Debt-laden Air India will have to shut down if sale offer flops

India’s national carrier will have to shut down if a renewed attempt to sell the debt-laden airline fails to find a buyer, the country’s aviation minister said, a year and half after an attempt to sell the high-profile asset flopped.

“The airline will have to close down if it’s not privatized,” Hardeep Singh Puri told the Indian parliament on Wednesday. “Once we invite bids, then we’ll see how many bids will come in.”