Big rush for RATION CARD, 4 Lakh Families Applied So Far

When the food and civil supplies department invited fresh applications for ration cards on November 18, they didn’t expect lakhs of responses. The reason could be that the department had decided to issue applications after a gap of two years. 
    Another reason is perhaps because ration card serves as an identity proof for various transactions. The department has received applications from 4,74,192 families from Bangalore alone. In the state, in just 35 days, nearly 11 lakh 
families have filed applications. “This response has made us aware of the importance of the ration card. We are yet to announce issuance of the ration cards. But based on the applications that we have got, we started physical verification of the applicants’ residential address and revenue register number of the electricity connection and supportive identity documents. There is no deadline as such for the bulk applications while issuing ration cards. We will gear up,’’ said M C Gangadhar, deputy director, food and civil supplies. 
    But online service has some glitches. For instance, 64-year-old Sathyanarayana Kotta was shocked when he was told that the ration card that he had used for the last 30 years was not valid. The department’s website reflected this. 
    Kotta was one among the many who was waiting for the issuance of the new ration cards for the last one year and was happy when the service for the ration card was made completely online. “I applied for one in the first week of December as my ration card was valid till December 2006. I tried to apply online for a new ration card in place of the existing one. The system indicated that the ‘old ration card number is not valid’,’’ he said. 
    When contacted, Gangadhar, deputy director of the department, said that in such a situation, many like Kotta want to know if they can freshly apply for the new ration card. “This is one of the cases of temporary ration cards that the department had issued only in Bangalore. In such cases the applicants will have to apply afresh if the card has expired. If the old ration card number is not found in the database, a remark can be made in the application giving the old ration card number,” said Gangadhar.

Source : TOI,Bangalore

IPS officer caught cheating in law exam

Regional passport officer (RPO) J.P. Singh was allegedly caught cheating while he was appearing for the LLB Exam of Lucknow University. When his answer script was snatched, he threatened the flying squad with dire consequences.

As per reports, during the LLB Exam of Lucknow University, the flying squad caught three candidates red-handed. When JP Singh's answer sheet was confiscated and sent to examination controller. If proven, his entire examination could be cancelled.

As per a member of the flying squad whent hey entered the examination room number 102 they suspected J.P. Singh of foulpay and warned him. In return Singh began misbehaving with the squad members. When Singh's desk was searched and he was patted down they found a numbers of chits on him, after which he began threatening the officers and examiners on duty.

Singh, however, clarified his stance and returned fire with fire alleging flying squad officers and examiners of conspiring against him. He vehemently denied all allegations.

Source : 

Take a new year “JOYRIDE”

Wondering how to usher in the New Year? How about taking a ride on the Metro, soaking in the sights and scenes of the city’s life by night? Namma Metro will operate till 2am Jan. 1 and this could be a big boon for those heading home after a night of revelry.
    The Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd has extended its timings, but just for a day. The services could be extended on Christmas Day too, but that would depend on the number of footfalls, said a BMRC press release.
    The Metro operates between MG Road and Byappanahalli till 11pm in the first week of getting on track, though the normal operating time is 6am to 10pm. The timing was extended because of the huge flow of excited commuters who wanted to take a joy ride. During weekends, the average ridership was around 50,000 per day during the two months. 

Secrets Of Samsung Corby Mobile Phone

Samsung Corby is really a cool series from Samsung mobile phone and some of the models are having some unknown and never said secrets which are really surprising and a lot interesting. I want to share some secrets with you today. First we will go with basic codes and after that we will get into real action.

We Start with the basic secret code which is common for all mobile phones

*#06#  - This will show the IMEI(International Mobile Equipment Identity) number of the mobile phone.

*2767* 5282# - This will reset the Java Application (It Deletes All Java Midlets which are installed in your phone)

#*7728# - This is a master reset code which will not delete any thing from your mobile but will set everything to factory default settings when it was on the time when we bought at the time of purchase.

*#9998*3323# - This code is used to unlock the samsung corby to all networks.

Now i will write some codes which might not work in all mobile phones but they are really working in some other mobile models of samsung.

*#9998*4357# - This will bring a Help Menu where we can select a lot of inbuilt options.

*#9998*5282# - This will bring a Java Menu where we can set the GPRS/CSD Settings for java server.

*#9999#0# - This will bring a Monitor Mode Menu.

*#9999# or *#9998*9999# - This will bring a Software Version Menu.

