Singapore to India

Job Opportunity in a leading MNC Bank, Singapore

2012-01-06T15:50:00.000+08:00

Today, I received the following job notification mail from QT&T, Singapore. If any of you are interested in the job position, you can send your detailed resume to QT&T directly. The details of the job profile is listed below.

""Dear All,

Please find below a vacancy in a leading MNC bank. Please send in your resume' to resumes@qtnt.com immediately!!! Also, kindly forward it to your friends who might be interested to take up this opportunity!!!!

Two positions open at a leading MNC Bank in Singapore
– one position for 6 months and another for 1 year.

Skillsets
- C++ & C# programming
- Auto-Dialer, preferably with Aspect solution
- CTI Skills

The job entails the development of the front-end CTI interfacing with
the Auto-Dialer.

Regards,
QT&T Support Team""

I have no connection/ relation to the above mail. So, it is upto you to find out the details from QT&T.

Battlestar Galactica Photos at Universal Studios

2010-10-02T13:22:00.005+08:00

Battlestar Galactica is one of the highly promoted attractions of Universal Studios Singapore before it was opened to public. The roller coaster ride was closed for public since March 2010. It remains closed for about six months now and there is no indication from the Resorts World Sentosa/ Universal Studios officials when this would be available again.

Battlestar Galactica is a pair of dueling roller coasters at Universal Studios Singapore. The attraction is themed after the hit television series "Battlestar Galactica".

The Cylon Raider (blue track) is a suspended roller coaster that will turn your world upside down as it runs through vertical loops, corkscrews and cobra rolls. The Human Viper Mark II (red track) is a seated roller coaster that zooms at 90km/h and propels you fourteen storeys into the air while pursuing the enemy.

Photos of Universal Studios Singapore

2010-09-30T22:33:00.005+08:00

In my previous article, I have uploaded part 1 of the Photos taken at Universal Studios Singapore. Here, I will continue to show you some more photographs taken on the same day at Universal Studios, Sentosa, Singapore. This article mainly concentrates on the Hollywood Boulevard.

Light, Camera, Action
Don't miss this show at Sentosa. It brings to you Hollywood director Steven Spielberg's light and sound effects. Its a good show that brings some breathtaking moments right in front of your eyes.

When you come out of the Lights, Camera, Action show you get a glimpse of this nice set that brings New York city in front of you.

Just opposite to the Lights, Camera, Action is a 1,500-seat indoor theatre fully equipped to host major Broadway musicals. Fitted with cutting-edge cinematic technology, including state-of-the-art digital projectors, this theatre features great music, dancing, comedy and special effects.

Universal Studios, Sentosa, Singapore: Photos

2010-09-29T23:06:00.005+08:00

Universal Studios is a recent addition to the attractions of the vibrant Singapore city. Located at the Sentosa island, Universal Studios attracts huge crowd of tourists. Opened to public early this year, Universal Studios has quietly started to attract people. In spite of its earlier setback which led to the halt of the huge roller-coaster ride "Battlestar Galactica", Universal Studios still remains popular among tourists.

Battlestar Galactica has not resumed its operations yet, but there are other attractions for you to enjoy a whole day. I went to Universal Studios on a day, when it was pouring down heavily in Singapore. But, I could not cancel my trip as I have already booked the tickets online. A word of advice for everyone: please book your tickets online or through phone booking. Else, you may be in for a surprise as Universal Studios has a limit on the number of tickets issued on a day.

The following are some of the photos I took inside Universal Studios. The photos might look a bit dark as it was completely cloudy the whole day. I could not see any sunshine that day. In fact, afternoon was just pleasant with no sun. It didn't look like I was in Singapore. It was as good as my visit to Genting Highlands couple of years ago. Please enjoy my photos.

Resorts World Sentosa: Top View Photos

2010-09-22T10:01:00.003+08:00

I have taken some top view photos of the Resorts World Sentosa (Integrated Resorts) Casino, Hotel and Theme Park. These photos of the Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) Casino, Hotel and Universal Studios Theme Park were taken from the Sentosa Island's attraction Tiger Sky Tower. The Tiger Sky Tower rises gently to a height of about 130m above sea level and presents a nice top view of the Resorts World Sentosa. Even if you go to the Integrated Resorts directly, you may not be able to get such a nice top view.

If you come to Singapore, then RWS is one place which you should not miss.

Good Neighbour Award 2010

2010-09-21T13:32:00.003+08:00

In today's high rise building life, we have very little time to speak to neighbours. Our children do not go out to play with the neighbours'. We rarely get together to share moments of happiness or times of sadness. Our doors always remain locked and so do the neighbours'. When we cross each other, sometimes a smile is exchanged; sometimes it goes further to a "good morning".

With such being the state of affairs between neighbours, it is no wonder the Singapore Government has launched a "Good Neighbour Award". The Good Neighbour Award is jointly organized by Housing & Development Board (HDB), People's Association (PA) and Ministry of National Development (MND), and supported by the Singapore Kindness Movement (SKM) and Singapore Press Holdings (SPH).

Residents may nominate any neighbour who lives within the same constituency. The Good Neighbour Award 2010 is presented in two categories - "Open" and "Student". Three recipients in the “Open” category will be selected for each constituency. Two primary school students and two secondary school students in the “Student” category will be selected for each school cluster. Top recipients from both categories will be considered for the national level Good Neighbour Award.

For further information, please visit the following link, Heartland Beat: Be a Good Neighbour

RWS: Lake of Dreams Photo

2010-09-17T13:50:00.004+08:00

When I entered the Resorts World Sentosa, the beautiful water pond looked cool and beautiful to the eyes. It is known as "Lake of Dreams". I am not sure why it is known as Lake of Dreams, but certainly it looked like a dream for me. I liked the place and the lovely, colourful surrounding. The photo at taken the Lake of Dreams is included below:

Resorts World Sentosa: Photo of Casino

2010-09-16T14:50:00.004+08:00

Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) is located in Sentosa island, Singapore. Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) is one of the two integrated resorts operating in Singapore. RWS opened its doors for public somewhere around February this year, which was later followed by the other integrated resorts Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resorts.

RWS attracts not only people with interest in gaming/ gambling, but it also has other attractions for family like the Universal Studios. The following photo is taken just outside the Resorts World Sentosa casino.

Returning to India: Part 1

2010-09-15T11:16:00.001+08:00

It all began about 15 years ago. I took my first flight from Chennai to Singapore, with butterflies in stomach. Singapore helped to shape my career and direction of life since then. Life has been pretty stable now in Singapore. But, my heart pulls me back to India. It’s been a tough decision to leave Singapore, but I am going to give it a try. I would like to return to India, return to Chennai.

Why should I return to India?
To be honest, I do not have an answer to this. As I said earlier, my heart goes back to India and I feel I am missing something here in Singapore. I may not get the same comfort over there in Chennai. I may not get the clean roads, green environment or an efficient government over there. But, still I want to go. Of course, I may come back to Singapore sometime later in my life.

The infrastructure growth in Chennai is one encouraging factor in my decision to return. Probably, I may be able to use my 15 years experience to good effect in Chennai. That could lead to personal career growth as well as the satisfaction of giving back something to my mother land.

Time permitting, I will try to blog my Return to India (R2I) experience.

The Hindu Property Plus Show 2010

2010-09-09T13:29:00.003+08:00

The Hindu group of publications is organizing a property show in Singapore. If you are interested in buying properties in the booming South India property market, this might be a good opportunity. A selection of best builders / Promoters will be on board with the most attractive projects to suit everyone.

Date: The show will be conducted on 18th & 19th September 2010
Time: 10am to 9pm
Venue: Singapore Expo, Hall 4B

Be there …don’t miss the opportunity!

Double Helix Bridge, Marina Bay

2010-09-01T16:51:00.006+08:00

Photos of double helix bridge located at Marina Bay, Singapore

The double helix pedestrian bridge was opened to public few months ago along with the vehicular bridge. These bridges connect the Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resorts to the other side of the bay, say Suntec City and Convention Centre.

Photo of Double Helix Bridge taken in day light

Photo of Double Helix Bridge taken during night time

In both the above photographs, you could see the Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resorts Hotel in the background. Marina Bay is getting livelier.

Pictures of Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resorts

2010-04-09T13:35:00.006+08:00

Marina Bay Sands (MBS) announced recently that they will open the Integrated Resorts (IR) on 17 April 2010. The April 27 opening will be a "soft" launch, with the grand events scheduled for 23rd June 2010 to celebrate the "official" opening, along with most of the other amenities. The opening of MBS IR comes more than two months after Singapore's first integrated resort, Genting's Resorts World Sentosa, commenced its operations on February 14.

We note that works are going on in full swing to meet the deadline. It is a great sight to see the 55 storey hotel standing majestically with the Singapore Flyer in the background. It would look even better once all the surrounding construction works are completed and those ugly looking crawler cranes are out of our sight. Right now, just look at the following pictures what is likely to come up soon in Marina Bay area. Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resorts will certainly be one of the milestone projects in the history of Singapore.

Chennai Metro Rail: An Introduction

2009-08-31T11:44:00.003+08:00

The proposed/ under construction Chennai Metro Rail consists of two corridors, corridor 1 running from Washermanpet to Airport and corridor 2 running from Chennai Central to St. Thomas Mount. The lines will meet each other at Chennai Central in the north and at Alandur in the south.

The Metro line, MRTS and suburban lines will have interchanges which will provide scope for commuters to switch lines seamlessly. Commuters on the Washermanpet to Airport metro line can switch over to the Beach-Tambaram suburban line at Guindy. St. Thomas Mount provides connectivity from the MRTS to the metro line. If you are planning to board long-distance buses or alighting from them at the mofussil bus terminus in Koyambedu, you can use the Central to St Thomas Mount metro line.

The proposed stations along the two corridors are as follows (the names and the number of stations are indicative only):

Corridor 1:
1. Washermanpet
2. Mannadi
3. High Court
4. Chennai Central (Interchange with Corridor 1)
5. Govt Estate
6. LIC
7. Thousand Lights
8. Gemini
9. Teynampet
10. Chamiers Road
11. Saidapet
12. Little Mount
13. Guindy
14. Alandur (Interchange with Corridor 1)
15. Officer’s Training Academy
16. Meenambakkam
17. Chennai Airport

Corridor 1 covers an estimated total length of 23.1 kms. The stretch from Washermanpet to Saidapet will be underground, approximately 14.3 kms.

Corridor 2:
1. Chennai Central
2. Egmore
3. Nehru Park
4. Kilpauk Medical College
5. Pachaiappa’s College
6. Shenoy Nagar
7. Anna Nagar East
8. Anna Nagar Tower
9. Thirumangalam
10. Koyambedu
11. CMBT
12. Arumbakkam
13. Vadapalani
14. Ashok Nagar
15. KK Nagar
16. SIDCO
17. Alandur
18. St. Thomas Mount

Corridor 2 covers an estimated total length of 22.0 kms. The stretch from Chennai Central to Thirumangalam will be underground, approximately 9.7 kms.

Chennai Metro Rail: Contract ECV12-03

2009-08-28T09:11:00.002+08:00

Chennai Metro Rail seems to be finally picking up speed as two tenders had been put up within a day or two. Chennai Metro has two corridors, 23.1 kms stretch from Washermanpet to Airport known as Corridor-1 and 22.0 kms stretch from St. Thomas Mount to Chennai Central known as Corridor-2. Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) has invited sealed tenders under two-packet system for two contracts, ECV02-02 and ECV12-03 recently.

Chennai Metro Rail Contract ECV12-03
The contract ECV12-03 includes the design and construction of elevated viaducts

from Ch 13840 m to 18410 m on Corridor 1 (including viaducts at Little Mount, Guindy, Alandur and Officers Training Academy)
from Ch 19578 m to 20178 m on Corridor 2 (600 m at Alandur station) and
double track tie line between Corridor 1 and Corridor 2

This contract will cover a total distance of 5170 m and the project should be completed in 24 months.

The tender is expected to close on 22 October 2009, 11:00 hrs and the tenders will be opened on the same day, as shown in Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) web site.

The information provided here are purely for information only. We do not guarantee the accuracy of the information provided herein. For latest, accurate and detailed information, please contact Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) or visit their website.

Chennai Metro Rail: Contract ECV02-02

2009-08-27T09:47:00.001+08:00

Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) has rolled out the tender for the second contract of the Rs. 14,600 crores Chennai Metro Rail Project. The first contract, won by Soma Enterprise, covers the stretch of viaduct from Koyambedu until Ashok Nagar. It is understood that the works have already commenced for this contract.

Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) has invited sealed tenders under two-packet system for the second contract of Chennai Metro Rail Project. The contract ECV02-02 includes the design and construction of elevated viaduct from Ch. 15738 m to 20900 m on Corridor 2. This contract will cover the viaduct from Ashok Nagar to St. Thomas Mount (including viaducts at Ashok Nagar – KK Nagar and SIDCO stations but excluding 600 m of viaducts at Alandur station). ECV02-02 will cover a total distance of 4562 m.

Contract ECV02-02 will interface with AC01, viaducts from chainage 9600 m to 15738 m being constructed by Soma Enterprise. This contract will also interface with ECV12-03, which is yet to be awarded.

The tender is expected to close on 22 Oct 2009, 11:00 hrs. The tender will be opened on the same day.

All details provided here are only for information. We advise readers to contact Chennai Metro Rail Limited/ visit their website for the latest/ accurate/ detailed information.

P1 2010 Registration: Phase 2C Vacancies

2009-08-12T10:31:00.002+08:00

The phase 2C stage of Primary 1 registration for 2010 intake has been completed yesterday. Most of the popular schools had to choose children by balloting, as there had been overwhelming response for certain schools. While you could see happy faces of parents who got their children enrolled, we could see many sad faces who were not lucky enough to get a seat in their preferred school.

