Showing posts with label CONSUMER NEWS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label CONSUMER NEWS. Show all posts
Friday, May 17, 2013
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
All Telephone / Cell Phone / Mobile Provider’s Information
All Telephone / Cell Phone / Mobile Provider’s Information | |
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Pay legitimate Transfer Fees, not Donation
PAY TRANSFER FEES AS PER LAW INSTEAD OF DONATINGThe unlawful concept of ‘donation’, employed by the cooperative housing society’s managing committees, to facilitate the transfer of a flat by a CHS member, urgently need to be examined at length, points out GAJANAN KHERGAMKER
Each time, a cooperative housing society member wants to sell his property anywhere in Mumbai, he is bullied into paying up way beyond the officially ‘legal’ transfer fee of a maximum of Rs 25,000. The excess he pays ranges from Rs 5,000, in case of small societies to as high as a few lakhs of rupees, depending on the size, status and level of moral accountability of the society in question.
The cooperative housing societies and their managing committees, charging the fees, are spurred by a skewed sense of logic in their acts of demanding donations. “If a member is getting a good price for his flat, it’s because we’ve collectively maintained the society and the common amenities too. Why then, should the member be reluctant to ‘donate’ something for the society that he’s lived in for years? He pays only voluntarily and as a gesture of goodwill,” is the regular rejoinder of managing committee members ‘charging’ donation fees. Any argument, however illogical, is permissible in a democracy but only in the context of a debate and within socially-approved parameters. The managing committee members have even evolved ways to elbow outgoing members into paying up the excess. In several cases all over the city, society’s managing committee members refuse to provide the no-objection certificate for the purpose of sale and transfer to the outgoing member.
Click Here for the full article
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The draconian LBT explained
Local Body Tax (LBT) is a draconian Act, especially with key words like ‘goods’, ‘dealer’, ‘business’ loosely defined in the legislature, giving enough scope for the administrators to stretch their imagination to fanciful limits to the common man’s harassment and dismay
At the time of introduction of VAT in 2005 the Government of Maharashtra had promised that Octroi would be removed and there will not be any additional tax burden on citizens but now they have introduced the LBT. Thus, LBT is not a good system of tax collection suited for the 21st century, and when there are many other better options available with the government.
Your dabbawala gets your tiffin box daily to your office in Fort area from your house in Thane. As the financial year comes to an end, one fine day, after December, a LBT officer lands in your office instead of the dabbawala with a warrant to arrest you for having brought into the city limits the goods exceeding the prescribed turnover limits.
Another point against LBT is the cascading effect of LBT. Unlike excise or service tax or VAT, there is no concept of set-off or input credit.
Click Here to read the full article by ANANTHRAM RAO, partner at Borkar & Shenoy, Chartered Accountants
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Thursday, May 2, 2013
Benefits available to Senior Citizens in India
Benefits available to Senior Citizens in India
CIRCULATE AND CREATE AWARENESS
THE BENEFITS FOR SENIOR CITIZENS IN INDIA
I. Transportation:
Ministry of Road Transport and Highways:
i) Reservation of two seats for senior citizens in front row of the buses of the State Road Transport Undertakings.
ii) Some State Governments are giving fare concession to senior citizens in the State Road Transport Undertaking buses and are introducing Bus Models, which are convenient to the elderly.
Under Delhi Transport Corporation:
1. Special Hire Service: - Apart from the normal services, the Corporation also provides buses to the Citizen of Delhi on Special Hire for marriage parties, picnics, etc.
2. Free/Concessional Passes: - DTC also offers Free Passes to disabled persons, war-widows & their dependents, eminent sport personalities, Freedom Fighters etc. and Concessional Passes to various categories of commuters viz. Students, Senior Citizens, Residents of Resettlement Colonies, Journalists, etc.
For Senior citizens above the age of 60 years, Bus pass for all routes at Rs. 50 per month. Income has to be below Rs. 75000 per year.
Ministry of Railways:
1. Indian Railways provide 30% concession in all classes and trains including Rajdhani/Shatabadi trains for both males and females aged 60 years and above.
2. Indian Railways also have the facility of separate counters for Senior Citizens for purchase/booking/cancellation of tickets.
3. Wheel Chairs for use of older persons are available at all junctions, District Headquarters and other important stations for the convenience of needy persons including the older persons.
4.. Ramps for wheel chairs movement are available at the entry to important stations.
5. Specially designed coaches with provisions of space for wheel chairs, hand rail and specially designed toilet for handicapped persons have been introduced.
