ATM and Online Banking makes the life easy for customers. At the same time it saves a lot of time and resources of bank. It is like mutually benefited. Federal Bank was one of the few private sector banks which made the move long back itself - with a large number of ATMs and also by bringing up online banking. Things were all nice till last month when they decided to charge for the convenience ! Now when a user make an online payment (just money transfer, both the receiver and the sender need to pay INR 28.00 to the bank as transaction fee). That is a total of INR 56.00 (USD 1.3). Yes, it is not a big deal, but think about the other side. When a bank introduce more ATMs or online banking, it help them keep a lot of customers away from the bank. I mean customers need not come to the bank to withdraw money and they need not come to the bank for fund transfer. Bank saves a lot in resources. I do not know what made Federal Bank to take this wrong decision of charging customers for online transactions.

Not all customers will be happy with this change. Result ? More and more people will re-think on online banking, and people may go back to bank for transactions. Who will lose ? Federal Bank - no doubt in that.Forcing people to pay extra for online transactions is like taking them back to the pen and paper era. (This is not same as charging for services like online train ticket booking, which is a totally different matter). I use online banking service of HDFC Bank, SBI and Corporation Bank. And I have friends who use online banking of Axis (UTI) Bank, ICICI Bank and many other banks. None of these charge extra for fund transfer, then why my dear Federal Bank ?

I think it started from just 1-2 years back. Its not like I am against China or people out there. But almost everything we buy form the market is from China does not sound as a good thing. I was just making a list of things with the Made in China or Made in PRC. Starting with computer peripherals. About 30 items has been bought in the last 12 months. Only one item says Made in India (very happy to see that these days) and that is blank CD / DVD. The guy who is selling it told me it is not an easy process to make blank media and to maintain the quality and that is the reason Chinese are not into that. Well, do not know whether it is true. Just checked with my brother in law who bought lot of electrical and electronics products recently for his new house. Again, majority has the Made in China tag on them. Even USHA fan !! Next thing was toys that we buy for my niece. China again.

I am pretty sure manufacturing cost is the main thing. And all claim that they maintain quality irrespective of the country where it is manufactured. I am not fully convinced on that. Just as an example, I can see the difference in two computer monitors I bought. Both are of the brand - Viewsonic. First one was bought three years back, not having the tag and last one 11 months back or so with that tag. We can see the difference just by touching the panels, buttons and the body. And I already having some small problem with the display with the second (newer) monitor. The last computer related product I bought was a cartridge. Just by the weight itself I knew it is Chinese (now do not attack me telling weight is not a factor for the quality of printer cartridge, I agree on that). I see the quality of plastic and overall I am not very happy about it.

Two things make me worried. One - Quality is deteriorating - no doubt in that. Second thing is, as everything is from China, if something goes wrong in the relation between the countries (China is always having an unpredictable nature) and if they stop exporting items(yes I know I am paranoid and this is like worrying too much on something), what will happen ? Sure we may not be in trouble as many things can be manufactured here or can be imported form other countries. But that will not be very easy and sure it will take some time.

Why just me ? Or all are worried but do not have more time to think on it ?

Footnote : Wanted to clarify it again. The Author is no way against the country China or its citizens. He is just worried as a nation depend on another one too much, like for every item.

Most of those who have passed through the National Highway 47 towards Cochin might have noticed the multi storeyed building which is very near to Hotel Le Meridien. The main structure of the building and most of its work were completed in the 90s itself. But even after 18 years, it hasn’t got any occupants. Reason ? Its a leaning building !!! Yes, Cochin where the land price is too high these days, people are ready to spend more than one Crore ( about 232,000 USD) for a house / flat, this building is all vacant.

Rest of the story. This was built even before they started work of the Le Meridien Hotel. The location is really good, very near to the National Highway. The work was finished and the owner approached the Government for final approval. They had a detailed analysis and found that the building is leaning and not suitable for living. I have heard that the Owner committed suicide, not sure whether it is true though.

The question is - The Civil Engineers, Overseers, who are all worked in this project, never knew the building is not vertical ? Everything was perfect in all phases ? All started going wrong only after finishing it ? No testes or analysis were conducted ? Unbelievable. I think the problem started from the foundation itself. Either it was not designed properly or work was not supervised properly. Only thing which can be done is demolishing the building. But even after that, it is not sure whether they can make new as the building laws became more strict now.

Keep it simple, but make things perfect too. People of Cochin do not need lot of world wonders !

