ramesh r

Yesterday was one of the most hectic days of my life while travelling. It took us 18 hours to reach Munnar. We got stuck in Annamalai National Park for eight hours on a 10 km stretch. We were supposed to reach Munnar by 4 pm but arrived around 1:30 a.m. We almost ran out of fuel, there was no network in the national park, and our family was worried about us. As girls, we struggled to find a washroom for 8-10 hours. We all say that India is not using the full potential of its tourism, but do we have that kind of infrastructure? One long weekend and every tourist place gets packed.

5 Things that first time buyers, need to keep in mind before comparing a spec sheet of multiple cars and making a purchase decision. 1) 60 km rule - Your service centre should be within 60 km max 2) Torque - If you are going to drive on highways and hills, prioritise torque (nm) over CC and BHP 3) Naturally Aspirated Petrol - If you want easy on pocket maintenance after 6th year too and will keep the car for longer period, prefer Naturally Aspirated Petrol Engine over Turbo Petrol and Diesel too. These engines are ok to travel from A to B with peace. Cars from Maruti, Toyota and Honda will fetch you excellent resale value in C2C market. 4) AMT and AT - If you are going to drive majorly in city, prefer AMT or Automatic after learning to drive AT car properly before getting a new one. AMT under 10 lakh is OK but above 10 lakh, prefer a proper Automatic (CVT, Torque Converter and DCT/DCA) 5) 6 Airbags and HSA - Don't compromise on solid safety kit in 2026. Safety rated car, 6 airbags, hill start assist/hold is a must. Also, have a basic understanding of platform (monocoque and ladder-frame). Prefer ladder frame with RWD only for rural areas and hills. BONUS TIP - If fuel efficiency is a big concern, consider an EV if you have parking at home to install home charger. Driving radius of 200 km. Range will be 6-8 km per kWh of your battery pack in real time, no matter what brands say. Get this tech if you are going to keep your car for 8+ years and running is 1000+ km per day. Read warranty thing very carefully. Otherwise, Hybrid Victoris/GV/City/Hyryder/Invicto/Hycross are near perfect if you are ok with 16-24 km/l and don't need an extra headache of charging your car. These hybrids still don't have any solid alternative for city use. Diesel is fine for 50:50 use with 1500+ km monthly running and if you understand that authorities may come hard at Diesel in coming years.

From a senior politician : One scenario he discussed . High chances of no party getting a majority on May 4th . If that happens - vijay will not align with any major party and will call for a re-poll . Which will happen in 6 months time . Until then - presidents rule .

Give me one good reason for you voting for Vijay.

