For 24 Years, Private and Foreign Banks such as Citibank, Standard Chartered Bank, ICICI, HDFC, HSBC, Kotak, ABN Amro, GE Countrywide, IndiaBulls, etc. have flouted interest rate regimen and looted the people of India in the guise of giving soft loans at exorbitant rates of interest.
These rates have ranged from 20% to as high as 80% all in the name of unregulated interest regime allowed by the Reserve Bank of India.
As an association of people utilizing credit from these banks, we have been petitioning RBI to stop this practice of giving usurious loans to unsuspecting people. We have staged countless demonstrations in front of these banks and have maintained constant pressure on the RBI since 2003.
Under the able leadership of Mr. Vijay Kamble and the hard work of his team CCAI has been finally successful in getting the monolith RBI to take note of the problem plaguing the system.
RBI has now pegged the maximum rate of interest at 18% per annum diminishing. What this means is that if your loan is at any other rate, you can have it reduced to this rate as anything more than this is considered usurious by RBI.
We are seeking a similar reduction on credit card rates too and very soon you can expect relief from high interest rates there too!
CCAI has been working tirelessly since 2003 for protecting the exploitation of the general public at the hands of MNC and Private Banks. Join us in our fight against the heavily biased banking system that favors the bank and penalizes the common man.
Call us now!
Credit Consumers Association of India
3/141, M.H.B. Colony, Ram Mandir Road,
Kher Nagar, Bandra (East), Mumbai 400051
Tel: 91-22-26474857, 26471908, Email: ccai.mumbai@gmail.com
Monday, June 02, 2008
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
5 Ways to Boost Profits
Brad Sugars: Startup Basics
25, 2008 5 Ways to Boost Profits No matter how many sales you make, your business will struggle if you don't watch your margins.
One of the biggest mistakes made by startups is to confuse making sales with making money. New business owners seem to think that business is about busy-ness--that is, how many times the cash register rings. They fail to take even simple steps to ensure they earn enough to cover their costs as well as take home a healthy paycheck. Without that, you may as well be working for someone else
Read rest of the Article here
Monday, May 12, 2008
Bombay or Mumbai?
Political parties and Political leaders resort to the Son-of-the-Soil theory whenever they find it convenient. Recently, Mumbai (formerly Bombay) has seen the ugly dance of Mr. Raj Thackery who is trying his level best to use the Marathi-Manoos (Marathi-Person) plank to threaten all outsiders (those from other states and those who have yet to adopt Marathi as their language of choice) to leave Mumbai.
Earlier, his uncle, the Shiv Sena Supremo Balasaheb Thackerey, used the very same plank to further his own political cause. Also, Balasaheb has successfully targetted various specific communities and allegedly extracted a huge fees from those threatened to look the other way.
With elections around the corner, every political party in Maharashtra is trying to shore up its vote bank. Shiv Sena workers have now gone on a rampage and are defacing names where ever Bombay appears. They have already done this to Bombay Scottish and have destroyed the sign boards in front of Bombay Dyeing Showrooms.
They may next target Times of India which has a supplement named Bombay Times. What about targetting the Bombay High Court which continues to use the name Bombay instead of Mumbai?
Everyone on the street knows that Mumbai has not really improved just because its name was changed from Bombay to Mumbai, similarly Bangalore has not improved because it is now called Bengalaru. After 60 years of independence, Political leaders still feel they can fool all the people all the time!
It is time people from all walks of life boycotted such politicians that attempt to divide us on the basis of caste, creed, religion, language and state.
Earlier, his uncle, the Shiv Sena Supremo Balasaheb Thackerey, used the very same plank to further his own political cause. Also, Balasaheb has successfully targetted various specific communities and allegedly extracted a huge fees from those threatened to look the other way.
With elections around the corner, every political party in Maharashtra is trying to shore up its vote bank. Shiv Sena workers have now gone on a rampage and are defacing names where ever Bombay appears. They have already done this to Bombay Scottish and have destroyed the sign boards in front of Bombay Dyeing Showrooms.
They may next target Times of India which has a supplement named Bombay Times. What about targetting the Bombay High Court which continues to use the name Bombay instead of Mumbai?
