Narendra Modi promises to privatise Air India
The state promises to unload its dusty companies. For real this time
THE HINDU pantheon of gods has no shortage of deities with multiple arms. India’s government, with a hand in industries from energy and steel to finance and travel, would fit right in. A long infatuation with central planning transformed state-run business into a sprawling industrial empire encompassing 5% of the economy. But acquiring appendages is easier than managing them. Profits as a percentage of revenues are just over 1% at state-run companies, compared with 7-9% for the private sector. Many are a loss-making burden on the public purse—more family lead than family silver.
This article appeared in the Business section of the print edition under the headline “Flogging the family lead”
Business February 13th 2021
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- Narendra Modi promises to privatise Air India
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From the February 13th 2021 edition
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