This Independence Day, NDTV Profit brings you the best of the nation builders and wealth builders. We titled it as the Nation Builders. Even though they are the wealth of the nation, we didn't choose this title lest it be confused with Adam Smith's The Wealth of the Nations.
These set of companies have protected the nation, powered the nation, funded the nation, built the nation and, MORE IMPORTANTLY, they are creating wealth for the masses and powering the future of India's dreams.
They are no longer chapters in a high school or degree academic textbooks. There was a sense of nostalgia and pride when we discussed this theme in the newsroom. The younger team members, too, lapped up the idea with great enthusiasm.
We chose to focus only on government-promoted public sector companies. This is not to discredit or ignore the contributions made by big business houses to the country. But the criteria were to focus on companies that were set up in the national interest and not for profit. Hence only public sector companies.
The next filter was to ensure these companies are at least 40 to 50 years old and have seen several Independence Days in their journey. Since there are a number of companies that fit this condition.
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We applied one more — they should be listed on the stock market. This looked simple, but one of my colleagues asked me "why not MTNL or ITI?". Their contribution to the country is immense but they are struggling for survival.
So, finally we agreed to pick up companies that have not only survived the vagaries of nature, political upheavals and technological advances but are also growing at a robust pace.
The stock market is a great judge here and also helps us iron out some degree of subjectivity (and emotional bias as I grew up in HAL).
The list of Nation Builders this Independence Day: HAL, Mazagon Dock, BEL, SBI, LIC, ONGC, Coal India, NTPC, NHPC and Steel Authority of India or SAIL.
Apart from the value they have created in your portfolio, they have touched the lives of millions of citizens directly or indirectly, in the past and will do so in the coming decades.
Please do watch our show on NDTV Profit and let us know your views. Wishing all our viewers and readers a very happy Independence Day From all of us at NDTV Profit.
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