This leads us to the next stage of the Primary 1 registration called Phase 2C Supplementary. The parents who were unsuccessful in securing a seat during the phase 2C stage can now submit their application for another school under the phase 2C supplementary stage. The registration will be on 14 August 2009 and the results will be made known to the parents on 19 August 2009.

You can visit the Singapore Ministry of Education (MOE) official website to find the latest information about the available schools in your area. We understand the following schools have seats available under the Phase 2C supplementary (Please check the respective schools/ MOE for the latest information and for full list of schools with vacancies. The information provided here serves only as a guide and we do not guarantee the accuracy/ completeness of the infromation supplied herein.)

Bukit Batok
There has been much demand for Princess Elizabeth Primary School, St. Anthony's Primary School and Keming Primary School, which all seems to have gone for balloting. The following schools in Bukit Batok seems to have places vacant for the Phase 2C supplementary stage

Bukit View Primary School
Dazhong Primary School
Hong Kah Primary School
Lianhua Primary School

The schools available in some of the other areas in Singapore is listed below:

Ang Mo Kio
Ang Mo Kio Primary School
Da Qiao Primary School
Jing Shan Primary School
Mayflower Primary School
Teck Ghee Primary School
Townsville Primary School

Bedok
Bedok Green Primary School
Bedok West Primary School
CHIJ (Katong) Primary School
Damai Primary School
East Coast Primary School
Fengshan Primary School
Opera Estate Primary School
St. Anthony's Canossian Primary School

Bishan
Guangyang Primary School

This list is not complete. Please check the MOE website or check with the respective schools.

Supervision Teams for LTA DTL2 Contracts

2009-07-06T13:24:00.003+08:00

The following contracts have been awarded by LTA for the supervision teams headed by QP(S), Qualified Person - Supervision, to supervise the Downtown Line Phase 2 (DTL2) civil contracts. The supervision teams will include QP(Supervision), QP(Supervision) Representative, Senior Resident Engineer (SRE), Resident Engineer and Resident Technical Officers as per the requirements of the respective contracts.

C911QP: Qualified Person (Supervision) Services for Contract 911 - Design and Construction of Depot for Downtown Line
Meinhardt (Singapore) Pte Ltd, S$ 5,895,100.00

C915QP: Qualified Person (Supervision) Services for Contract 915 - Design and Construction of Tunnels between Stations at Beauty World and Hillview for Downtown Line Stage 2
WorleyParsons Pte Ltd, S$ 7,992,670.00

C916QP: Qualified Person (Supervision) Services for Contract 916 Design and Construction of Station at Beauty World and Tunnels for Downtown Line Stage 2
Beca Carter Hollings & Ferner (S.E.Asia) Pte Ltd, S$ 11,992,700.00

C921QP: Appointment of Consultant for Supervision of Contract 921 - Design and Construction of Stations and Tunnels at Rochor and Little India for Downtown Line Stage 2
Tritech Consultants Pte Ltd, S$ 13,737,413.00

Contracts Awarded for Downtown Line 2 (DTL2)

2009-07-03T15:57:00.004+08:00

Land Transport Authority (LTA) of Singapore has awarded several civil contracts for the construction of Downtown Line MRT Phase 2 (DTL2). DTL1 connects Chinatown to Bugis station with stops along upcoming Marina Bay developments like Marina Bay Financial Centre (MBFC) and Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resorts (MBSIR). DTL2 extends the services of DTL1 from Bugis station to Bukit Panjang, with connections to Circle Line (CCL), North East Line (NEL) and North South Line (NSL).

The following lists the main contracts awarded with the respective scope, contractor and the contract value.

C911: Design and Construction of the Depot for DTL and its associated tunnels
GS Engineering and Construction Corp. - Hock Lian Seng Infrastructure Ltd Joint Venture, S$410.7 million

C912: Design and Construction of Petir Station and Tunnels for Downtown Line Stage 2
Lum Chang Building Contractors Pte Ltd, S$ 452,423,000.00

C915: Design and Construction of Tunnels between Stations at Beauty World and Hillview for Downtown Line Stage 2
SKEC Singapore Branch, S$ 225,238,400.00

C916: Design and Construction of Station at Beauty World and Tunnels for Downtown Line Stage 2
McConnell Dowell S.E.A. Pte Ltd, S$ 309,330,548.00

C919: Design and Construction of Stations and Tunnels at Botanic Gardens and Stevens for Downtown Line Stage 2
Sembawang Engineers & Constructors Pte Ltd, S$ 378,217,566.53

C921: Design and Construction of Stations and Tunnels at Rochor and Little India for Downtown Line Stage 2
Ssangyong Engineering & Construction Co Ltd, S$ 803,334,477.00

For latest and detailed updates, please check with LTA.

Primary Schools in Bedok

2009-06-02T17:23:00.004+08:00

The following primary schools are available for residents of Bedok:

1. Bedok Green Primary School
2. Bedok West Primary School
3. CHIJ Katong Primary School
4. Damai Primary School
5. East Coast Primary School
6. Fengshan Primary School
7. Opera Estate Primary School
8. Red Swastika Primary School
9. St. Anthony's Canossian Primary School
10. St. Stephen's Primary School
11. Telok Kurau Primary School
12. Temasek Primary School
13. Yu Neng Primary School

Primary Schools in Ang Mo Kio

2009-05-29T16:04:00.004+08:00

The following primary schools are located in Ang Mo Kio, Singapore:

1. Anderson Primary School
Anderson Primary School is located at the following address:

19 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 9
Singapore 569785

The nearest MRT is Yio Chu Kang MRT, which is about 600m away. The school is also served by SBS buses 76, 86, 163, 265, 268, CT8 and SMRT services 825, 851, 852, 853 and 855. Anderson Primary School is located just beside the Ang Mo Kio Community Hospital.

2. Ang Mo Kio Primary School
Ang Mo Kio Primary School is located at the following address:

20 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3
Singapore 569920

The nearby MRT is Ang Mo Kio, which is about 1 km from the school.

3. CHIJ St. Nicholas Girls Primary School
CHIJ St. Nicholas Girls Primary School is located at the following address:

501 Ang Mo Kio Street 13
Singapore 569405

The nearest MRT is Yio Chu Kang MRT, which is about 1.5 kms from the school

4. Da Qiao Primary School
Da Qiao Primary School is located at the following address:

8 Ang Mo Kio Street 54
Singapore 569185

The nearest MRT is Ang Mo Kio MRT, which is about 1.1 km from the school

5. Jing Shan Primary School
Jing Shan Primary School is located at the following address:

5 Ang Mo Kio Street 52
Singapore 569228

The school is located in close proximity to Ang Mo Kio MRT station, which is only about 400 m from the school.

6. Mayflower Primary School
Mayflower Primary School is located at the following address:

200 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 5
Singapore 569878

The school is located at about 600m from Yio Chu Kang MRT station and at about 1 km from Ang Mo Kio MRT station.

7. Teck Ghee Primary School
Teck Ghee Primary School is located at the following address:

1 Ang Mo Kio Street 32
Singapore 569299

The nearest MRT station is Ang Mo Kio, located at about 500m from the school

8. Townsville Primary School
Townsville Primary School is located at the following address:

3 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10
Singapore 569730

The school is at about 1.2 km from both Bishan MRT and Ang Mo Kio MRT.

Circle Line MRT: Bartley to Marymount

2009-05-28T09:52:00.003+08:00

The first phase of Circle Line MRT is open to Singapore public. The 5.7km long stretch of Circle Line MRT starts from Bartley station and ends at Marymount station. The remaining 24 stations in the Circle Line is expected to progressively commence operations from next year. The Circle Line covers about 33.3km length in total.

The following is the list of five stations that will be in operation:

CC12 - Bartley MRT Station
CC13 - Serangoon MRT station
CC14 - Lorong Chuan MRT station
CC15 - Bishan MRT station
CC16 - Marymount MRT station

Out of the five stations, two stations will be interchange stations. Serangoon will connect Circle Line passengers to North East Line while Bishan will connect Circle Line to North South Line.

The opening of these five stations will reduce travelling time for public. For example, travel from Bishan to Serangoon could take only 4 minutes compared to about 16 minutes if you take a bus. The new stations will generally help people changing over from North East Line to North South Line and vice versa.

Singapore Science Centre

2009-05-08T13:40:00.010+08:00

Singapore Science Centre is located at Jurong Town Hall Road/ Science Centre Road. The nearest MRT/ bus interchange is Jurong East. It takes about 10 minutes by walk from Jurong East interchange to the science centre. The science centre also features an omni-theatre within the same campus. The Omni-Theatre is equipped with state-of-the-art IMAX technology which delivers movies through the combination of specially designed facilities like 5-storey dome screen, seating configuration and digital sound system.

Operating Hours
The science centre is open from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. The omni-theatre is open from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. BOth the science centre and the omni-theatre are closed on Mondays except during school holidays and public holidays.

Exhibitions in Science Centre
The Science Centre is divided into several exhibition halls, some of them are as listed below:

Ecogarden

Solar System

i-Space

Space Science

Human Body

The Mind's Eye

Water Works

Nanotechnology

Energy

Mathematics

Chemistry

Discovery zone

Facilities
The Science Centre also includes McDonald's, which is located right at the entrance and makes it much more interesting for children.

Note: The information provided here are correct at the time of publishing this article. For latest updates, please contact Singapore Science Centre directly or visit their official web site.

Jurong East Swimming Complex

2009-05-05T09:50:00.008+08:00

Jurong East Swimming Complex provides many facilities you will find normally in a water theme park. The facilities include Competition Pool, Wading Pool, Wave Pool, Lazy River, Water Slides, Jacuzzi and Kiddy Fun Station Pool.

Rates & Charges for Jurong East Swimming Complex
It is a good place to enjoy a holiday with your entire family. With so much fun on water, you would expect a hefty price tag for entry. But, surprisingly, the entry price is very cheap compared to theme parks. The price per entry per person is as follows:

Week days:
Adult - $1.50; Child/ Senior Citizen - $0.80

Week end/ Public Holiday:
Adult - $2.00; Child/ Senior Citizen - $1.00

Location & Operating Hours of Jurong East Swimming Complex
Jurong East Swimming Complex is located at Jurong East Street 31. It is located between Chinese Garden and Lakeside MRT stations, along the East-West MRT line. The nearest MRT is Chinese Garden, which is less than a km away. The swimming complex is open on Tuesdays to Sundays, from 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.

Note: All the information given here are correct at the time of publishing this article. Please check with Singapore Sports Council for the latest updates

Singapore Zoo Photos

2009-04-30T08:07:00.006+08:00

Singapore Zoo, also known as Singapore Zoological Gardens and Mandai Zoo, is located at 80, Mandai Lake Road in Singapore. Singapore Zoo is formed based on the model of "Open Zoo" concept, which allows animals to be free in a spacious enclosures that closely reflect the natural environment for animals.

Opening Hours of Mandai Zoo
Singapore Zoo is open from 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. daily. Please take note that the last admission is at 5:30 p.m. The zoo is open 365 days a year.

Night Safari
Singapore night safari is the first wildlife park in the world that allows visitors during night time. While the zoo is open during the day, you can visit the night safari during night time. Night safari is open from 7:00 p.m. to 12:00 mid-night daily. The last admission is at 11:00 p.m.

Entrance of Singapore Zoo

Birds in Singapore Zoo

Raffleasia, World's Largest Flower

White Tiger in Singapore Zoo

Genting Outdoor Theme Park Monorail

2009-04-27T13:19:00.002+08:00

The outdoor theme park at Genting Highlands provides many thriller/ adventure rides as well as rides for family. Monorail is one of the family rides you will enjoy with your children. The monorail at Genting Highlands Outdoor theme park provides a delightful and entertaining train ride where you can catch a scenic view of the lake and the overall Outdoor Theme Park in full panoramic colour.

Genting Highlands Cable Car Photos

2009-04-18T11:17:00.008+08:00

Photos taken at Genting Highlands, Malaysia during Cable Car (Genting Skyway) Ride

Lucky Garden at Yong Peng, Malaysia

2009-04-16T12:03:00.005+08:00

Photos taken at Lucky Garden, Yong Peng, Malaysia
(Enroute Singapore to Kuala Lumpur/ Genting Highlands, Stop-over for breakfast)

1. WTS Travel Coach (CEO Platinum Cruiser)

2. Fountain outside the food court

Slumdog Millionaire: Trailer

2009-04-15T08:05:00.003+08:00

Slumdog Millionaire, the movie based on the popular TV show "Who Wants To Be a Millionaire", won many awards including the prestigious Oscar and Golden Globe among many others. Slumdog Millionaire is simply the most discussed movie of this year. Below is the trailer of the movie Slumdog Millionaire, for your viewing pleasure:

Tamil New Year Greetings

2009-04-14T11:30:00.003+08:00

Hello everyone,

Today is the first day of the Tamil Calendar year "Virodhi". Today is also known as "Chitthirai Perunaal". Chitthirai is the first month of the calendar year. While the dispute of whether Chitthirai first should be considered as Tamil New Year or Thai first should be considered as Tamil New Year continues, we will just celebrate first. Let the debate continue. Irrespective of whether it is "Chitthirai Thirunaal" or "Tamil New Year", my wishes to all my Tamil readers for a happy and prosperous life on this special day.

Privacy Policy of Singapore to India Blog

2009-04-09T17:00:00.001+08:00

We use third-party advertising companies, like Google, to serve advertisements when you visit our website/ blog. These companies may use information (but not your name, address, email address, or telephone number) about your visits to this and other websites in order to provide advertisements about goods and services of interest to you.

