The Hindu Business Line : Airports modernisation project may be delayed

THE Government's plans to create world-class airports is likely to be delayed as it is yet to zero in on a financial consultant to assist in the modernisation of Delhi and Mumbai airports.

Official sources, while confirming the development, felt that the delay is unlikely to be very significant.

"There is likely to be a slight delay in the project being completed. Earlier, we were hoping to receive the Expression of Interest (EoI) by now, but with the financial consultants not yet been appointed, the EoIs should now be invited by the first week of December," official sources told Business Line.

However, there is a feeling among some that the project could be delayed by a month.

The empowered Group of Ministers at its meeting on November 14 decided to have another look at who should be appointed as a financial consultant to advise the Government on the modernisation of the two airports.

The four-member group includes the Minister for Finance, Mr Jaswant Singh, the Minister for Law, Mr Arun Jaitley, the Minister for Disinvestment, Mr Arun Shourie, and the Minister for Civil Aviation, Mr Rajiv Pratap Rudy.

The group has decided to ask the financial consultants to make another presentation as the members feel that the presentation made by one of the three bidders was far superior than the agency which had been short-listed.

The agency had been short-listed by a high-powered inter-ministerial bureaucratic committee, which bound by strict rules, picked the lowest bidder.

However, officials do not look at the Group of Ministers' decision to have a re-look at the decision taken by the inter-ministerial bureaucratic group as something which could set a wrong precedent for the future.

"The empowered Group of Ministers has some of the best ministers which the Government has. These people are above politics and will look at what is in the best interest of the country," officials said.

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