Stafford Hospital scandal: The real story behind Channel 4's The Cure

Summary: It was one of the biggest scandals in the history of the NHS and saw hundreds of patients die. Now the story of Stafford Hospital, told through the eyes of campaigner Julie Bailey, is being brought to screens in new Channel 4 drama The Cure. BBC News takes a look at the Stafford Hospital scandal.

What happened at Stafford Hospital? The failings at Stafford Hospital are considered one of the biggest scandals in the history of the NHS, with years of abuse and neglect at the hospital leading to the unnecessary deaths of hundreds of patients. In 2009, a report by the Healthcare Commission laid bare the problems at Stafford, which was run by the Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust. The regulator condemned "appalling" standards of care and reported there had been at least 400 more deaths than expected between 2005 and 2008. It listed a catalogue of failings, including receptionists assessing patients arriving at A&E, a shortage of nurses and senior doctors, and pressure on staff to meet targets. Later, an independent inquiry chaired by Sir Robert Francis QC, with a report published in February 2010, stated that hospital patients had been left "sobbing and humiliated" by uncaring staff. It said the trust had become driven by targets and cost-cutting and said the distress and suffering had been "unimaginable". When a public inquiry - also chaired by Sir Robert - opened in November 2010, it was the fifth inquiry into the higher than expected deaths at the hospital. The inquiry sat for more than a year between 2010 and 2011, taking evidence from more than 160 witnesses over 139 days and with more than a million pages of evidence submitted. It heard accounts of almost unimaginable neglect - with patients left in soiled sheets, others crying out in pain and some so dehydrated they drank from flower vases. What was the outcome of the inquiry? In his report, published in February 2013, Sir Robert found there were failings from the top to the bottom of the NHS. At the time he said: "This is a story of appalling and unnecessary suffering of hundreds of people. "They were failed by a system which ignored the warning signs and put corporate self-interest and cost control ahead of patients and their safety." He said the public's trust in the NHS had been "betrayed" and a change of culture was needed to "make sure that patients come first". Sir Robert made 290 recommendations, saying "fundamental change" was needed to prevent the public losing confidence. Responding in the House of Commons, then-Prime Minister David Cameron apologised to the families of patients. In 2014, Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt backed calls to close down Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust. The trust ceased to provide services on 2 November 2014 and has been formally dissolved. Stafford and Cannock hospitals have continued to operate but are now run by different providers. Who is Julie Bailey? NHS campaigner Julie Bailey helped expose the failings at Stafford Hospital. She set up the Cure the NHS group after the death in 2007 of her mother Bella, who had been admitted to the hospital for a hernia operation. The cafe she used to run in the town became the group's headquarters but her campaigning led to her receiving online abuse and she was forced to move away from Stafford because of safety fears. The Cure will tell the story of the scandal through the eyes of Ms Bailey, who became a CBE in March 2014 in recognition for services to the care of older people. She told BBC Breakfast making the drama had been "a wonderful experience, although hard". And while she said there had been "huge improvements in the NHS since", she feared it was "still as difficult to speak out, inside and outside the system". What do other bereaved families think of the drama? Some campaigners who lost relatives in the scandal say they are angry the drama has been made without their consent. Among them is Katie Basford who lost her grandfather while she was still at school. She said she faced insults and attacks from people throughout her school and college career, including accusations she and fellow campaigners wanted to close the hospital. "To have it turned into a drama for entertainment, I feel betrayed," she said. "I shouldn't have had to go through that from the age of 11, I shouldn't be reliving it at 23 and seeing my family having to go through it." Deb Hazeldine, whose mother Ellen Linstead died at the hospital in December 2006, said she was "stunned and speechless" when she found out the drama was being made. She said she had been accused of "trying to make money out of my dead mum", and was concerned current services at the hospital could be adversely affected by a scathing portrayal of the past. Channel 4 said it decided from the outset the film was to be based on Julie Bailey's personal experience. The broadcaster said it appreciated the drama featured a sensitive subject, but had handled it with "the utmost care and respect". A statement said: "Anyone who did not want to be involved has not been referred to or depicted." More on this story: What happened following the scandal? In November 2014, a new NHS trust - University Hospitals of North Midlands (UHNM) Trust - was set up. It took over Stafford Hospital, which was renamed County Hospital, and also operated a second hospital in Stoke-on-Trent. The trust incorporated the activities of the former University Hospital of North Staffordshire NHS Trust (UHNS) and most of the activities of the former Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust (MSFT), while some of the services provided by MSFT were transferred to the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust. Tracy Bullock, chief executive of UHNM, said: "The whole NHS was shocked and saddened by the severe failures in care at Mid Staffordshire Hospitals, between 2005 and 2009." She said the publication of Sir Robert's inquiry report in 2013 "led to a change of culture, including a tougher inspection regime by the CQC (Care Quality Commission) and a duty of candour to patients and their families". "Whilst it is important that those lessons are learned and what happened is never forgotten, it is equally important to recognise that Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust no longer exists," Ms Bullock said. "The County Hospital is a much valued and highly regarded local hospital. "During the last five years there has been significant investment in improving facilities and services, including the refurbishment of all wards, a new chemotherapy centre and installation of new laminar flow theatres at County Hospital. "I am very proud of our loyal and dedicated staff who work hard to maintain the highest standards." The Cure airs on Channel 4 at 21:00 GMT on Thursday 19 December

यह एन. एच. एस. के इतिहास में सबसे बड़े घोटालों में से एक था और सैकड़ों रोगियों की मृत्यु देखी गई। अब अभियानकर्ता जूली बेली की आंखों के माध्यम से बताई गई स्टैफोर्ड अस्पताल की कहानी को नए चैनल 4 नाटक द क्योर में स्क्रीन पर लाया जा रहा है। बीबीसी समाचार स्टैफोर्ड अस्पताल घोटाले पर एक नज़र डालता है।


Seeking asylum on children's bicycles

Summary: Hundreds of migrants have cycled into Norway from Russia after finding a new route into Europe that avoids the deadly Mediterranean crossing. They are not allowed to cross the Arctic border on foot, so a lucrative trade in bicycles has opened up, with migrants buying bikes and pedalling the final few metres.

By Nick HollandBBC News, Russia-Norway border Fahed half squats and uses the palm of his hand to show me the height of the bicycle he rode across Russia's border with Norway. At full height he is about 5ft 10in tall but the hand he is gesturing with is about level with his knee. "You rode a children's bicycle?" I ask. "Yes, yes," He replies. "One for kids." He smiles and then starts to laugh before taking another drag on his cigarette. He is from Algeria and speaks in broken English. He is one of an increasing number of migrants travelling overland into Russia and then north into the Arctic Circle to the point where the borders meet. In the whole of 2014 just seven asylum seekers crossed over the Storskog border crossing. In October alone there have been 1,100. Some are from Iraq, Afghanistan and Lebanon but most are from Syria. They need a bicycle because the Russian authorities don't let people cross the Russian border on foot. Under Norwegian law, it is illegal for a driver to carry people into the country without the proper papers. Fahed tells me he paid $200 (£130) for his bike when he arrived in Murmansk. He looks pleased with himself when he adds that the price included the taxi ride up to border crossing point - what he described as a "package deal". It's then that he made his one and only journey on his new purchase - cycling just 120m (130 yards) across the no-man's land between Russia and Norway. Not taking into account the cost of the taxi ride, that works out at $1.60 per metre - probably one of the most expensive journeys in the world. But he has no regrets. He says it's a "small price to pay" to get to Europe. All the asylum seekers are temporarily housed in the small nearby town of Kirkenes, which is hastily having to build a new reception centre to accommodate 500 more people. The authorities take them from the border to the town by bus, so the bicycles get left behind at the border. Most were made for children. A hundred or so are neatly stacked against the back wall of the border police's customs office, and these are just the bikes that have been collected over the past two days. Many are brand new. There's not a speck of rust on the chrome handle bars. Some still have protective bubble wrap on the frames, presumably from the factory where they were made, to stop them getting scratched. What little sunlight there is bounces off the massed ranks of reflective mud guards. But this is a bicycle graveyard. Every two or three days they are collected up, taken away and crushed. It seems like a terrible waste - until the chief of the border police Stein Hansen takes a pair of handle bars in his bare hands, and with very little effort twists them into a u-shape. He wishes the bicycles could be put to some use, he says, but by Norway's standards they are not fit for the road. There's something slightly comical about seeing men on bicycles that are way too small for them. Once they pass a red and green striped marker post, they are officially out of Russia. Freewheeling for a few more feet past the yellow barrier, they make it into western Europe. As I watch, a young family appears, laden with luggage and carrying a baby. Exceptions can be made to the "no walking rule", it appears, as both the mother and father are on foot. Presumably their precious cargo gives them special dispensation. However, each of them is also wheeling a bicycle with their free hand, so presumably this makes them cyclists and not pedestrians in the eyes of the law. The reality is right now none of them care how absurd the rules are, nor how strange this looks. The authorities here believe the numbers coming over can only grow. Although the cold, wet landscape couldn't be more different than from the ones the migrants left behind, this Arctic road stays open, even in winter. Meanwhile the Mediterranean route - never safe - becomes even stormier. Subscribe to the BBC News Magazine's email newsletter to get articles sent to your inbox.

सैकड़ों प्रवासियों ने यूरोप में एक नया मार्ग खोजने के बाद रूस से नॉर्वे में साइकिल से प्रवेश किया है जो घातक भूमध्य सागर पार करने से बचाता है। उन्हें आर्कटिक सीमा को पैदल पार करने की अनुमति नहीं है, इसलिए साइकिलों का एक आकर्षक व्यापार शुरू हो गया है, जिसमें प्रवासियों ने बाइक खरीदी है और अंतिम कुछ मीटर पैदल चले हैं।


Fu Yuanhui: China's disarming and expressive Olympic swimming star

Summary: All Olympians can enjoy the support of their home country, but the enthusiasm of one Chinese swimmer after winning a bronze has made her an overnight social media star, and is changing the view of competitive sport in the country, as the BBC's Yashan Zhao reports.

