INDIA: Government To Lift Travel Advisory In Kashmir From Today, Tourists Welcome Back Inspite Of Protests

Indian authorities have announced that they will lift the travel advisory in Kashmir that has been in place for over two months. They also said they will gradually remove restrictions on movement in the disputed region.

Foreign visitors will once more be welcome in the India-controlled part of Kashmir, local governor Satya Pal Malik announced on Monday evening.

The travel advisory from the Indian government, which has been in place for over two months, will be lifted from Thursday onward.

On August 2, tourists were told to immediately leave the India-controlled part of the disputed region, named Jammu and Kashmir, following concerns about "terror threats."

More than 340,000 tourists and Hindu pilgrims were forced to scramble for buses and planes out of the region after the Indian government issued the travel advisory.

Malik said in a statement after a security meeting that these tourists would be welcome to return after Thursday, when the "Home Department's advisory asking tourists to leave the valley be lifted."

Only 150 foreign travelers have visited Kashmir since August 5, compared with half a million in the first seven months of the year. The lush Himalayan valley had been a popular holiday destination for Indians and other foreigners, describing itself as a "paradise on earth."

The travel advisory was first announced when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government scrapped the special autonomous status that Kashmir had long enjoyed.

Since then, India has imposed a clampdown on freedom of movement as well as a communications blackout, which is largely still in place.

Malik claimed in his statement that authorities were gradually lifting the curfew, along with internet and telephone restrictions, saying that all the security restrictions were removed in most parts of the region.

How safe the region has become is unclear. The UK and other countries still have travel advisories in place, and local media report that 10 people were killed in a grenade attack at the weekend.

Protests show no signs of abating

Unrest in the region remains widespread, with thousands marching over the last week towards the Line of Control, which divides India- and Pakistan-controlled Kashmir, demanding an independent Kashmir.

Meanwhile, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan is in Beijing for talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the security situation in Kashmir.

Both India and Kashmir claim the territory in full. India has received widespread condemnation for its removal of the region's special status, which Prime Minister Modi described as necessary to integrate the region into the rest of India.

There are fears in the region that the removal of the curfew and blackout and a return to business as usual may lead to armed resistance and further protests.

India is to be a unified nation, says Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. People in Kashmir are experiencing what that entails. The region is a tinderbox, also because of Modi's politics.

In his Independence Day speech, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was quick to blow his own horn: Within 70 days he succeeded in doing what no other government had been able to achieve in 70 years. Make no mistake he got it done.

The only problem is that we do not know what exactly the Indian prime minister achieved. What he did manage was to cut off the Kashmir region from the rest of the world in as far as that is logistically possible.

However, these measures would not have been necessary if his policies had been popular with the region's population. But the people in Kashmir are not as important to Modi as those in the rest of India.

On Indian Independence Day, Modi spoke of India finally becoming one nation with one constitution. Language such as this sounds somehow threatening in such a diverse country. What exactly does Modi have in mind?

In Kashmir, people are just getting a taste of what it means to live in Modi's nation.

They have lost their autonomy at the stroke of a pen. Despite Delhi's promises of prosperity and a golden future, who could blame Muslims if they now feel discriminated against?

However, one should not idealize the past. Even decades of autonomy have not brought peace to Kashmir. However, a strong message has been sent to the Muslim population: Unity will be achieved through force.

There is every reason to fear that the dream of Modi and Hindu nationalists will claim many lives. Pakistan, the other player in the Kashmir conflict, is outraged by Modi's coup but until now, Prime Minister Imran Khan has shown verbal restraint.

He knows his country cannot match its neighbor's military might. Having said that, when he conjures up an ominous threat of a reaction from the Muslim world, his words are not untrue.

At the same time, it is clearly a precautionary attempt to exonerate himself, Pakistan, and its intelligence services from any responsibility for further potential terrorist attacks and bloodshed.

The only realistic opportunity for Pakistan to influence the course of events is to make the issue a priority on the international agenda.

China backs Pakistan, whereas India sees it as a domestic issue. In his speech on Thursday, Modi did not mention neighbor Pakistan once.

However, his silence will do nothing towards bringing about a real prospect of peace to the region neither will his verbose vanity.

The dispute over Kashmir has poisoned relations between India and Pakistan since the two became independent countries in 1947. Here's an overview of how tensions have grown more dangerous over the past seven decades.

Like so many conflicts around the world, the dispute over Kashmir began with independence from a colonial power. In 1947, the United Kingdom gave in to the struggle for freedom in its Indian colony and granted it independence.

The retreating British left behind two states: the secular Indian Union and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.

The partition of India in 1947 presented a problem to the then princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, located right along the two new states' northern border.

Traditionally, the state was ruled by a Hindu maharaja or local ruler, but the majority of the population was Muslim.

Hoping to be able to declare his territory independent, Maharaja Hari Singh initially did not join either India or Pakistan, both of which took an interest in this special social constellation in the Kashmir Valley.

