New Delhi: Air India is set to get a new chief soon. The national carrier, which is struggling to even pay salaries to its staff and has accumulated losses of more than Rs.22,165 crore, will also get a turnaround strategy soon, officials said on Friday.
Chairman and Managing Director Arvind Jadhav is being sacked and an interim replacement is likely to be named in a day or two for the posts, till such time a regular candidate is appointed, the officials added.
The candidates being considered as interim replacements are Civil Aviation Secretary Syed Nasim Zaidi as the new chairman and Joint Secretary Rohit Nandan as the flag carrier’s new managing director, the sources added.
Zaidi is a 1976 batch officer of the Indian Administrative Service with Uttar Pradesh as his cadre. He has considerable experience in the sector, having served as the director general of civil aviation and on the board of International Civil Aviation Organisation.
Nandan is a 1982 batch officer of the Indian Administrative Service with Uttar Pradesh as his cadre. He has been in the civil aviation ministry since December 2009, which was his first posting outside his parent cadre.
Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions V. Narayanaswamy told parliament Friday that Air India’s cumulative losses amounted to Rs.22,165 crore apart from a Rs.22,000 crore debt burdened to buy new aircraft.
“There are two plans under consideration — one is the turnaround plan and the other is a financial restructuring plan which is being considered by a group of ministers,” said Narayanaswamy, while replying to a calling attention motion on Air India’s woes.
“A tournaround committee will also be formed, which will include senior management and representatives from the unions,” he said in the presence of Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi, who could not speak because of a throat infection.
But Ravi told parliament in a written reply that the restructuring plan will be ready by November. These have been prepared by the State Bank of India’s financial advisory arm, SBI Caps, and are currently under study by a panel under Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. (IANS)