Govt Will Sell 10 More PSUs To Private Firms Via Disinvestment Or OFS Route (Full List Of PSUs)

The Centre may look at 10 new public sector undertakings (PSUs) for divestment either through privatization or Offer-for-sale (OFS) route, as per the recent reports reveals.

Government’s Next Disinvestment Plans

 On May 20, Cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba-led divestment panel met to review the divestment pipeline. 

During this meet, as many as seven PSUs are likely to have been discussed including Neyveli Lignite, KIOCL, SJVN, HUDCO, MMTC, General Insurance of India, New India Assurance.

OFS For These Three PSU’s

The divestment can either be done through privatisation or OFS route.

Apart from this, three more PSUs including Indian Railway Finance Corp, Rail Vikas Nigam, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders are going to hit the market again under the Minimum Public Shareholding norms. 

The Offer for sale for the above three PSUs is likely to hit the market between FY22-24.

Since, as many as 19 PSUs are yet to comply with  minimum public shareholding norms of SEBI.

Under this norm, the listed companies need to comply with at least 25 percent public shareholding as per SEBI norms.

Quick Timelines And Follow-ups

Further, the Cabinet Secretary has sought quick timelines and follow-ups on strategic divestment.

 Moreover, the DIPAM and NITI Aayog have been tasked to draw up a roadmap of the strategic divestment candidates as per the New Public Sector Enterprises Policy.

Governments PSE Policy

Prior to this, on February 4, 2021, the New PSE Policy was notified by the government. 

This policy classified strategic and non-strategic sectors for PSUs under the New PSE Policy. 

According to this, the government will retain control in bare minimum PSUs and privatise/merge or close remaining enterprises in strategic sectors. 

While, it will consider PSUs for privatisation or closure under the non-strategic sectors.

This year, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a divestment target of Rs 1.75 lakh crore for FY’22 in the Union Budget.

It was mostly comprising of privatisation and strategic disinvestment.

This seems like an ambitious target as in FY21, the FM’s budgeted target of raising Rs 2.1 lakh crore, which was missed as the pandemic put paid to the government’s plans.

Initially, for the five months of FY21, the divestment target was fully stalled due to the pandemic, forcing the Centre to reduce its target to Rs 32,000 crore.

So far, the largest disinvestment of the last fiscal was Rs 8,847 crore receipts received.

It was gained from the government’s entire stake sale of 26.12 percent in Tata Communications Ltd (TCL).