BSNL Launches "Trojan Horse" Schemes!!!

BSNL Launches schemes for Landline, Broadband Users
The Bangalore Telecom District of the BSNL has launched six new schemes for its landline and broadband customers. Among the plans introduced is the Convenience 250 lan with Rs.250 fixed monthly charges and free usage limit of 1GB, the excess usage rate of 90 paise per MB has been reduced to 50 paise. Two other new plans offer EVDO data card and fixed monthly NIC (wireless internet card) at reduced tariff for existing combo orbroadband customers. Two other schemes offfer limited ofer free talktime to existing landline/broaband cusotmers on their existing/new local mobile connections.

Well, this was the News on printed edition of DNA Sunday Page 3. To verify these new schemes, I logged into BSNL Main Portal, but could not see an such new scheme. Immediately, my next step was to verify this news on BSNL Bangalore Portal. As the website was loading, my avast anti-virus came up with these Trojan Horse Alerts:

All these messages indicated me of JS:Redirector-H [Tri] Trojan Horse. As suggested by avast, I immediately clicked on Abort Connection option and choosed to Delete the temporary downloaded file.

I am not sure if this is a common problem for everyone, or there is something wrong only with my PC. Do leave me comments, if you find any Trojan Horse alert on BSNL Bangalore website.

Heavy traffic for Tata Nano - The people's car & the world's cheapest car

23-Mar-2009 will be considered as one of the big milestone in the history of India and Tata Motors, as it is launcing the world's cheapest car. The detailed specitifications of this car is available here. Booking amount for the Nano, the world’s cheapest car, can be done by just paying Rs 2,999 upfront while the rest can be secured by way of loan. The delivery of the first lot of Nano cars will begin in early July-2009. Applications for booking of the car would be available in 30,000 locations in 1,000 cities across India. State Bank of India has an exclusive tie up for providing finance for the Nano. The promise that has been made to sell the car at around Rs 1 lakh would be kept despite the fact that commodity prices had shot up, Tata said, adding that the fall in commodity prices now may provide some cushion. The first one-lakh customers will be selected by draw of lots from the bookings, he said, adding that those not allotted would have the option to retain their bookings.
Tata Motors, which is launching the ultra low-cost Nano car, plans to have a US model in the next three years. The United States has certain additional requirements that no other country needs and as result needs some redesign, Ratan Tata said at a news conference.
Nano, will be priced between Rs 1.34 lakh and Rs 1.85 lakh (ex-showroom Mumbai), although the car's claim to fame was its Rs one lakh tag. To book the Nano, customers will have to shell out Rs 95,000 for the base model BS II and III, Rs 1.2 lakh for the mid-range model and Rs 1.4 lakh for the top end all across the country.
Below is the Bangalore pricing details from Tata Motors website:

Today's launch event shooted up the web-site hits on company's official website (http://www.tatanano.com/) which was developed within a short timeframe of 1.5 months. The entire portal has been built on open source technologies. The hasty software development without sufficient planning on Load Testing has caused the website to go down, with following error:

The prefix "nano-" derives from the Greek root 'nanos', meaning dwarf. "Nano" also means "small" in Gujarati, the native language of the Tata family, founders of the Tata Group.

Links:

Tata Nano Official Website

Tata Nano on Wiki

BSNL Customer Care Initiatives

Open House Sessions, Adalat, Help Line Enquiries, Call Centre and Other Important Helplines.

Aero India 2009

A close encounter with flights!

User Development Fee @ Bengaluru International Airport

If you are traveling from Bangalore, please note that the Bengaluru International Airport is now charging a User Development Fee of Rs 260. This fee will be charged effective January 16, 2009 and be collected directly by the airport.
Who will be affected? All passengers travelling out of Bangalore from the Bengaluru International Airport will have to pay Rs 260. However, infants under 2 years are exempted.
Where to pay the UDF? You can pay the fee at the specially built counters just outside the terminal. You will then have to show the receipt before entering the terminal.
How can I pay? You can pay by cash, credit cards or debit (only Visa, MasterCard and American Express) at the UDF counters outside the terminal. If you are paying by cash, we would advise you to have the exact change ready.
Will it take time? While the airport has made provisions to provide enough counters, it may take up to 10 minutes during peak hours - from 6am to 10am and 5:30pm to 8:30pm. While at other times, it may take no more than 3 to 4 minutes.
But why is this extra amount being charged? The UDF of Rs 260 has been approved by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India. This amount will be used for the development and maintenance of this state of the art airport and to provide other services and amenities.

For any other information, you can contact the Bengaluru International Airport at 080 - 66782251 or 666782255 or visit their website: http://www.bengaluruairport.com/.

BMTC Volvo - Rs.1 Ride in Bangalore.

