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Ever experienced a scenic flight <keyword id="2073446" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="On-board-a-seaplane">on board a seaplane</keyword>? No, you don’t have to shell out a fortune any more to charter a private seaplane and go flying. From today (February 24), <keyword id="1703859" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="commercial-seaplane-service">commercial seaplane service</keyword> is starting in Mumbai for the first time. And that’s another feather in the cap of the financial capital after the city rolled out the country’s first-ever <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Mumbai-Monorail-IsNow-On-Track-To-Run-From-Feb-1/articleshow/29663991.cms">monorail</a> on February 1. 
 Initially, the <keyword id="509938" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="seaplane-service">seaplane service</keyword> is connecting Mumbai to <keyword id="2073466" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Aamby-Valley-hill-station">Aamby Valley hill station</keyword> in <keyword id="6378734" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Lonavala">Lonavala</keyword> – a 100 km stretch – and the flight will take just 25-28 minutes or one-fourth of the time taken by a road trip. As of now, there will be just one flight a day and you only get a <keyword id="2073454" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Four-seater-Cessna-206">four-seater Cessna 206</keyword> amphibian. But the <keyword id="1429804" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="seaplane-services">seaplane services</keyword> will be scaled up if there is enough response. The flights will be operated by Mumbai-based <keyword id="1392953" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Maritime-Energy-Heli-Air-Services">Maritime Energy Heli Air Services</keyword> (<keyword id="779896" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="MEHAIR">MEHAIR</keyword>) and a <keyword id="2073455" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="nine-seater-Cessna-208">nine-seater Cessna 208</keyword> amphibian will be deployed if the demand rises. 
 While a seaplane is capable of taking off or landing on water, without an airstrip, there is another variety that can also take off from regular airfields on land. <keyword id="1645279" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="test-flights">Test flights</keyword> for the current stretch took place in December last year and the amphibians landed and took off from the <keyword id="2073458" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Aamby-Valley-Lake">Aamby Valley Lake</keyword>. 
 
In June last year, Kerala launched the country’s first tourist seaplane service that connects the distant backwater destinations. Similar services are also available in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. 
 Mumbaikars, however, will have to wait some more for the intracity seaplane flights from Juhu to Girgaum Chowpatty. The <keyword id="190329" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Maharashtra-Tourism-Development-Corporation">Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation</keyword> (<keyword id="111420" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="MTDC">MTDC</keyword>), along with MEHAIR, had planned it nearly two years ago. But the project got delayed as it was awaiting crucial clearances from several authorities. It has finally got the nod from the <keyword id="6369097" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Ministry-of-Defence">Ministry of Defence</keyword> and has also obtained clearances from key agencies including the <keyword id="56306" type="POSITION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Coast-Guard">Coast Guard</keyword>, the <keyword id="42407" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Navy">Navy</keyword>, <keyword id="11098" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="police">police</keyword>, the <keyword id="170906" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="urban-development-department">urban development department</keyword>, <keyword id="48434" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="BMC">BMC</keyword>, <keyword id="136514" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Mumbai-Port-Trust">Mumbai Port Trust</keyword>, the <keyword id="6356826" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="environment">environment</keyword> department and the <keyword id="54875" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="80" keywordseo="Airports-Authority-of-India">Airports Authority of India</keyword>. 
 But to implement this project, MTDC will require to build a <keyword id="2073482" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Floating-jetty">floating jetty</keyword> for ferrying passengers to and fro. It has already earmarked some 5,000 sq km, about 100-200m into the sea and next to H2O, the privately operated water <keyword id="6356028" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Sports">sports</keyword> complex. However, a High Court-appointed committee will have to give the go-ahead first before the <keyword id="2073483" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Mumbai-City-Collectors-office">Mumbai City Collector’s office</keyword> can grant the land near the city’s coast. 
 
Once the last leg of the project is cleared and the seaplane service is launched, the hour-long commute will come down to 5-7 minutes for a one-way fare of Rs 750-1,000. 
 MTDC and MEHAIR are also planning to operate several other routes with no air connectivity. In fact, MTDC has already started working with the irrigation ministry to identify suitable water bodies like dams, lakes and rivers for starting seaplane services across the state. The upcoming destinations could be Lonavala, <keyword id="64488" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Mahabaleshwar">Mahabaleshwar</keyword>, <keyword id="46028" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Panchgani">Panchgani</keyword>, <keyword id="143186" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Shirdi">Shirdi</keyword>, <keyword id="2073489" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Shani-Singnapur">Shani-Singnapur</keyword> and <keyword id="680155" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Trimbakeshwar">Trimbakeshwar</keyword> – most of them are either popular <keyword id="476562" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="tourist-attractions">tourist attractions</keyword> or noted <keyword id="680154" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="pilgrimage-sites">pilgrimage sites</keyword>. So fasten your seatbelt and be ready – these amphibians are all set to take you on a discovery flight of a lifetime – over land and water. 
 
