Daily News Capsules
1. Govt may curtail IndiGo flight ops in winter after meltdown
The government is planning to curtail IndiGo’s daily flight operations in the ongoing winter schedule in the wake of a major meltdown, officials aware of the matter said, on a day when the airline in its reply to a showcause notice by the aviation regulator attributed the mass cancellations to a “compounding effect of multiple factors”. The airline operates 2,200 flights a day in the winter schedule. Though there was no confirmation on the number of flights that will be cut, some officials said at least 100 a day could be pulled back. “Looking at the current status of the airline, there may soon be a reduction in the daily approved IndiGo’s flight numbers for the current winter schedule operations. A final decision is yet to be taken on the number of flights to be reduced,” an aviation ministry official confirmed to HT. In this year’s winter schedule, IndiGo received regulatory approval to operate 6% more flights than in the summer schedule even as it sought to postpone flight duty rules. The regulator said IndiGo attributed the meltdown to a combination of “minor technical glitches,” schedule changes linked to the onset of the winter season, adverse weather conditions, increased congestion in the aviation system, and the implementation of updated crew-rostering norms under the Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) Phase II framework. It requested additional time to conduct a comprehensive Root Cause Analysis (RCA), noting that DGCA’s own procedures allow a fifteen-day timeline for responding to show-cause notices. In its response, IndiGo said it is “realistically not possible to pinpoint the exact cause(s)” of the crisis at this stage due to the “complexity and scale of its operations.”
Possible Question
In the wake of IndiGo’s large-scale operational meltdown, discuss how the government can affix regulatory and managerial responsibility for such disruptions while ensuring that corrective actions do not further burden travellers or destabilise the broader aviation ecosystem?
2. Goa fire: Club owners fled to Phuket on IndiGo flight
Delhi-based entrepreneurs Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra fled to Phuket on an IndiGo flight at 5.30am on Sunday, roughly six hours after a devastating blaze at the club they owned in north Goa killed 25 people amid allegations of mismanagement and multiple rules flouted, police said on Monday. Goa police failed to find the brothers at their residence in north Delhi on Monday and later said that they fled to Phuket at 5.30am on an IndiGo flight. The Goa police had issued a lookout notice against the brothers with the Bureau of Immigration at Mumbai on Sunday evening. “The Bureau of Immigration at Mumbai was contacted and it was found that both the accused had taken 6E 1073 flight (New Delhi to Phuket) at 5.30am on 7th December i.e. immediately after the incident which had taken place around midnight. It shows their intent to avoid police investigation,” deputy superintendent of police and public relations officer Nilesh Rane said. “The Goa police have taken further steps to coordinate with the Interpol Division of CBI to apprehend both Saurabh and Gaurav Luthra at the earliest,” Rane added, with the Delhi Police saying the CBI has approached Interpol for a blue notice against the two. Twenty-five people, including four from a Delhi family, were killed and six injured after a massive fire ripped through their nightclub – Birch by Romeo Lane – in the coastal village of Arpora in north Goa around 11.45pm on Saturday. The authorities have said electrically detonated pyroguns shot off during a belly dancing programme likely caused the deadly blaze.
Possible Question
Critically analyse the effectiveness of India’s mechanisms—such as Look Out Circulars, Interpol Notices, and coordination among state police, immigration authorities, and central agencies—in preventing absconding of accused persons in high-profile criminal cases.
3. DPIIT plan: Licence for AI training on copyrighted works
The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has proposed a mandatory blanket licence that will give AI developers the leeway to train their models on all lawfully accessed copyrighted content in India without needing individual permissions from creators. In return, people who own this content will receive statutory remuneration through a new central collecting entity, according to a government working paper on generative AI and copyright. DPIIT has invited feedback within 30 days. A second working paper on whether AI-generated content itself can get copyright will be released later. The committee behind this proposal was formed by DPIIT, under the commerce & industry ministry, on April 28. It was tasked with analysing the legal and policy issues around AI and copyright, and checking whether India’s current Copyright Act, 1957 is adequate for dealing with these challenges. In a notification dated December 8, DPIIT said the use of copyrighted content for AI training is becoming a major concern, especially because companies often use books, news reports, music, art and other material without permission. The committee has now suggested that India adopt a mandatory blanket licence. The working paper says AI companies won’t need to seek permission from individual creators, but they must pay into a central fund. A government designated body will then distribute royalties to creators, including small, independent artists. The committee also rejected the tech industry’s demand for a free “text and data mining exception,” arguing this would “undermine copyright” and leave creators without compensation or control. It said this model would especially harm smaller creators who may not even know how to opt out. The proposal comes as the Delhi High Court is hearing India’s first major AI copyright case, ANI vs OpenAI, where ANI has alleged that OpenAI used its news content to train ChatGPT without permission.
