UP govt revives Jewar airport project, survey to start today
With the change in regime, the Uttar Pradesh (UP) government has started the process to revive the international airport project in Jewar. The Obstacle Limitation Surface (OLS) survey for the proposed airport will begin on Monday. Talking to DNA, Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) Chairman Prabhat Kumar said the proposal will soon be sent for clearance to the steering committee formed by the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation. According to officials, an OLS survey is mandatory before starting work on an international airport. They further said the survey is conducted to determine corners and midpoints of runway strips. “An Inclinometer (slope indicator) is required to calculate slope, which is determined according to the regulations applicable in a particular country. An OLS survey mobile app will be used to record observations, including photos, for each location. An electronically recorded survey report will then be automatically sent via email. The app is being used as part of an aviation safety management master emergency plan. The app can be tailored to include action plans for regional planning and zoning regulations as well,” an official said. San Francisco Giants Jersey
With A Flight In 65 Seconds, Mumbai World’s Busiest Single-Runway Airport
The GVK group-run Mumbai airport has become the world’s busiest amongst the single-runway facilities by handling 837 flights a day or one in 65 seconds on an average in fiscal 2017, overtaking London’s Gatwick airport that had 757 flights a day. In terms of the number of passengers also, the city airport tops with 45.2 million people flying in and out in fiscal 2017 as against 44 million at Gatwick airport. Notably, no other large city in the world is served by one airport, that too with a single-runway. Besides, illegal squatters occupy nearly one-third of the airport land. The second airport proposed in Navi Mumbai is yet to come up. All the leading cities like New York, London, Dubai, and Singapore have more than one airports with multiple runways. The New Delhi airport has three parallel runways in use at any given time. As against this, Mumbai has to make do with a single runway (09/27) for all passenger and cargo aircraft and when it is shut for repairs, it uses the secondary runway (1432). In terms of aircraft movement in a day, the city airport had one plane take-off or landing in 65 seconds, which means it handled on an average 48 flights, peaking at even 52 movements at times, making it the busiest in the world on both the counts, an airport spokesperson said. The ATC (air traffic controller) thus has to manage two arrivals every 130 seconds and one departure in between these two arrivals. So there is one take-off or touch-down every 65 seconds from the main runway. That means the land-starved airport handled a whopping 837 flight movements a day, which on an average is 80 flights more than Gatwick handling 757 movements in a day, the spokesperson said. There are days when the number crosses even 900 movements a day, she said. However, the Delhi airport handles much larger number of passengers. At 45.2 million, Mumbai handled only 18.6 per cent of the total air traffic in the country while the Delhi airport handled 57.7 million passengers or 21.6 per cent of the total air traffic in the country in fiscal 2017. Out of the 45.2 million passengers at the Mumbai airport, 12.4 million were international travellers. John Gibson Womens Jersey
Draft of revised rules for UDAN likely in two weeks
The government is likely to complete in the next two weeks framing of the draft of revised rules for its scheme to promote low cost air travel and put up for stakeholder consultations, as it prepares for the second round of bidding by airlines. The Ministry of Civil Aviation undertook a comprehensive review of the rules, including those relating to the number of discounted seats in a plane and exclusive flying rights for carriers on select routes, under its regional connectivity scheme (RCS). “In another two weeks we will be putting out the RCS (rules) with amendments for public consultations,” Ministry of Civil Aviation Secretary R N Choubey told PTI. Without elaborating on the specifics, the top official said the revision is being done with an emphasis on increasing competition. “Our intention is to decrease entry barriers and increase competition. We would like to bring as many players as possible. We want to create a level-playing field so that small players can bid aggressively,” Choubey added. In the first round of bidding, which concluded in March, five airline operators were awarded 128 routes. The regional connectivity scheme became operational last month with the first flight under it being inaugurated on the Shimla-Delhi route. Josh Reynolds Jersey
Mumbai airport gets green nod for Rs 3,500 crore expansion plan
The Mumbai airport has received environmental clearance for a Rs 3,500-crore expansion plan as well as shifting of the iconic air traffic control tower to Kalina as a long-term security strategy. The changes are set to take place over the next three years as the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) expands to accommodate 50 million passengers by 2020. Interestingly, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had said the first flight from the proposed Navi Mumbai airport will take off by 2019. Arguing its case before the Union environment ministry, MIAL, the consortium that operates the airport, said: “This is important as CSIA shall be required to serve the entire demand of Mumbai till the commencement of operations at the proposed Navi Mumbai International Airport.” On the drawing board for CSIA is a new vehicle underpass below the secondary runway that will ferry passengers between the two terminals in less than 15 minutes. At present, traversing the 4km between the terminals takes up to 30 minutes. MIAL’s