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The Hindu : y>Car and bike questions? We have the answers

I plan to buy my first car. I drive approximately 15,000 and 18,000km a year — in city and on highways combined. My budget is between Rs. 4.5 and 5.5 lakh. I have narrowed down my choice to the Swift VDI, Ritz ZXi and Ritz VDi. Which of the two cars commands a better resale value?

Shalini

If it is mileage that is your main concern, you should go in for a diesel. The Ritz VDi is a good city car, but the Swift gets the better of it on the highway. We think the Swift will have better resale value.

I need a car that requires minimum maintenance, and fits within my Rs. 5-lakh budget. I’m a die-hard fan of SUVs, but I know my budget is insufficient for one. I travel around 60km every day. Can you suggest a suitable car? I don’t mind a hatchback or a saloon.

R Bhattacharjee

You can get an SUV within your budget! The Premier Rio is a mini-SUV, and it’s the size of a hatchback. However, you would be better off buying a conventional hatchback. Since you drive quite a lot, a diesel would be best for you. That limits you to a hatchback though, and the best option is the Swift diesel, which is reliable, quite trouble-free and hence requires minimum maintenance.

I am buying a Honda City, and want to know which will deliver better performance — Speed 93 or Speed 97 petrol?

Mukesh

97 octane will not result in a huge increase in performance as the Honda City’s engine does not have a very high compression ratio, and has been designed to run on 91 octane.

We’re a couple with two small kids, and own a Hyundai i10 Kappa. We are looking for a second car within Rs. 5.5 lakh, with focus on safety, comfort and reliability. Fuel efficiency is next…More

The Hindu : y>Anurag Doud co-founded Guruji.com, India’s own search engine that was country-specific

UPSTAGING GOOGLE With his own Guruji

When Larry Page and Sergey Brin launched the Internet search engine Google in 1998, little did they expect that it would revolutionise the Internet and in a decade, ‘Google’ would be part of the English language and serve as a metaphor for online search. In 2006, a group of young Indian software engineers felt the need to develop an Indian-centric search engine and thus, Guruji.com was born.

The company CEO and one of the founders, Anurag Doud, a software engineer by profession says, “Google is the market leader as far as global trends are concerned. However, in countries such as Japan, China etc, Google is being upstaged by smaller local players. We hope that Guruji also manages to achieve the same results in India.”

After graduating from IIT Delhi, with a degree in Electrical Engineering, Anurag undertook his masters in Computer science from the University of Michigan. He quips: “After my studies, I worked in many companies in the US, including many start-ups. The idea for setting up a search engine came in course of my stint in these companies.”

The inspiration for Guruji came when he was developing a core search technology in the course of his projects.

“I soon realised that search engines — local and national — were extremely popular in the United States. We felt that we could use this technology and create a search engine that would be India specific and would make online search an easier task.”

“We undertook some market research and discovered that though small search engines did exist in India, they worked on a different model and were content with providing specific information, much akin to a directory. We wanted to create a more comprehensive search engine and decided to go ahead.”Anurag decided to return to India and helped co-found Guruji in…More

The Hindu : y>Upgraded motor, four-speed auto option and better exteriors make the new Maruti SX4 a nicer car to drive

The refreshed SX4 gets an upgraded motor, but more importantly, gets a four-speed automatic option. It makes what is an easy-to-drive car even more user-friendly.

The Suzuki four-speed auto is a box that’s well-matched with the engine’s characteristics. It runs reasonably responsively while driving within city limits, and seems to find the right gear quickly to deliver a smooth and seamless drive. However, you won’t be greatly rewarded when you want to drive the SX4 enthusiastically. Compared to the more advanced DSG autos we are now accustomed to, the SX4’s shift seems a bit tardy.

Should you want more control, you can slide the SX4’s smart-looking brushed-metal gear lever through an old-fashioned gate to select the lower gears. In this mode, it won’t upshift by itself, allowing you to extend the engine to its redline. The auto does nip some of the engine’s power though — 0-100kph takes almost two seconds more than the manual car’s time.

The engine is the same 1586cc, twin-cam, four-valve, M-series motor that powers the manual. The only enhancement here being the variable valve timing and one additional horse to power it (now 103bhp). Torque output remains the same but the big change and the main reason why Maruti upgraded the engine was to make it more eco-friendly. This new engine now meets BS-IV norms that come into effect in April 2010 in 11 metros.

