Opinion 2010

Credit chaos – My Letters – Khaleej Times – Dt. 03.11.2010

Posted on Updated on

My Letters – Khaleej Times – Dt. 03.11.2010 – Credit chaos

Credit chaos
3 November 2010

A friend who lost his job recently sought my help with regard to his credit card. He was holding a credit card with a local bank, which had a limit of Dh 2500. Upon receiving his termination letter, he informed the bank about it and he was told to clear all his outstanding before his departure.

He duly paid an outstanding of Dh 1300 on it before he left the country. All the information was appropriately conveyed to the bank through its telephone banking system. There was no payment outstanding and he had not used his card during his notice period of one month. Now, after two months, he is getting calls for an outstanding amount of Dh 250. Before leaving the country he spoke with the bank whether he could avail an exemption using the insurance policy on the card considering the job retrenchment scenario. But, unfortunately, that facility was not approved stating that he had delayed his monthly payment one or two times. He is still fighting for clearing his name.

It is, therefore, important for all to take care of the payment dates and if payments are delayed, make sure your insurance coverage is still valid with your bank. If they do not, it is better to cancel the coverage, as it is no longer of any use. It is always important to get an all clearance letter from the bank before leaving the country.

Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi
To read it in original, please visit Khaleej Times online.

This entry was posted in Khaleej Times, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010.

School buses are cheaper, not safer – My Letters – THE NATIONAL – Dt. 02.11.2010

Posted on Updated on

My Letters – THE NATIONAL – Dt. 02.11.2010 – School buses are cheaper, not safer

School buses are cheaper, not safer

Looking at the number of private 15- and 30-seater mini buses operating within the city during the day, I am alarmed that so few of them conform to any safety regulations. A closer look shows children sitting in the front and playing un-strapped, drivers speeding through the small by-lanes without any caution and often whiletalking on the phone. Parents, and authorities, should call for strict measures.
Although the school authorities have no control in their operations, they should issue circulars to parents highlighting the danger of using such transport options. Appropriate labelling should be enforced on these vehicles with signage stating “Private – Student Transport vehicle” with the mobile telephone number (in big letters) of the contact person responsible and available to report any dangerous driving situations.

Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi

To read it in original, please visit THE NATIONAL online.

This entry was posted in HSE, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010, The National.

My Letters – Khaleej Times – dT. 01.11.2010 – Pakistan SA Cricket

Posted on Updated on

My Letters – Khaleej Times – dT. 01.11.2010 – Pakistan SA Cricket

Pakistan, SA cricket
1 November 2010

The T-20 series between Pakistan and South Africa finished with South African winning on a 2-0 margin. The series moved on to one-day matches and as cricket lovers we all expected a come back attitude from Pakistan. It looks like the Pakistan team has taken this South African team and its members very lightly.

The Pakistan cricket team with its fondness, familiarity for the UAE grounds and local support were expected to give a tough fight. However, against all expectations, and with some unimaginative batting and bowling display, they proved otherwise.
The Shaikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi is one of the most beautiful green grounds currently available for international matches. Although the grass is thick, the outfield is short and fast. During this time of the year, there is a certain element of humidity making batting second difficult. There is also a fair amount of air movement making accurate bowling and hitting highly difficult. It is here that the batsman and bowlers have to show patience and skill.
With the 1st one-day match also going against them, cricket lovers hope the Pakistan team learn fast from the mistakes.

-Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi
 


To read this in original, please visit Khaleej Times online.

This entry was posted in Khaleej Times, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010, Sports +, Sports Reviews.

My letters – GULF NEWS – Dt. 26.10.2010 – Give them attention

Posted on Updated on

My letters – GULF NEWS – Dt. 26.10.2010 – Give them attention

Give them attention

I refer to the news of Indian football team’s visit to train in Dubai (“India team to train in Dubai for a month”, Gulf News, October 20). It is an opportunity to promote the game by regional associations and interested corporate bodies, who could think outside cricket as the only commercially viable marketing option. This visit should therefore be utilised to give necessary support and encouragement to the Indian football team during the time they are in the UAE. This will be inspiring for them, for the game and for all non-cricket playing athletes. Let us hope that it will gain bigger momentum in India and benefit all track and field sports personnel who deserve more attention and pampering.

From Mr Ramesh Menon
Abu Dhabi

To read it in original, please visit GULF NEWS online.

This entry was posted in Campaign Pass, Gulf News, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010, Sports +, Sports Reviews.

