Centre’s PSU push: Miscellaneous capital receipts already close to ₹25,000 crore this fiscal

With the recent offer for sale of GIC Re, the Centre’s total receipts from disinvestments, dividends and asset monetisation are already close to ₹25,000 crore while its total tally from such receipts in the last 12 years has crossed ₹11 lakh crore.

Despite muted investor sentiments and volatile markets due to the West Asia war, the Centre has managed to raise ₹24,841.25 crore as receipts from disinvestments, dividends and asset monetisation within the first quarter of the fiscal.

Taken together, under the umbrella term miscellaneous capital receipts, the Centre has Budgeted ₹80,000 crore from such proceeds this fiscal.

Data from the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) reveals that the Centre has raised ₹16,479.89 crore from disinvestment in central public sector enterprises such as minority stake sales in Central Bank of India, Coal India Ltd, NHPC and NLC apart from General Insurance Corporation of India this fiscal. It has also raised ₹1,994.43 crore from CPSE dividends while asset monetisation has brought in another ₹6,366.93 crore so far this fiscal.

According to sources, while the Centre remains cautious on any big-ticket disinvestment or listing at present given the global conditions and market sentiments, it plans to continue on minority stake sales and asset monetisation as a steady source of revenue this fiscal.

“Both DIPAM and the Department of Public Enterprises have a list of PSUs ready where such action has to be taken. They will continue with this strategy,” said the source, adding that efforts would be to exceed the Budgeted target once again this fiscal.

Big-ticket disinvestments like a proposed offer for sale in Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) may be explored later in the year depending on market conditions, the source further said.

The revenue from these sources is also expected to help the Centre tide over — at least to some extent, the fiscal difficulties it faces in FY27 from higher expenditure and a likely shortfall in tax revenues due to the West Asia war.

Meanwhile, DIPAM data shows that in the last 12 years of the NDA government since 2014, the total receipts from disinvestments, dividends and asset monetisation in CPSEs has exceeded ₹11 lakh crore to ₹11,22,860.92 crore at present. In at least three financial years in the last 12 years, such proceeds have exceeded ₹1 lakh crore with ₹1.23 lakh crore raised in FY26 as well.

These include mega IPOs like the listing of LIC as well as the privatisation of Air India while in recent years the focus is more on PSU dividends through better governance and efficiency.