Serendipity : Musings of an Islander

Island villagers opposed to liquor outlets in their area – a success story By  Debkumar Bhadra Apropos news item “ V illagers oppose opening of liquor outlets in LA ” carried in E cho of I ndia dated A ugust 21, 2019. Through the columns of your esteemed daily, I would like to congratulate the villagers for raising objection against liquor outlet in L ittle A ndaman. My thanks are also due to E cho of I ndia for giving prominence to the news item. Representational Image It is well established fact that alcoholism is the mother of all evils, the root cause of deteriorating social values, failing morals, matrimonial discord, diminished productivity, loss of livelihood, poverty, poor health and a variety of other ailments. Women, children and a large section of the population belonging to the lower income group are the worst affected. Easy availability of liquor is adding to their woes; there are reports that say school going juveniles and youths are increasingly ...

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Bank levies penalty on MAB exempted minor’s account Concerned bank drags feet, parent take it to the banking ombudsman, gets penalty amount reversed. By Debkumar Bhadra To have an idea of how the banks are draining customers deposits to fill its own coffers, take a look at this : According to information presented by government in the Lok Sabha, Indian banks collected Rs 10,391.43 crore between April 2015 and September 2018 by charging customers for just two things – one failure to maintain minimum or monthly average balance (MAB) in their account and two for exceeding the number of free ATM transactions in a month. This amount is huge, not only because it is more than what Vijay Mallya reportedly owe to banks (Rs 9,000 crore) or it being more than the budget allocation for India’s first man mission to space – Gaganyaan (Rs 10,000 crore). For a country which has just taken first step towards financial inclusion, it is unfortunate as well since this amou...

K P Mammu: South Andaman Fireman Who Became a National Record Holder in Masters Athletics By Debkumar Bhadra At an age when most athletes would have stepped away from competitive sport, K. P. Mammu was breaking national records. Representing the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, he clocked timings that placed him among India’s best in masters athletics. Age, in his case, never stood in the way. Recently, I caught up with the master athlete, who reflected on his journey, future plans, and a long-cherished dream of winning a medal for the country at the international level. This article captures the story of the late resurgence of the Police Constable (Fireman) from a small island village who, through sheer grit, rose to the top, rewriting national records and continues to push his limits. Early Life, The Turning Point: 2015 State Championship Born on December 12, 1973, in Mannar Ghat village in rural South Andaman, K. P. Mammu showed early promise in athletics. From the age of 12, he w...

Kadakachang Bridge cum Sluice Gate The bridge cum sluice gate at Kadakachang which got severely damaged by the 2004 Great Sumatra - Andaman earthquake triggered tsunami, finally has been rebuilt. As of now the finishing work is in progress. Once formally opened, the decade and a half long wait for the residents of rural South Andaman would come to an end. Earlier posts on the issue : The day stands still for K adakachang B ridge cum S luice gate https://debkumarbhadra.blogspot.com /2016/01/ the-day-stands-still-for-kadakachang.html Featured in the S pecial E dition of T he A ndaman E xpress dated 26/01/2016 6 Y ears is too long a wait https://debkumarbhadra.blogspot.com /2011/11/6 -years-and-counting.html Featured in the L ight of A ndamans dated 09/09/2011 The I nconvenient T ruth https://debkumarbhadra.blogspot.com/2011/08/inconvenient-truth.html Featured in the P ort B lair edition of E cho of I ndia dated 11/08/2011

Cable TV Conundrum : Monopoly sends customer to face blacked-out tv screens in contravention of TRAI regulation. By Debkumar Bhadra As far as delivery of services in these islands are concerned, it is no secret that customers had been getting a raw deal since choice in almost cent per cent cases is limited to single operator/service provider. Be it T elecom, I nternet, LPG , POL or C able TV N etworks “take it or leave it” is the regime that is in vogue in this monopolistic region. In a bid to dismantle the status quo in the broadcasting and cable service sector, the regulatory body T elecom R egulatory A uthority of I ndia (TRAI) way back in M arch 2017 , mandated compulsory switchover from analog to digitally addressable systems (DAS) for cable networks. However, finding that the stated objectives viz transparency and real choice to consumers, weren’t met, TRAI initiated a comprehensive review of the entire framework and came up with a completely new tariff regi...