- 209 employees of Air India are bidding for the national carrier in partnership with a private financier
- Each member of the group will have to contribute financially towards the total corpus
THoD Newsdesk, New Delhi: As reported by IANS, a group of 209 employees of Air India are bidding for the national carrier in partnership with a private financier and each employee will be asked to contribute Rs 1 lakh towards the bid. The bid process is being captained by Meenakshi Mallik, Commercial Director, Air India and the last date for the bids is set at December 14. During the course of the project, the bidders will be required to submit documents and proofs certifying their intention and capacity to own, control and operate this airline.
In a letter to the team members of Air India, Mallik was quoted saying, “The PIM, thankfully, made it possible for the employees of Air India to take charge and ownership of the airline, and to this end, provides various terms and conditions which need to be fulfilled, and which we intend to collectively achieve and satisfy.” She further added, “Broadly, the project itself entails participating in a bid process along with all other participants who wish to take charge and ownership of AI and its assets. If the media reports are true, we will be bidding against, presumably, some of the largest corporate houses in India who will be just as keen and interested in the airline and bid.”
Mallik also mentioned that financially, the group does not have the necessary wherewithal to participate in this bid process alone. So accordingly, they have searched out for and sought to secure the support of a private equity fund who will invest in the company along with the team and share the benefit.
She added, “I must stress that ownership of the Company is what we are bidding for and thus, we are negotiating with our financial partner such that our Employee – Management Consortium will collectively own and control 51 per cent (i.e. majority) of our Airline. The financial partner will hold the balance of 49% of the company.”
As per reports, in order to acquire the remaining 51% of the airline, each member will have to contribute financially towards the total corpus. Moreover, after successfully completing the first stage, the team is planning on placing the bids in such a format, that no single employee will have to take on a financial risk or contribute more than a lakh.
While talking to her team, Malik was quoted saying, “There are two other commitments which we have to make to each other in order to succeed in this process. First, the assurance of absolute discretion and confidentiality. As you know, any information which is leaked can and will jeopardize our bid and chances in this project. Hence I appeal to all of you to refrain from discussing this matter with anyone who is not a part of our small group; and second, commitment to the project, since it is by your dedication, of your labour and for your success, that we will participate in this project, together.”
