Touchdown scare for Alliance fliers

New Delhi (PTI): Passengers on board an Alliance Air flight from Leh to Jammu had a miraculous escape on Saturday after one of its engines stalled while landing.

The Boeing 737-200 had completed the first leg of its flight from Delhi to Leh and was ferrying 79 passengers from Leh to Jammu when one of its engines stalled, airlines sources said.

They said the pilot, Captain Javed, managed to land at Jammu airport at 8.30 am, where the aircraft was finally grounded. Javed is the chief pilot of Alliance Air.

Men and material were flown from here to repair the plane and alternate arrangements made for the Leh-bound passengers.

Manet Paes, the Alliance Air managing director, said there was an “engine snag” in the aircraft which was being set right at Jammu airport.

This is the third time in less than a week when engines of Alliance Air’s aged Boeings have been stalled. On July 4, an Alliance Air plane developed a similar snag after takeoff from Leh. The same plane had developed this snag on July 2 while flying from Mumbai to Indore.

Sources said the majority of pilots and co-pilots of Alliance Air have refused to fly these Boeing planes to Leh. This has led the airline to put chief pilot Javed on the job, while the role of co-pilots was being performed by chief pilots from Mumbai and Calcutta.

Paes refused to comment on the issue but said that the flights to Leh continued to be operated.

Blast in IAF ammunition shed

Betul (Madhya Pradesh) (PTI): Huge quantities of ammunition and explosives were destroyed in a major fire on Saturday at an air force station, suspected to have been triggered by accidental blasts at Amlanagar, 30 km from here.

Two IAF personnel were also injured.

An entire shed housing a huge quantity of bombs and ammunition was flattened in the fire coupled with a series of explosions.

The exact volume of loss would be known only after complete assessment, district collector Sudha Choudhury said.

No loss of life was reported in the blaze, she said, adding that the two IAF employees — Janaklal Gadekar and Rajaram — were injured during the debris clearance operation after the fire was extinguished.

A court of inquiry has been constituted to probe the fire and the extent of damage, an IAF spokesman said in Delhi.

Pak boys stray into Indian side

Jammu (PTI): Two Pakistani teenagers who strayed into Indian territory unknowingly were arrested on Saturday by BSF troops near a border outpost.

The troops observed some movement near Pahadpur, 40 km from here, and laid a cordon early on Saturday, BSF sources said. They then spotted the two boys in Indian territory and arrested them. They were identified as 15-year-old Ansar Ali and 14-year-old Sajad of Gujranwala in Pakistan. Nothing incriminating was recovered from them.

NCP clash

Akola (PTI): Eighteen Nationalist Congress Party activists, including the leader of a faction, were arrested and remanded in police custody till Sunday after a clash and stoning of the houses of two rival leaders in Adsul on Friday. The supporters of NCP leader Purushottam Pathrikar allegedly attacked rival Pundalik Arbat’s house first, prompting a retaliation.

Badrinath yatra

Dehra Dun (PTI): Efforts are on to resume the suspended Badrinath yatra through an underground tunnel, an official has said. Garhwal commissioner Subhash Kumar has said the yatra, which was suspended after rains triggered landslides killing 17 people, could begin in a week.

Badal assets case

Chandigarh (PTI): The hearing in the disproportionate assets case against Parkash Singh Badal, the Shiromani Akali Dal president, his MP son Sukhbir and others has been deferred till July 24 by a Ropar court. Special judge S.K. Goel deferred the hearing saying a petition pertaining to the case is to come up in Punjab and Haryana High Court on July 13.

Brothers killed

Sonepat (PTI): Two prisoners, both brothers, were killed by some persons allegedly armed with swords at Mahra village here on Friday, police said. Both Krishan and Vinod were lodged in the district jail in a murder case and were recently released on parole. They were going to their fields along with their third brother Sonu when some persons attacked them, the police said.

Efforts are on to develop the Lalbagh palace of the Holkars in Indore as a world heritage site. Madhya Pradesh tourism minister Vijay Shah has told officials to ensure that the historical equipment there are made functional for demonstration to visitors.