Privatisation

Indo-US tech deals expand scope for private sector

States are also eligible for bonus marks for privatisation of power distribution companies (discoms)

Of three dozen companies originally identified for sale, officials are now left with a list of just 17 - 10 unlisted and 7 listed - largely because of legal and insolvency issues.

The government is not in a "crazy rush" to sell everything and it will continue to have a presence in four strategic sectors, including telecom, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday. In strategic sectors, a bare minimum presence of the existing public sector commercial enterprises at the holding company level will be retained under government control. The remaining enterprises in a strategic sector will be considered for privatisation or merger with another PSE or for closure. Speaking at the Raisina Dialogue, the minister said that the country will have government-owned professionally run companies in four broad strategic sectors. According to the PSE Policy, the four broad strategic sectors are - atomic energy, space and defence; transport and telecommunication; Power, Petroleum, Coal and other minerals; and Banking, Insurance and Financial Services. The policy, she added, "is not a crazy rushing out to sell everything..nor it is saying that the government will ru

'Privatisation processes are BMMP (bandwidth, market available, minority shareholders, and the process)', said Tuhin Kanta Pandey

The National Convention of Workers on Monday has resolved to give a call for nationwide strike in the end of this year to protest against issues including proposed implementation of labour codes, privatisation and disinvestment. The National Convention of Workers held on the martyrdom day of Rashtrapita Mahatma here in the capital, a statement said. The convention adopted the Declaration unanimously and resolved to resort to nationwide strike action in the end of the year, it stated. It stated that the government which failed on all fronts to deliver on the promises is now allowing the forces of communal hatred and polarization under various pretext to divert the united agitations of workers, farmers and other sections of the society from their pressing issues of livelihood and survival. The leaders of INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF, and UTUC among others participated in the convention. Quoting the latest Oxfam report, they explained about the growing ...

The Finance Ministry will move ahead with the already-announced and planned privatisation of state-owned companies in the next fiscal, and the chances of the new addition to that list of CPSEs in the Budget for 2023-24 is unlikely, sources said. The disinvestment target outlined in the Budget for the next fiscal is likely to be a scaled-down and realistic one, as the budgeted PSU sell-off target is going to be missed for the fourth year in a row this fiscal. In the current fiscal, the government had budgeted to collect Rs 65,000 crore from disinvestment. However, so far, it has realised only Rs 31,106 crore by selling minority stakes in public sector companies. After tasting success in privatising loss-making Air India in 2021, the progress of PSU sell-off has not been very impressive over the past year, and experts say that with the general election around the corner in 2024, no major disinvestment announcement is expected in this Budget either. "The plan is to move ahead with the

The marked shift in the foreign-bank narrative in the post-reform period must also be seen in another context - the renewed talk of privatisation of a clutch of state-run banks

Banks were challenged in 2022 by the sluggish growth in deposits, which have not kept pace with credit. One reason is that deposits, unlike debt mutual funds, do not offer any tax breaks

The government will this month invite Expression of Interest or preliminary bids for privatising Container Corporation of India (Concor), an official said on Wednesday. The official said the bid document for Concor is almost ready and has to get approval from 'Alternative Mechanism' which is essentially a group of key Cabinet ministers. "We are trying hard to issue the Preliminary Information Memorandum inviting Expression of Interest (EoI) for Concor as quickly as possible. It should be issued this month, subject to approval," the official told PTI. The Cabinet, in November 2019, had approved strategic sale of a 30.8 per cent stake, along with management control, in Concor out of the government equity of 54.80 per cent. The government will retain 24 per cent stake post sell-off but without any veto powers. However, the stake sale was hanging fire as investors awaited clarity on the rail land lease policy and licensing fees. The Union Cabinet in September approved a revised policy

Have better underwriting, risk magt to manage high credit growth

The government on Monday said it will take a view on privatisation of public sector banks (PSBs) after consultation with the concerned department and regulator. Consideration of issues related to disinvestment and decision on selection, terms and conditions, etc. in case of strategic sale is entrusted to the Cabinet committee designated for this purpose under the Government of India (Transaction of Business) Rules, 1961, minister of state for finance Bhagwat Karad said in a written reply to Lok Sabha. "Before such consideration for decision thereon, consultation is undertaken with the ministries and departments concerned and, where necessary, with the regulator concerned," he said. In the Union Budget for the financial year (FY) 2021-22, he said, the government's intent to take up privatisation of two PSBs and approval of a policy of strategic disinvestment of Public Sector Enterprises (PSEs) was announced. The objectives of the policy include enabling growth of public sector ...

9-10 serious bidders seek clarity on the expression of interest

IDBI Bank will continue to operate as an 'Indian private sector bank' after its strategic sale and the government's residual 15 per cent stake in the lender post privatisation will be considered as 'public shareholding', the finance ministry said on Sunday. An 'appropriate dispensation' for the new owner to achieve minimum public shareholding (MPS) over an extended period is under consideration and the winning bidder will have no restriction on undertaking corporate restructuring of the subsidiaries of IDBI Bank, it added. These clarifications are part of the responses by the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), under the finance ministry, to potential investors' pre-EoI queries. The government had on October 7 invited bids for privatising IDBI Bank and said that it together with LIC will sell a total of 60.72 per cent stake in the financial institution. The last date for putting in Expression of Interest (EoI) or preliminary bids is December 16. The ...

The sources said that the government expects over Rs 60,000 crore from the IDBI stake sale.

The Prime Minister stated that there is neither a proposal under consideration for the privatisation nor the Centre has any intention to do it

The government should give up its dependence on disinvestment as an instrument for containing the fiscal deficit

'If the geopolitical situation stabilises, we'll see whether we can relaunch the (BPCL) transaction', said Tuhin Kanta Pandey

Entry of Shriram Group as a bidder, could set the stage for at least a two-way contest for IDBI Bank with Prem Watsa's Fairfax Financial also believed to be a contender

The govt needs to act quickly to capitalise on the assets of such enterprises