Union Budget 2019: Govt hikes divestment target to Rs 1.05 lakh crore

Nirmala Sitharaman in the Budget 2019 speech further informed that Government will undertake strategic sale of PSUs and continue to do consolidation of PSUs in the non-financial space as well.

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the government has decided to increase the disinvestment target to Rs 1.05 lakh crore in the current fiscal from Rs 90,000 crore.

Presenting her maiden Budget in Lok Sabha, Sitharaman said, "Government is setting an enhanced target of 1,05,000 crore of disinvestment receipts for the financial year 2019-20. The Government will undertake strategic sale of PSUs. The Government will also continue to do consolidation of PSUs in the non-financial space as well”.

She further informed that Government will undertake strategic sale of PSUs and continue to do consolidation of PSUs in the non-financial space as well.

She informed that the Government has been following the policy of disinvestment in non-financial public sector undertakings maintaining Government stake not to go below 51 percent. Government is considering, in case where the Undertaking is still to be retained in Government control, to go below 51 percent to an appropriate level on case to case basis. Government has also decided to modify present policy of  retaining 51 percent Government stake to retaining 51 percent stake inclusive of the stake of Government controlled institutions.

The Finance Minister said that “strategic disinvestment of select CPSEs would continue to remain a priority of this Government. In view of current macro-economic parameters, Government would not only reinitiate the process of strategic disinvestment of Air India, but would offer more CPSEs for strategic participation by the private sector.”