THE DAY I MET MY INSPIRATION…

We all have someone in our life, the one we look up to and and the one we admire the most. The people who inspires us, who gives us strength to overcome all the challenges and the ones who give our life a new meaning and a new and a brighter path. This inspiration can be anyone- a person, an object, any non-living thing and it can even be an animal. Some people have found their inspiration and some are still in search of that particular thing which will give them a new prospective. Luckily I am one of those who have found their inspiration. This is a story of me narrating my first and the last meeting with my inspiration.

This incident took place 7 months ago when Covid-19 was not a big deal and just like my daily routine I was returning home from my college. That day I was quite dejected and and downhearted because my marks of the internal assessment were given and I’d scored very low marks in one subject. I’d prepared for that particular subject wholeheartedly, but still end up getting low grades.I was heading towards the bus stop, my mind full of hundreds of thoughts about my bad grades(as my college is very far from my home and I was compelled to use the public transport), suddenly a voice from behind broke my chain of thoughts. I turn around and saw a little boy, holding lots of balloons in his hands and staring at me with a heart melting smile. He came running towards me and told me whether I am interested in buying a balloon? I never liked balloons
(I am scared of them), but there was something in his smile that I ended up buying it. I gave him money(a little extra than the actual cost of the balloons) and told him that because of the rush in the public transport I would not be able to take the balloons with me, so he can keep them with him. He immediately declined me and said, ” No didi(elder sister) I cannot keep this money, if you won’t take this balloon. I want to earn money by doing some work, by selling some balloons and not like this.” I was stunned by his reply and finally agree to take the balloons. But now I was very inquisitive about this little boy so I asked him whether he will accompany me to the nearby Ice-cream shop. Initially he was hesitating but after insisting him he said okay. We went to the shop and I ordered ice-cream for both of us, meanwhile I asked him about his family and asked him why is he working at such a young age age. He told me his father died when he was 2, and his mother works as a maid. Since the income was not enough he decided to do some work after his school hours, so he started selling balloons. He said I don’t want to beg anybody for money or food, instead I will Earn them by doing work. After finishing the Ice-cream he picked his remaining balloons and say now he got to go as he wants to sell more balloons. I wished him good luck and asked him to meet me outside the shop, the next day, at the day time. He agreed and ran away.

During my whole journey I kept thinking about him, about how brave and determined he was about his goals. I suddenly felt how stupid was I to get sad about my bad grades, when my problems were nothing his front of his. The boy’s problems were giant and still he was so happy and dedicated towards solving them. A small boy, not even half of my age, unintentionally became my inspiration that day. Unfortunately he never showed up after that day, yet I feel and hope someday I will surely meet him again, again I would be able to witness that brightness on his face has his unforgettable smile.

BLACK MONEY&IT DEPT. RAID

 What is Black Money

Black money is funds earned illegally on which income and other taxes have not been paid. The unaccounted money hoarded illegally and concealed from the tax authorities is also called black money. So, it is essential that one does not keep any unaccounted or undeclared money, jewellery or any kind of wealth. In the event of such non-declaration, the chances of the income tax authorities conducting a raid on the taxpayer will be quite high. Therefore, the taxpayer also needs to safeguard himself while possessing someone else’s money ensuring that those are accounted for.

When does a raid happen?

An income tax raid, technically known as the process of Search and Seizure, is one of the crucial weapons that the Income-tax department possesses to check black money. It is a measure that is known to be constitutionally valid too. A raid gets triggered under any of the following circumstances:

  • Credible information of tax evasion; for instance, any evasion coming out of reports received from the Intelligence Wing of the Income tax department.
  • Information coming from government departments.
  • Information procured from assessment records of taxpayers.
  • Information received with regard to spending being disproportionate to income of the taxpayer i.e. an instance of lavish spending without corresponding income to match the same.
  • Manipulation of books of accounts, vouchers, invoices etc.
  • Illegal investment in real estate.
  • Unexplained cash credits, share transactions etc.

