Army Mela in Thiruvananthapuram

Thiruvananthapuram to host Army Mela after a gap of 4 years
TNN | Oct 28, 2012, 04.45AM IST
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: This year's Army Mela, scheduled to be held from November 6 to 8, is expected to see greater cooperation from the state government. The Army has sought infrastructure support and tax waivers from the state government for the smooth conduct of the event.
Mela, an event organized by the Army with an aim to educate, entertain and motivate youngsters to join military service, will be held at the Central Stadium, said a top Army official. The event is coming to the city after four years. "The Army Mela is a regular fixture in the event calendar of a few states and we are hoping to do the same in Kerala," he said.
The Pangode Army station command has sought the state government's assistance for conducting the event. "While the bulk of funding for the event is borne by the Army itself, we have requested that the state government pool in its resources to make it an unforgettable event," said the official. The Army is learnt to have asked the state government for an exemption on hiring charges of the Central Stadium and assistance for erecting stalls to display weapons, and also light and sound and seating arrangements for the promotional events.
"We had also requested that state government bear any expenditure on registration and insurance charges/taxes of mobility scooters being issued by Army to disabled ex-servicemen," said the official. If everything goes by the plan, the Army also plans to distribute a few scooters to disabled ex-servicemen during the event, he said.
The Army has identified Veer Naris from Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi, and is likely to invite around 100 women on the occasion. Veer Naris are widows and mothers of Army soldiers who have sacrificed their lives for the nation. Army Wives Welfare Association will closely coordinate this event. The Army Mela will have an exhibition of arms and ammunition and also dare devil display by trained army men.
Thiruvananthapuram to host Army Mela after a gap of 4 years

Elderly fume over proposed licence norms

NO LICENCE TO DRIVE: Many elderly feel taking away their right to drive is akin to killing their independence

BARRING ELDERLY TO DRIVE
The motorcycles zipping along, cutting across the lanes, indifferent to their own and others safety are not driven by the elderly, the speeding cars jumping the dividers and hitting the on coming traffic are also not driven by the elderly. The drunk drivers speeding their BMW’s and Merck, late in the night, and overrunning the poor homeless sleeping on the foot paths are also not elderly. Also those driving on the e-ways, over-speeding, on the foggy mornings and hitting the stationary trucks, dumpers regularly are also not elderly. The infamous Blue line Buses of Delhi were also not driven by elderly.
Then why select the elderly to debar driving, has any survey of the accidents attributed to the elderly, age wise statically resulted in this conclusion.
For the sake of elderly, do not deny their mobility, most of us living alone with children having flown the nest, mobility so necessary in case of a medical or other emergency.
We, those who are medically fit to drive are more cautious, drive at the speed of the traffic and in lanes, do not unnecessarily over-take and let the brash overtake us at their whims and fancy.
Brig Lakshman Singh (Retd)
TOI article
Elderly fume over proposed licence norms:
Say Plan To Keep Those Above 72 Years Out Of The Drivers Seat Is Arbitrary, Prefer Tests

Infrastructure India: A Long Road Ahead...When the cities will buckle?

Chennai- T. Nagar bursting at the seams by R. Sujatha
Traffic came to standstill, owing to festival shoppers’ crowd

— PHOTO: S.S.KUMARBUMPER TO BUMPER: Traffic on Bhashyam Street near the Panagal Park junction in T. Nagar on Friday.

CHENNAI: Shoppers who came to T. Nagar on Friday would have probably regretted their decision. Vehicular traffic in T. Nagar came to a standstill several times, thanks to the festival shopping crowd.

Police had a tough time regulating traffic as vehicles piled up along Venkatnarayana Road, G.N. Chetty Road, North Usman Road and Thyagaraya Road by noon.

Shoppers struggled to move around and autorickshaw drivers demanded exorbitant fare to drive through overcrowded streets. K. Saravanan, a car driver, said, “It took two hours to negotiate a two-km stretch from the Kodambakkam junction to T. Nagar. The traffic hold-up began at the Kodambakkam junction around 11 a.m. When we entered T. Nagar, it was 1 p.m.”

