The steel ministry has sent the proposal to sell 10 per cent of the government's holding in state-run Manganese Ore India Ltd to the Department of Disinvestment, Parliament was told on Friday.

"At present a proposal for listing of shares of Manganese Ore (India) Ltd (MOIL) through sale of 10 per cent equity of Government of India to the public through "Offer for Sale" has been sent to the Department of Disinvestment, Ministry of Finance," Minister of State for Steel A Sai Prathap said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.

An "Offer for Sale" is a public invitation by sponsoring an intermediary such as a bank or a broker to buy new or existing securities (in a company).

The steel ministry is learnt to have proposed to bring down the face value of the shares of the company to Rs 10 from the existing Rs 100, a move that would increase the total shares of the company.

The company has a share base of 2.8 million at the moment. With the proposed change in the face value of the shares, the company's equity would increase to 2.8 crore (28 million), top steel ministry sources said.

The ministry has also proposed to issue bonus in a 1:5 ratio to the shareholders.