Vidhana Soudha to become a BPO centre?




When it comes to IT and BPO, Bangalore has become a part of common lore around the world. Reproduced below is a humorous email that has been doing the rounds in the USA. Please read the piece with tongue-in-cheek.

Bush Lays Off Congress; will Outsource Lawmaking to India

— by Jay Slupesky

Citing the growing cost of running the Federal government and the need to cut costs in order to reduce the budget deficit, President Bush announced today that he was laying off all 535 members of Congress and transferring lawmaking operations to a legislative support center in Bangalore, India.

“ Hey, outsourcing is the way to go these days,” said Bush at an impromptu news conference where he announced the decision, adding, “the American people want to see less government waste. Since every one of those ex-Congressmen had a salary of $150,000, this move will cut our costs by over $80 million per year, and that’s not even counting what we’ll save on health insurance and retirement plans.” Sources indicate that the Indian replacements will be paid approximately $250 per month.

” I think it’s a great idea,” said Vice-President Dick Cheney, speaking from a secure undisclosed location. “The American people were fed up with that expensive do-nothing Congress which didn’t give the President everything he asked for. Our new Indian replacements will be much more cooperative to the President, which is what we all want.”

The new members of Congress seem thrilled with the attention they are receiving. Speaking from the offices of All-India Legislative Support Centre Ltd in Bangalore, new Mississippi Senator Ramchandra Shektar Gupta told reporters, “The Indian people are very hard working and we will do our best as U.S. Congressmen and Congresswomen. And we are going to have some fun too. Just think: we have $2 trillion of the American taxpayers’ money to spend!”

Home loans for NRIs

The Reserve Bank of India grants certain Indian HFCs and banks permission to provide funds to NRIs for the purpose of acquiring a house for self-occupation. All NRIs holding a valid Indian passport can apply for a housing loan. NRIs who are of Indian origin, but do not possess an Indian passport, don’t qualify for an NRI home loan.

A typical list of documents that need to be furnished by an NRI includes:

• Passport
• Visa
• Bank statement, both domestic and international for the last 6 months
• Salary certificate that mentions—in English—name, position, date of joining, and salary details
• Work permit
• General power of attorney

The loan amount sanctioned could range from a minimum of Rs 5 lakhs to a maximum of Rs 1 crore. While the loan can be availed for as much as 85% of the price of the property, the actual amount released depends on the NRI’s past experience and present salary.

Fees, bank charges, pre-EMI interest payments and EMIs should be paid by remittances from abroad through normal banking channels. They include your NRE or NRO account in India. More about home loans on www.brigadegroup.com

—Excerpted from Times Property, 21 November

• The loans can be availed up to a maximum of 85% of the cost of the property, depending upon the housing finance institution • Processing and administrative charges extra • Loan amount limit depends on the income of the applicant • Security of the loan is the first mortgage of the property to be financed • Some institutions may require a local guarantor • Repayment period ranges from 5 to 20 years or on superannuation or on completing 65 years of age • Loans can be availed from leading financial institutions • Interest rates and EMIs are subject to change without notice, check with the financial institutions for prevailing interest rates.