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Andhra
clears 68 more selloffs, offloads holding in 9 listed cos
K
V V V Charya
Hyderabad, Jan 4: Giving a major thrust to its on-going
disinvestment programme, the Andhra Pradesh government has accorded
its final approval to the long pending proposal to disinvest
in 68 more public enterprises besides offloading its holdings
in nine listed companies including VST and Nagarjuna Fertilisers.
“We are in the process of appointing a consultant, who could
evaluate and suggest appropriately to disinvest in the listed
companies,” Deepak Kumar Panwar, principal secretary, public
enterprises department and chairman implementation secretariat,
a body created to carry out the public enterprise reforms in
the state, told The Financial Express.
The state cabinet had given its nod to the proposal in its meeting
on December 31, 2001. However, the government could not make
the decision public as the assembly was in session.
According to Mr Panwar, the government is not in a hurry to
sell its stake, however, as the market improves and at an appropriate
time “we are authorised to sell the shares”. Though privatisation
of state-level public enterprises is being pursued by the state
government for over four years utilising the World Bank’s assistance
for rehabilitation of displaced work-force, the decision to
liquidate the stock holding in the listed companies is quite
new. In the case of Godavari Fertilisers the implementation
secretariat has already given 90 days notice to Iffco, which
is a co-promoter in the project, offering 26 per cent of the
voting shares the government holds in the company. “Even cost
of due-diligence of this project will be funded by DFID,” Mr
Panwar said.
Coming to the state-level public enteprises, the state government
is expecting Rs 1,475 crore from the World Bank to fund voluntary
retirement schemes and rehabilitation of work-force.
The financial assistance will be received by the state government
for a period of five years starting from 2002, Mr Panwar said.
The 68 units include: AP State Finance Corporation, AP Technology
Services, AP State Housing Board, AP State Police Housing, AP
State Warehousing. The list includes cooperative sugar mills,
spinning mills, dairy cooperatives, oil federation, rural electric
supply co-operatives etc.
During phase I reform program, the secretariat would be able
to privatise about 11 units, mostly co-operative spinning and
sugar mills, for an estimated value of Rs 36 crore. “We have
already handed over the land and assets of four units to preferred
bidders and others are in the process,” Mr Panwar said.
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