THIRUVANANTHAPURAM l tuesday l November 12, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l late city EDITION Vistara makes its last flight ahead of merger with Air India The airline operated its last international and domestic flights as an independent airline on Monday night ahead of its merger with Air India Delhi-singapore flight was airline’s last Vistara’s ‘UK’ code gives way to ‘AI2’ Vistara’s last domestic flight departed Mumbai for Delhi around 11.40 pm on Monday. Minutes later, its last international flight, bound for Singapore, took to the skies from the Delhi airport. Vistara commenced its flight operations in January 2015. The airline, a joint venture between Tata Group and Singapore Airlines, will merge with Air India on Tuesday ■ ■ Post the merger, the airline’s ‘UK’ code will be replaced with a special four-digit Air India code — ‘AI2XXX’. Vistara has a fleet of 70 airplanes The merger marks the second major consolidation wave in the country’s fast-growing civil aviation space after Indian Airlines merged with Air India and Air Sahara merged with Jet Airways in 2006-2007 208 The size of air india’s aircraft fleet post the merger with vistara CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI B rea c h o f c o n d u c t r u l es Senior IAS officers Prasanth, Gopalakrishnan suspended E x p r ess Ne w s S e r v i c e @T’Puram The state government late on Monday evening suspended two senior IAS officers, K Gopalakrishnan (industries & commerce director) and Prasanth N (agriculture special secretary), from service for breach of discipline. The action against the officers came at the directions of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan after Chief Secretary Sarada Murlaeedharan apprised him of the two bureaucrats’ conduct. Gopalakrishnan allegedly created a WhatsApp group of IAS officers on religious lines, while Prasanth launched a tirade against Additional Chief Secretary A Jayathilak through social media. The Prasanth N K Gopalakrishnan two officers were found to have violated the All India Service Conduct Rules, 1968. In the suspension order of Goapalakrishnan, the chief secretary noted that the WhatsApp group created by him was intended to foment division, sow disunity and break the solidarity within the cadre of the All India Services in the state. It was also prima facie found to be creating communal formations and alignments within the cadre of the All India Services. The group, ‘Mallu Hindu Off ’, was created on October 31 and had both serving and retired bureaucrats as its members. It was deleted after some of the added members pointed out the impropriety . In the suspension order of Prasanth, the chief secretary noted that his remarks amounted to grave indiscipline and they undermine the public image of the administrative machinery in the state. The remarks also have the potential of creating divisiveness and disaffection in the Indian Administrative Service in the state that can also affect service to the public. ● More on P4 Clean air a fundamental right, says SC S u c h i t r a K a lya n M o h a n t y @ New Delhi The Supreme Court said on Monday that it is a fundamental right of every citizen to live in a pollution-free atmosphere, adding no religion encourages any activity that creates pollution. Pulling up the Delhi authorities over their failure to enforce firecracker ban during Diwali, a bench of justices Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih said if firecrackers are burnt in this fashion, it will also affect the fundamental right to health of the citizens. “The right to live in a pollution-free atmosphere is a fundamental right of every citizen which is protected by Article 21 of the Constitution of India. Prima facie we are of the view that no religion encourages any activity that creates pollution or compromises with the health of the people,” the bench observed. The Delhi government issued an order banning the use of firecrackers on October 14. “We wonder why the Delhi government delayed the promulgation of order till October 14. It is quite possible users by that time must have acquired the stock of firecrackers.” The court noted that the police had not taken the ban order seriously . EXPRESS READ A new chapter in Kerala Tourism takes off Kochi/Idukki: A new chapter opened in the history of the state when a 17-seater seaplane took off from the Bolgatty Palace Waterdrome in Kochi on Monday. With the successful completion of the trial flight of the seaplane to Mattupetty reservoir, the doors have been open for tourists to venture out to hitherto unexplored destinations. P2 16 pages, including 4 pages of THIRUVANANTHAPURAM Express New CJI sworn in President Droupadi Murmu administers the oath of office to Justice Sanjiv Khanna as the 51st Chief Justice of India, at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on Monday | PTI Pinarayi promises permanent solution to Munambam issue E x p r ess Ne w s S e r v i c e @Kochi Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday promised that the state government will find a permanent solution to the land dispute at Munambam, where the Waqf Board has claimed rights over property . The chief minister gave the promise at a meeting with the representatives of the Munambam Land Protection Committee led by Kottapuram Bishop Ambrose Puthenveettil, when they called on him at the Ernakulam Guest House. The Munambam Land Protection Committee has been holding a relay hunger strike for the past one month to draw the government’s attention to the problems faced by the residents of the coastal village, near Kochi, in the wake of the Waqf Board claims. “We apprised the CM of the situation in Munambam. During the discussions, the CM told us not to be worried and that a permanent solution would be arrived at after the byelections,” Kottapuram Diocese Vicar General Rockey Roby Kalathil told TNIE. Meanwhile, the government has