Pak govt expedites PIA's privatisation; prepares framework for division of assets and liabilities
Islamabad (PTI): Cash-strapped Pakistan is expediting the privatisation process of its ailing national flag carrier, PIA, and has prepared a framework for the division of its assets and liabilities as part of the move, according to a media report on Monday.
The government has disclosed that the total value of the assets of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) is Rs 171.43 billion. Once the privatisation process is completed, the PIA’s assets along with its liabilities will be divided between the holding company and the new company taking over the airline, The Express Tribune newspaper reported.
The PIA owes Rs 161 billion to the government and Rs 267 billion to commercial banks, which will be transferred to the holding company, the report said, citing official documents.
Out of the PIA’s assets worth Rs 171.43 billion, assets worth Rs 146.57 billion will be transferred to the new management of the PIA, while assets worth Rs 24.86 billion will remain with the holding company, it said.
The federal government is expediting the privatisation process of the PIA and has prepared a framework for the division of assets and liabilities of the national flag carrier as part of the process, it said.
Out of the PIA's Rs 830 billion deficit, Rs 202 billion will be borne by it and Rs 628 billion by the holding company. As a result, the new company will begin the PIA operations with a deficit of Rs 55.70 billion, the report said.
According to the documents seen by the newspaper, the government will divide the PIA operations into core and non-core segments as part of the privatisation process. All assets and liabilities of the PIA will be divided between these two segments.
Post-privatisation, assets including aircraft worth Rs 92.62 billion, technical equipment for flight operations, operational offices, and other properties, along with long-term deposits worth Rs 6 billion, trade debts and advance deposits worth Rs 22.35 billion, and other receivables worth Rs16.83 billion, will be transferred to the new PIA management.
Additionally, liabilities in the form of long-term financing worth Rs 15.63 billion, aircraft leases worth Rs 30 billion, employee salaries amounting to Rs 27.26 billion, and trade and other payables totalling Rs 121 billion will be inherited by the new company.
Loans taken from domestic and international institutions and the interest payable on them, amounting to Rs 444 billion, will also be transferred to the holding company.
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Mathura boat capsize tragedy: Death toll climbs to 13
Mathura (UP)(PTI): With the recovery of two more bodies on Sunday, the death toll in the boat capsize incident in the Yamuna river in Mathura has climbed to 13, officials said on Sunday.
Search for three more missing persons is underway.
Superintendent of Police (Rural) Suresh Chandra Rawat said renewed search efforts led to the recovery of the body of a college student, identified as Dinki Bansal, near Devraha Baba Ghat and that of a man identified as Rishabh Sharma approximately 3 km away from the accident site.
The incident occurred on Friday afternoon when a boat carrying over two dozen tourists, primarily from Punjab, hit a floating drum of a pontoon bridge and capsized near Kesi Ghat in Vrindavan.
Most of the victims were from Jagraon and Dugri areas of Ludhiana district.
Teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) along with the district administration and local police were actively engaged in the search for the missing pilgrims.
However, strong currents of the Yamuna river and the significant depth of the water at the ghats are proving a hindrance.
Circle Officer (Mant) Sandeep Singh said the Yamuna river stretch extending from Keshi Ghat to Gokul Barrage has been divided into seven sectors.
The search for the missing individuals will now be conducted within this specific 20-square-km zone. A Station House Officer (SHO) has been designated as the in-charge for each sector.
Acting on the orders of the DIG (Agra Range), seven SHOs will oversee operations across the seven sectors of river Yamuna.
Giving details about the operation, Additional District Magistrate (Finance and Revenue) Pankaj Kumar Verma, citing NDRF officials, on Saturday had said although the search for the missing persons is currently focused within a 14-km radius from the spot where the boat had capsized, there is a possibility that they may have been swept much further downstream.
SHO of Vrindavan police station Sanjay Pandey said boat operator Pappu was arrested late on Friday night.
He is accused of failing to provide life jackets to passengers before allowing them to board the boat, and operating the boat at high speed. This resulted in the boat losing control and colliding with a pontoon bridge's drum, which led to the accident, officials said.
Police have registered a case and also arrested the contractor, Narayan Sharma, responsible for the repair work on the pontoon bridge.
Rawat said that on Friday evening, police registered a case under section 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) against the boatman Pappu (alias Dauji) and Sharma, and subsequently arrested them.
According to the case details, Pappu's boat did not have any safety equipment or provisions whatsoever.
Moreover, despite repeated pleas from pilgrims, Pappu operated the boat at high speed. By the time he realised the danger upon approaching the pontoons of the bridge, it was already too late.
Consequently, after colliding with a pontoon drum, the boat lost control and capsized. It has also come to light that he is among those operators who have not obtained the requisite license to operate a boat.
Sharma was carrying out the work of dismantling and reassembling the pontoon bridge without providing any prior notification.
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