Fasting Air India pilots seek PM, Sonia's intervention

New Delhi, June 29 (ANI): As the indefinite hunger strike of the Air India pilots entered its sixth day here on Friday, the agitating pilots urged Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi to resolve the impasse.

Despite deteriorating health, the fasting pilots are determined to continue with their protest until their demands are met.

Rohit Kapahi, one of the striking pilots, informed that the health of the few pilots has declined.

"They (the pilots) are spending almost 18 hours lying vertical, trying to conserve as much as energy as they can, and surviving only on water. We have already made an appeal to the Prime Minister Sonia Gandhi to come and end this impasse," he said.

Kapahi also said the Air India management had offered a compromising plan to end the hunger strike, which mentioned to reinstate all the pilots except 10 committee members.

"They have offered a compromise plan to the parents, who have approached them yesterday, saying that we will take back all pilots except the 10 committee members," Kapahi said.

Doctors administering the health of he protestors say the health of some protestors is abating and would soon need to be hospitalised.

"Blood pressure of two to three people was abnormal and of few others was below normal. Pulse rate of few people has also increased, which is not a good sign," Dr. Abhishek, one of the medics present, said.

Earlier on Monday, Minister of Civil Aviation Ajit Singh had termed the hunger strike as avoidable and needless.

The Air India pilots began their indefinite hunger strike to highlight their demands for career progression and training of pilots from the erstwhile Indian Airlines (that was merged with Air India) to fly the Boeing-787 Dreamliner aircraft, to be procured shortly.

The pilots lamented that since the management had refused to have a dialogue with them, this was one of the last resorts to draw the attention of the concerned authorities.

Pilots insisted that they would go back to work provided the management reinstated the sacked pilots, and start discussion with the unions.

Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh, had, earlier slammed the pilots and called their strike 'illegal and unlawful', for violating the High Court's ruling that had directed them to resume work. (ANI)