Ministry of Civil Aviation:
1. Indian Airlines is providing 50 per cent Senior Citizen Discount on Normal Economy Class fare for all domestic flights to Indian senior citizens who have completed the age of 65 years in the case of male senior citizens and 63 years in the case of female senior citizens subject to certain conditions.
2. Air India is offering discount of 55% to senior citizens of 60 plus on flights to USA, UK and Europe on economy class. Further, Air India has now decided to reduce the age of 60 plus for discount on their domestic routes as well with immediate effect. For Identity card, 2 passport sized photographs have to be submitted along with the form.
3. Sahara Airlines is offering 50% discount on basic fare for travel on its domestic flights only to senior citizens who have attained the age of 62 years. Discount is applicable in economy class only.
4. Kingfisher Airlines offers discount in Business class only for citizens of 65 years or above on sectoral basis. Age proof required.
5. Jetlite offers a discount of 50% on economy class for citizens of 65 years or above. One passport sized photograph required on the form along with age proof.
6. Jet Airways offers discount to senior citizens of 65 years or above.
For availing discount in domestic flights, senior citizens have to fill up a discount form along with a passport sized photograph and Age proof certificate. Jet Airways also provides Senior Citizen I-Card which is available in all ticket counters and requires 2 passport sized photographs and age proof certificate. For the I-Card a very nominal amount is charged.
II. Telecommunications:
i) Faults/complaints of senior citizens are given priority by registering them under senior citizens category with VIP flag, which is a priority category.
ii) Senior citizens are allowed to register telephone connection under N-OYT Special Category, which is a priority category.
iii) MTNL in NCR offers a discount of 25% on Rs. 250 per month Plan. Age limit is 65 years or above.
III. Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution:
i) Under the Antyodaya Scheme, the Below Poverty Line (BPL) families which also include older persons are provided food grains at the rate of 35 kgs. per family per month. The food grains are issued @ Rs.3/- per kg. for rice and Rs.2/- per kg. for wheat. The persons aged 60 years above from the BPL category were given priority for identification.
(ii) Under the Annapoorna Scheme being implemented by the States/UT Administration, 10 kgs. of food grains per beneficiary per month are provided free of cost to those senior citizens who remain uncovered under the old age pension scheme.
iii) Instructions to State Governments for giving priority to the Ration Card holders who are over 60 years of age in Fair Price Shops for issue of rations.
IV. Ministry of Health & Family Welfare:
1. Separate queues for elderly persons in hospitals for registration and clinical examination.
2. Special Clinics, every Sunday between 10 am to 12 noon, for elderly persons available at the following hospitals in New Delhi.
a) Lok Nayak Hospital
b) GTB Hospital c) Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital d) Aruna Asafjahan Ali Hospital e) Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital f) Dr. Joshi Memorial Hospital g) Babu Jagjeevan Ram Hospital h) Ram Rao Tula Memorial Hospital i) Lal Bahadur Shastri Hospital
The services include health check-ups, operations, treatment of physically invalid, gynecology, ENT and ophthalmology along with pathological and radio therapy facilities.
V. Income Tax (Ministry of Finance):
1. For senior citizens the exemption limit is Rs. 2,50,000 up to which senior citizen pays no income-tax at all. The benefit of higher exemption limit for a senior citizen is available only when a person has completed 60 years of age.
2. The senior citizen should also take full advantage of section 80C of the Income Tax Act, 1961 whereby deduction up to Rs. 1.00 lakh is available for investment by way of insurance premium, repayment of the housing loan or investment in Senior Citizens Savings Scheme as also the Bank Fixed Deposit.
3. Similarly as also the Bank Fixed Deposit. Similarly, the citizen can also take advantage of the Mediclaim Policy. In case senior citizen or any member of his family suffers from serious medical problem of suffers from some disability he can claim certain other deductions under the tax law.
VI. MINISTRY OF SOCIAL & EMPLOYEMENT
1. Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment is the nodal Ministry responsible for welfare of the Senior Citizens. It has announced the National Policy on Older Persons which seeks to assure older persons that their concerns are national concerns and they will not live unprotected, ignored and marginalized. The National Policy aims to strengthen their legitimate place in the society and to help older people to live the last phase of their life with purpose, dignity and peace. The National Policy on Older Persons inter alia visualizes support for financial security, health care and nutrition, shelter, emphasis upon education, training and information needs, provision of appropriate concessions, rebates and discounts etc. to Senior Citizens and special attention to protect and strengthen their legal rights such as to safeguard their life and property. The National Policy on Older Persons confers the status of senior citizen to a person who has attained the age of 60 years.
