The government is expected to soon appoint a high-power committee headed by the Cabinet Secretary for fast-track clearance of overseas asset buys by PSUs without going to Cabinet. 

Several public sector units (PSUs) in key infrastructure sectors like oil, coal and mines are scouting for acquisitions abroad. 

As these firms are up against tough competition for the acquisition of natural resources overseas, commercial decisions have to be fast-tracked. 

"We expect the Cabinet to pass the proposal next month or so and then a month after that the panel will be set up," Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) Secretary Bhaskar Chatterjee said here at an AIMA PSU Summit. 

The empowered committee headed by Ajit Kumar Seth will clear the PSUs' projects for the acquisition of strategic assets abroad. 

The secretaries of the administrative ministry (in charge) of the PSUs, its Chairman and Managing Director and representatives of the ministries of external affairs and finance would be in the empowered committee, he said. 

The PSU's proposals for overseas asset buys can directly go to this committee without going to Cabinet, thus saving time. 

The idea has already found support from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. 

The move is aimed at fighting competition from neighbouring China for foreign assets. It would also help provide a cushion to the PSUs to fight the competition posed by private companies in India looking at similar opportunities overseas. 

State-run steel major SAIL, along withNTPC, Coal India and Rashtriya IspatNigam Ltd, is also scouting for coal mines inAustralia and other coal-rich nations through a special purpose vehicle,International Coal Ventures Ltd ( ET )