ambitious expansion project, which got the nod of the Expert Appraisal Committee of the Union ministry of environment and forests and climate change last month, will require around 20 acres of the 308 acres of encroached airport land. This includes six acres for a taxiway from the parking apron of Terminal T2 to the main runway and 9.04 acres for another taxiway expansion to enhance airside safety and efficiency, said an MIAL spokesperson. The balance 4.9 acres will be for facilities like radar, aircraft parking, aerobridge, etc. Though MIAL has obtained permission to shift the awardwinning Air Traffic Control Tower (ATCT), the spokesperson said there were no immediate plans to relocate it. It was constructed around four years ago at acost of Rs 125 crore. “The current ATCT location is highly accessible from all sides. In view of threat perceptions of security agencies, MIAL is considering shifting the ATCT to a more secure location in the southern part of the airport as a long-term strategy. This project will be taken up for implementation only if advised by the security agencies after careful consideration of all aspects,” said a senior MIAL official. Another construction planed to enable more flights to take off is a bridge to connect the air craft parking apron of Terminal T2 to the taxiway leading to the main runway, creating additional holding area for aircraft ready for takeoff. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), which is the planning authority for the airport area, has identified slums in 11 priority areas that need to be shifted. The survey has been underway for one year despite severe opposition from local residents and political parties. The spokesperson said car go expansion work is already on. “It has been increased to 7.8 lakh metric tonnes and will be further expanded to one million metric tonnes. The expansion of the passenger terminals will require the relocation of slum dwellers. This will be done in accordance with the slum rehabilitation policy of the Maharashtra government for CSIA.” Residents of the surveyed slums will be relocated on the Premier Auto land at Kurla where around17,000 tenements have been constructed by HDIL in lieu of transfer of development rights to the tune of Rs 2,000 crore. MIAL refused to disclose how it proposes to develop the balance 288 acres of slum encroached land. CM Fadnavis has announced in situ rehabilitation while the previous Congress-led government had sanctioned a global floor space index of 1 for the entire airport land. The interim development plan approved for the airport notified area allows the non-aeronautical area to be used for hospitality, leisure, tourism and business activities. Riley Dixon Authentic Jersey
Chennai Petro won’t last as standalone, has to merge with us: IOC Chairman
Merger of Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd (CPCL) with Indian Oil Corporation is inevitable, taking CPCL’s viability into account in a volatile situation, says IOC’s Chairman. The public sector firm held talks with Naftiran Intertrade, the Swiss subsidiary of National Iranian Oil Company, which is yet to come forward and dilute its shareholding to pave the way for the merger. The development is a recent twist in the company’s story. Naftiran Intertrade’s stake in CPCL had, at one time, been a major issue in the wake of US sanctions against Iran. Besides, it was also a bottleneck for the company, which wanted to merge with IOC. The Iranian firm holds 15.4 per cent in CPCL, while IOC holds 52 per cent. B Ashok, chairman, Indian Oil Corporation said under the current circumstances the viability of a standalone refinery such as CPCL’s is questionable, given the current volatile situation prevalent in the sector. CPCL is the only standalone refinery in the country. CPCL has had a rough time in recent years and even was even referred to the BIFR in 2014-15, due to an erosion of more than 50 per cent in its net worth, to Rs 16.55 billion as on March 31, 2015. The company managed to turn around last year and by end of March 2017, its net worth was Rs 33.14 billion. CPCL also reported the second highest profit in its history, at Rs 10.2975 billion, up form Rs 7.4186 billion, a year ago. Ashok attributed this improvement in performance due to increase in operational efficiency and successful cost cutting measures. “In order to be a sustainable company, a company needs to be operational across segments and well diversified so that it can address volatility risk. That is what IOC did and it is better for CPCL also to be the same.” CPCL is also planning to take up a Rs 270 billion project for which about Rs 90 billion equity is required at Nagapatinam in Tamil Nadu. As a standalone company, CPCL may not be able mobilise such an amount, so we have asked the Iranian partner to bring in some equity. We have given lot of options to them (the Iranian company) and are in continuous dialogue with them,” said Ashok. Meanwhile the company reported a drop in net profit to Rs 1.7089 billion during the quarter ended March 31, 2017 as against Rs 2.4788 billion. The drop was mainly due to provisions the company made towards salary and pension and towards a project. Total income during the quarter rose to Rs 94.8688 billion from Rs 91.7169 billion. Paul Richardson Authentic Jersey
Iran Wants India To Pay Three Times Gas Price For Awarding Block To OVL: Report