2. The Ministry is also implementing following schemes for the benefit of Senior Citizens:
(a) An Integrated Programme for Older Persons (Plan Scheme) – This Scheme has been formulated by revising the earlier scheme of “Assistance to Voluntary Organizations for Programme relating to the Welfare of the Aged”. Under this Scheme, financial assistance up to 90% of the project cost is provided to NGOs for establishing and maintaining Old Age Homes, Day Care Centers, Mobile Medicare Units and to provide non-institutional services to older persons.
(b) The Scheme of Assistance to Panchayati Raj Institutions/ Voluntary Organizations/Self Help Groups for Construction of Old Age Homes/Multi-Service Centers for older persons (Non Plan Scheme) – Under this Scheme, one time construction grant for Old Age Homes/Multi-Service Centre is provided to non-governmental organizations on the recommendation of the State Governments/ UT Administrations.
VII. Ministry of Rural Development:
1. Under the National Old Age Pension Scheme, Central Assistance of Rs. 75/- p.m. is granted to destitute older persons above 65 years. This Scheme has been transferred to the State Plan w.e.f. 2002-03.
2. Under the Annapurna Scheme, free food grains (wheat or rice) up to 10 kg. per month are provided to destitute older persons 65 years or above who are otherwise eligible for old age pension but are not receiving it.
If you know more, please comment and add to the list. If there are any discrepancies, please highlight them.
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Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Guidelines for New Mobile Connections
Guidelines for New Mobile Connections
Department of Telecom (DoT) has issued revised instructions to Cellular Mobile Telephone Service and Unified Access Services Licensees vide letter dated 09.08.2012 on verification of Mobile Subscribers after review of existing instructions. New instructions are aimed at improving customer verification compliance. These instructions inter-alia prescribe the following:
(i) A passport size photograph should be pasted on the Customer Acquisition Form (CAF) and the documents as proof of identity and proof of address of the subscriber should be attached with the CAF.
(ii) The person at the Point of Sale has to get the CAF duly filled and signed (in case of illiterate person thumb impression) by the subscriber with date. The authorized person at PoS has to record in the CAF that he has seen the subscriber and matched the photograph attached on the CAF with the subscriber and verified his copies of documents of proof of address and proof of identity attached with the CAF with the original and has to put his signature on the CAF & all attached documents.
(iii) The mobile connection is to be activated only after the requirement of filling up CAF and copies of documentary proof as per requirement have been fulfilled by the customer and the subscriber details have been updated in the subscriber database of the Licensee and the employee of licensee has verified the same.
(iv) After activation of SIM also the subscriber is to be tele-verified by the Licensee.
As far as retailers are concerned, they are contractors of the licensees and these instructions are not addressed to the retailers.
The detailed instructions dated 09.08.2012 are available at DoT website at http://www.dot.gov.in/as/2012/
In these instructions, apart from the penalties prescribed in other instructions issued form time to time, the following additional provisions of penalty have inter-alia been made in these instructions:
(i) In case, the Licensee fails to intimate about the disconnection to TERM Cell within 7 days of disconnection, a penalty of Rs. 3000/- per connection per week or part thereof shall be levied.
(ii) If it is detected that the number was not actually disconnected on or before the date of confirmation/disconnection, then a penalty @ Rs. 1000 per day from the date of intimation to the Licensee to the date of actual disconnection shall be levied in addition to the penalty for non-disconnection.
The following provisions have inter-alia been re-iterated in these instructions regarding point of sale/ franchisees in case of forged document cases:
(i) Police complaint/ FIR shall be lodged by the Point of Sale (PoS)/Franchisee against the subscriber in case forged documents are submitted by the subscriber and originals are also forged.
(ii) Licensee shall lodge FIR/ Complaint against the subscriber and Franchisee/PoS in case of failure of PoS/Franchisee in lodging complaint/FIR against subscriber.
(iii) The Licensee shall lodge the compliant / FIR against the Franchisee/ point of sale and financial penalty shall also be imposed in case forgery has been done by point of sale/ franchisee.
(iv) In case action as above is not taken by the Licensee or Licensee itself is involved in forgery, Telecom Enforcement Resource & Monitoring (TERM) Cell of DoT shall lodge Complaint/ FIR against Licensee. Penalty shall also be imposed on all such forged cases.
(v) Where it is found that the act of issuing connections was done by PoS using the document of some other subscriber or any person, or the documents were forged by the franchisee/PoS, the concerned PoS/franchisee may be terminated by the Licensee in addition to lodging of complaint / FIR against it. Other Licensees shall also terminate/ not appoint any such PoS.
In the new instructions, some additional safeguards have been made in the interest of national security. There does not seem any provision leading to undue hardship to consumers.
This information was given by Shri Milind Deora, Minister of State for C&IT in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.
