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Archives for January 2018

Youth succumbs to injuries, toll in Shopian firing climbs to 3

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Srinagar: The death toll in the alleged Army firing on a mob in Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir today rose to three after a critically injured youth succumbed to injuries. Rayees Ahmad, who was among the nine persons injured in the Army firing last week, succumbed to injuries at a hospital here this morning, police said.

With this, death toll in the firing incident at Ganovpora area of Shopian has risen to three. The Army opened fire on a stone-pelting mob on January 27. The Army claimed it had opened fire in self defence after seven of its personnel were injured.

The state government has ordered a magisterial probe into the incident. Police filed an FIR under sections 302 (murder) and 307 (attempt to murder) against Army personnel, including a Major, involved in the incident.

(PTI)

Expedia – CAPA Outbound Travel Outlook: Dubai, Thailand, France, Singapore and Malaysia Account for >50% of Indian Outbound Leisure Arrivals

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Expedia group, the world’s largest online travel company, in association with CAPA India, the region’s leading aviation advisory, research and knowledge practice developed the latest ‘The inflection point for India outbound travel’ report, to enable global travel and tourism operators to better understand the Indian outbound leisure market. The report throws light on Indian consumers’ leisure travel habits and this year’s findings suggest that there is a huge potential in this segment as India contributes to only 4.8 Million leisure outbound trips. The findings also reveal the top outbound destinations for Indian weddings and explain what factors lead Indians to choose and plan their trip.

Mr. Simon Fiquet, General Manager, Southeast Asia and India, Expedia said, “India has a huge latent market for leisure travel owing to the burgeoning middle class, rising disposable incomes, higher need and awareness around travel being pushed by millennials. The report suggests that India has a promising potential, as only 30% of the total departures from India account for leisure travelling, which stands too small as compared to a global average of 53%. Some measures like introduction of more non-stop connecting flights, delivering value for money and simplifying the visa registration processes are a few key steps which can encourage the outbound leisure market to reach its true potential in India. By 2025, we expect 13.9 million leisure departures, leading to 19.4 million Indian visitor arrivals overseas, with a major contribution from Tier II and III cities.”

“Our research indicates that there is significant and rapidly rising interest in overseas holidays from India. And that the market is far more diverse – and includes sophisticated segments with an ability and willingness to spend – than most destinations realise. Similarly, there will be large numbers of first time travellers entering the international holiday market every year. India comprises multiple and varied markets. This points to the need for airlines, tourism boards and travel companies to invest much more in understanding the Indian travel landscape, and to pursue a more segmented approach to product development and marketing in order to grow volumes”, said Mr. Binit Somaia, Director, South Asia, CAPA – Center for Aviation.

DETAILED REPORT FINDINGS

India Travel Market:
· Indian outbound leisure market is estimated to be 4.8 million trips, representing just 30% of total departures, the leisure share is significantly lower than the global average of 53%
· In 2016, there were 21.9 million departures by Indian nationals, according to the Indian Ministry of Tourism. This includes travel for all purposes e.g. business, leisure, education, visiting friends & relatives (VFR) and others, by both resident and non-resident travellers. These travellers spent USD16.4 billion in 2016. Business travel accounted for 26% of outbound trips, while visiting friends and relatives, employment, education, pilgrimage and others accounted for the balance 44%
· By 2025, there will be estimated 13.9 million leisure departures, generating 19.4 million Indian visitor arrivals overseas, a CAGR of 12.2%. Traffic from tier-II Indian cities is expected to contribute significantly to the next phase of growth in outbound travel

Who is travelling:
· Indian millennials are more adventurous and confident and more inclined towards discretionary consumption of activities such as travel, as opposed to saving. They prefer independent travel over group tours
· 45% of 18-25-year olds went on their first international trip either with friends or by themselves
· Indian baby boomers are the fastest growing age group in some destinations such as Canada and New Zealand and prefer group travel

