The Air India building at Nariman Point in Mumbai has been transferred to the ownership of the Maharashtra state government for ₹1,600 crore. This transfer was approved by the central government, specifically the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), as part of the divestment plan for Air India.
The transaction involved waiving dues of ₹298.42 crore that would have been payable by AI Assets Holdings Ltd, a company managing Air India’s debt and assets post-acquisition by the Tata group in January 2022. This agreement underscores the commitment of both parties to facilitate the transfer smoothly.
This development was initially reported in March 2023, indicating that negotiations and discussions have been ongoing for some time.
As part of the broader divestment plan for Air India, the government took over the airline’s significant debt burden and its non-core assets, which included various properties such as the Nariman Point building. The total value of these assets was estimated to be around ₹14,718 crore.
The decision to transfer assets where land rights belonged to government departments or state governments to the respective entities was a strategic move to streamline ownership and management.
The Nariman Point building had been unsuccessfully put up for sale by Air India since 2018, with interest shown by various state-run entities such as the Life Insurance Corp. of India and the Jawahar Lal Nehru Port Trust. However, the transaction with the Maharashtra government signifies a successful resolution to the building’s ownership.
For Maharashtra, acquiring the Air India building is beneficial due to the state’s shortage of space for its departments. There are plans to integrate the building into the government secretariat, which aligns with the need for additional administrative space, especially considering the proximity of the Air India building to Mantralaya, the state government’s administrative headquarters.
Overall, the acquisition of the Air India building by the Maharashtra government represents a strategic decision to address space constraints and optimize administrative operations in the state capital, Mumbai.
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