Delhi high court grants more time to Centre on aircraft security

The Delhi high court today granted the Centre more time to take over the 13 security related functions including access to aircrafts, screening of baggages and aircraft security search at various airports.

The court had earlier directed the Ministry of Civil Aviation to take over the security related functions at four airports, including Delhi and Mumbai, from today while allowing the private airlines to undertake ground handling services by themselves till its further order.

A vacation bench headed by Justice Pradeep Nandrajog today granted time till January 7 on a Centre's plea for four weeks time due to lack of requisite man power.

Appearing for the Centre, additional solicitor general (ASG) AS Chandhiok submitted that there was a requirement of 10,000 personnel to handle the security related functions and at present the aviation ministry was in process of hiring them.

In an interim order last week, the court had allowed private airlines to undertake ground handling services by themselves except 13 security-related functions till further order.

The court order had come on a petition filed by the Federation of Indian Airlines, an apex body, challenging the government's decision to implement the ground handling policy from January next year.

Filing a petition, the airlines have claimed that they themselves could efficiently manage ground-handling services for their aircraft, which they are doing now, and sought the court to declare the government's new policy as null and void as it would hamper their business interests.

The Centre had told the court that the presence of a large number of employees from various airlines create not only chaos but also security concern in airports and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security's (BCAS) had recommended 13 security-related functions in airports.

The airlines, however, had taken a stand that with implementation of the new policy, the private airlines have to retrench their employees who have been handling the service. They are important part of airlines business, the counsel had argued.

The policy, announced in 2007, aimed at bringing down the number of agencies handling the job at six major airports in the country to three. However, the implementation of the policy has been deferred twice.

On June 2, 2010, DGCA had modified its order and extended its deadline to December 31, 2010, allowing the private airlines to continue ground-handling services themselves.