Archives for 2019

The TMC supremo said she would not be able to participate in the rally because of some pre-scheduled engagements.

KOLKATA: MNS chief Raj Thackeray on Wednesday endorsed West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s demand to replace EVMs by ballot papers and said the Trinamool Congress supremo has assured him of her support in his party’s fight to save the democracy.

The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena supremo said he came to Kolkata to invite Banerjee to attend an anti-EVM rally in Maharashtra on August 21.

The TMC supremo, however, said she would not be able to participate in the rally because of some pre-scheduled engagements.

“I’ve come here to invite Mamata ji for a rally scheduled in Maharashtra on August 21 to demand bringing back ballots in place of EVMs. This will be an anti-EVM movement. She is one of the key leaders in the country, voicing concern against EVMs,” Thackeray told reporters, with Banarjee by his side.

The MNS chief said Banerjee assured him that she would support his party to “save the democracy”.

Thackeray also referred to his visits to the Election Commission to demand reintroduction of ballots in elections.

“The situation which has emerged is not right. There were at least 370 constituencies in the country where there were problems regarding EVMs during the elections,” he said.

“When most of the countries across the world have stopped using the EVMs, why are we (India) using it?” asked Thackeray.

Asked if the rally scheduled in Maharashtra would be an anti-Modi move, Thackeray said, “This is not an anti-Modi rally but an anti-EVM one. But if it develops into an anti-Modi movement, there is no problem.”

Banerjee endorsed Thackeray’s remarks and asked why was India still using voting machines when countries like the USA and Japan have stopped using them after coming to know of their drawbacks.

Raising doubts over authenticity of polling through EVMs, the chief minister said one particular party predicted even the seat it would win in the election much before the polling.

Banerjee recalled that the TMC along with 23 other political parties had approached both the Election Commission and the Supreme Court against the use of EVMs in the elections but their complaints were dismissed.

The legislation provides for stricter punishment for various traffic-related offences as well as higher penalties. But that is just not it, click here to read more.

NEW DELHI: The Rajya Sabha on Wednesday passed a bill to tighten road traffic regulations such as the issuance of driving licence and imposed stricter penalties for violations in an attempt to improve road safety.

The Upper House passed the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2019 with 108 votes in favour and 13 against it, with three amendments moved by Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari.

The legislation was passed by the Lok Sabha on July 23 but the bill will be sent to Lok Sabha again because of a typo.

Replying to a debate on the bill, Gadkari allayed concerns of states, saying the Centre was not encroaching on any of their rights including the right to levy vehicle registration charge and permit fee, besides posting of officials.

Not a single penny of state revenue would be taken by the Centre, he asserted. Also, the rights of the states to set up driving training institutes too will remain untinkered.

The legislation provides for stricter punishment for various traffic-related offences as well as higher penalties, including compensation of Rs 5 lakh for death and Rs 2.5 lakh for grievous injury in a motor vehicle accident case.

Gadkari said the legislation will instil fear of law in people who violate traffic rules as an intelligent traffic system will monitor traffic offences.

The minister said India was facing shortage of 22 to 25 lakh drivers and to fill this gap, driver training institutes were planned pan India and the Centre was ready to provide Rs 1 crore subsidy for each centre.

He said such centres were not needed in metropolises like Delhi, Mumbai or Chennai but in remote rural areas to uplift tribals and poor and 1,000 such centres were planned.

The minister also allayed fears of members regarding roping in of corporates, saying no rights were being given to companies and in fact a few firms had come forward with Rs 20-25 crore free-of-charge training centres under CSR.

Gadkari said the process for obtaining driving licenses would now be computerised and anyone, whether a minister or MP, will get licenses only after passing online tests.

He said the government has no intention to intervene with the power of states and state transport corporations were free to run their buses.

He advocated the London transport model, stating that many state government undertakings had turned NPAs and the government was also exploring bringing in foreign funds.

The minister made it clear that vehicle registration rights remained with the states and asserted that the Centre was not benefitting by even a rupee. He also stressed on the need to promote electric buses and having a transport policy. He said a 265-seat bus skybus was planned between Dhaula Kuan and Manesar.

The bill proposes a National Transportation Policy for ushering in guidelines on the transportation of goods and passengers.

The minister said it will be framed only after holding consultations with the states.

Once the bill becomes a law, the new vehicles will be registered at the dealers level and it will eventually remove buyers’ interface with the registration authorities.

The bill, which was pending for approval in the Rajya Sabha, had lapsed after the term of the 16th Lok Sabha ended.

