JOIN USThe government on Wednesday approved sale of 15% of its shares in public sector National Building Construction Corporation Ltd that is expected to fetch the exchequer Rs 1,706 crore.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by the Prime Minister.
The government currently holds 90% shares in the construction behemoth. “The disinvestment would further broadbase NBCC’s shareholding and enhance the disinvestment receipts for making them available to the Government for utilisation as per Disinvestment Policy. In order to inculcate a sense of belongingness among the employees of NBCC, it has also been decided to allot additional shares to the eligible and willing employees at a discount of 5% to the Issue/discovered (lowest cut off) price of the OFS,” an official statement said.
The government has budgeted Rs 56,500 crore through disinvestment in 2015-16. Of this, Rs 36,000 crore is to come from minority stake sale in PSUs and Rs 20,500 crore from strategic sale.
The CCEA also approved the transfer of shares by sick PSU ITI Ltd to the Special National Investment Fund to meet the Sebi’s minimum public shareholding requirement.
“ITI Ltd will be allowed to transfer the requisite number of shares from the President of India to SNIF as and when Capital grant is released in the form of equity infusion to ITI Ltd as part of revival plan approved by the Cabinet in February 2014 to meet for Sebi’s minimum 10% public shareholding requirement,” the statement said.