UAE expats welcome trial flight landing in Kerala’s 4th international airport

February 24, 2016

Dubai, Feb 24: Expatriates from Kerala are excited about having a fourth international airport in their home state.

kannur

The Kannur International Airport (KIA) is all set to have its first trial landing of an aircraft on February 29. Expats from Malabar region cannot wait for the airport to be fully operational, as that would mean they can directly fly into their hometown.

The Director General of Civil Aviation has given clearance and a defence aircraft will touch down on the runway on the morning of February 29. The military plane will take off from the Karipur International Airport and land on the partially-completed runway. Full-fledged operation of international flights from KIA will commence from September 2016.

“KIA, which boasts a 4,000 meter runway when completed, is strategically positioned for both expatriates and business community from Malabar region. It can accommodate international travellers from Coorg and Mysore from the neighbouring state of Karnataka apart from serving those of the surrounding districts in Kerala, such as Vayanad, Kasargodu and Kozhikkodu, said Vinay Nambiar, UAE Country Head, Spice Jet. “Today someone going to Coorg need to travel to Mangalore and then take a road journey of about six hours,” he added.

The expected flow of international passengers through the new airport by 2026 is 4.6 million passengers per year and a cargo movement of 60,758 tonnes per annum. The projected aircraft movement from KIA is 39,638 per annum with a peak hour aircraft movement of 18 flights.

Speaking to Emirates 24|7, P Shashindran, a resident of Kannur, said: “Out of four international airports in Kerala, KIA is going to be the biggest international airport with 4,000 meter runway, making it suitable for any type of aircraft to land there.” He said, other two adjacent airports are table-top airports with limited space for expansion.

“With the completion of KIA, the place will become another hub for textile exports from India. Recently the National Institute of Fashion Technology came to Kannur and I am sure the airport project will only boost it further. There is not a single family in Malabar without a NRI and the new airport will definitely be useful,” he added.

A fifth airport in central Kerala has been in debate for some time now. KIA is being developed by Kannur International Airport Ltd (KIAL), a public limited company. The Phase 1 project cost would be approximately Indian Rs.1,892 crore including the cost of land.

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Agencies
May 28,2020

Sharjah, May 28: The Ministry of Interior has warned the public against visiting wadis during bad weather conditions, including rainy seasons, to avoid the risk of getting caught in flash floods that could endanger their lives.

A video posted on its official Instagram account depicted several such incidents involving cars being swept away by floods.

The warning comes after four people were found dead this week in Sharjah's Wadi Al Helo, an area hit by floods during heavy rains that lashed the emirate, authorities said.

The National Search and Rescue Centre (NSRC) found the bodies as it conducted an operation to look for seven people who were reported missing amid the unstable weather conditions.

In a separate incident yesterday, 20 passengers of a bus that got stuck in Wadi Hatta's Umm Al Nosor area in Dubai were also rescued by police after their vehicle was swept away by floods.

The ministry urged the public to follow the directives issued for their own safety.

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News Network
April 11,2020

Dubai, Apr 11: Saudi Arabia has reported another 382 new cases of coronavirus, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 4,033, the Ministry of Health announced on Saturday.

The ministry also confirmed five more deaths from the virus, pushing the death toll in Kingdom to 52.

A total of 35 people has made full recovery from the deadly disease, taking the tally of patients recovered to 720.

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News Network
April 28,2020

Dubai, Apr 28: Riyadh municipality has announced 13 requirements to restore commercial activity in malls starting Wednesday (April 29), in accordance with the government’s coronavirus precautionary measures.

The requirements include: the continued closure of all entertainment and playing areas inside malls, and not allowing the entry of children under the age of 15.

The municipality requires all malls to ensure the availability of medical examination and sterilization teams to measure the temperature of all individuals entering the mall at all entrances throughout opening hours, prevent any person with a temperature exceeding 38 degrees Celsius from entering, remove all chairs and benches in the corridors, and provide masks and gloves for visitors at the entrances.

All malls are to have security personnel stationed at all entrances to ensure that visitors are wearing masks.

The municipality also requires all malls to sterilize the entire facility every 24 hours, allocate rooms for medical isolation when there is any suspicion of an individual being infected with COVID-19, ensure the presence of a sufficient number of security personnel, and carry out regular rounds to verify full compliance, and suspend the valet service.

It also called for malls to put up explanatory signs of the guidelines to ensure that everyone understands the precautionary measures.

Malls should rely on the use of escalators and stairs for movement between floors, and in the event they are not available, only two people are allowed to ride the elevator at a time.

Revised curfew

Saudi Arabia had revised on April 21 its coronavirus curfew timings for the holy month of Ramadan, allowing residents in all areas and cities not currently under a 24-horu lockdown to go out between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.

However, areas under a complete lockdown will only be allowed to go out for essential needs, such as grocery shopping or medical visits, between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Residents in these areas must stay within their neighborhoods

A 24-hour lockdown was previously imposed on the cities of Riyadh, Tabuk, Dammam, Dhahran, and Hofuf and throughout the governorates of Jeddah, Taif, Qatif, and Khobar.

The government had imposed a full lockdown on the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah as well. Other cities and governorates had a curfew implemented from 3 p.m. to 6 a.m. daily.

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