India mulls investing more in Air India-minister

July 26, 2010 By Leave a Comment

July 25 (Reuters) – India’s government will consider putting more capital into state-run Air India if the national carrier improves its operational performance, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said on Sunday.

“The government has said based on performance parameters, it will look at inducting fresh equity,” Patel said.

The government put 8 billion rupees into Air India in the last fiscal year and has so far allocated 12 billion rupees in its current fiscal budget to help the airline reduce its losses and debt, which have been mounting.

Patel said Air India currently has working capital debt of 180 billion rupees.

The airline is currently going through a debt restructuring process as it looks to clean up its balance sheet with SBI capital managing its overall debt recast.

“The financial restructuring will also include reducing the cost of the debt. We have to replace the high cost debt with low cost debt,” Patel said.

The carrier will restructure the working capital loan through a mix of bonds guaranteed by the government over the next four years, Air India said in a separate statement on Sunday.

It also said it would raise additional capital from the sale of land and buildings or use them as security for fresh loans.

Air India Chairman Arvind Jadhav has said the airline, which incurred a loss of 54 billion rupees in the year to March 31, 2010, expects to pare its losses by around 75 percent this fiscal year.

The carrier said on Sunday it expected a 29 percent increase in its operating revenue as air traffic improves on a rebound in business travel.

Air India has said it has no plans to cut jobs. (Reporting by Aniruddha Basu; editing by Bappa Majumdar) (aniruddha.basu@thomsonreuters.com; +91-9819732516; Reuters Messaging: bappa.majumdar.reuters.com@reuters.net)) (If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to newsfeedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com)

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Government of India proposes to infuse Rs 1,200 crore into Air India

June 11, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Berlin, June 11 (ANI): Union Minister of State for Civil Aviation Praful Patel has said that the Centre would infuse additional equity of Rs 1,200 crore into Air India over the next few months.

Interacting with media on the sidelines of the annual summit of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) here, Patel said the government’s decision is an attempt to review national carrier’s performance to decide on the future course.

He, however, said there was no decision to divest government equity in the cash-strapped national carrier at the moment.

In 2009, the Union Government gave the airline Rs 800 crore as equity.

Commenting on merger of Air India and erstwhile Indian Airlines, Patel said the ministry still studying how the equity infusion performs.

He said officials of all airlines attending the summit have opined that “mergers do not happen overnight. It is an ongoing process which has to be achieved over time. Air France-KLM have taken six years. Nobody has said merger is a one-day process.”

Commenting on strengthening of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Patel said the government was considering granting it full autonomy and support the regulator in its functioning. (ANI)

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Vegetarian president brings own cooks to China

May 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Beijing, May 29 (IANS) President Pratibha Patil, a vegetarian, has flown in her own cooks for her six-day China visit, fully aware that she was visiting a nation known for a cuisine that is primarily non-vegetarian and where gourmet dishes are whipped out of many animal, bird and fish species.

In fact, the president who attended a sumptuous state banquet Thursday given by her Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao at the Great Hall of People bypassed the non-vegetarian dishes and tucked into a meal which included a special dish of white gourd.

Officials said Patil, who is staying in the majestic Hotel Raffles Beijing, has a huge suite which has a big kitchen, with separate entry for staff members. Patil is in China on a six-day visit that is taking her to Beijing, Luoyang and Shanghai.

‘She is a simple eater. And likes her dal, rice and one vegetable. Her chef knows her liking,’ an official told IANS, not wishing to be identified as he was not supposed to talk to the media.

Not only chefs Laxman Rai and Dheeraj Mani Bhatt are taking care of the president’s needs, but also her husband Devisingh Ramsingh Shekhawat, son-in-law Jayesh Rathore and grandson Dhruvesh Rathor who are accompanying her in the visit.

As Chinese dining etiquettes demand that guests do not decline any food that is served to them, Chinese authorities were informed about the president’s preferences in advance. ‘She was not offered any non-vegetarian fare (at the state banquet),’ said the official.

