Govt eyes different monetisation models to raise resources for investments

Monetisation and privatisation are the two planks on which the Union government is resting its blueprint for the public sector. Privatisation is a tried and tested option; monetisation is a relatively new experiment. Unlike privatisation, monetisation of assets does not require transfer of ownership to private hands; instead, projects are vested with a trust or a private operator.

There are various models that figure in the monetisation programme (see box). Power Grid Corporation Ltd (PGCIL) and National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), for instance, are taking the infrastructure investment trust (InvIT) route for monetisation. PGCIL plans to place some of