Cat in the City

Strangest Road Accident in Delhi

2015-01-16T23:12:00.001-08:00

Yesterday when returning from work, I got stuck in a jam before the newly constructed underpass to okhla. Nothing new accept there was a truck stuck vertically under the mid of the bridge with traffic being allowed to pass it from either side. We made it through from the left side of the truck, hoping that no sudden wind would topple it over onto us.

Hopefully nobody was hurt as the front of the truck did not seem much damaged. It just was properly etched onto the over-bridge. The jam was being caused by people taking photographs as this was indeed an unusual sight, which was way out of daily occurrences.

Christmas Time at Q'BA New Delhi

2015-01-15T02:07:00.000-08:00

Delhi is the best place to enjoy Christmas Season. The icy cold weather definitely adds to the Christmas feeling and the need to walk into a warm snug place. For our Christmas party, me and my friends visited the place on Tuesday ladies night and were thrilled to find a Christmas decorations and lanterns covering the place. On entering we simply had to see the balcony which I have heard to be was awesome. It was indeed wonderful but due to the severe cold weather me and my friends rushed back inside the cosy place.

The look of the place was quite sparkly and dark and could be good for romantic dinners in the fine dining section. The formal leather couch seating was comfortable but sort of distanced for us girls; I guess such a place would be more preferable for business meetings. A single candle was lit at the center of the table which made it a bit difficult to read the menu cards, but we did ultimately read them and order after taking a couple of group and selfie photographs.

As the ladies nite was to start after 8 pm, we decided to try that out. We ordered mojitos, Sangrias which were one-plus-one and we decided to wait till after eight for the free drinks offer. The mojitos were strong and more minty than lemony and the Sangrias were tasty and strong. A bit of a disappointment was that the free drinks were just four handpicked ones, but since they were free, we decided to give it a try. Two of these were fine but the other two were too bitter. To eat we kept it vegetarian, ordering the tandoori vegetarian platter for Rs. 555 and the crispy honey potatoes which were quite yummy. The croquettes were soft and tasty and the potato fries were quite yummy and were filled with honey and sauces. Later we ordered vegetarian paneer shwarma which was quite soft and not too dry with a mixture of sauces. Penne Arrabiata Pasta was the most delicious of all the stuff that we ordered. We truly enjoyed the Christmas theme and Christmas songs and put on our red and white Christmas caps to enjoy a few Xmas pics to be uploaded on facebook later. Overall the dining experience of the place was quite good compared to most places I've known in Delhi.

Ooh La La...Vidya Balan's Marriage Photos

2012-12-07T23:43:00.003-08:00

Everyone is interested in following celebrity weddings. Considering that even Saif Ali Khan's second wedding was such a hit, of course because there was a lot of Kareena in it. The next big Bollywood wedding is going to be Vidya Balan's marriage.

I actually though she was already married but hey, she's not and she and a Siddharth Roy Kapur are tying the knot on 14th December 2012. 12-12-12 was available but they chose 14th, a number I'm not too keen on, the reason being that her sister Priya got married on the same date.

Vidya Balan wedding and family plans

Hey whatever works for you just go with that Vidya. Anyway, the Vidya-Siddharth wedding is expected to be a quite affair and is scheduled to be in Chennai, a not so popular location for weddings, or anything for that matter. But true Vidya Balan fans are deeply anticipating every news and marriage photos about Vidya Balan's scheduled wedding.

Check out some of the world's most expensive things, here!

Wedding of Kareena Kapoor and Lisa Ray

2012-06-09T11:19:00.003-07:00

Two of the most awaited Great Indian weddings will be held soon much to the anticipation of many bollywood fans. One is the wedding of Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan, and the other is the marriage of Lisa Ray to Jason Dehni. I know that I'm waiting eagerly to see the bridal wear, the arrangements, decorations, the performances, and to know who's to be invited and who did not get invited.

Riteish and Genelia's Wedding Photos

2012-02-08T08:34:00.000-08:00

That's How It Really Works !!: Riteish and Genelia's Wedding Photos
Quite a lot of functions,Genelia is looking beautiful in her wedding gowns. Ritesh looks quite dorky though.

Sultanpur National Park

2012-01-15T02:23:00.000-08:00

My almost regular travel to Farukhnagar to a college, led me to visit the Sultanpur National Park, located 15 kms from Gurgaon and 40 kms from Delhi. You begin to realize that you are reaching the sanctuary when you see rare birds on the wayside. I have on a numerous times spotted the white throated kingfisher nearby to the Sanctuary, which had made me keen to visit the place.

History

White throated Kingfisher, easity spotted by me

Sultanpur named after Sultan Singh was the biggest village (covering 52000 bighas of land) under Farrukhnagar and many of the present day villages around it have originated as 'dhanis' i.e. temporary farmer's shelters within the boundary of Sultanpur. The region around Sultanpur was called Dhundhoti. Sultanpur was the center of salt production for use in Delhi and the United Provinces till the late 19th century exporting annually 250000 quintals of salt.

As a bird sanctuary it was the find of Peter Jackson, famous ornothologist, and Honorary Secretary of the Delhi Birdwatching Society, who wrote to Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, founder of the Society, in 1970 about the need to declare the Sultanpur jheel near Delhi, a bird sanctuary, and she asked him to take her there.In 1972, the Sultanpur Bird Reserve was established. On 07/13/1989 the reserve was upgraded to a National Park.It has an area of 1.43 square kilometers.It is a protected area where over 250 species of birds have been sighted.

