History of Public Enterprises & Industrial Reconstruction Department

Industrial Reconstruction Department

The Department was created as the Closed and Sick Industries Department out of the Commerce & Industries Department 1971 and was renamed as the Industrial Reconstruction Department in December 1981 to better reflect the following aims, objectives and activities assigned by the Government :

Public Enterprises Department

The Department of Public Enterprises (PED) originally exercised control over 23 Enterprises of the Government and one Departmental Undertaking. Of these, only a few were originally set up as Government companies but the majorities were erstwhile sick private sector units taken over by the Government. However, PED took several measures to revive all these units and run them successfully. The performance of these units was monitored regularly. A Strategic Business Experts Group (SBEG) was formed to study the units in depth and suggest improvements. Investments were made in upgrading technology where necessary. However, the units continued to make losses. The situation deteriorated sharply after 1991 when the economy was opened up and industry was exposed to international competition. The drainage of budgetary resources in supporting the units reached a level that was considered untenable. The Government accordingly decided to take up a programme for restructuring all loss making units.

In the year 2014 Home & Hill Affairs Department vide its Notification no. 841-Home(Cons.)/R2R(Cons.)-05/2014 merged these two department as PE & IR Department.