The government has scrapped the plan to privatise the state-run helicopter service provider Pawan Hans and disqualified the winning consortium led by Star9 Mobility.
A government panel has accepted the highest bid made by Star9 Mobility of Rs 211.1 crore in April last year. The winning consortium has promised to turn the service into an on-demand helicopter taxi service on the lines of Uber.
The Pawan Hans privatisation was second most high profile case after acquisition of Air India by Tata Group. In the past, several attempts to sell the loss-making company was stalled due to lack of interest.
As per the reports, the government has disqualified the winning consortium led by Star9 Mobility due to several legal cases against the company. The decision has been taken by the alternative mechanism or group of ministers which comprises of ministers of finance, civil aviation, road transport and highway.
Pawan Hans has been registering loss for several years and the company has a fleet of 42 helicopter, out of which 41 have been approved by the company.