Govt puts off debt-laden Air India stake sale, to revive loan recast plan

The attempt to sell 76% in the national carrier failed after not a single bidder evinced an interest in the airline earlier this month

The government has indefinitely put off the sale of state-owned airline Air India as it believes there wouldn’t be takers ahead of the 2019 general elections. The attempt will now be to recast the debt burden of the airline by hiving off a portion of the debt into a separate subsidiary.
 
Sources aware of the development said the call to defer the disinvestment process was taken at a meeting of the group of ministers Monday night. The decision came after the transaction advisor suggested that the political environment was not conducive for a sale of Air India’s magnitude. “If