NEW DELHI : The Indian government has the option of privatizing the national airline Air India Limited or shutting it down, due to its huge debt, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Tuesday.
Speaking at the Rajya Sabha before the passage of the Aircraft Amendment Bill 2020, Puri said that regarding the privatization of the national airline, if the government could help it, it would continue to operate the airline.
However, with ₹60,000 debt, the choice is between privatization and closing the airline, Puri said.
“We are confident that Air India will receive a new owner to keep the flag high,” he added.
Bloomberg had reported on Monday that the Indian government proposes to remove the condition that the winning bidder for Air India Ltd. will have to take on $ 3.3 billion in aircraft debt, citing sources.
The report added that a group of bureaucrats have examined the plan and, under the new proposal, potential buyers will be able to bid on the value of the company and not the value of the entity.
Meanwhile, civil aviation minister Puri said the county’s busiest airports in Delhi and Mumbai account for 33% of the traffic, while six airports awarded to the Adani Group account for only 9% of the total traffic.
Puri said a competitive open tender for airports has not been held for the past 15 years due to the prior experience clause. Under this clause, airport operators had to have prior experience in operating an airport to submit bids.
“I am making a limited point, we are moving from a limited number of actors in the airport sector, to expanding it and opening it up to global entities,” he added.
Puri said the Union government’s decision in August to hand over Thiruvananthapuram International Airport to Adani Enterprises Ltd (AEL), which won the operating rights at auction, is generating a lot of heat in the state government.
When the privatization process took place, the Kerala government, Niti Ayog and a group of empowered secretaries had a discussion, during which it was decided that if the Kerala government’s offer falls within the range of 10% of the offer winner, would be awarded. the airport, Puri said, adding that the eventual gap between the Kerala government and the winning bidder (Adani Group) was 19%.
Kerala’s state assembly last month unanimously approved a resolution against the 50-year contract with AEL, a move the Center called “regressive and far removed from public opinion.”
Meanwhile, Puri also said that the government will not engage in matters related to air safety.
During 2014, the average number of scheduled air accidents per billion flights for India was 2.8 while the global average was 3.06, Puri said, adding that the same number for India was 0.82 during 2019, while the global average was 3.02.
The Rajya Sabha passed the Aircraft (Amendment) Bill 2020, which was introduced by Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri after an hour-long discussion.
The Aircraft (Amendment) Bill 2020, which was already approved by the Lok Sabha in March this year, seeks to convert aviation agencies such as the General Directorate of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the Civil Aviation Security Office ( BCAS) and the Investigation of Aircraft Accidents. Bureau (AAIB) in statutory bodies.
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