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The predictions for the Hindu New Year by Guruji Arnav, Chief Consultant, Astro Journey were published by the leading Newspaper-Deccan Herald. Click on the title link of this post to read predictions on the Deccan Herald Website!

Guruji Srii Arnav Medhi Planetary gemologist The latter half of 2005 will see an increased boom in the real est ate market in the City. Rainfall this year will be average and ground water levels will recede. Business will pick up and there will be an increase in FDI. Predictions according to sunsigns Aries: Save for the rainy day as your expenses are likely to mount. Travel could be beneficial. Sudden gains are also indicated. Domestic harmony may be disturbed. Gemstone: Red Coral Taurus: You are likely to acquire land or property. The natives could launch a new project or venture. Keep away from speculation. Those single may tie the knot. Gemstone: Diamond Gemini: There are testing times ahead and there could be delays and disappointments in your work. Expect a change of place. Gemstone: Emerald Cancer: There’s a mixed bag for you all this year. There will be new opportunities for growth though work related travel may prove futile. Health remains a soft spot. It would be nice to have realistic expectations. Gemstone: Natural pearl Leo: You will be on an emotional roller coaster. This could get aggravated with a financial tizzy and your own vulnerability. Your strength of character will sail you through so have faith. Gemstone: Ruby Virgo: You will have a wonderful year and your strong resolve and hard work will keep you on top. Speculative activity could bring in some gains. You are likely to travel. Gemstone: Emerald Libra: At last! The lethargic trend ends this year and you are likely to accomplish some key tasks. The health of loved ones may be a cause of concern but have faith, will heal. Gemstone: Diamond Scorpio: You have a good year ahead with some reasonable gains coming your way. Disputes could be settled in your favour. Worship of Angaraka ensures your success and well- being. Gemstone: Red coral Sagittarius: Materially you stand to gain though there could be some phases of anxiety and confusion. Keep out of arguments and do not sign documents without verifying details personally. Gemstone: Yellow sapphire Capricorn: You will have plenty of opportunities to gain name and fame but there could be some threat to your authority. You may also acquire some property. Maintain marital harmony and take care of health. Gemstone: Blue sapphire Aquarius: Take care of your health. New undertakings will rake in profits and you are likely to take up long distance travel. Beware of cheats. Gemstone: Blue Sapphire. Pisces: Most of your tasks get accomplished, but not without impediments. You may gain material comfort and work related travel will fetch in gain. Gemstone: Yellow sapphire

Ancient Indian wisdom that drinking water should be stored in brass vessels for good health has now been proved scientifically.
Microbiologists say water stored in brass containers could help combat many water-borne diseases. In developing countries, such containers should be used rather than their cheaper alternatives, plastic containers, researchers said.
Water-borne diseases remain a serious threat in many poor regions of the world, with around 2 million children dying each year from diarrhoea. Efforts to provide safe drinking water have had difficulty reaching remote areas.
Even in places with basic water-purification systems, people often opt for riskier wells under trees because the water is cooler, ‘Nature’ magazine quoted Rob Reed, who led the research, as saying.
It said on a recent trip to India, Reed, a microbiologist at Northumbria University in Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom, witnessed villagers doing exactly this.
But he also heard an interesting piece of local wisdom: people believe that traditional brass water containers offer some protection against sickness. The idea, Nature added, intrigued Reed, who was in Asia investigating the anti-bacterial effects of sunlight on water.
He has now found that bacteria are indeed less likely to thrive in brass water pots than in earthenware or plastic ones. “It’s one of the traditional ideas of water treatment and we were able to find a microbiological basis for it,” he was quoted as saying.
Reed, with his colleagues Puja Tandon and Sanjay Chhibber, carried out two series of experiments, ‘Nature’ reported.
In Britain, the researchers filled brass and earthenware vessels with a diluted culture of Escherichia coli bacteria, which can cause illnesses such as dysentery. They then counted the surviving bacteria after 6, 24 and 48 hours. A similar test was carried out in India using naturally contaminated water.
The amount of live E coli in the brass vessels dropped dramatically over time, and after 48 hours they fell to undetectable levels, Reed told the Society for General Microbiology’s meeting this week in Edinburgh, UK.
The key to the result is copper, which can disrupt biological systems, Reed explained. The element interferes with the membranes and enzymes of cells; for bacteria, this can mean death.
Pots made of brass, an alloy of copper and zinc, shed copper particles into the water they contain. The amounts that circulate into the brass water vessels could not harm humans, Reed added.
Even a person drinking 10 litres of such water in a single day would take in less than the daily-recommended dose of copper or zinc, Nature quoted the researchers as saying.
Brass water pots also easily outperformed plastic ones, the researchers discovered. Plastic, Reed was quoted as saying, did not inactivate the bacteria. But many people in developing nations use plastic drinking vessels, because they view them as more modern.