South Indian state Kerala's ambitious IT business township project SmartCity Kochi (SCK) will soon be a reality. The entire project, covering 246 acres, has received the mandatory environmental clearance, a top official said. The clearance was given at a meeting of State Environment Impact Assessment Authority Kerala (SEIAA-K) of the Ministry of Environment and Forests followed by the State Expert Appraisal Committee's (SEAC) recommendations, he said. "For the first IT building-SCK01, we had received the environmental clearance in July 2013 and later we applied for the rest of the project, which has been cleared now," Gigo Joseph, CEO, SCK said. The 6.5 lakh square feet building is fast nearing completion. "Of own developments, construction of SCK01's seven-story structure is in an advanced stage of completion and as announced in the Director's Board meeting held in Abu Dhabi, the building is expected to be inaugurated in March 2015," Gigo Joseph said. Once complete, the building is aimed to be one of the largest LEED Platinum-rated IT buildings in India, as well as all of the forthcoming structures coming up here are being developed as environment friendly. SCK has also entered into agreements for joint developments with leading IT, hospitality, realty and education companies, to make the hub coming up here an integrated township with facilities for stay, work and play, sources added. Delegation From JapanMeanwhile, a 40-member Japanese business delegation will be on a three-day visit to Kerala from November six to identify areas of cooperation with the state, including Kochi. Said to be the biggest ever visit by officials from any country to the state, the event is being organised by Sanin India Association of Japan in association with Indo-Japan Chamber of Commerce Kerala (Injack). Five mayors - Masataka Matsuura, Yasuo Nozaka, Hideto Nagaoka, Hiroki Kondo and Katsugi Nakamura - from the two provinces of Tottri and Shimana are among the delegates. The areas of interest for the delegation are fisheries and marine products, medical tourism, healthcare and IT, said Tomofumi Fukamiya, First Secretary in the Japanese Embassy. (PTI)
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Despite recovery in market conditions and sentiment, this festive season has failed to bring cheers to the real estate industry as home buyers continue to remain cautious, according to industry experts. Festive season is generally considered as the most important time for the realty sector as it records the highest number of sales, which is nearly 20-25 per cent more than non-festive period. "The real estate industry has always witnessed a rise in sales during the festive season especially on the back of freebies and incentives offered by the developers. However, despite recovery, there is no improvement in sales during the festive season," IndiaProperty.com Chief Executive Ganesh Vasudevan said. He said, "The demand from property buyers has increased compared to the last few quarters. This is witnessed from the number of enquiries we are receiving. But this is not translating into actual transactions as buyers have adopted a wait and watch approach." According to Jones Lang LaSalle India Chairman and Country Head Anuj Puri, though there is a recovery in sentiment, the events that have catalysed it - namely the new government at the Centre and "its pro-business policies favouring realty" - will need more time to bring their benefits to bear on the market. "While demand exists, it is still held in abeyance by various economic factors, including the natural lag between the announcement and implementation of the government policy catalysts," he said. Likewise, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has held on to current interest rates in favour of safeguarding against further inflationary trends. "It will take several more months for the market to get into convincing forward momentum again.. the festive season did not bring the kind of momentum that was hoped for," Puri added. "There is also an expectation that home loan rates may come down in the next 2-3 quarters as the government is taking initiatives to tame inflation. If the interest rates come down, we will see a surge in sales from the second or third quarter of 2015," Vasudevan noted. Developers, on the other hand, have been addressing the situation by offering selective discounts and incentives, the success of which has varied across cities and locations. Those with greater holding power continue to wait for the market to pick up so that sales velocity will accelearate, Puri said. "During the festive season, developers generally launch new projects as well as offer various incentives to attract buyers. However, over the last few quarters, there has been a slowdown in new launches as the inventory levels itself are very high," Samruddhi Realty Chief Executive Madhusudan K said. He further said developers are currently concentrating on clearing the inventory and are offering discounts and other incentives to attract buyers. (PTI)
