AI strike: 60 flights cancelled, talks on

New Delhi, Apr 28 (PTI) Around 60 Air India flights
were cancelled on the second day of the strike Thursday by
pilots who have been asked by the Delhi High Court to call off
their stir.
The Chief Labour Commissioner (CLC) held a meeting
with the management and the union with the former insisting
that it would not talk to a derecognised union and the
agitators demanding restoration of recognition of their body
and reinstatement of those sacked and suspended.
"We sent notices to the two sides to appear before us
for talks. The meeting is going on", sources in the CLC office
told PTI.
At the meeting, representatives of the airline
management are understood to have refused to talk to the
pilots, saying their union was not a recognised one and they
had flouted court orders.
The pilots, on the other hand, insisted that the
recognition of their union be restored and all the six sacked
pilots be taken back, sources said.
The ICPA was de-recognised Wednesday and its offices
in various cities sealed.
Flyers at several airports bore the brunt of the
strike with some complaining that they were not informed about
the status of their flights and some coming to know about the
flight cancellations only after reaching airports.
Labour Minister Mallikarjun Kharge told reporters here
that the conciliation proceedings were going on and "a
solution can only be reached through conciliation."
Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi has briefed Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh on the entire issue, he said.
"We cannot say who is right or who is wrong. The
minister (Ravi) has constituted a committee which will give
its report to the government", Kharge said.
In Mumbai, Rishabh Kapur, the sacked General Secretary
of the Indian Commercial Pilots Associating (ICPA) which is
spearheading the agitation, demanded a Central Bureau of
Investigation probe into the alleged mismanagement of the
airline which, he said, had led to the huge losses suffered by
the company after the merger.
He also demanded ouster of the management charging it
with being responsible for taking measures that led to Air
India becoming a loss-making company.
In Delhi, 33 domestic and five international flights
to Kathmandu, Kabul and Dubai were cancelled as the airline
management decided to operate only those flights for which
cabin crew as well as adequate pilots were available.
Similarly, unavailability of cockpit crew forced the
national carrier to cancel around 19 flights, including two
international ones, out of Mumbai.
Roemer said the Indo-US relationship has been further
strengthened by the landmark 2009 visit and White House dinner
honouring Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to the history
making trip by President Obama to India in 2010.
President Obama committed America's support to India
for a permanent UN Security Council seat and removed nine
Indian companies from the entities list.
"We have entered into a strategic dialogue on
Afghanistan and a new joint economic partnership for capacity
building," he said.
Roemer said he was proud to have worked with the
Indian government to sign the Counter-terrorism Cooperation
Initiative providing groundbreaking joint US-India work on
mega-city policing, forensic lab training, intelligence
sharing, and sharing best government-wide practices.
He noted that during his tenure, the US-India defence
partnership expanded exponentially.
The sale of C130J aircraft and the pending sale of
C-17s strengthen the strategic partnership between the two
countries, demonstrated the enduring commitment to sharing the
world's best technology with India.
"Our defence partnership offers economic benefits for
both India and the United States and significant job creation
in both countries," he said.
Roemer said the joint commitment to conserve and
protect the resources of the planet as global partners was
evident in the concerted efforts made to identify and
highlight practical, affordable green technologies.
"As Ambassador, I had the chance to travel with my
family to all corners of this incredible and beautiful
country. Whether I was playing basketball with Muslim girls in
Lucknow, seeing the majestic tiger in Ranthambore, or
observing the "aarti" on the banks of the mighty Ganga in
Varanasi, I personally viewed how common values and common
interests bind our two great democracies together more
strongly every day," he said.
The diplomat went on to quote Mahatma Gandhi who said,
"a nation's culture resides in the hearts and in the soul of
its people".
"India has opened the doors of its schools,
communities, and hearts to my family. We will leave with full
and grateful hearts for the many wonderful people who have
welcomed us.
"We came here as diplomats and we leave feeling part
of a family," he added.
Prior to his nomination as Ambassador to India, Roemer
was President of the Center for National Policy (CNP) in
Washington, DC a moderate think-tank dedicated to finding
bipartisan solutions to America's most important national
security challenges.