The domestic carrier, Akasa Air has announced the addition of Srinagar as the 20th destination to its expanding network.
Starting March 1 2024, the airline will operate daily flights between Mumbai and Srinagar catering to the growing air travel demand between these two cities. This expansion is a significant milestone for the airline as it marks the entry into the state of Jammu and Kashmir, strengthening its domestic presence in the northern part of the country. Travellers can book flights starting February 2, 2024, on Akasa Air’s website, Android and iOS app or through multiple leading OTAs.
Srinagar has witnessed a consistent increase in travel demand over the past years. The launch of operations on the route will cater to a blend of business and leisure travellers and will bolster connectivity, trade, and tourism in the region.
With this launch, Akasa Air seamlessly connects Mumbai to 13 cities across India. “Known for its picturesque mountains and enchanting valleys, Srinagar has witnessed an uptick in domestic and international tourism and our flight launch will further boost economic activity in the region. Akasa Air is in growth mode and has achieved a milestone of adding 20 destinations to our network in just 17 months of operations, becoming the fastest-growing airline in the history of Indian aviation,” stated Praveen Iyer, Co-Founder and Chief Commercial Officer, Akasa Air.
The airline’s first flight will deploy its fleet of Bombardier CRJ200ER aircraft for services on this new route. Zooom’s Chief Executive Officer Atul Gambhir stated that the airline will also persist in its support role, promoting the UDAN scheme, by launching additional services focused on the regional connectivity routes.
Commenting on the launch, Belson Coutinho, Co-Founder and Chief Marketing & Experience officer, Akasa Air said, “We are super excited to bring the Akasa experience to Srinagar, a city with immense tourism and commercial significance as we expand and strengthen our footprint across the country. Since inception, our industry-leading and customer friendly products and services such as Pets on Akasa and the popular Café Akasa menu backed by our signature Akasa experience have made a positive impact while creating a warm, friendly and inclusive travel experience. As we rapidly expand our network, we look forward to hosting an increasing number of travellers and providing them with a memorable experience.” Akasa Air has introduced multiple quality products and differentiated services to ensure inclusive, warm and comfortable flying experience. The brand-new aircraft provide ample legroom and high comfort and come with USB ports in a majority of aircraft, allowing passengers to charge their gadgets and devices on the go. There are other notable services like Cafe Akasa and Pets on Akasa.
In addition, Akasa Air has introduced its safety instruction card and onboard menu card in Braille for persons with visual impairment.
Since its launch in August 2022, Akasa Air has served over 6.3 million passengers and connects with 20 cities across India, namely Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kochi, Delhi, Guwahati, Agartala, Pune, Lucknow, Goa, Hyderabad, Varanasi, Bagdogra, Bhubaneswar, Kolkata, Port Blair, Ayodhya, Gwalior, and Srinagar.
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The Mahindra Group has revealed significant leadership appointments across its businesses, showcasing a commitment to leveraging top internal talent for key roles. Manoj Bhat, currently serving as Group Chief Financial Officer, has been appointed as the Managing Director & CEO of Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Limited (MHRIL), effective May 17, 2024. This appointment follows Kavinder Singh’s decision to embark on a new professional journey, effective May 16, 2024.
Amarjyoti Barua, who presently holds the position of Executive Vice President – Group Strategy, will transition to lead the Mahindra Group’s Finance Organisation as the Group Chief Financial Officer, also effective May 17, 2024.
Dr Anish Shah, Group CEO & Managing Director of M&M, emphasised the Mahindra Group’s dedication to talent development, highlighting the organization’s robust development programs and career mapping initiatives. He expressed gratitude for Kavinder Singh’s contributions to MHRIL and the Mahindra Group, while welcoming Manoj Bhat’s leadership, which aligns with the group’s Rise philosophy.
In line with the group’s talent development strategy, further rotations of key finance talent are planned. Effective May 1, 2024, Vimal Agarwal, the current CFO of Mahindra Lifespaces Developers Ltd. (MLDL), will transition to the role of CFO for MHRIL, succeeded by Avinash Bapat as the CFO of Mahindra Lifespace Developers Ltd. (MLDL).