On taking a look at the increased power output on paper, you’ll tend to think that it’s not much, but in reality it feels distinctly better than before. Now equipped with variable valve timing (VVT), the engine breathes better. Throttle response is more prompt and the engine feels a lot more willing to rev to its 6500rpm redline than before. There’s a marked improvement in performance. The five-speed…More

The Hindu :

Less than five per cent of alternatively abled women get married in India. And, society is responsible for such a state of affairs

PHOTO: V. RAJUBETTER DAYS AHEAD? What we need is change in collective social thought

In “Guru”, the character played by Madhavan falls in love with a bright, young woman, who’s in a wheelchair. But reality is different — marriage eludes most alternatively-abled women. And, it becomes painful, if marriage ranks high in such a woman’s priority.

The latest World Health Organisation statistics say that in India less than five per cent of alternatively-abled women get married, while over 50 per cent of alternatively-abled men get married. This data tells the story only too well, and the reasons for such a condition are aplenty. It begins, strangely enough, with the girls’ parents themselves. Parents consider it their duty to get daughters married off, but do not explore marriage for their alternatively-abled daughters.

Still a little one

“They think, ‘Will my daughter be able to manage household work, will she be taken care of in her married home?’,” says Aruna Devi, activist and PRO, Tamil Nadu Handicapped Federation (TNHF). “These parents assume they can take care of their challenged daughter better. They also fall into the trap of forever regarding their disabled daughters as little ones, never understanding that she has grown up to be a woman.”

Says clinical psychiatrist Chitra Kumar: “If parents encourage safe socialisation and instil in these girls self-worthiness, they would have more effective social skills, and attract better relationships.”

However, the biggest hurdle is attitude. Society expects the woman to be perfect, not the man. This instils a bias in men against marrying alternatively-abled women. There is also this misplaced assumption that alternatively-abled woman are ‘dependent’, and that they cannot have or raise children. This is far from the truth. Alternatively-abled women with supporting families do pretty well in life. Aruna…More

The Hindu :

Suraiya Baluch says gender violence must be seen as a human rights issue

POWERFUL VOICE Suraiya Baluch

Psychologist, psychotherapist, teacher, educator, campus consultant and policy-maker on gender issues — Suraiya Baluch practises a brand of activism that is quiet and sharply-targeted. Her advocacy in prevention of violence against women is done on college campuses. As director of Princeton University’s Sexual Harassment / Assault Advising, Resources and Education (SHARE), and board member of Take Back That Night Foundation (TBTN), she works on both sides of gender violence — counselling those that have suffered physical and emotional abuse while helping to establish policies and procedures to prevent them.

In Chennai at the invitation of the U.S. Consulate General for the ‘16 days of activism against gender violence’ campaign, Dr. Baluch, who talks of how belief in gender role and cultural norms influence attitudes towards abuse in South Asian American women.

Isn’t her work daunting? “Trying to work with institutions can be difficult,” she agrees. “Educated people don’t want to be educated about the need to make a difference in women’s lives.” Getting help might not be easy. “Sometimes institutions are structured, and the law may work against us. And yes, we are resilient and that works against us too.”

The cycle of violence

She talks to students about the cycle of violence, what campus resources can do; how to help a friend in a violent relationship. “There are experiential activities for awareness,” she says. “It’s a simulation of a typical community. Thirteen stations in a room represent agencies such as the police station, and shelter and family/ friends. You assume a victim’s role, and navigate the ‘system’ to find help.”

If that’s difficult, domestic violence comes shrouded in philosophy. When a woman is abused, “the community views it as ‘her choice’. We need to assess the safety of the woman in that situation. She should have a safety plan,…More

The Hindu : y>The world is not lost to sending and receiving greeting cards the good ol’ way, finds MARIANNE DE NAZARETH this Christmas and New Year season

PHOTO: K.R. DEEPAKLINES FROM THE HEART Get transported to a greeting card

One would like to believethat in this age of the Internet,Christmas andNew Year cards wouldhave become obsolete. Butstrangely, the concept of stickinga stamp on an envelope witha card and posting it, after handwritingChristmas and NewYear wishes in them, still persists.

