UTI Mutual Fund on Monday announced the launch of a new scheme, UTI-Contra Fund, which aims at providing long-term capital appreciation/dividend distribution through investments in listed equities and equity-related instruments.

Unveiling the scheme, UTI Asset Management Company chief marketing officer K Madhavkumar said it was an open-ended equity oriented scheme.

"Considering the present growth path of the Indian equity market, we thought a fund based on a differentiated strategy will be best suitable for the investors aspirations."

The fund works with an approach to benefit from non-rational behaviour of the investor/equity markets and focuses on out-of-favour stocks, regional sales head-south UTI-AMC R Vijaykumar said.

The UTI-Contra Fund would not only be "contrarian to the majority but also try to identify stocks with intrinsic potential and a good management bandwidth," he said.

UTI AMC Fund Manager Swati Kulkarni said, "Investing in a contrarian manner allows investors to own a portfolio at a bargained price and gain handsomely at the time of value realisation."

The scheme is open to resident individuals, institutions as well as Non-Resident Indians and foreign institutional investors. The face value of the units is Rs 10 and the minimum initial investment is Rs 5,000. Subsequent minimum investment under a folio is Rs 1,000 and in multiples of Rs 1 thereafter with no upper limit.

The scheme, which closes on March 22, will reopen for continuous purchase and redemption from April 20.