AI to fly over Hindu Kush on way to UK

AI to fly over Hindu Kush on way to UK

Saurabh.Sinha@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:  07.10.2021

The increased flying time for Air India nonstop between Delhi and UK and Delhi and North America since Afghan airspace closed on August 16 is going to reduce significantly with the airline deciding to fly over the mighty Hindu Kush range for the first time. This new routing will see Boeing 777s and 787s soaring over Tirich Mir (7,780 metres), the world’s highest peak outside the Himalaya-Karakoram range.

Since mid-August, nonstop flights on these routes, including PM Narendra Modi’s recent US journey on India One, have taken the longer route via south Pakistan below Afghanistan and then via Iran-Turkey instead of the shorter Pakistan-Afghanistan-Turkmenistan/ Uzbekistan route. Now heading straight north towards Kashmir, over the Hindu Kush range and then the usual route to the west will mean less flying time for passengers and fuel saving for AI at a time when fuel prices are on fire.

“The flying time for north American nonstop flights will come down by up to 40 minutes and for the UK (London and Birmingham) by 20 minutes — almost like before the Afghan airspace closed,” said an airline source. “Our nonstops between Delhi and mainland Europe will continue to take the south Pakistan route for now as determined by our cost benefit analysis.”

The sources said that on the return from north America, an aircraft will save four tonnes of fuel (one tonne while going and three on return). On a return UK flight, the saving will be 2.5 tonne. At the moment, due to travel restrictions in the United States (likely to be lifted from early November), there aren’t too many daily flights, but AI will still save 30 tonne per week using the Hindu Kush route.

“At $800 per tonne of fuel, the weekly saving alone is $24,000, or around Rs 18 lakh at the current currency exchange rate,” confided a source. “When restrictions are lifted and we mount more flights to north America, the savings will multiply. Once the Afghan airspace reopens, we will resume the old route.” Canada, for instance, has just permitted nonstop flights from India and AI has resumed its direct Delhi-Toronto and Delhi-Vancouver services.

Carrying less fuel will mean more payload in terms of passengers and/or cargo. So, the benefit of say, four tonne less fuel will be double — lesser fuel and the differential amount in extra payload.

For the high terrain route, Air India has prepared through extra simulator drills, trial runs and special precautions.

AIMING HIGHER

Now, pay ₹10-₹50 extra for taking a train from revamped stations

Now, pay ₹10-₹50 extra for taking a train from revamped stations

Dipak.Dash@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:07.10.2021

Soon, you would have to pay a user fee ranging between Rs 10 and Rs 50 for boarding trains from stations that have been redeveloped or will be redeveloped in the near future. Similar charges will also be levied for de-boarding the trains at stations that have been revamped or will be revamped soon. This fee will be automatically added to the fare while booking tickets. The user fee would be in five categories, higher for AC First Class and subsequently less for AC-2, AC-3, Sleeper and unreserved classes.

The railway ministry will soon notify the fee, which will be an assured source of revenue for the private players who will develop these stations and the ministry hopes this will encourage more private players to bid for the projects.

Sources said though earlier the railways had sent the proposal to seek approval from the Cabinet, now a decision has been taken that the national transporter will notify the charges on its own and will come out with the detailed policy.

“We are hopeful of the notification in the next 4-5 days. It will bring clarity if the charges can also be levied on passengers boarding from or de-boarding at stations where redevelopment work is underway or if it will be applicable for only redeveloped stations,” said an official.The levy of the user fee will mean the train fare will increase.

For example, if a passenger books a ticket from New Delhi to Mumbai, then the ticket price would include the user fee of both stations.

However, if a passenger books a ticket from a smaller station to New Delhi or Mumbai, then the user fee would be 50% of the normal charge.

Sources said to begin with the railways may roll out the user fee regime at 50 stations.

COSTLY AFFAIR

‘Displaying Holy Cross no ground to cancel SC cert’

‘Displaying Holy Cross no ground to cancel SC cert’

Madurai:  07.10.2021

Can a Holy Cross and other religious symbols and practices displayed by a Dalit be cited to cancel his/her Scheduled Caste certificate? No, said the Madras high court, calling it a “bureaucratic narrow-mindedness” the Constitution never foresaw, reports K Kaushik.

In a recent order, the first bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice M Duraiswamy held that merely because a member of the Dalit community married a Christian and her children have been recognised as members of her husband’s community, the SC certificate issued to her cannot be cancelled.

‘Conduct of authorities portrays a degree of narrow-mindedness’

The court made the observations while allowing a petition filed by P Muneeswari of Ramanathapuram district in 2016, seeking to quash a 2013 order passed by the district collector cancelling her community certificate. A doctor by profession, she was born to Hindu Pallan (a Scheduled Caste) parents and certified so in accordance with law. She then married a Christian and raised her children also as members of the Christian community.

Citing this, her certificate was revoked by the district authorities. When she challenged the decision in court, officials said they visited her clinic and found a Holy Cross hanging on the wall. On this basis, the officials conjectured that she had converted to Christianity and was, thus, disqualified from retaining the Hindu Pallan community certificate. Slamming the argument, the first bench said: "There is no suggestion in the affidavit that she has abandoned her faith or that she has embraced Christianity. It is equally possible that she, as a part of a family, may accompany her husband and children for Sunday matins, but the mere fact that a person goes to church does not mean that such person has altogether abandoned the original faith to which such person was born."

The judges further said: "The acts and conduct of the authorities portray a degree of narrow-mindedness that the Constitution does not encourage." It would do well for the members of the scrutiny committee to approach the matter with a broader mind than is evident in the present case, they said. Judges directed the authorities to restore the certificate originally issued in favour of Muneeswari with immediate effect.

