Air India checks 'non-mandatory' travel for official meetings to reduce expenses

In the fast-growing domestic aviation sector, cash-strapped Air India, which is looking at ways to reduce expenses amid spiralling fuel costs and intense competition, has decided to discontinue all "non-mandatory" travel for staff for meetings and instead use conference call and video conference facilities, said a PTI report citing a communication.

Air India CMD Pradeep Singh Kharola, in a communication, has reportedly said that a lot of "non-mandatory Staff On Duty (SOD) movements on daily basis are taking place across the Air India network for attending meetings and interviews, among others.

Such movements "not only involves expenditure on travel, cost of hotel accommodation and providing replacement for staff who is travelling SOD (in case of operational departments) but also result in loss of man days," he reportedly added.

Citing the "current financial condition" of the airline, the Air India CMD said that all such non-mandatory SOD travel would be discontinued with immediate effect. 

In the communication dated August 28, Kharola reportedly said, "Meetings, interviews to be conducted through conference call/ video conference/ Internet-enabled tools." 

Further, the the communication stated that in case of unavoidable situations where the travel involves hotel accommodation also, then there should be CMD's prior approval.

Notably, the decision will reportedly be applicable on all officers up to the level of Executive Director. The government is looking at ways to revive the fortunes of Air India, which is staying afloat on taxpayers' money. 

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In the beginning of this month, Air India's board had met in New Delhi amid the government considering a financial package to help the carrier as the proposed strategic disinvestment of the airline failed to take off.

The meeting, which was aimed at considering proposal for equity infusion and possible loan waiver to improve the AI's finances, was the first after induction of leading industrialists -- ITC Chairman Y C Deveshwar and Aditya Birla Group Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla -- as independent directors on the airline's board.