To this day, India sees itself as a secular nation in which several religions coexist. This makes Jammu and Kashmir, the only province with a Muslim majority, an important part of India's religious plurality.

At the time, Pakistan saw itself as the home of all Muslims in South Asia. Its founding father, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, envisioned Pakistan and India as separate Muslim and Hindu nations on the subcontinent. Until 1971, Bangladesh, which is located to the east of India, was part of Pakistan.

While the maharaja hesitated to make Kashmir part of either country, in 1947, Pakistani guerrillas tried to bring the principality of Kashmir under their control.

Hari Singh turned to New Delhi for help, and it didn't take long for troops from India and Pakistan to face off.

The first war for Kashmir began in October 1947 and ended in January 1949 with the de facto division of the state along the so-called Line of Control (LoC), the unofficial border line still recognized today.

Back then, the UN sent an observer mission that is still on the ground today. Pakistan has controlled the northern special province of Gilgit-Baltistan and the sickle-shaped Azad Kashmir sub-region since 1949.

The Indian-held section became the federal state of Jammu and Kashmir in 1957, with special autonomous status allowing the state's legislature to have a say in legislation covering all issues except defense, foreign affairs and communications.

The following decades were marked by an arms race on both sides. India began to develop a nuclear bomb and Pakistan also started a nuclear program with the aim of being able to stand up to its giant neighbor.

Today, India and Pakistan have an estimated 140 and 150 nuclear warheads respectively. Unlike Pakistan, India has explicitly ruled out a nuclear first strike.

Pakistan also spends huge amounts on its nuclear program as the country tries to make sure it won't lag behind its neighbor in military terms.

In 1965, Pakistan once again used military force to try to change the borders, but lost to the Indian military. The neighbors clashed for a third time in 1971, but this time Kashmir was not at the center of the confrontation.

Instead, it was the independence struggle in Bangladesh that precipitated the war. India, which supported the Bangladeshi independence fighters, once again defeated Pakistan.

A year later, India and Pakistan signed the Simla Agreement that underlines the importance of the LoC and commits to bilateral negotiations to clarify claims to the Kashmir region once and for all.

In 1984, the nations clashed again; this time over the India-controlled Siachen Glacier. And in 1999, both sides fought for control of military posts on the Indian side of the LoC. In 2003, India and Pakistan signed a new ceasefire — but it has been fragile since 2016.

China, which has a long border with Jammu and Kashmir, also plays a role in this conflict. In 1962, China occupied a part of India that borders Kashmir and entered into an alliance with Pakistan.

Today, China and Pakistan trade via the newly constructed Karakoram Highway, which connects the countries via the western Kashmir region. As part of the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, that corridor is being expanded.

This former gravel road is currently being developed into a multi-lane asphalt highway that can be used all year long. China is investing $57 billion (€51 billion) in Pakistani infrastructure and energy projects, more than in any other South Asian country.

The economic alliance with its powerful neighbor has helped solidify Pakistan's claims to the Himalayan foothills.

The governments of neighboring states are no longer the only parties to the conflict in Kashmir, however. Using violence, militant groups have been trying to disrupt the status quo on both sides of the LoC since at least the 1980s.

Their attacks have contributed to a deterioration of the security situation.

At least 45,000 people have been killed in terrorist attacks over the past 30 years. And the total number of deaths resulting from this conflict is at least 70,000, according to estimates by human rights organizations.

Tourism Observer

INDIA: What Is Happening At Jet Airways

Jet Airways' pilots appealed to the State Bank of India to release funds to the tune of Rs. 1,500 crore for the airline, trade union National Aviator's Guild said on Monday.

The trade union, which has more than 1,100 pilots of the airline as its members, also asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to help in saving 20,000 jobs at stake.

The SBI-led group of lenders had last month taken control of the airline and agreed to provide an immediate funding support of Rs. 1,500 crore.

Cash-strapped Jet Airways' management is meeting its group of lenders, led by the State Bank of India, on Monday. The lenders are meeting to decide whether to release crucial funds to keep the debt ridden airline flying as it teeters on the brink of collapse.

Jet Airways' employees staged a protest in Mumbai demanding that the debt-laden airline be saved from shutting down.

Meanwhile, a report suggested that SpiceJet is hiring engineers and pilots at much lower pay than their current salaries at the financially-troubled Jet.

Pilots from Jet Airways are being asked to take salary cuts of 25-30 per cent while engineers have been advised to settle at 50 per cent of their current pay package.

The SBI-led consortium is trying to find a buyer for Jet, which was until recently the country's second-biggest airline by market share.

The meeting also assumes significance as it comes amid thousands of passengers being stranded after the cancellation of international flights in the last few days.

Hundreds of staff protested in Delhi and Mumbai over the weekend demanding to be paid and calling for the company to be rescued.

