After 69 long years, India’s national carrier&nbsp;Air India was officially handed over to Tata Group on Thursday.

N Chandrasekaran, the chairman of Tata Sons—who control the entire Tata conglomerate—called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi earlier in the day ahead of the official handover.

However, even before the new and revamped airline takes off, the company seems to have already taken various measures to make the airline competitive again.

Part of this makeover includes making the cabin crew “well-groomed” and presentable to the passengers. And one way to make sure that the staff look good is to check their weight.

According to reports, Air India is planning to check the body mass index (BMI) of its cabin crew, as well as their overall grooming and appearance.

The order dated January 20, 2022, states that “grooming associates” have been assigned to record the BMI of cabin crew when they report for flight

“These observations must be compiled and sent to my office,” Vasudha Chandana, Executive Director —In-flight Services, Air India, said in the order to all cabin crew members.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/tatas-introduce-enhanced-meal-service-on-air-india-flights-448035">Tatas introduce 'enhanced meal service' on Air India flights</a>

Each cabin crew shall be observed or assessed once on a quarterly basis, she noted.

But the order drew flak from the worker unions who deemed the missive as “dehumanising”.

The carrier's two unions —Air India Employees' Union (AIEU) and All India Cabin Crew Association (AICCA) —on Monday wrote a letter to Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) Vikram Dev Dutt opposing the order on the grounds that it is dehumanising and in violation of rules prescribed by aviation regulator DGCA.

The AICCA has also threatened to seek legal recourse if the said requirement on BMI/weight checks by grooming associates is not withdrawn.

Among the other measures taken by the Tata management includes flight announcements addressing passengers as ‘Guests’, and a recorded message of Ratan Tata to be played in each and every flight.

The Tata group already has announced an ‘enhanced meal service’ in Air India’s four flights, namely AI864 Mumbai-Delhi, AI687 Mumbai-Delhi, AI945 Mumbai-Abu Dhabi and AI639 Mumbai-Bengaluru from January 27 only. This will be expanded in other flights and routes in a phased manner.

In October last year, Tata Group announced the winning bidder for Air India with a bid amount of Rs 18,000 crore. Tatas would pay Rs 2,700 crore cash and takeover Rs 15,300 crore of the airline's debt.

(With inputs from agencies)

After 69 long years, India’s national carrier Air India was officially handed over to Tata Group on Thursday. N Chandrasekaran, the chairman of Tata Sons—who control the entire Tata conglomerate—called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi earlier in the day ahead of the official handover.

After 69 long years, India’s national carrier Air India was officially handed over to Tata Group on Thursday. N Chandrasekaran, the chairman of Tata Sons—who control the entire Tata conglomerate—called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi earlier in the day ahead of the official handover. However, even before the new and revamped airline takes off, the company seems to have already taken various measures to make the airline competitive again. Part of this makeover includes making the cabin crew “well-groomed” and presentable to the passengers. And one way to make sure that the staff look good is to check their weight. According to reports, Air India is planning to check the body mass index (BMI) of its cabin crew, as well as their overall grooming and appearance. The order dated January 20, 2022, states that “grooming associates” have been assigned to record the BMI of cabin crew when they report for flight “These observations must be compiled and sent to my office,” Vasudha Chandana, Executive Director —In-flight Services, Air India, said in the order to all cabin crew members. Also read | Tatas introduce 'enhanced meal service' on Air India flights Each cabin crew shall be observed or assessed once on a quarterly basis, she noted. But the order drew flak from the worker unions who deemed the missive as “dehumanising”. The carrier's two unions —Air India Employees' Union (AIEU) and All India Cabin Crew Association (AICCA) —on Monday wrote a letter to Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) Vikram Dev Dutt opposing the order on the grounds that it is dehumanising and in violation of rules prescribed by aviation regulator DGCA. The AICCA has also threatened to seek legal recourse if the said requirement on BMI/weight checks by grooming associates is not withdrawn. Among the other measures taken by the Tata management includes flight announcements addressing passengers as ‘Guests’, and a recorded message of Ratan Tata to be played in each and every flight. The Tata group already has announced an ‘enhanced meal service’ in Air India’s four flights, namely AI864 Mumbai-Delhi, AI687 Mumbai-Delhi, AI945 Mumbai-Abu Dhabi and AI639 Mumbai-Bengaluru from January 27 only. This will be expanded in other flights and routes in a phased manner. In October last year, Tata Group announced the winning bidder for Air India with a bid amount of Rs 18,000 crore. Tatas would pay Rs 2,700 crore cash and takeover Rs 15,300 crore of the airline's debt. (With inputs from agencies)

Tata takes over Air India. What does it mean for air hostesses?

A global study by the&nbsp;Imperial College, London, United Kingdom has found a direct relationship between the poor diet of children and the decreasing average height and increasing weight of the&nbsp;school-aged children.

In the study, recently published in the Lancet, revealed that the height and weight of the school-aged children vary across the globe. As per the observations, the poor diets of children may bring a gap of nearly&nbsp;20cm (7.9inches) between the tallest and the shortest countries.

The researchers used data of nearly&nbsp;65 million children aged five to 19 years old in a total of 193 countries. After studying the data, the researchers found a 20cm gap between the tallest and the shortest countries, which&nbsp;represented an eight-year growth gap for girls and a six-year growth gap for boys. In one of the instances, the average height of a 19-year-old Bangladeshi girl was similar to the height of an 11-year-old boy from the Netherlands.

