30 accidents involving aircraft since 2011, 52 lives lost

August 5, 2014

New Delhi, Aug 5: There have been 30 accidents involving helicopters and other aircraft in which a total of 52 people were killed since 2011.

While 11 accidents were reported in 2011, there were nine in 2012, eight in 2013 and two so far this year, Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju said in reply to a query in Lok Sabha, adding that there were 52 fatalities in ten of these accidents.

In most of these accidents, the choppers suffered substantial damage, he said in reply to a question.

As many as 100 aircraft were grounded for technical reasons in the past three years, including 30 of Jet Airways group and 41 of Air India and its subsidiaries, Minister of State G M Siddeshwara said.

The other airlines whose airplanes were grounded were 14 of SpiceJet, 10 of GoAir and five of IndiGo.

To a question on fake pilots licenses, Raju said 36 cases had been registered in the last three years, while no such case has come to light so far this year.

Licenses of 16 pilots were suspended based on the probe by Anti-Corruption Bureau of Rajasthan in 19 cases relating to faking of flying hours in a Jaipur flying school.

In 17 cases relating to fake result sheets, the licenses of 15 pilots were suspended during this period, he said, adding that Delhi Police was pursuing further investigations.

As many has 2,451 commercial pilot licenses have been issued since 2011 till June this year, the Minister said.

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Over 58 lakh names dropped from draft voter list in Bengal ahead of polls

News Network

December 16,2025

The deletion of over 58 lakh names from West Bengal’s draft electoral rolls following a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has sparked widespread concern and is likely to deepen political tensions in the poll-bound state.

According to the Election Commission, the revision exercise has identified 24 lakh voters as deceased, 19 lakh as relocated, 12 lakh as missing, and 1.3 lakh as duplicate entries. The draft list, published after the completion of the first phase of SIR, aims to remove errors and duplication from the electoral rolls.

However, the scale of deletions has raised fears that a large number of eligible voters may have been wrongly excluded. The Election Commission has said that individuals whose names are missing can file objections and seek corrections. The final voter list is scheduled to be published in February next year, after which the Assembly election announcement is expected. Notably, the last Special Intensive Revision in Bengal was conducted in 2002.

The development has intensified the political row over the SIR process. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress have strongly opposed the exercise, accusing the Centre and the Election Commission of attempting to disenfranchise lakhs of voters ahead of the elections.

Addressing a rally in Krishnanagar earlier this month, Banerjee urged people to protest if their names were removed from the voter list, alleging intimidation during elections and warning of serious consequences if voting rights were taken away.

The BJP, meanwhile, has defended the revision and accused the Trinamool Congress of politicising the issue to protect what it claims is an illegal voter base. Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari alleged that the ruling party fears losing power due to the removal of deceased, fake, and illegal voters.

The controversy comes amid earlier allegations by the Trinamool Congress that excessive work pressure during the SIR led to the deaths by suicide of some Booth Level Officers (BLOs), for which the party blamed the Election Commission. With the draft list now out, another round of political confrontation appears imminent.

As objections begin to be filed, the focus will be on whether the correction mechanism is accessible, transparent, and timely—critical factors in ensuring that no eligible voter is denied their democratic right ahead of a crucial election.

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