With extensive experience in the travel and hospitality sector, Machado brings a wealth of knowledge to Sabre, having previously served in various leadership roles within the industry. In an exclusive conversation with ETTravelWorld, Machado highlighted trends he sees in the marketplace, Sabre’s plans, and what agencies need to be thinking about to harness India’s huge tourism industry growth.
Kavinder Singh, who joined the Mahindra Group in 2014 as Managing Director and CEO of MHRIL, focused on elevating MHRIL into a world-class vacation ownership company during his tenure.Manoj Bhat, who moved to M&M in April 2021 from Tech Mahindra, brings a wealth of leadership experience and value creation skills to his new role. As Group CFO, he played a pivotal role in leading the group’s Finance Leadership Team and contributing to Tech Mahindra’s growth initiatives.
Amarjyoti Barua, who joined the Mahindra Group in May 2023, has demonstrated expertise in strategic leadership, previously holding roles at Baker Hughes and GE, where he spearheaded financial and operational transformations.
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Canada has announced that it is imposing an immediate two-year cap on new international student visas to tackle a housing crisis and target institutional “bad actors”, a move that is likely to impact Indians planning to study in the country. Immigration Minister Marc Miller said as part of the cap there will be a 35 per cent reduction in new study visas in 2024. The cap is expected to result in 364,000 new approved permits in 2024. Nearly 560,000 such visas were issued last year.
The cap will be in place for two years; the number of permits to be issued in 2025 will be reassessed at the end of this year, he said.
“To maintain a sustainable level of temporary residence in Canada, as well to ensure that there is no further growth in the number of international students in Canada for 2024, we are setting a national application intake cap for two years from 2024,” Global News quoted Miller as saying.
The move comes amid pressure on the federal government from provinces on the increasing numbers of non-permanent residents entering Canada while the country struggles with a housing crisis, CBC News said.
Miller earlier this month said that a cap on international students would not be a “one-size-fits-all solution” to housing shortages across Canada.
More than 800,000 international students were issued temporary study visas in 2022. Miller said last fall that 2023’s numbers were on track to be more than triple the number accepted 10 years ago.
The move is expected to impact students from India who see Canada as a preferred destination for higher studies.
India was the first among the top ten origin countries of study permit holders in 2022 in Canada, with a total of 319,000 students.
Miller said that by imposing the cap, the federal government is taking action against some small private colleges.
The move will help the government to target institutional “bad actors”, he said.
“It’s unacceptable that some private institutions have taken advantage of international students by operating under-resourced campuses, lacking supports for students and charging high tuition fees all the while significantly increasing their intake of international students,” Miller said.
In some provinces, Miller said, the total reduction in permits will be approximately 50 per cent.
Provinces and territories will be left to decide how permits are distributed among universities and colleges in their jurisdictions. The cap will be in place for two years; the number of permits to be issued in 2025 will be reassessed at the end of this year.
In an interview with CBC News on Monday, Miller spoke of “degree-granting institutions that are giving fake business degrees” to students who hope to stay in Canada. The minister said there could be “hundreds” of such schools operating in Canada and that the number has “exploded in the last couple of years.”
In addition to the cap, the federal government will also require international students applying for a permit to provide an attestation letter from a province or territory.
“These measures are not against individual international students,” Miller said.
“They are to ensure that as future students arrive in Canada, they receive the quality of education that they signed up for and the hope that they were provided in their home countries.”
Miller also announced changes to the post-graduation work permit programme.
Starting in September, international students who begin a programme that’s part of a curriculum licensing arrangement (one where a private college has been licensed to deliver the curriculum of an associated public college) will no longer be eligible for a post-graduation work permit.
Canada’s issuance of study permits to Indian students saw a significant drop in the latter part of the previous year, primarily due to diplomatic tensions following the murder of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada. Immigration Minister Marc Miller indicated that the permit numbers are unlikely to recover soon, citing the strained diplomatic relations with India. The tensions led to an 86 per cent decrease in study permits issued to Indian students in the last quarter compared to the previous one.
