Tag Archives: Airport privatisation

Privatisation of 6 more Airports

09 Friday Nov 2018

Posted by in General, privatisation, PSU

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All the airports in the country were under the government managed by the Airport Authority of India. As part of the new economic policy and so called liberalisation, the biggest and most revenue earning airports in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hydeabad and Kochi were handed over to private companies. The proposal to privatise Kolkatta and Chennai could not be implemented due to strong protests by the people and employees.

The privatisation under PPP ( Public Private Participation) is justified, that it will improve operation, management and development and the AAI / Government has not sufficient funds. This is only a lame excuse. The real intention is to hand over these airports to privatise to accumulate their wealth and make huge profits. Though some improvements are made, which AAI can also do efficiently, the charges for all services in the privatised airports have gone sky high with prices of coffee, tea, tiffins, meals as also prices of other commodities. While coffee/tea are available at nominal prices in the AAI controlled Kolkatta and Chennai airports, the passenger has to pay more than double of that amount in Mumbai and Delhi. Further, the corporates are getting huge rents for the buildings in and around the airports, which naturally would have been that of AAI.

Now, the Central Cabinet has decided to privatise six more profit earning Airports viz. Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Lucknow, Guwahati, Thiruvananthapuram and Mangaluru. The profit of AAI will further be reduced due to this decision. After some time, it will be only loss making airports under the operation of the AAI.

This privatisation of airports has to be resisted and defeated in the interests of the people, the passengers and the employees.

Jaipur and Ahmedabad Airports being sold to private

24 Saturday Jun 2017

Posted by in PSU

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There is not a single day without news about selling of the central PSUs. The latest is the privatisation of the airports at Jaipur and Ahmedabad. The government has proposed to hand over these two airports to the private for a period of 10 years. The private companies want the period to extended to more years. As usual, the government is likely to surrender to the corporates and increase the period from 10 to 15 or 20 years.

Modi government will convert all the PSUs in to private companies, unless might opposition and struggles take place by the workers and the central trade unions against this selling of the government assets.

Government to hand over small airports to private

06 Wednesday Jan 2016

Posted by in Disinvestment, General

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Finance Minister Arun Jaitely has stated in the meeting of the India Infrastructure Finance Company(IIFCL) that the government is proposing to hand over management of small airports to the private sector for ‘improving efficiency.’ This is nothing but privatisation of airports.

The NDA government is handing over the government properties to the private sector in a big way. And the private companies will increase all the rates in the name of modernisation. The common people are the sufferers.

Stop Selling Airports to Private companies

13 Friday Feb 2015

Posted by in Neo-liberal policy, PSU

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The move of the central government to privatise Chennai, Kolkata, Jaipur and Ahmedabad has been strongly opposed by the Airport Authority Employees Union. The Airport Employees organised massive protest demonstrations in front of AAI offices demanding that the privatisation move should be dropped.

It is to be mentioned here that all these airports which are now managed by the Airport Authority of India has been modernised with improved infrastructure by spending more than Rs. 50,000 crore. There is no need as such for further modification or spending money at present. The government’s move is only to favour private companies to get the benefit from running the airports. All these four airports are profitable. There are many airports under AAI which are loss making and the same is compensated by the profit making airports.

The Government has already privatised the most profitable airports in the country, viz. Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. The air-travellers are compelled to pay airport charges, which was not there when these were managed by AAI. Everything in the airports like tea, coffee, stationary, parking  etc. have become more costly after privatisation.  This will  repeat in the new privatised airports also.

The privatisation of airports is completely against the interests of workers, travellers and the country. It is only to maximise the profit of the private companies  by acquiring the well maintained airports. Strong opposition should come from the people and opposition political parties.

 

 

AAI Unions on struggle path – Declares strike against privatisation of air-ports.

19 Monday Jan 2015

Posted by in Neo-liberal policy, PSU

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The proposal for privatisation of Kolkatta,Chennai, Jaipur and Ahmedabad airports have been strongly opposed by the Airport Authority Employees Union and notice has been issued stating that the employees will go on strike, if the government does not go back from the privatisation move.

Already the most profitable airports in the country, Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Hyderabad are already privatised. The next profitable airports are Chennai and Kolkata. Both these airports have been modernised by he Airport Authority of India recently, spending crores of rupees. Now the government is proposing to hand over the same to privatse companies. Other profitable airports are also proposed to be privatised, keeping only the loss making airports to the PSU, AAI.