"I have used all my prehistoric powers to swim," Fu Yuanhui said in an interview with CCTV5 after she qualified for the women's 100m backstroke final. When asked what her hopes were for the final, she said: "No expectation! I'm very satisfied now!" That's how she began to rock China's internet and social media. Add her exaggerated facial expressions and humour, and she quickly became an online celebrity. She eventually won a bronze medal in the 100m backstroke final, not gold. But that hasn't reduced the affection from her fans. In fact, her fans on microblogging platform Sina Weibo have increased from a hundred thousand to four million over the past two days, and are still increasing. Many fans have also been sharing cute cartoons of Fu. 'Everyone is talking about her' Young Chinese social media users have been drawn to her straight-forward character, her sincerity and her attitude towards competition. Joanna Zhan, a fan in Chongqing, said she liked Fu because she is "so cute, and she is as powerful as a mudslide". "Fu interpreted the Olympic spirit of challenging herself and enjoying the game," she added. Chinese athletes traditionally follow a pattern in media interviews after they compete, thanking the country and vowing to do their best in the next competition. But Fu broke with tradition, showing her own happiness at her performance. One fan, Feng Zhu, told the BBC she liked Fu because she always said exactly what was on her mind. JingYing Li, a female entrepreneur in Sichuan province, said she heard about Fu from her friends. "Almost everyone is talking about her," she said. Ms Li said her colleagues had all been sharing videos and articles about Fu, but liked that she had a deep side to her too among the jokes. "I even checked her Weibo posts back to 2015. Although Fu seems to be a funny person on social media, she also had a tough time. And her experience encourages me to be strong when I am down." But it seems Fu is part of a generational change in attitude towards competing. Chinese athletes traditionally become big names if they win a gold medal. If they fail, they are nobody, and will not be remembered or known by audiences. In 2008, China gained 51 gold medals in Beijing Olympics leading to a peak in national excitement and joy. Gaochao Zhang, a London-based independent sports commentator, predicted that without any major upsets, China will secure a top three spot in the medal table this time around. But he said younger Chinese people were now just happy "enjoying the Olympic Games rather than expecting gold medals". And Fu's satisfaction with her bronze medal embodies exactly this new sentiment.

सभी ओलंपियन अपने देश के समर्थन का आनंद ले सकते हैं, लेकिन कांस्य जीतने के बाद एक चीनी तैराक के उत्साह ने उन्हें रातोंरात सोशल मीडिया स्टार बना दिया है, और देश में प्रतिस्पर्धी खेल के दृष्टिकोण को बदल रहा है, जैसा कि बीबीसी के याशन झाओ की रिपोर्ट है।


Alternative supercomputer powers

Summary: Supercomputers are the super models of the technology world.

By Mark WardTechnology correspondent, BBC News They get the headlines, the glossy photos and set their fans drooling over their vital statistics. But the machines that feature on the lists of the most powerful computers on Earth are not the only powerful computers on Earth. There are many alternative supercomputer powers that do their work without all the hoopla. For some, the biannual Top 500 list - which ranks the fastest machines in the world - is artificial. It is as much about flag waving as it is about working out who has the biggest machine. "You have to bear in mind that many of the big computer systems have not declared their existence," said Dr John Lockley, manager of the Oxford Supercomputing Centre. "You never get any details of those but they are big drivers of the technology." Old iron One of the other big pools of unseen computer power is made up of mainframes, usually IBM mainframes. These machines were the original supercomputers and until the arrival of the mini-computer and then the PC were the mainstays of the computer world. "They are still being widely used in particular segments such as finance, retail, health and government," said Jim Porell, an IBM evangelist for the machines. When we get cash out of an ATM, said Mr Porell, it will be a mainframe that will handle the back-end data processing of that transaction. Book an airline ticket and choose your seat on the plane and chances are that you are unknowingly using a mainframe. The machines are being used because they are used to running constantly at nearly 100% capacity. And, said Mr Porell, they have other advantages over Intel-based racks of servers. One IBM System z10 Enterprise Class mainframe, the biggest, is equal to 1,500 Intel servers and occupies 85% less space. "We measure meantime between failure in decades," he said. IBM does not say exactly how much cash is generated by selling and servicing mainframes, but the division of the company that makes them, amongst other things, was worth more than $5.2bn (£3.6bn) in the final quarter of 2009 suggesting that there are a lot of them about. The machines range in computational power from smaller models that can manage 26 million instructions per second to the biggest machines that crank through 30 billion instructions per second. And, said Mr Porell, it is theoretically possible to chain 30 of the biggest machines together in one giant cluster. While he admits that no-one has done that yet, some firms have amassed significant mainframe power. Giant US retail chain WalMart, said Mr Porell, has 54. "There's one in each distribution centre to manage the assembly line that moves goods from storage out onto the tractor trailers," he said. Many machines Many of the supercomputers that feature on the Top 500 list are monolithic machines, usually contained within one room or facility. The growth of the web has given rise to more distributed ways to harness computer power - usually of the humble desktop type. These projects typically take advantage of the fact that the processor inside most desktops spends most of its time idle. Rather than just let it sit doing nothing, it is getting increasingly easy to get it doing real scientific work. One of the first to use that idle computer time was the Seti@Home project, which harnessed processors to look through reams of radio signals seeking signs of alien life. Now, many more projects are keen to tap that processing power. "Some scientists have single jobs that they need to have done very fast like simulating an explosion or something like that," said Dr David Anderson, director and developer of the Boinc distributed computing project. "Other scientists have many, many jobs and want to complete the whole group of them relatively fast," he said. This is where Boinc's volunteer computing project comes in. Those that download the Boinc software can offer their PC to help with one of many different scientific projects. "Volunteer computing is by and large doing the same sort of computation that people do in supercomputer centres or other conventional hardware," said Dr Anderson. Get enough PCs together and you can amass a significant amount of computer power, he said. "There is in the order of 350,000 people running Boinc on their computer," he said. "We hope and expect that number will increase." "Currently the largest supercomputers are 1-2 petaflops machines," he said. "We have 3 or 4 times as much power on tap." The separate Folding@Home project, which is studying the ways that proteins fold inside cells, can call on about eight petaflops of computer power. Other distributed computing projects are using games consoles such as the PlayStation 3 and Xbox as sources of compute power. "The volunteer computing approach works for a surprisingly large fraction of all scientific tasks, about 95%," said Dr Anderson. "Those that it does not work well for are ones that require individual jobs to be done as fast as possible or require large amounts of memory." Power play One other unmeasured pool of computer power is under the control of the net's cyber criminals. In recent years one of the most popular hi-tech crime tactics has been to hijack home computers and put them to work for the bad guys. A hijacked PC, typically a Windows machine, becomes part of a botnet and could be used to send out spam, as a dead drop for pirated content or as a launch platform for attacks on other websites. Some botnets are huge. The Conficker worm is thought to have racked up millions of victims. That potentially puts more computer power than anyone has ever had in the hands of the cyber thieves. Thankfully, so far, Conficker has not been "armed" but many other smaller botnets are regularly used. The computational power they can call on is formidable, even though it is put to nefarious ends. "The largest botnet we've seen attack our customers has been in the hundreds of thousands of infected computers, although that was a while ago," said Paul Sop, chief technology officer at Prolexic which specialises in combating such networks. "These days bots have more bandwidth than in the past, so a botnet with 30,000 computers can do more damage than larger botnets of the past for certain attacks," he said. "Pretty much every week we see a botnet attacking with around 30,000 computers."

सुपरकम्प्यूटर तकनीकी दुनिया के सुपर मॉडल हैं।


How much of the science in Breaking Bad is real?

Summary: Breaking Bad is into its final few episodes, with fans already speculating how the story of a teacher-turned-drug-producing-criminal-mastermind will reach its denouement. But how many of the frequent science scenes reflect reality, asks chemist and physicist Dr Jonathan Hare.

