Kochi: What would have been a novel collaborative venture between the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and state-owned Kerala State Industrial Enterprises Ltd (KSIEL) to set up an international courier facility at the Trivandrum International Airport has come unstuck a good four years after it was conceived. The flashpoint came when the AAI unilaterally staked claim to the project and pushed out KSIEL.
While it is reliably learnt the AAI is looking to bring in a private player into the equation, the Customs department has not granted clearance to the project, citing security reasons.‘‘Granting clearance to KSIEL, a government organisation, was not an issue.
But if a private agency handles the courier facility on AAI's behalf, then it'll pose major security challenges as such services are largely used by rackets to smuggle in and out contraband and other banned items,’’ said a senior Customs officer. As per the latest development, AAI Cargo Logistics and Allied Services Company Ltd has started the tendering process to find a private agency to run the courier service.
Customs Commissioner Sumit Kumar told Express they had not given licence to the AAI. ‘‘We need to have clarity on certain points,’’ he added.It was in 2013 the AAI and KSIEL had signed an agreement for setting up the facility. As per that, the KSIEL would construct a building on the Chackai side of the airport and run it there.The AAI has come up with an argument saying it took over the project after KSIEL expressed inability to run it, something the latter has totally denied.
06/05/18 New Indian Express
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While it is reliably learnt the AAI is looking to bring in a private player into the equation, the Customs department has not granted clearance to the project, citing security reasons.‘‘Granting clearance to KSIEL, a government organisation, was not an issue.
But if a private agency handles the courier facility on AAI's behalf, then it'll pose major security challenges as such services are largely used by rackets to smuggle in and out contraband and other banned items,’’ said a senior Customs officer. As per the latest development, AAI Cargo Logistics and Allied Services Company Ltd has started the tendering process to find a private agency to run the courier service.
Customs Commissioner Sumit Kumar told Express they had not given licence to the AAI. ‘‘We need to have clarity on certain points,’’ he added.It was in 2013 the AAI and KSIEL had signed an agreement for setting up the facility. As per that, the KSIEL would construct a building on the Chackai side of the airport and run it there.The AAI has come up with an argument saying it took over the project after KSIEL expressed inability to run it, something the latter has totally denied.
06/05/18 New Indian Express
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