‘Displaying Holy Cross no ground to cancel SC cert’

 ‘Displaying Holy Cross no ground to cancel SC cert’

K.Kaushik@timesgroup.com

Madurai:07.10.2021

Can a Holy Cross and other religious symbols and practices displayed by a dalit be cited to cancel his/her Scheduled Caste certificate? No, said the Madras high court, calling it a “bureaucratic narrow-mindedness” the Constitution never foresaw. In a recent order, the first bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice M Duraiswamy held that merely because a member of the dalit community married a Christian and her children have been recognised as members of her husband’s community, the SC certificate issued to her cannot be cancelled.

Under SC fire, govt agrees to revert to old NEET-SS system

Under SC fire, govt agrees to revert to old NEET-SS system

New Pattern To Be Effective From Next Year

Dhananjay.Mahapatra@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:07.10.2021

Put under the pump following scathing criticism from the Supreme Court, the Centre, National Medical Commission and National Board for Education in medical sciences buckled and informed the court that the NEET-Super Speciality examinations will be as per the erstwhile pattern for the academic year 2021-22. The changed pattern will be applicable from the 2022-23 session onwards.

Additional solicitor general Aishwarya Bhati for the Centre and senior advocate Maninder Singh for NBE informed that in deference to the SC's views, it has been decided to implement the new pattern of question and subject-wise distribution of marks, implementation of which from current academic session was under challenge, from the following academic years. As of now, the court decided not to go into the correctness of the new examination pattern.

As many as 41 MD doctors had approached the SC through advocate Javedur Rehman alleging that the government changed the rules of the game after the starting whistle by completely altering the question pattern and subjectwise distribution of marks for the NEET-SS from what it was since 2018 and notifying the changes more than a month after the schedule of examination was announced. This, they said, jeopardised preparations of 12,000 doctors aspiring for super speciality courses.

Bhati informed the court that doubts of the SC about changes being made to benefit private medical colleges were unfounded as from among 414 colleges offering super speciality courses, 118 in government, and 296 in private sector and as many as 802 seats went vacant last year,” the ASG said.

Notices issued to seize property, arrest doctors over ₹10L bond

COVID DUTY ROW

Notices issued to seize property, arrest doctors over ₹10L bond

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad:07.10.2021

To tighten the noose around doctors who did not respond on being summoned for Covid-19 duty during the second wave, the state government has started issuing notices to them for attachment of their properties or properties belonging to the guarantors who stood for them in lieu of the Rs 10-lakh bond executed during admission to PG medical courses.

The state government had ordered doctors who studied at government medical colleges and yet to discharge their bonds, to join Covid duty.

In the notices issued under provisions of the Bombay Land Revenue Code in September, the government authorities asked the doctors to either pay the bond amount and discharge themselves from the mandatory three-year rural service or properties belonging to them or their legal heirs or their guarantors would be attached and put on auction to recover the Rs 10 lakh bond amount.

In case of failure to pay the amount, the government also threatened to arrest them and put them behind bars and said that a proposal to this effect would be sent to the collectors and district magistrates concerned.

This threat has created panic among doctors and those who stood guarantors when they took admission and their families did not have enough money to pay off the bonds, and had relied on relatives to stand as guarantors.

In some cases, medical college authorities have issued notices to former students asking them to pay Rs 10 lakh and get themselves discharged from the bond. They have been given a seven-day period to pay up or the bank guarantee issued at the time of their admission would be forfeited.

Following the government’s communications, as many as 45 doctors have paid the bond amount and freed themselves from the liability. They are among 251 doctors, who had taken admission to PG medical courses before 2013, and who have approached the Gujarat high court against the state government’s notices issued in June for failure to turn up for Covid duty.

During the hearing on Wednesday, the petitioner doctors’ advocate, Amit Panchal, raised the issue. In response, the government pleader promised the court that the authorities would be told to go slow against the doctors in this regard.

After the government gave an assurance of going slow, the bench of Justice J B Pardiwala and Justice V D Nanavati asked it to file a reply in this regard

‘Language of law has to be English only’

LOST IN TRANSLATION?

‘Language of law has to be English only’

TIMES-NEWS NETWORK

Ahmedabad:07.10.2021

The Gujarat high court on Wednesday asserted that when it comes to the law, the language to be used in court is English only.

During a hearing of a case relating to appointments for the post of police sub-inspectors, the bench of Justice J B Pardiwala and Justice V D Nanavati made it clear that for the legal fraternity in India, the mandatory language is only English and the court does not know any other language.

The proceedings were with regard to the scoring of marks in English and Gujarati languages in examinations conducted for recruitment of PSIs. The candidates had scored less marks in English and performed better in Gujarati.

The lawyer argued that in Gujarat people are more conversant with Gujarati and even law books are available in Gujarati.

The judges immediately posed a question, “How will they read the Indian Penal Code and the Criminal Procedure Code? We don’t understandGujarati.” The lawyer argued further that even law books referred to in lower courts are in the Gujaratilanguage and Gujarat’s law journals also provide headnotes of judgments in Gujarati.

This led the judges to comment, “When it comes to the law, it has to be English and only English, and nothing else. You are sending a wrong signal to the legal fraternity. Any lawyer, any upcoming, budding lawyer who wants to practice without English is nothing in this fraternity. How will he understand the judgements delivered by the Supreme Court and various high courts? Will he bank upon the translations undertaken by law journals?” The lawyer argued on the prevalence of Gujarati in the lower courts and said, “But this is the hard reality.” The judges asserted again, “Whatever the reality may be. The language has to be English.”