Air India chief Ashwani Lohani on Wednesday said the national carrier's legacy will remain intact even if the ownership changes hands.
After inaugurating a five-day exhibition -- which is being organised by the Society for Culture and Environment and supported by the divestment-bound Air India -- to showcase the vast cultural heritage of the airline built over the years, an emotional Lohani told reporters that the airline is still a great organisation.
"I have come from the Railways. These people have worked in this company for so many years. I have become emotional after seeing the exhibits. I can only imagine what they must be feeling," he said hinting at the ongoing privatisation bid of the heavily loss-making airline started by the late JRD Tata.
Lohani said the airline has an unmatched legacy that will be carried forward even if it changes the ownership.
"As an organisation, Air India is very strong, and great. Even today, despite all odds, we are carrying out our operations efficiently. Air India has always been there when the country needed it. It was only Air India that could bring back the stranded Indians from the novel coronavirus-hit Wuhan in China," he added.
If there is any specific reason behind holding such an exhibition at a time when privatization talks are progressing, he said, "It has nothing to do with the exhibition. Meera Das, who is the secretary of the Society for Culture and Environment, approached us with the idea and we decided to support them."
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