Chennai airport privatization deferred till formation of new Government at Centre
Chennai Airport sources have revealed that the privatisation of the airport has been postponed till the new government – to be led by Narendra Modi – assumes office at the Centre.
It was earlier being expected that the privatisation of the Chennai airport will likely be finalized in April; but the move was deferred by one month because of the recently-concluded Lok Sabha elections.
However, an unidentified airport official has now disclosed, on the condition of anonymity, that the privatisation of the Chennai airport has been “postponed indefinitely till further orders.”
It was on September 3, 2013 that the request for the qualification process first kicked off for operating, managing and transferring Chennai airport through private-public-partnership.
However, the finalization of the Concession Agreement has been delayed till now due to the postponement of the bidding a number of times. The companies which have shown in bidding include GVK, Reliance and GMR Airports.
Meanwhile, the privatization move is being opposed by the Chennai airport’s employees union, which is hopeful that the new Government will reconsider the privatization decision.
With more than Rs 6,000 crore having been spent on modernizing the Chennai and Kolkata airports, the union members have been questioning the need for privatization, particularly because the move will result in the lay-off of nearly 5,000 employees.
Source: The Hindu BusinessLine
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