30 useful government apps every Indian should download

January 31, 2020

There’s an app for almost everything these days and as part of its Digital India initiative, the government of India has also been aggressively building apps for the citizens. These apps are for various government related services and for also different sections of the society. For instance, there are special apps for teachers, farmers, women, children. Here we list out 30 government apps that one should download or at least know about

112 App: For women’s safety

Mainly meant for women safety, through this app one can just by pressing a button or just pressing power button thrice, one can initiate call to the state emergency responses.

Bharat ke Veer: For contributing to families of Central Armed Police Forces’ soldiers

Through this mobile app, citizens can pay homage and contribute financially to the bereaved families of Central Armed Police Forces’ soldiers who laid down their lives in the line of duty.

DigiLocker: For safely keeping digital copies of important documents

Users can save digital copies of documents like driving license, PAN card on this app

mParivahan: For driving license and vehicle related information

An app to create copies of driving license, vehicle registration certificate among other things. It can come in handy if you’re ever ‘caught’ by traffic police in case of violating any traffic norms.

Yoga locator: For fitness and yoga enthusiasts

As the name suggests, the app helps people searching yoga trainers and centres in cities. Yoga trainers and centres can register themselves through this app also.

Sangam: For devotional and Indian classical music

An app for devotional music, Sangam features over 2500 devotional tracks in 24 Indian languages on themes such as mantras. It also has songs from classical music artists like Pt. Bhimsen Joshi, Ustad Bismillah Khan and others

mPassport: For passport related information

All passport related information is available on this app. Users can track passport application status and locate the nearest Passport Seva Kendra (PSK)

UMANG (Unified Mobile Application for New-age Governance)

The app version of the single-ticket window and brings together various government departments and their services on one platform.

Indian Police on Call

An app to locate the nearest police station. It has numbers of district control rooms and other important details related to local police.

Krishi Kisan: For new farming techniques

Another app for farmers, which can be used to see and learn about best practices of cultivation. The app also helps farmers in geo-fencing and geo-tagging of crops.

Khelo India: For sports and fitness enthusiasts

Khelo India App helps you to get information about various games, available sporting facilities nearby and also gives a fitness assessment of children.

Consumer app: For registering consumer complaints

The app is available in Hindi and English and can be used to file complaints and get redressal within 60 days

CHC Farm Machinery: For farmers to get machinery

With this app, farmers can select and order required farm machinery at feasible rates. It is available only on Google Play Store for Android smartphones.

UTS: For booking unreserved tickets

An app for those who want to book unreserved tickets on Indian Railways.

Aaykar Setu: For income tax and PAN card

One can apply for PAN, pay taxes among other things on this Income Tax department’s app.

ePathshala: For students and teachers

This app comes in handy for teachers and students who can access e-books on mobile devices and desktops.

cVigil: For “free and fair elections

An app by the Election Commission of India that helps in creating a fast-track complaint reception and redressal system regarding elections in the country

MADAD: For Indian citizens abroad

An app created by the Ministry of External Affairs for those Indian citizens who are in distress abroad. Do keep in mind grievances/queries related to visa and passport, emergency travel documents etc. won’t be answered through the app.

BHIM: For financial transactions

A popular app for carrying out financial transactions digitally. This Unified Payment Interface-based app helps in sending/receiving money among other things.

Startup India

An app for entrepreneurs to understand government initatives about startups.

DigiSevak: For citizen volunteers

App for citizen volunteers who, based on their skills and interest, can do voluntary work for various government departments.

MySpeed (TRAI): For data speed

Users can tell TRAI about their data speed, coverage area and other network related information through this app.

IRCTC: Indian Railways app

From booking train tickets to hotels to even flight tickets, the IRCTC app is for all travel-related needs

National Scholarships Portal: For students looking for scholarship

National Scholarships Portal (NSP) is one-stop solution for various scholarship schemes offered by various central Ministries and State Departments.

