Coal Block Controversy

27/03/2015
Coalblockcontroversy:AnewsroundupLivemint
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FIRSTPUBLISHED:THU,SEP062012.1127PMIST
Coalblockcontroversy:Anewsroundup
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Thenewdevelopmentsinthecoalblockallocationcontroversy,putinperspective
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MOREFROMTHISSECTION
Photo:AFP
Lastyear,Mintstartedtrackingcoverageofthecoalscamcontroversy
acrossmedia.Heresrevivingtheserieswiththelatestdevelopments.
18October2013
ThecentralgovernmenthascomeoutstronglyindefenceofPrime
MinisterManmohanSinghafterformercoalsecretaryPCParakhsaidthat
PrataapSnackslooksto
raise$5070millionfrom
PEinvestors
ifheandKumarMangalamBirlaareconspirators,thensoisthePrime
Ministerequallyresponsiblefortheallegedconspiracyinallocationofcoal
blocks,CNNIBNnewschannelsaidinareport.
UnioninformationandbroadcastingministerManishTewarispeakingto
KaranThaparonDevilsAdvocatesaidthatitwasunfairtoholdthePrime
Ministerresponsiblefortheadministrativedecisionstakenbythe
governmentatthebureaucraticlevel,thereportfurthersaid.
AustraliamakesIndiagive
itback
TheBusinessStandardnewspaperhasquestionedwhetherthePrime
MinistercanescapescrutinyontheallocationoftheTalabiraIIcoalblock
http://www.livemint.com/Politics/tJIXT99jAiQNyBfPbjmmkJ/CoalblockcontroversyAnewsroundup.html
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toHindalco.
PCParakhslabellingofPrimeMinisterasconspiratornumberthreein
allocationofcoalminetoKumarManglamBirlapromotedHindalcoisnot
withoutreason.Thescreeningcommittee,ofwhichParakhwasthe
AAPfactionsfailtopatch
updifferences
chairmanwhenhewasthecoalsecretary,makesrecommendationstothe
coalministryforallocationcaptivecoalminesbutthefinalapprovalcomes
fromtheminister.PrimeMinisterManmohanSinghwastheCabinet
ministerofcoalwhenHindalcowasadmittedasacodeveloperofTalabira
IIcoalblockin2005alongwithUniongovernmentownedNeyveliLignite
Corporation(NLC).,thenewspapersaysinanopinionpiece.
Accordingtotheprocedurelaidoutforgivingoutcaptivecoalmining
rights,theministryofcoalmakesdirectallocationofcoalminesto
governmentcompaniesunderthegovernmentdispensationroute.For
privatecompanies,itdoesallocationbasedontherecommendationsofan
interministerialscreeningcommittee,thepiecefurthernotes.
TheIndianExpressnewspaperhassaidthatbeforefinalisingtheFIR
namingKumarMangalamBirlaandP.C.Parakh,theCBIhadinternally
debatedontheideaofmakingadirectreferencetothePrimeMinister.
SourcestoldTheIndianExpressthatCBIofficials,workingontheFIR
againstKumarMangalamBirlaandexCoalSecretaryP.C.Parakhhad
initiallymadereferencestothePrimeMinisterbecausehewascoal
ministerwhenHindalcogottheTalabiraIIcoalblock.Inthefinaldraft,
approvedbyagencydirectorRanjitSinha,however,thesereferences
appearedascompetentauthorityandunknownpublicservants.,the
newspaperreportsaid.
CBIofficialsclarifiedthatthefilingoftheFIRwasanindependent
decisionandthatnolegaladvicefromanyGovernmentlawofficerwas
soughtinthecase.Interestingly,theCBIisexpectedtofileaclutchofother
FIRsinthecoalblockallocationcasebefore29October,thenexthearing
intheapexcourt,thenewsreportfurthersaid.
WithindaysoftheCBInamingAdityaBirlaGroupchiefK.M.Birlaand
formercoalsecretaryP.C.Parakhinits14thFIRintheblocksallocation
case,thecoalministryispreparingtocanceltheallotmentofsomemega
blocksincludingthoseofJSPL,TataPower,NTPCandSAIL,TheIndian
Expresssaidinanotherstory.
Theinterministerialgroup(IMG)lookingintothecasehasshortlisted30
blocks.Thegroupissettomeetnextweek.Showcausenoticeshave
alreadybeenservedamonthagototheallotteesofeachblockpointingto
thedefaultsinmeetingmilestones,thereportfurthersaid.
On15May,Minthadreportedthatthegovernmentwassettoissueshow
causenoticestotheholdersofatleast30captivecoalblocks.The
companiesthatarelikelytobeservednoticesincludesomeofthe
prominentonesinthepowerandsteelsectors.TheyincludeJindalSteel
andPowerLtd,TataPowerCo.Ltd,GVKPowerandInfrastructureLtdand
JaypeeGroup,thenewsreporthadsaid.
TheHindunewspaperhassaidinareportthatthereversalofdecisionthat
finallyledtotheawardoftheTalabiraIIcoalblocktoHindalcoIndustries
Ltd,pointstoPrimeMinisterManmohanSingh.Thereportsaysthis,
citingtheminutesofthe25thscreeningcommitteethathadrejected
Hindalcosclaimontheblock.
Thisnewevidenceshowsthatthecommitteesrecommendationswere
changedinthecaseoftheAdityaBirlaGroupatthebehestofPrime
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MinisterManmohanSinghwhowasalsocoalministeratthetime.This
conclusionisderivedfromthefactthatthoughMr.Parakhhastakenpart
ownershipforthechangeinthedecision,thecoalsecretaryalone,though
headingthecommittee,hasnopowertochangeitsrecommendations.This
powereithervestswiththecommitteeorwiththecoalminister,thereport
says.
Interestingly,theexistingpolicystipulatesthatnocoalblockinwhichany
CentralPSUhasshowninterestorhasdevelopedinfrastructureinthearea
tosupportminingactivityintheareawillbeallottedtoanyprivate
company.Sinceinthisparticularmatter,MCL,aCentralPSU,hadapplied
andwasrecommendedforcoalblockallocation,itmakesitdoubly
surprisingthatthecoalminister(PM)wentagainstthepolicytoapprove
andallotasharefromTalabiraIItoHindalco,thereportfurthersays.
Meanwhile,TheHinduBusinessLinenewspapersaysinareportthatthe
PublicAccountsCommitteeofParliamentissettocallKumarMangalam
BirlaandP.C.Parakh.Theexaminationisunlikelytostopthere.Members
inthepanelwantindustrialistsincludingNaveenJindal,VijayDarda,Ajay
Sanchetiandotherbeneficiariesoftheallocationtobesummonedalong
withthethenministryofficials,thereportsays.
AskedifthePrimeMinisterwillalsobesummoned,apersonawareofthe
developmentsquippedthatallroadsleadtoRome.Itis,however,the
prerogativeofthePACchairman,MurliManoharJoshioftheBharatiya
JanataParty,todecidethenamesofpeoplewhohavetobeinterrogated
bythepanel,thereportfurthersaid.
RankledbyCBIactionagainsttopindustrialistK.M.Birlainrelationtocoal
scam,corporateleadersonThursdaysaidbusinessmencannotbemade
scapegoatsonthebasisofmeresuspicionandsuchincidentswould
furtherwidenthegovernmentindustrytrustdeficit,ThePressTrustof
Indiasaidinareport,citingvariousindustryrepresentatives.
HindalcoIndustriesmanagingdirectorDebuBhattacharyaonThursday
saidifhehadknownhowcomplexandfraughttheprocesswouldbetoset
upanaluminaplantandasmelterinOrissa,hewouldhaveneverputit
up,BusinessTodaymagazinesaidinareport.
Ireallydontunderstandwherewewentwrong.Ifanything,wehavebeen
atthereceivingend,BhattacharyatoldBusinessToday.
AdvocateManoharLalSharma,themainpetitionerinthecoalscamcase,
filedanapplicationintheSupremeCourtonThursday,questioningtheFIR
thattheCBIfiledagainstKumarMangalamBirlaandtheformercoal
secretary,PrakashChandraParakh,withoutincludingthenameofPrime
MinisterManmohanSingh,TheHindunewspapersaidinanotherreport.
WhilethecorporateworldslamstheCBIsmovetoaccuseindustrialist
KumarMangalamBirlaofconspiracyinallotmentofacoalblockto
Hindalco,theIASOfficersAssociationisconsideringpetitioningtheCentre
againsttargettingofformercoalsecretaryP.C.Parakhmerelybecause
hehadmetBirlabeforerevisinghisearlierdecisionrejectingHindalcos
application,areportinTheTimesofIndiahassaid.
AnIASofficerworkinginhomeministryarguedthatthemannerinwhich
Parakhhasbeenpulledoutofhisretirementandaccusedofcorruptionwill
proveadisincentiveforallseniorbureaucratswhogooutoftheirwayto
meetstakeholdersbeforetakingmajordecisions,thereportfurthernotes.
17October2013
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OdishachiefministerNaveenPatnaikonThursdaydefendedhiswritingto
PrimeMinisterManmohanSinghtoexamineexpeditiouslythepleaof
AdityaBirlaGroupcompanyHindalcoforallotmentofacoalblockinthe
state,whichisundertheCBIscanner,sayingitwasdonekeepingthebest
interestsofOdishainmind,thePressTrustofIndiasaidinareport.
IhadurgedthePrimeMinistertoexamineHindalcosrequestforcoal
block...butaspertheprocedureforcoalblockallocation,thefinaldecision
restswiththecentralgovernment,PatnaiktoldreportersinBhubaneswar,
thereportsaid.
Meanwhile,anNDTVreportclaimsthattheCBIfirstinformationreport
(FIR)mayalludetoPrimeMinisterManmohanSinghandhisoffice.The
reportsaysthattheinvestigatingagencyhasnotgivenacleanchittothe
PrimeMinistersOffice.
