MP Brijesh Chowta writes to centre urges to retain Mangaluru as Air India Express crew base
Mangaluru: Member of Parliament Captain Brijesh Chowta has written to Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu, seeking urgent intervention to prevent the closure of Air India Express’ crew base in Mangaluru.
In his letter, Chowta emphasized the strategic importance of Mangaluru International Airport, which has been operational since 1951 and serves as a key aviation hub for Coastal Malnad and North Kerala.
Highlighting the potential effects, Chowta stated that shutting down the crew base would significantly impact both airline employees and travelers.
He noted that over 100 crew members and ancillary workers would be displaced, causing strain on the region’s workforce. Furthermore, he pointed out that the airport's high operational efficiency which is boasting a 90.43% on-time performance (OTP) and handling over 1,300 tons of cargo highlights its necessity.
The MP also stressed that local crew members’ familiarity with the airport enables efficient operations, which would be disrupted by the closure.
He also urged the DGCA to explore decentralized approaches to crew bases, which he believes would improve India’s overall aviation network.
Pleased to have met Union Minister of Civil Aviation Sri Ram Mohan Naidu @RamMNK
— Captain Brijesh Chowta ಕ್ಯಾಪ್ಟನ್ ಬ್ರಿಜೇಶ್ ಚೌಟ (@CaptBrijesh) April 4, 2025
at his office in the Parliament premises today.
Discussed various issues including the ongoing land acquisition of the Mangalore International Airport for expansion and security purposes, which I… pic.twitter.com/56CEpOBQvC
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Telangana first state to implement SC categorisation, issues orders
Hyderabad (PTI): Telangana on Monday issued a government order on the implementation of Scheduled Castes (SC) categorisation, making it the first state in the country to do so officially, Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy said.
Telangana government had earlier appointed a commission headed by retired High Court judge Justice Shameem Akther on SC categorisation, which made recommendations that the 59 Scheduled Caste (SC) communities be divided into three groups viz I, II, and III for the total reservations of 15 per cent in government jobs and education.
"The following Act of the Telangana Legislature received the assent of the Governor of Telangana on 8, April 2025 and the said assent is hereby first published on the 14th April 2025 in the Telangana Gazette for general information," the GO said.
The issuance of GO coincides with the birth anniversary of BR Ambedkar, architect of Indian Constitution.
According to the commission report, group-I one comprising 15 socially, economically and educationally disadvantaged SC communities, are given one per cent reservation.
Group-II, including 18 moderately benefited SC communities, are provided a nine per cent quota while the Group-III comprising 26 significantly benefited SC communities, are given five per cent reservation.
Addressing a press conference, Minister Reddy, who headed a sub-committee on SC Categorisation, said the first copy of the GO was given to Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy this morning.
"From today, from this moment, SC categorisation will be implemented in Telangana in employment and education. We have issued a GO to that extent and gave the first copy to the CM," he told reporters.
"Telangana is the first state to implement the SC categorisation after the Supreme Court’s verdicts," Reddy said.
The minister alleged that earlier governments in Telangana confined themselves to pass resolutions for the categorisation and never took forward.
He further said all job vacancies in the state government now will be filled according to the sub-categorisation for SCs.
The Irrigation Minister further said the cabinet sub-committee did an extensive exercise in collecting the opinion of all the stakeholders.
He also said if the SC population goes up in 2026 census, the reservations for it would go up accordingly.
The Telangana Legislature in February accepted the recommendations of Justice Akther on SC categorisation, rejecting an advice that creamy layer should be exempted from reservations.
The Scheduled Castes (Rationalisation of Reservation) Bill, 2025 was passed last month. The Supreme Court gave a verdict last year in favour of categorisation.
