Governance

Centralised numbers released by Indian Railways for citizens' convenience       9760534983 : TTI, Reservation & Meals 9760500000 : cleaning 9760534057 : problem in coach 9760534060 : electricity problems 9920142151 : enquiry problems 9760534063 : RPF & Security 9760534069 : drinking water arrangement 9760534073 : medical   Please use these numbers and give the feedback on how useful you found them during/before/after your journey.   Clarification from my friend: "This was a news item  in India rail info.com site which normally is authentic. However after I managed to contact two of the 9760 series numbers I unearthed the real problem. Apparently it is the set of numbers of Moradabad division…

Centralised numbers released by Indian Railways for citizens' convenience       9760534983 : TTI, Reservation & Meals 9760500000 : cleaning 9760534057 : problem in coach 9760534060 : electricity problems 9920142151 : enquiry problems 9760534063 : RPF & Security 9760534069 : drinking water arrangement 9760534073 : medical   Please use these numbers and give the feedback on how useful you found them during/before/after your journey.   Clarification from my friend: "This was a news item  in India rail info.com site which normally is authentic. However after I managed to contact two of the 9760 series numbers I unearthed the real problem. Apparently it is the set of numbers of Moradabad division…

I took this picture from the top of Nandi Hill. Well, OK, technically, it's not Bangalore...yet. But remember the times when Whitefield, Sarjapura and Yelahanka were not Bangalore, either? The point I want to make is that a new layout has been created...and for all those homes, there is just one young tree, and perhaps some very small plants that one can see. What happened to our culture of planting trees on every road, so that we had shady avenues instead of bare streets? Why do we now have those in authority claiming that "Trees belong only in parks"? I…

I took this picture from the top of Nandi Hill. Well, OK, technically, it's not Bangalore...yet. But remember the times when Whitefield, Sarjapura and Yelahanka were not Bangalore, either? The point I want to make is that a new layout has been created...and for all those homes, there is just one young tree, and perhaps some very small plants that one can see. What happened to our culture of planting trees on every road, so that we had shady avenues instead of bare streets? Why do we now have those in authority claiming that "Trees belong only in parks"? I…

Me to BESCOM (Bangalore Power) employee: Can I have an ECS Mandate form, please, to enable me to have the monthly power bill amount deducted from my bank account automatically? (The forms are free, and it took me 3 visits because this gentleman, who is the ONLY one who can disburse these forms, was never in his seat. Today, Hallelujah, he is.) BESCOM employee: You will need two forms, one to be submitted to us, and one for the bank. Me; Can I have another form, then, please? BESCOM employee: (firmly closing the desk in which hundreds of forms are…

Me to BESCOM (Bangalore Power) employee: Can I have an ECS Mandate form, please, to enable me to have the monthly power bill amount deducted from my bank account automatically? (The forms are free, and it took me 3 visits because this gentleman, who is the ONLY one who can disburse these forms, was never in his seat. Today, Hallelujah, he is.) BESCOM employee: You will need two forms, one to be submitted to us, and one for the bank. Me; Can I have another form, then, please? BESCOM employee: (firmly closing the desk in which hundreds of forms are…

On October 2nd, Prime Minister Modi announced Swachh Bharat Abhiyan or Mission Clean India. In his speech, he appealed to Indians to devote 100 hours every year towards the cause of cleanliness. He also stated, “It is our social responsibility as citizens of India to help fulfil Gandhiji's vision of Clean India, by his 150th birth anniversary in 2019.” Since then, the media has been reporting of clean-up drives across the country, involving bigwigs from the industry, celebrities, politicians, NGOs and what not, almost on a daily basis. Why, some politicians even arranged for garbage to be littered, so that they had…

On October 2nd, Prime Minister Modi announced Swachh Bharat Abhiyan or Mission Clean India. In his speech, he appealed to Indians to devote 100 hours every year towards the cause of cleanliness. He also stated, “It is our social responsibility as citizens of India to help fulfil Gandhiji's vision of Clean India, by his 150th birth anniversary in 2019.” Since then, the media has been reporting of clean-up drives across the country, involving bigwigs from the industry, celebrities, politicians, NGOs and what not, almost on a daily basis. Why, some politicians even arranged for garbage to be littered, so that they had…

A rising spate of regulations in the education sector is slowly choking the supply. And Education departments around the country are catching up to Revenue and Transport departments in their levels of corruption. The irony is that the Education department officials turn a blind eye to the government schools, which often don't meet even the most basic regulatory standards. Unfortunately, parents whose kids are in private schools are not sufficiently worried about this. They believe that schools should be forced to keep fees as low as possible, while delivering quality education. They also believe that their children's schools will pay…

A rising spate of regulations in the education sector is slowly choking the supply. And Education departments around the country are catching up to Revenue and Transport departments in their levels of corruption. The irony is that the Education department officials turn a blind eye to the government schools, which often don't meet even the most basic regulatory standards. Unfortunately, parents whose kids are in private schools are not sufficiently worried about this. They believe that schools should be forced to keep fees as low as possible, while delivering quality education. They also believe that their children's schools will pay…