Where do Indians holiday:
· The largest overall outbound markets from India are Dubai, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the US and Thailand. US traffic is primarily for business, with only 18% leisure. Other top 20 markets which have a low leisure share include China (23%) and Australia (24%)
· Dubai, Thailand, France, Singapore and Malaysia alone account for just over 50% of Indian leisure arrivals overseas
· Making up the top 10 are Sri Lanka, Hong Kong, Indonesia (primarily Bali), the US and Switzerland
· Outbound leisure travel from India is highly concentrated in a handful of popular destinations, with the top 10 accounting for 70% of Indian leisure arrivals
· Amongst the 10 leading leisure destinations, India was the largest source market for Dubai and Sri Lanka, and 4th for Singapore
· The majority of the top 10 leisure destinations are within 5-6 hours flight of India. France was the leading long-haul leisure destination, followed by the US and Switzerland

Where would Indians like to go?
· Travel agents report notable growing interest, albeit off a low base, in South America (primarily Brazil, Argentina and Peru); Eastern Europe and the Balkans (Czech Republic, Slovenia, Croatia and Greece); Northern Europe (Iceland and Norway); Asia Pacific (Bhutan, Cambodia, Maldives and the Philippines), as well as Israel, Jordan and Morocco
· The United States emerges as the leading aspirational destination across metro and non-metro travellers, as well as those that have never travelled. Australia and New Zealand ranked second and third respectively in metro locations. Switzerland ranked higher amongst those that have never travelled

How much do they spend?
· For an average short haul outbound leisure holiday, Indians spend about USD857 per trip per person, while for an average long-haul leisure holiday Indians spend roughly USD1,687 per trip per person
· Accommodation generally accounts for about 35% to 50% of total vacation spend. 50% of respondents budgeted USD75-150 per room per night for leisure travel, with 35% spending less than USD75.

Impact of LCCs on affordability of travel
· India has seen strong growth in both domestic and international passenger traffic over the last five years (FY2012-2017), which have grown at a CAGR of 14.0% and 8.6%, respectively. LCCs have had a dramatic impact on air travel by making it more affordable and now command 67.2% of the Indian domestic market.
· International traffic carried by LCCs grew at a CAGR of 17.2% over the period FY2012–2017, much faster than the overall growth of the market. As a result, LCCs increased their international market share from 14.5% in FY2012 to 22.9% in FY2017, with relatively faster expansion in tier-II cities such as Amritsar, Lucknow and Jaipur, among others

Impact of technology on access to travel
· Online travel agents have grown to become a major force in the distribution of domestic travel. Their presence in the international segment is smaller, but rising, with OTAs estimated to account for around 14% of international flight bookings
· Research indicated that Indian travellers prefer to use OTAs than airline/hotel websites. ‘Ease of booking’, ‘ability to compare prices’ and ‘better deals’ were the key reasons. Up to 35% of those surveyed stated that they did not require the assistance of an offline agent to book international travel

When do they travel?
· The peak season for such travel from India has traditionally been from mid-April to June, because of summer school holidays; and again, from October to January, due to the festival period, the New Year break and the wedding season, which drives honeymoon travel. This is particularly so in the case of short haul travel
· However, for longer haul travel to northern hemisphere destinations, there is a much more distinct single peak season between April and June

Emerging travel segments
Special Interest Travel
A growing number – particularly among the younger demographic – are no longer content to simply sightsee, shop or relax. Activities range from taking cookery classes to learning to dive, overland adventures, or playing golf. For example, the analysis indicates that 5000-6000 Indians travel to Scotland each year to play at courses such as Gleneagles or St. Andrews. While the number going on golf holidays in Thailand – which offers a more cost-effective proposition that is also close enough to be a spontaneous, short break destination – is estimated to be over 30,000.
Cruising
· Over the last five years the market is estimated to have tripled in size from 50,000 to 150,000 cruise passengers from India. However, this still only represents around 3% of the outbound leisure market
· Singapore is the most popular embarkation port with almost 100,000 passengers in 2016, which made Indians the largest foreign nationality boarding ships from the Singapore Cruise Centre. The Mediterranean and Alaska are the two most popular destinations outside of Southeast Asia, however due to their higher cost, they tend to appeal more to baby boomers rather than family groups

