The government has begun evaluation of financial bids received from Tata Group and SpiceJet founder for the acquisition of Air India, sources said.
With this, the privatisation process of the national flag carrier has moved to the next phase as the government looks to expeditiously conclude the deal.
The financial bids are being evaluated against an undisclosed reserve price and the bid offering the highest price above that benchmark would be accepted.
If successful, this will mark the return of Air India to Tata fold after 67 years.
The Tata Group founded Air India as Tata Airlines in October 1932. The government nationalised the airline in 1953.
