Why in the news ?

• The parliamentary panel is likely to tell the government not to divest government stake in Air India, which should be given at least five years to revive and its debt written off.

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• The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture concluded that the government should review its decision to privatise or disinvest Air India and explore the possibility of “an alternative to disinvestment of our national carrier which is our national pride”.
• Observing that Air India has always “risen to the occasion” at times of need like calamities, social or political unrest in India or abroad, the Committee said “it would be lopsided to assess and evaluate the functioning of Air India solely from business point of view, as has been done by the NITI Aayog.”
• In its revised draft report on the airline’s proposed disinvestment, the panel noted that the turnaround plan (TAP) and financial restructuring plan (FRP) was for a period of 10 years from 2012 to 2022 and Air India has shown “an overall improvement in various parameters and every indication is that it is coming out of the red”.
• The panel said “at the end of TAP period, government may evaluate the financial and performance status of Air India and take a decision accordingly”.
• The panel further added that as some of its subsidiaries Air India Air Transport Services Limited (AIATSL), Air India SATS Airport Services Private Limited (AISATS), Alliance Air and Air India Express were making profits, these units should “not be disinvested.”
• Strongly recommending that the airline’s debt “should be written off by the government”, the revised draft report said, “Air India should be given a chance for at least five years to revive themselves”.
• The tenure of five years indicates the end of the TAP and FRP period in 2022. It said the airline’s debt was “due to policy directions of the Ministry of Civil Aviation. Air India may be permitted to function as a government PSU with less government control.”

Job concerns

• The Committee also expressed apprehension that Air India’s strategic disinvestment “would result in job loss of many people” and asked the government to “make an assessment” of the job loss before deciding on stake sale. “If the disinvestment of Air India and its subsidiaries is inevitable, the Committee emphatically recommends that the interests of employees should be protected,” the revised draft report said.

Source

The hindu, Indian express