Airlines hike airfare from Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata to Patna ahead of the festive season

It is the festive season and airlines have hiked the airfares from Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata to Patna. The rise is, in some cases is in excess of more than three-fold over the off-peak season rates. The price of air tickets for flights from Delhi to Patna and from Mumbai to Patna were more than the rate from Delhi to Sharjah or from Delhi to Singapore or Delhi to Bangkok. These are for destinations in other countries. Obviously, airline companies were taking advantage of the flexible fare during the peak season. In the opinion of experts, the spike might continue. This is not only for Delhi but also for other cities like Hyderabad, Chennai, Bengaluru, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, and Surat. It is obvious that people can afford to pay these exorbitant rates and no one is gumbling. Airfare from Delhi, Mumbai to Patna rises upto three fold amid Diwali, Chhath.

One of the biggest reasons for the spikes in airfare could possibly be the non-availability of train tickets. The waiting lists for trains are very high and even Tatkal tickets are not available. Hence, the railways plan to start additional mail and express trains bound for destinations in Bihar. These could include Patna, Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga, Jay Nagar, Kishanganj, Katihar, and Barauni (Begusarai). Moreover, Northern Railway has decided to run 32 additional mail and express trains bound to provide some relief to the passengers. According to the officials, there will be 211 trains until Chatth Puja. These will originate from Jammu, Amritsar, Ferozepur, Delhi, Bhiwani, and Pathankot. The authorities want the people to come home to enjoy the festive season with their near and dear ones.

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Rare migratory birds make a stopover in Okhla Bird Sanctuary, Delhi

Bird lovers of Delhi are excited at the sight of at least 30 species of winter migratory birds in the Okhla Bird Sanctuary. The winged visitors have arrived this winter despite global climate change which has had an impact on the migratory birds and have disturbed bird habitat.
This has been reported in thehindu.com dated 1 March 2017.

Such a sighting has happened after nearly a decade and among the birds were winter migratory duck called greater scaup - these had lat been seen in the Sultanpur National Park in Gurugram. Then there were two pairs of common shelduck which were seen after four years and flocks of greater flamingo seen after a year. There were also the unusual sighting of a few migratory raptor species like peregrine falcon and the greater spotted eagle apart from birds included in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
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Organised crime of bag lifting in wedding venues of Delhi

A well organized crime of bag lifting in wedding venues of Delhi has been reported. The gang of wedding lifters include a juvenile whi is employed on a "contract" by the gang. They have been apprehended from south Delhi and, preliminary investigation reveals that they had been involved in more than 15 cases of wedding crashes over the past few months.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 31 January 2017.

The gang belonged to a village in Madhya Pradesh and would escape across states with the booty to avoid detection. The police have successfully recovered a stolen foreign-made pistol and some stolen cars that used as a getaway vehicle after each heist.
The accused used to drive to Delhi from Madhya Pradesh and target wedding program in Chhatarpur and Vasant Kunj. They had inducted the juvenile on "contractual bondage" from his mother to carry out the crimes while they did the planning. They hired the juvenile for Rs 2 lakhs per night.
The juvenile had his work clearly cut out. He would gate crash the party and fix his focus on the bag containing the cash and jewellery. He would usually park himself beside the bride and even offer to help her keep the gifts during which he would place them in a bag. Later, he would walk out with the valuables, meet the others who would be waiting outside in the car and speed away.
The thefts were based on inside information provided by some staffers of popular banquet halls and farm houses. They were on the pay roll of the gang and would relay information about the event schedules and the profiles of the hosts and the guests who were to attend the ceremony at the venues.


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Those who come to the samadhi of Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat, Delhi, will now see it wearing a new look. This samadhi sees more than 10,000 domestic and foreign visitors every day and the renovated samadhi will be inaugurated on Monday, January 30, on the occasion of the 69th death anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
This has been reported in thehindu.com dated 30 January 2017.

Till now, the samadhi did not have much to offer visitors except the black stone platform that marks the spot where Mahatma Gandhi was cremated. Now, a 157-word brief profile of the Mahatma and a 131-word description of Gandhi Samadhi have been put on display. Both of these are in Hindi and English and have been placed at all the three gates of the samadhi at Rajghat.
In addition, the existing conventional lights have been replaced by energy efficient LED lights installed on top of 104 aesthetically designed poles - this is expected to save 60,000 KWH annually. Solar panels have also been installed above roof tops and cycle shed at the parking area and, in order to improve security, a total of 27 CCTV cameras have been installed.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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2017 Republic Day Parade will see 23 tableaux on the Rajpath

2017 Republic Day Parade will see 23 tableaux on the Rajpath in Delhi and, 17 of these will display the unique cultural heritage, festivals, rituals and art forms of the states. Remaining six will be from the central ministries showing recent landmark initiatives.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 23 January 2017.

