R Venkatesan

An analysis of Air India’s financials reveals that the national carrier is on the path to profitability. Strategic disinvestment at this time will prove to be suboptimal. It is shown that debt obligations of the carrier can be serviced, given its improving performance. The airline’s revenues also entail large amounts of foreign exchange inflows. With global crude oil prices expected to remain subdued, strategic disinvestment of Air India at this juncture is not desirable.

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NCAER's Report on Goa

Vol. 47, Issue No. 11, 17 Mar, 2012

R Venkatesan

This is a response to the two sets of criticisms (EPW, 12 November 2011 and 21 January 2012) of the report of the National Council of Applied Economic Research comparing benefi ts and costs of mining and forest services in Goa. The response focuses on the conceptual fallacies in the method proposed by the critics in estimating "social benefi ts" associated with iron ore mining and also comments on the alternative total economic value approach proposed by them.

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Should the Air India Maharaja Be Awarded His Privy Purse?

Vol. 44, Issue No. 32, 08 Aug, 2009

R Venkatesan

There has been little informed debate on the future of the National Aviation Company of India, better known as Air India, which is currently fighting for its future. Easy and dismissive suggestions like privatisation or closure have been advocated with little understanding of the facts on the ground. This article attempts to measure the changes in productivity at the troubled airline and compares its performance with that of the private airlines. There is no question that Air India has been doing poorly, but with a new fleet and rationalisation of costs, it is possible to be optimistic about the future of the airline. India needs a thriving Air India to provide competition to airlines that are growing by mergers and consolidation.

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Memorandum of Understanding and Business Performance Appraisal of the Public Sector

Vol. 43, Issue No. 39, 27 Sep, 2008

R Venkatesan

This paper presents a new framework for the memoranda of understanding that central public sector enterprises sign with the government for benchmarking their performance. The framework goes beyond standard financial ratios. It uses these ratios and other information to develop state financial parameters, dynamic indicators and sector and enterprise-specific variables for public sector enterprises in each sector. The paper, based on a study done for the government of India, suggests a new analytical tool for measuring public sector performance.