*#8888# or *#9998*8888# - This will bring a Hardware Version Menu.

*#9998*746# or *#9998*0746# or *#0746# - This will give the Sim Information.

*#9998*523# or *#9998*0523# or *#0523# - This will display the Contrast options.

*#9998*842# or *#9998*0842# or *#0842# - This will bring the Vibration On options.

*#9998*289# or *#9998*0289# or *#0289# - This will bring the Buzzer On option.

*#9998*288# or *#9998*0288# or *#0288# - This will bring the Battery & Field Information.

*#9998*377# or *#9998*0377# - This will bring the Error log

*#9998*778# or *#9998*0778# or *#0778# - This will bring the Sim Service table

*#9998*782# - This will bring the date and alarm clock options.

*#8999*638# - This will bring the network information.

*#9998*5646# - This will bring the change operator logo at startup

*#9998*76# - This will show the production number

*#9998*968# - This will bring the melody for alarm option.

*#9998*585# - This will bring the Non-Volatile Memory (NVM) option.

*#3243948# - This will bring the Digital Audio Interference Off option.

*#32436837# - This will bring the Digital Audio Interference On option.

Will update if anymore found...cheers.

LTA treatment before TAX

Leave Travel Allowance (LTA) is granted by the employers to the employees as part of the remuneration to provide for travel expenses incurred during the year. Leave Travel Allowance also covers such expenses of the spouse, children as well as dependent parents and siblings. However, there is a restriction. The allowance is restricted to two children born on or after October 1, 1998. There is no restriction on the number of children born before this date.

Expenses that Leave Travel Allowance covers
Leave Travel Allowance (LTA) only covers travel expenses incurred on travelling with your family within the country; i.e. exemption can only be claimed if it is within the country under Section 10(5) of the Income Tax Act. Some other expenses which cannot be included are expenses on hotel rooms, sightseeing, food, etc. Another condition is that you must make sure to opt for the shortest possible route, only then can you claim expenses. There is also a restriction on the fare component. Tax exemption can only be claimed for economy class air fare, first class AC rail fare or first/deluxe class bus fare. However in the absence of public transport, you can hire a taxi or rent a car and claim for expenses equivalent to first class AC rail fare.

Can the entire amount be claimed as an exemption?
Yes, provided that the entire amount has been spent according to the tax rules specified under LTA laws.

Can you claim Leave Travel Allowance every year?
While you can claim LTA every year for which you will be taxed, LTA exemption can only be claimed twice in a block of four calendar years.

Does claiming LTA in alternate years mean that the two year entitlement gets added together?

It does. If you are entitled to an LTA of Rs.10,000 per year and do not utilize it for the the first year it is carried forward to the next year. In the second year you can claim the entire amount (Rs.20,000) as tax exempt provided you spend it according to the specification in LTA tax laws as detailed above.

Carry over concession for Leave Travel Allowance
Leave Travel Allowance (LTA) comes with a carry forward feature. You can carry forward your Leave Travel Allowance in the situation that it has not been used. It can be brought forward and claimed in the first year of the next block.

No travel proof required for Leave Travel Allowance (LTA)
Supreme Court announces that there is no need to submit proof of travel in order to claim Leave Travel Allowance. Employers while assessing the travel allowance claims, do not need to collect proof of travel to submit to the tax authorities. Though it is not mandatory for employers to demand proof, they still have the right to demand documentary proof depending on its policy. The announcement by the Supreme Court has only moved the responsibility from the employer to the employee, the assessing officer can still ask for the employee to provide details of travel.

Can both spouses claim Leave Travel Allowance?
If the husband and wife are benefiting from Leave Travel Allowance benefit in their respective offices, then they both have the option of claiming Leave Travel Allowance exemption from their employers. They can also get the benefit of four journeys in just one block. There is no need to make sure that they do not travel twice in the same year. Also, as long as they adhere to the definition of family members, it does not matter whether they choose to take the same family members or different ones. Family in this case consists of spouse, children, siblings and parents who are dependent on you. In the case of kids who are born on or after October 1, 1998, the exemption will be restricted to only two surviving children. The only exception for this is if after the birth of the first child, the second conception results in multiple births (twins or triplets).

If both spouses travel together, can they both claim Leave Travel Allowance simultaneously?
No, both spouses cannot claim Leave Travel Allowance simultaneously. Leave Travel Allowance cannot be claimed twice for the same journey.

