Page 9 - Kolkata

Air India Express expands, defers Kolkata-Dhaka direct flight plans

Air India Express, the budget-carrier arm of Air India, is embarking on a significant expansion by increasing its fleet size and introducing new routes, as passenger growth remains robust. The airline, however, has deferred plans to launch direct flights between Kolkata and Dhaka, citing the ongoing political crisis in Bangladesh. "You would recall we had announced our operational plan for Dhaka, which is a new and significant market for us. But because of the situation there, we have deferred those plans," Aloke Singh, Managing Director of Air India Express, said. "As soon as the conditions are right, we will resume those plans," he said. The airline had initially planned to launch the Dhaka services in September with six weekly flights. Despite the deferment, Singh said the airline remains committed to expanding its presence in the eastern sector. He said its international service flights to and from Kathmandu would begin with the summer schedule, starting the end of March ...

Bangladesh summons Kolkata mission head for consultations amid protests

Bangladesh has summoned Shikder Mohammad Ashrafur Rahman, the Acting Deputy High Commissioner in Kolkata, for urgent consultations following protests over attacks on Hindu minorities. Rahman, who is also Minister - Political Affairs, stationed in Kolkata, has returned to Dhaka. Ashrafur Rahman was called for urgent consultations following ongoing protests outside our mission in Kolkata. Additionally, he will be part of the delegation during the foreign secretary-level talks between the two countries slated for next week. He will be back by the middle of this month, a senior official of the Bangladesh Deputy High Commission in Kolkata told PTI on condition of anonymity. The mission in Kolkata has witnessed multiple protests over the past week by political parties and religious groups condemning the reported atrocities against Hindus minorities in Bangladesh. In a related development, the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in Agartala, Tripura, suspended all visa and consular servi

KMC asks shops to put up signboards in Bengali alongside other languages

The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has made it mandatory for every commercial establishment in the metropolis to put up signboards in Bengali along with other languages, an official said. The civic body is determined to enforce the usage of Bengali in signages, and has set a tentative deadline of February 21, 2025 to initiate the process, he said. Municipal Secretary Swapan Kundu said the corporation is in contact with the owners of shops, restaurants and other business establishments to ensure that names and other information about the outlets are written in Bengali in addition to any other language. In October, TMC Councillor Biswarup Dey had said at a KMC session that all signboards in public and private offices should have Bengali text apart from other languages and all notifications, letters and documents of the municipal corporation should also be published in Bengali. Dey had made the proposal in the wake of Bengali receiving the distinction of a classical language by t

Flights to Kolkata from Bangladesh dwindling due to crisis, traders hit

The number of flights to Kolkata from Bangladesh has dwindled over the last few months with a falling passenger count, amid the ongoing crisis in the neighbouring country, officials at the NSCBI airport here said on Sunday. One airline from India has also scrapped its plan to begin flight services between Kolkata and Dhaka for the time being, they said. Flights arriving in Kolkata, operated by US-Bangla Airlines, a private carrier of the neighbouring country, were 84 in July and the number came down to 24 in November, the officials said. According to officials at the Kolkata airport, the airline carried 7,391 passengers to Kolkata in July, which came down to 1,646 in November. The number of departures from Kolkata to Bangladesh simultaneously shows the same trend. Similarly, the national carrier of the neighbouring country Biman Bangladesh had operated 59 flights to Kolkata in July and the number fell to 28 in November, the officials said. Indian low-cost carrier Indigo's flight

CBI files chargesheet in RG Kar case, names Sandip Ghosh as prime accused

The CBI on Friday filed a chargesheet in connection with the RG Kar Hospital financial irregularities in which it has named former principal of the medical establishment Sandip Ghosh as the prime accused, an official said. The Special CBI court at Alipore here, however, did not accept the chargesheet as the official approval required to file a chargesheet against any state government employee was not available, he said. In the 100-odd page chargesheet, the central probe agency has also named four others who were arrested for alleged involvement in the irregularities, he said. "Apart from Ghosh (who has been suspended), the chargesheet includes the names of the other four arrested accused - Biplab Singh, Afsar Ali, Suman Hazra and Ashish Pandey. The CBI has also attached at least 1,000 pages of documents in support of their investigation of the case," the officer told PTI. Another official said: "The West Bengal government needs to approve a chargesheet that has the name of its ...

DLF joint venture firm DCCDL sells IT park in Kolkata for Rs 637 crore

Realty major DLF joint venture firm DCCDL has sold an IT park in Kolkata to Primarc and RDB group for Rs 637 crore. DLF Info City Developers (Kolkata) Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of DLF Cyber City Developers Ltd (DCCDL), has entered into a definitive agreement to sell and transfer its Kolkata Tech Park 1 business undertaking to RDB Primarc Techno Park LLP (an affiliate of Primarc & RDB group), on a slump sale basis for an aggregate consideration of about Rs 637 crore, DLF said in a regulatory filing. Kolkata Tech Park 1 is one of the largest IT parks in eastern India with gross leasable area of about 1.49 million sq ft. It is home to global technology leaders. "This is reflective of the value embedded in our core assets created over the years with good quality tenant partners and asset management," DLF Rental Business Vice-Chairman & MD Sriram Khattar said. The deal also "demonstrates our commitment to continuously enhance shareholder value". Primarc Group Managing Director

House price index rises 4.3% in Q2 against 3.3% in previous quarter: RBI

The cities are Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Jaipur, Kanpur, Kochi, Kolkata, Lucknow, and Mumbai

Kolkata trams, now on their way out, inspired city's best-known filmmakers

Now that there will be fewer trams on the city's streets, it will not only be an ecological loss but also an aesthetic and political one

Kolkata: ED arrests father-son in Rs 2,800 cr chit fund, laundering scam

The Enforcement Directorate on Friday said it has arrested a father-son duo in Kolkata in an alleged Rs 2,800 crore worth chit fund scam linked money laundering case. A special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court sent Basudeb Bagchi and his son Avik Bagchi, promoters of Prayag Group of companies, to ten days of ED custody, it said in a statement. The premises of the two and some others in Kolkata and Mumbai were raided by the ED on November 26. The two are accused of "defrauding" the public by collecting deposits worth Rs 2,800 crore under "false" high-return schemes like monthly income schemes (MIS), redeemable preference shares and club membership certificates. As of now, the ED said, Rs 1,900 crore remains "unpaid" to investors. The Prayag Group of companies operated "illegally" without necessary authorisations from regulatory bodies like the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), affecting lakhs of investors across multip

Kolkata court orders seizure of Rs 24 crore assets in bank fraud case: ED

A special court in Kolkata has ordered the confiscation of assets worth Rs 24 crore of a man, who was declared a fugitive economic offender, and some others in a bank loan fraud case, the ED said on Thursday. The movable and immovable properties, located in prime locations of Kolkata in West Bengal and Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu, belong to "mastermind" Pushpesh Kumar Baid and his associates. Baid was declared an offender under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act (FEOA) by the same court on January 3, the federal agency said in a statement. The Enforcement Directorate case against Baid and others stems from multiple CBI FIRs and chargesheets. He is currently stated to be based in the US. The ED alleged that Baid was "absconding" from the legal proceedings despite a non-bailable warrant being issued against him by the court. "Various companies owned and controlled by Pushpesh Kumar Baid availed loan from the banks by submitting false financial statements and forged deeds of the several

Rising income levels to optimise home affordability in next 12 months: JLL

Kolkata is estimated to be the most affordable city, while Mumbai may reach near-optimal affordability levels in 2025

Suraksha Diagnostic to go deeper in eastern markets; IPO opens November 29

The company has set a price band of Rs 420-441 per share for its Rs 846.25 crore issue. The IPO is entirely an offer for sale (OFS)

RG Kar case protests: SC orders SIT probe into custodial torture case

The Supreme Court on Monday ordered an SIT investigation into the alleged torture of a woman in police custody following her arrest over protests against the rape and murder of a doctor at R G Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata. Observing not everything could be transferred to the CBI, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan modified the Calcutta High Court order ordering a CBI probe and said senior IPS officers of the state need to be entrusted with the investigation. The top court said the SIT, which will comprise officers, whose names were submitted by the state, shall submit its report on the progress of the investigation on weekly basis to the high court. The Calcutta High Court chief justice was directed to constitute a special bench before which the SIT would submit its report besides seeking further investigation. On November 11, the top court stayed the October 8 order of the high court directing a CBI probe while asking the state government to submit a li

Raj Bhavan launches probe on report of Bengal Guv unveiling bust of himself

The Raj Bhavan here on Monday said a two-member panel has been formed to find out details of the media reports that West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose unveiled a bust of himself at his official residence on completion of his two years in office. The office of the governor also rejected media reports that the bust was installed on the Raj Bhavan premises, claiming that it was presented to Bose by a sculptor. "The governor did not unveil any bust of himself at the Raj Bhavan nor did he install it anywhere on the premises of the Raj Bhavan. This is absolutely wrong information. The bust was presented to the governor," an official told PTI. "Several artists submit their creations to the governor. Painters made his portraits and presented them to him. Similarly, a sculptor had made the bust and presented it to Bose," he said. This has unfortunately been described as "unveiling his own statue", the official said. "This might be a plot scripted by people from outside the Raj Bhavan to b

Indian Navy demonstrates tactical response at Sea Vigil-24 in Kolkata

According to an official release, the exercise, conducted with precision by security forces, highlighted inter-agency collaboration and rapid operational readiness in countering evolving threats

RG Kar case: Bengal Guv asks for report over Kolkata CP's involvement claim

In a post on X, Raj Bhavan Media Cell said that Governor Bose has urged the state government to look into the matter and inform him of the factual position

Vizag man calls Kolkata 'India's dirtiest city', triggers online debate

A man from Visakhapatnam has started a discussion on the internet after describing Kolkata as "India's dirtiest city" in a post on his trip there on X. His social media post sparked a debate

'I was framed': RG Kar case accused frantically shouts from jeep. WATCH

Sanjoy Roy, a civic volunteer with the local police, was arrested a day after the body of a junior doctor was found in the seminar hall of the Kolkata-based hospital

Central referral system activated in five medical colleges in Kolkata

The West Bengal government has linked five medical colleges in Kolkata with the central referral system and started a digital bed vacancy monitor in one of these facilities, a state health department official said. These mechanisms are some of the demands made by junior doctors who have been agitating following the rape and murder of an on-duty medic at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9. The central referral system would allow hospitals in districts to requisition a bed in medical establishments in the city before referring a patient. On the other hand, with the bed vacancy monitor set up at NRS Medical College and Hospital, people will be able to see the number of beds occupied by patients in different departments, as well as those available. "The central referral system was made functional at five medical colleges in the city today. It would take a few more days for complete implementation of the entire process," the health department official told PTI. The five he

HM Amit Shah arrives Kolkata to launch BJP's membership drive in state

On Amit Shah's visit, BJP leader Locket Chatterjee said that due to political issues in the state, the membership drive started late in the state