With input from Agencies. 
Image: Thinkstock Photos/Getty Images

After Monorail,
Mumbai Gets Commercial Seaplane Service; Now Fly To Aamby Valley
Under 30 Minutes

Mumbai, Jan 21 () Amid the ongoing controversy over the metro car shed here for line-3 trains, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday stripped Ashwini Bhide from the post of Managing Director of Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC), which is implementing the project. 
Bhide will be replaced by Ranjit Singh Deol who is currently serving as the vice chairman and MD of Maharashtra state road transport corporation.
The reshuffle comes just a week after the Maharashtra government transferred 22 IAS officers.
Last week, Bhide was elevated to the post of principal secretary. 
However, during the reshuffle, she has not been given any other charge.
Aditya Thackeray, who is also the Maharashtra tourism and environment minister, had last year sought Bhide's transfer for ordering felling of trees at the Aarey colony, famous as the 'lungs of the city'.
The corporation is executing the Colaba-Bandra-Seepz Metro-3 corridor. 
Bhide's defence of the metro shed had drawn flak from activists as well as political parties. 
An IAS officer of 1988 batch, Bhide was very active on social media and used to post progress of the 33 km metro corridor.
A release from MMRC recently mentioned that 100 per cent tunneling work of the project will be completed by September this year.
Apart from this, the Corporation hopes to complete 70 per cent of civil work and get the first rolling stock by December 2020, MMRC said in a statement.
Currently, more than 70 per cent of the tunnelling work across the 33 km corridor has been completed. PSK RDM
RDM

Maha govt removes MMRC managing director amid Aarey tree felling controversy

<ul><li>This was the 10th edition of IAA's Olive Crown Awards.</li><li>The property is aimed at awarding campaigns that are talking about environmental threats.</li></ul>The <keyword id="1534752" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="International-Advertising-Association">International Advertising Association</keyword> (IAA) India Chapter presented the 10th edition of the Olive Crown Awards celebrating excellence in communicating sustainability. This first-ever award for ‘green advertising’ took on the aura of a ‘cause’ with corporates realizing the importance of differentiating themselves on the ‘green platform’ in an increasingly competitive environment. <keyword id="6395773" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="aaditya-thackeray">Aaditya Thackeray</keyword>, Minister of Environment, Tourism and Protocol (Govt. of Maharashtra) also became a part of the awards last night to support the work being done in the industry to support green initiatives. Speaking about the initiative, <keyword id="599253" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Punit-Goenka">Punit Goenka</keyword>, President, International Advertising Association (IAA) - India Chapter and MD &amp; CEO, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. said, “We at IAA are extremely proud of Olive Crown Awards as an initiative. The overwhelming response received from the industry speaks a lot about the need of such initiatives in today's era. Apart from being the pioneer in recognizing creative excellence in sustainability, Olive Crown Awards as a property has also led to a mindset change in the approach taken by the marketers and advertising agencies while crafting strategic communication campaigns. I am very glad to note that this initiative has touched the 10 year milestone. I am very proud of the entire team at IAA, for their immense amount of energy and time invested in building this initiative and all the key initiatives which bring about a positive change for the industry and the society at large.” Mark Read, CEO, WPP appreciated the fact that Olive Crown Awards show the power of creativity and innovation for environment sustainability. <keyword id="4722871" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="megha-tata">Megha Tata</keyword>, Chairperson IAA Olive Crown Awards said, ‘Today we celebrate a decade of communicating sustainability, a decade where we have brought sustainability to the forefront and on the agenda of both Marketers and Agencies alike. We have seen the conversation shift from doing something green to campaigns and brands vested in sustainability. We have seen this shift and are happy to have identified and led the way to acknowledge these initiatives. We have shown that we are not just custodians of our respective Brands but Custodians of Brand Earth’. <keyword id="1654102" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Andy-Puddicombe">Andy Puddicombe</keyword>, Andy Puddicombe, Former Buddhist Monk and Co-founder of Headspace, spoke about the importance of meditation and urged the audience to take out 5 minutes of the day for themselves and prioritize the mind. <keyword id="296247" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Kaushik-Roy">Kaushik Roy</keyword>, Past President IAA, expressed pride of being President IAA during the conceptualization of the Olive Crown Awards, fondly mentioned that if IAA Olive Crown was a tree it would be big today. Prasoon Joshi, Chairman of the Central Board of Film Certification and CEO of McCann World group India, reminded us of the fact that while it is a great initiative we must imbibe and live by the values. He recited a poem he had written on Water. Olive Crown Winners 2020: 
 
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IAA awards the green crusaders of advertising with the Olive Crown Awards

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After Monorail, Mumbai Gets Commercial Seaplane Service; Now Fly To Aamby Valley Under 30 Minutes

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Maha govt removes MMRC managing director amid Aarey tree felling controversy

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IAA awards the green crusaders of advertising with the Olive Crown Awards

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