New Delhi: The Modi government has ended the financial year 2020-21 (FY21) with a PSU disinvestment yield of Rs 32,835.45 crore, data sourced from the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) showed. Although the target for FY21 was Rs 2.1 lakh crore, however, the government's PSU disinvestment plan was derailed by the economic slowdown induced by the COVID-19 pandemic, pushing the government to revise the revised Budget estimate to Rs 32,000 crore.
According to official data, minority stake disinvestment through Offer for Sale (OFS) and Initial Public Offer (IPO) and share buybacks contributed to the cumulative total of Rs 32,835 crore. While OFS fetched the government Rs 22,972.86 crore, IPO accounted for Rs 2,801.76 crore. Share buybacks yielded Rs 3,935.99 crore. Faced with a revenue crunch this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the government had asked PSUs with surplus cash to undertake share buybacks.
Since none of the PSU privatisation plans which were expected to see the light of day in FY21 materialised, they have spilled over to the next financial year. The list includes oil marketing behemoth Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), national carrier Air India, Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) and Container Corporation of India (CONCOR). In addition, FY22 will also see the launch of LIC IPO, which was expected to take place in FY21 itself. For FY22, the government has set a target of raising Rs 1.75 lakh crore from PSU disinvestment.
(PSU Watch– India's Business News centre that places the spotlight on PSUs, Bureaucracy, Defence and Public Policy is now on Telegram & Twitter as well. Join PSU Watch Channel in your Telegram and follow us on Twitter to stay updated)