No violation in building pseudo bridges: NHAI
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has dismissed as “ totally misleading” the allegation raised by environmentalists over constructing an “illegal” pseudo bridge over the Yamuna. It has noted that the NHAI has taken up the construction of Delhi-Meerut Expressway for providing seamless connectivity between the Capital and suburbs of Ghaziabad, Meerut and the rest of U.P. and Uttarakhand. “This road is being upgraded to 14 lanes (6 lane Expressway at the Centre and 4 lane National Highway on each side). As part of this project, existing bridge over Yamuna at Nizamuddin is also being expanded with parallel 4 lane bridge on each side for removing bottlenecks for movement of traffic between central Delhi and trans-Yamuna areas. It would also decongest Delhi in addition to free movement of traffic,” it explained. To assess the impact of the proposed bridges, a hydraulic study has been carried out by IIT-Roorkee. “From the studies it has been established that there is no impact on Yamuna floodplain area on account of the construction of the proposed bridges. In the proposed bridge, the location of piers has been kept at the same location as of the existing bridge. To further minimise the impact, the span for the proposed bridge has been kept double of the existing bridge. Even a number of culverts have also been proposed in the embankment of the approaches of existing bridge to provide connectivity between upstream and downstream of the floodplains of river Yamuna. In fact, there will be positive impact due to the construction of these bridges,” the Authority said. It maintained that already clearance from the Inland Waterways Authority of India has been obtained. The proposal for clearance has also been submitted to Yamuna Standing committee and Principal Committee of NGT. An application before NGT is also being moved for its clearance. The Authority was reacting to a letter wriiten by environmentalists to L-G Najeeb Jung and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal seeking their intervention in protecting the Yamuna. Geoff Swaim Womens Jersey
Union Government launches Indian Bridge Management System
The Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has launched the Indian Bridge Management System (IBMS). It was launched by Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari in New Delhi as a major step towards ensuring safety of bridges in the country. Key Facts IBMS is being developed to create an inventory of all bridges in country and rate structural condition of the bridges. The rating will help for their timely repair and carrying rehabilitation work based on the criticality of the structure. IBMS is the largest platform in the world owned by a single owner, with database that could exceed one lakh fifty thousand bridge structures. How it will work? Each bridge will be assigned a unique identification number or National Identity Number (NIN) based on the state, RTO zone or located on National Highway, State Highway. Bridge Location Number (BLN) will be also assigned to each bridge based on the precise location of the bridge in terms of latitude-longitude is collected through GPS. Thereafter, Bridge Classification Number (BCN) will be assigned to the bridge structure based on the different engineering characteristics. Each bridge will be assigned a Structural Rating Number (SRN) based on allocated numbers which will be used for structural rating of bridge structures on a scale of 0 to 9. The rating will take in consideration of each component of the bridge structure like integral and non-integral deck, substructure, superstructure, structural evaluation, bank and channel, deck geometry, waterway efficiency, vertical clearance, etc. In addition Socio-Economic Bridge Rating Number will be also assigned to the bridges. It will decide importance of bridge in relation to its contribution to daily socio-economic activity of the area in its vicinity. Based on this inventory of various numbers, IBMS will analyse data and identify bridges that need attention. Further physical inspection will be carried out to improve the operational availability of the structure, enhance its life and prioritize repair and rehabilitation work. Reggie Bush Womens Jersey
nfra bonds Yes Bank raises Rs 2,135 cr via long-term infra bonds
Private sector lender Yes Bank today said it has raised Rs 2,135 crore by issuing long-term infrastructure bonds and will use the proceeds to finance affordable housing and infrastructure projects. This is the single largest issuance of infrastructure bonds by Yes Bank. “Yes Bank has successfully raised Rs 2,135 crore of senior long-term infrastructure bonds. The issue witnessed strong demand from leading domestic investors including several insurance companies, asset management companies, corporates, pension funds, provident funds and gratuity funds, resulting in a total subscription of Rs 2,135 crore,” it said in a release. The bond is carrying coupon rate of 8 per cent per annum with a tenor of 10 years. The issue was closed on September 30. The issue garnered Rs 2,135 crore against a base size of Rs 1,000 crore, with Rs 1,135 crore raised through green shoe option. “Yes Bank will use the proceeds to finance projects in the infrastructure sector and its recent thrust on affordable housing as a part of the overall retail strategy,” Yes Bank MD & CEO Rana Spoor said. In September, Yes Bank has raised Rs 330 crore by issuing green infrastructure bonds to Dutch Development Bank FM, which was the latter’s first investment in green infrastructure bonds in India. J’Mon Moore Womens Jersey
25 new roads to be developed under TenderSURE