Destination weddings
· Weddings in India are an important cultural phenomenon, with families spending a sizeable proportion of their lifetime savings on such occasions. The most popular locations have traditionally been Thailand and Dubai. Locations such as diverse as Austria, Bali, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Ras al Khaimah and Turkey are increasingly positioning themselves as wedding destinations
· Weddings, even those in India, also stimulate international travel for honeymoons. The most popular destinations are not dissimilar to those for the market overall. However, agents are reporting an increasing trend of requests to honeymoon in locations where there are less likely to be other Indian tourists
Event-based travel
· Planning holidays around specific events – be they music, cultural, or sporting – is most popular amongst travellers aged 26-35 residing in tier-1 cities
· Movies (both Western and Indian), TV serials and social media are the key drivers of interest. Similarly, there was a strong desire to post on social media about attending such events
Resort travel
· Although Indians have traditionally not been beach-goers, our research and survey showed strong growth and interest in resort holidays for relaxation. This is particularly true for young professionals aged 26–45 years and married couples. Destinations such as Mauritius, Maldives and Seychelles are especially popular with honeymooners

Constraints to Travel
Cost of Travel:
· Less than 5% of Indians had taken out a personal loan or holiday financing to pay for international travel, but 16% said that they would be interested
· Most of those responding in favour of a travel loan had annual household incomes of less than USD30,000 and a majority were aged 18-35 years.
Connectivity
· 80% of long haul international passengers from India have to connect at least once en-route to reach their destinations. Most of the foreign carriers are operating at average year-round load factors of 85-90%, suggesting that some traffic is being displaced during peak periods.
· The Government of India is expected to permit only incremental liberalisation of bilateral in the near term, at least until 2019.
· The destinations with strong leisure potential that are likely to appear on the route networks of Indian long haul LCCs include New York, London, Paris, Rome, Amsterdam, Istanbul, Tel Aviv, Johannesburg, Cape Town, Mauritius, Bali, Sydney and Melbourne.
· Re-engined narrow body equipment, such as the A320neo or 737 MAX aircraft, with their longer range and lower unit costs, could enable LCCs to launch non-stop routes from India to numerous holiday destinations—such as Phuket, Siem Reap, Manila, Hong Kong, Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and Seychelles—which are not viable today. Indian carriers currently have close to 800 such re-engined aircraft on order.
Visa Restrictions:
· There are only a handful of popular outbound destinations for Indians that permit visa-free entry, visa-on-arrival or a relatively simple electronic application for Indian nationals.
· The application process is onerous, requiring the submission of lengthy forms and accompanying documents, consuming several weeks and, on occasion, requiring a face-to-face interview. This rules out spontaneous travel.
· Visa situation is improving, with numerous destinations now implementing measures to make the process easier by enabling online applications and expediting processing. Whilst others are relaxing requirements for those that may have already been approved for a US, UK or Schengen visa on the basis that they have already been vetted by countries with stringent processes.
Limited investment in understanding the market
· Marketing, product development, customisation for local preferences, value proposition and distribution will play a critical role in determining which destinations are able to secure a larger share of volumes and spend
· The primary mistake that destinations make is to view India as a single market, and one that is at a relatively early stage of travel sophistication. The result in many cases is a generic marketing strategy focused on volume, which fails to address the diverse segments that exist. In India, each city requires their own tailored approach. Delhi differs from Chennai and within each region or city there are significant variations in preferences and behaviour based on age, income, level of travel experience.

Vatal Nagaraj calls for Bengaluru Bandh on February 4

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Bengaluru: Vatal Nagaraj has called for a Bengaluru Bandh on February 4.