decided to hold a ministerial-level meeting on November 22 to discuss and find a solution to the Munambam issue. The meeting was earlier scheduled for November 16, but the government was forced to postpone it after the Palakkad by-election was rescheduled to November 20. The Kottappuram bishop said the chief minister asked them to wait until the end of the by-elections, promising that the high-level meeting would find a solution. Earlier, addressing reporters, Industries Minister P Rajeeve said the high-level meeting was postponed as such crucial decisions cannot be taken as the election code of conduct is in place. “Anyway the government has clar, ified that not one person will be displaced from Munambam. The state government is trying to find a permanent solution to the problem,” the minister said. The committee also submitted a petition to the chief minister. Bishop Ambrose said the CM’s words give hope. 18 years on, parents of 13-yr-old murder victim get their hands on what remains E x p r ess Ne w s S e r v i c e @ Kasaragod A murder most foul can leave a haunting legacy The possessions of . loved ones who have departed can hold a value that raises existential questions. And, the remains of a long-lost victim of foul play can amount to more than just closure. On November 11, the skeletal remains of Safiya were handed over to her parents on the directive of the District Principal Sessions Court. These included a portion of Safiya’s skull, which was used for the superimposition process to identify her, and the mandible, which had been kept as evidence. Judge Sanu S Panicker ordered the release on a petition filed by the then public prosecutor C Shukur. The Safiya’s parents break down as they receive her mortal remains in Kasaragod on Monday daughter of Moidu and Ayesha, of Aiyangeri, in Karnataka’s Kodagu district, Safiya was a teenager when her life was brutally cut short, leaving behind a tale of exploitation and injustice. And it was Ayesha’s deter- mination that brought the culprits to light. The tragic chain of events was set in motion in 2006 when 13-year-old Safiya was hired by civil contractor K C Hamza and his wife Maimoona to work as a maid at their home in Kasaragod. Following their subsequent relocation to Goa, the family took Safiya along, a decision that would ultimately seal her fate. A few months later, Hamza contacted Moidu with news that Safiya would be brought back to Kasaragod. When Moidu reached Kasaragod to receive his daughter with her favourite Indian gooseberries he was told that she is missing. The girl’s father along with Hamza proceeded to file a complaint with Adhur ● More on P4 police. Ten militants killed in Manipur gunfight Kuki-Zo Council says its ‘volunteers’ shot dead by CRPF PRA S ANTA M AZU M D AR @ Guwahati TEN militants were killed and a CRPF jawan was injured in a gunfight in restive Manipur’s Jiribam district on Monday. Manipur police said in a statement that the incident occurred at around 3 pm when armed militants attacked the CRPF post located at the Jakuradhor and Borobekra Police Station, located nearby . “The security forces retaliated strongly. Due to the attack, one CRPF constable namely Sanjeev Kumar sustained bullet injury and has been evacuated to Silchar Medical College, Assam and is under treatment,” the statement said. It added that the CRPF and civil police personnel fiercely retaliated and the situation was brought under control after 40-45 minutes of heavy exchange of fire. Police said they searched the whole area after the firing ceased and found the bodies of 10 militants along with arms and ammunition. The weap- ons recovered included three AK series rifles, four SLRs, two INSAS rifles, one RPG, one Pump Action Gun besides bullet-proof helmets and magazines. “Accordingly, a criminal case has been registered and is being investigated into. Operations in and around Jakuradhor, under Borobekra Police Station, Jiribam District continued to flush out armed militants. Reinforcement teams consisting of Assam Rifles, CRPF and Civil Police have been rushed there,” the Manipur Police statement added. Reacting to the gunfight, the Kuki-Zo Council said its ‘volunteers’ were killed and announced a total shutdown on Tuesday – from 5 am to 6 pm. It said the protest is “in honor of the victims and to express our collective grief and solidarity who were brutally shot dead”. In its statement, the Council demanded an immediate and thorough investigation “to bring the perpetrators to justice”. CURFEW IMPOSED IN Jiribam Following the incident, prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the BNSS were imposed. An order issued by the district magistrate said curfew was clamped due to “apprehension of widespread disturbance to peace and public tranquillity or a riot or any affray in the area” We condemn in the strongest terms the violence and call for thorough investigations to bring perpetrators to justice Kuki-Zo Council Uddhav fumes as ECI officials inspect his bag S U D HIR S URYAWAN S HI @ Mumbai shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Monday trained his guns on the Election Commission of India (ECI) claiming its officials are selectively targeting opposition leaders. He said his bags and personal belongings were searched when he arrived in Maharashtra’s Yavatmal to campaign for the November 20 assembly elections. Thackeray asked if the ECI would inspect the bags of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde in a similar fashion. Disclosing this incident at a rally at Wani on Monday, he asked his party workers to check the identity cards of the searching ECI officials and inspect their pockets as well. According to a video footage of the incident, when ECI officers approached him for search, Thackeray first asked them to introduce themselves and fired a volley of questions. “The way you inspected my bag, did you inspect the bags of Modi and Shah?” he asked.