zoo in a suitcase ~ seizure at Domodedovo airport - greed of man !!

Domodedovo is a town in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located 37 kilometers (23 mi) south of Moscow. Domodedovo was founded in 1900  and reportedly named d after a nearby village of Domodedovo, which is known to have existed since 1410.  Recently the airport was in news – as baggage came out onto the carousel, so did a man, fast asleep, with seemingly no idea at what was happening. It is unclear just exactly how the man came to be on the carousel or his state — was he inebriated, just tired or lost? And while a few passengers were seen taking photos, the majority didn’t flinch as he cruised past them on the baggage belt.  Moscow Domodedovo Airport is an international airport, the largest airport in Russia and the former USSR in terms of passenger and cargo traffic.

Recently I had posted about the armed guards keeping vigil on 43 year old Sudan, which is the last hope for its species -  the  northern white rhinoceros  (Ceratotherium simum cottoni).  The  demise of this species, is an indictment of what the human race is doing to planet earth and it’s not just happening to rhinos.   The mass wiping of the species was done by the human greed, of a creature big and otherwise harmless – the only wrong that they possessed horns, which humans wrongly believed  to be of great curative value.

If it is poaching which did them in – there is also ‘smuggling’of smaller species – yet this report of a “zoo in a suitcase” is rare and not totally unheard of !!!

MailOnline reports that Customs officials have seized what is being described as a 'zoo in a suitcase' from a woman accused of smuggling 108 exotic animals in Russia. In the bag, carried in the hold of the aircraft, there were 55 snakes, 35 lizards, seven turtles, six lemurs, two monkeys and even a suspected leopard cub. Two baby crocodiles died on the journey from Jakarta to Moscow and all the survivors appeared terrified when they were found after the 6,515-mile ordeal.

The menagerie came to light when customs officials at Domodedovo airport electronically scanned a 27kg bag belonging to an unnamed female passenger who had flown from Indonesia via Qatar ~and  were started to find the cargo comprising of more than 100 exotic animals stuffed in this suitcase belonging to a female passenger travelling on a flight from Indonesia to Russia.   Among the animals seized was this suspected leopard cub, a species which is listed in the Red Book of endangered animals. If it turns out to be the case, the suspect could face up to seven years in prison

Spokeswoman Larisa Ledovskikh said: 'The animals were packed in tiny cages and plastic boxes and each snake was in small bag made of cloth.' Experts are trying to identify the 'amazingly beautiful "kitten" with bright green eyes and stripes' among the trafficked animals. Officials in Moscow suspect it is a leopard cub, a species which is listed in the Red Book of endangered animals.

The suspect claimed she bought the animals for £130 in a market in Indonesia; the  suspect denied intending to sell the animals on the black market, claiming they were 'for future breeding'.  Exotic animals are a lucrative business in Russia, where private zoos are seen as de rigueur for the wealthy. 

'It was a sad scene - exhausted monkeys, scared lemurs, the begging green eyes of a beautiful "cat",' wrote newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets.  After being impounded, the hungry and exhausted creatures were handed to employees of Moscow's 'Exotic Park' where they will be cared for until their future is decided.  'They will also establish if any of these animals are under protection of the international convention on rare species.'

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

15^th Apr 2015.

Total loss claim of automobile ~how easy it is for the policy holder ?!?

Insurance in Western World is advanced, especially in Europe, specifically UK – there so much of technology in use – settlements are made faster and policy holders are kept happy .... perhaps not in all cases !!

There are so many vehicles on road in every city - automobiles are insured under Motor Insurance Policy.  In India, known as Package Policy (now), the Policy provides indemnity to the Insured against loss or damage to the vehicle caused by a set of perils, so described in the Policy. The coverage is subject to exceptions and terms and conditions, which will have a bearing on liability and the extent of indemnification. 

