Page 22 - Kolkata

Kolkata airport gets DigiYatra, check-in with facial recognition tech

Passengers travelling through the Kolkata airport will now be able to check in for their flights and board planes with facial recognition technology as DigiYatra was rolled out here on Friday, an official statement said. Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport is the fourth one in the country after airports in Delhi, Bengaluru and Varanasi have the facility that provides a seamless entry and embarkation process for air passengers. DigiYatra' was rolled out in those three airports in the first phase in December last year. "Its main objective is to enhance passenger experience by eliminating the need for verification of ticket and ID at multiple touch points and to achieve better movement of passengers through existing infrastructure using a digital framework," the Kolkata airport said in a statement. The trials of the technology started at the Kolkata airport on February 21, and till Thursday, 9,206 passengers utilised the facility. Passengers travelling through Air India

Etihad Airways resumes direct flights between Kolkata and Abu Dhabi

Etihad Airways resumed flight services between Kolkata and Abu Dhabi on Sunday after three years, a statement said. The airlines will operate two flights a day, four days a week -- Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday -- from Kolkata to Abu Dhabi, the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International (NSCBI) Airport said in the statement. The first flight will depart Kolkata at 4.15 am and reach Abu Dhabi at 7.55 am local time. The second one will leave Kolkata at 9.05 pm and reach its destination at 12.45 am local time, it said. From Abu Dhabi, there will be one direct flight to Kolkata four days a week. It will depart Abu Dhabi at 9 pm local time and reach Kolkata at 3.20 am. Etihad Airways will operate an Airbus A320 aircraft on the route, offering eight seats in business class and 150 in economy class, it said. On the inaugural day, 152 passengers travelled from Abu Dhabi to Kolkata, while 126 passengers travelled from Kolkata to Abu Dhabi, it added. With the recommencement of service

Telecom operator Bharti Airtel launches its 5G services in Kolkata

Telecom operator Bharti Airtel on Wednesday announced the launch of its "cutting-edge" 5G services in Kolkata. The company also said that its 5G services are already live in Haldia, Ranaghat, Contai, Krishnanagar, Puruliya, Bongaon, Bankura, Raniganj and Kolaghat in West Bengal. Airtel 5G Plus services will be available to customers in a phased manner as the company continues to construct its network and complete the rollout, Bharti Airtel said in a statement. Customers with 5G-enabled devices will enjoy a high-speed Airtel 5G Plus network at no extra cost until the rollout is more widespread. The leading telecom operator will augment its network making its services available to cities across the entire state in due course, the statement said. Talking about the launch, Ayan Sarkar, the CEO (West Bengal) of Bharti Airtel, said, I am delighted to announce the roll-out of Airtel 5G Plus in Kolkata in addition to Haldia, Ranaghat, Contai, Krishnanagar, Puruliya, Bongaon, Bankura, ...

Merlin Group plans to develop a World Trade Center in Kolkata

The oldest World Trade Center in India is in Mumbai. There are Centers in Bangalore, Chennai, New Delhi, Noida, Pune, among others

Rs 450-cr Balagarh terminal to boost trade at Kolkata port: Official

The proposed night navigation facility at the Kolkata dock system, and the upcoming Rs 450-crore terminal in West Bengal's Balagarh will enhance productivity of the Syama Prasad Mookherjee Port by 30 per cent, a top official said on Sunday. The SMP, earlier known as the Kolkata Port, is working closely with IIT-Chennai and Belgium's Port of Antwerp to roll out night navigation over the next three months, he said. The Balagarh terminal is expected to be operational in the next 24 months. The Balagarh Island lies about 85 km upstream from Kolkata port's main docks on the Inland Waterway-1 in Hooghly district. "The upcoming terminal along with night navigation will significantly enhance the port's productivity. The initial plan was to introduce night navigation until Uluberia, but the port has now decided to extend it until Diamond Harbour, " SMP Deputy Chairman (Kolkata) Samrat Rahi told PTI. At present, the night navigation system is available till Haldia. "It will improve the ...

Water, livelihoods dry up for fish farmers of East Kolkata Wetlands

The wetlands (macher bheris in Bengali) are drying up mainly due to the diversion of wastewater from Kolkata city into river Vidyadhari

Adenovirus alarm: Four more child deaths reported from Kolkata

Meanwhile, questions have been raised over the absence of specialist paediatricians in the task force on adenovirus constituted by the state government

Another pee-gate incident, this time on train by TTE in Akal Takht Express

Yet another pee-gate scandal took place -- this time aboard the Akal Takht Express between Amritsar and Kolkata

Fire breaks out at shopping complex in south Kolkata's Dhakuria area

Fire broke out at a shopping complex in south Kolkata's Dhakuria area on Monday, officials said. The blaze was first spotted at a shop in the Dakshinapan Shopping Complex around 11.45 am, they said. Two fire tenders brought the blaze under control in 30 minutes, they added. No one was injured in the blaze, the cause for which is yet to be ascertained, a fire department official said.