The airline has only seven jets left after dozens of others were seized by creditors in recent weeks. Pilots, engineers, and ground staff who have not been paid for three months and have said they will call for a strike if the banks do not inject emergency funds.

A deadline passed on Friday for prospective bidders to express an interest in acquiring a 75 per cent stake in the carrier.
The Prime Minister's Office had last Friday convened a crisis meeting on Friday evening.

Jet Airways shares rose as much as 1.48 per cent on Monday. At 11:42 am, the Jet Airways stock traded 0.46 per cent higher at Rs. 262.05 apiece on the NSE, outperforming the broader markets which were up 0.24 per cent.


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INDIA: Jet Airways Cancels All International Flights

Hundreds of Passengers are stranded in India and around the world after Jet Airways suspended all international flights.

Flights from London, Paris and Amsterdam are among those grounded amid fears about the survival of India's largest private airline.

The airline cancelled all international flights until Monday when, according to reports, it will meet its lenders again to try to secure funding.

Jet Airways is saddled with more than $1bn (£765m) of debt.

It is seeking a financial lifeline to avoid collapse and, on Thursday, grounded 10 planes over unpaid fees to leasing firms .

These were the latest flights to be grounded and it was not clear how many of its fleet of more than 100 planes was still in operation. Local reports suggested that it was barely a dozen.

The airline flies on 600 domestic and 380 international routes - but carriers in India must maintain a fleet of least 20 aircraft to continue to operate international services.

From London, the airline initially confirmed it had cancelled its flights between London, Paris and Amsterdam and India for 12 April, but later said that all international flights would be cancelled between 12 and 15 April.

It said it regrets the inconvenience caused to its passengers and was working to minimise guest inconvenience.

The airline's management and its key stakeholders including its consortium of lenders, continue to work closely towards resolving the current situation, it said.

There was no statement about the status of domestic flights.

Television channels in India reported that the prime minister's office had called for an urgent meeting to discuss the airline.

They also reported remarks by government officials saying Jet Airways only had funds to operate six to seven aircraft over the weekend.

India's Aviation Minister, Suresh Prabhu, had tweeted that his ministry would review issues related to Jet Airways and take necessary steps to minimise passenger inconvenience and ensure their safety.

Television channels in India reported that the prime minister's office had called for an urgent meeting to discuss the airline.

They also reported remarks by government officials saying Jet Airways only had funds to operate six to seven aircraft over the weekend.

India's Aviation Minister, Suresh Prabhu, had tweeted that his ministry would review issues related to Jet Airways and take necessary steps to minimise passenger inconvenience and ensure their safety.

Jet Airways owes money to employees and suppliers and in recent weeks it has grounded aircraft and cancelled thousands of flights as its financial strains worsened.

The pilots union in India is planning a protest on Saturday and has written to the airline demanding that employees are paid. Staff of the airline were pictured by Priyanka Iyer of Business Television India marching to the company's headquarters in Mumbai.

In March, when the crisis at Jet Airways led to thousands of flights being cancelled, the government immediately stepped in and asked public sector banks to rescue the private carrier.

It was a rare move. With India holding a national election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government did not want the airline to be grounded as that would have affected 23,000 jobs.

The lenders which took control of the airline have only released a fraction of the amount they had promised so the airline has not been able to pay aircraft leasing companies, which means its fleet has shrunk further from more than 100 it had at the start of the year.

The lenders have started accepting bids from potential investors, but that process will take a couple of months to complete. And many analysts fear that Jet Airways will not survive even a week if immediate cash is not provided to keep the operations running.

The airline was founded by Naresh Goyal more than 25 years ago and he and his family currently own 52% of the airline, although that majority stake is expected to be lost as lenders' restructure the debt.

A consortium of investors led by the State Bank of India (SBI) took control of the airline in March.

The group is searching for a new investor to acquire a stake of up to 75% in Jet Airways. The deadline for bids had been extended to Friday, according to reports.

Ellis Taylor, deputy Asia editor of Flight Global siad the airline was in a precarious position.

The interim lifeline that the carrier talked about two weeks ago looks like it won't materialise any time soon, and that really leaves its future looking bleak, he said.

There were reports in local media that India's aviation ministry might review the regulations setting the fleet cap, which could allow the airline to resume international services.


Tourism Observer

INDIA: Arpit Palace Hotel Engulfed In Fire, 17 Dead

A fire engulfed a shoddily built budget hotel in central New Delhi early Tuesday, killing 17 people and injuring at least four others, including a woman from Myanmar who leaped from an upper floor to escape the flames, Indian authorities said.

Three of those killed were members of a family who had traveled to India's capital from Kerala in southern India to attend a wedding, family friend Arvind Vishwanathan said outside a hospital mortuary.

