Air India, the state-run airline, is set to ground 125 hostesses and stewards for being "overweight," The Hindustan Times reports, citing anonymous sources at the airline. The affected employees will be "assigned ground duty" or "offered voluntary retirement," the Times says.
The crew members are among 600 who were told they had to slim down to meet regulatory standards.
The state-run airline currently has 3,500 cabin crew staff, of whom 2,200 are permanent employees and the rest are on contract. As per the DGCA's regulations, a BMI of 18-25 is normal for a male cabin crew, while for a female it is 18-22. [The Hindustan Times]
While India struggles with extreme poverty, economic gains in recent years have also led to a sharp rise in obesity rates.
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