Earlier before the construction of bandhs and drainage areas around Sultanpur remained waterlogged and attracted a large numbers of migratory birds and hunters, many from the Diplomatic Corps at Delhi. Now however the bird sanctuary is artificially revived using pumped water from the Jamuna river.

Resident birds

Resident birds include the Common hoopoe, Paddyfield pipit, Purple sunbird, Little cormorant, Indian Cormorant, Common Spoonbill, Gray Francolin, Black francolin, Indian roller, White-throated kingfisher,Spotbill, Painted stork, Black-necked stork, White ibis, Black-headed ibis, Little egret, Great egret,Cattle egret, Crested lark, Red-vented bulbul, Rose-ringed parakeet, Red-wattled lapwing, Shikra,Eurasian collared dove, Red-collared dove, Laughing dove, Spotted owlet, Rock pigeon, Magpie robin,Greater coucal, Weaver bird, Bank Mynah, Common Mynah and Green Bee-eater.

Migratory birds

Sarus Crane (Grus antigone) at Sultanpur

Every year over a hundred migratory bird species visit here to feed. In winter the sanctuary provides is a panorama of migratory birds such as Siberian Crane, Greater Flamingo, Ruff, Black-winged Stilt, Common Teal, Common Greenshank, Northern Pintail, Yellow Wagtail, White Wagtail, Northern Shoveler, Rosy Pelican, Spot-billed Pelican, Gadwall, Wood Sandpiper, Spotted Sandpiper, Eurasian Wigeon, Black-tailed Godwit, Spotted Redshank, Starling, Bluethroat and Long-billed Pipit. In summer about 11 species of migratory birds such as Asian Koel, Black-crowned Night Heron, Grey heron, Eurasian Golden Oriole, Comb duck,Blue-cheeked Bee-eater, Blue-tailed Bee-eater and Cuckoos come here.

In addition to the many birds, animals such as Blue Bull and Black Buck are also seen here. Trees which are popular with the birds like Acacia nilotica, Acacia tortilis, Berberis and Neem have been planted.

Facilities

The park is a popular picnic spot for residents of New Delhi and the NCR (National Capital Region), especially during the winter migration months when thousands of birds visit here from across the globe. There are four watch towers (machans) located at different points, an education and interpretation center, a library, films, slides and binoculars for the benefit of bird lovers. A walk along the perimeter of the park takes up to two hours. A room dedicated to the memory of Dr. Salim Ali, which contains his bust, photographs, write ups, and some of his personal effects. There is public parking, bathrooms, drinking water facilities and a children's park in the reserve. For those wishing to stay overnight, the park also has a well appointed guest house with all amenities.

How to Get There

The park is 50 km from Delhi and 15 km from Gurgaon on the Gurgaon - Farukh Nagar Road. It is easily accessible by road and can be reached by hiring a taxi or by your own transport if you enjoy a long drive. Address: Divisional Inspector, Wildlife, Sultanpur National Park, Dist. Gurgaon. C/o DFO (Terr.) Gurgaon (0124) - 2015670, 2375242

Pictures from Anna Hazare's Revolution

2011-08-29T03:15:00.000-07:00

Prayer for Money

2011-08-29T02:56:00.000-07:00

When most of us grow up we are taught what is right and wrong. Stealing is wrong, giving to the poor is right., lying is wrong, being honest is right. All these rights and wrongs create some sort of multi-shaped mould within us to match up to right or wrong when we do come across various situations, so much so that when we are faced with a conflict we know exactly what we feel if we do the right thing and what we feel if we do the wrong thing. We of course settle for doing the right thing, which is more rewarding. Later on in life we struggle our way to end up in a job and the 'money factor' comes into play. But many of us still realize that this is not the important factor really.

Let me tell you about a situation that I was faced with, when I was working at an ngo organization some time back. We received an email from a foreigner whom I will call Mr.B who came up with this idea which I will discuss in detail. Our ngo basically supports widows though a widows home in the city of widows - Vrindavan. This person had been staying in the US but was originally an Indian who followed all Indian religious customs with the same fervor as an Indian would in India.

His idea was this:- He would help coordinate with US donors who would send details of people to be prayed for. And in exchange of the prayers by the widows they would get money in the form of donations.

On reading this email, I informed the head of our organization, that something did not seem right about this offer. But being of a more logical outlook she though this ideas was good. After all in Vrindavan these widows anyway beg on the streets and pray and hardly get any money for their prayers. Through this man's proposal the widows would pray and would get paid in return and that too in US Dollars!!

I then looked back into my good-bad-mould and could not find a solution for such a situation. Widows praying = leading to money = leading to a better life. Logically it seemed right but still something seemed amiss and I could not point out why in my heart I though this was wrong.

After some time another email was received from Mr.B saying that the donors would send pics of the loved ones, and particular prayers which they wanted the widows to pray and also said they would send us web-cams so that the donors would know that the praying was actually taking place!!Now this I felt was so wrong.

