The search for a ‘worthy’ successor for Air India’s Chair and Managing Director Arvind Jadhav has begun. But legacy issues and the state that the airline is in is keeping talent away. Had it been a decade back, bureaucrats would have tried to grab the coveted post with both hands.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC), headed by the prime minister would choose the new incumbent for the post, but by when, is yet to be decided.
“Jadhav’s tenure will end in May next year. He is due for a promotion as additional secretary soon. If he moves on, which he would, the post would fall vacant and a successor would be found,” a senior official told TEHELKA.
The official refused to speculate on the possible names as replacement of Jadhav. However sources said the government is keen on a new head for the airline as “it can not let the airline sink any further.”
Sources said given the legacy of the carrier, many IAS officers are reluctant to take up the assignment. “Officials who could now be chosen to head AI would be from the 1978-79 batch. This means most of them would be close to be being elevated as secretary in the Government of India. Now, given the state of the airline it is unlikely that any IAS officer would want to take up the challenge at the end of their carriers,” a senior official said on the condition of anonymity.
“But at the same time there are several who would want to take the challenge head on to prove themselves. It is about finding the right officer with the right credentials,” the official said.
Former civil aviation minister and Bhartiya Janata Party’s national spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudi in a detailed letter to Prime Minister dated August 6 has also demanded the “immediate removal” of Jadhav. He stated that Jadhav’s appointment was flawed and thus not the right man for the job.”
The 1978 Karnataka cadre Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Jadhav took over as CMD Air India in May 2009, for a three-year tenure. The airline since then has been in news, albeit for all wrong reasons.
As per the latest estimates, the ailing carrier is saddled with a net cumulative loss of Rs 20,320 crore since April 2007 to March 2011. It has a debt burden of Rs 46,950 crore of which Rs 20185 crore is its aircraft loans, Rs 22,165 crore of working capital loans and overdues of Rs 4,600 crore. Its cumulative losses stood at Rs 67,270 crore.
The airline is also required to pay a whopping Rs 20,415 worth of loans of different counts before the end on this fiscal year that would end on March 31, 2012.
Meanwhile, the civil aviation minister’s office neither confirmed nor denied the speculations about Jadhav’s continuing as CMD Air India. The minister was not available for comment as he is not in good health.
Source: http://www.tehelka.com
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