A huge steel box labelled with bold letters ‘grocery’ was flown to China. In fact, it was one of the few things that were loaded first in the special aircraft Air India One in which the president and her entourage travelled.

‘We are carrying everything for the journey. We know her choices so we have packed everything. We wanted to be fully prepared,’ the official told IANS.

Chinese banquets typically serve about ten courses that include food cooked from animal, fish or bird anatomy.

(Kavita Bajeli-Datt can be contacted at kavita.d@ians.in)

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India will send black box to US

May 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

New Delhi, May 28 — The black box and the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR), which hold the key to investigations into the tragic May 22 Mangalore Air India crash, would be sent to USA, where it would be decoded. Top sources in the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) – the civil aviation safety regulator – said they had decided to use the services of the best available lab in the world.

“We don’t want to take any chances. We have decided to send the black box and CVR to the best lab in USA. Certain formalities need to be completed before this can be done and we are in the process of completing them,” a DGCA official said.

Sources said the laboratory of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), an autonomous agency of the US government, could be used for this purpose. A three-member team of the NTSB is already in Delhi coordinating closely with the DGCA team probing the case.

“Though the CVR was recovered in partially damaged state – affected by fire – it is expected to yield the desired information. Digital Flight Data Recorder commonly known as Black Box, the most vital source of information, has also been impacted by the crash,” the official said.

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Why your flights aren’t safer

May 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Mumbai, May 29 — The air traffic control (ATC) official who averted the collision between a Jet Airways flight and an Indigo aircraft on Wednesday had a slice of luck.

Spotting the Indigo plane from the ATC tower located a few hundred metres away was not easy, especially because the airfield was pitch dark. As in this case, lack of coordination between air and ground traffic control was the common factor in the past few near-mishaps.

Simply put, a plane on the tarmac stood in the way of a plane about to land or vice versa. On April 20, a Kingfisher flight to Bhavnagar carrying 30 had to abort take-off because a GoAir flight that had just landed was late in vacating the runway.

Similarly, a Kingfisher flight cancelled take-off because an Air India flight landed on the same runway last October. Air safety experts feel that a Surface Movement Radar (SMR) would make the ATC’s work simpler by ensuring proper coordination between ground and air traffic.

A Directorate General of Civil Aviation preliminary report on Wednesday’s incident also recommended installation of the SMR. The radar can capture anything, from a dog to a jumbo jet, moving on the tarmac even during low visibility.

“It makes traffic management in the air and on the ground easy,” said MG Jhunghare, general manager, ATC (western region). The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has procured the radar but it is lying wrapped in boxes because officials are struggling to find a suitable spot to install it.

“The airport’s ground infrastructure is set to change constantly because of the modernisation,” said an AAI official requesting anonymity as he is not authorised to speak to the media. Delhi’s is the only airport in India to have the SMR.

In an airport like Mumbai’s, SMR is crucial because flights simultaneously take off and land on runways that intersect. “The window of error is small. A small gap in coordination between pilots and the ATC could lead to disaster,” said a Boeing commander with a private airline.

Worse, India’s second busiest airport has one-third of its air traffic manager posts vacant. Despite several demands to augment manpower, the department that handles 700 take-offs and landings every day is short of more than 100 personnel. Upgradation of the airport’s air navigation set-up is adding to the pressure.

“In addition to our existing work, we are being trained to use the new technology,” said a tower controller. The airport is likely to get software that gives real-time information of touchdowns and alerts the ATC when two planes are too close to each other.

Recent cases 2010 May 27: A Jet Airways flight aborted landing because an Indigo flight was blocking the runway. April 20: A Kingfisher flight aborted take-off to ensure that a GoAir flight, which had landed, was off the runway. 2009 October: A Kingfisher aircraft was about to take off when an Air India flight from Nagpur landed on the same runway.