But again if you see it, it sounds logical from a "value for service" point of view. That is, if the widows were providing this 'prayer service', obviously there should be proof that the praying was going on especially for that particular person according to his prayer requirements. Only then would it seem that a proper service was being provided. This too sounded quite ethical. My other colleagues also though it was quite an okay thing. So what what was wrong? why was I the only won who was feeling this was the wrong thing to do?

After a few weeks of agreeing to MR.B's proposal the head of our ngo found it quite hard to coordinate with him regarding emailing pictures, prayers requests, particular praying times which conflicted with the timings of various activities of the widows in the home, many of whom were illiterate. So the idea was finally dropped. It was only after a couple of weeks of deep thought that I figured out the answer of why I felt that all this was wrong.

It was wrong: because the widows were actually people, earlier-young girls with bright futures who were deserted by their families and forced to go to Vrindavan. If it so happens that many such MR.B's come up then such a prayer service would become commonplace. This would only encourage more widows to be sent to Vrindavan, even families who would otherwise be supportive would send them to Vrindavan.

I was glad then that we had done away with this Prayer Service Proposal.

2010-12-16T04:16:00.001-08:00

Taking a Break at Chandni Chowk

2010-12-11T01:24:00.000-08:00

Chandni Chowk - Paranthe Wali Gali

Last week I finally decided to walk down the lanes of Chandni Chowk as a stress-buster. It proved to be quite an adventure with the sights, sounds and tastes of the historic area. The Delhi Metro has been quite useful in directing the youthful crowd down the historic 'Galis' especially the famous Paranthe wali gali which I and my friend though to be truly amazing.

After researching on the web I found out that the Chandni Chowk region in particular was established in 1650 and was built along with the Red Fort under the Mughal Emperor, Shah Jahan. The Paranthe Wali Gali ("lane of parantha-makers") in Old Delhi is one of the famous gourmet localities of the world. The gali in the past had over ten to twelve shops, but today there are just five shops left. Located near the Gurdwara you can ask about just anyone where the gali is and they would direct you to it.

Anyway as we entered the Gali my friend suggested that we would enter the shop that was the most full of people, so as to judge the tastefulness of the paranthas, which I though was a good idea. We passed 2 shops and as we approached the third, I found the smell too tempting not to venture inside. Already almost lunchtime I was really enthusiastic to taste the parathas but the varieties were endless. We decided to take on the parathas one at a time to relish the taste (anyway due to the crowd at the small place we were handed the parathas one at a time so...we had to do it that way.)

We tried out the most popular mix paratha (stuffed with a little bit of everything, from aloo, gobi, matar, tomato and paneer to cashew, almonds, pista, radish and papad!), nimboo paratha (super khatta), mirchi paratha (not really spicy, but full of chilles) and bhindi parathas. The paranthas are quite hygienically prepared, deep fried in pure desi ghee in cast iron pans and served with chutney, sabzi and achar. After savoring these, we were quite full and we missed out on the bananna, Kaju, Badam, Matar, Rabri, and other exotic parathas, which I would try on my next visit.

Daulat ki Chaat

As we walked down the lanes of Chandni Chowk we came across a few street sellers with closed baskets. Wondering what was inside, I decided to ask the next vendor what indeed was inside.

What we ended up tasting was 'Daulat ki Chaat'. This is kind of like a Desi-ice-cream which served as a light dessert over the heavy meal we had earlier. On asking what is was made of the guy just mentioned milk. Later on I got to know it was made of cream, caster sugar, rosewater, pistachios, all whisked up to create a foam. The foam is then sprinkled with castor sugar in layers as well as on the top so that the foam is compressed further and refrigerated. Simply super!

Old Famous Jalebi Wala

Our journey ended at the Old Famous Jalebi Wala's shop. As history puts it, Kailash Chand Jain, the present owner of the shop's father Nemi Chand Jain, a native of Agra's Hari Ki Garhi village, migrated to Delhi in 1905 and after some struggle, started a shop at Dariba Nukkad. He experimented with many recipes and finally came up with the most delicious recipie of a Jalebi that has been kept as a family secret for years.

I have had jalebis earlier, but not really as tasty as these jalebis. We relished the hot jalebis and handed tit bits to a well fed stray dog who was quite glad to help us finish them.

Rambling forward we looked for the entrance to the metro station. A passerby informed it was near the fountain. We soon found the station, which was located near a non-functional relic of a fountain. As we stood still resting our feet on the escalators to the metro platform, I though back about how I would have almost not made it to the place due to daily work routine commitments. I'm glad I took a break to walk down the lanes of Chandni Chowk to see what the streets of Old Delhi have to offer.

Sania and Shoaib wedding pictures

2010-04-13T07:41:00.000-07:00

Sania Mirza and Shoaib Malik finally tied the knot on 12th April instead of 15th and gave the media a slip. Check out the pictures below....

To read details of the wedding see the link below:-
http://meowlife.blogspot.com/2010/04/sania-mirza-shoaib-malik-wedding-pics.html

-->

Grammy Awards 2010 Winners

2010-01-31T21:18:00.000-08:00

The Grammy Awards 2010 took place at Los Angeles Staples Centre. The following is the List of the winners for the major categories at the 52nd Grammy Award 2010.

