The Government is hopeful that the much awaited Companies Bill will be taken up for discussion and passage in the upcoming Monsoon session of Parliament, Corporate Affairs Minister, Sachin Pilot, has said.

The Companies Bill in the present form is very comprehensive and would go a long way in securing the interests of investors, Pilot said at an Assocham event in the Capital on Thursday.

Pilot said that the Bill had several provisions for improving corporate governance in the country.

“Corporate governance has to start from the top (board level). It has to be good board level practices that will usher in era of good corporate governance,” he added.

Praful Patel, Heavy Industries Minister, stressed the need for re-building confidence of retail investors in Indian companies and markets.

“Big companies can’t be built only with institutional investors. Retail investors are also important. The current situation of retail investors being away is not a good sign,” he said.

Later, Patel told reporters that he would take up the issue of fiscal problems faced by the automobile industry with Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram.

> srivats.kr@thehindu.co.in

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