As we now understand The Good side of the Telangana agitation, let’s take a different perspective and look at The Bad side of it.

If you need to refresh on the reasons why need a separate state now, please read the previous post one more time here.

Now, the list that I think tags the movement as bad:

• Resolution for the quoted problems: The problems currently put forward are problems in general. Though the numbers look a little different when compared with respect to other ‘regions’ in Andhra Pradesh, there aren’t many issues that cannot be resolved now.
  Think of less number of schools and colleges for example; If the number is too low in a particular Telangana district, I wouldn’t blame the Chief Minister and the government to start with. (Congress government is completely crap, but more on that later.) What are hell are the local MLAs and MPs doing? They can’t get a school approved and established? If the answer is no, there, you have an incompetent leader in your area. This same fellow is going to be responsible for your ‘development’ even after the state is formed. In fact, now you can go to a different place for education if feasible because it’s the same state. After a separate is formed, you’ll have to study in ‘different’ state!
• Irrigation: It’s true that the districts classified as Telangana are less productive when compared to rest of AP. However, it’s the geographical limitation that water can’t flow to these areas and Telangana crowd accept this too. But the blame still goes to ‘Andhra’ CMs that they developed their own regions by diverting water with the projects. Well, we did have Telangana CMs too rule our state. What the hell stopped them to spare a bucket of water from the river to your land? And, you don’t think the technical difficulty will still exist after the state is separated? Rivers ARE flowing through the region now. You wanna stop the rivers at the Telangana borders and NOT let the water flow to other regions?
• Employment: So, all jobs should be offered to ‘local’ people before you look for ‘outsiders’, huh? Are you able to successfully fight for the cause now, IF you think, in the first place, that the concept makes sense? Are all the jobs in AP done by AP population itself? What about the skilled personnel we have here from all over India? And, if you’re competent enough, come score a position. When we have a ‘job’ requisition, we want some work done, some task accomplished there, not just send a salary home. With the complete pool of talent in AP, the fate of our government is like this; think of our own Telangana government with near-zero competent leadership! AND, on top of that, placements based on locality, NOT skills/ eligibility. Yeah, my dream! :-\
• Quit Telangana: The funniest of the complete movement is this! What the hell do you mean by asking so called Andhra population to ‘leave’ Telangana? And even more funnier and ironical is: people in US and other countries supporting the ‘quit telangana’ crap. You have no shame in staying and earning your livelihood in another country (not even a different state in the same country, a different country in a different continent altogether!) but you don’t like Andhra and Seema area fellas living in Hyderabad? That too when the separate state decision is in no shape! It’s still stupid but worth lending an ear IF Telangana were a separate state. But now, am sorry but it’s cheaper comedy than the Gemini Comedy gags!
• ‘Want’ Telangana?: I say- “go take it!” What do you mean by “we want Telangana”. It’s right there, beautifully laid out in the Andhra Pradesh map. Use Google Maps and find it if you can’t locate it. It’s you who live there, do whatever you wish to do. Who’s holding you back from developing the region? If you think government is partial to the other regions, go question your local MLAs and MPs. They are the ones who should be addressing most of your issues. This fella can’t do anything now but lay red carpets once Telangana is a state? I don’t think so.
  When you stop my car on the road and claim ‘We want Telangana’, think about this: I don’t have it at home. It’s right out there. Go take it and leave normal commuters alone!
• Map issues: Frankly, I haven’t tried out every country’s map in the world but from the few I look at, India has the most beautiful map. And, Andhra Pradesh map within India has such a graceful presence! Why the hell would anyone want to carve another shape out of this beauty?
  To be honest, check out the Telangana region map alone –  it looks like two days old samosa!

By the way, I was checking out a few websites to write this series of posts and this is what I came across when I wanted to visit ourtelangana.com. You don’t even want others to visit your website? With this, the complete movement looks like an illegal underground business!

And that’s why the Telangana agitation is Bad. Stay tuned for The Ugly!

Wanna take a poll? What do you feel about the Telangana agitation?

It all started here.

It’s been more than a while that the term ‘Telangana agitation’ has become a synonym to trouble.

It cripples normal life and the face of Hyderabad has changed forever!

