News

Riyadh metro opens up to ease traffic jams, transform travel in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia opened parts of Riyadh’s long-awaited metro system as the kingdom pushes ahead with plans to modernize the capital and ease the heavy traffic that has become a commonplace complaint in the city. Three lines, including one to the main airport, started operations on Sunday, according to the Royal Commission for Riyadh City. Three more routes that will offer more connectivity in the heart of Riyadh are set to open gradually by Jan. 5. The partial launch couldn’t come at a better time for Riyadh, where the difficulty of dealing with traffic often dominates conversations among those living, working and visiting. The capital has faced worsening road congestion in recent years, with vast construction underway at a time when more people are moving to Riyadh or traveling to the city for business or leisure. The city, which is due to hold the World Expo in 2030 and may host games for the FIFA World Cup in 2034, is at the forefront of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s drive to diversify the Saudi economy away from oil.

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Virgin Australia to start selling Qatar Airways flight tickets in June 2025

Virgin Australia can start selling tickets for new Qatar Airways-operated flights between Doha and four Australian capital cities following an interim approval by the country’s competition watchdog on Friday. The interim approval by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) allows Virgin Australia and Qatar Airways to commence marketing and selling 28 weekly scheduled return flights between Doha and Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, and Sydney. ”We consider that granting interim authorization now will allow Qatar Airways and Virgin Australia the lead time to undertake the necessary planning discussions, marketing, selling and system alignment in preparation for Virgin Australia to commence flying the new services by June 2025,” ACCC deputy chair Mick Keogh said. This comes after Australia’s government last year denied Qatar Airways’ requests to fly additional services to the four capital cities. Under the proposed arrangements, Virgin Australia would use Qatar Airways craft and crew to operate the new services. In the aviation industry, this agreement takes the name ‘wetlease’ arrangement. The new services will be in addition to the international services already operated by Qatar Airways. The airlines sought urgent interim authorization to enable Virgin Australia to start flying its new Australia-Doha services from Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane in June 2025, with Perth services to follow in November 2025.

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Air India launches a Black Friday Sale that runs till December 2

In a recent update, the leading airline, Air India has introduced a special Black Friday Sale. In the sale, flyers are being offered exciting discounts on both domestic and international flights. This limited-time promotion began on November 29 at midnight (Indian Standard Time) and runs until December 2 at 11:59 PM IST, providing passengers with up to 20% off on domestic flights and 12% off on international flights. Let’s have a look at some of the interesting facts for every traveller or flyer. The offer is available exclusively on Air India's website and mobile app, with a few seats available on a first-come, first-served basis. 1. Discounts on domestic and international flights The sale provides significant discounts on base fares for domestic flights within India, offering up to 20% off. For international flights to and from destinations like the US, Europe, Australia, Southeast Asia, and South Asia, the discount is up to 12%. 2. Travel dates and booking period Bookings made during the sale are valid for travel up to June 30, 2025. However, flights between Australia, North America, and India can be booked for travel up to October 30, 2025.

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40 tourism projs get approval to boost lesser-known destinations in India

Forty projects worth over Rs 3,295 crore and spanning 23 states have received nod from the Centre for developing lesser-known destinations into iconic sites and promote a more balanced distribution of tourists across the country. As per the directives of the Department of Expenditure, the Ministry of Tourism issued operational guidelines for Special Assistance to States/Union Territories for Capital Investment (SASCI) for the development of iconic tourist centres, officials said. The Ministry of Tourism circulated the SASCI guidelines to the state governments with a request to formulate and submit the project proposals to the ministry, which are iconic in nature and can create impactful destinations, they said. By the last date of submission, October 15, 2024, a total of 87 project proposals were received costing more than Rs 8,000 crore, a senior official in the ministry said. Thereafter, the Ministry of Tourism in line with the guidelines and as per the procedure or criteria, shortlisted 40 projects across 23 states for Rs 3295.76 crore which have now been sanctioned by the Department of Expenditure, the official said.

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Bihar will soon get its second tiger reserve in Kaimur district

Good news for tiger lovers! Bihar is all set to get a second tiger reserve in Kaimur district. For those who don’t know, Bihar already has Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR) in West Champaran. The project has already got approval from the central government. The Bihar government has also proposed to develop the Kaimur Wildlife Sanctuary (KWLS) into a tiger reserve. The news was confirmed by the state’s Forest, Environment and Climate Change Minister, Prem Kumar. The minister said, “For the conservation of tigers, a proposal to make Kaimur forests — Bihar’s largest wildlife sanctuary — a tiger reserve is in the final stage. After VTR in West Champaran, Bihar will soon get its second tiger reserve in Kaimur district. Apart from tigers, there are several other wild animals in Kaimur forests, which also hosts migratory birds.” Another prime reason is also the growing population of tigers at VTR, which is going beyond its capacity. State officials have announced that these tigers will be relocated to the upcoming Kaimur Tiger Reserve, ensuring effective management and an eco-friendly environment in both reserves. As of now, VTR has 54 tigers. The park has surpassed its capacity of 45. In 2022, the Status of Tigers Report, prepared by the NTCA and the Wildlife Institute of India, showed the growth in VTR’s tiger population, which was recorded at just 31 in 2018.

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Akasa Air announces daily flights between Abu Dhabi, Bengaluru, & Ahmedabad starting March 2025

Akasa Air announced on Thursday the launch of daily direct flights connecting Abu Dhabi with Bengaluru and Ahmedabad, starting from March 1 and 2, 2025 in a press release. The daily flights from Abu Dhabi to Bengaluru (Flight QP 578) will depart at 10:00 am and arrive in Abu Dhabi at 12:35 pm. On the return leg, Flight QP 577 will depart Abu Dhabi at 3:00 am and arrive in Bengaluru at 8:45 am. Both flights will are non-stop, will operate daily and are set to fly from March 1 and March 2, respectively. In addition, Akasa Air will introduce direct and daily flights between Ahmedabad and Abu Dhabi from March 1, 2025. Flight QP 580 from Ahmedabad will depart at 10:45 pm and arrive in Abu Dhabi at 1:00 am the next day, while Flight QP 579 will depart Abu Dhabi at 2:50 pm and arrive in Ahmedabad at 7:25 pm. Bookings for these flights are now open on the Akasa Air website, through the airline’s mobile apps, and on multiple leading online travel agencies (OTAs), the company said.

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