The Hindu Business Line : IFCI merger

This is with reference to "IFCI merger with PSU bank by April 1" (Business Line, January 10). A decade ago, in 1993, the Government converted IFCI, then a statutory corporation, to a company. Further, IFCI went public in the booming stock market of the 1990s. Today, the stock market is once again bullish, but there are no takers for IFCI. The Government has failed miserably in its duty as a majority shareholder and the board it appoints is inept. The management of IFCI has still not come to terms with the post-liberalisation environment.

IFCI is a loss-making entity and the only thing the Centre has done in this regard has been to appoint a new Chairman and Managing Director every other year. IFCI has had five CMDs in the last decade. Can any company (that too a loss making one) function with the top level being changed so frequently?

IFCI turned to consultants such as PriceWaterhouseCoopers and Mckinsey at various times but nobody has managed to help it turnaround. Rumours are afloat about IFCI's impending merger with IDBI, SBI, BOB, Punjab National Bank and so on every now and then, but nothing worthwhile has happened. Every year the IFCI-promoted ICRA, downgrades its own parent. How much more ignominy should IFCI face before the Government steps in and takes some bold and positive action?

Jambu Ganesh Kumar

Chennai

Letters to the editor and contributions can be sent by e-mail to: bleditor@thehindu.co.in

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