<p>The controversy around the film Padmavati refuses to die down. Even without waiting for the Censor Board&#39;s decision on the film, the Madhya Pradesh government has banned it today. This was preceded by weeks of violent protest by the Karni Sena, a Rajput caste organisation who claims to uphold the goal of national unity.</p>

<p>The members went so far as to issue physical threats against both Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Deepika Padukone, the director and heroine respectively. The jealous defenders of Rajput pride and Hindu nationalism consider the film to be inappropriate. The allegation is the film has a scene where the famed Rajput sati-queen is shown to be dancing in front of the brutal Muslim invader Alauddin Khalji.</p>

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<p>The repeated denials issued by Sanjay so far has failed to pacify the agitators. Consequently, the producers of Padmavati has decided to postpone the release date of the film.</p>

<p>Whereas those protesting the immoral portrayal of Padmavati feel all righteous about their celebrated cause, there are many in India who doesn&#39;t see how such a hullabaloo can be created over the celluloid portrayal of a mythical character. The latter are annoyed with such display of intolerance and goes on to blame the Indian government for the lack of support it has shown so far to defend Deepika and Sanjay.</p>

<p>Veteran actress Shabana Azmi has taken a strong stand today, issuing a clarion call in support of boycotting IFFI. Incidentally, India&#39;s most prestigious film festival is scheduled to be inaugurated today at Goa.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">The entire film industry should boycott IFFI in protest against the threats to <a href="https://twitter.com/deepikapadukone?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@deepikapadukone</a> SLB and <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Padmavati?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Padmavati</a> <a href="https://t.co/VckVB5yRJp">https://t.co/VckVB5yRJp</a></p>
&mdash; Azmi Shabana (@AzmiShabana) <a href="https://twitter.com/AzmiShabana/status/931762168327946240?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 18, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>As the nation awaits this violence and vandalism around Padmavati to wane quickly, the intensity of the responses of those who felt that Padmavati has been dishonoured in the film needs closer probing.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Why are so many people riled up? Even the state governments are not showing restraint as it clear from Madhya Pradesh&#39;s decision to ban the film even before its release. Honestly, this kind of response from one or the other of the BJP-ruled state was not entirely unexpected because of the prudish line they have taken in the past. But what they are saying in defense of their action is what I find reprehensible.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WATCH?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WATCH</a>:Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan says the film which has distorted facts against <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Padmavati?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Padmavati</a>, will not be released in the state <a href="https://t.co/NOBXj6WF3P">pic.twitter.com/NOBXj6WF3P</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI/status/932521044325277696?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>First of all, the 50 BJP MLAs who have lodged their resentment against the movie have not seen the movie. They have, in fact, demanded, a &#39;thorough&#39; screening of the movie before it is released. And what is the basis of their demand? The protesting MLAs are against any &#39;distortion of historical facts&#39;.</p>

<p>So far, all articulations that Padmavati is most possibly a mythical figure, the subject of poems and songs of local bards who drew inspiration from Sufi poet Muhammad Jayasi&#39;s work has fallen on deaf ears. The Higher Education Minister of Madhya Pradesh, who ought to have known better, has also pointed out that Padmavati was &quot;not only a queen but a symbol of Jauhar&quot;.</p>

<p>The replacement of history by myth is a pretty old practise in India. In the days of anti-colonial struggle, such historicisation of myth served the purpose of inspiring a nascent national community to structure its identity around few chosen icons. These icons, mostly culled from Hindu past, were historically shown to put up a resistance against Muslim tyranny.</p>

<p>Thus, when Rabindranath Tagore&#39;s nephew, the famous artist Abanindranath Tagore wrote Rajkahini, he portrayed Padmavati (Rani Padmini) as the heart and soul of Rajput resistance against the treacherous attack of Alauddin Khalji.</p>

<p>It was a very common practise among the nationalists of the Swadeshi Age to eulogise Rani Padmini and other Rajput and Maratha icons who resisted Muslims as national heroes and defenders of Indian tradition. Thus, Padmini was simply transported from the pages of fiction and given a new lease of life as historical figures of flesh and blood.</p>

