Mamata not in favour of foreign investment in aviation

NEW DELHI: A huge question mark hangs on allowing foreign direct investment (FDI) by foreign airlines in Indian carriers. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee - who, along with the Opposition, was instrumental in forcing UPA to suspend FDI in retail - is learnt to be opposed to FDI in aviation too. The Centre is unlikely to invite her wrath by going ahead with this issue in a hurry, or at least till the Parliament session gets over. "Allowing 26% FDI in aviation was an almost done deal (although aviation ministry had favoured 24%) but we have been told that Mamata is opposed to this move also. Now one does not know how and when the government would take up this issue again. The Congress-led UPA has to learn to deal with Mamata keeping the fact that she is not dependent on the grand old party for survival in West Bengal and would be very forceful in getting her demands met," said highly-placed UPA sources. Banerjee is learnt to be keen on reviving Air India where employees now have months of unpaid salaries and allowances. AI pilots and other employees routinely tell their woes to Bengal CM and TMC's Union Cabinet ministers like Dinesh Trivedi. The aviation industry is also divided on the issue of FDI. While Jet Airways and IndiGo are opposed to this idea, Kingfisher and Spice-Jet are in favour of it.