Can pollution lead to delusion?

The link between air pollution and political delusion appears to be getting stronger by the day

Could there be a link between Delhi’s air pollution and the strange behaviour and statements of some of our politicians? Can some of the bizarre stuff that is coming out of New Delhi be blamed on absurdly high PM2.5 levels in the city’s air? Are we missing something here?

Forget the Aam Admi Party (AAP) and its unique methods for the time being. Minister of state for civil aviation Jayant Sinha sounded delusional in an interview given to this newspaper when he said that his government had turned around Air India “remarkably” and that the carrier had seen a turnaround on every parameter. He left everyone asking a simple question: If it’s so hunky-dory, what is the need to sell the carrier?

Nobody is contesting the fact that some operational parameters might have improved — the conditions for the aviation sector since 2014 have been so favourable that almost everyone was back in the black — but will the government have to shell out another ~60 billion to fund the airline’s losses this year or won’t it?

Wasn’t it his government that moved just a few months ago to put the airline on the block? If indeed the turnaround is as “remarkable” as he claims, isn’t that a wasted effort? Why hire E&Y to manage the sale? Why not let Rajiv Bansal lead Air India to glory if he’s doing such a stellar job?

This is nothing personal but why I say he sounds strange is because he goes on to say that the government has a “strategy to improve Air India as a global airline with its network of international destinations” and that it will provide a “refreshed experience to its flyers with its direct flights to global cities across the world”.

Phew! You can’t blame the rest of us for asking, how? And pray, why not earlier? If this indeed was this government’s strategy, why didn’t it put the strategy in motion in 2014 soon after taking charge? Why wait till the fag end? Almost everyone in the industry — several of whom are convinced Air India is unfixable under government ownership and perhaps under any leadership — had a good laugh.

Going beyond semantics, let me explain that if the government has an egg on its face for failing to sell the airline, it has no one else to blame but itself. And this could well be the “strategy” he’s referring to.

The conditions for sale — the purported reason why the sale failed to attract any bids — were decided by the cabinet and conveyed to the transaction advisor. As far as I know, the consultant acted more like a purveyor of information than providing any strategic inputs on the best way forward. I don’t know whose, if anyone’s, advice was sought before setting the conditions but I don’t think seeking advice is really this government’s thing.

Soon after the expression of interest document went out, the consultant acting on behalf of the government started meeting all possible buyers. Within a few days, it was quite evident that the debt left on the books was too onerous, the arm’s length clause made little sense and that the government retaining a 24 per cent stake was a deal breaker. Why wasn’t an emergency Cabinet meeting called to quickly modify the conditions if indeed the sale was such a priority?

This brings me back to what I — and many who have been observing Air India both in India and in global aviation circles — have always believed. It is in no government’s interest to sell this jewel. For the past many decades, it has suited everyone — the politician, the bureaucrat and the airline’s employee — to milk the airline. As one of my readers said to me last week: This sun may not shine but they won’t let it set.

Coming back to the minister’s statements and other political happenings in the capital, it appears that Delhi’s poor air is doing a bigger disservice to our political class than to you and me.

Either way, the issue needs a serious rethink.