Most of the deaths at the Arpit Palace Hotel in Karol Bagh, an area in India's capital city popular with tourists because of its shops and budget hotels, were due to suffocation, said Satyendar Kumar Jain, the Delhi government minister of health and urban development, as he toured the site after the fire was extinguished.

The hotel developer had a permit from the fire department to build up to four stories the standard height in central Delhi. But the building appeared to have six floors, including a basement and a kitchen built on top of the roof, Jain said.

At least 17 people died when a fire ripped through a budget hotel in Delhi, with victims including a woman and a child who reportedly jumped from a window to escape the blaze.

Images showed thick smoke and flames billowing out of the top floor of the Hotel Arpit Palace in a congested part of the Indian capital.

Guests at the hotel, popular with budget and business travellers, were unable to use corridors to escape because of wooden panelling, according to a fire officer.

Three Myanmar citizens staying at the hotel were missing.

Most of the residents were sleeping at the time the fire broke out in the early hours of Tuesday. It is estimated some 120 people were inside the building, built around 25 years ago, according to the hotel’s website.

We have confirmed with hospital authorities, the toll is now 17 including a child, Sunil Choudhary, a senior fire brigade official said.

G.C. Misra, Delhi fire services director, said the blaze had been brought under control and that 35 people were rescued by firefighters in an operation lasting several hours involving at least 25 fire engines.

There was wooden panelling on corridors because of which people could not use corridors to evacuate, another fire officer said.

Police said they were investigating the cause, and a judicial probe has been ordered into the latest disaster to raise concerns over fire safety in India.

The hotel is in the Karol Bagh district, a busy commercial centre criss-crossed by narrow alleys where electric wires dangle overhead.

The area, which houses hundreds of hotels, shops and offices, is packed with tourists and shoppers.

Fires are common across India because of poor safety standards and lax enforcement of regulations.

Activists say builders and landlords often cut corners on safety to save costs and have accused civic authorities of negligence and apathy.

Buildings can only be constructed up to four floors in Delhi, Delhi’s home minister Satyendra Jain said.

This hotel had been built up to six floors. It’s gross negligence on the part of the officers who allowed the extra floors to be built.

The entire hotel has wooden panelling, this shows carelessness on the part of the owner. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was deeply saddened by the loss of life in a statement posted on Twitter.

Fire disasters are particularly frequent in Mumbai, India’s financial capital where millions live in cramped and dilapidated properties because of high rents.

In December, eight people were killed when a fire engulfed a hospital in Mumbai. In 2017, 14 people were killed, also in Mumbai, when a huge blaze tore through a popular restaurant

In 2017, 14 people were killed, also in Mumbai, when a huge blaze tore through a popular restaurant.


Tourism Observer

INDIA: Tatas’ Love For Air India

It’s over four years since India’s Tata group went back into the country’s aviation sector.

In 2013, after staying on the sidelines for over six decades, the salt-to-software conglomerate returned to India’s aviation sector through two joint venture (JV) partnerships with Malaysia-based AirAsia Bhd and Singapore Airlines.

The Tata group had founded Air India (AI), then Tata Airlines, in 1932, which the Indian government took control of in 1953. Ever since, the group had stayed out of the airline business.

Now, it is eyeing a bigger slice of India’s aviation pie. On Oct. 10, chairman N Chandrasekharan said that his group would consider acquiring the beleaguered national carrier Air India.

This isn’t the first time that the Tatas have shown interest in AI, currently India’s fourth-largest airline by market share. In 2000, the group partnered with Singapore Airlines to bid for a 40% stake in the company, but the plan didn’t materialize as Singapore Airlines withdrew.

We will definitely look at it (AI), Chandrasekaran said. We still don’t have all the details. Every business proposal will be very seriously looked at and we will look at that (AI). Definitely.

But currently we don’t have the data there are so many different groups within Air India, and then there is real estate, there is debt, there is liabilities, and we got to look at all of that but we will definitely look at it.

The $103 billion Tata Sons’ interest in AI could have stemmed from the lacklustre showing of AirAsia and Vistara. Together, they have a domestic market share of only 7.6% with a fleet of 29 aircraft. This is significantly lower than market leader IndiGo’s 38% with 138 aircraft.

We need to look at aviation as a whole, Chandrasekaran said. We are subscale. We got two airlines both are subscale. Any decision that we take—Air India or otherwise—we have to have a story because we can’t be operating with 15 aircraft or 20 aircraft.

The Tata group owns 51% of Vistara, with Singapore Airlines in control of the rest. In AirAsia India, it owns 49%, while the rest is held by Malaysia’s AirAsia Bhd.

Over the past few years, both Vistara and AirAsia India have been looking at international operations but have been held up by regulatory hurdles, hampering business and profitability.

India’s aviation norms require an airline to deploy 20 aircraft, or 20% of its fleet, on domestic routes before it can take off on international routes. Vistara and AirAsia India have only 16 and 13 aircraft respectively.