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The Ordinance to auction coal blocks through an electronic platform got the President's approval on Tuesday (21 October), paving the way for a "transparent" allocation process for mines to the private sector, even as trade unions and Left parties opposed the move.The long-awaited "reforms" in the sector, a departure from the existing practice of allocation by a screening committee mechanism, got the go-ahead from President Pranab Mukherjee, who promulgated the Ordinance cleared by the Union Cabinet last evening.The Ordinance was warranted in the backdrop of the Supreme Court's order quashing 214 coal blocks allocated to various companies since 1993 on the ground that they were done in an illegal manner by an "ad-hoc and casual" approach "without application of mind".Industry bodies hailed government's move and termed it as a step in the right direction."This is an important decision and highlights the Government's seriousness to reform the coal sector. ...Through this move, the government has arrested concerns pertaining to diminishing coal supplies," FICCI President Sidharth Birla said in a statement."The air of uncertainty has been resolved and clear roadmap has been put forward. CII believes that quick decision-making by the government sends the right signals," CII Director General Chandrajit Banerjee said.With uncertainties almost over, metal stocks rallied in stock markets, led by JSPL, Hindalco and Tata Steel, pushing the benchmark BSE Sensex up 146 points at close.Naveen Jindal-led JSPL, which is among the worst hit in the cancellation of the coal blocks, said it would participate in the auction process. JSW Steel also would "definitely" take part, its Joint Managing Director Seshagiri Rao said.Left parties and several trade unions opposed the e- auctioning of coal blocks and the enabling provision in the Ordinance that allows commercial mining by private firms and sought its reversal, warning of a nationwide strike if the Centre went ahead with the changes. .All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) General Secretary Gurudas Dasgupta said the decision of the government on coal blocks "has a covert implication. It is a back-door entry for taking over the entire coal sector by the private corporates".The CPI(M) and the CPI said they fully supported the protest actions by the central trade unions and national federations of employees against the "anti-worker" issues including proposals to amend labour laws.All India Coal Workers Federation General Secretary Jibon Roy warned of a nationwide strike if the government implemented any enabling provision to allow commercial mining by private companies."To protest against the enabling provision and proposed e-auction, the workers would stage nationwide dharna on November 5 to 7," he said, demanding that the coal blocks be handed over to the state-run Coal India Limited.Allocation of coal blocks became a political issue after Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) alleged arbitrariness and absence of any criteria in the screening process and pegged notional loss to the exchequer at Rs 1.86 lakh crore.(PTI)
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The Malaysian government has intended to make an investment of Rs 10,000 crore in Rajasthan's road sector specially construction of highways on PPP model, state PWD Minister Yunus Khan said."The final decision on this point would be taken up by the Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, and an MoU between Rajasthan and Malaysia can be done on October 27," an official spokesman quoting Khan said.Malyasia's Public Works Department (PWD) Minister S.S. Velu would likely to come to Jaipur on October 27 for MoU signature ceremony as the asian country intended to spend an investment of Rs 10,000 crore in the road sector, Khan said.Rajasthan government has taken up a massive project to built about 20,000 km roads on highways and up to villages on PPP model with an investment plan of Rs 50,000 crore, he said.(PTI)
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Indian Oil Corporation will invest $4 billion in the British Columbia province, Canada, to source liquefied natural gas from the region.Premier of British Columbia, Canada Christy Clark said: "Indian Oil is poised to make its biggest investment in Canada to secure natural gas for India from BC."She said the state-run firm will invest $4 billion for securing LNG supplies from the Canadian province.IOC, in May, signed a deal to buy 10 per cent stake in shale-gas assets and a linked liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in British Columbia.The Canadian asset will produce as much as 19.68 million tonnes of LNG a year for 25 years starting in 2018.That apart, Clark said, GMR Group of India and IC-Impacts of her province will now work together on safe and sustainable infrastructure like innovative pavement technology, construction design and water and waste water infrastructure.Wooing domestic investors, she said: "We, in British Columbia, would like to partner with this great country to realise its potential by providing LNG to power its future. We recognise that there will be a mix of energy sources - coal, oil, solar, wind."India needs a million skilled workers a year, every year, for the next 15 years. We can help. If we can help train 3,000 and 300 of them help us build an LNG industry -- it's good for you and good for us."Reliance Industries has also signed on with IC-Impacts to share research, training and develop new technologies in such areas as specialised building materials for infrastructure like bridges, roads and buildings.The state government of Punjab and BC have committed to work together on skills training, education and agriculture.Projecting BC as an attractive destination for investment in the LNG space, Clarke said: "There are several advantages -- short transportation time to Asia to save cost, lower operating costs, vast gas reserves, stable and reliable jurisdiction and a strong regulatory regime."The Canadian province is also expecting big ticket investments in its energy space from other geographies as well. It is likely to finalise $36 billion from Petronas of Malaysia by this new year.Earlier this week, Clark announced a funding for 20 scholarships, worth a total of 50,000 dollars, to support and encourage two-way exchange of students between the University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) and Sanatan Dharma (SD) College in Chandigarh.(PTI)
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With workovers on the main fields nearing completion, output from the Krishna-Godavari (KG) basin is expected to increase to 15 million standard cubic metres per day (mmscmd) from 12 mmscmd. This should have Reliance Industries (RIL) cheering, but it is not. Reason: the delay in the gas price revision and the depleting Dhirubhai-1 and 3 gas fields in KG block D6 have been weighing on the growth prospects of its upstream business. Doubts persist about the government coming up with a new gas pricing formula by November 15 — its latest and second deadline — given that the issue has been politicised to a large extent. The previous government had recommended a price of $8.4 per million British thermal units (mBtu) that was sought by RIL. Besides, the new price, when it comes, is likely to be less than $8.4 per mBtu. The lack of a new gas pricing formula is also preventing RIL from taking a call to develop other discoveries such as R-series, satellite and MJ1. “RIL can decide on investments on new discoveries only if the price is viable. Already, we have unrecovered exploration expenses on account of failed discoveries,” says a RIL official, not wishing to be identified. RIL and its partners, BP and Niko Resources, claim to have spent $7.4 billion for the exploration and development of blocks that were later abandoned. “In case prices are fixed on the basis of cost of production, the additional cost of $7.4 billion will also need to be reimbursed,” RIL’s ‘Flame of Truth’ report quoted it as saying. S.P. Tulsian, an independent analyst, however, says there is no need to increase the price of gas, as the contractor has recovered costs. “The later entrant, BP’s investment in these fields is a big mistake. They (RIL & BP) are trying to link cost recovery to the price, which is wrong,” he adds. RIL claims to have spent nearly $20 billion on exploration and production in India but recovered just around $8 billion. RIL and its partners have stopped exploration activities in most of their 41 blocks. KG D6 is their main production block with 15 wells. “D1 was expected to produce 60 mmscmd at the point of time. Now, it seems that both the fields will be exhausted in three years. RIL pins its hope on other three lucrative fields in the KG basin,” says the official. The gloom, however, is not shared by all. As per a UBS report, an increase in the gas price to $6.5-7.0 per mBtu from the current $4.2 will drive investments for developing R-series, MJ1 and commerciality approvals for satellite fields in KG-D6. UBS expects most issues to be resolved as the government is keen on increasing domestic production. For RIL then, the coming month will be crucial. (This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 03-11-2014)
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An exciting game of musical chairs seems to be on in India’s power sector. In the latest round, Gautam Adani’s Adani Power is the last one ‘sitting’ with the tag of ‘largest independent power producer (IPP) in the country’, with its installed generation capacity rising to 8,620 megawatts (mw) after a 660 mw unit was commissioned at Tiroda in Maharashtra. Adani’s capacity is expected to go over 10,000 mw soon, once the acquisition of the 1,200 mw Udupi plant is completed. A few months ago, the Tata Power held the top position, with an installed gross generation capacity of 8,613 mw. The Indian power sector, which has at least 30 private IPPs, is witnessing a race between the top players — Tata Power, Adani Power, Lanco Infratech, JSW Energy and Reliance Power — to be crowned as the country’s largest private power producer.In this quest, the players are going in for quick capacity additions despite around 39,000 mw of stranded or troubled capacity available for sale, thanks to a changing business environment. Two big-ticket deals involving Adani Power and JSW Energy (and a failed attempt by Reliance Power) have gone through in the last few weeks, and experts say there’s more in the pipeline. “As we speak, at least half a dozen big-ticket deals are being discussed