Best Female Pop Vocal Performance: "Halo"- Beyonce

Song of the Year: “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)” Thaddis Harrell, Beyonc— Knowles, Terius Nash & Christopher Stewart, songwriters (Beyonce)

Best Solo Rock Performance: “Working on a Dream” — Bruce Springsteen

Record of the Year: “Use Somebody” — Kings of Leon

Best Country Album: Fearless — Taylor Swift

Best Rock Album: 21st Century Breakdown — Green Day

Best Hard Rock Performance: “War Machine” — AC/DC

Best Rap/Sung Collaboration: “Run This Town” — Jay-Z, Rihanna & Kanye West

Best Dance Recording: “Poker Face” — Lady Gaga

Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals: “Use Somebody” — Kings of Leon

Best New Artist: Zac Brown Band

Best Electronic/Dance Album: The Fame — Lady Gaga

Best Alternative Music Album: Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix — Phoenix

Best Contemporary R&B Album: I Am… Sasha Fierce — Beyonce

Best Female R&B Vocal Performance: “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)” — Beyonce

Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals: “I Gotta Feeling” — The Black Eyed Peas

Best Rock Song: “Use Somebody” — Caleb Followill, Jared Followill, Matthew Followill & Nathan Followill, songwriters (Kings Of Leon)

Best Pop Vocal Album: The E.N.D. — The Black Eyed Peas

Best Male R&B Vocal Performance: “Pretty Wings” — Maxwell

Best R&B Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals: “Blame It” — Jamie Foxx & T-Pain

Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance: “At Last” — Beyonce

Best Rock Instrumental Performance: “A Day in the Life” — Jeff Beck

Best Urban/Alternative Performance: “Pearls” — India.Arie & Dobet Gnahore

Best R&B Song: “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)” — Thaddis Harrell, Beyoncé Knowles, Terius Nash & Christopher Stewart, songwriters (Beyonce)

Best Rap Solo Performance: “D.O.A. (Death Of Auto-Tune)” — Jay-Z

Best Rap Performance By A Duo Or Group: “Crack a Bottle” — Eminem, Dr. Dre & 50 Cent

Best Rap Song: “Run This Town” by Jeff Bhasker, Shawn Carter, Robyn Fenty, Kanye West & Ernest Wilson

Best Rap Album: Relapse — Eminem

Best Male Pop Vocal Performance: “Make It Mine” — Jason Mraz

Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals: “Lucky” — Jason Mraz & Colbie Caillat

Best Female Country Vocal Performance: “White Horse” — Taylor Swift

Best Male Country Vocal Performance: “Sweet Thing” — Keith Urban

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album: Michael Buble Meets Madison Square Garden — Michael Buble

Best Metal Performance: “Dissident Aggressor” — Judas Priest

Best Country Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals: “I Run to You” — Lady Antebellum

Best Country Collaboration With Vocals: “I Told You So” — Carrie Underwood & Randy Travis

Best Country Song: “White Horse” — Liz Rose & Taylor Swift, songwriters (Taylor Swift)

Best Americana Album: Electric Dirt — Levon Helm

Best Contemporary Blues Album: Already Free — The Derek Trucks Band

Best Compilation Soundtrack Album For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media: Slumdog Millionaire — Various Artists, A.R. Rahman, producer

Best Song Written For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media: “Jai Ho” (From Slumdog Millionaire) — Gulzar, A.R. Rahman & Tanvi Shah, songwriters (A.R. Rahman, Sukhvinder Singh, Tanvi Shah, Mahalaxmi Iyer & Vijay Prakash)

Best Recording Package: Everything That Happens Will Happen Today — Stefan Sagmeister, art director (David Byrne & Brian Eno)

Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package: Neil Young Archives Vol. I (1963-1972) — Gary Burden, Jenice Heo & Neil Young, art directors (Neil Young)

Best Short Form Music Video: “Boom Boom Pow” — The Black Eyed Peas

Best Long Form Music Video: “The Beatles Love – All Together Now” — (Various Artists)

Best Comedy Album: A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift Of All! — Stephen Colbert

High Speed Rail

2010-01-29T21:22:00.000-08:00

Things have certainly been speeding up in the world today. Just recently, the American President has announced plans to introduce a high speed rail service in Chicago, and several other areas in California and Florida. The speed of these trains would range from 200-250 km/h. It is surprising that USA being though as one of the developed countries is now taking the idea of high speed rail from countries like China, which though quite far behind seems to be speeding ahead in terms of transport.

In China, Shanghai Maglev Train holds the record of the fastest train which has a top operation speed of 431 km/h and top testing speed of 501 km/h. It is only due to the short distance (only 30 km maglev tracks), the average operational speed for the maglev train is 245.5 km/h, else it would have been much higher. Faster still is the TGV (Train à Grande Vitesse, the high-speed rail service in France with the record speed, from Lorraine-TGV to Champagne-Ardenne-TGV being 279.3 km/h (173.5 mph).

The Delhi metro train capable of a mere 95 km/h currently only runs at a speeds ranging from 60-40KM/h. This is quite fast considering Delhi’s slow, traffic moving standards. Mumbai residents would also be given a speed boost with the government mentioning the start of the monorail in the city on this Republic Day. This would be a relief from the crowded local trains that have been ferrying mumbaikars for ages. Only the mono-rail is much smaller in size as compared to the Delhi Metro and it may just be another crowded form of transport.

I wonder why India cannot introduce high speed trains. It would certainly be a way to speed up Indians economic development process.

