Listing to make PSUs more transparent

Allowing public sector companies to get listed would give them more visibility. This would also ensure greater transparency in the activities of the companies, according to Nitish Sengupta, chairman of Board for Reconstruction of Public Sector Enterprises (BRPSE).

Speaking on 'Turning around sick public enterprises in India: Challenges before BRPSE' at the Institute of Public Enterprises here on Monday, he said the public sector in India withstood the pressures of slowdown in the economy during 2008 when most of the companies in the world found the going difficult.

He pointed out that Coal India had cash reserves of Rs 30,000 crore but did not have any private share holdings, which was not a welcome sign. “Public enterprises should be truthful and accountable to their balance sheets,” he said adding government funding would not be forthcoming in future to assist public enterprises in crisis.

PSUs should focus on rationalising manpower, updating technology, and reinventing their activities in tune with the changing times, he said giving example of Hindustan Cables, which faced stiff competition from private players as the latter moved on to producing optical fibre cables while it stuck to copper cables.