Bhagwad Gita's sales go up after Russia controversy

The Bhagwad Gita is a bestseller, controversy or no controversy. The holy book notches up steady sales through the year. In the last financial year, for instance, Gita Press, Gorakhpur, one of the major publishers of the ancient Hindu scripture, sold around six lakh copies of Gita in 13 languages.

Bookshop owners in the city maintain that the Gita sells throughout the year. They have also noticed a small rise in the sales since the controversy erupted late last week. "Hindi, Telugu, Marathi, Kannada, Oriya, Nepali - the book sells steadily in each of the languages we publish. Gita is a manual for life. Those who filed the case against it in Russia probably did not understand it," B B Tripathi, chief account officer in the book sales department, Gita Press, Gorakhpur told TOI over phone.

Mirza Afsar Baig of the Midland bookstore in the city's Aurobindo Marg has been selling books for over two decades.

"The controversies that crop up around books never cease to amaze me. I've sold over 60 copies of Swami Chinmayananda's The Holy Geeta in the last two days alone. There was a similar interest in Salman Rushdie after his Satanic Verses was banned," says Baig. There was also a rise in interest in books on the Prophet Mohammad and Islam after a US pastor threatened to burn copies of the Koran on the 9/11 anniversary last year, he says.

The city's International Society for Krishna Consciousness ( ISKCON) reported no spurt in sales. However, the organization is confident that the controversy will get more people interested in the subject.

In June this year, the state prosecutor's office in the Russian city of Tomsk, Siberia, filed a petition asking for a ban on the Gita, interpreting it as war-mongering, extremist literature.

courtesy : TOI

Lokpal bill approved; PM in, CBI & lower bureaucracy out

The Union cabinet on Tuesday approved the much-awaited Lokpal bill, bringing the prime minister under the anti-graft ombudsman with riders but excluding the CBIand the lower bureaucracy. Anna Hazareslammed the move, terming the government "dishonest" and vowed to launch his hunger strike Dec 27. 

The Cabinet chaired by Prime MinisterManmohan Singh approved the bill after an hour-long meeting in the parliament house. 

The bill is likely to be introduced and put up for consideration and passage in Lok Sabha Dec 22, the scheduled last day of the winter session. 

This means the parliament may be extended just for a day for this purpose. 

However, the Lok Sabha's Business Advisory Committee will take a final call on the issue on Wednesday. 

There are two proposals - to discuss the Lokpal bill on Dec 22 and 23 or to discuss the bill during an extended period of the winter session Dec 27-29. 

Accepting only one point - appointment of Lokayuktas in states from the sense of the houseresolution conveyed to haz in August this year, the bill has kept out the other key demand - lower bureaucracy from coming under the Lokpal. 

While the bill puts the lower bureaucracy under the Central Vigilance Commissioner with the superintendency of the Lokpal, it says the ombudsman would have no investigation wing and will only have a prosecution department with lawyers under it.

courtesy : times of india

Differences Between Aakash Tablet and Ubislate 7 or Aakash 2 Table

You must know the differences between Aakash and Ubislate 7 before choosing which to book. Most of the people are having a lot of queries on Aakash Tab and Ubislate 7. Now, Aakash Tablet is Available For Booking and people have a lot of questions on both these tabs, specially while booking them. So, to clear their doubts, we are writing a detailed post on the specifications of both the tabs. The major doubt which many people have is Aakash Tablet and Ubislate 7 have the same features like each other apart from the processor speed and GPRS.

Well, to be frank, there are a lot of differences between Aakash and Ubislate 7, and more over, you will be very surprised to see some amazing differences. And one more thing you have to keep in mind is, Ubislate 7 is also called as Aakash 2. Which is a upgraded version of Aakash 1, which is Aakash Tab. Confused ? Okay! No problem! Read the below article to get a clear idea on the basic differences between differences between Aakash and Ubislate 7.

Before giving the basic differences between Aakash and Ubislate 7, let me give you the specification of each tab separately. I am uploading a self made picture which will give the specifications and structured differences between Aakash and Ubislate 7. If we see the specifications of this tab, the first one from left to right is about Aakash Tablet and the other one is about Ubislate 7 which is ready to take the pre-booking orders.

Differences Between Aakash and Ubislate 7 – Features of Ubislate 7

·         High quality web anytime and anywhere.

·         You can connect your Ubislate 7 via GPRS or WiFi.

·         The amazing GPRS system will eliminate the need of external dongles and allow free access to internet anywhere.

·         The faster WiFi connection will never make your YouTube videos to lag.

