'Ready to reinstate sacked AI pilots'

Ajit Singh says pilots must call off their agitation unconditionally and return to work

PTI | June 18, 2012



As the strike by a section of the Air India pilots entered the 45th day, Aviation Minister Ajit Singh on Monday reiterated his readiness to take back the sacked pilots provided they called off their agitation unconditionally and returned to work.

"We are still open to talks, but the pilots are not ready for that. They can be taken back on a case-to-case basis if they called off the strike and came to the negotiation table", the Minister said.

On hiring new pilots, he said it is up to the Air India management to take a call on as to how my commanders they need.

On the letter written by the AI executive pilots to the minister stating that they were stressed out due to the strike by the IPG pilots, Singh said, he did not receive any such letter.

"What I got was an unsigned letter from some pilots", he said.

On May 7, the 400-odd erstwhile Air India pilots under the banner of the Indian Pilots Guild (IPG) went on a strike protesting the AI management's decision to allow the erstwhile Indian Airlines pilots to get trained on the Boeing Dreamliners, whose delivery will start from this month-end.

After the strike was declared illegal by the Delhi High Court, the management sacked 101 of them and also de-recognised their union.

As the Minister stuck to his gun that the pilots must call off their strike unconditionally if they wanted him to look into their issues, the cornered pilots abandoned their previous conditions but are now demanding taking them back and recognising their union.

Comments

 

Other News

India calls for doubling bilateral trade with UK by 2030

Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal has called upon businesses in India and the United Kingdom to translate the opportunities created by the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) into expanded trade, investment, partnerships and job creation. Addressing the Bu

Gandhian movement after Gandhi failed: Ram Guha

The Gandhian movement in India, after Gandhi’s death, failed, says Ramachandra Guha, and blames Vinoba Bhave for it. But the movement found new, fertile grounds around the world and succeeded in bringing about a change in South Africa, the US and elsewhere. It is high time it returned home. Of cour

When religion, politics and Bollywood come together

Tavleen Singh, noted journalist and political commentator, has turned to fiction, with her debut novel ‘The Actor’ (HaperCollins India). Set in the near future, it has a superstar, Amit Singh, turning to politics, when the political landscape is dominated by prime minister Guru Gaynendraj

Cabinet approves setting up of Integrated Transport & Logistics Authority

The union cabinet, chaired by prime minister Narendra Modi, on Tuesday approved the setting up of a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), called Integrated Transport & Logistics Authority (ITLA), to strengthen research, planning, appraisal, monitoring and impact assessment within the broad domains of Transp

Why foundational literacy and numeracy is key to school education

Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) are often described as the building blocks of education. Yet, their significance goes well beyond a child’s ability to read a sentence, write a response or solve a basic mathematical problem. These foundational skills shape how children understand the world,

When police data becomes the algorithm

For decades, policing has followed a familiar sequence: a crime occurs, the police respond, an investigation produces records and those records become part of the institutional memory of the criminal justice system. Artificial intelligence is beginning to alter that sequence. Instead of merely recording

Upcoming Conferences



-->

Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter