Former Karnataka Minister Kota Srinivas Poojary extends support to Congress' Shakti Scheme
Udupi: MLC and former minister Kota Srinivas Poojary has said that the BJP was in support of the Shakti scheme, giving free travel for women in government buses, as the party was always in favour of projects for the welfare of the economically backward classes.
Addressing reporters in Udupi on Tuesday, Poojary admitted that the BJP expressed doubt about the implementation of the guarantees promised by the Congress government, explaining that the party took the stand as finance experts and retired officials had said that it would be a very difficult task.
“The power tariff is hiked in January every year, based on the proposal submitted by the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC), yet, our government had not approved of a hike in tariff this year. The hike might have been approved after the declaration of elections,” said Poojary, adding, “I request Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and Power Minister KJ George to cancel the order to hike the power tariff in the interest of the people.”
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Referring to the cow slaughter ban, the former minister said, “The Congress government has declared that it will cancel the bans on cow slaughter and religious conversion. The government can similarly cancel its order to hike power tariff, since it is merely a matter of withdrawal of its circular and not an amendment of an act.”
He called it an act of injustice towards the people that the power rate is hiked in order to give 200 units of electricity for free and demanded that the tariff be revised to the earlier rate.
“The people of the state have supported the Congress in the elections conducted as per the rules of democracy. Implementation of the promised guarantees is the responsibility of the government. The BJP will, therefore, fight for the people as long as the promises of the Congress remain unfulfilled.
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Noida International Airport appoints Nitu Samra as interim CEO
New Delhi (PTI): Noida International Airport on Friday announced the appointment of its Chief Financial Officer Nitu Samra as the interim Chief Executive Officer after authorities denied permission for foreign national Christoph Schnellmann to be at the helm.
"This change follows directions issued by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) that the Chief Executive Officer of an airport in India is required to be an Indian national," NIA said in a statement.
Samra will replace Schnellmann, a Swiss national who has led Noida International Airport (NIA) as the CEO since August 2020.
The regulatory issue related to the requirement of having an Indian national as CEO has been delaying the start of commercial operations of the airport, which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 28.
Schnellmann will join the airport's Board of Directors as Executive Vice Chairman. In this role, he will continue to support the project and its transition to operations, the statement said.
With immediate effect, NIA said Samra has been appointed as the CEO on an interim basis until the Board of Directors can conclude a formal selection process.
Samra has been serving as the CFO since October 2021 and was closely involved in the airport’s development journey, overseeing financial stewardship, governance, and strategic planning during a key phase of the project, the statement added.
NIA will be operated by Yamuna International Airport Pvt Ltd (YIAPL), a subsidiary of Zurich Airport International AG, under a public-private partnership.
Originally scheduled to commence passenger services in September 2024, NIA is being developed in four phases, along with a dedicated cargo terminal. It received an aerodrome license from the aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in March.
YIAPL Chairman Daniel Bircher said that since the inauguration of the airport by the Prime Minister, the goal was to enable the start of operations as early as possible.
"This management change brings the airport into compliance with Bureau of Civil Aviation Security requirements while maintaining continuity in the airport’s leadership team. The newly structured team will support a smooth transition into operations, guided by clear and transparent governance and a strong corporate culture," he said.
On March 28, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said commercial flight operations from the airport would start in the next 45 to 60 days.
Among the largest greenfield airport projects in the country, NIA will initially have a capacity to handle 12 million passengers per annum.
Once fully developed, the airport will have a total passenger handling capacity of 70 million.
The first phase of NIA has been developed at an investment of around Rs 11,200 crore. 'DXN' is the code for the airport.
The airport features a 3,900-metre runway capable of handling wide-body aircraft, along with modern navigation systems, including Instrument Landing System (ILS) and advanced airfield lighting.
The peak handling capacity in the first phase will be 30 flights per hour.
In the first phase, there will be 28 aircraft stands, and the projected cargo capacity is around 2.5 lakh tonnes.
Terminal 1 of the airport is spread across 1,37,985 square metres with 48 check-in counters. Over 40 acres of land have been earmarked for developing MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) facilities at the airport.
