Present wave of peaceful protests in country will help deepen India's democratic roots: Pranab
New Delhi, Jan 24: Describing listening, arguing and dissent as essence of democracy, former president Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday said he believes that the present wave of largely peaceful protests that have "gripped" the country will once again enable the deepening of India's democratic roots.
He also cautioned that while India's tryst with democracy is a story which needs to be told time and again, "complacency enables authoritarian tendencies to gain ground".
Mukherjee pointed out that in the last few months people, particularly the youth, come out on the streets in large numbers to voice their views on issues "which in their view are important".
"Their assertion and belief in the Constitution of India is particularly heartening to see," he said at the first Sukumar Sen memorial lecture organised by the Election Commission here.
Indian democracy has been tested time and again, he said, adding that consensus is the lifeblood of democracy.
In an apparent reference to protests in parts of the country against the amended Citizenship Act and the National Register of Citizens (NRC), the veteran leader said, "The last few months have witnessed people come out on the streets in large numbers, particularly the young, to voice their views on issues which in the opinion are important."
Their assertion and belief in the Constitution is particularly "heartening", he noted.
Democracy, he said, thrives on listening, deliberating, discussing, arguing and even dissent, he said in his address.
According to a copy of the speech made available after the event, he said, "I believe the present wave of largely peaceful protests that have gripped the country shall once again enable the further deepening of our democratic roots."
In his speech, Mukherjee had skipped these lines.
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Pune airport runway restored after IAF aircraft snag; ops resume
Pune (PTI): The runway at Pune airport, which was temporarily unavailable due to an incident involving an Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft, has now been restored and declared operational, the Air Force said on Saturday.
The authorities at the Pune International Airport had earlier said that around 10.25 pm on Friday, a fighter aircraft experienced an undercarriage failure during landing, causing the runway to be blocked.
As many as 91 flights of airlines, including IndiGo, Air India, SpiceJet, Akasa, and Air India Express, were affected due to the incident, they said.
Earlier on Friday night, the Air Force had stated that the runway at Pune airport was temporarily unavailable following an incident involving one of its fighter aircraft. The aircrew are safe, and there is no damage to civil property, it had said.
"The runway at Pune Airport, which was temporarily unavailable due to an incident involving an Indian Air Force aircraft, has now been restored and declared operational. All necessary safety inspections and clearances have been completed. Operations are resuming in a phased manner," it said in a post on X.
Flight operations at Pune airport are being gradually restored. The situation has been brought under control with the highest priority given to the safety of citizens, a Defence PRO said.
