Concerns flagged in Parliamentary panel meeting to review impact of coronavirus on civil aviation sector, railways

By Ashoke Raj
New Delhi [India], Mar 18 (ANI): The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism, and Culture met here on Wednesday to review the impact of coronavirus on the civil aviation sector and the railways.
Secretaries of Ministries of Civil Aviation and Tourism and Chairman of the Railway Board were present in the meeting.
Sources said a member raised the issue of an airline asking its staff to go on leave without pay.
"The Committee has slammed aviation officials in view of GoAir sending their staffs on leave forcefully without pay," they said.
Aviation officials stressed in the meeting that airlines are incurring a huge loss due to coronavirus. Many airlines including Air India and Vistara have cancelled their flights on international routes.
Another member said that posters have been pasted and pamphlets have been brought out about the prevention of coronavirus but illiterate people cannot read them when they are travelling by railways.
He said railway is the only medium of travel for a large number of people and the matter should be addressed.
Railways informed the committee that 63 per cent of railway tickets were cancelled due to coronavirus scare.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation gave a detailed presentation, indicating that the aviation industry in India is facing huge losses due to COVID-19.
The committee has appreciated airlines and airport staff for handling the pandemic situation at the airport. It also stated that it is also required to do the medical check-up of family members of those who are deployed at airports.
The Committee told aviation officials in the meeting to provide onboard masks to all air traveller and sanitise the aircraft properly.
Earlier, officials were requesting for video conferencing to attend the committee but one of TMC members said: "In light of coronavirus outbreak in India, there is an urgent need to examine the impact of the disease on the aviation and tourism industry of the country."
"The Standing Committee is responsible for handling the matter related to the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Road Transport and Highways, Shipping, Culture and Tourism. Aviation and Tourism will be directly affected by the spread of coronavirus," he added.
"I request the Chairman to take suo motu cognizance of the matter and call two meetings with the Secretary, the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Secretary, the Ministry of Tourism respectively. This would enable the committee to understand the situation and the level of preparedness. The committee may then proceed to make recommendations if the need arises," he said.
The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in India has reached 152, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday. (ANI)