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2 days after engineers’ strike, 4 AI flights delayed by snags

May 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Mumbai, May 29 — About 400 Air India Express passengers in two separate flights headed to Chennai and Kochi were stranded at the Mumbai airport for more than five hours on Friday because the airline reported technical snags. Earlier in the day a Calicut-Dubai Air India flight (IC-538) carrying 84 passengers was delayed by about three hours after it was diverted to the Mumbai airport because the pilot suspected a hydraulic failure. This is the fourth case of flight delay of AI flights caused by technical snags in the last three days. Flight maintenance is the responsibility of engineers, who went on strike on Tuesday. “They have abandoned us. Nobody is giving any information,” Saharsh David passenger on the Kochi flight. Airline sources suspect that a section of aircraft engineers are purposely “going slow” in tackling snags to protest the sacking of 58 employees and suspension of 28 others. The action was to punish them for the flash strike called by two unions comprising engineers and other airline staff. “Engineers going slow in their work is a possibility. The members are furious about the sacking,” said an aircraft maintenance engineer, requesting anonymity. The Calicut-Dubai Air India flight landed at the city airport at 11.45 am under full emergency conditions – amidst fire tenders, an ambulance and rescue staff. Passengers were shifted in the spare aircraft that left at 2.55 pm. The aircraft with the snag was stuck in Mumbai until late evening. On Wednesday, a Jeddah-Mumbai flight was delayed by 24 hours because of a technical snag. The aircraft was diverted to Delhi to clear passengers stranded by the strike and again a technical snag was reported that delayed the flight by another six hours. “It is an effective tool to paralyse operations. Nobody can hold the engineer responsible for delaying repair work,” said an engineer with the airline. “An engineer can dilly-dally work by insisting that he will finish the paperwork first.”

An Air India spokesperson denied any such possibility. “Repair work depends on the nature of the snag,” the spokesperson said.

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AI staff calls off strike as govt threatens action

May 27, 2010 By Leave a Comment

A section of Air India (AI) staff called off their strike late on Wednesday following a warning from the government of stern action and the Delhi High Court terming the agitation illegal earlier in the day. The two-day flash strike by the airline’s ground staff crippled the carrier’s operation with at least 130 flights either cancelled or delayed on Wednesday.

The high court has also restrained employees from going on strike from May 31, which the airline unions had decided to protest against delay in payment of salaries.

The National Aviation Company of India Ltd (Nacil), which runs Air India, is estimated to have lost about Rs 10 crore in the two-day flash strike. The airline has suspended 16 and sacked 17 employees with immediate effect in its bid to deal strongly with the employees.

“The employees’ demand was completely unreasonable. Their action has hugely damaged the airline’s reputation,” an Air India official said.

While the civil aviation minister Praful Patel gave free hand to the airline management to deal with striking employees, the Delhi High Court restrained Air India employees from continuing with the strike which caused losses to the airline and inconvenienced passengers.

Patel who apprised the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Cabinet of the situation at Air India called for strong and decisive action against employees.

“Absolutely irresponsible behaviour like this needs strong action. No one can take law into their own hands,” the minister told reporters.

Nearly 10,000 employees represented by Air Corporation Employees Union (ACEU) resorted to a flash strike on Tuesday alleging that the company management was restricting their freedom of speech by issuing a ‘gag order’.

The airline management has denied that it issued any order stopping union members to air their views. The employee agitation came at a time when Air India struggled to come out of the fallout of an Air India Express flight crash which killed 158 passenger out of 166 in the weekend. Besides, the airline has been facing one of the worst financial crisis in its history with an accumulated loss of over Rs 12,000 crore.

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Sheesh Mahal cricket from May 31 to June 5

May 26, 2010 By Leave a Comment

The 57th edition of the All India Sheesh Mahal Cricket Tournament will be organised at Lucknow from May 31 to June 5. This is India’s oldest summer tournament and was founded by late Askari Hasan who was a great sports lover. It was adopted by Sahara in 2006. For the first time, the tournament will be played in T20 format with white ball and players donning coloured clothing. Earlier the tournament was played in 40-40 format.

This year, the tournament will also be providing a good platform to some of the young players to showcase their talent and impress the talent spotters for the Sahara Pune Warriors team of the IPL.

