Air India begging for survival, says Vayalar Ravi

New Delhi: Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi is fighting the battle of his life to save national carrier Air India from bankruptcy. But it's not an easy job.
In an exclusive interview to Headlines Today, Ravi says he has to beg the Finance Ministry every month to pay salaries of Air India employees.
"Every month end I go to Pranab Mukerjee's house at 12 o'clock in the night and so he asks me 'why have you come?' To which, I say I need Rs 200 crore. Arre Rs 200 crore in the night? Which means, I have to get the money from him for the salaries also. I need to be in a position, where I can depend on myself. That is my first step," Ravi told Headlines Today on Tuesday.
This is sorry tale of a man with perhaps the toughest job in government right now: turning around the troubled national carrier.
The minister claims he has already started working towards it.
"The various directors for important posts are missing. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has told me to appoint members from the open market and most of them have been filled now: HR, finance, marketing and commercial and also certain propositions. So, the team has come. Now, we are looking at the process, by which we can help save the posts, save the money and the areas from where we can get more cash flow," says Ravi.
20/09/11 India Today

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Categories: Air India Sep 2011