Spoiler warning: Multiple plot details revealed below "The chemistry must be respected." So says Walter White. Walt is a brilliant research chemist who has to leave his work and take up a career teaching high school chemistry. After discovering he has terminal cancer, he turns his skills to methamphetamine production in collaboration with former pupil Jesse Pinkman. With his background as a chemistry teacher, there are times when Walt instructs Jesse as if he is still back in the classroom. Jesse was a very poor science student at school, but while "cooking" meth with Walt, he starts to pick up and respect the chemistry that's so essential for a good product. But how do Walt's "lessons" fare from a scientific point of view? Can blue meth be pure meth? The crystal meth Walt makes is understood to be unusually pure and also has a characteristic delicate blue colour. This is a useful device for the narrative but generally the colour of a crystal does not suggest a pure or impure chemical compound. Impurities in minerals such as quartz crystal can lead it to look pink (rose quartz) or violet (amethyst) but generally the colour is a result of the way the electrons in the substance absorb light and is not a specific indicator of purity. Poisonous gas In one scene, in their makeshift mobile meth lab out in the desert, Walt is being threatened by two gangsters. He improvises a method to gas them by throwing red phosphorus into hot water. Walt manages to run out, locking the gangsters in. He later explains to Jesse that this reaction produced poisonous phosphine gas. Red phosphorus can react with hydrogen to produce phosphine - but not with hot water. White phosphorus can react with sodium hydroxide (a chemical he would have had) but you can see he throws in a red powder, rather than a white substance. Nor is that what he describes to Jesse. I don't think this trick would work. The dissolving bath The gas only kills one of the gangsters. Walt summons up the courage to kill the other but now has the problem of getting rid of the body. In a gruesome scene, Jesse adds hydrofluoric acid (HF) to dissolve the body. It's a useful acid to have in any lab because of its unusual chemistry. It dissolves glass and so has to be stored in plastic (PTFE or Teflon) bottles. It is a powerful acid but it's the chemistry of HF that makes it dissolve glass (and body parts) and not its super "strength". Unfortunately, Jesse does not follow Walt's careful advice to use a specific type of plastic container (which would be HF-proof). He simply pours it into his bath. The remains of a partly dissolved body and bathtub crash through a partially dissolved ceiling. The makeshift battery In another desert scene, Walt and Jesse are "cooking" but when they need to drive home, they find the car battery is dead. Walt makes an improvised and very basic battery out of acid, different metals and wires and explains the chemistry to Jesse. If you put two different metals in an acid (or even electrolyte solutions such as sea water), the difference in chemical reactivity between the metals produces a voltage. It's a basic electrochemical cell. A number of these cells wired in series like a daisy chain is called a battery. Anyone who had metal amalgam fillings as a child will recall the weird sensation of accidentally getting a piece of aluminium sweet wrapper in your mouth. The saliva was acting as the electrolyte solution. The metal filling and foil were acting as the two different metals, and we were being electrocuted by our very own mouth battery. Walt's explanation is fairly accurate but unfortunately such a simple battery would only provide a tiny amount of the power required to turn over an engine. Fulminate of mercury Jesse has been swindled and beaten up by psychopathic gangster Tuco. Walt confronts Tuco in his office, offering him more crystals but insisting on being paid immediately. Tuco starts to get nasty but Walt has a plan. The bag of meth crystals he has just given Tuco were in fact "fulminate of mercury". He throws a crystal on the ground which detonates, creating an almighty explosion. We see Walt walking victoriously from the smoking remains, clutching his bag of money. But could a small crystal really do so much damage? Mercury fulminate is a very unstable and explosive compound that can only be safely made in very small crystals, but it is something that a high school teacher could make. Crystals larger than a few millimetres in size are very tricky to handle. Snappits, the children's toy that you throw on the ground to create a small crack, contain small amounts of silver fulminate. Walt's crystals are rather large and a bag of them would not be stable enough to walk around with and handle as we see in the programme. They would, however, theoretically create a very powerful explosion. But the shockwave would no doubt have detonated the other crystals in the bag on Tuco's desk. If Walt and Tuco had miraculously survived the explosion, they would not have been able to hear much for a long while. Burning out the lock Walt and Jesse burn out a lock in a heavy duty door to get access to an industrial chemical store. Walt describes the process they are using - the thermite reaction - to Jesse. Here you mix a metal oxide (for example iron oxide) with a reactive metal powder (such as aluminium) and it produces iron metal and aluminium oxide. The temperature of the reaction is extremely high and can be used to weld train tracks together or indeed burn out a lock. The science here is correct and the episode is made memorable as Jesse and Walt fumble and stumble as they try to carry the chemical barrels instead of rolling them. You can follow the Magazine on Twitter and on Facebook

ब्रेकिंग बैड अपने अंतिम कुछ एपिसोड में है, जिसमें प्रशंसक पहले से ही अनुमान लगा रहे हैं कि एक शिक्षक से ड्रग-उत्पादक-आपराधिक-मास्टरमाइंड बनने की कहानी कैसे अपने पतन तक पहुंचेगी। लेकिन रसायनज्ञ और भौतिक विज्ञानी डॉ. जोनाथन हरे पूछते हैं कि विज्ञान के कितने दृश्य वास्तविकता को दर्शाते हैं।


New Inverness-Zurich flights announced

Summary: A new weekly service between Inverness Airport and Switzerland's Zurich Airport is to be run for nine weeks next summer.

Operated by Swiss airline Edelweiss Air, the new direct route is to start on 3 July. Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd (Hial), which operates Inverness Airport, has announced the new service. Hial said it would take less than three hours for the flights to reach Zurich from Inverness.

इनवर्नेस हवाई अड्डे और स्विट्जरलैंड के ज्यूरिख हवाई अड्डे के बीच एक नई साप्ताहिक सेवा अगली गर्मियों में नौ सप्ताह के लिए चलाई जानी है।


Chris Moore: The man who's photographed 60 years of fashion

Summary: An economic migrant during the 1930s depression, Chris Moore left Newcastle with his family for a new life in the south-east of England. Soon after war broke out and he ended up moving schools five times, mostly without his parents. He explains how he managed to break into the world of fashion photography, attending every notable show over the past 60 years.

I was only four years old when I left Newcastle with my parents. But many others were doing the same; we were as a tribe and Geordies were all around me throughout my childhood even though much of it was spent in Essex. We moved south and Newcastle came with us. It was soon after we arrived in the South to set up a new home that war broke out and the child evacuation policies meant that my schooling was a horrible mess. I was moved five times in as many years, each to a different house and school and most of the time without my parents. Work was easy to come by and my father arranged my first job. He was a great believer in joining a strong union and jobs in printing were coveted and well paid. I don't remember but he must have been disappointed that the place he sent me to at G & Watson, although a printing company, was in fact inside their photography department. I left with a strong technical grounding and I was recommended to Vogue Studio as an assistant a couple of years later. Their studio in Shaftesbury Avenue in the centre of London did, of course, change everything for me. As a working-class lad I found the place, people and attitudes at Vogue in the 1950s completely different to anything I had experienced up until then; it was a bit of a culture shock actually. But given my turbulent childhood I suppose I had learnt by then to take change in my stride a bit more than some would have. I worked for many photographers during that time, but of course some stand out now because they became famous, like Cecil Beaton and Henry Clarke. There too, I became aware of style for the first time. Before Vogue Studios, people, in my eyes, were wearing clothes. But I eventually realised that the same clothes on different people were not necessarily the same; a person's style is an individual thing. I travelled to Paris for the haute couture for the first time in 1967. By this time I had set up my own business and some of my fashion clients were newspapers and magazines interested in covering the new seasons there twice a year. The scene was really small compared to now and press members were treated with suspicion. We were not allowed in to photograph the presentation to clientele and even journalists would be thrown out if caught sketching the designs, so paranoid were the couture houses of being plagiarised. Instead a few ensembles were selected to be photographed either in the salon later or in the street outside the events. It was later in the 1970s when the ready-to-wear brands made a push to attract buyers through organised trade weeks that the catwalk circuits were born. I have been covering them continuously ever since. The term "catwalk photographer" was coined much later, around the same time as another catchy phrase "the supermodel"; some time in the early 1990s. It looks glamorous from the outside looking in, but in reality it is a tough business with high levels of stress and physical hardships. Those of us that have endured after many years are few and there is a strong camaraderie, especially among the photographers. Of course with every positive there is a negative and that I suppose is the downside in the divided life I have lived - time on the road is time away from home. My favourites have always naturally been from designers who cared that their presentations would be very visual, knowing that the show had to photograph well to reach the wider audience later in the news media. Showmen of the catwalk, like Thierry Mugler, Issey Miyake, Jean Paul Gaultier, Vivienne Westwood and Rei Kawakubo, then more recently Miuccia Prada, Hussein Chalayan and of course John Galliano and Alexander McQueen. I have often enjoyed just as much witnessing the circus around the events and the extraordinary people in the shadows. Whether backstage or in the front row, I loved following the style antics of Italian Vogue editor Anna Piaggi and style icon Issy Blow who on some days would have changed two or three times a day. It is also true that to some extent you can predict the fashion trends from what the front row is wearing or from how they are reacting to the shows, especially the expression on the face of Suzy Menkes who I worked with for 25 very special years at the International Herald Tribune. Then there is also US Vogue editor Andre Leon-Talley who, because of his tall stature and conscious style, would catch a lot of attention as he walked into a room with the all-powerful Anna Wintour. You might also like: I suppose it always has made good sense to watch the watchers. I have seen people with money flounder with so much choice that they do not know what they should wear, and those with so much less create an individual style just by ripping off a collar or painting an old pair of shoes. Fashion is at its worst when it dictates to the many and at its best when it offers a backdrop or mood to encourage more individual expressions of style. I have learned that fashion is for anyone who cares to be stylish, and that it has nothing to do with age, class or gender. Catwalking: Fashion through the Lens of Chris Moore opened at the Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, County Durham, on Saturday and runs until 6 January 2019. As told to Sian Davies.

1930 के दशक के अवसाद के दौरान एक आर्थिक प्रवासी, क्रिस मूर ने अपने परिवार के साथ न्यूकैसल को इंग्लैंड के दक्षिण-पूर्व में एक नए जीवन के लिए छोड़ दिया। युद्ध शुरू होने के तुरंत बाद और उन्होंने पांच बार स्कूल स्थानांतरित कर दिए, ज्यादातर अपने माता-पिता के बिना। वे बताते हैं कि कैसे वे पिछले 60 वर्षों में हर उल्लेखनीय शो में भाग लेते हुए फैशन फोटोग्राफी की दुनिया में प्रवेश करने में कामयाब रहे।


Motorcyclist dies in crash with 4x4 on A494 near Corwen

Summary: A 23-year-old motorcyclist has died in a crash involving a 4x4 vehicle in Denbighshire.

North Wales Police said the alarm was raised on the A494 between Gwyddelwern and Bryn Saith Marchog, near Corwen, at 15:35 BST on Saturday. The motorcyclist, who lived locally, was pronounced dead at the scene, while the people in the 4x4 were said to be shocked but uninjured. Police are appealing for information about the incident.

डेनबिघशायर में एक 4x4 वाहन की दुर्घटना में एक 23 वर्षीय मोटरसाइकिल सवार की मौत हो गई है।


Labour's conference '360'

Summary: We have just witnessed a classic conference '360'.

