The Horrors at the Guwahati LGBI Airport!

Aberrations do occur, in any field of activity or operation or management, the airport operations mid-air or at ground level being no exceptions. But unfortunately, such aberrations seem to be the rule at the Guwahati LGBI Airport, even after a complete revamp of the busiest airport of North East India that was done by one of the top-rated industrialists of the    country. As fairly regular passengers over the years in the domestic air routes to Guwahati we’d experienced or had witnessed such aberrations, the horrors, regularly too at this airport, occurring mostly at the Security zone. No doubt, security is the topmost priority in our insurgency-infested country; but there are justifiable ways of doing it and not going berserk and nearly attacking/harassing/shaming normal passengers. The security forces should possess some level of intelligence to be able to detect suspicious passengers instead of intimidating every Tom, Dick and Harry. There have been some news reports about such horrors happening to legitimately normal passengers having full records at the hands of the governments; but many stories never come out as most people prefer not to speak about their shame in public. Such horrors remind us of the ‘security tortures’ in the US airports following the 9/11 terrorist strikes, although our country hasn’t been experiencing terror activities in recent years. So, is this because of the hate-laden country where anyone of any background at any public arena could suddenly burst out with bizarre acts of violence?

The Security zone of the airport looks just fine with a full-women team managing and screening women passengers. But unfortunately, despite being of the same ilk as their passengers they fail abysmally to understand the kind of the basic necessities they all carry while traveling—like the minimal cosmetics, mobiles and accessories, vanity bags and purses and so on which are items permitted by the airlines. The all-women young team doesn’t seem to understand, anyway. We came to know the story of an elderly woman who was subjected to mental and physical torture in the name of ‘Security’.

First, she was nearly stripped inside the ‘examination’ cabin as one of the bright Security ladies ran her hands all over her body. At the lower belly of the 60+ woman she felt a lump which could’ve have been any harmless fat accumulation or a harmless hernia or rather tragically some malignant tumor that the woman herself was not aware. However, the smart young girl in dazzling uniform thought the lump could conceal some metallic device or even a bomb! Her loyalty to the highest possible standards of safety made her nearly strip the woman. She relented only when the woman burst into tears as her feeble protests had no impact on the ‘examiner’ and she, fortunately, didn’t turn into an ‘executioner’ conducting a possible surgery on the spot.  

Second, after being let out of the torture chamber the elderly woman discovered that her vanity bag was kept aside as obviously found suspicious by the diligent members of the team. As she approached another bright member of the team picked up the bag and turned it upside down pouring all the apparently mundane items on the desk. As the elderly woman stood aghast one more team-lady joined the other in rummaging through the items: they found the innocuous pin that is used to push out the simcard-tray of the mobile very suspicious, perhaps thinking that the pin could trigger some bomb somewhere; they took extraordinary interest in the cosmetic items; they then discovered a normal nail-cutter and threw it unceremoniously into their own dustbin; they also found a tiny purse containing notes and coins and dexterously counted out all of it, for reasons they only knew; they also found another tiny plastic cover having credit/debit cards and checked each one meticulously; and they objected to everything they found.

They demanded the elderly woman show her ID cards to which the exasperated woman strongly objected. Those cards were already checked and why at all she should show those here, she asked. What was her crime, she wanted to know. By then the elderly woman’s husband, on the wrong side of sixty, distraught by the unusual delay joined her and warned her that they could miss the boarding. As he began to understand the goings-on he started shouting in desperation asking were there instructions to harass passengers selectively and if they thought that all ID cards could be easily forged. One of the ‘examiners’ then proceeded to her table and started jotting down notes as if she made her observations to be forwarded to her high command. And finally, they allowed the elderly lady to proceed. One of them even offered to give back the nail-cutter which the woman refused stoutly asking them to use it. The woman needed another ten minutes to put all the scattered items back into her bag.