Photo of Hotel Le Meridien - Which is very near to this building

Photo Courtesy - Din the amature photographer.

The baby boy came bit early. Exactly one month early! No surprise, hes is just impatient as his Dad. Everything was normal except the pale yellow color which is not uncommon for premature babies. The Doc put him under the light for a week ! They call it Phototherapy. Anyway, back home after that and hes healthy and active now.

[Photo 1]Didn’t name him officially yet, but niece gave him a funny name on the first day itself - Aamakkunju - meaning : baby tortoise! When the nurse brought him to the room, he was well covered with soft white cloth, only head was visible, might be the reason behind the name.

[Photo 2] He prefer sleeping all day and wake up all night. Quite normal I know. Waking up after 2 hrs, drinking milk, back to sleep, life is sure fun for him. I noticed babies smile and cry when they sleep ! (Yes, learning new things) There is a beautiful myth behind this (courtesy : my aunt ! Blame her if this sounds funny). When the babies sleep, God appear in their dreams and tell them ‘Hey look, your mom has gone somewhere’ Poor babies, they believe it and start crying. God feel sorry and will tell them ‘Oh no, I was just joking, look, shes near you’ and next moment they start smiling. Everything in sleep !

[Photo 3] My wife was telling me (before delivery) if its a baby girl, she will buy skirts for the baby. I used to tell her if it is a baby boy, I will have to wear the skirt to make her happy. Seems she forgot it, lucky me. Now I can buy him big cargo shorts with twenty five pockets. That will be pretty cool. Can’t wait, grow up fast baby !

Meantime, I shared my happiness with my friends in ThinkDigit forum. The posts are here.

What is Hartal ?

Hartal (also hartaal) is a term in many Indian languages for strike action, used often during the Indian Independence Movement. It is mass protest often involving a total shutdown of workplaces, offices, shops, courts of law as a form of civil disobedience. In addition to being a general strike, it involves the voluntary closing of schools and places of business. It is a mode of appealing to the sympathies of a government to change an unpopular or unacceptable decision. [Wikipedia Link]

What is Bandh ?

Bandh, originally a Hindi word meaning ‘closed’, is a form of protest used by political activists in some countries in South Asia like India and Nepal. During a Bandh, a large chunk of a community declares a general strike, usually lasting one day.[Wikipedia Link]

Wikipedia is 100% correct ?

No, there is a mistake in the Wikipedia page which says - it involves the voluntary closing of schools and places of business - In real, there is nothing like a voluntary closing but people are terrorized and any business activity including traffic will be forcibly prevented by the strikers.

Which state is in the top position (prestigious) with maximum number of Hartals / Bandhs ?

The state with the maximum Bandhs in India is West Bengal where the average number of bandhs per year is 40-50 (ranging from a couple of hours to a maximum of 2 days per bandh). To make it clear, Hartal and Bandh are same these days.

Whatabout Kerala, the 100% literate state ?

Kerala (state that is located at the south end of India) is competing with West Bengal (with 28 Hartals in 2007) and we are pretty sure one day we will be in the first position with maximum number of hartals and bandhs. We are expecting at least 200 Hartals / Bandhs per year in the near future, if all political parties agrees (all are already united in this matter) we will see meeting the target in the very near future itself. Hartals for 365 days is the long term goal, considering the increasing number of hartals every year, we can say - nothing is impossible. Keep your fingers crossed.

Who can declare a Hartal ?

Any political party (need not be National, need not be even state level), religious party, or non political party can declare a Hartal. Basically a group of people (preferably more than 5 in numbers but even that is not necessary) is quite adequate and they can always declare a Hartal.

Do we need a valid reason to declare a Hartal ?

Absolutely not. Even though it is pretty easy to get very good reasons. The reasons does not matter at all. Declaring the Hartal and making it a huge success is the important part. Reason can be anything.

What happens after the Hartal ? Does it make any difference ?

Again - Absolutely no difference.

Eample 1. when petroleum price is increased, political parties declare Hartal for protesting. The petroleum price NEVER come down because of the Hartal - it remains the same after days, months and years (it may go up anytime though - may be you can call it after-effect of Hartal !)

Example 2. When political parties get into fight, (note : in almost all case, the leaders remains un-touched, only the so-called supporters or the common man get injured or even lose his life in these fights) after 5 or 10 people die, the parties will declare a Hartal to condemn the attack and fight (couldn’t find out the logic yet). Next month or next year, same thing happens and it goes on.

What is the advantage of Hartal ? Who are all benefited ?

