NEW DELHI: The Cabinet on Thursday decided to retain the amount paid by a Haj pilgrim at Rs. 12,000 for the 2006 season, due to commence later this month. The balance amount would be given as subsidy to the airlines transporting the pilgrims.

Union Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunsi said that up to 60,000 pilgrims would be flown by Saudi Arabia Airlines (SAA) and the remaining by Air India and Indian Airlines. This season, the quota had been increased to one lakh from 82,000.

The Cabinet decided to fix the return fare for SAA at $745 a pilgrim from Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad and $819 a pilgrim from Chennai, Lucknow and Bangalore. Air India and Indian Airlines would fly pilgrims from Kolkata, Kozhikode, Nagpur, Aurangabad, Patna, Guwahati, Jaipur and Srinagar.

Chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh the Cabinet gave approval for the design, development and launch of a multi-media mobile satellite system at a cost of Rs. 269 crores. It will deliver over 10 video and over 10 audio channels in each beam.

The Cabinet approved introduction of the Schedule Tribes (Recognition of Forest Rights) Bill, amendments to the Essential Commodities Act and the Electricity Act, and cleared a Bill to amend the Central Sales Tax Act.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs also approved the setting up of a transmission system at a cost of Rs. 3,779 crores for the 1,980 MW thermal power project at Barh in Bihar.

The system would evacuate power from the project and forward it to power utilities in eastern, western and northern regions.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail