New Delhi, Dec 19: India is well on its way to having the second-largest metro network in the world with 993 km of Metro rail already operational in 23 cities across the country and about 997 km under construction in 28 cities, Minister for Housing & Urban Affairs Manohar Lal Khattar has said.

The Union Minister made an elaborated presentation on Urban Transport to the consultative committee members of Parliament attached to MoHUA, according to an official statement on Thursday.

He emphasised that Urban Mobility is an important aspect to tackle the rising urban population and the government is working relentlessly to strengthen the Urban Transport Network across the country.

The participants were briefed about Metro Rail Policy 2017 and Metro Networks across the cities including Delhi, Jaipur, Patna and Lucknow.

The members were also briefed about the ongoing projects of RRTS (Regional Rapid Transport System) high speed train network, including its funding pattern.

The briefing to members also covered initiatives taken to promote indigenisation of technologies under Make in India and promote Aatmanirbhar Bharat.

The briefing also mentioned PM-eBus Sewa, a scheme for augmenting city bus operations by deploying 10,000 e-buses on the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.

Salient features of this scheme include deployment of 10,000 e- buses on PPP model, bus operations support for 10 years, support for development and the upgradation of bus depots and support for behind-the-meter power infrastructure.

The service aims to cover cities with 3 to 40 lakh population.

The briefing also covered ‘One Nation One Card’, an indigenously developed National Common Mobility Card (NCMC), launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in March 2019 to enable seamless travel through Metro, Rail, Bus and other Public Transport Operators.

During the meeting, the Members of Parliament raised issues pertaining to urban mobility which included matters related to last mile connectivity, enhancement of amenities, metro connectivity in their respective states, scaling up of metro operations in the country, ease of travel and passenger comfort.

The MPs who attended the meeting include Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Dinesh Sharma, Ajay Maken, Kamaljeet Sherawat, P.N. Vasava, Prof V.E. Gaikwad, Kavita Patidar, B.M. Sutariya , V.E. Vaithilingam , G. Lakshminarayana, Ramvir Singh Bidhuri and Y. Chandolia.

The Minister asked the officials that suggestions from members received should be reviewed and information sought by them should be provided.

Damascus, Dec 19: Syria’s interim authorities said that the previous government’s soldiers and officers fleeing to Iraq are now welcome to return home without fear of reprisal.

In a statement, the interim authorities pledged on Wednesday that military personnel who fled to neighbouring Iraq during the final stages of the previous government’s downfall would not face harassment or punishment upon their return.

It added that these returnees could use any border crossing and that the interim authorities would work directly with the Iraqi government to streamline procedures to facilitate their homecoming.

No timeline was provided for when their return might begin, Xinhua news agency reported.

More than 1,000 Syrian army personnel entered Iraq through the Qaim border crossing on December 7, a day before the overthrow of the former Syrian government by militant groups. The Iraqi side stressed that their presence is temporary until arrangements are made for their return to their country.

Authorities also reported a complicated flow of displaced people across the Lebanon-Syria border.

OCHA said that since December 8, Lebanese authorities recorded less than 10,000 Syrian refugees returning from Lebanon to Syria.

Meanwhile, the UN Refugee Agency reported that Lebanese authorities estimated around 30,000 displaced people returned as of Friday from Syria to Lebanon, including mostly Syrians but also Lebanese nationals, since the November 27 cessation of hostilities announcement for Lebanon.

The International Organisation for Migration reported a fluid situation with fluctuating movements continuing daily through both formal and informal border crossings. Humanitarians reported earlier that Syrian border officials abandoned their posts following the Damascus takeover.

Gaza, Dec 13: At least 27 Palestinians were killed and dozens of others injured in Israeli attacks at residential houses in the refugee camp of al-Nuseirat in central Gaza Strip, Palestinian sources said.

Palestinian Civil Defence spokesman Mahmoud Basal told Xinhua that the Israeli bombing targeted a residential block that contains the government post office building, which was sheltering displaced people.

Rescue operations are still ongoing amid a lack of equipment and heavy overflight by Israeli warplanes, Basal said, adding that the death toll could rise as many of the injured are seriously wounded.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the attacks.

Earlier on Wednesday at least 10 Palestinians were killed in an Israeli drone attack on a gathering in central Gaza City, said the Palestinian civil defence in the Gaza Strip.

Civil defence spokesperson Mahmoud Basal said in a press statement that the victims include children and women.

The Israeli army has not commented on this incident yet.

The Israel Defense Forces said in a statement on Sunday that its troops recently completed a targeted operation to dismantle underground militant infrastructure in the Jabalia area in the northern Gaza Strip.

Israel has been conducting a large-scale offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on October 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and about 250 taken hostage.

The Palestinian death toll from ongoing Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip has risen to 44,835, Gaza-based health authorities said in a statement on Thursday.