Laura KuenssbergPolitical editor@bbclaurakon Twitter It's a row in these heady days where one major player in the bubble promises something, then a rival says something rather different. Then, whoops, fearing a story about splits and dissent within a matter of hours, there is what is officially called a "clarification" - in other words one of those involved in the clash eats their words. As we reported last night, before midnight, Labour delegates agreed there would be a compromise to hold out the possibility of having another referendum. It was difficult to decide because the party leadership is conscious of not hacking off millions of Labour voters who want to leave, but also have to try to keep the membership - who, if they had a choice, would probably stop Brexit dead in its tracks tomorrow - happy. That's why there was so much discussion last night over the wording. But by midnight, allies of Keir Starmer and the Labour elements in the campaign for another vote were content. Not only did they have the idea on the agenda, but they had been able to keep the promise vague enough that if the circumstances emerge, there could be another referendum with, crucially, the option of staying in the EU on the ballot. But at 7:30am the shadow chancellor piled in telling the BBC that it was important to "respect the referendum", explaining that in his view another public vote should be on the terms of the deal. Was he trying to kill off the idea of another vote on stay or leave? It seemed that way. Then Tom Watson, who had been part of the push to change the policy, didn't quite agree with him. He told me a couple of hours later there was an "inevitable logic" to in or out being part of this hypothetical vote. Then Keir Starmer, who was in the room for all of those hours, came striding across the conference plaza to make absolutely clear that deliberately, and explicitly, the agreement in the room was to leave the option of holding another EU referendum on staying in or leaving on the table (in the end). Then lo and behold, perhaps thinking of the headlines his own dramatic speech this afternoon might generate, John McDonnell popped up again, to say that after all, guess what, "all options", including a vote, perhaps, one day, to stay in the EU, are after all still on the table. So, as you were. The 360 is complete. Labour is still inching towards the possibility of a second public vote that might include staying in the European Union. But the reluctance of Jeremy Corbyn's close allies seems clear. Conference will vote for the promise of that possibility, but that's a long way from vowing the party would make it happen.

हमने अभी-अभी एक क्लासिक सम्मेलन '360' देखा है।


Fire on board cargo ship in Warrenpoint Harbour under control

Summary: A fire onboard a cargo ship docked at Warrenpoint Harbour has been brought under control.

The alarm was raised at 08:25 GMT on Tuesday after 1,000 tonnes of animal feed were found to be overheating. A specialist marine response team from Belfast was sent to the scene, along with six fire appliances and a hydraulic platform. Firefighters discovered two seats of fire and flooded the grain with carbon dioxide to put the fire out. The ship arrived from Riga in Latvia earlier this week. A Fire Service spokeswoman said there had been no significant risk to life or the environment.

वारेनप्वाइंट हार्बर पर खड़े मालवाहक जहाज में लगी आग पर काबू पा लिया गया है।


Pen y Fan babygrow display for stillbirth and neonatal deaths

Summary: A washing line pegged with 15 babygrows has been carried up Pen Y Fan to raise awareness of the number of babies who die shortly before, during or after birth in the UK each day.

About 170 people climbed the Brecon Beacons peak on Saturday. The washing line is visiting well-known sites across the UK throughout June. The chief executive of Sands, the stillbirth and neonatal death charity, said she wanted people to talk about the "taboo subject" of baby death. Dr Clea Harmer said the campaign was also aimed at "provoking debate and discussion as to why do so many babies die and what can be done to reduce this number". The charity said the UK was three times slower than some European countries at lowering the baby death rate and families were often sent home with poor explanations of why their baby died. A babies remembrance service is to be held for bereaved parents at the Wenallt Chapel at Thornhill Crematorium in Cardiff on Sunday.

ब्रिटेन में प्रत्येक दिन जन्म से कुछ समय पहले, जन्म के दौरान या जन्म के बाद मरने वाले शिशुओं की संख्या के बारे में जागरूकता बढ़ाने के लिए 15 शिशुओं के साथ एक वॉशिंग लाइन पेन वाई फैन को ले जाया गया है।


Jersey residents could get tax cuts to help with cost of living

Summary: The rise in the cost of living in Jersey has pushed the States to consider easing the financial burden on households in the upcoming budget.

Figures released by the island's statistics department show increases in the cost of food, housing and travel. Treasury Minister Philip Ozouf said they would be able to "provide tax cuts to 84% of the population". The 2015 Budget, out in July, will focus on giving people "the confidence to invest and improve their lives".

जर्सी में रहने की लागत में वृद्धि ने राज्यों को आगामी बजट में परिवारों पर वित्तीय बोझ को कम करने पर विचार करने के लिए प्रेरित किया है।


Viewpoint: Is the Non-Aligned Movement relevant today?

Summary: As Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh arrives in Tehran to attend the 16th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement (Nam) along with a hundred of his counterparts, questions are understandably being raised about the relevance and direction of the movement itself.

By Shashi TharoorIndian parliamentarian Born half a century ago in the middle of a world riven by antagonism between the USA and the USSR and the alliances they led, Nam had been the vehicle for developing countries to assert their independence from the competing claims of the two superpowers. But with the end of the Cold War, there are no longer two rival blocs to be non-aligned between, and many have questioned the relevance of a movement whose very name signifies the negation of a choice that is no longer on the world's geopolitical table. With the passing of the binary superpower-led world, Nam has redefined itself as a movement for countries that are not aligned with any major power. 'Western imperialism' Since this is a state of affairs that is true of most countries in the world outside Nato, the globe's only surviving military alliance, it is hardly sufficient to justify the maintenance of the movement. So Nam has been shaping a persona that is increasingly vocal about resisting the hegemony of the sole superpower, the US, and in asserting the independence of its members - overwhelmingly former colonies in the developing world - from the dominance of "Western imperialism". The somewhat old-fashioned sound of the term revives charges that the movement is out of date. More seriously, this perception is compounded by the increasing visibility within Nam of countries like Iran, the current Chair of the movement, and Venezuela, its designated successor - both nations whose strident hostility to the US underscores Nam's anti-Western image. The very location of the summit serves to undercut the West's attempts to isolate Iran internationally and so proclaims Nam's defiance of the currents of the times. Does such an orientation sit well with the rest of the membership, which includes such partners of Washington as India, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Kenya, Qatar and the Philippines? Some of these countries would probably feel less comfortable with the political rhetoric of Nam than with its economic arguments at a time when predatory global capitalism is increasingly under challenge around the world - but others have been noticeably receptive to US economic policies. In any case economics is the domain of the G-77, the "trade union" of the developing world, not Nam, whose raison d'etre is political. Nam does, however, embody the desire of many developing countries to stake out their own positions distinct from the Western-led consensus on a host of global issues - energy, climate change, technology transfer, the protection of intellectual property specially in pharmaceuticals, and trade, to name a few. In its determination to articulate a different standpoint on such issues, Nam embodies many developing countries' desire to uphold their own strategic autonomy in world affairs and the post-colonial desire to assert their independence from the West. Necessary reflection The ongoing "Arab Spring" that has convulsed the Middle East has affected several Nam members directly. The countries that have undergone the most significant changes - Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and Syria - are all members of NAM. The movement should therefore be a logical vehicle to pursue a resolution of the issues swirling around the turbulence of the region. But its members are too hopelessly divided to forge a common position - and the anti-Assad views of many of them on Syria, for instance, are not very different from those of the West. Nonetheless the Nam summit is expected to discuss the developments in the Arab world in the hope of evolving a shared understanding of the region's future evolution. Whether this will amount to much more than words remains to be seen. For a country like India, whose two decades of economic growth have made it an important player on the global stage, the non-aligned movement remains a necessary reflection of its anti-colonial heritage. But it is no longer the only, or even the principal, forum for its international ambitions. In the second decade of the 21st century, India is moving increasingly beyond non-alignment to what I have described, in my recent book, Pax Indica: India and the World of the 21st Century, as "multi-alignment" - maintaining a series of relationships, in different configurations, some overlapping, some not, with a variety of countries for different purposes. Thus India is simultaneously a member of the Non-Aligned Movement and of the Community of Democracies, where it serves alongside the same imperial powers that NAM decries. It has a key role in both the G-77 (the "trade union" of developing countries) and the G-20 (the "management" of the globe's macro-economic issues). An acronym-laden illustration of what multi-alignment means lies in India's membership of Ibsa (the South-South cooperation mechanism that unites it with Brazil and South Africa), of RIC (the trilateral forum with Russia and China), of Brics (which brings all four of these partners together) and of Basic (the environmental-negotiation group which adds China to Ibsa but not Russia). India belongs to all of these groupings; all serve its interests in different ways. That is the manner in which India pursues its place in the world, and the non-aligned movement is largely incidental to it.

जैसे ही भारतीय प्रधानमंत्री मनमोहन सिंह अपने सौ समकक्षों के साथ गुटनिरपेक्ष आंदोलन (नाम) के 16वें शिखर सम्मेलन में भाग लेने के लिए तेहरान पहुंच रहे हैं, वैसे ही आंदोलन की प्रासंगिकता और दिशा के बारे में सवाल उठाए जा रहे हैं।


Jersey businesses have 'no problem' with earlier flight

Summary: A change to some flight times between Jersey and Gatwick airports will not affect business on the island, according to the Chamber of Commerce.

David Warr, from Jersey's chamber, said British Airways' decision to bring forward its last daily flight should not be problematic. The airline announced its 19:45 departure to Gatwick had been moved to 17:20, but refused to comment further. Mr Warr said businesspeople and commuters had sufficient alternatives. British Airways announced it would begin operating its revised schedule on 31 March.

चैंबर ऑफ कॉमर्स के अनुसार, जर्सी और गैटविक हवाई अड्डों के बीच उड़ान के कुछ समय में बदलाव से द्वीप पर व्यापार प्रभावित नहीं होगा।


Guernsey cliff rescue called out for dog

Summary: A missing black labrador which sparked a cliff rescue at Les Tielles on Guernsey's south coast was found waiting faithfully by her owner's car.

The alarm was raised just after 1000 BST after reports the labrador, called Trinity, had gone over the cliff while jogging with her owner. The Ambulance and Rescue's cliff rescue team and inshore lifeboat were involved in the two-and-a-half hour search. Trinity was eventually found lying further up the cliff path by the car.