Graduates of master’s and other “short graduate-level programmes” will “soon” be able to apply for a three-year work permit, the government says. Open work permits will also be made available to the spouses of international students in master’s and doctoral programs.
The changes announced Monday come a little over a month after Miller first announced measures intended to target what the minister described as “the diploma equivalent of puppy mills.”
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said the blame lies entirely with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and called the prime minister “incompetent.”
“He is the one that granted the study permits. That is a federal responsibility,” Poilievre said.
Jenny Kwan, the New Democratic Party leader, also blamed Trudeau‘s “mismanagement.”
She also warned that the new cap “might punish talented students who seek to build a better life.”
In a media statement, Ontario’s Minister of Colleges and Universities Jill Dunlop said her government recognises that “some bad actors are taking advantage of these students with false promises of guaranteed employment, residency and Canadian citizenship.”
The minister said Ontario has been engaging with the federal government on “ways to crack down on these practices, like predatory recruitment.”
A statement issued by Nova Scotia’s department of advanced education said the province “will need to assess the impacts of the changes made by the federal government once we have more details, including provincial allocations.”
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In a strategic move to diversify its service portfolio, EaseMyTrip.com, leading online travel tech platform, has announced the launch of a new subsidiary, EaseMyTrip Insurance Broker. The new venture aims to tap into India‘s burgeoning insurance market, currently valued at INR 7.9 trillion.
India, the fifth-largest life insurance market globally, growing at an annual rate of 32-34 per cent, presents a significant opportunity for EaseMyTrip. The newly formed subsidiary will leverage the company’s 20 million userbase to provide specialised insurance products. Nishant Pitti, CEO and Co-Founder of EaseMyTrip, expressed enthusiasm about this strategic expansion, emphasising the brand’s dedication to offering a complete travel ecosystem.
EaseMyTrip Insurance Broker, led by Pitti as Director, plans to revolutionise the insurance industry through innovation and a client-focused approach. The company said its subsidiary aims to offer comprehensive insurance solutions.
In tandem with its insurance venture, EaseMyTrip is also set to embark on a nationwide roadshow, a first-of-its-kind initiative in the company’s history. The roadshow, commencing on January 16th in Kolkata and concluding on February 1st in Pune, will cover key cities across India. In collaboration with recently acquired domestic travel brands Guideline Travels and Dook Travels, EaseMyTrip aims to foster robust business connections within the nation’s thriving tourism industry.
“The roadshow provides a unique platform for EaseMyTrip to engage in one-on-one dialogues with prominent travel agents across multiple cities. By facilitating this corporate endeavour, we aim to strengthen the fabric of India’s travel and tourism sector. The initiative is expected to generate innovative concepts, strategic collaborations, and an overall enhancement of customer-centric services,” the company said in its statement.
Pitti highlighted the significance of the roadshow as a strategic step toward fortifying the company’s market position and contributing to the growth and sophistication of India’s travel industry.
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In a significant boost to air connectivity for the holy city of Ayodhya, SpiceJet and IndiGo have unveiled strategic plans to facilitate seamless travel options for devotees and travellers. SpiceJet has announced a special flight operation from Delhi to Ayodhya on January 21, 2024, exclusively for passengers attending the historic ‘Pran Pratishta‘ ceremony, while IndiGo has launched a new route to Ayodhya from Ahmedabad starting January 11. The SpiceJet flight is only for passengers attending the historic ‘Pran Pratishta’ ceremony at the Shri Ram Temple on January 22. The airline will operate a return flight on the same day. Departing from Delhi at 1:30 pm and reaching Ayodhya by 3 pm, the return flight on the following day is scheduled at 5 pm, landing in Delhi at 6:30 pm.
Ajay Singh, Chairman and Managing Director of SpiceJet, expressed the airline’s deep honor in connecting devotees to this momentous event and affirmed SpiceJet’s commitment to expanding air connectivity to Ayodhya, connecting the holy city to multiple destinations across the country.