Short Take – GULF TODAY – Dt. 30.10.2010 – At the hospital

Posted on Updated on

At the hospital

As a regular visitor to the Oncology Department at a prominent hospital, I get to see several patients and interact with them. Some of them old, but they are striving their best to hold on to the pain and agony of this dreadful disease.
While waiting for my turn today, there was an old man, unlike others, and he was curious to see me fiddling with my phone and answering messages promptly as they come in without disturbing the others.
After some time, we sat close to each other, and I started casually conversing with him. He was a retired agricultural engineer from Iraq and now living with his son who is employed here.
Talking to me about his disease, he said it is nothing compared to the days he had seen and lived during the last couple of years. I, too, had memories of the country passed on to me by a friend who was working there in the 80s. He rekindled it with the fertile soil and the life around before it all turned bloody and continued thereafter. Even after several years and several hands at the regime, the lost glory has not been restored yet, nor is there any sign of serious effort towards it in sight.
While talking, we found an infant on his father’s lap, crying continuously. Hardly more than 2 or 3 months old, he was also there for treatment. Looking at the eyes of his father, we knew the state of affairs, and we all looked at each other in silence and our conversation discontinued as the baby’s cry overtook our emotional quest to share personal experiences.
Driving down, I was stuck on the road – again another accident – a death, due to the crazy driving of a driver. His car also was in a wreck and was struggling to come out of it in pain and blood while the other vehicle was a total loss.
As we drove ahead, I was thinking of the guy who caused the accident and his life ahead and comparing with those at the oncology ward. It is a difficult world especially when we create our own cancerous environment due to arrogance and attitude.
Ramesh Menon

This entry was posted in Gulf Today, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010, Short Take.

Short Take – GULF TODAY – Dt. 23.10.2010 – Strange Situations

Posted on Updated on

Short Take – GULF TODAY – Dt. 23.10.2010 – Strange Situations

Strange situations

Life is strange and special when we look at our momentary wants. I was with a visiting musician the other day who had come to the UAE for a concert. He was sharing his thoughts with me about life and money and timely assistance by unknown sources at turbulent times.

Once on a journey through a desert, he got stranded for days and all the water and food he had carried got over. He had money in his hand, but it was of no use as there were no shops or inhabitation around. Luckily for him, from somewhere, a bedouin family came and they offered him water and transportation to a distant village from where he could move on. It was a case where money could do nothing.

Back home, I had a chance to watch the pre-match discussion of the first one day cricket match between Australia and India supposed to be held in at Cochin. The commentators and phone in audience talked in length of pros and cons and probable team and strategies that could be adopted for a win. Unfortunately, next day morning I heard, the match was abandoned due to rain.

Many times, we come across strange situations in life, where all our predictions and planning go wrong in entirety. Our life is much similar to what we saw in both the above instances.

However advanced we are in terms of technology or facility, there are certain things that we have no control.

To a certain extent birth and then death. Let each one of us live our life peacefully and for the well being of our family and society without hurting anyone. The rest, leave it to destiny.

Ramesh Menon

To read it in original, GULF TODAY Online

This entry was posted in Gulf Today, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010, Short Take.

My Letters – GULF NEWS – Dt. 19.10.2010 – Community reporting

Posted on Updated on

My Letters – GULF NEWS – Dt. 19.10.2010 – Community reporting



Community reporting

I refer to recent community reports and a letter which cautions community reporters from taking pictures while driving. It is a good point that has to be given value. Many times, community reports act as an end-user feedback for facilities and services provided by the authorities. Not only do they give interesting insights, but also provide ideas to make the facilities more user-friendly.
They may be from an area that normally does not get attention from the authorities. However, having said the same, taking pictures while driving is extremely dangerous and should never be encouraged. Photo capturing should never be done by the driver. It should be done by the co-passengers at all times. The importance of a combined effort with your fellow passenger comes into action in community reporting. Additionally, readers should make a concurrent effort instantaneously to log on to the “suggestion and have your say” sites of relevant authorities and report the problem they noticed. This will benefit the authorities as they could take action according to the seriousness of the situation. In my experience, they are receptive to ideas and suggestions.

From Mr Ramesh Menon
Abu Dhabi

Additional note:

As a regular in Community Reporting, I wish to stress the importance of a collective effort while identifying, preparing and submitting data.

