Adani qualified in Airport bidding process; not you: Aviation Minister to Kerala govt

Agencies
August 20, 2020

New Delhi, Aug 20: The Kerala government did not qualify in Thiruvananthapuram airport's bidding process that was carried out in a transparent manner, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Thursday.

The Kerala government has opposed the Union Cabinet's approval on Wednesday to lease out the Thiruvananthapuram airport to Adani Enterprises through public private partnership (PPP) for a period of 50 years.

Talking about the airport's 2019 privatisation process on Twitter, Puri said, "Winning bid quoted Rs 168 per passenger, KSIDC (Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation) quoted Rs 135 per passenger and third qualifying bidder was at Rs 63 per passenger."

Per passenger fee was the criteria for the bidding process that was conducted in early 2019 for six airports - Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Mangalore, Jaipur, Guwahati and Thiruvananthapuram. Adani Enterprises turned out to be the highest bidder for these six airports.

Before the bidding process, the Centre and the Kerala government had agreed that if the KSIDC's bid comes within the 10 per cent range of the winning bid, it would be awarded the airport, Puri said.

However, since the difference between Adani's bid and KSIDC's bid was 19.64 per cent during the bidding process, the former was qualified as the winner.

"Thus, despite special provision of RoFR (right of first refusal) being given to GoK (government of Kerala), they could not qualify in the international bidding process carried out in a transparent manner," Puri stated.

The Kerala government on Thursday called an all-party-meeting to discuss and protest against the Centre''s decision to hand over of the management and operation of the Thiruvananthapuram airport to the Adani group.

"Thiruvananthapuram airport privatised to Adani rejecting the claim of Kerala govt, even after offer to match Adani's rate. PMO's promise to accept Kerala proposal broken. People of Kerala will not accept this act of brazen cronyism. #Airportprivatisation," State Finance Minister Dr Thomas Isaac tweeted on Thursday.

In February 2019, Adani Enterprises was declared the winner for all six airports as it was the highest bidder. In July 2019, the Union Cabinet approved the proposal for leasing out three of them - Ahmedabad, Mangalore and Lucknow - to the Ahmedabad-based company.

Eight months after the Cabinet approval, Adani Enterprises signed the concessionaire agreement with the Airports Authority of India (AAI) on February 14 this year for operation, management and development of these three airports.

In June this year, the AAI gave three more months to the Ahmedabad-based company to take over the management of these three airports due to the COVID-19 situation. This means the deadline for takeover has been pushed from August 12 to November 12.

Comments

Shanu
 - 
Thursday, 20 Aug 2020

Gujrat is worlds hafta collection point since MODI came to power. every contract every tender order all going to GUJRAT....we also need same gujrat model here in karnataka....
When we have top most technology and experts here in bangalur and mangolore why everything going to GUJJUs..
Guys right time to stay awake....

shanu
 - 
Thursday, 20 Aug 2020

Gujrat is worlds hafta collection point since MODI came to power. every contract every tender order all going to GUJRAT....we also need same gujrat model here in karnataka....
When we have top most technology and experts here in bangalur and mangolore why everything going to GUJJUs..
Guys right time to stay awake....

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News Network
November 28,2024

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Mangaluru, Nov 28: In a major breakthrough, police have arrested Rahul, alias Bol Karmaveer Eshwar Jat, a Haryana native, for a brutal train murder committed on October 25. Rahul, a notorious interstate serial offender, was apprehended after a relentless investigation involving multiple state police forces.

The October 25 incident occurred during a train journey when Rahul got into an argument over a cigarette with Mauzzam, a resident of Chikkaballapur. The altercation escalated, leading to Rahul strangling Mauzzam to death. He fled the scene with the victim’s mobile phone, bag, and cash.

Muazzan worked as a sales representative and was differently-abled. He boarded the train on October 24 from Yesvantpur and occupied the Divyang Coach. The incident came to light on the morning of October 25 at Udupi, where a railway guard found Muazzam unresponsive. The railway police immediately rushed him to the hospital, but doctors declared him dead.

Accused Rahul was tracked down through an exhaustive review of over 2,000 CCTV recordings by police teams from Valsad, Vapi, Surat, and Udvada. His identity was eventually confirmed by a vigilant officer from Surat Central Jail, leading to his capture in a joint operation by Railway and Surat police.