Please take note of the following:

1. Google, as a third party vendor, uses cookies to serve advertisements on this site.

2. Google's use of the DART cookie enables it to serve advertisements to users based on their visits to this site and other sites on the Internet.

3. Users may opt out of the use of the DART cookie by visiting the Google ad and content network privacy policy.

Thanks for your understanding. Happy browsing!

Golden Globe Honour for A.R. Rahman

2009-01-13T16:37:00.004+08:00

Music Director A.R.Rahman became the first Indian to win the Golden Globe, for Best Original Music Score. Slumdog Millionaire, a British movie with Indian backdrop, has emerged the big winner at the 66th Golden Globes. In addition to A.R.Rahman, the film won three more awards including Best Motion Picture- Drama, Best Screenplay and Best Director. Based on Indian diplomat Vikas Swarup’s novel Q and A, the film portrays the story of an orphan, Jamal, who goes on to win the Indian version of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" to win his love back. The film stars Bollywood actor Anil Kapoor as the Millionaire show host and British Indian Dev Patel in the lead role of Jamal.

A.R.Rahman made every Indian and Tamilan proud by achieving such an international recognition. A.R.Rahman's journey commenced in the early nineties with Mani Ratnam's successful movie "Roja", a film based on terrorism in Kashmir. He might have started off his career in style with the song "Chinna Chinna Aasai" (meaning "little wishes" in Tamil), but he ended up fulfulling bigger wishes of the Indian community.

He successfully captured Kollywood and his movies with Mani Ratnam and Shankar were outstanding. He went on to capture the imagination of Hindi fans in Bollywood. The Tamil people used to say "Ilayaraja made Tamil people make a shift from Hindi music to Tamil music, while A.R. Rahman made Bollywood listen to Tamil songs". Now, it seems he will make Hollywood listen to him. Let us hope the movie "Slumdog Millionaire" have some impact on the Oscar awards too and A.R.Rahman will lay his hands on the prestigious Oscar award.

A.R.Rahman, you made us proud! Keep going!

Singapore Public Holidays 2009

2009-01-12T13:01:00.003+08:00

Singapore has a fixed number of holidays for every year. The official holidays are for eleven days a year, even though unofficially most of the companies provide few more holidays during the Chinese New Year period. Singaporeans, most of them, also get half-day off during Christmas Eve, New Year Eve, Deepavali Eve (for Hindus) and Hari Raya Eve (for Muslims). If a public holiday falls on a Sunday, the following Monday will be considered as a holiday.

The following is the list of public holidays in Singapore for the year 2009.

1. January 1, Thursday - New Year
2. January 26, Monday - Chinese New Year First Day
3. January 27, Tuesday - Chinese New Year Second Day
4. April 10, Friday - Good Friday
5. May 1, Friday - Labour Day
6. May 9, Saturday - Vesak Day
7. August 9, Sunday - National Day (Aug 10 will be a holiday in lieu)
8. September 20, Sunday - Hari Raya Aidilfitri (Sep 21 will be a holiday in lieu)
9. November 15, Sunday - Deepavali (Nov 16 will be a holiday in lieu)
10.November 27, Friday - Hari Raya Haji
11.December 25, Friday - Christmas

COE prices bounce back

2008-12-03T16:03:00.001+08:00

COE (Certificate of Entitlement) prices for Category A bounced back from the low of $2 in the previous bidding. When the tender closed for December 2008 1st Open Bidding Exercise on 03 Dec 2008 16:00 hrs, the COE prices for the Category A vehicles went up to $7,721.

Latest COE Prices (for information only):
Category A: The available quota of COE for Category A, Cars (1600cc & below) and Taxi, is 1840. There were, in total, 3149 bids when the tender closed. The tender closed at S$7,721. The increase in COE and the number of bids is attributed to the sudden increase in the interest shown by car buyers due to the previous $2 COE.

Category B: 1411 bids were received for the available quota of 1100 cars (above 1600 cc) in category B. The bid closed at $6501.

Category C: 374 bids were received at COE price of $5212 for a quota of 267 Goods vehicle & bus

Category D: The COE for motorcycles finished at $1102. Quota - 414; Bids received - 640

Category E: The Open category closed at $7589. Quota - 761; Bids - 1337

For details, please refer to COE Open Bidding website

Tritech Consultants win DTL1 C902QP Contract

2008-11-21T14:02:00.001+08:00

Tritech Consultants Pte Ltd won the Qualified Person (Supervision) services contract for LTA Downtown line Contract C902. DTL Contract 902 includes Design, Construction and Completion of DTL1 Promenade Station and its associated tunnels. The main contractor for the project is Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co Ltd (STEC).

Tritech won the S$6,956,000 worth contract, with 7 suppliers participating in the tender. The other unsuccessful consultants include Beca Carter Hollings & Ferner (S.E.Asia), CKM Consultants Pte Ltd, CPG Consultants Pte Ltd, Maunsell Consultants (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Mott MacDonald Singapore Pte Ltd and R.J. Crocker Consultants Pte Ltd.

Tritech Consultants Pte Ltd is a specialist civil and geotechnical consultant firm, established in 1999. Tritech Consultants comes under Tritech Group Ltd. Tritech Group is a niche player specializing in the geotechnical, ground and structural engineering fields. Tritech Consultants are recently involved in projects like The Sail@Marina Bay, City Square at Kitchener Road, D Lotus Condominium at Lorong Ampas and Varsity Park at Clementi/ West Coast Road.

Meinhardt gets QP(S) Contracts for C485 and C487

2008-11-12T13:39:00.001+08:00

LTA has recently awarded MCE Contract 487QP. The scope of 487QP includes Qualified Person (Supervision) Services for Contract 487 - Design, Construction and Completion of Marina Coastal Expressway (ECP/ KPE Interchange). The tender attracted eight suppliers including CKM Consultants Pte Ltd, CPG Consultants Pte Ltd, LYL Consultants Pte Ltd, Maunsell Consultants (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Mott MacDonald Singapore Pte Ltd, Meinhardt Infrastructure Pte Ltd, Parsons Brinckerhoff Pte Ltd and Tritech Consultants Pte Ltd. The award went to Meinhardt Infrastructure Pte Ltd at S$5,987,580.00

LTA also awarded MCE Contract 485QP to Meinhardt Infrastructure Pte Ltd. The scope of the contract involves Qualified Person (Supervision) Services for Contract 485 - Design, Construction and Completion of Marina Coastal Expressway (Marina Bay Crossing). Meinhardt won the contract that is estimated to be worth S$7,428,750.00. The other six unsuccessful participants include CKM Consultants Pte Ltd, CPG Consultants Pte Ltd, Maunsell Consultants (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Mott MacDonald Singapore Pte Ltd, Parsons Brinckerhoff Pte Ltd and Tritech Consultants Pte Ltd.

Obama and McCain in Singapore

2008-11-06T12:43:00.000+08:00

Our congrats to the new President-elect Mr. Barack Obama, who made history by becoming the first African-American to lead America. Our wishes to Mr. John McCain, who came close in popular votes in spite of everything stacked against him. Obama's younger feel combined with the economic crisis and unpopular Bush government has led to the fall of McCain. He tried to distance himself from Bush' policies, but in vain. Obama has won, but the real battle starts from now. He has made it to the helm at the toughest possible time. He need to bail US, and the world, out of the current financial turmoil. He needs to get his act together quickly regarding the policies in Afghanistan and Iraq. Hope we will become one of the great Presidents. Our wishes to him.

What are they doing in Singapore?
Yesterday, I was at the Bugis Junction and took by surprise when I saw advertisements displaying Barack Obama and John McCain. Naturally, I got interested and got closer to take a look.

I am not the only one to be surprised. I could see many taking pictures of the advertisement and I even noticed youngsters posing besides Obama with a victory "V" sign.

The cool advertisement can be seen at "Hip Diner USA" restaurant at Basement B1 of Bugis Junction.

Great timely idea, well received by Singaporeans. This is the first time I noticed that an American restaurant exists in Bugis Junction.

Boon Lay MRT Extension

2008-11-04T12:57:00.000+08:00

The Boon Lay MRT Extension (BLE) is a 3.8km extension of the existing East West MRT Line. BLE starts from the existing Boon Lay MRT station and consists of two aboveground stations, namely Pioneer Station and Joo Koon Station. Pioneer Station is located at Jurong West Street 63 near the junction with Pioneer Road North and Joo Koon Station is located at Joo Koon Circle adjacent to the junction with Benoi Road.

BLE runs along Jurong West Street 63, Upper Jurong Road, International Road and terminates at Joo Koon Circle. The opening of BLE in February 2009 will be a welcome news to the residents living in the Jurong West Town and those working in the Jurong Industrial Estate. The opening of Boon Lay Extension is also expected to reduce the stress on Boon Lay MRT station.

Minister for Transport and Second Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Raymond Lim, recently announced that the Boon Lay Extension (BLE) will begin service on 28 February 2009.

The concept of Boon Lay Extension was announced in December 2004 and construction works commenced in the second half of 2005. The construction of the Boon Lay Extension is being carried out by Sato Kogyo-Greatearth Construction Joint Venture (SGJV).

Two Civil Contracts Awarded for MCE

2008-11-03T16:51:00.000+08:00

LTA has confirmed the award of two more Civil contracts for Marina Coastal Expressway.

MCE Contract 482
Contract 482 is awarded to Ssangyong Engineering and Construction Co Ltd at an estimated sum of S$929.9 million. The scope of this contract includes the design, construction and completion of 360m of dual carriageway depressed road structure, 640m of dual carriageway vehicular tunnel structure, slip tunnels, at-grade roads and 280m section of future transit tunnel undercrossing the MCE tunnels.

MCE Contract 483
Samsung C&T Corporation has secured Contract 483 at an estimated sum of S$716.4 million. The scope of this contract includes the design, construction and completion of approximately 950m of vehicular tunnel structure, slip tunnels and at-grade roads connecting to Marina Boulevard. It also includes the construction of one ventilation building.

With the award of the contracts C482 and C483, LTA has awarded four out of the six civil contracts to construct the Marina Coastal Expressway. The first two contracts were earlier awarded to Penta-Ocean (MCE Contract 485) and Sato Kogyo-Daelim JV (MCE Contract 487).

Happy Deepavali

2008-10-27T11:42:00.001+08:00

I wish all my readers a Happy Deepavali.

Deepavali (Festival of Lights) is a significant festival celebrated in India, to signify the triumph of good over the evil. The festival is known as Deepavali in South India while North Indians normally call it as Diwali. The celebrations in South India revolves around Lord Krishna destroying Narakasuran, where as the celebrations in North India is about Rama's return to Ayodhya after the killing of Ravana. The North Indians celebrate Diwali the day after South Indians celebrate Deepavali.

Deepavali is celebrated with much interest and enthusiasm in Singapore. In Singapore, it is a national holiday. In India, we used to have a Deepavali with sound of crackers resonating throughout the season. In Singapore, it will be a muted celebration due to the restriction on the crackers that can be used. While it is a sound and light show in India, it is purely a light show in Singapore.

Vannathirai on Starhub Cable TV

2008-10-22T14:04:00.001+08:00

I wrote about the launch of Vasantham, a full-fledged channel from Mediacorp for the Indian community in Singapore. Now, Starhub has some good news for the Tamil speaking Indians in Singapore. StarHub has added a new channel, Vannathirai(VTV) to its pay-TV line up.

What can you expect?
Vannathirai (VTV) is a 24-hour Tamil movie channel that offers classic movies and latest blockbusters. Vannathirai is expected to screen seven movies daily under five main categories namely

Morning Classic,
Mega Matinee,
Evening Hits,
Blockbuster Reels and
Hit Night.

Viewers can also expect exclusive local programmes produced especially for the Singapore market.

Who can get access?
StarHub TV customers using the HubStation, digital or High Definition set-top box can watch Vannathirai channel via StarHub TV Channel 30. StarHub TV customers can add Vannathirai to their subscription packages for just $6.00 per month ($6.42 with 7% GST) upon the subscription of at least three Basic Groups from StarHub TV’s subscription plan. Existing StarHub TV customers can call 1633 to subscribe to Vannathirai while new customers can call 1630 to take on a StarHub TV package.

Promotion
If you are an early bird, you can catch the good offer. Customers who sign up between 24 September 2008 and 31 October 2008 can enjoy 50% off the channel’s subscription fee for the first three months.

Free Preview
Currently, Vannathirai is shown for free on Starhub's Preview Channel (Channel 01). The free telecast is expected to last until this Friday, 24 October 2008. Catch a glimpse of the programs before you sign up.

Vasantham, a full channel for Indians

2008-10-19T19:28:00.000+08:00

October 19 marked a historic milestone in the Singapore local broadcasting. A new channel, called Vasantham (meaning "Spring" in Tamil), is launched today by Mediacorp TV. The ceremony attracted many leaders in Singapore, including President Mr. S. R. Nathan and his wife. Deputy Prime Minister Mr. S. Jayakumar, Minister Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan, Members of Parliament Mr. S. Iswaran and Ms. Indranee Rajah were also present.

Changes to Vasantham Central
Vasantham, the new full-fledged Channel, will replace Vasantham Central. Vasantham Central shared the same TV channel earlier, along with Kids Central and Arts Central. The new Vasantham will telecast about 65 hours of programmes, 9 hours daily from Monday to Saturday and 11 hours on Sunday. The programmes will be availble from 3:00 p.m. to 12:00 midnight from Monday to Saturday and 1:00 p.m. to 12:00 midnight on Sunday.