A<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/around-29-million-women-and-girls-victims-of-modern-slavery-un-report-334530">lso read|&nbsp;Around 29 million women and girls victims of modern slavery: UN report</a>

It also reported that on the basis of data collected between&nbsp;1985 to 2019, the tallest 19-year-olds in 2019 belonged to the&nbsp;northwest and central Europe, including the Netherlands, Montenegro, Denmark and Iceland. On the other hand, south and southeast&nbsp;Asia, Latin America and East Africa, including Timor-Leste, Papua New Guinea, Guatemala and Bangladesh were the shortest 19-year-olds in 2019. Meanwhile, countries such as China, South Korea and a few in Southeast Asia saw improvements in the average height during the&nbsp;35-year period.

Through this study, the researchers have been able to reflect on the role, importance and current input of nutrition, vitamins and minerals in a child's meal.&nbsp;

The study also looked at children's&nbsp;&nbsp;Body Mass Index (BMI), which is a measure of height and weight ratio and gives an indication of whether or not a person has a healthy body weight with respect to their height. As per the data collected, the largest BMI of a 19-year-old was found in&nbsp;Pacific islands, Middle East, USA and New Zealand, and the lowest were found in the&nbsp;south Asian countries such as India and Bangladesh.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/one-stillbirth-every-16-seconds-and-this-could-get-worse-due-to-covid-19-pandemic-333385">Also read|&nbsp;One stillbirth every 16 seconds and this could get worse due to COVID-19 pandemic</a>

One of the most important observations made by this study is that children in the majority of the countries were healthy, as per the stands set by the World Health Organisation (WHO), by the age of five. However, the rate at which the height increased kept massively decreasing over the course of years.

"Children in some countries grow healthily to five years, but fall behind in school years. This shows that there is an imbalance between investment in improving nutrition in pre-schoolers, and in school-aged children and adolescents. This issue is especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic when schools are closed throughout the world, and many poor families are unable to provide adequate nutrition for their children," explained&nbsp;Professor Majid Ezzati, senior author of the study from Imperial's School of Public Health.

The researchers, through this study, hope that the countries will be motivated to decrease the price of the nutritious food, for the sake of the future of their country. "Our findings should motivate policies that increase the availability and reduce the cost of nutritious foods, as this will help children grow taller without gaining excessive weight for their height. These initiatives include food vouchers towards nutritious foods for low-income families, and free healthy school meal programmes which are particularly under threat during the pandemic. These actions would enable children to grow taller without gaining excessive weight, with lifelong benefits for their health and wellbeing," said&nbsp;Dr Andrea Rodriguez Martinez, the lead author of the study from Imperial's School of Public Health.

A global study by the Imperial College, London, United Kingdom has found a direct relationship between the poor diet of children and the decreasing average height and increasing weight of the school-aged children.

A global study by the Imperial College, London, United Kingdom has found a direct relationship between the poor diet of children and the decreasing average height and increasing weight of the school-aged children. In the study, recently published in the Lancet, revealed that the height and weight of the school-aged children vary across the globe. As per the observations, the poor diets of children may bring a gap of nearly 20cm (7.9inches) between the tallest and the shortest countries. The researchers used data of nearly 65 million children aged five to 19 years old in a total of 193 countries. After studying the data, the researchers found a 20cm gap between the tallest and the shortest countries, which represented an eight-year growth gap for girls and a six-year growth gap for boys. In one of the instances, the average height of a 19-year-old Bangladeshi girl was similar to the height of an 11-year-old boy from the Netherlands. Also read| Around 29 million women and girls victims of modern slavery: UN report It also reported that on the basis of data collected between 1985 to 2019, the tallest 19-year-olds in 2019 belonged to the northwest and central Europe, including the Netherlands, Montenegro, Denmark and Iceland. On the other hand, south and southeast Asia, Latin America and East Africa, including Timor-Leste, Papua New Guinea, Guatemala and Bangladesh were the shortest 19-year-olds in 2019. Meanwhile, countries such as China, South Korea and a few in Southeast Asia saw improvements in the average height during the 35-year period. Through this study, the researchers have been able to reflect on the role, importance and current input of nutrition, vitamins and minerals in a child's meal. The study also looked at children's Body Mass Index (BMI), which is a measure of height and weight ratio and gives an indication of whether or not a person has a healthy body weight with respect to their height. As per the data collected, the largest BMI of a 19-year-old was found in Pacific islands, Middle East, USA and New Zealand, and the lowest were found in the south Asian countries such as India and Bangladesh. Also read| One stillbirth every 16 seconds and this could get worse due to COVID-19 pandemic One of the most important observations made by this study is that children in the majority of the countries were healthy, as per the stands set by the World Health Organisation (WHO), by the age of five. However, the rate at which the height increased kept massively decreasing over the course of years. "Children in some countries grow healthily to five years, but fall behind in school years. This shows that there is an imbalance between investment in improving nutrition in pre-schoolers, and in school-aged children and adolescents. This issue is especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic when schools are closed throughout the world, and many poor families are unable to provide adequate nutrition for their children," explained Professor Majid Ezzati, senior author of the study from Imperial's School of Public Health. The researchers, through this study, hope that the countries will be motivated to decrease the price of the nutritious food, for the sake of the future of their country. "Our findings should motivate policies that increase the availability and reduce the cost of nutritious foods, as this will help children grow taller without gaining excessive weight for their height. These initiatives include food vouchers towards nutritious foods for low-income families, and free healthy school meal programmes which are particularly under threat during the pandemic. These actions would enable children to grow taller without gaining excessive weight, with lifelong benefits for their health and wellbeing," said Dr Andrea Rodriguez Martinez, the lead author of the study from Imperial's School of Public Health.

Poor diet can result in smaller height of children: Study

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Tata takes over Air India. What does it mean for air hostesses?

Poor diet can result in smaller height of children: Study