Dash Dot

Teaching the kid how to factorize

2012-02-03T08:23:00.000+05:30

So, one day when I return home, I find my wife desperately trying to teach the kid how to find all factors of a number in vain. The kid was unable to comprehend how to do it. After watching for a while, I decided to step in.

With the background in programming coming handy, I first explain what are prime numbers. Then, using the divide-and-conquer method, I show how to factorize.

For example, if the number is 36, I first say that the number itself and 1 are two of the factors.

36 = 36 x 1

Then, we choose a single factor which will divide the given number. For example, 9.

36 = 9 x 4

Now, repeat the above method for each of the factors until you reach prime numbers - numbers that cannot be factorized any further.

9 = 3 x 3
4 = 2 x 2

Since 3 and 2 are prime numbers, we are now in a position to find ALL the factors.

36 = 3 x 3 x 2 x 2

Now, form all possible combinations to get all the factors.

36 = 3 x (3 x 2 x 2) = 3 x 12
   = (3 x 3 x 2) x 2 = 18 x 2
   = (3 x 2) x (3 x 2) = 6 x 6

Add the ones found earlier, and that would complete the list of all the factors.

36 = 36 x 1
   = 9 x 4
   = 3 x 12
   = 2 x 18
   = 6 x 6

So, the factors of 36 are:
1, 36, 9, 4, 3, 12, 2, 18, 6

The above method has the advantage of being very fast, but it has the disadvantage that it becomes difficult if it is not easy to find the first factor.

Happy New Year 2012

2012-01-01T16:30:00.000+05:30

A very happy new year. Another new year, another day. This new year I purchased a new pair of computer speakers - the Bose Companion 20 (a new model, and as usual expensive). The old speakers were less than nearly one-tenth the price of the new ones, but the old ones had nearly conked off.

Long time, no post...

2011-12-18T11:56:00.000+05:30

Its been a long time since I last blogged on this blog. I think this is because of 2 main reasons:

One, I find no spare time on weekdays. This is in turn because my workplace location has changed and I have to commute about 36 km one way (not an easy task using public transportation in Mumbai).

The other reason is that most of my browsing / email reading at home happens on the iPad2. And to type anything on the iPad2 is a cumbersome task.

So no blogs, my friend. At least until I return to my PC. This post, by the way, is from the PC.

The death of the dead zone???

2011-11-13T17:24:00.000+05:30

Even as I type this post, a mega-block (a non-availability of railway tracks in railway parlance) on the Western Railway suburban section draws to a close. This was due to the conversion of the electrification from DC to AC. While the lines north of Borivili were already AC-electrified, this work would mean that the lines would be converted to AC from north of Vile Parle instead. With that, in all probability, the neutral "dead zone" (which is currently at Borivili) would be shifted to Vile Parle. And, within a few months, the dead zone would be all gone as the entire suburban section would be AC-electrified.

Another Bengaluru trip

2011-11-08T10:30:00.002+05:30

This evening I fly into Bengaluru for some work related conference. I am not carrying the heavy laptop, instead choosing to opt for my android mobile for emails / browsing. Since I do not have a SIM card in the device, I will have to rely on the WiFi connectivity instead. Usually, many conference venues, airports, and hotels have a WiFi connectivity. I hope this works out. Will post back the results here.

Update: This idea is working out quite well. WiFi access at Mumbai airport, accommodation, as well as at the venue. Good riddance to heavy laptops?

Update 2: I reached Mumbai late on Thursday evening (10th November). Like I mentioned in the earlier update, the idea of using the Android phone worked very well. Apart from the free WiFi access mentioned above, there was also free WiFi access available at Bangalore International Airport, except that the one at Bangalore restricted free access for 45 minutes. If more access was required, one was supposed to buy additional access from online or some counter at the airport. I did not bother to buy additional time.

In hindsight, all one does is to check and reply to emails. All of this can be done easily today using a smart phone. Of course, typing long memos / documents is a pain, and obviously, one will also not have access to a development environment, but in a short trip such as this where a majority of the time is spent in attending the conference talks, this is hardly a priority.

In Dharwad, this Diwali...and back

2011-10-27T10:24:00.008+05:30

This Diwali I ~~am spending~~ spent a quiet vacation in Dharwad. The weather is was cool and pleasant - perfect for a vacation. And, by the end of the week, we are back in Mumbai all charged up.

We had 3 weekdays off for the Diwali festival starting Wednesday, and adding the 2 weekend days meant a really long weekend vacation. The decision to visit Dharwad was taken late, and it was quite difficult to get train tickets at such a short notice, so we had to travel by bus. We went by a Volvo bus of VRL Travels, one that has lot of services on this route.

We left on Tuesday evening (after work) and reached back on Sunday (today). The journey to Dharwad on Tuesday was quite tiring - the bus arrived about an hour late (traffic) at our boarding point, there was horrendous traffic (hordes were going away from Mumbai for Diwali), we had a flat tyre, I had dinner at 1:30 a.m., and until 6:30 a.m. in the morning we were still in Kolhapur.

Then, things changed for the better - a new expressway from Belgaum meant that we reached Dharwad in just 2 more hours at around 8:30 a.m.

The return journey was short and with no incidents - we reached in about 8 hours.

In Dharwad, we spent playing (badminton and other iPad games), praying (at various temples), and eating (Diwali!!!). The climate, as I mentioned, was very much pleasant - it was also cold at certain times due to sporadic rains. We spotted several types of birds, and a mongoose and squirrels. Oh! and by the way, although we did not visit the railway station this time, we could still hear the short powerful horns of the diesel locos - no doubt of the WDP4s / WDG4s of the UBL (Hubli) loco sheds.

All in all it was time spent well - a much needed break from the polluted environs and hectic life of Mumbai. I can still feel the cool breeze and the fresh air of Dharwad. Need to stop dreaming and wake up - its back to the grind from tomorrow.

iPad2 bought

2011-09-29T10:02:00.002+05:30

Just bought a new toy, the iPad2. I must say that I was inspired by my cousins (R from the USA, and R from Bengaluru). Indeed the whole wifi setup done at home recently was geared towards the ipad2 in mind. This post has been posted from the iPad.

Update on the fever

2011-09-28T11:05:00.000+05:30

After a series of medical blood tests, it was concluded that I was suffering from the "dengue fever". By that time this conclusion was reached, my fever had already subsided, but the general symptoms (drop in counts of WBCs, RBCs, and platelletes) still remained.

In the latest blood test report, it was ascertained that the counts were beginning to be within acceptable ranges. There was nothing to do except take rest as advised by the doctor. So, an unexpected off from work for the rest of the week.

Suffering from fever...

2011-09-20T17:23:00.000+05:30

Yesterday, I suffered from what I think is a severe bout of dehydration. By the time I returned home, I was surprised that I had not yet collapsed. I also had fever. After drinking Electral and several glasses of barley water, I was somewhat rejuvenated, but the fever remained, and giving it company was a severe headache.

Come to think of it, this was probably one of the worst bouts of fever I was suffering from in many years. In any case, I had to take the day off today, and I was confined to the bed for the larger part of the day.

I am feeling somewhat better now, and hope to be fit to resume work tomorrow.

WDP4 cranking up

2011-08-09T09:27:00.000+05:30

Remember, I had blogged about my face-to-face (well, side-to-face) experience with the WDP4 (Dippy 4) at Thane station. Here's a YouTube video that has the same effect. Since this is a cold start, there is the customary bell to be sounded to shoo away workers / animals that may be below or around the loco.

Then, a couple of clicks of some switches, the beast comes alive, and starts almost like a plane about to take off. You will have to be patient since this does not happen until 1 min 49 seconds into the video.

There's another vid here, but there's a lot of background noise. Also, another startup at Panvel is here.

Lost my cellphone

2011-07-31T11:25:00.001+05:30

I lost my Nokia cellphone last week. The phone was about 2 years old, and the screen cover was already cracked due to the slim phone falling off many times from my shirt pocket. The last time I had lost it, a good samaritan had returned it to me. This time, however, I was not lucky.

It did not take me much time to get the old SIM card blocked, and get a duplicate one. It cost me INR 25.

Instead of a buying a new phone immediately, I thought of using my Nexus S (which till now was being used as an email-checking and gaming device). Luckily, I also had a backup of my contacts / calendar entries which I could import into the Nexus S.

Its quite difficult to handle the Nexus S while commuting (especially in the rains). I plan to buy a plain (sub INR 2K) phone for regular use.

Fate and karma

2011-07-10T11:50:00.000+05:30

One of the most confusing aspects about Vedic beliefs is the relation between fate and karma. The general idea is that karma is the reaction of the actions performed by individuals. It is also believed that what actions / decisions we take are the result of our past karma.

This puts people into a quandary: If all that we do is guided by what we have done in the past, then it means that we have no control over what we are doing, and hence no way to change our destiny.

Some guys had also asked me such questions during various spiritual discussions. A detailed and very good explanation of how this works is outlined in this article on the Krishna.com website.

Panchratna Ri Dal

2011-07-03T12:54:00.000+05:30

Every once in a while you come across a recipe that you wonder why you did not try it out earlier. This recipe, in the Times Of India in October 2009, by Arvind Singh Mewar, is one such recipe. Since the time we first tried it out in 2009, we've made it at least once a month. The dish itself is prepared from 5 dals (hence the name "Panchratna"), and is quite wholesome. The spices are also not overpowering adding just enough hotness to the dish. The dish tastes wonderful if it is just about thick in consistency, and is best cooked over a slow fire once the dals are cooked.

All Wi Fi-red up

2011-06-25T10:33:00.000+05:30

After years of deliberation, finally bought a DLink WiFi router and set it up at home. I was skeptical whether it would work with the ISP that I have, but after checking out the manuals, it did seem that it would work. It did not take much time to setup, though I had to perform some of the steps differently than as outlined in the manual. It worked on first attempt, but then I had some trouble (my folly) to get my Android work via the WiFi. In the process, I hosed the settings on the router, and was unable to do anything with it.

Finally, did a hard reset (pressing the Reset switch for 20 seconds), restored to factory settings, and then performed the setup again. Since then its working like a charm. Even the Android works well with it.

Now, consider this: 20 minutes into installing the new router, I had to go ahead and reset it. Wow! It might be the first time that I took down something new so quickly.

Hello Bengaluru, bye Bengaluru

2011-06-14T08:53:00.000+05:30

Just returned from an express trip to Bengaluru. Incidentally, though I was born in Karnataka, it was my first trip to the state capital. Landed there this Sunday, and returned the following day.

It was a good break from Mumbai, and I felt quite at home since it resembles my birth place of Dharwad. The same terrain, and trees, not to mention numerous anthills among the woods.

Aadhar: no support yet

2011-05-15T22:05:00.000+05:30

Aadhar (meaning "support" or "base" in Hindi) is India's rather ambitious Unique Identification project (UID), where it is envisaged that every Indian will have a unique id system, which will then link up all the kinds of IDs in a single system. The other day, I went to get myself registered for this. I had read that there were several people who were against it because of privacy concerns.

Nevertheless, I decided to give it a try. After getting the forms and filling it up, I went to a registration center. I had to stand in a queue with about 25 people ahead of me. The service time require per person is anywhere between 10 to 15 minutes, more so if the forms have not been filled up correctly.

When my turn arrived, I was quite impressed by the entire setup used for the registration. There were fingerprint scanners, retina scans, and the information was filled up in both English and Devnagiri. After verification by me, the person at the counter prints out a receipt in duplicate, and hands us one of the copies.

What really pissed me off is that at the bottom of the form on the screen is a checkbox called "Make information public" or something to that effect. The person did not even bother asking me, and simply went ahead and clicked it. Now, imagine all these personal details floating around on the Internet, and its a very good material for getting a fake user id or for misuse in changing personal details on important accounts.

No matter how secure they say the system is, this is one thing that Aadhar will not get my support for.

A lesson in mathematics for a rickshaw driver

2011-05-08T22:07:00.001+05:30

I had earlier written about how to compute the regular fare for the Mumbai autorickshaws. At the end of a rickshaw trip, I try to pronounce the fare computed from the meter reading. This usually impresses the rickshaw drivers. On a couple of occasions, I even tried explaining the mathematics to some of them.

Very recently, I found a rickshaw driver who was keenly interested in knowing this computation. When I explained the simple mathematics behind it, he was quite amazed. In fact, he was so grateful that he waived off a couple of rupees of the fare. I did not accept the reduction in fare, however, and paid the fare in full to the exact rupee.

Unfortunately, unlike for the regular fare, I was unable to come up with a curve fitting simple equation for the late-night (post-midnight) fare. Maybe I should've tried using a more advanced software such as MATLAB or Scilab or some other curve fitting tools.

Time Management and the mobile phone

2011-05-01T17:37:00.003+05:30

Many years ago when I had just gotten out of an individual role to a role of leading teams, I struggled to keep track of my activities on account of poor time management. I guess this is a common phase for most people as they rise in the hierarchy. You would have heard of managers telling about the importance of multitasking and thrusting loads of parallel work on you. Even if you are fortunate to not having faced this at work, it is inevitable to face multitasking on the personal / home front. Several things need your attention, and some things must be finished before a deadline.

Years ago I attended a "Time Management" talk (a small session that talked about the basics). As is the case with most such trainings, the learnings were quite common sense - such as planning out a day's work at the start of the day, prioritizing activities, and things like that. One thing that struck me was the use of a PDA (those were the days when mobiles had not yet caught on) for maintaining TODO lists.

Some years later I did buy a Linux PDA (Sharp Zaurus), but never got around to using it on a daily basis. Some years after I bought my first mobile phone, I started using it for reminders. Every TODO activity (personal and work related) was maintained as a reminder. I continue using this approach even today. I find it to be extremely beneficial. Along with the convenient "Snooze" for the reminders, I feel I have never missed an important deadline.

I know that there are apps that allow one to synchronize one's desktop calendar (Outlook, etc.) with the cell phone calendar, but I haven't gotten around to that point yet. Looking back at these years, I find this simple solution has worked wonders for my problem.