InwhatmaybemoretroubleforthePrimeMinister,theCBIFIRmay
alludetohimandhisoffice.IntheFIR,accessedbyNDTV,thereis
referencetoacompetentauthoritywhoclearedalldecisions.Thisseems
tobeDrSinghwhowasholdingthecoalportfolioatthattime,theNDTV
reportsaid.
Thefirstreferenceistothecompetentauthorityapprovingthescreening
committeesrecommendationtorejectHindalcosapplicationinfavourof
thePSUs.Thesecond,allegedcriminalactioniswhenthecompetent
authorityapprovescoalsecretarysdecisiontooverturnscreening
committeeandapproveHindalco,thenewsreportfurthersaid.
CNNIBNnewschannelsaidonThursdaythattheCentralBureauof
Investigation(CBI)isscanningtheroleofOrissachiefministerNaveen
Patnaikinthecoalscam.NaveenPatnaikhadreportedlywrittentoPrime
MinisterManmohanSinghtoapprovecoalblocksofAdityaBirlaGroup
chairmanKumarMangalamBirlaownedHindalco,thenewsreportsaid.
CBIsourcessayPatnaikwrotetoManmohanSinghtoallocatethe
TalabiraIIcoalblocktoHindalco.Patnaiksenttheletterafterthescreening
committeerejectedHindalcosbidin2005,thereportfurthersaid.
AtopCBIofficialhowevertoldMintthatPatnaikwasunlikelytobe
questionedinthecase.
FourmonthsafteritbookedindustrialistandpoliticianNaveenJindalinthe
coalblockallocationscase,theCentralBureauofInvestigationsaidon
Tuesdaythatithadfiledafirstinformationreport(FIR)againstKumar
MangalamBirla,chairmanoftheAdityaBirlaGroup,andP.C.Parakh,a
formerunioncoalsecretary.
TheAdityaBirlaGroupcompanyHindalcoIndustrieshasalsobeennamed
intheFIR,theCBIsaid.
TheCBIisinvestigatingcoalfieldallotmentsinaprobemonitoredbythe
SupremeCourt.
Theyhavebeenbookedforcriminalconspiracy,MintcitedaseniorCBI
officialassaying.TheFIRstatesthatintheyear2005,thesepeople
colludedincriminalconspiracywithoneanotherandthepublicservants
thenabusedtheirofficialpositiontoshowfavourstooneprivatecompany,
theofficialsaid,detailingthecontentsofthecomplaint,theMintreportsaid.
Followingthis,onWednesday,theagencysaidthatithadrecoveredmore
thanRs.25croreinunaccountedforcashduringasearchofHindalco
IndustriesLtdsNewDelhioffice,insearchesconductedonTuesday.
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Themoneyhasbeenpassedontotheincometaxdepartmentforfurther
investigation,aseniorCBIofficialsaid.Theofficial,whodidntwanttobe
named,furthersaidthatduringsearchesofotherHindalcooffices,the
agencyhadrecoveredincriminatingdocumentsMintreportedon
Wednesday.
Meanwhile,Parakh,inaninterviewtoMintonWednesday,saidthatthe
decisiontoawardapartoftheTalabiraIIcoalblocktoHindalcowasfair
andright.Hesaidthatifhewerepartofaconspiracy,thenPrimeMinister
ManmohanSinghtooshouldbetreatedasanequalactorbecauseitwas
thePrimeMinistersOfficethattookthefinaldecision.
Meanwhile,inareport,TheTimesofIndiasaidthattheCBIsdecisionto
nameBirlainanFIRwillscaretheindustry.
GovernmentleadersareworriedthattheCBIactionagainstindustry
leaderslikeKumarMangalamBirlawilldentbusinessandinvestor
confidence.AtleasttwoUPAministersonWednesdayslammedCBIs
repeatedpursuitofindustrialistsandbureaucratsandwarnedthatsuch
actionimpactdecisionmakingandhitinvestorconfidence,thereportsaid,
citingunionministersincludingcommerceministerAnandSharmaand
corporateaffairsministerSachinPilot.
Inrecentmonths,apartfromBirla,severaltopindustrialistsamong
them,SunilMittal,RaviandAnshumanRuiaofEssar,NaveenJindalof
JSPL,JSWsSajjanJindalandUnitechsSanjayChandraandahostof
corporatehouses,includingAnilAmbanigroupfirm,VodafoneandTata
CommunicationarefacingCBIactionforallegedirregularities,thereport
furthernoted.
SharmawasjoinedbycaptainsofindustrysuchasHDFCchiefDeepak
ParekhandBioconheadKiranMazumdarShawwhosharplycriticisedthe
CBImove.ParekhsaidthatstraightforwardpeoplelikeBirlawerebeing
harassedbytheIndianprosecutionsystemwhilemajorfraudsterswere
allowedtogoscotfree,TheIndianExpressnewspapersaidinarelated
report.
Enquiry...revealedthatwhiletherecommendationsofscreening
committeewerebeingapprovedbythecompetentauthority,itreceived
lettersdated07.05.2005and17.06.2005fromKumarMangalamBirlaof
M/sHindalcoIndustriesLtd,requestingforallocationofTalabiraIIcoal
block,whichwereforwardedtotheMinistryofCoal,theCBIhassaidinits
FIR,anotherreportinTheIndianExpresssaid.
AccordingtotheCBI,BirlametParakh,thethenSecretary(Coal),during
July2005andrequestedfortheallocationofTalabiraIIcoalblockto
Hindalco...Pursuanttotheselettersandthepersonalmeetingbetween
ParakhandBirla,Parakh,byabusinghisofficialpositionasapublicservant
recommendedtheallocationofTalabiraIIalongwithTalabiraIIIcoalblock
toHindalco,alongwithothertwocompanieswithoutanyvalidbasisor
changeincircumstancesandwiththesoleintentiontoshowunduefavours
toHindalco,thereportfurthernotes.
26October2012
Thepublicaccountscommittee(PAC)oftheParliamentledbyseniorBJP
leaderMurliManoharJoshiwillvisitOdishasoontoscrutinizealleged
irregularitiesincoalblockallotmentsinthestatebetween2005and2009,
BusinessStandardnewspapersaidinareport.
Theninememberpanelwillalsoexaminetheprocedurefollowedbythe
stategovernmentinrecommendingcoalblocksforprivateaswellasPSU
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firms.Besides,thepanelwillcheckthestatusofcoalblocksallocatedto
MahanadiCoalfieldsLtd(MCL),aCoalIndiasubsidiary.Thepanelwilltake
upscrutinyonthebasisofthefindingsoftheComptroller&Auditor
GeneralofIndia(CAG)oncoalblockallocations.ThePACwillreach
OdishaonNovember2.Itwillholdtalkswiththechiefsecretaryandother
topstateofficialsonthenextday,saidaseniorsteel&minesdepartment
official,thereportfurthersaid.
TheRs1.86lakhcrorecoalscamhadanunexpectedfalloutwiththe
JindalSteelandPowerLtd(JSPL)allegingthateditorsofZeeNewsgroup
haddemandedmoneytostopthecoverageofthecompanybeingoneof
thebeneficiariesofcoalblockallocations,DNAnewspapersaidinareport.
Thevideoshowsthebroadcasterseditorsseekingmoneyfromthe
steelmakersemployeestoblackoutunfavourablereportsonthecompany
relatedtoirregularitiesintheallotmentofcaptivecoalminesbythe
government,Mintsaidinanotherreportonthesameissue.
23October2012
TheInterMinisterialGroup(IMG)willdecidethefateof13coalmines
allocatedtopublicsectorfirmsonthefirstdayofatwodaymeetinglikely
tobeheldnextweekThiscouldincludefirmssuchastheChhattisgarh
MineralDevelopmentCorp.andtheAndhraPradeshPowerGeneration
Corp.,thePressTrustofIndia(PTI)saidinareport.
TheIMGwillmakerecommendationswithregardto13coalminesalloted
topublicsectorfirmson30October.On31Octoberthepanelwillmake
recommendationsfor20mines,anofficialinthecoalministrysaid.Onthe
secondday,theIMGwillmakerecommendationswithregardstoPSUslike
NalcoandMMTCamongothers,theofficialsaid,thereportadded.
Acoalministrymemoontheinterministerialgroupnotingthattherewas
nomechanismtoverifycorrectnessofdatafurnishedbycoalblockallotees
todayledtheoppositiontoallegethatgovernmentwasnotseriousabout
checkingcorruption,butCongressplayeddowntheissue,anotherPTI
reportsaid.
Thecommunicationdated10/11September,releasedbyJD(U)president
SharadYadavtomediaonTuesday,said,theIMGhadnotedthatthereis
nomechanismtoverifythecorrectnessofdatafurnishedbytheallotees
exceptinthecaseswherepowerplantsmonitoredbyCentralElectrical
Authorityaretheenduseplants.Thememonotedthechartered
accountantcertificateandphysicalprogressreportbythecompanieswas
takenonrecord,thereportfurthersaid.
AccusingrulingCongressofnotbeingseriousincurtailingcorruption,
JD(U)onTuesdaysaidtheOppositionwillcornerthegovernmentoncoal
blockissueinwintersessionofParliamentbeginningfrom21November,
yetanotherPTIreportsaid
Hittingoutagainsttheirregularitiesincoalblockallocations,RTIactivist
EASSamrablamedpoliticiancorporatenexusforthecorruptpracticesand
suggestedtheideaofcompetitivebiddingtobringtransparencyinall
sectors,ZeeNewsreported.
CriticisingPMManmohanSinghforemptyreformpromiseshesaid,The
PMjusttalksaboutreforms.Thereisnoreformvisibleinreality.Headded
thatthereisnochangeintheallocationofspectrumyetandinanysector
forthatmatter,beitcommonwealth,2Gorcoalgate,thereportadded.