Who can conduct a raid?

According to Section 132(1) of the Income Tax Act, the :

  • Principal Director General or Director-General or
  • Principal Director or Director or
  • Principal Chief Commissioner or Chief Commissioner or
  • Principal Commissioner or Commissioner

They can authorize:-

  • Additional Director or
  • Additional Commissioner or
  • Joint Director or
  • Joint Commissioner or
  • Assistant Director or
  • Deputy Director or
  • Assistant Commissioner or
  • Deputy Commissioner  or
  • Income-tax Officer to conduct a tax raid. The authorizing officer will do so, if he has a “reason to believe” that :
  • A taxpayer has failed to comply with any summons or notices sent to him by the Department or
  • He has in his possession money and secondly, such money represents either wholly or partly income or property which has not been disclosed.

It has been held by various courts that the taxpayer being searched ideally does not have the right to get access to information based on which the search has been initiated by the department considering that this would hamper the department’s investigation process. Only High Courts and the Supreme Court have the right to do so.

Powers of tax authorities during a raid

The officer authorized to carry out the raid can:

  1. Enter and search any building, place, etc. where he has a reason to suspect that the books of account, other documents, money, bullion, jewellery or other valuable article or thing representing undisclosed income is kept.
  2. Break open the locks, where the keys are unavailable.
  3. Carry out personal search of a person who is suspected to have secreted some item as mentioned in (1) above.
  4. Seize the items as mentioned in (1) above.
  5. Place marks of identification and take extracts or copies of the books of account and other documents.
  6. Make a note or inventory of the valuables found during the search.

Assets that can be seized.

The authorized officials can seize the following types of assets:

  1. Undeclared cash, jewellery
  2. Books of accounts, challan, diaries, etc.
  3. Computer chips and other data storage devices
  4. Documents relating to property, deed of conveyances, etc.

Assets that cannot be seized

The authorized officials cannot seize the following types of assets:

  1. Stock-in-trade (except cash) of a business
  2. Assets or cash which are disclosed before the Income Tax and Wealth Tax Department
  3. Assets declared in books of account
  4. Cash which are duly explained
  5. Jewellery provided in wealth tax return
  6. Gold up to 500 gm for each married lady and 250 gm for each unmarried woman and 100gm per male member

 Rights of a person during a tax raid

  • To insist on personal search of ladies being taken only by a lady, with strict regard to decency
  • To have at least two respectable and independent residents of the locality as witnesses
  • A lady occupying an apartment being searched has a right to withdraw before the search party enters, if, according to custom, she does not appear in public
  • To call a medical practitioner in case of emergency
  • To allow the children to go to school, after checking their bags
  • To have the facility of having meals, etc. at the normal time
  • To inspect the seals placed on various receptacles, sealed in course of search and subsequently at the time of reopening of the seals
  • To have a copy of the panchanama together with all the annexure
  • To have a copy of any statement that is used against him by the Department
  • To have inspection of the seized books of account, etc., or to take extracts there from in the presence of any of the authorised officers or any other person empowered by him.

 Rights of a person after a tax raid

The person from whose custody any books of account or other documents are seized may make copies thereof or take extracts there from in the presence of any of the authorized officers or any other person empowered by him.

An aggrieved person can file a writ petition before the High Court challenging the raid, if he feels that the action of the department was unfair. He can also challenge the assessment and file an appeal before the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeal).

