CM wants loss-making PSUs to thrive What ails state public sector units

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma wants the loss-making state PSUs (Public Sector Units) to make profits. He has overhauled the chairmen of 36 PSUs with this in view.

The Chief Minister was crystal clear when he said on Friday, "I want the PSU chairmen to bring newness in their respective units. The thrust areas for them are – (i) to make the PSUs profit-making entities, (ii) to augment income to be able to pay regular salaries to employees and (iii) proper utilization of their (PSUs') assets, especially lands."

The million-dollar question now is: how to convert the loss-making PSUs in the state to profit-making entities.

The State Government has 40 PSUs in seven different sectors under 22 administrative departments. They are power, textiles, agriculture and allied sector, some related to public welfare, etc.

The State Government stopped pumping in funds into the loss-making PSUs long back. Till fiscal 2017, the total investment in the state PSUs was around Rs 5,436 crore as equities, term loans and subsidies. Till that fiscal, the accumulated loss incurred by the PSUs was around Rs 4,799 crore. Many PSUs have not been auditing their accounts for years. It led the CAG to write to the State Government several times to take up the matter.

The ground reality remains that hardly 10 of the 49 PSUs in the state are profit-making ones. They are ATDC (Assam Tourism Development Corporation), AFDC (Assam Fishery Development Corporation), AHEC (Assam Hydrocarbon and Energy Corporation), DNP Ltd, AIDC (Assam Industrial Development Corporation), AFC (Assam Finance Corporation) etc.

From the findings of several surveys and reviews conducted from time to time, official sources pinpoint the reasons behind the state PSUs making a loss – (i) lack of clear vision or roadmap, (ii) overstaffing and (iii) lack of work culture in the PSUs.

As of March 2017, while 33 of the 49 PSUs in the state were working, 16 were closed. The PSU sector in the state had 37,558 employees.

Earlier, the general concept was that political rehabilitation by ruling parties in PSUs as chairmen was responsible for PSUs to make a loss, leading to their sickness, even closure. However, the present Chief Minister is taking measures to revive the ailing PSUs.

The good sign is that most of the PSUs have their assets, especially mostly land. However, the lack of proper planning makes most of such lands lie idle. Lands of the ASHB (Assam State Housing Board) are lying idle in Guwahati and elsewhere. The same is the case of the ASTC (Assam State Transport Corporation) that has lands lying unused in Guwahati and other places in the state.

The Chief Minister has had his message get across that the PSUs will have to be self-reliant and that the State Government will not pump in funds for them. In such a ground situation, the PSU chairmen must introduce innovative ideas and use their assets properly to augment their income.

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