Lawswerefloutedandsidesteppedbythosewieldingpowerinthe
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massivecoalscamwhichtookthecountrybystorm.ZeeNewsfounda
blatantexampleofthiswhenitvisitedRaigarhdistrictofChhattisgarh
whereithasbeenallegedthattheadministrationoverlookedtheconcerns
ofthelocalpopulationtoallotcoalblocktotheJindalSteelandPower
Limited,ZeeNewssaidinanotherreport.
WhenZeeNewsvisitedgroundzeroitfoundoutthatthepeopleof
KhamiyaravillagewereagainsttheallocationofcoalblocktoJSPL.Asper
thevillagers,JSPLsprojecthadtobegivenanenvironmentalclearance.
However,thepolicelathichargedtheprotestorsandchasedthemaway,
thereportfurthersaid.
19October2012
TheAttorneyGeneralG.E.Vahanvatihasadvisedthegovernmentagainst
goingtocourttoseekexemptionforDrManmohanSinghfromFIRsor
policecomplaintsbeingregisteredbytheoppositionBJPacrossthe
countryinconnectionwiththecoalswindle.Thegovernmentislikelyto
accepthisopinion,NDTVnewschannelsaidinareport.
ThegovernmentisconcernedthatthePrimeMinistercouldbequestioned
bythepoliceinconnectionwiththecoalscam,worthRs1.86lakhcrores
accordingtothenationalauditor.
SoitwaskeentoaskforimmunityforDrManmohanSingh,thereport
said.
TheBJPhaslaunchedahighvolumecampaignagainstthePrimeMinister
becausehewasinchargeofthecoalministrywhensomecoalblockswere
allocatedatbelowmarketrates.TheauditororCAGsaidinareportin
Augustthatthemethodofallocationlackedtransparency,butdidnotindict
eitherthePrimeMinisterorhisoffice.TheBJPisfilingpolicecasesagainst
coalministerSriprakashJaiswal,SoniaGandhiwhoisthechairpersonof
therulingUPAcoalition,andthePrimeMinister,thereportfurthersaid.
BJPtodaysoughttoresurrectthecoalallocationissue,allegingthereisa
hugescaminthecancellationoftheallotmentswherenomininghas
beendonewellpastthedeadlineandunduedelayisbeingcausedbythe
coalministryandtheInterMinisterialGroup.BJPMPHansrajAhir,who
hasbeenspearheadinghispartyscampaignagainstcoalblockallotments,
toldreportersheretodaythatlikeintheallocations,thereisahugescam
inthecancellationoftheblocksaswell.HenamedcoalministerSri
PrakashJaiswalandtheIMGastheonesresponsibleforthis,thePress
TrustofIndiasaidinareport.
CoalsecretaryS.K.SrivastavaandCoalIndiachairmanS.NarsingRao
werehauledoverthecoalbytheStandingCommitteeofParliamenton
CoalandSteeloverthedelayinthecancellationoflicencestodevelopers
thathadnotundertakenexplorationactivitywithinthesettimelimit.The
ministryhassoughtaweekstimetosubmitadetailedreplytothe
committeeontheactiontaken.Ithadhadthreemonthsforthisexercise,
TheHinduBusinessLinesaidinareport.
SourcesonthecommitteetoldBusinessLinethattheywereinformedby
ministryofficialsthatlicencesofabout30blockswerecancelledsofarand
bankguaranteesof14allotteesencashed,thereportadded.
Rattledbythedinoverallegedirregularitiesinallocationofcoalblocks,the
governmentisbringingbackinspectorrajinthepowersector,TheIndian
Expressnewspapersaidinareport.
Proposednormsenvisageindependentengineersbeingstationedat
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eachupcomingthermalprojectforroundtheclockmonitoringof
operations,somethingthatprivatedevelopersarecallingexcessively
intrusiveandunworkable,thereportsaid.
PrivatepowerprojectdevelopersledbyTataPowerandReliancePower
todaymetofficialsfromthePrimeMinistersOfficeonthis,amongother
issues.Theproposal,partofacontentiousbiddingregimebeingushered
intothepowersector,isintherevisedStandardBiddingDocuments
(SBDs)forpowerprojectsfloatedbyPowerMinistryinpartnershipwiththe
PlanningCommission.TheprovisionintheSBDstipulatestheappointment
ofanindependentengineerbythestateelectricityboardtooversee
operationsoftheplant,includingefficiencyintheusageofcoal,todecide
whethertheelectricitytariffbeingchargedbytheplantisfair.The
engineerwillalsohavethemandatetoreviewdrawingsanddocuments,
inspectandmonitortheconstructionandcompletionoftheproject,the
reportfurthersaid.
18October2012
ThecoalministryhasfiledacaveatintheSupremeCourtagainstapetition
challengingcoalblockallocations,thePressTrustofIndia(PTI)reported.
AftertheComptrollerandAuditorGeneral(CAG)reporthadobservedthat
financialbenefitsofanestimatedRs1.86lakhcrorecouldhaveaccruedto
privatefirms,twopetitionshavebeenfiledintheapexcourtagainstthe
coalblockallocations.MembersofcivilsocietyincludingformerCEC,N.
Gopalaswami,exNavychief,L.Ramdasandformercabinetsecretary,
T.S.R.Subramanianhadon4OctoberapproachedtheSupremeCourt
seekingacourtmonitoredSITprobeintothecoalblockallocation.They
filedajointPILalongwithotherretiredbureaucratsandNGOCommon
Causepleadingtheapexcourttoquashtheentireallocationofcoalblocks
toprivatecompaniesmadebytheCentresince1993.Thepetitioners
allegedthatallotmentofcoalblockswasnontransparentandwasdonein
anunfairmannerinviolationofrulesandprocedures,thereportadded.
TheInterMinisterialGroup(IMG)oncoalblocksislikelytofinalizeits
recommendationsbythemonthendwithregardto33blocksallottedto
publicsectorfirmssuchasNalcoandMMTC,PTIsaidinanotherreport.
ThePSUswhichpresentedtheircasesbeforethepanelincludeAndhra
PradeshPowerGenerationCompany,ChhattisgarhMineralDevelopment
Corp,MMTCandNalcoamongothers,thereportadded.
Thecoalministryhassoughttheadviceofthelawministryontheformat
ofdeallocationlettersthatwillbesenttoabout13coalblockowners
whoseblocksaretobetakenbackbythegovernment,saidpeoplefamiliar
withthedevelopment.TheministryhasalsoengagedtheCoalController
forcalculatingtheamounttobedeductedfromthebankguarantees,and
theprocessislikelytobecompletedthisweek,TheEconomicTimes
newspapersaidinareport.
ThecoalministryissendingastockreplytohundredsofRightto
Information(RTI)applicants,citingtheongoingCentralBureauof
Investigation(CBI)probeasareasonfornotbeingabletoprovideanswers
toquestionsseekingdetailsonthecontroversialcoalblockallocations,Mint
saidinareport.
Repliestoapplicationsreceivedinthelastmonthorsosayproviding
informationwouldhindertheprosecutionbyCBI,accordingtoa
governmentofficialclosetotheprocess,thereportadded.
15October2012
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TheSupremeCourtonMondaysoughtthestandsoftheCentreandthe
Odishagovernmentonchargesthatauthoritieshadindulgedincorruption
ingivingacoalblock,allocatedtothestateminingcorporationin2003,toa
privatefirm,thePressTrustofIndia(PTI)reported.
APILhassoughtaCBIprobeintodivestingOdishaMiningCorporationLtd
(OMC)ofthecoalblockinTalchercoalfieldofAnguldistrictandhanding
overthesametotheprivatefirm,thereportsaid.
FiledbyTalcherbasedsocialactivistPurnaChandraSahu,thePILhas
allegedthatwhiletheconductoftheOdishagovernmentwasmanifestly
illegal,thatoftheCentreremainingsilentdespitenoticingthevariousacts
ofomissionbythestateisequallyshocking.Inthepleafiledthrough
advocateSureshTripathy,theactivisthasallegedthatduetothenon
transparentandarbitrarypolicyintroducedbytheCentre,thecoalblock
allocatedinfavourofOMCwashandedovertoaprivatefirmbythestate
inanarbitraryandmanifestlycorruptmanner.Hehassaidthatthecoal
blockwasallocatedinfavourofOMCon19December,2003andthe
consentletterregardingthesamewasreceivedbyOMCon5January,
2004,thereportfurthersaid.
Thecoalministrywillstartsendinglettersfordeallocationofcoalblocks
fromMonday,TheEconomicTimesnewspapersaid,citingatopministry
official.
Allfilesregardingdeallocationandbankguaranteesofcompanies,which
havenotmettargetstodevelopblocks,havereachedthecoalministry
fromtheinterministerialgroup(IMG).Theministerialpanelhaddecidedto
deallocateblocksonwhichnoprogresshasbeenmade,theofficialsaid,
thereportnoted.
BlockstobedeallocatedincludeBramhadihblockinJharkhandallocated
toCastronMiningin1996,ChinoraandWarora(southernpart)blocksin
MaharashtragiventoFieldMiningandIspatin2003,Lalgarh(North)block
inJharkhandallottedtoDOMCOSmokelessFuelsin2005.Gourangdih
ABCcoalblockallottedtoHimachalEMTAPower&JSWSteel,Rawanwara
NorthcoalblockallottedtoSKSIspatandPowerandNewPatraparacoal
blockallottedtoBhushanSteelandotherswillalsobedeallocated,the
reportfurthernoted.
TheCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)onMondayfiledtwofreshFIRs
inthecoalblocksallocationsscam.Sourcessaidthattheagencywas
conductingsearchesat16locationsinsixcitiesinfivestates,CNNIBN
newschannelsaidinareport.
TwoofthecompaniesthatwereraidedduringthesearcheswereGreen
InfraandKamalSteel.Thetwocompaniesareaccusedofmisrepresenting
theirnetworth,thereportadded.
