Air India has ordered to stop new hires and promotions

New Delhi: In the wake of its privatization project, the Indian government has asked Air India to freeze large-scale promotions and appointments.

New flights should only be launched when it is extremely necessary and after due diligence from a commercial point of view.

"The management came back almost a week ago and says that because of the imminent privatization, no major initiative should be launched, there will be a freeze on appointments and promotions." declared an official source to IANS.

The directive was issued by the Department of Investment and Public Assets Management or DIPAM.

After failing to find a bidder during his previous term, the Modi 2.0 government is working on the battlefield to sell Air India to a private actor. He has already reconstituted the group of ministers (GoM) to decide the course of privatization.

The consulting firm EY is already working on developing a preliminary information memorandum to invite potential bidders to express their interest.

"This time, we do not doubt the disinvestment.Since the speed at which things move, the ownership of the airline would be transferred to a private party," said a senior Air India official.

Air India has a total debt of around 58,000 crore. The cumulative loss of the national carrier amounts to 70,000 crore. During the fiscal year ended March 31, 2019, the airline reported a loss of 7,600 rupees.

Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said this week that Air India was to be privatized in order to save him. He suggested that the government was not equipped to run an airline where day-to-day operational decisions must be made immediately rather than following a bureaucratic process or going through a call process. 39; offers.

"Left to myself, I would be very interested in supporting the public sector, but the question is: is the government equipped to manage an entity, such as Air India, where operational decisions need to be made on a day-to-day basis? "taken on the spot?" Puri said in Rajya Sabha.

The reconstituted government, led by Interior Minister Amit Shah, is expected to meet in the coming weeks to make decisions regarding the privatization of Air India.