SCUFFLE AT MUMBAI AIRPORT
Unhappy with govt policy, Air India staff bash him up
Sats COO was in Mumbai for meeting on ground-handling joint venture at airport
December 22, 2008
HURT: The extent of Mr Singh's injuries are not known. LIANHE ZAOBAO FILE PICTURE
A MEETING between aviation officers from Singapore and India at the Mumbai airport on Thursday turned ugly.
Caught in the middle was Mr Karmjit Singh, 60, the chief operating officer of the Singapore Airport Terminal Services (Sats).
He was beaten up by a group of Air India employees who were protesting the new ground-handling policy at the airport, reported the Times Of India.
No police complaint has been filed.
The incident took place at around 11 am in the international terminal of Mumbai airport.
Officials of the National Aviation Company of India Air Transport (Nacil) and Sats had met to discuss ground handling issues.
Nacil is the entity that was formed after the merger of Air India and Indian Airlines.
An airport source told The Times Of India: 'When Air India employees learnt about the meeting, they gathered in hundreds to protest the new ground-handling policy.
'Five Sats officials had come for the meeting and the protesters pleaded with them to leave. Seeing the mob, four of them left.'
The source said Mr Singh 'refused to accept the protesters' demand and there was an altercation between him and the protesters'.
He added: 'Soon tempers were flying and the protesters got violent. Even as blows rained on Mr Singh, other protesters tried to pacify the crowd and escorted him to safety to his vehicle.
'An executive director of Air India was also roughed up in the melee.'
It is not known if MrSingh sustained any grievous injuries.
An Air India spokesman told The Times Of India: 'We have no comments on the matter.'
Attempts by The New Paper on Sunday to contact officials from Sats, Air India and the Mumbai airport were unsuccessful.
We also were unable to reach Mr Singh. When The New Paper on Sunday called his home, a woman who answered the phone declined to comment.
Senior Police Inspector Dilip Patil of the airport police said no report had been filed on the matter.
A member of Civil Aviation Joint Action Front, a group formed to protest the new ground-handling policy, said it was only supposed to be a slogan-shouting protest against the joint venture.
'Arrogance'
He alleged: 'But due to the arrogance and rude attitude of Sats' COO, it ended up in manhandling.'
Nacil and Sats have formed a private joint venture company to undertake ground-handling work in Mumbai and other airports in the country.
Over 20,000 Air India employees engaged in ground-handling work have been protesting the formation of this joint venture and the government policy which effected it.
According to the government policy, ground-handling work in Mumbai, New Delhi and four other major airports of India should be handed over to the chosen few private companies by 1Jan.
Although there has been talk of postponing of this deadline, no official statement from the government has come so far.
Currently, a number of airlines do their own ground-handling work, while the rest have either outsourced it to Air India or private companies like Cambata Aviation.
To stay competitive following the implementation of the new policy, Air India entered into a joint venture with Sats, with both the companies holding 50 per cent stake each.
A joint action committee member said the joint venture would be a 'private company' so that 'decisions like hiring staff, spending of machinery, etc would not need government approval'.
He added that the move upset Air India ground-handlers as they would be made redundant once the joint venture takes over.
He said: 'Even if they are relocated to the joint venture company, they fear wage cuts, reduction in service conditions etc.'
India has more than 100 airports and is on a fast track to privatise existing airports and build new ones to support its booming aviation industry.
It is a lucrative business, with the total value of projects expected to exceed US$16 billion ($24.5 billion) in the next five years.
Apart from ground handling work, Sats, in partnership with Taj Hotels, Resorts and Palaces, already provides in-flight catering at four Indian airports - Mumbai, Chennai, New Delhi and Kolkata.
Mr Singh joined Sats in 1998 and became COO in May 2004. As COO, he has overall charge of all Singapore operations of the Sats Group, including the key businesses of airport services and in-flight catering at Changi Airport.
According to the Sats website, Mr Singh spent 24 years with SIA, serving in a variety of managerial capacities.