Incredible India: For tourism information

All tourism related information is available on this app.

Voter Helpline: App by the Election Commission of India

An app that acts as a single point service for voters. One can submit forms for new voter ID cards, do a search of names in electoral rolls among other things.

MyGov: Feedback, suggestions and ideas to the government

This app can be used to give feedback, suggestions to the government about its various schemes

Kisan Suvidha: For agriculture related information

This app is meant for farmers who can information like market prices, weather update and other details.

mKavach (Mobile security solutions)

This government app offers mobile security solutions like malware and one can even block spam messages and calls.

eBasta app: For teachers and students

An app for teachers and students to access ebooks and creating content/study material as well

he Madras Food Truck offers a melange of flavours to beach-goers in Besant Nagar

Orange with a chance of meatballs

If you have been visiting Elliot’s beach in Besant Nagar, you may have seen this cheerful orange food truck featuring an image of the Marina lighthouse. What is even more unmissable is the aroma of hot, buttery pasta mingled with Chinese fried rice, wafting from it.

 

The Madras Food Truck was launched in March last year. “The younger generation is curious to know more about food trucks but the older generation thinks we are just street vendors,” smiles Anand.

Ranjith takes care of the food. He previously worked as demi chef de partie at The Oberoi, Bengaluru and Hyatt Regency, Delhi. “Our cuisine is a fusion of Indian, Chinese, Italian, American and continental,” says Anand. Their focus is on using fresh ingredients. “We used to serve fries, but we stopped as we had to freeze the semi-boiled potatoes. Also, we have fish on the menu, only when there is a fresh catch,” says Anand.

Their honey chilli potato is a favourite among clients. The potatoes are tossed with a combination of spicy sauces and fried to crispy perfection.

Other popular starters include lotus stem, baby corn and barbecue chicken wings. The Italian mushrooms and white sauce pasta are well received too.

“Many customers have told us that the pasta they’ve eaten at fancy restaurants — typically costing ₹400 a dish — is not as good as ours. That’s the comment we’ve always longed to hear,” smiles Anand.

They also serve seafood: crunchy fish sticks topped with peri-peri mayonnaise and squid with addictive Indian masala.

However, it is the desi Chinese fried rice that is the star of the menu. “The cooking method is different from the traditional Chinese style, and we add a secret ingredient that’s found in everyone’s home,” grins Anand, mysteriously. The brothers enjoy running the truck: they say people who visit regularly have become friends. “Some customers encourage us to start more food trucks, and are even willing to invest in the business,” says Anand. They’re planning to scale up by starting a truck dedicated to South Indian cuisine before the end of the year. The Madras Food Truck is parked at Fourth Main Road, Besant Nagar and is open between 6 pm and 11 pm.

Mouth-watering vegetarian dishes of India

Goa – khatkhate, Almixacuti & Goan nevri

West Bengal - Luchi-ghugni, begun bhaja (fried brinjal), aloo posto (potatoes cooked in poppy seeds paste), and mochar ghonto (banana flower and potato curry). Bengali sweets, such as rosogulla, chomchom and sandesh.

Uttar Pradesh

Aloo puri puffy, crispy puris and piping hot potato curry. sweets petha, peda and rewari.

Kerala - A must-have foodie experience in Kerala is the sadya, which is served on a banana leaf. Avial, appam (type of pancake), porotta (flaky, layered flat bread), vegetable stew, idiyappam (rice noodle cakes) and puttu (steamed rice cakes with coconut) to match with kadala (chickpea) curry.

Karnataka - Mysore dosa smeared with a spicy garlic and red chillies chutney. Neer dosa (made with runny rice batter), allugedda (mashed masala potatoes) and bisi bele bath (made with rice, lentils and veggies).  Traditional sweet Mysore pak.

Sikkim - Food is mostly influenced by Nepalese and Tibetan cuisine. Momos and thukpa to delicacies like gundruk (leafy vegetable), Sikkim has some unique dishes to offer.

