Adani Group acquires 74% stake in Mumbai international airport
New Delhi (NVI): The Adani Group today announced that it has acquired 74 per cent stake in Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai. This makes the group the second largest private operator in India after the GMR group, which operates the Delhi and Hyderabad airports.
This is the first major airport win for Adani Group, one of the largest homegrown conglomerate who has recently entered airport operation business in India.
In a filing with stock exchanges, billionaire Gautam Adani’s company said it will buy 50.5 per cent stake held by GVK Group and will take steps to acquire 23.5 per cent stake of minority partners – Airport Company of South Africa and the Bidvest Group, according to media reports.
Airports Company South Africa and Bidvest Group hold 10 per cent and 13.5 per cent stake respectively of the Mumbai International Airport.
In addition to this, the acquisition will also give the Adanis ownership of the upcoming Navi Mumbai Airport, in which Mumbai International Airport Limited holds 74 per cent stake.
Furthermore, Adani has already won bids to operate and manage development of six airports – Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Mangalore, Jaipur, Guwahati and Thiruvananthapuram.
Meanwhile, in March 2019, the Adani Group had agreed to acquire 13.5% stake of Bidvest Group for Rs 1,248 crore. However, GVK Group blocked the deal claiming the right of first refusal, but failed to buy stake in Bidvest, after which the matter went to court.
-CHK
Centre rushes teams to manage COVID-19 situation in eastern states
New Delhi (NVI): The Union Health Ministry today decided to deploy high level Central teams to four States of Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and Odisha.
According to the ministry, these states are seeing a sudden surge in the number of COVID-19 cases and some of them are also reporting high mortality.
“The teams will support the State efforts towards strengthening containment, surveillance, testing and efficient clinical management of the positive cases,” the Ministry of Health said in a statement.
They shall also guide the states in effectively managing the challenges related to timely diagnosis and follow up. Each of the multi-sectoral teams will comprise of an epidemiologist and a public health expert, it added.
The ministry further said that most number of deaths are reported in Uttar Pradesh (3,423) while Odisha, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh are reporting 482, 410 and 269 deaths cumulatively.
“Of these four states, Uttar Pradesh has the maximum number of active cases secured at 54,666, followed by Odisha (27,219), Chhattisgarh (13,520) and Jharkhand which has 11,577 active cases,” it added
Moreover, in terms of total COVID-19 cases, Uttar Pradesh has 2,25,632, Odisha (1,00,934), Jharkhand (38,435) and Chhattisgarh has 30,092 cases.
The Central government has been deputing teams from time to time to visit various States to interact with the authorities and get a understanding of the challenges and issues being faced by them so as to strengthen their ongoing activities, the ministry said.
-RJV
Gadkari to inaugurate, lay foundation stone of 11 highway projects in UP
New Delhi (NVI): Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, will lay foundation stone of and inaugurate 11 highway projects in Uttar Pradesh tomorrow.
These projects for inauguration and foundation laying carry a road length of 363 kilometres, involving construction value of Rs 4,281 crore.
Paving the way for development of UP, these roads will enhance better connectivity, convenience and economic growth in and around the state. Movement of people and goods to and from Uttar Pradesh will also improve substantially especially with the neighbouring states.
Better roads lead to savings in time and fuel, as also lower emission of pollutants. Further these projects will decongest roads and the towns en-route, contributing to improved road experience, a statement by MoRTH read.
UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will preside over the virtual function, to be attended by MoS-RTH Gen (Retd) V K Singh, UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, Ministers from the State, several MPs, MLAs and senior officers from the Centre and the State.
Earlier on August 25, Nitin Gadkari also inaugurated and laid foundation stone for 45 highway projects in Madhya Pradesh, involving a construction value of Rs 11,427 crore.
-CHK
Parts of South India likely to receive heavy rainfall for next 4 days : IMD
New Delhi (NVI): Heavy rainfall is likely to lash parts of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu over the next few days, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
The Met Department said that under the influence of strengthening of the north-south trough along the east coast, rainfall intensity over peninsular India is very likely to increase from September 1.
“South Interior Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu are very likely to receive isolated heavy to very heavy falls on September 2 and 3, 2020”, the IMD said.
Moreover, the IMD stated that Karnataka coastal districts very likely to receive fairly widespread rainfall on August 31 and September 1.
The coastal regions of Karnataka will experience widespread rainfall on September 2, 3 and 4 while south Interior Karnataka is likely to experience fairly widespread rainfall today, said C S Patil, Director, IMD Bengaluru.
Last week, rains resumed in many parts of Karnataka after a brief respite. The torrential rains caused flood-like situation in several areas, especially in the northern belt.
In addition to this, several parts in the border district of Belagavi were submerged, with increasing inflow into rivers like Krishna, Ghataprabha and Malaprabha.
Meanwhile, the India Meteorological Department has also placed a yellow watch in Kerala throughout this week, which instructs residents to be aware of the rough weather conditions.
The state is likely to witness heavy rains of more than 70 mm per day, along with thunderstorms till September 3.
-RJV
Study revealy 15% area around Mussoorie highly susceptible to landslides
New Delhi (NVI): About 15 per cent of Mussoorie hill station in Uttarakhand and its surrounding area is highly susceptible to landslides, according to a study by the scientists at the Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology (WIHG).
Like most hill townships, Mussoorie in Uttarakhand has witnessed several landslides, resulting from an increased spate of developmental activities.
The increased disaster hazard has led scientists to map the landslide susceptibility of the area.
