Air India seeks Rs.10,000-crore bailout

October 11th, 2009 CHENNAI - The four government-owned non-life insurers - National Insurance, New India, Oriental Insurance and United India - have posted a combined business growth of 10.55 percent for the first half this fiscal. "The four companies earned a total premium of Rs.9,991.18 crore during the period, up from Rs.9,059.3 crore earned during the first half of 2008-09," J.

October 5th, 2009 HYDERABAD - The worst floods in over a century have left a trail of destruction estimated at Rs.12,225 crore, the Andhra Pradesh government has said while asking New Delhi for immediate assistance of Rs.6,000 crore. In a memorandum to United Progressive Alliance chairperson and Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Chief Minister K.

August 21st, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Planning Commission Friday approved Rs.10,000-crore (Rs.100 billion) plan outlay for Delhi for the 2009-10 fiscal. The annual plan for the capital was finalised in a meeting between Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia.

August 5th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Private carrier Kingfisher Airlines has reported a net loss of Rs.1,608.09 crore ($338.5 million) for 2008-09, but said it has plans to raise Rs.500 crore from the equity market. The airline's expenses on employees cost stood at Rs.823.85 crore last fiscal, while expenses on aviation fuel and aircraft lease rental were respectively at Rs.2,602 crore and Rs.1,185.13 crore, Kingfisher said in a regulatory statement Wednesday.

July 31st, 2009 NEW DELHI - State-run telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) hopes to generate Rs.1,000 crore ($207 million) of revenue in a year from its infrastructure sharing business. "The master sharing agreement (MSA) for sharing of BSNL towers is in the final stages with some telecom operators and likely to be finalised very soon," the company said in a statement Friday.

July 25th, 2009 MUMBAI - State-run gas utility company GAIL India Saturday reported a 26.8 percent dip in its net profit at Rs.655.8 crore ($135.5 million) for the quarter ended June 30, compared to Rs.896.8 crore in the same period last fiscal. However, the total income increased 4.3 percent to Rs.6,101.3 crore from Rs.5,845.5 crore, the company said in a regulatory statement.

July 7th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Cash-strapped national carrier Air India is expected to register a loss of Rs.5,000 crore last fiscal, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel told parliament Tuesday. "Nacil (National Aviation Co of India Ltd, that operates Air India) is expected to register a loss of approximately Rs.5,000 crore in 2008-09, largely due to high operating expenses, which have been compounded due to the present economic recession resulting in a drop in passengers," the minister said in a reply in Rajya Sabha.

July 6th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Out of a total plan outlay of Rs.12,165 crore for the civil aviation ministry, a sum of Rs.190 crore will be provided as budgetary support to various organisations under the ministry, the government said Monday after Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee presented the annual budget in Parliament. Out of the Rs.190 crore, India's airport developer, Airports Authority of India (AAI) has been allocated Rs.99.15 crore for development of airports.

July 2nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - National carrier Air India has been asked to present its restructuring plan within a month, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said Thursday and reiterated that the airline cannot take the government for granted. "The government wants to know what is needed to be implemented in coming weeks and years.

June 29th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Yielding to pressure from its employees, cash-strapped national carrier Air India Monday decided to give them their June salary July 3, instead of July 15 it decided earlier. "The management has told us that we would get our salaries on July 3.

June 24th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel Wednesday said the government would support and help bail out the loss-making national carrier Air India, but stopped short of spelling out the size or nature of the package. Patel discussed a bailout plan with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

June 22nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Air India officials, who met the Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, T.K. Nair, Monday seeking financial assistance for the cash-strapped airline, did not get any assurance from the government, a senior official said.

June 14th, 2009 NEW DELHI - About 31,000 employees of flag carrier Air India will receive their June salaries only in mid-July as the national carrier attempts to overcome its losses, which were over Rs.4,000 crore (Rs.40 billion/$8.4 billion) during last fiscal, a top official said Sunday. The July salaries could be delayed by over two weeks, said a senior civil aviation ministry official.

March 27th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Japan Friday committed itself to a Rs.7,158.32-crore ($1.43 billion) loan to India for four infrastructure projects, making the country the largest cumulative recipient of Tokyo's overseas development assistance programme. The bulk of the assistance, amounting to Rs.4,061.81 crore, is for the second phase of Delhi's mass rapid transit system to help India's national capital cope with increasing traffic, an official statement said.

March 26th, 2009 NEW DELHI - A proposal from top international events broadcaster Neo Sports and another from the US construction equipment giant John Deere were among 26 applications for foreign investment worth Rs.1,043 crore (nearly $200 million) approved by the government. Neo Sports seeks to induct foreign equity worth Rs.258.53 crore in its Mumbai-based arm that is engaged in uplinking and broadcast of non-news and current affairs programmes.