In parallel, IndiGo has commenced operations between Ahmedabad, Gujarat, and Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, effective from January 11, 2024. The airline aims to enhance interstate accessibility and reduce travel time between the two cities.
This route follows IndiGo’s recent commencement of operations between Delhi and Ayodhya, with plans to launch the Mumbai-Ayodhya route from January 15, 2024.
Ayodhya gears up for the Ram Mandir inauguration on January 22, less than two weeks away. State tourism minister Jaiveer Singh announced plans for helicopter services to accommodate the anticipated surge in visitors. While he didn’t specify the start date, he assured services before January 22, along with increased rail capacity.
Vinay Malhotra, Head of Global Sales at IndiGo, highlighted the significance of this new route, connecting Ayodhya with key cities like Delhi, Ahmedabad, and Mumbai, contributing to business opportunities, travel, tourism, and economic growth.Both airlines express their commitment to enhancing connectivity to Ayodhya, marking a significant stride in promoting accessibility to this sacred destination. SpiceJet and IndiGo’s strategic initiatives align with the growing demand for air travel to Ayodhya and underline their dedication to facilitating smooth journeys for pilgrims and travellers alike.
The increased connectivity is poised to contribute to the socio-economic development of the region and cater to the religious, cultural, and historical significance of Ayodhya.
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Britain announced plans to slash the number of migrants arriving by legal routes on Monday, raising the minimum salary they must earn in a skilled job by a third, amid pressure on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to tackle record net migration figures.
High levels of legal migration have dominated Britain’s political landscape for more than a decade and were a key factor in the 2016 vote to leave the European Union. Sunak has promised to gain more control after lawmakers in his Conservative Party criticised his record ahead of an election expected next year, with the opposition Labour P1arty far ahead in opinion polls.
But businesses and trade unions both attacked the measures as counterproductive and challenging for the private sector and state-run health service, both dogged by labour shortages.
Figures last month showed annual net migration to the United Kingdom hit a record of 745,000 in 2022 and has stayed at high levels since, with many migrants now coming from places like India, Nigeria and China instead of the EU. Home Secretary (interior minister) James Cleverly said the new measures could reduce that number by 300,000.
“Immigration is too high. Today we’re taking radical action to bring it down,” said Sunak, who is also trying to deport migrants who arrive illegally to Rwanda.
Cleverly said the government would raise the minimum salary threshold for foreign skilled workers to 38,700 pounds (USD 48,900), from its current level of 26,200 pounds, though health and social workers would be exempt.
Other measures included stopping foreign health workers bringing in family members on their visas, increasing a surcharge migrants have to pay to use the health service by 66 per cent, and raising the minimum income for family visas.
TIGHT LABOUR MARKET
The measures could spark new disputes with business owners who have struggled to hire workers in recent years given Britain’s persistently tight labour market and the end of free movement from the EU since Britain’s 2020 exit from the bloc.
In October, the government’s independent migration adviser recommended abolishing the so-called shortage occupations list, one of the main routes for businesses to hire migrant workers in sectors where there are severe staff shortages.
Cleverly said the government would end the current system that lets employers pay migrants only 80% of the going rate to do jobs where there is a worker shortage, and that the list of shortage occupations would be reviewed.
the US issued more than 1,40,000 visas to Indian students last year and is taking several steps to reduce visa appointment wait period. Julie Stufft, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Visa Services, said US missions in India worked six, seven days a week to make sure that students could be interviewed before their classes started.
“We will stop immigration undercutting the salary of British workers,” Cleverly told lawmakers. “We will create a new immigration salary list with a reduced number of occupations.”
However, some studies have shown foreign workers have little or no impact on overall wage or employment levels, and Britain’s acute shortage of candidates to fill vacancies remains a problem for many company bosses.
“These changes will further shrink the talent pool that the entire economy will be recruiting from, and only worsen the shortages hospitality businesses are facing,” said Kate Nicholls, chief executive of trade body UKHospitality.
“We urgently need to see an immigration system that is fit-for-purpose and reflects both the needs of business and the labour market. The system at the moment does none of that.”