Everyone on the street knows that Mumbai has not really improved just because its name was changed from Bombay to Mumbai, similarly Bangalore has not improved because it is now called Bengalaru. After 60 years of independence, Political leaders still feel they can fool all the people all the time!
It is time people from all walks of life boycotted such politicians that attempt to divide us on the basis of caste, creed, religion, language and state.
Saturday, May 10, 2008
How to check whether your flat in on forest land
There is huge confusion about the Forest Land Issue in Mumbai, where flat owners have been left with little or no information about the legality of their flats.
The state has failed to provide information about the plot numbers to the public at large. However, the state has provided this information to the Registrar's office. Thus when you go to register your flat, the registrar will check your flat details and may refuse to register the flat if it is on an affected plot.
Prospective flat buyers can call the following numbers 022-22634567, 022-26891161, 022-22630742 or visit their nearest collectors office (of the place where they intend to buy the flat) to find out whether they are buying flats that are located on forest land or not.
Buyers are cautioned that there exists two lists of plots, one official and other being circulated by conniving real estate agents and builders to hoodwink the buyers into buying flats that are actually on forest land. Extreme caution is advised in buying flats in these areas. As a thumb rule if you buying a flat that lies on the east of the Western Express Highway, Ghodbunder Road or West of the LBS Marg, there are chances that the plots may be in forest land and may best be avoided.
The state has failed to provide information about the plot numbers to the public at large. However, the state has provided this information to the Registrar's office. Thus when you go to register your flat, the registrar will check your flat details and may refuse to register the flat if it is on an affected plot.
Prospective flat buyers can call the following numbers 022-22634567, 022-26891161, 022-22630742 or visit their nearest collectors office (of the place where they intend to buy the flat) to find out whether they are buying flats that are located on forest land or not.
Buyers are cautioned that there exists two lists of plots, one official and other being circulated by conniving real estate agents and builders to hoodwink the buyers into buying flats that are actually on forest land. Extreme caution is advised in buying flats in these areas. As a thumb rule if you buying a flat that lies on the east of the Western Express Highway, Ghodbunder Road or West of the LBS Marg, there are chances that the plots may be in forest land and may best be avoided.
Friday, May 02, 2008
Flat Buyers Unite...
Today a report in Times of India talks about Builders uniting and forming a cartel to keep real estate prices artificially inflated till Diwali. The reason being citied for such a move is that the builders have purchased their land at very high prices and will suffer losses if they chose to reduce prices.
What a lot of horse shit! Who told them to go and buy land at such prices? Property prices have risen by 300% all over the city making it extremely difficult for a middle class family to own a house. Coupled with very high interest rates ranging between 11.5 to 12.5% per annum, the middle class can only dream of owning a house.
A 800 square feet flat costs 24,00,000 in distant Mira Road. On top of this the stamp duty and registration charges further inflate the price. Builders are illegally selling open and covered parking spaces too! For a final price of 27,00,000 you will get a loan of 23,00,000 and at 1200/- per lac per month the installment would come to 27,600/- This should be 40% of your take home salary, meaning that you should have a salary of 45,000 per month. You have to pay this installment for 20 years and if you opt for floating rate of interest, it would mean that the 20 years can easily stretch to 23 or 25 years.
It is therefore time for the buyers to unite and boycott purchase of any property that is expensive.
How do you decide what is expensive? Typically the best of construction costs 1200/- per square feet. Given the variable of land cost and allowing decent profit of 30% a 800 square feet flat in Mira Road should cost about 2300/- per square feet. Therefore a fair price for such a flat should be around 18,40,000 and not more. Please be aware construction costs vary between 550/- per square feet to 1200/- per square feet, therefore for a unscrupulous builder there is still a very big margin to play with.
Buyers should decide to wait out the sellers and only purchase flats when prices become reasonable. For example a flat is Vadodara is being sold @ 1275/- per square feet. Obviously the seller there too is making money! Why such high costs in Mumbai? Reason being greed of the builders who have bought land left-right and center in the hope of selling the same at a hefty profit but now their plans are coming undone. It will be very interesting to watch as the situation develops.
What a lot of horse shit! Who told them to go and buy land at such prices? Property prices have risen by 300% all over the city making it extremely difficult for a middle class family to own a house. Coupled with very high interest rates ranging between 11.5 to 12.5% per annum, the middle class can only dream of owning a house.