"Luxury ride on Volvo Bus for Rs.1 only", is the newest BMTC offer to Bangalore commuters for 4 days (11-Sep-2008 to 14-Sep-2008). Usually, the fare for a travel between Koramangala Water Tank to Electronics City is Rs.30. It costs BMTC Rs 52 per km to operate Volvo. Minimum ticket is Rs 10 (Refer - BMTC Volvo - Route Details and Fare Chart). On Thursday(11-Sep), 154 Volvos, with a seating capacity of 43 each, plied. BMTC’s chief traffic manager Dastagir Sharief said on the first day, 72,000 tickets were sold. The second day yielded sales of 97,000 tickets. The numbers are expected to be higher on Saturday(13-Sep) and Sunday(14-Sep).

BMTC’s offer of selling Volvo tickets at Rs. 1 (Rupee One only) for the next three days in a bid to encourage more passengers to take to the public transport system was a super hit with the people. BMTC hopes to lure more people into travelling by bus to ease traffic and tempt passengers with a luxury travel experience. But most said once the rates became normal, they will not be able to afford it and would be back to their two-wheelers.

This four-day initiative of the government has clearly created an opportunity for common man to take up public transport. I believe that this will help a great deal in improving traffic conditions of the city.

The Auto-rickshaw customers are reduced and it has This initiative has created problem to the income of Auto-rickshaw drivers, who are more customers.

The BMTC has no plans of extending the offer, which has pinched the organization by over Rs 5 lakh per day. Please note that this offer is not applicable on BMTC Volvo towards Bengaluru International Airport.

Thanks to the BMTC Volvo team to provide such promotional offer, which is one of its first kind in Bangalore.

Source of News/Pictures: Times of India

CBI's move against corruption

Central Bureau of Investigation, the country’s premier investigation agency, has started a nation-wide campaign to involve the people in its fight against corruption. The campaign is multi-folded. The agency is sending SMS messages inviting complaints and information from people about babus, who demand bribes or have huge assets. People can send information about them through letters, faxes, e-mails, SMS and phone calls. Besides they can post information on the CBI website or meet the officials in person. The scale of the campaign is huge. In Karnataka, the CBI has tied up with the BSNL and sent SMS to all its 18.5 lakh mobile subscribes in a single stroke.

The SMS:
“Please inform CBI-Bangalore about officials of government of India/PSUs demanding bribe or being in possession of huge assets at 080-2333 2726 or 94480 44355.’’

What an informant can do ?
Log on to www.cbi.nic.in and go to ‘contact us’ page Send an e-mail to the ID spacblr@cbi.gov.in, with the words ‘complaint-information’ in the subject line Send a fax to 080-23331026 Write to The SP, Anti-Corruption, CBI, Bellary Road, Ganganagar, Bangalore-32. You can also meet Komar at his office at the same address.

Source: Times of India, Front Page 03-Sep-2008

Brahmin's Coffee Bar - Best Idly & Chutney in Bangalore

Brahmin's Coffee bar is THE place to go for the Best Idly's & Chutney. They make very delicious green chutney, which goes well with both idly and khara bhaat.

If you are in Bangalore and like to explore for good eat-outs, then please visit this small restaurant, which is open from 6am to 12pm and 3pm to 7pm (Sunday Holiday).

There are very few limited item's available, but they maintain the same good taste & quality.

Idly - Rs.10

Vada - Rs.9

Kesri Bhaat - Rs.9

Khara Bhaat - Rs.9

Tea/Coffee/Milk - Rs.7

You can refill the green chutney multiple times. This place is located near to Bull Temple Road (less than 1 KM from Ramkrishna Ashram). While coming from Bull Temple, take the right turn at Shanti Sagar junction. Click here for the map. Let me warn the Saambaar fans that you don't get any Saambaar at this place. So you only need to Go for Green chutney!

Hi Honey!

Last weekend, we had sweet time in our Apartment, because of Honey Bee-Hive. Once a year I find the Honey Bee constructing their nest in my apartment area. Usually they like the 3rd floor very much. They love the balcony area of some of the flats in 3rd floor. This time, we had tough time finding a person who can remove the hive. Finally we got hold of the person through a chain of contacts.

My aim was to shoot (smile pls) the Queen Bee, but I could not do so. The Queen Bee was captured in a container and it could not be opened due to security reasons :) Somehow, I managed to get these snaps for my post. Due to huge size, I have uploaded them here. I am posting the details of the person who is professional in removing the Honey and cleaning up the hive.

Name: Ashok (stays near Bannergatta)

Contact: 92427-71877

BMTC Volvo introduces SMS service

Technology has come right down to the streets with the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) introducing SMS alert service on the exact location of its buses.

The service, appropriately called "Yelli Iddira," entails a message "Where are you," eliciting the answer in the likes of "I am near Corporation bus stop now."
Initially, the service will be available on two Volvo routes — V356C between Kempe Gowda Bus Station and Electronic City and V335E between KBS and Kadugudi via ITPL. To avail oneself of the facility, one has to send an SMS from the mobile phone in the following manner — YI {lt}Volvo Route Number{gt} {lt}U or D{gt} to 9945634666.
For instance, to know the location of Route No. V356E, send an SMS reading YI V356E U, where YI stands for Yelli Iddira? V356 stands for the Volvo route number and U stands for `up' direction. Buses heading out of the starting station are designated as `up' and in reverse direction as `down.'

