The Subcontinent: 27 December 2020
The Subcontinent: 27 December 2020
Don’t Drink Alcohol: Weather Department Recommends
India’s SuperRich Club Continues to Grow
Myanmar gets its 1st submarine, from India
Kabul: Archaeological discoveries from the Buddhist Era
Music: Amir Khusrau’s Sakal Ban by Meesha Shafi
1. Don’t Drink Alcohol: Weather Department Recommends
The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) had an unusual recommendation - do not drink alcohol! No, it is not the folks at the Medical Council saying this, but the ones at the met office (Hindustan Times) (News18).
Recommendations
The met office had predicted a cold wave in NorthWestern India, and it came up with a list of recommendations -
Get indoors
Eat Vitamin-C rich fruits
Moisturize your skin
Do not drink alcohol (since it lowers the body temperature).
Alcohol and Body Temperature
We explored a few health websites for our readers.
Apparently, alcohol is what they call a “vasodilator” - it widens the blood vessels. More blood flows, and a person feels warm. But this heat quickly dissipates, causing the core body temperature to fall.
WebMD: “Alcohol widens your blood vessels, making more blood flow to your skin. That makes you blush and feel warm and toasty. But not for long. The heat from that extra blood passes right out of your body, causing your temperature to drop” (WebMD).
For those more scientifically inclined, here is a study on rats (PubMed) and humans (PubMed).
2. India’s SuperRich Club Continues to Grow
Ten more individuals joined India’s SuperRich club. The number of billionaires in dollar terms now stands at 90, up from 80 last year (Business Standard).
How Much Are They Worth?
The combined wealth of these 90 individuals is $483 billion.
To put things in perspective, the combined wealth is equivalent to one-fifths of India’s GDP. (Times Now)
The Complete List
Bloomberg provides an exhaustive list of the global rich in the Bloomberg Billionaires Index (Bloomberg). The top 5 Indians on the list are Mukesh Ambani, Gautam Adani, Aziz Premji, Shiv Nadar, and Lakhsmi Mittal.
Pallonji Mistry and Cyrus Poonawala
Pallonji Mistry is also on the list (ranked higher than Shiv Nadar), but he is now an Irish citizen. Of particular interest this year has been Cyrus Poonawala, the vaccine king of India, who has multiplied his wealth five times in one decade (Business Insider).
3. Myanmar gets its 1st submarine, from India
The Myanmar Navy celebrated its 73rd anniversary, displaying their cruisers and their 1st submarine (Mizzima).
Source
Earlier, India had given Myanmar a Soviet-era Kilo-class submarine. The submarine was manufactured in Russia and transferred from India (Naval Recognition). Zee News reported that this was the first time that India had given a submarine to any country.
Naming
Known as INS Sindhuvir in India, it has been renamed UMS Minye Theinkhathu (Deccan Herald), after a legendary warrior.
4. Kabul: Several Stupas from Buddhist Era Discovered
“Several stupas, one fireplace, 24 broken statues, two complete statues, one statue of a princess, and one statue of a prince” - these are some of the discoveries from 14 sites on the Tapa-e-Narenj hill in Kabul.
All discoveries belong to the Buddist era (Tolo News).
5. Music: Amir Khusrau’s Sakal Ban by Meesha Shafi
Amir Khusrau’s poetry, swaying dance, and electrifying vocals (Dawn) - this is Sakal Ban Phool Rahi Sarson for you.
Mughal-e-Funk’s latest video has vocals by Meesha Shafi, who described the video as “a celebration of all things desi, but with but a smoking hot, sultry, modern twist!”
Read more at Rolling Stones India (Link).
What Do the Lyrics Mean?
Sakal ban phool rahi sarson,
Umbva phutay, tesu phulay, koyal bolay daar daar,
Aur gori karat singaar
The yellow mustard is blooming in the field,
Mango buds are breaking open; flowers are blooming, the koel is chirping on every branch.
And the pretty maiden is getting all decked up and ready.
Watch Here:
Earlier Version
Coke Studio (Season 8, Episode 2) had a rendition of Sakal Ban by Rizwan & Muazzam Ali Khan.