Table of Contents
The Hindu Editorial Analysis
We understand the significance of reading The Hindu newspaper for enhancing reading skills, improving comprehension of passages, staying informed about current events, enhancing essay writing, and more, especially for banking aspirants who need to focus on editorials for vocabulary building. This article will explore today’s editorial points, along with practice questions and key vocabulary.
As the crisis persists, the government imposes a limit on airfares
- The central government put limits on airfares, fixed strict refund timelines, and started special trains to help passengers who were stuck after IndiGo’s major service failure.
- IndiGo suffered a huge operational problem recently, cancelling almost two-thirds of its flights on Friday. The situation slowly improved as the airline operated around 1,500 flights on Saturday instead of only 700.
- The airline, which normally flies 2,200 flights every day and carries the highest number of domestic passengers, expects full normal operations to return between December 10 and 15, according to its CEO.
- IndiGo said that over 95% of its flight network is working again and it is flying to 135 out of its 138 destinations as things gradually come back to normal.
- The Aviation Minister said the Ministry used its legal powers to control ticket prices on all routes affected by the crisis so that airlines do not charge very high last-minute fares.
- The government fixed maximum economy class fares: ₹7,500 for a 500 km trip, ₹12,000 for 1,000 km, ₹15,000 for 1,500 km, and ₹18,000 for flights longer than that. These rates do not include taxes and other fees.
- IndiGo has been told to complete all refunds for cancelled or delayed flights by Sunday, 8 p.m., so that passengers get their money back in time without any unnecessary waiting.
- Officials also directed the airline to find all missing baggage and return it within 48 hours. The luggage must be delivered directly to the passengers’ homes or to any other address they prefer.
- IndiGo announced that it will not take any charges for cancelling or changing tickets for travel between December 5 and 15. This will help passengers easily change their plans during this period of disturbance.
- Indian Railways started more than 75 special trains across many cities to help travellers stuck due to flight cancellations and to give people another option for urgent travel.
- East Coast Railway started six trains connecting cities in Odisha with Delhi, Mumbai, and Visakhapatnam, and also added extra coaches on four busy routes to help more passengers travel smoothly.
- Western Railway launched seven special trains on routes such as Mumbai–Delhi, Mumbai–Bhiwani, Mumbai–Shakur Basti, Bandra–Durgapura, Valsad–Bilaspur, Sabarmati–Delhi, and Sabarmati–Sarai Rohilla to handle the increased number of travellers.
Supreme Court warns of penalties for mistreating disabled inmates in prisons
- The Supreme Court said that jail authorities who ill-treat or abuse disabled prisoners will be punished under the RPwD Act. This order provides strong legal protection for prisoners with disabilities.
- A Bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta passed a 15-page order telling all States and Union Territories to change prison rules and create new systems to support disabled inmates.
- The court said prisons must provide assistive devices that help disabled inmates move, offer special medical care, and give better visitation rights so that prisoners with disabilities can stay connected to their families while remaining safe inside the institution.
- The court also ordered that prisons must create proper facilities so disabled inmates can attend inclusive education programmes. It clearly said that no inmate should be denied education just because of their disability.
- The order is a positive step, acting like thoughtful judicial law-making, and brings disabled prisoners fully under the protection of the 2016 Act. This strengthens their rights and ensures they are treated humanely.
- The court stressed that disabled prisoners should be able to perform their daily tasks with dignity without affecting the safety of the prison. Their rights should be treated the same as disabled people outside jail.
- The judgment came from a petition filed by Sathyan Naravoor, represented by advocates Kaleeswaram Raj and Thulasi Raj. The petition spoke about the painful and inhumane treatment faced by Professor G. Saibaba and Stan Swamy.
- Saibaba’s death was linked to his worsening health and the harsh conditions of his long imprisonment. Swamy, who had Parkinson’s disease, was not given a simple sipper cup, which showed how badly disabled prisoners were being neglected.
- The petition argued that disabled prisoners suffer two punishments—one for the crime they are accused of, and another simply because they are disabled. This shows clear discrimination and harmful treatment inside prisons.
- After hearing these issues, the court ordered that prison manuals must be changed to ensure disabled inmates get better visitation rights and full protective measures in all prisons.
NGO in Rajasthan aims to end child marriage across 38 districts
- A civil society group selected 38 high-risk districts in Rajasthan for a one-year strong campaign to end child marriage through community support and firm use of laws.
- This campaign will support the State government’s plans and use village panchayat resources to spread awareness in faraway areas. It will be run by Just Rights for Children along with 17 partner organisations.
- JRC reported that it stopped 22,480 child marriages in Rajasthan last year. They are now focusing on the 38 districts where child marriage is most common, based on National Family Health Survey-5 data.
- NFHS-5 shows that Rajasthan’s child marriage rate is 25.4%, which is slightly higher than India’s average of 23.3%. This is worrying, even though many other states also have high numbers.
- Chittorgarh and Bhilwara have extremely high child marriage rates of over 40%, showing big regional differences and highlighting the need for strong protection for vulnerable children.
- Nine districts—Jhalawar, Tonk, Sawai Madhopur, Bundi, Bharatpur, Karauli, Bikaner, Alwar, and Pratapgarh—have child marriage rates above 30%, showing that the practice is still very common in many areas.
- Another nine districts show rates between 23% and 29.9%, which also need strong awareness work, involvement of local religious leaders, and active steps by village panchayats.
- JRC founder Bhuwan Ribhu said child marriage is a crime and called for combined efforts from citizens, community groups, and faith leaders to completely end this practice.
- The Union Women and Child Development Ministry has launched a 100-day national movement to help end child marriage by 2030, as part of India’s commitment to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Important Questions
- Why did the central government put limits on airfares after IndiGo’s major service failure and large number of flight cancellations?
- How did Indian Railways support travellers stranded due to IndiGo flight cancellations and disrupted operations?
- What directions did the Supreme Court order give to Indian prisons regarding assistive devices and special care for disabled inmates?
- Why did the petition mention the inhumane conditions faced by Professor G. Saibaba and Stan Swamy inside prisons?
- Why did Just Rights for Children select 38 high-risk Rajasthan districts for the year-long campaign to eliminate child marriage?
- What information does National Family Health Survey-5 provide about the child marriage prevalence rate in Rajasthan districts?
Important Vocabulary
- Operational failure – when the system of a company stops working properly.
- Aviation Minister – the government official in charge of air travel matters.
- Refund – money returned to a person for a cancelled or failed service.
- Stabilise – to bring something back to normal and steady working.
- Visitation rights – permission for family or others to visit a prisoner.
- Inclusive education – learning where disabled and non-disabled people study together.
- Neglect – not giving proper care or attention.
- Discriminatory – unfair treatment of a person because of a certain condition.
- Prevalence – how common something is in a particular area.
- Interventions – actions taken to stop or change a problem.
- Vulnerable – easily harmed or at risk.
- Awareness – understanding and knowledge among people about an issue.
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