On an ending note, for some time management tips (targeted for grad school, but can be of use to others as well), there's the Time Management talk by Randy Pausch. There's one equation in the presentation that sums it up:

Bad Time Management = Stress

Been a busy week and weekend

2011-04-04T11:08:00.003+05:30

Had a busy week attending a few training sessions, as well as (trying to) study for some technical certifications. When most of India had probably just gone to sleep in the morning hours of Sunday after wild celebrations for India's cricket World Cup win, I reported for the certification exam, took the 4-hour exam, and passed it.

A good thing is that I have a holiday today (Monday). That gives me some time to catch up on some reading, writing (er, typing) and preparing for the other exams.

There was some stress as well when on the morning of the exam I discovered that I had lost my cell phone - not that it contained anything important, and I had a recent backup of my contacts, but then getting the SIM card blocked, getting a replacement, and lodging a police complaint using the IMEI number (important since the phone might be misused) were the activities I had lined up for after the exam. Fortunately, a call on the phone revealed that some good samaritan had not only found it, but also readily agreed to part with it. That saved me some headache.

What wheel?

2011-03-23T12:18:00.001+05:30

A newspaper article (8th March, Times of India) specifies that the Deccan Queen would be piloted by Surekha Yadav, and for the first time "a woman would be behind the wheel". What wheel? Surely, this should not read as "behind the wheel", but "above the wheels". Surely, there is no "steering wheel" in a loco. Okay, I am trying to be picky here, and I get it that this is more of a commonly-used phrase, but hopefully the author also understands the same.

Coming back to Surekha Yadav, I have, of course, read about her earlier. She was also filmed in the National Geographic documentary on "Mumbai" in their "Megacities" serials. She is shown piloting a CR suburban local (probably shot between Dadar and Kurla) frantically blowing the horn to ward off trespassers.

Started a new tech blog

2011-02-20T18:02:00.000+05:30

Started a new tech-related blog over at Wordpress. This is because Blogger does not support PDF attachments (remember the previous post about LaTeX). To all my computer-savvy readers, figure out where it is. Hint: There has to be a Unix connection for the name, and devices are an eternal favorite along with the fascination for 0.

Sorely missing Linux

2011-02-17T18:11:00.003+05:30

I have been using my new desktop (bundled with Windows 7) for a while, but I am sorely missing my Linux (especially Ubuntu, Kubuntu, and Debian). And with that, I am also missing all the wonderful utilities that GNU brings along. Not to mention LaTeX (not the material, but the software). Its a pleasure to read documents that are typeset with LaTeX and variants. With a lot of (non-work related) material to be put into document form, I finally installed ProTeXt for Windows. While it seems to be working fine, I still miss my Kile -that fine KDE-based software with which I had typed my entire master's thesis.

I am also looking at trying out writing some mini (or maybe pocket) books. Looking over my disk archives, I had found a wonderful way of combining LaTeX for A5 sized paper with some nifty Linux shell scripts (psnup and what not). This would produce a booklet, but still be printed on a standard A4 paper, but the pages would be laid out such that when printed it could be stitched like a look. Really love the idea, as well as the output quality. Another point is that most of the cheat sheets that I had prepared while doing my academics were typeset in LaTeX.

Now, I know there are a lot of GNU utils available for Windows (GetGnuWin32, Cygwin, etc.). And I do not think any other software (at least the free ones) can match the quality of LaTeX. I think it is better to get Ubuntu installed (maybe using Microsoft Virtual PC or other virtual machine). So that's what's happening now - a download of the Ubuntu 10.10.

Update (2011-02-17): Yeah! just finished installing and firing up the Ubuntu 10.10 on a VirtualBox. This update is being posted from the VM running Ubuntu. Had some problems with the VM crashing while installing initially and later the display res, but things have been sorted out. Works like a charm!

"Don't Lose Your Mind, Lose Your Weight" - a reminder to what we forgot

2011-02-13T18:41:00.001+05:30

Just finished reading the book by Rujuta Diwekar (website not working when checked last). While most of it is common sense, it came across an important read because common sense is so uncommon. In any case, the rules stated by her are something inline with what I had gathered over the years. Of course, the most important thing is to know the signals offered by the body (I call this "debugging" the body). It becomes easy when you have a settled and more-or-less fixed routine. Just like it is easy to debug a program that broke due to changes made - you know where to look, it is easy to understand why you feel light or heavy, why you do not feel hungry, have a headache, etc. if there are some changes to the diet or routine.

The book seems to have preference for ayurveda and yoga and other desi things, but that is similar to my opinion too.

Another trip to LTT

2011-01-23T18:49:00.000+05:30

Got an opportunity to go to LTT (Lokmanya Tilak Terminus) last evening. My parents were traveling to Ernakulam. I was lucky to get tickets for them on the newly inaugurated LTT-ERS Duronto Superfast Express. In fact, this service was introduced only on the 18th of January. As is the case with most other Durontos, there are hardly any stops - in fact, the train travels non-stop to Ernakulam (with only about 5 technical halts - maybe for crew change, etc., but not to pick up passengers).

The train's scheduled departure is at 20:50 from LTT, and I reached there about an hour earlier. The rake (brand new LHB coaches, but with a "fractal" livery - printed plastic stuck over its original paint) was spotlessly clean. I could see the inside of the luggage compartment - it was all shiny stainless steel. The service crew of the train (in uniforms) were busy loading bottles of water and other stuff onto the train coaches. There were 1st AC, 2-tier AC, and 3-tier AC coaches. And, of course, the pantry car and a hot buffet car as well.

The loco was still not attached. After I got my parents settled, I went off to the front of the rake to see what I am always keen to see - the coupling of the loco to the rake. There was no activity related to the coupling. I sat down patiently. When it was about 20 minutes to departure, I could hear a short horn - a typical WDM3 / WDP4 horn. A couple of khalasis turned up with a wireless radio and the work gloves. One of them asked the other whether it was an AlCo, and the other replied in the affirmative. Moments later, the Kalyan loco shed WDM3D #11254 had arrived on the same track as the rake. A couple of hand signals later the loco waited about a few hundred meters away. The khalasi jumped onto the tracks, adjusted the coupler of the rake, clambered back up onto the platform. Meanwhile, a handful of engineers arrived at the spot - making checks, giving comments, studying or whatever else they seemed to be doing. I got a feeling that this unusual visit by the engineers at the everyday event of coupling could have been because of the presence of the LHB rake at LTT. (Usually, only Rajdhanis and Durontos have these coaches - and this might have been one of the first services with LHB coaches at LTT).

A few more hand signals later, the loco was moved very gently to be attached to the rake. The khalasi jumped back again, and coupled the rake - air brake pipe as well. Another one did the checks. With all final checks in place, the pilot started the compressor, and all was well.

A few minutes later the engineers were in the SLR coach checking out the diesel generator sets, the brake van, etc. Another 10 minutes later, the train revved up, and departed - albeit a few minutes later than its scheduled departure time.

Nexus S : my first Android

2011-01-23T18:12:00.001+05:30

Received by first Android phone (a Nexus S) a few days ago. I have been playing with it, and trying to get a hang of whether it is a good competitor to the iPhone. Though I love gadgets, I have been consciously trying to avoid adding to the e-waste. So, while I used my first mobile for about 8 years, the Nokia that I current use is just about a year old. I do not intend to make the Nexus S my daily phone, but more to use it as a developer's phone. It still does not have a SIM card - I use it via the WiFi setting up my Windows 7 as a virtual access point.

From whatever I have read, it has a 1GHz processor, and until now the phone and the apps seems to be quite a pleasure to use. There are few grouses regarding the placement of the home buttons / rocker buttons, but I'll reserve that for a later post.

Until now (like my brief iPad experience outlined in this post), Android seems to have a large number of games / entertainment apps available. So, off I go back to the phone to have some more leisurely Sunday fun.

WDM2 Interactive

2011-01-08T10:21:00.001+05:30

One of the fun things to do is to play around with this Flash animation created by Sheeju Chandran available at IRFCA. Depending on your browser / Flash plugin version, you may have to right-click and choose "Play" and select the "Interactive Technical Diagram". Among other useful information, the parts of the WDM2 and its inner workings (obviously a simplification) can be viewed. Check it out, and don't forget to try out the short and long horns, and the air compressor and release.

A screenshot of the interactive WDM2

Some interesting rail vids

2010-12-25T10:59:00.000+05:30

Back to railfanning:Some interesting ones:

The mighty WDP4 being coupled to a rake: requires a couple of tries to really get it right. Probably something to do with the responsiveness of the control or the power of the gigantic WDP4. Or maybe the pilot was used to the oldie-but-goldie (non-microprocessor) WDMs.

A token exchange vid: This time the Koyna Express at Ambale.
And, this eternal favorite that did quite some rounds on the email: A careless couple misjudging the speed of a WAP-4. Luckily, nothing happened. Careless Couple crossing

Ecstatic kirtan and a divine Sunday feast

2010-12-12T21:25:00.001+05:30

Over the last decade, I have been following a practice of celebrating special family occasions with dinner / lunch from the Govinda's restaurant at ISKCON, Juhu in Mumbai. This Sunday, too, saw me attend an ecstatic kirtan (congregational chanting) at the temple there followed by a take away of the Sunday spread at Govinda's. Over the years, the rates of the buffet have increased multi-fold. The weekend rates are a bit higher than the weekday rates. The take away rates are lesser than the dine in rates primarily because only a limited quantity is packed for the take away as compared to the unlimited buffet, and also because a fewer variety of dishes from the buffet are packed in. For example, if the buffet has 4 rice dishes, only 1 would be packed for the take away. The take away weekend price is now Rs. 300.

Though there are people who have opinions otherwise, I, nevertheless, found the food (prasadam) to be absolutely divine.

Hamsadhwani instrumental

2010-11-28T17:42:00.001+05:30

Been searching for a while for an instrumental rendition of raga Hamsadhwani, the most popular use of which is in MSD's Vataapi Ganapatim. Came across a couple of superb pieces on YouTube, and thought of posting it for those interested:

Shrinidhi's guitar rendition of Vataapi at a NJ temple
A saxophone version - there are more than one sax versions, but I feel this one from Shyam Murali is nice

Here is the Ibanez guitar version embedded:

Passport Application: Day 2

2010-11-28T17:24:00.002+05:30

Day 1 for the passport application of my daughter was mentioned in an earlier post. Fortunately, day 2, was not as bad at all. Things did proceed smoothly. There was a separate queue for people who had had to go back and come for a second (or more) visit. The sentiment in the queue was the same - why hide information from people, and why not mention everything clearly. Also, such "repeat visitors" were herded into Hall 2, which is a separate hall than the Hall 1 (for normal passport applications).

In any case, the application was accepted by 11 a.m.

Netra tarpanam: lubrication for the eyes

2010-11-14T22:54:00.002+05:30

I have been visiting one of Ayush Ayurvedic Therapy Centres for a few times now, and one of the treatments I undertake is what is known as "Netra tarpanam". In fact, after these few sittings, I have come to like its effect on my eyes. Working by spending a larger part of the day staring at a computer screen, it is easy for the eyes to be strained. Fortunately, for me, I still do not have had to resort to lenses. But in my experience, this therapy seems to have the good benefits that it touts - at least, my eyes feel better.

Let me explain the treatment first: You are asked to lie down, and a "wall or dam" is prepared using ground (urad or rice?) flour around both the eyes. The idea is to put some medicated liquid on the eyes, and to make it remain there and enter the eyes. This medicated liquid is usually some kind of medicated ghee that is warmed up just before pouring it on the eyes. While some people I have described this to get scared just thinking of hot ghee being poured into one's eyes, notice that I said warm and not hot.The ghee is warm enough to cause a good fomentation of the eye lids. You are then asked to open the eyes, and the liquid is allowed to float on the eyes. After a little twitching (as is the usual case with eye drops), the liquid is then dabbed up. The eyes feel much relieved and lubricated.

In another context, a book on natural therapies that I had read recommended that the hard area (bones around the eye socket) around the eyes be massaged with one's fingers on a regular basis, if one needs to get rid of lenses. The idea is to exercise and strengthen the eye muscles so that they feel relaxed.
I think among other things one of the things that this oil therapy does is also the same. The twitching makes ones eye muscles to be exercised. Its probably the same with eye drops that cause tearing. I know there are eye drops that claim to not bring tears to the eyes - this is good especially for kids - but I think those eye drops are for cleansing the eyes only, not exercising them.

By the way, the Ayush therapy centers are probably run by franchisees, and the Ayush center brand has been in existence for some years now - launched by Unilever (then HLL) and AVP (Arya Vaidya Pharmacy). I also came across this board that greets visitors in the therapy center that I visit. I will leave you with these words of wisdom to think about.

How to understand stress:

To untie a knot, one must know how the knot was tied in the first place.
(Surangama Sutra)

Regional Passport Office: Another brush with the govt offices

2010-11-14T12:04:00.005+05:30

My experiences with govt offices are far and few, but the experiences they create are enough to last a lifetime. The last time I had this experience was about 3 years ago when we had to visit the FRRO thrice in 3 days. This is already documented in this post ("Do it in 8" and other short stories from the FRRO)".

This time it was the passport office's turn because of the application of passport for my kid. I will document the exact procedure in a later post. But in this post it is sufficient to say that I had done an online registration, read the FAQ on the passport office's website, collected the documents and photocopies as required. I reached at 10 a.m. for my slot at 10:45 a.m. However, it was only at about 11:05 a.m. that I entered the hall. One more hour of wait, and I reached the counter for scrutiny of application and the supporting documents.

The lady at the counter asked me whether my wife had a passport, and I said it had expired. The lady asked me to note the number of my wife's passport, and attach photocopies. I had entered my passport number on the form, and also attached the photocopies of my passport. I tried to reason saying that the form mentioned that only valid passport, and besides, the form mentioned that EITHER of the parents' passport details would do. But no. In India, our people love to have undocumented rules or even if they are documented, then hiding them so that these are difficult to find, and are discovered at run-time. So, I was ordered to go away and come back with the photocopies of my wife's invalid passport. Another fun and exciting trip is definitely on, and I will post the experiences of day 2 for this passport application.

Just for the record, here's an image capture of the application form that states the parents' passport details. Also note how the word EITHER is all upper-case and underlined to state its importance. But looks like to our govt officials, the word EITHER means something else. Also, notice how it states clearly that only "Valid Indian Passport" has to be considered.