And that was not the end. Air India made it still worse for the senior citizen duo. The couple hurried to the boarding counter and found a long queue.  The display showed that the flight was on time. So, they joined the queue and waited and waited and waited. More than half an hour elapsed with the Airline still not announcing a delay, sticking to the same scheduled time and expected time of departure. Already tired from their previous torture the elderly couple’s knees began aching. There were only limited chairs available most of which were occupied by young guys who looked very energetic, but seemingly in extreme need of rest and care themselves. It was a very hot day and the central AC was either not functioning or kept at very low levels. Perhaps one more noble initiative for the objective of conservation of energy! However, it only added to the sorry plight of the hapless couple. The old couple still couldn’t afford to leave the queue in search of some vacant chairs, for the Airline already sounded the warning that boarding counter would close 25 minutes before departure.

Finally, the display sign claimed ‘Boarding Gate Open’. Even after that, the gate remained closed for another ten minutes with the smart executives hopping in and out of the boarding counter as if they were the busiest souls in the world. It turned out to be a delay of nearly an hour, but still not announced or acknowledged or apologized for. The couple only got a text message from the Airline regretting a change of the boarding gate when there was none.

We don’t know how many more stories of such horrors are waiting to be told. In the name of what that we’re made to suffer like this? Security and safety of the nation? Well, first learn treating the rightful citizens as rightful citizens and then talk of their safety. More importantly, learn respecting the senior citizens most of whom are definitely not terrorists. All of the good citizens deserve better than this.

Air India Regrets Rescheduling Of Your Flight…

If you fly Air India out of the long-standing loyalty for the national airline or out of compulsion being employed by the Government of India you must be acutely aware of the ‘Regrets’ service. The deadliest manifestation of this ‘service’ comes usually in the dead of the night when you are desperate to get at least 2/3 hours’ sleep for your early morning flight and suddenly all sleep is robbed away most inhumanely making you wonder if you are going to reach your destination the next day at all.

Once you are booked into one of the flights of Air India you cannot escape from this persistent service. For the period from one day before to minutes before the departure of the flight you will definitely get flooded with text messages on your mobile or emails announcing that ‘Air India Regrets Rescheduling of You Flight AI__ on ___  to ____ hours…’. The ‘Regrets’ content is very unpredictable with ‘regretted’ delays ranging from 20 minutes to over 5 hours. Short-term-delay ‘regrets’ get you reach the airport with some assurance, but there, to your dismay, the regrets keep on to the job of delaying your flight. Even after the ‘regrets’ finally disappear from your mobile you are still not sure when the flight would depart leading to ‘unexplained’ and ‘not regretted’ delays.

The most intriguing part of the ‘regrets’ syndrome is that Air India still regrets even if their flight is on time. The text message would say ‘Air India regrets rescheduling of your flight AI___ on__ to ___ hours. Pls ignore if revised timing is same as in your ticket.’ If you are a practical mix of intelligence and experience you would perhaps anticipate delays once you get the message and it happens in most cases. However, you cannot wait and have to go to the airport on time for whatever ‘regrets’ are to follow later for whatever ‘operational reasons’.

The ‘Regrets’ syndrome of Air India is a direct outcome of the negative mindset about the airlines both within and outside. The cash-starved and struggling airline hardly generates confidence or trust in its employees or for the Government of India or for the air travelers. Other airlines announce proudly that their flights are dot on time and in any case they would never bother the travelers with text messages or emails if their flights are departing on time.

It really is perplexing why Air India cannot talk positive for at least the positive aspects. It would not cost them to generate a different message announcing right-time flights apart from the normal ‘regrets’ message for delays. Furthermore, there have been some positive developments for the airline since the forgettable days of 2011-12 when its employees were observing annual strike fests and their schedules were topsy-turvy. Since then their website has improved a lot making online booking very easy and convenient. Their executives on the ticket counters have become more professional and friendlier. Air-hostesses often criticized for being overage are now conducting things quite well. Air India also showed practical sense of saving money by serving only tea-biscuits on flights of less than two hours duration instead of the fried rice dishes served in even less than one hour flights earlier. Therefore, it is time indeed for feeling positive when it is positive and get on serving and earning better. If people call you a circus then only you are helping them to form such opinions.

