MERA DELHI, BOLEDIL

Jade Goody's tormenting of Shilpa Shetty in the Big Brother show and the consequent furore over the issue of racism in the UK is a case study in itself. A few things did come out of this episode:-First, people have strong views about racism.Secondly, people are willing to express their views.Thirdly, people's view count.Now that Jade Goody is in New Delhi, for whatever good reason, it keeps the issue of racism in focus. And things that happened after it..
Technorati : Big Brother show, Delhi, Jade Goody, Shilpa Shetty

Now that Punjab and Uttarakhand have slipped away from the hand of the Congress, would it be prudent to call this the cost of inflation?It is easy recall how the price of onion cost the then BJP government of Delhi dear. Now, in a repeat of history, the present inflation had made price of onions rise sharply and it is for everybody to see the result in the elections held in the states of Punjab and Uttarakhand.So, today being the Budget Day, what to expect? I believe this Budget would invariable focus to tame inflation and not let the growth story falter. Keep your fingers crossed...
Technorati : Budget, Delhi, Inflation

Room to Read, a not-for-profit organisation will receive a million dollar (Rs. 4.4 crore) grant from investment bank Goldman Sachs Group to fund about 450 libraries in India, which will be set up in existing schools, community centres and other places.Room to Read's mission is to provide underprivileged children with an opportunity to gain the lifelong gift of education. The organisation is headed by former Microsoft executive, John Wood. Recipient of the Fast Company/Monitor Group Social Capitalist Awards, Room to Read have found a better way to do good: They're using the disciplines of the corporate world to tackle daunting social problems.Take a look at their India story and decide for yourself:

If you want to know more about their Indian Chapter, click : here
Technorati : Goldman Sachs, India, Room to Read, education, library

Delhi will be bidding for the Asian Games in 2014. The bid will be made over a series of meetings at Kuwait in April 2007.Delhi will be hosting the Commonwealth Games, 2010, for which work is in progress.Extrapolating these series of events, it would not be out of place to say that, Delhi is brewing up its ambition to host an Olympics.

Technorati : Asian Games, Commonweath Games, Delhi, Olympics

Trendylicious is free daily e-newsletter designed to give you advice on what's happening in your city, from a woman's point of view. Presently available in Mumbai and Delhi editions, its the brain child of 'power couple' Stacy and her husband Dan.
Take for example the last three newsletter of the Delhi edition. They covered a book launch (A Journey Out Of India. By Anna K. Chacko) a restaurant review, (Bonsai - The Garden Restaurant, B-49 Connaught Place, Middle Circle, New Delhi) and Delhi's First Wine Boutique (Savitri Cinema Complex, Greater Kailash-II, New Delhi 110048). Certainly trendy in approach and meant for the new women.So, why am I reading these newsletters? Its anybody's guess, maybe I want to know that ' women's point of view'. Trendylicious newsletters are simple, gender neutral and cover only one item per day, not to say the least, trendy (hence trendylicious). And in a strange sort of way, enjoyable.Technorati : Delhi, Mumbai, trendy…

Its the old story, but with a twist. Government is of the opinion the forward trading in commodities " ..have driven up prices and the benefit of increased prices has not been cornered by farmers". Analyst point out that consumption is rising faster than supplies and affecting increase in inflation and government is to be blamed for ignoring supply-side constraints and allege that futures trading are being made a scapegoat.In this game there are three players and we can call this game 'Inflation'.First, the RICH. Inflation may affect their business in a negative manner, but not much to their personal expenditures or budgets. They have a major say in the polices that are framed in the governance of the country.Second, the famous MIDDLE CLASS. Inflation is the bane word here. It affects their budgets, spending habits and to a major extent their think about money in general. They form the salaried class and are squeezed the two powerful group the 'RICH' and '…

Like any big event these days the Annual Budget of the Union of India is on marketing over drive, thanks to popular interest. A day doesn't go by, where you get to read/see on mainstream newspapers/TV what reliable sources familiar with the process have to say about the new proposal for individuals/corporates in the budget.And in the moment of the hour, every year, we over look the simple fact that the 'Budget' document is the closely guarded secret. An untoward incident concerning this document can bring forth widespread political wrath.And still, we go on believing all those sweet and sour proposals fed to us, until on the day of the budget. And as the day draws nearer, more the hype, less the facts and soo ... everybody's ears are glued to what Finance Minister has to say. And you find out without any malaise towards anybody what's in store ... (including the surprises)Technorati : Budget, Delhi

AIIMS, as we all is the premier organisation for medical research in the country. But Metronow's Soni Gangwan take on the institution raises questions from a certain perspective. She writes:-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
" ...in 1999, I can recall going to AIIMS .. for a press conference where doctors told fascinating stories about the cases they were handling and research they were doing... But that was then. Today, if you call a doctor for information, that standard response is ' I cannot speak unless you get it clear'. "--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The recent coverage by the media of a dead monkey in an overhead water tank in the institution spreading illness has neither added to the image AIIMS has come to acquire ' a very political medical campus'.Having said all this, you cannot takeaway from AIIMS the quality of doctors it produces or the quality of t…

