Modi govt's equity guzzlers

The govt provided more equity to Air India and public-sector banks than UPA-II, raising questions on efficient use of resources

Five years of the Narendra Modi government have seen a significant rise in the capital outlay for public sector undertakings (PSUs). But as explained in an earlier piece in Business Standard [“PSU resources: Future tense” (February 13)], in spite of the rise in the outlay for PSUs, internal resources generation by these state-controlled enterprises was relatively slow and the government continued to increase its reliance on PSU dividends in these five years. 

A key indicator of the government’s engagement with the PSUs is the level of Budgetary support it provides to these enterprises. Even in this respect, the Modi government provided