Schedule of Movies
You can watch five movies a week; three Tamil movies, one Hindi movie and one regional movie (expected to be in Telugu/ Malayalam/ Kannada/ Punjabi languages). Vasantham is certainly starting off on a big note by telecasting the blockbuster movie "Shivaji", the success from the combination of actor Rajini Kanth, Director Shankar and Music Director A. R. Rehman.

The Singapore Indians, mainly Tamil people, have a better choice now with the free channel Vasantham. Starhub Cable Vision also brings Sun TV, Vijay TV and Vannathirai as paid channels.

MCE Contract 487 awarded to Sato Kogyo-Daelim JV

2008-10-18T18:04:00.001+08:00

Image via Wikipedia

The recent news release from LTA confirms that Contract 487 for Marina Coastal Expressway has been awarded to Sato Kogyo - Daelim Industrial Joint Venture. The S$732.6 million worth contract includes the design, construction and completion of approximately 700m of dual-carriageway main vehicular tunnel, 1,550m of slip tunnels, at-grade roads connecting to the ECP and Fort Road, and an interchange with Kallang-Paya Lebar Expressway (KPE)/ East Coast Parkway (ECP).

Sato Kogyo(S) Pte Ltd is one of Japan's leading general contractors and is currently involved in many prestigious projects in Singapore including the Marina Bayfront Bridge (MBB), the Boon Lay MRT extension and District Cooling System Box at Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resort (MBSIR). Daelim Industrial Co. Ltd is one of Korea's top construction and engineering companies.

Penta-Ocean gets MCE Contract 485

2008-10-15T22:05:00.000+08:00

Image via WikipediaPenta-Ocean Construction Co. Ltd secured LTA Contract C485, one of the two civil contracts awarded for the construction of Marina Coastal Expressway (MCE).

Marina Coastal Expressway (MCE)
MCE is the latest expressway that will be added to the road network of Singapore. MCE will become the tenth expressway to be constructed in Singapore. The other nine expressways existing in Singapore are as follows:

PIE (Pan Island Expressway),
ECP (East Coast Parkway),
AYE (Ayer Rajah Expressway),
CTE (Central Expressway),
TPE (Tampines Expressway),
SLE (Seletar Expressway),
KJE (Kranji Expressway),
BKE (Bukit Timah Expressway) and
KPE (Kallang-Paya Lebar Expressway)

The MCE is one of many important initiatives to expand Singapore's land transport network into the Marina Bay area. MCE is expected to be about 5 km long, serving as a strategic east-west transport link between the KPE, the ECP and the AYE, with direct connections to the Marina South and Straits View areas.

Contract 485
The scope of Contract 485 includes the design, construction and completion of 700m of dual 5-lane vehicular tunnel structure, of which approximately 420m is below the Marina Bay Crossing. The contract is awarded to Penta-Ocean Construction Co. Ltd at a sum of $669.7 million, as per the news release on LTA's website. Construction works for the MCE are expected to commence in the first quarter of 2009.

LTA Awards Contracts C1320 and C1321

2008-09-08T16:46:00.007+08:00

Land Transport of Authority (LTA) of Singaprore has awarded two contracts for the installation Of Half Height Platform Screen Doors (HHPSD) and Associated Works at MRT Stations of North-South and East-West Lines.

What are Platform Screen Doors?
Platform Screen Doors (PSD) are barriers that are installed to prevent public from entering the rail track. PSDs are normally transparent and separate rail tracks from platform. Train doors and PSDs are synchronized to open simultaneously after the train has come to a halt. As such, PSDs help in reducing the risk of accidents by preventing people from falling or jumping on to the tracks. PSDs reduce air-conditioning and ventilation costs by isolating the platforms from the track and tunnels. It also improves the passenger comfort by keeping the platform quiet and clean.

What are Half-Height Platform Screen Doors?
The Half Height Platform Screen Doors are about 1.5 metres high and are installed along the edge of the station platform to create a barrier separating the trackside and the platform. While Full-height Platform Screen Doors serve many purposes as discussed above, Half-height Platform Screen Doors are installed solely to improve safety.

All the underground MRT stations in Singapore are already fitted with platform screen doors while the elevated stations do not have such a barrier. As part of the Land Transport Master Plan, LTA has decided to install half-height platform screen doors to enhance the safety of the rail system. In one of my articles, MRT Train Service Disruption at CCK: Update, I have discussed about the safety at elevated MRT stations.

Contract C1320
Contract C1320 has been awarded to Singapore Technologies Electronics Limited. The contract is worth approximately $112.3 million and includes the design, manufacturing, supply, installation, testing and commissioning of the Half Height Platform Screen Doors and its associated works at the existing 36 elevated North-South and East-West Line MRT stations which currently do not have platform screen doors.

Contract C1321
Contract C1321 has been awarded to Westinghouse Brake and Signal Holdings Limited. The contract is worth approximately $13.9 million and includes the signaling interface to ensure that the Half Height Platform Screen Doors are able to synchronize with the train doors.

The installation of the Half Height Platform Screen Doors is expected to commence in the third quarter of 2008 and complete in the fourth quarter of 2009 at three stations, namely Yishun, Jurong East and Pasir Ris. Subsequently, all the remaining 33 stations will have such doors fitted by 2012.

Design logo for Singapore Youth Olympic Games

2008-08-19T14:47:00.003+08:00

Singapore will be hosting the first ever Youth Olympic Games (YOG) in 2010. About 3500 athletes from around the world are expected to arrive in Singapore to compete in the spirit of Excellence, Friendship and Respect. YOG will be an Olympic Games for 14-18 year old athletes.

Design the Logo
You can be part of the Singapore Youth Olympic Games (YOG), to be held in 2010, by designing the logo. The competition is open to everyone, regardless of the nationality or design experience. Please take note that professional organizations are not permitted to take part in this competition but their employees may participate in the competition in their personal capacity. Group submissions are also not allowed.

Logo Themes
The logo should cover three broad themes:

Youthful spirit
Values of Olympism and
The Singapore identity

Essential elements in the logo
The Singapore 2010 logo should include the following 4 elements:

A distinctive element
The word mark "Singapore 2010"
The Olympic symbol (the five rings)
The word mark "Youth Olympic Games"

Competition Categories
Participants can take part in one of the following categories:

Youth category (18 years and below)
Open category

Attractive Prizes
The creator of the Overall Best Design will win:

A chance to be one of the Torchbearers during the Torch Relay for the Singapore 2010 Games
A pair of exclusive tickets to the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the Singapore 2010 Games
The ultra chic Olympic Edition Samsung SGH F480

Each Merit Prize Winner will win:

A pair of exclusive tickets to the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of Singapore 2010 Games
A Samsung voucher worth $200

If you are ready for the challenge and would like to find out more information on the competition, terms and conditions, then click here to visit the Singapore 2010 web site. I wish you all the best for the competition.

Paes-Bhupathi wins, Sania-Sunitha loses

2008-08-14T12:26:00.003+08:00

The reunited Indian tennis pair of Leander Paes/ Mahesh Bhupathi advanced to the quarterfinals in the Men’s Doubles while Sania Mirza/ Sunitha Rao bowed out.

Leander-Mahesh Show
Once again, Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi were clinical in despatching the Brazilian pair Marcelo Melo/ Andre SA. The Indians took 69 minutes to win the match in straight sets 6-4, 6-2. Like in the last round, they did not provide any break opportunities to the opponents. They broke the Brazilian pair in the third game of the first set and then the set went on serve until the Indians completed the set 6-4. In the second set, they broke the service in the very first game and in the seventh game to take the set 6-2. Leander/ Mahesh won 65 points compared to 44 points by the opponents.

Roger Federer Awaits Next
The quarterfinals match will really test the Indian pair. They are up against the giant, Roger Federer. The 7th seeded Indians have to sum all their doubles experience to go past the 4th seeded Swiss pair of Roger Federer/ Stanislas Wawrinka.

Sania will be disappointed
The Indian women’s pair of Sania Mirza/ Sunitha Rao went down to the top seeds Svetlana Kuznetsova/ Dinara Safina of Russia. Throughout the match, the players found it difficult to hold the serve. There were as many as 5 break of serves in both the sets. It’s a very close game, but the Indians were unable to really capitalize. Sania Mirza might be disappointed overall without posting any win on the Olympics stage, as she had retired in the first round of the singles event earlier.

Pictures of Leander Paes/ Mahesh Bhupathi during their match against the Brazilian pair:

Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi in action

Mahesh Bhupathi serves

Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes walk to the baseline

Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes celebrate winning the first set

Leander-Mahesh leading in Men’s Doubles Third Round

2008-08-13T17:09:00.000+08:00

Leander Paes/ Mahesh Bhupathi pair is currently playing the Brazil pair Marcelo Melo/ Andre SA in the third round of the Men’s Doubles Tennis in the Beijing Olympics 2008. As at the time of this article, the Indian pair has captured the first set 6-4 and are leading in the second set 4-2 with a break of serve in their favour.

Go Indian Express!

Leander-Mahesh in Men’s Doubles Third Round

2008-08-13T16:59:00.000+08:00

Leander Paes/ Mahesh Bhupathi pair has progressed into the second round of the Men’s Doubles Tennis in the Beijing Olympics 2008. In yesterday’s second round match, the seventh seeded Paes/ Bhupathi pair overcame unseeded pair Gael Monfils/ Gilles Simon of France in straight sets.

The Match

Leander and Mahesh played good tennis to easily beat the opponents 6-3, 6-3. The match lasted only for 57 minutes. The first break point for the Indian pair came in the fourth game of the set and they converted it to take a lead. Then, the set went along serve and the Indian pair took the set 6 -3. In the second set, they broke the opponents in the seventh and ninth games to take the set at 6-3.

The Indian pair served four aces and no double-fault. They are so dominant that there was not even a single break point against them. Leander and Mahesh won a total of 54 points compared to the opponents’ 36 points.

What Next?

In the third round match, Leander Paes/ Mahesh Bhupathi will face the Brazil pair Marcelo Melo/ Andre SA. The Brazil pair advanced to the third round by defeating Czech Republic pair Tomas Berdych/ Radek Stepanek 5-7, 6-2, 8-6.

Will the Indians advance further? Let us wait and watch. With Saina Nehwal out of the medal contention in badminton and Sania Mirza also opting out of the Women’s Singles, the hopes are with Leander and Mahesh to pull the second medal for India. We wish the Indian Express all success in their second round match.

Saina’s Dream Run Ends in Beijing Olympics

2008-08-13T13:18:00.002+08:00

India’s Saina Nehwal lost to Indonesian Maria Kristin Yulianti in the quarterfinals of the Beijing Olympics Badminton Women's Singles event. Saina did her best to progress into the semi-finals, but the Indonesian’s determination to progress further in the tournament stood in the way.

First Game
The first game saw a great fight between the two unseeded players. Saina held the advantage for most part of the game, but she was unable to close it out early. When Saina finally won the first game at 28-26, it took her 9 game points to secure the game. For her part, Maria had two game points.

Second Game
In the second game, Maria took the lead early to make it 9-3. She maintained the lead to finish off the second game at 21-14 and did not allow Saina any chance to make a comeback.

Third Game
The third game saw Saina wresting the initiative and leading comfortably at 11-3. It seemed that she was running away with the match when she won seven points on the trot. But, Maria did not relent. She won 16 of the next 17 points and changed the direction of the game and the match. She went on a rampage to lead 19-12 in the game and Saina was unable to recover. She saved one match point at 20-14, but Maria converted the second match point to win the match at 26-28, 21-14 and 21-15.

Saina might have lost the match, but she certainly showed the fighting spirit. The Indians should be proud to have Saina in their team. We will hear more of Saina in the future. Welcome back to India, Saina! A red carpet welcome awaits you.

Saina in Beijing Olympics Quarterfinals

2008-08-12T13:20:00.000+08:00

Saina Nehwal of India has moved into the quarterfinals of the Women’s Singles Badminton in the Beijing Olympics 2008. The Indians had much to cheer yesterday, thanks to the "Golden Son of India" Abhinav Bindra. And the unseeded Saina made it a double joy by performing above expectations.

The Match
The 18 year old girl from Hyderabad entered the quarterfinals by beating the 4th seed Wang Chen from Hong Kong. World No. 6 Wang Chen lost the first game 21-19 to Saina Nehwal, though at one stage the score read 19-16 in favour of the veteran. Wang regained her momentum by winning the second set 21-11. However, Saina had the last laugh as she led 6-0 at the beginning of the tiebreaker and kept this lead to win the game 21-19, 11-21, 21-11.

The Progress So far
Earlier, in the round of 64, Saina had an easy win over the Russian Karachkova Ella 21-9, 21-8. She followed it up with another easy win over the Ukrainian Gryga Larysa 21-18, 21-10.

What Next?
Saina, currently ranked No. 15 in the World, will face Indonesian Maria Kristin Yulianti, World No. 21, in the quarterfinals. The unseeded Maria Kristin has an upset win over sixth seeded Tine Rasmussen from Denmark in the pre-quarterfinals. Tine Rasmussen is currently ranked No. 4 in the world.

India will hope for another medal with the excellent performance from Saina so far. This blog wishes Saina to make it to the semi-finals. Go Saina! Get another gold for India and be the "Golden Daughter of India".

India wins Gold Medal in Beijing Olympics 2008

2008-08-11T13:10:00.001+08:00

Abhinav Bindra of India has won the gold medal in the Men's 10m Air Rifle in Beijing on August 11. Bindra shot a total score of 700.5 and finished ahead of China's Zhu Qinan, gold medalist at Athens 2004, and Finland's Henri Hakkinen, who was leading the field after the qualification round.

