In an endeavour to streamline guidelines on ?Maharatna? status for public sector undertakings by August this year, the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) has asked different ministries to quickly furnish details, including last three years? net profit, turnover and net worth, of Navratna companies under their administrative control.

The quick action is called for to keep up with the promise made by heavy industry & public enterprises minister Vilasrao Deshmukh to prepare the guidelines within 100 days of the United Progressive Alliance taking oath for its second term on May 22, 2009.

The ministries are asked to provide details like average turnover, average net worth and average net profit of concerned firms for the last three years, which will help in evolution of the selection criteria. The companies are also required to specify their key global operations, a note sent by the department stated.

Officials in the ministries of petroleum & natural gas (P&NG) and power confirmed the receipt of the note. ?We have been asked to provide information about our companies,? an official in the ministry of P&NG said.

The Maharatna status will attach higher financial and administrative autonomy. For instance, ?the maximum limit of creating joint ventures is 30% of net worth for Navratna CPSEs at present.

Once a CPSE is granted the Maharatna status, the limit will be enhanced to 50% of net worth. The CPSE can also decide on making investments up to Rs 5,000 crore without prior government approval,? a senior official in the DPE said.

There are 18 Navratna companies at the present, namely Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (Bhel), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL), Coal India Ltd, Gail (India) Ltd, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL), Indian Oil Corp (IOC), MTNL, NMDC, NTPC, Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL), National Aluminium Company, ONGC, Power Finance Corp, Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (PGCIL), Rural Electrification Corp (REC), Shipping Corporation of India, Steel Authority of India (SAIL) and Bharat Electronics Ltd.

PSUs like Bhel have been demanding more freedom to enable them take faster decisions. ?Major PSUs should be given more autonomy to take decisions on investment and resource mobilisation. Besides encouraging better performance, this will help them to tide over the current economic slowdown,? PGCIL chairman & managing director SK Chaturvedi said.

Seeking greater independence, nine (Bhel, HAL, BPCL, HPCL, SAIL, NMDC, PGCIL, REC and IOC) out of 18 Navratna firms are understood to have demanded Maharatna status from the government.

Among these, SAIL earned the highest average net profit of Rs 6,651.59 crore in the last three years, while IOC made Rs 5,619.3 crore, NMDC Rs 3,314.52 crore and Bhel Rs 2,796 crore. The rest had earned under Rs 1,500 crore as average net profit during the period.