Possible Question
Discuss the policy trade-offs involved in DPIIT’s proposal for a mandatory blanket licence for AI training. How can India balance innovation, creator remuneration, and copyright protection in the emerging generative-AI ecosystem?
4. SC reserves 30% quota for women in state bar councils
The Supreme Court on Monday directed state bar councils to reserve 30% of posts for women, clearing the barriers that stood in the way of women lawyers to occupy high positions in the institutions governing the legal profession. Passing a direction in two public interest litigations (PILs) filed by women lawyers, a bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and justice Joymalya Bagchi said that while 20% of posts shall be filled through elections, 10% will be by co-opting women lawyers. The bench said, “There will be no compromise on the issue that there will be 30% representation in bar councils.” The order marks another instance in a series of judicial interventions which have led to a greater representation of women in the legal profession, with similar orders having been passed since May last year for lawyers contesting in bar association elections in the Supreme Court and Delhi high court among others. While these associations are largely registered societies, the state bar councils are statutory entities under the Advocates Act, 1961, with the apex regulator being the Bar Council of India (BCI). “For the remaining bar councils where elections have not been held (or notified) 20% of the posts will be filled by election of women members and 10% by co-option,” the court order said. The bench felt co-option to be a good option as several women lawyers who have established a name in the profession may not be keen to stand in the election. Senior advocate Shobha Gupta, who argued the PIL, told the court that co-option could lead to arbitrary selection by bar office bearers, thus, depriving eligible and efficient women lawyers from occupying such posts.
Possible Question
Evaluate the constitutional and institutional implications of the Supreme Court’s directive mandating 30% representation for women in state bar councils. How might such judicial interventions shape gender equity in self regulating professional bodies?
5. Gang-rape case: Actor Dileep acquitted, 6 convicted
A Kerala court on Monday convicted six people but acquitted actor Dileep in the sensational 2017 actress abduction and gang rape case that made national headlines, sent shock waves through the Malayalam film industry and prompted far-reaching shifts in state movie bodies. Ernakulam principal sessions judge Honey M Varghese read out the verdict in a packed courtroom shortly after 11 am, capping a trial that ebbed and flowed over seven years, stunning the state’s public consciousness and precipitating landmark changes in the film industry. The sentence will be pronounced on Friday. The trial court found six accused (Sunil NS, aka ‘Pulsar’ Suni, Martin Antony, B Manikandan, VP Vijeesh, H Salim, and Pradeep) guilty of charges including gang rape, kidnapping, intent to outrage a woman’s modesty, and conspiracy. At the same time, the prosecution could not gather enough evidence to prove the charge of conspiracy against actor Dileep, who allegedly ordered the assault on the woman actor as part of a personal grudge, the court said. The full court order is awaited. The state government said it will appeal the verdict.
Possible Question
In light of high-profile sexual-assault cases, assess the challenges faced by India’s criminal justice system in securing convictions—particularly around evidence, witness protection, and hostile environments—and propose reforms to improve survivor-centric justice.
