Kerala HC stays KSRTC decision cutting down concession in ticket fares for CBSE school students
Kochi (PTI): The Kerala High Court has put on hold for a month a decision of the state road transport corporation cutting down the concession in travel fare for students of CBSE schools and making the management of such institutions liable to pay 35 per cent of the ticket price.
The High Court said that the petitioner association of managers of CBSE schools made out a prima facie case for an interim order and stayed the operation of clause 4 of the KSRTC's February 27 memorandum for one month.
Clause 4 of the February 27 memorandum issued by the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) stated that in respect of self-financing colleges, unaided schools and recognised schools, 35 per cent of the ticket fare shall be paid by students, 35 per cent by the management of the institution and only a 30 per cent concession would be granted.
The court also issued notice to the Kerala government and the KSRTC, represented by advocate Deepu Thankan, seeking their stand on the claims in the petition by August 9, the next date of hearing.
The petitioner association in its plea has claimed that the memorandum was "classifying students based on the institutions in which they study and offering different rates of concessions."
"Such a classification among the students travelling in the same bus is discriminatory and arbitrary. That apart as per clause 4 of the memorandum, CBSE/ ICSE school management are made liable to pay 35 per cent of the ticket fare in respect of their students travelling in KSRTC bus.
"There is no authority to the 3rd respondent (KSRTC) to impose such a condition on the management of CBSE/ICSE schools," the petition has contended.
The petitioner association has said that under the memorandum, students of government and aided schools would get full concession irrespective of the income of their parents.
It has also contended that when the CBSE school managements were not receiving any services from the KSRTC, the transport corporation cannot demand any ticket fare from them for their students' travel on KSRTC buses.
The petition has sought quashing of clause 4 of the memorandum and a direction to the KSRTC to ensure students travelling on their buses are not discriminated against based on the institution in which they are studying.
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Cong takes swipe at PM over India not being part of US-led 'Pax Silica' grouping
New Delh (PTI) The Congress on Saturday said it is perhaps not very surprising that India is not part of a US-led strategic initiative to build a secure silicon supply chain, given the "sharp downturn" in the Trump-Modi ties, and asserted that it would have been to "our advantage if we had been part of this group".
Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the news of India not being part of the group comes after the PM had enthusiastically posted on social media about a telephone call with his "once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC".
In a lengthy post on X, Ramesh said, "According to some news reports, the US has excluded India from a nine-nation initiative it has launched to reduce Chinese control on high-tech supply chains. The agreement is called Pax Silica, clearly as a counter to Pax Sinica. The nations included (for the moment at least) are the US, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia."
"Given the sharp downturn in the Trump-Modi ties since May 10th, 2025, it is perhaps not very surprising that India has not been included. Undoubtedly, it would have been to our advantage if we had been part of this group."
"This news comes a day after the PM had enthusiastically posted on his telephone call with his once-upon-a-time good friend and a recipient of many hugs in Ahmedabad, Houston, and Washington DC," the Congress leader asserted.
The new US-led strategic initiative, rooted in deep cooperation with trusted allies, has been launched to build a secure and innovation-driven silicon supply chain.
According to the US State Department, the initiative called 'Pax Silica' aims to reduce coercive dependencies, protect the materials and capabilities foundational to artificial intelligence (AI), and ensure aligned nations can develop and deploy transformative technologies at scale.
The initiative includes Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia. With the exception of India, all other QUAD countries -- Japan, Australia and the US -- are part of the new initiative.
New Delhi will host the India-AI Impact Summit 2026 on February 19-20, focusing on the principles of 'People, Planet, and Progress'. The summit, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the France AI Action Summit, will be the first-ever global AI summit hosted in the Global South.
Prime Minister Modi and US President Trump on Thursday discussed ways to sustain momentum in the bilateral economic partnership in a phone conversation amid signs of the two sides inching closer to firming up a much-awaited trade deal.
The phone call between the two leaders came on a day Indian and American negotiators concluded two-day talks on the proposed bilateral trade agreement that is expected to provide relief to India from the Trump administration's whopping 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods.
In a social media post, Modi had described the conversation as "warm and engaging".
"We reviewed the progress in our bilateral relations and discussed regional and international developments. India and the US will continue to work together for global peace, stability and prosperity," Modi had said without making any reference to trade ties.