CAT Results Delayed

2010-01-21T21:00:00.000-08:00

The Common Aptitute Test commonly known as the CAT Exam is one of the biggest tests for MBA Aspirants in India. The results were supposed to be declared today, the 22nd of January, But now will be declared in the 3rd week of February 2010.

For those unfamiliar to the CAT Exam, it is the test written by thousands of students as the toppers of this exam get calls from some of the top MBA Colleges of India, namely the IIMS. The basic reason being the highest placement packages in the industry averaging to arround 14 lakh a year!

This year the exam was computerized for the first time and was plagued with many faults like server crashes, non display of forms etc. Due to these reasons many students were not able to give the exam on the said dates. Thus many of these such students were given new test dates.
All candidates identified for the re-test in phase two would have received notice of their eligibility from Prometric by now. They will receive another notification informing them of the time and location for their test by January 23rd, 2010 at the latest. The results of CAT 2009 are likely to be declared by the third week of February 2010.

Phase 1: CAT 2009 - November 28th - December 8th, 2009
Phase 2: CAT 2009 - January 30th & 31st, 2010.
For more details visit the official site: www.catiim.in

Recover Lost Mobile SIM

2009-11-12T01:21:00.000-08:00

Lost your mobile?..there is no time to loose..

Firstly you should contact your service provider Airtel, Vodaphone, etc and block outgoing facility...it would be activated in 24 hours. This you should do especially if you have a post paid connection.

Next to get a new SIM (of the same number), u need to give a FIR (Vodafone & BSNL) and ID proof at the nearest Mobile Service Provider Center.

For Vodaphone customers, even if you are hesitant to visit the police station you must go through the proces so that you can contine to recive calls on that number. Be sure to make the FIR the soonest otherwise the police will take you to task.If a lot of time does pass and you want the same number then maybe you should say you lost it a day ago just to avoid hassles. Another thing to be considered while making the FIR is to make sure the police station comes under the same jurisdiction of where your phone went missing. This means that if you are not aware of where exactly your phone is lost/stolen....like in a bus, etc, you may have to just pinpoint the exact area where the phone may have been stolen. This you would have to put in you application to the police to get your FIR.

In the case of Airtel customers you dont have to go though this hassle. ( though I had to 3 yrs back) All you have to do is to visit the nearest Airtel office and submit your ID and address proof, 1 passport size photo with Rs.49 and your sim would be activated in 4 hrs after doing this.

Delhi Metro extended to Noida

2009-11-07T01:45:00.000-08:00

Travel form Delhi to Noida will be more easy from tomorrow as the Delhi-Noida metro would be starting regular services from tomorrow morning. Not only will one be able to travel from central delhi to noida, but now travel from Dwarka to noida would also be made possible within a short duration.

The stations would be in the order of Akshardham, Mayur Vihar-I, Mayur Vihar Extension, New Ashok Nagar, Noida Sector 15, Sector 16, Sector 18, Botanical Garden, Golf Course and Noida City Centre

The Yamuna Bank-Noida stretch will have 10 stations en route. The Noida corridor will be linked to the existing 34.3 km Yamuna Bank-Dwarka segment, making it 47.4-km - the longest Metro corridor in the country.

So with the upcoming Trade Fair on 14th November, be prepared to face the rush of people on all metro lines.

India vs Australia 3rd ODI at Delhi Oct 31 2009

2009-11-02T07:42:00.000-08:00

I got the privilege to see the 3rd ODI between India and Australia that was held on 31st oct 09. Though many complained that the pitch at Ferozshah Kotla was bad, it did lead to an entertaining match. But Brett Lee not being there was truly missed. This is how the the team members performed....

Earlier Mike Hussey scored his third successive fifty as he made 81 not out after Australian captain Ricky Ponting made a cautious 59 to help injury-hit Australia post 229-5 after winning the toss.

Slowly, I must add very slowly... India replied with 230-4 in 48.2 overs to take a 2-1 lead in the seven-game series.

Yuvraj Singh top-scored with 78 and shared a big partnership with skipper MS Dhoni to power India to a six wicket win over Australia in the third one day international in Delhi.Though they took their time to achieve the target...leaving the crowd waiting....

Yuvraj struck eight fours and two sixes in his 42nd one-day fifty and shared a stand of 148 for the fourth wicket with Dhoni,. Dhoni's 71 not out followed his match-winning 124 in the previous game in Nagpur. The pair rescued the India innings from 53-3 after Virender Sehwag (11), Sachin Tendulkar (32) and Gautam Gambhir (6) fell in succession.The evening due made it quite difficult for the Australians to field, and had to be mopped with some fat ropes to make things easier, but still it was not destined for the Australians to win on this pitch. Indian won ultimately and watching the entire match from 1 to 11pm was definitely worth it...

