The Hindu Business Line : Modernisation of airports by AAI will be okay, says Left

THE Left parties today gave their go ahead for the modernisation plan of the Delhi and Mumbai airports if it is carried out by the public sector Airports Authority of India. At the ninth meeting of the coordination committee that went on for more than two hours, the Government briefed the Left parties on measures it had taken to mobilise resources, the Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, told newspersons after the meeting.

The Left parties gave the Government a 12-point alternative tax proposals agenda to raise tax-GDP ratio and a separate note on modernisation of the Mumbai and Delhi airports.

Mr Chidambaram said the proposals were discussed and it had been decided to have more detailed discussions at a separate meeting.

Food subsidy cut: On the issue of cut in food subsidy, the Finance Minister said the Left parties had been informed that the Cabinet decision in this regard had been "put in abeyance" and that the Government would hold discussions with political parties.

Disinvestment: On the disinvestment issue, he said he had held separate meetings with Left parties in which there were discussions on case-to-case basis subject to certain guidelines.

The issue of increasing interest rate on provident fund deposits, though expected, did not figure in the meeting today.

The meeting was attended by the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, the UPA Chairperson, Ms Sonia Gandhi, the Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, and the Defence Minister, Mr Pranab Mukherjee.

Among the Left leaders were the CPI (M) General Secretary, Mr Prakash Karat, the CPI General Secretary, Mr A.B. Bardhan, the CPI (M) Polit Bureau member, Mr Sitaram Yechury, the CPI Secretary, Mr D. Raja, and the Forward Bloc General Secretary, Mr Debabrata Biswas.

Airport privatisation: Speaking to newspersons after the meeting about airport privatisation, Mr Yechury said, "privatisation cannot be allowed in the garb of modernisation, which is needed to decongest the two busy airports."

"There is an urgency to complete the modernisation of these two airports. Having regard to the urgency, it was decided that the Government may take a suitable decision,'' he said.

PF issue: On the provident fund issue, he said it would first be taken up by the central trade unions, which have given a call for country-wide demonstration on January 20 with the Union Labour Minister.

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