Disinvestment of NTPC & SCI on first 100-day agenda of govt

NEW DELHI : Disinvestment of state-owned companies such as NTPC and Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) will figure high on the first 100-day agenda of the government after the votes are counted on June 4, a report said.

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, who is confident of a rare third term in a row, has on more than one occasion said the government was working on the plan not just for 100 days after the Lok Sabha elections but also towards making India a developed nation by 2047.

The government’s focus would be to push for disinvestment, which fell short of its target in FY24, sources said.

The government may push to sell its stake in NTPC, which aims to bring its green energy IPO first, sources said.

The government is also looking to expedite its 63.75 percent stake sale in the Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) and invite financial bids, sources said.

IDBI Bank divestment may see financial bids coming in in FY25, however, another divestment target, BEML, may get delayed, the report cited sources as saying.

In her interim Budget speech on February 1, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the government aims to raise Rs 50,000 crore from stake sales in various public sector companies in 2024-25.

For the previous fiscal, the budget scaled down the disinvestment revenue target in the revised estimates to Rs 30,000 crore from Rs 51,000 crore.

A significant portion of the projected revenue was missed because no strategic sale transaction came through due to complications and issues with state governments in each case. The Center missed its divestment target for the fifth year in a row.

The new government is expected to present a full budget in early July.