NEW DELHI: Supreme Court has ruled that candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes and Economically Weaker Sections are entitled to general category posts if they secure the cutoff marks stipulated for general category.The ruling by a bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and Augustine G Masih was inspired by SC’s landmark verdict in the Indra Sawhney case of 1992 which had granted 27% reservation to OBCs in govt jobs. The bench dismissed a petition by Rajasthan HC which, while recruiting candidates for certain posts, had barred reserved category candidates from getting appointed against general category posts despite securing more marks than the cutoff fixed for general category.When an HC division bench ruled in favour of reserved category candidates who wanted to be considered for general category posts, HC moved SC, arguing that considering reserved category candidates for general category posts would amount to their being granted double benefit. Writing the judgment, Justice Datta said, “We hold that the word ‘open’ connotes nothing but ‘open’, meaning thereby that vacant posts which are sought to be filled by earmarking it as ‘open’ do not fall in any category.”Upholding the HC division bench’s decision, SC said, “The availability of reservation doesn’t operate as a bar for a reserved category candidate from being considered on merit against the unreserved category.”The HC recruitment process was based on a written test followed by an interview. SC said if a reserved category candidate gets more marks more than the cutoff prescribed for general category, they should be considered to be in general category while appearing for interview. If the cumulative marks fall short of the cutoff for general category, they would be considered under the reserved category to which they belonged.

LUCKNOW: For two winter mornings, dense fog over Lucknow turned the skies into a maze for an Air India Express Boeing 737 MAX 8 operating flight from Delhi.On January 2 and January 4, the aircraft circled the city 28 times, spending around 171 minutes hovering above Lucknow, only to return to Delhi without landing.On January 4, IX217 flight reached Lucknow at 6.42 am. But the runway visual range (RVR) was only 125 metres, far below the DGCA-mandated minimum of 150 metres required for a safe landing.Hoping the fog would clear, the pilots kept the aircraft in a holding pattern. For 78 minutes till 8.01 am, the jet looped over the city 11 times. When conditions didn’t improve, the aircraft turned back, landing in Delhi at 8.55 am.SalamAir OV705 from Muscat landed over 90 minutes late at 5.16 am, while two Air India Express flights – IX2048 from Bengaluru and IX1026 from Mumbai – arrived one to three hours behind schedule.On January 2, IX2171 faced nearly identical conditions. It reached Lucknow at 6.18 am, and for the next 93 minutes, it circled over the city 17 times, waiting for a break in the fog that never came.

NEW DELHI: In a bid to improve connectivity to Kedarnath, reduce travel time by road and enhance pilgrims’ safety, the govt has zeroed in on the construction of a 7-km tunnel connecting Chaumasi in Kalimath Valley near Guptkashi to Sonprayag, the starting point of the ropeway project which will take pilgrims to the shrine.The twin tube tunnel will not just be an alternative but also serve as an escape route in case of emergency and bad weather. The govt will also carry out a feasibility study for a walkway and pedestrian tunnel from Chaumasi side for better connectivity to Kedarnath shrine.At present, all vehicles heading to Sonprayag and Gauri Kund take NH-107.As per the plan, the existing one-lane road in Kalimath Valley, which is under the Uttarakhand govt, will be expanded to two lanes to cater to increased traffic once the tunnel becomes operational.

Traffic to Sonprayag, P 10

TOI has learnt the road transport ministry held a detailed discussion last week with Uttarakhand govt on the proposal. It took note of the increased number of pilgrims and tourists in Kedarnath, which stood at 17.7 lakh last year and is estimated to rise to 25 lakh in 2030 and 40 lakh in 2040.Taking lessons from the Sylkiyara tunnel episode, detailed geological and hydrological investigations will be carried out. The govt has awarded to Adani Enterprises the 12.9-km Sonprayag-Kedarnath ropeway project, which is likely to be operational in 2031-32.It will have the capacity to carry 1,800 pilgrims per hour, and pilgrims will be able to complete a one-way trip in just 40 minutes.

DEHRADUN: A youngster from Bihar, misled by forged Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) results and a fake selection letter, reached the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) in Mussoorie with his parents to begin training as an IAS officer, only to discover he had been duped by cybercriminals.Pushpesh Singh, 28, a resident of Saran district working for a private company in Gurgaon, told police he was contacted by unknown persons claiming to be from UPSC. They conducted a fake online exam, declared him selected, and shared a forged merit list and training schedule on WhatsApp. Convinced, he paid Rs 30,000 to the accused before travelling to Mussoorie with his family.LBSNAA officials stopped Pushpesh at the entrance and alerted Mussoorie police after spotting discrepancies in the documents. A team reached the spot and upon verifying the documents and questioning him, found he had fallen prey to an elaborate scam. The local intelligence unit and Intelligence Bureau were also informed.Dehradun SSP Ajai Singh said, “The documents appeared genuine at first glance, with official stamps and rank listings. Since the fraud occurred while he was in Gurgaon, we registered a zero FIR under BNS section 318(4) (cheating) at the Mussoorie police station. The case has been transferred to Gurgaon police which will now carry out the investigation in the case.”The case follows a pattern of similar cybercrimes targeting civil service aspirants, particularly those from smaller towns. In May 2023, Jharkhand police uncovered a racket offering fake IPS postings for Rs 2 lakh. “Pushpesh holds a degree and had no doubts about the documents. He had no reason to suspect anything was wrong until he was turned away at the gate,” said an officer who is part of the inquiry.

ROHTAK: Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, who is serving sentences in cases related to the rape of two sadhvis and the murder of a journalist, has once again been granted a 40-day parole. He is currently lodged in Sunaria Jail, Rohtak, and will stay at the Dera Sacha Sauda headquarters in Sirsa during the parole period.Ram Rahim is serving a 20-year sentence in the rape case involving two of his female followers. Convicted in August 2017, this will be the 15th time he steps out of jail since the conviction.

Earlier, Ram Rahim had come out of Sunaria Jail on 15 August to celebrate his celebration. January 25 remained special for Sirsa dera as it is the birth anniversary of Shah Satnam Ji Maharaj, second dera head of Dera Sacha Sauda.Ram Rahim has been in jail since 2017 and is currently imprisoned at Sunaria Jail, Rohtak. From there, he has repeatedly been granted parole and furlough, allowing him to come out 14 times earlier. The present parole marked the 15th occasion he will be outside prison.Jail authorities in Rohtak are yet to receive orders of his release.