BBC NEWS | South Asia | The amazing DIY village FM radio station
I love this story. The guy shows skill, pluck and is delivering something of real value to the people who are at the best on the fringes of the government radar screen. I can bet the government will shut him down for "illegal" activities.
Kerala, they say is a great state with high literacy and health statistics that match that of developed nations.
But, the folks there suffer from perpetual delution. This is especially true with the government. Recently, the government of Kerala decided to launch a low cost airline to help its citizens who provide for the only infrastructure development in the state - creating palatial homes and new places of worship. Apparently, these poor souls were finding the fares from "gelf" were on the high side. This when there are a number of low cost carriers starting to come in the Indian and Gulf markets and the Indian domestic carriers beginning to fly international routes.
Now, this is the same state where successive governments have n't been able to run the state road transportation system properly. And, of late have had difficulties paying salaries to its employees and indulged in redirection of funds marked for tsunami relief for other activities. So, in all sense the government is bankrupt. But, hey don't let financial bankruptcy bankrupt you of ideas.
Of course, the airline idea never took off the ground because of a number of things including objections of the union minister of aviation.
But, if you do have any stupid ideas please feel free to share it with the government of kerala.
On a recent trip to India I was bombarded with questions on stuff about the US -
"What the hell is America doing in Iraq?" "Why on earth would anyone in their right mind elect GWBush - he is an idiot, see we have Dr. Manmohan Singh?" "I hear that they are doing away with Christmas altogether and calling it 'Holidays'?
Each time these questions are the first things these people ask. It made me wonder why they would be so concerned about the US when there are lot of items of interest right there in India.
My response to the questions - I skip the Iraq question. Partly because I have no clue what is happening there, partly because the Americans have no clue either but mostly because I think invading a country in the name of "exporting freedom and democarsy" smacks of arrogance and hypocrisy. As for the GWBush vs. Manhoman Singh I tell them right or wrong Americans elected Bush directly. It was not the wonderful process that our elected folks indulge in - the churning of the mythical ocean which turns up poison and the elixir. This time we got lucky. As for Bush vs. Kerry at least I know what Bush stands for.
Why can't desis discuss and more importantly **act** on things that affect them like corruption, bad governance etc...
Saw the dawn break from the window of a hospital. Sometimes "jet lag" has its blessings. It has been a while since I got up before the sun did.
Venus shone brightly against the pitch dark sky. And, slowly the outline of the ranges emerged. And, as the light of the morning star waned the dark mass of the hill close by became visible. Soon the trees on the hill picked the golden glow of the morning sun.
BTW, "Daybreak" by Beth Orton is good, too...
The desis are good at changing names of lackluster products in an effort to revitalize it. So, it comes as no surprise that the state run domestic airlines Indian Airlines will hence forth be called Indian. I can hear the cheers from the paint manufacturers and printers. They are expecting orders from the new Indian. But, to be fair Indian is not the first to do this and somehow I doubt if it would be the last.
Bombay became Mumbai, Madras became Chennai, Calicut became Kozhikode - All in the name of righting a wrong. Then, there were even more bizarre name changes – Victoria Terminus in Bombay became CST.
Indian just need to have looked at Air India and would have realized that the name change will not change the ground realities. Air India under Rajiv Gandhi changed its logo, upholstery etc… with much fanfare but they could not change the attitude of the service personnel and nothing much came off the effort. A few years later Air India went back to the old logo.
Now, how unique is the name Indian for an airline? On a recent trip via Mumbai I had my answer – not that unique. South Africa has South African and Ethiopia has Ethiopian. These are the two that I found on the tarmac in Mumbai.
I just got back from a vacation in India. I spent my time in Bangalore (the Silicon Alley of the south), Kerala (God’s own…) and somewhere in between.
I flew BA via London to Bangalore. The flight to London was an hour behind when it landed. Then we had to wait for gates at Heathrow. After a while the captain said we will be bused to the terminus. The buses came but we were still stuck in the aircraft. Turns out they forgot to get the ladder. I barely managed to get on the Bangalore flight.
Castles in the air require no infrastructure
Bangalore was a shock. It looks like the bastard child of unplanned development and greed.
The roads are non existent. I remarked to my friend who grew up in Chennai but now makes Bangalore her home that the roads in Chennai are much better. And, she said – “I bet you never thought you would ever say such thing.” Almost all my friends claim to have one way commute of one to two hours to work. That, combined with long hours at work to handle the overseas calls meant most have no life.
And, what does the government do to improve the situation – rename the city. Yeah, right. That is one way to spend the precious little tax money – on new stationery and repainting the signboards in two or three languages. But, they are not the first – Bombay became Mumbai and around the same time everything there became known as Chhatrapati Shivaji something. Why won’t these ultranationalists build a railway terminus better than Victoria Terminus and then call it whatever they want. And, my hometown made a mad rush to transform from Madras to Chennai.
