Phnom Penh, Jul 5 (AP/UNB) — Millennium-old Cambodian artifacts displayed in a Japanese collector's home for two decades have been returned to the Southeast Asian country's National Museum.

The 85 artifacts are mostly small bronze items and include statues of Buddha and the Hindu god Shiva, plus jars, ceramics and jewelry. Cambodia's Culture Ministry says some items were older than the Angkor era, which began about 800 A.D. Others date from the Angkor era or just after it ended in the late 14th century.

Cambodia has made intense efforts to recover artifacts looted during its civil war in the 1970s.

At an official reception for the artifacts Friday, Prak Sonnara, secretary of state for the Culture and Fine Art Ministry, praised the Japanese collector for voluntarily returning the artifacts. He said her actions set a good sample for other countries and collectors to follow.

The collector, Fumiko Takakuwa, told reporters after the handover ceremony that she and her husband had bought the items in Japan and liked to collect and display them in their home. But she knew they were originally from Cambodia and that is why she returned them.

"My husband has said before he passed away that those artifacts have to be returned back to Cambodia, and today I am happy that I did," Takakuwa said.

Prak Sonnara said the 85 items were believed to have been stolen from Cambodia's temples during the war, when intense looting occurred and valuables were smuggled through neighboring Thailand.

A 1993 Cambodian law prohibited the removal of cultural artifacts without government permission. The law strongly compels owners of items taken abroad after that date to return them. But there is also general agreement in the art world that pieces were acquired illegitimately if they were exported without clear and valid documentation after 1970 — the year of a United Nations cultural agreement targeting trafficking in antiquities.

In 2014, three 1,000-year-old statues depicting Hindu mythology were welcomed home to Cambodia after being looted from a temple and put in Western art collections.

Also in 2013, two 10th century Cambodian stone statues displayed for nearly two decades at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art were returned to their homeland in a high-profile case of allegedly looted artifacts.

Dhaka, July 5 (UNB) - Gram flour has been used in recipes all over India since time immemorial. In fact, I can think of very few states that do not use this amazingly tasting and healthy flour in a variety of dishes, be it pakoras, kadhi, chillas or mithais. So many of us are also familiar with gram flour, or besan as it is more popularly called in India, as a beauty ingredient too. When used in the correct way, and for the appropriate skin-type, besan can work wonders to improve the quality of your skin, reports NDTV. 

Besan is a very versatile ingredient, and when mixed with certain other ingredients it can treat and take care of many skin issues. Not only can gram flour be used in masks for different skin types, it's also an important ingredient in many natural and homemade body ubtans that are great for polishing and nourishing the skin. Other benefits of besan include removing tan, removing patchiness on the skin and even removal of hair! Versatile and easily available in any grocery store, gram flour should definitely be one of the key ingredients on your beauty shelf!

Gram flour Hair Removal Ubtan

Firstly let me use this magical ingredient to make an ubtan for the body that helps reduce hair growth-

Things You Need:

Half a cup of besan
The juice of 2 lemons
1tsp turmeric
1tsp fresh cream
Water to make a smooth paste

Method:

Mix well and apply onto arms or legs.
When dried completely, rub in the opposite direction of hair growth. This is especially effective in young growing girls who have not entered puberty and should be done as a ritual 3 times a week.

Gram flour Mask- Dry Skin

If your skin is dull and dry and you want an instant wake-me-up mask, try this amazing mask and you will get hooked onto gram flour as an ingredient-

Things You Need:

3tsp besan
2tsp honey
1tsp fresh cream
A little milk to make a smooth paste

Method:

Mix all the ingredients and apply to clean skin and let dry.
When it has dried, dab with cold milk and scrub off to get smooth, soft and lighter skin in no time at all!

Gram flour Oily Skin Scrub

Most people who suffer from T-zone and oily skin problems do not know that gram flour when mixed with the right ingredients can not only reduce oily skin but also whiteheads and blackheads that can be a result of increased sebum production in the skin. Make the following scrub effectively to treat oiliness, blackheads and whiteheads-

Things You Need:

3tsp gram flour
2tsp red masoor lentil powder
The juice of half a lemon
Half a tsp of camphor powder

Method:

Mix with rose water to make a thick consistency scrub and apply onto clean skin.
When dry, dab with water and scrub off in a rotating manner very gently.
After removing this scrub, you can very gently squeeze out stubborn blackheads.

Gram flour Body Polishing Ubtan

The skin very often looks patchy, dry and dull and you yearn for a silky soft feel wanting to get rid of dead skin. This wonderful natural gram flour ubtan will help polish and nourish the body and leave it feeling like baby soft skin!

Things You Need:

Half a cup of gram flour
Half a cup of green moong lentil powder
Quarter cup of rice flour
Half a cup of orange peel powder
2tsb honey
2tsb fresh cream
2tsb almond oil
Full fat cream milk to mix to a smooth paste
8 drops essential oil of rose

Method:

Before bathing, apply this all over the body and let it become semi-dry.
Scrub off and rinse with water and the day you use this ubtan, do not use soap on your body.

Gram flour Neglected Area De-tanner Mask

I have always felt that we often neglect our feet, knees, elbows and hands and these areas are so important for a well-groomed look. Dark patchy areas like hands and feet look so ugly when left unattended. Travelling outdoors and driving can play havoc with the skin and a natural de-tanner with gram flour will work wonders! Apply the following-

Things You Need:

6tsb gram flour
4tsb yoghurt
Juice of one full lemon
2tsp almond paste

Method:

Mix well and apply to the hands, feet, elbows and knees. Let it dry and dab with milk when semi-dry and scrub off.

