The Bangladesh Journal - Biman Bangladesh Airlines to become public limited company by June

Biman Bangladesh Airlines will be turned into a public limited company (PLC) within the next month of June.
More than 1500 employees of Biman Bangladesh Airlines are also going to lose their jobs.

The caretaker government has taken the major steps to turn the country’s lone flag carrier into a profitable organisation by recasting the loss-incurring enterprise.

As part of the move, the authorities concerned have decided to retrench some 2500 officials, employees and workers of the national flag carrier in two phases.

Sources said that some 1500 officials, employees and workers would be retrenched under the first phase. They would be retrenched through golden handshake from the next month.

In order to retrench these officials, employees and workers, the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism has already sought Tk 500 crore from the Ministry of Finance, sources said.

Earlier, a high-powered committee headed by Secretary of the Civil Aviation Ministry has recommended transformation of the corporation into a public limited commercial company “for its rescue”, official sources said.

All preparations are set to turn Biman Bangladesh Airlines into a public limited company.

Biman Bangladesh Airlines is considering several options, which included retrenchment of 50 per cent work force and import of fuel from the open market, to salvage the state own Biman from the financial collapse.

The Biman organogram has a provision of 6800 workforces as against that 4700 employees now working with different wings of the Biman.

With the implementation of 50 per cent workforce cut policy a total 1500 employees of different categories are likely to lose jobs.

The Biman employees union opposed the workforce cut policy and said that by throwing the employees out of job it would not be possible to salvage Biman from financial difficulties. They demanded to root out corruption from all tiers and also to include more and modern aircraft in the Biman fleet to ensure its commercial viability.

“Presently 4700 employees are working in the Biman, of which 37 officials and staff were sacked recently, as they were involved in corruption”, said an official recently at Balaka Bhaban, requesting anonymity.

He said Biman is maintaining its flight schedule with only nine aircraft. It could not maintain schedule with the existing fleet.

The Biman is now running its 19 destinations both home and abroad with only nine aircraft. With such a small fleet it has become difficult to maintain its flight schedule.

The national flag carrier management ignoring the opposition of the employees union and also Bangladesh Airline Pilot Association (BAPA) has decided to go ahead to implement its workforce cut policy. A seven-member committee headed by the secretary, ministry of civil aviation and tourism has been formed to prepare a policy of retrenchment.

On Saturday last delegations of Biman employees headed by BAPA president Helaluddin met the adviser Major Gen. (rtd) MA Matin and apprised him the prevailing situation in Biman. While expressing their opposition to the workforce cut policy, the delegation suggested a number of measures, which included the e-ticketing system. According to them existing ticketing system breeds corruption.

In another development the Biman authorities were forced to buy fuel in cash from Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) in the backdrop of BPC’s refusal to sell fuel on credit.

The BPC’s decision has ignited anger at different levels of Biman management. They said that if the Biman was to purchase fuel in cash than it should have the right to purchase the same from the international market on a competitive price.

The Biman management claimed they are purchasing fuel at 68 cent per litre from the BPC, which they can purchase at 48 cents from the international market. They also said Biman could save around Tk 200 crore per year, if the national flag carrier was allowed to procure fuel from the open market.

Earlier, BPC warned several times and sent letters to Biman for payment of Tk. 1500 crore arrears immediately.