Tips to drive through waterlogged roads- Do's and Don'ts

Monsoons in Assam have become analogous with floods. Even slight drizzle causes widespread waterlogging, especially in the downstream areas. So one should be very careful while driving on such roads and take utmost care to avoid stalling your vehicle and getting stuck in the middle of the road. A little preparation and presence of mind can get you out of a tricky situation without harming you or your vehicle. Here are 8 tips to follow while driving through waterlogged roads that will come in handy.

1. Avoid Speeding

Water logging hides out any potholes, open drainages on the road and you end up speeding yourself right into one of them. You don’t have much control on your vehicle while speeding, which is dangerous not only for you, but also for the other cars, pedestrians and so on, since there is minimal stopping power into play.

2. Stay In The Centre Lane

The depth of water is higher on the left side and it would be a good idea to stick to the centre lane and maintain an optimum speed on your vehicle. Roads are designed with a tilt to the left side for the rain water to collect and flow into the drainage. The water depth should be at level in the centre lane and will help you judge better, if it is possible to drive through it.

3. Avoid If Water Level Is Above The Exhaust

Judge the depth of water before you venture on the waterlogged road. If the water level is rising above your door sills, it’s best to avoid driving. Your exhaust will be completely submerged in water and there is a dry chance that it will enter your engine, severely damaging several components. Moreover, certain insurance companies may not process your claim of driving on waterlogged roads, and you will have to end up paying for the very expensive damages out of your pocket.

4. Keep The Throttle Pressed

In the event that you do have to drive through a waterlogged street, it is important that you keep the throttle pressed at all times. Maintain a constant speed, you don’t need to floor the throttle, just keep it gently pressed. Even if you need to change gears, make sure you do that with keeping the throttle pressed. It is best to drive in the first and the second gear at the most and maintain a consistent speed, with higher revs. The idea is to keep the water out of the engine, which could enter from the exhaust pipe.

5. Avoid Starting Your Car

In any case, if the vehicle does stall amidst the water do not try restarting the engine. Your vehicle could go into something known as hydrostatic lock causing the engine to seize. Cranking the engine will allow more water seep in and cause extensive damages. Also do not open the bonnet while the car is stuck in an effort to start the car, you will only be making way for more water to get through. It is best that you ask someone to tow your car away from the road, or wait it out till the water level recedes.

6. Make Way For Others

This may seem a little harsh, but it is best to follow another car on waterlogged roads. This will keep you informed well in advance in case the car in front does land up with some problem. If there is a car coming from the opposite direction, it is better to wait for it to pass by and then move forward.

7. Take An Alternate Route

During monsoons, it is better to lookout for alternate routes that are likely to be less flooded. Even though they could be the busiest, since everybody will be using it, you will save a lot of money that would inadvertently go into the repairing the car. It is better that you plan your route well in advance and also keep a tab on the weather. Even though you cannot always let the weather control your travel plans, you can fairly decide if it is better to use public transport or take your vehicle out.

8. Take A Break

It is best to stop and take a break while it’s raining. If it’s flooding, it is better to stay at home. Not only will you be safe, but won’t spend countless hours in traffic jams risking your life and money. If the trip is not important, it is best to avoid it. You can choose to wait till it stops raining and then commence your journey. Above everything else, stay calm. You tend to think better when calm and will be able to use your presence of mind to wade in deep waters more effectively.

Driving through rains can be a stressing task for you and your car. That said, it is best that you prepare your car for the monsoons with a pre-monsoon check. Most manufacturers come up with pre-monsoon check service camp that will prepare your car for the monsoons.


Credits- MotorBeam

Gorkha Regiment : The legendary badass warriors

- Naba Raj Chetri.

“Better to die than to be a coward" is the motto of the world famous Gorkha army, whose might and valour has transcended boundaries, but what do we really know about the gorkhas, lets try to find out.

23 Things every Bong can relate to

-Pratap Kumar Das. 

It’s a saying that you can find a Bong every place you go to. We Bengali folk are indeed special and some characteristics make us a class apart. There are things which only we have gone through in our lives and the broad ‘Bong’ smile is testament to our amazing lives. Here’s celebrating Bong Power.

10 Essential Fashion Hacks every man should know

All of us want to look fashionable, isn’t it? With changing times, the archaic belief that ‘Fashion is a girl’s thing’ has changed considerably. A good dressing sense not only enhances our personality and makes us appealing, but also makes us confident and gives us an edge over others. However, most of us seem to commit some major fashion blunders in our day-to-day life. So, here is a quick list of some practical fashion tips, every man should know:

1) CHOOSING THE RIGHT SUNGLASSES

When it comes to choosing the right sunglasses, don’t just go with the flow. Every person has a different facial outline and one should buy sunglasses that suit his/her facial outline.

Credit: Pinterest

Review Aggregation: Kabali

Rajnikanth starrer 'Kabali' has been creating storm worldwide. Starring Radhike Apte, Dhansika, Dinesh Ravi and Winston Chao in pivotal roles, this Pa- Ranjith directorial has been ruling the box office numbers, both domestically and internationally. "This is Rajnikanth's biggest release till date. His last two films- 'Lingaa' and 'Kochadaiyaan' have not performed so well. With 'Kabali', Rajnikanth has proved that he is, was and will be the Megastar", said a trade analyst.

