Pilots’ `joyride’ returns to haunt Pawan Hans

The employees have now resurrected the case after securing possession of documents detailing the escapade. They are also stunned to discover that the pilots instigated their colleagues to resort to a flash strike in 1995 with the express purpose of gaining leverage over the management to drop the charges against them.

“All chargesframed against the pilots for serious acts of indiscipline and misconduct were withdrawn by the management without a proper trial,” sources allege.

“Moreover, the management concealed the facts from the employees for five years but we now have documentary evidence to prove that the management connived with the pilots to deprive employees of their demands,” said a pilot.

While the Pawan Hans management refuses to comment, General Manager (Western Region), Group Capt P S Sood (Retd), says he took over his post only three months ago and is yet to study the case. Among the documents in the employees’ possession is a report dated September 14, 1993, submitted by the Superintendent of Police, Lakshwadweep, to the PHHL management reporting the pilots’ sojourn with two women. It also sought disciplinary action against the duo for misusing the company’s helicopters for their “personal pleasure and violating the law of the land”. The two women, Aparna and Pushpa G Misal, believed to be employees of Pawan Hans,were brought to Kavaratti from Kochi by Govil and Pati on a Vayudoot flight on September 11 without the permission from the administrator, Kochi, or the airport security at Agathi to ferry the women. They even failed to report to the local police station within 24 hours of their arrival as stipulated under the entry and residence rules at Lakshwadweep.

“The names of the two women were not even mentioned in the passenger manifest on that day for travel from Agathi to Kavaratti,” the report states, adding that the foursome were found indulging in “undesirable deeds at the northern end of the beach and at the guesthouse annexe, where the women were accommodated on September 11 and 12”.

The pilots later told the island’s police that the women were employees of Pawan Hans and did not require permission to stay in Lakshwadweep. After recording the women’s statements, they were deported to Kochi on September 14. Another report submitted to the management by the Collector-cum-Development Commissioner,Lakshwadweep, in September, 1993, confirms that the women were given a free ride on the helicopter.

Govil and Pati were finally chargesheeted by the then General Manager, D C Kaushik, on January 23, 1995, who held them guilty of serious indiscipline and misconduct. However, the pilots convinced the employees that they were being victimised and that they should go on a flash strike in protest. For the next 17 days, the employees struck work with the full support of the Pawan Hans Employees’ Joint Action Forum, from January 25, 1995. All the employees, including peons, lost their salaries for the strike period.

In the meantime, Govil and Pati struck a deal with the management, saying they would withdraw the strike if the charges against them were dropped. The matter was finally decided by the Additional Chief Labour Commissioner who passed strictures against the pilots. “The selfish motives of Commander Govil and Captain Pati were clear from the fact that the moment their chargesheets were withdrawn, theyarbitrarily called off the strike, without taking any unions, or even the general body of the guild into confidence,” sources said.

Several employees say Commander Govil violated the rules once again, in June 1997, when he took off on a test flight without clearance from the aircraft maintenance engineer concerned. The matter, amounting to violation of safety norms, was reported to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation and Govil was subsequently grounded for 10 days. Govil once again complained of victimisation and declared a flash strike for three days in June 1997. Both Govil and Pati have been promoted thrice since 1993. Govil is a senior commander and Pati is a commander.