Click to view larger size

I know for sure that in computer science, the word EITHER means "either one or the other or both". If it meant both, then most programs would start failing miserably. Imagine changing the meaning of boolean OR to boolean AND...

The Rs. 50 all-day Mumbai Suburban railway ticket

2010-11-14T11:22:00.006+05:30

Out of curiosity, one weekend I bought the all-day Mumbai Suburban railway ticket. This costs Rs. 50 and is only valid within suburban Mumbai limits. The ticket is valid for the entire day until mid-night, and is valid on the Western, Central and Harbour lines. There is some confusion regarding the limits, but I guess these would be:

Churchgate to Virar, on the Western line
Mumbai CST to Karjat / Kasar, on the Central line
Mumbai CST to Panvel, on the Harbour line

By "confusion", I mean to ask whether the ticket is valid on the Khopoli line (beyond Karjat), and if it is valid upto Dahanu Road from Virar.

Update (2010-December-23): Today's Times of India newspaper carried an advert specifying that Virar to Dahanu is covered as well. Take a look at the advert below. It also specifies that there are 3-day and 5-day tickets as well, and that these are for the 1st as well as 2nd class.

Click to view larger image

Update (2010-December-05): Here's a scan of the ticket. In railway parlance, it is also called as the "Tourist Ticket" (or more correctly the "Second Adult Tourist -1day Ticket").

Click to view a larger image

Shikari Shambu, Suppandi, and others

2010-11-14T11:11:00.006+05:30

I received a huge cache of comics last week that I had ordered from Amar Chitra Katha. I had placed a couple of orders from the online store, and I have had no regrets so far.

It all started about a year ago when I had bought a Tinkle comic from a newspaper stand. I was reminded of my youth days when comics ruled the roost, and were a staple time pass for school vacations. Subsequently, I also found a digest of Suppandi stories. One thing led to another, and soon I found that there were other good collection sets available, but none available easily at newspaper stands. So the online shop came in handy. More sets of the Suppandi collection followed. Then, very recently I had ordered this set of Humor collection (Birbal, Tenali Raman, Gopal) from the online store. And, by the way, shipping is free within Mumbai (done through DTDC couriers).

Here's a scan from a comic devoted to Shikari Shambu stories.

And one of the comics on Birbal contains the now standard Narayan Murthy quote:

"Amar Chitra Kathas are a glorious tribute to India’s rich cultural heritage. These books have been an integral part of my children’s early years, as they have been for many other families across India. Comics are a great way of reaching out to children, inculcating reading habits and driving their quest to learn more about our roots.”

A rather quiet Diwali

2010-11-09T10:25:00.000+05:30

This year was one of the quietest Diwalis that I have ever experienced in Mumbai. While it was quite some years back that I had stopped the bursting of noisy crackers, I was surprised to observe that no one burst crackers from my society of 6 buildings - even on Lakshmi Puja day. And to keep the record spotless, none on Bhau Beej day either.

The trend seems to be the same in other parts of Mumbai. It does seem that children were being taught the cons of bursting crackers in school. And while that is a good thing for the environment and all, wonder what effect it will have on the child labor in Sivakasi and other parts where the crackers are actually manufactured.

Neutral zone now at Borivali / Dahisar

2010-10-25T00:47:00.000+05:30

Post the AC conversion of some part of the suburban Western Railway line, the neutral section is now located between Borivali and Dahisar. The WCAMs (AC - DC dual locos) now lower down the AC pantograph at this section, and raise the DC one before the end of the neutral section. Here's a video from YouTube that captures this moment. Note the rear pantograph being dropped before the front one is raised. Also, note the boys passing by are oblivious to why this filming is taking place - probably not knowing what is happening.

Shweeb: cycle your way in a capsule

2010-10-16T10:04:00.001+05:30

Google's 10^100 project had invited people to submit ideas that could change people's lives. One of the chosen entries was Shweeb in the transportation section. The below YouTube video shows how much fun it can be to commute to work. Of course, the below ride is currently only deployed at a park in New Zealand.

Microsoft Kinect

2010-10-10T11:07:00.000+05:30

Recently attended a Microsoft session where they touted the yet-to-be-released Kinect game controller. The video at YouTube about this commercial says it all. Quite impressive.

Train station indicators show platform directions

2010-10-05T15:36:00.000+05:30

One of the main problems (complaints) that (new) Mumbai suburban commuters often have is to know which side of the car the platform would be on. In a crowded train, knowing this can immensely help a commuter by informing the commuter well in advance which direction s/he should proceed. Too often, commuters new to Mumbai train travel / stations have to ask other commuters which side the platform would arrive. Although in most cases the sides on which the platforms appear are fixed, in certain cases the trains do arrive at platforms other than the ones they usually do. This sometimes results in a shift of the platform side. A sudden surge of people from one side to the other ensues, and this is a big hassle in a crowded train. Commuters hanging out the doorway are usually the ones to spot that the train is changing its tracks, and hence also notice the shift in platforms. They announce this to fellow commuters, who then head to the other door.

Some years ago the local rakes (especially the MRVC ones) have been fitted with a LED display that displays the next station as well as the final destination of the train. However, it was only recently that I noticed that these displays also show an arrow indicating the platform direction. I also double checked to make sure that these arrows are not present in all the indicators. It maybe a part of a trial or part of a new rollout.

Here are two photographs (sorry for the poor quality - mobile cam) from a recent train trip. Note that the indicator for Diva is on the left, whereas Kopar (a relatively new station) is on the right.

Hope this is installed in all the locals, and that it functions correctly.

Thoughts of a car finally hit the brain

2010-10-03T16:56:00.000+05:30

After years of not wanting to own a car, thoughts of have now started emerging in my brain. All these years I couldn't even differentiate between the various models. But a learning session with a co-worker now makes sure that I know a Maruti Swift from a Hyundai i10, or for that matter what is a VXI, ZXI or a VDI.

One of the things I realized I was missing out was on being able to travel with family on weekends. That meant that I was missing out on visiting places on the outskirts of Mumbai. I am also close to being convinced that the Maruti Swift is a broad compact car (it has the same width as a Maruti Swift Dzire) which means it can accommodate 5 people with ease.

I have driven extensively in the USA, including dense cities such as Boston. This experience also includes a 10 hour drive from Massachusetts to Akron, Ohio. I was not sure whether I could drive in the crazy Mumbai traffic. But if the intention is to drive on the weekends, then this is not that big a problem. Plus a realization that if others could, why couldn't I.

I am also clear that the first car should be a pre-owned car - one that should be ready to receive scratches and dents - a common experience for a new driver in Mumbai.

Science experiments on YouTube

2010-10-03T12:21:00.000+05:30

Read elsewhere that some schools in the UK / USA are planning to introduce the Apple iPad for their students. Apart from the general replacement for paper notebooks, what caught my attention was the claim that the students could actually view dangerous or hard-to-reproduce science experiments on the iPad.

For some interesting science experiments on YouTube, once just has to search for those keywords. But here's a sampler:

IRCTC website timings changed for online railway reservation

2010-10-03T12:13:00.000+05:30

It seems that sometime in July / August 2010 IRCTC has changed the timings for its online railway reservation system. Whereas earlier, the reservation was not allowed from 23:30 night to the next day early morning, the reservation is now closed only for a period of 1 hour (from 23:30 to 00:30).

The 90th day reservation timings are different: That is, if a ticket is booked on the 90th day (the first day advance reservation begins) from the travel date, the reservation only begins at 8 a.m. This is only for the 90th day advance booking.

The new timings are especially convenient for people wanting to book tickets from another timezone (read NRIs), but I think it would put the people booking at the reservation counters at a huge disadvantage. The counters open only at 8 a.m.

I recently tried booking a ticket during the peak Christmas vacation. 37 seconds after 8:00, I was already wait listed.

Dabbling with iPad

2010-10-03T11:55:00.001+05:30

Had the chance to take an Apple iPad for a spin. The FSF (Free Software Foundation), of course, is against such "closed" devices as reasoned out in this article "iPad is iBad for freedom".

The iPad out-of-the-box itself is a pretty useless device. If you have a WiFi connectivity, then you could use it as a device for browsing. But a very limited number of useful apps are actually installed on it when you pick it out of the box. As soon as I could, I installed a large number of whatever free apps I could onto the iPad. Most of the iPhone apps can also be installed onto the iPad, but by default they show up using a smaller part of the screen (iPhone size). There's a control (called "2X") that you could click to make the app full screen, but then the images seem to be a bit pixelized.

Only those apps that are mentioned as being "designed for iPad" appear displayed correctly. Thus, even though an app maybe available for both iPhone and iPad, only those that say "designed for iPad" are actually the ones that appear more pleasing on the iPad.

Most of the free apps are games. And tons of games I did install. Some of the games were actually pretty cool. Most of these games had a free version for certain basic levels, and the more advanced levels would require buying the games.

There were useful informative apps too. Such as the ones that described the various yoga poses.

I only had the iPad for a few days, and it did seem that Apple had finally hit the sweet spot between the portability and the usability. It could also make for a good device for kids - especially on long boring journeys. I could well imagine this being the replacement for those puzzle books that people buy just before a journey.

The iPad has not yet been launched in India, but even if it does, it would be priced quite high to be a casual entertainment device.

Easy computations for the new Mumbai autorickshaw fare

2010-10-03T10:51:00.000+05:30

The old tariff for Mumbai's autorickshaw was quite easy to compute mentally. At least for the regular fare - the late-night fare (after midnight was a different matter), but at least it was easy with the regular fare. So a meter reading of 3.40 could be translated into the fare by multiplying the meter reading by 10 and subtracting 1. Thus, 3.40 on the meter reading would be (3.40 x 10) - 1 = Rs. 33. That's it. No need to carry copies of tariff cards.

The new tariff which came into effect some time in 2010 is a bit more difficult to compute mentally. The official computation is as follows: Rs. 11 for the first 1.00 on the meter, and Rs. 13 for every 1.00 thereafter. A little common sense (read maths) shows that it is still possible to translate this to a formula that can be used to compute the fare mentally. Of course, one needs to know the 13 multiplication tables quite well.

Here is how I do it. Once you get the hang of it, its possible to do it quite fast. I usually try and pronounce the fare before the rickshaw driver can check his tariff card. A couple of rickshaw drivers were surprised by the accuracy of my calculations. I try to practice this quite often now just to check my computation.

The rule is quite simple: Multiple the meter reading by 13 and subtract 2.

So a meter reading of 3.00 would be (3 x 13) - 2 = 37. And so on.
Things start to get tricky when we do not have whole meter readings. For example, 3.70. Its still doable, but requires some addition as well. Here's how to do it:

First multiply the non-factional part by 13. This gives 3 x 13 = 39
Then, multiply the fractional part by 13 and divide by 10. This gives 7x 13/10 = 9.1
Add both rounding off the resultant. 39+9.1 = approx 48 (rounded off)
Subtract 2 to get the fare. This gives 48 -2 = 46

Try it out.

Toys and stuff ordered

2010-10-03T10:24:00.002+05:30

After regularly keeping track of products at ThinkGeek's webshop for years now, I finally decided to take the plunge and order a few items - some simple toys - those that fascinate both older kids (the ones with gray hair) as well as normal kids. At my first attempt, I was quite taken aback by their order verification process - and in fact, I canceled my order. However, a little bit of Googling revealed that this was a normal process. And after mustering courage, I ordered again. And went through their order verification process.

Of course, I am paying through my nose for the delivery to India. Even though these might be available in India, I did not have the patience to spend time looking where it might be available. It made sense to pack as many items into a single shipment as possible, since the DHL Express shipment to India is itself about USD 35.

And, as some study recently pointed out, online shopping probably results in more environmental hazard than brick-and-mortar shopping. So, the items manufactured in China go to the USA only to be shipped back to India (via an airplane).

It remains to be seen what shape the items arrive in. A couple of decades ago, anything shipped to India had the reputation of being opened up and flicked at the arrival port. Not to mention taxed to death.

Onto the interesting items actually: Apart from a few silly items, one of them is a mini remote-controlled drone and the other a doodle track car. Check out the interesting videos here and here.

And since DHL offers a web-based online tracking mechanism, its quite easy to see where the shipment is at any point in time.

Can't wait to get those items however worthless they may be.

Amazon.com amazes

2010-10-02T18:15:00.002+05:30

I had this question first about 3 years ago, and its still unanswered. Does Amazon.com deliver to India? They sure have software development facilities here in Hyderabad (and maybe 'Luru), and they sure conduct campus recruitment from Indian universities, but it beats the hell out of me to know they do not have a local Indian warehousing from where the items could be shipped.

The story I had heard then is still the same now: They do ship to India, but they charge international shipping rates, and the credit card is charged in USD.

The interest in buying Yamuna Devi Dasi's classic cooking book "Lord Krishna's Cuisine: The Art of Indian Vegetarian Cooking" was rekindled when Kurma Dasaji started running a series of recipes from Yamuna Deviji. And, this book shows on Amazon. But can we order locally? We don't know.

A good idea would be to check some Indian e-stores such as indiatimes.com or the more popular one for books flipkart.com. That's what I'm going to do next.

Painful disk recovery

2010-09-12T10:59:00.000+05:30

Learnt the hard way that storing information on a DVD is less probable to failure than an external hard disk. I was using DVDs for storing important information a few years ago. Then, it came to a point where the number of DVDs were too much to store large folders. So, I had switched over to using an external USB disk. While I was using these disks on Linux, I had encountered no problems at all. The trouble began soon after I plugged one of the important disks into my PC running Windows 7. It went bonkers trying to handle the data.It could be that the Linux file system drivers for FAT32 were storing data in a way that Windows 7 didn't like. All in all, the disk stopped working on both Linux as well as Windows (unformatted disk was the only error I got from Windows).

Then started the desperate measures to recover. First, of course, was the use of Linux tools followed by chkdsk on Windows. No avail. Then, went over to commercial tools such as Handy Recovery. Though the data was not that important, it was not the first time that I had encountered corrupt file systems on disks. A full weekend wasted on recovery, and only about half of the data has been recovered.

It makes me wonder if those disks are more reliable than DVDs. With DVDs, of course, the probability that all the disks fail is quite low. With a hard disk, one corrupt partition table is enough to get rid of the entire data on the disk.