However, it has received mixed reviews from the critics. Shubra Gupta, of The Indian Express rated it 1.5 and said that, "This was the time when Rajinikanth should have reinvented himself for his directors have long stopped bothering about plot and characterisation. For when Rajinikant is on and at it, who cares?". Hindustan Times rated it 3 and stated that, "Like every other such movie, there are revenge kills and fast-paced scenes that keep you on edge. But just as things start getting wild, an emotional drama starts and puts you in sleep mode. This start-stop nature of the film will be criticised and analysed in days to come."

The film's plot is as follows: Kabaliswaran aka Kabali is the firebrand leader of a group of Tamil indentured labour in the Malaysian rubber plantations. A skirmish between the owners and the labour turns into a tragedy, and Kabali transforms from regular guy into an grizzled gang-boss.

Talking about the film, The Indian Express said that, "There could have been something there, given the history. But the treatment is both half-baked and half-hearted. Despite it being shot in Malaysia (new locations), the arch-villain being a local (new face), and the superstar given not one but two pretty young women (Apte as wife, Dhansika as daughter) as adoring satellites, this bloated, overlong enterprise cannot hide the fact that the superstar is distinctly slower, less nimble on his feet, making the holes in the film much more visible."

Aggregate Rating (from 10 reviews)- 2.5/5

SULTAN

Sidharth Sharma.

Movie Review: Sultan- Despite its minute flaws, the film manages to keep you hooked throughout!

Cast- Salman Khan, Anushka Sharma, Randeep Hooda, Amit Sadh

Direction- Ali Abbas Zafar

Verdict- 3.5/5

Salman Khan’s much anticipated film ‘Sultan’ hits the theatres today. With a screen count of over 4000 in India and 1100 in abroad, the film seems to be a propitious affair for the makers. The Eid release has always been a sure shot megahit for Salman at the box office. Given his inimitable stardom, a humongous advanced booking and a mid-week release, Sultan is a hit even before its release! But will it ‘hit’ the right chord with the audiences or will it be another forgettable mass entertainer?

Sultan Ali Khan (Khan), who runs a cable business in Haryana, falls for Aarfa (played by drop-dead gorgeous Anushka Sharma), a famous female wrestler. A chance meeting leads into love at first sight and soon, Sultan learns that she will marry only a wrestler. In order to be worthy of her, Sultan trains himself to become one of the finest wrestlers of the nation. The rest of the film traces Sultan’s rise and fall in life!

The best thing about Sultan is that it stays true to its character and blends Salman Khan with his character, unlike Khan’s previous movies in which characterization was done to amalgamate up to Salman’s persona. The story is clichéd, predictable but thoroughly entertaining. The screenplay (written by Aditya Chopra), loaded with drama, action and forced humour, could have been much better but nevertheless, it will not disappoint you. Except for the supposed-to-be-funny scenes, the film does have its moments. The first half is out-and-out entertaining but the second half is somewhat dragged.  The fight sequences fail to be edgy but are still better than those which Bollywood has witnessed since ages. The dialogues are sometimes tacky, but a few dialogues are indeed inspiring.

Salman Khan, who plays the titular role, has indeed challenged himself as an actor, as said by his director in one of his interviews. To get that type of physique is truly laudable. He emotes with utmost sincerity and delivers one of his best performances.  However, his ‘best’ is not good enough! He fails to get his accent right and in many scenes, he struggles to emote. Hope he overcomes his limitations in the years to come. Anushka Sharma delivers a power-packed performance and impresses us with her tremendous screen presence. Randeep Hooda, as the coach, leaves his mark despite a lesser screen time. Amit Sadh, as the owner of a Martial Arts Team, does a fine job. Other actors ably support the lead pair.

The Cinematographer splendidly captures the heart and soul of the desi akhadas and does an excellent job with his lens. The editing, however, could have been much sharper and a few of those ‘snail-paced’ scenes could have been trimmed off well. A running time of 170 mins could have been easily avoided!

Director Ali Abbas Zafar does an excellent job, once again. He brings out the best of his lead actor and succeeds to tame his acting skills. Most importantly, he delivers a power-packed film, depite the limitations of its script!

3 stars for the film and 0.5 to Salman for daring to act in a movie like this; a movie which required him to showcase his acting mettle!

Final Verdict- A great ‘Eidi’ by Khan to all his fan. Others won’t regret watching it once, atleast!

Intelligence Bureau: The Unsung Spy Heroes.

- Naba Raj Chetri.

Shrouded in secrecy lies the World’s Oldest intelligence agency, responsible for India’s internal intelligence.

                           

Primarily responsible for gathering information regarding any anti-national activities, these are highly trained professionals who are masters of their trade - who know  how to penetrate a community, militant organization etc by cultivating sources/ contacts, how to use secret methods of surveillance, how to disguise and track a suspect, how to perform counter intelligence and how to diffuse tensions in a community, all these without revealing their identity.

It is the most vital arm for collecting information and performing intelligence assessment of the government. Counter insurgency and counter terrorism measures are devised on the basis of informations provided by the Intelligence Bureau.

Agony

-Jitupan Talukdar.

There is this, brook of pain, in my heart,
Through my eyes, let it flow....
Walking like a dead, I don't need a soul,
Won't share my grief, let me bear it alone.