First drive: 2012 Mercedes ML350CDI 4Matic

Hochgurgl sounds more like a throat rinse but the small ski resort north of Innsbruck isn't a place you'd rinse out of your system easily. Perched on my balcony at the Top Hotel overlooking the amazing landscape I can't help but admire how Europeans make every effort to improve their life and lifestyle.

The thought sprang up when I caught sight of dozens of snow machines littered across the slopes blowing snow onto the ground so that the skiing season in these parts could continue unaffected by the late onset of winter.

'Get back on board, damn it!' T-shirts a hit

Rome: A coast guard officer's 'Get back on board damn it!' order to the fleeing captain of the capsized Costa Concordia liner is being printed on T-shirts by a company hoping to inspire Italians to rescue their country from economic crisis.

Italians have made a hero of coast guard officer Gregorio De Falco for his angry exchange with skipper Francesco Schettino - who has been blamed for the accident and is now under house arrest accused of manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning ship.

Auto cos rev up efforts to tap customers on social sites

New Delhi: As use of social media spreads like wild fire, automobile companies are cashing in on the opportunity to tap younger customers and are more than doubling their spending to market products through sites like Facebook and Twitter.

Maruti Suzuki India, Hyundai Motor India Ltd and Tata Motors, the top three volumes player in the Indian automobile market, are leaving no stones unturned to tap the potential of social media which they consider very important for future.

Overdrive: Merc AMG takes over Buddh Int Circuit

Mercedes has launched its AMG driving academy at the Buddh International Circuit in Noida.

Nissan increase prices of Sunny and Micra

Nissan India has hiked the prices of its Micra and Sunny models starting from January 20, 2012. Depending on the model, the hike goes upto 2.09 per cent.

While prices of all the three variants of the Micra petrol are up by Rs 3000, the diesel variants will now cost an additional Rs 20,000.

Govt downplaying the tuberculosis threat?

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government has labelled a hospital's claims of a fatal tuberculosis strain as premature. The question is whether the government is downplaying the disease.

1,000 Indians die of tuberculosis every day and 20 per cent of the total TB deaths in the world take place in the country. The picture seems to be getting darker with reports that show 12 cases of the killer, totally drug resistant TB. But the government has been downplaying the danger.

First drive: Tata Sumo Gold

My first memory of the Sumo is of a massive vehicle barrelling towards my dad's car while waiting at a red light. I remember it coming to a halt next to our car and sort of going into a nosedive.

In my childhood ignorance, oblivious to the benefits of hard suspension, I thought "wow! That must be fun." It’s been several years since that day and now as fate would have it, I was sitting at the wheel of the new Tata Sumo Gold.

Now, cure migraine with a botox jab

New Delhi: Severe headaches for days, nausea and vomiting - migraine patients go through hell. In fact it has been ranked as the 19th most disabling disease by WHO. But anti-ageing drug botox can bring some relief to chronic patients, say experts, though there is not much awareness about this cure yet.

Jamuna Pai, a Mumbai-based cosmetologist, told IANS that botox "blocks the pain pathways and beautifully treats migraine. We people who have not gone through migraine don't know what it can do".

FIAL to supply Fiat diesel engines to Maruti

New Delhi: Auto makers Fiat and Suzuki Motor Corporation today said they have reached an agreement to supply Fiat diesel engines to India's largest car company Maruti Suzuki.

"Fiat India Automobiles Ltd (FIAL) will supply up to one lakh 1.3 litre MultiJet 75hp SDE engines per year to Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL) starting from January 2012 for a period of three years," a joint statement said.

Oprah scheduled to attend Jaipur Literature Fest

The talk show queen attended a star-studded party hosted by Parmeshwar Godrej in Mumbai on Monday.