Zero admissions to Class I in 55 govt schools in Dakshina Kannada, Udupi districts
Mangaluru, Jul 9: Many government primary schools in the twin districts of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi are facing a situation in which not a single student has enrolled for Class I (first grade) during the current academic year.
Sources at the Directorate of Public Instruction said the statistics till June 30 have confirmed that no student has applied for admission to first grade in 55 government primary schools in DK and Udupi.
A few students have enrolled in some other schools where classes have started. If the current trend continues, the primary schools will have to be closed down in future, sources said.
Zero admissions for Class 1 have been recorded in 24 schools in DK, including two schools in Puttur taluk, four in Bantwal, three in Belthangady, two in Mangaluru North, two in Mangaluru South, three in Moodbidri and eight schools in Sullia taluk.
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DK Deputy Director of Public Instruction (DDPI) R Dayanand said there is still time left for admissions and children are likely to join the first grade class. The grade-wise data accumulation process is underway, he said.
In Udupi district also, zero admissions for class I have been recorded in 31 schools. These include four schools in Udupi, four in Brahmavar, five in Kundapura, nine in Byndoor and nine schools in Karkala taluk.
According to Udupi DDPI B Ganapati, the environment in government schools is complementary to quality education and parents should be made aware of this. Everyone should take initiative to send their children to schools in their respective villages and preserve the institutions, he said.
Experts in the field say the parents are not willing to send their wards to government schools with the strong presence of English medium schools in almost all localities. They also provide bus services for children to their doorstep which attracts parents, they said.
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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.
