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A major tragedy was averted on March 24 when an Air India and a Kathmandu on Sunday. Both aircraft were Boeing A320 with capacity of around 150 passengers.

A Nepal Airlines plane coming to Kathmandu from Kuala Lumpur and an Air India plane coming to Kathmandu from New Delhi almost collided. The Air India aircraft was descending from 19,000 ft while the Nepal Airlines aircraft was flying at an altitude of 15,000 ft at the same location. After it appeared on the radar that the two aircraft were in proximity, the Nepal Airlines aircraft descended to 7,000 ft, reported news agency PTI.
The Air India crew saw the flight coming from the other direction and immediately informed Kathmandu air traffic control. The ATC asked Air India crew to ascend sharply to avoid a collision, which they did and a tragedy was averted.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal has formed a three-member probe committee to investigate the matter and has already suspended three employees of the air traffic controller department for carelessness.

KUMARAKOM
Sherpas from G20 nations are meeting in Kumarakom for the second meet of the key representative of world leaders and will discuss ways to deal with challenges. The sherpas will begin discussions on drafting the communique for the leaders’ summit in September.

G20 should remain non-political: Kant

India on Thursday said that the world was facing several challenges – including dealing with climate change, poverty and development – and sought the support of G20 members to keep the grouping “non-political”.
India’s sherpa Amitabh Kant said New Delhi is working with all members to ensure that challenges around global debt and recession, in several parts of the world, are addressed, and “one issue can’t hold back other things”, in what was seen as a reference to the Russia-Ukraine war.
Sherpas from G20 countries are meeting in the backwaters of Kumarakom for the second meeting of the key representative of world leaders and will discuss ways to deal with the challenges. “Kumarakom will provide peace and serenity to all the delegates. Kumarakom backwaters will enable us in the coming days to take the challenges of the world forward,” Kant told a news conference.
With several meetings out of the way, the sherpas will begin discussions on drafting the communique for the leader’s summit in September. Officials said unlike earlier, in India, all G20 countries are part of the deliberations, indicating a willingness to engage.
The Russia-Ukraine war has emerged as a sticking point for the developed world, led by the G7, while India has maintained that the G20 should remain an economic and development forum. India’s stand found support from the Troika (which includes Indonesia and Brazil with South Africa as a special invitee). Sources said all emerging countries have said that issues such as global debt overhang, slowing global growth, inflation and climate action are key for them and need to be deliberated at the forum extensively for possible resolution.
During the day, Kant also held wide ranging discussion with his Russian counterpart as well as South Africa.
“We discussed everything under the sun with Russia . We are very positive and optimistic,” said Kant. He said there was strong support for the development issues at the bilaterals that he had with sherpas of several countries, including Italy.

Find out the latest news about Hanoi and Vietnam in a five-minute brief.

1. Central bank to lower deposit interest rate cap next week

The State Bank of Vietnam announced on April 3 that it would cut interest rates on dong-denominated deposits by 0.5 percentage points to between 0.5% and 6.0%, depending on maturity, effective April 3. The overnight electronic interbank rate will also be kept at the current level of 6.0%. The central bank will also cut its refinancing rate by 50 basis points to 5.5% in a bid to spur economic growth, bucking a trend among regional peers.

Earlier this month, the SBV cut several key interest rates to boost liquidity and spur growth in a surprise move amid global financial turmoil.

1. 2. Vietnam requests Taiwan to cancel illegal live fire drills

Vietnam strongly opposes Taiwan’s illegal live-fire drills in the maritime regions surrounding Itu Aba, part of Vietnam’s Spratly Islands, and demands that they not be repeated. On March 31, the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson stated that the Taiwanese maneuvers constituted “a serious violation of Vietnam’s territorial sovereignty over the islands, as well as a threat to maritime peace, stability, security and safety”, and a complication of the situation in the East Sea.”

The Itu Aba is the island with the largest natural area within Vietnam’s Spratly Islands. Vietnam has affirmed that it has full legal basis and historical evidence to assert its sovereignty over the Spratly and Paracel islands by international law.

1. 3. The upcoming 32nd Vietnam Expo to boost business cooperation

From April 5 to 8, Hanoi will host the 32nd Vietnam International Exhibition (Vietnam Expo), featuring more than 500 domestic and foreign companies. The participating exhibitors from Vietnam, the Republic of Korea, Japan, Indonesia, Poland, and mainland China will showcase their advanced machinery and technologies in electronics, machinery and supporting industries, digital technology – e-commerce, food industry, handicrafts and beauty care at more than 600 booths.

The event allows organizations and enterprises to share and discuss experiences, promote products, seize investment opportunities, and transfer technologies to improve production and business efficiency.