It proposes Rs 10,000 fine for not giving way to emergency vehicles and Rs 10,000 for driving despite disqualification.

Aggregators violating driving licences will be fined up to Rs 1 lakh.

The proposals are based on the recommendations of transport ministers from 18 states, which were vetted by a standing committee of Parliament.

The bill includes penalties in the range of Rs 1,000- 2,000 for over-speeding.

Driving without insurance will be punishable with Rs 2,000 fine, while driving without helmets will attract Rs 1,000 penalty and 3-month suspension of licence.

Also, the guardian/owner will be deemed guilty in case of road offence by juveniles, while registration of the vehicle will be cancelled.

As per the new provisions, “guardian/owner shall be deemed to be guilty and there will be a penalty of Rs 25,000 with three years imprisonment and cancellation of registration of the Motor Vehicle”.

Traffic violations would now attract a penalty of Rs 500 in place of Rs 100 earlier, while disobedience of orders of authorities will attract a minimum penalty of Rs 2,000 in place of Rs 500 earlier.

Penalty for unauthorised use of vehicles without licence has been proposed at Rs 5,000 while those driving without licence will have to shell out the same amount and those found driving despite disqualification would be fined Rs 10,000.

Penalty for dangerous driving would be increased to Rs 5,000 from Rs 1,000, while drunken driving under the proposed new law would attract a fine of Rs 10,000.

“If aggregators are found violating lincensing conditions, they will be charged a sum of up to Rs 1 lakh” while overloading of vehicles would attract a penalty of Rs 20,000.

Earlier participating in the debate, members raised concern over the growing number of road accidents and said that there should be a compensation mechanism for the deceased.

The Congress alleged that the Centre has “hoodwinked” the Rajya Sabha on the bill as it was “defective” and not in the form passed in the Lok Sabha last week.

The crocodile is suspected to have entered the town’s drainage system which was flooded due to the water overflow from the nearby river.

RATNAGIRI: An eight-foot-long crocodile was rescued from a roadside drain in the tourist resort of Chiplun in Maharashtra’s coastal Ratnagiri district, officials said on Tuesday.

A video of the reptile emerging out of the drain has gone viral on the internet. The incident occurred in Chiplun’s Dadar area, leading to confusion about whether it happened in suburban Mumbai.

Forest officials said that the incident occurred last Friday (July 26) when Ratnagiri was lashed by heavy rain leading to floods in the Vashishti River, which originates in the coastal district.

The crocodile is suspected to have entered the town’s drainage system which was flooded due to the water overflow from the nearby river. Locals alerted the fire brigade and the Forest Department after they heard some strange sounds emanating from the drain as the huge reptile struggled to escape.

“This is quite common in this region during the monsoon. We rescued this crocodile safely. Since it had not suffered any injuries, it was released back into the river,” Divisional Forest Officer V. K. Surve said.

“I have been barged with calls… I have said it’s the Dadar area of Chiplun and not the Dadar of Mumbai,” Surve said with a laugh.

He said that apart from this incident, the Divisional Forest Office handles calls to rescue other reptiles like snakes, and last month it rescued a leopard trapped during a torrential downpour.

With a population of around 55,000, Chiplun town, 325 kms south of Mumbai is a popular tourist resort and famed for its Alphonso mangoes and kokam, the Sawatsada Waterfalls, the Parshuram Temple and other temples, plus a Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Museum.

Rajiv Kumar, Secretary in the Department of Financial Services, will take place of  Subhash Chandra Garg.

NEW DELHI: Rajiv Kumar, Secretary in the Department of Financial Services, was on Tuesday named the new Finance Secretary to take the place of Subhash Chandra Garg, who was shunted to the Power Ministry.

Garg sought voluntary retirement from government service earlier this week after he was transferred to the Ministry of Power in a bureaucratic reshuffle.

“The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved designating Shri Rajiv Kumar, lAS (JH:1984), Secretary, Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance as Finance Secretary,” read a statement issued by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions.

Earlier this week, the government had reshuffled top bureaucrats across 12 ministries, departments and agencies.

The rejig came less than three weeks after the Union Budget was presented in the Lok Sabha and a day after it was passed by Parliament.

Garg, who formerly served as the Finance Secretary, was on Tuesday moved to the Ministry of Power, a day after which Atanu Chakraborty, a 1985-batch Gujarat-cadre Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, was named Garg’s replacement.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi released the All India Tiger Estimation Report 2018 on 29 July and said the country had emerged as of one of the biggest and safest habitats for tigers in the world.

