Mysteries From India - The Village Of Twins

Kodinhi is a village in Malappuram district in Kerala, India. Administered by the Nannambra panchayat, the village came to international attention for the unusually large number of multiple births in the region.

Kodinhi only has around 2,000 families, yet there are 250 sets of twins officially registered there. In fact, there could be many more—experts estimate there could be as many as 350 sets of twins in the area.

Despite several studies being conducted, the exact cause of this phenomenon is yet to be ascertained. Women from Kodinhi married off to faraway places are also known to give birth to twins. The number of twin births in Kodinhi has been increasing over the years

Research has suggested that the multiple births could be related to the eating habits of the women in the region; though no direct correlation between dietary intake and twin births has been observed.

Doctors have absolutely no idea what is causing this strange phenomenon. They assume there must be some unknown hereditary factor at work, or maybe it’s something they eat. Until they find out for sure, the Village of Twins remains one of the strangest curiosities of perhaps the most mysterious country in the world

Similar phenomenon of a large number of twin births within a small isolated community has been observed in Cândido Godói, Brazil & in the town of Igbo-Ora in Nigeria

Want to buy a car... but unsure if you can afford one or not??

Often we consider the price of a car while buying it, and may be the power, comfort, fuel economy etc. Especially while buying a low cost car, we put emphasis on fuel economy but often neglect other costs associated with it. Here's a approximate tabular representation that how a car's running cost may go to almost 40-50% of its purchase price.

These table which are based on very raw calculations show that if you drive your car for approx 30 Kms a day for going to your office and market etc., you may run into shedding about 40% of its purchase price every year. This doesn't takes into account cost for emergency works like accidental damage, techincal problems etc. 

Of course if you are going for further higher grade cars / luxury cars, these figures may not scare you, but if you are a middle class working person, you may want to re-think about your plan to buy a new car. 

And for those who consider car is a necessity now a days, this table still indicates that owning a car shall still be considered as a luxury meant for your comfort only.

Misplaced sympathy & reaction to Salman Khan found guilty in the 2002 hit-and-run case*

The reactions to film actor Salman Khan found guilty in a 13-year-old hit-and-run case and sentenced to five years in jail have been predictable. The film fraternity has expressed 'shock' over the judgement. Some have expressed sympathies. Even some of the TV news channels have dramatised the entire court proceedings almost giving the impression that the judgement is harsh.

The 'Dream Girl' of Bollywood and BJP MP from Mathura Hema Malini said that her sympathies are with Salman Khan. She hastily added that judgement has to be respected too.

Many other cine celebrities who are unaware of the criminal justice system in India, which says all are equal and the sentencing will also be equal, are behaving like Salman Khan is a poor fellow who has been punished for no fault of his. Fortunately, nobody has attacked the judge or the judiciary because of the fear of contempt proceedings.

Shocking, very few people are openly hailing the judgement and expressing sympathies with the pavement dwellers who died and injured due to Salman Khan's drunken driving.

While the film fraternity as expected closed ranks to express sympathy for one of their own, there is not a single word about Nurullah Mehboob Sharif, the man who was killed in the accident, and his family which is still struggling to lead a decent life. Even the injured Kalim Mohammed Pathan, Munna Malai Khan, Abdullah Rauf Shaikh and Muslim Shaikh have been completely missing from the discourse.

Even with all the shortcomings, our judiciary has time and again proved that it will not spare anybody. The same judiciary has sent another big film star Sanjay Dutt to jail in the Mumbai bomb blast case of 1993. The same judiciary has sent mighty people like AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa, business tycoons Subrato Roy Sahara and Ramalinga Raju, self-confessed godman Aasaram, the powerful Haryana politician family Chautalas and many others in various other cases across India.

Instead of shedding tears for Salman Khan's plight, the so-called educated society must hail the judgement and express sympathies with the poor victims of Salman Khan's rash driving.

Salman Khan seems to have realised that he is also a human being after the judge Deshapande declared him guilty of all charges. With tears in his eyes and folded hands, he requested Additional Sessions judge DW Deshpande to sentence him as an ordinary citizen and not as a super film star.

Only when they are down and faced with the harsh realities of life, our rich, famous and the mighty come down to earth and start behaving like commoners. Once again thanks to our judiciary.

These things are not just India specific phenomenon. Even in the West, the so-called educated and the rich people do similar things.

The biggest lesson from Salman Khan case is - the judiciary has once again proved that it is above everything and will not spare anybody, even if you are Salman Khan.

That's the spirit of our Constitution and the law. We should not be guided by misplaced sympathy, whoever may be the guilty.

While the film fraternity closed ranks to express sympathy for one of their own, there is not a single word about Nurullah Mehboob Sharif, the man killed in the accident.

* Source: ibnlive.com