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<h5>If Padmavati was a symbol of resistance for the anti-colonialist firebrand youths of India, she has transformed into a revered symbol of chastity and womanhood under the current political regime.</h5>
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<p>In their struggle against the oppressive colonial regime, the inspiring Sannyasi rebels of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay&#39;s Anandamath as well as Rani Padmini provided the young revolutionary nationalists a moral and ideological sustenance.</p>

<p>If Padmavati was a symbol of resistance for the anti-colonialist firebrand youths of India, she has transformed into a revered symbol of chastity and womanhood under the current political regime.</p>

<p>In the current time when the fervour of nationalism runs rather high, the ideologically conservative camp and its many constituent groups are hellbent on creating a sacrosanct image of India where the line between myth and history are purposefully kept blurred to serve the political purpose. In the name of cultural nationalism, we are harping on the glory of being a woman of chastity.</p>

<p>All Hindu woman, to be counted as a Hindu woman, needs to be virtuous. The litmus test of virtue, as we all know, is self-sacrifice in face of dishonour as have been done by Sita, by Padmini.</p>

<p>Within this moral trope, Padmavati&#39;s observance of <em>jauhar</em><em> </em><em>vrata</em> becomes an act of resistance against lustful Muslim men. Padmini fought the invaders with her body through sacrificing it. The sacrifice makes Padmini holy, her body becomes the site where chastity and patriotism become perfectly blended. How can such a body, which is an embodiment of a defiant spirit, succumb to earthly pleasure. Such (human) being can&#39;t dance, can&#39;t seek pleasure, can&#39;t cringe in pain.</p>

<p>It is, therefore, redundant to ask whether Rani Padmavati historically existed or not. She has become, for all intent purpose, a symbol. The universal symbol of all chaste Hindu women. That is the reason Padmavati shall not dance. Not even in a celluloid dream sequence.</p>


Padmavati is a universal symbol of all chaste Hindu women. That is the reason Padmavati shall not dance.

