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Finance ministry is proposing to close BSNL
Sell off BSNL, MTNL, Air India, Airport Authority & others in the services sector – Government has no business to be in hospitality. Privatise portions of Indian Railways especially coaches and stations, Government has no role here too. I wrote the above in 2014, as part of my wish list to the (then) new Government of Mr Narendra Modi. After five years, they seem to be taking steps in this direction, recently the Finance Ministry has recommended the closure of BSNL & MTNL. If this really happens, I welcome the move and wish Air India and others join the list. Taxpayers can’t be used repeatedly to bail out public sector…
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Technical talk at NIC, Chennai
Today, on invitation from the Senior Technical Director of NIC (National Informatics Centre), Chennai, I delivered a technical talk at their Tamil Nadu Head office at Rajaji Bhavan, Chennai. It was attended by all their district officers across Tamil Nadu. For those who are not familiar, NIC is a Government of India organization established in 1976 that powers the numerous electronic applications and computing backbone of central and state governments across India. Today, the majority of citizen services and the government administration across India is happening electronically and with that, the role and importance of NIC have been steadily growing. My presentation was a demonstration of the various open-source tools,…
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Good service by the state electricity board
I am not used to this kind of service from a public utility in Tamil Nadu. I can’t take the shock! Background: Electricity in my house went off at 4:45 PM, then within a few minutes I got an SMS informing about the power cut (let us ignore the start time mentioned, that’s a minor issue). Then at 5:15 PM, the power was restored. WOW! Not only was it done before the window mentioned, but it was restored well ahead of the time. Good job by Tangedco (the Tamil Nadu state’s electricity board). Our bureaucrats and politicians should realize that it takes only these small tiny things to delight the citizens…
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The San Francisco’s Facial Recognition Ban and the questions it raises
//14th May 2019: San Francisco, long at the heart of the technology revolution, took a stand against potential abuse on Tuesday by banning the use of facial recognition software by the police and other agencies.// The word that came to my mind when I read about the above law (ordinance) was “Hypocrisy”. Silicon Valley is where most of the technology used in surveillance gets invented by tech giants and exported worldwide – now the elected officials of the same community are saying it may be harmful and are enacting a ban for it – I am confused to say the least!!! I subscribe to the idea that technology advancements and…
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Chennai Trade Fair 2019
Every year, post Pongal festival, it is almost a tradition for me to visit the Chennai Trade Fair (இந்திய சுற்றுலா தொழிற் பொருட்காட்சி, சென்னை) that happens for the last 45 years at the Island Grounds in Chennai. In the past, I have covered my visits made on: 2007, 2009, 2012, 2016 & 2018. This time, I am being late, visited the Chennai Trade Fair 2019 only this week, a few days before it’s close for the year. Most of the shops have been pulled down and all the Government department booths are looking bare without the pictures of elected representatives (CM and Deputy CM of Tamil Nadu) due to upcoming Parliament…
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Inauguration of Honorary Consul of the Czech Republic in Chennai
Thank you Mr Ar Rm Arun (Chairman, Valingro Group) for inviting me today for your inauguration as Honorary Consul of the Czech Republic in Chennai (Facebook page). I had an interesting evening and a fine dinner. I also had the opportunity to take pictures with the Hon’ble dignitaries, friends and my teacher. Before the evening, I had known little about the Czech Republic, like the ubiquitous footwear brand in India, the “Bata shoes” having its origin in Czech and about the famous writer Franz Kafka. But after the brief talks by the dignitaries on stage and by a sharp presentation by Mr Arun, I learned quite a lot about the…
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E-Voting machines and the never ending controversies!
This is getting tiresome! Time and again, the two largest political parties in India, the Congress and the BJP (along with the numerous regional parties) have accused the winners of Electronic Voting Machines (#EVM) frauds. As an Electronics Engineer and a practising Software Engineer, I haven’t seen till now any convincing proof of a mass-scale hacking or technology holes in the EVMs made in #India. A truly transparent and fraud-proof method of electing leaders will be to have a fight till the death between the candidates, like wild animals – but that is not an option that is available in a democracy! The name of the game is PROCESS improvement…
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Meeting Hon’ble President of India
I am pinching myself to check all that happened today were real. I got a rare invitation to visit Rashtrapati Bhavan in Delhi, towards the celebration of (Late) Former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam‘s birthday in the presence of Hon’ble President of India Sri Ram Nath Kovind. Like every Indian who has watched Rashtrapati Bhavan, the symbol of India, getting to go inside was an ecstatic experience. Every year, the President’s house celebrates Dr Kalam’s birthday on the 15th October by a floral tribute by Hon’ble President of India to a portrait of Dr Kalam in the Durbar Hall of the Rashtrapati Bhavan. I have been privileged to be serving in…