The Hindu sent two SMS for the two services at 7 p.m. on Saturday to test the same. For V356C, the reply was "At Kempe Gowda Bus Stand, near Kempe Gowda Bus Stand" and for V335E, it was "At 1.07 km southwest of Ulsoor bus stand." The idea was conceptualised by Muralidhar Rao, co-chairman, BMTC Commuter Comfort Task Force and the service was designed by Sujit Kumar of CL InfoTech Pvt., Ltd., Bangalore, a BMTC release said. Apparently, the service is being offered with the help of Global Positioning System (GPS) and Geographical Information System (GIS) that are integrated through GPRS.

Service Provided by CL Infotech Pvt Ltd. For details on its services, please click here.

Air Show 2007 - Bangalore

The Air Show of 2007 is back in Bangalore. I am hoping to see it again this year. My first visit to Air show was two years back with my friend Ganesh. Unfortunately, we were not Blogging that time :)


This year, Chairman of the Tata Group Ratan Tata (right in picture) flew the F-16 fighter aircraft at the Aero India show in Bangalore on Thursday 08-Feb-2007. He termed the experience "exhilarating."

Latest Update >>> I visited Air Show on Sunday and will put the update soon...

Bangalore FM Radio

A quick list of Bangalore's FM Radio Channels along with its Frequency (in MHz).

91.1 - Radio City
91.9 - Radio Indigo
92.7 - Big FM
93.5 - S FM
94.3 - Radio One
98.3 - Radio Mirchi
101.3 - FM Rainbow
102.9 - Vivdh Bharati
104 - Fever FM - Powered by Virgin
107.3 - Gyaan Vaani

Thanks to VJ for his inputs.

Spot Puncture Service - Bangalore

Heard from my friend that this service can be availed at a Membership of Rs.100 per Year.



See Also: Metro eService

Update on 11-Jan-2008:
I have seen the comments of many visitors for this post. Yes, I agree with you guys. Kindly check the above Metro eService post. Trust me - this one is a reliable one. I have used it two times personally.

Tribute: Cash Pharmacy (1908 - 2006)

Landmark vanishes in time’s abyss
DH News Service Bangalore: 12-Sep-2006

A nearly 100-year-old building has bit the dust in Bangalore. On Monday when Cash Pharmacy was pulled down, another of the City’s landmarks got obliterated.

A nearly 100-year-old building has bit the dust in Bangalore. On Monday when Cash Pharmacy was pulled down, another of the City’s landmarks got obliterated.

Cash Pharmacy catered mainly to the people of Cantonment area. But it was also one place looked up to by all Bangaloreans who were in search of medicines and life-saving drugs unavailable elsewhere in the City.

Located at the junction of St Mark’s Road and Residency Road, the building a few years ago had a first floor with monkey tops, typical of the colonial era buildings. Its unusual elevation made it stand out from the regular tiled-roof buildings around and a wooden facia and trellis ran around the first floor verandah.

Read on more at Source Link below:
Deccan Herald 12-Sep-2006

At Bangalore - Got Punchure / Got Flat Tyre? - Call in : +91-98457-64439

Most of us commute to & fro to office & especially for the ones who use their own transportation this is one big reason for you guys to smile.

An agency who are providing puncture or repair service round the clock (24 *7 ) anywhere within 50 kms radius of Bangalore. You just need to give them a call and they will land at the place where your vehicle has broken down to repair or whatever the case maybe. Just tell them your address and the problem of your vehicle. So for the ones in night shifts here is a big relief.

Charges : Service charge + 35 additional anywhere in Bangalore city.(50 kms)

Call in : +91-98457-64439

Update on 27-Mar-2007

I personally used this service and found it decent. The company name is Metro eServices and its located near Trinty Circle (M.G.Road). The only problem I found is that they said they will come in 15 minutes to the spot, but they arrived after 1 hour. Thanks to Bangalore Traffic. So plan your timings before giving them a ring. The charge taken was Rs.25 for fixing the tube and Rs.35 for their Transportation.

Update on 02-Jan-2008
Welcome 2008 and once again, I was the victim of a nail which pierced my rear tyre and then everybody knows the end results! But this time, it was a bad timings. The event occurred at 8:30pm between the Hosur Road and I tried searching for a punchure shop near-by. After a quick hunt, I could locate 3 shops - but all closed! So, finally the Metro eServices came to my rescue. Luckily I had transferred their Mobile# 98457-64439 into my new mobile phone. I called them around 9pm and he confirmed his presence would take about 1 hour, since he has to start from M.G.Road. I had to ultimately wait about 1 hour 45 minutes for him to reach the spot. This guy comes like a God, fixes the problem and goes back. I appreciate the pain and effort he takes. Ofcourse, he does charge his service - Rs.50 for his travel, Rs.25 for service and any parts replacement (e.g. - replacment of damanged tube with a New tube). I was also informed through my close friend about another such service called - RescueFirst, but they would require Membership and I have not tried them personally. When I called them today, they refused to come saying that they serve only members. For non-members, it may cost upto Rs.500 per visit. If anyone has tried RescueFirst service, please share your comments.

See Also: Spot Puncture Service