Exciting weekend at XThrill

2010-09-08T10:15:00.000+05:30

Last weekend, I had an enjoyable and unique experience at Lavasa's XThrill. There were a lot of activities that included accommodation in tents (air-conditioned). Other experiences included trekking, rappelling, and rowing across a lake. Not to mention the lovely weather.

Mumbai Suburban Railway ATVM fails test of public

2010-09-01T00:43:00.002+05:30

Okay, the title is probably a bit harsh. But, wanted to just say that I observed at a few stations that the ATVM kiosk screen was completely smashed up, and the ATVMs were non-functional. Kanjur Marg and even Matunga (CR) had their screens completely destroyed. Fortunately, I came across these non-functional ATVMs only at the smaller stations, where the ticket queues are also smaller.

Wonder who smashed the screens. The general Indian public certainly has an apathy towards things that they cannot use. The standard Mera kya jaata hai attitude.

I have even observed a few guys who just keep touching / hammering the screen even though they do not have a card. They perhaps think it would give them some information such as the fares between stations. But that ignorance is certainly not a reason to smash the ATVMs.

Will certainly post photos the next time I observe this.

Update (11-Oct-2010): Here's a smashed and out-of-service ATVM. This one at Kanjurmarg railway station on the Central Railway. As usual, sorry for the poor quality (mobile cam).

Sunset over Powai lake

2010-09-01T00:34:00.000+05:30

An old photograph with a now-obsolete camera. Thanks Nikon.

More ebooks bought

2010-07-31T17:57:00.000+05:30

Following my new found interest in e-books coupled with good "deals" on e-books, I have bought a host of "new technology" books. More on this later.

Shuffle db for iPod Shuffle

2010-07-31T15:12:00.001+05:30

I never was impressed with the way iTunes used to handle the syncing of songs; that had led me to use "gtkpod" for uploading music to my Shuffle. Though I had discovered "shuffle_db" more than a year back, I never had the opportunity to use it. I got that opportunity today.

After uploading new music to my Shuffle, simply running the Python script did the trick. The script hardly took 5 seconds to run, and I wasn't sure whether the song database (the .db) file was updated or not. But, the log file created did a mention of the folders and the number of songs it had found. Sure enough, the iPod was updated and ready to go.

Apart from the ease by which one can easily add new songs, there is the added advantage that the songs can be copied to any folder on the Shuffle. In any addition, the the songs itself need not be renamed (like the way iTunes or gtkpod does so automatically). That has the added advantage of being able to plug-in the Shuffle and locate songs in the folders.

The project, "shuffle_db", itself is pretty old, and it looks like a dead project on SourceForge - one reason might be that the Shuffle itself might hardly be the player that people buy today. Of course, the other disadvantage is that the latest version of the script requires a Python installation, but that's hardly a problem on Linux (especially Debian-based systems such as Ubuntu).

A brand new PC, a brand new post

2010-03-19T23:56:00.004+05:30

After years of pulling along with upgrades and "hardware patches" to my dear old assembled PC, I finally buckled to the pressure from folks at home, and bought a branded new HP Desktop Pavilion (HP Pavilion P6373IN). The new PC arrived today. This new post is being typed in from the new PC.

Though there were several features I did not want, I decided to still buy this one. For some reason, I felt it looked quite good. Here's a list of features that I might never use:

TV Tuner card
Audio with 7.1 support
Built-in wireless networking
A 720 GB hard-disk (always a pain to backup such a huge disk; also its better to have several external disks to minimize the risk of a single point of failure)

On the other hand, below are some of the features that I though might be useful:

A 20"monitor (useful for my parents)
Wireless keyboard / mouse
A nice CPU (Intel Core i3) and RAM (4 GB) configuration (but I guess this is pretty standard config these days)

Next steps:

Install Firefox, Linux, and other essentials
Install programmer tools

Will post updates to this blog.

Discovering the joy of eBooks

2010-02-07T12:01:00.005+05:30

Until recently, I used to prefer the printed books. That way, one could refer to them anywhere even where there would be no access to an electronic device. Probably this also had to do with the lack of widespread use of personal computers we grew up. The problem with printed books related to computer technology is that most of them become outdated very quickly. These also tend to take up a lot of storage space (a premium in Mumbai).

I had recently ordered a newly released book for which there was no Indian reprint. In it, I found that they (the publishers) had offered the buyer of the printed book, a free download of the electronic version (PDF) of the book. I found it to be quite handy, for I could start reading it anywhere I had access to a computer (work or at home) without needing to lug it around.

I also realized that publishers now actively encourage readers to buy the electronic versions of their books (of course, not all books are available in their e-versions yet). One reason is the "go-green" effect to save paper (forests / trees). I also found that I had another very good reason to buy these...one could get the newly released books immediately (no need to wait for it to be shipped - all one needs to do is to download them).

With these enticing reasons, I have just completed buying 3 e-books today. Not only are the costs lower, but also I have these books for reading immediately.

Vox AmPlug: my return to the guitar world

2010-02-01T08:44:00.003+05:30

Just bought a Vox AmPlug AC30 from Furtados' (suburban outlet). With this handy battery-powered device, one just needs to plug it into an electric guitar, and plug any standard earphone jack into the device. That way, one can practice with very little setup without disturbing anyone else. Great for trying out all those weird training books without inviting any sarcastic remarks.

Felt like buying the DigiTech RP 90 guitar effects processor, but was way too expensive around Rs. 7K.

Back to blogging

2009-11-15T12:49:00.001+05:30

The home PC had an Internet connection that kept getting slower over the years. This year it was so slow that I had to wait for eternity to even load the blogging website. The workplace anyways does not encourage blogging on public websites. I had to almost give up blogging. The final nail in the coffin was when the home PC hard-disk conked off. Of course, I have a laptop, but the connection was so damn slow that I had to give up blogging for a while.

Now, I am back online. I recently bought the Reliance NetConnect Broadband which has at least acceptable speeds from my home (the speed is location dependent). I also used the USB modem while I was in Goa in October. The speed wasn't Broadband levels, but at least I had connectivity.

Hopefully this will re-activate my online life.

Back from Goa

2009-10-31T10:08:00.003+05:30

A vacation to Goa with the family was a good way to end the Diwali festival this year. There was precious little to do while in Goa. Temples, churches, and beaches are the best way to describe Goa. And since I've been to Goa many times earlier, these places no longer beckoned. Instead, a quiet vacation at the company's holiday home was planned. Of course, 5 full days of not doing anything would bore any city dweller because of the habit of leading a fast-paced life. So, almost each morning and evening there were visits to specific locations, returning within 3 hours back to the holiday home.

I had thought of trying out some of the activities at the H2O water sports center. Some of the activities that interested me were the under-water walk, the glass bottom boat ride, and the dolphin cruise. Unfortunately, it seemed that they had not yet received licenses to start operations after the rainy season (during which the activities are closed). Fortunately, there were other places where the dolphin cruise was on. And, although it was nothing compared to whale spotting near Boston in the icy climate, it was still one of the better things that we did in Goa.

Other activities included a visit to the local science center; this had the usual stuff like at Mumbai (some displays not in working condition), but it had also had a short 3D film screening on underwater creatures. The river cruise on the Mandovi was boring (partly because I had been on it during earlier visits).

Other disappointments included not getting to visit the Dudhsagar waterfalls and other wildlife sanctuaries around Goa, and not being able to travel the scenic Konkan Railway route by train (no tickets available).

Thinking of starting a new blog

2009-05-21T22:22:00.003+05:30

I am thinking of starting a new blog for posting technical (IT) things...still to decide on the blog name. Hoping that it'll be useful to me to keep a record of things learnt. It might also hope someone or the other looking for information.

Keep looking.

"Bhavayami Gopala Balam"

2009-04-27T23:14:00.003+05:30

Once in a blue moon there comes a musical piece that makes me listen to it over and over. And, so, after a very long time, I came across this gem on a double CD set by MS ("Live in Russia"). The piece, titled "Bhavayami Gopala Balam", is actually a composition by Annamacharya (as found out from the Internet).

I have never heard so slow a track, but the meaning of the lyrics, and the rendition by MS is enough for me to listen to the song again and again. Too bad, the iPod Shuffle does not have a "repeat track" feature.

A bit of spring cleaning

2009-03-22T10:32:00.002+05:30

"Spring cleaning" is probably not the best way to describe it, but cleaning up the old hard-disks certainly felt like that. A computer, a laptop, 3 external hard-disks, 2 USB pen drives...it can get messy after a while. I began a massive "clean-up" session last Sunday that lasted well into the midnight. This involved merging files / directories from these multiple sources to a single place to make it more manageable. This was a long pending task from August 2008 (since the completion of my MTech). The task is not yet done. This will be continued today (Sunday) as well.

Another visit to Cafe Mysore

2009-03-22T10:25:00.002+05:30

The visit to Sweden had made me crave for some Cafe Mysore idlis. So last Saturday, I hopped into Cafe Mysore for a mid-morning snack. Not that I was hungry, but I was passing it.

I was quite surprised to learn of the death of Nagesh Nayak, the second generation of A. Rama Nayak that runs the Cafe Mysore. From the newspaper clippings pasted on the wall, it seemed that he died around 7th March. This news article has more info about it. Though the article specifies that the children of Nagesh Nayak would take over the management of the restaurant, it is not clear to me it would still be the same. The idlis that I had were sure off the mark.

Train related pics from Sweden

2009-03-08T11:20:00.018+05:30

Finally, I managed to get some pics of trains / sites in Sweden. Here they are:

Stockholm Centralen station	A long-distance SJ train passes over a high viaduct close to Södertälje Syd

An empty SL local train rake waits at Södertälje Centrum for departure to Gnesta	The 08:05 SL local arrives at Södertälje Centrum to take daily commuters to Märsta via Stockholm Centralen. Commuters unhurriedly board the SL local at Södertälje Centrum

A very sleek-looking SL local arrives from the Stockholm side to Södertälje Centrum	A close-up of the SL local

Good to be back in India...

2009-03-08T11:12:00.003+05:30

Last week I returned to India after about 7 weeks of stay in freezing Sweden. Of course, over that period, one did tend to get used to the cold. I had made a mental list of food items to be eaten...all those that were missed during my stay in Sweden.

But it is so unusually hot in Mumbai that it feels like going from the deep freezer straight to the oven. But that is life...the grass always seems to be greener on the other side!

A good replacement for chappatis...

2009-02-25T21:24:00.002+05:30

One common food problem outside India is to make or find suitable chappatis. Making it takes time and a lot of practice; getting it is difficult.

The usual way out is to buy soft tortillas. But these are white in color, and made from maida. They do not taste like chappatis, but its still a good start. I remember some enthusiastic days when these were deep fried, and called "bathuras" to be had with chhole.

Then, I remember my Boston days way back in 1996. I used to stay in a small town called Waltham. Every weekend I would travel down to Cambridge to an Indian shop that would sell semi-frozen chappatis. They did taste quite good, and relieved the monotony from rice and bread.

Getting it in the USA is not surprising, since there is such a large Indian population there. Getting this readymade chapati stuff in Sweden was beyond my imagination. So, I had begun to go back to the maida soft tortillas.

Then, came that amazing "discovery": whole-wheat tortillas. The Mexican answer to chappatis, I guess. These make an almost perfect replacement for chappatis. If one can forget the fact that they contain some preservatives (the ones with names like "E520"), then these are a very good option.

Here is a photograph from my apartment kitchen starring a packet of whole-wheat tortillas next to the standard aloo-cauliflower combination (without onions / garlic).

Mesmerized by "Kriti in Raga Mohanam"

2009-02-22T16:05:00.002+05:30

About a decade ago, I had purchased some CDs from Moment Records. One of them is titled "Lalgudi Jayaraman Violin - Violin Trio". It features Lalgudi Jayaraman and his 2 siblings (the trio), Vellore Ramabhadran (Mrindangam), and Zakir Hussain (Tabla). The first piece is a whopping 56 minutes 44 seconds' track called "Kriti in Raga Mohanam".

This is one hell of a track. I've been simply amazed by the raga, the rendition, and the final conversation between tabla and mridangam. All involved are in amazing control of their instruments. The only problem I have is in skipping to particular sections within this big track (especially on the iPod shuffle).

The B.E.S.T. all-day travel ticket

2009-02-22T15:59:00.003+05:30

Update 2011-03-20: Rs. 15 add-on to day travel ticket introduced: As of mid-March 2011, read a newspaper report that the B.E.S.T. has introduced an add-on ticket of Rs. 15 (that is valid with the Rs. 25 all-day ticket). This add-on allows the passenger to also travel on the fast-track corridor routes ("whose bus numbers start with alphabet C").

Update: As of August 2010, the Rs. 20 all-day suburban ticket is no longer available. It has been withdrawn. The all-day ticket is now a single ticket at Rs. 25 valid for travel throughout Mumbai (suburbs as well as city). Read the below post only to get the gist of the ticket scheme. The variants are no longer valid.

About 2 years ago, the B.E.S.T. introduced the all-day travel ticket. The use of this has, as is the BEST tradition, not been explained anywhere officially. Just a small newspaper note is all that was put out. But, those who know of this avail of it. From the conversations I hear in the buses, irregular users of this ticket seem to be confused about the rules and regulations concerning this. This post is for those who need this information.

Disclaimer: This is the unofficial version of the information. In case of doubt, always verify with the counductor / other authorities to make sure the ticket is valid on a certain route.

There are 3 basic variants (city, suburb, all zones) of this ticket. The actual price also depends on whether it is a holiday or not (prices are lower on a holiday; Sunday is regarded as a holiday aside from other state public holidays).
The ticket is valid for travel on any route (non-AC buses) any number of times on the day of the ticket upto 12 midnight in the zones as mentioned below:

Variant 1: City : Rs. 15 : South of Mahim / Sion
Variant 2: Suburb: Rs. 20 : North of Mahim / Sion, including beyond Dahisar / Vashi
Variant 3: All zone: Rs. 25 : Anywhere the BEST buses ply

It is available with all the conductors on all the regular routes.

The ticket layout is also different from the regular ticket. Instead of punching in the "stage number" of the bus stop that the passenger got in from, the conductor instead has to make 4 punches:
- Date (1 to 31), Month (1 to 12), Gender (Male or Female), Year (top-left: single digits were used until now: "8" for 2008, "9" for 2009, etc.)

The most important of these is the gender. While buying a ticket for a group, make sure to specify the gender correctly for the number of passengers in the group. Also, make sure that the center of the ticket specifies which kind of ticket it is (of course, it is in Marathi), and also the date / month punched.

The ticket has no personal identification. As a result, it can be given to acquaintances who might need it. This, I believe, is exploited to the fullest by the courier guys. One guy buys the Rs. 25 ticket in the morning. At the end of his shift, it is handed over to another guy who can use it until the end of the day.

Work, work, and more work...

2009-02-08T15:51:00.002+05:30

Its a pity that work is taking away all the time. At the workplace, I have a lovely view of 2 railway lines passing a few kilometres away. One is used for the local Sotckholm (SL) traffic, whereas the other line, is on a high viaduct (remember Konkan railway?), and caters to the long distance traffic (SJ). Numerous trains pass around each day, including goods trains carrying ship containers. There are even double decker trains with a dull grey livery. Every now and then, a WAG7 like locomotive hauls some passenger trains. At other times, a WDS4-type shunter (similar to the ones at CLA and BA), is seen hauling a small goods train.

Its a pity that its been 4 weeks at the workplace, and I have not a picture of a train / loco to share. Hopefully, in the next few weeks...

Rawa, at last...

2009-02-08T15:33:00.003+05:30

As mentioned in an earlier post, I was dying to get my hands on rawa.

Finally, after searching many English to Swedish online dictionaries, found out that rawa (semolina) is called "Mannagryn" in Swedish. Sounding it off to the Swedish guys at the workplace confirmed that it is indeed the same thing we were looking for, and that it is readily available at the local grocers'.

Yesterday, I finally found it lying on the shelves among the other "flour" items. Today's breakfast was thus "vegetable upma". And, it did seem to relieve the monotony of having bread for breakfast each morning.

The routine stuff...

2009-02-01T19:04:00.003+05:30

Nothing new, except the routine stuff. I have now fairly settled down to a routine in Sweden, and counting the weeks for the return to India. As usual, the thing I miss the most is the food. However, with a good supply of masalas and spices from India, at least there is the good fortune of cooking several things Indian.

The usual disasters happened: In a non-English-speaking country, such things are bound to happen. It was difficult to know one thing from the other in the supermarkets / grocery stores. Luckily, we learn by experience...so the mistakes are not repeated. At this stage, it seems that the thing I need most is "besan" (gram flour), "rava" (semolina), and "sabudana". These things could have added more variety to the things one can prepare.

The very first mistake was in the choice of milk. It was not very clear what was milk, since in the milk section, most products included "mjölk" (pronounced, "myolk") in the name of the products. So, there was "Filmjölk", "Mellanmjölk", "Mjölk", etc. I chose "Filmjölk" by just a random guess. It turned out to be something else.

The next challenge was to get curds (also known as "yogurt" in some parts). Purchased something that was labelled an "yogurt", but turned out that it was not suitable for cooking. It wasn't the Indian curd that we are used to. It had a very thin texture, and felt very slimy like mucous.

The very recent mistake included buying 2 packets of something that looked like rawa. Since "vit" was included in the name, it somehow conveyed the feeling that it was something from wheat. Wrong choice. Turned out that "vitlök pulverized" is "garlic power". While I tried preparing "upma" from it, the result was a very salty thing that resembled upma, but tasted of nothing but strong garlic. No wonder it was kept in the spices section.

The best thing to do is probably to ask around, but not many locals would know what "gram flour" is, and while we did take advice from the locals about curds, it turned out to be not what we were used to in India.

A few weeks in Sweden...

2009-01-11T16:45:00.002+05:30

I arrived to an extremely cold (-10 degrees C) welcome in Sweden on the 7th January. The plan is to be here for a few weeks. Lets see how things pass by...and if I get to visit the Krishna temple nearby (www.krishna.se).

Its always a bit of a pain arriving for a few weeks in a new place away from home. One of the most boring and tiresome part is the packing. One needs to consider ones needs and pack up everything that may be useful, and at the same time, worry about not exceeding the 20kg limit that most airlines have in flights from India to Europe. All this just means that one spends a lot of time deciding and packing things, and traveling "heavy", which I have started hating.

The first day in Sweden was so cold when we ventured out for some shopping of daily items in the local grocery supermart (Willy's). It was so cold while waiting for the buses, that my toes became numb from the snow. I was worried I may have suffered from frost-bite, though I do not know what it feels like when that happens. Luckily, it was nothing long-lasting. The next day saw me wearing 2 socks, but still it was quite cold. The same day, I purchased a shoe insole (a special one) to keep out the cold. The weather has since become a little better, but the insole probably helped too.

Will keep this blog updated from time to time, and with pics.

A new digital camera...

2008-12-27T22:40:00.004+05:30

My 5-year old 4-megapixel Nikon Coolpix 4300 digital camera conked off some months ago, and I was looking forward to buying a new camera. This Christmas I bought a 9-megapixel Canon camera (SX 110 IS) from J. J. Mehta at Dadar. This camera has some nice features: 10x Optical Zoom, Image Stabilization, Face detection (now a common feature in most cameras).

I would have preferred Nikon, but there were some very enticing features that made me interested in the SX110IS.

The 10x optical zoom seems to be non-existent in Nikon in the Rs. 16K price range
Like most Canon Powershot cameras, this one too uses standard pencil (AA) batteries. This is a great advantage while traveling. If the batteries are dead, a new pair can be bought at most stores (or one can keep a spare pair handy. This is better than the Nikon models, since most of them use Nikon-specific Li-Ion rechargeable cells.
The SX110IS can shoot video at 30 fps, which is a reasonably good resolution by video standards.

Here 's a sample from my new SX110IS: This is a cropped image (courtesy Gimp) of a stray near the building where I stay. The image is shot with the full 10x optical zoom.

PS: The dog parks itself on the top of a car probably to get a good view of all that it surveys. The 2 black lines towards the left and right are of the window grills.

The gift of freedom

2008-11-30T10:21:00.002+05:30

Every so often I pass by a shop that sells birds as pets. These birds, colorful and lovely, cheerful and noisy, are caged. People are supposed to buy these, and keep them at their homes, as pets. What a pity! A natural idea is to buy these birds and to free them.

This can be combined with near ones' birthdays. A gift of freedom to those who need it on someone else's birthday seems to be a perfect gift. So, by this proposition, if there are 4 members in a household, buy a pair of these on the birthdays of each of the 4 members, and free them (when you get home).

I thought about this for a while. Then, it struck me that there is another possible hurdle to this: what if the guys who capture / sell them have injured the birds' wings so that they aren't able to fly away even if the cage door is open? In that case, I would be stuck with having bought those birds, and not being able to free them. This is a very real possibility. One can see this kind of cruelty everywhere. An example: pass by any fish market, and you'll see crabs maimed just enough so that they do not run away, but just alive to be killed fresh when a customer buys them.

I still plan to ask some of those guys, and maybe someday I'll take a risk and buy those birds anyways...to "free" them.

Lunch at Cafe Mysore

2008-11-22T10:29:00.004+05:30

Last Saturday, I had lunch at Cafe Mysore, King's Circle. The quality was the same, the quantity a bit reduced, and the price much higher than what it was a few years ago (blame inflation).

I had the "chappati lunch" (with "puri lunch" or "double rice" being other options). The lunch came with 2 chappatis, one subji (cauliflower + carrot + peas) small watis of dal, rasam, black-eyed pea (chawli) "gassi" (a coconut-based gravy), a small glass of buttermilk, one papad. A small mound of rice followed, once the chappatis were gobbled up.

I find the lunch at Cafe Mysore to be simple, and quite easy on the stomach. The quantity is lesser than at other restaurants, but for me, that is fine. I wouldn't like to stuff too much into the stomach.

Experiences with iPod Shuffle

2008-11-22T10:14:00.004+05:30

Usually, I've tried to stay away from technical posts in this blog of mine. But since this is also related to the iPod Shuffle I bought recently (a mention of which was made in my previous post), I thought I'll mention it here.

The iPod Shuffle was bought from J. J. Mehta, Dadar(who maintain a wonderful website, and are sellers of cameras and related equipment). The iPod Shuffle came in a nice packed / sealed case. I rushed back by train to my home quite excited. When I reached home, I plugged it into the USB to charge it. After charging it for a while, I decided to fill it up with some songs. My laptop (2 years old) came with a pre-installed version of iTunes. However, when I tried to connect the iPod to the laptop, iTunes complained that it was unable to communicate with the Shuffle (and that I must install a new version). Tried downloading iTunes from the Apple website, and realized that it was more than 60 MB. This would take at least a few hours to download from the slow internet connection at home.

WTH? I thought to hell with iTunes. Just booted my laptop into Ubuntu Linux, installed gtkPod, and loaded the Shuffle with a basic set of songs.

So that's how GNU / Linux helps us...in very small, subtle ways. Nice! And, like I mentioned earlier, my home PC hasn't seen Windows running for more than 2 years now. Everyone at home now uses Ubuntu (well Kubuntu) Linux.

Diwali temptations

2008-11-22T09:49:00.003+05:30

Having been without salary for more than a year, I was quite excited to get it in October 2008. I had kept a list of things to buy ready. While I've not bought all of those yet, I've just indulged in buying my first iPod, a 2 GB iPod Shuffle.

My old Mobiblu cube and cute MP3 player had conked off due to my experiments. One day I noticed that there were some large MP3 files on the player which refused to get deleted. So I did a "mkfs.vfat" to reformat it. That foolish decision wiped out the player's software as well, I guess. It no longer worked. I tried to locate the CD that came along with the player, but I could not find it. Downloading the software over the web was not successful either. That's when I decided that it was time to but the Shuffle.

Among the list of things that I've lined up to be bought are:

A new laptop (maybe Dell or HP). The old one was pretty useful (especially in my IITB days); however there is only so much that one can do with 512 MB of RAM and the Intel Centrino that came along with it.
A DVD set containing Srila Prabhupada's videos / lectures (pretty expensive at about Rs. 4k)
A set of Bose loudspeakers
A new mobile phone which has the capability to set an MP3 as a ringtone (my old one is a good 6 years old)

Near death on the tracks

2008-10-23T22:07:00.005+05:30

This incident took place a few years ago, but it keeps coming back to my mind.

It was a time when I used to visit quite frequently on Saturday mornings a shrine on the banks of the Banganga tank at Walkeshwar. The usual routine was to reach the shrine at about 9 a.m., and return to Grant Road station by 10 a.m. to catch a local train elsewhere.

One such morning as I was waiting on platform 3 to catch a fast local from Grant Road to Dadar, an old lady suddenly started crossing the tracks from platform 4 towards platform 3. As she reached platform 3, it was obvious that she could not jump and get on to platform 3 (since the platform is a good 4 feet high from the track level). She seemed to be a regular since she came quite close to platform 3 confidently. When she reached the platform 3 side, she did what many do in Mumbai...held out her hand...anyone on the platform then usually obliges and hoists / pulls up the person onto the platform. The idea is that the person on the track level usually just needs a hoist - an initial pull - the person, of course, needs to put his / her own efforts to push themselves up. That way, even if a heavy person is asking for help, it not too much of an effort for the person on the platform to hoist the guy.

When she held out her a hand, I was closest to her on platform 3. As a result, I offered my hand to her to pull her up. It was not the first time I was doing such a thing. However, for some strange reason, as I started pulling the old lady up, she just started dangling in mid-air. To my horror, the fast local had just entered the far end of the platform 3, and in a few seconds would be directly where the old lady was struggling to get onto the platform. For a split-second, my heart skipped a few beats. My mind was puzzled with decisions. Should I let her go? Should I jump onto the tracks and take her to the place in between tracks of platforms 3 and 4?

Fortunately, another man on platform 3 who had noticed this, approached quickly, and helped grasp her other hand, and we both managed to pull her up seconds before the train came to the spot where she stood.

I was relieved, but shaken. It was then that I decided that thenceforth I would not help anyone else to clamber onto the platforms. If a tragedy had occurred, obviously it would have played heavily on my mind, and it would be one decision that I would always have come to regret for the rest of my life.

Random notes...

2008-10-04T10:46:00.004+05:30

There's nothing particular to write about...just a collection of happenings over the last few weeks.

Navratri:
I make it a point to visit the local "Sitladevi" temple during one of the nights of Navratri, the 9-night festival. Its not that I go every year, but these past few years, I have had the opportunity to visit it. This year, I went last night to the temple. The temple was surprisingly not crowded, inspite of it being a Friday (believed to be an auspicious day to worship the Devis). Usually, I would have had to stand in a longish queue, but not many were to be seen. Maybe I was late (it was about 20:30).

Usually, I do not visit the pandals. This year I decided to visit one local pandal where the idol of the Goddess was kept. I met one classmate there - it seemed to me that he was suffering from some anxiety...his eyes were all puffed up, as if due to lack of sleep. Then, I saw his elder brother whom I failed to recognize. My classmate told me that his brother, in his early 40s, had suffered from a paralytic stroke a little more than a year ago. His brother could hardly stand erect. Some other guys known to him were advising him to go to a particular doctor, etc. I slipped in my advice too...

The point is that everyone has some "story" to tell about how a particular doctor / treatment is the best one for any disease. Someone would recommend allopathy, others ayurveda, still others homeopathy, etc. At such a time, the person suffering usually feels that he / she has tried it all, and still nothing works...so I decided to keep mum.

It is quite surprising how a man so capable, so active, until just a few years ago in his prime should suffer so much so suddenly. Actually, this is a very much known phenomena...nothing surprising about it. Though people get surprised about it, they are ignorant. I was reminded of the famous Bhaja Govindam verse:

maa kuru jana dhana
yovana garvam
harati nimeshaat
kaalat sarvam

Meaning that one should not be proud of one's wealth, youth (strength / health), position, etc. Time can take it all away in a moment's notice.

So there it is in plain truth...that is knowledge.

I smiled not knowing what to do next (I am never good at such things as sympathy, etc.). I bade him goodbye and returned home.

Back to work...