1. 4. Hanoi to renovate 78 sites into underground carparks

Hanoi mulls the building of underground public car parks at nearly 80 sites in four central districts. The parking garages will be in public spaces like parks, squares, and gardens. Each parking garage will cover a total area of 104 hectares and consist of three to four floors.

The underground facilities will comprise transportation and technical infrastructure, electrical systems, and public spaces such as commercial and service centers, supermarkets, entertainment venues, and parking lots.

1. 5. Hanoi hosts a week-long exhibition showcasing OCOP farm products

The One Commune-One Product (OCOP) Fair opened in Hanoi on March 31 at the headquarters of the Hanoi Cooperative Alliance in Van Quan Ward, Ha Dong District. More than 100 cooperative groups from cooperative alliances in Hanoi and provinces across the country will participate in the week-long event to promote the sale of agricultural products and handicrafts recognized by the One Commune One Product (OCOP) program.

The event also aims to link tourism promotion activities between the capital and other localities in the country, enhancing the brand value of products, preserving the value of traditional craft villages, and promoting the development of agricultural production and services.

1. 6. Drivers in Hanoi struggle with construction blockades

Traffic congestion in Hanoi has worsened as 17 construction sites have encroached on the roadbed, according to the city’s Department of Transportation. The construction sites reduce the amount of space available on the road. The most critical sites include the Nhon-Hanoi metro project, Thanh Nien-An Duong flyover, Yen Xa sewage treatment plant, Chua Boc-Pham Ngoc Thach flyover, Mai Dich intersection flyover, and Kim Dong tunnel.

Hanoi has over 7.8 million private vehicles, including over one million cars and 6.6 million motorcycles and 185,000 electric motorcycles. The number of vehicles in the capital increases by about 4-5% every year.

CHANDIGARH/DIBRUGARH: NSA ) against five arrested associates of fugitive Harpreet Singh surrendered in Jalandhar.
The duo gave themselves up after turning up at a police checkpoint in the
The decision to slap the NSA on the five men, four of whom had been shifted to a jail in Assam’s Dibrugarh on Sunday, was taken after leads emerged of foreign funding of Amritpal’s allegedly subversive activities, hawala transfers and a possible link with Pakistani spy agency ISI.

Harjit was also flown to the Assam town, 440km from state capital Guwahati, hours after his surrender. Six more members of Amritpal’s pro-Khalistan outfit

Section 5 of the NSA contains a provision to transfer suspects from one state to another to maintain peace and harmony. Under the NSA, there is no requirement for a police remand. The investigating agency is required to submit a report to an advisory board, which, after examining the facts and evidence, can extend custody for a maximum of one year with an extension every three months.

The police have registered six criminal cases against Amritpal and his aides so far on charges of “creating disharmony among classes, attempt to murder, attacking cops and preventing them from carrying out their duties”, IGP (headquarters) Sukhchain Singh Gill said. The number of arrests as part of the crackdown on Waris Punjab De rose to 114 with Harjit and Harpreet’s surrender.

IGP Gill said Amritpal had been trying to form an outfit christened “Anandpur Khalsa Fauj (AKF)”. Some of the bulletproof jackets and rifles seized from those arrested during the crackdown since Saturday bear the initials “AKF”. Ditto the gate to Amritpal’s home in Jallupur Khera village of Amritsar district.

On allegations that Amritpal and his organisation may have been also involved in drugs smuggling, Gill said, “This is very preliminary…We have taken action against them for primarily disturbing the state’s communal harmony. Every aspect of the investigation cannot be revealed as of now.”

Amritpal’s father Tarsem Singh contested the police’s statement, saying stories were being “concocted” and “blown out of proportion to defame Amritpal”.

As the hunt for the absconding Khalistan sympathiser continued amid protests from some quarters, the Punjab government extended the suspension of mobile internet and text messaging, excluding those for banking, till Tuesday noon. Gill said the decision to lift the mobile internet blockade would depend on the situation.
Twitter accounts of some journalists in Punjab were suspended and access to handles of a few Canadian Sikh politicians was restricted on grounds of their questioning the crackdown on Amritpal.

A Mohali-based lawyer filed a petition in the Punjab and Haryana high court, challenging the curbs as illegal, unconstitutional and in violation of Supreme Court judgments. The plea states that internet shutdowns can now only be ordered by the home secretary of the Union or state governments.
IGP Gill said criticism of the police for not initiating action against Amritpal and his aides after they laid siege to Ajnala police station on February 23 was unfair. “It takes time to collect evidence, examine facts and strategise before taking action,” he said.

On how Amritpal could have fled when so many police vehicles were on his trail, Gill said the impression was that he would give himself up. “The reality is that he is still on the run and the police are making every effort to arrest him.”

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