The fourth match in the series will be played in Mohali on 2nd November. This is how the scoreboard was:-

Australia:

Shane Watson st Dhoni b Yuvraj Singh 41

Ricky Ponting lbw b Jadeja 59

Mike Hussey not out 81

Cameron White c Dhoni b Raina 0

Adam Voges c Kumar b Harbhajan Singh 17

Moises Henriques b Jadeja 12

Mitchell Johnson not out 9

Extras: (b 4, lb 3, w 3) 10

Total:( For five wickets in 50 overs) 229

Fall of wickets: 1-72 (Watson, 16.2 overs), 2-128 (Ponting, 31.1), 3-129 (White, 32.4), 4-172 (Voges, 41.5), 5-200 (Henriques, 46.3)

Bowling:

Praveen Kumar 5-1-16-0

Ashish Nehra 9-0-51-0

Ishant Sharma 5-0-24-0

Ravindra Jadeja 9-1-41-2

Harbhajan Singh 10-0-37-1

Yuvraj Singh 8-0-30-1

Suresh Raina 4-0-23-1

India:

Virender Sehwag b Johnson 11

Sachin Tendulkar run out (Johnson) 32

Gautam Gambhir b Hauritz 6

Yuvraj Singh lbw b Henriques 78

Mahendra Singh Dhoni not out 71

Suresh Raina not out 9

Extras (b 4, lb 4, w 14, nb 1) 23

Total (for four wickets in 48.2 overs) 230

Fall of wickets: 1-37 (Sehwag, 8.5 overs), 2-51 (Tendulkar, 13.3), 3-53 (Gambhir, 15.2), 4-201 (Yuvraj, 43.6), 4-201 (Yuvraj Singh, 43.6)

Bowling:

Mitchell Johnson 9.2-2-43-1

Peter Siddle 10-0-41-0

Doug Bollinger 10-0-26-0

Moises Henriques 8-0-51-1

Nathan Hauritz 10-0-48-1

Adam Voges 1-0-13-0

Result: India win by six wickets, take 2-1 lead

Toss: Australia, who chose to bat

Umpires: Sanjay Hazare and Amiesh Saheba

TV umpire: Shavir Tarapore

Match referee: Chris Broad (England)

Dry Pushkar

2009-10-30T08:16:00.000-07:00

I went to the city of Ajmer a couple of years ago and was quite delighted to see that the city was really quite beautiful. My childhood holidays were spent at the beaches of my hometown and I found the dessert like sand very much like the sand found on beaches. I had visited the famous Puskar Fair at that time and I thought....what a beautiful lake the pushkar lake was. With exotic birds and a cool breeze blowing across it on a hot day, It was really quite refreshing.

Now I have been horribly surprised by what has happened to the Pushkar lake. The lake has gone dry not because of natural reasons but due to a beautification project conducted by the urban development department. Now the visitors and tourists visiting during the fair would be in for quite a bad surprise this year.

It is a really sad result of how thing could go really wrong, when man interferes with nature..... I hope it rains soon in the dessert so that the lake fills up.

Mumbai Darshan

2008-01-17T22:36:00.000-08:00

I went for a Mumbai Darshan on 13-01-08 with my mom and cousin and hoped to see a lot of Mumbai's Heritage and beauty but I was in for a hurried bus ride.

First when we reached the boarding point at Dadar we were told to go to a bus parked some distance away with the entire tour group. The tour group composed of non Mumbaikars and included Punjabis, a Sikh family, south Indians, Bengalis, etc. When we reached the bus we found that it was not upto the mark. We had booked Priyanka Travels with 2 seats on either side of the isle, but we were made to board a Renuka Travels bus (bus no. MH07-0999) which had 2 seats on one side and 3 seats on the other side of the isle. This was very little leg room in this bus. The windows also would not open completely. The bus stopped at two more pick up-points where travelers boarded and a lot of time was wasted upto 10:30 am. Next, the bus went to a petrol pump where 31 litres of diesel was filled in to the bus for 1,100. The bus should have been filled up before the tour but still they did this when we were actually waiting in anticipation to see Mumbai. Sachin Tendulkar's Restaurant was pointed out to us, which was barely visible.

The tour guide Akbar told us that in addition of our ticket price of 150 we would have to pay a sum of 165 for entry tickets to the various places. He said for Atria Mall alone the ticket price was 80 which he had got at a subsidized price from the Mall. He took the collection ( without any receipt may I add) of 150 tp 165 rupees which the tour group readily paid. I told him that there was nothing to see at the aquarium so I would pay only 150.

Akbar then announced on the microphone that he would give every one only 40 minutes to see the various locations and that we should remember the bus name RENUKA and the number 999. If anyone is late the bus would go within 40 minutes he said. If anyone is left behind they could take any other tourist bus as all the buses follow the same schedule, he said. Before getting off at the next stop he said that we should carry our belongings with us and not get fooled by roadside three card gambling.

The first location that the bus took was the Gateway of India which was built in 1911 (that was all he knew about the monument as he repeated it again and again) The only problem was that it was under renovation!. So the snaps I got were of a Gateway in a cage! and walking around it was quite dangerous. The photograph guys hesitantly asked us if we wanted to take a snap to which we of course refused. If the tour operators knew it was under construction they should have mentioned it. Akbar showed us the old Taj and new Taj Hotel on the opposite side and our group took pictures. We remained close to the bus so that we would not get left behind.

When we got back into the bus my cousin who was sitting near Akbar said that they were not going to Jahangir Art Gallery and Prince of Wales Museum due to parking difficulty. I thought we had paid for entry into these and that they had marked these areas as stoppage points on the ticket. My cousin had a word with Akbar who told him that for parking they had to give a lot of bribe to the traffic cops! They could just as well take us for a ride and not make any stops if parking is not available!. Then why did they collect entry ticket money and promise us stoppages at these places?