If I were in school now, probably I would have liked to get a holiday once every few days; but, it’s no fun with the ‘Telangana Bandh’ now! Forget the word ‘fun’, am killing myself to get the purpose!

Every time I hear about stuff related to ‘Telangana’, and more often than not, it’s of course ‘bandh’, there is a routine we have to go through (need not be in the same order):

• Spend at least a few minutes in front of the TV to understand the ‘severity’ (magnitude is what we need, damage can be taken for granted)
• Scan for news and talk to people just to check if ‘everything is okay’
• Wait for a communication from HR to understand the ‘business as normal’ decisions. Hope for an exception concerning traffic situations and possible riots
• Lucky are the ones who have the ‘Work From Home’ option. If not, ponder over the career switch, or company jump options for a moment
• Check fuel levels and bump up to ‘tank full’ and that project can’t be completed without waiting in long queues at the end of day
• Call family members before going to bed the previous night, just to remind them to ‘be careful’ and ‘commute with caution’, and avoid stepping out if at all possible
• Where there is any medical related appointment for anyone in the family, just hope that everything goes fine on the way up and down, what happens at the hospital is secondary
• For people with kids who attend schools, can’t even think of the process threads running in their heads
• …
• …

This is just an outline of what comes to my mind when I think of the agitation.

Just out of curiosity, was looking up the word ‘agitation’ in the dictionary. Option 2 sounds right and I hope it is carried out that way. But I do like the Option 3 from dictionary.com, for that seems more appropriate for what I have been hearing.

Anyway, for the next few days, I’ll dig a little deeper and try to understand ‘The Good’ part of the Telangana agitation, if there is any. And then it’s just an opportunity I’ve been waiting for to vent out ‘the Bad, and the Ugly’ part of it.

Stay tuned!

Update:

Read more on the agitation: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly!

Dear Pearl Yamaha,

Your request to send an SMS or an email with feedback gives me a hope that you would like to care for customers.

Well, here is my feedback:

I have a black YAMAHA SZ, and am very happy with the performance and the bike in general. However, I am very disappointed with your service. I sent you an SMS yesterday mentioning the same from your Service Station itself. I would like to elaborate and provide more details here.

My first visit was about 2 months ago, when it was time for the first service for my bike. I did not have any major complaints as it was just 30 days old. So, it was just a general service like the oil change and a casual check on the nuts and bolts. All went well until it was the time to pick up my bike in the evening. I don’t know the internal process you follow but I sensed that you lost my bike. Well, not completely but at least for a while. It took more than 30 mins to locate my bike. And you know the best part? Your staff were showing every bike in the building and asking me if it was mine! They were all FZs mostly and I don’t like it much, so I kept saying no until they found mine. If there was a R15, should I have said yes? Am sure they would give me key and thank me for getting off the their back!

Yesterday, 10-Feb-2011 was my second service encounter. I told them not to lose my bike this time; they were careful this time about the bike, but lost the job card (Job Card number: 5283). Well, another 30 mins of search everywhere to complete the formalities and pay the bill. But, more than that these are the points I am pissed off with:

• After repeated requests, finally yesterday was the day I could get the seat cover and the tank cover. Every time I visited, I was told the same thing “99% today evening sir”. Well, how long is your day? 01-Dec-2010 to 10-Feb-2011 is a single day for you?
• The guy manning the spares store wants me to use the covers for Gladiator. It took good patience to explain that I would prefer the ones made specifically for SZ. Why else would I chase you for the covers while I can custom-make them on the road side? I can even get pink and yellow stripes for the seat if I wanted on the roadside! But again, here is the highlight: He wants me to use Gladiator stuff EVEN while SZ stuff is in stock! What the hell? Why don’t you sell me even when the stock is finally there right in front of you?
• Sale done. But no one wants to fix them now. Reason: time out. I was there at 6:00 pm and I was told that working hours are till 7:00 pm.
• I still wanted to take the accessories home and fix them myself. The guy from the store takes these covers from a plastic bag, prepares the bill and hands me the covers and throws the bag away. I requested for some bag to carry it home and the answer is no. Boy, why does he hate me so much?
• Billing time: I am at the counter and I see my bike which is all ready for delivery is taken back to the service area. I had to follow him to understand the story and realized the big surprise in store for me! He started the servicing then! What the hell is the purpose of leaving my bike with you ALL DAY?
• I asked him for an explanation and he said it was all done, except the oil change. Into the conversation he admitted that all they did was check if breaks are okay. They were okay so they put the bike aside. That’s all you do? Of course, it was washed, which I now understand is the major part of your servicing routine. I don’t have to get it to you to change the oil and have it washed. I am sure I can handle those!

Anyways, you wanted the feedback and I am sending it to you as email as requested. Whether you want to read it and do something about it is your decision. Being a little selfish and not wanting my efforts to go in vain, this email is also posted on the Internet and here is the link:

http://viveeonline.com/blog/2011/02/11/pearl-yamaha-feedback-about-your-service

And one more thing: Why do you print your Service Station’s name and address on the accessories like seat and tank covers, as if you’re giving it for free or promotion? Am I not paying for those? YAMAHA is good, am proud to be associated with the brand. We don’t need YOUR station’s name and address, you’re no good!

Thanks and regards,
Vivekananda K.
YAMAHA black SZ.

Update: 24-Feb-2011:

I forwarded this link to the YAMAHA folks and received the following response. I filled up the details and sent it back to them.

From: Back Office <BackOffice@yamaha-motor-india.com>
To: Vivek
Date: Mon, Feb 21, 2011 at 11:04 AM
Subject: Re: Your CustomerID is: IC004173
Complaint : Service

Dear Sir

We apologise for the inconvenience caused. We would request you to please provide some of your details in the below mentioned Format, so that we can proceed further with your concern

Note : All fields marked with * are compulsory.

* Name                                                                 :
* Date of Birth                                                          :
* Address, City                                                         :
* State                                                                        :
* Contact Number                                                :
E-mail Address ( if any )                                         :
Customer ID                                                        :
* Chassis Number                                                 :
* Purchase Date                                                :
* Concern Dealer Name                                         :

If you have any further queries, please feel free to contact us.

Thanks & Regards
Back Office Operations
Toll Free : 1800-420-1600

—–

Message-Id: <20110218062253.77DD2D00052@epoint.yamaha-motor-india.com>
Date: Fri, 18 Feb 2011 11:52:53 +0530 (IST)

Dear Sir/Mam,

Here is the feedback letter I wrote to the service station. Not even an acknowledgement so far!!

http://viveeonline.com/blog/2011/02/11/pearl-yamaha-feedback-about-your-service/

Kindly find the details of the customer :
Name:Vivekananda Kadukuntla
Contact Number: xxxxxxxxxx
MyAddress :Hyderabad
State :Andhra pradesh
City :Kurnool
Email: vivxxxxx@xxxxxx.com
Model : SZ

Update: 21-Apr-2011:

I received a call from Pearl Yamaha manager Mr. Anand a couple of days ago. He apologized for the inconvenience caused and requested to give it another try with the same service station. He also left his business mobile number to keep him posted if the service is not better the next time.

That is at least an acknowledgement from the authorities and I like it. So, let’s see next time!

After a lot of thought and trial & error experiments, the new Gallery is finally here!

Go to Gallery now!

I’ve been a user of Picasa Web Albums and Flickr for a long time now. As far as I know, they are the best out there! I even linked this blog to my Picasa Gallery and Flickr Photostream all the while. Unfortunately, it was just ‘view-only’ arrangement; no activity.

I always wanted something on my own domain which will allow me to upload and manage pictures. The recent article “Why You Should (Or Shouldn’t) Abandon Your Flickr Account” I bumped into from the Digital Photography School made me concentrate a little more. Well, after a few ‘review and reject’ projects, one open source solution finally made it!

Check out the Gallery and let me know what you think!

Done so far: Installation and setup, minor tweaks, moving all Picasa Web Albums and Flickr content to Gallery.

Yet to work on: Sorting all pictures to appropriate categories/ albums, removing few ‘snapshot/ events’ kinda content, fine tuning some functionality and user interface.

By the way, there is an option for you to host your own album here, if interested!

It’s again that time of the year when we spare a moment to think about the year that comes to an end, ponder over the good and bad, and make plans for the new year. For this blog, it’s about the top 10 posts for this year. Last year’s list is here.

Before I list out the individual posts, here are a few pages that got most visitors!

a) Home page
b) Picasa
c) Gallery
d) About

Now, the top 10 posts.

1. Photos from Wonder La Amusement Park, Banglore: This is a post that was published after my adventurous trip to Banglore. My experience in the park was wonderful, and looks like many of you shared the thrill from the pictures!
2. Airtel and the proof of address: I don’t find some things reasonable. Based on the number of views for this post, looks like am not alone!
3. Miyapur to Madhapur: One day’s commuting experience during those tough rainy times of the year. I posted this bit a couple of weeks before I sold off my Santro.
4. Photos from Bannerghatta National Park, Bangalore: Another album from the Banglore trip. Awesome experience it was! Check out the pictures now if you missed before!
5. Go bananas!: This was actually a forwarded email in circulation I wanted to share. Pretty informative! I assure you will never look at banana the same way again; go bananas!
6. SBH ‘Explore’d: An awesome experience with SBH (of course, sarcasm!) And you can’t afford to miss the screenshot
7. YES!YAMAHA: I got my new Yamaha about two months ago. Thanks for sharing my excitement!
8. Manisha sold you off for Rs 999!: She did! It’s a marketing email I received that I couldn’t resist sharing.
9. A holiday for me – finally!: Ha! Am so relieved. Thanks people for sympathizing with me for my difficult times!
10. Assurance from TATA AIG when terrorism is a treat: Just a screen capture from a marketing email. Sometimes, typos have different effects!

Bonus post!

10th post above and this one attracted the same number of visitors, so here you go!

• An early morning encounter: A sleepy cabbie’s lecture early in the morning.

If you have enjoyed any other post and that’s not in the list above, please let me know in the comments!

One thing is confirmed – nothing comes easy for me! When I take the actual recommended route to contact any service, they throw their SLA’s away, fail to keep the promises, take no ownership of the problem/request and of course, cause a lot of frustation and inconvenience. As it is said ‘In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice, but in practice, there is.’ So, what is put on the website/ paper or promised by the representative and the actual deal always has a huge gap. When I pay to get a service, I don’t wish to compromise on anything promised to me.

But this post is about something different. Airtel, of course. You might have already read about the support experience with Airtel and the makes-no-sense address proof policy I penned down before. This one I observed right at the initial contact. I asked today (Dec 16, 2010) if they can change the bill plan for my Airtel mobile connection. Guess how many days they need to address it? Huh!

Expected Revert Time: 31/01/2011. Great!

I saw an ad on TV couple of weeks ago. That was the first I saw for that bike. While I didn’t concentrate much on the ad, the idea of a new vehicle from YAMAHA made me open the website and take a look at the available products. I was not happy with the already existing products like FZ and Fazer etc, for various reasons. The new one however, looks kool. Read through the specs real quick, checked if it’s available in black (I mean- compleeete black) and made up my mind.

Two or three days later, left office an hour early, Bharani and I went to the dealer, swiped a Credit Card and bought the new companion home. Dot.

Yes! I got another YAMAHA.  It’s YAMAHA SZ. This is my second (The two other vehicles I used between two YAMAHAs are an Activa, which, my dad is using now and a SANTRO, which I disposed after using for 2.5 years). Though it wasn’t as dramatic as I got the first, I do have the same thrill of owning one. Of course it was a quick decision!

I understand you don’t see a lot of SZs on the road; and that happened with my first one too, YAMAHA Crux. For most of my contacts, my bike was the only means they knew the product Crux existed. Looks like it happens this time too, and here is why:

• This one has a 153 cc engine but has no disc brakes: While most of the riders prefer a disc brake for any bike, it is a common feature expected for the ones with 150 cc and above. However, I feel comfortable with the old fashioned drum brakes and SZ just got that. Both the wheels. Not that I tried tricks back then but it’s been a lot of time I got out of college and I have no feats to perform on road.
• Of the two variations in SZ, mine is the low end one: No electric start, no RPM meter. The high end is named SZ-X, has an electric start, an RPM meter and a little extra plastic designer attachments to the fuel tank. While I like the SZ-X so far, the problem is it has no kick start. That, to me, is a bad configuration. Especially, if the lights are directly connected to the battery and can be turned on even without starting the engine, like car! If the battery dies one fine day, I should be doing experiments with wheel rotation or the typical push-n-start stuff. No no.
• No digital meters. While I prefer old fashioned manual needle pointers, I see a lot of them prefer digital indicators. I think more than the question of reliability of the digital stuff in rain etc, what turns me off is the ugly orange backlit displays. Yack!!

When I used Crux, I used to ponder over a few things. I wanted a little more powerful engine to rip once in a while as necessary (I think Crux had a 98 cc engine, or 106 cc am not sure now), one additional “speed gear” to cover highway distances without putting a lot of stress on the engine for longer durations, probably a fuel indicator and an rpm meter. I think SZ has them covered except the rpm as I got the low end model. But that’s ok, I’m content with the existing features.

My first YAMAHA purchase experience is posted here.

YAMAHA SZ specifications can be found here.

Not a canal, just a regular street.

We stay near Miyapur (enroute to Bachupally) and work in Madhapur. Hyderabad. Some call these areas as ‘in’ Hyderabad, some call it ‘just outside/ sub-urbs’ of the abad and we just call it Miyapur, Hyderabad; whatever that association may mean to different people.

This is our normal route to office: Bachupally road Vikas school – Miyapur X roads – Miyapur (old?) Police Station – Miyapur Cheruvu – Hafezpet flyover – Hitex – Madhapur.

We’ve witnessed different traffic conditions – low and high volumes; travelling by different means – bike and car in the last many days. The maximum time it took could be one hour – to, or fro, with last Tuesday being an exception. We started around 6.35 pm at my office and reached home at 9.15 pm. Quite a long drive huh? Oh, we did break for a pizza (HAD to) for 15-20 mins.

It rained like hell and traffic congestion is expected. When it took 30-40 mins from Google office to Hitex charminar, we thought it was a little too much. It was kool all through the Hitex campus though, until we exited on the other end in Kondapur.

We had many vehicles entering the wrong side of the road. We deligently waited for our turn and got into the correct lane. If I drive on the right half of the road, papam where will the inflow traffic go? If there is no divider, it sometimes happens that the complete road is covered by the same direction traffic; entering the wrong side in spite of the road divider is too much I say!

We were moving at snail pace and looking around to analyze situation and water levels. On our side of the road, it was dead slow but was still moving. For 2-3 mins the traffic on the other side of the divider was moving fast. We know something bad will be awaiting the flow and it in fact did. All the cars slowly came to a halt. We were still moving at our same pace looking on the right at the stalled vehicles. We passed about a dozen cars and there was a break-down. Couple of them were trying to push the car to movement. We felt sorry for everyone on that side but we moved on. Another dozen cars later, another break-down. Crap!

That was not all. The traffic from the opposite direction was in full swing by then. That’s their legal side of the road and the ‘break-downs and the batch’ were in fact creating more problems. A little further, the worst has happened. These cars in the wrong lane are by the divider, there is no median to slowly even get into the correct side, and the opposite traffic, including a Mercedes bus was waiting in 6 lanes. Hu la la! No space to move forward and no space to turn back. For those who have observed, am sure the ‘HOT CHIPS’ store nearby was a big releif!

I have no Arya 2 sadism properties in general but I really felt ‘nice happened’ for those who created the problem. It did take another hour or so for us to get home, but we at least moved ahead. Apparently, that block was cleared after the complete normal flow traffic in that direction has stopped – which was around 1.00 am.

After a lot of driving, worrying, waiting, observation, facebook updates and Radio Mirchi traffic-beats, it occurred to me again. Even if it takes a little more time than usual, stick to your side and stick to your lane. Even if we are stuck there for some reason, at least the rest of the traffic will flow smoothly, creating way for us to get along. What say?

(Keep songs from Kotha Bangaru Lokam and Ye Maya Chesave handy, traffic lo irukkunna time atte gadisipothundi bore kottakunda )

Update – 26-Oct-2010:
If you have landed here to know about Airtel’s announcement to launch 3G services in India, click here.
As per the Government of India, Department of Telecommunications Notification No.1-34/2006-VI (Pt I) dated 30-09-2009, all mobile operators are required to re-verify their subscribers for correct and complete information by 31-10-2010. If you need the list of documents accepted by Airtel, this might help a little.

