Ennore Port Limited Presented a Dividend Cheque of 40 Crore to the Government

The Ennore Port Limited (EPL) presented a dividend cheque of 40 crore Rupees to the Union Minister of Shipping GK Vasan for the financial year 2012-13. The Chairman and Managing Director of the EPL MA Bhaskarachar presented the cheque to the minister in Chennai on 17 September 2013.

Ennore Port Limited (EPL), a Mini Ratna Government of India Undertaking made a post tax profit of more than 173 crore Rupees for the fiscal year 2012-13, against a profit of 96.72 crore Rupees for 2011-12 financial year. For 2012-13, EPL declared a dividend of 20 percent on the equity share capital of 300 crore Rupees. Apart from the Government, the EPL also paid a dividend of 20 crore Rupees to the Chennai Port Trust, which is the only other share holder apart from the Union Government of India, since the fiscal year 2008-09.

The Ennore Port Limited (EPL) apart from contributing to the economy of the country is also involved in the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities in and around the city of Chennai. Prior to this, GK Vasan reviewed the Ennore Port Limited and the Chennai Port Trust in terms of the traffic handled, on the status of modernisation and capacity addition projects.

Why does a company or a corporation pay dividends to the shareholders?

It is important to note that the dividends are corporate earnings of the companies which they pass to the shareholders. There are various reasons why any corporation or a company passes on some of the earnings to the shareholders as dividends. Any company may or may not pay the dividends to the shareholders. Certain companies plough the profits back into the company for its growth or some new projects.

When a company pays the dividends to its shareholders, the investors consider it as a sign of the strength of a company. Also, payment of the dividends is seen as a sign that managements expects positively for the future earnings of a company, which makes its stocks very attractive. The greater demand for the stock of a company eventually increases its price.