 Duties of a person during a raid

i. To allow free and unhindered ingress into the premises 

ii. To identify all receptacles in which assets or books of account and documents are kept and to hand over keys to such receptacles to the authorised officer 

iii. To identify and explain the ownership of the assets, books of account and documents found in the premises 

iv. To identify every individual in the premises and to explain their relationship to the person being searched. He should not mislead by impersonation. If he cheats by pretending to be some other person or knowingly substitutes one person for another, it is an offence punishable under section 416 of the Indian Penal Code.

v. Not to allow or encourage the entry of any unauthorised person into the premises.

vi. Not to remove any article from its place without notice or knowledge of the authorised officer. If he destroys any document with the intention of preventing the same from being produced or used as evidence before the court or public servant, he shall be punishable with imprisonment or fine or both, in accordance with section 204 of the Indian Penal Code.


vii. To answer all queries truthfully and to the best of his knowledge. He should not allow any third party to either interfere or prompt, while his statement is being recorded by the authorised officer.

viii. Being legally bound by an oath or affirmation to state the truth. If he makes a false statement, he shall be punishable with imprisonment or fine or both under section 181 of the Indian Penal Code.

ix. Similarly, if he provides evidence which is false and which he knows or believes to be false, he is liable to be punished under section 191 of the Indian Penal Code.

x. To affix his signature on the recorded statement, inventories and the panchanama.

xi. To ensure that peace is maintained throughout the search process, and to cooperate with the search party in all respects so that the search action is concluded at the earliest and in a peaceful manner.

xii. Similar co-operation should be extended even after the search action is over, so as to enable the authorised officer to complete necessary follow-up investigations at the earliest.

How can one prevent raid?

One can lawfully avoid a tax raid by being compliant in terms of responding to summons and notices sent to him by the department and also refrain from keeping money, property undeclared.

AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine

The initial trial data for the COVID-19 vaccine that has been developed in a joint collaboration between Oxford University and AstraZeneca. The data has been widely awaited as the world looks forward to some good news on the front of a vaccine that could shield people from the deadly coronavirus outbreak that has already infected over 14 million people worldwide and killed over 6 lakh. 

The potential vaccine is already in large-scale Phase III human trials to assess whether it can protect against COVID-19, but its developers have yet to report Phase I results which would show whether it is safe and whether or not it induces an immune response. The developers of the vaccine said this month they were encouraged by the immune response they had seen in trials so far and were expecting to publish Phase 1 data by the end of July.

How does the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine candidate work?

When someone is infected with the Covid-19 virus (SARS-CoV-2), the reason it spreads in the body easily is because of the spikes on its surface. These spikes, known as the ‘spike protein’, allow the virus to penetrate cells and, thereafter, multiply. The vaccine developed by Oxford and AstraZeneca, which belongs to a category called non-replicating viral vector vaccines, tries to build the body’s immunity against this spike protein. The idea is to create antibodies to fight this spiked surface so that the virus does not even have the chance to penetrate the cells. The vaccine uses a different virus — in this case, a weakened version of a common cold virus (adenovirus) that infects chimpanzees — to carry just the code to make the spike protein, like a Trojan horse. The adenovirus, genetically modified so that it cannot replicate in humans, will enter the cell and release the code to make only the spike protein. The body’s immune system is expected to recognize the spike protein as a potentially harmful foreign substance and starts building antibodies against it. Once immunity is built, the antibodies will attack the real virus if it tries to infect the body.

Since the Covid-19 vaccine has been developed by a United Kingdom-funded university, UK will have intellectual property rights. Other countries such as India will need to enter into commercial deals or understanding via foundations such as Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI). AstraZeneca also entered a deal with the Pune-based Serum Institute of India to supply one billion doses for low-and-middle-Income countries, with the first 400 million nicely before the end of 2020. It is not yet clear how many doses India will be able to land at first since the rollout of the vaccine will be subject to considerations that are commercial as well as that of equity. The World Health Organization’s chief scientist has described the Oxford vaccine as the leading candidate in a global race to halt the coronavirus pandemic that has killed more than 600,000 people. More than 100 vaccines are being developed and tested around the world to try to stop the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 600,000 people and ravaged the global economy.

Fat shaming


Some of the people certainly making the fun of overweight people and make them feel ashamed of their weight and eating habits.
People also try to force them to get lesser food and more exercise with this belief that they will look better.

