The Indian government plans to sell up to a 5% stake in General Insurance Corporation (GIC) via an offer for sale (OFS), the state-run insurer said on Monday.

Here are more ‌details:

* The ⁠OFS ⁠includes a base offer of up ​to a 2% equity stake in GIC, with an ​option to sell an additional 3% if the issue is oversubscribed.

* The ​floor price is set ⁠at 352 ‌Indian rupees per share ($3.72), ​implying ​a discount of about ⁠9.1% to the company’s last close on Monday.

* ​The OFS opens for non-retail ​investors on June 16 and for retail investors on June 17.

* India plans to offload 10% of its stake in the insurer ‌in tranches to meet the market regulator’s minimum public shareholding norm, Reuters reported in 2024. ⁠Of this, the government already sold a 3.4% shareholding in September 2024.

* The government ​holds 82.4% in the insurer as of March 31, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Ensuring the safety and security of all citizens, regardless of ethnicity or religion, is a key responsibility of the government, the Minister of Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs, Ananda Wijepala stated.

 

A newly constructed state-of-the-art building for the Kopay Police Station was officially declared open today (14), by Minister Ananda Wijepala.

 

Constructed at a cost of nearly Rs. 40 million, the facility was completed within approximately one year and is expected to enhance the efficiency and quality of services provided to the public.

 

During the ceremony, the Minister also oversaw the symbolic return of the land on which the former police station building had been located to its owners. House keys were presented to seven beneficiaries in recognition of the restoration of their property rights.

 

Addressing the gathering, Minister Wijepala stressed that providing efficient, reliable and high-quality services to the general public remains a core responsibility of Sri Lanka Police.

 

The event was attended by Northern Province Governor N. Vedanayagam, Jaffna District Parliamentarian Karunanathan Ilankumaran and other representatives of the political leadership.

Leader of the Opposition Sajith Premadasa has called on the government to take immediate steps to secure a fresh agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in order to safeguard the wellbeing of the general public.

In a message posted on X (formerly Twitter), Premadasa said Bangladesh is also seeking a more realistic IMF arrangement aimed at easing the burden on citizens amid current global economic conditions.

He stressed that Sri Lanka must similarly prioritise public welfare in its economic policy decisions.

Premadasa warned that economic policymaking should not become a delayed process where action is taken only after shortages worsen, prices rise further and households face increased hardship.

He added that the responsibility of leadership is to prevent suffering before it becomes unmanageable, urging the government to act promptly while there is still room to avoid deeper economic distress.

Shares of Coal India dropped 3% on Thursday after a report said that the central government is planning to sell a 3-4% stake in the PSU company for nearly Rs 10,000 crore via the offer for sale (OFS) route.

The government is expected to offer the shares at an attractive discount to the current market price, CNBC-TV18 reported citing sources. Coal India or the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) are yet to confirm or deny any such development.

The Economic Times could not independently verify the report.

Coal India shareholding pattern

Notably, the government is Coal India’s largest shareholder, holding more than 63% stake in the PSU company as of March 31, 2026. Among public shareholders, mutual funds and alternate investment funds held a 9.5% stake, while insurance companies including Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) held around 12% stake at the end of the financial year 2026. LIC itself held more than 11% stake in Coal India, making it one of the biggest institutional shareholders.

Foreign investors meanwhile held more than 8% stake in Coal India. Over 25 lakh retail investors jointly owned around 4% stake in the company.

Coal India share price

Coal India shares dropped 3% to trade at Rs 456.1 apiece on NSE during the afternoon trading hours of Thursday. The stock has declined around 5% in one week and nearly 1% in one month. However, the company’s shares are up over 14% so far in 2026 and 20% in one year.

The company currently has a market capitalisation of more than Rs 2.82 lakh crore.

Coal India Q4 Results

Earlier last week, Coal India reported a 12% year-on-year (YoY) surge in net profit to Rs 10,908 crore for the January-March quarter of FY26, while revenue from operations rose 6% YoY to Rs 46,490 crore. EBITDA grew 12% to Rs 17,917 crore, while margins improved to 39% from 36% in the corresponding period last year, indicating stronger operating leverage.Also read: RBI clears Kotak Mahindra Bank to buy up to 9.99% in Federal Bank

Revenue growth was mainly driven by higher realisations, even as sales volumes remained largely unchanged. Average realisation per tonne rose 6% YoY to Rs 2,290, while total sales volume slipped around 1% to 198.83 million tonnes.

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The Congress has offered conditional support to TVK president C Joseph Vijay who is 10 seats short in the 234-member Tamil Nadu assembly to form the govt and has reached out to multiple parties in both alliances.

The five Congress MLAs will offer support through a letter tomorrow on condition that TVK does not induct communal forces from NDA into his alliance, said a senior Congress leader. 

The decision followed a late night video call with Congress seniors, MPs and MLAs from TN hosted by AICC leader Girish Chodankar at which “95% favoured a tie-up with TVK”.

Earlier in the day, new AIADMK MLA Leema Rose Martin said TVK is in touch with her party, but another AIADMK leader later ruled out supporting TVK. The tally of TVK, which won 108 seats, will drop to 107 after Vijay resigns the Trichy East seat on Wednesday. 

Then, in the 233-member assembly, he needs the support of 117 MLAs. Sources said TVK intermediaries have reached out to VCK chief Thol Thirumavalavan and PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss, besides Congress. VCK has two seats and PMK four.

AICC general secretary K C Venugopal said in Delhi that the verdict in TN is for a secular govt.

“INC is determined not to have BJP and its proxies to run the govt in any manner … Congress leadership has directed TNCC to take a final decision on Vijay’s request keeping in view the sentiments of the state reflected in the electoral verdict,” he said.

‘Secular forces must unite to protect TN from RSS’

Thol Thirumavalavan-led VCK, the third recognized party in the DMK alliance,is watching the developments cautiously.

AIADMK is also assessing its options. Leaders close to Edappadi K Palaniswami said that Vijay would struggle to run a stable govt with support only from DMK allies and would need a more secure arrangement that could function “without fear of BJP pressure.” “BJP concurrence is a must for any AIADMK tie-up with the actor,” said a leader. 

There is also speculation within a section of BJP that the party could back Vijay by engineering a split in AIADMK. BJP won just one seat, down from four in the previous election.

Congress MP Manickam Tagore said the state again rejected the NDA and it was the duty of the secular forces to stop any manipulation of the verdict. “Secular forces must come together to protect Tamil Nadu from RSS proxies and from hate politics. Hope all egos are left behind to protect Tamil Nadu,” he posted.

Source: TOI

–Agencies 

The Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development has issued a circular aimed at managing state expenditure within existing fiscal limits and approved government spending ceilings. 

This measure is intended to ensure the continuity of essential public services while mitigating the economic impact caused by the prevailing conflict in the Middle East.

The Secretary to the Ministry of Finance, Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma, issued this circular to all Ministry Secretaries, Provincial Chief Secretaries, Heads of Special Expenditure Units and Commissions, Heads of Departments, District Secretaries, and Chairmen of State Corporations and Statutory Boards.

The circular states that, considering the limitations on fuel issuance and the declaration of Wednesday as a government holiday, the Cabinet of Ministers has decided to standardize fuel allowances. 

Accordingly, the fuel allowances entitled to Ministers, Deputy Ministers, Members of Parliament, public officials, and other categories will be calculated based on fuel prices as of March 1, until further notice.

Furthermore, the Secretary to the Ministry of Finance highlighted in the circular that any other allowances paid based on fuel quantity and price, instead of a direct fuel allowance, must also be calculated according to the fuel prices prevailing on March 1.

The government may consider selling a stake in IDBI Bank through the Offer-for-Sale (OFS) route to increase public shareholding, after the unsuccessful attempt to divest stake in the LIC-controlled lender, sources said.

Currently, the public float in IDBI Bank is only 5.29 per cent, limiting the scope of fair valuation.

The remaining shares are with insurance behemoth Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), with a controlling stake at 49.24 per cent, while the Government of India (GoI) holding stood at 45.48 per cent.

Earlier this month, the proposed sale of a 60.72 per cent majority stake, held jointly by the government and the LIC, was scrapped after financial bids from two potential buyers reportedly fell short of the reserve price.

Low free float restricts the scope for fair markvaluation, and expanding this by 10 per cent or 15 per cent would make price discovery more reliable, sources said.

It can provide a reliable benchmark for valuation and further make the price discovery process transparent, they said, adding, strategic sale can be pursued even after one or two tranches of OFS.

As per the failed plan, both the government and LIC were to offload 30.48 per cent and 30.24 per cent stake, respectively.This is the second time that the government has wanted to privatise IDBI Bank since the first announcement made in 2016. The idea was first officially flagged in the Union Budget speech by then-Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in February 2016.

The first attempt to privatise the then state-owned IDBI Bank failed due to valuation concerns.

However, the government later sold the controlling stake to LIC, which had been eyeing acquiring a stake in a bank to expand its bancassurance business model.

Subsequently, in January 2019, LIC acquired a 51 per cent controlling stake in IDBI Bank for approximately Rs 21,624 crore to rescue the lender from heavy bad loans as part of the disinvestment process.

As a result, the bank was categorised as a private-sector bank by the Reserve Bank of India.