The 25-year old youngster from Chandigarh has made the entire Indian nation proud by lifting the gold medal with an incredible performance in the final. Abhinav Bindra has made history as he became the first Indian individual to win an Olympics Gold medal. He improved upon the performance of shooter Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, who won silver in the double trap event at the 2004 Games in Athens.

The eight gold medals, so far won by the Indians, had been through the team sport of Hockey. It is a pity that India does not even feature in the Beijing 2008 Olympics Hockey event. So, it is a highly satisfying performance by Bindra, considering the fact that India’s last gold medal came in the year 1980. Since then, the Indians managed a lone bronze each in 1996 and 2000, followed by a silver in 2004.

Indians would be over the moon with the gold medal, as the paltry 15 medals from 21 appearances in the Olympics would tell you how dearly they needed a medal. With one medal in the kitty, can the Indians equalize/ better the performance of 1952, the only time they won two medals in an Olympics tournament.

Whatever happens from now in Beijing, Bindra can hold his head high. Congratulations to him and this blog salutes his efforts.

DTL1 C902 Awarded to Shanghai Tunnel Engineering

2008-08-07T13:13:00.000+08:00

Land Transport Authority (LTA), in its news release yesterday, has announced the award of Contract 902 for civil works for Downtown Line 1 (DTL1) to Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co Ltd (STEC).

The scope of LTA Contract 902 includes Design, Construction and Completion of DTL1 Promenade Station and its associated tunnels up to the contract boundaries with Contract 905 (Tunnel between Promenade Station and Marina Bay) and Contract 903 (DTL1 Bugis Station and tunnels). It is understood that the contract is approximately S$231.9 million worth.

The DTL1 Promenade Station is adjacent to the existing Circle Line (CCL) Promenade station, which is located just opposite the Millenia Tower and the Centennial Tower. The DTL Promenade station will be constructed below the CCL Promenade station. Upon completion, Promenade will serve as an interchange station facilitating transfers between Circle Line and Downtown Line. The construction on the DTL1 C902 is scheduled to commence in the last quarter of 2008 and is targeted to complete in the year 2013

Shanghai Tunnel Engineering has good background in the Singapore MRT projects, some of which are listed below:

Woh Hup Pte Ltd, Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co. Ltd and NCC International AB Joint Venture: Contract C825 – Civil works for the Millenia, Convention Centre, Museum and Dhoby Ghaut stations and tunnels (Circle Line Stage 1)

Woh Hup Pte Ltd, Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co. Ltd and Alpine Mayreder bau GmbH Joint Venture: Contract 852 - Construction and completion of Serangoon Interchange Station including the interconnecting tunnels from Serangoon Station to Lorong Chuan Station, and from Serangoon Station to Bartley Station (Circle Line Stage 3)

Woh Hup (Pte) Ltd-Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co. Ltd-Alpine Mayreder bau GmbH (WH-STEC-AM) Joint Venture: Contract 855 - Construction and completion of Holland, Buona Vista and NUH Stations, including fit out works and tunnels for One-North Station (Circle Line Stage 4 & 5)

We would like to congratulate Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co. Ltd and wish them another successful project.

Suggest Station Names for Downtown Line MRT Stage 2 (DTL2)

2008-08-06T13:32:00.002+08:00

Downtown Line MRT Stage 2 (DTL2) will connect Bukit Panjang to the heart of the city, passing through Bukit Timah. DTL2 will extend from Bugis station of the under-construction six-station DTL1 line to Bukit Panjang. DTL2 is expected to add another 16.6 km to the MRT network and will comprise of one depot and 12 stations. DTL2 will provide three interchange stations at Little India, Newton and Botanic Gardens. The three stages of the Downtown line DTL1, DTL2 and DTL3 are estimated to be ready by 2013, 2015 and 2016 respectively.

With the recent announcement of the alignment and station locations of DTL2, working names based on station location are being used for ease of reference. Land Transport Authority (LTA) of Singapore is now seeking feedback and ideas from the public on the official names for these stations, with the exception the three interchange stations at Little India, Newton and Botanic Gardens as these are the official station names. The depot is named as Gali Batu Depot. The names of the stations along DTL2 are as follows:

Petir (Will serve as an interchange station between Bukit Panjang LRT and Downtown line)

Cashew

Hill View

Beauty World

Blackmore

Sixth Ave

Duchess

Botanic Gardens (Official Name, Will Serve as an interchange station between Circle Line and Downtown Line)

Stevens

Newton (Official Name, Will Serve as an interchange station between North-South Line and Downtown Line)

Little India (Official Name, Will Serve as an interchange station between North-East Line and Downtown Line)

Rochor

To take part in the station naming exercise and submit your preferred station name(s), please visit the Talk2LTA portal by clicking here. You have the option to keep the current working names or suggest new ones for as many of the nine stations. The closing date for suggestions is on 26 August 2008. LTA will collate all suggestions and short-listed names will be announced for public polling in September 2008.

Singapore MRT: The North-South Line

2008-08-04T14:11:00.000+08:00

Singapore has a very good transport network that aims to provide a seamless travel experience to its residents. MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) system remains as the major public transport system, well supported by buses and LRT system. The MRT network mainly comprises of three routes, namely, East-West Line (EWL), North-South Line (NSL) and North-East Line (NEL). As at end of the year 2007, the total rail length is estimated at about 139 km, with 110 km of MRT line and 29 km of LRT system.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) of Singapore continually works on improving the MRT network and construction works are in progress for the Circle Line (CCL) and Downtown Line 1 (DTL1). The works for the Downtown Line 2 (DTL2) and Downtown Line 3 (DTL3) are expected to commence mid-2009 and mid-2010 respectively.

In this discussion, we will see the MRT stations situated along the North-South Line, running from Jurong East in the West to Marina Bay in the South.

NS1/ EW24 – Jurong East (Interchange station that connects North-South Line and East-West Line)

NS2 – Bukit Batok

NS3 – Bukit Gombak

NS4/ BP1 – Choa Chu Kang (Interchange station that connects the North-South Line and the Bukit Panjang LRT Line)

NS5 – Yew Tee

NS6 – No station at present; Set aside for Future Station at Sungei Kadut

NS7 – Kranji

NS8 - Marsiling

NS9 – Woodlands

NS10 – Admiralty

NS11 – Sembawang

NS12 - No station at present; Set aside for Future Station at Canberra

NS13 – Yishun

NS14 – Khatib

NS15 – Yio Chu Kang

NS16 – Ang Mo Kio

NS17/ CC15 – Bishan (Will become an Interchange station once the Circle Line is completed. Connects the North-South Line and the Circle Line under construction)

NS18 – Braddell

NS19 – Toa Payoh

NS20 – Novena

NS21 – Newton

NS22 – Orchard

NS23 – Somerset

NS24/ NE6/ CC1 – Dhoby Ghaut (Interchange station that connects the North-South Line and the North-East Line. The link to Circle Line is under construction and expected to be available by 2010)

NS25/ EW13 – City Hall (Interchange station that connects North-South Line and East-West Line)

NS26/ EW14 – Raffles Place (Interchange station that connects North-South Line and East-West Line)

NS27 – Marina Bay

We will see the other MRT lines in the coming discussions.

New Seventh Storey Hotel to give way for DTL Bugis Station?

2008-06-27T14:41:00.001+08:00

From a News Release jointly issued by the Land Transport Authority (LTA), Singapore Land Authority (SLA) and Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), it is understood that the New Seventh Storey Hotel (NSSH) will have to be demolished to allow for the construction of the new DTL Bugis station. The News Release displayed on the URA's web site indicates that the Singapore Government will acquire the NSSH under the Land Acquisition Act (LAA) to make way for the construction of the new Bugis station and to enable comprehensive development of the area.

The new Bugis station is part of the 4.3 km Downtown Line MRT Phase 1 (DTL1). It is one of the six stations of DTL1, which will run from Bugis station on the East-West Line to Chinatown station on the North East Line.

It is not known how the hotel management will react and the general public will feel. I had seen this hotel between the DHL hot air balloon site and the Bugis MRT station. It is always sad to know that something has to give way for a new development. I know the difficulty of building new structures and how painful it would be to see a structure go down flat.

You can read the complete News Release from URA at this link titled New DTL Bugis Station.

Time for a break

2008-05-23T16:25:00.000+08:00

Yes, I am going on a holiday trip, that will stretch for about three weeks. The school holidays commence in Singapore from 24 May 2008. I have planned this trip for my children a few months ago.

So, you may not be able to see any updates to this blog over the next one month. I will be back with more news on Singapore and India very soon. Until then, good bye from me. Be Happy.

Long Queue at Immigration & Checkpoints Authority Building

2008-05-17T08:51:00.003+08:00

Last week, I had to visit the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) of Singapore. It was a Saturday. So, I got up early so that I can reach the ICA building by 8:00 a.m. I took the MRT train and alighted at the Lavender MRT station. When I came out of the station, it was about 5 minutes to 8:00 a.m.

The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) is conveniently located just outside the door of the Lavender MRT station. So, I walked slowly to join the queue that normally forms up before the operations begin in the morning. It seemed like a never-ending walk as the queue meandered along the ICA building. It took me almost five minutes to reach the tail of the queue that stretched outside the ICA building and running along the canal.

I estimated the queue to be as long as one kilometre. This was the first time I encounter such a long queue outside the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) building. As the queue started to move slowly, I came to the entrance and took the lift to the Permanent Resident Services section. Once again, there was a big queue outside the reception counter to get the tokens.

An immigration officer came along and announced that no more applications for permanent residency would be accepted. A small notice board appeared at the reception counter indicating that the quota for that day has been closed at 8:16 a.m. That’s very quick. All the slots were gone within 16 minutes. Fortunately, I went there to get my passport endorsed and not for permanent resident application. I could see lot of disappointed faces returning back with murmurs.

I have always enjoyed my visits to the ICA building. They have a very good system and the immigration officers used to be very kind and helpful. Even the waiting time would be happy moments with those Mr. Bean cartoons. I still think that ICA is very efficient in handling such a huge turnout everyday. But, should they look at extending their operating hours to cope with the increase in immigrants? I have the confidence that my next visit to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority would bring along a better experience.

Fight against Natural Disasters

2008-05-16T08:47:00.000+08:00

We have been devastated by natural calamities like Tsunami that changed the lives of several Indians, Sri Lankans and Indonesians in 2004. The bad memories from the Gujarat earthquake still haven’t disappeared. Earthquakes in Pakistan, Mumbai serial bomb blasts, 911 terrorist attack, ... As if those are not enough, the first half of the month of May 2008 has produced many disasters.

First came the news of Cyclone Nargis blowing away the coastal areas of Myanmar, leaving about 38000 people dead. A week later, the entire nation of China was shook when the earthquake measuring 7.9 on Richter scale struck Sichuan. The earthquake left more than 15000 people dead and thousands still under the rubble.

To add to the wounds caused by natural disasters, here is latest news on a man-made disaster. The serial bomb blast ripped through the bustling streets of Jaipur, the capital city of the state of Rajasthan in India. The eight bombs that went after within minutes of each other took about 63 lives and paralysed the life of Jaipur, a tourist spot also known as Pink City.

The mankind is already fighting terrorism. How are we going to fight against the natural disasters? Is there any way to mitigate the effects of Natural Hazards? We could not yet win the Fight against Terrorism; what about nature? God, please give us a break. We need peace. We want to enjoy the life without the worries of disasters, either man-made or natural.

National University of Singapore (NUS)

2008-04-25T12:37:00.000+08:00

Acknowledged as one of the finest universities in the Asia-Pacific region, National University of Singapore (NUS) is a comprehensive university offering a broad-based curriculum underscored by multi-disciplinary courses and cross-faculty enrichment.

Location of NUS
National University of Singapore (NUS) is located at the south-western side of the Singapore Island. Situated at Kent Ridge, the main campus occupies approximately 140 hectares of land and overlooks the western coast of Singapore. The Faculty of Law is located at the Bukit Timah campus, while the Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School can be found at the Outram campus.

The New University Town
National University of Singapore (NUS) has recently commenced works on the University town, which will add another 19 hectares across the highway from Kent Ridge at the site of the former Warren golf course. The University Town, which is expected to be ready by 2010, will host the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART), the first research centre within the National Research Foundation’s Campus for Research Excellence And Technological Enterprise (CREATE) as well as the Asia Research Institute.

Students in NUS
National University of Singapore (NUS) currently has 12 faculties offering undergraduate and graduate programmes. For the annual year 2007-08, it has an enrolment of about 24,000 undergraduate students and about 7000 graduate students. The student population is made of both local and foreign students. Of the foreign student population, the majority are from the neighbouring ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) countries, although there is also a significant number from China, India, and Bangladesh.

Escape of Mas Selamat, COI Report

2008-04-23T13:12:00.002+08:00

Who is Mas Selamat?
Mas Selamat Bin Kastari, a 47 years old Indonesian-born Singaporean, was allegedly the head of the Singapore arm of the terrorist network called Jemaah Islamiah. Mas Selamat was detained in Singapore under the Internal Security Act since Indonesia handed him over in February 2006.

Escape from the Detention Centre
Mas Selamat escaped from the Whitley Road Detention Centre in Singapore on 27th February 2008. His escape took Singaporeans by surprise. Singapore is believed to be one of the most secure places in the world and nobody expected a high-profile terrorist to escape. This led to a massive search that is believed to be the biggest manhunt in Singapore history. All the efforts are in vain as Mas Selamat could not be traced down still. About 8 weeks had rolled since his escape on that eventful Wednesday.

Committe Of Inquiry
The Singapore Government has ordered a thorough investigation by a Committee Of Inquiry (COI). The COI submitted its report on April 10, 2008. Deputy Prime Minister and Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng released the executive summary of the COI's report to parliament on Monday.

