BPSC exam row: Prashant Kishor, on hunger strike, arrested
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Patna (PTI): Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor, who was on a fast unto death at Gandhi Maidan here to press the demand for cancellation of a Bihar PSC exam, was arrested early on Monday, police said.
Police personnel removed him and his supporters from the protest site as they were holding the demonstration near a restricted area, and thus it was "illegal", a senior officer said.
Kishor was arrested on the fifth day of his fast-unto-death protest over an alleged question paper leak in the December 13 examination conducted by Bihar PSC.
According to Jan Suraaj party's supporters, the police took Kishor to Patna AIIMS for a medical examination.
Talking to PTI, Patna District Magistrate (DM) Chandrashekhar Singh said, "Yes, Kishor and his supporters, who were sitting on a dharna at Gandhi Maidan, were arrested by the police on Monday morning. They will now be produced before a court."
Their demonstration was "illegal", he said, adding that they were holding the sit-in near the restricted site.
“Despite repeated requests by the officials concerned, they did not leave the place. They had also been served notice by the district administration to shift their dharna to Gardani Bagh, the dedicated place for holding protests, in the state capital," the DM said.
The Patna Police had registered a case against Kishor for holding the fast unto death at Gandhi Maidan’s restricted site, another official said.
The district administration also issued a statement, claiming that the "Kishor is absolutely fine".
Immediately after his arrest, the poll strategist-turned-politician was taken to Patna AIIMS for a medical check-up.
When Kishor was being taken out from the AIIMS in an ambulance, his supporters tried to block the road outside the hospital.
A "mild force was used to disperse Kishor’s supporters who gathered outside AIIMS and tried to disrupt traffic movement", said a senior police officer.
Kishor began his fast unto death on January 2 in support of the civil service aspirants who have been demanding the cancellation of the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) examination held on December 13 last year.
However, the BPSC had ordered the retest for a select group of candidates who had appeared in the December 13 exam, which was embroiled over allegations of question paper leak.
The retest was held on January 4 at 22 centres here.
Of 12,012 candidates, around 8,111 aspirants had downloaded their admit cards for the re-exam.
However, 5,943 candidates appeared for the retest last week.
The retest was held peacefully at all centres without report of any misconduct and malpractice, the BPSC said in a statement issued on Saturday.
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Air India resorts to cost-cutting ways amid 'tough times'; layoffs not anticipated
New Delhi/Mumbai (PTI): Hit hard by Pakistan airspace closure and Iran war, Air India has resorted to cost-cutting measures, including holding back annual increments for staff and asking them to cut discretionary spending as well as non-critical expenditures, warning of "tough times".
On Friday, Air India Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director (CEO & MD) Campbell Wilson told the staff it is going to be a "very, very difficult year" if things don't improve on the Middle East front.
A day after the loss-making airline's board discussed various cost-saving steps, Wilson, along with Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Sanjay Sharma and Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) Ravindra Kumar GP, addressed the employees during a townhall on Friday where the emphasis on the need to keep a close watch on costs.
With higher jet fuel prices due to the West Asia conflict and airspace curbs, the loss-making airline's expenses have spiralled in recent times and against this backdrop, Sharma also told staffers that FY26 has seen a softening in revenue amid heightened external uncertainties.
Calling for a relentless focus on costs in these tough times, Wilson urged employees to suspend discretionary spending, renegotiate rates where feasible, and defer non-critical expenditures.
"There must be a laser-sharp focus on eliminating wastage and leakages," he said.
Stressing the need to tighten the belt for a while, Wilson sounded optimistic that travel demand would rebound and the industry would continue on its upward path.
CHRO Ravindra Kumar told staff that the airline will proceed with variable pay for the last financial year and continue with planned promotions while noting that annual increments will be deferred by at least one quarter.
"We don't anticipate layoffs," he said.
At the airline's board meeting on Thursday, various cost-saving steps, including likely furloughs, were discussed. The Tata Group-owned airline has around 24,000 employees.
Generally, furlough refers to sending staff on unpaid leaves by companies during a tough financial situation.
During the townhall, CFO Sanjay Sharma said while strong revenue growth and fleet expansion drove financial momentum through FY25, FY26 has seen a softening in revenue amid heightened external uncertainties.
Air India has seen around 40 per cent CAGR (Compounded Annual Growth Rate) in revenue between 2022 and 2025, he added.
The airline was acquired by the Tata Group from the government in January 2022.
The Air India CEO mentioned the external challenges being facing the aviation industry as a whole, including the continued closure of Pakistan airspace that is expected to persist for the foreseeable future and geopolitical conflicts leading to disruptions and airspace closures across West Asia.
Wilson, who is set to step down later this year, also flagged a sharp depreciation of the rupee and a 2.5-3 times increase in jet fuel prices, and added that these factors have adversely affected travel sentiment and consumer confidence, as per the sources.
If the Strait of Hormuz opens, oil prices fall and consumer as well as business confidence come back, there is a decent chance of a solid recovery, Wilson said, adding that unless those circumstances happen, it was going to be "a very, very difficult year".
"I feel somewhat responsible that we ended up with probably the biggest surprise of the year in the external environment which was a full-scale war in our neighbouring region in the Gulf. That has had a huge impact on airspace," he said.
For Air India, Wilson said the situation is compounded by the fact that the airline cannot fly over the neighbouring country and has to take a much longer routing for any west-bound destination.
"Every airline is reporting that they are under some sort of financial pressure as a result of higher fuel prices and economic uncertainty. So, it is unfortunately not a great environment to be running an airline," the Air India CEO said.
The Air India Group -- Air India and Air India Express -- is projected to have incurred more than Rs 22,000 crore loss in the financial year ended March 2026.
At the townhall, Wilson also highlighted various initiatives, including completion of the retrofit of its legacy narrow-body aircraft and rapid network optimisation to redeploy capacity more efficiently.
