Rs 2 lakh cr disinvestment target for FY’22

Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic and its ensuing adverse impact on the Indian economy, the FY21 disinvestment revenues are likely to be at a five-year low of around Rs 30,000-40,000 crore. This is 14-19% of the massive annual target of Rs 2.1 lakh crore. This, however, has not deterred the government from setting the disinvestment target of roughly Rs 2 lakh crore for FY22.

The government is rooting for a lot of deals planned for FY21 to materialize next fiscal, coupled with private investments. Some of the deals in the pipeline include strategic sale of fuel retailer-cum-refiner BPCL and the initial public offering (IPO) of Life Insurance Corporation.

Given that India’s last outright sale of a CPSE was carried out in FY04, the next financial year could prove to be a watershed year of privatization after a hiatus of 17 years. The new strategic sector policy on the anvil and statements made by senior government officials in recent weeks that the privatization process would be “more ambitious”.