It’s very shameful and disgust behaviour of our society that this society makes fun of them instead of appreciating which leads to some harmful effects. This includes depression, low self-esteem, eating disorders and negativity thinking. Thus, we all should appreciate them to be healthy and chubby instead of making fun and help to grow our society happy and healthy one.

Maybe we all were ‘the same’

We have often heard the saying, “Everyone is unique”. But let’s try to question this. Is this really true? Okay, very much debatable! But, let’s proceed with it slowly.

We grow up in a society where we face comparison knowingly or unknowingly. No one can escape the trap of comparison. Comparison with a second person for grades, for projects, for skills, for the job, for salary, and whatnot. But, then we decide, or let’s say realize that this is not the correct way we are seeing things. We now understand that each of us is unique. Yes, it is true to some extent. We are unique in the way we think, in the way we perceive a situation, the talent we have, the skills we acquire, and the level of our creativity. But, this uniqueness is not out of birth, it is developed.

When we say each of us is different, we start imagining a situation, where we all have everything different. We think that the kind of situations we are in is less likely to be experienced by others or maybe, at least not at that point in time. Sometimes, we come across some difficult situations and we are stuck, we might feel low and might feel that we are the one who is stuck here, there are people out there with a very smooth and happy life with no difficult situation arising in their life. But, the thing is that life offers the same set of problems in each one’s life and the no. of problems with the same difficulty level is also the same. We all experience ‘the same‘. We all come across similar situations in our lives and then label them as “good” or “bad” according to our personal opinion. Now, we call them, good or bad experiences and then count the number of bad experiences we had, to classify our lives as a ‘happy life’ or ‘struggling life’.

To better understand, think of life as a game. We all are players of the same game. Initially, we don’t know whether we will find the game interesting or not but, we all need to start playing. Then, we proceed with playing the game. We all come across different levels of the game in order of increasing difficulty. Some are playing the game with great enthusiasm and interest, collecting a lot of gems, health/lives, and rewards, which will be helpful for them in coming levels. While some are going at the same pace with quite low enthusiasm, hardly collecting gems and lives, or they are stuck at a particular level. Those who have collected rewards and lives can now use these in the difficult levels of the game too, to easily clear that level. But, those who were not able to collect rewards are stuck there watching their fellow reaching higher levels. Some of those in the lower levels of the game can again try the previous levels and collect gems, learn the strategy, and move forward, while some of them are tired and can’t play the game more and they quit. This is how the game goes on.

So, we all are playing the same game. We all come across the same situations and the same difficulties. The thought that we are the one coming across the difficulties of life arises because we don’t have enough knowledge of others’ lives. We only see their lives from outside. We can say we know the points of each player in the game (it is there on the scoreboard), but what we actually don’t is the details, i.e. how much gems, lives, and rewards each of them have collected. We all started from the same point and proceeded along the same direction but eventually end up getting different results. The gems, lives, and rewards that we collected on our way and the attempt we made for it kept us making different from each other. So, if you look at those who reached the final level, they may have different skills and talents because of the way in which they proceeded but they have similar perceptions.

BLACK MONEY&IT DEPT. RAID

 What is Black Money

Black money is funds earned illegally on which income and other taxes have not been paid. The unaccounted money hoarded illegally and concealed from the tax authorities is also called black money. So, it is essential that one does not keep any unaccounted or undeclared money, jewellery or any kind of wealth. In the event of such non-declaration, the chances of the income tax authorities conducting a raid on the taxpayer will be quite high. Therefore, the taxpayer also needs to safeguard himself while possessing someone else’s money ensuring that those are accounted for.

When does a raid happen?