Kerala is a beauty – of a different sort. Since there has hardly been any industry or infrastructure development in this state, they are partly right in calling it “God’s own country.” It is pretty much they way god left it. Plus, a few temples, mosques, churches, big mansions and lot of jewelers.
Truth is relative, not absolute
This time around I was hell bent on using my cell phone in India. So, when I got to Bangalore I bout myself a pre-paid SIM. Of course, in India to get a pre paid SIM you have to provide your photo, tax id or passport information. This to take care of the terrorists’ tendency to go for this product (America take note). So, Rs 250 got me my SIM. Then, I had to charge my card – another Rs 250. I punch in the recharge code and I get this message – You have Rs 100 worth of talk time. Hey, wait a minute – didn’t I pay Rs 250 for the recharge card. I call the customer service and I am told that Rs 250 recharge card gives me Rs 100 worth of talk time and other Rs 150 is processing fee. Now, why would they be upfront about this?
A week later the same company introduced “Rs 999 Lifetime prepaid” plan. Now, I had already spent Rs 750 on my cell phone. So, I decided this offer to keep my prepaid number valid for life is too good. The offer comes with other goodies like “Full talk time on recharge” etc… I go to a reseller to get it and I ask him to explain the details of the offer. He says “full talk time means you will get about 90% of what you pay – Rs 225 worth of talk time on an Rs 250 recharge.” Great. I punch in the new code and I get a new message – “Your SIM card is valid until Spet 2008. You have time till Oct 2008 to recharge your card.” I guess “lifetime” is very short in India – wonder whether they were referring to my lifetime or the company’s.
Some days later I happened to meet a VP for this telecom firm at a party. And, I asked him why they couldn’t be upfront with their pricing and plans. His response – “Everyone does it.”
“Why should I pay my taxes? The government is corrupt”
A recent India Today issue covered the growth of “black money” with the booming economy. Apparently there are only 85000 people who have a declared income of Rs 1 million (or, 10 lakhs). Pretty much everyone I know earn more that. And, one afternoon in Ganjam (a Banglore jeweler) the person on my right was buying jewels worth Rs .5 million and one on the left was buying something worth Rs .8 million. You want me to believe that there are only 85,000 in India who make Rs 1 million?
Some try to justify their tax evasion by pointing out that the government is corrupt so why bother paying taxes when you know that they are going to waste it or pocket it.
Hey, you get only what you deserve – the roads, the infrastructure and the government.
“It is those darn autos”
We all have a way of laying the blame on others. The affluent, who travel in cars, blame the traffic congestion on the autos. I guess they don’t realize that autos serve the function of public transportation for the less affluent. And, thanks to them evading taxes the government has not made any efforts to improve the public transportation system.
Transport
Indian Railways continue to surprise me. I booked my tickets on the web from US. Even the small stations had electronic kiosks where you can check your reservation status. Of course, the trains were still running late. I am told that is because of the traffic congestion
The Bangalore airport last year handled about 5 million passengers. It is possibly the smallest terminal to handle that kind of passenger volume in the world. And, guess what the darn airport was not meant to be a public airport.
Tourism
I spent a day at Kabini Jungle Lodges. It is amazing – clean, neat, quiet and very relaxing. All this without the typical five star gimmicks.
“It is a constant assault on your senses…”
A week before I left for India I met an American woman who had spent a month traveling in India. And, when someone at the meeting asked her about the experience, she remarked “It (India) is a constant assault on your senses… visual, smell, touch.. everything. Some good, some bad. But, boy you will feel alive.” Very true.
BBC NEWS | South Asia | IT giant faces India legal action
A lot has been talked about how the Indian call centers and processing centers can be a security risk. But, often they refer to the employees there trading the customers’ data. I guess no one thought this as a security risk.
Looks like the multinational often pick the cheapest possible option. Wonder if HP would have such lax security policy in US. I am sure they will be worried about their exposure to lawsuits.
Indians, of course, are very circumspect as passing judgments on HP. Some even remarked – “It is sad that she had to give up her life for the industry to get its act together.”
BBC NEWS | South Asia | Losing the war on Afghan drugs
And, it brings poppy with it. Dude, somebody was smoking when they said they will export democracy to Afghanistan.
Over the Thanksgiving holiday I watched a Hindi movie on DVD that made me think of the impact of global warming on Bollywood. No, seriously… The impact of global warming was clear – heroines wearing really skimpy outfits because of the rise in temperatures. Then, no images of flowers touching each other in the breeze to cover the kissing – I am guessing the environmental destruction has made it cost prohibitive to find flowers. And, the lack of rains meant no more songs in the rain.