Vatal Nagaraj from Kannada Okkuta today said that until the BJP resolve the Mahadayi issue, they Okkuta members will fight.

Addressing the media, he said if the BJP leaders don’t give any assurance on the Mahadayi issue by February 3 then the Okkuta will hold a protest and the bandh will be observed on 4.

The Prime Minister will be participating in the valedictory of the BJP’s Navakarnataka Parivartana Yatra at Palace grounds on Feb 4.

(Agencies)

Egyptian opposition calls for boycott of ‘absurd’ poll

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President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is all but certain to win the March election in a landslide [Mohamed Abd El Ghany/Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

A coalition of Egyptian opposition groups have called for an election boycott, calling the vote an “absurdity bordering on madness” after all serious candidates were either arrested or subjected to a campaign of intimidation.

In a joint statement, eight Egyptian opposition parties and 150 pro-democracy public figures urged Egyptians to stay away from the March polls in protest, accusing the government of President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of preventing “any fair competition”.

“It is not right for us to surrender to what has become an absurdity bordering on madness,” said Abdel-Geleel Mustafa, a veteran opposition figure, at a news conference in Cairo.

Hamdeen Sabahi, Sisi’s only rival in the 2014 presidential elections, launched the campaign under the slogan, “Stay at home.”

He called on political parties to unite against what he called Sisi’s “brutal tyranny of power”.

Sisi, a former general who came to power in a 2013 coup against his democratically elected predecessor, Mohamed Morsi, is all but certain to win the March election in a landslide.

Several potential candidates have either been arrested or faced threats, intimidation and physical violence, forcing them to drop out.

Sami Anan, a former general, had planned to run against Sisi but was arrested at gunpoint on Tuesday by Egyptian security services.

His vice-presidential candidate, Hisham Genena, was attacked and seriously injured in a busy Cairo street on Saturday.

Earlier this month, Ahmed Shafik, former prime minister, backtracked on his intention to run, claiming he would “not be the ideal person to lead the state”.

The New York Times quoted one of Shafik’s lawyers as saying that the Egyptian government had forced him to withdraw by threatening to investigate previous charges of corruption against him.

In December 2017, Ahmed Konsowa, an army colonel, was sentenced to six years in prison after announcing his candidacy, while human rights lawyer Khaled Ali withdrew after receiving a three-month prison sentence.

Government apologist
Sisi’s only challenger is Mousa Mostafa Mousa, a government apologist who entered the race at the 11th hour, amid fears that a widespread boycott could lead to embarrassingly few votes being cast.

Mousa, who formally submitted his candidacy 15 minutes before the deadline despite not publicly declaring his intention to run until the day before, denied allegations he was cooperating with the government, saying, “We are not puppets in this race.”

However the 66-year-old has repeatedly endorsed Sisi, and last year formed a campaign called “Supporters of President el-Sisi’s nomination for a second term”.

Egyptians took to social media and used the hashtag Al-Kombares, which loosely translates to someone playing the role of an “extra”, to mock Mousa’s candidacy and the upcoming poll.

“An innocent question: How was the ‘extra’ Mousa Mostafa Mousa able to get more than 47,000 signatures in 10 days, as he said, without appearing on the candidates’ database?” asked journalist Hossam Elshorbagy.

To be eligible, a candidate must have collected 25,000 signatures from constituents across 15 governorates, or the signatures of 20 members of parliament.

Egypt has been beset with problems since the 2013 coup against Morsi, the country’s first democratically elected president.

While it has also received generous economic aid packages from several Gulf countries, economic and security conditions for most Egyptians have deteriorated.

Under Sisi, human rights in Egypt have worsened, with organisations reporting that at least 60,000 people have been imprisoned since the general came to power.

There have also been reports of forced disappearances and a clampdown on press freedom.

6.1 magnitude quake rattles Afghanistan; tremors in Pak, India

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Kabul: A powerful 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck northern Afghanistan Wednesday, with the tremors felt as far away as India and Pakistan, where one girl was killed and 11 people were injured.