ThegovernmentmayusethefindingsofaCrisilreporttocounterthe
ComptrollerandAuditorGenerals(CAG)estimatesonwindfallgainsthat
allegedlyaccruedtoaclutchofprivatecompaniesfrom57coalblocks
allocatedtothembetween2004and2009withoutauction,TheFinancial
Expresssaidinafrontpagestory.
Coalministrysourceshavehintedthattheministrymayputupthereport
beforeParliamentsPublicAccountsCommittee(PAC)tobuttressits
positionthattheCAGwaswronginputtingthelosstotheexchequerdueto
discretionaryallocationofcoalblocksatawhoppingR1.86lakhcrore,the
reportsaid,citingcoalministryofficials.
Meanwhile,CrisilhasrevisedthefundamentalgradeofMonnetIspat&
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EnergyLtdtothreeonfive(3/5)formthepreviousgradationoffouronfive
(4/5),TheHinduBusinessLinesaidinareport.
Itsaidthatthedowngradeessentiallyconsiderstheuncertain
repercussionsoftheCAGsrecentreportoncoalblockallocation.Any
adverseoutcomewillimpactMonnetsprofitabilitysignificantly,Crisil
added.
Monnetwaspreviouslygradedhigherbasedontheexpectedhigh
profitabilityofitsupcoming1,050MWpowerprojectbasedonthe
allocationoftwocaptivecoalblocksMandakiniandUtkalB2in
OdishasAnguldistrict,thenewsreportsaid.
CRISILhasrecommendedlinkingthevaluationofcoalreservestobeput
upforbiddingtointernationalprices.Initsdraftreportoncoalblock
auctioning,BusinessStandardsaidinareport.CRISILhassaidgiving
subsidiesforuseofnaturalresourcesdoesnotprovideincentivesfor
marketparticipantstojudiciouslyutilisethescareresourceinthelongrun,
thereportadded.
Thedraftreportnotesatleastfivefactorswillimpactthevalueofamineto
bebidout.Theseincludecoalpriceconsidered(whetherimportparityor
CIL),discountrateconsideredfornetpresentvalue(NPV),operatingcost
assumptions(whetherdepartmentaloroutsourcing),timelinesfor
developmentandadditionalpaymenttoprojectaffectedpeopleaccording
tothedraftMinesandMineralsDevelopmentandRegulation(MMDR)Bill,
thenewsreportfurthersays.
13October2012
TheParliamentaryStandingCommitteeonCoalandSteelwillreviewthe
allotment,developmentandperformanceofcoalblocks.Adecisiontothis
effectwastakenatthefirstmeetingofthereconstitutedcommitteehereon
Friday,TheIndianExpressnewspapersaidinareport.
ThecommitteeisheadedbyTrinamoolCongresssLokSabhaMPKalyan
Banerjee.Incidentally,HansrajAhiroftheBJP,whoiscreditedwiththe
exposureofanomaliesintheallocationofcoalblocks,isalsoamemberof
thecommittee.Thepanelwouldalsolookintocoalpricingandroyalty
besidesthepoliciesforcoallinkagesandexportofironore,thereport
said.
Meanwhile,thegovernmentcouldsoongrantforestclearancetothe
Mahancoalblock,whichfindsmentionintheComptrollerandAuditor
Generalsrecentreportonimproperallocationsofcoalblocks,Mintsaidin
areport.
TheMahancoalblockwasallocatedtoajointventureofEssarPowerLtd
andHindalcoIndustriesLtd,thereportsaid.
FormerenvironmentministerJairamRameshhadbeenapprehensiveof
givingaclearancetotheMahancoalblockandreferredboththeblocksto
agroupofministersheadedbythethenfinanceministerPranab
MukherjeeThepanelclearedboththeblockson30May.Itincludedthe
coalandpowerministers,apartfromtheenvironmentminister,thereport
noted.
12October2012
TheTimesofIndiareportsthattheOrissaunitoftheCongresspartyhas
accusedstatechiefministerNaveenPatnaikofbeinginvolvedinthecoal
blockallocationandminingscams.TheoppositionCongressonThursday
allegedthatchiefministerNaveenPatnaikisscaredofreferringtothe
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miningscamandcontroversiessurroundingtherecommendationofcoal
blocktotheCBIbecauseinvestigationbythecentralagencywouldexpose
corruptioninhisgovernment,thereportsays.
TheOPCCpresidentreferredtothecontroversialOMCSainikdealforthe
UtkalDcoalblockandsaidthegovernment,whichinitiallydefendedits
deal,hadtofinallycancelthejointventureagreementwiththeDelhibased
companyonlyafterpublicpressuremounted,thereportgoesontosay.
CongressmemberofparliamentVijayDardamayhaveviolatedtheState
EmblemofIndia(ProhibitionofImproperUse)Act,2005,
VijayDarda,CongressmemberofParliament(MP)intheRajyaSabha,
whowasrecentlyinthenewsinconnectionwiththecoalblockallocation
scam,appearstobeusinghispositionformorethanjustParliamentary
work,BusinessStandardnewspaperreports.
Dardahasbeenusinghisofficialletterhead,whichhashisnameandthe
nationalemblem,tosecureadvertisementsfromcompaniesfortheDiwali
issueofthepublicationsoftheLokmatMediagroup,ofwhichheisthe
chairman,thereportgoesontosay.
11October2012
JSWSteelonThursdaysaiditmaytakethegovernmenttocourtfollowing
acoalministrydecisiontodeallocatetheGourangdihABCcoalmine,
allottedjointlytotheSajjanJindalledfirmandHimachalEMTAPowerLtd,
Moneycontrol.comreported.
Wehavetakeneffectivestepsindevelopmentofmineandalsoin
implementingtheenduseplant.Wewilltakeitupatappropriateforum
eitherinthecourtorinthegovernment,iftheytakethatactionwhichisnot
right,thecompanysjointmanagingdirectorSeshagiriRaotoldreporters,
thereportsaid.
Actingonarecommendationfromtheinterministerialgroup(IMG),the
governmenton18Septemberhadannouncedthedeallocationofthe
GourangdihABCblock,allocatedtoJSWandHimachalEMTAjointlyinJuly
2009.TheIMGfoundthattheprojectdevelopershadfailedtodevelopthe
blockwithintheprescribedtimeandhadnotachievedcriticalmilestones
includingforestclearance,grantofminingleaseandlandacquisition,the
reportsaid.
TheTopworthGroup,oneofthecompanieswhichcameintothelimelight
duringthecoalgaterevelationsrecently,wasraidedbytheincometax
sleuthsonWednesday,TheTimesofIndiasaid.
Topworthiscomingupwithanintegratedspongeiron,steelandpower
plantatUmrerRoad,forwhichithadpurchasedacaptivecoalblock
originallyallottedtoShreeVeeranganaSteels.Thiscompany,promotedby
formerpresidentofVidarbhaIndustriesAssociation(VIA)MohanAgrawal,
hadgottheblockthroughthegovernmentsallocationsystemin2005.
However,insteadofdevelopingthemine,thepromotersoldthecompany
toTopworthUrjaandMetalsforaroundRs30crore,thenewspaperreport
added.
TopworthgroupispromotedbytheLodhafamilyfromJalgaon.The
promotershadbeenissuedanoticebytheministryofcoalalso,which
pointedoutthatfrequentchangesinownershipindicatedprofiteeringfrom
ofthecoalblock,thereportfurthersaid.
Meanwhile,sevencoalblocksthathadbeenallocatedtotheMaharashtra
stategovernmentin2006,togetheraccountingformorethan4,000million
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tonnesofcoalreserves,remainunoperationalisedsixyearslater,DNA
newspapersaidinareport.
TheblocksallocatedtotheMaharashtraStateMiningCorporation
(MSMC)buckthecoalallocationstrend:Auctionswereconducted,joint
venture(JV)partnerspaidthegovernmentsweatequity.Andstill,the
blockslieidle,oneembroiledinlitigationandtheotherfivejostlingwith
environmentalclearances,landacquisitionandinteragencywrangling.
ThesmallestoftheseisAdkoliinVidarbhasYavatmaldistrict.Itisbeing
developedbyaJVofMSMCandSunilHitechPvtLtdthathasneitherbeen
abletoacquirethe300hectaresoflandnorgetenvironmentalclearances,
thereportsaid.
Thecoalministryhascancelledatleastfiveblocksheldbygovernment
controlledpowercompanies,TheIndianExpressnewspaperreports.
BrushingasidethecontentionsofthepowerministryandtheJharkhand
government,thecoalministrytodayrefusedtorestorefivecancelledcoal
blocksofcentralandstaterununitsofwhichthreebelongtoNational
ThermalPowerCorporation(NTPC).Themovecomescloseontheheels
oftheministryendorsingtherecommendationsofaninterministerialgroup
(IMG)fordeallocating13coalblocksanddeductionofbankguaranteein
casesof14mines,thereportsays.
ThefiveblockswhicharefacingtheaxeincludeNTPCsKerandari,
ChhattiBariatuandChattiBariatu(South)blocks,DamodarValleyCorps
SaharpurJamarpaniandJharkhandStateElectricityBoards(JSEB)
Banhardihblock.Theblockswereallocatedtothefirmsunderthe
governmentdispensationroutein200607butwerecancelledon14June
lastyearafterareviewcommitteerecommendedtheirdeallocationciting
persistentnonperformance,itfurthernotes.
10October2012
Thecoalministrywillauction38coalblockswhile16willbesetasidefor
governmentcompanies,BusinessTodaymagazinehasreported.
Havingburntitsfingersinthecoalscam,theUnitedProgressiveAlliance
(UPA)isbeingextracautiouswhileallocatingthenextsetofcoalblocks.
Significantly,38ofthe54coalblocksidentifiedbythecoalministrywillbe
auctionedwhile16willbesetasideforgovernmentruncompanies,the
reporthassaid.
Sourcesinthecoalministrysaidthateventhoughthedecisiontoallocate
the54blockswastakeninMay,beforethecoalscambroke,the
governmentiskeenonmakingthisroundofallocationsastransparentas
possible.,thereportsaid.Thissenseofurgencyisfurtherevidentinthe
factthatthegovernmenthasexpeditedtheallocationprocessforthese54
blocks.InendAugust,Jaiswalhadsaidthatitwouldbedifficulttocomplete
theprocessbytheendofthisyearandthattheallocationsmighttake
placeonlynextyear.Thishaschanged,thereportadded.
ThecoalministrywillfileacaveatintheSupremeCourtagainstapetition
challengingcoalfieldallocations,Mintreported.
SincetheComptrollerandAuditorGeneralofIndia(CAG)tableditsreport
oncoalfieldallocationsinParliamentinAugust,twopetitionshavebeen
filedintheapexcourtagainsttheallocations.
ThecaveatisbeingfiledforthepetitionfiledbylawyerPrashantBhushan.
Thereisachancethatthetwocasesmaybeclubbed,thereportsaid.
Meanwhile,theJharkhandgovernmenthasdecidedtotakebacklandfrom
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thecoalminingcompanies,includingthepublicsectorundertakings,which
haveeitherremainedunusedforyearsorwheremininghasbeen
completed,TheTimesofIndianewspapersaid.
Thestategovernmentexpectstogetbackatleast1,000to1,500acres
fromthecompanies,including690acresfromtheCentralCoalfields
Limited,asubsidiaryoftheCoalIndiaLimited(CIL).ThetwootherCIL
subsidiariesthatareoperationalinJharkhandareBharatCokingCoal
LimitedandEasternCoalfieldsLimited.Statelandreformandrevenue
departmentministerMathuraPrasadMahatohasaskedhisofficialsto
preparealistofsuchplotswhichwillbesenttothecompaniesforreturning
theland,thereportsaid.
Officialssaidthematterwasdiscussedwiththeofficialsofthecoalmining
companiesandalsowiththeGeologicalSurveyofIndiaforreturningthe
unusedlandtothestatesothatitcouldbeallottedtootherindustries
awaitingtoestablishtheirplantsformanyyears.Thereareatleast50big
companieslikeArcelorMittal,TataSteelandJindalSteelandPowerLimited
whichhavefailedtostarttheirgreenfieldprojectsinthestatebecauseof
lackofland,thereportfurtheradded.
9October2012
ThegiftingawayoflandbelongingtoCoalIndiaLtdbytheOdisha
governmentin2004issettoembarrasstheBharatiyaJanataParty,now
accusedoffavouringacompanypromotedbyrelativesofthelateformer
DelhichiefministerSahibSinghVerma,DNAnewspapersaidinareport.
Thelandinquestionisa22acreexpanseinthebackwardJharsuguda
districtofOdisha,giventoGlobalCoalandMiningPvtLimited(GCMPL)by
thestatesIndustrialInfrastructureDevelopmentCorporation(IDCO)
controlledbytheBJPsindustriesministerBiswabhusanHarichandaninthe
BJDBJPgovernmentofthetime.Notonlywastheland,ownedbyCIL
subsidiaryMahanadiCoalfieldsLtd,handedovertoGCMPL,butacoal
washerywasalsopermittedonthelandin2006,inclearcontraventionof
therules.DespiteashowcausenoticeissuedbyMahanadiCoalfieldsLtd,
GCMPLhasrefusedtovacate,takingthedisputeintolitigationthatbegan
in2009andisstillcontinuing.Activistsallegethatthedealwasapolitical
favour.Thislandhasmorethan2milliontonnesofcoalreservesandwas
giventoGCMPLbyHarichandanasapoliticalgift,saidK.C.Das,an
activistfromtheareawhohasbeenfightingabouttheissueforseveral
yearsnow,thereportnoted.
WhileGCMPLispromotedbyCaptainKuldeepSinghSolanki,itsassociate
companyACB(India)LtdispromotedbyHaryanabasedRudraSen
SindhuandSolanki.RudrarunsACB(India)Ltdwithhissixbrothers.The
youngestbrother,DevSumanSindhu,ismarriedtoSahibSinghVermas
daughter.After2008,Rudra,VritpalSindhuandVirSenSindhu(all
brothers)alsobecamenomineedirectorsoftheGCMPL.ACB(India)Ltds
websitesaysitholds35.61%equityinterestinGCMPL.Thedisputedates
backtoMay2004,whenIDCOfiledanalienationproposalfor21.17acres
withtheLakhanpurtehsildarsoffice.Thereafter,inJune2004,the
JharsugudacollectorleasedthelandtoIDCOforestablishmentof
industries.Withinjustfivemonths,IDCOsubleasedthelandtoGCMPLfor
a90yearperiod,on29October2004.ThelandispartoftheSamleshwari
OpenCastprojectofMCL.ThePSUacquiredthelandinvillageBelpahar,
Jharsuguda,undertheCoalBearingAreas(CBA)Act,thereportfurther
said.
Meanwhile,thesecondroundofreviewoftheunderdevelopedcoalblocks
allocatedtovariouscompanieswillbegintoday,TheTribunenewspaper
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saidinareport.
Theinterministerialgroup(IMG)hassoughtexplanationfromthepublic
sectorundertakings(PSUs)thathavenotcarriedoutanyworkonthecoal
blocksallottedtothem.Sourcesinthecoalministrysaidatotalof31
noticeshavebeenissuedtovariousPSUstogivepresentationsbeforethe
IMGwhichisscheduledtomeetinnextovertwodaysfromTuesday.The
movetoseekexplanationfromthePSUscomesaftertheIMG,earlierthis
month,wentaheadwiththereviewof29blockswiththeprivatesector.The
IMGhadrecommendedthedeallocationof13blockswhilepenalising
another14withthedeductionoftheirbankguarantee,thenewsreport
said.
Sourcessaidwhileon9October,thepublicsectorfirmswiththe
possessionof15coalblockswouldmaketheirpresentations,andon10
October,16coalblockholderswillmaketheirpresentationsbeforethe
IMG.Thepublicsectorfirmswhichwillmakepresentationswouldinclude
ChhattisgarhMineralDevelopmentCorporation,MMTCandTVNLamong
others.SourcessaidthattheIMGislikelytofinaliseitsrecommendations
withregardtothePSUminesby20October,thereportfurthernoted.
ThecoalministryhasaskedReliancePowertostopminingatcoalblocks
attachedtothecompanysSasanultramegapowerproject(UMPP)till
transferoflandownershipiscompleted,TheHinduBusinessLine
newspaperhasreported.
AseniorministryofficialtoldBusinessLinethattheanoticehasbeen
issuedtoReliancePowertoimmediatelystopminingatMoherandMoher
Amlohriblocksifthecompanyisusinglandthatisyettobelegally
transferredtothefirm.TheMoherandMoherAmlohriblocks,giventothe
UMPP,aresurroundedbylandnotifiedbyNorthernCoalfieldsLtd(NCL),
accordingtotheCoalBearingAct.Apartoftheselandsistobelegally
transferredtoSasanPowerLimited(SPL),theReliancePowercompany
thatoperatestheUMPP,thereportsaid.
TheministryhastakenthestepafterNCLinformeditthatSPLhasstarted
usingthelandevenwhenthelegaltransferoflandisawaited.SPLhas
startedclearingtheareaandusingheavyearthmovingmachineryonthe
land,thereportfurthersaid.
Initsreplytotheministrynotice,ReliancePowerhascitedtheoutcomeof
the17October2011meeting,whereitwasdecidedandagreedbetween
allstakeholdersthatnoncoalbearingareaswouldbetransferredtothe
UMPP.NCLhasgivenitsnoobjectiontotheproposal,ReliancePower
said.
ReliancePower,initsreply,said:Fortheportionofprivatelandover
whichNorthernCoalfieldshasraisedobjection,samehasbeennotifiedfor
objectionbySPLunderLandAcquisitionAct,1894.NorthernCoalfields
raiseditsobjectiononlyatthelaststagewhenlandwasbeinghandedover
toSPLbytheDistrictCollector.
TheAnilAmbaniownedReliancePower(RPower)startedproduction
fromcaptivecoalminesallottedforitsshowcaseSasanUltraMegaPower
Project(UMPP)lastmonth,despiteagovernmentdirectiveaskingthe
companytostopminingactivitiestillfewformalitieswerecompleted.The
matterrelatestotheissueoftransferoflandheldbyCoalIndiasubsidiary
NorthernCoalfieldsLtd(NCL)toSasanPowerLtd(SPL),theReliance
Powersubsidiarydevelopingthe4,000Megawatt(MW)project.Evenwhile
thetwocoalblocksMoherandMoherAmlohriExtensionwerehanded
overtoReliance,ittranspiredthatNCLhadalreadyacquiredpartofthe
landoftheblocksforitsownprojects,theBusinessStandardsaidina
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relatedreport.
8October2012
Thegovernmentislikelytodeliberatenextweekonthecriteriatobe
adoptedforauctionofcoalblockstostateownedfirms,thePressTrustof
India(PTI)reported.
Aninterministerialmeethasbeenscheduledfor15Octoberandwill
deliberateondrafttermsandconditionsforallocationofcoalblocksto
governmentcompaniesthroughcompetitivebiddingmode,acoalministry
officialtoldPTI.Themeetingwilldeliberateondrafttermsand
conditions...regardingallocationofareacontainingcoaltogovernment
companiesforthepurposeofspecifiedendusersunderRule4ofthe
AuctionbyCompetitiveBiddingofCoalMinesRules,2012,theofficialsaid
quotingfromtheagenda.Theagendaofthemeetingshallbe...todiscuss
onthecriteriatobeadoptedforselectionofthegovernmentcompanyfor
allocationoftheblock,theofficialsaid.Themeeting,tobechairedbycoal
secretaryS.K.Srivastava,willalsobeattendedbychiefsecretariesofthe
statesbesidesofficialsfromministriesofsteel,power,legalaffairs,
economicaffairsandthePlanningCommission,thereportsaid.
