No reports of ceasefire violation by Pak along LoC since Saturday night: Officials
Jammu, Mar 3: There were no reports of ceasefire violation by Pakistan along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch and Rajouri districts since Saturday night, even as the army was on high alert and maintained a tight vigil, officials said.
Barring ceasefire violation in Nowshera sector of Rajouri district from 12.30 pm to 2.30 pm on Saturday, there were no reports of firing in the rest of the sectors since 11 pm Friday, they said.
"There is no report of firing and shelling by Pakistan along the LoC overnight...the army is on high alert and maintaining tight vigil," a defence spokesperson said.
The cross-border shelling witnessed a spurt after India's air strike at a Jaish-e-Mohammed terror camp in Balakot in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Tuesday, 12 days after the terror outfit claimed responsibility for a suicide attack on a CRPF convoy in Kashmir, killing 40 soldiers.
More than 80 forward villages were targeted by Pakistan in over 50 ceasefire violations in Rajouri and Poonch districts alone since Tuesday last, which left four civilians, including three members of a family, dead and several others injured.
The lull in the cross-border firing came as a major relief to the border residents, who faced intense shelling by Pakistan, forcing many families to move to safer places.
Amid heightened Indo-Pak tension, Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat visited the Jammu-based White Knight Corps on Saturday to review the operational preparedness and exhorted all the soldiers to remain vigilant.
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Parliamentary panel to summon airline executives, regulator over flight disruptions
New Delhi (PTI): A parliamentary panel is likely to summon top executives of private airlines and the civil aviation regulator over the mass cancellation of IndiGo flights that has left thousands of travellers stranded across the country's airports.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture, chaired by JD(U) leader Sanjay Jha, is likely to seek an explanation from top executives of airlines and officials from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the Ministry of Civil Aviation about the cause of disruption in air services and possible solutions.
A member said the panel has taken serious note of the difficulties faced by thousands of passengers due to disruption in air services.
Even parliamentarians, who were in the national capital for the Winter Session, faced the brunt of flight cancellations by IndiGo and delays by other airlines, the panel member said.
Several MPs also received complaints from people about air fares shooting up due to the scenario.
Meanwhile, CPI(M) Rajya Sabha member John Brittas, who is not part of the standing committee on transport, has demanded setting up of a joint parliamentary committee or a judicial inquiry into the large-scale disruption of flights.
IndiGo cancelled more than 220 flights at Delhi and Mumbai airports on Sunday, as the disruptions entered the sixth day even as efforts were on to normalise operations.
The aviation regulator, DGCA, on Saturday sent notices to IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers and COO and Accountable Manager Porqueras, seeking explanation.
In a statement issued on Sunday, IndiGo said the Board of Interglobe Aviation, its parent company, has set up a Crisis Management Group, which is meeting regularly to monitor the situation. The company's Board of Directors is doing everything possible to take care of the challenges faced by its customers and ensure refunds to passengers, it said.