An income tax raid, technically known as the process of Search and Seizure, is one of the crucial weapons that the Income-tax department possesses to check black money. It is a measure that is known to be constitutionally valid too. A raid gets triggered under any of the following circumstances:

  • Credible information of tax evasion; for instance, any evasion coming out of reports received from the Intelligence Wing of the Income tax department.
  • Information coming from government departments.
  • Information procured from assessment records of taxpayers.
  • Information received with regard to spending being disproportionate to income of the taxpayer i.e. an instance of lavish spending without corresponding income to match the same.
  • Manipulation of books of accounts, vouchers, invoices etc.
  • Illegal investment in real estate.
  • Unexplained cash credits, share transactions etc.

Who can conduct a raid?

According to Section 132(1) of the Income Tax Act, the :

  • Principal Director General or Director-General or
  • Principal Director or Director or
  • Principal Chief Commissioner or Chief Commissioner or
  • Principal Commissioner or Commissioner

They can authorize:-

  • Additional Director or
  • Additional Commissioner or
  • Joint Director or
  • Joint Commissioner or
  • Assistant Director or
  • Deputy Director or
  • Assistant Commissioner or
  • Deputy Commissioner  or
  • Income-tax Officer to conduct a tax raid. The authorizing officer will do so, if he has a “reason to believe” that :
  • A taxpayer has failed to comply with any summons or notices sent to him by the Department or
  • He has in his possession money and secondly, such money represents either wholly or partly income or property which has not been disclosed.

It has been held by various courts that the taxpayer being searched ideally does not have the right to get access to information based on which the search has been initiated by the department considering that this would hamper the department’s investigation process. Only High Courts and the Supreme Court have the right to do so.

Powers of tax authorities during a raid

The officer authorized to carry out the raid can:

  1. Enter and search any building, place, etc. where he has a reason to suspect that the books of account, other documents, money, bullion, jewellery or other valuable article or thing representing undisclosed income is kept.
  2. Break open the locks, where the keys are unavailable.
  3. Carry out personal search of a person who is suspected to have secreted some item as mentioned in (1) above.
  4. Seize the items as mentioned in (1) above.
  5. Place marks of identification and take extracts or copies of the books of account and other documents.
  6. Make a note or inventory of the valuables found during the search.

Assets that can be seized.

The authorized officials can seize the following types of assets:

  1. Undeclared cash, jewellery
  2. Books of accounts, challan, diaries, etc.
  3. Computer chips and other data storage devices
  4. Documents relating to property, deed of conveyances, etc.

Assets that cannot be seized

The authorized officials cannot seize the following types of assets:

  1. Stock-in-trade (except cash) of a business
  2. Assets or cash which are disclosed before the Income Tax and Wealth Tax Department
  3. Assets declared in books of account
  4. Cash which are duly explained
  5. Jewellery provided in wealth tax return
  6. Gold up to 500 gm for each married lady and 250 gm for each unmarried woman and 100gm per male member

 Rights of a person during a tax raid

  • To insist on personal search of ladies being taken only by a lady, with strict regard to decency
  • To have at least two respectable and independent residents of the locality as witnesses
  • A lady occupying an apartment being searched has a right to withdraw before the search party enters, if, according to custom, she does not appear in public
  • To call a medical practitioner in case of emergency
  • To allow the children to go to school, after checking their bags
  • To have the facility of having meals, etc. at the normal time
  • To inspect the seals placed on various receptacles, sealed in course of search and subsequently at the time of reopening of the seals
  • To have a copy of the panchanama together with all the annexure
  • To have a copy of any statement that is used against him by the Department
  • To have inspection of the seized books of account, etc., or to take extracts there from in the presence of any of the authorised officers or any other person empowered by him.

 Rights of a person after a tax raid

The person from whose custody any books of account or other documents are seized may make copies thereof or take extracts there from in the presence of any of the authorized officers or any other person empowered by him.

An aggrieved person can file a writ petition before the High Court challenging the raid, if he feels that the action of the department was unfair. He can also challenge the assessment and file an appeal before the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeal).