Eight teams featuring some national and international level players are expected to be seen in action during the tournament. The teams have been divided into two pools— teams of Indian Oil, ONGC, Maharashtra Cricket Association and ITC are placed in pool A, pool B includes the teams of Air India, Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association, India Post and Sahara India. The name of defending champions Rizvi Builders team is missing from the teams’ list.

The ‘Sahara City Homes Sheesh Mahal Cricket Tournament’ will be played on a league-cum-knockout basis. The matches will be played at KD Singh ‘Babu’ Stadium and the Chowk Stadium, with two matches on each ground on May 31, June 1 and June 2. The first match of the day will commence at 6.30 am and the second match will start at 10.00 am on both grounds. The semi-finals will be played June 4 while the final will be played on June 5.

Addressing mediapersons, Abhijeet Sarkar, head of corporate communications, Sahara India Pariwar, informed, “Sahara has plans to develop the event as one of the major cricket tournaments of the sub-continent in the coming years. This will help the game develop at ground level and will provide the international exposure to the local players from different parts of the nation.”

The tournament carries a prize money of Rs 25 lakhs. The winners will become richer by Rs 11 lakhs while the runners-up will be getting Rs 5.5 lakhs. The prestigious and now, also the richest prize-money tournament, has seen many cricket legends playing for the Cup.

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Air India register easy win in GG Dutt, enter quarters

May 26, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Air India beat South Delhi Colts by four wickets to enter the quarter-finals of the ongoing All-India Goswami Ganesh Dutt memorial cricket tournament on Tuesday. Set a target of 230, Air India completed the formalities with five balls to spare at the St Stephen’s ground.

At one point, Air India were in danger of losing the grip on the match, when they were three down with only 51 on the board. But the timely 125-run partnership for the fourth wicket between skipper Shafiq Khan and Reetinder Singh Sodhi got them closer to the target, before both the set batsmen were dismissed.

It was left to Naman Sharma, who struck 23 in quick time, to see the 11-time champions home. Khan made a run-a-ball 79, including nine hits to the fence, while Sodhi contributed 47 to the total. For South Delhi Colts, Manish Bhatia struck thrice and Gaurav Gambhir took two wickets, in a losing cause.

Earlier, put into bat, the Colts were reeling at 89 for 6 in only 22.2 overs. And only a late-order burst by Nischal Gaur and Gaurav Gambhir, ensured that they put on a fighting total of 228 after the end of their innings. They put on 140-run partnership for the seventh wicket.

Gaur struck six boundaries and four sixes in his 57-ball 81, while Gambhir made 54. Mohammad Arif, who made 32 and Amarjeet Singh (23), also contributed to the South Delhi Colts total.

For Air India, Sachin Rana was pick of the bowlers with figures of 2/57), while Amit Bakshi, Iresh Saxena and Ajit Chandela shared a wicket apiece.

Brief scores: South Delhi Colts 229 for 8 in 40 overs (Nishchal Gaur 81, Gaurav Gambhir 54, Mohammad Arif 32, Sachin Rana 2/57, Amit Bakshi 1/22, Iresh Saxena 1/44, Ajit Chandela 1/41); Air India 233 for 6 in 39.1 overs (Shafiq Khan 79, Chandan Madan 27, Reetinder Singh Sodhi 47, Naman Sharma 23 not out, Manish Bhatia 3/50, Gaurav Gambhir 2/39, Parveen Thapar 1/40)

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Despite deadlock, Patil hopeful about passage of Women’s Reservation Bill

May 26, 2010 By Leave a Comment

On Board Air India One, May 26 (ANI): Despite the deadlock in the Lok Sabha over the passage of the Women’s Reservation Bill, President Pratibha Devisingh Patil has said that she is hopeful about its passage.

Speaking to reporters enroute to Beijing on Wednesday, Patil said: “I wish that the Women’s Reservation Bill is passed in the Lok Sabha.”

Now, it is to be seen how the UPA Government, which has still four years in power, manages the requisite support for the passage of the Bill,” she added.

The Bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha with help of marshals who prevented some members of the opposition from disturbing the process.

Parliamentarians of the ruling party and the opposition, however, have said that they are against its forceful passage.

It has been more than a decade since the Bill was first introduce in Parliament (1996-97).

Last month, Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee presided over an all-party meeting to discuss the Bill, but failed to reach or arrive at a consensus on it.

Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad and Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav proved to be the main opponents of the Bill in its present form.

Lalu Prasad has demanded a quota for Muslim and Dalit women, and women of other backward castes.

At that time Lalu said he was grateful to the government for calling an all-party meeting on the issue, but reiterated his commitment to have Muslim, backward and Dalit women included in the ambit of the Bill

“Our stand has not changed,” Lalu said then

After the meetiing, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee said the Bill would look after the interests of the minorities.

Janata Dal (United) President Sharad Yadav also demanded a quota within a quota.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has supported the bill.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi is demanding that the Bill be passed in its present form.

The Rajya Sabha had last month passed a Constitution Amendment Bill that provides for 33 per cent reservation of women in Parliament and state assemblies.

President Patil is visiting China from May 26-31 and will hold discussions with the Chinese leadership.

Commenting on her visit, which coincides with the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and China, President Patil said her visit is part of the process of high-level contacts between the two countries.

President Patil said that Chinese President Hu Jintao’s state visit to India in 2006 had generated a great deal of goodwill between the two countries, and added, that during the visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to China in 2008, the two countries concluded a “Shared Vision for the 21st Century” which forms the basis for bilateral cooperation on global issues.

She also said that India and China are two large and populous countries and both of them are focussed on enhancing economic growth and social progress, so there are many areas in which the two countries can exchange views and learn from each other”s experiences. (ANI)

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India hopeful about China’s support for UNSC seat

May 26, 2010 By Leave a Comment

On Board Air India One, May 26 (ANI): Not expecting much diplomatic gains from President Pratibha Devisingh Patil’s visit to China, India is, however, hopeful that Beijing would support India’s candidature for a permanent seat in the United Nation’s Security Council.

President Patil’s is visiting China at the invitation of her Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao from May 26 to 31. Her visit coincides with the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and China.

Minister of Food Processing Industries Subodh Kant Sahay, Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and a business delegation are accompanying her.

“We hope that India should be in the United Nation Security Council (as a permanent member), and I hope to take up the matter with my Chinese counterpart,” President Patil said when asked about seeking China’s support in this regard.

She also said that as developing nations, India and China have similar approaches and viewpoints on many global issues.

India and China have successfully had close cooperation within such international frameworks as G-20, BRIC countries and BASIC countries.

The two countries also coordinated with each other at the UN Copenhagen Climate Change Summit last December. (ANI)

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India will target 60 bln dollars bilateral trade with China in 2010: Patil

May 26, 2010 By Leave a Comment

On Board Air India One, May 26 (ANI): President Pratibha Devisingh Patil said on Wednesday that India plans to achieve 60 billion dollars in bilateral trade with China in 2010.

“I will address an India-China Business forum to provide fillip to this most dynamic sector of our bilateral exchange. India and China are working together to achieve the bilateral trade target of 60 billion dollars in 2010,” she told reporters enroute to Beijing.

“I will encourage Indian business to expand their presence in China. I will also convey that India is open for business and we would welcome Chinese investments in India,” President Patil added.

Patil is visiting China from May 26-31 and will hold discussions with the Chinese leadership on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and China.

Bilateral trade with China in 2009 was worth 43 billion dollars both ways. The year before that the volume was larger at 51 billion US dollars.

The drop in 2009 was basically due to the global recession.

Patil also said that India and China have had cultural contacts going back to over a thousand years.

“Either the visit of Xuan Zhuang to India or that of Indian scholar monks Kashyapamatanga and Kharmartna to China, there has been a continuous interaction. In the last century, Rabindranath Tagore and Dr. Dwarkanath Kotnis became famous in China as representatives of the Indian people,” she said.

