Over 600,000 people are expected to gather at the largest Muslim prayer congregation near Malappuram, Kerala the venue of the annual Ramadan event.

The congregation is considered the third biggest Ramadan gathering of Muslims in the world after Makkah and Madina.

The organisers said the pilgrims will take a pledge against terrorism and alcoholism and pray for peace and harmony. They will seek the blessing of the night, known as Lailathul Qadr, the Night of Power.

Accommodations have been set up for the believers and the meeting will be telecast live to Chennai, Bangalore, Mumbai and Delhi as well as major cities in the Middle East.

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Students of the Faculty of Management Studies, Delhi University, are to have a special class to case study the phenomenon of 'Brand Anna'.

By studying the phenom, students will gain an insight into how the Anna name and cause evolved into a brand and a unique marketing strategy. Professor Harsh Vardhan Verma will address the class and require a paper to be submitted by the students.

Topics will include the uncanny way in which this simple man captured the imagination of people, made his cause all pervasive, with his ability to heed the need and respond by creating a product of intangible promise that people bought.

Students of marketing are eager to follow the case and apply the perception to the reality that has caught the attention of the world at large

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India sank at the Test level after their 4-0 drubbing by England, seen by followers as a result of India's ageing superstars, a shallow patch-up pool and India's addiction to the well loved One Dayers.

This was India's heaviest series defeat in twenty years, dethroning India from the top of the Test ranking and moving them down to number three behind England and South Africa.

The wonderboys, now mature men, who carried cricket to its pinnacle have mostly aged or retired leaving the restroom lockers bare of budding big time batters and bowlers.

Sadly like in most sports around the world 35 is the age when sportsmen have to back out and leave the pitches to the young ones, which India has a derth of.

Of course critics have slammed the BCCI and lament India's relegation to the catch-up classes. They accuse the BCCI of a lack of vision, lop sided scheduling and pray the rest of this year's matches will be rescued by the masterful magic of Dhoni, Ghambhir, Tendulkar and Kohli.

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The annual festival to celebrate Lord Krishna's birthday, Janmashtami, was celebrated in Mumbai with pots full of lucre, waiting to be won by the young men and women, Govindas, who form human pyramids to reach the Dahi Handi, a clay pot of curd hung high.

At main venues in Thane, Ghatkopar and Worli, prize money ranged from Rs.25 lakhs to Rs.1 crore.

The people pyramids are normally 7 to 9 layers high, but some contenders aimed to form a record ten layer pyramid.

Cultural shows are included in the festivities and feature folk dances, music, skits and one act plays.

Devotees gather the broken clay pot fragments that they believe keep away both mice and negative energies from their homes.

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Across India, Anna Hazare's supporters picketed the homes of surprised politicians, obeying Anna's call that they protest before their MPs to demand a stronger Lokpal.

PM Manmohan Singh was not left out. Some 40 people squatted near his Delhi residence, shouting slogans supporting their hero Anna. Congress MPs Pawan Kumar Bansal of Chandigarh and Manish Tiwari in Ludhiana were also unwitting hosts to protesting picketers. In Ghaziabad MP Rajnath Singh's residence was picketed, but Singh was not home.

In Mumbai over 50,000 people took part in a protest march. In Bangalore even American visitors marvelled at the peaceful protests, calling Anna Hazare 'simply fantastic'

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