29 April,2011 05:57 AM IST | | Bipin Kumar Singh
On day two of strike, both parties refuse to budge; agitating pilots swell in numbers, demanding that CMD Arvind Jadhav be sacked; flights cancelled
The standoff between the Air India management and the agitating pilots intensified yesterday, with both sides refusing to back down. While the pilots stood their ground, so did the flights that they had abandoned, which did not take off. The agitating pilots put up a brave front, claiming the support of more than four other unions.
Sorry, no service: Airline services were disrupted as the Air India
pilots' strike entered its second day. Pic/Sayed Sameer Abedi
"This strike is heading towards a national movement. We have garnered support from fellow unions. We apologise to passengers who were inconvenienced. However, we also want to maintain that the management did not leave us with any other option but to go on strike," said Captain Rishabh Kapur, General Secretary, Indian Commercial Pilots' Association (ICPA).
"The mismanagement within Air India quarters should be investigated by the CBI. It is this mismanagement that has lowered AI's standards. We want to restore the airline to its past glory. But this will only be possible when perpetrators sitting in the management are punished. We want an assurance from the management that the alleged corruption will get investigated," added Kapur.
More support
The Indian Pilots Guild (IPG), who till late seemed to be opposing the ICPA, surprised everyone by supporting the agitating legions. "We have got a letter of support from the IPG, saying that they are with us in our cause, and will continue to give their moral support to us in our crusade," said Kapur.
Distorted view
"We want the irresponsible CMD Arvind Jadhav to be immediately removed from his post. This is our one of our primary demands. He is the man responsible for the sorry state of Air India ," said Kapur.
Passenger speak
Not all were as lucky, however. Hiralal Brahan, a Delhi passenger, reached the domestic airport at 11 am to catch his flight, only to discover that it had been cancelled. "My flight has been declared cancelled. I have been accommodated in a connecting international flight to Delhi at 4.30 pm. I must rush to the international airport now," he said.
Cancelled
Total cancellations on day one from Mumbai: 43
Total cancellations of flights on day two from Mumbai: 71 (including 9 int'l flights)
Total flights operated daily by Air India: 320
The Other Side
An Air India spokesperson told MiD DAY, "It is our duty to ensure that passengers are not affected. We have tried to accommodate our passengers in the flights that are operating. We also booked our passengers with different airlines in cases of seat unavailability in our flights." The Air India office later said that it would close bookings for flights for the next five days.