Jammu and Kashmir will showcase the snowy peaks of Gulmarg on its float in an effort to woo tourists for winter sports

Maharashtra is celebrating the 160th anniversary of Lokmanya Tilak - it will depict the landmarks in his life like starting the newspaper Kesari, initiating Ganeshotsav and going to Mandalay jail

Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Karnataka, Punjab, Tripura and Tamil Nadu will be showcasing their traditional dance forms

Haryana will promote Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao - it will have achievements of women like astronaut Kalpana Chawla, Olympic medallist Sakshi Malik and paralympic champion Deepa Malik

Gujarat will focus on the art and lifestyle of the Kutch region

Odisha will display Dol Jatra

West Bengal will come with Sharad Utsav

Assam will show the Kamakhya temple

Union territory of Lakshadweep will make a return after 23 years - it will showcase the 'unexplored tourist destination' comprising 36 islands

It will be the first time that a float by National Housing Bank will be shown. It will be the float of Khadi India and it is understood that it will avoid images of both Mahatma Gandhi and PM Narendra Modi. The float will focus on traditional weavers and modern attire made of the hand-woven cloth

The Central Board of Excise and Customs has created its tableau on GST, which is touted as the biggest tax reform since Independence

Tableaux of Rajasthan, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh failed to secure a place this year

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People in Delhi are missing the popular boat ride at Purana Quila

It has now been over 100 days that the people of Delhi are missing out on the popular boat ride at Purana Quila. This is a popular tourist site and has remained closed all winter. The neighboring Delhi zoo is now open to the public, after having been kept out of bounds following a bird flu scare, but the boat club wears a sorry look with boats stacked together and the water body all dried up.
The Purana Quila lake sourced water from the Yamuna and through borewell and on average attracted 2,000-4,000 visitors daily. But, it has missed out on the annual high of footfall that is seen during the annual trade fair held at Pragati Maidan nearby and New Year. On those occasions, the footfall goes up to 7,000 on an average.
This has been reported in thehindu.com dated 22 January 2017.

The boating previously used to earn ₹ 6 lakh per month on an average and during the peak season it would go up to ₹ 9 lakh. Its monthly electricity bill to maintain the facility comes to around ₹ 45,000 and with 70 boats, it has assets worth ₹ 2 crore that is lying unused.
Incidentally, it is very popular with children who come during the summer and winter vacation and spend an entire day here. Children go to the Delhi Zoo nearby and then come for a boat ride which is a clean, affordable place for the middle class. The place helps children be close to nature and also out of harms way of malls.


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World Book Fair in Delhi facing problems of shoplifters

There are bookworms in the ongoing World Book Fair in Delhi but, simultaneously, there are shoplifters due to which many of the book stores are facing the issue of shoplifting. This is the 44th edition of the book fair being held at the Pragati Maidan and it has got more than 2,500 stalls.
Publishing houses which attract maximum number of visitors are targets - publishers like Penguin, Harper Collins are finding it difficult to keep an eye on every person who enter their stalls. AS Penguin has indicated - every day there are more than 25 cases when people were apprehended for shoplifting and, last year they had to face a loss of Rs.5 lakh.
This has been reported in thestatesman.com dated 12 January 2017.

Shoplifting happens every year, especially on weekends and the actual amount of loss of books due to this menace comes to light only when the fair ends and the inventory is taken.
According to the organizers, there are CCTV cameras inside the premise and the ITPO officials are watching the videos. There is also a police van inside the premise where the stall owners can lodge their complaints. But keeping an eye on every individual is not possible.
The book fair started on January 7, will end on January 15, 2017.


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Himachal Pradesh to share space in Republic Day parade at Rajpath, New Delhi.

Himachal Pradesh will finally get to share space with other states at the Republic Day parade at Rajpath, New Delhi, after a long wait of four years. It was in 2013 last, that the state had exhibited the rich tribal culture of Kinnaur district.
The opportunity has now come again to showcase its rich cultural heritage through its R-Day tableaux list and, the break has brought cheers to the people.
This has been reported in thestatesman.com dated 6 January 2017.