Meanwhile,thegovernmenthasidentified54coalblockstobeallocated
andhaschosenCrisilasitsconsultancypartner,whichwillprovide
methodologyforcalculatingreserveandfloorpricesforallthesecoalblock
allocations,CNBCTV18,newschannelsaid.
ItisalsoknownthatCrisilmayaddsharelockinclauseintheauctionor
allocationpolicytoseethatthereisacorrectuseofthesecoalblocks.Itis
alsolearntthatashareholdermeetingwillbeheldon12October,2012,
whererepresentativesfromfinance,steel,powerministryandotherswill
jointodiscussthisdraftreportfurtherwiththecoalministryofficials,the
reportsaid.
TheUnioncoalministryhasaskedtheOrissagovernmenttoexpeditethe
actiontakenreportontheissueofillegalcoalmining,BusinessStandard
newspaperhassaid.
Atatimewhencontroversysurroundingblockallocationshascaught
differentcoalbearingstatesinabind,theministryofcoalhasurgedthe
Orissagovernmenttosubmititsactiontakenreportattheearliestin
connectionwithillegalcoalminingactivities.Inthelightofobservations
madebytheparliamentarystandingcommitteeoncoalandsteel,coal
secretaryS.K.SrivastavahasaskedOrissachiefsecretaryB.K.Patnaikto
expeditetheactiontakenreportssothattheycanbecompiledandsentto
theLokSabhasecretariat,thereportsaid,
Thoughthecoalministryhadwrittentothestatechiefsecretaryearlieron
thematterinDecember2011,thestatewasyettoapprisetheministryon
actiontakeninrespectofillegalcoalmining.Wakingupratherbelatedlyto
thedirectiveofthecoalministry,theOrissasteelandminesdepartment
hasnowurgedMahanadiCoalfieldsLtd(MCL)andcollectorsoffour
districtsAngul,Sambalpur,JharsugudaandSundergarhtocomplywith
therecommendationsoftheparliamentarypanel.Thedepartmenthasalso
suggestedthattherecommendationsbediscussedinthemeetingofthe
districtleveltaskforce.Theparliamentarystandingcommitteehad
observedthatthenaturalresourcesofthecountryarebeingplunderedat
thecostofnationaleconomyanddestructionofenvironment.Thepanel
wasoftheopinionthatofficialsresponsibletocurbillegalminingareeither
indifferentortooscaredtostopthemenace,thereportsaid.
ThiscomesevenastheOrissagovernmenthasaskedthecentreto
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allocateminesonlytostateownedcompanies.
Inaswiftmovebythedepartmentofsteelandmines,alettersenttothe
directorofUnioncoalministryP.SomaShekharReddy,thestate
governmentstated,Thecoalrequiredbytheindustrieslocatedoutsidethe
statecanbemetbythehoststategovernmentcompanies.However,
prioritywillbegiventotherequirementofcoalforindustrieslocatedor
proposedtobesetupinthehostcoalbearingstate.Thestatesentthe
letterafterthecentrecirculatedadraftoftherevisedguidelinesforcoal
blockallocationtothegovernmentcompaniesforthepurposeofmining.
Theletteralsosaidthattheareascontainingcoalforallocationto
governmentcompaniesshouldbeidentifiedtakingintoconsiderationthat
suchareasshouldbefairlylargeinsizehavingsufficientandgoodquality
coalreservestoenableplanninghighcapacitycoalprojectswithworld
classtechnologyandstandardswithmatchinginfrastructuralfacilitiesso
thattheneedsoftheenduseplantscouldbemetonalongtermbasis,a
reportinThePioneernewspapersaid.
On3September,thecoalministrycirculatedtherevisedtermsand
conditionsunderRule4oftheAuctionbycompetitivebiddingofcoalmines
Rules2012tosteel,power,financeandindustrialproductiondepartments
ofthestategovernmentsseekingtheircommentsbeforeitsfinalization.
Accordingtotheproposedguidelines,theapplicationsshouldcontain
detailedjustificationwithreferencetorequirementofthestate,theexisting
linkages(theplant/industrywheretheminedcoalwillbeused)andthe
areascontainingcoalalreadyallocated,thereportfurtheradded.
FormerMPandmemberofPublicAccountsCommittee(PAC)Surinder
SinglahasaskedComptroller&AuditorGeneral(CAG)VinodRaitorevisit
hisreportoncoalinthewakeoftheSupremeCourtsopiniononthe
PresidentialReference,whichconfirmedtheConstitutionalpositionthat
policymakingpowerlieswithintheexclusivedomainoftheexecutive,The
IndianExpressnewspaperreported.
TheformerMPsaidthatpeopleofIndiadeservetherighttobere
educatedonthefreshfindingsoftheCAGasrevisitedinthelightofthe
SupremeCourtsobservation,thereportsaid.
7October2012
InaninterviewtotelevisionnewschannelCNNIBN,BharatiyaJanataParty
(BJP)PresidentNitinGadkarihassaidthathewillquitpoliticsifanybody
couldprovehisallegedbusinesslinkswithcloseaideandpartyMPAjay
Sancheti,currentlyinthemidstofanirrigationscaminMaharashtra.
Sanchetisnamealsofiguresinconnectionwiththecontroversyrelatedto
theallotmentofcoalblocks.
GadkarisaidthatSanchetididnotgetasinglecontractduringhistenure
asthePublicWorksDepartment(PWD)ministerofMaharashtra,areport
publishedbythechannelsaid.
AjaySanchetiisdoinghisbusinesssincethelast30years.Heisathree
generationbusinessmenandcontractor.Ihave...directly,indirectly...not
anytypeofbusinessrelationswithhim.NowIamgoingtochallenge
everybody...toCongresspartyandthemedia.Ifyouhavegotasingle
evidencethatcanprovethatIamadirect,indirectbusinesspartnerofAjay
SanchetiorSharadPawar,pleaseidentify,Iwilldonateallthatpropertyto
whosoeveritmaybewhocanidentify,thechannelcitedGadkarias
saying.
ThePressTrustofIndia(PTI)saidinreportthattheCongresspartyhas
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demandedthattheChhattisgarhgovernmentcomeoutwithawhitepaper
listingtheallegedfavoursgiventoSancheti.
ThestateCongressspokespersonShaileshTrivediallegedthat
ChhattisgarhgovernmentshowedfavourstoSanchetiscompaniesasheis
afriendofBJPpresidentNitinGadkari.HechargedthatSMS
Infrastructure,thecompanyownedbySanchetifamily,hadgottwocoal
miningleasesfromthestategovernmentwhichwouldcauselossofRs
25,000croretothestateexchequer,thereportfurthersaid.
PTIalsoreportedthattheInterMinisterialGroup(IMG)oncoalblocksis
likelytofinaliseitsrecommendationswithregardtothe31minesallocated
topublicsectorfirmsbyOctober20.
IMG,whichhadrecentlyconcludedthescrutinyof31coalblocksallotedto
51privatefirms,ismeetingthisweekodecidethefateof31coalblocks
allocatedtopublicsectorfirms.PSUcompanieswillpresenttheircase
beforetheIMGonOctober9and10.Ofthetotal31coalblocksallottedto
thepublicsectorfirmswhichwereissuednotices,around15coalblock
holderswillpresenttheircaseonfirstday,while16willmakepresentations
onthesecondday.ThefirmswhichwillmakepresentationsincludeMMTC,
ChhattisgarhMineralDevelopmentCorporationandTVNL.TheCoal
Ministryisholdinganinternalmeetingthisweektodiscusswaystodeduct
bankguaranteesofprivatecompaniesincaseofthe14blocksfollowing
theInterMinisterialGrouprecommendingactionagainstthem.
AfewweeksafteritbroughtaresolutiongivingstateownedOrissaMining
Corporation(OMC)firstrightoverareascontainingmajormineralssuchas
ironore,bauxiteandchromite,theNaveenPatnaikgovernmenthaswritten
totheCentretoallocateareascontainingcoaltoOMCalone,TheIndian
Expressnewspaperreported.
Replyingtothecoalministrysdrafttermsandconditionsforallocationof
coalblockstogovernmentcompaniesforthepurposeofminingunderRule
4oftheAuctionbycompetitivebiddingofcoalminesrules2012,thestate
governmentonSaturdaywrotebackthattheareacontainingcoalshould
beallocatedonlytogovernmentcompaniesunderthecontrolofhostcoal
bearingstate.TheCentrehadcirculatedthedrafttermsamongallthe
statesonSeptember3thisyear.Lastmonth,theOrissasteelandmines
departmenthadbroughtoutaresolutionsayingmineswhichhavenot
beenleasedoutwouldhenceforthbegiventoOMC,thereportsaid.
Replyingtoanotherdraftclauseoftheministrythatcoalproducedfrom
blockswouldbedistributedthroughlongtermcontractsorlinkagesto
specifiedendusers,Orissalistedoutfourcategoriesofplantswhichshould
begivencoal,thereportfurthersaid.
6October2012
ActivistenvironmentgroupGreenpeacehasallegedthattheenvironment
ministryhasclearedthecontroversialMahancoalblockinMadhya
Pradesh.
Theministryofenvironmentandforests(MoEF)hasallegedlygivenforest
clearancetocontroversialcoalblockinMahan,MadhyaPradesh,areport
inTheTimesofIndianewspapersaid.TheNGOclaimedthatthe
clearancewasinviolationofforestrightsoftribalslivinginthearea.People
fromdifferentvillagesaroundthecoalblockhavewrittentothedistrict
collectordemandingthattheirforestrightsberecognised.Thevillagers
saidthattheyaredependentontheMahanforestforavarietyofforest
produce.Anotherletterfromthevillagersclaimedthattheywerenot
allowedtoholdagramsabhatoclaimrightsunderForestRightsAct,the
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reportadded.
