NEW DELHI: Ahead of the Rs 4,000 crore FPO of Hindustan Copper likely on December 6, the mines ministry plans to appoint its former Secretary Ms Santha Sheela Nair as a counsel for the PSU’s image makeover as a socially responsible corporate, a move aime d at wooing maximum number of investors.
Besides Hindustan Copper, Ms Nair would be in charge of facilitating corporate social responsibility plan for National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO), too, as a “mentor on corporate social responsibility (CSR) for the ministry.”
The ministry’s move also comes in the wake of the new mining Bill, which not only proposes sharing 26 per cent profit by miners with the people affected by their projects, but provides for public disclosures of CSR plans and expenditures.
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“The issue of CSR has been a matter of considerable attention..former secretary, Ms Santha Sheela Nair..may be designated as a mentor on CSR for the ministry for the purpose of facilitating the CSR Action Plans for NALCO and HCL,” Mines Secretary, Mr S Vijay Kumar said in a letter yesterday.
Both the companies can consult Ms Nair wherever necessary and the mines ministry can also invite her whenever required, it said. Ms Nair, a Tamil Nadu cadre IAS officer retired as mines secretary on July 31 this year.
Ms Nair will be designated with the CSR work for a year or till further notification, the letter said adding that the appointment would be on honorary basis.
The image makeover of HCL through more CSR work comes at a time when the company is likely to hit the capital market on December 6.
The PSU filed draft prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Board of India in September for its proposed 20 per cent share sale programme.
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In the 20 per cent share sale, the government is selling 10 per cent of its stake, while the company would issue fresh equity in the same proportion.
In July, the copper producer appointed UBS Securities, ICICI Securities, SBI Capital, Kotak Mahindra and Enam Securities to manage the issue.
HCL’s 0.41 per cent stake is already with the public. The proposed follow-on public offer will see the government holding coming down to 81.45 per cent from 99.59 per cent at present.
Mines Minister B K Handique had earlier said the share sale could generate around Rs 4,000 crore. The Cabinet had cleared disinvestment plans of HCL in June.
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Meanwhile, the ministry is in the process of finalising the new mining draft bill which proposes that the miners share 26 per cent profit with the project affected people.
The bill is likely to be placed in the ongoing winter session of Parliament, after approval by a ministerial panel, headed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee.
(India CSR)
