Mangaluru Airport ushers in Christmas spirit in style
Mangaluru, Dec 24: The Mangaluru International Airport (MIA) has ushered in the spirit of Christmas in style with a three-day celebration which began at the airport on Saturday.
Passengers travelling through the airport will be treated to mellifluous Christmas carols including 'Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells' by a group of talented artistes. Santa Claus too will be present to charm the passengers during the three days, a release from the MIA said here Sunday.
This bag of goodies of 'Santa Claus' with its supply of red and white Christmas hats on Saturday brought smiles on the faces of passengers who keenly sported the same as they embarked on their journey to their respective destinations.
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The airport has set up a 360-degree photo booth on the first floor of the domestic security hold area. This booth will enable the passengers capture rich memories of the ongoing celebration, the release said.
The Christmas celebration is part of the ongoing "OneNationBillionCelebration" (ONBC) campaign that the airport started with Dusshera and continued with Diwali. The thematic decor that marks the spirt of the respective festival has been the hallmark of this ONBC campaign.
Passengers stand a chance to win an international holiday for a family of four to Paris as the grand prize with the shop and win contest which has been rolled out alongside this three-months plus long campaign, the release said.
Jingle bells and joyous carols filled the air as we celebrated Christmas in style! Young guests joined us for a celebration, 360-degree photo memories were made, and the whole airport was decked out in festive cheer. 📷#OneNationBillionCelebrations #SeasonsGreetings #Festival pic.twitter.com/XGu3GQzosk
— Mangaluru Airport (@mlrairport) December 23, 2023
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Karnataka government employees demand return of Old Pension Scheme
Bengaluru: Government employees in Karnataka have urged the state government to scrap the New Pension Scheme (NPS) and bring back the Old Pension Scheme (OPS), The New Indian Express reported.
The demand was made by the Karnataka State Government Employees’ Association, whose leaders met senior IAS officer Uma Mahadevan on Monday and submitted a memorandum. The association asked the NPS Review Committee, headed by senior IAS officer Anjum Parvez, to recommend the reintroduction of OPS in the state.
Association president C.S. Shadakshari reportedly said the review committee has already visited Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana where NPS was revoked and OPS re-implemented. The committee is yet to submit its report, but has told the government it will do so soon.
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Shadakshari allegedly said NPS has been in force in Karnataka since 2006. He pointed out that West Bengal never adopted the scheme, while Andhra Pradesh and Telangana replaced NPS with a contributory pension model.
States including Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Jharkhand have already scrapped NPS through cabinet decisions or budget announcements.
“Under NPS, 10% of the employees’ basic salary and DA, and 14% contribution from the state is credited to the employees’ fund. It constitutes 24% of the total which is non-withdrawable. This is invested in the share market and the final amount depends on the ups and downs of the market,” TNIE quoted Shadakshar as saying.
As per the report, he said that by limiting its contribution to 14%, the government could save up to ₹1.87 lakh crore annually if all vacancies are filled, strengthening the case for bringing back the old pension system.