 Duties of a person during a raid

i. To allow free and unhindered ingress into the premises 

ii. To identify all receptacles in which assets or books of account and documents are kept and to hand over keys to such receptacles to the authorised officer 

iii. To identify and explain the ownership of the assets, books of account and documents found in the premises 

iv. To identify every individual in the premises and to explain their relationship to the person being searched. He should not mislead by impersonation. If he cheats by pretending to be some other person or knowingly substitutes one person for another, it is an offence punishable under section 416 of the Indian Penal Code.

v. Not to allow or encourage the entry of any unauthorised person into the premises.

vi. Not to remove any article from its place without notice or knowledge of the authorised officer. If he destroys any document with the intention of preventing the same from being produced or used as evidence before the court or public servant, he shall be punishable with imprisonment or fine or both, in accordance with section 204 of the Indian Penal Code.


vii. To answer all queries truthfully and to the best of his knowledge. He should not allow any third party to either interfere or prompt, while his statement is being recorded by the authorised officer.

viii. Being legally bound by an oath or affirmation to state the truth. If he makes a false statement, he shall be punishable with imprisonment or fine or both under section 181 of the Indian Penal Code.

ix. Similarly, if he provides evidence which is false and which he knows or believes to be false, he is liable to be punished under section 191 of the Indian Penal Code.

x. To affix his signature on the recorded statement, inventories and the panchanama.

xi. To ensure that peace is maintained throughout the search process, and to cooperate with the search party in all respects so that the search action is concluded at the earliest and in a peaceful manner.

xii. Similar co-operation should be extended even after the search action is over, so as to enable the authorised officer to complete necessary follow-up investigations at the earliest.

How can one prevent raid?

One can lawfully avoid a tax raid by being compliant in terms of responding to summons and notices sent to him by the department and also refrain from keeping money, property undeclared.

Recent trends in HRm

We have witnessed a major recent trends in human resource management industry for the past few years. If you look back, everything from the hiring process, people analytics to software systems has evolved.

Instead of just engaging the employees and giving an upper hand to their satisfaction level, today’s trends are more inclined to enlighten the overall HR culture

recent trends in human resource management

The HR department has moved far forward than just mere recruitment, benefits management, professional development and time and attendance.

Here let us have a look at some of the most recent trends in human resource management that can change the overall working scenario of a daily office.

Employee experience:

Here than the engagement of employees at workplace, the focus has shifted to employee experience. More than mere engagement, concentration is now given to enhancement of company culture, and performance management.

The main roles of the HR department now covers enhancing employee’s journey map and giving a greater exposure to feedback tools, employee wellness apps, productivity tools and advanced communication tools.

Advanced people analytics:

Companies have moved far ahead from just the back office data to utilizing the best of people analytics. Reporting through the dashboards has outdated in most of the companies and focus is more on predictive models.

Companies have moved far ahead from just the back office data to utilizing the best of people analytics. Reporting through the dashboards has outdated in most of the companies and focus is more on predictive models.

SAP Success Factors, ADP, Visier, Cornerstone and Oracle are among the most widely used HR tools to enhance the possibilities of HR sector to improve the overall effectiveness of employees.

Learning management systems:

Despite the position of the employees or their experience, learning new skills is important to stay updated. That is why constant learning is now a novel trend in the HR sector. Providing learning opportunities to employees is the key for any company that is eyeing for progress.

An improved skill set can help employees to deliver their best at workplace that reflects in the overall productivity of the enterprise. Learning management systems are playing the crucial part in tracking the employees learning process and even to collaborate between various departments effectively.

Bazil’s President Bolsonaro Threthens to quit WHO

Following the footstep of his counterpart Donald Trump, President of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro has warned to quit the World Health Organization (WHO) unless it ceases to be a “Partisan political organization.” 

The president said “I tell you here, the United States left WHO, we are considering it in the future (…). Either WHO works without ideological bias, or we are leaving it too.”

“We don’t need outsiders to give their feelings about health here,” he told reporters in Brasilia.

All over the world, around 4,02,428 people had died because of the coronavirus Pandemic since it emerged last year in China. This pandemic affects every nation among those nations European countries are affected very much.

