The Hindu Business Line : Govt readies contingency plan to deal with airport staff strike

THE Government on Monday said that it has drawn up a contingency plan to ensure that air services around the country are not affected on September 29 due to the one-day strike call given by the Airports Authority of India Employees Joint Forum.

"All 124 airports around the country will be operational. A contingency plan has already been firmed up," a senior Government official said. Meanwhile, the Forum today threatened to intensify its stir in case the Government did not consider the alternate plan that it had submitted for modernisation and restructuring of the Delhi and Mumbai airports.

"The strike on September 29 is being supported by all central trade unions except INTUC. At least 20,000 workers of AAI out of the total staff strength of 22,000 will be on strike including those from the fire department, technical and engineering departments. If the Government does not consider the alternate plan then we will be left with no choice but to intensify our agitation," the Forum General Secretary, Mr M.K. Ghoshal, told newspersons. However, Air Traffic Controllers (ATC) are not taking part in the one-day strike, that has been called to protest against the move to privatise the two metro airports.

The Forum has claimed that a proposal for modernisation of the two airports had been accepted by the AAI board in 2003 but had not been implemented by the Government since. "The Government has the plan since 2003. It has hardly been changed. We can implement the proposal much faster than what any of the six shortlisted bidders will be able to," Mr Ghoshal claimed.

The alternate proposal calls for construction of a passenger terminal of more than 2,26,000 square meters along with related apron and car park in Delhi apart from providing inter-connectivity by people mover system between the international and domestic airport.

The Forum also claimed that the sole purpose of the parties participating in the modernisation process of the two airports was to exploit the land at the airports for commercial use. "Their interest for development of passenger facilities will be subsequent to the profitability accrued from exploitation of the city side land," the Forum said in a presentation.

However, senior Government officials when contacted merely said that " a fair comparison will have to be made between all the bids before a decision can be taken on whether there is merit in the demand of the Forum."

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