MadhyaPradeshchiefminister,ShivrajSinghChauhanhadlobbiedwith
thenenvironmentminister,JairamRameshseveraltimestogetthecoal
blockcleared.Buttheministryhaddeniedclearanceduetoenvironmental
concerns,thereportfurthersaid.
5October2012
Thecoalministrywillholdaninternalmeetingnextweektodiscusswaysto
deductbankguaranteesofprivatecompaniesinthecasesof14blocks
followingtheInterMinisterialGrouprecommendingactionagainstthem,
thePressTrustofIndia(PTI)reported.
CoalsecretaryS.K.Srivastavahascalledameetingwithofficialsofhis
ministrynextweek.Therewouldbediscussionsonthecalculationsdone
bythecoalcontrolleronbankguaranteedeductionforcoalmines,the
reportcitedanofficialinthecoalministryassaying.
InanotherreportPTIsaidfinancialservicesfirmCrisil,consultanttothe
coalministryforfixingthereservepricesforauctionof54mines,is
expectedtosubmititsreporton8October.
Further,theministryisexpectedtoholdameetingon16Octoberto
deliberateontheCrisilreport,theofficialadded.Basedonthereport,the
governmentwouldinitiatethebiddingprocessforallocationofmines,the
reportsaid.
TheCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)lookingintocoalblockallotments
between1993and2004haszeroedinontheperiodaround2003asit
hasfoundthatthehighestnumberofallotmentsweremadeinthatyear
whentheNDAgovernmentwasinpower,andtheBJPsKariaMundawas
thecoalminister,TheIndianExpresshasreported.
CBIofficerssaidthat20blockswereallottedduring2003,ofwhich13
weregiventostatepublicsectorfirmsandtheresttoprivatecompanies.
TheprivatecompaniesincludePrakashIndustriesLtd(PIL),promotedby
VedPrakashAggarwal,brotherofJaiPrakashAggarwal,whoisknownto
beaBJPRSSsupporter.ThecoalblocktoPILwasallottedinBJPruled
Chhattisgarh.UshaMartinLtd,whichalsoownsmediagroupPrabhat
Khabar,wasallottedacoalblockinJharkhandin2003.Thelistofthose
whogotcoalblockswasgiventotheCBIbythecoalministryafterthe
agencyregisteredmultipleFIRsandpreliminaryenquiriestoprobecoal
blockallotmentssince1993,thereportsaid.
Meanwhile,thePrimeMinistersOfficehasconvenedameetingofCoal
andPowerSecretariestodaytodiscusstheissuesrelatedtothetwo
sectorsincludingintroductionofcompetitivebiddingforcoalblocks,review
oftheprogressmadebytheInterMinisterialGroup(IMG),reformsinthe
powersector,pricepoolingformulaforcoalandsigningoffuelsupply
agreements(FSA)byCoalIndiaLimited(CIL),NDTVreports.
Membersofcivilsocietyandnongovernmentalorganizations(NGOs)have
movedtheSupremeCourt,demandingthecancellationofallcoalblocks
allottedtoprivatecompaniessince1993,theHindustanTimessaidquoting
anIANSnewsagencyreport.
TheSupremeCourtwasmovedonThursdaybyNGOsseekingthe
cancellationofallcoalblocksallocatedtoprivatecompaniesfrom1993to
2012anddemandingacourtmonitoredinvestigationintotheissue,the
reportsaid.
ThepetitionwasfiledbyNGOCommonCause,formercabinetsecretary
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T.S.R.Subramanian,formerchiefelectioncommissionerN.Gopalaswami,
formerIndianNavychiefR.H.Tahiliani,formersecretariestogovernment
RamasamyR.IyerandSushilTripathi.Thepetitionallegedthegovernment
wentinformassiveallocationofcoalblockstoafewselectprivate
companiesatnocostinacompletelyarbitraryandnontransparent
manner,causingahugelosstothepublicexchequerrunningintotensof
lakhsofcroresofrupees.
4October2012
TheCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)hasgotitsteethintonew
evidencepointingtothemanipulationofcoalblockallocations,theIndia
Todaymagazinehassaidinareport.
Explosivedocumentsinitspossessionpointtothecosyrelationship
betweenthefamiliesofminingbaronManojJayaswalandthatofCongress
MPVijayDarda.MailToday,whichfirstexposedtheJayaswalDardalink
inCoalgate,investigateshowthetwofamiliesworkedintandemtoillegally
benefitfromthecoalblockallocations,thereportsays.
CBIsuspectsthatsharesofAMRIronandSteelPvtLtd,oneofthe
Jayaswalgroupcompanies,weregivenfreeofcosttotheDardaowned
Lokmatgroupinreturnforacoalblockallocationfacilitatedbythe
CongressMP,thereportadds.
AtelltalecommunicationoftheJayaswalfamily,aletterwrittenbyManoj
tohisfatherandbrotherssays,AMRhasbeenallocatedacoalblock
becauseoftheeffortsoftheLokmatgroupandhencecommitmentsmade
havetobehonouredintruespirit.Iconveythat26%freeequitybeallotted
immediatelytoLokmatgroupwithoutanyfurtherdelayandLokmatgroup
nomineesbeappointedasChairmanandDirector.Thereisfurther
indicationofhishighpoliticallinksintheletter.Itreferstothesettlementof
ownershipof14%sharespresumablyofAMRtobedecidedbyShri
Sriprakashji,thatisUnioncoalministerSriprakashJaiswal.However,
Jaiswalhasdeniedthathehasanythingtodowiththematter,thereport
furtheradds.
Meanwhile,areportinTheEconomicTimesnewspaperhassaidthatthe
AbhijeetGroup,whichisbeinginvestigatedbytheCentralBureauof
Investigation(CBI)foritsallegedinvolvementintheindiscriminate
allotmentofcoalblocks,islikelytoapproachbanksforrestructuringits
loans.
Selectunitsofthecompanycouldapproachbanksforadebtrecast.They
arestillindialoguewiththebanks,saidabankerintheknowofthe
development.WeareabitcautiousaftertheCBIraidsonthepromoter
andwearemonitoringthedevelopments,thereportsaid,citingabanker
withexposuretothecompany.
Inaseparatereport,TheEconomicTimeshassaidthatRashtriyaJanata
Dalleaderandformercorporateaffairsminister,PremChandGupta,
appearstobeintrouble,withBJPapproachingCBIwithdocuments
pointingtohislinkswithISTSteelandPowerthatbaggedacoalblockin
Maharashtra.
DocumentsfurnishedbyBJPsecretaryKiritSomaiyashowthatGupta,a
closeassociateofRJDleaderLaluPrasad,isadirectorofHongKong
basedGuptaInternationalInvestmentCompanythatholds49.95%stakein
ISTSteelandPower.DahegaonMakaradcoalblockwasallottedtoIST
SteelandPoweron17June2009.Itwasamongthecoalblocksde
allocatedbythecoalministryon26September.Theannualreturnsfiledby
GuptaInternationalInvestmentCompanywiththeRegistryofHongKong
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showPremChandGuptaasadirectorofthecompany,residingatGround
Floor,15,WyndhamStreet,CentralHongKong.HiswifeSarlaandson
Mayuraretheotherdirectorsofthecompany,thereportsays.
WhencontactedbyET,Guptaadmittedheisadirectorofthecompany,
butsaidheheldnosharesinit.Thecompanywasfloated38yearsago
andwasafamilybusiness.ItisrunbymytwosonsMayurandGaurav.I
havenoshareholdinginit,hesaid.GuptawasaministerinUPAIregime
tillMay2009andthecoalblockwasallottedinJune2009.TheDahegaon
MakardhokraIVblockwasgiventoISTSteelandPower,alongwith
cementfirmsGujaratAmbujaandLafargeIndia,inJune2009.Theblock
has48.84milliontonnesofextractablereserves.ISTSteelandPower
ownsthemajority53%stakeintheblock.AsperGupta,hissonGaurav
hasarunningspongeironplantthathasbeeninoperationsince2007.
Whenthegovernmentinvitedapplications,hissonsappliedandGaurav
gotanundergroundcoalblockalongwiththeothertwocompanies,the
reportfurthersaid.
3October2012
CitingtheongoingprobebytheCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI),the
PrimeMinistersOffice(PMO)hasdeclinedtopartwithinformationoncoal
blockallocations,thePressTrustofIndia(PTI)reported.
ExercisinghisRighttoInformation,advocateVivekGarghassought
informationonminutesofallmeetingsbetweenUnioncoalministerand
PrimeMinister,copiesofdecisions,approvals,ordersandlettersor
correspondencesbetweentheCoalMinistryandPMOrelatedtocoal
blocksallocation.GarghasalsofiledanRTIapplicationseekingdetailson
thecoalblocksallocationtoMinistryofCoalinformationonwhichwas
deniedbyitsayingtheinformationsoughtwasnotavailableinthe
compiledform.Thecoalministrysaidinformationregardingdetailsofcoal
blocksallocatedandvariousactsandguidelinesarealreadyavailablein
publicdomain,thereportsaid.
Further,mostofthefilesorrecordsrelatingtoallocationofcoalorlignite
blocksareinthecustodyofCBI,NewDelhi.Theinformationsoughtisnot
availableinthecompiledformanditwoulddiverttheresourcesofthe
publicauthorityverydisproportionatelytoprovidetheinformation,the
Ministrysaidinitsreply,thereportfurthersaid.
BusinessStandardnewspaperreportsthatthegovernmentiscomingup
withanewpolicythatwouldmakeevenCoalIndiaLtd(CIL)payformining
rights.
ThecoalministryhasdecidedtochargeCILareservepriceforthe116
coalblocksallottedtothestateownedminer,thereportsaidcitingacoal
ministryofficial.
