Wine Merchants withdraw decision to halt liquor sales in Karnataka on Nov 20
Bengaluru: The Federation of Wine Merchants’ Association in Karnataka has decided to withdraw its decision to halt liquor sales across the state on November 20, the CMO said on Tuesday.
Last week, the Association had decided to halt liquor sales across the state on November 20 alleging “rampant corruption” in the Excise Department and the government’s “failure” to heed its demands.
“Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s meeting with wine merchants’ was successful and they have clarified that they will not go on strike,” the Chief Minister’s office said in a statement.
According to the statement, the CM during the meeting, assured that the demands of wine merchants will be reviewed sympathetically, and enforcement will be done to ensure that the merchants' businesses do well and bring more revenue to the government.
The CM said the Excise Commissioner will be instructed to monitor and ensure that officials don’t harass wine merchants, and take action against errant officials.
Siddaramiah also assured that his government will consider implementing a counselling system for transfer of excise department officials.
He also instructed the officials to submit a report regarding problems faced by the wine merchants.
While announcing the strike, the Wine Merchants’ body had urged the CM to call a meeting to address their issues and take action to curb corruption in the Excise Department.
The demands they had put forth included — merger of the Excise Department with the Finance Department, a guarantee to raise the profit margin on retail liquor sales to 20 per cent, among others.
During the meeting today, the wine merchants’ clarified that they have not complained to the Governor that there has been corruption in the Excise Department, and lies have been spread about this.
“We have nothing to do with the complainant. If necessary, the matter can be verified and investigated,” the representatives of Wine Merchants’ Association were quoted as saying.
An RTI activist had earlier this month sent an email to the chief minister, the Governor, and others, levelling corruption allegations against the excise minister and excise department officials.
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Air India resorts to cost-cutting ways amid 'tough times'; layoffs not anticipated
New Delhi/Mumbai (PTI): Hit hard by Pakistan airspace closure and Iran war, Air India has resorted to cost-cutting measures, including holding back annual increments for staff and asking them to cut discretionary spending as well as non-critical expenditures, warning of "tough times".
On Friday, Air India Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director (CEO & MD) Campbell Wilson told the staff it is going to be a "very, very difficult year" if things don't improve on the Middle East front.
A day after the loss-making airline's board discussed various cost-saving steps, Wilson, along with Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Sanjay Sharma and Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) Ravindra Kumar GP, addressed the employees during a townhall on Friday where the emphasis on the need to keep a close watch on costs.
With higher jet fuel prices due to the West Asia conflict and airspace curbs, the loss-making airline's expenses have spiralled in recent times and against this backdrop, Sharma also told staffers that FY26 has seen a softening in revenue amid heightened external uncertainties.
Calling for a relentless focus on costs in these tough times, Wilson urged employees to suspend discretionary spending, renegotiate rates where feasible, and defer non-critical expenditures.
"There must be a laser-sharp focus on eliminating wastage and leakages," he said.
Stressing the need to tighten the belt for a while, Wilson sounded optimistic that travel demand would rebound and the industry would continue on its upward path.
CHRO Ravindra Kumar told staff that the airline will proceed with variable pay for the last financial year and continue with planned promotions while noting that annual increments will be deferred by at least one quarter.
"We don't anticipate layoffs," he said.
At the airline's board meeting on Thursday, various cost-saving steps, including likely furloughs, were discussed. The Tata Group-owned airline has around 24,000 employees.
Generally, furlough refers to sending staff on unpaid leaves by companies during a tough financial situation.
During the townhall, CFO Sanjay Sharma said while strong revenue growth and fleet expansion drove financial momentum through FY25, FY26 has seen a softening in revenue amid heightened external uncertainties.
Air India has seen around 40 per cent CAGR (Compounded Annual Growth Rate) in revenue between 2022 and 2025, he added.
The airline was acquired by the Tata Group from the government in January 2022.
The Air India CEO mentioned the external challenges being facing the aviation industry as a whole, including the continued closure of Pakistan airspace that is expected to persist for the foreseeable future and geopolitical conflicts leading to disruptions and airspace closures across West Asia.
Wilson, who is set to step down later this year, also flagged a sharp depreciation of the rupee and a 2.5-3 times increase in jet fuel prices, and added that these factors have adversely affected travel sentiment and consumer confidence, as per the sources.
If the Strait of Hormuz opens, oil prices fall and consumer as well as business confidence come back, there is a decent chance of a solid recovery, Wilson said, adding that unless those circumstances happen, it was going to be "a very, very difficult year".
"I feel somewhat responsible that we ended up with probably the biggest surprise of the year in the external environment which was a full-scale war in our neighbouring region in the Gulf. That has had a huge impact on airspace," he said.
For Air India, Wilson said the situation is compounded by the fact that the airline cannot fly over the neighbouring country and has to take a much longer routing for any west-bound destination.
"Every airline is reporting that they are under some sort of financial pressure as a result of higher fuel prices and economic uncertainty. So, it is unfortunately not a great environment to be running an airline," the Air India CEO said.
The Air India Group -- Air India and Air India Express -- is projected to have incurred more than Rs 22,000 crore loss in the financial year ended March 2026.
At the townhall, Wilson also highlighted various initiatives, including completion of the retrofit of its legacy narrow-body aircraft and rapid network optimisation to redeploy capacity more efficiently.