Telangana - Shahi tukda the Hyderabadi pudding comprises fried bread topped with condensed milk and flavored with a hint of cardamom and saffron. Sarva pindi  (a type of savory pancake), pachi pulusu (tamarind soup), polelu (flat bread stuffed with jaggery) and baghare baingan (brinjal curry).

Jammu and Kashmir - Dum-aloo, which is fried potatoes cooked in a curd-based gravy. Lyodur Tschaman (cottage cheese cooked in a turmeric-based gravy) and paneer chaman (cottage cheese prepared in milk). Breads such as sheermal and baqerkhani. 

Odisha - Mouth-watering desserts such as ras malai, chhenapoda and rasabali. The vegetarian dishes that commonly figure in a main course meal here include dalma (a green gram preparation), pakhala bhata (a rice dish) and santula (vegetable curry). 

Mizoram - Chhum han is a simple dish made of steamed vegetables. Koat pitha (banana fritters), paanch phoron torkari (mixed vegetables) and bamboo shoot fry.

Gujarat - Khandvi is made with gram flour, the rolled snack is served with chutney. Snack on like dhokla, thepla, muthiya, fafda, khichu. Mohanthal, ghari and basundi are must-try sweets.

Tamil Nadu - Dosa, uttapam has toppings of bell pepper, onion and tomato. Idli, vada, dosa, lemon rice, sambhar, rasam, banana bondas, milagu pongal (savory rice dish) and murukku

Haryana - A paradise for vegetarians, Kadhi pakoda (gram flour balls cooked in curd), sangri ki sabzi (a preparation of stringy beans) and a variety of khichdi (rice and lentil dish) and dal preparations. Buttermilk is one of the much-loved drinks. Gulfi at Delhi.  

Madhya Pradesh - Poha-jalebi  the classic breakfast combinations here is poha (lightly fried flakes of flattened rice) paired with jalebi. With scrumptious dishes such as bhutte ki khees (corn cooked in spices and simmered in milk) and dal bafla (baked wheat balls with dal), Madhya Pradesh sure offers a good mix for food connoisseurs.

Rajasthan - Dal baati from the traditional dal baati churma (a dish made of lentils), gatte ki sabzi (made of gram flour), bikaneri bhujiya (crispy snack) to sweets like balushahi, ghevar and Alwar's milkcake, there are ample of dishes in Rajasthan to please all taste buds.

Andhra Pradesh - Known as pulihora or puliyodharayi, tamarind rice is a tangy rice preparation infused with tamarind pulp. Other well-liked dishes from the state include poornalu (rice flour stuffed with jaggery mixed dal paste), mamidikaya pappu (raw mango dal), koora (curry) and panasapottu koora (jackfruit curry).

Maharashtra - Vada pav from puran poli to vada pav and pav bhaji, the land of Marathas has some of the best food in the country. Other famous food from this region include missal pav, batata vada and modak.

Assam - Aloo pitika, a mashed potato preparation, other signature dishes include xaak aru bhaji (leafy vegetable stir fried), oou khatta (chutney made of elephant apple) and a variety of pithas (rice cakes).

Arunachal Pradesh - Bamboo shoots are used as an ingredient in most recipes. A separate dish prepared entirely with tender bamboo shoots is one of the most popular of the state.

Bihar - Staple food litti chokha (whole wheat flour balls with a stuffing of roasted gram flour) and sattu recipes like sattu paratha. Thekua (sweet dish), balushahi (dessert), dhuska (deep fried snack) and suran chutney (made of elephant foot yam).

Jharkhand - sweet Malpua (deep-fried pancake) and thekua & litti chokha.

Punjab - Makke di roti and sarso da saag (made of corn and mustard leaves). Lip-smacking Amritsari kulcha and lassi (yogurt-based drink).

