'Set Selloff Target At Rs 30,000 Cr'

The government should raise the disinvestment target to at least Rs 30,000 crore in the next fiscal and aggressively aim at privatising successful companies like Mahana-gar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) and Maruti Udyog Ltd, experts said at a round table on `Big Ticket Privatisation' organised by Confederation of Indian industry in New Delhi yesterday.

"PSUs like the Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd and Nalco (National Aluminium Company) are losing value because of their being public sector enterprises," Omkar Goswami, senior consultant to the Confederation of Indian Industry, said.

Goswami said the government had realised that disinvestment "in bits and pieces won't do", adding that the government should go in for targetted social sector programmes, since "it gives them the bite" in the disinvestment programme.

Taking part in the discussion organised by the industry chamber, DSP Merill Lynch vice-chairman and managing director Shitin Desai said the government should undertake strategic sales of PSUs and "proactively go out and canvass for investors" but cautioned that the process of

disinvestment should be transparent.

Satish Kaura, chief of CII's economic affairs committee said the disinvestment target of Rs 10,000 crore was a mere drop in the ocean as the PSUs had assets of over Rs 100,000 crore.

He said the target should be revised to Rs 30,000 crore in the next financial year.

Oxus Research and Investment president S S Bhalla said the privatisation process could go haywire unless high interest rates in the country were not reduced.