Air India fiasco: Who robbed the Maharaja?

NEW DELHI: Union civil aviation minister Praful Patel came under attack from within the treasury benches and the Opposition in the Lok Sabha for his handling of the sector.

While Congress member Vilas Muttemwar alleged that policies of the ministry are tailored to suit private operators, BJP���s Shatrughan Singh demanded a JPC probe into the functioning of the Air India. Mr Sinha accused the civil aviation ministry of ���completely mismanaging��� the national carrier that has resulted in the ���Maharaja��� turning a ���pauper��� with a Rs 8,000-crore loss.

The BJP member said matters have come to such a pass that the Frankfurt airport, a major aviation hub, has sought a bank guarantee from Air India for continuance of ground-handling services for the national carrier following a default in payment.

Mr Sinha also said that lucrative routes are being awarded to competitors of Air India. ���The private players are benefiting from this decision which is hurting the Air India,��� he said. The trade unions in the National Aviation Company have been seeking prime ministerial intervention to set things right in Air India.

On his part, Mr Patel told reporters outside Parliament that Air India will be restructured financially, organisationally . ���It will start making profits soon and we will silence all the critics,��� the minister said.
Air India, which posted an estimated net loss of Rs 50 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31, sought Rs 39.81 billion in financial assistance from the government last October to continue with its current operations and take delivery of new planes.