‘Centre should give draft copy of UCC to prevent confusion among people’: Mangaluru Catholic Sabha
Mangaluru: The Catholic Sabha Central Committee has called for the Central Government to release a draft copy of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) to provide better understanding of the proposed law.
During a press conference held at the Press Club in Mangaluru, the Catholic Sabha's legal advisor, Praveen Pinto, expressed the view that instead of using a questionnaire to collect public opinion, the government should provide details on how the implementation of the UCC would impact personal laws. Pinto suggested that a draft copy of the UCC would help alleviate confusion among the people and enable them to provide informed feedback on the code.
Pinto highlighted the diverse religious, caste, and tribal communities in India, with over 10 religions, 3,000 castes, 25,000 sub-castes, and numerous scheduled castes and tribes. He emphasized that personal laws governing marriage, divorce, inheritance, and adoption apply to all citizens of India, regardless of their religion, caste, or race. However, he noted that personal laws based on customs and traditions specific to religion, caste, and race have distinct importance from a cultural perspective. Pinto stated that retaining personal laws is vital to preserving the cultural diversity of the country.
Allwyn D’Souza, President of the Catholic Sabha Mangaluru, requested that the state government declare September 8, the day Christians in the coastal district have been celebrating the Harvest Festival for centuries, as a government holiday. D’Souza also urged the government to increase the grant allocated to the Christian Development Corporation from Rs 100 crore to Rs 200 crore. Additionally, he called for the withdrawal of the anti-conversion law.
Former presidents of the Catholic Sabha, Paulo Rolphy D’Costa and Stanley Lobo, as well as General Secretary Wilma Monteiro and others, were present at the press conference.
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AI, IndiGo, SpiceJet seek ATF price relief; say airline industry on verge of 'stopping operations'
Mumbai (PTI): Air India, IndiGo and SpiceJet have told the government that the country's airline industry is under extreme stress and on the verge of "stopping operations", as they sought revision in ATF pricing and financial support.
The West Asia turmoil has pushed up oil prices, and airspace restrictions have increased airlines' operating costs, especially on long-haul routes. Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) accounts for around 40 per cent of a carrier's operational expenses.
Against this backdrop, the Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) has written to the civil aviation ministry, seeking steps to extend the same fuel pricing mechanism uniformly across both domestic and international operations as was done in the past with the establishment of the crack band.
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With an unprecedented rise in jet fuel prices and exorbitant crack/differential between crude and ATF, the federation said the operation of airlines is being challenged in totality.
"... any ad hoc pricing (domestic vs international) and/or irrational increase in the price of ATF will result in unsurmountable losses for airlines and will lead to grounding of aircraft, resulting in cancellation of flights," the federation, which represents Air India, IndiGo and SpiceJet, said.
"In order to survive, sustain and continue operation, we request your urgent intervention for immediate and meaningful financial support to tide over the current situation," it said in a letter on April 26.
Also, the airlines have sought temporary deferment of excise duty on ATF, which is at 11 per cent.
"With the abnormal increase in ATF prices from the pre-crisis period, adding rupee depreciation to the increased prices, the 11 per cent excise duty also increases manifold for the airlines and adds to the ATF price as a big impact on airlines," they said.
Last month, the government limited the hike in ATF price to Rs 15 per litre for domestic operations, but for international operations, the price rose by Rs 73 per litre.
The airlines said the situation has practically made international operations, along with domestic operations, completely unviable and resulted in significant losses for the aviation sector in April.
Seeking urgent intervention on the current ATF ad hoc pricing, FIA said the current situation is creating a severe imbalance in domestic and international operations and rendering airline networks unviable and unsustainable.
"The airline industry in India is under extreme stress and is on the verge of closing down or of stopping its operations."
The federation has pitched for a transparent pricing framework under the crack band mechanism (USD 12–22/BBL) that was implemented in October 2022, saying there was a fair and reasonable margin for Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs).
According to FIA, the country's largest aviation hub Delhi has the second-highest value-added tax (VAT) of 25 per cent on jet fuel, while the highest rate is 29 per cent levied in Tamil Nadu.
"The other major aviation cities, viz. Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Kolkata range between 16 per cent and 20 per cent. These 6 cities cover more than 50 per cent of airlines' operations within India," the federation said.