to my knowledge and some of them may even go through,” says Sanjay Sethi, executive director, Infrastructure, Kotak Investment Banking.What explains the sudden rush for consolidation and what exactly has led to the hurried buyer-seller discussions in an industry that is in a shambles? More on that later, but what is clear is that the scramble comes amid uncertain coal supplies and the coal industry itself looking for a policy push to revive its fortunes. Even more intriguing is the fact that leading corporates such as ADAG (Reliance Power) and the Adani Group are bullish on adding capacity despite their stretched balance sheets and huge debts. But before we get to the answers, it will be interesting to look at the tug of war between the top private power producers, their big plans (before the Indonesian coal law change) and the current status. DIFFERENT STROKES: (From left) Anil Sardana, Sajjan Jindal and Anil Ambani. While Tata Power had a debt of Rs 30,469 crore as on March 2014, JSW Energy and Reliance Power were in better financial healthScramble For Capacity In April 2011, Hyderabad-based Lanco Infratech made an announcement that surprised the industry. Lanco, which had just 500 mw of operational capacity in 2008, had become the largest independent power producer in the country, with 3,292 mw, following the synchronisation of its 600 mw pithead Anpara project in Uttar Pradesh. An elated L. Madhusudan Rao, executive chairman, also announced that Lanco planned to add 4,000 mw in the short term, with an investment of over Rs 22,000 crore. “Our long-term goal is to reach 15,000 mw by 2015,” Rao said.This development was a big blow for Tata Power — the country’s first private sector power producer, dating back to 1911 — which had built up a capacity of over 3,000 mw by 2011 through consolidation. Unfortunately, for Tata Power, big capacity additions did not happen for seven to eight years since 2000, by when it had set up nearly 2,300 mw of capacity. While it did consider taking over the troubled 2,000 mw-plus Dabhol gas plant in Maharashtra in partnership with British Petroleum during the period, the deal did not materialise. Tata Power also signed up with the Orissa and Maharashtra governments for thermal projects in 2005-06, but they too did not take off. In 2009, Tata Power added a 250 mw unit at its Trombay Thermal Power Station in Chembur and a 120 mw gas-based unit in Jamshedpur. While competitors were aggressively looking to add capacity, its plans were more moderate — 318 mw in 2010, 1,138 mw in 2011, 1,600 mw in 2012 and 2,400 mw in 2013. Besides, two major projects were under construction — a 4,000 mw ultra mega power project (UMPP) at Mundra and a 1,050 mw thermal plant at Maithon in Jharkhand.Lanco’s stay at the top was, however, short-lived. Tata Power began commissioning units one by one at Mundra and crossed 3,600 mw by the end of 2011. Lanco could not add capacity as planned owing to the debt that had piled up at the group level. By January 2013, Tata Power was on song, reaching 7,699 mw with the commissioning of four 800 mw super-critical units of its Mundra UMPP. “Our target is to have 18,000 mw of generation capacity and 4,000 mw of distribution by 2022,” states an email response from Tata Power. Incidentally, the target was 22,000 mw by 2022.Around the time when Tata Power was scaling new heights, Adani Power was also setting tall targets. While it missed bagging any of the four UMPPs awarded until then, it began constructing a mega power plant next to Tata Power’s UMPP at Mundra, and at two locations in Maharashtra and Rajasthan. Adani Power’s goal is to have 20,000 mw of power generation capacity by 2020.“We are confident of achieving a target of generating 9,240 mw of electricity by March 2014,” said Gautam Adani, chairman of the Adani Group, in December 2013. Despite a debt of over Rs 22,000 crore and losses due to the Indonesian coal crisis that led to expensive coal imports from that country, the company stuck to its plans and aggressively added capacity. In fiscal 2014 alone, Adani Power added 2,640 mw, almost 15 per cent of the 17,000 mw added across the country that year. The commissioning of the fourth unit of its Tiroda plant in April made Adani Power the largest private thermal power producer in the country. According to sources, Adani Power is looking to add another 5,000 mw. “This is the right time for consolidation in India’s power sector,” said Adani recently.For Reliance Power, which bagged three 4,000 mw coal-based UMPPs and raised a record Rs 11,563 crore from its initial public offer (IPO) in February 2008, consolidation did not come easy. It set a target of 35,000 mw in capacity by 2017, but its plans did not materialise and no additions were made save for the Rosa , Butiburi and Samalkot units and the Sasan UMPP. The other UMPPs — Krishnapatanam, Tilaya and Chitrangi near Sasan — are still years away from taking off. Reliance Power’s current capacity is 5,185 mw, half of what Tata Power and Adani Power added in the past few years. But soon, 660 mw will be added to the Sasan UMPP’s capacity and 100 mw at a plant in Rajasthan. At the annual general meeting recently, ADAG charirman Anil Ambani told shareholders that the