The Union government is contemplating on the big question, whether, to privatize Air India or to completely shut it down due to its mammoth Rs 60,000 crore debt, says the civil aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri. He told the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Parliament before the passage of the Aircraft Amendment Bill, 2020, that the government is confident of giving Air India to a new owner to keep the flag flying high.
The minister, however, said that if the government can, it will continue to run the flag carrier. But, with ₹60,000 crore debt, the choice is between privatization and closing down the airline, Puri told the Rajya Sabha before the passage of the Aircraft Amendment Bill 2020. “We are confident that Air India will be given to a new owner to keep the flag flying high,” he said.
Air India has received an equity infusion of ₹30,520.21 crore till date from the government since FY 2011-12, which includes financial support and cash support.
Our reliable sources within the ministry inform us , that the government is proposing to drop a condition that the winning bidder for Air India will have to take on $3.3 billion of aircraft debt. Now the potential buyers will be allowed to bid on the enterprise value and not on the entity value.
