Mangalore International Airport gears up for new airline services from Gulf

[email protected] (CD Network, Photos by Suresh Vamanjoor)
October 11, 2012

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Mangalore, October 11: The grant of international status to Mangalore Airport has led to competition among airlines with several prestigious airlines showing keen interest to operate from Mangalore to Gulf countries, said Mangalore Airport Director M R Vasudeva.

Speaking at an interaction programme organised by the Dakshina Kannada district Working Journalists Association and Mangalore Press Club on Thursday, Mr Vasudeva, who is all set to retire later this month, said that Air Arabia, Etihad and Emirates Airlines may extend its air services to the coastal city soon.

“Once those airlines get approval, they will start operations. As a result there will be surge in the passenger traffic by March 2013. More over ticket fares are also expected to be reduced”, he said.

Apart from international flights the number of domestic flights is also expected to increase in the coming days. Jet Airways is expected to commence operation of flights between Mangalore and Mumbai from October 28. SpiceJet will restart its service between Bangalore and Mangalore, he said

ATC


Mr Vasudeva said that an integrated Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower and technical block would come up in the Airport by May 2013, at the cost of Rs 19 crore. The tower will stand 24 metres high and will offer the controller a complete 360 degree view of the airport, which will enable to guide the aircrafts with no trouble, he said.

“The new system will not only enhance the safety and security of the Airport but also bring different air control units under one roof. It will house air traffic control, control tower, radar unit and communication unit at one place”, he said.

Passenger Handling


The Director said that the passenger handling at Mangalore airport witnessed four time growth in past 10 years. The Airport was handling 2.77 lakh passengers in 2002, while the current count was estimated at 9, 29,000 passengers. He attributed this growth to Mangalore's connectivity with more locations.

The Indian population in the Middle East constitutes more than one-fourth to the total passenger handling at the Airport, he revealed.

He said the Airport, which incurred a loss of Rs 2.5 crore in 2002, showed operational profit of Rs 80 lakh after commencement of international flights in 2006. This year Mangalore Airport secured a profit of Rs 9.5 crore, and Rs 12.5 crore is the expected profit for 2013, he said.

Reiterating that Mangalore Airport is safe, the Director said it has better facilities compared to Kochi and Kozhikode airports, which do not have Area Control Centre. In fact this unique facility available at Mangalore Airport is used by the pilots to land in those two airports, he said.

Air Cargo Complex

Mr Vasudeva said that the Air Cargo Complex, which has come up at the old terminal building of the Airport is waiting for the approval from the Central Board of Excise and Customs. Once the Air Cargo Complex starts the service, the Airport will witness further development, he added.

The Director, who is all set to retire later this month, was given a warm felicitation by the scribes' body on the occasion.

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News Network
March 26,2020

New Delhi, Mar 26: While the humans are on lockdown and spending time with their families, animals are free and without any fear roaming around on the otherwise busy roads. From Malabar civets to large Indian bisons, animals are enjoying this time.

Indian Forest Officer Susanta Nanda recently shared a video with the caption, "Indian bison( the gaur) goes for a street walk. The largest extant Bovine, is native to South and Southeast Asia. It can be very aggressive. Rare to see in markets."

The 8-second video shows the large animal freely walking in the market area of Chikmagalur district, Karnataka, while the few onlookers on the road get aside and watch the Bison with utmost amazement.

The videos of animals having a gala time on the roads have become common. After the video was posted online, it became a hit. The clip garnered over 3.1k views and over 100 retweets.

Twitter is amazed at the video. Have a look at the comments.

One user wrote, "Oh! We should vacate this place for them. Guess humans have stayed for too long."

Another Twitter user wrote, "That’s one thing people would follow social distancing with!"

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News Network
June 3,2020

Mangaluru, Jun 3: Cyclone Nisarga did not land in Karnataka and has passed its border with heavy rains and strong winds, said an official on Wednesday.

However rains continued to lash parts of coastal Karnataka. There was no report of any casualty, the official added.

"It has already passed. We have not got any reports of fatalities. A heavy rain was expected and the deputy commissioners were alerted. Fishermen too were warned," said Karnataka State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA) Principal Secretary T K Anil Kumar.

Kumar said Nisarga's actual landing is in Maharashtra and the warning was given for that state and Gujarat.

"In the fringe proportion (of Karnataka), high winds were expected and fishermen were warned not to venture into the sea," he said.

Kumar said the department interacted with the deputy commissioners of Belagavi, Uttara Kannada, Udupi, Dakshina Kannada, Chikkamagaluru and Shivamogga and alerted them about heavy rains.

Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre Director Srinivas Reddy said the department has kept four National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) teams on standby in Mangaluru and Kodagu for any eventuality.

The teams have been mobilized from Guntur in Andhra Pradesh.

"More rain is predicted in coastal districts. Wind speed too will be more in coastal areas," said Reddy.

According to a Met Department official, the track of Nisarga is expected to be 200-400km off Karnataka coast.

"Sudden wind speed had been reported along the coast. We had issued port warnings," said the official.

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News Network
February 24,2020

New Delhi, Feb 24: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is conducting raids at more than 20 locations in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The latest raids are being carried out in connection with ISIS conspiracy cases.

More details are currently awaited regarding the cases.

Meanwhile, NIA had on February 15 filed a charge sheet against two Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) terrorists before the agency special court, Jammu. The two terrorists are identified as Khalil Ahmad Kayani (34) and Mohammad Nazeem (23), both residents of Haveli Farwad Kahuta district in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK).

The case is related to the arrest of the two accused near Nilkanth Nala, approximately 700 metres inside the Indian side of LoC, in Gulmarg Sector of Baramulla district.

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