நட்பு வட்டாரத்துல ஒரு death. 42 வயசு. Happy Family. நல்ல சம்பளத்துல வேலைக்கு போய்கிட்டு இருந்தார். வேற எந்த வருமானமும் இல்லை. மனைவி வேலைக்கு போகவில்லை. 4 வருஷத்துக்கு முன்னாடி அவங்கள விடாம துரத்தி, அவன term இன்சூரன்ஸ் எடுக்க வச்சேன். As per ரூல்ஸ், யாரையும் இன்சூரன்ஸ் எடுக்க compel பண்ணக் கூடாது. நண்பன் என்கிற முறையில் அதை செஞ்சேன். இப்போ இன்சூரன்ஸ் claim process க்கு ஹெல்ப் பண்ணிக்கிட்டு இருக்கேன். வர்ற ₹3 கோடியை நல்ல முறையில் முதலீடு பண்றதுக்கு எல்லா ஏற்பாடுகளும் பண்ணியாச்சு. அடுத்த 30/40 வருஷங்களுக்கு அவங்களோட financial situation is well protected. இந்த இன்சூரன்ஸ் மட்டும் எடுத்துருக்கல ன்னா என்ன ஆகியிருக்கும் ன்னு தெரியலை. ரொம்ப கஷ்டமா இருந்துருக்கும். “எதுக்குடா வீண் செலவு? கட்டுற பிரீமியம் வேஸ்ட் தானே” ன்னு சொல்லிக்கிட்டே இருந்தான். என்னமோ தோனிச்சி, compel பண்ணி எடுக்க வச்சேன். இன்னிக்கு அதுதான் கை கொடுக்குது. என்கிட்ட தான் ன்னு இல்லாம, எங்க வேணும்னாலும் யாருகிட்ட வேணும்னாலும் எடுங்க. ஆனா கண்டிப்பா குடும்பத்துக்கு ஒன்னு எடுத்து வச்சிக்கோங்க. அந்த இன்சூரன்ஸ் அ கிளைம் பண்ணவே வாய்ப்பளிக்காத ஒரு வாழ்க்கை அமையட்டும். எல்லாரும் சந்தோஷமா 100 வயசு வரைக்கும் வாழ்வோம். இப்படி எதாவது நடந்துட்டா… அதுதான் பயமுறுத்துது என்ன. என்னோட வயசுக்கும் ஹெல்த் கண்டிஷன் க்கும் யாரும் எனக்கு கவரேஜ் கொடுக்கல. ஆனா நான் வேற வழியில்லாம ULIP policy எடுத்து வச்சிருக்கேன். அதுலதான் எந்தவொரு கண்டிஷன்ஸ் ம் இல்லாம லைப் கவரேஜ் குடுக்குறான். If we want to take care of your family’s financial health even after our death, TERM INSURANCE IS A MUST HAVE.

To save 1 litre of imported crude, India is spending 2,860 litres of groundwater. That's the single statistic missing from the entire E85 debate. E20 is done. The government's draft notification for E85 (85% ethanol, 15% petrol) is ready. Most reactions are either "great, energy independence" or "my mileage dropped." Both are shallow. Here is the actual trade India is making. The economic logic is real: India imports 85%+ of its crude. The FY25 import bill was ~$137 billion. Ethanol blending has already saved ₹1.08 lakh crore in forex and put ~₹92,000 crore in farmers' hands since inception. Every 1% of blending = ~$1 billion in annual savings. But ethanol is not a free lunch: 🔹 Ethanol has 33% less energy per litre than petrol. 🔹 US DoE data: FFVs on E85 get 15 to 27% fewer miles per gallon than on petrol. 🔹 The offset is octane. E85 rates ~105 vs petrol's 91. In purpose-built engines (turbo, high-compression, direct injection), higher octane recovers most of the energy loss. The catch. India's fleet is 90% E10-ready at best. You cannot pour E85 into a Swift. Flex-fuel vehicles need stainless fuel lines, upgraded pumps, 30% larger injectors, ethanol content sensors, and recalibrated engine maps. The hidden cost nobody is pricing: 🔸 E20 at today's consumption needs ~1,016 crore litres of ethanol annually. 🔸 At 2,860 litres of water per litre of ethanol, that is ~2.9 trillion litres of water per year. The annual water footprint of 200+ million Indians. 🔸 E85 scales this 4x+. 🔸 60% of India's ethanol now comes from maize and broken rice. India, a net corn exporter, imported 1 million tonnes of corn in 2024 because of ethanol diversion. 🔸 Retail sugar moved from ₹40 to ₹45/kg in two years partly due to cane diversion. The reframe most people miss: The ethanol programme is not an energy policy. It is an agricultural subsidy dressed as an energy policy. The forex savings are real. The farmer income transfer is real. Both are the actual goals. The mileage drop is a tolerated cost. The water and food inflation risk is the hidden tax. E85 will happen anyway. The listed winners sit in three buckets: 🔸 Sugar and distillery players with integrated ethanol capacity 🔸 Auto ancillaries making ethanol-compatible injectors, pumps, fuel lines, sensors 🔸 OEMs going flex-fuel first (Toyota, Maruti and Hyundai are already prototyping) Energy independence is not free. India is trading barrels of oil for billions of litres of water and millions of tonnes of grain. Whether it's worth it depends on which constraint matters more in 2040 — your oil bill, or your aquifer.