Tata to fly Air India again; emerges highest bidder with ₹18,000 crore [details]

After a long wait, the command of the government airline Air India has been handed over to the Tata Group. The Tata group had made a bid of about Rs 18,000 crore for Air India. Addressing the media, Tuhin Kant Pandey, Secretary, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) said that Tata Sons' Tales Pvt Ltd has won the bid of Rs 18,000 crore. Tuhin Kant Pandey said the transaction is expected to be completed by the end of December 2021.

According to the terms of the government, the successful bidder company i.e. Tata will get 100 per cent control of the subsidiary Air India Express apart from Air India. At the same time, a 50 per cent stake will be captured in Air India SATS Airport Services Private Limited (AISATS). Notably, AISATS provides cargo and ground-level services at major Indian airports. As per the disinvestment norms, Tata will be allowed to land 4,400 domestic and 1,800 international flights at Air India's domestic airports. At the same time, control of parking allotments will be given.

Tata owns Maharaja after 68 years

The state-owned airline Air India has gone to its old owner, the Tata Group, after 68 years. Actually, this airline was established in 1932 by Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhai (JRD) Tata. Then it was called Tata Airline. However, Air India was nationalized in 1953. Thereafter, the company was 100 per cent owned by the government. However, due to the increasing debt burden, the government started trying to sell a stake in Air India for the first time in 2017. At that time, the government wanted to sell a 75 percent stake, however, it failed to attract any bidders.

After which, all the concessions were given in the rules of disinvestment and the government agreed to sell its complete ownership. Those interested in bidding for Air India were given multiple deadlines to submit applications. The last deadline was September 15. To this day, Tata Sons and SpiceJet have mainly shown interest in buying Air India. Now the command of Air India has gone to Tata Sons of Tata Group. With this, the dominance of the Tata Group in the sky has increased. Two other Tata Group-owned companies Vistara and Air Asia are also active in the aviation sector.