Most of us underestimate simple, easily available but highly effective ingredients. Use them wisely and to your advantage to see fabulous effects on your skin and I can assure you gram flour will be one of your favourites!

Dhaka, July 5 (UNB) - Carrots are one of the healthiest vegetables among the rainbow of veggies available to us. The reddish orange vegetables are fortified with beta-carotene, which is incredibly essential for healthy eyesight. Besides this, carrots are also low in calories and are one of the most popular negative-calorie vegetables.

This means that carrots may help in weight loss, on account of the fact that it may require more calories to digest them, than what the vegetable itself supplies. Carrots are root vegetables that can play a role in both Main and side dishes. Carrots can be fashioned into savoury and sweet dishes as well and although they're probably the healthiest when you eat them raw, they might not be the tastiest veggies out there, on their own, reports The Indian Express. 

Although carrots can be added to almost anything, they don't really have much going for them, taste-wise. This is probably an advantage too- the neutrality of taste is exactly what increases carrots' potential as a versatile vegetable. They're sweet when they're in season and endlessly nutritious. For someone who is on a low-carb diet for quick weight loss, carrot can be especially beneficial. But how does one eat them, besides as part of the regular boring raw salads?

Low-Carb Diet- We suggest some yummy ways to add carrots to your diet:

1. Carrots In Soups

Grate some carrots and add them to your clear soups and/or vegetable stocks. Carrots contain good amounts of roughage, which is important for digestive health. So soups may be a good idea, instead of juicing carrots.

2. Carrots In Fried Rice

You can increase the fibre-content of your bowl of Chinese fried rice by adding vegetables like corn, carrots, beans etc. to it. Carrots have high water content and may fill you up faster.

3. Carrots In Dips

Shredded carrots can also be added to healthy dips and accompaniments. This includes recipes like carrot raita, carrot hummus etc. You can also roast carrots and once they're soft, simply turn them into a dip by adding spices and some cream to it.

4. Carrot Pickles

Simply pickle your carrots to increase their nutrition. Pickling or fermenting vegetables makes the beneficial compounds in them more readily available for absorption by the body. You may add pickled carrots to your salads or simply eat them for a kick of healthy gut-friendly bacteria.

5. Carrots In Baked Goods

You can add shredded carrots to the batter of your muffins, cakes, breads etc. for a delightful dessert. Carrot cakes are already quite popular. Carrots go well in baked goodies, due to their inherently sweet taste.

Got any more interesting ways of adding carrots to your diet? Let us know in the comments section below!
 

Dhaka, June 5 (UNB) - Summers are here and how! In this sweltering heat, all you need is a refreshing cup of green tea to rejuvenate and boost the system to get along the day. The many nutritious benefits of green tea have made it a popular option across tea lovers and even those who are not. Green tea is known to soothe our body, mind and soul like nothing else. It is believed that a cup of green tea everyday can cleanse and rejuvenate our body from within, reports NDTV. 

Originating in China, which is the largest producer of green tea followed by Japan, Vietnam and Indonesia, green tea is derived out of Camellia sinensis leaves and does not go under oxidisation, which makes it a great antioxidant. Oxidisation in simple words refers to letting the tea leaves dry. Tea leaves go through a process of hand or machine-rolling to initiate the release of essential enzymes after which they are left to dry and oxidise. The more oxidised the leaves, darker will be the colour with a strong taste. The innumerable health benefits of green tea would make you a fan just in case you are not.

Health Benefits Of Green Tea:
1. Loaded with antioxidants, polyphenols and flavonoids, green tea helps in boosting the immunity and may also prevent our body from cold and flu.

2. A regular intake of green tea also helps in lowering the cholesterol levels.

3. Consumption of green tea can also facilitate healthy skin and hair.

4. Green tea is known to maintain a healthy heart.

Nowadays, markets are stocked with a huge variety of flavours of green tea, from chamomile, tulsi, honey, jasmine and many more. While all these flavours might be great, the joy of brewing fresh green tea at home is unmatched. In the summer heat, add the magic of mint leaves to your green tea for the ultimate therapeutic experience. Infusing a few fresh or dried mint leaves adds a great flavour and additional refreshing properties to your green tea due to the presence of menthol. Here is a five-step recipe to make the perfect green tea with mint at home.

How To Make Mint Green Tea: 5 Easy Steps

1. Take a cup of water and add it to a container. Heat it until it gets boiled.

2. Take a strainer, measure and put one teaspoon of green tea leaves in it. When almost simmering, put one teaspoon of cleansed mint leaves.

3. Now pour hot water into the cup through the strainer. Pour till the bottom strainer is immersed completely. If you are using a tea bag, then dip the tea bag directly into the cup of water for about 2-3 minutes.

4. Take a sip to check how strong you would like it to be and you are done!

5. Steep again for 30 seconds if you feel the tea needs to be stronger.

Sip on the freshly brewed mint green tea and reap the many health benefits that come along.

San Francisco, Jul 4 (AP/UNB) — The San Francisco Board of Education will spend up to $600,000 to eliminate historical artwork depicting the life of George Washington.

An 83-year-old mural at George Washington High School has been criticized as racist and degrading for its depiction of black and Native American people. When the mural was created, many considered the work radical for showing unsavory aspects of American history, such as slavery.

School Board member Mark Sanchez voted to paint over the mural, saying it's unfair for students to see harmful images.

Critics worry the move censors a critical portrayal of history and that other New Deal-era artwork could face a similar fate.

Painting over the mural won't happen until at least fall and could be further delayed by a lawsuit.