Possible SP-led bloc may upset Mayawati’s elephantine plans

NEW DELHI: The possible SP-Congress-RLD alliance may upset the plans of the BSP, which has been eyeing Muslim votes in the upcoming assembly elections.

BSP’s decision to field about 97 candidates from the minority community reflects its attempt to wean Muslims off SP and dent the incumbent party’s Muslim-Yadav support base. However, if the alliance is sealed, Muslims may not rush to desert the SP as the BSP has been hoping since the family feud broke out in the ruling party.

The infighting in the Yadav clan had raised hopes among BSP leaders that Muslims would find it a safer bet than a weakened SP. With Akhilesh Yadav appearing to emerge stronger after winning the battle for control of the party, an alliance could strengthen SP’s chances of retaining support of the Muslim community.

BSP chief Mayawati is closely watching the developments in SPCongress camp, said a party member. “BSP has nothing to worry in case of SP-Congress-RLD alliance.

Source:-Timesofindia

The FAA just issued the largest fine ever against a company for flying drones illegally

The Federal Aviation Administration announced today that it will fine SkyPan International of Chicago, a drone company, $200,000 for conducting 65 illegal drone flights in congested airspace over Chicago and New York City. It’s the largest civil penalty the FAA has issued against a drone operator to date.

Originally, the FAA proposed a $1.9 million fine against SkyPan in October. Recode reached out to the FAA to ask why the final settlement is dramatically lower than the previously proposed fine, but did not immediately hear back.

SkyPan advertises itself as an aerial imaging company that can capture a “bird’s-eye view” that’s useful in “dense, urban environments” for developers and architects planning new projects.

The illegal flights were conducted between 2012 and 2014, and the FAA alleged in October that the company was operating drones without proper FAA clearance in some of the country’s most congested airspace. SkyPan was further accused of operating its aircraft without proper communication tools and without receiving an airworthiness certificate and registration.

In addition to the $200,000 fine, the agency announced an additional $150,000 fine SkyPan will be responsible for if it violates FAA rules again in the next year and another $150,000 fine if the company fails to comply with the settlement agreement. SkyPan is also required to work with the FAA to release three public service announcements over the next year to promote FAA rules. In exchange for the fine, the FAA “will make no finding of violation,” according to a statement from SkyPan.

SkyPan’s flights were conducted before the FAA issued its commercial drone operator rules in August 2016, prior to which special FAA clearance was required for commercial drone flights.

The FAA was expected to release its proposal for rules that would clarify how drones are allowed to fly over populated areas in December 2016, but that didn’t happen.

Earlier this month at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, FAA Administrator Michael Huerta said that in 2016 airplane pilots reported 1,800 drone sightings, up from 1,200 drone sightings in 2015. Drone operators are required to avoid flying near other aircraft to prevent a collision in flight, which could cause substantial damage and even bring down a plane.

Source:-recodea

Have sought report on Rafale negotiations: Manohar Parrikar

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has sought a report from the committee negotiating the price for the Rafale fighter jets as India looks at concluding the deal in a couple of months.

In an interview to IANS, the minister also said that concluding the deal by June-July will mean the first of two Rafale squadrons will be in place in two to three year’s time. Asked about the concessions sought by France on bank guarantees, the minister said any decision taken will be “within the legal framework”.

“Whatever happens will be within legal framework, governmental framework, and according to what has been done in past,” he said.

As per reports, Fence has rejected Indian request for a sovereign guarantee or bank guarantee for the deal, and instead offered to provide a “comfort letter” from the prime minister.

“At this stage, I do not want to interfere into or influence the committee that is discussing (the deal). I have told them they should discuss it and put up a report on this… what is the conclusion of the discussions,” he said.

“If the Rafale deal concludes by June-July we will have a squadron of Rafale in two-three year’s time,” the minister said.

He said that deal is in its final stage.

The deal for purchasing 36 Rafale combat jets in fly-away condition was inked during the prime minister’s visit to France last April.

A negotiating team was constituted to decide on the deal and is holding talks with the French side.

The deal comes with a clause for delivering 50 percent offsets, expected to generate business worth at least three billion euros for Indian companies.
Source: Financial express

Iraqi officials: Attack on cafe north of Baghdad kills 13

A group of gunmen, including two suicide bombers, stormed a coffee shop in a town north of Baghdad early Friday, leaving at least 13 people dead and 15 wounded, Iraqi officials said.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the assault in Balad, 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of the Iraqi capital. The attack came on the heels of a two-day wave of bombings in Baghdad that killed nearly 100 people — attacks that have been claimed by the Islamic State group. The deadliest struck the sprawling Shiite neighborhood of Sadr City in northeast Baghdad on Wednesday, killing 63 people.

The Balad attack started with three gunmen, armed with machine guns, who opened fire into the crowd in the cafe shortly after midnight Thursday, the officials said. Once police arrived at the scene, two of the attackers detonated their suicide vests, they said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

The IS bombings this week exposed lingering gaps in Baghdad's defenses, which are manned by an array of security agencies and militias that don't always cooperate. They also point to the resilience of the extremist IS group, which has increasingly resorted to bombings in civilian areas far from the front lines as it has lost some territory to Iraqi forces backed by U.S.-led airstrikes.

On Thursday evening, hundreds took to the streets in Baghdad's Sadr City to demand government accountability for the security breaches. Protesters carried signs calling for the interior minister to resign while others called for the minister of defense and Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to also step down.

Anti-government protests first erupted last summer as temperatures soared and millions were left without electricity. While al-Abadi proposed a series of government reforms in August 2015 that he claimed would combat corruption, very little has been implemented. Repeated delays in Iraq's parliament sparked another wave of protests this year, led by influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. In late April the cleric's supporters stormed Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone and the parliament building.

Since the unprecedented breach of the compound, which is home to many of Baghdad's ministries and foreign embassies, the country's government has been largely gridlocked as many lawmakers are boycotting parliament.

Iraqi officials and analysts warn that the deepening political crisis may be distracting Iraq's security forces from the fight against IS. The Iraqi government claims IS only occupies 14 percent of the country's territory after a string of battlefield losses, but the extremist group still controls key border areas between Iraq and Syria as well as Iraq's second largest city of Mosul.

SOurce: http://www.newindianexpress.com