IndiGo introduces female-only seating option amid safety concerns
New Delhi: India's largest budget airline, IndiGo, has introduced a new feature allowing female passengers to choose seats next to other women, an initiative aimed at enhancing safety and comfort during flights. The airline began testing this feature in May, enabling women to select seats marked in pink, indicating they will be seated next to another female traveler.
This option is visible only to female passengers during the seat selection process, with the airline's system requiring passengers to identify their gender while booking. IndiGo’s CEO, Pieter Elbers, reported to CNBC’s "Street Signs Asia" that the initiative has garnered positive feedback, particularly on social media platforms. However, the feature has also sparked debate, with some labeling it discriminatory.
The move comes in the wake of several incidents, including a 2023 case where an intoxicated male passenger urinated on a female traveler during an Air India flight, leading to widespread outrage. IndiGo has defended the new option, emphasizing its commitment to making flying more comfortable for female passengers.
The airline has not confirmed whether this feature was directly influenced by recent incidents involving inappropriate behavior by male passengers. The debate continues online, with some users supporting the measure for enhancing female safety, while others question its implications for gender identity and discrimination.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