Iran wants India to pay more than triple the gas price for award of the coveted Farzad-B natural gas block to ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL), the overseas arm of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC). Iran wants India to buy all of the natural gas to be produced from the Persian Gulf block at a price equivalent to the rate Qatar charges for selling liquefied natural gas (LNG) to India under a long-term deal. Qatar, as per a revised formula agreed upon in December 2015, sells 7.5 million tonnes a year of LNG to Petronet LNG Ltd – India’s biggest gas importer – at a price of $7-plus per million British thermal unit. The rate being sought by Iran is triple of $2.3 per mmBtu rate OVL is willing to pay for the gas during low global oil prices. If global rates rise, OVL is willing to pay $4.3 per mmBtu, sources privy to the development said. When oil prices move up, rates of LNG from Qatar would also rise. Sources said that since the lifting of western sanctions, Iran is playing hardball over award of the field which was discovered by OVL. OVL has recently submitted a $5.5 billion master development plan for bringing the gas in Farzad-B to production. Iran allows all the cost sunk in by an operator to be recovered from sale of oil or gas. For this reason, it wants OVL to reduce the cost of development as well as pay a higher gas price. The two nations were initially targeting concluding a deal on Farzad-B field development by November 2016 but later mutually agreed to push the timeline to February 2017. Now, the deal is being targeted to be wrapped up by September after the two sides agree on a price and a rate of return for OVL’s investments. Farzad B was discovered by OVL in the Farsi block about 10 years ago. The project has so far cost the OVL-led consortium, which also includes Oil India Ltd and Indian Oil Corp (IOC), over $80 million. Iran was initially unhappy with the $10 billion plan submitted by OVL for development of the 12.5 trillion cubic feet reserves in Farzad-B field and an accompanying plant to liquefy the gas for transportation in ships. It felt the $5 billion cost OVL and its partners have put for developing the field was on the higher side and wanted it to be reduced. ONGC Videsh will earn a fixed rate of return and get to recover all the investment it has made in the field development. Sources said that in the new master development plan (MDP), the company has estimated cost of putting up a facility to convert gas into LNG and shipping it to India at $5-6 billion. The field in the Farsi block has an in-place gas reserve of 21.7 tcf, of which 12.5 tcf are recoverable. New Delhi is keen that the gas from the field comes to India to feed the vast energy needs. But it initially felt deterred from investing because of the fear of sanctions imposed by the US. But with the lifting of sanctions last year, it is back to discussing a master development plan. Demarcus Lawrence Womens Jersey
Modi diktat paying off: India infrastructure projects on a roll
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s efforts to push delayed infrastructure projects are paying off. About a quarter of 1,201 projects valued at 16.9 trillion rupees ($262 billion) were delayed as of January, down from 43 percent two years back, according to a government report seen by Bloomberg News. Cost overruns have also come down to 11 per cent from 20 percent from March 2015. Of the total projects — each worth at least 1.5 billion rupees — 329 are running behind schedule, 293 have cost overruns, while 95 have both time and cost overrun compared to their original implementation schedules. Since coming to power in May 2014, Modi has been reviewing infrastructure projects, setting targets for ministries, taking steps to ease bottlenecks and encouraging overseas companies to set up factories. Still, projects from sectors including coal, power, petroleum, railways and road have been running behind schedule, primarily because of a delay in attracting finance, land acquisition and environmental clearances and a lack of infrastructure support and linkages. As the government implemented initiatives such as the delegation of decision-making power, setting deadlines and reforming contract rules, the stalled public projects stared moving, said Manish Agarwal, Leader, Capital Projects & Infrastructure, PricewaterhouseCoopers India. “Government intentions have translated into reality.” The government is focusing on an “increase in public spending, completion of stalled projects rather than the announcement of new projects, the resolution of private stalled projects and bringing new projects into the market for private investment,” said Agarwal. With the government’s recent steps to reduce non-performing assets of banks, there will be some increase in private investment, said Agarwal. In the latest review meeting on April 26, Modi called for a consolidated approach to existing projects. India needs $646 billion investment in the next five years to meet its infrastructure demand, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said in April. Denzel Perryman Jersey
Transport Unions Strike, 22,000 Buses Go Off Roads, Commuters Hit In Tamil Nadu
Commuters are facing a harrowing time in Tamil Nadu as 22,000 state-run buses have remained off roads after many transport unions began their indefinite strike on Sunday. Their demands include revision of wages, settlement of Rs. 1,700 crore dues for more than 10,000 retired workers and government taking over operational losses of transport corporations among other issues. As a majority of Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation buses stopped plying yesterday after talks with the government failed, passengers across the state were stranded for hours with not many commuting options available. The government has agreed to discuss the matter with the unions to reach a consensus. Transport Minister MR Vijayabaskar said 37 unions were in support of the government. Ten other unions, including those headed by DMK and Left, are participating in the strike. He said the government was ready to hold talks to break the logjam if the unions came forward for discussions. “Efforts are on to operate the bus service in full strength even as 2,000 private vehicles have been pressed into action in Chennai to clear the rush,” he said. Police protection is being provided to buses plying on the roads, the minister said. The government is also mulling deploying retired and private drivers to run additional buses, officials said. It has also requested the Southern Railway to operate inter-city services between Chennai and other cities. It has also increased number of services on the various suburban routes in and around Chennai. Derek Watt Jersey