The president said the China Festival being held in India and India Festival being held in China this year will spark the interest of people of both countries in each other’s culture. (ANI)

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India, China have enough space to prosper globally: President Patil

May 26, 2010 By Leave a Comment

On Board Air India One, May 26 (ANI): Playing down China’s nuclear help to Pakistan in establishing reactors and underscoring the border disputes, President Pratibha Devisingh Patil said on Wednesday that the Sino-Indian relationship is progressing on a friendly path.

President Patil’s six-day visit to China gains importance in wake of growing irritants in the Sino-Indian relationship like usage of the waters of the Brahmaputra, reported violation of the Indian border by the Chinese Army, and providing nuclear reactors to Pakistan.

Patil is visiting China from May 26-31 and is expected to hold discussions with the Chinese leadership on all controversial issues.

“India and China’s friendship is progressing well. We have a strategic and cooperative partnership. We have also attained pronged strategy for mutual cooperation, and when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited China in 2008, the two countries concluded a “Shared Vision for the 21st Century” which forms the basis for bilateral cooperation on global issues,“ she told reporters on board Air India One.

“We are progressing on the friendly path and you must have seen that in the Copenhagen Climate Change summit, on the framework on basics, we operated very well. India and China both have a future together and there is enough space in the world for both the countries to fulfill their aspiration of development so that they can grow and prosper together,” she added.

Commenting on her visit, which coincides with the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and China, President Patil said her visit is part of the process of high-level contacts between the two countries.

She said that India and China are two large and populous countries and both of them are focussed on enhancing economic growth and social progress, so there are many areas in which the two countries can exchange views and learn from each other””s experiences.

She said that as developing nations, India and China have similar approaches and viewpoints on many global issues.

India and China have successfully carried out close cooperation within such international frameworks as G-20, BRIC countries and BASIC countries.

The two countries also coordinated with each other at the UN Copenhagen Climate Change Summit. (ANI)

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If you can’t sack Raja, change his portfolio for fair probe: BJP to PM

May 26, 2010 By Leave a Comment

From limited mandate to limited authority, the debate it seems is not ending. A day after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh firmly backed his embattled Telecom Minister, the BJP on Tuesday trained its guns at the PM saying he doesn’t have the “political authority” to sack A Raja and sought at least a change in the minister’s portfolio. While saying so, the main opposition party alluded to the coalition compulsions of Singh and the Congress given the fact he and his party have to keep ally DMK in good humour.

“We are aware of your limitations as far as political authority is concerned. You cannot dismiss A Raja. At least change his department so that a fair inquiry is done into allegations of corruption in allocation of 2G spectrum,” BJP chief spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said. He criticised the Prime Minister for “virtually” giving a “clean chit” to Raja who he said had committed the “biggest fraud” by claiming that the TRAI had approved the policy on 2G auctions. Taking forward his party’s argument that “the Prime Minister evaded answers to crucial questions”, he said the PM was “conspicuously” silent on critical infrastructure-related issues.

He identified five areas � power sector, national highway projects, agriculture, Air India and BPL data � where he said the government was lagging behind or lacking clarity. While power generation is going down, the Planning Commission has lowered the target of constructing 20 km of highways a day set by Road Transport and Highways Minister Kamal Nath.

Same is the case with agriculture sector. Agriculture income is going down and inflation is having a serious impact on the sector. There is no clarity on the exact number of BPL families in the country as five different estimated numbers are being talked about which varies from 27.3 per cent to 77 per cent, he said.

HC rejects plea to monitor 2G probe

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday dismissed a petition that requested it to monitor the CBI probe into the alleged role of Union Communications Minister A Raja in the 2008 sale of 2G spectrum licences.

A Bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice M B Lokur dismissed the petition filed by two city-based NGOs � Telecom Watchdog and the Centre for Public Interest Litigation. The court said it would be unfair to not show confidence in the CBI while it was still probing the issue.