People who get benefited by Hartal - Beverages Corporation, CD shops, Hotels, Meat shops etc. These shops will be flooded by people on the eve of a Hartal.

Who are all affected by the Hartal ?

In malayalam language there is a saying - Pothu janam kazhutha (common men are donkeys). That is very correct and only these people get affected (who cares !! Hartals - Long Live). Businesses will be closed down causing loss of millions of Rupees (Rupee is the Indian Currency. 1 USD = 42 Rupees approx - as on May 21 2008). People will not get vehicles to go to hospital even if it is emergency. People die, people starve, people can’t travel, marriages get postponed, all other functions get postponed, exams get postponed, offices will not work (who cares !! Hartals - Long Live). Every Hartal takes us back to the stone age.

Is there any alternative to Hartal ? Anything that can be beneficial for the common man ? Any messages to the people who declare it ?

Yes, but nobody is going to try those (who cares !! Hartals - Long Live). Anyway some suggestions are

1. Political leaders who declare the Hartal, their (blind) supporters, and all other people interested to join, take a day off (no casual leaves, take a leave with loss of pay from offices). Go to any village (ever seen one ? know how it looks like ?), try to repair some road there, try to help the villagers for making some open wells, buy the poor kids some food, donate them some dress. If you can’t do anything like that, just sit at home but do not disturb others.

2. Same people mentioned above - Cultivate rice and wheat on Hartal days (as there will be a lot of Hartals, you will get plenty of time to look into this!) Cultivate vegetables. We can even market them under the name - Hartal India Product (wow I am a genius - what an Idea Sir !)

3. Those who support the Hartal, feel free to close down your business for a day. But for God’s sake, do not force any one to close their business or shops. You do NOT have the right to do so. If you do not like to work a day and prefer to relax and enjoy, take a day off. Do not force all others to do the same. Do not interrupt the traffic. You can never give the life back to the patients - who die on the way to the hospital because of not having proper medium of transportation on the Hartal day.

4. Please understand that Hartal is a totally useless and barbarian method to protest against something. It is very simple logic. (no idea why the political leaders never understand this !!). This is the most cruel method and causes only trouble for the common man. There are people in India who get less than 20 Rupees (that is 0.5 USD) for working the whole day. You are responsible for people losing even that. Please try to open up your eyes and stop this crap for ever.

5. We will NEVER become a developed country if there are Hartals. Every Hartal will show us bad in front of the world. Every tourist who spend a day during the Hartal in India will curse us. They will tell their friends how terrible it is. The foolish act of some political leaders will make India’s image really bad. Do not allow it. Do not make the life miserable for Indians and those who come to India. Every Hartal will take the nation back to 5 or 10 years.

Now I feel better !

Foot note : I apologize for using the term ‘Stone Age’. Comparing these incidents with the ‘Stone age’ is like insulting the people who lived in that Era. They were so good, they never made our life miserable by declaring Hartals every now and then.

Side view of the same fort - You can see the difference in height. Now, don’t you think they are really amazing ? And when you sit near and watch, the ants get the signal very fast. Within seconds all the security-staff goes inside, may be passing the warning to message to the top officials ? They came back after about five minutes and continued the duty ! See the material they used, how they collected it, the pattern and distribution of the material. WOW, I am impressed !

While I was watching this, I saw another type of ants making something different near. Not a fort this time, but a nice trench ! That was near our open well. The trench is of about two metres length. Seems they have more entrances and exits throughout it. More than one way might be the idea ! These ants must be really intelligent. As the open well is near, there is chance of a flood any time and if that happens, these multiple entrance / exit combinations will help them to manage things. Good teamwork and great crisis management team.

Lesson learned - Going out and watching these small but amazing things (instead of sitting in front of the computer all the time) is really a nice experience. Yes, I am childish sometimes !

Note : Click on the thumbnail images for enlarged view

I was shell shocked but I couldn’t do anything. Couldn’t even shout. In the picture above, you can see how the private bus driver made way on the left while the ambulances were packed in between other vehicles on the right. It was done by blowing horn very loud (other staff in bus supported him by beating on the bus body and making big sound). After the right turn, there is a narrow bridge and I saw the bus going very fast way front of the ambulances.

I was totally helpless, couldn’t even note down the number of the bus and felt sad. Heavy traffic is quite usual in Cochin on weekends but drivers forgetting the priorities and ethics is really shocking.

I am pretty sure those who are going too fast in their life will regret later. If not today, tomorrow.