Motor Insurance in India cannot be transacted outside the purview of the India Motor Tariff unless specifically authorized by the Tariff Advisory Committee.   The insured value i.e., sum(s) insured in other types of insurances is modified to be known as  -  Insured’s Declared Value (IDV.  The IDV is  fixed at the commencement of each policy period.   The IDV of the vehicle is to be fixed on the basis of  manufacturer’s listed selling price of the brand and model as the vehicle proposed for insurance at the commencement of insurance /renewal and adjusted for depreciation.  Thus the IDV should ideally represent the market value of the vehicle and in case of a Total loss [or Constructive total loss – whence the aggregate cost of retrieval  and / or repair  of the vehicle subject to terms and conditions of the policy exceeds 75% of the IDV.]

Sec I of the Package Policy covers Own damage i.e., loss of or damage to the vehicle insured.  The Insurer will indemnify against loss or damage to the vehicle arising out of perils named in the policy which include : fire, burglary, riot & strike, flood, hailstorm, frost, accidental external means;.........  Modern day Insurers offer so many ‘add-ons’ which include ‘alternate vehicle for use’ and so on !

An insured vehicle parked in a public place, rammed by another car – very badly damaged ending up to be a Total loss – accident occurring with the policy period – should be a ‘hassle-free’ settlement – so one thought !!

Here is the harrowed experience of a claimant as detailed in MoneyMail.  A mum and her teenage son have faced a year-long battle with insurers after their cars were written off while parked on their own driveway. Sixth-form student Josh Coultas and his mother Jaki Cowling were sitting in their front room when they heard a loud bang outside.  Looking out the window, they saw his red Ford Fiesta, which had been parked on their driveway, was in a neighbour’s garden. And his mother’s blue Renault Clio, which had been on the kerb, was also further down the street.

A BMW they didn’t recognise was smashed into a neighbour’s front window. The driver and passenger fled.  ‘The scene was carnage,’ says Jaki, 45. ‘It just didn’t make sense to look at. I was in complete shock. There was an elderly woman shaking who was stood by the car when it happened, and Josh went straight over to comfort her.  ‘I went mad. I was shouting. The driver and his passenger didn’t even say sorry - they just ran off.’ The police were called. The driver of the BMW later turned himself in, and was convicted of dangerous driving.

Jaki and Josh made a claim under a multi-car policy with Admiral, which cost them £335.39 a month. They assumed that, as neither of them were in the vehicles at the time of the collision, it should be straightforward. Josh’s car was declared a write-off at the scene. Jaki’s was taken away for assessment at a garage. However, Admiral would not pay for a courtesy car until the garage had assessed the damage. She had to pay for one herself at a cost of £50 a day. Two days later, her car was written off, too.

 After becoming sick of waiting for Admiral to process their claim and needing cars for their daily commutes, Jaki and Josh went out to buy new vehicles.  Josh, 19, replaced his 2001 Ford Fiesta with a 2005 Renault Clio, costing £2,135. Jaki, a waitress, bought a 2012 Renault Clio for £8,825 to replace her 2010 model. But when Admiral came to pay them cash for their cars, Josh was awarded just £100 after his excess of £600 was deducted. Jaki, meanwhile, was given £4,515 towards the cost of a new car, after her excess of £310. Both say they are out of pocket.

But insurers will only pay out enough money for the policyholder to replace their car like-for-like - with the same make and model, and similar mileage. After being convicted of dangerous driving, the BMW driver was ordered to pay Jaki and Josh the cost of their excesses on their insurance policies.  To date, Jaki says she has received a payment of £8, while Josh has received £16.

Meanwhile, Jaki and Josh have been passed from pillar to post by Admiral and Aviva, which insured the BMW. The registered owner of the BMW was not the driver involved in the crash. Admiral and Aviva argued over who should foot the full bill for the claim. Aviva also disputed the identity of the driver - despite his prosecution. After being contacted by Money Mail this week, Aviva accepted its customer was liable and agreed to pay the excesses for Jaki and Josh. An Aviva spokesman said: ‘The circumstances of this claim are unusual in that our customer was not the person driving the vehicle at the time of the accident. Now that we know who the driver was, we are able to settle our part of the claim immediately.’

