NEW DELHI, NOV 17: The Indian government will sell 10 per cent of its holding in the state-run Indian Oil Corp (IOC) between January and March, Petroleum Minister Ram Naik told the Economic Editors Conference here on Wednesday."Disinvestment in Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is planned for the last quarter of the current fiscal year (10 per cent of government holding) depending upon market conditions," the Minister said in a speech to journalists.Around 78 million IOC shares will be offered for sale, IOC Chairman M A Pathan later said. The government holds an 82 per cent stake in IOC, while the state-run Oil & Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) holds 10 per cent. Most of the remainder has already been floated with the public.UNLEADED PETROL: Naik added that unleaded petrol will be available throughout the country by March 2000. "We have taken steps to provide unleaded petrol and hope that our present schedule to ensure its country wide availability by March 2000 will be adhered to," he said.MARUTI STAKE: Later, Heavy Industry Minister Manohar Joshi said the government had no plans to disinvest its stake in car maker Maruti Udyog Ltd. "The government is not at all thinking of disinvestment in the case of Maruti," Joshi said.The Indian government and Japan's Suzuki Motor Corporation each hold 50 percent equity share in Maruti Udyog Ltd. The company is India's largest car-maker.Joshi said the country would need to forge strategic domestic and overseas alliances to give a thrust to its capital goods sector. "In order to have a robust and competitive machine building industry, it may be necessary to forge strategic alliances within the country and outside it," Joshi told a three-day Economic Editors Conference.Joshi said the country's capital industry was beset with problems like infrastructural deficiencies, high cost of finance, dumping and industrial sickness which needed to be "grappled with determination"."I would even go so far as to say that our capital goods industry both in the public and private sector needs to be rebuilt," Joshi added. "These were created as National assets over the decades."He said the capital goods sector was showing strong revival signs, adding that a 6.6 per cent year-on-year growth of the six infrastructure industry index achieved in April-September was the highest since the peak of 1995/96."The improved perception of foreign investors, stock index movement and increasing appetite in the consumer durables sectors are symptomatic of this economic upsurge," Joshi said.He said the government would give priority to make the capital goods sector more investor friendly, harness capacities in full and promote competition. Joshi said the country's auto sector was facing "fierce competition" as the demand for tighter emmission norms, safety and comfort was growing rapidly."The government will support the efforts of the industry in acknowledging this through introduction of contemporary technologies," Joshi added.He said the government was committed to restructure its public sector enterprises to bring it to global standards. "The government's strategy towards public enterprises will continue to encompass a judicious mix of strengthening strategic units, privatising non-strategic ones through gradual disinvestment or strategic sale and devising viable rehabilitation for weak units," Joshi said.
