New Delhi: The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on Thursday criticised the civil aviation ministry for granting “massive increases” in bilateral air traffic rights to Gulf nations in 2004-05, despite Air India’s (AI) “strong reservations”, as this was its most profitable international sector. Between May 2007 and March 2010, the Dubai sector saw the number of seats per week rise from 18,400 to 54,200.
The government’s apex auditor said as a result of liberalisation of the bilateral rights, Indian carriers did not get any increase in the number of destinations in the Gulf countries, while airlines from that region got the right to operate to 14 destinations in India, four more than before.
“Despite repeated protestations of AI on the lack reciprocity and the funnelling of the sixth freedom traffic by Emirates through Dubai from interior locations in India, even change of gauge facility was not adequately pursued, nor linked to additional benefits.
This resulted in vague commitments for such facility, not at Dubai airport, but at the upcoming Jebel Ali Airport (an impractical solution for AI and other Indian carriers) and that too with distant time frames between 2012 and 2018,” the CAG said in its report placed before Parliament on Thursday.
09/09/11 Business Standard
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