Air India Officially Handed Over To Tata Group After 69 Years: ‘Totally Delighted,’ Says Chairman
Mumbai: Air India was officially handed over to Tata Group on Thursday, nearly 69 years after its nationalisation.
Ahead of the handover, Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran met PM Narendra Modi.
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“Formalities have been completed. Air India’s disinvestment transaction has closed. The government has got ₹2,700 crores. The shares are transferred to the new owner Talace. The prize money has been received. The new owner has accepted a loan of ₹ 1,53,00 crore. The new board is currently conducting the meeting,” Tuhin Kanta Pande, secretary of the department of investment and public asset management said.
“We’re totally delighted that this process is complete & happy to have Air India back in the Tata Group. We look forward to walking with everyone to create a world-class airline,” Chairman of Tata Sons N Chandrasekharan after taking the handover of Air India.
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“Today’s disinvestment of Air India is a truly defining movement that will usher in a brighter future for the employees, will help the airlines to expand its wings and soar to greater heights, is a shot in the arm for domestic airlines and will add muscle to the Indian aviation sector,” civil aviation secretary Rajiv Bansal said.
Civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said the disinvestment process has been completed in a time-bound manner.
“It is indeed noteworthy that the disinvestment process of @airindiain has been brought to a successful conclusion in a time-bound manner. This proves the govt’s ability, and the resolve to carry out disinvestment effectively in non-strategic sectors in the future,” the minister tweeted.
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The government had in October last year entered into a share purchase agreement with the Tata group for the sale of national carrier Air India for Rs 18,000 crore.
The Tata group is expected to take full control of the airline, founded on Thursday in 1932. The cash component of the deal will come after the handover process is completed.
The Tata group will repay Rs 2,700 crore in cash and take the airline’s debt of Rs 15,300 crore. The deal also includes the sale of Air India Express and ground handling arm AISATS.
The transaction was to be completed by December 2021, but later the deadline was extended to January 2022 due to a longer than expected time to complete the procedural work.
This will mark the return of Air India to the Tata fold after 67 years. The Tata Group had founded Air India as Tata Airlines in October 1932. The government nationalised the airline in 1953.
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