Vijay Mallya, chairman of Kingfisher Airlines, succeeded in
averting an unrest over delayed salaries by telling his staff on Monday that their dues will be paid in a phased manner from Wednesday, April 4.
Despite the seemingly positive news,
the company's scrip at the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) touched an all-time low in the intra-day trade to Rs 15. At 3.14 pm, the stock was trading down 7.85 per cent at Rs 15.25.
"All junior staff will be paid before Easter, April 4. All pilots and engineers will be paid April 9 and 10," Mallya wrote in a letter to his staff. "My focus now is to start paying your seriously overdue salaries."
The billionaire assured his employees that he would be
available at all major stations from this week to address the staff's concerns.
"Despite all my other commitments to UB (United Breweries) companies, I am personally passionate about and committed to your airline."
The letter stated that the company can now pay the overdue salaries as its bank accounts have been un-frozen following payments worth Rs 44 crore to the income tax department and Rs 20 crore as service tax.
On March 27, the airline suspended operations to several cities and asked its staff to stay home till it managed fresh funding. The airline claimed that it had started the summer schedule with about 120 daily flights and 20 dedicated aircraft.
The airline's international operations have been suspended after the International Air Transport Association (IATA) barred the carrier from its inter-airline clearing house and
billing and settlement plan accounts due to non-payment of dues.
The move is akin to the Reserve Bank of India removing a commercial bank from its currency clearing system.
Currently, Kingfisher has a debt of Rs 7,057.08 crore. Its net loss widened to Rs 444.27 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2011 from Rs 253.69 crore in the October-December quarter in the last fiscal.
Inputs from IANS
Kingfisher Airlines Chairman Vijay Mallya 
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