Parrikar to meet Modi over Goa mining crisis
Panaji, June 22: Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar is likely to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi next week to resolve the mining crisis in the coastal state which was triggered after the Supreme Court banned mining in all 88 operational mining leases in March.
"The Chief Minister will also hold a joint meeting of all mining concerned MLAs shortly to arrive at a consensus after which the matter will be taken up with the Centre and Prime Minister Narendra Modi," a statement issued by the Chief Minister's Office said on Friday, after Parrikar met legislators from the state's mining belt.
Resolving the mining imbroglio is one of the first challenges before Parrikar, who on June 14, returned after a nearly three month absence, during which he was undergoing treatment for advanced pancreatic cancer in a US hospital.
Among the legislators who met the Chief Minister were Speaker Pramod Sawant, Pravin Zantye, Rajesh Patnekar (BJP), Prasad Gaonkar (Independent) and Deepak Pauskar (Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party), where the Chief Minister discussed ways and means in which mining can be resumed in Goa.
The mining issue has been hanging fire in Goa ever since the Supreme Court banned extraction and transportation of iron ore from 88 mining leases from March this year, while also directing the state government to re-issue mining leases.
This is the second time in less than a decade that all mining in the state has come to a standstill after it was banned in 2012.
The ban was later lifted by the apex court in 2014, but it was forced to impose the fresh restrictions while castigating the state government for messing up the lease renewal process.
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Delhi airport: 9 flights diverted due to bad weather
New Delhi (PTI): Nine flights were diverted and many flights were delayed at the Delhi airport on Monday due to bad weather conditions in the national capital, according to an official.
The official said eight flights were diverted to Jaipur and one to Dehradun.
The national capital is grappling with high pollution levels that has also resulted in lower visibility levels in various parts of the city.
The official said some of the pilots were not trained for CAT III operations due to which flights had to be diverted.
Broadly, CAT III trained pilots are allowed to take off or land planes at very low visibility conditions.
"Low visibility procedures are in progress at Delhi airport. All flight operations are at present normal," Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) said in a post on X early morning on Monday.
DIAL operates the Indira Gandhi International Airport, which handles around 1,400 flight movements daily.
It also advised passengers to contact the airlines concerned for updated flight information.
