Reshuffle boosts India's sell-off plans

Mr Shourie added the top jobs at the IT and communications ministries to his role as disinvestment minister in Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee's cabinet reshuffle.

" In general in India, we're not able to manage mammoth organisations "
Arun Shourie
Disinvestment, IT and telecoms minister

The move is being seen as an indication that with two controversial oil privatisations going ahead, telecoms is next in line.

The privatisation of state enterprises has met with strong opposition from hardline Hindu fundamentalists in the government.

Shares in state-controlled telecoms firms such as Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) shot up on investors' hopes of a rapid disinvestment, rather than the merger with an unlisted state phone firm which Mr Shourie's predecessor had favoured.

"In general in India, we [the government] are not able to manage mammoth organisations," Mr Shourie said as he announced he would review the merger plans.

New blood

The reshuffle is likely to be the last before elections due next year, and brought two new cabinet ministers and six junior ministers into the fold.

The main jobs - defence, home affairs, foreign affairs and finance - were untouched.

But otherwise the changes are seen as a chance for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party to capitalise on its success in December's Gujarat state elections, ahead of another nine state polls due this year.

The Hindu nationalist party draws much of its support from a clutch of fundamentalist organisations, whose main voices in the Cabinet have opposed privatisations as unpatriotic.

Only 50bn rupees (£635m; $1bn) has been raised from the sale of state assets to date, less than half the government's target of 120bn rupees.

Competition

But some of those voices have now been relieved of duty, and a stronger hand for Mr Shourie could help the process back on track.

His new responsibilities for IT and communications also hold out the hope of more transparent regulation of the sectors.

"There must be competition," he said. "At the same time, there must not be predatory practices... there's room for anybody."

The move brought praise from the Indian media.

"Reforms win" was the headline in the Indian Express, while The Asian Age, in a piece titled "Shourie is the biggest gainer", said disinvestment was back as a priority.