Rant against Tata Docomo in India

I have a problem with the 3G e-stick that I bought in February 2011. Problems started within a month of activation - at the end of March. The connection disconnects at all times of the day at random, sometimes for a few seconds and as along as 6 minutes ( I have a video of my laptop screen).

I first tried Customer Service. Two service engineers visited my home. No solution. I wrote 3 emails in succession to the Karnataka Nodal Officer (Suresh Kumar). He refuses to answer his phone or his emails. Template replies are his only response.

A third service engineer visited my home. He alleged that he discovered the root of my problem and has instructed the network center to rectify it. That was the first week of September. I still face this problem. Financial transaction time out.

I then called the Karnataka Appellate Officer (Sunitha George). No reply to my calls. I have written two emails to Sunitha George. I received a call from a Ramkumar in the Nodal Office! He could not solve my problem. In fact, he never called back as promised. My second mail to Sunitha George has not evoked even a template response.

It's almost like these people do not exist, though their names are listed in the service escalation sheet on your website.

I would like the address of the Managing Director of TTL, so that I can send a detailed report of this abject state (even non-existence) of your Customer Engagement.

The latest news is that all Tata telecom services are now being clubbed under the Docomo Brand. I wonder how this is going to benefit paying customers.

Micro Investing

The term was coined by Dr. Musa, Founder Member of the Bangalore Investors Club, Fraser Town, Bangalore in India.

We take such things as PAN Cards, Bank Accounts, Demat and Trading Accounts, more or less, for granted.

What about the woman who comes in to do your house work - sweeping, swabbing and doing your dirty dishes? What about the people employed by the City Corporation or Municipality to sweep and clean our roads and surroundings? What about the thousands of people who live below the so-called "Poverty Line?"

Do they have recourse to investing opportunities other than the local money lender or un-monitored "chit funds?" Do folks like them have a way to invest in post office savings instruments, mutual funds or even equities?

Dr. Musa and a small group set up a meeting for a group of 10 such women and led them through a Q&A session, and came up with some insights. 8 out of the 10 women did NOT know that they could invest small amounts in the Post Office, and benefit from the Income and Growth Schemes.

All these women have invested, and have lost, a relatively large sum of money in chit funds schemes and local money lenders. They have no clue that they can invest small amounts in governed and monitored schemes, where their funds are protected. Only 2 of the 10 have opened a bank account. None of them have PAN Cards - an essential for opening bank accounts.

The small group is committed to help these and other such folks to get an entry into "main-stream" finance and help them "micro-invest" in structured schemes. We are in the process of helping them with getting proof of residence address, PAN Cards, and opening bank accounts in banks that look favourably at "financial inclusion" as an opportunity at the Bottom Of the Pyramid (BoP, as defined by C K Prahalad).

Readers in India who wish to contribute in any way to this initiative may please head over to the Bangalore Investors Club, subscribe to the newsletter and send a mail to Dr. Musa, expressing your interest in contributing.

Thank you.