Editorial Snapshots
A. Betting on the next big reforms
Nirmala Sitharaman’s Saturday’s declaration at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit that customs reforms is going to be a big priority of the next budget is indeed very good news for the economy for several reasons. The first is the hope that this will further facilitate the ongoing pivot from what is known as an inverted duty structure where importable inputs are taxed more than exportable outputs. The tariff differential acts as a net tax and eats into the competitiveness of Indian exports. The only problem which is perhaps even bigger than duties as far as the customs regime is concerned, is the complicated structure and process of tax administration which is often abused by unscrupulous stakeholders on both sides and acts as a huge deterrent for honest ones. A simplification of these processes and provisions will do a big service to India’s trade ecosystem. Desirable as these two goals are, they’re not without complications. For example, any blanket simplification or reduction in duties will have to be mindful of India’s food security concerns which often require counter cyclical trade restrictions. Similarly, a lot of compliance easing at ports will require infrastructural augmentation of facilities so that India doesn’t let its guard down on preventing contraband and harmful substances from getting in or out. Sitharaman herself flagged this concern while speaking. Taking care of these concerns will require more than mere tweaks in the tax laws. It will have to be complemented by development of new infrastructure at ports and augmenting regulatory and supervisory capabilities. This is yet another proof of the fact that an economy as big and diverse as India cannot reform in silos and changing one aspect for the better will also require improving another. But if the country has to add to its economic prowess and boost its competitiveness in the rest of the world this is the only way.
Possible Question
Customs-rate rationalisation aims to fix the inverted duty structure and simplify trade processes. Discuss how comprehensive customs reforms can enhance India’s export competitiveness while ensuring safeguards for food security, revenue stability, and border control.
B. A safeguard for Aadhaar data
The ubiquity of Aadhaar as identity proof comes from nearly every service provider in the country — government or private — insisting on its use for KYC purposes. And Aadhaar-holders are mostly happy to submit this even when other documents are valid and would have sufficed. Done offline, where the Unique Identity Authority of India (UIDAI)’s servers are not contacted for authentication — think hotels scanning guests’ Aadhaar cards and retaining photocopies — this raises several concerns about privacy and data security. It is against this backdrop that UIDAI is seeking to notify fresh regulations on offline verification based on Aadhaar, which will require users — from hotels, societies, and event organisers to car rentals — to register with the authority and carry out Aadhaar verification in a data-secure manner. American cybersecurity firm Resecurity, in 2023, had flagged the staggering scale of compromised Aadhaar and passport data, affecting 815 million Indians. This data, the firm reported, was on sale on the dark web for all sorts of mala fide actors — from fraudsters to terrorists. As the custodian of Aadhaar data, including biometrics, of over a billion Indians, UIDAI has long claimed that the data remains secure and unbreachable, but as a 2022 report of the Comptroller and Auditor General shows, limited oversight across the data-chain, including client vendors, translates into serious risks of leakage. To that end, UIDAI’s proposed move should make the Aadhaar ecosystem more secure than it is today. That said, Aadhaar-holders must get more careful about sharing data. A leaky system holding large volumes of personal data itself is a risk. Casual usage, despite the Digital Personal Data Protection Act covering Aadhaar, exacerbates the risks — especially when few have the time or expertise to read the fine print and check for what purposes the data will be put to use by the establishment soliciting it in the name of KYC or how it plans to safeguard it once collected.
Possible Question
With UIDAI proposing mandatory registration for offline Aadhaar verification entities, evaluate whether India’s current data-protection and identity management architecture is adequate to prevent misuse, ensure accountability, and build citizen trust in digital ecosystems.
Fact of the day
MOEFCC to adopt cost assessment method for green violations: The Union environment ministry is considering the adoption of an environmental damage cost assessment (EDCA) methodology to assess cost liability for various environmental violations, Kirti Vardhan Singh, minister of state for environment has informed Lok Sabha. Responding to a question from BJP MP Manoj Tiwari, he added that the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has sought comments from stakeholders before finalising this. “The EDCA report has been drafted by the committee constituted by the ministry of environment, forest and climate change to provide the environmental damage cost liability for the release of pollutants in excess of environmental standards, violation of waste management rules/ guidelines, non-compliance to the conditions of environmental clearance and other environmental approvals, assessment of impacts, restoration of environmental and ecological damages, and fixed penalty costs,” he said. He added that CPCB has circulated the said report to all stakeholders including state pollution control boards/ pollution control committees, Indian Institutes of Technology, Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) and placed (it) on CPCB website for public consultation for its finalisation.
