Govt says all options open for Air India revival

The government is open to "all options", including disinvestment, to take the national carrier Air India to a new high, Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju said on Tuesday.
 
Raju and his deputy Jayant Sinha, however, did not elaborate on what are the options other than disinvestment available before them.
 
Their remarks came days after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the government is exploring all options on the national carrier, which has a debt of around Rs 50,000 crore.
 
The talks come against the backdrop of arguments that there is no point in government pumping in money into Air India as part of its Turn Around Plan and Financial Restructuring Plan (TAP-FRP). Under the TAP-FRP approved in April 2012, the government had committed to infuse equity of Rs 42,182 crore from 2011-12 to 2031-32.
 
"The Niti Ayog has made some recommendations. It has suggested that we need to have a strong and viable airline. All courses of actions are being examined. We cannot disclose beyond this at this point of time. We have not closed any options," Raju told a press conference on the achievements of his Ministry in past three years.
 
Asked whether Ministries of Finance and Civil Aviation were on the same page on disinvestment, he said there is no point in viewing this issue in a compartmentalised fashion, saying the government has to be taken as one unit.
 
Sinha said they have to sit together and chart out a "winning strategy" for the national carrier. He said in 2015-16, Air India made operational profits for the first time in past 10 years.
 
"This is a national asset and we have to make it even stronger. Our aim is to make it a global airline," he said.
 
In a panel discussion on Doordarshan earlier, Jaitley said he had first proposed disinvestment of Air India when he was in the A B Vajpayee Ministry. "Today, they have a market share of 14% and a debt of Rs 50,000 crore. Your money does not go into private sector airlines such as Indigo, SpiceJet, GoAir, Jet Airways. then why should you put Rs 50,000 crore in running Air India? Government money means your money. This money can be used for education," he had said.
 
Asked about the CBI filing cases against unknown Ministry officials on irregularities in aircraft purchase and other issues, Raju said the Ministry would fully cooperate with the probe.