एक लापता काला लैब्राडोर जिसने ग्वेर्नसे के दक्षिणी तट पर लेस टिलेस में एक चट्टान को बचाया था, उसे उसके मालिक की कार द्वारा ईमानदारी से इंतजार करते हुए पाया गया।


Second swimmer dies at Gullet Quarry within seven days

Summary: Divers searching for a swimmer who went missing at a disused quarry where a teenage boy died last weekend have found a body.

Rescue teams were called to Gullet Quarry in Herefordshire at 16:28 BST after reports a man, believed to be in his 20s, was struggling in the water. An underwater search was carried out and police confirmed they recovered a body on Friday evening. Russell O'Neill, 17, died on Saturday after swimming at the same site. A candlelit vigil that was due to be held for him on Friday at 21:00 was cancelled following the discovery of a second body.

एक अप्रयुक्त खदान में लापता हुए एक तैराक की तलाश में गोताखोरों को एक शव मिला है, जहां पिछले सप्ताहांत में एक किशोर लड़के की मौत हो गई थी।


New path leads to Swindon's Richard Jefferies museum

Summary: A new path has opened at a park in Swindon which will offer better access to a museum celebrating a Victorian author.

Enthusiasts had campaigned for nearly 30 years for a more direct walkway to the Richard Jefferies Museum in Coate Water park. The nature writer was born at Coate in 1848. Chairman of the Richard Jefferies Society, John Price said the path will be a "great asset". He added: "We've been trying to get something like this done for nearly 30 years now."

स्विंडन के एक पार्क में एक नया रास्ता खोला गया है जो एक विक्टोरियन लेखक का जश्न मनाने वाले संग्रहालय तक बेहतर पहुंच प्रदान करेगा।


Isle of Man ferry delays after fishing rope damage

Summary: Delays are expected on a ferry route between the Isle of Man and the UK, after an engine was damaged by discarded fishing gear.

The Steam Packet company said the problem was discovered by divers at the height of the company's busiest time of year- the TT festival. It means the Manannan fast craft must sail on reduced power which, operators said, will cause timetable disruption. A spokesman said repair work will take place after the TT period. He added: "We have campaigned long and hard about the risks from fishing gear discarded in Manx waters. "We will advise passengers of any changes necessary to schedules as soon as we are able. "It may be necessary to reschedule some sailings after the TT period to allow a permanent repair to be effected."

आइल ऑफ मैन और यूके के बीच एक नौका मार्ग पर देरी की उम्मीद है, क्योंकि मछली पकड़ने के उपकरण को फेंकने से एक इंजन क्षतिग्रस्त हो गया था।


Is Facebook favouring the ruling BJP in India?

Summary: Did Facebook go easy on hate speech by an Indian lawmaker belonging to the governing BJP to protect its interests in its biggest market? A Wall Street Journal report, based on interviews with current and former Facebook employees, suggests so, and it prompted immediate calls for an investigation. Soutik Biswas reports on the aftermath.

Soutik BiswasIndia correspondent In its report, the WSJ said Facebook deleted some hateful anti-Muslim posts by T Raja Singh, a lawmaker from India's southern Telangana state only after the paper asked about them. The paper reported that Facebook employees had decided in March that Mr Singh's post violated the company's hate speech rules and qualified as dangerous. But the firm's top public policy executive in India, Ankhi Das, opposed applying "hate speech rules to Mr Singh and at least three other Hindu nationalist individuals and groups flagged internally for promoting or participating in the violence". Ms Das, the paper said, told employees that "punishing violations by politicians from Mr Modi's party would damage the company's business prospects in the country". The WSJ report has sparked calls by opposition MPs for investigations into Facebook's conduct in India. The leader of the main opposition Congress party, Rahul Gandhi, led the charge. He alleged that the BJP, and its ideological fountainhead, RSS, were "controlling" Facebook in India. India's information technology minister Ravi Shankar promptly responded. He alluded to his previous remarks in 2018 about "numerous reports" of Congress involvement with Cambridge Analytica and asking Mr Gandhi to "explain" the company's role in his social media outreach. (That year India had taken down the local website of Cambridge Analytica following allegations the company used personal data of 50 million Facebook members to influence the US presidential elections.) With more than 340 million users, India is Facebook's biggest market. In April Facebook announced it was investing $5.7bn (£4.6bn) in cut-price Indian mobile internet company Reliance Jio, owned by the country's richest person Mukesh Ambani. This would give Facebook a major foothold in India, where its WhatsApp chat service has 400m users and is about to launch a payments service. I reached out to Facebook with a list of detailed questions. I asked why Facebook had not taken down Mr Singh's posts earlier, what it did with the lawmaker's account, and how many pages had been taken down and accounts suspended in India for hate speech. "We prohibit hate speech and content that incites violence and we enforce these policies globally without regard to anyone's political position or party affiliation. While we know there is more to do, we're making progress on enforcement and conduct regular audits of our process to ensure fairness and accuracy," a Facebook spokesperson replied in an email response. The firm did not provide any more details. Separately, Andy Stone, a Facebook spokesman, acknowledged to WSJ that Ankhi Das had "raised concerns about the political fallout that would result from designating Mr Singh a dangerous individual, but said her opposition wasn't the sole factor in the company's decision to let Mr Singh on the platform". Mr Stone told me he had nothing more to add. The BJP lawmaker T Raja Singh said his official page on Facebook with 300,000 followers was "hacked and deleted" in 2018 and he had complained about it to the local cyber crime detectives. "I don't know whether it was misused," he told me. He said Facebook might have recently taken down pages floated by his followers and containing inflammatory content. He said his followers might have "uploaded hate speech" on these pages. "Sometimes I go to public meetings and talk in style. My followers might have uploaded those videos", Mr Singh, the sole BJP legislator in the 119-member elected Telangana state assembly said. Mr Stone told WSJ that Facebook is still considering whether it will ban the legislator. When I asked him why he would post such incendiary content Mr Singh said: "There are a lot of anti-socials in my area. I counter them in their language, sometimes it is communal". He said his Instagram account, which was still active, was not being operated by him. This is not the first time allegations have been raised that Facebook is favouring the governing party. A series of articles by journalists Cyril Sam and Paranjoy Guha Thakurta in 2018, wrote about the social media platform's "dominant position in India with more than a little help from friends of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP", among other things. (The articles also looked at the Congress party's own "relations with Facebook".) The Congress party's chief of data analytics, Praveen Chakravarty, says he met senior Facebook officials in the US and India in 2018 and "discussed the issue of bias and partisanship of their India leadership team" and denying to accept party advertisements relating to a controversial fighter jet deal by the government. "I was told that it will be looked into but nothing happened," he says. Last year, Derek O'Brien, a lawmaker belonging to the opposition Trinamul Congress party, raised the issue in the parliament. "Facebook censors anti-BJP news. Its algorithm censors anti-BJP news," Mr O'Brien said in a short speech. When I reached out to him at the weekend, Mr O'Brien said: "There are other important issues to raise in the parliament, but this will not go unnoticed." Shashi Tharoor, a prominent Congress MP who heads a parliamentary committee on information technology, says he believes the "recent revelations raise questions that require explanation". "The subject is serious because of Facebook's extensive reach in India and the potential for hate speech to incite violence and other unlawful behaviour. How worrying this is to be determined after a hearing process is concluded, not on the basis of media reports," he told me. Chinmayi Arun, a fellow at the Information Society Project at Yale Law School, says it is difficult to assess Facebook's record without access to the company's data in India. "There are contexts in which they have reacted swiftly or improved their policies based on feedback. But the system for implementation is opaque and one is unlikely to hear about the sort of incident that the WSJ reported unless insiders share information only available to Facebook," Ms Arun told me. In its latest biannual Community Standards Enforcement Report, Facebook said it had taken action against more than 20 million pieces of hate speech content that had violated its community standards between January and March. But in its biggest market, many say the social media behemoth needs to do more.

क्या फेसबुक ने अपने सबसे बड़े बाजार में अपने हितों की रक्षा करने के लिए सत्तारूढ़ भाजपा से संबंधित एक भारतीय विधायक द्वारा नफरत भरे भाषण पर आसानी से काम किया? वॉल स्ट्रीट जर्नल की एक रिपोर्ट, जो वर्तमान और पूर्व फेसबुक कर्मचारियों के साथ साक्षात्कार पर आधारित है, ऐसा बताती है, और इसने तत्काल जांच की मांग की। सौतिक बिस्वास ने इसके बाद की रिपोर्ट दी।


Everybody's shuffling: Rise of zombies in modern life

Summary: The living dead, a long-time staple of horror films, are increasingly becoming food for thought for academics and economists. Zombies have been lurching from the entertainment business into the worlds of mathematics, science and finance. Why have zombies taken over?

By Steven McKenzieBBC Scotland Highlands and Islands reporter The word "zombie" has its origins in the distant past. According to Prof Adam Chodorow, author of Death and Taxes and Zombies, it appears to have its roots in Haitian voodoo. The Oxford Dictionary says the word "zombie" emerged in the 19th Century from an African word, "zumbi", which means fetish. Whatever its inspiration, fascination with the foot dragging, groaning undead is very much alive and kicking. The entertainment industry has for decades been the main driver behind the popularity of zombies. In the past few weeks, the first trailer for World War Z was released. With action scenes shot in Glasgow's George Square and starring Brad Pitt, it has been adapted from Max Brooks' 2006 book World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War. When the film opens in cinemas next year, it will join an estimated 500 zombie movies that have been made. This year's fare of the living dead in cinemas and on TV has included the start of season three of The Walking Dead, films Cockneys Vs Zombies and Resident Evil: Retribution and children's animation ParaNorman. For some fans it has not been enough to just sit and watch the horrors, they re-create scenes at mass gatherings called zombie walks. This year they have been held in Birmingham and Bristol in UK, Berlin, Stockholm, Toronto, Prague, Seattle, Long Beach, and Mexico City - where last year more than 10,000 gathered to set a zombie walk world record. And now zombies have staggered into other walks of life. In marine biology, scientists are trying to better understand bone-eating "zombie worms" first discovered in 2004. Some scientists have suggested sinking dead whales off the Scottish coast in the hope of observing the creatures. Economists are warning of the rise of zombie companies - struggling firms that can just about afford the interest payments on their loans - and zombie households, those on interest-only mortgages, yet unable to pay off the loan itself. Last month, Scotland and Northern Ireland were identified as having almost double the rate of zombie firms than the rest of the UK, according to research by insolvency trade body R3. A total of 30,600, or 18%, of Scottish and Northern Irish businesses reported they were only just staying afloat. This was double the UK average of 9% and the highest figure for any UK area. In his paper Death and Taxes and Zombies, which was published earlier this year, Prof Chodorow examines asks a hypothetical question: should zombies be taxed? The professor of law at Arizona State University got the idea when he witnessed first-hand an anti-greed and corruption protest in Denver, Colorado. As the Occupy Denver demonstrators marched, Prof Chodorow caught sight of a zombie walk lurching from the opposite direction. He watched with amusements as the two groups collided and mixed together. Prof Chodorow said: "At that moment, the following thought popped into my head: 'I wonder if zombies should be considered dead for estate tax purposes?' 'Playful way' But serious issues lay behind the rotting, brain munching subjects of the academic's tongue-in-cheek examination. It was written and published amid warnings that the US was headed towards a "fiscal cliff", the deadline when tax cuts expire and spending cuts kick in. Prof Chodorow said: "In chastising Congress for failing to address zombies, I was trying to call Congress out for its utter failure to address what most people see as more pressing issues." He added: "While this article was meant primarily as a humour piece, one of the things law professors do is to look at the law from different and unexpected angles. "The legal analysis in the paper is all real. This article allowed me to explore a number of different issues in a playful way, which is important when you teach tax law, a subject many would rather avoid." Another US academic - James Powell, a mathematical ecologist at Utah State University - uses the idea of a zombie apocalypse to help him explain how real-life viruses such as H1N1 swine flu spread. In February, he held a public workshop called Mathematics and the Life-Impaired: How the Theory of Disease Predicts the Zombie Apocalypse. Prof Powell said: "I like using zombie examples because it grabs the students. "They have an intuitive sense of the disease dynamics, i.e. you get bitten, you turn into a zombie, you bite somebody else... "They don't get paralysed with too much biological detail, and of course there is a lot of natural zombie humour and participation that we can all do. "If I talk about polio or cholera I don't feel good about being humorous about how the disease progresses - it's all too tragic and real. "But with zombies you can be as silly as you like and nobody is going to feel offended." Prof Powell's fascination with zombies started when he was just five, or six. His mother, thinking young James was asleep in the back of the car, had gone to a drive-in theatre to watch Night of the Living Dead. "Didn't sleep for a month, which set the pattern for me as a kid watching horror movies," said Prof Powell. In the UK, zombies have been moaning and groaning across the political landscape. Lincolnshire County Council revealed in August that it been asked in a freedom of information request about its preparedness for zombies. And last month, the National Collective, an artists' collaboration that is pro-Scottish independence, published a spoof news story about "fears" that Scotland would be more vulnerable to an invasion if independent. It comes as no surprise to Edinburgh-based film-maker David Hutchison that the living dead are so popular. One of his first short films was Zombie Lick about a zombie that craved chocolate not flesh. He is now working on a new script about a Scottish crofting family unearthing a zombie while cutting peats. Hutchison said: "The best zombie films cast a reflection of the times. "Take the wonderful Juan de los Muertos. How would a film-maker comment on modern Cuba, and get past the censors? By shrouding it as a zombie movie, of course. "The UK film Harold's Going Stiff, a moving yet funny film, could be seen as a comment on euthanasia, the ageing population and the strain on the NHS. "Got a mine in Wales? Don't want to pay for a workforce? Use zombies. The Plague of the Zombies from 1966." Richmond Clements, a writer and co-organiser of Inverness's Hi-Ex comic book convention, suggested that for some people zombies mirror personal concerns. He said: "There is an obsession that runs through fiction, particularly, I would say, through horror and sci-fi, and that is the fear of a loss of identity. "And this is what zombies represent. It's the fear that you as an individual are not a person but just one of a shambling, faceless crowd, no different than those around you. Of course, the real horror is that for most people this is true. "The popularity of the zombie walk, where hundreds of people turn up in costume and go on a parade, almost lifts this into another level of irony." But Clements also believes the zombie tale beloved of the film and TV industries is actually approaching the end of its life. He said: "Zombies are a small part of a general malaise in the horror genre itself, where ideas, plot and character have been abandoned in favour of shock, gore, sexual violence and tiresome sequels and remakes. "The genre needs to find some new life and new ideas, or end up (un)dead itself."

जीवित मृत, डरावनी फिल्मों का एक लंबे समय से मुख्य हिस्सा, शिक्षाविदों और अर्थशास्त्रियों के लिए विचार का भोजन बन रहा है। लाशें मनोरंजन व्यवसाय से गणित, विज्ञान और वित्त की दुनिया में आ रही हैं। लाशों ने क्यों कब्जा कर लिया है?


What is 'Islamic State'?

Summary: The jihadist group Islamic State (IS) burst on to the international scene in 2014 when it seized large swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq. It has become notorious for its brutality, including mass killings, abductions and beheadings. The group though has attracted support elsewhere in the Muslim world - and a US-led coalition has vowed to destroy it.

What does IS want? In June 2014, the group formally declared the establishment of a "caliphate" - a state governed in accordance with Islamic law, or Sharia, by God's deputy on Earth, or caliph. It has demanded that Muslims across the world swear allegiance to its leader - Ibrahim Awad Ibrahim al-Badri al-Samarrai, better known as Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi - and migrate to territory under its control. IS has also told other jihadist groups worldwide that they must accept its supreme authority. Many already have, among them several offshoots of the rival al-Qaeda network. IS seeks to eradicate obstacles to restoring God's rule on Earth and to defend the Muslim community, or umma, against infidels and apostates. The group has welcomed the prospect of direct confrontation with the US-led coalition, viewing it as a harbinger of an end-of-times showdown between Muslims and their enemies described in Islamic apocalyptic prophecies. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi: Islamic State's driving force What's the appeal of a caliphate? What are its origins? IS can trace its roots back to the late Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian. In 2004, a year after the US-led invasion of Iraq, Zarqawi pledged allegiance to Osama Bin Laden and formed al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), which became a major force in the insurgency. After Zarqawi's death in 2006, AQI created an umbrella organisation, Islamic State in Iraq (ISI). ISI was steadily weakened by the US troop surge and the creation of Sahwa (Awakening) councils by Sunni Arab tribesmen who rejected its brutality. Baghdadi, a former US detainee, became leader in 2010 and began rebuilding ISI's capabilities. By 2013, it was once again carrying out dozens of attacks a month in Iraq. It had also joined the rebellion against President Bashar al-Assad in Syria, setting up the al-Nusra Front. In April 2013, Baghdadi announced the merger of his forces in Iraq and Syria and the creation of "Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant" (Isis). The leaders of al-Nusra and al-Qaeda rejected the move, but fighters loyal to Baghdadi split from al-Nusra and helped Isis remain in Syria. At the end of December 2013, Isis shifted its focus back to Iraq and exploited a political stand-off between the Shia-led government and the minority Sunni Arab community. Aided by tribesmen and former Saddam Hussein loyalists, Isis took control of the central city of Falluja. In June 2014, Isis overran the northern city of Mosul, and then advanced southwards towards Baghdad, massacring its adversaries and threatening to eradicate the country's many ethnic and religious minorities. At the end of the month, after consolidating its hold over dozens of cities and towns, Isis declared the creation of a caliphate and changed its name to "Islamic State". The rise of 'Islamic State' How much territory does IS control? In September 2014, the then director of the US National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), Matthew Olsen, said IS controlled much of the Tigris-Euphrates river basin - an area similar in size to the United Kingdom, or about 210,000 sq km (81,000 sq miles). A year later, the US defence department declared that IS frontlines in much of northern and central Iraq and northern Syria had been pushed back significantly by US-led coalition air strikes and ground operations. IS could no longer operate freely in roughly 20-25% of populated areas in Iraq and Syria where it once could, it said. The defence department estimated that IS had lost approximately 15,000-20,000 sq km (5,790-7,720 sq miles) of territory in Iraq, or about 30-37% of what it controlled in August 2014, and 2,000-4,000 sq km (770-1,540 sq miles) in Syria, or about 5-10%. Despite this, IS has been able to capture new territory of strategic value over the same period, including the city of Ramadi in Iraq's Anbar province and Palmyra in Syria's Homs province. Analysts also note that the US figures do not necessarily reflect the situation on the ground. In reality, IS militants exercise complete control over only a small part of that territory, which includes cities and towns, main roads, oil fields and military facilities. They enjoy freedom of movement in the largely uninhabited areas outside what the Institute for the Study of War calls "control zones", but they would struggle to defend them. Similarly, it is not entirely clear how many people are living under full or partial IS control across Syria and Iraq. In March 2015, the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross put the figure at more than 10 million. Inside areas where IS has implemented its strict interpretation of Sharia, women are forced to wear full veils, public beheadings are common and non-Muslims are forced to choose between paying a special tax, converting or death. How many fighters does it have? In February 2015, US Director for National Intelligence James Clapper said IS could muster "somewhere in the range between 20,000 and 32,000 fighters" in Iraq and Syria. But he noted that there had been "substantial attrition" in its ranks since US-led coalition air strikes began in August 2014. In June 2015, US Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken said more than 10,000 IS fighters had been killed. To help mitigate the manpower losses, IS has turned to conscription in some areas. Iraqi expert Hisham al-Hashimi believes only 30% of the group's fighters are "ideologues", with the remainder joining out of fear or coercion. A significant number of IS fighters are neither Iraqi nor Syrian. In October 2015, National Counterterrorism Center Director Nicholas Rasmussen told Congress that the group had attracted more than 28,000 foreign fighters. They included at least 5,000 Westerners, approximately 250 of them Americans, he said. Studies by the London-based International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation and Political Violence (ICSR) and the New York-based Soufan Group suggest that while about a quarter of the foreign fighters are from the West, the majority are from nearby Arab countries, such as Tunisia, Saudi Arabia and Jordan and Morocco. What about its targets outside Iraq and Syria? In late 2015, IS began to lay claim to attacks outside its territory. An Egyptian affiliate, Sinai Province, said it downed a Russian passenger plane in the Sinai peninsula, killing all 228 on board. It gave no details, but the UK and US later said it was likely that a bomb caused the crash - whether or not a bomber was linked to IS. IS also claimed twin blasts in the Lebanese capital Beirut which killed at least 41 people. Militants from the Lebanese movement Hezbollah have been fighting in neighbouring Syria on the side of IS' enemy, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. And then on 13 November, at least 128 people were killed in a wave of attacks around Paris. IS said it was behind the violence - French President Francois Hollande described it as "an act of war". Battle for Iraq and Syria in maps What weapons does IS have? IS fighters have access to, and are capable of using, a wide variety of small arms and heavy weapons, including truck-mounted machine-guns, rocket launchers, anti-aircraft guns and portable surface-to-air missile systems. They have also captured tanks and armoured vehicles from the Syrian and Iraqi armies. Their haul of vehicles from the Iraqi army includes armoured Humvees and bomb-proof trucks originally manufactured for the US military. Some have been packed with explosives and used to devastating effect in suicide bomb attacks. The group is believed to have a flexible supply chain that ensures a constant supply of ammunition and small arms for its fighters. Their considerable firepower helped them overrun Kurdish Peshmerga positions in northern Iraq in August 2014 and the Iraqi army in Ramadi in May 2015. Where does IS get its money from? The militant group is believed to be the world's wealthiest. It initially relied on wealthy private donors and Islamic charities in the Middle East keen to oust Syria's President Assad. Although such funding is still being used to finance the travel of foreign fighters to Syria and Iraq, the group is now largely self-funding. The US Treasury estimates that in 2014 IS may have earned as much as several million dollars per week, or $100m in total, from the sale of crude oil and refined products to local middlemen, who in turn smuggled them in Turkey and Iran, or sold them to the Syrian government. But air strikes on oil-related infrastructure are now believed to have diminished such revenue. Kidnapping also generated at least $20m in ransom payments in 2014, while IS raises several million dollars per month through extorting the millions of people living in areas under its full or partial control, according to the US Treasury. IS is believed to raise at least several million dollars per month by robbing, looting, and extortion. Payments are extracted from those who pass through, conduct business in, or simply live in IS territory under the auspices or providing services or "protection". Religious minorities are forced to pay a special tax. IS profits from raiding banks, selling antiquities, and stealing or controlling sales of livestock and crops. Abducted girls and women have meanwhile been sold as sex slaves. Islamic State: Who supports the jihadist group? Iraq and Syria: The hostages Why are their tactics so brutal? IS members are jihadists who adhere to an extreme interpretation of Sunni Islam and consider themselves the only true believers. They hold that the rest of the world is made up of unbelievers who seek to destroy Islam, justifying attacks against other Muslims and non-Muslims alike. Beheadings, crucifixions and mass shootings have been used to terrorise their enemies. IS members have justified such atrocities by citing the Koran and Hadith, but Muslims have denounced them. Even al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, who disavowed IS in February 2014 over its actions in Syria, warned Zarqawi in 2005 that such brutality loses "Muslim hearts and minds". Why is 'Islamic State' so violent? 'Islamic State' deploys asymmetry of fear