The controversy around the film Padmavati refuses to die down. Even without waiting for the Censor Board's decision on the film, the Madhya Pradesh government has banned it today. This was preceded by weeks of violent protest by the Karni Sena, a Rajput caste organisation who claims to uphold the goal of national unity. The members went so far as to issue physical threats against both Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Deepika Padukone, the director and heroine respectively. The jealous defenders of Rajput pride and Hindu nationalism consider the film to be inappropriate. The allegation is the film has a scene where the famed Rajput sati-queen is shown to be dancing in front of the brutal Muslim invader Alauddin Khalji. It was a very common practise among the nationalists of the Swadeshi Age to eulogise Rani Padmini and other Rajput/Maratha icons who resisted Muslims as national heroes and defenders of Indian tradition. × The repeated denials issued by Sanjay so far has failed to pacify the agitators. Consequently, the producers of Padmavati has decided to postpone the release date of the film. Whereas those protesting the immoral portrayal of Padmavati feel all righteous about their celebrated cause, there are many in India who doesn't see how such a hullabaloo can be created over the celluloid portrayal of a mythical character. The latter are annoyed with such display of intolerance and goes on to blame the Indian government for the lack of support it has shown so far to defend Deepika and Sanjay. Veteran actress Shabana Azmi has taken a strong stand today, issuing a clarion call in support of boycotting IFFI. Incidentally, India's most prestigious film festival is scheduled to be inaugurated today at Goa. The entire film industry should boycott IFFI in protest against the threats to @deepikapadukone SLB and #Padmavati https://t.co/VckVB5yRJp — Azmi Shabana (@AzmiShabana) November 18, 2017 × As the nation awaits this violence and vandalism around Padmavati to wane quickly, the intensity of the responses of those who felt that Padmavati has been dishonoured in the film needs closer probing. Why are so many people riled up? Even the state governments are not showing restraint as it clear from Madhya Pradesh's decision to ban the film even before its release. Honestly, this kind of response from one or the other of the BJP-ruled state was not entirely unexpected because of the prudish line they have taken in the past. But what they are saying in defense of their action is what I find reprehensible. #WATCH:Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan says the film which has distorted facts against #Padmavati, will not be released in the state pic.twitter.com/NOBXj6WF3P — ANI (@ANI) November 20, 2017 × First of all, the 50 BJP MLAs who have lodged their resentment against the movie have not seen the movie. They have, in fact, demanded, a 'thorough' screening of the movie before it is released. And what is the basis of their demand? The protesting MLAs are against any 'distortion of historical facts'. So far, all articulations that Padmavati is most possibly a mythical figure, the subject of poems and songs of local bards who drew inspiration from Sufi poet Muhammad Jayasi's work has fallen on deaf ears. The Higher Education Minister of Madhya Pradesh, who ought to have known better, has also pointed out that Padmavati was "not only a queen but a symbol of Jauhar". The replacement of history by myth is a pretty old practise in India. In the days of anti-colonial struggle, such historicisation of myth served the purpose of inspiring a nascent national community to structure its identity around few chosen icons. These icons, mostly culled from Hindu past, were historically shown to put up a resistance against Muslim tyranny. Thus, when Rabindranath Tagore's nephew, the famous artist Abanindranath Tagore wrote Rajkahini, he portrayed Padmavati (Rani Padmini) as the heart and soul of Rajput resistance against the treacherous attack of Alauddin Khalji. It was a very common practise among the nationalists of the Swadeshi Age to eulogise Rani Padmini and other Rajput and Maratha icons who resisted Muslims as national heroes and defenders of Indian tradition. Thus, Padmini was simply transported from the pages of fiction and given a new lease of life as historical figures of flesh and blood. If Padmavati was a symbol of resistance for the anti-colonialist firebrand youths of India, she has transformed into a revered symbol of chastity and womanhood under the current political regime. × In their struggle against the oppressive colonial regime, the inspiring Sannyasi rebels of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay's Anandamath as well as Rani Padmini provided the young revolutionary nationalists a moral and ideological sustenance. If Padmavati was a symbol of resistance for the anti-colonialist firebrand youths of India, she has transformed into a revered symbol of chastity and womanhood under the current political regime. In the current time when the fervour of nationalism runs rather high, the ideologically conservative camp and its many constituent groups are hellbent on creating a sacrosanct image of India where the line between myth and history are purposefully kept blurred to serve the political purpose. In the name of cultural nationalism, we are harping on the glory of being a woman of chastity. All Hindu woman, to be counted as a Hindu woman, needs to be virtuous. The litmus test of virtue, as we all know, is self-sacrifice in face of dishonour as have been done by Sita, by Padmini. Within this moral trope, Padmavati's observance of jauhar vrata becomes an act of resistance against lustful Muslim men. Padmini fought the invaders with her body through sacrificing it. The sacrifice makes Padmini holy, her body becomes the site where chastity and patriotism become perfectly blended. How can such a body, which is an embodiment of a defiant spirit, succumb to earthly pleasure. Such (human) being can't dance, can't seek pleasure, can't cringe in pain. It is, therefore, redundant to ask whether Rani Padmavati historically existed or not. She has become, for all intent purpose, a symbol. The universal symbol of all chaste Hindu women. That is the reason Padmavati shall not dance. Not even in a celluloid dream sequence.

Rani Padmavati shall not dance. But why?

