FY23 disinvestment receipts pegged at Rs 65,000 cr: FM in Budget

The government's receipts from disinvestment proceeds in the next financial year beginning April have been pegged at Rs 65,000 crore, lower than the current year's estimated mobilisation of Rs 78,000 crore.

With budgeted disinvestment targets rarely being met, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's fourth Budget drastically reduced the receipts to an achievable Rs 78,000 crore in the current fiscal, from Rs 1.75 lakh crore budgeted earlier.

In her 2022-23 Budget, Sitharaman said towards implementation of the new Public Sector Enterprise policy, the strategic transfer of ownership of Air India has been completed. The strategic partner for NINL (Neelanchal Ispat Nigam Ltd) has also been selected.

"The public issue of the LIC is expected shortly. Others too are in the process for 2022-23," Sitharaman said.

So far, the government has mopped up Rs 12,030 crore from PSU disinvestment and strategic sale. This includes Rs 2,700 crore from Air India privatisation and another Rs 9,330 crore through minority stake sale in various Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs).

In the current fiscal, the big-ticket initial public offering of Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) is in the works, besides the strategic sale of BPCL, Shipping Corp, Container Corp, RINL and Pawan Hans.

Briefing reporters after the Budget, Sitharaman said, "LIC in all probability is going through this year. I have indicated clearly that it will happen."

The final valuation of LIC is still being worked out.

Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey said, "The emphasis is on completion of transactions and implementation. If we keep too high a target, sometimes it also distorts the market."

The government has missed the disinvestment target for three consecutive years.

In 2020-21, as against the budgeted disinvestment target of Rs 2.10 lakh crore, the government had mopped up Rs 37,897 crore.

In 2019-20, the disinvestment receipts stood at Rs 50,298 crore, lower than the Revised Estimates of Rs 65,000 crore and Budget estimate of Rs 1.05 lakh crore.

In 2018-19 and 2017-18 fiscals, the government had exceeded the disinvestment targets set in the Budget. In 2018-19, the disinvestment mop-up stood at Rs 84,972 crore, as against the Budget target of Rs 80,000 crore.

In 2017-18, it bettered the target of Rs 1 lakh crore and raised a record Rs 1,00,056 crore.

In 2016-17, the government had missed the budgeted disinvestment target. While the Budget had pegged the target at Rs 56,500 crore, the government was able to mop up Rs 46,247 crore.

In 2015-16, the government had realised Rs 23,996 crore from CPSE disinvestment, lower than the Budget target of Rs 69,500 crore.