Government to sell up to 5% stake in railway unit IRCTC

The government is looking to sell a 2.5% stake in the state-owned firm at Rs 680 per share, with an option to additionally offload 2.5%

India will sell an up to 5 per cent stake in Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corp (IRCTC) , the company said in a filing on Wednesday, as the government seeks to meet a steep divestment target for the year.

The government is looking to sell a 2.5 per cent stake in the state-owned firm at Rs 680 per share, with an option to additionally offload 2.5 per cent.

At that price, offloading 5 per cent of IRCTC could fetch around Rs 2,720 crore ($329.90 million), a Reuters estimate showed.

IRCTC is the only firm authorised by the Indian Railways to manage food services on trains and offer online railway ticket booking services.

In nearly nine months of the current financial year, the Indian government has not been able to meet even half of its Rs 65,000 crore budgeted divestment target due to delays in privatising some state-owned firms including Shipping Corporation of India and BEML.

Last month, the government received Rs 3,839 crore from the sale of Axis Bank Ltd (AXBK.NS) shares held by a government-investment vehicle.