I was there at the Indian Consulate in Chicago today to get a visa for a friend. Boy, the place is like any other desi office – chairs strewn all over, staff ambling in well past 9 a.m., one person behind the window to accept the applications and people made to wait to submit their application. But, I did manage to get out there in 25 minutes with my sanity almost intact.
I had to return in the evening to collect the passport. The place was a mess. There were at least three lines and I had no idea why. I picked the longest line. Not that I love lines but years of standing in lines in India has helped me figure out that usually the longest one is the one that I should be in. There was so much jostling and confusion – three people at the window at the same time and everyone else right behind them. It made me wonder why desis can’t form a single line, stand behind the yellow line. Then it hit me – we have had this problem for eons. Had Sita stayed behind the line there would have been no Ramayana.
BBC NEWS | South Asia | State's Muslim job quota quashed
Finally… some sense prevails. WTF were they thinking? How about a level playing field for all? Nothing more and nothing else.
BBC NEWS | South Asia | Israel halts Indian conversions
How is that this does not extend to the like of Benny Hinn and other marketers?
* What Makes Albert Pinto Angry? (after, Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyon Ata Hai)
Dr. Ron Hira, is an Assistant Professor of Public Policy at Rochester Institute of Technology and IEEE-USA's chair on Career & workflow Policy. He is very vocal critic of outsourcing, offshoring and H1B. And, often gets quoted in articles regarding this issue. For a while I was surprised and angry with this guy of Indian origin for his stance on outsourcing and offshoring. But, I do realize that it is bad to form an opinion based on statements attributed to him in articles written by others.
So, the other day I listened to a conference hosted by Software Development magazine featuring him. And, that made me realize that he is just doing his job. He is an office bearer of IEEE-USA (the US local chapter) and is concerned about fewer people choosing to become engineers. He is also concerned about the government not having a clear policy to handle the effects of offshoring. And, he is upset about the visa loopholes that are being abused by corporations – local and foreign. Fair enough…Hero Hira-lal!!!
BBC NEWS | South Asia | Deadly blasts hit Indian capital
So, there was a time after the Kashmir earthquake that both India and Pakistan were making statements as if the ground reality had changed due to the earthquake.
I was amused and alarmed at the various statements - amused at Mush's suggestion at throwing open the Line of Control border (which he does not recognize) after taking his own sweet time to get aid to Pakistan occupied Kashmir (probably wanted to make sure that there were no evidence of them helping the terrorists). Then, there were reports stating the terrorists camps may have been destroyed by nature. This, when the terrorists managed to kill over ten people immediately after the quake to prove that it is business as usual for them.
Now comes this co-ordinated blasts in Delhi around Diwali time - a reminder that fighting evil is not by turning the other cheek. Or, that in this case an eye for an eye can make people see things in a new light. Time to act rather than pussy foot peace.
washingtonpost.com: Myth of the Melting Pot: America's Racial and Ethnic Divides
It has been a while since I updated my blog. And, it was a while back that my colleagues and I had this discussion over lunch. The topic of conversation was “American culture”. The guy from Russia felt that was an oxymoron. A few of us felt there are very little efforts made to reach out and understand other cultures. Of course, the Pakistani guy felt it was the best – “salad bowl” that is what he called it – take the best of different cultures and throw the worst. Wonder which culture gave him “scheme IKEA” and “share DirecTV receivers”.
Anyway, I wonder why we always get caught up with this mine is better than yours. The Washington Post special is really good.
Chinese tourists getting a bad image
Flying from the US to India with fellow desis is always an experience. They form an orderly line to check in here at ORD. And, by the time they reboard in LON there is just a semblance of order. Once you get to India all order vanishes. It is difficult to believe it is the same set of people behaving this way.
It is as if the flight or cab will leave without them. Or, maybe the darwinian "survival of the fittest" that has been ingrained in them whhile growing up playing out.
BBC NEWS | South Asia | Huge alcohol seizure in Pakistan
Looks like Bin Laden's buddies love to party the way the infidels do. Whazzaup ... with that?
Poor rural India? It's a richer place
The IHT article is interesting and heart warming. I wonder how the picture will look if the government eliminates the subsidies like free electricity, free water and reserve prices.
Don't get me wrong. I think farmers in India have a tough time - mostly because of lack of access to capital and information. As for the subsidies those are usually lapped up by the rich farmers and in quite a few cases "farmers" on paper.
Names of Vanishing Companies,Dates of Incorporation,Names of Directors and
I came across this list. It was tucked in some article. The site is rather slow. But, hey I think these guys should get same amount of publicity as sexual predators and violent criminals.
So, if you find someone you know on this list call the cops.
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