Rahul’s criminal record reveals a trail of horrifying offenses across Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana, Haryana, and West Bengal. Among these are the rape of a mentally ill minor girl in Pune and the rape and murder of a 19-year-old woman near Udvada railway station in Gujarat's Vapi district. Despite being arrested in the past, Rahul resumed his crimes after securing bail.

On November 19, he allegedly stabbed a 60-year-old man to death aboard the Katihar Express in West Bengal, with a case registered at the Howrah police station. In Telangana, he confessed to murdering a woman in yet another shocking crime.

Public Advisory:

  • Stay vigilant when traveling on trains, especially during late hours.
  • Report suspicious individuals or activities to railway authorities immediately.
  • Ensure your personal belongings are secure while traveling.
  • This arrest brings a sense of relief, but the investigations continue as authorities piece together the full extent of Rahul’s crimes.

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News Network
November 14,2024

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Bengaluru: The Prime Minister Narendra Modi led union government has requested the Karnataka High Court to direct the Mandya district administration and the state government to clear a madrasa operating within the premises of the historic Jama Masjid in Srirangapatna.

The Waqf Board, opposing this move, has claimed the mosque as its property and defended the right to conduct madrasa activities there.

The matter was brought before a division bench headed by Chief Justice N V Anjaria following a public interest litigation filed by a person named Abhishek Gowda from Kabbalu village in Kanakapura taluk. The petition alleged “unauthorised madrasa activities” within the mosque.

Representing the Central government, Additional Solicitor General of India for High Court of Karnataka, K Arvind Kamath argued that the Jama Masjid was designated as a protected monument in 1951, yet unauthorised madrasa operations continue there.

He noted that concerns over potential law and order issues have so far prevented any intervention. Kamath urged the court to direct the Mandya district administration to take action and vacate the madrasa from the mosque.

In defence, lawyers for the state government and the Waqf Board contested this request, stating that the Waqf Board had been recognised as the owner of the property since 1963 and, thus, conducting madrasa activities there is lawful.

After hearing both sides, the bench adjourned the case for further arguments, scheduling the next hearing for November 20.

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News Network
November 21,2024

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Hamas says the Israeli regime’s sole objective lies in “erasing” the entirety of the Palestinian population from across the Palestinian territories.

Khalil al-Hayya, a ranking official with the Gaza Strip-based Palestinian resistance movement, made the remarks to the Palestinian al-Aqsa TV on Wednesday.

“The occupation targets everyone—it strikes hospitals, civil defense, women, children, and the elderly,” he said, adding that the regime sought to “empty Gaza of its residents, and displace the Palestinian people to fulfill its dreams of building a Zionist Jewish state across all of Palestine.”

The remarks came amid the regime’s October 2023-present war of genocide on the coastal sliver that has so far claimed the lives of nearly 44,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

“This unprecedented aggression in modern times evokes scenes from the dark ages of human history, having crossed all red lines and exceeded every expectation of brutality in the modern era,” the Palestinian official lamented.

He also regretted that the regime had added “systematic and dangerous starvation to its aggression, falsely claiming before the world that it allows 250 [aid] trucks into Gaza daily. In reality, the number of trucks is far fewer.”

Hayya, meanwhile, regretted that “scenes of children torn apart, women screaming over their children, and heart-wrenching destruction have failed to stir enough humanity to stop these crimes.”

He decried the United States for vetoing the United Nations Security Council’s resolutions that are aimed at bringing about a potential ceasefire in the war, saying this indicated Washington’s “partnership in the aggression” and a simultaneous siege that the Israeli regime has been enforcing on Gaza.

Addressing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the official asserted that, despite what the Israeli official is after, Hamas would not hand over the regime’s captives “without [the regime’s] stopping the war.”

He called Netanyahu “the main obstacle” in the way of cessation of the aggression, saying the Israeli premier “blocks any progress for political reasons,” and citing his preventing conclusion of a ceasefire agreement in July.

Hayya also warned that the regime sought to expand the war beyond Gaza, but asserted that its goals are “impossible and will never happen.”

“Today, the enemy exposes its true intentions of extermination and displacement, but it will fail,” he stressed.

“The Palestinian people are resilient and will not surrender, as they believe in their humanitarian and political cause. The enemy and its allies will not succeed in achieving their goals. This steadfast people will endure, and the occupation will not prevail against them.”

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