Vigilance wing
unearths over 160 cases where employees stole liquor, caviar from aircraft
Even as Air
India struggles to survive on the back of a Rs.30,000-crore government bailout,
investigations by its vigilance wing have unearthed over 160 cases where
employees milked the airline by stealing liquor, caviar and other luxury goods
from aircraft.
The cases,
Union Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh has said in response to a question in
the Lok Sabha, included a flight purser who was dismissed from service after he
was apprehended with 372 mini-liquor bottles by customs at Delhi's Indira
Gandhi International Airport.
Similarly, a
catering officer was found with Rs. 20,200 worth of caviar tins that were
missing from a special charter flight.
Large-scale
malpractice, the Minister said, ran through the airline. Air India officials
selected five-star hotels in New York, Chicago and Mumbai for cockpit crew
without following the tender procedure, while bills were raised at a Delhi
airport restaurant for delayed departure even though the flight was on time.
Bogus
attendance, inflated bills and overtime claims were also unearthed during
investigations. For instance, two senior officers were found guilty of
procuring portable entertainment appliances and ground pods through a
middleman, thus causing loss to the tune of $1.6 million besides a recurring cost
of over Rs. 7 crore per annum for equipment which were hardly used.
Mr. Singh said
even highly-paid pilots had engaged in malpractices, with several found to have
been claiming allowances to which they were not entitled. In one case, a pilot
was actually found to be working for another airline while continuing to draw a
salary from Air India. Air India officials, the Minister said, made payments of
allowances linked to time spent flying aircraft from the date their contracts
began — whereas they were only certified to fly aircraft a month later.
Junior staff at
Air India were not far behind in following their seniors. Air India officials,
the Minister said, frequently misused their position to get their relatives and
friends upgraded.
Jaypee hotels in New Delhi city in India offer luxury accomodation and comfort by charging reasonabl prices. they offer best services in New Delhi with the aim to conquer other rival Luxury hotels new delhi, All jaypeehotels emphasise on contemporary designs and décor, rejuvenating spaces, delicious dining and unlimited entertainment.
ReplyDelete