Kochi, July 13 : A Qatar Airways flight from Doha to Kochi skidded off the runway while landing at the Cochin International Airport early on Friday due to heavy rains, an airport official and the airline said.

Airport Director A.C.K. Nair told IANS that all the passengers were safe.

The airline said: "Qatar Airways flight QR516 from DOH to COK skidded during landing roll due to heavy rain and water on the runway, damaging a few runway lights. The aircraft taxied normally to the stand. Due to this incident the return flight ... was cancelled.

"All passengers were accommodated on later flights," an airline statement said. "Qatar Airways is fully cooperating with local authorities. The safety and security of our passengers is our top priority."

The Airbus 330 missed the alignment while landing as some lights on the runway were broken due to cross wind conditions, Nair said earlier.

"The aircraft was well on the runway but missed the alignment... All the passengers are safe," he said.




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Mumbai (PTI): Former Union minister Sharad Pawar on Monday said that he and nephew Ajit Pawar are together as a family, but made it clear that the latter was heading a different political party.

“Gharat tari ekatrach ahet (we are together at home least),” the veteran politician said at a press conference at Chiplun in coastal Konkan region.

He was responding to a query about the demand from “various quarters in the state” that the uncle-nephew duo should come together once again.

In July last year, Ajit Pawar broke away from his uncle to join the Eknath Shinde-led government in the state as deputy chief minister. Of late, there has been speculation over his continuation in the ruling alliance.

Asked about Ajit Pawar’s recent remarks the decision to make his wife Sunetra Pawar contest the Lok Sabha polls against Supriya Sule in Baramati was a mistake, the veteran politician said, “He is in a different party. Why should we comment on decisions taken by another party?”

Asked if the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance of NCP (SP), Congress and Shiv Sena (UBT) had decided its chef ministerial face, Pawar said, “I don’t think that it is an urgent issue at the moment”.

When elections were held after the Emergency, Morarji Desai’s name as PM candidate was not disclosed before polling, he added.

“Our (MVA) attempt is to give a progressive alternative in Maharashtra with help of other parties like Samajwadi Party and Peasants and Workers Party,” he said.

“Our observation is that the people of Maharashtra have made up their mind to give us (MVA) a chance in the ensuing elections,” he said.

Asked about Andhra CM Chandrababu Naidu’s claim that sub-standard ghee with 'animal fat' was used to make prasad laddoos at Tirupati temple during Jaganmohan Reddy's tenure as CM, Pawar said, “If anything was mixed, it is very wrong and action should be taken against those involved”.