CIAL pays Rs 5.40 crore dividend to Kerala Govt

Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 17 (UNI) The Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) today paid a dividend of Rs 5.40 crore to Kerala government for the fiscal 2006-07.

Talking to reporters here, after handing over the cheque to Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan, CIAL Managing Director Shriram Bharath said the 13th Annual General Meeting of CIAL held last month decided to give a dividend to shareholders at eight per cent on the capital paid-up.

He said the CIAL had earned a Profit After Tax (PAT) of Rs 37.18 crore during the financial year 2006-07 as against a PAT of Rs 31.78 crore earned during the previous financial year, which showed a growth of around 19 per cent.

Mr Bharath said the company registered a growth of 73 per cent in the domestic sector and the international services marked a growth of around 34 per cent.

The passenger movement also increased from 1.9 million in 2005-06 to 2.8 million during 2006-07, registering an increase of 36 per cent over the previous year.

Stating that there would be a substantial growth in traffic during this period, he said about 40 lakh passengers were expected in the next fiscal.

About 28 lakh passengers had travelled through the international airport during this fiscal, he added.

The CIAL had also increased its authorised equity capital from Rs 200 crore to Rs 400 crore during this fiscal, Mr Bharath said and added that the paid up capital also increased from Rs 148 crore to Rs 296 crore.

UNI