The state authorities had submitted five models of tableaux and the one on the ‘Chamba Rumal’ impressed the selection committee and was approved. Himachal Pradesh, thus, becomes one of the 15 states and UTs selected for showcasing their tableau in the R-Day parade this year.
In 2013, Himachal Pradesh had got an opportunity to exhibit the rich tribal culture of Kinnaur district. Earlier, in 2007, it had showcased the monasteries and monks of Lahaul and Spiti, and in 1998, the Raghunath Chariot of Dussehra festivity of Kullu.
Incidentally, in 1993, it won an award in the tableau round for showcasing tourist enjoying snowfall and also an appreciation award for the tableau on famous Rock temples of Masrur.


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30th International kite festival in Gujarat, Telangana, Delhi and Karnataka

30th International kite festivals are being held in Gujarat, Telangana, Delhi and Karnataka. The festivals are organized by the State governments in association with India Tourism. Thirty-five international teams and five national teams are participating in the festivals.
This has been reported in thehindu.com dated 5 January 2017.

Kozhikode is sending two teams - One India Kite Team and Incredible India Women’s Kite Team. They will take part in all the four festivals being. The tentative schedule is - Gujarat from January 8 to 13, the Telangana International Kite Festival to be held in Hyderabad on January 14 and 15, the Delhi International Kite Festival from January 16 to 17, and the Belgaum International Kite Festival from January 18 to 22.
The teams will be seen in both national and international categories in events like kite making workshops, kite flying competitions, exhibition of huge kites and competition of sports and stunt kites.
Incidentally, the trump card of One India Kite Team for the year is ‘NASA A.B. Plus’ - this is a Sports Power Kite and it has been made locally by a gentleman and is based on a technology that has been developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of the United States of America. The kite is just 1,500 grams in weight and the technology is usually used by NASA to control aircraft as they alight on ships. It is believed to be the first time that this technology is used for kites in India.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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44th edition of World Book Fair begins in Pragati Maidan on 7 January 2017

44th edition of World Book Fair is set to start in Pragati Maidan on 7 January 2017. It will have more than 800 Indian and 20 foreign publishers and is one of the largest in Afro-Asian countries - there would be more than 2,500 stalls.
The focus this year would be on women authors and writings on women and their fight for emancipation under the theme ‘Manushi'.
This has been reported in thestatesman.com dated 5 January 2017.

As Director, World Book Fair, has indicated - the basic idea is to show and project the diversity of writings by women writers and to bust the homogeneity of ‘women writers'.
There will also be a Children's Pavilion where seminars, story-telling sessions, and workshops on creative writing would be organized.
In addition, there would be an Authors Corner where book lovers can avail of the opportunity to interact with eminent authors and literary personalities.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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Connaught Place in Delhi to go vehicle-free for 3 months beginning February

Delhi will experiment with decongesting Connaught Place - the tentative plan is to make the middle and inner circular roads vehicle-free from February for the next three months on a pilot basis. The decision was taken at a meeting of the relevant authorities of the Urban Development Ministry, NDMC and Delhi Police.
The meeting was chaired by Union minister M Venkaiah Naidu.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 5 January 2017.

The pedestrianisation of Connaught Place would be taken up on a pilot basis and would be implemented for three months from February for ground level testing of issues that would relate to changes in traffic circulation, experience of pedestrians and shop owners, management of reclaimed parking lots, traffic load on outer circle and other similar aspects.
The total parking capacity at the three locations of Shivaji Stadium, Baba Kharak Singh Marg and Palika are 3,172 and these are under utilized - on an average only 1,088 vehicles are being parked. The unutilised capacity could be fully used by promoting 'park and ride' concept. There would be bicycles for hire and also battery-operated vehicles that would be deployed for commuting of people in the business district.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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Christmas in Delhi - fancy Santa hats from China sell for Rs 400 a piece

It is difficult to stay away from products made in China. It is Christmas time and, while vendors sell red Santa hats at traffic lights, markets and malls at cheap rates, the ones that come from China are costly. The simple ones made locally come for Rs 90 a dozen while the fancy ones with lights on them come for Rs 400 per piece.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 24 December 2016.

