Digha's Jagannath Dham Cultural Centre unhygienic halal prasad

Digha's Jagannath Dham Cultural Centre unhygienic halal prasad made by muzlims at various locations in West Bengal were distributed free of cost with ₹20 spent per packet containing a peda and a goja from the state government exchequer in late June and early July 2025. 

The packet was offered to me on 2025-07-01 by a shop owner who's an acquaintance of mine. I politely declined to consume the prasad. However, I clicked enough photos for your perusal. 

Don't miss this  .... 

https://howindiatravels.blogspot.com/2025/09/large-scale-corruption-on-inspiration.html 

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How West Bengal Travels

Visited Ma in Behala with Diya, Diksha on Bijoya Dasami, 2024-10-13

Visited Ma in Behala by car with Diya, Diksha on Bijoya Dasami, 2024-10-13. 

Good habits die hard - vegetables washed thoroughly before cooking 2025-08-19

The habit of vigorously washing vegetables started in March 2020 ever since the Gandhi Virus (Covid 19) kept us indoors for almost 2 years. Even on 2025-08-19 the habit has not changed a bit in my household. 

Every vegetable and fruit item bought from the market is painstakingly dipped in light detergent solution for 30 minutes and then scrubbed clean in flowing tap water and left to dry naturally for 2 to 3 hours 😡😡😡 

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* Good Habits Die Hard

I have been using my Xiaomi Mi 6A for long hours every single day for voice calls, WhatsApp, Social Media and photography ever since I bought it in early July 2019 without any hassles whatsoever. That's exactly 6 years of uninterrupted service. 

Since May 2025, the handset was losing charge very fast, from 100% to 0% within 4 hours of moderate internet use 😰. 

On Thursday 2025-07-19, I replaced the battery of my Mi 6A from a small shop near Joramandir market in Beliaghata, Kolkata 700010. Its owner, a soft spoken and well behaved man, Tarak Das who knows his job well, is known to me since end June 2019. 

Hopefully, the phone starts serving me well for the next couple of years. 

P.S: If any of my contacts want to get their phones repaired feel free to get the work done only by Tarak. However, stay clear from getting any work done by Tarak's assistant who sits across the counter. He lacks the much needed X-factor. This person is just the opposite of Tarak's skill and behaviour! The assistant might actually jeopardize Tarak's business and hard earned reputation.

Thank you wifey dear for making me my favourite french toast on 2025-08-17 afternoon. 

P.S: The 4 slices soak in a lot of oil. I try to lead a regimented lifestyle. Therefore, instruction to my wife is not to serve me these not more than once every 6 - 8 weeks!

Potassium Permaganate poured in water tank 2025-08-09

In Queen's Republic of For the Crooks, Of the Crooks, By the Crooks, I wouldn't prefer to take chances. I am always apprehensive about the quality of water supplied by the Queen Bee 👑🐝 and her pissful Hakim. 

To stay safe, I pour reasonably concentrated  (a teaspoon of Potassium Permanganate KMnO4 granules mixed in about 750 ml of water) in the underground water tank. This exercise is carried out by me at intervals of every 4 - 6 months. 

2025-08-09 morning was one of those days to carry out the routine exercise. The previous exercise was on 2025-02-23. 

For me, good habits die hard. 

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* Good Habits Die Hard

Visited Ma in Behala on 2025-07-23

With Ma at Behala on 2025-07-23 She will be 86 in October 2025. She wanted me to tutor her on how to Google any topic of her choice. She got busy almost immediately after a couple of demos 😊

Indian Roadie Adv Abhijit Sarkar was close to my house for some professional assignment on Saturday, 2025-06-14. He called me at 1 pm to check my readiness to meet up for a short adda. 

In slightly over an hour's time we were there at the Arun's Ice Cream parlour at CIT Road in Beliaghata, Kolkata, barely one km away from my residence. Abhijit's Ford Ecosport was sporting two shining and eye catching Indian Roadie Stickers on  the rear windshield. 

It was a nice, short and impromptu #IndianRoadieGTG with Abhijit after a long time. 

Friends, where ever you are in India, your car should be sporting the smart set of #IndianRoadieStickers. It's only at times of extreme need, you will realize what being proactive in #IndianRoadie means! #OrderIndianRoadieStickers now.

Visited Ma at Behala on 2024-11-20

Visited Ma at Behala on 2024-11-20. 

Met b-school batchmate Ashok Kumar at Sarovar Portico, Kolkata on 2025-04-07

It was wonderful meeting my b-school batchmate Ashok Kumar in Kolkata on Monday 2025-04-07 afternoon, exactly 40 years (mid 1985 - mid 2025) after passing out. It was the same jovial Ashok, however, with a shining scalp, which those days had a thick growth of black hair 😊.

Ashok came for a leisure trip to Kolkata with wife Sapna (and another friend and his wife) from Delhi solely to savour yummy Kolkata food, tonnes of shopping, visiting a handful of places of interest and of course to meet me. I wish Ashok's daughter whom I have never met also accompanied her parents to Kolkata.

The couples had put up at Sarovar Portico Hotel in Newtown and I drove down to meet them there for coffee, chicken sandwich and lots of adda.

Those days, four decades ago Ashok hailed from Jamshedpur since his father was serving in TELCO (viz. Tata Motors of yesteryears) while I was from Barakar/ Asansol since my father was with CMPDI Ltd (a subsidiary of Coal India).

Ashok has settled in New Delhi with wife and daughter years ago and is presently engaged in his own hospitality business.