After 69 yrs, Air India says ‘Tata’ to govt

New Delhi: The entire country’s eyes are on the Tata Group and Air India waiting to see what they will achieve together, Tata Sons Chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran told the carrier’s employees in his first communique after taking over the airline on Thursday.

The Indian government on Thursday officially handed over Air India to the Tata Group after nearly 69 years. Following a competitive bidding process, the government had on October 8 last year sold Air India to Talace Private Limited, a subsidiary of the Tata Group’s holding company, for Rs 18,000 crore. In the communique sent to Air India’s employees, Chandrasekaran said, “I have learned that to preserve what is best about the past, requires constant change. It is by evolving, adapting and embracing the future that we best honour a glorious history.”