The PSUs must learn the art of surviving in a competitive environment and should not be run like a government department," Jaitley

 

In a stern message to the ailing public sector enterprises, the finance minister Arun Jaitely on Tuesday categorically told them to either shape up or shut down.

 

Asking them to pull their socks up, the government said that four public sector, which cannot be rejuvenated will be shut down. Jaitley has asked them learn the tricks to deal with free competition in an era when state-run firms had lost monopoly rights and preference, marking a clear shift in the Centre's policy.

 

As far as seven other PSUs are concerned, Jaitley told Parliament, the government is trying to breathe life into seven ailing such undertakings via disinvestment and the joint venture route. The FM's unyielding stand means the government is prepared to take the bull by the horns on controversial reforms to revamp public finances and put the economy on a higher growth trajectory.

 

The minister informed that 79 central public sector enterprises have incurred losses, of which 49 are sick. At the same time he said that there are 19 that have turned around, indicating that there will be an effort to revive the viable ones that remain competitive.

 

While contending that being pro-business does not amount to being anti-poor; Jaitley said his Tuesday's statement is being envisioned as a signal that it won't be business-as-usual in matters of economic policy. For a decade, the UPA government had dragged its feet on shutting down even the terminally sick PSUs, despite it clearly stating it as a policy goal. As a result, the government kept on pumping money to pay salaries and keep these money guzzling entities alive, all for the sake of political expediency.

 

Jaitley said that over Rs 1.57 lakh crore has been pumped into these enterprises over the past few years. While there had been interest from the private sector in some of the units of Cement Corporation, among others, the UPA government failed to decide on the issue.