Govt can either privatise Air India or close it down: Minister

Responding to the Rajya Sabha members concerns against privatisation of Air India, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said that the government has the choice of either privatising national carrier or closing it down.

New Delhi: Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Tuesday said that the Air India has a huge debt and the government has the choice of either privatising national carrier or closing it down.

Responding to the Rajya Sabha members concerns against privatisation of Air India, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said, "with Rs 60,000 crore debt, the choice is not between privatisation and not privatisation but between privatisation and closing down."

"We are confident that Air India will be given to a new owner to keep the flag flying high," the minister added.

Speaking on the government's decision for Air India disinvestment in the Rajya Sabha, TMC MP Dinesh Trivedi said, "I must compliment the government for bringing back a lot of Indians from abroad under Vande Bharat Mission. And who did it? It was Air India. You can change the structure of Air India but please don't sell it."

The Centre has placed its entire 100 per cent stake in the airline up for sale, as against 76 per cent in the previous attempt.

Recently, the government had extended the deadline for bids for the fourth tune in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the potential bidders now have the time till October 30 to make formal offers.

Meanwhile, the Aircraft (Amendment) Bill, 2020, moved by the Civil Aviation Hardeep Singh Puri, was passed by the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday. The Bill has already been cleared by the Lok Sabha in March this year.

Notably, the Bill seeks to convert three aviation regulatory bodies under the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) - Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) and the Aircrafts Investigation Bureau (AAIB) - into statutory bodies to be headed by Director General appointed by the Centre.

The Bill also proposes to increase the fine amount for violations of new rules from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 1 crore.