 Brazil ranks third among the European countries with total deaths of around 36000, while this figure has crossed 1,00,000 in the USA.

Governments of all over the world are focused on resuscitating economies, which has declined due to the lockdown of several months. 

 Suspension of the clinical trial of the drug hydroxychloroquine –

Accusing WHO as the puppet of China, last month US President Donald Trump also announced to take back US membership from World health organization.

 Mr. Bolsonaro criticized WHO for suspending clinical trial of the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine and warned to pull out of World health organization like US President Donald Trump.

Earlier the study published in The Lancet, can not answer the question of whether hydroxychloroquine can help the patient fight Covid-19 or not, and with the use of this drug the death cases increase or not. But a recent study found that those patients of Covid-19, treated with hydroxychloroquine drug had a higher risk of death than those who didn’t take it.

The WHO has also changed the guidelines on the face mask and asks to loosen the social distancing.WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris said that a key criterion for lifting lockdowns was slowing transmission and asks to loosen the social distancing.

“The epidemic, the outbreak, in Latin America is deeply, deeply concerning,” she told a news conference in Geneva. 

The positive cases all over the world are increasing every day. Coronavirus infected almost 6.7 million people and 4 lac deaths globally.

Every Nation is trying to recover from this pandemic after risking its economy into the deepest recession since the great depression of the 1930s.

This impacted even the country with the largest economy. The US with 1.9 million the highest number of COVID-19 positive cases and 1 lac death Mr. Trump is trying to bring the economy on the track again.

Mr. Trump also said the economy was bouncing back. “We had the greatest economy in the history of the world. And that strength let us get through this horrible pandemic, largely through, I think we’re doing really well,” he told reporters.

A SHORT GUIDEBOOK TO DARJEELING

with women plucking tea leaves a breathtaking memory.The untouched beauty coupled with the picturesque view of mountains along with the availability of unique variety of tea exported everywhere makes it a go to place for people residing in the Eastern Part of the Country.

How To Get Into Darjeeling?

Darjeeling being a small town , has tourist visiting from all over India. By Plane, the nearest airport is Bagdogra, near Siliguri. It’s a 96 km drive from Bagdogra to Darjeeing, which is approximately a 3 hour drive. By Train,  the nearest railway station is  New Jalpaiguri .The railway route is well connected to cities like Kolkata, Bhubaneshwar, Guwahati , etc. We took The Darjeeling Mail from Kolkata, which takes approximately 12 hours,  the next best alternative is the Paharia Express, which takes almost the same number of hours. From New Jalpaiguri , we ‘ve to take the famous “Toy Train” to the city of tea leaves. It’s difficult to get hold of the tickets of the toy train during the summer months, because of high rush  of tourist.

The   tracks running across the town surrounded by emarald  green plantations, is a popular subject of visit for tourists.  It’s the picturesque mountainous scenery  is the reason  why so many romantic movies  have been filmed ,and Darjeeling has been mentioned in articles of romantic  subject .The  toy train  stops at the Ghoom junction, running  360 degree around the Batasia Loop. What makes it all the more famous, is the fact that it was listed as World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Buses are a convenient option for the ones who ’re backpacking, and  for people who’ve money constraint. Private taxis  are a convenient  option  for family people. Back when I visited Darjeeling in the year of 2016, shared jeeps would charge  Rs. 150-200 (depending the number of riders sharing the ride).

Best time of the year to take a  break?

Darjeeling is a backpacker’s delight and honeymooner’s dream.The best time to visit Darjeeling is between the  months April-June, when the temperature is around 25 degree Celsius. While there are some honeymoon couples who wishes to go at the time of winter i.e.,October-January when the temperature drops down to below 10 degree Celsius.

