Air India airline fined for fake visas

Air India is paying thousands of dirhams in penalties while sending back workers who land in the UAE on fake, cancelled, or mismatched visas, a top official told XPRESS. "In the last six months alone, we have paid a penalty of Dh70,000 in addition to the cost of providing for the workers' meals and one-way tickets back to India," said Abhay Pathak, Regional Manager of Air India for Gulf, Middle East & Africa. Defending the Indian national carrier's stringent Okay to Board (OTB) rules whereby sponsors or representatives of passengers are required to produce the original visas in person to get an OTB stamp on the passenger's reservation, he said the practice is not out of line. "While other Indian airlines - like Jet Airways and Kingfisher - claim they do not have any OTB requirements, Air India Express strictly goes by the clearance, without which passengers are not allowed to board the plane at the port of embarkation. And unlike other airlines like Emirates which permit visa copies to be sent by fax or e-mail, Air India requires that the original document is produced in person. from/ Gulf News