OREANDA-NEWS. February 2, 2012. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday presented the MOU and SCOPE Excellence Awards for the year 2009-2010 to Central public Sectors Units (CPSUs).

Appreciating the public sector Prime Minister said: “I am extremely happy to learn that 17 of our largest CPSUs have committed to investment plans amounting to Rs1, 40,000 crore in the coming year”.

He said The CPSU have continued to play a very important role in our national economic activity ever since our independence. They bore a very large share of the responsibility of industrialisation of our economy in the formative decades after 1947. And they remain critical to the processes of nation building even today.

He also asked these firms, especially in the mining sector to explore for assets abroad for raw material security.Singh said that India needs huge investments - both public and private particularly in the area of infrastructure. Assuring Government support, he said; “We are of the clear view that both public and private sector need to work together to meet the demands of our rapidly growing economy”.

Speaking on the occasion the Minister for Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises Praful Patel said that the (CPSU) have gone from strength to strength in the post-reform period. The turnover of (CPSU) has increased from Rs 1,18,676 crore in 1990-91 to Rs 12,35,060 crore in 2009-10 and the profit in the same period has increased from Rs 2,272 crore to Rs 92,593 crore.

While achieving this, it is also worth noting, that the Public Sector fraternity has expanded from 56,522 employees in 1990-91 to 14, 90,699 employees in 2009-10. He also said that there is need to give more autonomy to empower the CPSEs.

Ten Public Sector Enterprises received MOU award for the year 2009- 2010- are IndianOil Corporation & NTPC Ltd, Engineers India Limited, ONGC Videsh Ltd & National Seeds Corporation Ltd, Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd, Oil India Limited, Hindustan Insecticides Ltd, Bharat Pumps & Compressors Ltd, National Fertilizers Ltd.

The SCOPE Excellence Awards for the year 2009-2010 were presented to WAPCOS Ltd, Telecommunications Consultants India Ltd, Coal India Ltd, Rashtriya Chemicals and fertilizers Ltd, Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd and Power Finance Corporation Ltd .