Letter to BS: Modi govt gives debt-laden Air India's revival a last shot

This refers to “Govt plans autonomous AI board, with a rider” (October 8). This is bad news for the government’s disinvestment drive. After several years of tom-tomming the sale of its loss-making and debt-ridden behemoth, the government seems to have finally buried the plan. The move may have been triggered because buyers have not come forward but if one reads between the lines, the government seems to have chickened out perhaps due to pressures from the workers’ unions and the lack of interest from politicians and bureaucrats to let go of it. Honestly, it is just too good a legacy to be given up. 

On paper, the plan to bring in an empowered autonomous board and an experienced COO with market-related compensation sounds great. However, I am not sure if the grand scheme will actually work. There are many private enterprises in the country where the promoters (owners of majority equity) inducted professional managements but the results were mixed. Some of these companies have done very well but many others have had to go back to a family scion being the CEO. In case of government ownership, chances of granting de facto autonomy are even slimmer. The mere presence of a single government nominee on the board will be enough to ensure that his diktat works. Top industrialists and celebrated professionals from the private sector have served as AI chairmen in the past and were not able to do enough.

The CAPA’s word of caution and the suggestion to induct “an accomplished executive from an Indian public sector enterprise” could be a glimmer of hope in this losing game.

Krishan Kalra, Gurugram

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