TEHRAN, Dec. 16--A website titled ’Chehel Cheragh-e Reza’ was launched with the aim of making children and young adults familiar with the various aspects of the life of Imam Reza (AS), the eighth Imam of Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) infallible household.
A press release by the Public Relations Department of the Institute for Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults said that the website, which was launched on the birth anniversary of the Imam on Wednesday, deals with his life in 40 sections.
Quotations, supplications, poems attributed to him, miracles, nicknames, stories, eulogies and elegies, traditions, books as well as significant historical events are among the sections manifesting his fruitful life.
Some sections of Imam’s trip to Mashhad in 40 lines, 40 interesting articles about Mashhad, Imam’s burial ground, 40 points about the shrines and sacred places in that city as well as 40 pictures of the Imam’s holy shrine are among the different parts of Chehel Cheraq-e Reza (Imam Reza’s 40 Lights) Website.
Some 40 recollections by servants working in the Imam’s shrine, 40 noteworthy points about his life as well as 40 paintings by children are also available in this website.
A similar website titled ’Chehel Cheragh-e Hossein’ was earlier launched to make children and young adults familiar with the life of Imam Hussein (AS), the third Imam of Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) infallible household.

TEHRAN, Dec. 16--The Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance has placed an order for the composition of a symphony for nuclear activities given the absence of a unique artistic work in this field, reported ILNA quoting the head of the Ministry’s Public Relations Department.
Mohammad Qahremani said that the suite has been composed for a symphony orchestra and would be performed in four movements which include Shokouh (magnificence), Aftabi Dar Mian (a sun in between), Solh (peace) and Pirouzi (victory).
The lyrics of the symphony are by Mohammad Abdolhosseini.
He hoped this work would pave the way for future artistic creativity in the field.

TEHRAN, Dec. 16--Head of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting Ezzatollah Zarqami said that the organization has notified the government of its one-trillion-rial budget deficit in the year to March.
Speaking to Fars news agency, he however maintained that that none of the projects, even the major ones, undertaken by the national broadcaster have been suspended due to the shortage of funds.
“Fortunately, the Majlis has in recent week made some important decisions to provide sufficient funds to the IRIB to upgrade its technical facilities and purchase spare parts for transmitters,“ he said.
He hoped that the government will also cooperate in modernizing IRIB’s technical capacities.
The official pointed out that the transmitters are in poor condition and may create problems. “We are trying to convince the Management and Planning Organization of our needs and hopefully solve part of the budgetary problems in the next fiscal year (which begins in March).“
Zarqami stated that the conversion of analog systems to digital costs billions of dollars.
He further highlighted the need to set up an independent satellite, saying that renting foreign satellites is not cost-effective and may lead to disruptions in broadcasting TV programs.
The Majlis has on its agenda a plan to launch an independent satellite for IRIB in cooperation with the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, he concluded.

TEHRAN, Dec. 16--Noted Iranian film director Rasoul Sadr Ameli has been selected as a member of the jury at the New Delhi International Film Festival, which will be held in India late in January, according to ISNA.
Sadr Ameli, whose latest film ’I Saw Your Daddy Last Night, Aida’ is currently on screen in Tehran, has not produced any film for this year’s Fajr International Film Festival.
However, he will take part in the event as the producer of the film ’Western Doll’, a debut by Farhad Saba.
According to Sadr Ameli, his film ’Aida’ was screened at an inopportune time, the lunar fasting month of Ramadan, and proper publicity was not given to the film.
Not to mention that few cinema halls screened the film, he said, adding that despite this, it registered good box office sales.
Shooting of the film ’Western Doll’ directed by Saba was recently completed in Tehran.
Final touches are now being given to the film and those involved in the production are trying to get it ready in time for Fajr Festival (late January-early February).
Saba, who is a professional cinematographer, has so far directed the films ’Lineless Paper’, ’Stamp Album’,
’Relation’, ’Where Is Friend’s Home’, ’Once for All’, ’Survivors’, ’Sometimes Look at Sky’.
’Western Doll’ narrates the story of Shahab, a successful legal counselor who is well-positioned in his job, but has certain indulgences in his personal life.
Day and night he thinks about Maryam, a simple and ordinary girl, either for love or passing impulse.

