The New Indian Express First Published : 28 Apr 2011 10:43:00 PM ISTLast Updated : 28 Apr 2011 11:42:47 PM IST
For once, the customarily mealy-mouthed government and its subservient Air India management have cracked down hard on the striking pilots. It is possible that at a time when it is being arraigned for capitulation before pushy scamsters, the government decided against more signs of retreat. In any event, the case for the pilots is weak enough to discourage even ardent carriers of the red flag. Considering that the wild cat strike was the second in less than a year and the third in three years, there was no way that this annual ritual of the pilots to hold the national carrier and its harried passengers to ransom could be tolerated yet again.
Since their complaints received a measure of support from Justice Gita Mittal of the Delhi High Court, who said that they were a victim of “injustice”, the pilots should have listened to her advice to return to work. But, presumably because they are used to the authorities giving in every time to their strong-arm methods, they not only decided to stop work, but also urged the staff on the ground belonging to the commercial pilots’ association to report “sick”. Clearly, they did not care in the least that their rash and reckless act would lead to the harassment of thousands of flyers in a holiday season, but also make Air India even more ‘sick’ than it is now with its endless need for subsidies.
As civil aviation minister Vyalar Ravi pointed out, it was the airline’s financial difficulties which made it difficult for it to accept the demand of pay parity between all sections of pilots, especially those who were earlier with the Indian Airlines. Considering that a committee headed by a former Supreme Court judge is looking into the matter, the irresponsible nature of the strike can hardly be overstated.
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