·         You can use the Datawind’s patented acceleration technology for a faster web access even when on any GPRS network, across the country.

·         You can have access to Web, Emails, Social Networking and much more.

·         HD quality video playback will never disappoint you.

·         The expandable 32Gb will give you access to many apps and many files to store in your tab.

·         You can use any ordinary pen drive to access the data.

·         The best part is, its a phone where you can make voice calls and receive calls.

So, these were the features of the Ubislate 7, and apart from these specifications and features, i have found many possible doubts which may rise in you while booking your Tab. We have already answered some queries with the help of a post, Aakash Ubislate 7 Tablet Most Frequently Asked Questions and the remaining questions are shared here.

Most Frequent Doubts asked while booking Aakash Tab and Ubislate 7 :

1) Is the tab available in Punjab, Bihar, Delhi and other places?

A : Yes, it is available in any part of India.

2) Will Aakash be delivered in a week ?

A : Depends on your booking order, It may take 1 week or more than that.

3) Can we pay the money online for booking ?

A : No, you can only pay the money by cash on delivery.

4)  Can we cancel the order of booking Aakash ?

A : As per now, there is no option to cancel your booking, but you can cancel it when the team calls you for confirming your order.

5) Are they any hidden charges in shipping ?

A : As far as i know, the post will be in a speed post or any normal courier services, for that you no need to pay any additional money.

6) Can we use internet dongle like TATA, Reliance and Other services to browse net ?

A : You cannot use them in any of the tabs. But there will be WiFi and GPRS which will replace the services of your dongle very effectively.

7) I have not received any email from Aakash team.

A : Firstly they will send you an automated message while booking the tab, and later when your tab is ready to get delivered, you will get a conformation call and a email message.

8 ) Can we insert make calls in Aakash Tablet ?

A : No, you cannot make calls in Aakash Tab, but this features is available in Ubislate 7. Where you can make and receive calls.

9) Can we check the status of our tab after booking ?

A : Unfortunately the answer is No. You cannot trace the status of your tab as per now.

 10) What is this Rs 98 monthly charge for ?

A: This is the charge for using the web services which you will pay to your operator for browsing web.

11) Do these tabs have web camera’s ?

A : Nope, you wont have any web camera’s for any of the tablets.

12) Is the processor fast and can it support multitasking ?

A : You may find some difficulties in Aakash while multi-tasking, but not in Ubislate 7.

13) Will these tabs have Bluetooth ?

A : No, there is no Bluetooth or IR connection.

14) Can we install windows operating system in this tab ?

A: No, you cannot.. You can only update it to further android OS versions.

15) What is the battery backup ?

A : Aakash will give you 3-4 hours of solid backup and Ubislate 7 can give you 4-5 hours of backup.

16) Can i connect my USB pen-drive into it ?

A : Yes, you can connect your USB, Keyboard too.

17) Can we play high graphic card games in this tab ?

A: Obviously you cannot, its a simple tab to open your apps. and not all apps are supported.

These were the most asked questions for our previous articles, and If you want to book your Aakash Tablet, then please follow this article carefully : Aakash Tablet is Available For Booking

Get back to us if you have any further queries on the differences between Aakash and Ubislate 7

Apartment Communities – United To Combat Climate Change

Did you know that just by choosing to live in an apartment instead of a standalone house, you qualify as an environmentalist?

Are you aware of the collective power that you as an apartment community hold, to conserve your immediate ecosystem?

The theme of the World Environment Day 2009 is “United to Combat Climate Change”. This post discusses how as part of a united apartment community we can make a positive impact to our shared piece of earth, which as an individual may not be equally substantial.

Here is a list of 5 such initiatives that any apartment community can undertake. Please let us know if you could think of more -  the birds, bees and butterflies would thank you!

1. Rainwater Harvesting
2. Car Pooling
3. Waste Segregation
4. Lake Development
5. Plant Trees

Let us explore each of these.

1. Rainwater Harvesting

Do you remember filling buckets of rainwater when you were small and then using it for fun games? Or opening your mouth up to a hailstorm? You had just reused rainwater. Rainwater harvesting is exactly that – collecting rainwater for reuse.

You may ask – why harvest, doesn’t rainwater naturally seep into the underground water table and ultimately get pumped into our taps? The answer is NO! With the growing cityscape, the absorbent soil surfaces are covered with buildings or tar roads. This causes rainwater to flow into drainage systems or dirty water bodies. This water then has to be run through expensive recycling and purifying systems to make it usable by us. When our bore wells dry up (as the water table gets depleted ), this is the water we buy from expensive tankers.