Taken using my mobile phone camera on 10th April 2008.

The family is basically from Kerala, settled in Tamil Nadu long back. Ajith was all their hope and they were all very happy when Ajith got the job in the company. When I called them over phone, I was little nervous as I was not sure what to talk. Ajith’s mom was very sad and she couldn’t talk much. Finally talked to Vinod (Ajith’s cousin) for some time. I am quoting the email below. I forwarded it to most of my friends in the address book.

Email follows …

You might be receiving hundreds of emails claiming to pay some $$$ whenever you forward it to others. Please do not treat this as one among them. By forwarding this email, no one is going to pay any $$$. As you know I always discourage such emails, so I personally verified the information in this email before sending this to you. Please do not ignore.I request all to get united in this matter and help the family. It is our duty and commitment towards the society. Please do not ignore. Please send an email to all your friends, please post this website and details in forums, please talk to your friends and family about this.Everything matters.

Please visit the website - http://www.helpthefamily.org

March 1, 2008. Ajith, a young man who was working in a BPO firm in Chennai, Tmail Nadu was on the way back to home after his work. It was his salary day and he was happy but the same day turned to be the worst day in his life. He was hit by a speeding vehicle and thrown to the dark side of the road, he became unconscious and nobody noticed him. Some of his co-workers who came after the work heard some sound near the roadside and shocked to see him in a pool of blood. They took him and rushed to the nearest hospital and then to another super specialty hospital. Three days he fought for his life but on March 4th he surrendered to death.

According to Ajith’s family - The hospital bill was really high, which came to Indian Rupees 3 Lakhs (USD $7,500) . The BPO company in which Ajith was working, paid Indian Rupees 1 Lakh (USD $2,500) to release his body from hospital. The hospital authorities asked the relatives to sign a lot of papers which were in English. They signed in all papers without knowing what they are (as they were in shocked state plus they were not good in English). Later they came to know one of the form was for eye donation as they saw eyes were removed from Ajith’s body. They are still not sure what the other forms were.

The whole incident was a big shock for the entire family and they didn’t recover form it yet. They were running a small tea shop which is closed after his death. He was the only earning member in his family. All their dreams are shattered with the fatal accident which took their loving family member away from them - for ever.

We believe it is our duty to extend our support to the family. Ajith was just like every one of us. Young, talented, happy and having a lot of dreams about his future. We request every visitor of this website to give support and donate to the family. Even a small amount will make a difference in their life. That is the least thing we can do.

Please visit the website and help the family if you can. That will be a great help and as in the email, that is the least thing we can do for them.

Year 1995, Back in Engineering college class room, on lunch break. Dev, my friend started his class as usual. He narrates even silly incidents with his own style, adding more spice to it and making it all suspense.

“Listen Din, class will be over at 4.10 and I will take my bag from hostel room, will rush to bus stop and then to Town to have a Sharjah first. After that, direct to home.”

I didn’t understand the middle part, Having Sharjah ? How is that possible ? I had no clue what it is and here comes Dev’s (usual) narration.

“Ok, ok, I will explain. In Town there is a shop called - Popsy. Go there, order a Sharjah and you can see how they make it. First they will get a frozen Milma (pasteurized milk) packet, will put in in the mixer, then will add the ’secret powder’, sugar and then one or two banana and will make it like a paste. They will put it in a big beer glass and you can have it, believe me, its an excellent thing.”

I decided to give it a try. On friday I went to the shop with Dev. There were eight or nine small shops just like Popsy, all in a row, but majority of the people were going to Popsy only. Dev ordered two Sharjah. I saw them making the much awaited, Dev’s favorite Sharjah. Beating the milk cover with softwood to make it like a paste, then put it in mixer, adding ’secret powder’ form a big cover, adding sugar and banana and finally poured into beer glasses. And for the first time in my life I tasted milk shake. Dev was right, it was really nice. It was very tasty, cold and it was like half eating and half drinking. After having it I couldn’t speak properly, my tongue was out of control, my head was like frozen, but it was real fun.

After 13 years, knowing most flavors and names of milk shakes, I still remember the great taste of the first Sharjah I had with Dev on that day.

Note : For those who never heard of it, give it a try and you will sure love it. You can do it in your home and there is no harmful things in Sharjah. It is just milk, sugar and banana. If you want to experiment more, try with mango and make it mango shake, try with chocolate powder to make it chocolate shake, add dry fruits, add color, it is all up to your taste and imagination and during the summer season it is really nice to have a Sharjah.