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Protest holds up airport contract bids
by Gyanendra Kumar Keshri

     New Delhi: The government will not open the financial bids for the revamp and modernisation of its ageing airports at New Delhi and Mumbai before January 29 due to opposition from employees, an official said on Friday. The agitation is being supported by the Left parties, which prop up the ruling coalition. K. Ramalingam, chairman at the Airports Authority of India, told reporters after talking with the agitating employees leader that the financial bids will not be opened today and they will be intimated about any further steps that will be taken. "I have told them there is no bid opening till January 29," Ramalingam said.

   The government's plans to bring in private cash to modernize and manage the international airports have been hobbled by opposition from its communist allies and the workers' unions, who fear job losses. Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) president P.C. Pande said that the agitation would stop only if the government agrees to their proposals for an amicable settlement. "As the minister had given us an assurance that without talking to the employees forum they will not open any bid and will also listen to their proposal. This was the governments promise and they should abide by it. And if the government agrees to this then we are ready to stop this agitation," Pande said. The Central Government is seeking private players to pump in resources to revamp its shabby, overburdened state-run airports to keep pace with the increase in passengers. With the opening up of Indian skies to private players, a number of new airlines have begun operations on domestic and international routes, while the infrastructure remained the same. Economists say that the Indian economy is surging and predict that the per capita gross domestic product will be as high as 8,442, dollars from an estimated 691 dollars now. Simultaneously more and more Indians are able to afford a flight now as low budget airlines are making air travel more affordable as against costlier fares before. The air travel industry is estimated to need 50 billion dollars in investment in planes and infrastructure over the next decade to cope with demand, Indias aviation minister had said in 2005.
-Jan 27,  2006

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