company was planning to invest Rs 50,000 crore on building the Tilaya UMPP, a 700 mw hydropower plant and on solar energy. break-page-breakJSW Energy is no pushoever in the race for capacity. On 25 September, the company signed a memorandum of understanding with Jaiprakash Power Ventures to buy three of its operating hydropower plants with an aggregate capacity of 1,891 mw for over Rs 12,000 crore — a day after Reliance Power backed out of the deal. The existing operational capacity of JSW Energy is around 3,140 mw and it has 8,630 mw under implementation. Once the Jaiprakash acquisition is complete, JSW Energy’s capacity will rise to 5,031 mw. And, unlike other power companies, JSW Energy is cash rich. So, analysts believe, it will be aggressive on acquisitions.Why The Rush?According to industry observers, the rush among private players to add capacity is a consequence of the positive sentiment in the market ever since the new government came to power. So much so that the Supreme Court order cancelling coal block allocations made since 1993 has done little to dampen enthusiasm. The government is considering a slew of measures, among which are ensuring availability of coal for all new plants and those to be commissioned before 2017, restructuring of coal mining rules with an emphasis on private-public partnership, new coal block auctions, automatic clearances for linkages, capacity expansion of new plants by 50 per cent and amendment of the Electricity Act to improve tariff policy and regulations. The industry is hopeful that changes in policies related to fuel pricing, operationalisation of gas-based projects, a comprehensive review of competitive bidding guidelines (CBG), refinancing of stressed power assets and new coal linkage norms will provide a fillip to the sector. Besides, international coal prices are cooling, making the running of several plants viable. Since peaking in January 2011, the price of thermal coal has fallen over 50 per cent, to about $60-70 per tonne, allowing Indian power producers to import coal. However, a strict licensing norm effective in Indonesia since 1 October 2014 has created some uncertainty in the sector. “Besides the favourable factors that are helping the sector revive, many assets are available for sale due to a cash crunch and it is the right time for developers with deep pockets to consolidate, since such brownfield assets may not be easily available in future,” says N.K. Jain, former vice-chairman, JSW Energy. The government is pushing NTPC to be more aggressive. The state-owned behemoth, which already has a generation capacity of more than 43,000 mw, has been directed to acquire additional capacity from the brownfield market. A government committee headed by former power minister Suresh Prabhu has urged the country’s largest power generator to complete acquisition of distressed power plants within six months. Speaking to BW a few months ago, Arup Roy Choudhury, chairman and managing director, NTPC, said his company was in the process of finalising plants for acquisition. The criteria: plants with good equipment and fuel linkages in place. “Looking at our balance sheet, we can invest around Rs 10,000 crore for acquiring assets in the market,” said Choudhury.“The current resurgence in the power sector is based on the assumption that coal availability will be better in the future and tariff revisions will help both developers and distribution companies, with developers being promised assured returns on their investments,” says Anand Agarwal, CEO and director of Vedanta group’s transmission- and telecom-focused company, Sterlite Technologies. He notes that India is investing only half of what is required in the transmission and distribution sector compared to capacity addition, leaving many projects stranded after completion.Sources say acquiring brownfield projects is more viable in the current scenario than setting up new projects, which take five to six years for completion. An integrated generation project (power plant with a coal mine) is governed by a minimum of 46 key legislations and requires 90 key approvals or clearances for commencement of construction. Besides, acquisition of land is a big issue as large tracts with proximity to clean water resources are going to become a rarity in the country.“About 79,784 mw of capacity, with an investment of Rs 3,13,710 crore are affected due to under-recovery of fixed/variable costs, unavailability or shortfall of gas, projects without power purchase agreements (PPA) and coal block issues,” says Ashok Khurana, director general, Association of Power Producers (APP). Of this, projects involving a capacity of around 39,000 mw are facing viability concerns due to factors beyond developers’ control, he adds. This includes gas-based projects (13,566 mw) and projects that are in trouble due to coal linkages (25,834 mw). Other projects (17,177 mw) lack PPAs, according to data compiled by APP.But this does not mean that these stressed power assets are available at throwaway prices.