New Delhi, January 24, 2006 (ANI)

The Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) will meet here today to discuss the criterion for the modernisation of Delhi and Mumbai airports.

The EGoM, headed by Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee, may consider the broadening of the criteria for the bid process in the light of the recommendations of the E. Sreedharan-led Group of Eminent Technical Experts (GETE), by allowing more than one bidder for each of the two metro airport projects.

The Sreedharan panel has recommended lowering of the marks received by the Reliance-led consortia below the qualifying levels on account of managerial capability and transition plan.

Though the recommendations of the Sreedharan Committee are not binding on the EGoM, the sources said the Group of Ministers would have to take the call and deliberate on ways and means on how to take the process of restructuring and modernisation of the two major metro airports forward.

The Sreedharan panel has proposed the setting up of a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) with the Airports Authority of India to take the process forward.

The employees of the Airport Authority on India (AAI) have extended their support to the recommendations of the Sreedharan Committee. They feel that the Government has ignored the panel's view in the same way as their own pleas were brushed aside.

Meanwhile, the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), a Left constituent, has expressed its opposition to the inclusion of bidders rejected by the GETE to include more bidders in the race. It feels that the process lacks transparency and wants the Government to hand over the task to the AAI.

RSP leader Abani Roy has also written a letter to Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in this regard, saying, "such a move will be biased in favour of certain parties and will be a matter of investigation".

"I fear that this is being done to deliberately weaken and eventually deal a deathblow to AAI", Roy added.

It is learnt that GETE have downgraded Reliance-led consortium below the qualifying level of 80 points and lowered the marks of the GMR-Fraport consortium during the fresh evaluation. However, the ranking of bidders is said to be done as per the standards adopted by the global technical advisor Airplan.