A salute in honour of good samaritans lands Kerala cop in trouble
Malappuram (Kerala): A salute by a police officer to groups of volunteers who helped in evacuating the Air India Express plane crash victims here has landed him in trouble with an enquiry being ordered into his conduct.
Nizar A, a senior civil police officer of the control room here, had saluted the young volunteers, who had participated in the rescue operations on Friday and are now in quarantine at Kondotty here.
A photograph of the police officer's gesture has gone viral on social media.
Malappuram District police chief U Abdul Kareem said the policeman, who was deployed at the airport to ensure public do not crowd at the place of the mishap site, visited two quarantine centres on his own.
An enquiry has been ordered and a report expected in two days' time.But there was no possibility of taking any stringent action against Nizar, he told PTI.
"There is no protocol as to who all a policeman can and cannot salute. Hence, the act of the police personnel cannot be regarded as illegal," the SP said.
Malappuram District Collector K Gopalakrishnan has also said the policeman's act should be condoned. Many netizens also have also come out in support of Nizar.
Those involved in the rescue work after the Air India Express flight from Dubai with 190 people on board crashed at the Karipur airport here have been advised to go on quarantine after samples of one of the passenger who died tested positive for COVID-19.
The volunteers had rushed to the accident spot unmindful of the heavy rains and COVID-19 fears and the injured were taken immediately to various hospitals, thus saving many lives, drawing praise from various quarters, including Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
The Air India Express has also acknowledged their role in evacuating the passengers.
"We at Air India Express take a bow to the people of Malappuram who have risked their own lives to save many. WE OWE YOU!" the airline had tweeted.
Eighteen people, including the pilot andco-pilot, were killed and 100 odd injured in the mishap.
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No proposal to hike bus fares in Karnataka, says Ramalinga Reddy
Bengaluru: Karnataka Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy has said there is no proposal at present to increase bus fares in the state, even if diesel prices go up.
Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru on Wednesday, Reddy said he was not aware of any decision to raise diesel prices and added that it would be welcome if no such hike takes place.
He said that although an increase in diesel prices would add to the financial burden of state-run transport corporations such as Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation and Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation, no discussion has been held so far regarding a revision in passenger fares.
Commenting on the recent salary revision for transport corporation employees, the minister said the government had already conveyed its decision and declined to comment on reports that some employees were dissatisfied with the announcement.
On the delay in holding elections to the Greater Bengaluru Authority, Reddy said it was natural for aspirants to feel disappointed and acknowledged that the postponement was also increasing pressure on party leaders.
He said Bengaluru’s infrastructure development since 1947 had seen substantial progress during Congress governments, but added that questions regarding the reasons for postponing the elections should be addressed to Deputy Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar.
Reddy also said he had no information regarding any power-sharing arrangement within the government, but was aware of discussions on a cabinet reshuffle.
He noted that he had travelled to New Delhi only three times in the past three years and said it would be good if the cabinet expansion takes place soon.
According to him, there had been indications that the expansion would occur after two and a half years in office, but it has already been delayed by six months.
