Left parties to oppose government’s decision to disinvest 10 percent shares in PSUs

November 6th, 2009 more images more imagesNEW DELHI - Condemning the union cabinet's decision to disinvest 10 percent shares in all profitable public sector, the Left parties Friday said it would "organise strong resistance" to the move. "The Manmohan Singh government has embarked on this patently anti-national step along with measures to remove the FDI (foreign direct investment) limit in various sectors and open up more areas to foreign capital including vital sectors like the media," said a statement signed by Communist Party of India-Marxist general secretary Prakash Karat, Communist Party of India's A.B.

October 13th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The government must reduce repo and reverse repo rates by 50 basis points to enable industry avail of loans at reasonable rates, says Swati Piramal, the newly-elected president of the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry in India (Assocham). Interest rates across the whole economy should be stabilized between 4 percent to 6 percent with user-end interest rate on agriculture and allied investments at 4 percent," Piramal said while addressing her first press conference here Tuesday after taking charge.

August 7th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Steel Ministry has identified two Public Sector Units (PSUs) for disinvestment, and is going to send its recommendations to the cabinet later this month, Union Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh said on Friday. "We have identified two steel PSU's for disinvestment.

July 2nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Economic Survey the government presented in parliament Thursday called for revitalising the divestment policy so as to generate at least Rs.25,000 crore (Rs.250 billion/$5.22 billion) annually. List all unlisted public sector enterprises and sell a minimum of 10 percent of equity to the public, the survey stated.

June 16th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The government is considering divesting up to 10 percent stake in the state-run Coal India Ltd, the country's largest coal miner, Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal said here Tuesday. "We are working on a proposal to disinvest 5 to 10 percent stake in Coal India.

June 8th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Divestment of even minority stake in state-owned firms can raise nearly $95 billion (Rs.450,309 crore), help clean the red ink on the government's balance sheet and make enough room for another fiscal stimulus, said an independent study released Monday. The study by Delhi-based brokerage firm SMC Capitals said as much as $94.77 billion can be raised from the sale of equity in state-run firms even if the government retains 51 percent controlling stake.

May 27th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL), a subsidiary of state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), has recorded a 6.3 percent drop in profits in 2008-09 at Rs.1,192.54 crore, down from Rs.1,272.23 crore earned the previous fiscal. In 2008-09 we suffered a huge inventory loss...

May 10th, 2009 KOLKATA - West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on Sunday said the Left parties were not running after any individual leader or any particular party to form an alternative government at the Centre. Addressing an election rally in the South Kolkata Lok Sabha constituency, which is held by Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee, Bhattacharjee said, "We are very busy nowadays to chalk out the functions and strategies with the secular parties.

May 2nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Saturday said the Congress party was ready to take the support of the Left to form the next government, but not at the cost of giving up the nuclear deal with the US. 'I have enjoyed working with the Left.

April 27th, 2009 KOLKATA - Dismissing signals from the Congress that it was open to an alliance with the Communists after the Lok Sabha polls, the Communist Party of India (CPI) Monday said the Left parties were against both the Congress or the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led governments. 'Often they (Congress) say doors are open for us, as if we are waiting to troop in.

April 5th, 2009 AGARTALA - Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) general secretary Prakash Karat Sunday said it was now 'thousand percent confirmed' that the Third Front with the Left parties in the lead would form the government at the centre after the Lok Sabha polls. 'While the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) has already broken, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has not a single ally in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and many other states,' he said, addressing an election rally in the Tripura capital.

March 25th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Left parties Tuesday issued an appeal asking people to support their alternative platform against the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to defend secularism and protect national sovereignty. In a joint appeal, the four Left parties -- the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), the Communist Party of India (CPI), the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) and the Froward Bloc -- said they had to be strengthened to firmly defend secularism, to protect national sovereignty and to develop a self-reliant and balanced economic path.

February 2nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Kerala is eager to enter into tie-ups with central public sector undertakings (PSU) to strengthen and modernise the state's public sector, Industries and Commerce minister Elamaram Kareem said here Tuesday. Speaking after Kerala Electrical & Allied Engineering Company Ltd (KEL) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the state-owned Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL), Kareem said the state government's slogan was to 'modernise and strengthen' the PSUs.

February 2nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Kerala is eager to enhance business ties with central public sector undertakings (PSU) to 'modernise and strengthen' the state's public sector, Industries and Commerce Minister Elamaram Kareem said here Tuesday. Speaking after Kerala Electrical & Allied Engineering Co.

January 22nd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Officers of 21 public sector undertakings (PSUs) have joined hands to demand greater autonomy in decision making. 'We have constituted a Coordination Committee of Officers' Associations of Central PSUs to fight for the cause to save the PSUs.