Uttarakhand - Bal mithai is a dessert made with roasted khoya and coated with sugar balls. Apart from this, Uttarakhand has some unique dishes like the bhaang ki chutney (made with hemp, mint leaves and green chillies), Garhwal ka fannah (a dal preparation), baadi (a type of porridge), jhangora ki kheer (cereal-based dessert) and Kumaoni raita (a curd preparation)

Chhattisgarh - Muthia the dumpling served with chutney is made from rice batter mixed with spices and chopped onion. Aamat (tangy soup made with bamboo shoots), dubki kadhi (a kadhi preparation with chana dal dumplings) and chousela (rice puri).

Himachal Pradesh - Babru - Stuffed with black gram, this is a Himachali version of the popular kachoris. The Himachali pulao made with rice, nuts, spices and fruits is also a staple of the state. Apart from this, sweet, saffron-flavored rice known as meetha zafrani chawal and makhana raita (lotus seeds and curd preparation) are also popular.

Guide to new car delivery inspection

An oversight on your part at that time could lead to some stress or inconvenience later

Taking delivery of your new car is a big occasion. While it is easy to get lost in the moment of being handed the keys to your new set of wheels, you should take care that everything is in order. An oversight on your part at the time of taking delivery could lead to some stress or inconvenience later. Here are some pointers on what to do before taking delivery.

Bring someone along

It is best to take someone along when inspecting the car — if you have a trusted mechanic, even better. It’s nice to have an extra set of eyes and ears as you inspect the car, so that you’re more likely to notice things that may have been missed if only a single person were looking over the car. A mechanic will also be more likely to spot any sub-par repair work, or notice if anything seems out of place.

Exterior inspection

Walk around the car and inspect the surfaces for dings and scratches and places that may look repainted. Also keep an eye out for misaligned panels or improper panel gaps, which could indicate a shoddy repair job. Check the rubber seals around the doors and windows for cracks and check the tyres for tread level and flat spots. Also switch on all exterior lights and make sure they are working properly and do not flicker. A flicker could indicate a wiring or battery problem.

A full inspection — especially by someone with a trained eye — can help you identify any damage or unwarranted wear-and-tear to your new car. This should be correctly rectified by the dealer prior to your taking possession.

Keep in mind that it’s not unusual for cars to suffer a little damage during storage or transit from the factory.

Interior inspection

Inside the car, check if all the various adjustment functions for components like the wing mirrors, seats, steering and seatbelts work properly, as well as all electricals within the cabin, such as the audio system, touchscreen, instrument cluster lights, cabin/reading lamps etc. Check the quality of the dashboard, door pads, seats, and if the overall fit-and-finish levels are acceptable. Also, keep an eye out for any stains on the upholstery and check the carpets for signs of water seepage.

Fire up the engine and switch on the air conditioning; check if it cools the cabin quickly and effectively. Also check for any odour emanating from the system, which could indicate the growth of bacteria inside the system. Improper cooling or a foul odour will require the system to be serviced.

Also make sure you check for the spare tyre, vehicle jack and tool kit. In most cars, the spare wheel is under either the boot floor or the vehicle.

Under the hood

Open the bonnet and look for any signs of fluid leak, dirt, grime and signs of rats. Also, check all fluid levels to make sure they are at the correct level and colour. It’s also worth inspecting the rubber hosings, tubing and insulation casings of wires under the bonnet for damage. Rubber components tend to dry out, harden and/or crack over time, which is an indicator that the car has been exposed to the elements for a while.

Also, start up the engine, allow it to idle, and check for any peculiar or unusual noises. While at idle, the engine shouldn’t vibrate excessively, the bay should not smell of unburnt fuel and the exhaust should not emit black fumes.

Inspect the battery and its terminals for signs of corrosion as well, and ask the sales person for the battery’s warranty card.

