Sixth cruise vessel of season calls at New Mangalore Port
Mangaluru, Mar 21: The sixth cruise vessel of the current season, 'Silver Spirit', called at New Mangalore Port Authority (NMPA) and docked at 8 am on Tuesday, port authorities said.
The vessel, carrying 497 passengers and 411 crew members berthed alongside berth No.4, NMPA release here said.
The overall length of the ship is 210.70 metre with a carrying capacity of 39,444 gross tonnage and having a draft of 6.60 metre. The vessel's last port of call was Cochin Port and after leaving Mangaluru it will sail to Mormugao port.
The passengers were given a warm welcome by playing traditional drums (chende). Arrangements were put in place for the pleasant experience of the cruise passengers including medical screening of passengers, multiple immigrations and customs counters for swift movement.
A total of 25 coaches of bus including two shuttle buses were arranged for passengers visiting local market and shops in and around Mangaluru.
The cruise passengers also availed benefits of meditation centre set up by the department of AYUSH inside the cruise lounge. Cloth and handicraft outlets were also kept open for the tourists.
The passengers visited various tourist destinations including Achal cashew factory, Kudroli Gokarnatheshwara temple, Kadri Majunatheshwara temple, St Aloysius Chapel, local market, Pilikula artisan village, Thousand Pillars Basadi and the Soans Farm.
Souvenirs were given away to the cruise passengers while they were embarking back to their ship. The ship sailed at 6 pm to its next destination at Mormugao Port in Goa, the release said.
1/2 New Mangalore Port welcomed 06th Cruise vessel "Silver Spirit" today. The ship arrived today at 0800hrs carrying 497 passengers & 411 crew members. @shipmin_india @Indportsassn @SDCL_India pic.twitter.com/SRSpkVq71v
— New Mangalore Port Authority (@NewMngPort) March 21, 2023
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HC questions Delhi govt over failure to regulate sale of old vehicles, refers to Red Fort blast
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi High Court questioned the city government on Wednesday over its failure to regulate the sale and transfer of used vehicles, while pointing out that in a recent bomb blast near the Red Fort, a second-hand car was used, making the issue more significant.
A bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela asked the Delhi government to file a detailed response on the issue of regulating authorised dealers of registered vehicles.
"A car changes four hands but the original owner has not changed. Therefore, what happens? That man (the original owner) goes to the slaughterhouse? What is this? How are you permitting this? You will take a call when two-three more bomb blasts take place?" the bench asked the Delhi government's counsel.
The bomb blast near the iconic Mughal-era monument was carried out using a second-hand car, making the issue even more significant, it said.
The court listed the matter for further hearing in January 2026.
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The court was hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) plea filed by an organisation, Towards Happy Earth Foundation, highlighting the challenges in the implementation of rules 55A to 55H of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, introduced in December 2022 to regulate authorised dealers of registered vehicles.
While the rules were intended to bring accountability to the second-hand vehicle market, the petitioner's counsel argued that they have failed in practice due to regulatory gaps and procedural hurdles.
The plea said there is a major gap in the amended framework, that is, the absence of any statutory mechanism for reporting dealer-to-dealer transfers.
"In reality, most used vehicles pass through multiple dealers before reaching the final buyer, but the rules recognise only the first transfer to the initial authorised dealer.
"As a result, the chain of custody breaks after the first step, defeating the very purpose of accountability," the petition said.
It added that because of these gaps, only a very small percentage of dealers across India have been able to obtain authorised dealer registration and in Delhi, not a single dealer has got it.
Consequently, lakhs of vehicles continue to circulate without any record of who is actually in possession of those, it said.
The plea said only a small fraction of India's estimated 30,000 to 40,000 used-vehicle dealers are registered under the authorised-dealer framework.
The petition also pointed out that the 11-year-old vehicle used in the November 10 bomb blast near the Red Fort was sold several times but was still registered in its original owner's name.
The blast near the Red Fort had claimed 15 lives.