2008-09-18T20:52:00.004+05:30

After a 2 year sabbatical for my MTech, I joined back my old workplace on 1st September. Ideally, I would have loved to wait for a few more days before joining, but there was no point in delaying the inevitable. These first few weeks at work I felt quite strange...quite out-of-place, a sense of losing freedom. I had to report to work by 08:30 and couldn't leave my workplace when I felt bored. In addition, numerous restrictions on accessing the Internet made life more miserable. Another reason may be that I was missing Ubuntu / Linux at my work desktop. After all, during the last 2 years of MTech I had hardly used Microsoft Windows at all.

Then, I recollected a similar feeling when I had joined MTech. That is when I had blogged this post titled "Feels like jail". And then suddenly I felt there was hope. Maybe if I could just persist over the feeling, it would eventually die down. Let's see how this works out.

Mumbai monsoon wear : experiences

2008-08-26T10:01:00.000+05:30

The rainy season in Mumbai is a particularly challenging one. One has to be fully equipped to just get by. Most of the problems are faced by people who commute. Like delayed or no train services, flooded streets, and open manholes. To add to it, on some days, there are heavy rains accompanied by strong winds.

All this makes it tricky to decide how to commute. Some experiences:

Commuting:
Taking the suburban local train to commute can be quite frustrating. Trains, especially on the Central Railway (CR), are often delayed. Half-an-hour of rain is enough to delay services on the CR. The excuse, often read in newspapers, is that CR runs through areas that are low-lying. The tracks get flooded.

It seems that the problem is not that of tracks getting washed away or that of trains being derailed, but is that of an electrical nature. The rain water causes the signal circuitry to be completed triggering off the same conditions that are used to detect a train crossing over a signal point. This causes all the signals to be red - causing ambiguity as to whether a train is present on the next section, or whether the signal has turned red because of the water.
(In long-distance trains, it is then left to the guard to decide whether to break the signals. The pilot has to get the guard to sign an "ok to proceed" order before breaking the red signal. In the suburban section, however, I think other rules may be followed since this is such a common occurrence during the monsoons.) Obviously, the motorman has to pilot the train slowly since there might really be another train ahead. The leads to delays.

Commuting by buses is the safest option. This was also demonstrated during the 26th July 2005 deluge. Any other mode of transport, especially rickshaws, could cause trouble since a lot of water does really get collected in the so-called "low-lying" areas. Of course, the problem is that there are no gutters or the ones that are there are clogged. The slope of the road does not seem to favor water draining into the drains.

Rain protection:
This one is a favorite one. There are many options: umbrellas, raincoats, jackets, jackets + rain-proof trousers.

Umbrellas are the most popular ones: one can fold them and carry them; there are ones that are really small when folded. However, the biggest problem is that Mumbai winds and rains are enough to drench one waist downwards. In practice, the head is the one and only part of the body that the umbrellas prevent from being wet. Besides, when its windy, it is difficult to keep the umbrella straight...it is always blown over.

Over the years, I've tried almost all of these options. When I was a kid, the raincoat was the preferred form of rain protection. The raincoat that was usually made from some plastic material. Though they protect the clothes from being wet, the raincoat made it difficult to walk. In addition, if it did not rain, one would feel very hot wearing a raincoat. Another problem was that since it was made from plastic, it would tear.

For many years when I started working, I used the folding umbrella. While it was easy to carry, it made me wet almost completely in a heavy shower. A few years ago I switched to a rain jacket. The jacket was a cheaper one made of 2 layers of plastic. This one gets torn quickly if one is not careful. However, it did a good job in keeping me dry. The problem is that when it does not rain, I find myself wet due to heavy sweating. I am aware that there are some expensive ones available (Dockers, etc.) that I haven't tried. These seem comfortable and also seem to keep one dry.

The wind cheaters are better in this regard. They do not feel hot when it does not rain. However, they are not effective at all in keeping out the rain - heavy showers ensure that water gets in making one wet completely.

Though jackets protect the upper part of the body, it does not protect the lower part. To do so, I started using a rain trouser. This trouser is usually worn on top of the regular trousers. This, in combination with the jacket, does a perfect job in keeping me dry. The problem is that of putting on the rain trouser when it starts raining. If I wear it before I venture outdoors, it feels very hot if it does not rain.

Footwear:
Footwear is very important during the rains. Especially considering that one has to sometimes walk through ankle-deep waters. The water that gets collected on the streets usually is dirty - one can sometimes see floating garbage in the water...not to mention all the other things the water would be mixed up with. In all cases, it is essential to wash one's feet properly when one reaches back home.

As a kid, I have used "gum boots". These are boots that are ankle-high. They are water proof, and extremely rugged. The problem is that if one wades through water that is more than the height of the boots, all the water would enter the boots. One has to then drain the water off - the boots would continue to make a "slish-slosh" sound till they have water in them. The gum boots would cause "shoe bite", and feel extremely hot if it did not rain.

Open sandals are another option that I've tried. These feel nice even if it does not rain. Even if one has to wade through water, the open sandals let the water drain out. That way, both the sandals and the feet dry up quickly. However, the slightest water collected on the street comes in direct contact with the feet, making one feel quite dirty.

Closed shoes offer some more options. I've tried various types: sports shoes, all-weather shoes, and the rubber ones. This year, I tried the closed rubber shoe variety - a very cheap one made by Lakhani Shoes (only about Rs. 110). While I was apprehensive, they did offer me the best protection on most days. If there is a lot of water, these shoes fail to keep the water out, but on most days, the water level isn't that high...and I found these to offer the best for the cost. The only problem was the initial "shoe bite" that I had to endure, but at the end of this rainy season, the shoes look good enough to offer service for another season too.

Some years ago I had tried an "all-weather shoe" made by Bata (Power range). Though it felt very comfortable, it failed to last even a single season. It tore off. Also, it failed to keep the feet dry if it rained heavily. And once the shoes became wet, they did not dry off quickly.

Convo over...

2008-08-10T17:55:00.004+05:30

Its official...the "Master of Technology" degree was conferred on me by the IIT Bombay in its 46th Convocation ceremony held on 08.08.08, in its golden jubilee year. The chief guest was the President of India (Smt. Pratiba Patil).

Using the GO Mumbai Smart Card on the suburban railways

2008-07-20T22:54:00.009+05:30

Update (2011-06-03): This post is no longer valid as the railways have now withdrawn the usage of the GO Mumbai (B.E.S.T.) Smart Card on the railways. The railway ATVM card continues to see popular usage.

This post is a follow-up to the others related to the Mumbai Smart Card (see other posts here, here, and here). I see from the hits on this blog that some people are searching for information on how to use the SmartCard on the suburban railway section. Though this is a bit late (I was busy), here is the information about how to use the SmartCard on the suburban lines. Please do read the cons as well (scroll below) before deciding to use this.

The B.E.S.T. SmartCard (also known as the "GO Mumbai SmartCard") can be used on Mumbai Suburban railway lines too. However, there are some things that are important in this regard. I will first explain the way the card is supposed to be used. Then, I will list down the cons in using it this way. (Oh! this style of writing, I picked up while writing my technical reports and thesis...it'll take me sometime to get rid of it).

At the outset, let me tell you that the "GO Mumbai SmartCard" is NOT the same as the "ATVM (Automatic Ticket Vending Machine) Card" also used on the suburban railways.

The steps in using the Card for suburban rail travel are:

Get yourself a Card, if you do not yet have one. The SmartCard issued by the B.E.S.T. will also do; the same card can be used for travel on the B.E.S.T. buses as well as the suburban railways.
Fill the Card with some denomination from any "GO Mumbai" outlet ("Go Mumbai" outlets are stalls present at prominent railway stations or at major B.E.S.T. bus depots). If the SmartCard is already being used for the bus travel, then the Card will be "partitioned" to hold the railway data separate from the bus data. That is, the bus routes will not be overwritten, and can still be used.
Now, to use the Card during suburban railway travel one needs to do the following (note that the usage of the Card on the buses do not change - the below steps are only for the rail travel):

At the station where the train will be boarded, locate the "Card Swipe" machine. Usually, there are 2 machines: one for First Class, the other for Second (normal) Class. Place the SmartCard on the panel on the machine. The machine will automatically deduct from the Card the maximum travel fare applicable from that station, and also record on the Card the boarding station.
If there is not enough money in the Card, the display will show a message.
These machines are usually near the entrance to the platforms (not near the usual ticketing counters, but closer to the platforms).
The train can then be boarded without buying a ticket.
At the destination station, place the Card at the "Card Swipe" machine. The "Card Swipe" machine then "adjusts" the fare - that is, if excess fare was deducted, it will be refunded back to the Card.
The ticket checkers are being given SmartCard readers so that they can check if the passenger had really swiped the Card.

Okay, that's the semi-official version. Now, here are the cons (also, reasons why I do not use the SmartCard for suburban railway travel):

The shocking news: This is valid only on Central Railway suburban section yet. Though, officially, its supposed to be applicable to both, the Western Railways have not yet officially recognized the SmartCard. Be ready to pay a hefty fine if you travel on the Westernl line with this Card. See this article for more details.
The pain: Knowing well how our railways and these machines would be maintained, there can be several problems. First, the machines might not work at all. If the machine at the source station does not work, at least you would know, and buy a ticket instead. On the other hand, if the machine at the destination station does not work, then you would have paid the maximum possible fare already. Now, it is unlikely that someone would run about trying to find how to get the refund of the fare.
Different machines might deduct fares differently for the same route. The problem here is that of keeping the fare system updated. Unlike the ATVMs, these Swipe machines are probably not centrally maintained. As a result, some of the machines may not have "up-to-date" fares or may even have incorrect fares.

Yipee! its over...

2008-07-15T09:29:00.007+05:30

By the grace of the Supreme Lord and all the other Gods, Goddesses, saints and gurus, I have successfulky completed the MTech programme at IITB.

My MTech thesis defense is over, and I'm glad to say that its finally over. A few formalities including the convocation remain, but otherwise there should be no problems.

The 2-year stint at IITB comes to an end. The time was spent nicely, and it really helped me a lot. Lots of points jotted down - may result in a book some day...

The interesting part was my CPI (Cumulative Point Index)...in the end, my CPI stands at about 9.8987, which is truly surprising.

The next few weeks I intend to rest, as well as finish some of the pending work on the system I was working on. It'll be only after the convocation that I'll be resuming my earlier job (hopefully).

A few final points in this post: a lot of heartfelt gratitude towards my guide, Prof. Abhiram Ranade, also the head of the Dept. of Comp. Science and Engg., IITB. Although he was the head, he always found time to talk to his students. I think he always believed that the world's most complex problems always have the most simple solutions. And, while I was busy conjuring up useless solutions to my project's problems, he would, in one swipe - one single math formula - state the solution, and be done. The beauty is in the simplicity of his solutions. Another point worth mentioning is his simple lifestyle. In almost 2 years of association with him, I did not find him talk on a cellphone (which probably he does not own). He does not seem to own a vehicle either. Did I mention that he was among the recipients of IIT Bombay's "Excellence in Teaching Awards"? More about my guide in a separate post later...

Until then, its party time!

24032007 KYN DLS : More miscellaneous pics...

2008-06-01T11:18:00.007+05:30

More pics from last year's visit to the Kalyan Diesel Loco Shed.

The shock absorber springs on the bogie of a WDM2 - notice a set of springs inside the outer set.

Parts of a stripped-down WDM2:

The radiator fan.

BHEL-manufactured generators

Cylinder Heads inside the engine

The "bull gear" over the axle of a stripped-down WDM2. The drive turns the gear that ,in turn, turns the axle.

The drive of a stripped-down WDM2:

The "Sanding Box" of a WDM2. (A Sanding Box holds sand that can be used in case the rails are very slippery; the sand can be released by the press of a button in the cab; the sand comes out of the sand pipe positioned so that the sand falls just ahead of the wheels)
A CLA (Kurla) WDS4 shunter awaits its duties at the KYN DLS.

Siblings from the same stable: a WDM2 and a Shakti WDG3A

24032007 KYN DLS : Miscellaneous pics...

2008-05-23T10:11:00.006+05:30

I realised that I had only posted some pics from the visit to the Kalyan DLS (Diesel Loco Shed). Here are some more. These pics are those of the 13307 KYN WDG3A "Shakti" being serviced at the KYN Diesel Loco Shed.

The builder's plate on the Shakti:

The control stand:

The shock absorbers:

The LED markers on the Shakti:

A SHF (Short Hood Forward) view from inside the Shakti:

The "dairy farms" of Mumbai

2008-05-04T12:36:00.006+05:30

One problem in working in Mumbai (and probably true for the rest of India as well) is the addiction to drinking tea (cutting) at odd hours during the working period. So, after working for about 13 years, I found that I had acquired this (rather stupid) habit at having tea at the following approximate times:
9 a.m., 11 a.m., 2 p.m., 4 p.m., 7 p.m. (and sometimes even after dinner).

This seems to be a common practice among Mumbaikars. A proof of this lies in the number of roadside stalls that sell tea. You might not find shops selling milk, but I can almost guarantee that there would be a stall that sells tea within a few hundred metres on any public road where ever in Mumbai. One reason for this might be the cost: a cutting (less than 100 ml) of tea costs (even today) less than Rs. 3 at most stalls.

This post is, of course, not related to the "tea stalls"...but that is the background. An increase in my chanting kind of made me averse to drinking this tea. I cannot claim to have kicked the habit, but I certainly seemed to have developed some aversion towards this habit. Now, to overcome this silly habit and to get some proteins, I decided to have milk instead. The only problem is that there are not those many shops in Mumbai that sell milk by the glass.

There are shops that are typically named "dairy farms" that do sell hot milk. Why these are called "farms" I have no idea...since it is just a shop. A glass of hot milk costs Rs. 10; a half-glass costs Rs. 5. Either ways, it is served topped with cream.

The operation of the shop is simple: There is a large kadahi that is constantly simmering over a small flame of fire. The kadahi is filled with many litres of milk. After much simmering, the milk turns a bit brown, and has a layer of cream over it. Whenever a customer asks for a glass of milk, the appropriate quantity of milk is put into a glass (along with some sugar). Finally, the glass is topped with a layer of cream from the kadahi. In some "farms", some condiments such as crushed cardamom is added to give it a special flavor.

