MORE POWERS FOR GoM DECIDING ON PRIVATISATION OF STATE-OWNED FIRMS

The Group of Ministers (GoM) that decides on privatisation of the state-owned companies, will now also take decisions on the timing, price and number of shares of a company to be put on the block. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) decided on Thursday to delegate these responsibilities to an Alternative Mechanism (AM).

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari and the minister representing the administrative department, whose public sector unit is up for strategic sale, will be a part of the AM. For example, in the case of strategic sale of Pawan Hans, the AM will have Jaitley, Gadkari, along with Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu. The buyer will also be decided and approved by it.

"The CCEA has approved delegation of the following AM in all the cases of strategic disinvestment of Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs), where the CCEA has given 'in principle' approval for strategic disinvestment," an official statement said.

The CCEA, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, also decided to allow the AM to take the decisions on the mode of sale and and lay down the principles/guidelines for its pricing, the selection of strategic partner/buyer, terms and conditions of sale, said the statement. It will also decide on the proposals of the core group of secretaries on disinvestment with regard to the terms and conditions of sale and other related issues.

"This will facilitate quick decision-making and obviate the need for multiple instances of approval by CCEA for the same CPSE," the statement said.

There are about 30 stateowned firms, including Air India, that the Modi government wants to sell off completely or give up on majority stakeholding. For 2018-19, Dredging Corp is on its way of being sold to a consortium of four port firms. Two of three other firms — Pawan Hans, Central Electronics and Scooters India — are also likely to be privatised.