Best places to Pose for a Camera

The first to top the list, is everyone’s  favourite The Tiger Hills .Before the dawn cracks, witnessing the first rays of sun, hitting the Kanchenjunga peaks , it  makes the Perfect Sunrise. Panoramic view of the toy train  around  Batasia Loops  is a sight to die for. Animal lovers cannot miss paying visit to the Padmaja Naidu Zoological Park, where Red Pandas, Tibetan Wolves, Himalayan bears could be spotted. Tourists in huge numbers are found around  the Ghoom Monastery , one of the oldest monastery in the region. The Peace Pagoda  is the best place for relaxation , and for mental peace.

What To Grab A Bite In Darjeeling?

Darjeeling is the Hub to multi-cuisines , since it  caters to the needs of tourists from all over the world. The most famous  street food are Momos  and Thukpa, available in all the forms for food lovers. When  in Darjeeling, you just cannot  leave without   tasting the authentic tea leaves. Chaang, a local  brew, similar to beer  served in bamboo sticks catched eyeballs. For tea addicts like me, Darjeeling seemed to be next to heaven. If you fancy spice, treat your taste buds with the Dalle. Dalle is a locally made pickle, which would  surely sent a burning sensation down your spills.

Best Stop For Bargain Hunting?

Never thought my mother’s obsession over collecting unique jewellery items, would lead us to the Mall Road, a place worth visiting. The  atmosphere there  had vibes  which would remind anyone of the ancient Buddhist culture depicted in their art,  paintings ,etc. For those who admire arts and culture, must pay a visit to the Nehru Road which is famous for Buddha statues, knives, handbags, exotic Tibetan items used as souvenir. The Tibetan Self help  centre is one of the few best places known for unique carpets.

Snow capped Himalayan Peaks, the cute Himalayan train , beautiful tea garden amidst the rolling hills ,along with the Tibetan influence of arts, culture and cuisine the town has a lot to offer.

Tiktok again caught spying on iOS 14 users’ data

TikTok app – for which many campaigns are running over the social media to boycott the use of this Chinese app- was recently caught spying on people who were using iOS 14, mainly developers and selected users. Complete access to the update will be made available to users by Fall 2020, Apple had noted.

The short video-making Chinese app had stated in the past that it would stop the practice of reading content on user’s clipboards However, quite recently it was again found that the app is snooping on the Apple users and was caught red-handed a report on Telephraph stated.

This could be figured out by a software update by Apple for iOS 14 that sends notifications to users whenever an app is found accessing their data.

The alarms for apps getting access to data were raised before the release of iOS 14. Research by Talal Haj Bakry and Tommy Mysk found that many popular apps were snooping on user content without their consent. The report noted that the text left in the clipboard or the pasteboard could be inconsequential but it could contain sensitive data like user’s passwords, etc.

Every time the user opens an app, it gets access to their data. This could be gaming apps or social media apps.

Along with Tiktok other apps like AccuWeather, Overstock, AliExpress, Call of Duty Mobile, Patreon, and Google News also accessed user’s data from their clipboards, Telegraph noted.

iPhone users and software developers who received notifications were enraged with this and described the app’s behavior as “creepy” and “extremely shady,” the report stated.

A spokesperson for TikTok issued a clarification quoted by The Telegraph. He said that the app’s behavior was triggered by a feature designed to identify repetitive, spammy behavior. Further, he assured of the privacy of the users and transparency of the working of the App.

“Following the beta release of iOS 14 on June 22, users saw notifications while using a number of popular apps. For TikTok, this was triggered by a feature designed to identify repetitive, spammy behavior. We have already submitted an updated version of the app to the App Store removing the anti-spam feature to eliminate any potential confusion,” the spokesperson said.
“TikTok is committed to protecting users’ privacy and being transparent about how our app works,” he added.

It is however not clear if the company removed the feature for Android devices as well and for how long the feature had been in place. It also did not give any clarification if the user’s data from the clipboard was used by the app.

A report by MacRumors stated that a download of the new update confirms that TikTok no longer appears to be accessing the clipboard.