जिहादी समूह इस्लामिक स्टेट (आईएस) ने 2014 में अंतर्राष्ट्रीय परिदृश्य पर हमला किया जब उसने सीरिया और इराक में बड़े क्षेत्र पर कब्जा कर लिया। यह सामूहिक हत्याओं, अपहरणों और सिर कलम करने सहित अपनी क्रूरता के लिए कुख्यात हो गया है। हालांकि इस समूह ने मुस्लिम दुनिया में कहीं और समर्थन आकर्षित किया है-और अमेरिका के नेतृत्व वाले गठबंधन ने इसे नष्ट करने की कसम खाई है।


Latitude Festival: Man bailed over rape allegation

Summary: A man arrested after a 20-year-old woman reported being raped at a festival in Suffolk has been bailed.

Police were called to the Latitude Festival site at Henham near Southwold on Sunday morning. The incident was reported to have happened in a tent on the staff campsite and the area was cordoned off while investigations take place. The man, from Ipswich, was questioned at Lowestoft Police Station before being bailed until 14 September.

सफ़ोक में एक उत्सव में एक 20 वर्षीय महिला के साथ बलात्कार की सूचना के बाद गिरफ्तार किए गए एक व्यक्ति को जमानत दे दी गई है।


The Archers tackles the 'hidden' connection between disability and modern slavery

Summary: In the latest episode of The Archers it was revealed that three men, kept as slaves on the outskirts of Ambridge, have a learning or mental health disability. It is a side to modern slavery that experts have described as "hidden", as Mike Lambert explores.

Like other listeners to Radio 4's The Archers, I've been gripped by the latest twists in its modern slavery storyline. Since March, we've known about three British-born men - Blake, Jordan and Kenzie - who have been enslaved by builders and kept at a secret location near Ambridge. Last night, we heard the men talk amongst themselves for the first time and it was revealed they all have a learning or mental health disability. According to the Global Slavery Index it is thought there are up to 136,000 victims of modern slavery in the UK. This is the appalling reality that The Archers' editor, Jeremy Howe, has chosen to confront and he also wants to challenge some of the stereotypes about this trade in human misery. "It's not simply a problem involving immigrant labour," explains Howe. "It can be a British problem involving British slaves and British gang-masters." In so doing, he has posed the question of what mind-forg'd manacles keep three, British-born, young men enslaved to a pair of unscrupulous builders. My interest in the connection between disability and modern slavery began in 2017, after a chance meeting with a former victim. At that time, there had been a crop of news stories about the Rooney gang - a Lincolnshire-based family convicted of trafficking 18 men into hard labour for their driveway resurfacing company. I had read how these victims were regularly beaten, subjected to mental cruelty and "institutionalised" into slavery - one of them for 26 years. Then, one Sunday, on a train from Doncaster to London, I met a 23-year-old man called Chris (not his real name). At first, as Chris described his difficult life and recent trip to visit his abusive, alcoholic mother, I was struck by his chatty and trusting nature. But, as he continued detailing some of the calamities that had befallen him, the penny dropped. Having spent over 25 years supporting disabled students, I was sure Chris had a mild learning disability. Sitting on that train, I listened aghast as Chris told me how he had once worked for a "bad man" called John Rooney who had kept him in a dilapidated caravan and only fed him when he worked. Chris eventually "escaped". In 2019, the number of potential victims of modern slavery rescued and referred to the Home Office reached 10,627. It would be good to know what percentage of this total had learning or mental health disabilities. But, surprisingly, nobody knows. Although most agencies that fight modern slavery keep data on gender and country of origin, no-one is counting victims with a disability. The one exception I found is Nottingham City Council, which reports almost 60% of its clients had a disability and/or mental health/cognitive impairment in 2019 and 2020. 'Statistically hidden form of abuse' Other agencies acknowledge a significant overlap between modern slavery and disability. The Anti-Slavery Coordinator at The Passage, a London-based homelessness organisation, told me: "At least 13 of the 73 potential victims we've identified in the last two years show clear signs of a learning or mental health disability - and the actual number may be even higher." The coordinator added: "Disabilities may sometimes be hard to spot, as these clients present with complex traumas related to both their exploitation and homelessness." At the Ann Craft Trust, a national charity combating the abuse of disabled children and adults, Deputy CEO, Lisa Curtis, believes "the modern slavery of people with learning disabilities is a statistically hidden form of abuse". She says: "Data-capture needs to include learning disability to highlight the scale of the problem. More research, training and work are required to ensure that people with learning disabilities are protected from modern slavery and supported in their recovery from its traumatic effects." Mencap defines a learning disability as "a reduced intellectual ability and difficulty with everyday activities," such as household tasks, managing money or socialising, "which affects someone for their whole life". Thus, victims may already have been struggling to take adequate physical and emotional care of themselves, before being lured into exploitation by promises of food, shelter and emotional support. Some may already have been abused as children, making them susceptible to trauma-bonding - a process in which victims are alternately praised and made to feel worthless. Others may have reduced communication skills, making it impossible for them to describe their situation to the police. The Passage, told me how "on cold, wet nights, vans cruise well-known gathering points for London's homeless" and "well-dressed men emerge, offering kind words, bottles of wine, food and promises of accommodation and work for cash-in-hand". Traffickers are often psychologically astute in how they groom victims and Curtis describes how, "grooming often mimics a genuine relationship". She says: "Early in the process, the groomer may appear friendly, whilst sizing-up the psychological vulnerabilities that'll get a victim on board. For example, by saying they'll treat him like a son, they may play on a victim's emotional needs and create a sense of dependency and loyalty. "Later - even if the victim realises they're being mistreated - they don't leave because they're emotionally dependent, fearful of repercussions or feel embarrassed that this has happened to them." For years, Archers' slave-master Philip Moss has successfully deceived everyone in Ambridge, including his new wife. He is a respected member of the community and when Philip's conscience bothers him, he deceives himself with the idea that he's "doing those lads a favour by taking them off the streets". But, like other traffickers, Philip specifically targeted people who were rendered homeless by their disabilities and a failure of support services. And, in March, due to a lack of supervision, one of the men broke his back in a workplace accident. 'Odd hours' It is a situation The Passage is familiar with. Its Anti-Slavery Coordinator told me about the case of a 55-year-old man with schizophrenia who had been homeless since he was 18. "A family approached him when he was sleeping rough in London, offering him food, shelter and work in construction and farming. He was exploited for decades by this family, who mentally and physically abused him and moved him around the country to avoid detection. "One day, he suffered a serious workplace injury, which led to the family abandoning him in a parking lot because he could no longer work." Experts agree that increased public awareness is crucial in combating such practices. Curtis advises looking out for "groups of people accommodated at unusual locations and being picked up and dropped off at odd hours". And, when having building work done, she asks householders to watch out for labourers who "appear neglected and malnourished, have untreated injuries and who are either uncommunicative or not allowed to speak for themselves". The Archers' modern slavery story has more surprises in store for 2021. But, for now, it's created a space to think about an extremely hidden group of individuals who are failed by society before being further devalued and traumatised by criminals. For more disability news, follow BBC Ouch on Twitter and Facebook and subscribe to the weekly podcast on BBC Sounds.