I was watching 'Click' ,the weekly tech show on BBC World. But on the back of my mind the sudden change in temperatures in northern India was just not dying down. Was man's follies catching up to him! I wondered. Was my generation to be blamed for 'globalwarming' and for its repercussions and be punished for it by nature itself. Yes, these are serious questions and boledil was not doing enough.What can a single individual do to curtail or lessen the things causing global warming. The things are to be done by big corporations and the countries involved. But then, Kate Russell comes up in the section called 'Webscape' and tells us that we can contribute our part to lessen global warming by using a simple software called localcooling. This software optimises power consumption in the PC, which we all use nearly for 2-20 hours a day.LocalCooling is a 100% Free power management tool from Uniblue Labs that allows users to optimize their energy savings in minutes a…

Vienna is one of the most beautiful cities of Europe. But, Vienna, according to Microsoft, the software giant stands for the follow-up client operating system to the Microsoft Vista.Microsoft Vista was launched all over the world this January and it has already drawn up plans for an upgrade by 2009, similar to the now famous Service Pack 2 (SP 2) for the Windows XP.PC World has reported citing Ben Fathi, Corporate Vice President of development with Microsoft's Core Operating System Division.Technorati : Delhi, Microsoft Vista

It is hard for boledil not to notice the big deals, Aditya Birla Group acquiring US based Novelis Inc, Vodafone Plc taking over Hutchison stake in Hutchison Essar, Suzlon Energy Ltd bidding for German Repower System AG. I think boledil is left to deal with the climate.Saturday and Sunday say quite a bit of rainfall and hailstorms in most parts of NCR (National Capital Territory of Delhi). Some said this was the repetition of climatic conditions that prevailed in 1987 (yet to be confirmed). But, it is hard not to miss the realities, these climatic conditions will bring, most notable price rise (economically termed inflation). Hail Strom in and around Delhi is OK but most part of northern India experiencing cold weather means, standing crops are devastated and nobody as of yet, has to reported it .What does this mean! Very simply the inflation which has already reached a two year record high may still go higher up. So this summer, brace for record prices of consumables. (Can Wal-Mart be…

What do u do on a rainy saturday afternoon like today. A glass of vodka with a good puff looks ideal. Doesn't it! But most don't share this optimism. Grey skies bring memories of monsoon. Delhi does not love monsoon and for that matter rain drops from the sky. So the grey skies and wet earth means cosy quilts, Johny Waker and (may be) a good read.
In DC Blogs:Not looking forward to Valentine's Day, writes Golden Silence, who wants to know: Why there is a holiday to make us perpetually single people feel like crap is a mystery to me.
BLOGTO ( Toronto, Canada) reports : As a press stunt for their upcoming Valentine's Day rom-com release, Warner Bros is sponsoring the Music and Lyrics Karaoke Lounge this Saturday and Sunday at the Roots Organic Coffee House. The event will be hosted by Canadian comedian Craig Lauzon (CBC's Royal Canadian Air Farce) as well as the Gladstone Hotel's regular award-winning karaoke host Peter Styles.

londonist has take on :There's a t…

Most of the new bloggers look for blog resources. Not most resources are found in one place. But at Kmax, you may find all the blog related resources and that too in well defined categories. Go and use it.



Who links to me?Technorati : Blogging resources, Delhi

The latest newspaper, or shall I call it a 'tabloid' to hit Delhi, is strangely the product of cooperation between two media gaints, the Times Group and the Hindustan Times Group. And no doubt, the paper is going great guns. 'Metro Now' sold out on first day and when i went to pick my copy today (second day), there were only two copies left.Two things are striking about the paper. First, its cheap at Re. 1 per copy. Secondly, for Re. 1 you get the best of two newspapers the 'The Times of India' and 'The Hindustan Times'. The various sections of 'Metro Now' consists of City, India, World, Hangout, Interactive, views, money, metro masala, entertainment, Mars & Venus, wellness, swellness, style, tech that, Games/listing, sports.Two things are equally annoying. First, the quality of newsprint used is poor ( blame it on Re.1 price) and Secondly, the layout of the paper is tardy. Otherwise, what is covered between the pages is 'time pass'…

What does this look to you.  Gadget, it is.  And believe me or not it is a mobile phone.