Public libraries are currently facing shortage of funds.

TEHRAN, Dec. 16--The Board of Trustees of the State Public Libraries Organization has set up a committee to look into the shortage of funds for public libraries, reported CHN.
Earlier the Management and Planning Organization rejected the sum proposed by the board for the fiscal year (March 2006-2007) and the lack of funds has led public libraries to imminent closure.
Deputy Secretary General of Board of Trustee of Public Libraries Organization Gholamhossein Nafissi said a committee has been formed to follow up the budget shortage for libraries.
The MPO has not only rejected the amount of funds demanded by public libraries but has also decided to make its budget independent from that of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, he said adding, “Therefore, the libraries will never receive financial support from the ministry.“
An official in charge purchasing books for public libraries, Nasser Shafiei, said that the public libraries are currently in a critical condition due to the lack of funds.
He said that the budget required to provide public libraries with equipment and purchase of books stood at 300 billion rials whereas the MPO has earmarked only about one third of the amount requested.
Shafiei said that since the current situation will gradually drag the libraries to closure, a committee, led by Nafissi, has been formed to follow up the issue.
“The Board of Trustees of public libraries ordered books from publishers in the past two years and is unable to pay for them. So, the publishers have lodged complaints against the board of trustee,“ he added.
He said that the Board of Trustee of Public Libraries has demanded 880 billion rials for the next fiscal year, and the MPO rejected this amount. “That was the least amount needed to run public libraries,“ he said.

TEHRAN, Dec. 16--A contest on research studies on the history of photography for children will be included in the fifth photography festival for the age group next year.
The Institute for Intellectual Development of Children and the Young Adults (IIDCYA) in a press release said that the fourth photo festival opened at the institute on December 12 and will continue until December 17.
Secretary of the fourth photo festival for children, Esmail Abbasi said that the research studies would focus on history of photography for children and photographs by children in Iran and the world. It will also deal with training photographers for the age group as well as successful photographers, he added.
Abbasi said that the photo festival serves to boost creativity among children. He said that the secretariat received 3,933 pieces of photographs from children up by 14 percent compared to the figure for the preceding year.
“In this year’s event, a one-and-a-half-year old child, a three-year-old child, 10 four-year old and five-year old children and in total 204 children have taken part. This indicated that we have been successful in encouraging children to look at photography as an art and demonstrate their own talents.“
Some 15 top photographers were awarded at the event’s inaugural ceremony.
Meanwhile, director of IIDCYA Publishing House Hamid Reza Shahabadi said that photography is an art which helps human beings have a deep look into the surroundings.
He said that IIDCYA attaches importance to photography and has launched a number of programs including festivals, training of children and publishing albums and books about photography to promote photography and always respected intellectual property of the photographers.

TEHRAN, Dec. 16--A documentary film about the Iranian victims of chemical warfare has been produced in the Hague, the Netherlands, reported Fars news agency.
Victims of chemical warfare have lodged complaint with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Hague against western firms which supplied the ousted Iraqi dictator with chemical weapons for use against Iranian soldiers during the Iraqi-imposed war of 1980-1988.
The documentary was produced by an Iranian television crew.
Director of the documentary, Hamid Zargarnejad told Fars news agency that the film features interviews with war veterans indicating how they were contaminated by chemical weapons.
“They went to the Hague to sue a Dutch chemical arms dealer arrested by the authorities in the Netherlands. Legal proceedings against him are currently underway. The court asked for a film about the sufferings of the victims of Iraqi chemical attacks against Iran,“ Zargarnejad said.
He added that the film covers various aspects of this human tragedy and also lists the names of the dealers who supplied chemical weapons to the ousted Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.
He said that the film will be delivered to the ICJ which is expected to issue verdict against the Dutchman on December 23.
Meanwhile, photographers Rasoul Omid Qaemi and Shahriar Kavousi were also involvement in the production of the documentary film.