Moments

I'm a big fan of Bond flicks. Have seen the entire series quite a few times and would still watch again if it's being telecasted.  Action which gives an adrenaline rush, and immaculate chivalry of 007 keeps me glued. For that time, I am totally engrossed with no other thoughts or worries crossing my mind. I feel happy. 

There are so many such moments which makes us all glad, happy, amused, without even us realizing. What we do realize consistently is that somebody is more beautiful, some one is more rich, some one is more successful.....then what we are.... We park our happiness for a future state. 

"I would be more happy after I achieve this ".  Well, that is absolutely fine ! 

However, sometimes it is worth to take a pause and then ponder about those small things which makes our day, brings a smile to our face and gladdens our hearts. More precisely, observing continually magic moments from our life. There are so many !

I took one such pause.................. some incidents, times, moments from my life, in a no particular order -

• Speaking to my four year old nephew sweetly complaining about his mom, playing with him
• Watching India play Pakistan, any sport
• Connecting with close colleagues in office and sharing stories of the day, grapevines
• Hearing anecdotes from my wife's office 
• Receiving a promotion letter (occasional phenomenon but gives immense joy)
• Being successful in booking a tatkal ticket in a rush season phewww 
• Entire Friday, donning casuals awaiting weekend 
• First rains, there is some magic about it 
• Celebrating Diwali with family and friends

• Get together with friends at home when wife is on a business trip :P
• Lying down on a beach in Goa, carefree watching blue sky 
• Times when I have been able to help anyone in whatever small way
• Reading books having a philosophical bent 
• Watching movies with my wife in our favorite theater, might have seen over 60-70 now
• Meeting any of my best college friends, discussing college days including our crushes ;)
• Discussing political affairs, election results with mom and dad
• Fighting with my sisters even now, just like our childhood
• Watching a tiger (whether in a zoo or a national park), how royal and regal !
• Getting a great deal online 
• Relishing my favorite food
• Sitting on Marine Drive observing ebbs and flows, observing crowd
• Watching Games of Thrones, Hannibal, favorite TV shows

The list can go on. If I compare it with a hypothetical list of worries or stressful moments then there is a sudden realization and appreciation of what I have. This is true not just for me but for a majority of us.

           As cliched as it may sound - Life is indeed a Journey, not a destination.

                  

                               

   

Invoking the Demon Inside Us - Road Rage

A few weeks back I was travelling in a auto lost in my thoughts. Suddenly, a bike rider grazed the auto from behind while manoeuvring his bike in the traffic. I could clearly see biker being at fault. However, he got into an heated argument with the auto driver (I'll refer him as Pehelwaan) abusing, cursing et al. Biker was all set to become Rocky Balboa, ignoring the fact, that his existence made earth heavier by only 50 Kgs. 

I asked Pehelwaan, a well built, stout man and who by then was also red, to ignore biker's words. However Rocky boy was hell bent for a bout, chasing the auto and instigating Pehelwaan - " Why you running away? Come on face me ...". Somehow situation was doused but left a bigger question for me, for all of us. Why so much anger, so much intolerance, so much hate and most important not accepting our mistakes.

             It is not unusual to read articles and hear about Road Rage (WWE on road). In fact, it happens all the time. With increasing purchase power, there are more vehicles and only so much infrastructure to accommodate. Most of use are in so much hurry that anyone impeding our takeoff raises our hackles. 

All the more surprising is the way, well-educated professionals behave in such situations. While I strongly believe, level of education is not the criteria in determining who reacts how, still my hopes are more pinned on a educated person not to get physical and keep calm as much as possible. Respond and not react is the expectation. Easier said than done though !

What to do?

Keeping it simple is the way to go about it. I would not want anyone to be in such a situation. In case, if one does comes face to face, how to respond? Everything starts happening so fast around us, crowd starts gathering, someone starts shouting and invariably panic button is pressed. So is aggression best mode of defense? Not always. First and foremost accept this has happened to you. Ask yourself sincerely, was it your fault? If it was, then accept it and be apologetic in your tone and tenor. If you think you are not to be blamed, rather than shouting and cursing mindlessly, hear what other person has to say. At times, it is circumstances, which may have forced him/her to react that way. 

Finally, always be conscious of the fact that your well being matters most to your loved ones, rest other facts matter least.

                   

Experience after receiving SCN - Indian Passport, Mumbai

This blog refers to the Show Cause Notice (SCN)  received after applying for a passport in India. I received a SCN and going to share my experience in Mumbai. SCN is normally issued by Regional Passport Office(RPO) after inputs from Police department.