It found that the dominant part of the area falling under the very high and high landslide susceptible zone lies in the settlement area — Bhataghat, George Everest, Kempty fall, Khattapani, Library road, Galogidhar, and Hathipaon — and is covered by highly fractured Krol limestone exhibiting slope more than 60 degrees.
According to the researchers, various possible causative factors of landslides in the study area include lithology, landuse-landcover, slope, aspect, curvature, elevation, road-cut drainage, and lineament.
The study was carried out in Mussoorie township and its surroundings covering 84 square km in the Lesser Himalayas.
The researchers from the WIHG carried out the study using Geographic Information System (GIS) and high-resolution satellite imageries.
The study could help initiate a large scale landslide hazard, risk, and vulnerability assessment of the hilly townships in different parts of India, the Ministry of Science and Technology said.
The Landslide Susceptibility Mapping (LSM) published in the Journal of Earth System Science also showed that about 29 per cent of the area falls in the moderate landslide susceptible zone and 56 per cent falls in low to very low landslide susceptible zone.
The WIHG team obtained Landslide Occurrence Favourability Score (LOFS) for a particular class of the causal factor of landslide and subsequently calculated the weight of each factor of landslide to finally generate Landslide Susceptible Index (LSI) in GIS platform.
This has been reclassified into five zones using natural break criteria.
-CHK
J&K: Lashkar module busted in Jammu’s Reasi district, 3 held
Abid Bashir
Srinagar (NVI): Security forces today busted a Laskhar-e-Taiba module in Mahore area of Reasi district in Jammu and Kashmir and arrested three persons who were in touch with Pakistan-based Lashkar commander Muhammad Qasim, who had exfiltrated to Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) in 2002, police officials said.
A statement issued by the J&K police said that specific information was received on August 5 at Police Station Mahore that some unknown persons (anti-national elements) in the area were in touch with Lashkar militants based in Pakistan to revive the militancy in Mahore with the intention to wage a war against the country and to disturb the sovereignty and integrity of India.
“On this information, a case FIR NO-63/2020 U/S 120-B,121,122, 123, 124 IPC was registered in police station Mahore and a Special Investigation Team was constituted to investigate the case,” the statement read.
“During the course of investigation, with the help of technical data analysis, support from Army and intelligence Units working in Mahore area and interrogation of suspects by the SIT, it has emerged that Muhammad Qasim who exfiltrated to other side of fence in the year 2002 (and some other youth of the area who are in PaK) working for Laskhar outfit across the border is the mastermind behind the module.”
The police said that the further investigations revealed that Qasim was trying to establish an OGW network so that Lashkar can utilise the new potential either as guides in infiltration or to recruit new ones in militancy from Mahore and adjoining areas, providing logistics support and establishing Lashkar base, facilitate the crossing of militants via various routes that include Rajouri belt, Mahore, Nikin Gali and other areas in Kashmir.
The statement said that three persons identified as Ghulam Hussain, Abdul Aziz, and Ashfaq Ahmed, all residents of Mahore, Reasi have been arrested who were in touch with the said Lashkar commander Qasim via different means.
“Some Benami transactions in different accounts of these suspects has also been detected and some families of slain militants who have received financial aid from ISI have also been identified. During investigation, the involvement of more suspects has been found in this module and investigation in this regard is in progress,” the statement said.
-ARK
Arms, ammo recovered near LoC in north Kashmir’s Baramulla
Abid Bashir
Srinagar (NVI): Security forces recovered a large cache of arms and ammunition today in a Cordon and Search Operation (CASO) in Boniyar area of north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, police officials said.
Acting on a specific tip off, a joint team of Army’s 5 JAT regiment and J&K Police launched a massive CASO in Banalo forest area in Boniyar, Uri in Baramulla district in the morning, they said.
“During the search operation, a huge quantity of arms and ammunition including parts of two AK 47 riffles, two AK Magazines, 74 AK rounds, 10 grenades, one pistol, two radio sets, Pakistani currency worth Rs 4,000 and one pouch was recovered,” they said.
A police official said that a case in this regard has been registered and further investigation has been taken up. They said that since the recovery was made in an area close to the LoC, it seems that the consignment was supposed to be handed over to the militants who were trying to sneak in.
An Army official said that at least 200 to 300 militants are waiting across the LoC on launch pads to infiltrate into this side. “Uri being one of the traditional routes of infiltration is being used by the militants to sneak in. There is a separate Overground Workers’ network that facilitates the arms and ammunition delivery to the newly infiltrated groups of militants,” he said.
Police sources said that the investigations are on to find out who had dumped the arms and ammunition and whether any group of militants had sneaked in to receive the delivery of the same. A new group may also try to cross the LoC in a day or two, they said, adding that “Army has been apprised about the possibility of an infiltration bid in the Uri sector in the next few days.”
-ARK
India extends ban on international flights till Sept 30
New Delhi (NVI): The suspension of scheduled international passenger flights to and from India has been extended till September 30, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said today.
The regulator, however, stated that it may allow international scheduled flights on selected routes on case-to case-basis.
Meanwhile, special international flights have been operating under the Vande Bharat Mission since May and under bilateral air bubble arrangements with other countries since July.
The circular said the suspension does not affect the operation of international all-cargo operations and flights specifically approved by the DGCA.
DGCA had first issued a circular suspending both international and domestic flights on March 26 when the nationwide lockdown was announced in order to curtail the spread of Covid-19.
After two months of a complete ban on flights, India resumed its domestic flight operations on May 25.
-CHK/ARK
