Bal Thackeray hits out at TV channels in editorial

Bal Thackeray hits out at TV channels in editorial

Mumbai, March 2 -  Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray, who is undergoing treatment at the Lilavati Hospital here, has lashed out at television channels and their crew over the way in which they were monitoring his health and reporting on it.
In a personalised editorial in party mouthpiece “Saamna”, Thackeray said that TV channels were engaged in stiff competition over reporting the minutest details of his health. 

“While one channel  said I suffer from high blood pressure, another  said I had developed low blood pressure,” he said in the editorial. 

“Apparently, they are more in the know of my health than the dedicated team of doctors attending on me,” he added sarcastically. 

He attributed the extensive coverage to the scramble for TRP rating points among TV channels, which forced them to park OB vans outside the hospital for the past five days, cameras trying to catch the smallest unusual activity and the visitors calling on him. 

Expressing sympathy for the electronic media staffers, the editorial said the poor journalists and technicians have been waiting on the pavements in the blazing sun for so many days and nights without going home, having a proper bath or proper food. 

All this is because they don’t want to be left out in the rush for “breaking news” and giving “hit and hot” headlines. 

Taking pity on their plight, he said in the editorial that he has instructed his local municipal corporator Bala Sawant to make all arrangements, including a mobile toilet, for the benefit of the TV crew. 

Terming his spell in hospital as “a prison of love”, Thackeray said that the priority was not his health, but the “health of the nation”. 

“Don’t worry about my health, be concerned about the health of Maharashtra and the whole country,” he said referring to the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party fighting over sharing seats for the parliamentary elections. 

The 82-year-old was admitted to the hospital Thursday after a bout of incessant coughing. Giving a brief of his health, the editorial said he did feel a bit unwell last week and was taken to Lilavati Hospital for a routine check-up. 

He was due to be discharged the same day, but doctors insisted that they may as well carry out more tests - so he stayed put for another five days. 

“A decision will be taken in a day or so when the doctors feel I am fit and fine to go home,” he said in the editorial.

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India confident of success

India confident of success
Tourists look to improve on poor record in New Zealand


Mahendra Singh Dhoni's India flew out to New Zealand on Thursday confident they can improve on a miserable Test record in the Black Caps' back yard.

Not only have India had just one series victory in New Zealand back in 1968, they have not won a Test match there for more than 30 years.

But coach Gary Kirsten believes the team, riding high on the back of home series wins over Australia and England, are now capable of dealing with the country's unfamiliar weather and pitches.

"We have a very balanced team - in batting, pace and spin bowling," said the South African. "We are capable of playing in any conditions.

"Conditions will be vastly different and the weather would be cold with a bit of rain. But we have the players to overcome these."

The six-week tour opens next Wednesday with the first of two Twenty20 internationals. India and New Zealand will also play five one-dayers and three Tests.

The previous tour in 2002 was a nightmare for India, who, under Sourav Ganguly, lost both Tests in "windy" Wellington and Hamilton inside three days, before being thrashed 5-2 in the one-day series.

Seamer-friendly pitches and cold and windy conditions all made life difficult for the tourists, with only Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid scoring a half-century apiece.
Tough

"It's going to be a tough tour," captain Dhoni told reporters.

"Every place has its challenges. Foreign players come to India and struggle against spin and bounce. We would focus on planning well and in executing those plans. The results will follow."

Kirsten is not worried about the absence of any practice match ahead of the Twenty20 opener on 25th February, saying four days of net sessions will put his team in gear.

Only six players in the current squad - Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Dravid, Venkatsai Laxman, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh - have played a Test in New Zealand before.

"Conditions can vary in New Zealand," Kirsten said. "When the Indian team went there in 2002 the ball was seaming around. But when the West Indies played there recently, the wickets were flat.

"So we can assess the conditions only when we get there."

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