UNITED NATIONS: India’s tiger population, which has more than doubled from 1,411 in 2006 to 2,967 in 2019, is a “good sign” as it meets UN’s sustainable development goal which encourages the preservation of all species, particularly those that are endangered, a spokesperson for UN chief Antonio Guterres has said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday released the All India Tiger Estimation Report 2018 and said the country had emerged as of one of the biggest and safest habitats for tigers in the world.

The tiger population in India has grown from 1,411 in 2006 to 2,967 in 2019, according to the report.

“With around 3,000 tigers, India has emerged as of one of the biggest and safest habitats for them in world,” Modi said as he lauded all the stakeholders involved in the country’s tiger conservation exercise.

“We have a Sustainable Development Goal which encourages the preservation of biodiversity and of all species including, in particularly, those that are endangered. So, it’s always a good sign if endangered species are, in fact, being protected,” Secretary-General Guterres’ Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq said at a press briefing here on Tuesday when asked to comment about the increase in tiger population in India.

Of the 17 UN sustainable development goals, 15 deal with “Life on Land” and are focussed on protecting, restoring and promoting sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably managing forests, combating desertification, halting and reversing land degradation and halting biodiversity loss.

Among the main targets of the 15 goals is to “take urgent and significant action to reduce the degradation of natural habitats, halt the loss of biodiversity and, by 2020, protect and prevent the extinction of threatened species”.

It also stresses on the need for urgent action to end poaching and trafficking of protected species of flora and fauna and address both demand and supply of illegal wildlife products.

According to the report, while the number of tigers have increased nationwide, there was a decline in its population in Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh.

The report was prepared by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), a statutory body under the Ministry of Environment, in collaboration with the Wildlife Institute of India (WII).

The report covered 3,81,400 sq kms of forests which were surveyed for tiger signs and prey estimation.

Nearly 27,000 camera traps were set up at 141 locations covering an area of 121,337 sq km and taking nearly 3.48 crore photographs.

Out of the total pictures, nearly 77,000 were of tigers.

The impact of this on profitability was huge, as more than 40 % of the Airline’s operating cost were incurred on fuel.

NEW DELHI: Air India Express, the low-cost arm of Air India, has earned a net profit of Rs169 crore in FY 2018-19. The net profit earned in the last fiscal is particularly significant as the aviation sector has had to face high input costs.

The impact of this on profitability was huge, as more than 40  per cent of the Airline’s operating cost was incurred on fuel. “Despite this we were able to drive-in profit by greater utilisation of our assets and resources, like aircraft, manpower and materials. Through concerted cost measures, the airline was able to contain the unit cost incurred on expenses other than fuel to be at the same level as in FY 18,” said K. Shyam Sundar, CEO, Air India Express.  

The airline’s revenues grew by 16.07 per cent, going up from Rs 3,620 crore in FY 2017-18 to Rs 4,202 crore in FY 2018-19.  

The number of passengers carried by the Airline increased by 12 per cent, to reach 4.36 million from the 3.89 million passengers carried in 2017-18. The Airline’s international carriage alone grew by about 10.5 per cent during this period.

Air India Express also inducted two more aircraft, to its fleet in September and October 2018. With the induction of these two aircraft, Air India Express expanded its network to three new Indian cities — Bengaluru, Kannur and Surat.

Vizianagaram traffic police, led by DSP L Mohana Rao, conducted a special drive on helmets at the APSRTC complex and high bridge road on Tuesday morning.

VIZIANAGARAM:  Three police personnel, including one ASI-ranked officer, were penalised for not wearing helmet while driving on city roads, as part of a campaign to create traffic awareness among public. Vizianagaram traffic police, led by DSP L Mohana Rao, conducted a special drive on helmets at the APSRTC complex and high bridge road on Tuesday morning.

As a part of the drive, police stopped the vehicles of police officers and imposed fine. Two female constables and one ASI rank officer were fined along with other bikers.Following the directives of SP B Raja Kumari, the district police officials are mulling to make helmet mandatory in Vizianagaram. Majority of fatalities during road accidents occur for not wearing helmet.

Keeping this in view, the police are mulling to implement the helmet rule strictly, the DSP told media persons.“As a part of creating awareness among the public, we have imposed a minimum fine of `135 for helmet-less driving. The fine would be hefty after completion of the awareness drive. We are also insisting the bikers not to drive without helmets,” he added.