NOIDA/DELHI
VARIETY/NORTHERN REGION
 Azhwars and acharyas look upon Brahman and His creation as exemplifying the indissoluble relationship between the jivatma and the Paramatma. They affirm that out of compassion, the Supreme Brahman creates the universe with His Jnana and Shakti so that the  jivatmas can attain salvation, said Velukkudi Sri Krishnan in a discourse.
If creation is thus seen as the effort of Brahman to claim the lost jivatmas who belong to Him, consequently the result too is seen to benefit Brahman when the jivatmas get back to His fold. Does this mean and imply that Brahman too has unfulfilled desires? No. His omniscience is such that Brahman knows at which birth and at what moment a particular jivatma would attain Him. This knowledge is tantamount to fulfilment of His desire to attain the j ivatma who is unaware of his past or future in the journey to liberation.
Brahman has nothing to attain. There is nothing He is yet to acquire. Krishna quotes His case clearly when He says He is not bound by any sort of duty. There is nothing in all three worlds which He does not already  possess. Yet, He goes on working untiringly because if  He did not, mankind would be lost.
Nammazhwar is overwhelmed while contemplating the many ways in which the Lord takes absolute care of  each and every aspect of His creation. In a hymn, he bemoans with a tinge of sadness that the celestial beings belonging to the heavenly region, the asuras from the nether world and the human beings of this world see the Lord as a mere means to attain their aims in life. What a pity that they are not sensitive to His boundless beauty and compassion!
Who stands to benefit? 
FAITH
Across
1 State army officer makes fuss after a bit of row (8)
6 In favour of women at f ront of boat (4)
9 College's disapproval for modern music genre (6)
10 Work hard to keep referee in clover (7)
13 Looking back, losing act upsets (9)
14 Endorses reverse sides (5) 15 What is in a newspaper some
credit emphatically (4) 16 XI XI (4,2,4) 19 Little time — even year with
another of it (5-5) 21 Symbol of smoothness from
son's family (4) 24 In north-eastern State, a
master goes ahead to gather (5)
25 Mantra's one opening up — second fellow is official investigator (9)
26 One new drink I demonstrated initially turns out to be tasteless (7)
27 Introduce son involved in interchange (6)
28 Inquisitive about operating system in New York (4)
29 Mastermind, English, one never without victory (8)
Down
3 Remains with artist on mountaintop hermitage (6)
4 Such a drive to destination is time-consuming and even tiresome (1,4,4)
5 Round bit of taint in photo of the eye (5)
7 Complaint of boss losing foot in rigorous imprisonment (7)
8 Such an orator won't vilify (4-8)
11 It will develop by more reorganisation (6)
12 Secret entry in short line with power, having lost a number (12)
17 Giving a title to be exalted? (9)
18 Examines Pye grabbing habit back (4,2)
20 How time flies! See, with pals, engaged in frolic! (7)
22 I am only taking son for dip (7)
23 English essayist abandons publicity for English inventor (6)
25 O, that is a memorable number! (5)
THE HINDU CROSSWORD 11283
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Agricultural Prices Commission
The Union Government has decided to set up an Agricultural Prices Commission with a  view to evolving a balanced and integrated price structure in the perspective of the overall needs of economy and with due regard to the interests of the producer and the consumer. The Government on January  2 finalised the terms of  reference of the commission. The commission will have two full-time members besides the Chairman, the personnel of which will be announced in a few days. The commission will keep in view three main points while recommending a price policy for farm produce. They include provision of incentives to the producer to adopt improved technology and maximise output, ensuring rational utilisation of land and
other production resources.
Check on doctors The Union Health
Ministry has tightened up measures to prevent the drain of doctors from the country in recent months, it is learnt. According to a policy decision taken more than a year ago, only  doctors with a post- graduate degree like M.D. or M.S. were allowed to go abroad for higher studies or for taking up employment without any  restriction.
Pak. spying in Delhi In a confessional
 
Cuoco apologises for feminism comments
Kaley Cuoco has apologised after her comments that she did not consider herself a feminist caused backlash. In an interview with Redbook , the Big Bang Theory star when asked whether she considered herself a feminist had said: “I was never that feminist girl demanding equality, but maybe that’s because I’ve never really
faced inequality. I cook for Ryan five nights a week: It makes me feel like a housewife; I love that.” The comments drew criticism with many deriding the 29-year-old actor for belittling the concept but Cuoco defended her comments on Instagram, saying they were “taken out of context” and apologised “if anyone was offended.” — PTI
Gomez deletes controversial photo Pop star Selena Gomez has deleted, from Instagram, the controversial picture of herself popping her leg out to show off a bare ankle at a mosque in Abu Dhabi. Gomez, 22, was in the city to welcome the New Year with friends. The picture got criticism for the singer as the pose was deemed as a sign of impropriety. — PTI
Elvis's personal jets up for sale Elvis Presley’s pair of personal  jets, one complete with gilded wash basin and plush sleeping quarters, will go under the hammer in a sealed-bid auction for mile-high rock and roll memorabilia. The jets, Lisa Marie and Hound Dog II, were designed by the King of Rock and Roll himself. — Reuters
Bono says he may never play guitar again
U2 frontman Bono said he might never play the guitar again after a bicycle accident that injured his hand, shoulder, elbow and face. The Irish rocker fell off his bicycle in New York’s Central Park in November and underwent hours of intensive surgery to wash out his elbow and repair the bone with three metal plates and 18 screws. Bono said in a post on his website late on Thursday that the accident was more serious than he thought. “Recovery has been more difficult than I thought. As I write this, it is not clear that I will ever play guitar again,” he wrote in a New Year post titled ‘Bono’s A to Z of 2014’. “I personally would very much miss fingering the frets of my
green Irish falcon or my (RED) Gretsch. Just for the pleasure, aside from writing tunes.” — AFP
MUMBAI: Even as protests against the film continued, the producers of the Aamir Khan- starrer PK  said on Friday that the film has broken Dhoom 3  record to become the biggest earner in Bollywood by collect- ing Rs. 278.52 crore since its release on December 19.
PK  has faced criticism from right-wing organisations which said the Rajkumar Hirani-di- rected film disrespects Hindu religion, an allegation rejected by its makers.
Hirani, 52, said the film’s word-of-mouth performance has been overwhelming.
“I had never in my wildest dreams thought this film will cross these numbers. It rein- forces faith that content is king.  We can continue making films we believe in… People are
watching the film over and over again. It’s humbling,” the direc- tor said in a statement.
It is the second film by both  Aamir and Hirani after 3 Idiots  (Rs. 202 crore) to be a part of  the highest-earning club.
The Aamir-starrer Dhoom 3  is the second biggest earner with Rs. 271.82 crore followed by the Salman Khan-starrer Kick (Rs. 244 crore) and Shah Rukh Khan’s Chennai Express  (Rs. 228 crore).— PTI
PK  becomes highest grossing Bollywood film
The Aamir Khan- starrer has earned Rs. 278.52 crore till date, breaking the record set by Dhoom 
3 
LONDON: Twitter has launched a new “while you were away” service which recaps impor- tant tweets users may have missed since their last login.
The new feature includes what the micro-blogging site thinks to be the best tweets on the top of a user’s timeline the next time they open their Twitter account, The Guardi-  an reported.
It works like Facebook’s news feed that presents sta- tus updates and posts in a ranked manner.
“Every time you open the Twitter app, you’ll see some- thing great,” Twitter said when it announced the new  feature as part of its “timeline highlights” improvements. — IANS
Twitter to recap missed tweets
DEATH