Major findings in the COI report

The ventilation window in the urinal cubicle from which Mas Selamat escaped had not been secured by grilles

The weakness in the perimeter fencing, where the outer and inner perimeter fences converged with an enclosed staircase and walkway leading to the Family Visitation Block, was not detected

The two Gurkha Contingent guards and the Special Duty Operative escorting Mas Selamat failed to respond immediately and decisively when they noticed Mas Selamat was taking too long in the urinal cubicle

No one was actively monitoring the two CCTV cameras covering the outer and inner perimeter fences at the rear of the Family Visitation Block

It is now very clear that Mas Selamat might not have had many problems to escape from the detention centre. The escape plan was so simple and easily executed. There is no need for him to either confront any physical security or any technical barricades. The only difficulty was to push himself through the window and he was free.

The most annoying lapse was the failure to secure the ventilation window with any sort of protection. A detention centre that is holding a terrorist like Mas Selamat could have been better. Most of the residential flat windows, located at a much higher level, have been secured by grilles. Secondly, it is frustrating to know that the CCTV cameras were not actively monitored. This brings my mind to the Nicoll Highway COI report that pointed out the failure in the instrumentation monitoring.

No intentional omission by any staff
The only consolation is the conclusion by COI that there was no indication of criminal negligence, intentional omission and collusion by any of the staff at the detention centre. The Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which carried out an independent probe to find out if there was criminal liability on anyone's part, concurred.

Where is Mas Selamat Kastari? DPM Wong Kan Seng still believes that he is still in Singapore. The escape of Mas Selamat Kastari would remain as a black dot in the history of red dot.

Singapore Climate

2008-04-22T13:19:00.000+08:00

The climate in Singapore is like summer all year round. Singapore's climate is warm and humid, with only slight variations between the average maximum of 31 degrees Celsius and minimum of 23 degrees Celsius.

The tropical climate makes Singapore warm and wet most of the year. The climate of Singapore can be separated into two key seasons, the Northeast Monsoon and the Southwest Monsoon season. Rain falls throughout the year, with more consistent rain coming during the monsoon season from November to January. Showers are usually sudden and heavy, but also brief and refreshing.

December is the coolest month of the year while May is the warmest. This year, it is heavily raining for the past one month or so here in Singapore. December and April bring maximum rainfall while February and July are considered to be the dry periods.

Image in this post: Courtesy of Singapore Tourism Board

Singapore’s Happiest Person

2008-04-18T13:06:00.000+08:00

What is happiness? Having a Mercedes? Living in a condo with a sea view? Holding the position of CEO? Happiness is a very subjective term. We always feel that someone with higher living standards is always happy. Is that true? Is happiness related to money, property or your position in the society?

The two-day conference on “The New Science of Happiness and Well-Being” concluded yesterday at the Singapore Expo Convention & Exhibition Centre. The conference concentrated on how to utilize the science of positive psychology to good effect.

As part of the conference, a month long search was conducted to identify the Singapore’s Happiest Person. The contest attracted 207 nominations from Singaporeans. From this list of nominations, four persons were short listed by the selection panel that consisted of Dr Sorinder Singh (Singapore Family Physician for 33 years), Mr. Najib Ali (Creative Director, Dua M Pte Ltd), Dr. Leong Chan-Hoong (Head of Psychology Programme, SIM University) and Lord Bittleson of Newnham (Author, Business and Personal Mentor).

The finalists included patient transporter Ms. Stella Fernandez, 43, training consultant Ms. Zaibun Siraj, 61, polyclinic records-keeper Mr. Ng Chai Lee, 61, and engineer Mr. Andy Goh, 34. The contestants are expected to have a happy smiling disposition, ability to be happy no matter what life presents them with, have a strong sense of community and belonging, stays consistently happy and contributes to society by bringing happiness to others.

In the finals yesterday, Mr. Andy Goh, the youngest among the finalists, won the Singapore’s Happiest Person award along with a 3D2N stay at the Marriott’s Phuket Beach Club worth $2,240 and $200 cash. The second-placed Mr. Ng Chai Lee won a 3D2N stay at Thailand’s Hua Hin Marriott Resort worth $648. The other two finalists tied for the third place that fetched them both a 2D1N stay at the Ritz Carlton Millennia Singapore worth $410.

The secret to happiness seems to be remaining content with what you have. Happiness lies in making others happy. Happiness lies in cherishing your loved ones. Be Happy!

Singapore Population

2008-04-10T06:53:00.000+08:00

The population of Singapore is about 4.0 million, comprising of a multi-racial mix of nationals. There are four main races here in Singapore: Chinese constitute about 77% of the Singapore population, about 14% of Malay people, about 8% of Indian community and other ethnic groups about 1.4%. Singapore Government is very particular in maintaining the ethnic race ratio around these numbers. An ethnic integration policy is adopted by Singapore's Housing Development Board. The Ethnic Integration Policy (EIP) is adopted to promote racial integration and harmony. It also helps to prevent the formation of racial enclaves, by ensuring a balanced ethnic mix among the various ethnic communities living in Singapore.

Most Singaporeans are bilingual. English is widely spoken and is the main language of administration, business and technology. The national language of Singapore is Malay while the four official languages are Mandarin (Chinese), Malay, Tamil and English. Major religions include Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Christianity and Hinduism.

Image in this post: Courtesy of Singapore Tourism Board

MRT Train Service Disruption at CCK: Update

2008-04-07T15:12:00.001+08:00

In my earlier post, Bukit Gombak MRT Station: In Chaos, I have expressed my disappointment in the way SMRT handled the disruption to train services between Yew Tee and Bukit Gombak MRT stations. The train services were disrupted for about an hour, between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. this morning.

It is clear now that the disruption was caused by a man, who fell onto the MRT track and was hit by an approaching train. The accident happened at Choa Chu Kang MRT station in the North-South line. The man, a Chinese in his mid-40s, was pronounced dead at about 8:30am. It is understood that Police has classified this as unnatural death and are investigating.

It is too early to conclude the cause of the death. But, this death will once again open up discussions on the safety at the MRT platforms, which do not have platform screen doors. The underground stations are normally fitted with platform screen doors. But, the elevated stations do not have such protection.

With the huge crowd in the morning peak hours, everyone likes to get close to the door opening before the train arrives. This exposes passengers to the hazard of being pushed into the MRT tracks while the train is approaching the station. The trains are too crowded and if you are too gentle, you would never get into the train. This is particularly true in stations like Chua Chu Kang, Bukit Gombak and Bukit Batok that are close to the end of North-South line. When trains arrive at these stations, they are already full and there is enough space for only one or two to squeeze themselves into the train. You face the same problem in the city-bound trains at Jurong East MRT interchange.

I have shared my experience with the trains in the west of Singapore. But, I believe the problem is the same all over Singapore. Will SMRT look into increasing the number of trains during peak hours? Will LTA expedite the construction of platform screen doors at the elevated MRT stations? Will SMRT start to handle such disruptions in a better way? I am waiting for the answers/ actions as you do.

Bukit Gombak MRT Station: In Chaos

2008-04-07T10:43:00.003+08:00

The MRT train service along the North-South line was disrupted at about 8:00 a.m. this morning. It is understood that the delay was caused by an accident at Choa Chu Kang MRT station.

I was at Bukit Gombak MRT during this time to board train towards Jurong East station. It was utter chaos in the Bukit Gombak MRT station and people were left stranded. I am writing this post to express my disappointment. I can understand that accidents are unexpected. But, the response should have been planned. Many exercises have been conducted to show people how to face emergency situations and how to react. But, why SMRT team is not ready with contingency measures when such disruption occurs? I will list down the issues below:

Poor Communication
The public announcement system at Bukit Gombak MRT station is barely audible. With the huge crowd gathering, the staff should have made the announcements with a little more clarity. The passengers were not informed of the expected delay and when the train services are expected to resume.

No alternate arrangements
The passengers were instructed to go to Bukit Batok MRT station to continue their journey towards Jurong East interchange. As only bus service 945 passes through Bukit Gombak, the crowd started to gather at the bus stop outside the MRT station. As I could not board the bus in front of the MRT, I decided to board the bus at the bus stop opposite. I had to spend about another 20 to 30 minutes as the bus went through the entire Bukit Batok West before coming back to Bukit Gombak station and continued to Bukit Batok bus interchange. More buses could have been directed to the 945 route or special buses could have been arranged to ferry the passengers to Bukit Batok.

No updates
SMRT could have made some efforts to make some announcements to the public through the radio stations. While I was in the feeder service, I was not sure what was happening. I had to ponder whether it is OK to get down at Bukit Batok to board the train again. As no updates were forthcoming, I decided to take another bus to Clementi. I thought it is better to play safe rather than give the benefit of doubt to MRT service.

Poor administration
The accident has affected the train services beyond Bukit Gombak towards Choa Chu Kang. There was no problem in the route from Bukit Gombak towards Jurong East. So, I do not understand why passengers were not allowed to board the empty trains that went back towards Jurong East. If train services could run from Bukit Batok, as announced, why not from Bukit Gombak? I think it is due to the poor administration and lack of some quick decisions that led to this delay, at least at Bukit Gombak station.

It is difficult to comprehend that such haphazard arrangements still exist in the systematic Singapore. Hope SMRT will be prepared if such disruptions happen again.

Singapore: A place to live, work and play

2008-04-01T12:43:00.001+08:00

Singapore is a small country situated at the southern tip of the Malaysian peninsula, just above the equator. Singapore is about one degree north of the equator with a land area of about 685 square kilometres. Living conditions in Singapore are amongst the best in Asia with state-of-the art facilities for education, sports, shopping and recreation.

Strategic location, coupled with a small but dynamic population, has enabled the country to experience rapid economic development. Many factors such as political and social stability, good communication, world class transportation, infrastructure and an English-speaking workforce have attracted foreign investment and multi-national corporations to Singapore. Singapore is also a regional centre for business and technical consultancy, professional, engineering and computer services, and research and development activities.

The rich cultural heritage of Singapore has also made her a strong attraction to tourists from all parts of the world. Singapore is known as a shopper’s paradise - you can find a full range from arts and crafts, antiques, electronic goods, computer software to fashion. Find what you want at Mustafa Centre, Sim Lim Tower, Funan Centre, Ngee Ann City, Tangs, Robinsons or at your favourite neighbourhood shops.

The racial harmony in Singapore is a rarity in today’s world. In Singapore, you can see Hindu temples, Sikh temples, Churches, Mosques and Buddhist temples. Indians can get a feel of their home at Little India, Chinese has China town, Malays at Geylang Serai, Filipinos assemble at Lucky Plaza and the Thais have their own at Golden Mile Complex.

Singapore will offer visitors a culinary experience of a lifetime - distinctive dishes from the Chinese, Malay, Indian, Indonesian, Nonya, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai, Filipino and Western culture can all be sampled here. Restaurants can be found alongside the extensive hawker centres around the island.

Images in this post: Courtesy of Singapore Tourism Board

Chinese New Year (CNY) Celebrations in Singapore

2008-02-13T13:28:00.000+08:00

Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year celebrates the arrival of spring and a fresh start to one’s life. Chinese New Year festival begins on the first day of the first lunar month, a New Moon day. And it ends in the Lantern Festival on the 15th day, a Full Moon day.

This year, the first day of the Chinese New Year fell on the 7th of February. Normally in Singapore, the first two days of the Chinese New Year are declared as official holidays. But, most of the companies close down for at least 4 days to a week.

The Chinese years are named by animals. There are 12 animal names; so by this system, year names are re-cycled every 12 years. 2008 is the Year of the Rat as per Chinese calendar. The other animals include Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig.

Rat years:
1900, 1912, 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008

Ox years:
1901, 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009

Tiger Years:
1902, 1914, 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010

Rabbit Years:
1903, 1915, 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011

Dragon Years:
1904, 1916, 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012

Snake Years:
1905, 1917, 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013

Horse Years:
1906, 1918, 1930, 1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014

Sheep Years:
1907, 1919, 1931, 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015

Monkey Years:
1908, 1920, 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016

Rooster Years:
1909, 1921, 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017

Dog Years:
1910, 1922, 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006, 2018

Pig Years:
1911, 1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019

For those of you who are celebrating Chinese New Year, GONG XI FA CAI (Happy New Year).

QP (Supervision) Contract awarded to CKM Consultants

2008-02-11T13:33:00.000+08:00

CKM Consultants of Singapore had won the following contract awarded by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) of Singapore:

LTA contract 901QP: Qualified Person (Supervision) Services for Contract 901 Construction and Completion of Circle Line (CCL) Marina Bay Station including Associated Tunnels for Downtown Line Stage 1

CKM Consultants' tender amount of about S$4.9 Million beat Mott Macdonald Singapore Pte Limited's tender amount of about S$5.5 Million. CKM Consultants Pte Ltd was founded by Dr. C. Keshava Murthy in the year 1989.

The award of QP(Supervision) contract to independent consultants is in line with the Nicoll Highway Committee Of Inquiry (COI)'s findings and recommendations. Four lives were lost in The Nicoll Highway collapse in the year 2004. The Nicoll Highway COI was set-up immediately after the collapse. The Committee was of the view that appointing the QP (S) from within the ranks of the client was not desirable, as this may put the QP (S) in a position of conflict. The Committee highlighted the importance of the independence of the QP (S) and asked LTA to consider appointing an independent QP (S) from outside the organization.

Downtown Line Phase 1 (DTL1) MRT works under progress

2008-02-04T13:17:00.000+08:00

Downtown line (DTL) is the latest addition to the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system in Singapore. It will consist of 33-stations when fully completed and will stretch the network to another 40-kms. Downtown Line Phase 1 (DTL1) is the first part of the whole Downtown line that will be constructed in three stages. DTL1 forms an effective part of the Singapore Government’s plan to develop the Marina Bay area into a place to live, work and play.