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Pilot failed to signal SOS, being blamed for Mangalore air crash

May 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Mangalore, May 22 (ANI): The pilot of the Air India Express flight from Dubai to Mangalore failed to signal or announce an emergency landing, and this is being cited as a factor leading to Saturday”s crash near Mangalore Airport.

At least 169 people are feared dead after an Air India Express aircraft from Dubai to Mangalore overshot the runway while landing at the Mangalore airport on Saturday morning.

A total of 173 people including the crew members were on board the flight that crashed around 6: 30 a.m.

At least 20 fire tenders have been rushed to the site as the plane is on fire and smoke was seen coming out of the airport.

The rescue operation is still on with the help of around 150 Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel.

It has been reported that there are six survivors, who have been rushed to the hospital.

Karnataka Home Minister Dr V S Acharya said incident happened near a valley 10 kilometers from the airport.

Meanwhile, the Mangalore airport has been shut for the time being.

There are reports that Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel has rushed to Mangalore to monitor the situation. (ANI)

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Over 169 dead in Mangalore air crash

May 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Mangalore, May 22 (ANI): At least 169 people are feared dead after an Air India Express aircraft from Dubai to Mangalore overshot the runway while landing at the Mangalore airport on Saturday morning.

A total of 173 people, including the crew members were on board the flight that crashed around 6: 30 a.m.

At least 20 fire tenders have been rushed to the site as the plane is on fire and smoke was seen coming out of the airport.

The rescue operation is still on with the help of around 150 Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel.

It has been reported that there are six survivors, who have been rushed to the hospital.

Karnataka Home Minister Dr V S Acharya said incident happened near a valley 10 kilometers from the airport.

Meanwhile, the Mangalore airport has been shut for the time being.

There are reports that Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel has rushed to Mangalore to monitor the situation. (ANI)

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Memorial for Kanishka victims vandalised

May 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

A monument built for the victims of the 1985 bombing of Air India’s Kanishka flight has been vandalised ahead of the event’s 25th anniversary, prompting the Canadian police to launch an investigation into the incident.

Members of the Indo-Canadian community are outraged that someone has stolen earlier this month a stainless steel “gnomon” or “shadow caster” that produces a shadow on a memorial sundial when lit by the sun.

The vandals also used black paint to spray graffiti on the face of the sundial.

The monument, located in Humber Bay Park East in Toronto, also features a wall naming the 329 people who were killed when a bomb exploded on Air India’s Kanishka Flight 182 as it travelled off the coast of Ireland on June 23, 1985.

Two baggage handlers killed by an associated bomb at Narita Airport in Japan are honoured on the wall as well.

Cleaners have removed the graffiti and officials are hoping to have a newly-built gnomon installed in time for the anniversary.

The Toronto Sun reports it will cost about USD 4,800 to replace. In 2005, Ottawa declared June 23rd the National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism.

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Air India Kanishka bomber faces fresh trial next month

May 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Vancouver, May 13 (IANS) Air India Kanishka bombing convict Inderjit Singh Reyat, who was released last year after spending 15 years in jail, will face a fresh perjury trial starting June 22 coinciding with the 25th anniversary of the bombing which killed all 329 passengers.

Reyat was the only person jailed in the 1985 Air India bombing by Khalistani extremists to avenge the Indian army action at the Golden Temple to flush out militants in 1984.

The Kanishka flight 182 from Montreal to Delhi was blown off mid-air near the Irish coast June 23, 1985. All 329 passengers, mostly Indian Canadians, were killed, making it the worst aviation attack in history till 9/11 happened.

Another bomb, meant for another Air India flight, also went off at Tokyo airport the same day, killing two baggage handlers.

As the trial court said, Sikh militants had planted both the bombs at Vancouver airport in two unaccompanied suitcases which were transferred to the connecting Air India flight and Tokyo-bound flight at Toronto airport.

After his arrest, Reyat – an electrical mechanic – admitted to testing the bomb that blew off at Tokyo airport for which he got 10 years in jail in 1991.

After this, he was given another five years in jail for his role in the Kanishka bombing.

