The Hindu : New Delhi News : Padma awards

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Monday, Jul 07, 2008
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Padma awards

The Union Home Ministry’s reply to a petition filed under the Right to Information Act on the Padma awards announced by the Government on January 26, 2004, raises doubts about the fairness of the system employed to decide the award winners.

The Ministry’s reply revealed that the Awards Committee comprising nine members from different regions and different fields “unanimously” selected about a hundred names out of a total of 1,039 nominees and also graded them in three categories -- Padma Vibhushan , Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri -- at a meeting that lasted just a few hours on December 26, 2003. It was thus a case of “non-application of mind” for selection.

A second meeting of the Awards Committee was held on January 19, 2004, to replace the names of selected nominees who had been rejected by income tax or intelligence authorities. Fresh nominations received (or invited) after December 26, 2003, were also considered at this second meeting.

Even though the last date for receipt of nominations for the awards was September 30, 2003, nominations received as late as January 19, 2004, were considered formally endorsed by the Awards Committee.

The Union Home Ministry refused to give details of the exact duration for which these meetings lasted. However, it transferred the RTI petition to the Prime Minister’s Office to provide copies of file notings/minutes of meetings.

It seems the meetings of the Awards Committee were called just to endorse some pre-approved government list. It may be recalled that the Padma awards were discontinued in the past once after the Supreme Court noted irregularities in the selection procedure and laid down guidelines for the same. But the functioning of the Awards Committee shows that adherence to the guidelines is merely on paper.

Subhash Chandra Agrawal,

1775, Kucha Lattushah, Dariba, Chandni Chowk, Delhi – 110 006.

Who will help?

India is a land of corruption. It is a country where 50 per cent of the population lives below the poverty line. About 60 per cent of the population does not have access to safe drinking water. Two meals per day is a distant dream for millions. Large sections of the population live in slums. Education and health care are beyond the reach of many.

These bitter facts are known to all of us but what is the outcome of our knowledge? Things are not improving; rather they are deteriorating. The million-dollar question is: Who will help? Some wolves in the clothing of politicians? They can easily raise the boggy of “aam aadmi” but only for the sake of getting votes in elections to remain in power. And they will continue to fool us in the name of “aam aadmi” for years to come.

Parents and school teachers are the ones who can make the difference. Only if they discharge their duties well and mould the youth the right way can we dream of improving the lot of India and its “aam admi”.

Dr. Naresh Raj,

34, Power Colony, Patiala – 147 001.

Hello, Airtel….

I have been a customer of Bharti Airtel’s post-paid cellular services (mobile No. 9818678289) since 2006. Initially I was a heavy user of the phone; later I switched my usage pattern from heavy to mild and began to scrutinise the bills.

On one such scrutiny of the phone bill for the period from April 5, 2008, to May 4, 2008, I found that a one-time charge of Rs.516.97 had been levied, which intrigued me. Immediately I called Customer Care and was told that the company had de-activated my account and upgraded it to a corporate connection. The money had been charged for re-activation. All this without informing me!

I mailed the higher authorities seeking an explanation why all this was done without my knowledge. However, even after exchange of mails dated May 16, May 23, June 9, June 12, June 16 and June 19, I am yet to receive a satisfactory reply from the company.

I am appalled at the stubbornness of the company officials who just go on insisting that according to their records the charges are valid. I have paid my bill under protest and intimated the nodal officer and appellate authority about my grievances, but to no avail. I await a fair response.

Kapil Rohatgi,

Flat No. 261, Sector 3, Pocket 16, DDA SFS Flats, Dwarka, New Delhi – 110 075.

Tata trouble

I bought a Tata Sky cable connection in October last year. I chose Tata Sky over other cable connections only because of the Tata brand name. However, right after installation the Tata Sky Digicomp started giving trouble.

The process of making a complaint is very taxing. While registering a complaint, the caller is asked to press a number of digits at various stages before being made to wait for the Customer Care executive. After listening to non-stop music and advertisements of Tata Sky products for countless seconds, the line is finally answered by an executive who directs the caller to attempt so many operations on the Digicomp that the caller becomes a semi-skilled technician.

In January this year, after going through the above-mentioned drill, I got my Tata Sky Digicomp replaced as it could not give proper service. On June 16, it stopped giving any service at all. I underwent the same tortuous experience all over again and ended up with Complaint No. I-1688532904 against my ID No. 1008868299. The company finally sent a repairman who handed me a bill of Rs.800 saying the Digicomp was out of order. However, when I confronted him with the fact that the Digicomp was not even one year old, he agreed to replace it with another repaired piece as and when one would be available! Is this the way to treat customers?

Dr. Aslam Mahmood,

C-232, Shahin Bagh, Jamia Nagar, Okhla, New Delhi - 110025

BSNL’s ways

BSNL recently announced a reduction in local and STD call rates for its cellular services. The revised rates were to be applicable from midnight on June 10.

Around June 16, I found that I was still being charged according to the old rates. I immediately called up the BSNL helpline to register a complaint. After the customary language selection I was asked to hold on till a Customer Care executive answered my call. I waited for about five minutes but to no avail. I kept trying to register a complaint over the next two days opting for all the languages available, but no one answered.

I then met the Sub-Divisional Engineer (Mobile) of the local exchange who forwarded my complaint and telephone number to the Main Switching Centre (MSC) for corrective measures. However, when the problem was not solved even after a week, I again met the officer at the exchange who informed me that the proposed switchover to new call rates had not been done yet, even a fortnight after the announcement!

Nairit Barkataki,

33, Bali Baat, Rukmini Nagar, Ranga Mancha Path, Dispur, Guwahati – 781 006.

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