You have got to give them time as far as their investments in AirAsia India and Vistara goes, Mark Martin, founder of Martin Consulting, an aviation consultancy based in Dubai, said about the Tata group’s investments in the aviation sector.

But, if and when Air India is bought out by Tata, it would be one massive and mega monolithic turnaround for the airline because the Tatas are the only people capable of turning around such an airline.

Buying AI will give the Tata group access to a sizeable fleet that can operate both at home and abroad. The government airline flies to nearly 41 international and 72 domestic destinations.

It is also India’s single largest international carrier with a 17% market share of the overseas routes from the country and operates 119 aircraft. But, bogged down by debt following an ill-advised merger in 2007, it has been struggling for survival.

The Tata group’s core strategy currently involves building a strong brand globally. And what better than an airline that flies to every part of the world, particularly the Americas and Africa? That’s the opportunity Air India brings to the table for the Tatas, Martin said.

India is currently the world’s ninth-largest aviation market. Domestic air travel is expected to grow 9.5% annually between 2011 and 2031, according to aircraft maker Airbus. Currently, only about 2% of India’s population uses airlines, providing a massive opportunity to expand the market.

The prospects for Air India’s privatization seem to be going from bad to worse.

Days after India’s largest airline IndiGo declared that it lacks the capability to turn the country’s state-run airline around, the private player’s closest competitor by market share, Jet Airways, pulled out of the race.

We welcome the government move to privatise Air India. It is a bold step. However, considering the terms of offer in the information memorandum and based on our review, we are not participating in the process, Amit Agarwal, Jet Airways’ deputy CEO said

Earlier this year, Ajay Singh, chairman of low-cost carrier SpiceJet, had also told CNBC-TV18 that it is too small to bid for the Maharajah.

With three heavyweights out, few aviation space players remain in the race for Air India. And all eyes are now on the airline’s founder itself: the Tata Group.

Last year, Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekharan had made his group’s interest known when he said it would definitely look at buying Air India.

I do not think any player in India, apart from the Tata group, has the management ability to turn around an airline like Air India. Tata also has the strategic leadership, financial foresight, and consumer connect to drive traffic, said Mark Martin, head of aviation consultancy firm Martin Consulting.

The group, he said, can either individually bid for Air India, or form a consortium with a foreign airline.

The Tata group, India’s largest diversified conglomerate, had total revenues of around Rs673,350 crore ($100 billion) as of financial year 2017.

It went into aviation in the 1930s with the launch of Tata Airlines, which was later nationalised and rebranded as Air India. In 2014, it partnered with AirAsia Behrad to launch AirAsia India. A year later, its joint venture with Singapore airlines, Vistara, took flight.

If the Tatas, too, opt out, government will have to look for alternatives.

One option could be one or more foreign airlines teaming up with Indian financiers, Martin explained. Airlines like Qatar airways can partner with private equity firms, for instance, and bid for Air India, he said.

A foreign airline can only have up to a 49% stake in Air India, with ownership and effective control of the airline resting with an Indian entity.

However, some experts believe the sale terms need to be overhauled.

The government may have to reconsider separating the domestic operations from the ground-handling services and international operations, Dhiraj Mathur, partner at PwC India said.

Additionally, low-cost players do not necessarily want to enter the full-service airline business, Mathur said. Therefore government will likely have to change the terms if it wants Indian players to participate.

Air India is the flag carrier airline of India headquartered at New Delhi. It is owned by Air India Limited, a government-owned enterprise, and operates a fleet of Airbus and Boeing aircraft serving 94 domestic and international destinations.

The airline has its hub at Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, alongside several focus cities across India. Air India is the largest international carrier out of India with an 18.6% market share.

Over 60 international destinations are served by Air India across four continents. Additionally, the carrier is the third largest domestic airline in India in terms of passengers carried after IndiGo and Jet Airways with a market share of 13.5% as of July 2017.

The airline became the 27th member of Star Alliance on 11 July 2014.

The airline was founded by J. R. D. Tata as Tata Airlines in 1932; Tata himself flew its first single-engine de Havilland Puss Moth, carrying air mail from Karachi to Bombay's Juhu aerodrome and later continuing to Madras currently Chennai.

After World War II, it became a public limited company and was renamed as Air India. On 21 February 1960, it took delivery of its first Boeing 707 named Gauri Shankar and became the first Asian airline to induct a jet aircraft in its fleet.

In 2000–01, attempts were made to privatise Air India and from 2006 onwards, it suffered losses after its merger with Indian Airlines.

Air India also operates flights to domestic and Asian destinations through its subsidiaries Alliance Air and Air India Express. Air India's mascot is the Maharajah (Emperor) and the logo consists of a flying swan with the wheel of Konark inside it.


Tourism Observer

INDIA: Air India Plans Voluntary Retirement For 1/3 Of 40,000 Staff

State-owned Air India is drawing up a compensation plan to offer in a voluntary retirement of a third of its 40,000 employees, ahead of its privatization next year.