The Bank of England said last month that businesses were finding it a bit easier to hire but persistent skills shortages remained in some sectors. Trade unions also voiced concerns at Cleverly’s plan. Christina McAnea, the general secretary of UNISON, the main union in the health sector, saying it spelled “total disaster” for the health service.
“Migrants will now head to more welcoming countries, rather than be forced to live without their families,” she said.
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Saudi Arabia announced its plans to bid to host the 2034 World Cup, the latest step in a campaign to turn the kingdom into a global sports powerhouse.
The bid “intends to deliver a world-class tournament and will draw inspiration from Saudi Arabia’s ongoing social and economic transformation and the country’s deep-rooted passion for football“, said a statement from the Saudi Arabian football federation.
News of the bid comes one year after neighbouring Qatar hosted the first World Cup in the Middle East, where the Saudi national team scored a stunning group stage victory over eventual winners Argentina.
The Saudi announcement came an hour after world football’s governing body FIFA released a statement giving its plans for the 2030 World Cup and inviting countries in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) to bid for 2034.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is considering implementing a visa system that would allow residents to travel easily to other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations, including Saudi Arabia. The proposed system aims to facilitate free movement within the bloc and could be introduced in the near future. Currently, foreign residents in the GCC countries often require visas to cross borders, while citizens of the bloc can travel freely.
On the heels of the Qatar tournament, Saudi Arabia signed Cristiano Ronaldo to play in the Saudi Pro League, the first in a slew of major stars drawn by eye-watering salaries to the world’s biggest crude oil exporter.Sport is a major component of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Vision 2030 reform agenda, which aims to transform Saudi Arabia into a tourism and business hub while transitioning the economy away from fossil fuels.
Spending spree
In the coming weeks, the kingdom is set to host the final LIV Golf League tournament of the regular season, a boxing match featuring Anthony Joshua and the Next Gen ATP Finals tennis tournament.
It will also host the FIFA Club World Cup in December.
Earlier this year Saudi Arabia was confirmed as host of football’s 2027 Asian Cup.
That event will enable Saudi officials to improve on existing football infrastructure, with new “world-class stadiums” constructed “in the most sustainable ways”, Saudi football federation president Yasser Al Misehal said on Wednesday.
Saudi Arabia previously explored a tri-continental World Cup bid with Egypt and Greece, though that plan has been shelved.
This collaboration will help unite both private and public sectors in a concerted effort to create a sustainable framework for growth. Additionally, it seeks to promote community empowerment and inclusion while jointly addressing crisis preparedness, management, and recovery, drawing from the valuable lessons learned during the Covid-19 pandemic
The new Saudi-only bid means fans would face “maximum three-hour flying times between cities and stadiums”, Misehal said.
Riyadh’s willingness to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on sporting events has drawn accusations of “sportswashing”, using sport to distract from oft-criticised human rights abuses.
In an interview with Fox News last month, Prince Mohammed dismissed those attacks, saying “I will continue doing sportswashing” if it will benefit the Saudi economy.
Prince in spotlight
Hosting the World Cup would ratchet up scrutiny of the 38-year-old de facto ruler, who critics accuse of consolidating power through a fierce crackdown on dissent, including one recent case in which a retired teacher was sentenced to death for critical social media posts.
Prince Mohammed told Fox he was “ashamed” of that verdict.
Like Qatar, Saudi Arabia would take heat for outlawing homosexuality and for its treatment of migrant workers, said Kristin Diwan of the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington.
“Still, there is a growing sense of inevitability to the emerging centrality of the Gulf region to the sport,” she said.
World Cup-related construction could also draw a backlash from environmental activists who sounded the alarm last year after Saudi Arabia was awarded hosting rights for the 2029 Asian Winter Games, a 47-event competition to be held in Trojena, an area of the planned $500 billion futuristic megacity known as NEOM.
At the time, Greenpeace questioned how plans for Trojena — including a man-made freshwater lake, chalets, mansions and ultra-luxury hotels — could possibly be sustainable.