We strongly oppose the privatisation move and extend support and solidarity to the AAI employees in the just struggle.

Chennai Airport Privatisation – Madras HC declines to extend stay

02 Sunday Mar 2014

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CHENNAI, MARCH 1:
The Madras High Court has declined to extend the stay on the privatisation of Chennai airport.

Justice R Subbiah granted the interim injunction on January 29 based on a petition filed by Airports Authority Employees’ Union against the Airports Authority of India seeking Request for Qualification from private parties to manage the airport. The AAI filed a counter affidavit and P Wilson, Additional Solicitor-General, in his representation insisted on an early hearing of the injunction application.

On Thursday (February 27) when the petitioner’s counsel requested adjourning the matter to next week, Justice Subbiah adjourned the case to March 5 and stated that the interim injunction will not be extended further. Arguments in the case will start on March 5.

Companies such as GVK, IL&FS Transportation Networks Ltd and Essar Projects (India) Ltd have evinced interest in the privatisation of operations. The union claimed that since over ₹2,000 crore was spent on construction, privatising the airport will push up the user-development fee. (Courtesy: Business Line)

Private Airports in Delhi, Mumbai charges higher rates for car parking.

12 Tuesday Nov 2013

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Every body who travels by air knows that the car parking charges in Delhi and Mumbai are much higher than that is charged by the Kolkata and Chennai Airports. All are metros. Of course, there may be slight variations in the number of flights to and fro from these airports.
While Delhi Airport levies parking charges between Rs. 100 and Rs.1,000 for duration of 30 minutes to 24 hours, Mumbai charges about Rs. 70 to Rs.900 for the same.
At Kolkata and Chennai airports, the charges for parking are only Rs. 60 for a duration up to 4 hours.
Why this drastic difference? The answer is that Mumbai and Delhi are run by private companies, while Chennai and Kolkata are run by a PSU, Airport Authority of India. Before handing over Mumbai and Delhi Airports to private, the parking charges in these airports were also far less than the present.
Now Government of India is planning to privatize 8 airports including Chennai and Kolkata. What will happen is known to every body. Not only car parking charges, but even tea and coffee in the airport will be charged more than double. This is privatization.
Despite the opposition of the airport employees and the unanimous report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transports headed by Com. Sitaram Yechury M.P.,against privatization of airports, the Civil Aviation Ministry is moving fast to sell the same to private companies for their maximum private profitization.
There should be strong protest against these anti-people measures.

Good News! – Kolkata, Chennai Airport Privatisation delayed

05 Tuesday Nov 2013

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The latest news in ‘Business Line’ today indicate that the proposed privatisation of Chennai, Kolkata and other 4 airports will be delayed. As per the report, the Airports Authority of India (AAI), has extended the dates for shortlisting the companies who have offered for taking over the airports. About nine companies, including foreign companies, have shown interest in the project for Chennai.
The decision to delay shortlisting can be well understood. There has been strong opposition from the Airports Authority Unions against the privatisation. Now the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transports chaired by Sitaram Yechury, CPI(M) M.P., has unanimously opposed to the privatisation of these profit-making airports, after modernisation has been done by the Airports Authority of India, a PSU, at great costs. The Standing Committee also has pointed out the case of Delhi Airport, after it was privatised, that the departure and arrival charges being collected from the passengers have gone sky-high.
The airport privatisation will result in more charges on the passengers and maximum profit for the private companies. The UPA government is in an aggressive mood to privatise all the PSUs to the extend possible and destroy the PSUs which have benefited in the growth of the country.
Strong protests should come from from all unions and progressive forces against this cheap selling of the nation’s properties. We have to fully support the unions in the AAI, who are fighting against the privatisation.

Unions oppose Airport Privatisation

30 Monday Sep 2013

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The Employees Unions in Airport Authority of India (AAI), has decided to organise agitational programme against the proposal of the government to hand over the airports at Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Jaipur and Guwahati to the private companies. These airports have been recently modernised by the AAI by spending huge amounts and are the airports from which the AAI is getting profits. New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Hyderabad, big and profitable airports have already been privatised. If the above six airports are also privatised, then AAI will be left with small airports which are mostly loss making. The union has suggested that if the government wants to privatise, then they can privatise these small airports.
Against the proposed privatisation, the unions are organising four days Relay Hunger Strike from 22nd October 2013.
We support the demand of the AAI employees and their unions and demand the government to desist from the proposed privatisation of airports, which is completely against the interest of the nation.