Some BPCL contractors challenged guidelines issued by Centre on 18 August 1994. Policy mandates reservation to SC/ST bidders in transport contracts by oil marketing companies.
Fuel prices were first kept static to protect consumers from rise in oil prices, and then for OMCs to recover losses. With OMCs in profit now, daily pricing mechanism can be restored.
Government has already met one-third of its Rs 65,000-cr disinvestment target for this year. But legal and procedural delays with high-value companies are now posing hurdles.
While govt was successful in selling Air India to Tatas, BPCL got pushed to the new financial year. The hope was it would be among the first big-ticket deals early in 2022-23.
Modi govt was expected to bring legal changes in banking laws to facilitate privatisation of PSU banks, but couldn’t after a nationwide protest by bank employees' unions.
The BPCL privatisation, which could be the country’s biggest, is crucial for India. The govt needs to raise capital to make up the fall in tax revenues as the pandemic hit the economy.
Modi govt is of the view that 2nd Covid wave won't cause major economic disruption like it saw last year. Officials confident of Air India & BPCL sale 'in next few months'.
Tuhin Kanta Pandey, Secretary, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management, says the government's exit from many sectors will help it to neutrally administer its policy-making role.
I was in Islamabad when Mark Tully broke the news of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto being hanged. I held it against him—he could have tipped me off. But he was a journalist before he was a friend.
Premier David Eby, the leader of the minerals- and gas-rich province of British Columbia, spoke with executives at Tata Steel and Reliance Industries on a trade mission to India.
President Murmu has also conferred Kirti Chakra on Major Arshdeep Singh of 1 Assam Rifles for eliminating armed cadres when patrol led by him came under fire along Indo-Myanmar Border last May.
No nation other than China can negotiate one-on-one with Trump on an equal footing. That’s why the middle powers who so far formed the core of multilateral bodies now feel orphaned.
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