The civic body will take up work on at least 25 new roads under TenderSURE in the coming months. At a review meeting held on Tuesday, Bengaluru City Development Minister K.J. George directed the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to redesign at least 25 roads each under the TenderSURE footpath model and to white-top another 25 “at the earliest”. BBMP had proposed to take up TenderSURE works on 50 roads last year. “We will start work on half the identified roads. These will be in the Central Business District,” said Commissioner Manjunath Prasad. The proposed roads include some of the busiest stretches in the city, including M.G. Road, Brigade Road, Infantry Road, Queen’s Road, Victoria Road, Magrath Road, Indiranagar 100 Feet Road, and CMH Road. In all, work will be taken up on 36.78 km of road. “The detailed project report for 13 of these roads has already been prepared, and the State government has sanctioned funds. We will see work on these roads soon. We will also ensure trees are not cut there and the road width not compromised,” said Mayor G. Padmavathi. Meanwhile, concretisation will be taken up on Magadi Road, St. John’s Church road,and Dhanvantri Road. During the review meeting, the Minister said 65 km of storm-water drains will be completed by March, and the remaining 55 km taken up next year. The whole project will cost Rs. 800 crore. ‘The DPR for 13 of these roads has been prepared, and the State government has sanctioned funds’ Deshaun Watson Authentic Jersey
AAI organises workshop on ‘Vigilance as a Management tool’ at Trivandrum Airport
A workshop was organised by the Corporate Vigilance Department, Airports Authority of India at Trivandrum Airport on the topic “Vigilance as a Management tool” on September 29 and 30. Around 60 Executives and Non-Executives from Trivandrum, Tuticorin, Madurai and Cochin Airports participated in the workshop. Besides general issues, the workshop also covered varied aspects of vigilance and disciplinary matters. Jacob Punoose, Retd. DGP, Kerala(IPS:1975) also addressed the participants. Among the eminent speakers, Vijay Menon, renowned Industry HR trainer and Motivational Speaker spoke on “Optimizing Human Excellence”. Dale Hawerchuk Jersey
Regional Connectivity Scheme: Centre plans to bid out routes to participating airlines this month
In order to ensure that the first flight under the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS) takes off from January next year, the government plans to bid out the routes to participating airlines later this month. The Ministry of Civil Aviation will unveil the final RCS policy by mid-October after which it will invite bids from the airlines wanting to fly on regional routes, civil aviation secretary Rajiv Nayan Choubey said. The bids for routes will be on “reverse auction” basis, he told The Indian Express. This means an airline quoting the lowest amount of subsidy would get the right to fly on a particular route. Apart from bidding out a pair of routes, the government will also auction a network of routes. The Centre has already signed memorandum of understanding with states including Gujarat, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh among other for the RCS. It signed an MoU with Puducherry on Friday for implementing RCS in the state. The Centre has proposed to cap fares at Rs 2,500 for a one-hour flight under the RCS. Airlines operating under the RCS will get viability gap funding and a host of other benefits such as lowers taxes and airport charges to promote regional connectivity. The government has already notified setting up of a Regional Air Connectivity Fund for providing viability gap funding to aircraft operators. The Centre will share 80 per cent of the cost of viability gap funding while the states will share the remaining 20 per cent. B.J. Goodson Jersey
Air India moving towards turnaround: CMD
Air India Ltd is moving towards a turnaround and expecting even better performance after narrowing June quarter loss to INR 246 crore from INR 316 crore in the year-ago period. “Yes, we are definitely moving towards that turnaround. Last year it was good. This year would be better. Next year should be even better. We narrowed our June quarter loss to INR 246 crore from INR 316 crore in the corresponding quarter last year,” Ashwani Lohani, CMD, Air India Chairman told reporters after inauguration of the airline’s new booking office in Bengaluru. Air India’s operational margins were affected by intense fare war unleashed by private carriers during the first quarter of this fiscal, leading to the state-run carrier posting operational loss of INR 246 crore. Asked how long it would take for Air India to come out of losses, Lohani said he cannot give a specific timeline due to factors relating to the market. “I can’t give a specific time because a lot of things are decided by the market. The ticket prices are decided by the market. However, we would try to improve our services or efficiency,” he said. To a query, Lohani admitted that the market share of the airliner has gone down domestically, but internationally it was a big player. Lohani said Air India plans to regain domestic market share by going in for huge induction in domestic segment in next one year. “In next one year, there is going to be a huge induction in domestic segment, and with that induction we are going to regain our market domestic market share,” he said. On tapping international market, Lohani said the airliner will have nine brand new aircraft – six Dreamliners and three Boeing 777 in the next two years. Sterling Shepard Authentic Jersey
Air traffic: 26% gowth in domestic passengers