<p>Pop singer Katy Perry has been &quot;indefinitely&quot; banned from entering China, PageSix reported on Saturday.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Perry, who is known as &#39;Fruit Sister&#39; in China was said to perform at&nbsp;the Victoria Secret&rsquo;s Fashion Show in Shanghai next week but her visa was denied by the Chinese officials due to a performance in 2015 in Taipei, Taiwan in which she wore a sequined, green dress that had sunflower appliques.</p>

<p>The outfit created a big controversy as the sunflower had been adopted the previous year by anti-China protesters as a symbol, media reports said. &nbsp;</p>

<p>The fact that she also supported a Taiwanese flag as a cape during the show&nbsp;did not help her case as China and Taiwan have not had the best relations for several years. However, her intention to make a political statement through this is unknown.&nbsp;</p>

<p>PageSix reported that the Chinese officials skim through artists&#39; social media profiles as well as previous news reports to understand if any activities have been adopted&nbsp;which could be posed offensive in any way whatsoever.</p>

<p>Supermodel Gigi Hadid was&nbsp;earlier denied entry to China following the Victoria&#39;s Secret Fashion Show because of an Instagram video posted by her showing her imitating a Buddha by squinting her eyes.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Reports say that Hadid had been criticized in China following the video and even apologized on the Chinese social media site, Weibo.</p>

<p>Other models including Julia Belyakova, Kate Grigorieva, and Irina Sharipova have also had their visas denied by the officials, reports confirmed.&nbsp;</p>

<p>According to media reports, Perry will be replaced by Harry Styles in the show.</p>


Perry, who is known as the 'Fruit Sister' in China was said to perform at the Victoria Secret?s Fashion Show in Shanghai next week.

Pop singer Katy Perry has been "indefinitely" banned from entering China, PageSix reported on Saturday. Perry, who is known as 'Fruit Sister' in China was said to perform at the Victoria Secret’s Fashion Show in Shanghai next week but her visa was denied by the Chinese officials due to a performance in 2015 in Taipei, Taiwan in which she wore a sequined, green dress that had sunflower appliques. The outfit created a big controversy as the sunflower had been adopted the previous year by anti-China protesters as a symbol, media reports said. The fact that she also supported a Taiwanese flag as a cape during the show did not help her case as China and Taiwan have not had the best relations for several years. However, her intention to make a political statement through this is unknown. PageSix reported that the Chinese officials skim through artists' social media profiles as well as previous news reports to understand if any activities have been adopted which could be posed offensive in any way whatsoever. Supermodel Gigi Hadid was earlier denied entry to China following the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show because of an Instagram video posted by her showing her imitating a Buddha by squinting her eyes. Reports say that Hadid had been criticized in China following the video and even apologized on the Chinese social media site, Weibo. Other models including Julia Belyakova, Kate Grigorieva, and Irina Sharipova have also had their visas denied by the officials, reports confirmed. According to media reports, Perry will be replaced by Harry Styles in the show.

Katy Perry banned from entering China: Reports

<p>Remember the much debated film&nbsp;<em>Lipstick Under My Burkha?&nbsp;</em></p>

<p>The film<em>&nbsp;Lipstick Waale Sapne </em>(Lipstick Under My Burkha in English) is an Indian film directed by Alankrita Shrivastava and produced by Prakash Jha. It came under <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/indias-censor-board-refuses-to-certify-lipstick-under-my-burkha-12748">controversy</a> after The Censor Board of India (CBFC) refused to certify the film, stating that &quot;The story is lady oriented, their fantasy above life. There are contanious sexual scenes, abusive words, audio pornography and a bit sensitive touch about one particular section of society&quot;.&nbsp;</p>

<p>However, there is good news for those who believe in creative freedom.&nbsp;The film has now become eligible for Golden Globes after it was chosen as&nbsp;one of the official Hollywood Foreign Press Association Screening entries at the International Film Festival of Los Angeles. The Golden Globes&nbsp;is run by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and is expected to be held in january 2018.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&ldquo;We are honoured that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association has chosen our opening night film, <em>Lipstick Under My Burkha</em>, to be an official Golden Globes qualifying screening. The director of the film will now have the opportunity to properly plan a Golden Globes campaign should she choose to submit the film for nomination,&rdquo; Director of Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles Christina Marouda said in a press statement.</p>