The quake hit at 12:37 IST near Afghanistan’s northern border with Tajikistan in the Hindu Kush mountains at a depth of 191 kilometres, the US Geological Survey said.

AFP news agency reported that frightened residents ran out of homes and shops in Kabul. No casualties were immediately reported in Afghanistan, the spokesman for the country’s National Disaster Management Authority told 1TV.

Across the border in Pakistan, homes, offices and schools were quickly evacuated in Islamabad, Peshawar and Lahore.

Mild tremors were also felt in New Delhi.

In Pakistan’s Quetta town, one girl was killed after the roof of her house collapsed during the earthquake. Deputy Commissioner Shabir Mengal said they were also incidents in other parts of Quetta where around a dozen people were injured due to building damages or collapses.He said some villages in the Balochistan province also felt the tremors.

“The injured have been rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment. Emergency has been declared in all hospitals,” he said.

Rescue teams were also dispatched to the nearby Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province to assess reports of damage. However Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority did not expect serious losses, a spokesman said.

AFP said the epicentre was near Afghanistan’s Jarm, which was hit by a devastating 7.5 magnitude quake in October 2015 that triggered landslides and flattened buildings, killing more than 380 people across the region.

Afghanistan is frequently hit by earthquakes, especially in the Hindu Kush mountain range, which lies near the junction of the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates. Aid agencies have stressed the need for greater disaster preparedness in the war-torn country, which remains extremely susceptible to recurring natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes and landslides.

(IANS)

47 million children in India reside in most polluted areas: Greenpeace India report

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New Delhi: Around 47 million children in India under five years of age reside in areas where particulate matter levels exceed the prescribed limits, with 17 million among them inhabiting places where the pollution levels are twice the limits, says a recent report.

‘Airpocalypse-II’, a Greenpeace India report, said children are worst affected in states such as Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar, Maharashtra and Delhi respectively.

It said Delhi remained the worst impacted city with annual PM10 levels exceeding approximately five times the national ambient air quality standards.

According to the report, a massive part of the population i.e. 580 million or 47 per cent are living in areas where “no air quality data is available”.

It claimed that out of 630 million, close to 550 million people live in areas exceeding national standards for PM10, including 180 million living in areas where air pollution levels are “more than twice the stipulated limit of 60g/m3 which has been set by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

“As many as 47 million children under the age of five years are residing in areas where PM10 levels exceeded CPCB annual limits, including 17 million children under the age of five who are in the areas where pollution levels are more than twice the limits,” the report claimed.

Ranking of cities based on an annual average of PM10 levels reveals that Delhi is the worst polluted city with 290 µg/m3 followed by Faridabad, Bhiwadi, Patna with the annual average ranging from 272 µg/m3, 262 µg/m3 & 261 µg/m3, respectively, it said.

It said Dehradun in Uttrakhand, once thought to be a ‘salubrious preserve of retiring elite’, also made it to the top 10 list of worst-polluted cities with 238 µg/m3 annual average of PM10.

The report added that the most-polluted cities are spread across the Indo-Gangetic basin with the southern cities being slightly better off than their northern counterparts.

However, cities in the south also need focused and time-bound action plan to bring the air quality to achieve the WHO standards, thus showing a pathway for other cities across India, it said.

(PTI)

SC asks Centre to give details of 5th time applicants for Haj

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Muslim pilgrims circle the Kaaba at the Grand mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia September 8, 2016. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah

New Delhi: The Supreme Court Tuesday asked the Centre to furnish details of applicants aged between 65 and 70 years, who have applied for four times earlier but have not been able to go for the Haj pilgrimage.

The top court clarified that it was an ad-interim measure and wanted the Centre to file the details of such persons to examine the issue raised by the Kerala Haj committee alleging that the policy to grant state-wise quota for Haj pilgrims was discriminatory.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud sought the Centres response by February 19.