First there was Internet, then came dail-up followed by broadband, Wi-Fi and now WiMax. WiMAX is defined as Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access.WiMAX is described as "a standards-based technology enabling the delivery of last mile wireless broadband access as an alternative to cable and DSL".Most bloggers at least in India use broadband connection. The biggest problem with broadband is the cable. On days you want it most, the connections are down due to problems associated with cable. The way out till date was the Wi-Fi connections available in cafes and other public places. So, you were out of your home, in the least. It was as good as visiting you local Internet cafe. Now, with WiMax, things may change.WiMAX is a second-generation protocol that allows for more efficient bandwidth use, interference avoidance(experienced in Wi-Fi connections), and is intended to allow higher data rates over longer distances.WiMAX can provide broadband wireless access (BWA) up to …

If, you have used an auto or a taxi in Delhi, you know the fares. My experience is that, the fare changes on the basis of need and from person to person. If you thought the auto and taxi fares in Delhi were very high, think again. Here is a lowdown on the fares of auto and taxi in the 4 metro's:AUTO FARESDELHI*Rs. 8 on 1st km thereafter Rs. 3.50 per km

MUMBAI*Meter Reading x 10 - Re1KOLKATAPly fixed routes for fixed faresCHENNAIRs 14 1st km thereafter Rs 6 per km---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------TAXI FARES
DELHI*Rs 13 on 1st km thereafter Rs 7 per kmMUMBAI*Meter Reading x 14 - Re 1KOLKATAMeter Reading x 1.8 - Rs. 2CHENNAIRs. 50 on first 3 km thereafter Rs 10 per km
In short the auto and taxi fares are lowest in Kolkata. So the eastern part of India is still cheap as far as transport is concerned.
*Night charges: Delhi 11pm to 5am, 25%; Mumbai 12pm to 5am, 25%
Source: Outlook MoneyTechnorati : Chennai, Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, auto far…

'mint' reports that 'government is expected to withdraw additional customs levies on foreign wine and liquor, which is likely to lead to a 20% to 44% drop in the retail prices..'So if you relish 'Teachers', and imported brand, expect is to cost Rs. 500 less. The proposal is expected to be announced in the coming 'Budget'. So, if you cherish your drink, its good news.Technorati : Delhi, liquor

Sidney Sheldon (February 11, 1917 - January 30, 2007)
How do we pick up the habit of reading thick book? Start with Sidney Sheldon.My first encounter with Sidney Sheldon's novels started at the reading room of a big library. To relax, I had picked up 'Rage of Angles' oblivious of the author and his antecedents. I got hooked and still am. The last one i had encountered was 'Nothing Lasts Forever'.What was is about Sidney Sheldon that got readers enthralled. Christopher Reed of 'The Guardian' has eloquently pointed that Sidney's novels have a heady mix which were about " ...fast and furious tales, usually featuring gutsy women in danger or in love...". Most of his readers were womenA man of many talents, Sidney Sheldon had attained fame in Hollywood and in Television before publishing his novels. Sheldon was in the Guinness Book of World Records for the greatest number of languages into which his novels were translated, and more than 300m copies …

Why did HT Media Ltd choose Feb 1, 2007 for the launch for 'mint'. Simplest guess is that the most important financial item comes up in Feb called 'BUDGET'. For launch, 'mint' had Tata Corus deal to boot, the largest acquisition by any Indian company ever outside India. The dream start some would say!And I agree. The paper is a business newspaper and believe me, it had the freshness of mint, though 'mint' for the newspaper means coinage factory. The layout is simply and there isn't an avalanche of information as some newspapers provide. For freshness sake, the most impact news is included and a through analysis follows. No non-sense business newspaper this 'mint' is.I am hooked. Called my newspaper vendor and instructed him to supply 'mint' from today.
Technorati : Delhi, mint

Its the famous mela Delhiwalla throng for. Yes, the Surajkund Crafts Mela will be inaugurated today at 12 Noon at Surajkund, Haryana [outskirts of Delhi]. The mela will continue upto 15th Feb, 2007.Things for which you should attend the mela:-(i) Shopping extravaganza of finest handlooms & handicrafts of India, SAARC countries and Thailand.(ii) Choicest cuisines especially Hyderabadi & Thai cuisine.(iii) Kite flying & painting competitions(iv) Camel safari(v) Amusement park for children.Rather than taking a public transport which will be available at ISBT, Haryana Emporium- Baba Kharag Singh Marg and at Gurgaon and Faridabad, it would be advisable to get your own transport, so that, you can enjoy the mela to your hilt and not be bothered by time constraints. So, enjoy.
Technorati : Delhi, Haryana, Surajkund, crafts, mela

The National Rail Museum, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi -21 will be celebrating Museum Day on Feb 01, 2007. National Rail Museum houses a variety of steam locomotives which have been used by the Railways since its inception. In short its a place to learn about Railways, its history and it can be fun.On 1st Feb, 1977, the museum was dedicated to the nation. The occasion will be marked by:(i) Unveiling of HASANG, smallest steam engine(ii) Live miniature steam Locomotives(iii) Exhibition on Heritage of Northern Railway(iv) Cultural Programme - Rajasthani Folk DanceOther than above, National Rail Museum organises many events from time to time. Take a tour of their website. Entry fee for Adults is Rs. 10/- and free entry for children below 12 years of age.

Technorati : Delhi, National Rail Museum