Chanting is addictive

2008-05-04T10:11:00.005+05:30

"Chant and be happy" is what they tell you at every ISKCON temple. Printed on leaflets and books, the message is clear (and simple). Chant the 16-word Mahamantra, and improve your life. Most ISKCON temples (at least the one in Juhu) provide visiting people (who are not necessarily Krishna conscious devotees) with a 108-bead japa mala (chanting beads) and a small leaflet with the Mahamantra. I've never tried chanting on those beads offered at the temple.

The recommended daily practice for aspiring as well as initiated devotees is 16 rounds of chanting this Mahamantra. That is, 16 x 108 = 1728 times. In addition, on Ekadashi day, it is recommended to perform additional rounds (preferably 25 x 108 times).

Now, this was not the only mantra that I knew...I had, of course, recited many other mantras daily for many years. So, it was not clear what this chanting would achieve. Still, out of curiosity, in 2002, I started chanting this Mahamantra almost every working day 11 times (not 11 rounds - only 11 times) in a day. This was during the morning commute to my workplace.

As if by instruction (or magic), a few years later, I increased that to some more times. However, I did not use chanting beads or any other device...so it was difficult to keep track. I used to use my fingers, but then I would lose count soon.

Around 2006, I started visiting Srila Prabhupada's quarters in the Juhu temple. This was on suggestion from a devotee co-worker. During one such visit, one devotee who was also praying at the quarters asked me about how many times I chant daily. He asked me to buy chanting beads from the store at the temple. Though I did not pay attention to his instructions on that day, I did find myself buying the beads after a few days. I used the beads to chant a few times...but the main problem was in using the beads while commuting.

A few days later I bought a "hand-tally counter" (a small metallic device) that can be used for counting the number of times chanted. I could use this counter while commuting...even while standing inside the crowded buses, there was no problem in continuing the chanting.

I started with a modest goal of 4 rounds daily. Soon, I found that I could chant 10 rounds frequently; very often, I could do the recommended 16 rounds too. There was no problem.

Srila Prabhupada has said that "If you take one step towards Krishna, then Krishna will take ten steps towards you". This seems to be the theory at work behind my increase in the chanting. It cannot be mere coincidence that the 2-year break from work was meant exactly to make more time for chanting.

The main advantage of this Mahamantra is that it can be chanted anywhere, anytime (although it is more beneficial to chant in the early morning hours). So, all in all, chanting the Mahamantra does seem to be addictive. There are some other experiences as well...I may outline in a later post. Though I cannot claim be a devotee yet, it seems the goal is closer than it was before.

The first offering rolls out...

2008-03-23T10:38:00.004+05:30

From the recipes of Kurma Dasa into my kitchen, I've just finished cooking, offering (to the Supreme Lord), and eating my first preparation of a Kurma Dasa recipe. It was called "North Indian curried cauliflower and potato" ("Aloo Gobi").

Needless to say, it was delicious. The sugar and lemon juice really made it more delicious. Thanks to Kurma.

Updates: Mumbai B.E.S.T. Smart Card

2008-03-22T10:11:00.008+05:30

Starting from February 18th, there were some major changes in the fare structure for Mumbai's B.E.S.T. buses. One of the most major changes was to do away with the differences in the fares of limited and ordinary buses. Another impressive change was the fixed fare of Re. 1 (for any distance) for blind persons per journey. The information about the fare changes were pasted inside most buses.

A significant change in the passes available for the Smart Card fares were also brought in. A reduction in the Smart Card fares were announced. In addition, 3 types of bus passes were introduced:

An all-city bus pass (from Colaba/Nairman Point to Mahim/Sion) - monthly Rs. 350
An all-suburban bus pass (from Mahim/Sion to Bhayander/Thane/Airoli/Belapur) - monthly Rs. 450
An all-route bus pass (anywhere within city or suburbs) - monthly Rs. 550

All these passes are available on a fortnightly / monthly / quarterly / yearly basis. They are valid for all non-AC routes in the mentioned zones.

Update (2008-July-20):
Information on how to use the "SmartCard" for suburban railway travel is in this post.

ping KJMT01

2008-03-22T09:57:00.005+05:30

The expected has happened. For the past several occasions, both the ATVMs (Automatic Ticket Vending Machines) at the Kanjurmarg (KJMG) station are non-functional. Not only at KJMG, but also at several other stations. On most occasions, the display of the ATVMs do not display anything; at other times, the touch-screen refuses to respond. However, yesterday I was surprised to find a "terminal (X windows)" window opened on both the ATVMs at KJMG. Someone was running a "ping" to some class A IP addresses. Aha, they run some kind of Unix, most likely some distro of Linux. The prompt at the machines displayed "user@KJMT01", and "user@KJMT02" respectively. Guess the machines are cleverly named using station codes. (I think "KJMG" is station code for Kanjurmarg; I wonder what "KJMT" is...)

However, that does not absolve the railways to keep the ATVMs non-functional. Wonder if, and how long before, they are trashed, and like many other schemes, become history. I want my money back!

Sabudana Wada, and an attempt to return to cooking

2008-03-17T10:42:00.002+05:30

This is two posts in one, but both somewhat related...

On Ekadashi, some people abstain from taking food (a total fast); while some others abstain from eating grains and pulses. Recently, I've started the second type of abstinence. Although I try not to consume grains / pulses, I can hardly get along without eating something. So, I consume some fruits and something made out of sabudana (sago). Some people do believe that sabudana is not a good thing to consume...but we shall let that be for the present.

Sabudana wada and sabudana khichadi are two preparations that are often prepared in some Maharashtrian homes during fasting. Outside, in restaurants, sabudana wada is hardly prepared well. I've yet to come across some restaurant that makes nice sabudana wadas (even the usual suspects (Panshikar, etc.) fail to impress here). But, there is one place I know which makes out-of-the-world sabudana wadas. The Hare Krishna temple at Juhu has a stall that sells samosas, and batata wadas. This stall also sells sabudana wadas (only on Ekadashi days). Those sabudana wadas are the tastiest I've ever had in my entire life. Sometimes, the wadas are all sold out before I reach the stall...in which case, I've to get along with the wadas dished out in regular Udipi restaurants.

To understand the complexity of getting the sabudana wadas / Khicadi right, take a look at this article (sabudana pilaf) by Kurma Dasa.

Recently, inspired in part by Govinda's tasty dishes (one wonders how they could make it taste so well without using onions and garlic), and part by Kurma Dasa, I am attempting to return to cooking. The last time I cooked was when I was away from home. That time, cooking meant frying onions in oil, adding garam masala, and then adding whatever was to be cooked. This time, however, I'm going to do things differently. Kurma Dasa's excellent collection of recipes do not include onion and garlic (and obviously no meat / eggs). I hope to get close to the taste offered by Govinda's. Of course, all cooking is to be done with devotion to the Supreme Lord, and offered to the Lord first before eating, since, in the Bhagavad Gita (Bg. 3.13), the Supreme Lord says:

The devotees of the Lord are released from all kinds of sins because they eat food which is offered first for sacrifice. Others, who prepare food for personal sense enjoyment, verily eat only sin.

And, in Bg. 9.27, the Supreme Lord says:

O son of Kunti, all that you do, all that you eat, all that you offer and give away, as well as all austerities that you may perform, should be done as an offering unto Me.

The Mumbai Suburban Railway Smart Card (aka ATVM Card)

2008-02-03T10:10:00.002+05:30

(If you came to this page wanting to know how to use the Go Mumbai Smart Card on the suburban railways, try this link instead.)

Yesterday, I happened to go to Churchgate station. I decided to buy the Mumbai Suburban Railway Smart Card (aka ATVM Card). I had read about it earlier, and also seen others use it. I thought it might be useful to own a card. Here are the details you need to know (some photographs of the Smart Card / Receipt / Ticket are at the end of this post):

Unlike the B.E.S.T. Smart Card, the railway smart card allows the card holder to purchase tickets from a machine called "Automated Ticket Vending Machine" (ATVM).
The ATVMs have been installed at some (not all yet) stations; I've seen ATVMs at some stations that are yet to be made functional. One can be sure that the major stations have multiple functional ATVMs.
The card is "loaded" with an initial amount (or when it is refilled). The fare of the tickets purchased is deducted from the amount on the card.
This scheme works on both the Central and Western suburban railway stations. It is valid only for the Mumbai suburban section.

To purchase the card, the procedure is simple:

Go to any ticket counter that is marked (some board near the counter tells you which one) to sell the Smart Card.
The Smart Card can be loaded / refilled in multiples of Rs. 50, upto Rs. 500
Initially, the Smart Card itself has a deposit of Rs. 50 (which is refundable under some reasonable conditions mentioned at the back of the Smart Card).
(Probably) To attract customers to this scheme, the railways are offering a 5% bonus amount on every charge of the card. For example, if you load the card with Rs. 100, your card would actually be loaded with Rs. 105.

To buy tickets using the Smart Card:

Go to an ATVM. Place the card on the sensor on the ATVM. The ATVM has a touch-screen interface.
Select the language (Hindi, Marathi, English).
Choose the destination (zone)...and the station from the railway route map.
Choose the number of adults and children.
Select "Print" to print the tickets.
The tickets are dispensed through the ATVM slot.

Here are some initial observations:

Not all stations have the ATVMs installed. I landed up at Matunga (C. R.) only to find that the ATVMs were still kept in packed plastic covers.
The card can be used by anyone. So, one of the benefits is that it could be shared by family members. The downside is that if the card is stolen / lost, it could be misused by whoever gets it.
The time printed on the ATVM-issued ticket is the current time of the ATVM. One is supposed to commence the journey within 1 hour of this time. This is unlike the card tickets issued at the counter. The time is usually rounded up to the next hour. So, if you buy a regular card ticket at 10:05, the time printed on the card ticket would be 11:00. That gives one extra time to commence the journey.
The user interface of the ATVM is not the best. It took me sometime to figure out how to get the interface in the English language. Second, I could not easily locate Matunga Road (as opposed to Matunga); the map is divided into zones, probably selecting the right zone is enough. It gave me a list of stations after selecting the zone, from which one has to select the destination. The other parts of the interface are also a bit confusing for the new user.
It is not clear how the ATVM is supposed to "save time" in the long run. In the short run, of course, only those who have the cards line up for the ATVM. Thus, the ATVM queues could be expected to be much, much smaller than the ones at the ticket counters. In the long run, however, if many had these cards, the ATVM queues would probably be longer since it takes quite a while to conduct a transaction at the ATVM.

Here are the images for the front and back of the Smart Card:

The back-side has some "rules" for the refund.

The receipt provided along with the Smart Card that one is supposed to carefully preserve!

A ticket purchased using the Smart Card (Mumbai CST to Matunga).

End of Sem 3...one more to go...

2008-01-20T23:19:00.000+05:30

By the grace of the Supreme Lord and all the other Gods, Goddesses, saints and gurus, I have managed to pass comfortably semester 3 of the MTech programme.

I got much better grades in semester 3 compared to previous semesters. In fact, I cannot better the 10-point grade index that I got this semester.

Actually, the course-work for semester 3 was over by Novemeber 2007 end. But, officially, semester 3 also includes Stage 2 project evaluations that are held only in January. So, in a way, the semester 3 gets over only in mid-January. While the rest of the students were enjoying the MoodI (I don't know who enjoys MoodI, but that is material for another post), Christmas, and New Year, we were busy slogging it out in preparation for the project evaluation.

That brings to an end one of the busiest consecutive periods of intensive work. After a little rest, we head back to the grind for the (hopefully) final semester and the final stage of the project.

Potato Pattice and other Sindhi snacks

2007-11-09T11:50:00.000+05:30

Sindhis seem to have a penchant for potatoes. They seem to excel at preparing potato pattice (elsewhere, this is called "tikki"). My earliest brush with the Sindhi variety was when I was a kid. A guy from Ulhasnagar would bring in "yet-to-be-fried" pattice for selling to select Sindhi households. We would buy the pattice from him and fry it at home.

The second major experience was when I was studying in Chembur. Sindhi Society had a roadside vendor ("Raju Pattice") near the Bhakti Bhavan bus stop. He would setup his stall by 4 p.m. and do a roaring business until he ran out of pattice. Though it seemed that Raju was not a Sindhi himself, he probably bought the "yet-to-be-fried" pattice from some Sindhi. As of this writing, Raju is no longer selling pattice at the spot. Probably, because he was thrown out by protests from the local people.

The third experience was in the form of a birthday treat at the home of a Sindhi classmate. (We haven't forgotten those delicious bread rolls and pattice - thank you, Murli Janyani.) I must've had close to 10 bread rolls.

Eventually, I realized that Sindhis had a specialty in preparing this stuff.

Jhama is a popular Sindhi eatery that sells snacks as well as sweets. The first outlet was probably first setup in Sindhi colony (aka Chembur Camp). I had read somewhere that Raj Kapoor (and other RK studio people) would order from this place. Eventually, Jhama setup other outlets: one on Sion-Trombay road in Chembur; the other in Vashi; and the latest one in Koparkhairane.

I am told that the locals, however, prefer Vig Refreshments in Chembur Colony. The mango lassi is absolutely worth the money (although it is probably made with mango syrup). Other standard stuff is available: Chola (not ragda) Pattice, Chola Puri, Chole Bhature, Stuffed Kulcha (extremely good ones), Dahi Pattice (aka DP). Veg Pulav too is available, but only upto 4 p.m. or before it gets over.

Diwali Snacks Shopping 2007

2007-11-09T11:43:00.000+05:30

Judging by the hits on the previous years' posts (here and here) related to the same topic, I thought I might post another one for this year too. This year we decided to buy the snacks for Diwali from only 2 shops. So, here is the list of shops and the things we bought from:

Mysurpa (Mysore Pak) (at Rs. 200 per kg) from Shri Krishna Sweets, N. G. Acharya Marg, Chembur (quite close to the railway station)
Chaklis, Poha Chiwda, Boondi Laddu, and Banana Wafers from Cafe Mysore (and its other outlet "Nayak Sweets") from King's Circle, Matunga

Though the Mysurpa is fully laden with ghee, there is no guilty feeling in eating it; in fact, it probably tastes good only because of the ghee. This is a very soft variety unlike the other Mysore Pak prepared in Maharashtrian homes.

"Do it in 8" and other short stories from the FRRO

2007-11-05T00:51:00.001+05:30

(The incidents in this post have taken place around July 2007.)