But Riyadh would be keen to use the World Cup as a showcase for various natural attractions, dispelling the notion that Saudi Arabia is one giant desert.
Misehal, the football federation president, said on Wednesday that fans would be drawn to “our mountains, our islands and of course our culture”, adding: “Everything will be connected with state-of-the-art facilities to guarantee an amazing fan experience.”
The Asian Football Confederation came out in support of the Saudi 2034 World Cup bid shortly after it was announced on Wednesday.
“The entire Asian football family will stand united in support of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s momentous initiative, and we are committed to working closely with the global football family to ensure its success,” said AFC President Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa.
The Jeddah-based Organisation of Islamic Cooperation also called on its 57 member states to back the bid.
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In a significant development amid escalating diplomatic tensions between India and Canada, the Ministry of External Affairs in India has announced temporary suspension of visa services in Canada citing security reasons. However, travel between both the countries remain unrestricted as existing visa holders can continue to travel to India.
In a day full of multiple developments related to visa services, BLS International, the visa facilitator, which handles Indian visa services in Canada had issued a public notice about suspension of visa services until further notice. Later in the day, the same notice disappeared from the company’s website.
Sharing a clarification on the same, BLS International told ETTravelWorld that the website faced technical isues due to heavy traffic. “The BLS Canada visa website witnessed a technical glitch, due to which the message did not reflect for a brief period,” the company said. It also clarified that it does not provide Canadian visas and that it directly works with embassies.
BLS had notified ‘operational reason’ as the cause for the suspension from today until further notice.
This led to a confusion that the visa services will operate normally until the Indian government held a press conference to intimidate about the visa service suspension. In the press conference, Arindam Bagchi, Official Spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) informed that the government is closely monitoring the situation and will be reviewing the situation on a regular basis.
“Those in Canada who possess valid visas to India or those who have OCIs are free to travel to India. There is no issue with Indian students in Canada as they are Indian students and there are no Indian visa issues for them. We will review this situation on a regular basis,” Bagchi said.
Elaborating more on the reason of suspension, Bagchi cited safety and security of Indian diplomats as the key reason. “You are aware of the security threats being faced by our High Commission and Consulates in Canada. This has disrupted their normal functioning. Accordingly, our High Commission and Consulates are temporarily unable to process visa applications,” the MEA spokesperson said.
The message posted by the Indian visa application center in Canada read, “Important notice from the Indian Mission: Due to operational reasons, with effect from 21st September 2023, Indian visa services have been suspended until further notice.”
India and Canada are embroiled in a diplomatic row over the killing of a Khalistani separatist leader. The deteriorating diplomatic relations between Canada and India have raised concerns about the visa prospects for hundreds of thousands of immigrants, students, and workers who travel to Canada annually.
Canada is the second most popular destination for Indian students and immigrants, particularly from Punjab and Haryana, with over 700,000 students studying abroad last year.
These concerns emerged following the mutual expulsion of diplomats by Canada and India. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged that individuals linked to the Indian government may have been involved in the murder of Khalistan Tiger Force chief Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June.
On Wednesday, India had issued advisory for Indian nationals in Canada to exercise caution due to anti-India activities and hate crimes. It was apparently issued in response to the similar advisory issued by Canada however, the Canadian authorities said it was part of a pre-scheduled and routine maintenance and no new risk information has been added to the India TAA.
Amid heightened tensions with India, Canada is pulling some diplomats from India. With some diplomats having received threats on various social media platforms Global Affairs Canada is assessing its staff complement in India.
Additionally, Canada’s reported refusal to grant visas to Indian security personnel who had served in Jammu and Kashmir had also garnered attention in this context.
Triggering a tense diplomatic standoff earlier, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged that India had a role in the killing of Khalistan Tiger Force chief Hardeep Singh Nijjar. The advisory was updated after Trudeau said on Tuesday that Ottawa wants New Delhi to address the issue properly, according to CBC News. The Canadian PM added, however, that his country wasn’t trying to provoke India by any means.
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