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Miraculous escape for 408 as Boeing skids off runway
Runway uncomfortable for landing?
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Rane sworn in as Cabinet Minister
Batra may be new Railway Board head
No make-or-break situation in Indo-Bhutan ties
BJP to go it alone in AP
Bihar issue has taken backseat: Fernandes
Hit lashes out at Congress, DSGMC chief
Amarinder meets Sonia
Nitish seeks Buta’s recall
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Miraculous escape for 408 as Boeing skids off runway
Mumbai, July 30 The mishap happened this morning when the flight bound for Chicago via Frankfurt began taxying for take off. Airline sources say, the commander was trying to abort take off on the orders of the Air Traffic Control and had applied brakes. But due to continuous rainfall, the pilot did not apply full brakes to prevent the aircraft from skidding. As a result, the plane overshot the runway and its nose wheel landed on the muck ahead of the runway just metres away from the boundary wall of the airport. The nose-wheel of the aircraft also damaged some runway lights on the secondary runway. Sources say, the consequences would have been disastrous had the aircraft rammed into the wall. Nudging the wall are a large number of slums housing thousands of people. The Director-General of Civil Aviation will conduct an inquiry into the incident. The Mumbai airport was closed for more than two hours and all flights were diverted to other cities. According to an AI spokesperson, the damaged aircraft was pulled out of the muck and towed away in about 90
minutes. The 408 passengers were accommodated in another Boeing 767-400, which took off at 12.05 pm. AI officials who did not reveal the name of the pilot said he was a senior executive pilot with the airline with several years of experience. |
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Runway uncomfortable for landing?
New Delhi, July 30 Reports here said that the AI Boeing was operating on “runway 1432” which, some of the international airlines had refused to use as its approach is from the city side and proves to be very uncomfortable for the pilots to assess the conditions in such a scenario. The runway was being used apparently as the main runway has been unfit for landing as yet. However, aviation experts are questioning the very reason for using a runway which is uncomfortable for the pilots putting on risk the lives of the passengers. There were over 330 passengers on board the AI flight when it overshot the runway. Meanwhile, as a result of the accident over the “uncomfortable runway”, the Singapore Airlines (SIA) has cancelled four of its flights from Mumbai which would have operated from today till Monday. The airlines said the flights would not be operated till the time the main runway gets fully operational after their submergence following torrential rains. The flights, SQ 421 of July 30, SQ 423 and SQ 421 of July 31 and SQ 423 of August one, have been cancelled. The airline advised the passengers of these flights to contact their travel agents for re-bookings when operations are resumed. The Civil Aviation here said preliminary reports had suggested that the pilot did not apply full brakes to avoid skidding on the wet runway. He had estimated that the plane would come to a stop before the end of the runway. It did so, but the nosewheel went out of the runway by a few feet. Incidentally, investigations so far have revealed that the aircraft had touched down on the runway at the correct touchdown point and that the pilot had applied 80 per cent of the brakes, the required strength, at the time of the landing. The aircarft had everything operationally correct at Experts are also pointing to the possibility of the pilot being fatigued and that there was a similar incident with the AI in New York also some months ago. The main runway had been opened for outgoing flights on Saturday and it would become operational for landing too in a couple of days, he said. Reports suggest that AI pilots have been raising safety issues with the management but they have been ignored in the past. Mr Patel said the Air India pilot was a senior executive pilot who had decided not to apply hard brakes, which could have increased the chances of skidding when torrential rains were on. The secondary runway had taken the load of 500 flights since operations resumed at the Mumbai airport on Thursday afternoon, he said. “The secondary runway is always used when the main runway is not available,” he said. The runways were submerged due to the heavy rains, the highly-sophisticated electronic instrument landing system and navigational aids were under water and slush. “Since these are very sensitive equipment, these have to be fully tested before they can be used,” he said, adding that work on this direction was already on. |
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Rane sworn in as Cabinet Minister
Mumbai, July 30 Mr Rane’s entry into the Congress, originally scheduled for Thursday, was postponed due to the flood situation in the state. This morning he was officially inducted into the party at its office at Tilak Bhavan in central Mumbai. “I will work for the Congress for the rest of my life,” Mr Rane told reporters after his induction into the party. He later thanked Congress President Sonia Gandhi for taking him into the party. Mr Rane had told mediapersons yesterday that he wanted to join the Deshmukh Cabinet immediately so that he could oversee the relief efforts in his Konkan region. |
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Batra may be new Railway Board head
New Delhi, July 30 The formal order on Mr Batra’s appointment is expected on Sunday. The names of Mr R.S. Varshneya, Member (Staff) and Mr R.R. Jaruhar, Member (Engineering), were also considered for the post. Mr Batra joined the Indian Railways in December 1969 and has held key posts. He has been the Chief Operating Manager and the Chief Freight Traffic Manager of South Eastern Railway. Although Mr R. K. Singh’s last working day in Rail Bhavan was hectic, following an explosion in an unreserved coach in Shramjeevi Express, he appeared relaxed. He began his day by calling up the Union Home Minister and the Home Secretary and sought the help of forensic experts in ascertaining the cause of the explosion. He stressed the need for better sharing of intelligence with the state governments to prevent similar mishaps. Mr R. K.Singh, who took over as the Chairman Railway Board in July 2003, said he had a wonderful and very satisfying time in the high office that he held. Asked to comment on the speculation that he was likely to get an extension till the Bihar elections, Mr R. K. Singh said: “Being in the apex chair, I would not like to get an extension even for a single day. It has been very satisfying having worked for 38 years with the Indian Railways which is like a family.” Asked about his experience with Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, he said: “It was a wonderful experience.” |
