Inaugurating the "Executive Development Programme on Restructuring of Public Sector Enterprises," organised by the Institute of Company Secretaries of India, he said he is not against disinvestment, but cautioned against blindly following a policy. He said that the sell-off decisions should be taken up on a case-to-case basis.

The public sector has a crucial role to play as a countervailing force, to curb monopolistic practice, to control prices, promote self-reliance, and industrialise far-flung backward areas, the minister said.The minister emphasised that a regulatory mechanism was needed to promote the common good and check the imbalances.

Joshi exhorted PSUs to enrich their management competence, productivity, efficiency and profitability as the prime determinants of their functioning.

For this, he said, government has granted them greater autonomy in the management and decision-making.

PSU executives today have more autonomy and scope for decision-making even managers in the private sector, Joshi said. There is now a concerted effort to rationalise the portfolio of PSUs. As competition stiffens and all entry barrier get dismantled, government undertakings may be expected to emerge as global players, the heavy industries miniser said.

Explaining the government's initiatives on restructuring PSUs to enable the public sector to perform efficiently in the global environment, the heavy industries minister said many PSUs are already on the path of restructuring and revival.

The minister praised the MoU system as an effective way to improve the performance of PSUs. Spelling out the measures that the government has taken to reform the public sector and resolved problems endemic to some of these, he said the performance contract system of memorandum of understandings enjoins PSUs to achieve specific results. The system has worked well, he added.

The MoU system is accompanied by pro-active measures to modernise technology, diversify the product mix, restructure ailing undertakings, and ensure that social obligations are met and management capability is enhanced, Joshi said.