Ministry pulled up over A-I postings

The parliamentary standing committee on public undertakings has pulled up the government for not appointing key members on the board of Air-India. The committee had directed the government to do so in its eleventh report presented on December 19, 2003.

The committee had recommended that the posts of functional directors of the finance, commercial, personnel and engineering departments and five non-official directors' posts needed to be filled up so that the company was run by a professional board of director in line with the Department of Public Enterprise Guidelines of March 1992 regarding the composition of the board of directors.

"The committee regrets to note that more than a year has elapsed before a proposal was sent by the ministry of civil aviation to the Public Enterprises Selection Board for filling up the posts of functional director, the decision for which was taken at the minister's level. The persons have not yet been appointed against these vacant posts," the committee has said in its report, placed before Parliament today.

Pointing out that the civil aviation ministry has not mentioned the time by which the functional directors will be appointed, the committee says, "The committee, therefore, takes a strong note of such lackadaisical approach adopted by the ministry while furnishing action taken reply to the committee's recommendation. The committee also express their strong displeasure over the manner in which board level appointments in Air-India have been delayed for a longer period."

"The committee further directs that the vacant posts in the board of the company should be filled up within a fixed time-frame," it further said.