Transportation woes biggest issue faced by NRIs, says Chandy
In
hindsight, Union Minister for Civil Aviation Ajit Singh and his deputy K.C.
Venugopal displayed perfect judgement in staying away from the inaugural
session of the three-day Pravasi Bharatiya Divas that began here on Monday.
They would have had a tough time, had they been present, as Air
India emerged the punching bag for everyone from Ministers to delegates who
attended the session - NRIs in the Gulf.
Union Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi, who
inaugurated the session, dropped more than a hint when he said he had a fair
idea about what topped the list of complaints that the delegates were waiting
to air.
“I know what it is. Your problems with the flight back home; the
approach of Air India,” he stopped mid sentence with a smile.
Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, who spoke after him, was more
forthcoming. Identifying transportation woes as the biggest issue of the NRIs,
he held the beleaguered airline responsible for their plight.
Minister for Norka K.C. Joseph was the most acerbic as he made a
no-holds-barred attack on Air India. “We cannot turn a blind eye to the
hardships suffered by the NRIs because of the step motherly attitude of Air
India. Therefore, the State government is determined to go ahead with Air
Kerala at any cost,” he said to a wide round of applause.
Soman Baby, managing director of the Bahrain-based Daily Tribune , pointed out the absence of decision
makers to resolve the complaints of delegates with regard to Air India. His
poser about the absence of Civil Aviation Minister was met with an almost
irritated response from Mr. Ravi, who said the Minister was from a different
political party.
When it was pointed out that the Minister in question was his
Cabinet colleague, Mr. Ravi said he cannot force Cabinet members to attend a
meeting. He had invited Mr. Ajit Singh but he was not interested. Mr. Ravi,
however, was candid enough to admit that he could have asked Mr. Venugopal to
attend the meet. C.R.G. Nair, a delegate from Dubai, wondered what prompted Air
India to withdraw its service between Dubai and Thiruvananthapuram some years
back.
While Mohammed Kavungal, a delegate from Saudi Arabia, lamented
the downward spiral of Air India services over the years, Siddique Hussain from
Muscat hoped that the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas deliberations would bring about
some change in the approach of Air India officials.
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