ISLAMABAD - As parts of its efforts of getting back at least three departments of the aviation division, the defence ministry has reportedly convinced the federal secretaries committee of coordination in this regard, The Nation has learnt.
Official sources informed this scribe that Defence Secretary Lt-Gen (r) Asif Yasin Malik has recently convinced the coordination committee that departments of Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), Airport Security Force (ASF) and Metrological Department should be given back under the control the defence ministry.
Defence secretary, however, did not stress giving PIA (Pakistan International Airline) under the administrative control of its ministry that too has been working under it in the past, the sources claimed.
The sources further said that defence secretary has succeeded in convincing the cabinet division in this connection and it is likely that cabinet division would put this proposal before Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in next cabinet meeting.
The PML-N led federal government after coming into power in June last year had bifurcated the Defence Division by creating Aviation Division which was given control of PIA, CAA, ASF and Met Department.
This was done as part of government efforts to bring structural changes in PIA that has become a burden on the national economy.
Captain (r) Shujaat Azeem, Adviser to the PM on Aviation Affairs, is overseeing the affairs of the aviation division and he had brought some structural changes in PIA. The adviser is a brother of Tariq Azeem, a former state minister during Musharraf regime.
Certain sources claimed that there was a need to strengthen the CAA management as experts say that civil aviation authorities around the world work independently and do not fall under any government division or ministry. It has also been mentioned in the preamble of in CAA Ordinance, 1982 that CAA would work as an independent body.
Defence ministry spokesperson was contacted for her official version but she did not attend the phone call. Ministry of defence had also resisted the decision of the government last year when aviation division had been taken out of its control but Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had refused to reverse his decision.