The carrier likewise scrapped its April decision to lease eight Boeing 787 wide-body aircraft after putting fleet expansion on hold, an unnamed company official said.

Prime minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet last month approved plans to privatize the loss-making flag carrier — either in parts or lock, stock and barrel — ending decades of state support.

The central government in 2012 injected $5.8 billion in bailout support to keep the airline flying amidst its $8.5 billion debt (SR31.88 billion) and bloated cost structure.

Founded in the 1930s, Air India has been unprofitable since its 2007 merger with then-domestic carrier Indian Airlines.

It made an operating profit of about one billion rupees in its financial year to March 16, thanks to oil prices, but still posted a net loss of 38.4 billion rupees.

Once the country’s major aviation player, Air India has lost market share to better-run private airlines such as IndiGo, whose share of the market in January stood at 39.8 percent; and Jet Airways with a share of 15.5 percent.

Nothing has been finalized but our aim is to make the strategic sale as simple as we can, said a second airline official said, and added that any fresh investments would be put on hold.



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INDIA: Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh Mocked For Peeing In Public

A government minister of India was mocked on social media for urinating in public despite the prime minister's flagship public hygiene drive as pictures of the embarrassing incident were splashed over front pages today.

Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh relieved himself against a school wall guarded by his security guards carrying automatic weapons.

Union minister peed in open, sparking a row on social media and along with rivals printed grainy images of the 67-year-old minister standing next to a wall.

The picture was taken in Singh's constituency in Bihar state.

Indian internet users mocked the minister and his ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Here, the national agriculture minister inaugurating an irrigation scheme in a drought affected region amidst tight security, Rashtriya Janata Dal, a regional political party, quipped as it tweeted the pictures.

The minister also made a contribution to 'Clean India Mission'," the post announced.

'Clean India' is one of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's flagship programmes to improve public hygiene and cleanliness and encourage people to use public toilets.

Proud to have an agricultural minister like Radha Mohan Singh who waters the grass himself, Santosh Bharadwaj tweeted.

Superb. Proud to have an Agricultural Minister like #Radhamohansingh who waters the grass himself !! pic.twitter.com/tkvNJ4LOyK

— Santosh Bharadwaj (@santo_bharadwaj) June 29, 2017

But Singh's relatives and friends criticised the media for publishing the pictures.

Urinating is a natural biological obligation of a human being, so why are such things highlighted to create a controversy?

Are urinals available everywhere?" Sujit Kumar Singh, his son-in-law, asked.

The minister has made no comment.



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INDIA: Travel Goes Up As Fuel Exports Go Down

India's record jet fuel exports may fall this year as an expanding middle class and cheaper air travel boost local consumption, refinery executives said, potentially raising ailing profit margins for the fuel.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month launched the first flight under the Regional Connectivity Scheme that is designed to spur air travel between smaller Indian cities that are currently under-served and to make flying more affordable.

The government will cap fares under the scheme and offer airlines incentives to fly less traversed routes.

The plan should eat into the country's jet fuel exports, which rose to a record of 741,000 tonnes in March, according to preliminary government data.

The expected decline in exports could help raise jet fuel margins, which plunged to a nine-month low earlier this month, said three middle distillate traders.

India's efforts to connect regional routes and the expansion of aircraft fleets will continue to boost local demand for jet fuel, said Sri Paravaikkarasu, head of East of Suez Oil at energy consultants FGE.

India's jet fuel demand is expected to rise by 11 percent in 2017 after rising last year by 13 percent, or about 15,700 barrels per day (bpd), she said.

In the domestic market, we are expecting double digit growth in jet fuel because of regional connectivity and enhanced air travel, said Indian Oil Corp chairman B. Ashok last week.

According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), India is the world's fastest growing aviation market, with passenger numbers rising by more than 20 percent a year.

IATA expects India to displace the United Kingdom as the third-largest market in the world in 2025, with passenger numbers more than doubling to 278 million a year from more than 95 million today.

Enticed by the growing size of India's aviation market, BP last year obtained a licence to sell jet fuel in the South Asian nation.

The firm local demand, coupled with weaker profit margins for refining jet fuel compared with gasoil, could slow jet fuel exports this year, said L.K. Gupta, managing director of Essar Oil.

Refiners typically adjust the yield of middle distillates, which include jet fuel, kerosene, gasoil and diesel, according to the margins.

Last year, India's jet fuel exports were high due to better margins compared to gasoil, Gupta said.