“Purely as an ad-interim measure, it is directed that Pinky Anand, Additional Solicitor General, shall file a statement with regard to the fifth time applicants, who have crossed the age of 65 years and are below 70 years and have never been able to go for the pilgrimage,” the bench said.

Fifth time applicants are those who had applied four times earlier but were unable to go for Haj due to the limited quota fixed by the Centre for each state, and have applied again this year.

During the hearing, the ASG said the Centres policy was that all Haj seats should be equally distributed among the states and all of them should be given equal opportunity.

The bench then asked Anand as to what happened to the surplus seats.

She said the surplus seats “are kept in general pool and then subsequently distributed among the states on the basis of application received statewise.”

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the Haj Committee, said the current policy of the Centre to give state-wise quota was “arbitrary” and “discriminatory”.

He said Kerala has a higher number of people who want to go for Haj pilgrimage than states like Bihar and suggested that there should be an all-India draw of lots to select the pilgrims.

“First, let the details come then we will see what can be done in the case,” the bench said.

On January 5, the apex court had issued notice to the Centre seeking its response on the plea within two weeks.

The Kerala Haj committee had said that India has been allowed by the Saudi Arabian government to send 1.7 lakh Haj pilgrims every year and the Centre distributed the quota on the basis of the Muslim population in each state.

The Haj committee had earlier referred to the example of Bihar and said it gets 12,000 pilgrimage seats as against a total number of 6,900 applications last year.

In stark contrast, Kerala got 6,000 seats against 95,000 applicants desirous to go for Haj and, as a result, every applicant in Bihar gets the opportunity to go for Haj, but in Kerala, the situation was not so, it had said.

The Centre had justified the present quota policy saying it had been devised by the Central Haj Committee after considering the suggestions of the state Haj panels.

The Haj Committee had also raised the issue of allotting 25 per cent Haj seats to private tour operators and alleged that they charged exorbitant price of up to Rs four lakh from one pilgrim.

Instead of allowing private operators, the government should be sending all pilgrims for Haj which would begin in August this year, it had said.

(PTI)

Main accused in Kasganj violence held

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Lucknow: The main accused in the Chandan Gupta murder case in Kasganj was arrested on Wednesday even as a Congress delegation was stopped from entering the violence-hit district amid continuing tension in some pockets.

“Saleem, the main accused, has been nabbed,” IG, Aligarh range, Sanjeev Gupta said.

Kasganj SP Piyush Srivastava said notices pertaining to attachment of properties of the accused have been pasted on their houses.

Authorities stopped a Congress delegation in Mirhachi area in Etah on the border of Kasganj district.

They denied permission to the delegation from entering troubled areas, citing law and order issues, official sources said.

District Magistrate, Kasganj, R P Singh had refused to give permission to the Congress delegation apprehending that their visit to the troubled areas might create additional problems.

At least three shops, two buses and a car were torched after a youth was killed in clashes following stone-pelting by a mob on a motorcycle rally taken out to celebrate Republic Day last week.

At least 118 people have been arrested in connection with the violence. Tension still prevailed in a few pockets of the western Uttar Pradesh town.

Police said normalcy was slowly returning to the violence-hit town where security personnel have intensified patrolling in sensitive areas.

Stray incidents of vioon Wednesday. Officials said the state government was preparing a report sought by the Centre on the violence and steps taken to control it.

“We are sending a report on the incident and steps taken to restore peace. Details of the steps taken to punish the culprits will also be furnished to the Union Home Ministry,” an official said.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on Tuesday that his government was committed to providing security to each and every citizen.

“Anarchy has no place in the state,” he said, and promised strict action against the perpetrators of violence, asserting the guilty would not be allowed to go unpunished.

The Uttar Pradesh government has come under fire over the clashes with even Governor Ram Naik terming the Kasganj violence a “blot” on the state.

Opposition parties have also attacked the state government over the clashes.

