Alitalia damages

New Delhi, April 24 (PTI): Alitalia airline and its travel agent have been asked by a consumer court to pay Rs 84,791 to a student of a US university who was forced to take a detour while flying to New Delhi from Milan.

Holding Alitalia and Coronation Travel guilty of deficiency in service, the central district consumer forum directed them to pay Vir Philip Rs 50,000 in compensation and Rs 3,000 as litigation cost, besides a ticket refund of Rs 31,791.

NRI passport

Dubai (PTI): The Indian mission here will waive the application fee for duplicate passports for Indian workers and businessmen whose documents were destroyed or damaged in the Naif Souq fire earlier this month, said a statement from the consulate.

Animal skin

Mumbai (PTI): Customs authorities have seized fashion accessories made of animal skin at the international airport here. Officials intercepted Thea Rummel, carrying handbags, belts and wallets made of python, ostrich and crocodile skin, for violation of the Wildlife Protection Act. She had permits for the items from a Hong Kong agency but was carrying articles far in excess of the permitted quota.

Cops booked

Basti (PTI): Eleven policemen have been booked in Uttar Pradesh for allegedly killing two persons in a fake encounter The FIR was registered against the accused, who include an inspector and a sub-inspector, on a court order.

Panther data

New Delhi (PTI): The government does not know the total number of black panthers in the country, the Rajya Sabha was told on Thursday. Neither does the government know how much black panther skin, nails and fur its agencies have seized, the minister of state for environment and forests said.

Mumbai fire

Mumbai (PTI): A fire broke out in the Maharashtra secretariat, housing the state legislature and chief minister’s office, in south Mumbai following a short circuit on Thursday. Fire brigade sources described the fire as minor.