Taxman, beat it!

One common thought people returned from US to India have is - how to distribute the money in IRA and 401K without penalty, since most of the returnees are well below 59 1/2 years

Rule #: Distributions from IRA (that aren't qualified for tax benefits) before the age of 59.5 will be subject to 10% penalty, and the regular income tax on the withdrawn amount.

The suggestion below looks credible...

In case you have traditional IRA accounts (or will have when you rollover your 401ks), do not convert them into Roth right away (since Roth has tax free withdrawls). Wait for the year when you have little or no US income then do the conversion … so you pay no taxes at all on the conversion. Pass this on to anyone else who has made the migration back to India as well.

More details here …. http://www.fatwallet.com/t/52/624589/

A visit to the Museum

Today we visited the Visvesvarya industrial and Technological Museum in Bangalore. It's a good sized museum with a nominal entry fee (Rs. 15 per person). There are five floors of exhibits with sections dedicated to Aerospace, Biotech, Mechanics and electronics. The science behind each exhibit was a bit overwhelming - kind of reminds the school days, and the museum deserves a better upkeep. We had a good time however. The boys were fascinated by the wheels and all things mechanical in the museum.

More pics on our flickr page

Lavan's Bangalore visit

In her own words:
I came to banglore by air on 22 nd.I really enjoyed the travel.This was the first time I experienced a flight journey.I was really lucky
to get the window seat in my flight.I enjoyed to see things go smaller and smaller,as the plane reaches its maximum hieght.After reaching banglore,mami &keshav recieved me at the air port.I visited the swimming pool and enjoyed
watching my little brother swimming there.we all ate some snacks in the nearby stall.the next day
I enjoyed discovering things by wandering around the appartment on my own.
It wasreally a nice stay over here,enjoying this cool climate and playing with my little brothers. 

Vallabh goes to School

The much awaited event happened on Wednesday this week - Vallabh went to School for the first time in India. Like us, there were hundreds of nervous parents who filled the unfinished playground at the PSBB Leadership Learning Academy on Bannerghatta road. It was a great sight to see so many kids assembled at one time - ages 4-7.

Vallabh's class is on the first floor, and he goes to UKG 'C' section. So far, he seems to be enjoying his school. Starting Tuesday, he'll go on the school bus.

The school's founder Mrs. Parthasarathy was there to inagurate the school. She announced that there'll be no exams and kids don't have to carry books daily. Cool concept eh? Wonder why they didn't think up this when we went to school!

Visit to Pune

Anu and kids visited her mom and brother's family in Pune late May - early June. We were all bent on settling in Pune before finding a job in B'lore. Anu had a first-hand experience of life in Pune, which turned out to be pretty good. The weather in Pune is not as pleasant as Bangalore, but isn't bad either. The city has a very long history and is supposed to be better constructed than Bangalore.

Anu's mom and brother's family moved to Pune earlier this year from Gwalior. Her neice, Kavya, celebrated her fourth birthday. The kids stuck like glue!

More pics at http://www.flickr.com/photos/chandars/

Fun time with grandparents

The kids and us had whale of a time with grandparents and great granma (kollu paati) visiting us in May. Great granma and grandpa were first time fliers, and had a lot of fun flying in and out of Bangalore.

More photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/chandars/