Wholesalers in Sadar Bazar get most of their stock from China, and some are made locally in Shahdara and east Delhi. There are differences in the quality of the Indian-made hats and Chinese-made hats. The simple ones sold at traffic lights are usually made in India. But, the fancy ones, like the musical ones or the ones with lights, are imported from China.
The local ones are preferred by schools or offices that are having Christmas parties. The velvet ones go for Rs 150 a dozen. Those that have stars or small Santas on them are sold in Khan Market, South Ex and Gurgaon where customers do not mind paying Rs 80 per piece.


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Yak Dance of Arunachal Pradesh will be seen this Republic Day on the Rajpath

This Republic Day will be a special one for Arunachal Pradesh - the famous Yak Dance of the state will be seen this Republic Day as one of the tableau on the Rajpath in New Delhi. This Yak Dance has been selected for presentation during the forthcoming Republic Day parade on January 26.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 22 December 2016.

Yak dance is a famous pantomime of the Mahayana sect of Buddhism. The masked dancer represents the members of a family who discovered the Yak with the help of a magical bird hundreds of years ago. It is performed during the Losar festival and the dance represents the joy of the people upon finding the yak and their belief that performing the dance would relieve them of all their miseries.
Fifteen states and union territories have been selected this year to present their tableaux. Arunachal Pradesh is one of the selected states with only two other states from the northeast - Manipur and Tripura.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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Three-day TLC Heartwork Tattoo Festival in Delhi from 2 December

A three-day TLC Heartwork Tattoo Festival is set to take off in Delhi from December 2 - its aim is to make tattoos accessible. Tattoo is a new fashion trend becoming popular in India and the festival wants to bring together the tattoo industry, artists and equipment suppliers.
This has been reported in thestatesman.com dated 25 November 2016.

The venue of the festival would be the capital's Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium and there will be participation of artists from England, Spain, Russia and the Netherlands. Some of the international artists are Jay Freestyle from the Netherlands, Stepan Negur from Russia, Bez 666 from Britain and Fabrice Koch from Germany.
The festival is organized by Creative Skin Graphics. As per its statement - its first introduction to tattoos was watching artists and their work on TLC (channel). Through the festival, it wants to promote the culture of tattooing by giving people access to international artists and standards. The festival will also host music bands and acts by various other entertainers.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org


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Madame Tussauds is an international wax museum and a popular tourist attraction and it is set to come to New Delhi - it will be the 22nd in the world and would be located at Regal Cinema in Connaught Place. Its tentative launch date is mid-2017.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 24 November 2016.

The Delhi museum, which will be spread across two floors of Regal Cinema and one can see both local and international figures. A few of them are Prime Minister Narendra Modi, master blaster Sachin Tendulkar, and American celebrity Kim Kardashian apart from Big B Amitabh Bachchan.
Madame Tussauds is run by entertainment company Merlin Entertainment which is headquartered in Dorset, England and has the biggest and most popular Madame Tussauds wax museum in London. It has wax replicas of Indian figures like Sachin Tendulkar, Narendra Modi, Mahatama Gandhi, and Aishwarya Rai.
Amitabh Bachchan was the first Bollywood figure in Madame Tussauds London in 2000 and it has appealed to the Indian consumer. Hence, it is extending its reach by opening the museum in New Delhi.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org


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A leopard takes a fancy to Delhi - been in Yamuna Biodiversity Park for two weeks

A male leopard was caught on camera in the Yamuna Biodiversity Park (YBP) in north Delhi for the first time and the location is too far away from the place where another spotted cat's pugmarks had been seen last year. Based on its pugmarks, officials feel it may have become a `resident' - its pugmarks have been regularly seen for two weeks.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 23 November 2016.

That leopards are straying into human habitats is a known fact. Pugmarks of leopards were found last year at Asola Wildlife Sanctuary and a spotting was even reported in Usmanpur at the end of December 2015. In order to capture leopard and hyena sightings, a number of camera traps were also installed in Bandhwari and Mangar areas near Gurgaon.
In the opinion of experts, the number of sightings of the leopard at YBP could mean that it has decided to stay here for the time being. This could be attributed to availability of sufficient water during the day and small animals to prey on, during the night. Animals like wild boar, pigs, dogs, goats and hare.
Experts suspect that it may have walked down the river plain from Kalesar in Haryana which is the nearest forest patch. It could have followed the river corridor. Leopards can travel as far as 700km.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org


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Feedback on public toilets - Kolkata has smelliest ones followed by Delhi

A survey conducted among 10,000 travelers in major cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Pune has revealed that Kolkata has the smelliest public toilets followed by Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai.
The survey found that 95% of Indian travelers demanded more public toilets and were dissatisfied with the hygiene levels of the existing ones. 70% travelers have changed their intended holiday destination or mode of travel because of discomfort with the level of cleanliness.
Obviously, the 'swatchh bharat' campaign should focus on not just creating new toilets but keep the existing ones clean and usable.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 22 November 2016.

