The union finance ministry hopes to meet the target of raising Rs 30,000 crore through the disinvestment of the government stake in public sector undertakings in 2012-13.
But some financial market observers feel that the market may not have the capacity to absorb the huge avalanche of shares in such a short span.
They point out that divestment in shares of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation(ONGC) last March had no takers and government-owned Life Insurance Corporation of India was forced to buy most of the shares at the last minute to help raise Rs 12,000 crore.
It may be recalled that in 2011-2012, the government fell way short of the target of raising Rs 40,000 crore through disinvestment. The target was then scaled down to Rs 30,000 crore for the current fiscal keeping the ONGC experience in mind.
Last year, the government could successfully sell shares in the mining firm National Mineral Development Corporation as risk appetite among foreign institutional investors has improved.
Meeting the disinvestment target is crucial for the finance ministry to contain the runaway fiscal deficit at 5.3 per cent of GDP in 2012-13.
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