PIB
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Deceiving consumers: Tricks of the food trade
The myth: Ingredients lists on food products are designed to inform consumers about what's contained in the product. The reality: ingredients lists are used by food manufacturers to deceive consumers and trick them into thinking products are healthier (or better quality) than they really are. This article explores the most common deceptions used by food manufacturers to trick consumers with food ingredients lists. It also contains useful tips for helping consumers read such labels with the proper skepticism.
Deceiving consumers: Tricks of the food trade
If the Nutrition Facts section on food packaging list all the substances that go into a food product, how can they deceive consumers? Here are a few of the most common ways:
One of the most common tricks is to distribute sugars among many ingredients so that sugars don't appear in the top three. For example, a manufacturer may use a combination of sucrose, high-fructose corn syrup, corn syrup solids, brown sugar, dextrose and other sugar ingredients to make sure none of them are present in large enough quantities to attain a top position on the ingredients list (remember, the ingredients are listed in order of their proportion in the food, with the most common ingredients listed first).
This fools consumers into thinking the food product isn't really made mostly of sugar while, in reality, the majority ingredients could all be different forms of sugar. It's a way to artificially shift sugar farther down the ingredients list and thereby misinform consumers about the sugar content of the whole product.
Another trick is to pad the list with miniscule amounts of great-sounding ingredients. You see this in personal care products and shampoo, too, where companies claim to offer "herbal" shampoos that have practically no detectable levels of real herbs in them. In foods, companies pad the ingredients lists with healthy-sounding berries, herbs or superfoods that are often only present in miniscule amounts. Having "spirulina" appear at the end of the ingredients list is practically meaningless. There's not enough spirulina in the food to have any real effect on your health. This trick is called "label padding" and it's commonly used by junk food manufacturers who want to jump on the health food bandwagon without actually producing healthy foods.
Hiding dangerous ingredients
A third trick involves hiding dangerous ingredients behind innocent-sounding names that fool consumers into thinking they're safe. The highly carcinogenic ingredient sodium nitrite, for example, sounds perfectly innocent, but it is well documented to cause brain tumors, pancreatic cancer, colon cancer and many other cancers (just search Google Scholar for sodium nitrite to see a long list of supporting research, or click here to read NaturalNews articles on sodium nitrite).
Carmine sounds like an innocent food coloring, but it's actually made from the smashed bodies of red cochineal beetles. Of course, nobody would eat strawberry yogurt if the ingredients listed, "Insect-based red food coloring" on the label, so instead, they just call it "carmine."
Similarly, yeast extract sounds like a perfect safe food ingredient, too, but it's actually a trick used to hide monosodium glutamate (MSG, a chemical taste enhancer used to excite the flavors of overly-processed foods) without having to list MSG on the label. Lots of ingredients contain hidden MSG, and I've written extensively about them on this site. Virtually allhydrolyzed or autolyzed ingredients contain some amount of hidden MSG.
Don't be fooled by the name of the product
Did you know that the name of the food product has nothing to do with what's in it? Brand-name food companies make products like "Guacamole Dip" that contains no avocado! Instead, they're made with hydrogenated soybean oil and artificial green coloring chemicals. But gullible consumers keep on buying these products, thinking they're getting avocado dip when, in reality, they're buying green-colored, yummy-tasting dietary poison.
Food names can include words that describe ingredients not found in the food at all. A "cheese" cracker, for example, doesn't have to contain any cheese. A "creamy" something doesn't have to contain cream. A "fruit" product need not contain even a single molecule of fruit. Don't be fooled by product names printed on the packaging. These names are designed to sell products, not to accurately describe the ingredients contained in the package.
Ingredients lists don't include contaminants
There is no requirement for food ingredients lists to include the names of chemical contaminants, heavy metals, bisphenol-A, PCBs, perchlorate or other toxic substances found in the food. As a result, ingredients lists don't really list what's actually in the food, they only list what the manufacturer wants you to believe is in the food.
This is by design, of course. Requirements for listing food ingredients were created by a joint effort between the government and private industry (food corporations). In the beginning, food corporations didn't want to be required to list any ingredients at all. They claimed the ingredients were "proprietary knowledge" and that listing them would destroy their business by disclosing their secret manufacturing recipes. It's all nonsense, of course, since food companies primarily want to keep consumers ignorant of what's really in their products. That's why there is still no requirement to list various chemical contaminants, pesticides, heavy metals and other substances that have a direct and substantial impact on the health of consumers. (For years, food companies fought hard against the listing of trans fatty acids, too, and it was only after a massive public health outcry by consumer health groups that the FDA finally forced food companies to include trans fats on the label.)