द आर्चर्स के नवीनतम एपिसोड में यह पता चला कि एम्ब्रिज के बाहरी इलाके में गुलाम के रूप में रखे गए तीन लोगों को सीखने या मानसिक स्वास्थ्य अक्षमता है। यह आधुनिक गुलामी का एक पक्ष है जिसे विशेषज्ञों ने "छिपी हुई" के रूप में वर्णित किया है, जैसा कि माइक लैम्बर्ट ने खोज की है।


Musician falls in Llangollen Canal trying to rescue saxophone

Summary: A musician suffered hypothermia and had to be rescued from a canal after he fell in while trying to retrieve his saxophone in Denbighshire.

Rescuers say the man, in his 50s, was lucky to be alive as he was thought to have been in the water at Llangollen for some time. The alarm was raised on Sunday by an early morning dog walker who called the emergency services to Llangollen Canal. His saxophone was handed in to police after being found floating in its case. The man was taken to Wrexham Maelor Hospital for treatment. No further details are known.

एक संगीतकार को हाइपोथर्मिया का सामना करना पड़ा और डेनबिघशायर में अपने सैक्सोफोन को पुनः प्राप्त करने की कोशिश में गिरने के बाद उसे एक नहर से बचाना पड़ा।


Russian satellites fail to enter orbit after launch

Summary: Three Russian satellites have failed to enter orbit after they were launched on a rocket from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

Russian aerospace experts said the Glonass spacecraft and the upper-stage booster carrying them probably fell into the Pacific Ocean near Hawaii. The satellites were to be part of a navigation system meant to rival GPS. Russia has already successfully launched a number of the Glonass satellites this year. Officials had hoped to have the navigation system fully in place in 2011.

कजाकिस्तान में बैकोनूर कॉस्मोड्रोम से एक रॉकेट पर प्रक्षेपित किए जाने के बाद तीन रूसी उपग्रह कक्षा में प्रवेश करने में विफल रहे हैं।


Abellio Greater Anglia rail firm faces franchise challenge

Summary: Three rail companies have been shortlisted to run the East Anglia franchise.

Abellio Greater Anglia currently runs the East Anglia franchise, but it is being re-let in October 2016. It includes services to Stansted Airport and to Cambridgeshire, Essex, Norfolk, Hertfordshire and Suffolk. Abellio, in a joint bid with Stagecoach, now faces competition from the other two shortlisted companies - FirstGroup and National Express. Last month, it was revealed that Abellio Greater Anglia had had more negative tweets from passengers in 2014 than any of the other commuter train operators. Abellio carries more than 350,000 passengers a day. Announcing the shortlist, rail minister Claire Perry said: "We have ambitious plans for East Anglia's rail network, and the successful bidder will be central to making these plans a reality. Analysis by Andrew Sinclair, BBC East Political Correspondent The government wants to show that it is moving fast to act on its manifesto promise. The pledge to provide a better rail service for East Anglia was one of the party's key pledges for the East, continually emphasised by the prime minister and his ministers whenever they visited during the election campaign. It is thought to be one of the reasons why the Conservatives did so well on 7 May. Work to upgrade the track and signalling has already started but upgrading the rolling stock and making it feel like a 21st Century train service will be the job of the new franchise holder and the government has already made it clear that whoever wins will be expected to make immediate improvements. The reality is that upgrading any form of infrastructure takes time, that's why ministers want to get the ball rolling now. They know that when the next election comes they will be judged on whether they have really delivered on that very public pledge. "We want to find a partner who will help us meet the increasing demand for transport in the region by providing faster, more reliable journeys and better connections across the region and beyond." Stagecoach Group chief executive Martin Griffiths said: "We are one of the country's leading rail companies and we know the railway is central to the economy in East Anglia. "We believe our strong track record, combined with the insight of Abellio, can produce a powerful joint bid to deliver a better experience for customers, and support jobs and businesses in the region." Peter Radford, of the Essex Rail Users Federation, said he welcomed the government announcement as a "positive" but added he would "like to see the money on the table". In April this year Abellio announced a £20m plan to refurbish trains serving the East of England and increase services between Stansted Airport and Cambridge. Abellio Greater Anglia pledged the improvements as part of its agreement with the government. The firm also agreed to complete upgrades to stations at Bishops Stortford, Cambridge and Chelmsford.

ईस्ट एंग्लिया फ्रेंचाइजी को चलाने के लिए तीन रेल कंपनियों को चुना गया है।


European economy: How French and German states compare

Summary: France has revealed that its sluggish economy grew by 0.3% in the last three months of 2013. With debt and deficit levels high, the government has begun taking steps to reduce the country's burgeoning public sector.

By Hugh SchofieldBBC News, Chalons-en-Champagne, France In France, if you want to run away to join a circus, the state can help. Simply apply to the National Centre for Circus Arts (CNAC), which since 1985 has been based in the eastern town of Chalons-en-Champagne. Every year around 20 undergraduates start the course, learning to become trapeze artists, acrobats and rope-dancers. All without charge. Why - some might wonder - is the state using taxpayers' money to subsidise young people in tights? Plenty of circus schools exist around the world, but in the vast majority of cases they are private. Students pay fees, or get sponsorships. But not at the CNAC. The answer, according to the school's director Gerard Fasoli, is that "here in France, we regard the circus as part of culture, so it is perfectly normal that we use public money to train the next generation". It is a perfect glimpse at how France is different. What in most other countries would be regarded as an extravagance - especially in these straitened times - is held up as a mark of pride. According to Mr Fasoli, while there are certainly ongoing discussions about how to make savings, the culture ministry has no intention of cutting off the money. State-funded tightrope-walking is safe. Administrative layer cake Circuses aside, the state figures prominently in Chalons. Historically the town has always been an administrative centre. But today the multiplication of tiers of government has made it a bureaucratic hive. A walk down the main street makes the point. At one end is the headquarters (in a former Roman Catholic seminary) of the regional government of Champagne-Ardennes. Walking beneath the monumental Porte Sainte-Croix, you pass the headquarters of the department (or county) of the Marne; then the departmental archive; then the prefecture, representing the national government. Finally - after a quick detour for the law courts and the army barracks - you come to the Hotel-de-Ville, where the municipality is based. It is a perfect glimpse at the "millefeuille" of French government - so called after the multi-layered patisserie. Chalons may display an unusual concentration of different types of "fonctionnaires" (civil servants), but it remains the case that across the country nearly one in four of the workforce is still employed by the state. Ask most French people and they would probably say there is nothing intrinsically wrong in that. A big state has always been part of society. But today even the Socialist government admits that the public sector needs to be reduced. They say it is an essential part of the task of restoring order to government accounts - without which debt and deficit levels will reach unsustainable levels. France's problem is two-fold: first, finding the courage to wield the axe; and second, instilling a spirit of free enterprise to take over in those areas where the state has been excised. Gradually across France attitudes to business creation are changing. Younger generations are more aware of changes happening in the rest of the world. Painful change But for many it is all too late. "My children are grown up and they have all gone to pursue their careers abroad - in Asia," says Elisabeth Michel who with her chef husband Jacky runs the wonderful Hotel d'Angleterre in the town centre. "There are so few opportunities here in France for young people who have ideas and want to make a mark. Life is made so hard, I tell you. In France there is a lot of questioning going on at the moment." At the TI Automotive car parts factory, the town's biggest private employer, European Managing Director Oliver Schmeer - a German - takes a similar view. He recognises that the Socialist government has changed its rhetoric, and now talks up the role of business in creating jobs. Last month President Hollande promised to cut social charges for companies, if they in turn promised to employ more workers. But Mr Schmeer says that France, with its ultra-complex labour code, high taxes and militant trade unions, is stuck way below its economic potential. "A lot of people in government still don't understand industry. They don't understand that we rely on customers to place orders, otherwise we have no jobs to offer. We can't offer jobs to people to build things that no-one wants," he says. Chalons is not a rich town. Around two-thirds of adults do not even pay income tax, which shows that most are at the bottom end of the pay scale. Many shops are closed, driven out of business by out-of-town superstores. At night the town is dead. At the job centre, they say that unemployment is around 10.6% - more or less in line with the (near-record) national average. Unemployment benefit kicks in if you have been at least six months in a job and are made redundant. Normally you can expect a monthly pay-off worth around 70% of your former income, for up to two years. Though of course many job-seekers do not qualify for this and just get the basic dole. There have been calls to change the system, to make it less generous: cutting costs and less automatic, so job seekers cannot turn down successive offers. But with joblessness so high in France, there is little political capital to be gained from "bashing" the unemployed, as it is likely be portrayed. Along with a big state, generous welfare is central to France's social contract. But the question is whether either can be sustained at current levels, without dragging the economy down. Bread and circuses. It all costs money.

फ्रांस ने खुलासा किया है कि 2013 के अंतिम तीन महीनों में उसकी सुस्त अर्थव्यवस्था में 0.3% की वृद्धि हुई है। ऋण और घाटे के उच्च स्तर के साथ, सरकार ने देश के बढ़ते सार्वजनिक क्षेत्र को कम करने के लिए कदम उठाना शुरू कर दिया है।