Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday indicated that an expeditious decision would be taken on Air India disinvestment, with at least two parties having formally expressed interest in buying stake in the national carrier.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday indicated that an expeditious decision would be taken on Air India disinvestment, with at least two parties having formally expressed interest in buying stake in the national carrier.
A group of ministers, headed by Jaitley, is working on the modalities of the strategic disinvestment of debt-laden Air India, which has been making losses for long.
"These decisions are to be taken expeditiously but in their normal course," Jaitley told reporters in response to a query about the Air India stake sale process.
The Union Cabinet had in June given in-principle approval for strategic disinvestment of the carrier and its five subsidiaries.
Aviation services provider Bird Group has written to the government expressing interest in acquiring Air India's ground handling subsidiary AIATSL, civil aviation secretary R N Choubey told reporters earlier in the day.
"After IndiGo, Bird Group has written a letter with an expression of interest in Air India," he said.
Bird Group's aviation companies provide varied services from general aviation services and ground handling to cargo management.
"Our expression of interest has gone for AIATSL. We are already in this business," a Bird Group spokesperson said, adding "we don't want to buy the company as such. We want to be a bidder. And if we are the highest bidder for what we see the value in it, we will take over."
Surviving on taxpayers' money, the airline has been in the red for long and various proposals, including government think tank Niti Aayog's suggestion for complete privatisation, have been made.The airline has a debt of more than Rs 52,000 crore and is surviving on a Rs 30,000-crore bailout package extended by the previous UPA government in 2012.
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