While MTC buses managed to wind their way slowly, cars, autorickshaws and two-wheelers clogged the roads. Traffic was heavy around the junctions near Kodambakkam-North Usman Road, Venkatnarayana Road-Burkit Road and Thyagaraya Road-Dr. Nair Road. Many who hired autorickshaws or cabs got off midway and tried to walk to the destinations.

At most places, pedestrians struggled to cross the road.

C.N.R. Selvaraj, who works in T. Nagar, said he had to wait for 10 minutes before he could cross G. N. Chetty Road near the Kannadasan statue. Though traffic police towed away vehicles from several roads, it did not deter many from parking along the road margins on other roads such as Thyagaraya Road and Bhashyam Street.

A commuter had a hard time bargaining with an autorickshaw driver for a trip from Coats Road to the Doraiswamy Road junction, a distance of about 1 km.

The driver demanded Rs.40. Another auto driver charged Rs.70 for a trip from Panagal Park to Trust Puram, three km away.

Sources in the Mambalam and Soundarapandianar Angadi police stations said there were no complaints of missing children. Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Shakeel Akhter said that since certain traffic regulations were introduced recently, it led to some confusion. By evening, motorists were getting familiar with the changes and the traffic flow became easier, he said.
Chennai- T. Nagar bursting at the seams: The Hindu
Related reading
Infrastructure India: A Long Road Ahead

SBI sees tremendous response for Nano

Ratan Tata during the launch of Nano in Mumbai (TOI) see nano pictures click here
24 Mar 2009, 2122 hrs IST, PTI
MUMBAI: Bookings for Rs 1 lakh Nano car by the Tata Motors are pouring in from all parts of the country as the sole booking agent SBI on Tuesday said it has distributed lakhs of applications for the world's cheapest car.

"We have distributed lakhs of applications for Nano across the country. We are getting a tremendous response from people for Nano," SBI Chairman O P Bhatt told reporters here.

The lender has inked an exclusive agreement with Tata Motors for the management of the bookings of Nano through its pan-India network. Around 1,350 branches of SBI in 850 cities would assist in the booking process of the Nano. Booking forms will be distributed and the filled-up application forms with the booking amount will be collected through SBI's branches.

The bank will be marketing the application forms through its 11,111-plus branches. Customers will be provided end-to-end processing with a bouquet of retail products for the bookings. Apart from extending loans for Nano purchase, the refund to unsuccessful applicants will also be available at SBI branches, SBI said.

The sale of application forms and acceptance of booking amount at SBI branches will start from April 9 and will go on till April 25. SBI will be using its cash management product, SBI Fast, for the processing and has also set up a 24x7 helpline to facilitate the booking process, the release said.

SBI loan product will enable applicants for booking the Nano by financing 100 per cent amount at a low down-payment amount starting from Rs 2,999, the release said.

The Nano car loan can be availed up to a maximum period of seven years for 11.75-12 per cent interest rate, the release said.
SBI sees tremendous response for Nano

The triumphant Herald Car

We would be scooting along, the four of us, Jeet,on the pillion with Chotta in her lap and Chotoo standing on the foot rest, clutching the handle of the Vespa, on the streets of Poona on the week-ends. Both of us would be covertly looking at the Heralds of many colours zipping past, not that a Herald could zip.

We took a major decision I had an offer of a plot in Dehradun, the two of us had a long discussion to buy a plot of land or to buy a car as affording the two together was just out of question. The need of a house was still in distant future while a car was some thing immediate.

One day we decided to take the calculated risk and exchanged the Vespa for a ‘Conifer Green’ Herald, thanks for a 16,000 Rupee Government loan, returnable by monthly instalments of Rupees 200 for next six or seven years. This reduced the already meagre take-home pay of a senior Major of the Army to Rupees 800 per month, for Jeet to run the house and spare me 100 for the hundred litres of petrol consumed by the car every month.

