The UDF ministry in Kerala headed by Oommen Chandy was today expanded with the induction of 13 more ministers -- nine from Congress, three from Indian Union Mu7slim League and one from Kerala Congress-Mani.
Taking a serious note of the situation, the civil aviation ministry said it has invoked regulatory powers to ensure fair and reasonable fares across all affected routes.
The cost of any flight from Delhi and Mumbai could rise by up to Rs 3,000 soon unless the airport regulator is able to reverse a court order.
DGCA provided temporary relief to IndiGo, which is partially owned by Rahul Bhatia, by rolling back the night duty definition to 12 am-5 am from 12 am-6 am earlier, and allowing its pilots to do six night-landings from two earlier, besides other relaxations.
If as critics point out, the environmental impact assessment study was commissioned only after the auction process got underway with not all the stakeholders getting to know of it, then the government has already compromised the trust it could have enjoyed with Kerala's public including its coastal communities, points out Shyam G Menon.
It was a protest which held a mirror to the government of a state taking pride in its commitment to democracy, gender equality and social indices.One person, who in his employed days had known governments and political parties at close quarters, told me that public perception of how the Kerala government handled the ASHA workers' strike had been terrible, reports Shyam G Menon.
International passengers departing from the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Hyderabad from April 23 onwards will have to pay Rs 1,000 ($25) towards user development fees (UDF). Announcing this in a statement, the new airport developer -- GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited -- said that the fees would be collected with the approval of the ministry of civil aviation.
The report filed by Vigilance SP V N Sasidharan said Chandy was not aware of the details of the decision to import palmolein through a Singapore based firm.
Shailaja Teacher, arguably the most famous Covid warrior in India, versus former student leader Shafi Parambil who defeated 'Metro Man' E Sreedharan in the last assembly election. Shyam G Menon reports from the Vadakara Lok Sabha constituency, which some feel is the most politically important contest in Kerala this election.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has honoured Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh and Jain refugees by giving them citizenship through Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), Union home minister Amit Shah said on Tuesday and maintained there is no provision of stripping of anyone's citizenship in the new law.
Senior leader K Karunakaran and his son Muraleedharan boycotted the swearing in ceremony.
Seeking to reach out to the fishing community in poll-bound Kerala, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday interacted with the fishermen at Thangassery beach in the district.
The veteran Kerala Congress leader had been a dominant player in Kerala's coalition politics, serving under six chief ministers.
UDF, LDF raise voice against cow slaughter ban backed by BJP leadership.
CPI-M veteran Pinarayi Vijayan, who led the Left Democratic Front (LDF) to an unprecedented consecutive victory in the April 6 assembly polls, on Thursday took oath as chief minister of Kerala for the second time along with 20 ministers.
The airport had asked for a UDF of at least Rs 600 from domestic passengers travelling out of Andhra Pradesh. For passengers travelling within the state, it had demanded a user fee of Rs 350. UDF is the fee levied at the airport on departing passengers to enable the airport developer bridge the gap between expenditure and admissible revenue as stipulated by the ministry guidelines.
The victory of the ruling Congress-led United Democratic Front in 12 of the 20 Lok Sabha seats in the state has made Chief Minister Oommen Chandy stronger as Kerala is one of the few states that bucked the anti-Congress trend in the country.
'The AIADMK has no Number Two, frankly it does not even have a Number Hundred and Two. There is the Numero Uno, and there is everybody else -- a point that was made very clear when Jayalalithaa made her ministers take the oath of office in unison on May 23. What, after all, was the point of having them do so individually when they lack individuality?'
The ruling Congress-led United Democratic Front in Kerala has decided to shut down over 700 liquor bars attached to hotels below the five-star categories and make Sundays "dry days".
Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Kochi airports have hiked their landing charges by up to 45 per cent, increasing the operating cost for airlines at a time they are facing financial constraints because of the two months of grounding and weak demand.
Kerala Industries Minister P K Kunhalikutty is facing sexual harassment allegations
In a major embarrassment to the Congress-led United Democratic Frontn government in Kerala, state Finance Minister K M Mani was on Thursday booked by the vigilance and anti-corruption bureau in the bar bribe scam.
'The regime -- and particularly the home ministry under Amit Shah -- have sought to suppress and destroy these struggles through intimidation, bullying, threats, through false cases, arrests, custodial torture, the use of draconian laws like the UAPA.'
The government is looking at various ways of reducing the user development fees (UDF), to be charged by the developers of greenfield airports in Bangalore and Hyderabad, even after the ad hoc period when the Ministry of Civil Aviation is expected to decide on the charges. According to the current concession agreement, both the airports will charge user fees on their own for an ad hoc period of 120 days from the start of commercial operations.
'Here is a woman who has got widespread appreciation for her work.' 'Social media was full of posts wanting her as the chief ministerial candidate.' 'This kind of popularity did not go well within the party.' 'See, today the party is Pinarayi Vijayan!'
'Unlike in other states, minorities form a significant number in Kerala. They have money and political power. In such a society, the emergence of a new communal power is not a healthy thing.'
In a three-page complaint submitted to the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate in Kochi, second accused Saritha Nair put the blame for the fraudulent dealings on the first accused Biju Radhakrishnan and actress Shalu Menon while stating that associating her name with politicians and ministers was incorrect.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan dashed off a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking his intervention for repealing the measure. He said the Centre's decision amounts to an "intrusion" to the rights of the states in the country's federal structure.
Group rivalry in the Kerala Congress unit has intensified further as the political mission of chief minister Oommen Chandy to induct Pradesh Congress Committee chief Ramesh Chennithala into the cabinet has failed.
Former Kerala minister T H Mustafa was on Thursday suspended from the Congress for calling Rahul Gandhi a "joker" and saying that the party vice-president should be removed if he does not resign in the backdrop of the party's debacle in the Lok Sabha polls.
Normal life was affected across Kerala by the dawn-to-dusk hartal called by the Left Democratic Front on Monday to protest the Centre's move to implement key recommendations of the Kasturirangan report on Western Ghats conservation.
There are 13 new faces, including two women, in the cabinet. Five ministers had held positions in previous LDF ministries.
The bitter political rivals -- the ruling LDF and the UDF -- close ranks in the state assembly to oppose the ban.
Kerala, West Bengal, Puducherry slam the government's decision to ban sale and purchase of cattle from animal markets for slaughter; meat traders fear spike in cow vigilantism.
'People are losing their freedom to eat, speak, write and practise their religion.' 'All that is said in the Constitution has been taken away.' 'Does every Muslim or Christian or Hindu have to say I am a patriot every morning and repeat it in the afternoon and at night?'
''This chief minister is so obstinate that he is ready to use the police to attain his goal.' 'Had he been more mature rather than obstinate, Kerala would not have reached a boiling point.'
'Narendra Modi is one person who came up fighting many injustices. So, he is a fighter all the time, and that makes all the difference.'
'Growth is predicated on the misery of large sections of people.' 'Maybe Hindutva will be used to suppress any such unrest.'
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