Rain-related deaths: Toll rises to 8 in Dakshina Kannada, Udupi districts
Mangaluru, Jul 7: With the death of a woman in a landslip early Friday, the toll in rain-related mishaps in the twin coastal districts of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi this week has risen to eight.
A 47-year-old woman was killed when part of a hill caved in on her house at Nandavara village in Bantwal taluk of Dakshina Kannada district. Her 20-year-old daughter was rescued from the debris.
In another incident reported from Udupi district, a bike rider lost his life after a huge tree fell over the vehicle when he was passing through Belman town on the Karkala-Padubidri state highway on Thursday night.
The deceased Praveen Acharya (30) hails from Pilar. The mishap occurred at around 9.30 PM when it was raining heavily. Though the youth was rushed to the hospital, he died on the way, police said.
With this, the number of rain-related deaths in the twin districts has risen to eight during the week, with five deaths reported from DK and three in Udupi, Revenue department officials said.
In another incident, a portion of the underpass which was under construction on National Highway 66 at Kallianpura-Santhekatte junction near Udupi caved in due to incessant rains on Wednesday night, sources said.
Though vehicles are being allowed through the carriage way for now, steps will be taken to divert them through an alternate route if necessary, police said.
Meanwhile, the Forest department has banned trekking in Gadai Kallu in Belthangady taluk, Dakshina Kannada district from Friday as the path leading to the hill has turned slippery.
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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.