Reason for applying

Since my passport was going to run out of validity, I decided to re-issue a new passport. As well wanted to put my wife's name on my passport and change the address. 

The process of getting a passport has undergone a sea change when I first applied for passport way back in 2004. Those were the times when agents ruled the roost :) 

My old passport had my hostel address from a different city. Since I am working in Mumbai for 10+ years and staying at same place on rent for 5 years, it was natural to apply for the passport on this rental address. 

New Process for seeking a Passport 

For those, unaware of new process to get a new or re-issued passport:

One has to create a profile and submit an application at :

http://passportindia.gov.in/AppOnlineProject/welcomeLink

Site has all details of documentary evidences required etc. Also fees is to be submitted online. This application is valid for 1 year. One has to get an appointment at nearest Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) which is operated by TCS as far as I know. On the day of appointment carry documents and go through the process at PSK.

Got the Passport !

I opted for Tatkaal scheme and went to Andheri PSK. Carried documentary evidences like Aadhar, rent agreement, gas book, bank statement, original marriage certificate. Please note that PSK's in Mumbai don't accept bank statement as address proof from private banks like ICICI, CITI etc. Also Aadhar needs to be an year old at-least.

It should be noted that Post Police Verification always happens for passports issue under "tatkaal" scheme.

Well, I got my new passport in 2 days and also traveled abroad for a while. On checking the application status, status was Police Verification Pending. This was in April 2014.

I received a call from local police station with a set of documents. They insisted on getting bank statements as well. Police verification was completed successfully or  I thought so.

Received SCN :(

In Oct-14, I got a letter from RPO saying that my police verification report is Adverse. Reason being, I am staying on a rental basis and that I haven't mentioned my permanent address in my Passport application form (P.P form). They wanted a clarification on the issue. This status was also reflecting against my application on website with SCN number.

In reality, I indeed mentioned my permanent address which was same as rental address.  There was no intent on my part to hide anything. Since my parents stay in a different city and that too on rent, in reality I don't have any permanent address. Also, assuming that if my parents were staying with me and I don't have any native place to refer as permanent then what do I mention in the form as permanent address??

Does it means that a person staying on rent has to have a permanent property, I found it a little strange.

Next Step after receiving SCN

Best way forward is to visit Regional passport office and figure out what needs to be done next. They have a fixed entry time and days at RPO. So I went to RPO, Worli. Once you enter, there are different windows and cabins. I was asked to stand in a queue outside Andheri PSK. It was amazing to see so many people who had received SCN. Out of curiosity, I checked why a few others received SCN. Reasons:

• Police verification not completed since applicant was unavailable
• Applicant didn't went to Police station after receiving call for verification
• Address mis-match or name mis-match
• Deliberately suppressing some information (like some criminal background or an active FIR)

At my turn, I entered the cabin and spoke to Passport Officer who was a soft spoken and a person with calm demeanor, which really helped. He asked me about my native place and I told him about my parents staying on rent in some other city. He asked me if I can provide a proof of that address and I expressed my inability to do so. He then advised me to write an application mentioning my Parents address and also attach copy of old passport and new passport. I wrote the application, attached copy of SCN and passports and went back to him and he scribbled some comments. He asked me to go to Scan counter and get application scanned. At Scan counter, a person has a bar code reader with which he reads your SCN and accesses your case on passport website. Then he attaches scan copy of your application and other documents. Finally he puts a "Scanned" stamp on the application. Finally, this hand-written application has to be submitted to Passport Officer and you are done.

What I observed was that everybody has to write an application whatever the case might be :)

Status on Passport Website subsequently

After returning back, I checked the current status and it had changed to "Applicant submitted reply".

A few days letter, the status changed to Passport XYZ dispatched and there is no mention of SCN.

Learning out of this experience

I was surprised at receiving SCN and also angry at the functioning of PSK, police verification, passport office. After all I had submitted more than necessary documentary evidence. Also it is pretty evident, that there passport and police department are not in sync and it has to improve drastically. 

However,after visiting RPO found that issue got resolved quickly. Guess I got lucky! However there were many disgruntled faces and cursing word, voices expressions. 

As far as possible please share all information while applying for a Passport. There is a fine of Rs 5,000 for suppressing any information intentionally. If police verification doesn't happens then visit local police station and inquire. Being lazy has bigger repercussions subsequently :)

Finally, pray that you receive Passport there is no SCN following !

Thanks

P.S. - If anyone has any questions, comments, experiences feel free to share.