In December 2020, the lender was reclassified as an associate company following the reduction of LIC’s stake in the bank to 49.24 per cent.

The process for privatisation gained formal momentum when the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs gave its in-principle approval in May 2021 for strategic disinvestment along with transfer of management control in IDBI Bank.

In October 2022, KPMG India was appointed as Transaction Advisor and the intent to sell 60.72 per cent stake in the bank was announced.

The Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) invited Expressions of Interest (EoI) in October 2022, and market regulator Sebi approved the reclassification of GOI as a public shareholder upon completion of the sale in January 2023.

Later in August 2025, the regulator gave its nod for reclassification of LIC as a public shareholder upon completion of the sale and after a long due diligence period, financial bids from two Emirates NBD Bank and Prem Vatsa-promoted Fairfax India were finally received in February 2026.

The Department of Government Information stated that legal action has been initiated against fuel station owners who operate in violation of prescribed fuel distribution guidelines. 

Issuing a statement this evening (18), the department further noted that the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) has established dedicated phone numbers for the public to provide information related to such irregularities.

Accordingly, the public is requested to report relevant information via the following numbers: 

Phone Numbers: 0112106767 / 0117296130

Government will not exercise the oversubscription option for the Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC) offer for sale (OFS) after the issue failed to get fully subscribed on the opening day.

The issue, which opened for non-retail investors today, was subscribed 95% of the 2% stake accounting for 26.13 crore shares.

In a regulatory filing to the stock exchanges, the company said the promoter will not exercise the oversubscription option of 2% equity, equivalent to 26.13 crore shares, as there was an undersubscription of 1.18 crore shares as of the close of bidding on T day.

Additionally, 25,000 equity shares, amounting to 0.0002% of the total issued and paid-up equity capital have been reserved for employees as part of the offer.

IRFC shares today ended with sharp cuts, falling 4.6% to close at Rs 104.43 on the NSE.

The Government had planned to sell up to 4% stake in IRFC, setting the floor price for the issue at Rs 104 per share taking. At the floor price, the initial OFS size was up to Rs 5,436 crore.

IRFC is the dedicated funding arm of Indian Railways and the company is entrusted with mobilising funds from domestic and overseas markets to meet the pre-dominant portion of extra budgetary resources requirement of Indian Railways. It is a Navratna public sector enterprise under administrative control of Ministry of Railways.IRFC share price performance

The stock has been a big laggard, sliding 15% over a one-year period when Nifty has gained 13% in the same time. It is currently trading below its 50-day and 200-day simple moving averages (SMAs) of Rs 118 and Rs 126, respectively.

IRFC reported its highest-ever quarterly profit for the third consecutive quarter, supported by steady loan growth and improving margins. For the quarter ended December 2025, IRFC posted a profit after tax of Rs 1,802 crore, marking an 11% year-on-year (YoY) increase and the highest quarterly profit in the company’s history.

Net interest margins improved by over 8% YoY during the quarter, aided by value-accretive disbursements across diversified segments and disciplined liability management. Total income stood at Rs 6,719 crore for the quarter, while income for the nine-month period came in at Rs 20,009 crore.

Government will sell up to 4% stake in Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC) via an offer for sale (OFS) which opens on Wednesday for non-retail investors while retail investors will be able to place bids on Thursday.

The government has offered to divest 2% equity in IRFC with an additional 2% as green shoe option. Under the OFS, over 26.13 crore equity shares of the company will be offloaded with an option to sell additional 26.13 crore shares under the oversubscription option.

The floor price for the issue is set at Rs 104 per share taking the OFS size to Rs 5,436 crore thorough the sale of 4% equity.

The floor price is at a 5% discount over today’s closing price of Rs 109.44, 2.2% lower over Monday close.

IRFC is the dedicated funding arm of Indian Railways and the company is entrusted with mobilising funds from domestic and overseas markets to meet the pre-dominant portion of extra budgetary resources requirement of Indian Railways. It is a Navratna public sector enterprise under administrative control of Ministry of Railways.

IRFC share price performance

The stock has been a big laggard, sliding 12% over a one-year period when Nifty has gained 11% in the same time. It is currently trading below its 50-day and 200-day simple moving averages (SMAs) of Rs 118 and Rs 126, respectively.

IRFC reported its highest-ever quarterly profit for the third consecutive quarter, supported by steady loan growth and improving margins. For the quarter ended December 2025, IRFC posted a profit after tax of Rs 1,802 crore, marking an 11% year-on-year (YoY) increase and the highest quarterly profit in the company’s history.

Net interest margins improved by over 8% YoY during the quarter, aided by value-accretive disbursements across diversified segments and disciplined liability management. Total income stood at Rs 6,719 crore for the quarter, while income for the nine-month period came in at Rs 20,009 crore.