After being contacted by Money Mail, Admiral offered to pay Jaki £5,080 for her new car and raised Josh’s payout to £820. It also admitted that it made an error in assessing Josh’s excess, which should have been £350 and not £600. Admiral is looking into the costs incurred by Jaki in paying for a hire car. It says she was entitled to a courtesy car for the time when her vehicle was in the garage.

An Admiral spokesman said: ‘We are sorry that Mrs Cowling is upset with our handling of her claim. It certainly wasn’t our intention and we are always disappointed when a customer has reason to complain about the service they have received. ‘This matter has certainly taken a long time to settle, but we are still waiting for Aviva to forward their documentation to us and for the police report. ‘Once we have completed our investigations we will look at compensating Mrs Cowling and Mr Coultas for any distress caused as a result of how we have dealt with the claim.’

It happens ~ not the accidents !! – rest of the things too !!!

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

24^th Apr 2015.

the roller-blading President ..... education in Finland !

Education has changed ! – in every pantry, anxious mothers [parents !] speak of putting their wards in institutions of fame, enlist them in various support schemes preparing for entrance tests and put them for private tuitions too – leaving the children little or no room to think of anything else.  Some gutsy and over-ambitious put their wards in residential schools like the specialised ones of Salem Rasipuram ! – still children find time to play [many of them indoor on computers, phones and gadgets !!];  watch television programmes of their choice and follow IPL too... !!

Roller skating is a sport, recreational activity of moving on roller skates -  quad roller skates, inline skates or blades and tri-skates.  This is a photo of a famous person skating at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi.  Not unique to him as he has rollerbladed in more than 30 different countries.  On an official visit to  the United Arab Emirates, he managed to fit in a 12km (7.5 mile) skating session along Abu Dhabi's seafront before meeting Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed for talks. 

He is no ordinary person – he is Sauli Väinämö Niinistö  the Finland President since 2012. A lawyer by education, Niinistö was Minister of Finance from 1996 to 2003; Speaker of the Parliament of Finland from 2007 to 2011 and has been the Honorary President of the European People's Party since 2002.  Finland is a Nordic country in Northern Europe bordered by Sweden, Norway, Russia, Estonia.   In terms of area, it is the eighth largest country in Europe and the most sparsely populated country in the European Union. Finland is a parliamentary republic with a central government based in the capital Helsinki.

Finland was a relative latecomer to industrialisation, remaining a largely agrarian country until the 1950s. Thereafter, it rapidly developed an advanced economy while building an extensive Nordic-style welfare state, resulting in widespread prosperity and one of the highest per capita incomes in the World ~and Finland, is seen as a superpower in education.

BBC reports that – no International education conference is complete without a reference to Finland. Ever since it appeared at the top of international league tables more than a decade ago, it has been endlessly hailed as how to run an education system. Finland, which faces a general election this week, has been the poster child for education reform and overseas delegations have made pilgrimages to learn from its example.

In particular it has been used to argue that you can have high results without an overbearing system of testing and inspection. It was the country where pupils did not have to start school until they were seven, enjoyed the longest holidays and then basked in the glow of global approval when they topped the tables in the international Pisa tests.  The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) is a worldwide study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in member and non-member nations of 15-year-old school pupils' scholastic performance on mathematics, science, and reading.

A study by the  research at the Centre for Market Reform of Education, argues that Finland's education standards are in decline. In a report published by the right-wing think tank the Centre for Policy Studies, Mr Sahlgren argues that Finland's star performance in the 2000 Pisa tests was built on the legacy of an older, very traditional education system, which had been part of the country's process of nation building. But this wasn't the image of Finland wanted by education experts, he says. Instead, when Finland was the top performer in Europe, it was used as a "counter-argument" to the success of east Asian school systems in Singapore, Shanghai and Hong Kong.  While they were seen as successful because of hard work and grindingly long hours, Finland was seen as the way to achieve success with a much more creative and less centralised approach.

Mr Sahlgren, based at the London School of Economics, says there was "never any real evidence" for such an impression.  "It was simplistic, looking at how Finland's system looked today, without looking at its history."  Finland's school system became part of its building of a national identity.  Rather than being the opposite of east Asian countries, he says in many ways Finland was like those emerging economies.