“All projects are viable, provided there is clarity on PPAs, fuel linkages and bidding norms,” says Khurana, who adds that the priority should be to salvage existing stranded capacities and not add to capacity. AHEAD OF THE GAME: Gautam Adani’s Adani Power has toppled Tata Power to become the largest independent power producer in the private secto“In the case of the two big domestic deals struck recently, both were operational assets and the buyers were aware of the assured returns and profits over the life of the plants. Both Adani and JSW may have overpaid for these assets, but that can be justified by the fact that operational costs of Jaiprakash assets will come down through financial re-engineering. As for Adani, it has the clearance to further expand the Udupi plant’s capacity by another 1,320 mw,” says a senior power sector analyst.The Debt OverhangThe balance sheets of both Tata Power and Adani Power are not as healthy as those of Reliance Power or even competitors like JSW Energy and Jindal Power.Tata Power had a debt of Rs 30,469.94 crore and a not-so-robust debt-to-equity ratio of 2.90 (including impairment provisioning), on a consolidated basis, as on 31 March 2014. “Tata Power is evaluating and will continue to evaluate opportunities to acquire projects in various stages of development across the country,” says Anil Sardana, CEO and managing director, in the company’s annual report for 2013-14. To de-risk operations and investments in India, Tata power is also trying to go global. It is planning a 1,200 mw project in Vietnam, a 120 mw hydro project in Zambia and an imported coal-fired power project in Myanmar.Companies with strong balance sheets like JSW Energy and Jindal Power are going to gain in the near future, say industry observers. JSW Energy had revenues of Rs 8,782 crore in 2013-14, with a net profit of Rs 903 crore, while its total current liabilities as of March 2014 were Rs 4,446 crore. “JSW Energy has a strong balance sheet with no capex plans, leading to high cash-flow generation, which is a rarity among IPPs,” notes Abhinav Sharma, an analyst with HDFC Securities.But for pure infrastructure players like Lanco Infratech, these are bad times. A year ago, Lanco had over 4,000 mw of operational assets, 4,636 mw under construction and 6,840 mw of capacity under development. But a debt of over Rs 36,000 crore at the group level and a subsequent corporate debt restructuring (CDR) forced the company to divest its assets. Lanco Infratech declined to participate in this story.Some companies such as GVK Power and Infrastructure are treading the path of caution. “We are now focusing on consolidation of existing projects rather than chasing new projects,” said G.V.K. Reddy, chairman, GVK Power and Infrastructure, at the company’s annual general meeting. GVK has a debt of Rs 22,800 crore and is planning to raise some Rs 1,000 crore through a qualified institutional placement to cut its liabilities. Apart from two operational power plants of 900 mw each, GVK has over 5,000 mw of capacity in various stages of construction and development.“Power companies with good corporate backing can raise money and manage attractive valuations despite their debt as once PPAs and fuel allocations are in place, power projects will ensure profits and good long-term return on investments,” notes Jain, adding, “But it is up to bankers to decide on the parameters under which they will extend further credit to companies with stretched balance sheets.”Whether or not funds are available, aggressive capacity expansion is back on the agenda of leading power producers. This may lead to a make-or-break situation for many companies, but only time will tell. jayakumar@businessworld.inTwitter:@pbjayakumar(This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 03-11-2014)
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A special court on Monday (13 October) rejected the closure report of CBI and summoned as accused former Coal Secretary H C Gupta, two government servants, MP-based Kamal Sponge Steel and Power Ltd and its officials in a coal blocks allocation scam case.Special CBI Judge Bharat Parashar took cognisance of the offences of criminal conspiracy, cheating, criminal breach of trust by public servant under the IPC and under the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act."I am taking cognisance for the offences under sections 120B, 420 and 409 of the IPC and also under sections 13(1)(d) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act. I am summoning the accused," the judge said, adding that a separate order will be followed.The court issued summons to Gupta, two other serving government officials, Kamal Sponge Steel and Power Ltd, its managing director Pavan Ahluwalia and senior official Amit Goyal and directed them to appear before it on October 31.The court directed the investigating officer to get the summons served to all the accused and also asked him to complete the documents to be given to the accused before the next date of hearing (October 31).The court passed the order while rejecting the closure report filed by CBI in the case in which Kamal Sponge Steel and Power Ltd, its directors, Pavan, Kamaljeet Ahluwalia, Prashant Ahluwalia, Amit and some unknown government servants were named as accused for allegedly misrepresenting facts, including inflated net worth, to acquire coal blocks.(PTI)
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