Breastfeeding may boost child's IQ

Prolonged breastfeeding can help babies grow up to be intelligent kids, a new study has found. Breastfeeding longer is associated with better receptive language at 3 years of age and verbal and nonverbal intelligence at age 7 years, US researchers found. Mandy B Belfort of Boston Children's Hospital and colleagues examined the relationships of breastfeeding duration and exclusivity with child cognition at ages 3 and 7 years. Researchers found seven-year-olds breastfed for the first year of life were likely to score four points more in a test of verbal IQ. Verbal intelligence scores in seven-year-olds increased by 0.35 points for every extra month of breastfeeding and 0.29 points per month on the nonverbal one. "In summary, our results support a causal relationship of breastfeeding in infancy with receptive language at age 3 and with verbal and nonverbal IQ at school age," researchers said. The study was published by JAMA Pediatrics, a JAMA Network publication.

Sensex down 147 pts in early trade

The BSE benchmark Sensex today fell over 147 points in early trade dragged down by realty, power and banking sector stocks on sustained selling by funds and retail investors, after RBI lowered GDP forecast amid a falling rupee. Extending losses for the sixth straight session, the 30- share barometer fell by 147.86 points, or 0.76 per cent, to 19,200.48. Sensex has lost almost 955 points in the previous five sessions.

On similar lines, the wide-based National Stock Exchange index, Nifty, declined by 53.80 points, or 0.93 per cent, to 5,701.25. Brokers said steady selling by funds on growth concerns after the Reserve Bank lowered GDP estimates to 5.5 per cent from earlier projection of 5.7 per cent for the current fiscal, dampened the trading sentiment.

Besides, weakening rupee which fell by 60 paise to 61.07 against the dollar in early trade today, was another dampening factor, they said. Meanwhile in the Asian region, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was up by 0.30 per cent, while Japan's Nikkei Index was down 0.48 per cent in early trade.

Jindal Steel and Power Limited Q1 profit up 28 per cent at Rs 494 crore

Jindal Steel and Power (JSPL) today reported a 28.27 per cent increase in its consolidated net profit at Rs 494.28 crore for the April-June quarter over the corresponding period a year ago.

The Naveen Jindal-led firm had reported a net profit of Rs 385.33 crore during the corresponding quarter of 2012-13.

The net sales registered a marginal decline of 4

per cent to Rs 4,490.80 crore. Other income, however, surged to 135 per cent to Rs 49.47 crore, helping the company clock higher profit.

The other income was recorded at Rs 21.06 in the 2012-13

quarter previous fiscal while the net sales stood at Rs

4,680.41 crore in the June-ended quarter of the previous

fiscal.

The steel maker's total income from operations marginally

dropped to Rs 4,540.27 crore in the quarter ended June from Rs 4,701.47 crore in the same period a year ago, it said in a

regulatory filing. Total expenses of the company rose 5.6 per cent during the qurter under review to Rs 3,656.74 crore from Rs 3,461.08 crore in the April-June quarter of 2012-13.

On standalone front, teh company posted "a net profit of

Rs 238.86 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2013 as

compared to Rs 12.42 crore for the quarter ended June 30,

2012, it said.

JSPL shares closed at Rs 202.25 apiece, up 1.45 per

cent from the previous close on the BSE.

John Abraham signs Madras Cafe girl Raashi opposite Ayushmann Khurrana

Debutante Raashi Khanna, who plays John Abraham's wife in Madras Cafe, has reportedly signed another film under John Abraham's production opposite Ayushmann Khurrana but declined to talk about it.

The Delhi girl says she was in awe of John when she met the Bollywood star on the sets for the first time.

"John is a gentleman. He broke the ice through casual conversation and was very easygoing and helpful during the shoots," she said.

A Delhi University graduate, Raashi started her showbiz career with TV commercials. She auditioned for the role and bagged the offer within a week's time. The newcomer is now looking forward to establish herself as an actress in Bollywood.

"I want to be part of every thing that comes to me. Be it commercial or offbeat, I want to establish myself as an actress."

The 22-year-old actress found it challenging to portray a character older than her.

"It was a challenge for me to portray a much mature character on-screen. I was little apprehensive of my capabilities but Shoojit sir (director Shoojit Sircar) helped me perfect my portrayal. I attended three workshops with him and he made me understand it better. I can now pull off mature characters," Raashi told PTI.

Madras Cafe is a spy thriller set against the backdrop of the Sri Lankan Civil War of the 1990s and John plays a RAW agent. The film, which will hit theatre on April 23, also stars Rockstar actress Nargis Fakhri in a prominent role.

The actress plays the role of Ruby Singh in the film.

"In this husband-wife relationship silence does the talking most. She is not aware of her husband's work and when she comes to know about it she does not show it on his face. She is a great influence in his life and shares a beautiful relationship with him," Raashi said.

Marriage is a wonderful place to be

Singer-actress Tina Turner says she has found her "nirvana" after tying the knot with longtime boyfriend Erwin Bach.

Turner, 73, who has been dating Bach for 27 years, said her married life is a wonderful place to be, reported Ace Showbiz.

"It's that happiness that people talk about, when you wish for nothing, when you can finally take a deep breath and say, Everything is good.' It's a wonderful place to be," she said.

The Proud Mary hitmaker and the producer tied the knot earlier this month in a private ceremony in Zurich.

The bride walked down the aisle in a green dress and said she fell for the Giorgio Armani dress at a catwalk show in Beijing.