Air India, please stop regretting the good things. Regret only when it is really regrettable. Most practical advice at the moment would be to minimize delays absolutely.

Air India: Annual May-Strike Fest-2012 Still On!

The pilots of Air India have only problems and more problems. They don't get their salaries for months or not quite regularly, they don't get their promotions in time, they suffer from career regression and they don't get the benefits they are right royally entitled to. Domestic Indian Airlines and international Air India got merged indeed in 2007, but the communal divide between the two erstwhile sets of pilots only accentuated over time. The two communities compete still for the perks and opportunities like for example flying the forthcoming Dreamliner Boeing 787 which figured in the list of strike demands too and baby-cry on missing any. The pilots have been suffering so badly that they are forced to put personal issues first and company or national interests later. How sad!

So they did not approach the Air India management for representing or deliberating on their problems, because they hold the management as the culprit for all their ills. They felt they were the best bets for managing their own problems. 

So they did not approach the Government of India for negotiating their demands either, because they proudly hold the view that any talks with the government is an extremely routine procedure and thus they get no pulling force to get their demands through. 

So they looked towards their most loyal passengers to get going bang-on. Their May Strike-Fest of 2011 was a huge turbulence and so they decided to make it an annual event. After all those years of experience they know the importance of the month of May only too well. In this month, known as the period of summer rush, their passengers visit native places and make holiday plans for both domestic and international sectors. The passengers book well in advance as they know that come May all  flights, trains and even buses get full and getting a ticket at the last minute becomes almost impossible. The pilots understand this and so they ensure that all passengers of their cancelled flights due to their Fest get helplessly stranded and remain stranded. They think they can never expect get a better platform than this to bargain for their righteous personal interests and aspirations. 

The Air India Pilots' May-Strike Fest-2012 has already completed a magnificent week and has entered the ninth day today. There seems to be no end to the continuing revelries yet. 

How long would Air India continue to be a 'national pride' at the cost of the nation, at the cost of all the hapless passengers, at the cost of all Government of India staff whose travel destiny remains hostage to Air India and, to the benefit of the influential and the powerful whose majestic travel on Air India translates into more costs for the nation? Does democracy give the right-to-blackmail to any interested party or individuals? Why democracy fails to prevent a strike by an interested party even after a High Court order declares it illegal? 

By the way, what is a democracy? Sorry...you see...people tend to get confused in this great democratic atmosphere of all the toon-toona-toons by all the aflatoons in the melee of all the cartoons. 

Politics of the Beg Word!

Article first published as Politics of the Beg Word on Technorati.

Politics has  myriad shades and colors. Just now in India it has achieved another unique dimension—the politics of begging!

Rahul Gandhi, the youthful general secretary of the Congress party who has commanded tremendous youth following all over the country of late, was in Uttar Pradesh to kickstart the party’s campaign for the forthcoming assembly elections of the state. He lambasted the ruling party there for total lack of economic development and for resembling almost a mafia rule. He went on with his diatribe by saying that had there been some developmental progress the people there would not have been forced to migrate to other states and beg for work.

There was an inherent truth in what he said about the state and it had to be analyzed in the context of an opposition party leader addressing an election rally. But all hell broke loose because of just one word ‘beg’! Rahul Gandhi must have said it with bitter sarcasm and sentiments, but ‘beg’ created a chain effect of self-righteous protests and self-dignified ejaculations. Just how dare he call the people of the biggest state of India beggars!
Now, the word ‘beg’ has a deeper significance too. Maharashtra, a state in western India, was prominently included as the other ‘states’ due to the fact that regional parties there made it very clear that north Indian migrants were not at all welcome there. There had been disturbances, arguments, mini riots and running court cases over the issue in the last two years.

