I am currently trying to revise for my law exams which are in less than two week's time. Today was a typical
day ‘s revision.
I get up this morning and the internet isn’t working.
In addition, the power then goes out.
Then the power comes on again.
No surprise there as this is a regular occurrence, but I have some stuff
I need to download for revision today and the internet is totally dead.
I ring the number that I have been given for the local Helpcentrewallah
– the number has been discontinued. I ring another
number I have been given for the main helpcentre. It turns out this
is the number for telephone problems only. After explaining that I
wanted help for broadband they give me a number.
Then the electricity
goes off again.
It comes on after about 20 minutes. I ring the number
and it turns out this is the number for mobile phone help only. I ring the original number back and again they give me the same number that they gave me in
the first place. It took me about ten minutes to get the correct number
from them. I ring the number, and am on hold. After fifteen minutes someone
answers and immediately hangs up.
Then the electricity goes off again.
Eventually it comes back on. I try the number again and after about
fifteen minutes the same thing happens. Anyone that knows me well will
understand what kind of mood I am now in.
I think that the best thing
to do is get a 3G dongle for such emergencies. So I take my motorbike
to the local mobile phone shop. He has a 3G dongle for INR 1500 but he
doesn’t take debit cards, and I didn’t have the cash so I eventually find an
ATM and return with the cash. He then tells me he won’t have a SIM card
for it until tomorrow.
I kill him and drive off to another mobile
phone shop I know about two miles away. Inexplicably, it is closed for
the day. It then starts to rain and I head home. Soaked. My wife comes
home to get something for an afternoon function, and drops me off at
the local shopping centre. I go to the shop there and they have a
dongle. I present my ID documents that are required, and they need
copies. They have no copier. There isn’t one in the whole shopping
centre, so I walk home to copy them there.
But the electricity is off
again.
Eventually it comes on. I do the copying and I return on my
bike, and get the dongle after about twenty minutes of them messing around
trying to activate it. On getting home it doesn’t work. I return to
the shop again and it turns out they forgot to put some credit on it, which
they now do, and it works. On leaving the shopping centre there is a
tropical thunderstorm and I get soaked for a second time. I arrive
home…..just in time for the internet to start working again.
India - A "global economic
superpower" that is incapable of providing a stable electricity supply
or a reliable basic internet connection