Downtown Line (DTL1) will be 4.3-km long and will include 6 stations as follows:

Chinatown, Interchange with existing North-East Line (NEL)

Cross Street

Landmark (This station will be connected via underground subway links to Marina Bay Financial Centre)

Bayfront (This station will be connected to the Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resorts and will also attract visitors to Gardens by the Bay)

Promenade, Interchange with the Circle Line (CCL) under construction

Bugis, Interchange with the existing East-West Line

Some of the contracts for the above stations have already been awarded by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) of Singapore and works have commenced. The following are the contracts:

LTA Contract 905 (C905) - Design, Construction & Completion of tunnels between Promenade and Marina Bay: Awarded to Shimizu Corporation at S$ 102.8 million

LTA Contract 906 (C906) - Construction & Completion of Bayfront station and associated tunnels: Awarded to Sembawang Engineers & Constructors Pte Ltd at S$ 463 million

LTA Contract 907 (C907) - Construction & Completion of Landmark station and associated tunnels: Awarded to Taisei Corporation at S$ 230 million

LTA Contract 908 (C908) - Design, Construction & Completion of Cross Street station and associated tunnels: Awarded to Samsung Corporation – Bachy Soletanche Joint Venture at S$ 224.9 million

LTA Contract 909 (C909) - Design, Construction & Completion of Chinatown station and associated tunnels: Awarded to Gammon Construction Ltd S$ 160.3 million

Marina Bay: What is happening?

2008-02-01T12:36:00.000+08:00

The Marina Bay area in Singapore is bustling with construction activities. It is promoted as the future place to explore, exchange and entertain. The commencement of the Integrated Resorts construction has provided the momentum to the Marina Bay area development. In my life, I had not seen so many construction equipments/ machineries congregate at one place like this.

I have listed below some of the projects currently ongoing in and around Marina Bay area:

Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resorts

Land Transport Authority (LTA)’s MRT Downtown Line Contract 906, carried out by Sembawang Engineers and Constructors

Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA)’s Common Services Tunnel (CST) Phase 1B & 2, carried out by Koh Brothers

Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA)’s Common Services Tunnel (CST) Phase 3A, carried out by Singapore Piling

Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA)’s Rock Mole Removal Works, carried out by Gammon

Marina Bay Business and Financial Centre

City Developments Limited (CDL)’s Residential Project The Sail @ Marina Bay

The 280 metre long Double Helix Bridge, claimed to be the world’s first double helix structure bridge by URA

With Taisei expected to join the Marina Bay area soon for its Landmark Downtown line MRT station, it is going to be a scene of cranes everywhere with the background of the little island’s skyscrapers.

Singapore Sports Hub Consortium Secures Bid

2008-01-23T09:11:00.000+08:00

The Singapore Sports Hub (SSH) Consortium has won the contract to build and run the Sports Hub for 25 years. They beat Alpine Mayreder Consortium and Singapore Gold Consortium to clinch the deal. The Singapore Sports Hub consortium is led by the France-based construction firm Dragages Singapore. The winning consortium’s proposal included a dome shaped stadium that won over the horseshoe and crumpled tissue designs from the other bidders.

The new Sports Hub at Kallang will replace the National Stadium, which gives way after 35 years in prominence. The Sports Hub, considered as one of Asia’s largest sports projects, is expected to be ready in 2011. The construction works are likely to commence in April 2008.

The Singapore Government is expected to spend about S$1.87 billion, while the consortium to expected to spend about S$1.2 billion.

The Most Memorable Vacation

2007-11-15T11:28:00.001+08:00

The holiday season can be a wonderful time of the year filled with visits to unfamiliar parts of the world. I can fondly remember the pure joy at the beginning of each holiday season, as a child. Those days, I would love to be busy during the holiday trips. It would not be tiring to visit park after park, gardens, museum, memorials, beaches and so on. Nowadays, I prefer a much more peaceful holiday. A remote place, free from the mechanical daily life, would be my choice now.

Whatever your choice may be, the holiday season can be quite overwhelming with all the added activities such as selecting the right tour operator, the right tour package, at the right price.

One place I would love to visit is America. The holiday possibilities in America are endless. You could choose to visit famous cities such as New York or Los Angeles, choose to relax on a sun-kissed Florida beach, enjoy a California holiday or combine the attractions of Las Vegas with the natural beauty of the Grand Canyon.

Holiday Travel of America is a full service travel agency and will plan your trip based on your requests. The innovative packaging, promoting and delivering a wide variety of vacation packages has given Holiday Travel of America the reputation as one of the leading travel incentive providers. Holiday Passports regularly updates and adds new exciting destinations. They specialize in accommodations, airfare, car rental and cruises. As stated in their web page, Holiday Travel holds the distinction as the only incentive travel company to develop a specific vacation package with Walt Disney World Resorts.

It is easy to make your holiday dreams come true. Plan your vacation carefully and choose the right travel service provider. You should look for Maximum Flexibility that gives you Maximum Value at Maximum Convenience. Make your vacation the best possible and most memorable.

I am not going to chuck this blog

2007-11-13T13:25:00.000+08:00

This is the oldest blog I have. I started off this blog about 1.5 years ago. But, I am not updating this regularly. I am quite busy with one of my other blogs. But, having been with me for such a long time, I am not going to dump this blog.

You might have noticed that I have changed the template of this blog recently. Initially, I was using the classic version of Blogger and spent many days in developing a template of my own from scratch. But, as time went by, the maintenance of the blog became very difficult. That’s why I have changed finally to the widget version of Blogger.

Just to share with you, this blog is ranked as follows:

Google PageRank: 2
Alexa traffic rank: 4,412,291
Technorati rank: 1,644,723

There is nothing great to speak about those numbers. But, it gives me a feeling that this blog is not lost in the blog jungle. To keep it going, I will continue to post here once in a while.

Joke of the day

2007-09-03T17:00:00.000+08:00

FunnyMan saw a glittery item in the shop. He was interested.

FunnyMan: “What is the item over there?”
Salesgirl: “Oh! That is a flask.”

FunnyMan: “What can I do with it?”
Salesgirl: “It keeps hot things hot and cold things cold”
FunnyMan bought it.

The next day, FunnyMan goes to the shop with the flask.
FunnyMan: “This is not working”.

Salesgirl: “What do you have in it?”
FunnyMan: “Two cups of coffee and one scoop of ice cream”

Joke of the day

2007-08-10T09:27:00.000+08:00

FunnyMan goes to a shop to buy a TV set.

”Do you have a colour TV?”

The salesman replied “Yes!”

FunnyMan happily said “Please give me a GREEN one”

Joke of the Day

2007-07-19T12:54:00.000+08:00

FunnyMan went to his doctor with burns on both his ears.

The doctor asked him what had happened to his ears and he answered, "I was ironing a shirt and the phone rang”

Instead of picking up the phone, I accidentally picked up the iron and stuck to my ear.

"Oh dear!" the doctor exclaimed in disbelief. "But, what happened to the other ear?"

FunnyMan answered: "That stupid idiot called again!"

My blog approved by ReviewMe

2007-07-13T12:57:00.000+08:00

Have you heard of paid reviews or sponsored reviews? ReviewMe is a company that pays bloggers to write about advertisers’ products, services or websites. ReviewMe requires bloggers to disclose that the review is a paid advertisement. This is to ensure the readers know whether they are reading a real feedback from the user or it is a paid review.

I have submitted my blog to ReviewMe to become an approved blogger to write reviews for them. My blog was accepted in a flash. I understand that ReviewMe uses an algorithm based on Alexa, Technorati and other statistics to determine the importance of a blog before giving the approval. So, I am happy that my blog is approved.

My other blogs

2007-06-28T12:07:00.000+08:00

Of late, you could have noticed that I am not posting regularly here. Yes, I am unable to continue to post here, as I am actively posting at some of my other blogs. I will continue to maintain this blog and post once in a while.

You are also welcome to visit my other blogs: Mahendra Singh Dhoni, a blog created to salute the achievements of Dhoni, the latest sensation in Indian cricket or Assess My Blog, a blog that concentrates mainly on online money, paid blogging and blog reviews. Your suggestions/ feedback is always welcome.

Joke of the day

2007-05-18T22:01:00.000+08:00

FunnyMan is filling up an application form for a job.

He completed the information for the fields Name, Age, Sex, Contact information, etc.

When he saw a field on "Salary Expected”, he writes "Yes"

Joke of the day

2007-05-11T08:22:00.000+08:00

The boss gave a letter to FunnyMan to photocopy quickly. As he did not turn up immediately, the boss went to look for him.

Boss: “What are you doing?”

FunnyMan: “I am comparing the photocopy with the original for spelling mistakes”

Joke of the day

2007-05-09T17:23:00.001+08:00

Friend: Why did you go to the movie with your 18 friends?
FunnyMan: Below 18 not allowed!

Joke of the day

2007-05-03T12:39:00.000+08:00

FunnyMan was working on a jigsaw puzzle and upon completion, proudly shows off the finished puzzle to a friend.

FunnyMan: "It took me only 6 months to solve it"

Friend: "6 months? That's pretty long"

FunnyMan: "You are crazy, see this box, it is written 3-8 years"

The story of a crow

2007-04-19T17:09:00.000+08:00

An 80 year old man was sitting on the sofa in his house along with his 45 years old highly educated son. Suddenly a crow perched on their window.

The Father asked his Son, "What is this?"
The Son replied "It is a crow".

After a few minutes, the Father asked his Son the 2nd time, "What is this?"
The Son said "Father, I have just now told you "It's a crow".

After a little while, the old Father again asked his Son the 3rd time, "What is this?"
At this time some expression of irritation was felt in the Son's tone when he said to his Father with a rebuff. "It's a crow, a crow".

A little after, the Father again asked his Son the 4th time, "What is this?"
This time the Son shouted at his Father, "Why do you keep asking me the same question again and again, although I have told you so many times 'IT IS A CROW'. Are you not able to understand this?"

A little later the Father went to his room and came back with an old dilapidated diary, which he had maintained since his Son was born. On opening a page, he asked his Son to read that page. When the son read it, the following words were written in the diary:

"Today my little son aged three was sitting with me on the sofa, when a crow was sitting on the window. My Son asked me 23 times what it was, and I replied to him all 23 times that it was a Crow. I hugged him lovingly each time he asked me the same question again and again for 23 times. I did not at all feel irritated. I rather felt affection for my innocent child".

Moral of the story:

If your parents attain old age, do not drive them away or look at them as a trouble, but speak to them a courteous word; be cool, respectful, humble and kind to them. Be considerate to your parents.

Hearing Test: An interesting story

2007-04-14T12:15:00.000+08:00

A man feared his wife wasn't hearing as well as she used to and he thought she might need a hearing aid. Not quite sure how to approach her, he called the family Doctor to discuss the problem. The Doctor told him there was a simple informal test the husband could perform to give the Doctor a better idea about her hearing loss.

“Here's what you do,” said the Doctor, “stand about 40 feet away from her, and in a normal relaxed speaking tone see if she hears you. If not, go to 30 feet, then 20 feet, and so on until you get a response.”

That evening, the wife was in the kitchen cooking dinner, and he was in the living room. He said to himself, “I'm about 40 feet away, let's see what happens.” Then in a normal tone he asked, 'Honey, what's for dinner?" NO RESPONSE.

So the husband moved closer to the kitchen, about 30 feet from his wife and repeated, “Honey, what's for dinner?” Still, NO RESPONSE.

Next he moved into the dining room where he was about 20 feet from his wife and asked, “Honey what's for dinner?” Again, he got NO RESPONSE.

So, he walked up to the kitchen door, about 10 feet away. "Honey, what's for dinner?" Again, there was NO RESPONSE.

So he walked right up behind her and said, "Honey, what's for dinner?"

She turned around, looked into the eyes of her husband and shouted "My dear husband, for the FIFTH time I've said, CHICKEN RICE!"

Moral of the story:

The problem may not be with the other person as we always think, could be very much within us..!

Intellignt Lion: A management lesson

2007-04-13T12:28:00.000+08:00

Story: It's a fine sunny day in the forest and a lion is sitting outside his cave, lying lazily in the sun. Along comes a fox, out on a walk.

Fox: "Do you know the time, because my watch is broken"
Lion: "Oh, I can easily fix the watch for you"

Fox: "Hmm... But it's a very complicated mechanism, and your big claws will only destroy it even more."
Lion: "Oh no, give it to me, and it will be fixed"

Fox: "That's ridiculous! Any fool knows that lazy lions with great claws cannot fix complicated watches"
Lion: "Sure they do, give it to me and it will be fixed"

The lion disappears into his cave, and after a while he comes back with the watch which is running perfectly. The fox is impressed, and the lion continues to lie lazily in the sun, looking very pleased with himself.

Soon a wolf comes along and stops to watch the lazy lion in the sun.

Wolf: "Can I come and watch TV tonight with you, because mine is broken"
Lion: "Oh, I can easily fix your TV for you".

Wolf: "You don't expect me to believe such rubbish, do you? There is no way that a lazy lion with big claws can fix a complicated TV."
Lion: "No problem. Do you want to try it?"

The lion goes into his cave, and after a while comes back with a perfectly fixed TV. The wolf goes away happily and amazed.

Scene: Inside the lion's cave. In one corner there are half a dozen small and intelligent looking rabbits that are busily doing very complicated work with very detailed instruments. In the other corner lies a huge lion looking very pleased with himself.

