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Divestment exports infra get govt push

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The Cabinet on Wednesday cleared the sale of a 10 per cent stake in Coal India, restored interest subvention for merchandise exports, directed compensation for stalled road projects, empowered the ministry concerned to clear road projects up to a cap on costing and for the first time gave production subsidy directly to sugar farmers.
The slew of measures would revive market sentiments, investments and economic growth. The government had also liberalised the foreign investment regime last week to boost the market.
The Cabinet also gave a nod to a marketing margin of Rs.150- 200 per standard cubic metre charged by gas retailers like Reliance Industries and GAIL ( India) for urea and liquefied petroleum gas plants. This was based on recommendations of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board.
The government is expected to mop up Rs.20,000 crore from the Coal India disinvestment, power minister Piyush Goyal said at a press briefing. At current prices, the 10 per cent stake sale could fetch Rs.21,137.71 crore. Shares of Coal India, in which the government holds a 79.65 per cent stake, rose 0.83 per cent to Rs.334.95 on Wednesday.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs also cleared the initial public offer for Cochin Shipyard, for the government to offload a 10 per cent stake in the countrys largest shipbuilding and repair facility.
Acquiescing to a pending demand from merchandise exporters, the Cabinet restored the three per cent interest subvention, to arrest falling exports. The move will have a financial implication of up to Rs.2,700 crore in a year. Merchandise exports declined for the eleventh month in a row in October, a period longer than the slump in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. The subvention would be available for both pre- and post- shipment credits, Goyal said.
The government had earlier announced a revamped Merchandise Exports from India Scheme and raised the duty drawback rates for various products to help exporters.
Business Standard, New Delhi, 19th Nov. 2015

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