From the moving bus then Akbar said we would have to keep looking left and right to see the famous skyscrapers like the Mumbai Corporation Building, Mumbai Stock Exchange Building, Asiatic Library (used in shooting of films as the Mumbai High Court), Rajabai Tower, Mumbai High court( saying Sanjay Dutt could be spotted there very often), World Trade Center, Mantralaya. As the bus turned at Nariman Point he showed the Oberoi Tower Hotel, Air India Building and the Brabourne Stadium which he said was visible in between the buildings. The Bus hardly slowed down and most of the buildings were hidden by trees.

Our second stop was at Taraporewala Fish Aquarium. Akbar announced that we would get 40 minutes to see the aquarium and to eat lunch at a government restaurant. Akbar warned us to cross the road properly. Cars travel at very high speeds on this road he said. Thus everyone followed him like his loyal sheep. As cameras are not allowed inside and as we had been there before, we chose not to go to see the aquarium. We would just hang out at Marine Drive after lunch, I thought. We went to the restaurant to have lunch at 11:30 am ! Who has lunch at such a time, many in the group joked and laughed about this but did nothing. We had pau bhaji which looked very spicy but was actually full of tomato and oil. At 12;15 we were back in the bus.

Our third stop was Hanging Garden and Kamla Nehru Park. Akbar gave us 20 minutes to see each. We took photos of both gardens and The famous 'Boot House'. We were just picking up a bag of kurkure and walking back to our bus, when we noticed that it was gone. A tour guide from another bus told us that it did not wait a second. It was 12:55 on my watch and the bus was gone. The guide told us to go standing in another bus going to the next stop Mahalaxmi Mandir, but we took taxi instead. We did the right thing because when we reached the Mandir, good old RENUKA 999 was taking a U-Turn in front of the Mandir. We quickly got of the taxi and caught up with the bus which was stuck in a traffic jam in front of the Mandir. Taking the taxi was the right thing to do as Akbar decided to give the Mandir a slip as it was crowded with devotees.

Our next stop was at Atria Mall for the 4D movie. Those who had not paid entry fee were told to stay in the bus. The rest of us crossed the road with Akbar leading us across. We were told to go to the 4th floor, if we did not get in with Akbar in the same lift. This happened and we had to wait for the next lift. We hurried to the Orama 4D theater where we waited in line for the first show to finish. Only about 4o people were allowed in at a time. We were given 4D glasses and were told to put our belongings on the floor. The movie was about a gold mine. An old man tried to warn us not to go into the mine but we still went in. We sat on a little car which went down the mine shaft on shaky railway tracks. As we went deeper into the mine we experienced a bumpy ride, hissing snakes, bats flying at our faces, a swim in waist deep water with bodies around, explosions, lava pits and having wooden beams being hurled at us as we swung about on our out of control cart. All this was to be seen and experienced to be believed. Lastly we managed to exit the mine where the creepy old guy asked us if we would like to go back and laughed sarcastically. I quite enjoyed this movie, I guess it was the best part of the tour. We rushed outside the Mall with Akbar, desperate not to be left behind.

Our fifth stoppage was at Nehru Science Museum. Again the sleepers who did not want to go inside were dropped off at a park. Akbar told us that there was not much to see in the Nehru Planetarium and that much more could be seen at the Science Center. The Science Centre had many floors with various exhibits and practical experiments. Sound experiments could be done with a press of a button, vibrations could be produced, a large keyboard to step up on and play was cool. At another level there were air experiments with airplanes and flight technology explained. At another level there was space exploration and space knowledge we had just seen in textbooks. Another floor housed mammoths and prehistoric animals. Seeing all this was quite educational. We returned quickly to the bus before 2:10 as Akbar said.

Akbar grew more and more detached and seemed to have something on his mind. He locked himself in the drivers cabin and refused to make any more announcements. The conductor made the announcement to see the pawan hans helicopter helipad and everyone wondered if other announcements were being left out. Akbar was reluctant and kept out of sight and did not seem to be in the mood to make announcements. At least the conductor bothered about showing us this. Why were we not being shown the area around. First of all we had not been taken to many other places due to traffic and scarcity of parking space.

Suddenly Akbar appeared and announced that the last and final stoppage was at the Iskon Temple & Juhu Beach. We were told to return by 5:15 and were given the usual 40 minutes to complete this task. Akbar also announced that he would not be in the bus ( to complain to) and that his duty had finished at this point. (what an easy duty he has from 10:30 to 4:30, I wish I had a job with such timings). We visited the temple and also enjoyed delicious snacks at the restaurant inside. I was dismayed that I would not be able to have a word with Akbar.
Juhu Beach was quite a mess and full of people ( if you have been to Goa beaches this was definitely not enjoyable). The Bengali family were rushing back to catch the bus. I guess they too found the beach quite unpleasant.

RENUKA was punctual at 5:15 and as we boarded inside I was surprised to see that Akbar was still there. As Akbar made his way to the middle of the bus, I asked him why they had not taken us to Jahagir Gallery, Mahalaxmi Mandir, Chota Kashmir which we were very keen on seeing. He again said that it was due to traffic and parking constraints. This I said was totally unfair. He looked guilty and did not want to argue with me and again locked himself in the front cabin.

