¤ Indian Standard
Time
India is 5 ½ hours ahead of GMT/UTC,
4 ½ hours behind Australian EST,
and 10 ½ hours ahead of American
EST.
¤ Women Travelers
Once upon a time, women
travelling alone used to be
frowned upon in India, but times
are slowly changing. Proper
dress code in accordance with
the Indian social matrix serves
to an extent. In mosques, women
should be fully covered, and in
temples and gurudwaras,
they have to cover their heads.
One needs to be on the right
side of caution while entering
into conversations with
strangers, accepting invitations
to drinks and late night
dinners. Remember that the more
you move away from touristy
areas, the lesser problems you
are likely to have.
The southern and the eastern
parts of the country are more
fun to travel for the women
traveller.
and as a bonus, there are
ladies’ queues for train
tickets, ladies’ compartments in
trains and even ladies’ seats in
buses. So you see, it is not
just caution all the way.
¤ Senior
Travellers
Elders are respected and revered
all over India. Thus senior
travellers will not have any
problem in touring India. Unless
you have poor vision or are
otherwise challenged, there
shouldn’t be any reason for not
visiting India. All senior
travellers have senior citizens’
quotas in trains and senior
citizens’ queues for train
tickets. Your stay in India will
be a memorable one. So, enjoy it
while it lasts.
¤ Physically Challenged
Travellers
Travelling in India for the
physically challenged is not
easy. Few buildings in India are
geared up for the wheelchair.
Sometimes even footpaths cannot
be used by the physically
challenged. Restrooms have not
been designed with the
wheelchair in mind.
Nevertheless, many physically
challenged travellers are daring
a head-on encounter with these
difficulties.
¤ Travel With
Children
Travelling with children is a
real joy as it often increases
the chances of having
interesting encounters with the
local people. Children are
easily welcomed everywhere and
hospitality is extended to those
accompanying them. One of the
reasons for this might be that
children are not self-conscious
and they do not feel cultural
differences as acutely as some
adults are likely to. It is thus
easier for them to make friends
with the locals.
However, travelling with
children can also be exhausting,
for they fall sick very easily.
In big hotels, obtaining safe
baby food is not a problem.
Disposable nappies are available
in all major towns and cities.
Most big hotels provide
babysitting facilities.
Extra care should be taken to
protect children from the Indian
heat by avoiding the sun during
the hottest part of the day.
Cool showers and baths always
help. Dehydration can be
remedied by drinking plenty of
water that is either boiled or
purified with tablets. Diarrhoea
can best be avoided by staying
away from uncovered street food.
If travelling with children, it
is best to visit India in the
cooler months.
¤ Dangers &
Annoyances Theft
Nothing could be more annoying
than to discover that you have
lost something important. It is
always preferable to carry
important things on yourself and
never leave them behind in your
room. Be extra vigilant about
your baggage at airports, on
trains and other means of public
transports that you might take.
However, if anything is stolen
or lost, it should immediately
be reported to the police.
Finally, a good travel insurance
policy may help to some extent
in making good the loss or
damage.
¤ Stolen Traveller’s Cheques
Traveller’s cheques can easily
be stolen or lost, but the good
thing about them is that they
are replaceable. It is best to
buy them from American Express,
Visa, Thomas Cook, Citibank and
Barclay.
Instant replacement may be
difficult. However, the best way
to deal with such a crisis is to
keep an emergency amount aside.
Those availing of American
Express TC facilities can seek
help at the 24 hour helpdesk in
Delhi at (011) 687 5050. The
loss of TCs should be reported
to the company concerned within
24 hours of the loss. Carrying
the receipts of the missing TCs
would ensure a speedy
replacement.
It is advisable to keep the
receipts in a separate place and
a photocopy of the same in
another.
¤ Business Hours
Government offices are open from
9 a.m. to 6 p.m., from Monday
through Friday. Banks are open
from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. from
Monday through Friday and from
10 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. on
Saturday. However, major cities
have been divided into zones
where banks remain closed on
particular days of the week. You
must check that up before you
actually go to one for a
transaction.
Traveller’s cheque transactions
usually cease 30 minutes before
the official bank closing time.
The Reserve Bank of India has a
half-yearly closing on 30th
June and 31st
December. Other banks have it on
31st March and 30th
September. Shops also remain
closed on particular days of the
week according to their
location. offices are usually
closed on Sundays and public
holidays.
¤ Holidays
India is a multicultural,
multilingual country and thus
has a great number of holidays
and festivals. Most of these
festivals follow the Indian
lunar calendar. Therefore they
are likely to fall on different
days each year in the Gregorian
Calendar. Muslim holidays and
festivals follow the Islamic
calendar. So they too fall on
different days every year.
Numerous religious festivals are
celebrated throughout the
country, although the manner in
which they are celebrated may
vary from state to state.
Amongst those that count as
public holidays are – 26th
January: Republic Day, 15th
August: Independence Day, 2nd
October: Mahatma Gandhi’s
Birthday and 25th
December: Christmas.
January
Republic Day on 26th
January ,Pongal ,Id-ul-Fitr
February-March
Holi ,Shivaratri
March-April Mahavir
Jayanti ,Ramanavami ,Good Friday
,Gangaur ,Id-ul-Zuhar , Muharram
May-June ,Buddha Jayanti
June-July ,Rath Yatra ,Teej
, Milad-un-Nabi
July-August ,Raksha
Bandhan
August ,Independence Day
on 15th August
August-September
Janmashtami .Ganesh Chaturthi
September-October ,Durga
Puja ,Dussehra ,Gandhi Jayanti
on 2nd October
October-November Diwali
November-December ,Nanak
Jayanti ,Christmas on 25th
December
¤ Photography
Film
Every kind of film is available
in the Indian markets. Always
check the expiry date printed on
the film rolls as the heat and
humidity of India can take their
toll on them. Each city has its
own camera and film market, so
if you are looking for a large
stock, it is better to get it
from these markets as you’ll get
it much cheaper here. However,
it is better to bring your own
positive films as they are not
readily available in smaller
towns. Kodak and Fuji have their
labs all over the country,
including in small cities.
You should try to store both
your exposed and unexposed films
in a cool place to protect them
from the summer heat. and if
you’re travelling during the
monsoon, it is better to have
waterproof cases for your
equipment.
¤ Equipment
A UV filter permanently fitted
to your lens will not only cut
down the UV rays but also
protect your lens from the heat
and dust of India. UV and
polarising filters will also
help shoot better photographs in
high altitudes. Professional
photographers should carry their
tripods as well, for India has a
lot to offer through its
historical monuments.
Fast films (400 ASA) are also
useful while photographing the
interiors of India’s numerous
temples, forts and monasteries.
¤ Exposure
In India, photographs are best
taken early in the morning and
late in the afternoon. The
midday sun tends to eliminate
the shadows of objects cutting
down on the depth to your shots.
¤ Restrictions
Indians could be very touchy
about what you photograph. To
photograph places of military
importance including railway
stations, bridges, airports,
military installations, tribal
areas and sensitive border
regions, you would require to
seek permission from the
authorities concerned. Some
temples prohibit photography in
the main hall and the inner
sanctum. Usually such temples
have prohibitory signboards on
their premises. It is always
prudent to ask if there are no
such indications. Some temples,
forts, palaces, tombs and
monasteries levy a fee to bring
a still or video camera into the
premises.
A few wild life sanctuaries levy
a much higher fee. The
Archaeological Survey of India
issues special permits for
photographing monuments with
tripods and artificial lights.
People in India are ever willing
to pose for complete strangers.
In places where tradition and
conservatism rule the society,
care should be taken before
training your lens on women.
¤ Shopping Tips
The most important rule while
purchasing handicrafts is to get
the right bargain. It wouldn’t
hurt to first look around to
know the fake from the real. It
is always beneficial to get an
idea of the quality and price of
items by visiting the various
state emporia and the Central
Cottage Industries Emporia in
Delhi, Calcutta, Mumbai,
Chennai, Bangalore and
Hyderabad. Here the prices are
fixed and will give you a fair
idea of how much you could
expect to pay while purchasing
similar items from regular
dealers.
Again, be careful when buying
items that include delivery. You
may have to pay additional
customs as well as the handling
charges.
Beware of buying gems and
carpets unless you’re an expert.
Export of items such as ivory,
fur and skins, antiquities is
banned. Hence it is mandatory to
obtain a certificate of
legitimate sale and permission
for export before trying to take
any of these items out of the
country. |