India (Frommer's, 4th Edition) - Keith Bain [618]
NEWSPAPERS & MAGAZINES Major English dailies include The Hindu (www.hindu.com), The Indian Express (www.expressindia.com), The Times of India (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com), and Hindustan Times (www.hindustantimes.com), as well as Kolkata’s The Statesman (www.thestatesman.net) and The Telegraph (www.telegraphindia.com). These make for interesting reading and will keep you up to date on local and international events. You may find that much of the writing assumes a great deal on your part, however. If you haven’t been following certain stories for some time, the latest update may be impossible to fathom. The Economic Times and Mint provide the most detailed business news. Each week you can pick up fresh issues of The Week, India Today, Outlook, and Frontline (which provide quite venomous analyses of the nation’s social, political, and economic situations). These are available at newsstands and railway stations and not only help you pass travel time but add immensely to your understanding of India. If you’re looking for general travel features, the monthly Outlook Traveller (www.outlooktraveller.com) features colorful articles from an Indian perspective. In Mumbai and Delhi, the twice-monthly Time Out is indispensable if you’re looking for what’s hot and happening.
PASSPORTS See www.frommers.com/planning for information on how to obtain a passport.
For other information, please contact the following agencies:
For Residents of Australia Contact the Australian Passport Information Service at 131-232, or visit the government website at www.passports.gov.au.
For Residents of Canada Contact the central Passport Office, Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Ottawa, ON K1A 0G3 ( 800/567-6868;www.ppt.gc.ca).
For Residents of Ireland Contact the Passport Office, Setanta Centre, Molesworth Street, Dublin 2 ( 01/671-1633;www.irlgov.ie/iveagh).
For Residents of New Zealand Contact the Passports Office at 0800/225-050 in New Zealand or 04/474-8100, or log on to www.passports.govt.nz.
For Residents of the United Kingdom Visit your nearest passport office, major post office, or travel agency or contact the United Kingdom Passport Service at 0870/521-0410 or search its website at www.ukpa.gov.uk.
For Residents of the United States To find your regional passport office, either check the U.S. State Department website or call the National Passport Information Center toll-free number ( 877/487-2778) for automated information.
POLICE Emergency and police contact numbers are listed in “Fast Facts” sections for major cities.
SMOKING Whatever curbs the government has tried to place on cigarette usage, there are still relatively slim signs of society giving in to concerns about the hazards of smoking. Things are improving, though, and whereas just a few years ago it seemed as though just about every male in India smoked something, there’s a marked drive towards health and social consciousness—this is probably more evident among the upper echelons of society and in cities where people are more regularly exposed to forward-thinking advertising campaigns. On the other hand, the cities are also where high-cool is sometimes defined by cigar toking, so it’s ultimately up to the lawmakers to change attitudes. Where they have made changes, they’ve been pretty thorough: Shimla (in Himachal Pradesh) theoretically forbids smoking in any public place, including on the streets; Chandigarh (the Union Territory from where the Punjab government operates) has been working towards similarly far-reaching legislation; and in Trivandrum (Kerala’s capital), smoking in restaurants and public places is banned (and the rule is being enforced). Smoking is also forbidden on all trains, so if someone is smoking on your train, you are well within your rights to ask them to stop. Most luxury hotels