RF govt presidium to discuss discount air tickets from Far East.

MOSCOW, April 12 (Itar-Tass) -- The implementation of the program of
discount air tickets from the Far East to central Russia will be in the
focus of a meeting of the Russian government presidium on Monday.
Some 330,000 people can take advantage of discount air tickets from
the Far East in central Russia and inside the Far Eastern Federal District
this year, a source in the Russian government told reporters on Friday.
"We are planning to provide discount air tickets for 330,000
passengers for the period of the program in effect from April 1 through
October 31," the source said. Alongside, he recalled that more than
160,000 passengers were granted discount air tickets in the previous year.
According to him, budget subsidies for air trips will grow as well. "Some
1.7 billion roubles were allocated in 2009, and more than 1.2 billion
roubles were spent, the budget subsidies will reach 2.5 billion roubles
this year," the source said.
He specified that this year the network of routes will expand. On
these routes people under 23 or over 60 years will be granted a 50%
discount on air tickets. "The number of routes will increase from 18 to
26, we will introduce an additional flight from Komsomolsk-on-Amur to
Moscow and the one from Khabarovsk to Sochi," he added. Alongside, other
four routes inside the Far Eastern Federal District will be added.
Specifically, the air traffic from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Magadan,
Yakutsk, Anadyr to Vladivostok will be subsidized. According the source,
routes from Kyzyl and Norilsk to Moscow will be opened. The air traffic
for these cities is the only kind of transport connecting them with the
mainland.
According to the source, the program that proved to be very efficient
in the previous year will also be needed in 2010. "Already 63,000 tickets
were sold and 424 million roubles were spent for the purpose," the
government source said.
He also forecasts that the Aeroflot - Russian Airlines will sell the
greatest number of discount air tickets (95,000 tickets). "The Transaero
Company will sell about 90,000 discount tickets, and Vladivostok-Avia -
about 73,000 tickets," he forecasts. Meanwhile, in the previous year
Aeroflot sold just 26,500 discount tickets, Transaero - 53,000 discount
tickets, the Yakutia Airlines - 33,500 and Vladivostok-Avia - 28,000
tickets.
The government also noted that under the program the air companies,
which operate modern Russian airplanes, will be primarily subsidized. "We
will give preference to those companies, who operate Russian airplanes -
Tu-204, Tu-214, Il-96, An-140 and An-148," the source specified.
According to him, upon the program results in 2010 the government will
decide whether or not to extend the program for discount air tickets for
2011. But already now the Transport Ministry is working on further
enlargement of the list of routes, on which people will be able to buy
discount air tickets. "These are the routes Irkutsk-Khabarovsk,
Irkutsk-Vladivostok and Novosibirsk-Khabarovsk," he said.
Alongside, the governors from the Moscow Region, the Jewish Autonomous
Region, the Chelyabinsk Region and the Stavropol Territory were summoned
for a Monday government presidium meeting. In the foresaid regions the
decisions on the state regulation of the prices on vitally important
medicines were fulfilled badly. On Friday, April 9, at the United Russia
interregional conference in Novosibirsk the Russian prime minister noted
that "the prices on some medicines exceed the standard prices manifold. At
some regions pharmaceutical companies do not register the foresaid
medicines at all in order to avoid the state regulation."
Addressing to the regional chief executives Putin urged them "to do
this work in earnest, that is to say the administration of the decisions
already taken." "You should make them be fulfilled," he underlined.
"Special attention should be given to several regions leading in the
number of these violations. This is the Moscow Region, the Jewish
Autonomous Region, the Chelyabinsk Region and the Stavropol Territory,"
the premier went on to say. "I invite the governors of these regions to
Moscow to participate in a meeting of the government presidium this
Monday. We will discuss what is being done in their regions and what else
should be done at the example of their regions in all Russia in order to
put into practice the compulsory common decision on keeping the prices on
medicines at an appropriate level."
Meanwhile, the premier warned that "certainly, this should be done
carefully, without any abuses against business, but all of you will have
to fulfill the decisions."
Since April 1 the state regulation of the prices on the vitally
important medicines was introduced all over Russia.

.95% of Tuva people vote for harmonizing Tuva, Russia Constitutions.

GORNO-ALTAISK, April 12 (Itar-Tass) -- Over 95% of Tuva residents
voted for bringing the republican constitution in compliance with the
Russian Constitution.
After all ballots had been counted by Monday morning, it turned out
that 95.36% of voters supported the introduction of corresponding
amendments in the Tuva fundamental law at the referendum, a source in the
republican election commission told Itar-Tass. Some 3.03% of Tuva citizens
voted against the foresaid decision.
The turnout at the referendum has made 83.84% of people entitled to
vote in the republic that is 23% more than at a similar general voting in
May 2001 (60.87%). The official results of the referendum will be made
public later, the source said.
Under the upgraded Constitution of the Russian Republic of Tuva the
president will be the top official in this federal constituent territory.
Instead of the current sizeable and costly two-chamber Veliky Khural
(parliament), where 162 deputies seated, a one-chamber Supreme Khural with
32 deputies will be elected already in autumn 2010. In a new parliament
nine deputies will work permanently instead of 41 such deputies before.
Alongside, the fundamental law of the republic excludes an article on Tuva'
s citizenship, which the Russian Constitutional Court found contradictory
to the Russian Constitution. The Public Chamber institute will be
established in the republic. Some other amendments will be introduced in
the Tuvan Constitution, which will bring it in full compliance with the
federal legislation.
-0-baz