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The company has in its possession paintings
by artists like the late M.F. Husain, exotic wood
carvings, centuries-old sculptures and other authentic
artifacts, and a prime property in Mumbai.
According to a company official, plans are being
finalised to rent out some of these magnificent
pieces and the iconic Nariman Point headquarters
in Mumbai.
"We are planning to appoint a consultant
for cataloguing and valuation of the art works,"
a senior Air India official told IANS.
"The art works may be rented out to galleries
around the world. On a later stage these may be
sold as well," he said, not wishing to be
identified.
The consultant that will be hired by the airline
will have a hard time to put exact value to the
huge collection which deals with Indian history
and culture.
The richness of the stuff can be gauged by the
fact that some 18 paintings of Husain are part
of the collection. Some of these date back to
the 1940s.
Each of these paintings can command a price of
no less than Rs.5-6 crore in open bidding process,
the official said.
Other artifacts under the carrier's possession
include centuries-old exotic wooden carvings portraying
mythology. For example, a carving shows Ravana
carrying Shiva, Parvati and Ganesha.
Most of these 400 artifacts adorn the walls of
the Mumbai building and the airline's offices
in New York, London and Paris.
The iconic 22-storey Air India building at Nariman
Point which house the chairman and managing director's
office can command a handsome rent of Rs.290-350
per square feet.
"The plan is to retain the top three floors
of the building, while the rest would be rented
out. We expect to get anywhere between Rs.30-40
crore per annum. We will go for an open tender
for the renting process," the official said.
Currently, two floors in the building are rented
out to information technology major Tata Consultancy
Services (TCS) while an area approximately of
one floor is given out to other small offices.
Renting out the art works and the building is
expected to fetch the company around Rs.100 crore
annually. Sale of these can easily bring in Rs.10,000
crore, said the official.
The airline plans to shift executives to its
New Delhi office at Airlines House in Parliament
Street.
The move is expected to provide financial relief
to the company which currently is reeling under
an accumulated losses and loans of around Rs.67,520
crore.
The company has taken Rs.21,200 crore as the
working capital loan, Rs.22,000 crore worth of
long-term loans for aircraft acquisition, Rs.
4,600 crore of vendor bills and an accumulated
loss of Rs.20,320 crore.
The government in April approved a turnaround
plan and a financial restructure plan for which
it will receive some Rs.30,000 crore worth of
equity infusion over a period of nine years.
The proposal to rent out the artifacts and the
Mumbai building is not part of the turnaround
plan.
The overstaffed airline, which is constantly
in labour trouble and is also blamed for poor
onboard service, has been on government doles
for long but it hasn't helped.
(IANS)
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