Every one was excited and waiting for me to bring the car home. Jeet warning Chotoo and Chotta, again and again, all sitting on the front steps of the house, to act normal and not show any excitement on my arrival. However, all the effort was in vain; as I drove in through the gate, on to the short drive-way, both the children rushed towards the car with Jeet following slowly and with dignity. How could they resist we had over the time graduated from cycle to scooter and now to our own car.

Soon we were all in the car for a long spin towards NDA. Luckily with this in mind I had tanked-up filling petrol en route for a princely sum of Rs 20. Incidentally even after the acquisition of the car and the monthly deductions from the salary every month we still had enough to manage a decent life style.

How it became the fifth member of the family for the next 22 years needs narration. It an integral part of the family, a home away from home, a home on wheels; a dependable and loyal new member of the family, also some one to hold Jeet’s hand especially during my extended absences from the family due to my numerous postings to non- family stations.

The Herald was there always at the beck and call when needed, to ferry the children to school, emergency visits to hospital and shopping and also to carry the family for joyous reunions at the Railway station when I came home on annual or casual leave, with picnics and long overdue family outings. It served us faithfully with trouble free trips both long and short.

From Poona to Dehradun and back, the trip taken just a couple of days after bringing it home that we piled in with the luggage packed-up in the trunk, Chotta and Chotoo on the back seat, Jeet in the co- driver’s expertly acting as the navigator, with the AAWI (Automobile Association of Western India) handout for the road.

All of us were in a state of excitement but for different reasons the children for the prospects of the long car ride, the two of us of showing our new acquisition to our respective families; albeit I all the time keeping the many of my worries of possible road- hazards, the reliability of the untested car and possibility of a breakdown en route some where in the wilderness far away from any help of the risks involved while traversing the dacoit infested section of the road between Bhind/ Moreina and Gwalior and a few more to myself.

Much later from Ranchi in Bihar where I was posted to Secundarabad in Andhra Pradesh on being detailed for the Long Defence Management Course, this time with less worries, better prepared and organized. We made frequent trips to our native village on bad roads as also on no roads and innumerable drives to Dehradun when posted at Delhi. The Herald also travelled the length and breadth of India by train on my postings along with our baggage safely lashed in the EVK the special railway wagon. For the next 22 Years it served us well but for occasional flooding of the carburettor, mainly due to my flooring the accelerator pedal; direct fuel injectors for petrol cars were still in the distant future, it never let us down or met a road accident. However, with age catching up it started needing frequent visits to the mechanics and started eating into the off days to the chagrin and irritation of Jeet, naturally as she had lined- up some other plans for the day.

One day it had competitor. On the insistence of the family we brought a Maruti Omni home. Now the Herald would remain parked outside waiting for some one to brush the accumulated dust from the body, give it a wash, crank the engine and take it out for a spin but in vain. Sadly one day with a heavy heart and deep- felt sorrow I sold it. Parting from the loyal companion with heavy heart; however, I was glad to see it leaving under its own power. Seeing it disappear round the corner I had the same feeling of loss that possibly Rosy’s parents would have felt seeing the green Chevrolet sedan carrying their daughter, with me till recently a stranger, when it disappeared from their vision as it turned round the corner and sped away on that day of 22nd November 1958 from 18 Old Survey Road at Dehradun.

Brig Lakshman Singh VSM (Retd)

Nano Car for Ex Servicemen

I observed families riding on two-wheelers—the father driving the scooter, his young kid standing in front of him, his wife seated behind him holding a little baby. It led me to wonder whether one could conceive of a safe, affordable, all-weather form of transport for such a family. Tata Motors’ engineers and designers gave their all for about four years to realize this goal. Today, we indeed have a People’s Car, which is affordable and yet built to meet safety requirements and emission norms, to be fuel efficient and low on emissions. We are happy to present the People’s Car to India and we hope it brings the joy, pride and utility of owning a car to many families who need personal mobility.

Ratan Tata, Chairman Tata Motors