A 800 square feet flat costs 24,00,000 in distant Mira Road. On top of this the stamp duty and registration charges further inflate the price. Builders are illegally selling open and covered parking spaces too! For a final price of 27,00,000 you will get a loan of 23,00,000 and at 1200/- per lac per month the installment would come to 27,600/- This should be 40% of your take home salary, meaning that you should have a salary of 45,000 per month. You have to pay this installment for 20 years and if you opt for floating rate of interest, it would mean that the 20 years can easily stretch to 23 or 25 years.
It is therefore time for the buyers to unite and boycott purchase of any property that is expensive.
How do you decide what is expensive? Typically the best of construction costs 1200/- per square feet. Given the variable of land cost and allowing decent profit of 30% a 800 square feet flat in Mira Road should cost about 2300/- per square feet. Therefore a fair price for such a flat should be around 18,40,000 and not more. Please be aware construction costs vary between 550/- per square feet to 1200/- per square feet, therefore for a unscrupulous builder there is still a very big margin to play with.
Buyers should decide to wait out the sellers and only purchase flats when prices become reasonable. For example a flat is Vadodara is being sold @ 1275/- per square feet. Obviously the seller there too is making money! Why such high costs in Mumbai? Reason being greed of the builders who have bought land left-right and center in the hope of selling the same at a hefty profit but now their plans are coming undone. It will be very interesting to watch as the situation develops.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
How To Handle Customer Complaints
Mar. 04, 2008
By Kevin Stirtz, Stirtz Group LLC
Fifteen years ago I had a complaint at a very well known Italian restaurant in Minneapolis. I still remember how badly the employee responded to my concern. In fact, I’ve used it in my customer service seminars. It shows the power we all have to give our customers a memorable experience.
Here are some rules I teach in my seminars to help people handle customer complaints. If you and your staff follow these rules you can turn unhappy customers into loyal cheerleaders for your business.
1. Listen completely
Give them your complete attention. Don’t multi-task. Don’t “half-listen”. Write down what they are telling you and get specifics from them. Then confirm that you understand. Focus only on them.
Read rest of the article here http://www.customerthink.com/blog/how_handle_customer_complaints
Relief for Forest Land Flat Owners
People owning flats on so called forest land can heave a sigh of relief.
According to reports appearing in most of the newspapers today, Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh has assured the flat owners that the state government will be filing an affidavit in the Supreme Court accepting its mistake of not notifying the forest lands acquired by it and delaying the mutation of the land records.
The Chief Minister has assured that flat owners / builders will have to pay a fine of .70 to 1.40 rupees per square feet of their flat area as penalty to regularize the flats. Therefore, if you have a flat measuring 1000 square foot you will have to pay a minimum penalty of 700 and a maximum of 1400 rupees to regularize your flats.
This money will be used for creating forests at an alternate location.
Also other plots that were acquired for forest purposes will be allowed to be constructed upon as relief to those plot owners who did not benefit from the errors of the government.
Mumbaikars can travel to these forests to breathe fresh air!
According to reports appearing in most of the newspapers today, Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh has assured the flat owners that the state government will be filing an affidavit in the Supreme Court accepting its mistake of not notifying the forest lands acquired by it and delaying the mutation of the land records.
The Chief Minister has assured that flat owners / builders will have to pay a fine of .70 to 1.40 rupees per square feet of their flat area as penalty to regularize the flats. Therefore, if you have a flat measuring 1000 square foot you will have to pay a minimum penalty of 700 and a maximum of 1400 rupees to regularize your flats.
This money will be used for creating forests at an alternate location.
Also other plots that were acquired for forest purposes will be allowed to be constructed upon as relief to those plot owners who did not benefit from the errors of the government.
Mumbaikars can travel to these forests to breathe fresh air!
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The Pawarification of Indian Politics.
Maharashtra State elections have thrown up surprising results, results that have defied all opinion polls and even surprised the winnin...
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This is the list of survey numbers issued by the collectors office for those affected by the recent forest land issue in Mumbai. -
In 1956 Government of Maharashtra reserved land in Mumbai for forests and acquired private lands adjoining the National Park from private pa...
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Many of you will remember the Telgi Stamp Scam that happened in 2000-2003. It was hyped initially to be 60000 Crores. Later the CBI declar...