some form of client software to read and monitor RSS feeds.
There are many different RSS clients available. I use RssReader. But there are many that can be used which you may find useful:
But now the Web Browsers also has the RSS Reader integrated. Like Mozilla Firefox and New Microsoft Internet Explorer 7 has RSS feed integrated. I use FireFox for syndication as I don't have IE7 yet. We can even read RSS online using Google Reader. Whenever we visit any website and we see the or symbols, they should link to an RSS feed that we can subscribe to via RSS client or Online Reader like Google Reader.
A brief History
The name "RSS" is an umbrella term for a format that spans several different versions of at least two different (but parallel) formats. The original RSS, version 0.90, was designed by Netscape as a format for building portals of headlines to mainstream news sites. It was deemed overly complex for its goals; a simpler version, 0.91, was proposed and subsequently dropped when Netscape lost interest in the portal-making business. But 0.91 was picked up by another vendor, UserLand Software, which intended to use it as the basis of its weblogging products and other web-based writing software.
In the meantime, a third, non-commercial group split off and designed a new format based on what they perceived as the original guiding principles of RSS 0.90 (before it got simplified into 0.91). This format, which is based on RDF, is called RSS 1.0. But UserLand was not involved in designing this new format, and, as an advocate of simplifying 0.90, it was not happy when RSS 1.0 was announced. Instead of accepting RSS 1.0, UserLand continued to evolve the 0.9x branch, through versions 0.92, 0.93, 0.94, and finally 2.0.
Atom
The Atom Syndication format is the next generation of XML-based file formats, designed to allow information--the contents of web pages, for example--to be syndicated between applications. Like RSS before it, Atom places the content and metadata of an internet resource into a machine-parsable format, perfect for displaying, filtering, remixing, and archiving.
This Blog site "Blogger" use RSS Feed / XML Feed for syndication.
So, Now how to syndicate my Blog: - Open my Blog: http://prabhatnath.blogspot.com - Navigate to the "Feeds / Syndication" in the left side of the page. (Scroll down a little...) - You can see "Feeds / Syndication" and the link: RSS / XML Feed. - Right Click on the link and copy the shortcut and use the "ADD" button of the RSS client to add the feed or just click on the link if your browser support RSS feed or ATOM feed. - or - - Click on the Link in Browsers like (FireFox / Internet Explorer 7) to use Online Feed Reader like Google Reader.
Hope you all enjoyed this article. Happy Syndication...
Many people used to Blog using many different Blogging sites and also I have seen many of my friends asking about how to start a Blog. So I have decided to write some basic and easy steps here.
A "Blog" is a web-based journal in which people can publish their thoughts and opinions on the Internet. Anyone can start a blog. Most of the cases it is free!
Get Ahead with Steps
Find a decent blogging provider that appeals to you. I use Blogger, Rediff iLand and MSN Spaces. Some others include Yahoo 360, Livejournal.com, JournalHome.com, WordPress.com, TheDiary.org etc. Of course there are many. Most of these sites are pre-made with Templates or Themes that don't require much technical know-how.
1.Once you sign up, you'll have a gallery of ready-made themes or templates to choose from. Select one and personalize it. Add your Name, Interests, Images, etc.
2.Add blogging freebies like buttons, images, blog chalks, imoods, tagboards, guest maps, guestbooks, comment boxes for readers' input, etc. if the blogging site permits these all.
3.Explore other blog sites that offer more features for a small fee, such as Typepad.com.
4.Decide on whether or not you want your blog to be Private or Personal: do you want any Internet visitor to be able to read your blog, or do you just want your friends and family to be able to read it? Most blog sites offer the ability to password-protect your published posts so only those who you approve of can view what you've written.
5.Decide on how you want your blog to look. You can pick a Theme, Color Scheme and Layout. Most sites come with a set of predefined layouts and schemes that you can choose from, or you can edit your own.
6.After you've set up your blog, write a few posts to test it out, and make any adjustments to the layout or style that you see fit. At first, it will seem tough to figure out what to write, but once you get into a routine of daily blogging, you will find it addictive. Write about your day, your thoughts, events, ideas, fears, pleasures, the news, current affairs, art, or anything you are interested in!
7.Visit other blogs to build a blogging circle. When you leave comments, add your blogging address so they can visit you, too! Also leave your message in the Guestbooks if any.
8.If you want to make your blog look more attractive, there are some sites up that have many "skins" that might make it look better. One example is blogskins.com, which also comes with Photoshop and HTML tutorials.
9.Publish your blog by sending the URL to your friends or publish the URL on your website. Add the URL to posts you make on other blogs.
Tips you should not forget
If you update your blog frequently, more people will return on a regular basis to read it. Establishing a reader base will motivate you to write more and in turn more people will read your posts.
Get into a routine of blogging. Make it part of your day. Soon, you will notice things during your day and think, "Hey, I'll blog this!"
Personalize your blog. A pretty blog always catches the eye. Visit some other blogging sites like blogger.com for ideas; they have a list of their 10 most recently updated blogs.
You could Google for "blog Orissa" or "blog Mobile" (or anything else), depending on location, interests, etc. Circles of interest are the essence of blogging, and it can start to develop you as an authority in the blogospher on lawns or whatever area of interest you choose.
Keep the posts interesting. Try to avoid focusing on things that most readers won't find useful (such as "I went to the park today and saw Sabita.") Write about things you noticed, thoughts you had, and feelings or ideas. Blog about a recent trip to any place like Konark etc.
Spellcheck your writing before posting.
Some sites allow you to make money off your blog by using by placing Google AdSense advertisements. If popular enough, your blog could start to pay your bills!
Don't feel bogged down if no one visits your site for the first few months. As with communities this large, it will take some time for your blog to get noticed.
If you want a broad (international) readership, do not use too many abbreviations or slang terms that might not be easily understood by people who are not from your country/area.
Get interesting news from websites like Rediff GetAhead, Techtree or any other websites that you frequently read.
Blog on a specific subject. You can't please everyone, so target a specific audience (ie. culture, teens, computers related, gamers, etc.) and go with it.
Finally, I would suggest that you be patient with yourself. Writing is like anything else. The more you do it, the better you get. If you have a little talent, and stick with it, you’ll eventually get into the rhythm and joy of it. Cheers!
Little Window to Odisha - Prabhat Nath | version 2.0 | Created and maintained by Prabhat Nath.
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RSS / XML Feed
symbols, they should link to an RSS feed that we can subscribe to via RSS client or Online Reader like 
