Man Paid $39000 for a new mobile number

LUDHIANA, India: There seems to be no limit to price tags on status. But paying a jaw-dropping Rs 1.55 million (approx $39000) for a fancy cell phone number will clearly be India’s richest ring.

That’s what Ludhiana’s Amit Malhotra coughed up for 9780000000.

Even though Ludhiana — which has the most Mercedes per capita in any major Indian city and where Rs 600 thousand-suitlengths are common sartorial acquisitions — is known for its if-you-have-it-flaunt-it attitude, the price tag for Amit’s number has set a new benchmark. ‘‘ What do we say,’’ chuckled a Hutch employee who didn’t want to be named. ‘‘ If people have the money, let them buy the moon.’’

Amit, the son of a city garment manufacturer and property dealer, won the number at an auction organised by Hutch. He learnt last week that the company was going to release ‘VIP’ numbers and applied for one. Then he was told it planned to auction these numbers.

The auction was conducted through a phone-conference . The bidding process began on Tuesday morning and ended on Wednesday evening. In the final round, there were five men battling it out for the big-draw number. The results were released on Thursday evening.

In the Malhotra household, sweets were distributed as friends and relatives trooped in. Vijay Malhotra , the father, wasn’t a bit fazed. ‘‘ It’s not something new. He has always chosen VIP numbers for his belongings. Only this time he has spent a huge amount on it.’’

Swamped by questions, the 26-year-old ‘VIP’ said he didn’t just dust his pocket out for the money. ‘‘ I borrowed money from friends and relatives and will repay them soon,’’ Amit said.

Ludhiana at Wikipedia
Hutch Cellular at Wikipedia

Originally Published at: Economic Times

UP boy claims to be incarnation of a US scientist

This story is could be described as bizarre, miracle of nature and unbelievable. How can a 14 yr old boy suddenly forget his language Hindi and start speaking in English with an American accent?

New Delhi: Last week, many news channels showed the story of a 4-year-old girl in a tiny village in Uttar Pradesh, India, who claims to be incarnation of Kalpana Chawla.

Now, if that wasn’t enough, there is another bizarre case of a 14-year old boy, who talks in a strange accent and claims he is an incarnation of a US scientist.

The boy talks gibberish with a few words of science thrown in here and there. And the people in his village Rampur claim that "Rajesh Kumar is explaining scientific formulas and concepts," although he has never studied science or has been overseas.

Rajesh’s family claims that this transition occurred after the boy hurled a stone at his father and was severely punished. They say he suddenly started speaking in accent and hasn't talked in Hindi ever since.

While the Indian media is going gaga over the case, it’s not for the first time that something bizarre as this has attracted undue attention.

“There are channels that thrive on such news. From morning till evening they will keep repeating special shows, overtly stressing upon such stories. They even bring in experts to give even more stupid theories on reincarnation and re-birth. What they don’t understand is that by doing so, they are promoting bunkum,” Sanal Edamaruku President Indian Rationalist Association said.

As the Indian media runs after the bizarre, one can only hope it will also try to show the scientific side of things.

Original Story by: IBNLive.com
Further Reading: Rajesh or American scientist: Rebirth or something else?