INDIA: Adventure Tourism Can Be Biggest Employer

He said all states in the north east region were blessed with natural scenic beauty, distinct historical cultural and ethnic heritage. "All this offers tremendous scope for tourism in the region.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said adventure tourism can emerge as the biggest employer in the north east region and urged the states concerned for its development and promotion. “If developed and promoted well, this can emerge as the biggest employer in the region. It can also add to the growth and income of the region,” Modi said while addressing the 65th plenary session of the North Eastern Council (NEC). He said all states in the north east region were blessed with natural scenic beauty, distinct historical cultural and ethnic heritage. “All this offers tremendous scope for tourism in the region.

There is also a great scope for mountaineering, trekking and adventure tourism in the region,” he said. Underlining the need to make the best use of the Ministry of Tourism’s ‘thematic circuit’, Modi said the region can also look for combining a few popular destinations of the neighbouring countries for added attraction for tourists. Terming the north east as the gateway to South East Asia, the Prime Minister said there was a need to take advantage of this. “We are opening up both road and rail routes to our neighbouring countries.

This should give a boost to the economic development of the region,” Modi said highlighting the achievements of his government in this regard. According to the Prime Minister, as of today, 34 road projects in the north eastern states covering 1,001 km at a total cost of over Rs 10,000 crore have been implemented by the specialised highways construction agency for the north east – the ‘National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation’. Highlighting the Internet connectivity project for the north east region in collaboration with Bangladesh, Modi said this would make available 10 GB of seamless alternate bandwidth for the region.

On power, the Prime Minister said the Centre has invested in power transmission projects covering all the eight north eastern states at a cost of around Rs 10,000 crore to ensure electricity to more areas. On railways, he said major railway expansion projects have been undertaken in the region at a cost of around Rs 10,000 crore following the connectivity provided to Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya in November 2014.

INDIA: India Banks To Chase Vijay Mallya For ‘every penny’: Minister

Indian banks will strive to recover “every penny” from a beleaguered liquor baron who left the country owing more than $1 billion, the finance minister said on March 17, as warnings sound over a mounting bad debt problem.

More than a dozen lenders are chasing Vijay Mallya, once dubbed The King of Good Times, for 90 billion rupees ($1.34 billion) in unpaid loans, but he left the country on March 2 despite calls for his arrest.

“Every government agency, whether it’s the taxation department or the investigative agencies, wherever he has violated the law, is going to take strong action,” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley told a conference organized by India Today television channel in New Delhi.

“As far as the banks are concerned I’ve been briefed that they are going all out to recover every penny of the last rupee that they can.”

The country’s financial crimes agency has summoned Mallya to appear before investigators on March 18 in connection with a money-laundering probe.

But he has asked the Enforcement Directorate to give him until April to appear, the Press Trust of India news agency reported Thursday.

In a further blow, an auction Thursday of Kingfisher House, the former headquarters of the entrepreneur’s now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines in Mumbai, attracted no bids, PTI reported.

The businessman’s massive debt has become a symbol of Indian banks’ vast volume of bad loans meaning in default or close to it - seen as a threat to financial stability in Asia’s third-largest economy.

Critics say the government has not done enough to tackle the issue of wealthy individuals, such as Mallya, who obtain huge loans that they later fail to repay.

Jaitley told the gathering that many bad loans were due to a slowdown in sectors such as steel, which is suffering after China flooded the market with cheap excess metal.

But the finance minister also said that lenders granting individuals large loans - sometimes in unusual circumstances - which then went awry was “the real cause of worry.”

“This has brought a huge bad name both to India’s banking and also to India’s private sector. It’s extremely dangerous for the future if we are not able to remedy this,” he said.

Mallya, who has not been charged with any crime, denies absconding and has lashed out at media who accuse him of fleeing the country.

In its budget last month Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government announced recapitalization measures for public sector banks, although some economists said the funds were not sufficient.

On March 12 the market regulator laid out tougher measures to tackle individuals or businesses classified as “willful defaulters,” preventing them from raising fresh funds on capital markets or from sitting on listed company boards.

Mallya was known as the “King of Good Times” before the 2012 collapse of his Kingfisher Airlines, which left thousands of workers unemployed and millions of dollars in unpaid bills.

MALDIVES: Maldives Declares State Of Emergency,Large Protest Planned,As Tourism Gets Affected

A newly imposed state of emergency should not affect holidaymakers in the Maldives, though cancellations are expected.

Tourists visiting the Maldives have been told that a state of emergency, declared by the country’s president ahead of a large anti-government rally, should not affect their holiday.

President Abdulla Yameen has imposed a 30-day state of emergency across the whole country limiting the constitutional freedoms of locals to meet and travel, and increasing powers of arrest.

The Foreign Office has told British travellers, however, that there will be no restrictions on tourist movements and that holiday resorts are “unlikely to be significantly affected.”

It suggests though that Britons should take extra care and follow local advice.

A statement from the Maldives' ministry of tourism said: "The Ibrahim Nasir International Airport and all domestic airports, tourist resorts, tourist hotels, tourist guest houses, tourist accommodating vessels (safari boats), marinas are in full operation. International and domestic flights, sea plane operations and all modes of transport are in operation.

