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Air India has broken 19-year privatisation jinx

The Union government had been trying to privatise public sector enterprises (PSEs) for four years through what it safely labels 'strategic sale'.

Air India
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Photo: Bloomberg

Jyoti Mukul New Delhi
The privatisation of government-owned companies has resumed after a hiatus of almost 19 years with the Narendra Modi government deciding to sell Air India to Tata Group. The Centre had been trying to privatise public sector enterprises (PSEs) for four years thro­ugh what it safely labels “strategic sale”.
 
A list of 20 firms was drawn up in 2017 but the investor community evin­ced little enthusiasm for them. The last time a PSE was privatised was by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, whi­ch demitted office in May 2004.
 
There were a series of controversies that came with it, leading