Pre-delivery test drive

Sure, you will have test-driven the car prior to placing the order, but this is more to check out your new car’s mechanicals. Insist on taking it for a test drive before officially accepting delivery. A test drive will help you zero-in on any mechanical issues — manufacturing defects or otherwise. If the car has been lying still for a while, the tyres may develop a flat spot. This can be identified during the test drive, if not spotted during the visual inspection. Also get a feel for the steering, brakes, clutch and gearbox and make sure that all are functioning smoothly. On the test drive, see if the car is pulling in one direction, if there is a judder in the brake pedal during hard braking, any unwanted suspension noise over uneven roads, or if any of the warning lights show up.

Paperwork

Check the manufacturing month and year of the car. Ask the dealer to show you the ‘Form 22’ which is issued by the manufacturer and mentions the vehicle’s engine number and chassis number, with the month and year of manufacture.

The car’s Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) should be the same as the one appearing on the bill of sale, registration certificate and the finance or lease agreement. Check that the engine and chassis number of the car match the ones on the invoice as well. And make sure your spelling, address and other details are correct and consistent on all documents.

You get only one chance to see if there are any fundamental issues with your car. Make the most of it and do a thorough job, and don’t forget — any of the faults that you might see need to be noted down, signed and duly acknowledged by the dealer. Once satisfied, you can celebrate your new purchase with even greater peace of mind.

கோவில்களில் இறைவனை வணங்க சாஸ்திரங்கள் கூறும் மூன்று வகை நமஸ்காரங்கள்!

கோயில்களுக்கு சென்று இறைவனை வணங்கும் போது முக்கியமான மூன்று வழிமுறைகள் உள்ளதாக ஆகம சாஸ்திரங்கள் கூறுகின்றன. 

உத்தம நமஸ்காரம்:

லட்சுமி வாசம் செய்யும் வேதரேகைகள், மந்திர உபதேசங்கள் நிறைந்த நமது இரண்டு கரங்களை இணைத்து, இதயத்திற்கு அருகில் மார்பிற்கு நேரே மையத்தில் வைத்து, மனதில் மட்டுமே மந்திரங்களைக் கூறி இறைவனை ஒருநொடியேனும் மனதார வணங்க வேண்டும். மனிதனின் ஆத்ம இருப்பிடமான இதயத்தில் இருந்து வணங்குவதை இறைவன் செவிசாய்த்து கேட்பான் என்பது ஐதீகம்.

அஷ்டாங்க நமஸ்காரம்:

இவ்வகையான நமஸ்காரமுறை ஆண்களுக்கு மட்டுமே உரித்தானது. இம்முறையில் அஷ்டாங்கமும் (அஷ்டம் எட்டு; அங்கம் உடற்பாகம்) தரையில் படும்படியாக வீழ்ந்து, இறைவனிடம் தன்னை முழுமையாக அர்ப்பணித்து வணங்க வேண்டும். தலை, முகம், இரண்டு தோள்பட்டைகள், உடல், இரண்டு முழங்கால்கள் மற்றும் பாதநுனி ஆகிய உடற்பாகங்களை தரையில் படும்படியாக படுத்துக்கொண்டு இறைவனின் திருப்பாதத்தை சரணடைந்தால் வாழ்வில் பாவங்கள் நீங்கி நற்கதி உண்டாகும்.

பஞ்சாங்க நமஸ்காரம்: 

இந்த நமஸ்காரமுறை பெண்களுக்கு மட்டுமே பொருந்தும். இவ்வகையான வணங்கல் முறையில் பெண்கள் தங்களது பஞ்சாங்கத்தையும் (பஞ்சம் ஐந்து; அங்கம் உடற்பாகம்) இறைவனிடம் முழுமையாக சமர்ப்பணம் செய்து வணங்க வேண்டும். இம்முறையில் தலை, இரண்டு முழங்கால்கள் மற்றும் இரண்டு பாதநுனிகளை பூமியில் வைத்து இறைவனை வணங்கிட நற்பலன்கள் கிட்டும்.