"Public safety is of paramount importance and the government assures the safety of the destination."

The state of emergency follows the arrest of the country’s vice president on October 24 and allegations of an assassination plot against the president. An explosion aboard Yameen's speedboat on September 28 wounded his wife and two others.

The Maldivian National Defence Force also said this week that it had found and defused a remote-controlled bomb near the president's official residence.

Tourists, who generally pass their time in an isolated bubble in on one of the country's numerous island resorts, reached by seaplane from the country’s capital Male, are not being advised to change their travel plans. But the move may put some off visiting and further tarnish the country’s reputation as a peaceful honeymoon destination.

Despite State of Emergency, situation in Maldives remains calm and normal. There are no restrictions for visitors to travel to Maldives.

“This hasn’t happened for a very long time and details about the state of emergency are very sketchy,” said a representative from the campaign group Ethical Maldives, who asked to remain anonymous. “But visitors should be warned that there is a large protest planned.

“There is also lots of police activity taking place in Male, with people’s homes being raiding. I’m concerned because tourists tend to spend a lot of money during Christmas and New Year. I spoke to a local hotelier who said the industry could be at breaking point if they don’t hit 55 – 60 per cent occupancy, which they need during this period.

“The people who will be put off the most will be the Chinese as they always cancel bookings after a big protest.”

"The resorts have long operated as almost a separate nation state to the rest of the Maldives," said JJ Robinson, author of The Maldives. "Tourists arrive on the airport island and are immediately whisked off to their resorts via speedboat or seaplane, never even stepping foot on an island Maldivians consider to be 'inhabited'."

As the vast majority of tourism employees are foreign workers, he said the resorts are largely insulated from political events such as the state of emergency.

"During the 2012 coup and the fall of the fledgling democracy, tourists barely looked up from their daiquiris," he added. "The country seems able to have pro-ISIS street rallies on islands barely a few hundred metres from sunlounging, bikini clad, cocktail sipping tourists without any kind of internal contradiction."

Indeed, despite the recent unrest, tourism – the archipelago's mainstay – has up until now remained robust, with more than one million visitors arriving a year.

There a signs though that President Yameen, who came to power in November 2013 following a controversial election, faces international censure over his crackdown on opponents of his regime.

In March, opposition leader Mohamed Nasheed, the country's first democratically elected leader, was jailed as the result of a rushed trial which the UN said was seriously flawed.

A rally is planned by the MDP in Male in the hope of pressuring Yameen to release Nasheed, whose incarceration has been severely criticised by the UN and international rights groups.

The Foreign Office warns that demonstrations have led to violence and arrests. “You should take appropriate security precautions,” it states, “comply with local security requirements and avoid large gatherings, protests and rallies.”

It also reminds travellers that there is no British Embassy or Consulate in Maldives and that those needing consular assistance should contact the British High Commission in Sri Lanka.

Narendra Modi, the Indian Prime Minister, this year shelved plans to visit the Maldives, a move seen as a rebuke to Yameen.

INDIA: As PM Modi Visits Silicon Valley, Air India's Gift For Techies

Air India today announced the launch of a non-stop flight to San Francisco from December 2, fulfilling a long-pending demand of Indian IT professionals on a day Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting the Silicon Valley.

"We are launching a direct non-stop flight to the San Francisco on December 2 as there was a demand for it," Air India CMD Ashwani Lohani announced at an event to celebrate the World Tourism Day in Delhi.

San Francisco will be the national carrier's fourth destination in the United States after New York, Newark and Chicago where it operates daily non-stop flights.

The Boeing 777-200 LR (Long Range) flight, to be operated on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, will have a convenient early morning departure and arrival. Similarly, the return flight would depart early morning departure from San Francisco and arrive in Delhi in the afternoon.

Air India officials said the flight will be a boon to the Indian diaspora on the US West Coast as it will make travel easy and convenient for students, NRIs and business travelers looking for direct options to connect with India.

The new flight would connect passengers from Indian cities of Bengaluru, Mumbai, Chennai, Kochi, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Pune and Bhubaneswar.

Referring to Air India's Discover India scheme, Mr Lohani also said there was a deep connect between tourism and civil aviation sectors and the airline was in discussion with Tourism Ministry to launching various schemes in this regard.

Effective today, Air India announced the Discover India scheme under which customers will have an option of buying a maximum of 5 or 10 coupons on its economy class.

The scheme for 5 coupons will cost Rs. 32,500 and can be availed within validity of 15 days, while the second scheme for 10 coupons would be available for Rs. 60,000 and valid for 30 days.

Mr Lohani said Air India will launch Incredible Air India Holiday packages from December 1, in association with the State Tourism Development Corporations.

The packages are being worked out it will be competitive and inclusive with the objective to help the tourists savour the sights and sounds of India in a comfortable, economical and enjoyable manner.