<p>The film stars Konkona Sen Sharma, Ratna Pathak, Aahana Kumra and Plabita Borthakur in lead roles along with Sushant Singh, Vikrant Massey, Shashank Arora, Vaibhav Tatwawaadi and Jagat Singh Solanki.&nbsp;The trailer of the film was released on 14 October 2016 while the film premiered at the Tokyo and Mumbai Film Festivals, where it won the Spirit of Asia Prize and the Oxfam Award for Best Film on Gender Equality.&nbsp;</p>

<p><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="430" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EpHqeHF8NM0" width="970"></iframe></p>

<p>The storyline of the movie revolves around&nbsp;four women: burqa-clad college girl, a young beautician, a mother of three and a 55-year-old widow who rediscovers her sexuality.</p>

<p>But while the movie receives more accolades on global turf, the film is not yet realeased in India. Are you listening CBFC?&nbsp;</p>

<p>(WION)</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


The movie was refused certification by The Censor Board of India (CBFC) for being too 'lady-oriented'

Remember the much debated film Lipstick Under My Burkha? The film Lipstick Waale Sapne (Lipstick Under My Burkha in English) is an Indian film directed by Alankrita Shrivastava and produced by Prakash Jha. It came under controversy after The Censor Board of India (CBFC) refused to certify the film, stating that "The story is lady oriented, their fantasy above life. There are contanious sexual scenes, abusive words, audio pornography and a bit sensitive touch about one particular section of society". However, there is good news for those who believe in creative freedom. The film has now become eligible for Golden Globes after it was chosen as one of the official Hollywood Foreign Press Association Screening entries at the International Film Festival of Los Angeles. The Golden Globes is run by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and is expected to be held in january 2018. “We are honoured that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association has chosen our opening night film, Lipstick Under My Burkha, to be an official Golden Globes qualifying screening. The director of the film will now have the opportunity to properly plan a Golden Globes campaign should she choose to submit the film for nomination,” Director of Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles Christina Marouda said in a press statement. The film stars Konkona Sen Sharma, Ratna Pathak, Aahana Kumra and Plabita Borthakur in lead roles along with Sushant Singh, Vikrant Massey, Shashank Arora, Vaibhav Tatwawaadi and Jagat Singh Solanki. The trailer of the film was released on 14 October 2016 while the film premiered at the Tokyo and Mumbai Film Festivals, where it won the Spirit of Asia Prize and the Oxfam Award for Best Film on Gender Equality. The storyline of the movie revolves around four women: burqa-clad college girl, a young beautician, a mother of three and a 55-year-old widow who rediscovers her sexuality. But while the movie receives more accolades on global turf, the film is not yet realeased in India. Are you listening CBFC? (WION)