Because of the political significance of the ‘beg’ word the Congress party had been caught in a dilemma how to go about defending its leader while at the same time getting concerned for its north Indian votes. The main opposition party of the country held protests and effigy burnings in many parts defending the dignity of the north Indians. Even the regional leaders in Maharashtra who oppose north Indian migrants advised Rahul to take home all such beggars and feed them well so that they did not have to come to their state to ‘beg’ for work.

The Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Mayawati, cried hoarse for her hard working and self respecting people while on the very next day announcing a proposal for dividing the state into four parts or states to be placed in the coming assembly session. If this latest politicking is linked to the ‘beg’ and how one only time will tell.
Meanwhile rejoice O’ Indian beggars! Politics has finally caught up with you too!

The Costliest Travel Concession Ever!

Most of the people in salaried class do get leave travel concession (LTC) annually or every two years. Depending on the employers the package benefits vary. If, by misfortune, you belong to the Government of India you do get LTC, but with repressively dictatorial conditions:

• You have to travel by Air India come what may as if it’s you people that makes the bankrupt airlines viable and competitive. You have to go over their special LTC counters and book your tickets physically with their options for your travel. Even if their pilots are on never ending strike you are not spared. And you have to ignore all cheaper air ticket offers available online.
• If your compulsory airline fails you at the last moment you can book only at the government appointed travel agencies most of which may not have online booking facilities. You can send in an application for booking and it hardly matters if your tickets arrive after your leave period is over.

I had recounted my sufferings earlier where my only crime was to opt for LTC for going to my hometown.

Coming back from my leave I was gratified to find an advance of 45,000 rupees (approx. 50 rupees a US dollar) in my bank balance which you cannot expect to get normally. My local office took account of my sufferings and loss of money due to the Air India strike and sanctioned the actual cost of travel (around 30.000 rupees). But the order had to go to the chief paying authorities in Delhi for final approval and payment.

After two months I was horrified to find 23,250 rupees deducted from my salary of August, 2011. On inquiry I got the Delhi letter that said under the booking restrictions I was not eligible for LTC and since the advance was given to me two months before a penalty of 1500 rupees also added making the total 46,500 rupees. It was to be deducted in two months in two EMIs. So I lost the same amount in September salary too.

But it was hardly over. The cuts continued in October too making the total cost of trying to avail LTC a staggering 69,750 rupees and counting! My Diwali darkened!

Maybe I am set to be punished for my crime for lifetime. So I am set to be the first Government of India officer ever to turn beggar while in service and to run to the streets for shelter!

LTC is a frightening word if you are in……..!

Air India: My Story

We were scheduled to leave for our hometown Guwahati on 4^th May, 2011. It was my homecoming after more than year and of course some events and programs of Ragini fixed earlier. As I had very limited leave and events were fixed we could not afford to either cancel of postpone our trip. We booked or rather had to book with Air India (AI) long back because I , curse my decision, took the leave travel concession (LTC) offered by the Government of India every two years. With 8 days left for the journey the AI strike of greedy pilots began, but I never thought it would go on till then.

When the strike seemed to be endless I got a little tense because if it continued and our flight got cancelled in the last minute I would not be able to book due to LTC compulsions and exorbitant private airlines prices. So I started taking advice from knowing people, sought permission to no avail and finally on 2^nd May decided to book refundable tickets on private airlines for safety. Meantime I kept on inquiring AI helpline and every time I was assured that our particular flight was running normally.

On 3^rd May I again rang up AI helpline and the executive told me, ‘Don’t worry! Your flight is on!’ Even then I persisted asking if  it was hundred percent confirmed. The executive assured me again and even told me the terminal for departure. I believed them, curse my decision once more, and cancelled my private tickets paying a hefty cancellation fee per passenger. Then around midnight when we were ready packing up and about to go for a short nap before catching the flight at 6.10am I got a call from AI. The lady executive calling from a number somewhere in the north region informed me that our flight was cancelled apologizing and assuring full refund without charges!

