One More Step Towards Privatisation? Government to Sell Stakes in 6 PSUs, Targets ₹80,000 Crore in FY27

During the current fiscal year 2026–2027, the Central Government expanded its disinvestment activities by lowering its ownership of six Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs). In addition to banks, the government is reducing its ownership of other public sector businesses. Through disinvestment, the government has so far raised almost ₹20,000 crore. This now exceeds the ₹16,885 crore that was collected during the course of the previous fiscal year.

The Central Government has raised a total of ₹18,561 crore by selling shares in the Central Bank of India, Coal India, NHPC, NLC India, General Insurance Corporation (GIC), and Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC). The government raised the following approximate sum from the sale of PSU stakes:

Company / Organisation	Amount Raised Through OFS
Central Bank of India	Over ₹2,200 crore
Coal India	Over ₹5,500 crore
NHPC	Over ₹4,300 crore
NLC	Over ₹1,200 crore
GIC	Over ₹3,000 crore
IRFC	Over ₹2,000 crore
Cochin Shipyard	Over ₹1,700 crore

This amount is just in 3 months of the financial year. This amount is higher than the total amount raised by the Government in the last few years. It seems the Government has increased the speed of disinvestment. The government raised ₹16,885 crore in FY 2025-26 and ₹10,163 crore in FY 2024-25. The government had collected ₹16,507 crore in FY 2023-24, ₹35,293 crore in FY 2022-23, ₹13,534 crore in FY 2021-22 and ₹32,886 crore in FY 2020-21.

It seems the NDA-led government has put disinvestment on top of its agenda. Almost all PSU stake sales during the current financial year have been carried out through the Offer for Sale route. 

The government is also planning to strategically disinvest in a number of other Central Public Sector Enterprises. Among them are Air India Engineering Services Ltd. (AIESL), Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd. (RINL), and Container Corporation of India (CONCOR).

On stock exchanges, 68 CPSEs are listed. The government owns shares in these businesses worth more than ₹22.80 lakh crore. In addition, 16 public financial institutions, including banks and insurance firms, are listed; the government owns shares in these organizations worth around ₹19 lakh crore. As a result, the government can readily sell a portion of these businesses.

The government’s strategic disinvestment programme is also continuing, although the process has been slow. The Expression of Interest process has been completed for the strategic sale of six CPSEs. These include IDBI Bank, NMDC Steel, HLL Lifecare, Projects & Development India Ltd (PDIL), BEML and Shipping Corporation of India (SCI). 

According to Finance Ministry officials, the strategic sale of IDBI Bank is likely to be revived soon. The process had earlier been put on hold because of valuation concerns and limited interest from investors. The government is now expected to move ahead with the stake sale process again.