Moral:

IF YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY A MANAGER IS FAMOUS; LOOK AT THE WORK OF HIS SUBORDINATES.
IF YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY SOMEONE UNDESERVED IS PROMOTED; LOOK AT THE WORK OF HIS SUBORDINATES.

Just for fun: Tax on GOD's money

2007-04-12T12:36:00.000+08:00

A little boy wanted Rs.500 from his father. His father, in an effort to divert his attention, asked him to pray to God and God will give hime the money. The boy started to pray daily. Weeks had gone, but nothing seems to happen. Finally he decided to write a letter to God requesting the money.

When the postal authorities received the letter addressed to God, they decided to forward it to the President as a joke. The President was so amused, that he instructed his secretary to send the little boy Rs. 100. The President thought Rs. 500 is a lot of money to a little boy, and he did not want to spoil the kid.

The little boy was delighted when he received Rs. 100, and wrote a thank you note to God, which read: "Dear God: Thank you very much for sending the money. However, in future, please do not send the money through the President's office. These officers had deducted Rs. 400 in taxes".

An interesting story about FROGS

2007-04-11T21:45:00.000+08:00

Once upon a time there was a bunch of tiny frogs, who arranged a running competition. The goal was to reach the top of a very high tower. A big crowd had gathered around the tower to see the race and cheer on the contestants....

The race began.... Honestly, no one in the crowd really believed that the tiny frogs would reach the top of the tower. You heard statements such as: "Oh, WAY too difficult!!" "They will NEVER make it to the top." or: "Not a chance that they will succeed. The tower is too high!"

The tiny frogs began collapsing. One by one.... Except for those, who in a fresh tempo, were climbing higher and higher.... The crowd continued to yell, "It is too difficult!!! No one will make it!" More tiny frogs got tired and gave up....

But ONE continued higher and higher and higher.... This one wouldn't give up! At the end everyone else had given up climbing the tower. Except for the one tiny frog who, after a big effort, was the only one who reached the top!

THEN all of the other tiny frogs naturally wanted to know how this one frog managed to do it? A contestant asked the tiny frog how he had found the strength to succeed and reach the goal? It turned out.... That the winner was DEAF!!!!

The wisdom of this story is: Never listen to other people's tendencies to be negative or pessimistic.... because they take your most wonderful dreams and wishes away from you -- the ones you have in your heart! Always think of the power words have. Because everything you hear and read will affect your actions!

Therefore: ALWAYS be....POSITIVE! And above all: Be DEAF when people tell YOU that you cannot fulfill your dreams! Always think: I can do this!

Start making money with Adsense

2006-10-15T11:34:00.000+08:00

There are actually three steps to put into mind before you begin writing your ads and having an effective Adsense.

Keyword search. Find some popular subjects, keywords or phrase. Select the ones which you think has more people clicking through. This is actually a keyword selector and suggestion tool that some sites are offering to those who are just their Adsense business.

Writing articles. Start writing original content with keywords from the topics that you have achieved in your search. Take note that search engines are taking pride in the quality of their articles and what you will be writing should keep up with their demands.

Quality content site. Build a quality content site incorporated with Adsense ads that is targeting the subject and keywords of your articles and websites. This is where all that you've done initially will go to and this is also where they will prove their worth to you.

Are you a blogger? Start Making Money With Adsense

2006-10-13T22:01:00.000+08:00

Google Adsense is considered as one of the most powerful tool in a website publisher's arsenal. It is a programme that can generate advertising revenue from each page on your website. What is needed from you is commitment in time and no additional resources. It enables a person to monetize their sites easily. If used properly, it can generate a very large and healthy income.

What Adsense does? It delivers relevant text and image ads that are precisely targeted to your site content. You can also add a Google search box to your site, and AdSense delivers relevant advertisements that are targeted to the Google search results pages generated by your visitors' search request. It keeps your users on your website longer, since they can search from where they are. It takes just minutes to implement, and you pay nothing to participate.

Earning money with Adsense is easy and quick. You will be amazed at the results you will be getting in such a short period of time.

Start by writing some quality content articles which are also keyword incorporated. There are a lot of people given the gift of being good with words. Writing comes easy for them. Why not make it work in such a way that you will be earning some extra cash in the process.

There are actually three steps to put into mind before you begin writing your ads and having an effective Adsense.

To be continued ...

Obesity: A big health hazard among Indians?

2006-10-10T22:56:00.000+08:00

Read this eye-opener by Prof. James Philips from Deccan Chronicle. In this article, the author feels that India has grown obese very fast in the past few years. He also warns that Indians have more fat cells than other average Europeans, due to their unique body structure. Read the complete article >>

More demanding Wealthier Indians

2006-09-22T12:42:00.000+08:00

A report by American Express states that Indians are getting wealthier and they are becoming more demanding. Read the findings of the informal study, authored by the company from Business Week Online.

US Open 2006: Leander wins the Men's doubles crown with Martin Damm

2006-09-10T20:50:00.000+08:00

Great performance again by Leander, this time with Martin Damm. They won the US Open 2006 Men's doubles crown. That rounds up really a great year for Leander. He ended up as runner up in Australia and semi-finalist at Wimbledon. Now, with US Open title also in his kit, only Australian crown is missing. Hope he will add that next year. Well done Leander! Keep Going!

US Open 2006: Sania loses in second round

2006-09-02T12:54:00.000+08:00

Sania loses to Francesca Schiavone in the second round 7-5, 1-6, 2-6. Read the match report "Star of India Ousted by No 14 Seed Schiavone" from US Open web site.

In the women's doubles, 11th seeded Sania/ Liezel Huber advanced to the second round with an easy win over Neha Uberoi/ Angela Haynes 6-4, 6-0.

In the men's doubles, Mahesh Bhupathi/ Xavier Malisse pair had lost to Leos Friedl/ Mikhail Youzhny in straight sets 4-6, 4-6. The 6th seeded pair of Leander Paes/ Martin Damm had an easy outing against Petr Pala/ Robin Vik with a straight sets victory 6-1, 6-2.

However in the mixed doubles, the 3rd seeds Leander/ Samantha Stosur had lost in the first round to unseeded Max Mirnyi/ Victoria Azarenka 6-3, 2-6, [5-10]. Mahesh has not entered the mixed doubles event. Sania is in the mixed doubles with Pavel Vizner.

US Open 2006: Sania Mirza in second round

2006-08-31T20:56:00.000+08:00

Sania Mirza makes it into the 2nd round with a straight-sets victory against 51st ranked Croatian Karolina Sprem 6-4 6-2. Sania is currently ranked No. 54 in the singles and No. 28 in the doubles. She would like to have a good tournment here so that she can crack back into the top-50 by the year end. By the way, Sania's best performance is at US open, she went upto the 4th round last year. Can she repeat it or better that record here? Sania will be playing the 14th seeded Italian Francesca Schiavone in the second round. She has also entered the Women's doubles with Liezel Huber and Mixed doubles with Pavel Vizner.

In the women's doubles, 11th seeded Sania/ Liezel Huber will be facing the US pair of Neha Uberoi/ Angela Haynes.

An apple a day keeps the Doctor away

2006-08-16T22:28:00.000+08:00

Undeniably, an apple a day really keeps the Doctor away. This time-honoured adage is now strongly supported by nutrition experts all around the world.

Apple is fat free, cholesterol free and provides many vitamins, minerals and phyto-nutrients which our family needs. A medium-sized apple contains about 80 calories and a good source of potassium and fibre too.

Apple's soluble fibre pectin helps lower blood cholesterol by binding to fatty substances and promoting their excretion. Apple peel is also a source of insoluble fibre which is necessary for proper bowel function. Apple peels are loaded with quercetin, a very strong antioxidant. Quercetin is essential for a healthy heart and to prevent certain types of cancer.

Hence, take apples with skin.
Try apples as salads or desserts.

How to reduce fat in your diet?

2006-08-12T18:00:00.000+08:00

Use polyunsaturated oils like sunflower oil, corn oil, soya oil, olive oil, safflower oil, canola oil or oat bran oil. Carefully read the labels while buying cooking oils
Use margarines instead of butter for bread slices
Switch to low fat dairy products instead of fresh and whole milk
Remove skin and visible fat from meat while cooking
Alter your method of cooking. Go for shallow fat cooking than deep fat frying
Eat more vegetable based dishes. Replace meat with beancurd, dhals and legumes
Use low fat cooking techniques like brush oil on pan instead of pouring. Use non-stick cookware
Cut down deep fried snacks, cakes, ice creams and try whole fruits, whole meal biscuits and sandwiches

Nutrition Tips for Children

2006-08-06T16:46:00.000+08:00

A child needs a balanced and adequate diet to supply the nutrients and energy needed for growth.

A healthy body weight promotes good physical and mental well being. As parents, you can help your child achieve a healthy weight. Fat children can have health problems later in their life. To prevent you child getting fat, help them to form good eating habits while they are still young. Here are some hints:

Have meals together and make healthy eating a family affair. Make meal time relaxing for your child.
Meal hours should be regular and nibbling in between meals should be discouraged.
Make healthier food your choice. Set a good example by practicing good eating habits. Children are good imitators.
Avoid scolding or feeding forcibly your child as this makes the child dislike food.
Avoid using food as a form of reward, threats or bribery.
Encourage breakfast eating to avoid hunger and over-eating
Teach your child to eat slowly, chew well and swallow. Enjoy each mouthful before swallowing
Allow your children to feed themselves. Do not feed them while watching TV or reading books
Make available fresh fruits as snack
Provide water or unsweetened juices instead of soft drinks
Prepare attractive, appealing and colourful meals whenever possible. Avoid monotony in food preparations.
Last but not the least, explain the functions of different types of food to the children. For example, telling them that carrot is good for vision will make them understand why they should include carrot in their food.

Today's healthy children are tomorrow's healthy citizens and pillars of our nation. So, inculcate healthy eating habits from today onwards.

Good News for Ganguly's supporters

2006-08-02T21:45:00.000+08:00

If you are a cricket crazy Indian fan, certainly you would not have stopped thinking about one of the most successful Indian captain Sourav Ganguly. It doesn't matter whether you support him or you are against him, you will agree that he was treated very badly. His case could have been dealt with a bit more professionalism.

In my opinion, Greg wanted to prove a point when he took over the responsibilities of the Indian coach. He was helped by Ganguly's inconsistency. Greg got through and in came Rahul Dravid, the new Indian captain. He performed admirably well after taking over the captaincy.

Now, Ganguly needs to prove a point before getting into the team. He tried to do that by blaming Dalmiya for all the chaos that surrounded his infamous dropping from the team. So, it is clearly a sign that he wants to get on with the game with the support of the coach, and keep away from Board politics.

The recent team selection to Sri Lanka is baffling. Why should they fall back to Dinesh Mongia? He was tried many times. He was not that great. I would have been happy if the selectors gave a chance to Ganguly. His experience would help in the one-day version and would be really handy in the preparations to the World cup next year.

Finally, there is some good news to Sourav's supporters. You can read the article from Deccan Chronicle which reports that "Dada may be among the probables for the Champions Trophy". Good luck Sourav!

Anonymous Visitors

2006-07-31T20:43:00.000+08:00

It was a weekday evening. Back from office, I was having a cup of coffee and relaxing on my sofa, when I heard a knock at the door. When I opened the door, a lady was standing with a clip-pad in her hand. She smiled at me.

"Good evening Sir, I am from *** company". She flashed her identity card in front of me. I am still trying to figure out what she was up to.

She did not wait for my response. She continued. "My company is carrying out some repair works to your block. Tomorrow, we are planning to do some patch-up works around the bamboo poles at your unit". She was quick again to add "The repair works are at no cost to the owner. I would like to take a look from inside the unit. Is it convenient?".

Being a civil engineer myself, I was a bit curious to know what they were really doing. So, I asked her "Do you have any letter from HDB?" My intention was to find out the nature of works being carried out. She replied "No Sir, but it is of no cost to the owner".

"Do you have any letter from the town council?". She said "No".

This is when I got puzzled. She immediately shut any further questions from me. "Sir, Is it not convenient for me to take a look from inside the unit?"

I was also straight this time "No, it is not convenient". She thanked me and immediately left the place. In a short while, I could hear her knocking the next door.

As far as I know, I did not get any notification from HDB or the town council about any repair works in the block. Is it possible to carry out repair works at a HDB block in Singapore without the approval of either the HDB, town council or the owner? Can any one enlighten me please?

Know about fruits

2006-07-08T18:18:00.000+08:00

Here are some interesting facts about the fruits we consume in our everyday life:

We all know that banana relieves constipation. Would you be surprised if you come to know that banana also controls diarrhea? A high banana intake during diarrhea increases butyric acid concentration in the colon and thereby inhibits the growth of B.Coli.
Ripe mango is an excellent source of Vitamin A and C and of course calories too. Consuming ripe mangoes in season may provide an excellent store of Vitamin A in liver, which may be used for the following year.
Common citrus fruits are orange, tangerine, sweet lime, grapes and sour lime. Juices of citrus fruits are refreshing drinks throughout the year. They are very rich in Vitamin C. They also increase the efficiency of iron digestion and absorption.
Papaya fruits are excellent sources of Vitamin A. Papaya seeds possess antihelminthic properties. Unripe papaya is a rich source of papain, an enzyme capable of digesting protein. Hence, raw papaya is used during cooking to soften meat or dhal.
Amla (Gooseberry) and Guava are fertile sources of Vitamin C. Ripe guava is helpful in treating constipation.
Boiled apples and pomegranates are advised in diarrhea, but there is no scientific proof yet. Pomegranate has a good source of iron and fibre.

Take fruits everyday. As far as possible, eat whole fruits and consume fresh juices.