Two-day national executive of Samajwadi Party in Kolkata from March 18

The Samajwadi Party will organise its two-day national executive in Kolkata from March 18 to discuss the party's policies and strategies for assembly elections in the three Hindi heartland states later this year and Lok Sabha polls next year, party vice-president Kiranmoy Nanda said. The party's national executive will be held in Kolkata after a gap of 11 years. Samajwadi Party founder, the late Mulayam Singh Yadav had flown down to the city to chair the previous meeting in the eastern metropolis. "Our party president Akhilesh Yadav ji will come to Kolkata on March 17 and address workers meet here. From March 18, our two-day national executive will be held. "We will discuss the party's strategies for the upcoming elections later this year in Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, and then the Lok Sabha polls in 2024," Nanda, the party's national vice-president, told PTI. When asked about any possibility of a meeting between Akhilesh and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerj

Sea level rise major risk for Asian megacities like Chennai, Kolkata: Study

Sea level rise this century may disproportionately affect certain Asian megacities, including Chennai and Kolkata, as well as western tropical Pacific islands and the western Indian Ocean

Chennai, Kolkata, in India, at particular risk due to sea level rise: Study

Sea level rise this century may disproportionately affect certain Asian megacities as well as western tropical Pacific islands and the western Indian Ocean, according to a new research. The research team identified several Asian megacities that may face especially significant risks by 2100 if society continued to emit high levels of greenhouse gases: Chennai, Kolkata, Yangon, Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, and Manila. The study looked at the effects of natural sea level fluctuations on the projected rise due to climate change, it said. It did so by mapping sea level hotspots around the globe. The study is published in the journal Nature Climate Change. Scientists have long known that sea levels will rise with increasing ocean temperatures, largely because water expands when it warms and melting ice sheets release more water into the oceans. Studies have also indicated that sea level rise will vary regionally because shifts in ocean currents will likely direct more water to certain ..

5 children die of respiratory infection in Kolkata, Mamata chairs meeting

Five children died due to respiratory infection at different hospitals in Kolkata in the last 24 hours, an official said on Tuesday evening. The deaths were reported amid fears of adenovirus infection, but doctors were not sure whether these fatalities could be linked to it. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee held an emergency meeting on the evolving situation, following which the government issued a series of directives and announced a 24x7 emergency helpline -- 1800-313444-222. All paediatric acute respiratory infection (ARI) clinics will operate at the medical college and hospitals (MCHs), district hospitals and sub-divisional hospitals, among others, round the clock, the directive said. To curb the problem of patient referrals, it said that "no paediatric ARI cases shall be referred without the knowledge of the concerned MSVP/Superintendent of the hospital". It also directed the hospitals to ready ventilators and other logistics to deal with the situation. ASHA workers and other

Penalty for littering garbage on roads in Kolkata hiked 100 times

Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has decided to increase the penalty for littering garbage on the streets of the city by 100 times in the near future

Startup launches drone-delivery of medicines in Kolkata to beat traffic

Eight more places in West Bengal have been earmarked for the launch of drone delivery of medicines in the coming days

Kolkata to host International Seafood Show, with focus on G20 countries

Kolkata will host the India International Seafood Show 2023, which will feature a buyer-seller meet with a particular focus on G20 countries, organisers said on Tuesday. The three-day event organised by the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) in association with the Seafood Exporters Association of India (SEAI) will commence on Wednesday. The Show assumed significance as the Indian seafood sector needs to regain buoyancy in the post-pandemic phase in the face of stiff global competition and a stringent inspection regime imposed by the European Union and Japan on shrimp consignments. European Union and Japan are members of G20. According to M Karthikeyan, director of MPEDA, around 5,000 delegates from India and other countries are expected to attend the event. MPEDA officials said Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) would promote fish production, thereby increasing the availability of marine products for export. Further, the Production Linked Incentive Sc

ED seizes Rs 1.4 crore cash from Kolkata firm involved in coal smuggling

The Enforcement Directorate on Thursday said it has seized Rs 1.4 crore in cash from the premise of a Kolkata-based company and has identified a person who was "handling illegal cash of a minister" allegedly generated from coal smuggling. The federal probe agency issued a statement saying it raided the premises of the Gajraj Group at Earle Street in West Bengal's capital Kolkata on Wednesday. The action, the ED said, was undertaken on the basis of a "specific" intelligence input that a "highly influential political person" was making an attempt to launder the proceeds of crime originating from coal smuggling through his "close confidant" Manjit Singh Grewal alias Jitti Bhai. The seized cash of Rs 1.4 crore was "unaccounted", part of the total cash payment of approximately Rs 9 crore, for a property called Salasar guest house at an "under-valued" price, it said. "The market value of this property is more than Rs 12 crore. However, deed value of the same is shown around Rs 3 ...

Coal scam: ED recovers Rs 1 cr from businessman's office in Kolkata

ED sleuths, probing coal-smuggling case in WB, recovered Rs 1 crore from the office of a Kolkata-based businessman after a marathon raid and search operation at his residence and office on Wednesday

MV Ganga Vilas cruise ship to leave Kolkata on Monday for Sundarbans

Touted as the world's longest river cruise, MV Ganga Vilas, has been docked at a Kolkata jetty and will on Monday leave for Sundarbans, a UNESCO heritage site, an official said. The cruise vessel, flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 13, entered West Bengal early this week through Murshidabad and later reached Kolkata, he said. The ship has been docked at the Indenture Memorial (IM) Jetty on the bank of the Hooghly river. "The vessel will leave Kolkata on Monday and then it will be anchored at Sundarbans, one of the largest mangrove forests in the world and a UNESCO world heritage site, for two days," the official said. Taking to Twitter, Union Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said, "The next phase of journey of MV #GangaVilas will be on the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Route, as it travels through B'desh (Bangladesh) to reach Assam. All infra has been provided at IM Jetty itself for a smooth immigration process for passengers." MV Ganga Vilas began its journey f

Peaceful screening of BBC documentary at Jadavpur University in Kolkata

A controversial BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi was screened peacefully within the premises of the prestigious Jadavpur University (JU) in Kolkata