Villagers in Haryana end protest over expressway construction
The construction work on the KGP and KMP Expressways has resumed as farmers at Badhkhalsa village at Sonipat ended their protest after assurances from the district administration that they’d be duly compensated, the state authorities said on Sunday. The villagers had been protesting against the acquisition of their land for construction of road and roundabout of Kundli-Ghaziabad-Palwal Expressway and Kundli-Manesar-Palwal expressways since November 17, 2005, an official statement said on Sunday. “As the villagers were not ready to give up their land, the construction work had to be halted. The farmers recently ended their protest,” it said. The construction of the road was restarted after the BJP government came to power in Haryana in 2014. “On April 19, 2016, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar held a meeting with the villagers where he offered the villagers land in other locations in lieu of the land to be acquired. He had also instructed the district administration to comply with these orders,” the statement read. Following this, Sonipat Deputy Commissioner, K Makrand Pandurang, held talks with the villagers and offered land or enhanced compensation. “While 70 farmers were recently paid compensation, land at other locations would be provided to the remaining 212 farmers, for which the process has already been started,” it said. The 135-km long Eastern Peripheral Expressway (KGP) envisages signal-free connectivity between Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Gautam Budh Nagar (Greater Noida) and Palwal. The two expressways were planned in 2006 following the Supreme Court order to form a ring road outside Delhi for channeling non-Delhi bound traffic bypassing the national capital. Evan Turner Authentic Jersey
Safety on NHs and State Highways raising concern
Eight deaths in two accidents barely few hours apart on Friday, that too just two days after the ghastly accident that claimed two lives including that of Nishith Narayana, and the question is back again. How safe are our roads and highways? That the highways, both National and State, passing through the State, along with the Outer Ring Road (ORR), have turned virtual death traps over the last few years is not a new fact. As many as 2,377 people have lost their lives in 3,137 road accidents from 2013 to 2015 on 12 NH/SH stretches and the Outer Ring Road (ORR). And in 2016, as per figures from the National Accident Data, 225 accidents were recorded on every 100 km of national highways, while there were 126 deaths recorded on every 100 km of State highways. And with Friday’s accidents, the toll has climbed higher. “There is a need to re-do the road safety awareness programmes and safety campaigns,” feels Additional Director-General of Police (Road Safety), T Krishna Prasad. A massive awareness campaign was taken out in January, which Prasad says had yielded major results. The accident growth rate in the first quarter of the year had gone up by six per cent across the country, while in Telangana, it had dipped by one per cent. This was in comparison with the figures of the first quarter of 2016. The number of deaths in accidents, again when the two first quarters of 2016 and 2017 were compared, had grown by seven per cent across the country, while in Telangana, it fell by four per cent. However, public memory is short, and the campaign has to be taken up again, he says, adding that educational institutions, IT firms, and all other stakeholders would be involved in another massive campaign to be taken up in the first week of July. At the same time, efforts are on to straighten out a few bottlenecks on highways, like clearing defects which make certain stretches black spots on highways, apart from mapping hospitals nearest to such black spots using Geographic Information System (GIS). Villagers will also be sensitised to help accident victims, Prasad said. Study pins the blame on poor reporting, infra Hyderabad: Poor implementation of laws, lack of coherent data collection and glitches in infrastructure are some of the reasons behind India’s increasing road mishaps, a study by National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (Nimhans) says. Titled ‘Advancing Road Safety in India: Implementation is the Key’, the study was conducted in collaboration with global safety science consultant UL as part of the fourth United Nations Global Road Safety Week (May 8-14). The study, which puts out bare facts on road accidents and deaths, points at inefficiency in the implementation of laws due to divided responsibility between Central and State governments. It also says the country lacks comprehensive data collection and analysis of police and hospital records. Poorly maintained roads and trauma centres is another reason the study lists out, among other factors. According to the study, pedestrians (30%-40 %), two-wheeler riders/pillions (30%-40 %) and cyclists (10%) account for nearly 80% of casualties and injuries. These figures are in complete contrast with government records due to flawed reporting practices. Some studies suggest that the number of deaths is likely to be 20% higher than what is declared, while serious injuries are underreported by more than 50%. The study goes on to quote Ministry of Road Transport and Highways data — only 22.1% of accidents and 11.3% of road deaths of the total 50 million plus cases were reported in 2015. “A large number of crashes and deaths occur on rural roads (most of these include national and State highways) where road safety is yet to gain prominence,” it states. The study will be used as reference to address the road safety crisis afflicting the country, a statement read. DeAndre Jordan Jersey