Indian movie 'Lipstick Under My Burkha' eligible for Golden Globes

The hole in the ozone layer over the Antarctica has begun to shrink, signaling good news for the environment, decades after an international accord to phase out certain pollutants, researchers said on Thursday.<br />
<br />
The study found that the ozone hole had shrunk by 1.5 million square miles (four million square kilometers), an area about the size of India, since 2000.<br />
<br />
&quot;It&#39;s a big surprise,&quot; said lead author Susan Solomon, an atmospheric chemist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in an interview with Science magazine.<br />
<br />
&quot;I didn&#39;t think it would be this early,&quot; she added.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
The study attributed the ozone&#39;s recovery to the &quot;continuing decline of atmospheric chlorine originating from chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs),&quot; or chemicals that were once emitted by dry cleaning, refrigerators, hairspray and other aerosols.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
Most of the world signed on to the Montreal Protocol in 1987, which banned the use of CFCs.<br />
<br />
&quot;We can now be confident that the things we&#39;ve done have put the planet on a path to heal,&quot; said Solomon.<br />
<br />
Co-author Anja Schmidt, an academic research fellow in volcanic impacts at the University of Leeds, agreed, describing the Montreal Protocol as &quot;a true success story that provided a solution to a global environmental issue.&quot;<br />
<br />
The ozone hole was first discovered in the 1950s. It reached record size in October 2015, but Solomon and colleagues determined that this was due to the eruption of the Chilean volcano Calbuco that same year.<br />
<br />
The volcano slightly delayed the recovery of the ozone, which is sensitive to chlorine, temperature and sunlight.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
&quot;Volcanic injections of particles cause greater than usual ozone depletion,&quot; said Schmidt.<br />
<br />
&quot;Such eruptions are a sporadic source of tiny, airborne particles that provide the necessary chemical conditions for the chlorine from CFCs introduced into the atmosphere to react efficiently with ozone in the atmosphere above Antarctica,&quot; Schmidt added.<br />
<br />
The ozone goes through a regular cycle each year, with depletion of ozone starting in late August at the end of Antarctica&#39;s dark winter.<br />
<br />
The hole size typically peaks in size in October.<br />
<br />
The overall trend towards recovery became apparent when scientists studied measurements from satellites, ground-based instruments and weather balloons in the month of September, not October.<br />
<br />
&quot;I think people, myself included, had been too focused on October, because that&#39;s when the ozone hole is enormous,&quot; said Solomon, adding &quot;But October is also subject to the slings and arrows of other things that vary, like slight changes in meteorology.&quot;<br />
<br />
Co-author Ryan Neely, a lecturer in observational atmospheric science at Leeds, said the scope of the study allowed the team to quantify the separate impacts of man-made pollutants, changes in temperature and winds, and volcanoes, on the size and magnitude of the Antarctic ozone hole.<br />
<br />
&quot;Observations and computer models agree,&quot; he said, adding, &quot;Healing of the Antarctic ozone has begun.&quot;<br />
<br />
(AFP)

Most countries had signed the Montreal Protocol in 1987 which banned the use of CFCs whose decrease led to this development

The hole in the ozone layer over the Antarctica has begun to shrink, signaling good news for the environment, decades after an international accord to phase out certain pollutants, researchers said on Thursday. The study found that the ozone hole had shrunk by 1.5 million square miles (four million square kilometers), an area about the size of India, since 2000. "It's a big surprise," said lead author Susan Solomon, an atmospheric chemist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in an interview with Science magazine. "I didn't think it would be this early," she added. The study attributed the ozone's recovery to the "continuing decline of atmospheric chlorine originating from chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)," or chemicals that were once emitted by dry cleaning, refrigerators, hairspray and other aerosols. Most of the world signed on to the Montreal Protocol in 1987, which banned the use of CFCs. "We can now be confident that the things we've done have put the planet on a path to heal," said Solomon. Co-author Anja Schmidt, an academic research fellow in volcanic impacts at the University of Leeds, agreed, describing the Montreal Protocol as "a true success story that provided a solution to a global environmental issue." The ozone hole was first discovered in the 1950s. It reached record size in October 2015, but Solomon and colleagues determined that this was due to the eruption of the Chilean volcano Calbuco that same year. The volcano slightly delayed the recovery of the ozone, which is sensitive to chlorine, temperature and sunlight. "Volcanic injections of particles cause greater than usual ozone depletion," said Schmidt. "Such eruptions are a sporadic source of tiny, airborne particles that provide the necessary chemical conditions for the chlorine from CFCs introduced into the atmosphere to react efficiently with ozone in the atmosphere above Antarctica," Schmidt added. The ozone goes through a regular cycle each year, with depletion of ozone starting in late August at the end of Antarctica's dark winter. The hole size typically peaks in size in October. The overall trend towards recovery became apparent when scientists studied measurements from satellites, ground-based instruments and weather balloons in the month of September, not October. "I think people, myself included, had been too focused on October, because that's when the ozone hole is enormous," said Solomon, adding "But October is also subject to the slings and arrows of other things that vary, like slight changes in meteorology." Co-author Ryan Neely, a lecturer in observational atmospheric science at Leeds, said the scope of the study allowed the team to quantify the separate impacts of man-made pollutants, changes in temperature and winds, and volcanoes, on the size and magnitude of the Antarctic ozone hole. "Observations and computer models agree," he said, adding, "Healing of the Antarctic ozone has begun." (AFP)

Ozone hole over Antarctica shows signs of healing: Study

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