The government holds 51 per cent stake in Pawan Hans, which has a fleet of 43 helicopters . The remaining 49 per cent is with ONGC After the new government took over, it decided to sweeten the deal by diluting certain crucial terms of sale in view of the concerns raised by potential bidders when Pawan Hans was first put on the block.As of April 30, 2019, Pawan Hans had 718 employees, of which 415 were regular and 303 on contract. The company's manpower comprises 116 pilots, 101 aircraft maintenance engineers (AMEs), 52 executives, 157 technicians and 292 other technical and non-technical employees. The Budget has set a disinvestment target of Rs 1.05 lakh crore for current fiscal, up from Rs 85,000 crore raised last fiscal.The government had first floated an offer to sell its 51 per cent stake in Pawan Hans in October 2017, but in view of subdued response from bidders, the EoI was withdrawn in April 2018. The Pawan Hans sale process was then put on hold till the new government took charge post the general elections.

Source: Economic Times July 21, 2019 06:11 UTC