What about the Rs. 150 collected in the bus. Why could they not refund us part of this as there is entry ticket only at the planetarium and the mall. (for the mall he said price was 80, entry to the museum could not have been Rs.70 as at other places entry was free)

Akbar got of on the way. I thought I would have to do something. I phoned the office on my mobile and told them that we were not taken to all the places. To this the person said to call at a different number. This number 24161734 was not working. We were dropped back near our home at barely 6:30, when the tour was supposed to be back by 7:30. Some places had definitely been left out. I got of the bus promising the conductor that I would complain.

Persistent as I am, again the next day I called and even requested the man from Shree Shridhivinayak Travels for a refund. The guy on the phone was surprised and said no one had complained regarding their services in 15 yrs! and that mine was the first. I guess these guys will continue to take tourists for rides for many years to come. Though I did not get the refund, I just hope that by my complaining, at least they will make things better for future travelers.

Blueline Buses in the Capital

2007-10-14T06:39:00.000-07:00

That's How It Really Works !!: Blueline Buses vs Delhiites - Total Madness

Blame it on the Bluelines

Bluelines no doubt are part of our lives. Why should we let the media decide what we think. We catch the b-buses everyday, everytime a little dangerously, I might ad. It's just that Delhi has too many people, too many erring vehicles, too many jaywalkers, too many gol chakkars and so little time to reach our destination. Its not always the b-buses fault, though sometimes they are very much to blame. Especially when they are late and try to speed and overtake similar route buses to make more money.

But are the DTC's any better? They are not fitted with speed governors so they drive faster than bluelines and slow down in the middle of the roads to make people get off. Still why does the Delhi government want to stick to DTC's?

Most DTC's are falling apart and are in such a pathetic condition. Sitting in a DTC bus one has to experience the continues rattle of the entire chassis of the bus. The repeated screech of the clutch every time the driver changes gears is torture. Bluelines are much more pleasant at least songs play on the radio that make us forget our worries, at least for sometime. The seats in the DTC have covers that have not been changed for ages and reek of human sweat, puke and god knows what else. The windows of the DTC's offer good shade in summers as they are caked with dirt, washed only occasionally by heavy rains. I can guarantee that there is not a single DTC bus with all windows that close. In contrast some bluelines have sparkling clean windows, which makes the scenery look so good everytime the flowers are in bloom. Now with winter coming and less bluelines on the road....I am sure that the evenings will get quieter and colder for delhites.

Reliance Fresh

2007-04-26T23:47:00.000-07:00

Reliance Fresh stores have come up all over Delhi and have revolutionized the way delhiites shop for their foodstuffs. Shopping baskets and carts allow one to drift around and spend time patiently looking for items which are displayed clearly with labeled prices. What you see is what you get. Unlike shopkeepes who hide products of lesser value and lie that they only have products of more value. Such stores sell various eatable like vegetables, fruits, dairy products, besides frozen foods, beverages, snacks, pulses among other items. Vegetables and fruits are quite fresh and are packed in nets with the price mentioned. “Budget” vegetables are weighed and given to you at lower rates by the efficient staff. Discounted TV snack nets are also available, which contain a collection of snacks you can enjoy with the family while watching TV on a hot summers day. Unlike the usual shops where you have to wait to be served while a “jan Pehchan Wale” gets quick service, you don’t have to wait that long to complete your shopping spree. Children hangout at the stores just to slide shopping carts, staff are also polite unlike the usual shopkeeper’s – “buy or leave, I couldn’t care less attitude”. Service is good as the items from your basket are totaled on a visible screen with a proper bill. No arguing, bargaining, fighting or baatcheet takes place between the sales persons and the customer so if you enjoy to yell and argue with the neighborhood vegetable seller you would not find such pleasure in these stores. These stores are for the brand new, refined, well-to-do, non-spitting, ready for the Commonwealth Games Delhiite. So if you have not yet been to a store, just give it a try to find out about the all-new Reliance experience.

Delhi - dilwalon ke shahar

2007-03-17T03:10:00.000-07:00

Delhi is supposed to be the dilwalon ke shahar...but it really is not.

Why is it that in Delhi women have to argue for seats in busses sometimes being quiet ruthless to a poor guy, just to grab a seat for 2 minutes? and why do men wait for someone else to get up and give a seat to a woman when she can clearly be seen carrying a child. Why do men rush in doors not bothering that they are pushing an old lady aside? Why do people show people the exact opposite direction when someone asks them for a particular direction? Why do shopkeepers and bus conductors act like the own their shops/vehicles and that they can do what they want (apni marzi) in their own shop/vehicle. Why do people throw rubbish in the streets, just when the street sweeper has just cleant up the mess? And the overcharging auto drivers…I don’t even want to start.

Recently I heard from a friend a strange story. When she was running to catch the last bus and it was rushing away an auto driver who saw her chasing the bus asked her to get in the auto and believe it or not chased the bus and parked just in front of it so that she could catch it. And what’s more he did this free of charge. This I felt was quite an unbelievable story as most of the time autodrivers make your life hell by taking you for joyrides and charging you all that’s in your wallet. After hearing this story the non- believer in me couldn’t help but say to her that maybe this auto diver will wait for you today and charge you for the 10-second ride. I really can’t believe that there is a dilwalla in a delhite. Chivalry is dead in delhi...if anyone feels otherwise do let me know.