Kolkata topped the list of smelly cities with 43% votes, followed by Delhi with 32% votes. About 29% felt Chennai and Mumbai public toilets were smelly, while Hyderabad got 20% votes. Pune and Bengaluru turn out have the least smelly toilets at 18% and 14%, respectively.
In the opinion of travelers, more toilets are required near bus stops, railway stations, religious places and government offices. 54% of Indian travelers indicated that there should be more toilets in their respective cities and across tourism destinations and sightseeing spots in the country.
As to pay-and-use toilets, nearly 32% of travelers rate them as most unclean.
Some places of tourist interest that have been voted as lacking cleanliness include Golden Temple, Amritsar; Nandi Hills, Karnataka; Golkonda Fort, Hyderabad; Mysore Palace, Karnataka; Humayun's Tomb, Delhi; Taj Mahal, Agra; Ajanta Ellora caves, Maharashtra; Princep Ghat, Kolkata, Qutab Minar, Delhi; Bada Imambara, Lucknow and Red Fort, Delhi.
Cleanliness of public toilets is an area that the authorities need to address to attract more tourists.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org


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National Green Tribunal continues with its ban on farming on the banks of the Yamuna in Delhi

National Green Tribunal has refused to permit farmers to carry out cultivation on their farms located along the banks of the River Yamuna. This is because the waters are polluted with heavy metals and other high pollutants and these will affect the quality of the final vegetable.
People will buy these vegetables and fall sick after eating them.
This has been reported in deccanherald.com dated 16 November 2016.

NGT has commented that till such time Delhi Jal Board cleans, no permission will be given to carry out farming on the banks of the river. The observations came during the hearing of a plea filed by a local farmer who was seeking NGT’s nod for cultivation on the ground because the only source of his livelihood was farming.
NGT was firm that cultivation of edible crops and vegetables on the floodplains of Yamuna can be permitted only after Yamuna is restored and made pollution-free.


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Delhi to have iconic theme parks in Sector-20 of Dwarka

Delhi can soon boast of theme-based iconic parks like London’s Hyde Park and New York’s Central Park - the first of these could come up in Dwarka in southwest Delhi. The parks will be established by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and will be at par with international standards.
This has been reported in thehindu.com dated 15 November 2016.

In order to have the best design, the DDA plans to hold a design competition where international consultants will be invited. The first of the proposed parks would be spread over 200 acres – an area equal to two Jawaharlal Nehru stadiums – and will come up in sector 20, Dwarka.
The objective behind creating such a park is to enhance the quality of outdoor experience, with recreational opportunities of world class standards. Simultaneously, its design, development, revenue generation and maintenance should be socially, economically and environmentally sustainable.
Already representatives from 12 reputed landscaping firms had made presentations with regard to the designs at the DDA headquarters in Vikas Sadan. The intention of DDA is to create theme parks, exploring concepts ranging from culture and science to heritage and ecology. Each of these iconic parks would have individual themes. In the opinion of DDA, these ‘iconic parks’ would be great places to hang out and also attract tourists. Some of the existing district parks could be converted to theme-based parks.


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Air pollution in Delhi takes its toll on foreign missions in the city

Air pollution in Delhi has affected the lives of those working in foreign missions and, while India is trying to become a global force, the deteriorating quality of living, particularly related to the unhealthy air, has robbed Delhi of much of its sheen.
The US embassy has expressed its concern on the issue of the impact of poor air on its community and is now trying to work with the Delhi government to improve the situation.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 8 November 2016.

US state department medical experts on pollution has explained to embassy officials on how to deal with the hazards of air pollution in Delhi. Other embassies, mostly from developed countries, are taking similar steps to deal with the extremely polluted environment.
Moreover, some countries, mainly European ones, have reduced the tenure of their officials serving in Delhi from four to three years. Others have reduced it from three to two while some countries have made Delhi a non-family station, where spouses and children prefer not to join the diplomat here.
In addition, younger diplomats with families now prefer to skip Delhi, even though the work here is believed to be interesting and, families with school-going children are specially reluctant to serve here.
These do not paint a very rosy picture of our country and the authorities need to take immediate action to remove these irritants from the capital.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org


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