"There is no under-valuation of these shares. The price of Rs 70 per share at which disinvestment had been carried out in global depository route (GDR) market recently in November 1999 is 17 per cent higher than the domestic issue price of Rs 60 in February 1999," Naik told the Lok Sabha in a written reply. Stating that government had not sold the shares in GAIL at prices much below the expected prices to the foreign investors, Naik said that since 1991, 27 crore shares of government's equity in GAIL had so far been sold.

Naik said that pricing of GAIL shares was based on the book-building process, which showed the price at which the investors were prepared to pay for a share at a given point of time.

The government in 1997 had to withdraw the disinvestment in GAIL through the GDR market on account of extremelylow demand even at prices below the minimum approved price.

GAIL issue was launched in October 1997 with a mandate to sell up to 20 crore shares of face vlaue of Rs 10 per share at the minimum price of Rs 125 per share, against the domestic price of Rs 160 per share at the time of approval, Naik said. Naik said that the book value of GAIL share is about Rs 48 while its face value is Rs 10. Government had offered around eight crore shares in Feb 1999 to the domestic investors of which only three crore could be sold at a price of Rs 60 per share.

In another reply, Union Petroleum Minister said, that during 1999-2000 the LPG imports would be 1.263 million metric tonnes while the domestic availability of the gas would be 4.644 million metric tonnes.

He said that availability through diesel imports would be 3.956 million metric tonnes while the domestic availability of diesel would be 36.948 million metric tonnes in `99-2000.