Divestment in major state-run firms is set to perk up the IPO space, with about six PSUs including Air India, BSNL, Oil India and NHPC, gearing up to sell equity sale in the primary market.
The government on Tuesday said the new Bangalore airport would be made operational by the last week of May, while keeping alive the option of allowing small aircraft to use the existing HAL airport. Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said extensive discussions were held with BIAL, the operators of the new airport. The High Court had earlier advised the government to explore the possibility of allowing the existing airport run by HAL to function.
Various airlines in India have engaged nearly 1,000 foreign pilots. However, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation has advised all scheduled, non-scheduled and general aviation operators to submit their plan to phase out foreign pilots and replace them by trained Indian pilots. As per the plan, all the foreign pilots are likely to be repatriated in about 5 years time. Government has taken steps to reduce the gap between demand and supply of skilled India pilots.
Aviation industry experts expect the ATF prices to fall by 16 per cent in November, compared with the current month. This, they say, translates into bridging of nearly half the gap between the airlines' operational costs and total revenues.
Jet Airways, Kingfisher and NACIL, which operates Air India, owe over Rs 2,000 crore (Rs 20 billion) to the oil PSUs in unpaid fuel bills, Petroleum Minister Murli Deora said.
Chapman was hospitalised on Sunday night in Bengaluru and passed away early Monday morning.
The budgetary provision for all aviation infrastructure has generally been reduced, apparently with the view that most of the airport modernisation programmes, barring those in Kolkata and Chennai, were being carried out through public-private partnership.
Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel's dream to make Indian airports an international aviation hub may have to wait.
The Global Indian Award is given to a person who has had an impact on and contributed in some way to the growth of the Indian and global economy.
Noting that Indian civil aviation sector is experiencing high levels of growth, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel has said the industry must tackle the shortcomings of inadequate infrastructure and shortage of skilled manpower to sustain growth.
The government plans to formulate a separate set of policies for regional airlines, Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said on Monday.
Nationalist Congress Party leader Praful Patel, who announced after day-long consultations among all concerned parties that the four-day old crisis has been resolved, sidestepped questions on whether it involved some changes in the ministry.
Aviation Minister Praful Patel has requested FM to rationalise taxes on aviation fuel in Budget 2008-09.
India's infrastructure sector alone can absorb more than $150 billion of foreign direct investment over the next five years.
Latur and Nanded in Marathwada region of Maharashtra would soon be on the aviation map with the launch of flights from this metropolis to these towns, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel has said.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the purchase of 68 aircraft by the country's flagship carrier Air India, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said on Thursday.
The controversy over the non-inclusion of the three service chiefs in the list of VIPs exempt from security checks at the airports has been resolved with their inclusion in the exemption category by the government.
'We have the majority. We will survive even when we go ahead with the deal,' Praful Patel told rediff.com 'We have 234 (Lok Sabha) MPs in the UPA, add 39 members of the Samajwadi Party and the Independents who have declared support to us,' a Congress leader added. 'We believe it touches the mark of 272.'
The move will help mop up not more than Rs 10 billion, which is only a fifth of the capital requirement of the industry, led by Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines, say experts. The expected investment has been calculated on the basis of a 100 per cent premium on the current valuations of Jet Airways and Kingfisher -- two of the country's largest carriers by market share -- which require over Rs 50 billion.
He said this in his keynote address at the Business Standard Open Sky Summit 2008 held here today. Airport charges in India are 50-60 per cent higher than global airport charges and account for over 12 per cent of an airline's cost. Patel, however, added that his ministry has not yet initiated any talks with airports on this issue.
Civil aviation authorities have asked all private airlines to withdraw the congestion surcharge of Rs 150 imposed per passenger, Rajya Sabha was informed on Tuesday.
India is on the verge of entering 'big league' in the world aviation scene with the launch of satellite-based navigation system, GAGAN, next year, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said on Tuesday.
Union Minister and All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Praful Patel said that the involvement of chargesheeted persons in the affairs of IOA has brought "a messy situation" in Indian sports and tarnished the image of national federations.
Government considers a proposal to give sops to airlines for linking metropolitan cities and small towns, Union minister for civil aviation Praful Patel informed the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
At present, the booming airline industry is facing a shortage of approximately 1,000 qualified pilots, Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel told Rajya Sabha in a written reply on Tuesday. Patel said the government has taken various steps, including increasing the retirement age of pilots to 65 years and setting up of a training institute in Maharashtra, to reduce the demand-supply gap.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation is planning to start flights connecting about 120 cities in the country from the current 81 cities, said Praful Patel, Union Minister for Civil Aviation.
The radar blip on the flight path of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's special plane, which created a mid-air scare, was caused by an Indian Air Force aircraft and the incident cannot be considered a serious security lapse, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said. "Primary investigation has revealed that there was some mix-up in the signals," he said. The special aircraft carrying Prime MinisterManmohan Singh had the mid-air scare on Tuesday evening.
Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel's plans to make India a maintenance, repair and overhaul hub for aircraft in Asia are set to crash. China, once again, has left India way behind. While over 300 MRO companies are in operation in China, only three have set up shops in India - Max Aerospace, Airworks and Indamer.
Petroleum Minister Murli Deora will meet Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel and chiefs of airlines and oil companies to discuss a solution for dues of over Rs 2,000 crore that the domestic carriers owe the state-owned oil marketers on fuel sales.
Praful Patel, Vice-President of the World Bank, visited Pakistan on a 3 day tour. He said the economic picture of Pakistan is not good and the country should carry out necessary reforms to avert an economic crisis. There has been robust growth over the past few years and there has been a significant reduction in poverty. However, the growth can only continue if Pakistan adjusts itself to the new global reality including high prices of oil, commodities & foodstuffs like wheat.
Mumbai airport, which has limited capacity for expansion, is being expanded to handle 40 million passengers annually by 2010.
Amid reports that Jet Airways was to get clearance for flying to the United States soon, the government on Monday said that "procedures" were being followed before the issue was resolved.
The NCP's flag was handed over by Praful Patel to K Muraleedharan, DIC-K president, signifying the merger.
Kingfisher will be permitted to fly abroad this year, following its acquisition of Air Deccan. Since Air Deccan will be eligible for the international arena this August, Kingfisher too will enjoy this right.
After the merger between the two national carriers -- Indian (formerly Indian Airlines) and Air India, the merged airline will have its first flight from Mumbai to New York on August 1, said Union Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel.
The Centre was still undecided whether the modernisation of the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata should be done by Airports Authority of India or through joint venture, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said.
The Delhi International Airport Limited's (DIAL) ongoing tussle with the Airports Authority of India/Ministry of Civil Aviation (AAI/MoCA) isn't likely to get resolved in a hurry, though things appeared settled when, a few weeks ago, Aviation Minister Praful Patel said at a press conference that the government would go by the Attorney General's (AG) opinion on the dispute.
No one from Pravin's family was present at the wedding.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances