The Indian Express - Jet, Shiv Sena delegation meets Hardeep Singh Puri, Nirmala Sitharaman

Jun 04,2019

In a bid to revive Jet Airways, crew members and a delegation of the Shiv Sena and Bharatiya Kamgar Sena (Sena’s labour wing) met Minister of State for Civil Aviation Hardeep Singh Puri and Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday. They also demanded that pending salaries of the airline’s employees be given to them.

Shiv Sena secretary Anil Desai, MP Rahul Shewale, labour wing president Suryakant Mahadik, cabin crew members, pilots and ground staff who met the ministers said they were hopeful the newly formed BJP-led government will help resolve the Jet crisis.

“It was a positive meeting. The civil aviation minister asked for some time to resolve the Jet crisis. He has just taken over office a day ago,” said Nidhi Chapekar, Jet’s cabin crew member. She added that Sitharaman assured that the finance ministry will look into the crisis and see if funding could be provided to revive the airline.

Chapekar had survived the 2016 terror attack at Brussels airport after alighting from a Jet Airways flight. After the meeting, Puri tweeted, “I wish I met her in better circumstances, but in the Jet airways delegation which met me was the very brave airhostess and survivor of the 2016 Brussels terror attack, Ms Nidhi Chapekar. Hailing from Guru Nagri, she like me, is a Punjabi married to a Maharashtrian!”

Shewale said the finance minister assured that the State Bank of India will look into the demand to pay salaries of 14,000 Jet employees. Salaries of all employees from March remains pending. The airlines shut operations on April 17, announcing suspension of all domestic and international flights after a consortium of lenders refused to provide interim funding to keep the airline airborne.