Unhappy with govt policy, Air India staff bash him up
Sats COO was in Mumbai for meeting on ground-handling joint venture at airport
December 22, 2008
HURT: The extent of Mr Singh's injuries are not known. LIANHE ZAOBAO FILE PICTURE
A MEETING between aviation officers from Singapore and India at the Mumbai airport on Thursday turned ugly.
Caught in the middle was Mr Karmjit Singh, 60, the chief operating officer of the Singapore Airport Terminal Services (Sats).
He was beaten up by a group of Air India employees who were protesting the new ground-handling policy at the airport, reported the Times Of India.
No police complaint has been filed.
The incident took place at around 11 am in the international terminal of Mumbai airport.
Officials of the National Aviation Company of India Air Transport (Nacil) and Sats had met to discuss ground handling issues.
Nacil is the entity that was formed after the merger of Air India and Indian Airlines.
An airport source told The Times Of India: 'When Air India employees learnt about the meeting, they gathered in hundreds to protest the new ground-handling policy.
'Five Sats officials had come for the meeting and the protesters pleaded with them to leave. Seeing the mob, four of them left.'
The source said Mr Singh 'refused to accept the protesters' demand and there was an altercation between him and the protesters'.
He added: 'Soon tempers were flying and the protesters got violent. Even as blows rained on Mr Singh, other protesters tried to pacify the crowd and escorted him to safety to his vehicle.
'An executive director of Air India was also roughed up in the melee.'
It is not known if MrSingh sustained any grievous injuries.
An Air India spokesman told The Times Of India: 'We have no comments on the matter.'
Attempts by The New Paper on Sunday to contact officials from Sats, Air India and the Mumbai airport were unsuccessful.
We also were unable to reach Mr Singh. When The New Paper on Sunday called his home, a woman who answered the phone declined to comment.
Senior Police Inspector Dilip Patil of the airport police said no report had been filed on the matter.
A member of Civil Aviation Joint Action Front, a group formed to protest the new ground-handling policy, said it was only supposed to be a slogan-shouting protest against the joint venture.
'Arrogance'
He alleged: 'But due to the arrogance and rude attitude of Sats' COO, it ended up in manhandling.'
Nacil and Sats have formed a private joint venture company to undertake ground-handling work in Mumbai and other airports in the country.
Over 20,000 Air India employees engaged in ground-handling work have been protesting the formation of this joint venture and the government policy which effected it.
According to the government policy, ground-handling work in Mumbai, New Delhi and four other major airports of India should be handed over to the chosen few private companies by 1Jan.
Although there has been talk of postponing of this deadline, no official statement from the government has come so far.
Currently, a number of airlines do their own ground-handling work, while the rest have either outsourced it to Air India or private companies like Cambata Aviation.
To stay competitive following the implementation of the new policy, Air India entered into a joint venture with Sats, with both the companies holding 50 per cent stake each.
A joint action committee member said the joint venture would be a 'private company' so that 'decisions like hiring staff, spending of machinery, etc would not need government approval'.
He added that the move upset Air India ground-handlers as they would be made redundant once the joint venture takes over.
He said: 'Even if they are relocated to the joint venture company, they fear wage cuts, reduction in service conditions etc.'
India has more than 100 airports and is on a fast track to privatise existing airports and build new ones to support its booming aviation industry.
It is a lucrative business, with the total value of projects expected to exceed US$16 billion ($24.5 billion) in the next five years.
Apart from ground handling work, Sats, in partnership with Taj Hotels, Resorts and Palaces, already provides in-flight catering at four Indian airports - Mumbai, Chennai, New Delhi and Kolkata.
Mr Singh joined Sats in 1998 and became COO in May 2004. As COO, he has overall charge of all Singapore operations of the Sats Group, including the key businesses of airport services and in-flight catering at Changi Airport.
According to the Sats website, Mr Singh spent 24 years with SIA, serving in a variety of managerial capacities.
