The Centre has no immediate plans to divest its stake in Air India or bring in a strategic partner, said Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State for Civil Aviation, on Thursday.

In an informal chat with the media, the Minister said it is important for the country to have a national carrier and added that for the next six months at least the Government’s focus would be on improving the airline’s on-time performance.

The Centre has pumped in ₹30,000 crore in Air India so far for its revival. The airline’s net loss came down to ₹5,389 crore in the last fiscal year from ₹5,490 crore in financial year 2013 and ₹7,559.74 crore in FY12.

Infusing equity

The Minister said that the Centre is committed to infusing equity each year into Air India in line with an already approved turnaround plan.

For financial year 2015-16, the allocation is about ₹2,500 crore against a demand for ₹3,400 crore.

A senior official indicated that the Ministry will seek the shortfall in equity support later this year through a Supplementary Demand for Grants.

He also said that Air India’s losses decreased in 2014-15 due to lower crude oil prices and lower currency fluctuation compared to 2013-14.

No-poaching pact

Sharma also wants airlines to give an informal commitment against poaching cabin crew and pilots. “We will call all the airlines for a meeting on this issue,” he said.

The Minister added that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation could be asked to frame guidelines on this issue as it results in a crippling shortage of trained manpower for airlines.

Air India has been finding it difficult to find crew to man its flights.

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