Compared with its Nordic neighbours, Finland was a "late developer", much poorer and with lower levels of education in the early part of the 20th Century. Finland's approach of investing heavily in education and seeing rapid improvements was in many ways more like the pattern of Tiger economies in east Asia than the more sluggish progress in western Europe. Mr Sahlgren's research argues there is a reluctance to accept that Finland's education system, under which many of its successful teachers had trained, had been very structured and centralised.

Another study challenges what it calls the "misconceptions and misrepresentations" about Finland's success in the Pisa tests. Tim Oates, director of assessment research for the Cambridge Assessment exam group, has published a study called "Finnish fairy stories", in which he debunks what he claims are myths about the Finnish system. He says the waves of "education tourism" that followed the success in Pisa tests failed to look at how the system had improved.

Finland is facing another set of controversial changes, away from traditional subject teaching. And Mr Sahlgren warns of a school system in decline. It is no longer in the top 10 for maths in Pisa tests, having been in second place in 2003 and 2006.

Telegraph states that the UK shouldn't throw away authority in classrooms, an expert has said, trashing decades-long conventional wisdom that an education system to emulate is one that gives pupils more power over teachers and less homework.  These arguments are set to reignite the debate over the benefits of a Finnish model in the UK education system. In recent years, British officials have visited the country to try to find its formula of success and apply it to UK classrooms.

Taking a cue, never get carried by names, advertisements, powerful marketing techniques, perceptions, fees, structures and the like – there could still be good teaching in ordinary schools too.

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

15^th Apr 2015.

Nepal earthquake relief - Op Maitri and insensitive beef masala

 25^th April became a very sad day for the Himalayan Nation as tremors  occurred at 11:56 NST  with a moment magnitude (Mw) of sub 9 and a maximum Mercalli Intensity of IX (Violent). Its epicenter was approximately 34 km (21 mi) east-southeast of Lamjung, Nepal; it sent the Nation reeling with thousands of deaths and more rendered homeless. In remote mountain villages near the epicenter of Saturday’s massive earthquake in Nepal, receiving outside help has become a matter of life or death.

In the midst of this terrible disaster, there is a slender silver lining for Nepal: The international community—from economic giants like India, China and the US, to tiny Bhutan and faraway Israel—has responded swiftly and generously to help search and rescue efforts in one of the world’s poorest nations. Within four hours of the earthquake on April 25, New Delhi dispatched the Indian Air Force’s first C-130J super Hercules aircraft with members of the National Disaster Response Force.   The Modi Govt acting with great alacrity immediately despatched   groups with  three army field hospitals and civilian doctors.  Thirteen military aircraft and three civilian aircraft from Air India and Jet Airways were also been pressed into service to help the rescue operations.  In addition, six Mi-17 helicopters and two Advanced Light Helicopters were also  deployed.  The Indian government has also sent ten tonnes of blankets, 50 tonnes of water, 22 tonnes of food and two tonnes of medicines to Kathmandu. Indian nationals stranded in Nepal are also being evacuated.

Named ‘ Operation Maitri’ [meaning friendship] – it seemingly well schemed and well executed, as the response started almost within 15 minutes of the quake.  In any relief operation, planning is most important.  Immediately after Tsunami, when we went to coastal hamlets of Tamilnadu, some groups [with good intention] had brought in lot of clothing – but that was not the need of hour, and they were strewn along the path. 

Besides the full-hearted assistance rendered, India  is also facilitating the movement of various international rescue teams as the IGI Airport, Delhi  has turned into a transit hub. According to sources, the Delhi airport has become a hub for the aircraft of various countries such as Russia, Canada, Belgium and the Netherlands.  An airport official said the traffic of non-scheduled flights has increased by almost 20 per cent since the April 25 earthquake in Nepal.  The official added that the Indian agencies, including the air traffic controller (ATC), Delhi airport operator DIAL, the CISF, the Delhi Police and others, are helping international rescue teams who have set up base at Delhi IGI Airport.  The official added that there are three Russian military aircraft, one Canadian, one Belgium, two of Spanish Air Force, one Dutch and one aircraft from the Netherlands government at the IGI Airport.  Besides facilitating the international teams, various Indian agencies have set up counters to help people coming from Nepal. The Indian Railways has opened reservation counters at the airport itself to provide immediate rail tickets to people landing in Delhi from quake-hit Nepal to help them undertake their journey to home in a smooth manner.

