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COVER STORY: GOVERNMENT
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Manohar
Joshi
Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises
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| The
Last Emperor |
Ministers:
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2
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Joint secretaries and above:
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6
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No. of PSUs referred:
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48
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Budget in Rs cr (2001-2):
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658.9
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It
is a ministry groping for its raison d'etre. Set up to fuel the growth
of Jawaharlal Nehru's "temples of modern India" (mainly government-owned
heavy industry), the ministry is floundering in an open economy. All the
48 PSUs under its control have been officially classified as "non-strategic",
which means they have to be privatised or closed. In 2000-1, 34 out of
the 48 PSUs incurred losses and 27 have been referred to the Board for
Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR) after turning sick.
The good news is that Manohar Joshi realises
the dispensability of his ministry. "The liberalisation policies
of the 1990s have reduced the relevance of the Heavy Industries Ministry,"
he says. The roadmap he has prepared envisages winding up of his ministry
within four years. The roadmap is part of a white paper on the future
of PSUs under his ministry. But the bad news is Joshi wants government
control to continue over five of the 48 PSUs. Isn't that contrary to the
Government's policy of relinquishing public control from all non-strategic
PSUs? "It is. But I would like the Government to respect my opinion,"
says the minister frankly.
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|
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| Promptness of response |
4.0 |
| Understanding of issues |
5.0 |
| Commitment to reforms |
4.0 |
| Openness to ideas |
3.0 |
| Achievements |
3.0 |
| Average score |
3.8 |
| OVERALL RANK |
2
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| All ratings are on a scale
of 7 |
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"If
my suggestion is accepted, the ministry can be wound up in four
years."
Manohar Joshi
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Though he won't disclose the names of his five
favoured psus, they are said to be Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL),
Bharat Ophthalmic Glass (BOG), Hindustan Engineering Corporation (HEC),
Hindustan Photo Film (HFP) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT). Barring
BHEL, all are loss-making units. Joshi considers a company like HPF to
be vital because it's the only manufacturer of X-ray films in India, notwithstanding
the inefficiency of its operations. The company has been making a loss
for more than five years. BOG is in the red too.
Whatever is Joshi's reasoning, experts are unanimous
that most of them have no future, definitely not under the government.
Delay in privatisation could only erode whatever value they are left with.
For instance, the Lucknow-based Scooters India Limited was once hotly
pursued for purchase by both Bajaj Auto and Piaggio. But the government
dithered for years and today there are no takers. Maruti Udyog Limited,
another PSU with the ministry, has also lost market value worth crores
of rupees in the past three years.
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COST
OF NON-PERFORMANCE
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34
of the 48 PSUs under the ministry are incurring losses
Delay in Maruti disinvestment has eroded its market value
An auto policy in the making for the past three years
COMMITMENTS
To privatise or close all but five PSUs within four years.
To divest government stake in Maruti through rights issue.
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On the flip side, the ministry has been able
to close seven out of the 10 PSUs it intended to close. To rid PSUs of
excess manpower, Joshi has also made retirement schemes more lucrative.
On Maruti disinvestment too Joshi resolves to divest government stakes
soon through a rights issue. How soon? He can't say, admitting only that
the uproar over BALCO will delay Maruti's disinvestments. But Joshi's
masterstroke is his proposal to shut his ministry. Among the 48 ministries
that the Government of India today comprises, many are redundant. But
there is no minister other than Joshi willing to come forward with a proposal
to shut down his ministry. Probably the former Maharashtra chief minister
is turning over a new leaf. Or looking for new pastures.
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