Rainwater Harvesting entails collecting the rainwater that falls on our roof and balconies, and have it recharge our bore wells, or channel it to absorption pits so the water table right below our building is replenished! And if your builder has made the provisions, you could directly reuse the appropriately filtered rainwater for the washing machine & other cleaning needs! Assuming the average rainfall in your city remains same, you will not need to call another water tanker ever – statistics says that for a city like Bangalore, the annual rainfall on the catchment area (roof and balconies) of a typical house is enough to provide all the water needed by a typical household! This holds good for a typical apartment complex as well.

Implementing rainwater harvesting does require concerted effort from the Apartment Owners’ Association, but professional help is available in plenty! Here is your complete How-To guide from BWSSB (Bangalore Water Supply and Sewage Board).

2. Car Pooling

If you live in a large apartment complex as well as work in the commercial center of the city (e.g., an IT Park), chances are that there are at least 10 cars commuting each day from your apartment gate to your office gate. The right setup for a carpooling arrangement!
And guess what, you also face the same facility inefficiencies – if there is no water in your tap, then it’s the same for your neighbour too – you both will be late !! Where do you get better carpool partners?!

If all 10 commuters carpool, 10 cars are reduced to 2 cars! The savings: money, petrol, wear & tear of each car, and the environment! And oh the variety of topics for discussion – right from Guptaji’s loud parties to the new playschool coming up next door!

3. Waste Segregation

Every morning when we hand out a single garbage bag containing all our household garbage together, we just created more waste.

How?

The typical household garbage bag mainly contains wet waste from kitchen, paper, plastic, and occasional e-waste (used batteries etc.). When these ride the garbage truck together, they end up in a landfill. Some of the dry waste like plastic bottles get picked up by unauthorized reusers and the rest just lies there – for eternity to do its job of long decomposition.

The truth is that other than the wet waste, almost everything else in our garbage bag should go to human hands – either to be re-used by the needy, or decomposed safely (e.g., the batteries), or to be recycled the right way (e.g., paper and plastic). If we could just separate our waste right at our home, and hand out our garbage in two bags – one with the wet waste, and the other with dry – the dry waste can get recycled.

BENEFITS: Recycling the paper waste will cause less trees to be felled to manufacture fresh paper – recycling a tonne of waste paper saves 17 trees and 26460 litres of water. Recycling of plastic consumes 70% less energy than manufacturing them. Proper disposal of e-waste will prevent underground water from being contaminated with hazardous chemicals such as lead, mercury and cadmium. Reduction of waste dumped in landfills, will free up land used as landfills for more productive use.

You can choose to go the whole way – install 3 separate garbage bins: 1) for wet waste, 2) paper+plastic+metal+clothes and 3) e-waste.

Or, you can just start with one level of separation! Below are the commendable examples:

Prestige Greenwood provides separate bin for the e-waste from each flat. This e-waste is taken away by a qualified re-cycler.

Brigade Millenium in Bangalore provides a separate bin for all dry waste. Read about their inspiring initiative on the Citizen Matters site.

4. Lake Development

Have you paid a fortune to buy a ‘lake facing’ apartment, only to helplessly watch the lake deteriorate by the day? The builder promised to develop the lake but.. You figure it is under the Lake Development Authority or the Forest Department, who are not sure if it is going to be under BBMP soon.

Then there are problems of Sewage Overflow from STPs of the neighbourhood that have only the lake to flow into. The BWSSB sewage lines are not yet extended to your neighbourhood.

Well.. here you are – part of an apartment community with collective resources and determination. Can nothing be done to prevent the lakes from being filled – either by construction or by weeds & pollutants?

We don’t have answer to this yet. Do you?

5. Plant Trees!

Finally, here is playing in the offense rather than the defense! If you cannot do any of 1 through 4, you sure can roll up your sleeves, dig up the empty patch right next to your building and plant a sapling! And if your neighbours join in, you can plant a neat little botanical garden around your building!

40 yrs down the lane your next generation will not only inherit that apartment but also the air loaded with oxygen and mornings hailed by chirpings of birds! Talk about raising your property value! In Bangalore there are NGOs that help you with planting trees – you can sponsor the saplings or just show a patch of property where saplings can be planted and will be nurtured by the property owner. You can also just volunteer for planting.