The Hindu Business Line : Pranab to head GoM on Civil Aviation Policy

New Delhi, July 2 The External Affairs Minister, Mr Pranab Mukherjee, will head the Group of Ministers that will look into the Civil Aviation Policy, which proposes to relax guidelines to allow domestic airlines to start international flights.

Besides Mr Mukherjee, the other members include Mr P. Chidambaram, Minister for Finance; Mr Sharad Pawar, Minister for Agriculture; Mr Lalu Prasad, Minister for Railways; and Mr Praful Patel, Minister for Civil Aviation.

The Minister of Defence, Mr A.K. Antony; the Minister for Home Affairs, Mr Shivraj V. Patil; the Minister for Urban Development, Mr Jaipal Reddy; the Minister for Shipping, Road Transport and Highways, Mr T.R. Baalu; the Minister for Law Justice, Mr H.R. Bhardwaj; Minister for Tourism and Culture, Ms Ambika Soni; and the Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission, Mr Montek Singh Ahluwalia; are the other members of the group.

Currently it is the foreign airlines that carry the bulk of international passenger traffic. A relaxation of the existing rules, which only allow domestic airlines with more than five years of operations to start international flights, is likely to benefit Kingfisher Airlines.