Private airline operators on Tuesday stood divided on the conditions that the government should adopt for new entrants with Jet and Sahara seeking stringent norms to keep non-serious players out of the arena, while Deccan Aviation took a contrary position.

The divide was reflected during the meeting representatives of private airlines had with Aviation Minister Praful Patel this afternoon in relation with the new aviation policy that the government is striving to put in place before the year is over.

"The two private airlines (Jet and Sahara) suggested entry level barriers to the Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel and we opposed it as this move will harm the growing aviation industry in the country," G R Gopinath, deputy chairman, Deccan Aviation, told reporters after a meeting of the private airline owners with the minister.

Besides Gopinath, others who attended the meeting were chief executive officers of Jet Airways (Wolfgang Prock-Schauer) and Air Sahara (U K Bose).

The meeting with private airlines was called by Patel to invite suggestions about the framing of new aviation policy.

The two airlines also suggested that the government should increase the paid-up capital to Rs 250 crore (Rs 2.50 billion) for any new entrant besides allowing only experienced private airlines to fly to foreign destinations, Gopinath said.

"I made it clear that putting such ceilings or any limit for a new entrant would harm the growing aviation industry in the country to which the minister responded that he will do only what was in the interest of the nation," he said.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Patel said that he had called the private operators for their views on the airports and other infrastructure facilities.

"This is part of the ongoing discussions that we will be having with aviation companies before we come up with the new aviation policy," Patel added.