The FRRO (Foreigners' Regional Registration Office) is some kind of a government-related office that most foreign visitors to Mumbai need to register at. It is also the place foreigners go to get some kind of a extension to stay within India. For the Mumbai region, this office is located near CST (close to the CST station).

It so happened that one of the guys I know happens to be a foreigner studying in India. It is a common practice for the visa to be issued only for a year and then get it extended after a year. Let us call this foreigner guy as "PH". So, PH ran out of his visa and needed an extension. Since this is a very common practice among foreign students, I guess it might be well documented somewhere. PH somehow got himself acquainted with these procedures (say, by reading a web site or maybe by talking to other foreign students). His only concern was travelling to CST.

He asked me if I could come along, and I said yes. So, one morning we left to go to CST. Me being me, the only way someone could get me to travel (from the distant suburbs) to CST would be by a local train...no amount of air-conditioned comfort and other luxuries would make me travel the distance by road.

He being him, agreed readily to travel by the local train. As luck would have it, the train was a bit crowded, but eased out as we crossed Dadar. After a few more minutes, we reached CST. We reached before 12 noon and that was considered to be a good time since the office would not yet be closed for lunch. PH knew the shortcuts to get to this FRRO quite well...in fact, I had never been to the FRRO earlier (which is not surprising since Indians residing in India have no business to be at the FRRO). So we reached the FRRO, signed in at the ground floor register, climbed up the stairs to the third floor, and there was a reception counter there.

To ensure orderliness, a reception counter on the floor checks if one has all the documents in order to get the extension. There was not much of a queue. So, PH's documents were checked after a while, and then he was told that a particular letter did not mention his nationality. Now that was stupid, PH thought. After all, he had his passport...and the passport is considered the global proof of nationality. Nothing doing said the lady at the counter. No nationality, no entry to the office. I tried to intervene...in Marathi. No avail. I understood the matter quickly...these govt. people wouldn't budge an inch. So I told PH that we should get the nationality into the letter. PH being a bit naive said that he could write the nationality in the typed letter. I said that was not a legal thing to do since anyway the letter was signed by some other authority. So any change to the contents required the signed authority to sign over the changes as well. We tried to get the corrected letter faxed, but no avail.

Day 2:
With the correct letter mentioning the nationality in hand, PH and I travelled again in the second-class train to CST. We reached the FRRO, again signed in the register, went upto the third floor. The reception counter checked our documents. All was okay. We were allowed to the inner offices. Now, once in, the systems were supposed to all web-enabled and of the self-service variety. The problem was that the JSP application needed some kind of complex username and password derived from the application earlier. We got a staff to help us out, and put in the application for the visa extension online. The offices inside were nicely furnished. All air-conditioned, nice seating, an LCD TV showing a news channel...even some abstract art paintings thrown in. There was even a small shop inside selling vending machine tea and some potato chips (wafers).

The online system prints out a receipt that we then needed to take and give to an officer. So we went and met the officer. The officer said that the application was not complete since the letter in question did not mention until what time the study course would be over by. "Oh no", I thought...not again. PH tried to reason with the officer stating that everyone knew that a master's programme would be for 2 years. But, no. Government offices do not work that way. If it is not in black-and-white, then it is not present. These government officers keep their brains at home...maybe that's nice for the country, since rules are rules, I thought.

I knew it then and there that a third visit to the FRRO was definitely on the cards. The next situation was, however, very surprising: The officer said that if he forwarded the file to his senior, PH's application would be rejected, and since his visa was expiring on that very day, it would mean that he would have overstayed without a visa. This is a very legal angle. The officer was "kind enough" to say that we could come back the next day and he would keep our application "on hold" with him. So I told PH we should go back and come back with yet another version of that damned letter.

PH then told the officer that he was willing to take the risk of being deported from India and that the officer should forward the application to the senior. Things seemed to get out of hand, so I intervened. Surprisingly, I blew off my top for a while, and tried to reason with the officer...why, on earth, I asked they did not have this stupid thing documented anywhere. And, why did the lady at the reception counter not inform us of this thing on the first day itself. Anyways, since the officers leave their brains at home, no amount of reasoning works.

Day 3:
We arrive at the FRRO again with yet another version of that letter. The ground floor guy now starts to recognize us. Unlike earlier days, even though I have a beard, he does not seem suspicious about me. We reach the FRRO at 13:15...we were asked to come a bit late by the officer. We approach the officer, who seems quite pleased with all his power. PH is then asked to wait for an hour or so.

I go out to nearby McDonalds to fetch PH his meal. When I return back, I call PH down and he eats his meal sitting under the shade of a tree outside the FRRO building. After lunch, we go up again. We enjoy sitting cosily on a sofa in the cool air-conditioned environment. There is nothing for me to do (I have not lugged around my books). So, I look around and observe the activity in the office.

Around 10 foreign people lounging around waiting for something or the other. One fat NRI type of guy is sitting next to us at a distance. Most the other guys finish their jobs and go away. Our fatso is still present. A little while later, a well-built officer comes out of the office and signals to the NRI to call him. The officer himself proceeds towards an entrance that is marked as the way to the toilet. Our NRI chap makes a call on his mobile (presumably to the officer) and I tune my ear in. "Do it in 8", "I know you guys for so long" is what I hear...of course, the conversation is in Hindi. A little while later, the NRI has finished talking...he also heads over to the toilet.

Moral of the story: Talking over the mobile increases the kidney activity leading to bloated bladders. After talking over the mobile, one needs to go to the toilet.

Okay, I made that one up. A little while later, the NRI comes back, the officer also comes back...both look happy. The officer goes to his seat, the NRI sits back at the sofa. The NRI is summoned inside the office...he comes back after a while, it seems his "job" has got done.

What that "8" happens to be I will never know. 8 hundred, 8 thousand, 8 lakh, ...

In the meanwhile, PH is also summoned. His work has also been done. He gets his extension.

On the way out, I look at the visitor's book. It is full of praise-worthy comments for the "helpful staff". I remarked to PH that he must also make an entry...which of course, he refused...I think because English is not his strong language.

We return back by the crowded local carrying the peak hour traffic. I urge PH to document all this since it would help the others...of course, he does not do so. I think its because of his English.

Panshikar Dadar gets an upgrade

2007-09-09T22:50:00.000+05:30

In the recent past, when I visited Dadar, I found Panshikar to be closed even though it wasn't a Monday. Last week when I visited it, I found it not only open, but the reason for its closure was clear. There was renovation being carried out. The newly tiled eatery (though work was ongoing in the rear end - no doubt to increase its capacity) was open for business...and there was rush. In fact, I had to wait in a queue for about 10 minutes to get a seat.

Panshikar Dadar was a Grade II eatery (as graded by the BMC). Its quite possible now that it gets converted to a Grade I eatery (for comparison's sake, Cafe Mysore is a Grade I eatery). I guess it has something to do with the neatness levels (and nothing to do with the taste of the food). Panshikar Dadar was earlier run by the same (family) people that run the Panshikar at Girgaon. Eventually, a split of the business (warring family members???) meant that the management of Panshikar Dadar would be different than the one at Girgaon. The one at Girgaon opened up a branch at Vile Parle a few years ago.

When I saw Panshikar Dadar closed a few months ago, I felt it was on its decline...maybe its business was hit by the roadside Wada Paav and other vendors, I thought. But, fortunately my thinking was incorrect. The Marathi manoos is not going to let go of his farali misal and other "fast foods" (meaning food that is had during a fast). The crowds at the eatery may have had to do something with the month of Shravan (when a lot of these manoos-es fast).

All seems well with the eatery as it prepares itself to gear up for the festival months ahead. All hail the Marathi manoos and the farali misal. The king of farali misal is back for business.

The more the things change...

2007-08-30T22:37:00.000+05:30

...the more they remain the same. This post is in the context of the traffic scenario in parts of Mumbai.

I remember about 13 years ago there was no Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road. Traveling from Powai to Andheri meant taking the route via Saki Naka. There was the other option of traveling by the Aarey Colony Road, but at that time toll rates were considered exorbitant. One particular evening I remember the traffic being so bad via Saki Naka that it took me 3 hours to just reach Andheri station.

A few years later things eased up because of the Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road (JVLR); traffic got divided between the two routes. Another few years down the line, many people commuting to Goregaon and beyond started taking the Aarey Colony route. This further eased the traffic going towards Andheri. (Of course, matters became worse for people traveling to Goregaon...but that's not part of this story).

A couple of years ago, the Saki Naka junction and the road towards Andheri were widened...traveling to Andheri was not so much of a pain...whichever route was taken.

But, it seems we are back to the starting point...traveling via Saki Naka now can take as much as 2 hours to reach Andheri as I recently experienced. While I conciously take buses that go by the JVLR to Andheri, I had the misfortune to take a bus via Saki Naka a couple of times in the recent past. And that commute was enough to convince me not to travel by that route (except maybe at late nights).

Actually, the real reason for the change in traffic scenario is the numerous setups (buildings, industries) that have come up along that route...Chandivali, behind Saki Naka post office, Marwah lane, etc. That is why the more the things change, the more they remain the same.

Lunch at "A Rama Nayak's Udipi Shri Krishna Boarding"

2007-07-28T23:28:00.000+05:30

Last Saturday afternoon, I was at Matunga (C.R.) to buy some things from the market. Since I landed up at Matunga station taking a C.R. train, I thought I might as well eat some South Indian stuff. There was the hopelessness of making a choice from among so many eateries there: Starting from "Ram Ashraya" near the station, "Saraswati", to "Cafe Mysore", "Anand Bhavan", "Cafe Madras" at Maheshwari Udyaan. "Idli House" was out of the question as it would be closed for lunch (what business sense?). Calculating at what seemed to be the speed of light, the mind zeroed in onto "Dahi Rice" at either "Cafe Mysore" or at "Ram Ashraya". But when I came out of the station, of course, there was "A. Rama Nayak's Udipi Shri Krishna Boarding" (hereafter referred to as ARN USKB) (review by Busybee is here) to be considered. How could I have forgotten to consider that? All computational power used up was wasted and I decided to go to the ARN USKB. One of the main driving forces was that I hadn't visited that eatery for many years now.

So up the flight of stairs behind Matunga vegetable market (BMC market) and I arrived on the first floor. Lots of people (well-dressed) waiting in a queue. (Those Gujjus certainly contribute to lot of these ARN's business, I thought.) I went past those people and landed up near the counter...the same boss (Satish Nayak from Idli House seated there). I gave him a Rs. 100 note and he gave me some coupons and Rs. 71. That made the lunch cost equal to Rs. 29. But I could've opted for a bare minimal meal and got only one (main) coupon...I think that would have cost me Rs. 23 or so.

Anyways, I was directed inside the "general" seating hall, ahead of all the people waiting. It wasn't that I used influence...those people waiting were for the "unlimited" section, I guess. The "general" or the "limited" section is for getting only limited food. Sayings by "Sane Guruji" and his photograph were displayed on the walls. I could not understand the relationship between Udipi and "Sane Guruji". Maybe ARN was firmly impressed by Guruji's thoughts and ideals.

After being seated, a "server" came to my table, took one of the coupons, and put down a glass of buttermilk. Then, came a plate with 2 chapatis, 2 mounds of rice, a bowl of sambar, a bowl of kadhi, papad, and 2 vegetable preparations (subji). I finished eating it. Some "servers" keep moving about asking if we would like more of the gravy. I then gave another coupon and took a bowl of curd. Another coupon was for the sweet dish. There were 4 sweet dishes to choose from. I took "aamras". I was done with my lunch. Then, it was time to look around.

Oh I could see people of all kinds...some Gujarati women, some North Indian men, even a Muslim family with women in burqas. I was surprised to see this family. I mean one does not expect people who relish non-vegetarian food to eat at this eatery. Maybe they did not know what they would get, but one second thoughts, no one would come to the eatery on the first floor of a municipal market whose entrance is at the very end of the road (next to the tracks) had they not known about it. Maybe they just felt like eating "plain" food for one lunch.

Of course, there were people from the relatively lower-middle classes. At Rs. 23 for a gentle-on-the-stomach lunch plate, why would anyone want to eat somewhere else?

A major milestone reached

2007-07-28T22:56:00.000+05:30

By the grace of the Supreme Lord, I can now say that I've finished reading the (English) translation of the "Bhagavad Gita - As It Is". For quite some time (years), I was stuck with having read only 3 chapters. Recently I figured out what the problem was and why I wasn't making any progress. I worked around that obstacle (you'll never guess it was so trivial, but the solution involved LaTeX).

The completion of reading the Gita is definitely the most major milestone in my life. That does not say anything about my having understood 100% of it. Also, the workaround involved skipping reading the purports (by HDG ACB SP) in the translation. Hopefully, reading the purports will increase my understanding. Until then, I can claim to have read (the translation of) all the verses.

I have never watched the Mahabharat serial that was telecast on television some years ago. I believe it also covered the conversation in the Bhagavad Gita. I do not know if it covers whatever is there in the Bhagavad Gita. I was surprised to see many questions directly answered in the Bhagavad Gita.

There is one thing that I would like to quote for now:

From BG Chapter 13, Verse 26:

Again there are those who, although not conversant in spiritual knowledge, begin to worship the Supreme Person upon hearing about Him from others. Because of their tendency to hear from authorities, they also transcend the path of birth and death.

In my case, the "others" mentioned in the verse was a co-worker of mine. He is, of course, an ISKCON devotee. I would like to thank him.
Some other quotes will follow in posts to this blog later.

The next logical step is to read the purports and then the Srimad Bhagavatam.

Amazing lectures of HDG ACB Srila Prabhupada

2007-07-05T23:02:00.000+05:30

Recently I had the chance to hear some lecture recordings of HDG ACB Srila Prabhupada (courtesy Internet streaming and a good mechanism to find these built into Amarok, the KDE media player). Although I have read several books by Srila, I found the lectures to provide much more information. The voice also provides the emotional content - something that is not captured in the books. Srila's rasping voice, a tone that almost seems to reprimand the audience, and the authority with which Srila speaks, made me wanting to listen to more of the lecture recordings.

Most of these are recorded in the 1970s. CDs featuring these lectures are sold in the ISKCON stores. There is also a MP3 library (24 CD set) available containing all these lecture recordings (but I think its a bit too expensive).