Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration is seeking to raise a record 1.05 trillion rupees ($14.6 billion) from asset sales this year as revenue collections fall short amid a growth slowdown. That threatens government’s budget-gap goal of 3.3% of gross domestic product and risks a downgrade from sovereign rating agencies.

The ministerial panel also cleared stake sale in generators THDC India Ltd. and North Eastern Electric Power Corp. to state-run NTPC Ltd. The government decided to offload 30.8% holding in Container Corp. and exclude Numaligarh Refinery Ltd. from BPCL’s privatization, Sitharaman said.

Big Ticket

So far, Modi’s government had resisted big-ticket privatization and restricted sales of its holdings to other state companies, including the 369.2 billion-rupee sale of Hindustan Petroleum Corp. to the biggest explorer Oil & Natural Gas Corp. last year. It raised 145 billion rupees by transferring control of REC Ltd. to Power Finance Corp.

Sitharaman in her federal budget speech on July 5 had mentioned the plan to privatize state companies. The government had also identified the biggest energy companies such as Indian Oil Corp., ONGC, NTPC Ltd. and GAIL India Ltd. as possible candidates for cutting direct holdings below 51%.

India is also looking to raise 500 billion rupees in the current fiscal year by selling infrastructure assets such as roads, gas pipelines and power transmission lines.

The Indian government holds 53.3% of Bharat Petroleum, 63.75% in Shipping Corp. and 54.89% in Container Corp. of India, while it has 74.23% ownership in THDC and full ownership of NEEPCO. Offloading its holding in BPCL alone can help meet about 60% of this year’s asset sale aim, based on the stock’s closing price Wednesday.