"I thought, 'I gotta have that, even if I never wear it,' " she says, adding, "Then I thought, 'I know, that will be my wedding dress!," she added.

Asus to open 125 new flagship stores in 2013

ASUS India, a leader in the new digital era, plans to open 125 new flagship stores in the country this year to take the total number of exclusive stores to 200 during 2013.

Unaez Quraishi - Sales and Distribution Director - System Business Group, ASUS India said here today that at present the company has 75 exclusive stores in the country. He said that during 2013, the company plans to open 175 new stores including exclusive stores in all districts of Punjab state and two in Chandigarh.

During his visit to Chandigarh today, he unveiled the Transformer Book TX300, touted as the world's thinnest Window 8 tablet and detachable Notebook, featuring a 13.3 inch full HD IPS display and multi touch. About the Transformer Book launched today, he said that "the ASUS Transformer Book is aesthetically crafted as per what people need and want. We are positive that the world's thinnest Window 8 detachable tablet cum notebook will stun the masses in the way it has been designed to. The Transformer Book is a new element of innovation and will strengthen our commitment to the market. Chandigarh, with plentiful IT talent pool and serving capital for Haryana and Punjab, is imperative to us even in our pan-India retail expansion."

Quraishi said that the ASUS Transformer Book is a 13.3-inch notebook with a detachable tablet which has a Full HD IPS Touch panel and a 178 Degree viewing angle. It comes with an Intel Core processor for an outstanding notebook and tablet performance. Separate storage has been provided for the notebook and tablet with a high-capacity hard drive and an Ultra-fast SSD. The ASUS Transformer Book is available with Windows 8 Professional.

Whether used as a Windows 8 multi-touch tablet or a notebook with keyboard and touchpad, ASUS Transformer Book claims an incredible performance on tap. With two types of internal storage device, the ASUS Transformer Book works the way users want to. In Notebook Mode, ASUS Transformer Book features a backlit keyboard with ambient light control that automatically adjusts its brightness to suit the surroundings, making it easy to keep on top of any productivity task. The Transformer Book has up to five hours' battery life in full notebook mode and up to eight hours in tablet mode.

Reliance Capital Q1 profit jumps three-fold to Rs 133 cr

Reliance Capital today posted nearly three-fold rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 133 crore for the first quarter ended June, 2013 on the back of all-round growth. The company had reported net profit of Rs 45 crore for the April-June quarter of last fiscal, Reliance Capital said in a statement. According to Reliance Capital CEO Sam Ghosh, three subsidiaries contributed to the company's performance.

There was turn around in case of Reliance General which recorded a profit of Rs 10 crore as against a loss of Rs 20 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2012, he said. Besides, there was increase in both topline and bottomline of the Reliance Mutual Fund, he said, adding that consumer finance arm also contributed as there was turnaround in the segment. The total income of the company rose to Rs 1,930 crore in the quarter, against a total income of Rs 1,662 crore in the year-ago period, an increase of 16 per cent.

This was mainly on account of increase in topline of General Insurance and Asset Management businesses, he added. As on June 30, the total assets of the company stood at Rs 42,155 crore. Reliance Capital is the financial services arm of Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group and is present in businesses such as asset management, mutual fund, insurance, brokerage besides other segments of the financial services sector. As on June 30, 2013, the net worth of the company stood at Rs 12,138 crore, an increase of 3 per cent.

However, shares of the company closed at Rs 360.85, down 2.76 per cent on the BSE. On standalone basis, Reliance Capital's Q1 net profit surged to Rs 115 crore at the end of June 2013 as against just Rs 8 crore in the year-ago period. The total income on standalone basis rose to Rs 839 crore as compared to Rs 704 crore in the first quarter of the previous fiscal. Reliance Mutual Fund, a subsidiary of Reliance Capital, recorded a profit before tax of Rs 77 crore for the quarter ended June 30, an increase of 32 per cent. Another subsidiary, Reliance Life Insurance achieved a profit of Rs 56 crore, an increase of 196 per cent.

FIR against producer for threatening Rajkumar Santoshi

An FIR has been registered against producer Firoz Nadiadwala for allegedly threatening filmmaker Rajkumar Santoshi over a financial matter, police said today.

According to police, Nadiadwala (52) had gone to Santoshi's (56) house in Krushna building in suburban Juhu and threatened the latter's servant after he could not find the director-producer.

"The two have been working on a project and Nadiadwala has claimed to have given crores of rupees to Santoshi. In a bid to recover that amount, Nadiadwala has been allegedly

threatening Santoshi for sometime now," said Arun Bhagat, senior inspector at Juhu police station.

Nadiadwala has been booked under IPC sections 452 (house-trespass alter preparation for hurt, assault or wrongfulrestraint) and 506 Part II (criminal intimidation) after the complaint by Santoshi, the officer said, adding that the probe has begun in this case.

According to police sources, Nadiadwala had threatened Santoshi over phone also a number of times.

Initially, Santoshi did not take the matter seriously with an intention to clear the misunderstanding. However, Santoshi later felt Nadiadwala's threats were serious and lodged the complaint yesterday, police said.

Firoz is the cousin of producer Sajid Nadiadwala and an established film producer in Bollywood, with films like Hera Pheri and Welcome in his kitty.

Santoshi's upcoming movie Phata Poster Nikla Hero

starring Shahid Kapoor is scheduled for release next month.

The Filmfare Award winning director has made some of the top grossing movies in the last two decades like Damini, Ghatak, Pukar, Khakhee and Ajab Prem ki Gajab Kahani.