Sending cards is a more prevalentpractise in the older generation.Youngsters buy cards toexchange along with gifts, andtend to post hand-written orhand-made cards only to closerelatives and friends.

UNICEF cards were big onthe wish list of many Bangaloreansin the past. The thoughtwas that the money spent buyingthe cards was to be used tofeed poor children across theglobe. Many shifted to buyingCRY cards and other merchandiseas the concept behind thecard was doing charity for acause, but the cause was closerhome – supporting India’s poorchildren. The Indian Mouth andFoot Painting Artists too have apopular selection of cards forthe new year, along with calendars.”Being an artist myself, Iprefer sending cards from theFoot and Mouth Artists as Iknow the money goes to supporta physically challenged artist,”reveals Shobha Nagendran.

Despite postage costing Rs. 4if the envelope is left open andRs. 5 if the envelope is stuckdown, (within the country), alarge number of multinationalsand businesses in the city, stillprefer handwriting and postingtheir New Year cards.

Something personal

Archie’s Christmas merchandiseis popular among all agegroups as they cater to a varietyof tastes and desires. “I alwaysbuy my New Year cards fromArchie’s,” says Sana Mashood.”They have a big variety and Iprefer sending a card especiallyto my brother who is studying inMelbourne, besides sendinghim a Hallmark e-card.”

Mona Printer sits with a pileof cards, addressing them to relativesdotted across the globe.Why does she spend so muchmoney on hand posting aChristmas card? “I enjoy writingcards…More

The Hindu : y>Jaguar XF wins the female vote

The first-ever Women’s World Car of the Year awards were announced recently and the car that received the greatest number of votes was the Jaguar XF.

Over the past year, eight women motoring writers from around the world have tested 21 cars and the Jaguar XF was the clear winner, edging out the Volvo XC60 and the VW Golf diesel, in that order.

There are four categories in these awards and individual results are Women’s World Family Car of the Year: Volvo XC 60, Women’s World Sports Car of the Year: Audi TTS, Women’s World Economy Car of the Year: VW Golf diesel and Women’s World Luxury Car of the Year: Jaguar XF.

The judges clearly considered the Jaguar XF to be well-constructed, competent, comfortable, a combination of sport and luxury and ideal for women.

Cars that qualified had to be sold in at least 10 countries worldwide and available between September 2008 and 2009.

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The Hindu : y>The Jaipur Literature Festival 2010 is taking shape

PHOTO: K. GOPINATHANWRITE POWER Vikram Chandra

DSC Jaipur Literature Festival 2010 begins on January 21, 2010 and goes on till January 25. Touted as Asia’s leading literary event, it will play host to authors, publishers and book lovers at the heritage Diggi Palace.

This year authors such as Vikram Chandra, Tina Brown, Tenzin Tsundue, Steve Coll, Stephen Frears, Salima Hashmi, Pavan Verma, Mahasweta Devi, Mark Tully, Lawrence Wright, Hanif Kureishi, Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuk, and Alexander McCall Smith will participate. The highlights of the evenings include screening of the movie “Queen”, performances by Titi Robbin, Cheb –I sabbah, The Nine Lives concert and so on. The programmes this year have been put together by Namita Gokhale and William Dalrymple, the two directors of the festival, and has been produced by Sanjoy Roy from Teamwork Productions.

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The Hindu : y>

Let Christmas come alive at the click of a mouse. India’s Internet radio station, myopusradio.com, has launched ‘O Carol’, an internet radio channel dedicated to spreading the warmth and cheer of Christmas.

From popular carols to contemporary renditions ranging from jazz, blues, soul, country music etc, the channel will offer non stop Christmas music throughout the day. Tune in to O Carol at www.myopusradio.com and let the music lift your spirits this festive season.

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The Hindu : y>

The British Council is organising an art competition for students studying in south India called “What’s the big picture”.

It is open for students aged between 18 and 25 years. Winners can look forward to a cash prize of Rs. 50,000.

Entries have to be submitted in a JPG and Tiff format (600 DPI) as per the specification (width: 8.739 ft and height: 7.054 ft) in a CD/DVD with a note about your work and a hard copy of the artwork in A-4 size paper.

A panel will decide the winning entry, which will be showcased at the British Council Library in Chennai. January 8, 2010 is the last date to send in your entry.

For details log on to www.britishcouncil.org.in/bigpicture or call 044-42050606.

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