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Air India on Saturday announced the reinstatement of its codeshare partnership with Air Canada, which was suspended more than five years ago during the coronavirus pandemic. The codeshare agreement will enable Air India to offer passengers access to six points across Canada beyond its gateways at Vancouver and London (Heathrow). A codeshare partnership allows passengers to travel on a single ticket on different flights. Air India will place its 'AI' designator code on Air Canada-operated flights on these routes -- from Vancouver to: Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Montral and Halifax; and from London Heathrow to Vancouver and Calgary. "Reciprocally, Air Canada customers will benefit from seamless domestic India connectivity to Amritsar, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Kochi via Delhi, and to Delhi and Mumbai via London (Heathrow)," a release said. For now, it is Air India's only codeshare partnership with a North American carrier. During the pandemic, then government-owned Air Indi
Salman Rushdie was among the honourees Sunday at the Dayton Literary Peace Prize event in Ohio, receiving a lifetime achievement award after publishing his first work of fiction since being stabbed on a New York lecture stage three years ago. The prizes honour both literary merit and the writers' promotion of peace through their work, with separate awards annually for fiction, nonfiction and lifetime achievement. The Ohio city was the site of negotiations that led to the Dayton Peace Accords in 1995, ending a war in the Balkans marked by ethnic cleansing that killed more than 300,000 people, as well as the displacement of 1 million residents. The 78-year-old Rushdie is best known for his 1988 novel, The Satanic Verses, which prompted allegations of blasphemy and a 1989 call from Iran's Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini for the Indian-born writer's death, driving him into hiding. He was blinded in one eye from the 2022 attack before a stunned audience, and his assailant who wasn't born w
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's strong leadership is among the key advantages India has to offer as an attractive investment destination which is set to become the world's leading economy by 2047, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu said in London. In his chief guest address at the annual London Global Convention organised by the Institute of Directors (IoD) on Tuesday night, Naidu pitched his vision for the speed of doing business through a public, private, people's partnership model for his state. The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief also presented his wife Nara Bhuvaneswari, Vice-President and Managing Director of Heritage Foods Ltd, with the prestigious IoD Distinguished Fellowship and the Golden Peacock Award for Excellence in Corporate Governance. We have some advantages in India: One is economic reforms, second is around first mover advantages of IT, and third, we have a very strong leader Narendra Modi as prime minister, said Naidu. Recently, you have seen our GS
British police said Sunday that one of two men arrested in connection with a mass stabbing attack that spread fear and panic on a London-bound train a day earlier has been released without charge, and that one person, a heroic member of the railway staff, remains in a life-threatening condition. In a statement Sunday evening, police said the only remaining suspect is a 32-year-old British man who remains in custody on suspicion of attempted murder. A second man initially arrested as a suspect was released without charge after it was determined the 35-year-old was not involved. Police said they are not treating the stabbings as an act of terror and are confident they are not looking for anyone else in connection with the attack. They have not disclosed a possible motive or the type of knife used. Our investigation is moving at pace and we are confident we are not looking for anyone else in connection to the incident," said Deputy Chief Constable Stuart Cundy of the British Transport
British Museum said its inaugural fundraising ball not only celebrated London's status as one of the world's leading cultural capitals but also the colours and light of India, rolling out the pink carpet to hundreds of celebrities from around the world. The glittering gala over the weekend, co-chaired by Reliance Group's Isha Ambani, was presented in conjunction with the museum's Ancient India: Living Traditions' exhibition that explored how Hindu, Jain and Buddhist sacred art lives on for thousands of years. Ticket sales to the so-called Pink Ball alone are believed to have raised around 1.6 million pounds, with the museum set to unveil the full extent of the fundraising efforts in the coming weeks. In India, pink is the colour of warmth, welcome and joy. It evokes a spirit of openness and grace integral to our culture, said Isha Ambani, who showcased Indian artisanship in a custom-made gown by design duo Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla. Isha was supported at the event by her mother N
The High Commission of India has strongly condemned the vandalism of Mahatma Gandhi's statue at Tavistock Square in London on Monday, just days before the annual Gandhi Jayanti celebrations are scheduled to be held at the site on October 2. The plinth of the iconic statue, which depicts the Father of the Nation in a seated meditative pose, was discovered daubed with some disturbing graffiti. The Indian mission said it has reported the desecration to the local authorities, even as its officials are at the site to coordinate the restoration of the monument to its original state. The High Commission of India in London is deeply saddened and strongly condemns the shameful act of vandalism of the statue of Mahatma Gandhi at Tavistock Square in London, the Indian High Commission in London said in a statement on social media. This is not just vandalism, but a violent attack on the idea of non-violence, three days before the International Day of Non-Violence, and on the legacy of the Mahatm
A London march organized by far-right activist Tommy Robinson drew more than 100,000 people and became unruly on Saturday as a small group of his supporters clashed with police officers who were separating them from counterprotesters. Several officers were punched, kicked and struck by bottles tossed by people at the fringes of the Unite the Kingdom rally, Metropolitan Police said. Reinforcements with helmets and riot shields were deployed to support the 1,000-plus officers on duty. At least nine people were arrested, but police indicated that many other offenders had been identified and would be held accountable. Police estimated that Robinson drew about 110,000 people, while the rival March Against Fascism protest organised by Stand Up To Racism had about 5,000 marchers. Anti-migrant theme Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, founded the nationalist and anti-Islam English Defense League and is one of the most influential far-right figures in Britain. The march wa
Hundreds of people of Indian heritage gathered at the High Commission of India in London on Friday to celebrate the country's 79th Independence Day, with music, dance and patriotic slogans. Indian High Commissioner to the UK Vikram Doraiswami opened the festivities by unfurling the Tricolour followed by the National Anthem echoing across the India House courtyard in Aldwych. He then read out excerpts from President Droupadi Murmu's address to the nation overnight, as is customary at the annual diaspora gathering. Independence Day is an opportunity for, not just Indian citizens, but friends of India including among the diaspora to come and reconnect with India, Doraiswami told PTI. We had people here from all our communities, representing the colourful tapestry that is India from Kashmir to Kerala, from Punjab to the North East, we had all communities represented here and it's a great feeling because it's a chance for everybody to reconnect with the spirit that is India to salute t