The government on Thursday decided that all listed central public sector enterprises (CPSEs) would increase the public holding to 10 per cent and all unlisted profitable state-owned entities should go public.
“All profitable listed CPSEs should need the mandatory listing of 10 per cent public ownership,” Home Minister P Chidambaram told reporters after the meeting of Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs(CCEA) in New Delhi.
Government has also decided to increase minimum support price of some Rabi crops, including wheat, barley and gram. He said that wheat MSP is hiked by 20 Rupees to 1,100 rupees per quintal.
CCEA has decide to increase the loan for commonwealth games from the existing 767 crore rupees to 1620 crore rupees. Announcing this Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni said that loan will be given to the organising committee for smooth conduct of games amid new developments.
The government has also decided that all unlisted CPSEs which have made profit in the past 3 years and have a positive networth should get listed on stock exchanges, he said, adding that CPSEs would enter the market at “appropriate” time.
The decision will have a bearing on mineral major NMDC and MMTC as the public shareholding in these companies is 1.62 per cent and 0.67 per cent respectively.
As per SEBI regulation, listed companies are required to divest a minimum of 10 per cent of the equity to the public.
The Minister further said the proceeds of the disinvestment would straight away go to meeting the capital expenditure of the government’s social sector programmes, without being routed through National Investment Fund (NIF).
In pursuance of its disinvestment programme, the government had offloaded its stake in Oil India Ltd and NHPC in the current fiscal. It has also unveiled plans to reduce its shareholding in NTPC, Sutluj Jal Vidyut Nigam and Rural Electrification Corporation.
