Halt airport plans: Left

Intensifying their opposition to the privatisation and modernisation of the Delhi and Mumbai airports, the Left parties on Firday called upon Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to stall the process.

In a memorandum to Singh, a group of members of Parliament from the Left, led by CPI (M) leader Nilolpal Basu, asked the government to consider the alternate plan proposed by the Airports Authority of India Employees Forum for the modernisation of the two airports.

"Such a move, in our position, is in violation of the common minimum programme, which stipulated that generally profit-making companies would not be privatised," the Left parties said in their memorandum to the prime minister.

Pointing out that the Airports Authority of India (AAI) was consistently making profits and had a reserve of over Rs 2,300 crore, the MPs said, "The lack of transparency of purpose, as evident from contradictory statements of the civil aviation ministry on the issue, has shrouded the whole process with mystery and suspicion".

Urging the prime minister to start discussion on the alternate proposal submitted to him by the employees, they said the sudden decision to involve private domestic airlines as equity participants in the proposed joint venture was a glaring instance of such non-transparency.

As per the plan put forward by the AAI Employees Joint Forum, the modernisation of the two airports will require investments to the tune of Rs 3,900 crore, which will be invested over 48 months.

The employee unions have proposed that since AAI has an in-house expertise to build and operate airports, the modernisatoin and upgrading of both the airports should be undertaken by itself, instead of privatising the two airports.

The forum also said the AAI had in 1996 presented a feasibility report for the development of the Delhi and Mumbai airports to the earlier government, which decided to privatise them instead.

"However, the whole process was brought to a grinding halt because of the declaration of then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1998, to privatise the Delhi and Mumbai airports", the forum, comprising unions of employees, officers, air traffic controllers and other sections, said.

The forum said the AAI board had also invited expressions of interest from firms and consortia to provide architectural and engineering services and was also understood to have approved the selection of firms or consortia, before the government reconsidered its decision in May 2003.