The supply of aviation turbine fuel has been stopped to national carrier Air India at six airports due to non-payment of pending dues, sources privy to the developments told CNBC-TV18.

The fuel supply has been stopped at the airports of Patna, Kochi, Vishakhapatnam, Pune, Ranchi and Mohali.

In response to a query, the airline said that it has no equity support from the government in order to handle its huge debt liabilities.

“Our financial performance however this fiscal is very good and we are moving towards a healthy operating profit. The airline despite its legacy issues is performing well,” Dhananjay Kuma, Air India spokesperson said.

As per the provisional figures of FY 2018-19, the total debt of Air India Ltd as on March 31, 2019, is Rs 58,351.93 crore.

In the union budget for 2019-20, the government had not given any substantial financial equity support to Air India and had said it will again initiate the process of its disinvestment.

The amount of nearly Rs 30,000 crore approved under the turnaround plan in 2012 has already been given to Air India.

Last year, the government had failed to sell Air India when it had offered 74 percent stake. While a lot of parties had shown interest, none of them actually submitted bids. Some like IndiGo suggested that they weren't comfortable in a joint venture with the government.

This year, it is expected that the government may divest over 90 percent stake in the debt-ridden carrier, hence making the deal a lucrative one for the buyer.

While this is not the first time that fuel supply has been stopped to Air India, flight operations are likely to get disrupted if funds are not released soon.

First Published:Aug 22, 2019 8:31 PM IST