Many teams of Indian volunteers have also  reached and opened  langars to feed about 20,000 people in Nepal every day. Though there should not be any comparison at all when it comes to helping people, the following news makes an irritating and sad reading. 

After experiencing major devastation and loss of life in the April 25 earthquake, Nepal was left with an unsavoury taste in its mouth after receiving packets of ‘beef masala’ as part of the relief package from Pakistan.  Since the majority-Hindu country treats cows as sacred and there is a blanket ban on slaughtering the animal, the development has the potential to trigger diplomatic acrimony between the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) member countries.  Indian doctors at Kathmandu’s Bir Hospital told Mail Today that packets of ‘beef masala’ were sent by Pakistan on Tuesday as part of relief aid to the temblor survivors.  “When we reached the airport to collect the food items from Pakistan, we found packets of ready-to-eat meals, including packets of ‘beef masala’. There were other food items too,” Dr Balwinder Singh told Mail Today.  Perplexed, the doctors chose to have food from a hotel instead.

“We did not touch the Pakistani aid,” Dr Singh said. “Most of the local people are not aware of the contents. When they understand, they avoid it,” said another doctor on the condition of anonymity. He added: “Pakistan has hurt Nepal’s religious sentiments by supplying the masala. Shockingly, it did not care about the sensitivity of the matter.” Exclusive photographs of the ‘beef masala’ packets supplied to Nepal are with Mail Today. These pictures clearly show that the place of origin of these packets was Nowshera Cantt in Pakistan. These packets also prominently mention that these are not for sale and the contents include ‘potato bhujia’ and ‘beef masala’.

A top Nepal government official said: “The matter has been conveyed to Prime Minister Sushil Koirala and the intelligence chief. We are also starting an internal inquiry to verify the facts. If the report is correct, we will raise the matter at the diplomatic level with Pakistan. India, being our key partner, will also be informed of the developments.”  Tasneem Aslam, spokesperson for Pakistan’s ministry of foreign affairs, told Mail Today: “I am not aware of the issue…I am not responsible for the dispatch. The relief aid is sent by the National Disaster Management Authority.”

Despite repeated attempts, the officials of the Pakistan NDMA could not be contacted. The food items have been manufactured by PANA Force Foods. The consignment was supplied after receiving orders from Pakistan’s NDMA. “PANA Force food processing centre aims at providing quality goods at affordable prices. Currently, the company is supplying two brands of products to Pakistan Army commonly known as Meal Ready to Eat (MRE) and Emergency Pack Ration (EP Ration or high-energy biscuits) whereas a plant for the production of dehydrated vegetables and fruits is under construction,” the official website of PANA Force Foods mentions.  The website also states that the processing centre provides food to civil population during natural calamities, like earthquakes and floods.

The first Civil Code of Nepal, the Muluki Ain of 1854, stated: “This kingdom is the only kingdom in the world where cows, women, and Brahmins may not be killed.”  It trumpeted Nepal as the ‘purest Hindu kingdom’ and simultaneously signalled to Nepalese citizens that Hindu religious creeds would be the law of the land. But an amendment in 1990 to the Civil Code made cow slaughter punishable by 12 years in prison.

In another such nauseating news going in circles in the web according to various sources, more  than 100,000 paperback editions of Gideon Bibles have arrived in Nepal to provide relief for the millions of Nepalese desperate for help following the devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake that has struck the country. But the jet loaded with skids of boxed Bibles is being called misguided and “dumber-than-dumb-ass” by rescue groups and world governments alike. “Well, isn’t that just a plane-load full of stupid?” said a shocked and annoyed Nepal Prime Minister Sushil Koirala. It is not a surprise to see the evangelical vultures are playing with the life of the people in distress. This is what they do everywhere when people are suffering.

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

1^st May 2015.