While in jail that he had agreed to testify during the trial of Air India suspects – Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri – in 2003. But during his testimony, Reyat is said to have lied 27 times, leading to acquittal of Malik and Bagri.

His trial for lying under oath was earlier scheduled to begin in March. But the provincial supreme court here postponed it after dismissing the whole jury of eight women and four men. the jury was dismissed after some ‘biased’ remarks about Reyat by a woman juror.

If convicted, he faces up to 14 years in jail.

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Judge fixes trial date on Air India bombing anniversary, dismays victims families

May 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Vancouver (Canada), May 13 (ANI): A decision by a Supreme Court judge in the Canadian province of British Columbia to schedule the start of the perjury trial of 1985 Air India bomb accused Inderjit Singh Reyat for June 22, the 25th anniversary of the attack, has dismayed the families of the victims involved.

“The families won’t be very happy. “They should have kept it away from the anniversary,” the Globe and Mail quoted Bal Gupta, a spokesperson for the victims’ families for several years, as saying.

Gupta was speaking after Mr. Justice Mark McEwan rescheduled the seven-day trial of Reyat when his lawyer told the court that he was involved in another trial that was continuing longer than he had anticipated and he could not be in court for the perjury trial on Monday.

Lata Pada, who had a husband and two daughters on Flight 182, said the anniversary was important to honour the memory of those onboard. Her mind will be on matters other than Mr. Reyat, she said.

But she still felt the sting of events. “It is hard to believe it has been 25 years, and we are still at a point where a criminal case against Mr. Reyat is still playing out,” she said.

Rattan Mall, the editor of a well-established Indo-Canadian newspaper, said bringing Reyat to trial before a jury around the time of the anniversary was patently unfair to him.

“There is going to be a whole lot of emotions whipped up around that time. You cannot expect [Mr.] Reyat to be viewed fairly. The perception of justice should be there, it is not just justice. … you got to be fair to everyone,” he said.

Reyat faces charges of perjury for allegedly testifying falsely in 2003 at a trial that acquitted B.C. residents Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri of charges of murder related to the Air India disaster.

The Crown alleges that Reyat told the court under oath, with the intent to mislead, that he did not know or recall details of the alleged conspiracy, beyond a few matters. The prosecution alleges he lied 27 times during his testimony.

Jury selection for the perjury trial was to begin next Monday.

Two bombs were placed on planes at Vancouver International Airport on June 22, 1985, by a group of Vancouver-based Sikh militants fighting for an independent homeland carved out of India.

The bombs exploded hours later, on June 23, on opposite sides of the world.

One of them went off at Tokyo’s Narita airport, killing two baggage handlers. The second bomb exploded about an hour later aboard Air India Flight 182 over the Atlantic Ocean, killing 329 people. (ANI)

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Canada will not allow Khalistani movement from its soil: Obhrai

April 24, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Vowing to crush the activities of Sikh terrorist organisations in the country, a top Foreign Ministry official said Canada will not allow its soil to be used by the separatists.

“The government of Canada will not tolerate any separatist Sikh organisation that poses a threat to the sovereignty and integrity of India,” Deepak Obhrai, Parliamentary Secretary to Canadian Minister for Foreign Affairs told PTI.

Obhrai was commenting on recent concerns expressed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to his counterpart Prime Minister Stephen Harper over growing support by Canadian Sikhs for militants in Punjab.

Ujjal Dosanjh, a former Liberal cabinet minister and onetime British Columbia premier, has said Sikh extremism was on the rise in some parts of the country and nothing was being done about it.

That militancy is worse now, he said, than a generation ago when extremists blew up an Air India flight, killing 329 people, most of them Canadians.

Ironically, Dosanjh said separatist extremism is more entrenched in some Canadian Sikh communities than in Punjab, the Indian region where the Khalistan movement named after the theoretical Sikh country originated.

“It’s getting worse,” Globe and Mail quoted Dosanjh as saying.

“The number of people who have continued to perpetuate that kind of hatred has become smaller, but more consistent and more long-lasting,” he said.

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