The finance ministry is said to have supported the proposal of selling 26% stake in Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (DMICDC) to Japan.
DMICDC is country?s multi-billion dollar urbanisation project along the Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor. According to government sources, the support for this proposal was communicated by the finance ministry to DIPP on Thursday.
The proposal has been stuck in the finance ministry for around six months. ?The economic affairs department wanted a clarity on who will own the 26% stake which will be divested in DMICDC.
The required clarifications have been provided by DIPP now,? a senior government official said.
DMICDC is a special purpose vehicle for the $90-billion project to build industrial enclaves along the Delhi-Mumbai rail corridor, spanning Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. Japan has already announced investments of $4.5 billion in the project through two Japanese arms ? Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). While JBIC has promised to invest $3 billion, JICA will invest the balance amount.
Earlier, the DIPP had moved a Cabinet note seeking approval from the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on selling of 26% stake in DMICDC to Japan. The move had come after Cabinet’s clearance to the decision to transfer 51% stake currently with IL&FS and IDFC in DMICDC to government-owned financial institutions.
It is now understood that LIC and IIFCL together will hold 5%, Hudco will own 20%, 26% will be with Japan and the remaining 49% will be held by the government of India.