I will give an example of my own case. I am a regular to community reporting and have an interest for photography and thus carry a sleek and simple automatic camera all the time with me. Whenever I drive, or I am in a car, I am with my family or with my work colleagues, i.e. either my wife, my son or my driver, who are well aware of my keenness to follow and find safety or improvement aspects whenever observed. If I am on the wheels, an indication from me will prompt them to click the pictures for me. In case, I am driving and have no one to assist, I will find a safe place to stop and click it or if it is a moving object, and there is no such place, I wait for the signals or a suitable stop ahead. Even in extreme case where I am unable to do any of these, I note the area and time very clearly in my mind and if possible do a re-run of the same route next time, with someone along with me. The driving habits here have never let me down of such violators as I will find someone else doing the same mistake. However, in all these cases, I will never dare to take a photo of a moving object creating a dangerous driving situation either for me or for other road users.

An awareness on the importance and advantageous of community reporting should be done amongst colleagues and family so that they come out in open and address issues which they get to see or keep within themselves in normal case. May be they are not able to express it in a nice way and they need your help to write and present it. May be they need more guidance and observation. An encouragement in this line will provide you with lots of leads, whether it is dangerous driving, whether it is safety at public place or even indecent acts towards women and children or any other. Those around you will come out and address them and someone could present it to the authorities who in the normal case would never get to know about it.
Community reporting should therefore be encouraged and practised as a combined effort by all, at home or office level.

More and more readers should therefore come out and write without inhibition. Authorities will also find such a proactive scenario benefiting their progressive campaigns and actions. I am sure, the community reporting team of our major newspapers, in particular GULF NEWS would be keen to assist them

This entry was posted in Gulf News, HSE, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010.

Indian sports glory reaches heights – My Letters – THE NATIONAL – Dt. 17.10.2010

Posted on Updated on

My Letters – THE NATIONAL – Dt. 17.10.2010 – Indian sports glory reaches heights

This entry was posted in Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010, The National.

Short Take – GULF TODAY – 16.10.2010 – Lost in E-World

Posted on Updated on

Short Take – GULF TODAY – 16.10.2010 – Lost in E-World

Lost in e-world

I was at a traffic signal adjacent to a prominent housing colony in our city. A child playing alone at the footpath, very adjacent to the road caught my attention suddenly.

When I looked around, I saw her mother immersed in a telephone conversation on her mobile. A few distances away, I saw her nanny, with a pet dog with its lace in one hand and she was too fully lost in her mobile world talking with someone.

From the looks of both of them, I realised, they were waiting for another child’s return from her school. I suddenly thought about the plight of the dog as well as of the little child. Both caretakers were totally away from the existence of these two wonderful living beings.

Are we all now lost in a mobile and e-world? Pure affection, once used to be there, seemed to be drifting away from our real life.

The signal turned green and I had to take time out from my thoughts and get back to the life ahead on road.

Ramesh Menon

This entry was posted in Gulf Today, Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010, Short Take.

Rise of wealth brings more indebtedness – My Letters – THE NATIONAL – Dt. 13.10.2010

Posted on Updated on

My Letters – THE NATIONAL – Dt. 13.10.2010 – Rise of wealth brings more indebtedness

Rise of wealth brings more indebtedness
Last Updated: Oct 13, 2010

A reader questions the long-term viability of many airlines in the Gulf region.

Karim Sahib / AFP

next photoprevious photo

I refer to the front page news article Wealth of the UAE has tripled in the past decade (October 10). While I am happy to read that the wealth of UAE residents has tripled, I was touched in the same article that the residents have also quadrupled their indebtedness. These statistics are indications of a giant killer, already in action, and waiting for more action in the coming months. As the demand for credit cards and loans grew a couple of years ago, consumers and banks equally cashed in on the booming market. There was a plentiful availability of credit facilities provided by the banks without any real credit checks.

Without any insights about what would be the impact on the overall customer base, many banks rearranged their credit policies including the interest rate on lending, card usage and payment periods. Mounting interest for delayed payments have severely affected customers. This explains the increased overall debt figures currently prevailing. Any realistic analysis will show the result of these changes initiated to rescue bank funds which were depleted due to wrong financial investments in local and international markets.

Customer confidence in banks and their lending policies has taken a deep dive and it will take a lot of restructuring of the prevailing credit policies for confidence to return. It is time for banks to have competent financial advisers placed within their lending and collection departments before they offer credit to customers and before collection agents proceed with actions against hapless customers.

Ramesh Menon, Abu Dhabi

To read it in original, please visit THE NATIONAL online.

This entry was posted in Letters to the editor, Opinion 2010, The National.