I recently noted on facebook regarding the new Airtel application for broadband. Based on the few responses, it appears that Airtel has some policies and standards that make no sense [to me]. I’ve blogged about Airtel before regarding a Customer Care incident. Read the article here. This is another experience. I wonder how companies with glitches like this (also ICICI) make it to the top Innovative companies list.

Read on for this story from Airtel – my recent experience when I applied for a broadband connection. It’s not that bad to complain much or whine about; but sure is worth a mention. I just hate it when someone tries to take me for a ride. Most of the times I don’t let them do it. And when they succeed, I blog. [:P]

1. Invalid address proof: I’ve been an Airtel mobile customer for years now. I change address every time I move without any problem. I never delayed a payment irrespective of the bill receipt. I pay online so I don’t need the bill for payment. One of the reasons I insist I receive the bill is to use it as a proof of address for any other applications/ requirements. Of course other reason being the verification of usage charges and monitor the call volume/ duration trend.When I applied for the broadband connection on Friday 7-May-2010, I offered a copy of the recent bill as a proof of address along with other documentation like PAN, Company ID etc. The executive rejected the document and opted for a rental agreement. He was very sure that Airtel doesn’t believe they keep correct addresses and therefore doesn’t accept the bill as proof. So, they are okay if my bill is not reaching me alright every month? I frankly didn’t know where to start to argue with the guy.
2. False promise: I came to know later that the normal time it takes to install a broadband connection after submitting the application is 4 days. I wish they could do it a little quicker but frankly doesn’t hurt much. If it takes that long to set up an account and do the physical setup and stuff, agreed; no arguments there.This representative promised he would “login” the application same evening and I can expect an engineer on Monday 10-May-2010 before 9am to install the CPE (Customer Premise Equipment – the phone, modem, cables etc.) I thought that’s probably the right time they need and agreed. I waited till 6pm and called the rep. Surprisingly he disconnected my calls! I would actually expect a call from Airtel as the appointment was not kept with an explanation and to reschedule the installation. Disconnecting my calls irked me a little and I had to raise a complaint with Customer Care about the whole commitment.
   
   Login is a term even the banks use with respect to applications. I guess it’s their entry into the system to start the workflow, but not sure.

3. Automation: I think the idea is great, but the implementation sucks. Airtel tried to keep me posted on the progress of the application and set expectations – just that they were not right.
   1. Airtel as a company did not know that the installation was scheduled on 10-May
   2. After few follow up calls and an escalation, it was installed on Tuesday around 5pm; about 32 hours delay
   3. The SMS around lunch time on 11-May (the next day after installation) says the set up will be done in 3 days from then! So they didn’t even know my connection has been active for almost a day? Or, was something incomplete? No info.
   4. There was automated email sent, a Welcome Letter with account number and an attachment with broadband plans. The “From” address/ name? – care.karnataka@airtel.in [:)]

Anyways, the connection is up and running for more than a week now and I guess I should be happy about it. Just hoping it will continue to work and not make me run around 121 calls.

P.S.: I drafted this post late last week and was waiting to click a picture of the SMS to post along with this text. Unfortunately my phone died over the weekend and therefore no pic. [:(]

In continuation to my previous post, here is the next album. I wonder which psychopath (with due respect to physics and technology) designed all these rides, but we did have hell lot of fun all day. A ride was named ‘insanity’ and it lived up to the name; it tossed us in all directions like a tennis ball in an empty room! For me personally, the ‘drop zone’ (free fall effect) and the ‘Sky wheel’ (30m giant wheel on a 14 floor, 50m tower) was damn scary! View the album and you’ll see!

You can click on the first photo to enlarge and then use arrow keys on the keyboard or click Prev/ Next options to navigate.

Link to Wonder La photos.
Link to Gallery.

By the way, I also have a few videos to share the action. However, a 90 sec video is about 160 MB and am breaking my head to optimize it to web without losing the clarity. If anyone knows the trick, please let me know.

View from the 50m tower that has the Sky Wheel