Cab Secy asks ministries not to interfere in CPSEs

Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrasekhar today did some plain-speaking, asking administrative ministries to allow Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) to function independently.

"We need to stop this," Chandrasekhar said at a seminar here expressing concern over the ministries interfering with "nitty gritty of administration".

He said, intervention in the day-to-day functioning of the CPSEs was not advisable because the government was here to lay down the policies and strategies.

However, there was also a tendency on the part of Chief Executives and senior managers of CPSEs not to use the powers delegated to them.

"I have also seen a reluctance even to exercise delegated powers," Chandrasekhar said, adding that he has asked the Department of Public Enterprises to work out a system whereby the evaluation of the management takes into account how effectively it uses its authority.

The Cabinet Secretary said that the listing of CPSEs on the stock exchanges would help discover the real valuation of the companies as has been seen in the recent cases of National Hydropower Corporation and Oil India Ltd.

The government has lined up a plan to disinvest its minority stake in at least 60 companies including SAIL, NMDC, BSNL and Coal India.