A Review of Major Trends in Disinvestment in India since 2015: Policy Evolution, Transactions and Emerging Directions

Shivaraju

doi:10.36948/ijfmr.2026.v08i05.88099

A Review of Major Trends in Disinvestment in India since 2015: Policy Evolution, Transactions and Emerging Directions

Author(s)	Dr. Shivaraju
Country	India
Abstract	Disinvestment-the process by which the Government of India dilutes or transfers its ownership stake in Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs), has remained a central instrument of fiscal and structural policy since the economic reforms of 1991. This paper reviews the major trends in Indian disinvestment from 2015 to 2026, a period marked by a decisive shift from an ad hoc, case-by-case approach toward a codified policy framework. The paper traces the formulation of the first consolidated Disinvestment Policy of 2016, the creation of the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), the launch of Exchange Traded Fund (ETF)-based disinvestment, and the subsequent adoption of the New Public Sector Enterprise Policy for Atmanirbhar Bharat in 2021, which classified CPSEs into strategic and non-strategic sectors. Using budgeted and actual disinvestment receipts from 2015-16 to 2025-26, the paper identifies persistent gaps between targets and realisation, a recurring reliance on ETFs and offer-for-sale routes over genuine strategic privatisation, and landmark transactions such as the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) sale to Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), the strategic sale of Air India to the Tata Group, and the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) initial public offering. The paper also examines stalled transactions including Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) and IDBI Bank, sectoral patterns, and the emerging pivot toward asset monetisation as a complementary non-debt revenue source. The paper concludes that while disinvestment policy architecture has matured considerably since 2015, actual execution continues to be constrained by valuation disputes, regulatory delays, market volatility and political sensitivity, and it outlines directions for more predictable and transparent disinvestment governance.
Keywords	Disinvestment, Privatisation, CPSEs, DIPAM, Strategic Sale, Asset Monetisation, Indian Economy, Public Sector Enterprises, Fiscal Policy
Field	Sociology > Economics
Published In	Volume 8, Issue 5, September-October 2026
Published On	2026-09-22
DOI	https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2026.v08i05.88099

View / Download PDF File

About IJFMR Fees & Payment Current Issue Publication Archive	Submit Research Paper Track Submission Status Publication Guidelines Publication Ethics Peer Review & Plagiarism	Join as a Reviewer Editors & Reviewers Reviewer Referral Program Get Reviewer Membership Certi.	Website/Journal Policies Usage Policy Content Policies Privacy Policy

Contact Us		+91-9687-828-838	editor@ijfmr.com

International Journal For Multidisciplinary Research

A Widely Indexed Open Access Peer Reviewed Multidisciplinary Bi-monthly Scholarly International Journal

A Review of Major Trends in Disinvestment in India since 2015: Policy Evolution, Transactions and Emerging Directions

Share this