Online SBI

Registration

To enable internet banking, one has to download the Internet Banking register form, fill it up and submit in his bank. Upon activation you will receive a confidential mailer by post containing a one-time-usage password to kickstart your online account.

Security

It comes with, like other banking websites, 2 passwords. One is meant for normal tasks like checking account balance, recent transactions, transferring funds and so on while the other lets you edit profile details (e.g. mobile number), add/edit beneficiaries, etc. On top of that, I have enabled high security for my account which means that every transaction is protected by a security code sent to my mobile.

Suppose you are in a cyber cafe or using a friend’s laptop which is neck deep with spywares and viruses and you desperately need to make an online payment e.g. book a train ticket. There is always the risk of a keylogger - a malicious program that can record your keystrokes - stealing your credit card details! The SBI virtual keyboard, which is a mouse-based onscreen keyboard, rules out any such threat.

Recent Transactions

This is perhaps the most used feature. Every month I withdraw a sum from my Paypal account and transfer it to SBI. As soon as it is credited, it is reflected in the recent transactions. Also, I come to know as soon as my parents plonk my monthly dole on my account!

Online Payment

Many consumer websites (from Flipkart to IRCTC) allow you to pay via SBI Internet Banking which is a lot safer than using your credit card or debit card. It’s easier too - instead of having to type a 16-character long number you just have to enter your SBI username and password. For added security, every transaction needs you to enter a one-time-use security code sent to your mobile via text message. Now I can purchase books online with absolute peace of mind as well as book rail tickets online. I am also immediately notified via SMS as soon as a transaction takes place. This proves useful especially while trying to book tickets through IRCTC. Slow as the IRCTC site is, often the connection is lost leaving one to wonder whether the payment was successful. Thanks to the SBI sms alerts, I can be sure if the payment actually went through!

Funds Transfer

A very handy feature that has made life easier. I can transfer funds to any friend having an account with any bank (SBI or non-SBI), which I often need to do in order to share online advertisement revenues with friends. Before sending money to a friend you have to add him/her as a beneficiary and enter all their bank details. Then you must confirm the beneficiary account by entering a high security code sent to your mobile phone via SMS. To avoid sending excess amount by mistake, you can always set an upper limit.

For the unitiated, Avro allows you to type Bengali on Windows platform - be it on any webpage or any application like MS Word, etc. Very recently, Omicronlab has come up with a Linux version of Avro that I mentioned here earlier, making it truly a cross-platform Bangla writing solution. 

Avro is used in lakhs and lakhs of computers. The current version 4.5.1 has been downloaded more than 1,25,000 times from download.com, 37,ooo from Niponwave and many more times from Omicronlab server. There is also a portable edition of Avro. It has been used by the Bangladesh election commission in their National ID Card project. See link

1. The latest novel from Chetan Bhagat - 2 States: The Story of My Marriage - which is a story of love blooming in 2 young hearts from 2 different states and their struggle to get married. Once again it is priced at Rs. 95, but I got it at a heavily discounted (32%) price of Rs. 65!
2. Anuja Chauhan’s Zoya Factor - this was in my to-read list after a friend mentioned it esp. the use of ‘Indian English’ in the book.
3. Milton’s Paradise Lost - this one I wanted to read since a long time back but never really ended up doing so.

All of these for Rs. 384!

Durga Pujo is the time we look forward to throughout the year. It means a lot to me! It is the time to enjoy to the fullest. To get back with friends and indulge ourselves in unadulterated ‘adda’. It is the time look best in new outfits. It is the time when girls don killer looks and we gape with open jaws! Make new friends. Talk to girls! To dine out at the best eateries in these days with friends. Our hearts dancing to the sound of the dhak.

The crowd! It is another great part of the Durga Pujo. I love the crowd. The incredible Calcuttans get out on the streets in a great festive mood. The roads are choc-a-bloc with the flow of humanity, the police struggling to control the human traffic.

Pujo is also about pandal hopping. So many big Pujos of the city vying to outshine each other bring out their creative best - the majestic pandals, the looks of the deities, the creative genius gracing the pandals, the unique themes every pujo tries to convey. I’m not much of a pandal hopper during the Puja days. We try to finish pandal hopping on Panchami n Sasthee itself so as to spend more time with friends on the Pujo days. Saptami onwards, there is so much rush - with the famous pujos clocking 15,000-20,000 footfalls every hour - that a lot of time is lost in the queues!

It is also about planning. Which dress to wear on which day. Which part of the city to roam on which day. For the fashion-conscious, planning da pujo style (dress, hair) months in advance. Preparations begin well in advance, in anticipation of the festive time.

I could go on and on writing about Pujo which is so special to my heart. Which has so many fond memories, memorable moments worth cherishing.

Every year I spend the Pujo days mostly at Maddox Square with my friends from school. Maddox Square is a magical place. Everyone comes there and I get to meet more than half of my all contacts and old friends. We also spend time at a friend’s place at Lansdown. They have their own Durga Puja in their house, and we have a great time there. The ‘barir pujo’ is so different from the public pujos. We even go to the ‘bhasan’ - to immerse the deity in the Ganges - in a truck. It is great fun to ride atop a truck and feel the cool gush of da wind.

2007 was the last time I could enjoy Pujo to the fullest. Stayed out till 1 a.m. every night during the Puja days. Thereafter 3rd year onwards, there is always a semester exam right after the Pujo vacation! Nowadays I hesitate a little to go back to the no-holds-barred masti mode with the exam to worry about. But friends succeed in forcing me to come outta shell and join them. Haha! The same is true for the other medical friends in our group. We don’t know what we’ll be doing next year as it is gonna be final year for us!

Recommended reading: my blog post 4 years back - How I spent this Puja…