The Union Cabinet on Thursday approved a proposal to allow 100 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in public sector refiners, expanding the scope for FDI in the privatisation of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL). The approval by the Cabinet will enable the sale of the government's 52.98 per cent stake in BPCL to a foreign buyer, and, at the same time, will open the door for FDI in other public sector companies in the oil sector put up for privatisation.
'This incident offers ammunition to those inside the US government and elsewhere who question the wisdom of trusting India, so it will have a lasting consequence no matter how it is managed.'
The Dipam will work under Finance Ministry.
The government is working towards further review and simplification of the foreign direct investment (FDI) policy to facilitate the proposed initial public offering (IPO) of the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC), Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) secretary Anurag Jain said on Thursday. The final decision will be taken by the Cabinet. The industry department is working together with the finance ministry's department of financial services (DFS) and department of investment and public asset management (DIPAM) towards a successful listing of the life insurer on the domestic bourses, which is expected to be the largest in India.
The government is likely to file draft papers for the mega initial public offering of LIC with market regulator Sebi by next week, while a portion of the issue would be reserved for anchor investors, a top official said on Wednesday.
The Centre has received Rs 6,651 crore as interim dividend from 12 public sector undertakings (PSUs) on Monday, edging towards its Rs 50,028 crore dividend target for the ongoing fiscal. Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL) has transferred Rs 2,506 crore as a dividend tranche to the government, while NMDC and Nuclear Power Corporation of India transferred interim dividend of Rs 1,605 crore and Rs 972 crore, respectively. The government has received dividend tranches of Rs 913 crore from GAIL, Rs 351 crore from Hindustan Aeronautics, Rs 149 crore from Bharat Electronics, among others, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey tweeted.
Vodafone Idea (Vi) is in continuous talks with network vendors to finalise its 5G rollout plans, Vodafone Idea CEO Akshaya Moondra said. "We are in early stages of 5G deployment. "5G is an important development and we are keeping our eyes on it," Moondra said on Wednesday in a post-result analyst call. Already five months behind rivals Jio and Airtel in the 5G race, Vi's efforts will be on the deployment of 5G in target geographies.
The total amount of money various entities have raised through the private placement route is at its lowest since 2014. They raised a total of Rs 1.96 trillion in the first five months of 2022, revealed the numbers from PRIME Database. It is down 23.4 per cent from the Rs 2.56 trillion raised in the corresponding period in 2021.
The partners intend to invest $2 million annually through the India Innovation Growth Programme for the entrepreneurs to develop technology-based solutions for the betterment of the society
The Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (Dipam) has asked ministries, government departments, and public sector undertakings (PSUs) to send a list of assets that can be monetised under the proposed National Monetisation Pipeline. The list will be used for creation of an asset monetisation dashboard, which will keep a track of such assets. The government, meanwhile, has asked CRISIL to prepare a road map for monetising assets of PSUs and government departments.
Ever since the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) announced launching the initial public offering (IPO), 6.48 crore LIC policyholders have shown interest to get the much-touted share of the largest insurance company in the country, an official said. "The response to our IPO launch is wonderful. We have some figures: 6.48 crore policy holders have linked their PAN number with the policy details up to the cut-off date (February 28, 2022)," Rahul Jain, director of the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) in the Ministry of Finance, told reporters. The LIC has set a price band of Rs 902-Rs 949 per equity share. The government intends to raise Rs 21,000 crore through the issue.
If money allocations, investment commitments are a sign of better things to come, the state can be optimistic.
The government on Thursday withdrew its offer to sell its entire 52.98 per cent stake in Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd, saying that majority of bidders have expressed their inability to participate in the current privatisation process due to prevailing conditions in the global energy market.
7 key areas that the Budget must address to re-energise the infrastructure sector, suggests Vinayak Chatterjee.
India's economic image is not affected due to Adani Group's recent decision to pull out Rs 20,000 crore FPO (follow-on public offers) amid allegations of financial wrongdoings, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday.
Debt-ridden telecom operator Vodafone Idea on Tuesday approved the allotment of equity shares worth Rs 16,133 crore to the government, which post-allocation has become the largest shareholder with a 33.44 per cent stake in the company. The shares have been allocated to the government in lieu of conversion of interest dues arising from deferment of adjusted gross revenue and spectrum auction payments, the company said in a regulatory filing. "...it is hereby informed that the board of directors of the company has, at its meeting held today approved the allotment of 16,133,198,899 equity shares of face value of Rs 10 each at an issue price of Rs 10 per equity share aggregating to Rs 161,331,848,990 to the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management, Government of India," the filing said.
The department of investment and public asset management (Dipam) can also seek in-principle approval from the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) for strategic divestment of PSUs on a case-to-case basis considering investor appetite and sectoral trends.
'New Delhi showed itself willing -- at least for a period -- to tolerate the risk of conflict and to withstand Beijing's implicit and explicit threats.' 'But it also continued to try to cut some kind of deal with China to reduce tensions.'
The department of investment and public asset management is racing against time to launch the LIC IPO, which could become the largest-ever listing on the Indian bourses. This would lead to some delay in the strategic divestment of IDBI Bank.
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At the retreat, PSBs had suggested the government cut its stake in these entities to less than 51 per cent over a period of time and empower the boards of individual banks.
We as customers have to be conscious and careful to sidestep numerous types of frauds made possible under a mindless shift to a digital ecosystem without customer-redress procedures, warns Debashis Basu.
Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Thursday indicated that the much-delayed privatisation of oil major BPCL may not happen in the near future, saying there is "no proposal whatsoever" on his table for now. As part of its asset monetisation plan, the government had in November 2019 put Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) on the block and said it would completely sell its 52.98 per cent stake in the country's second largest state-run oil refiner and marketer. Though it had received three tentative bids, it got only one financial bid from Vedanta group, forcing it in May 2022 to shelve the plan pending a "comprehensive review".
In a first, the government has made it mandatory for interested buyers of IDBI Bank to provide details for security clearance from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in the first stage of the bidding process. So far, in all instances of CPSE privatisation, the government would seek details regarding security clearance of the bidders at the second stage of the bidding process. This meant that bidders who qualified in the first or the Expression of Interest (EoI) round, were required to seek security clearance from the government while placing their financial bids.
Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Tuesday allocated portfolios to the new ministers, keeping 14 departments with himself and giving home affairs to deputy chief minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and health to other deputy O P Soni.
Education finance is a complex and dynamic sector. There are too many variables -- the course, the calibre of students, the universities, and the job prospects once the course is over, notes Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said monetisation of Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSE) assets is based on the principle of value creation for the government and investors and would bring about a paradigm shift in infrastructure augmentation and maintenance. Chairing the National Workshop with the states/UTs on Asset Monetisation organised by Niti Aayog, the minister sought the collaboration of states for the holistic development of infrastructure. She said India can become a $5 trillion economy, while striking the right balance between fiscal imperatives and socio-economic welfare, through active collaboration between the public and private sector.
Domestic capital market will see the launch of India's largest-ever initial public offering (IPO) next week. Life Insurance Corporation of India's (LIC's) landmark Rs 21,000-crore IPO will open for subscription on Wednesday. Here's a look at some unique features of this mega offering, which are not typically seen in other IPOs.
Post handing over of Air India to the Tatas, government officials will be free to book their travel with any airline that offers them the best price. And, the Centre will not have a tie up with any carrier, department of investment and public asset management (DIPAM) secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey said. "The government is not mandating travel by any particular airline, going forward, after handing over Air India because there won't be any state-owned airline," he said. The department of expenditure (DoE) will soon issue instructions to government departments for official travel as this needs to be done before handing over Air India to the new buyer, he said.
'I'm very much against petrol and diesel....'' 'I travel in an electric car.' 'I have had a really good experience with it.'
Department of investment and public asset management secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey on Tuesday said the weak debut of the country's largest insurer LIC on the bourses was due to unpredictable market conditions and suggested investors to hold on to the stock for long-term value.
'Had there been no war, maybe, we would come out with a 7.5 per cent stake sale.' 'At this point in time, a 3.5 per cent stake sale looked good.'
The Centre is considering relaxing some norms that led to the failure in attracting bids for assets of Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam (MTNL) as they look to restart the auction for their non-core assets. The Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) had listed six properties of BSNL and MTNL for sale through its new e-bidding portal, developed by state-run MSTC, but the auction failed to garner an adequate interest. DIPAM had asked government-appointed property consultants to identify issues in the bidding criteria for resolution.
Financial planners also believe that retail investors should avoid the IPOs or direct stock route because it is too risky for them.
The Union Cabinet has cleared disinvestment of the country's largest insurer LIC and a panel headed by the finance minister will now decide on the quantum of stake dilution, a senior official said on Monday. The Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) had in January appointed actuarial firm Milliman Advisors LLP India to assess the embedded value of LIC ahead of the IPO (initial public offering), which is touted to be the biggest public issue in Indian corporate history. The Budget amendments to the LIC Act has been notified and the actuarial firm is expected to finalise the embedded value of the life insurer. Under the embedded value method, the insurance company's present value of future profit is also included in its present net asset value.
As many as seven firms, including JM Financial, Ernst and Young and Deloitte, have bid for managing the strategic sale of IDBI Bank. These firms would make a virtual presentation before the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management, which is handling the sale process, on August 10, according to a notice by DIPAM. The firms that have bid for acting as transaction advisor are Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India LLP, Ernst and Young LLP, ICICI Securities, JM Financial Ltd, KPMG, RBSA Capital Advisors LLP and SBI Capital Markets.
The amount of money lying unclaimed with the Life Insurance Corporation of India dwarfs the budgets of many ministries. There was Rs 21,539.5 crore which lay unclaimed with India's largest insurance company, according to details in the initial public offer (IPO) document it filed over the weekend. The regulatory documentation is ahead of LIC selling shares to the public through the stock exchange for the first time this financial year. This will be India's largest ever public listing.
The 2022-23 Budget has projected a disinvestment target of Rs 65,000 crore for next financial year. This is significantly lower than the estimated Rs 1.75 lakh crore budgeted for 2021-22. In the revised estimates, the target for 2021-22 has been cut to Rs 78,000 crore.
The 28 new ministers who joined the Chouhan cabinet on July 2 include 20 of cabinet rank and eight ministers of state.
'Rapists do have families. I wanted to see how a father or mother would deal with it.' 'They go through shame as well and get discriminated from the rest of the village.' 'Why don't we show it that way?'
While movie stars like Akshay Kumar, Amitabh Bachchan and Salman Khan are among the top I-T payers, very few of the wealthiest Indians figure on the list.
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