After three years of negative growth, the Jaipur International Airport has registered a whopping domestic passenger growth of 26% in 2015-16, bringing cheers to the state’s tourism sector. This is higher than the national average growth of 20.5% for the year. Passenger traffic swelled from 18.71 lakh in 2014-15 to 25.40 lakh in 2015-16, adding 7 lakh passengers more than the previous year. This can be attributed to the significant rise in domestic aircraft movement, which rose from 18,648 flights in 2014-15 to 22,772 in 2015-16. During the same period, the frequency of flights has also shot up from 32 daily in May 2015 to 48 at present. B K Tailang, airport director, Sanganer, said that a few more airlines would start operations from Jaipur. “The rising congestion in Delhi offers abundant opportunities for Jaipur in both domestic and international sectors. The new terminal is meant to handle 70 flight movements. This means that we have a lot of potential,” he said. After completing the runway extension, the airport has overcome the last obstacle for the entry of premium luxury international airlines. He also pointed to the possibilities of operators increasing flight frequency on existing routes. Alfred Morris Jersey
Power demand falls, but installed solar capacity up
Solar power installations in the country have reached 8,643MW, driven by four states crossing the 1gw solar installation mark on the back of the Modi government constantly pushing renewable energy as part of its climate management policy. Some 500MW solar capacity was added in a month through September, indicating solar installations continue to grow in spite of a slowdown in power demand, declining capacity utilisation of thermal projects and availability of cheaper power on the electricity exchanges. Green energy market tracker Mercom Capital has projected a total capacity of 4.8GW for calendar year 2016. Installations have already reached a capacity of 3.8GW. According to the latest Mercom report, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Andhra have crossed the 1GW solar installation mark. These states displayed significant activity in the sector and together accounted for 59% of the 8.6GW installed so far. Cumulative solar installations in the country had topped 7.5GW in May. India has 14GW of solar projects in various stages of development and another 7GW waiting to be auctioned. “The challenge is going to come next year when approximately 9GW of solar power is forecast to be installed. Unless the ‘must run’ status for solar projects is strictly enforced, we are going to see some challenges,” Mercom CEO Raj Prabhu said. Low bidding tariffs in an immature energy — especially power — market and infrastructure failing to keep pace with the rapid rise in solar capacity have heightened apprehensions over future funding and viability of projects. At the end of 2015-16, solar accounted for 2.5% of the net installed capacity in the country, up from 1.4% a year ago, and was the fastest-growing new energy source. Solar accounted for 17.4% of all renewable energy generation in 2015-16 against 10.5% in 2014-15. “The Indian solar market is growing in size but infrastructure and systems have not kept pace with auction announcements. For the sector to move from 2GW to a 10GWa-year market, work still needs to be done,” Mercom’s quarterly report in May had quoted Prabhu as saying. Low bidding levels through reverse auctions have been a concern at a time when the Indian banking sector is going through its own challenges, which could make borrowing much more difficult. But according to Prabhu, there is no set rule which says tariffs below Rs 5 per unit cannot be financed. Some banks are seriously looking at projects in the Rs 4.5-5 tariff range, but financing depends on sound project economics, borrower credibility, a strong balance sheet and the developer’s ability to service debt. According to the Mercom report, creating a ‘reserve backstop fund’ against nonpayments or delayed payments by discoms using NCEF funds could take care of late tariff payment problems, rooftop subsidy delays and have a positive impact by eliminating offtaker risk, reducing interest rates and increasing lending. Tedric Thompson Jersey
Tripura government yet to clear power dues
The Tripura State Electricity Corporation Limited (TSECL) will have a tough time ensuring uninterrupted power supply during Durga Puja as the state government and many individual consumers have not cleared their power bills yet. Forty government departments have not cleared electricity bills amounting to more than Rs 23 crore between February and July this year, TSECL officials said. According to the state electricity corporation, the health department has the highest outstanding bills – Rs 539.67 lakh. The lowest – Rs 0.22 lakh – has to be paid by the factories and boilers department. The governor’s secretariat is yet to pay Rs 3.15 lakh and the secretariat administration has to pay Rs 123.77 lakh. The government press, law department and revenue department owe Rs 3.50 lakh, Rs 13.98 lakh and Rs 119.39 lakh, respectively. Rs 312.36 lakh is pending with the home department, Rs 17.68 lakh with the information and cultural affairs department, Rs 133.97 lakh with the school education department, Rs 400.40 lakh with the panchayat department, Rs 0.87 lakh with the cooperatives department and Rs 0.64 lakh with the urban development department. TSECL, however, said adequate measures have been taken to avoid power cuts during Durga Puja. The corporation has finalised a deal with power generation companies and neighbouring states to ensure additional supply of around 300 MW power during peak hours. The Tripura government meanwhile said it will borrow Rs 250 crore from United Bank of India at 9.9% interest to pay around Rs 300 crore to major power generation companies, including NEEPCo and ONGC Thermal Power Company. Rs 100 crore will be taken in this fiscal, Rs 100 crore in the next fiscal and Rs 50 crore later. Tripura draws an average of 85 MW power from NEEPCo daily but has yet to pay Rs 180.33 crore since May 2013. Similarly, the state draws power from OTPC’s gas-based, combined cycle power project at Palatana but has dues of Rs 100 crore. Devonta Freeman Womens Jersey