(PTI)

Ramadoss says Cauvery talks with Karnataka wrong, Stalin hails it

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Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K. Palaniswami’s move to meet and urge his Karnataka counterpart to release Cauvery river water to save the Samba paddy crop on Wednesday elicited contrasting responses from DMK and PMK leadership, with the former hailing it.

PMK founder S.Ramadoss on Wednesday termed the state government’s approach as “completely wrong” as he claimed it would be akin to forgoing Tamil Nadu’s hard-fought rights in the river water dispute with Karnataka.

In a statement issued here, Ramadoss said that as per the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) Karnataka should release 192 thousand million cubic feet (TMC) of water per year but had released only 112 TMC this year.

The PMK leader said the Tamil Nadu government should have instead taken steps to get the balance 80 TMC water from Karnataka, taking the help of the Supreme Court and the central government.

Ramadoss said as Assembly elections were around the corner in Karnataka, its Chief Minister Siddaramaiah would not order release of Cauvery water.

On the other hand, DMK leader M.K. Stalin welcomed the Palaniswami’s decision and said he “should have done this much earlier”.

Stalin said Palaniswami should take along with him leaders of all opposition parties in Tamil Nadu to put pressure on Siddaramaiah to release water.

“If need be, Palaniswami should take all the opposition leaders to Delhi and meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on this issue.”

On Tuesday, the Tamil Nadu government said Palaniswami and Ministers from the Cauvery Delta region will meet Siddaramaiah. A decision on this was taken at a meeting on Monday.

The statement said a letter seeking an appointment had been sent to the Karnataka Chief Secretary and its Chief Minister’s Principal Secretary.

An official statement said water inflow into Mettur Dam had gone down and hence sufficient water could not be released for irrigation.

(IANS)

All India Mahila Empowerment Party making waves in Karnataka

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Dr. Nowhera Shaik conferred with The Nasheman Ratna Award 2018. Seen with Managing Editor of Nasheman Weekly, Mrs. Husna Rizwan.

by Rizwan Asad

Newly launched All India Mahila Empowerment Party’s (MEP), which has announced its decision to contest elections in all the 224 seats in the upcoming Karnataka Assembly Elections under the leadership of Dr. Nowhera Shaik, is making waves in Karnataka.

With the entry of MEP, the calculations of major political parties have gone in jeopardy and many are worried about their political future.

As MEP is concentrating more on women, who are the majority of voters, and they may eat into the votes of other political parties, which in turn, many political parties are fear that they may lose their seats to MEP.

It may be recalled that many people are fed up with the present political parties, as only promises have been done, in terms of security, water, electricity and development, which has not been delivered in the last 2-3 decades.

The so-called major political parties have only given false promises for the past decades, and they have not given basic security to women. And even in govt, there are no women, who can raise above men, which is a sad state of affairs.

According to Dr. Nowhera Shaikh, fighting for justice and empowerment of women is MEP’s top priority, and free education to all, irrespective of caste, colour and creed, and MEP wants to see that the women in the state get their due rights.

There are more than 64 crores women in India, and yet, their basic necessities are not looked. It’s high time, we fight for the rights of women, and when MEP comes in power, we promise to fulfil, the agenda, which is there in our manifesto. It’s high time, people bring in a change, by giving MEP a chance.

It may be recalled, after the success of rallies in Tumkur, Kolar and Chikkaballapur, and the recent speech by Dr Nowhera Shaikh at the Nasheman Awards, thousands of people, especially women are joining the party, and more than 1700 applications have come in, from people of all walks of life, and as the days are passing by, MEP is growing stronger and getting a strong foothold, in the whole of Karnataka. Dr. Nowhera Shaik has promised that she’ll never let the people of Karnataka down. She has promised that she’ll get the free education.

She is confident of winning more than 150 seats, saying that most of her candidates will be women. She has invited people who have the motive to serve the nation, by joining the hands of MEP.

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