I rang up AI helpline and shouted at them for misinforming me all the way. The executive on duty at that time told me that they get updates for flights continuously and admitted that the I should’ve been informed about that. Now I knew that every employee in AI is his/her own boss and they are bestowed with absolute power to tell passengers whatever they felt like. The AI website is also devoid of any useful information. So passengers are harassed as a rule, made to pay through their nose and I was subjected to the same treatment as I was hopelessly left alone to rebook my journey with avoidable expenditures increasing all the time.

A note about the booking syndrome too. Forced by LTC rules we had to go physically to the AI counter at Nariman Point where the domestic reservation counter looked worse than a railway one and the atmosphere was palpably unfriendly and frightening. Half of the booking counters were empty and it took hours for our token finally get a call. The domineering lady Booker took the basic details from me, went on tick-tucking on her computer and did not even bother to inform me which flight we were booked into—forget giving my choice and options.

I was horrified to witness that for one journey-Mumbai to Guwahati- and two passengers, four separate tickets were made! Per passenger and for Mumbai to Kolkata and Kolkata to Guwahati segments. In all my flight booking history I always got one ticket for one journey irrespective of number of passengers! Combined with my return journey I had a complete ticket file of 8 pages with an assortment of PNRs, ticket numbers and amounts! While canceling all these on wee hours of 4^th May the harrowed helpline executive having to cancel each ticket separately and charging refund fee for each ticket separately expressed his opinion all the while,’ There shouldn’t have been so many tickets!’ Maybe more money is generated misusing the LTC rules finally giving an inflated bill to the government.

LTC must be delinked from Air India immediately so that hapless government employees could travel in comfort. For me personally, I have decided to avoid AI for the rest of my life even if it means foregoing my LTC entitlements. Isn’t this corruption too making wasteful expenditures to avail of a particular facility?

Air India should no longer be patronized by the Government of India. It should be left on its own either to survive or perish forever. Only professionalism must be respected and no emotions or sentiments or patriotic feelings must be associated with this degenerated giant.

Obama Eliminates Osama! & Air India Circus!

Today, the 2nd of May 2011, is a historic day in the global war against terrorism. And the war hero is President Obama. There are celebrations all around USA singing the praise of Prez Obama who said justice done to the 9/11 victims. Justifiably and significantly so.

Osama Bin Laden, the greatest terrorist evil of the millennium had been found in Pakistan and killed by Navy Seals in brutal precision keeping the Pak government spectators..or not even that. Because nobody could even witness what happened.

If the greatest terrorist could hide in Pakistan what about scores of others about whose whereabouts the Pak government always acted ignorant. There are too many questions, too many suspicions involving both Pak and American authorities. And for India, this is both good news and frightening. Because many of the terrorists targeting India including the 26/11 Mumbai attack perpetrators are now proved to be in Pak's safe custody and till Prez Obama exterminates them all the threats will continue to haunt India. Let the war against the biggest evil of modern times continue till the last one is felled.

There are laws now forbidding mobile Circus groups to keep animals in captivity. But Air India is keeping real human beings captive for a week now. The self styled 'crusading' pilots are extremely adamant defying even the orders of the High Court. In fact, as usual, they want more money; but they give it an anti-corruption tag. Well, prove your integrity sans the hapless passengers held to ransom. To make matters worse, the Air India management too had proved to be useless even in managing their own employees apart from taking the national airlines apart over the decades. Yes, it's inefficient and corrupt. But the fight against it has to be fought with the cooperation of the 'passenger' people and not by victimizing them.

Among the victims the worst affected ones are the Government of India officers who have to travel by Air India by compulsion in all their tours and govt funded travel. Even if their Air India flight is cancelled the poor fellows still cannot opt for a private flight. If they do so, it will be at their own expenses! Extreme parental care leads to spoilt brats!

The Air India Circus is raging to full houses!