Manipulating serving sizes
Food companies have also figured out how to manipulate the serving size of foods in order to make it appear that their products are devoid of harmful ingredients like trans fatty acids. The FDA, you see, created a loophole for reporting trans fatty acids on the label: Any food containing 0.5 grams or less of trans fatty acids per serving is allowed to claim ZERO trans fats on the label. That's FDA logic for you, where 0.5 = 0. But fuzzy math isn't the only game played by the FDA to protect the commercial interests of the industry is claims to regulate.
Exploiting this 0.5 gram loophole, companies arbitrarily reduce the serving sizes of their foods to ridiculous levels -- just enough to bring the trans fats down to 0.5 grams per serving. Then they loudly proclaim on the front of the box, "ZERO Trans Fats!" In reality, the product may be loaded with trans fats (found in hydrogenated oils), but the serving size has been reduced to a weight that might only be appropriate for feeding a ground squirrel, not a human being.
The next time you pick up a grocery product, checking out the "No. of servings" line in the Nutrition Facts box. You'll likely find some ridiculously high number there that has nothing to do with reality. A cookie manufacturer, for example, might claim that one cookie is an entire "serving" of cookies. But do you know anyone who actually eats just one cookie? If one cookie contains 0.5 grams of trans fatty acids, the manufacturer can claim the entire package of cookies is "Trans Fat FREE!" In reality, however, the package might contain 30 cookies, each with 0.5 grams of trans fats, which comes out to 15 grams total in the package (but that assumes people can actually do math, which is of course made all the more difficult by the fact that hydrogenated oils actually harm the brain. But trust me: 30 cookies x 0.5 grams per cookie really does come out to 15 grams total).
This is how you get a package of cookies containing 15 grams of trans fats (which is a huge dose of dietary poison) while claiming to contain ZERO grams. Again, it's just another example of how food companies use Nutrition Facts and ingredients lists to deceive, not inform, consumers.
Here are some additional tips for successfully decoding ingredients list labels:
Tips for reading ingredients labels
1. Remember that ingredients are listed in order of their proportion in the product. This means the first 3 ingredients matter far more than anything else. The top 3 ingredients are what you're primarily eating.
2. If the ingredients list contains long, chemical-sounding words that you can't pronounce, avoid that item. It likely does contain various toxic chemicals. Why would you want to eat them? Stick with ingredients you recognize.
3. Don't be fooled by fancy-sounding herbs or other ingredients that appear very far down the list. Some food manufacturer that includes "goji berries" towards the end of the list is probably just using it as a marketing gimmick on the label. The actual amount of goji berries in the product is likely miniscule.
4. Remember that ingredients lists don't have to list chemical contaminants. Foods can be contaminated with pesticides, solvents, acrylamides, PFOA, perchlorate (rocket fuel) and other toxic chemicals without needing to list them at all. The best way to minimize your ingestion of toxic chemicals is to buy organic, or go with fresh, minimally-processed foods.
5. Look for words like "sprouted" or "raw" to indicate higher-quality natural foods. Sprouted grains and seeds are far healthier than non-sprouted. Raw ingredients are generally healthier than processed or cooked. Whole grains are healthier than "enriched" grains.
6. Don't be fooled by the word "wheat" when it comes to flour. All flour derived from wheat can be called "wheat flour," even if it is processed, bleached and stripped of its nutrition. Only "whole grain wheat flour" is a healthful form of wheat flour. (Many consumers mistakenly believe that "wheat flour" products are whole grain products. In fact, this is not true. Food manufacturers fool consumers with this trick.)
7. Don't be fooled into thinking that brown products are healthier than white products. Brown sugar is a gimmick -- it's just white sugar with brown coloring and flavoring added. Brown eggs are no different than white eggs (except for the fact that their shells appear brown). Brown bread may be no healthier than white bread, either, unless it's made with whole grains. Don't be tricked by "brown" foods. These are just gimmicks used by food giants to fool consumers into paying more for manufactured food products.
8. Watch out for deceptively small serving sizes. Food manufacturers use this trick to reduce the number of calories, grams of sugar or grams of fat believed to be in the food by consumers. Many serving sizes are arbitrary and have no basis in reality.
9. Want to know how to really shop for foods? Download our free Honest Food Guide, the honest reference to foods that has now been downloaded by over 800,000 people. It's a replacement for the USDA's highly corrupt and manipulated Food Guide Pyramid, which is little more than a marketing document for the dairy industry and big food corporations. The Honest Food Guide is an independent, nutritionally-sound reference document that reveals exactly what to eat (and what to avoid) to maximize your health.
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