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No make-or-break situation in Indo-Bhutan ties
New Delhi, July 30 Well placed sources in the Ministry of External Affairs rubbished a report in a national English daily that India was taken aback by Bhutan’s announcement that it had agreed to “change the claim line” in boundary talks with China and said no knee-jerk reaction could be expected from India, given the fact that Bhutan-China border talks had been going on for more than two decades. India and Bhutan share warm and cordial relations and a tradition of periodic exchange of high-level visits and the upcoming visit of the King should be seen in this light. The entire range of bilateral and other issues of mutual interest will be on the table when the King interacts with the top Indian leadership, including President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, External Affairs Minister K. Natwar Singh, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee and other Cabinet ministers. The Prime Minister will host a dinner in honour of the King. The royal dignitary will also meet UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi. Since King Wangchuk’s August 1-4 visit is a working visit, no agreements are on the anvil, nor would there be a joint statement at the end of the visit. The King’s talks with the Indian leadership would focus on issues like security, border management, hydel power generation and the renewal of trade agreement. This will be King Wangchuk’s third India visit since November last. He was also the Chief Guest at India’s Republic Day parade this January. Bhutan is the only neighbouring country, which has mounted a full-fledged military action against Indian insurgents on its soil, though Myanmar also followed up later with limited military strikes against Indian insurgents on Myanmarese soil. There have been regular high-level visits from India to Bhutan in past one year, both at political and military levels. External Affairs Minister K. Natwar Singh and his deputy Rao Inderjit Singh have visited Bhutan, while the Indian Army Chief, Gen J. J. Singh and the Director-General of Military Operations, Lt-Gen Madan Gopal have also been to Bhutan. These visits were “routine” and not caused by any diplomatic emergency. |
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BJP to go it alone in AP
Hyderabad, July 30 Addressing a party executive meeting at the coastal town of Nellore today, the state BJP president N. Indrasena Reddy, while declaring that the party would fight the forthcoming municipal poll on its own, bracketed the TDP with its principal rivals — the Congress, Communists and the TRS for pursuing “blatantly opportunistic politics”. Taking exception to the TDP repeatedly blaming the BJP for losing the minority vote in the last Assembly election, Mr Reddy countered that the regional party should not forget that it got immensely benefited in the 1999 polls because of the alliance with the BJP. “The BJP actually suffered losses in the 2004 elections because of the tie-up with the then ruling TDP,” the state BJP president pointed out. |
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Bihar issue has taken backseat: Fernandes
New Delhi, July 30 The JD(U) president also made it clear that the temple issue would not have any impact on the coming elections to the Bihar Assembly. Without naming the BJP or Mr Advani, he said: “Some people are bothered about Ayodhya and some others about some other issues but Bihar is burning and nobody seems to be bothered about it.” He was speaking to mediapersons at a seminar on FDI in the retail sector. The JD(U) leader asserted that the Ram Temple issue would have no bearing on the upcoming Bihar elections as these were not being fought on any religious issues. He said elections would be fought on Lalu’s “misrule and loot of the state. Even senior officers have now accused that Governor’s rule is no different from Lalu’s rule”. The NDA convener said the Ram Temple issue should be resolved through negotiations, failing which the court decision should be accepted by one and all. “There cannot be a legislation on such issues,” he said dismissing the Sangh Parivar’s suggestion for a law in this regard. |
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Hit lashes out at Congress, DSGMC chief
New Delhi, July 30 Talking with The Tribune, Hit said the DSGMC president had clearly spelt out the purpose behind the Punjab Chief Minister’s visit and how Sarna had acted as a facilitator in the endeavour. SAD Delhi unit chief today said the Punjab Chief Minister first addressed a gathering right below “Khalistan Zindabad” banner in Canada in a gurdwara, which is considered to be the hub of Sikh separatists. It was followed by a “hush-hush” visit to Dubai, which was sponsored by Sarna. The two events indicated that they were acting in quite an understanding of each other, he alleged. “The Congress, shunned by the Sikhs after the 1984-riots, is being encouraged by Sarna causing displeasure and discomfort to the members of the community in the Capital,” Hit alleged. He said: “Congress leaders, who avoided visiting gurdwaras, were being presented siropas by Sarna. Irony is that the religious honour is being extended to those who were alleged to have perpetrated the riots against the Sikhs.” SAD Delhi unit president said the DSGMC was concentrating more on political issues rather than those of the gurdwara and concerns of the community. He pointed out that four schools run by the DSGMC had been de-recognised by the authorities and little effort was being made to protect the interest of the students. |
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Amarinder meets Sonia
New Delhi, July 30 Describing the meeting as “routine,” sources close to the Chief Minister said he apprised Ms Gandhi of the development endeavours of the state government. With the state scheduled to face elections after nearly a year and a half and some major promises in the party manifesto still pending, the Chief Minister apprised Ms Gandhi of the ways in which his government intended to fulfil these promises, the sources said. |
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Nitish seeks Buta’s recall
Bhagalpur (Bihar), July 30 “The haste with which the Governor transferred the officers shows that transfers were made at the behest of others to please a particular political party. We strongly condemn the action and seek his immediate recall,” JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar said. “It is strange that even the Chief Secretary was not taken into confidence while effecting the transfers,” he said. Kumar accused Singh of running the state in cahoots with Lalu Prasad. “They are together pushing Bihar down the path of ruin. President’s Rule has become an extension of the Lalu-Rabri regime,” he said. Seventeen IPS officers, including Siwan SP Ratan Sanjay, were transferred late Thursday night triggering a virtual revolt by the state Chief Secretary G.S. Kang, who proceeded on long leave yesterday.
— PTI |
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