TheofficialalsosaidthereservepriceforCILwoulddependonthe
averagegradeorqualityofcoalintheblock,thelocationoftheacreage
andtheaccessibilityofthemininglease.Thedetailsofhowthereserve
priceforcoalblockswouldbecalculatedandthequantumoftheoutgofor
theworldslargestcoalminerareyettobeworkedout,thereportsaid.
Thenewdispensationforcoalblockswouldbedifferentfromthe
governmentspolicyintheoilandgassector,wherestateowned
companiesareconsideredonaparwithprivateonesduringbiddingforoil
andgasblocksundertheNewExplorationandLicensingPolicy(Nelp).
UnderNelp,companiesarenotchargedanupfrontpayment,buttheyhave
toshareaportionofproductionwiththegovernment,afterrecovering
costs,itfurtheradded.
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October1,2012
TheSupremeCourtonMondaydismissedapleathathadchallengedthe
ComptrollerandAuditorGenerals(CAG)powertoconductperformance
auditofcoalblockallocationandotherissues.
ObservingthatCAGisnotamunimji(accountant),theSupremeCourt
todaysaidscrutinizingtheeffectiveuseofresourcesishisprimaryduty
anditwasforParliamenttoacceptorrejecthisreports,TheIndian
Expressnewspapersaid.
TheapexcourtbrushedasidethepetitionersargumentthattheCAGhad
noconstitutionalmandatetoscrutinisetheeffectivenessoreconomic
aspectofthegovernmentspolicymatters,thereportnoted.
Meanwhile,theOrissagovernmentonMondaycancelleditsjointventure
withDelhibasedSainikMiningandAlliedServicesLtd(SMASL),thePress
TrustofIndia(PTI)reported.
Criticizedforgiving74%staketoaprivatecompanyforcoalmininginthe
state,OdishaMiningCorporation(OMC)todaysaiditsjointventure
agreementwithDelhibasedSainikMiningandAlliedServicesLtdhasbeen
cancelled.TheJVbetweenOMCandSMASLwassignedin2003to
developUtkalDcoalblockhavingareserveof145mt(milliontonnes)in
Anguldistrict.IthadbeenallegedthattheJVagreementwasmadein
violationoftheCoalMines(Nationalisation)Act1973,thereportsaid.
Meanwhile,aPIL(publicinterestlitigation)hasbeenfiledintheSupreme
CourtoverOMCsdealwithSMASLfordevelopingUtkalDcoalblock,
where74%stakeinthejointventurehasbeenconcededtotheprivate
player,thereportfurthersaid.
29September2012
StateownedOdishaMiningCorporation(OMC)hasscrappedthejoint
venturedealwithDelhibasedSainikMining&AlliedServicesLtd(SMASL)
afterthestatecontrolledminerfacedabarrageofcriticismforconceding
controllingstakeinthejointventuretotheprivateplayer,Business
Standardnewspaperhasreported.
ThestategovernmentsdecisiontocancelthedealwithSMASLcomessix
daysafterapublicinterestlitigation(PIL)wasfiledintheSupremeCourton
groundsofblatantviolationofCoalMines(Nationalization)Act1973by
allowingtheprivateplayertohavecontrollingstakeinacoalmineallocated
toaPSU.ThepetitionerhaddemandedaCBIprobeintothedeal,the
reportsaid,
Thestategovernmentisunderstoodtobeplayingsafeontheissueof
coalblocksandprojectslinkedtocoalminingafterfindingitselfinabind
againstcoalblockallocationrow.TheequitypatternoftheOMCSMASL
jointventurehadalsodrawnflakfromtheMinistryofCoalwhichhadheld
OMCguiltyofviolatingtheActbyconcedingcontrollingstaketoaprivate
playerfordevelopingacoalblockallotedtoastatePSU.Theministryhad
issuedashowcausenoticetoOMCinJuly2010,urgingthePSUtoraiseits
stakeintheJVcompanytoatleast51percent.Inadditiontothis,the
ministryhadalsoadvisedOMCtosuitablymodifytheMemorandumand
ArticlesofAssociationoftheJVcompany.Inresponse,thestateChief
SecretaryBKPatnaikinalettertoCoalsecretaryAlokPertiinFebruarythis
yearhadinformedthatOMCinitsboardmeetinghaddecidedtoraiseits
equityintheJVcompanyto51percentfromtheexisting26percent,the
reportfurtheradded.
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28September2012
On2October,agroupofvillagersinChhattisgarhwillmarch,togetmining
rights,TheTimesofIndiareports.
Amidragingcontroversyovercoalblockallocations,Chhattisgarhisallset
towitnessauniquemovementfrom2OctoberGandhiJayantiwhena
groupofvillagerswillstartminingcoal,demandingthatlocalcommunitybe
givenminingrightsonnaturalresources,thereportsays.
Around1000villagerswillbreakthecoallawlikeMahatmaGandhiledthe
movementagainstsaltlaw.Localcommunitiesshouldhavethefirstright
onnaturalresourcesandnotindustrialhouses,thereportcitedSavita
RathofnongovernmentorganisationJanChetnaManchassaying.
Thegovernmentisdevisingasinglewindowclearancemechanismfor
developmentofcoalblocks,TheEconomicTimesnewspaperreported.
Thegovernmentwilldiscusssettingupasinglewindowclearance
mechanismonthelinesoftheForeignInvestmentPromotionBoard(FIPB)
forcoalblockstoexpeditetheirdevelopmentaproposalmootedbythe
ComptrollerandAuditorGeneral(CAG)initsrecentreportoncoalblock
allocations,thereportnoted.
InameetingwithtoppowerandcoalministryofficialsonOctober5,Pulok
Chatterjee,principalsecretaryinPrimeMinistersOffice,willalsodeliberate
governmentsdefenceagainsttheCAGsreportthatallegedRs
1.86lakh
.
croreunduebenefitstoprivatecompaniesthroughnontransparentcoal
blockallocations,sourcessaid.Themeetingislikelytobeattendedbycoal
secretaryS.Srivastava,powersecretaryP.UmaSankarandCoalIndia
chairmanS.NarsingRaoamongothers.Themeetingwillalsodiscussthe
governmentsplanofactionagainstthepublicinterestlitigation(PIL)
admittedbytheSupremeCourtagainstallotmentofcoalblockstokinof
politicalleaders.Thecoalministryisdraftingrepliestothequeriesraised
bytheSupremeCourt,thereportfurthersaid.
Inaninterestingopinionpiece,Firstpost.comhassaidthatUnionminister
KapilSibalmayhavejumpedthegun,whilewelcomingtheSupreme
Courtsjudgementandhailingitasavindicationofthegovernmentsstand
ontheissueofallocationofnaturalresources.
TheSupremeCourtclarifiedthatAuctionsmaybethebestwayof
maximisingrevenuebutrevenuemaximisationmaynotalwaysbethebest
waytosubservepublicgood.Commongoodisthesoleguidingfactor
underArticle39(b)fordistributionofnaturalresources.Itisthetouchstone
oftestingwhetheranypolicysubservesthecommongoodand,ifitdoes,
irrespectiveofthemeansadopted,itisclearlyinaccordancewiththe
principleenshrinedinArticle39(b),theopinionpiecenotes.
Between1993and2011,thegovernmentgaveaway195coalblockswith
totalgeologicalreservesof44.8billiontonnesfreetoprivateand
governmentcompanies.Anestimateofthetotalamountofcoalpresentin
ablockisreferredtoasgeologicalreserve.Duetovariousreasons,
includingthoseofsafety,theentirereservecannotbemined.Theportion
thatcanbeminedisreferredtoasextractablereserve.Ofthese,115
blocksweregiventocompanieswhichwouldusethecoalthatthey
producedfromthesecaptiveblocksforthemanufactureofcementandiron
andsteel,conversionofcoaltooilandcommercialmining.Theseblocks
havegeologicalreservesamountingto20.53billiontonnesofcoal.The
manufactureofcementandironandsteelorcommercialminingoperations
areforprofitoperationsandcannotbetermedasactivitiesthatarepurely
aboutcommongood.Hencetherewasnoreasonforthegovernmentto
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giveawaythesecoalblocksforfree.Thatisaclearinterpretationthatone
candrawoutofwhattheSupremeCourtsaid.Eightycoalblockswere
giventocompaniesforthemanufactureofpower.Ofthese80coalblocks,
53blocksweregiventocompaniesforcaptivedispensationofpower.
Theseblockshad10.66billiontonnesofgeologicalreservesofcoal.What
thismeantwasthatcompanieshadtousethecoalproducedfromthe
blockstheyhadbeengiventoproducepowertomeettheirinternalneeds.
Henceacompanymanufacturingsteelcouldusecoalproducedfromits
blockstogeneratepowerneededtoproducesteel.Thefreecoalblocks
wouldallowthemtoproducepowercheaplyandthusbringdowntheir
costsandthusmakehigherprofitsfromwhattheywouldhaveotherwise
made.Again,theendresultisaforprofitoperationandthiscannotbe
categorisedascommongood.Hence,168outofthe195coalblockswith
geologicalreservesof31.15billiontonneswereallocatedtocompanies
supposedlyinforprofitoperations.Theremaining27blockswith
geologicalreservesof13.65billiontonneswereallocatedforproductionof
power.Ofthesesevenblockshadbeenallocatedtoultramegapower
projects.Thecompanieswhichweregiventheseblockscouldproduce
powercheaplybecausetheydidnothavetopayforthecoalblock.This
canbecategorisedasacommongood.Hence,commongoodislimited
toaround30percentofthecoalreservesallocatedunderthe
governmentspolicyofgivingawaycoalblocksforfree.Eventhiscanbe
questionedgiventhatallthesevencoalblocks(withgeologicalreservesof
2.6billiontonnes)allocatedtotheultramegapowerprojectsareinthe
privatesector.Andnoprivatesectorcompanyisinbusinesstomakea
loss,thepiecesays.
ADNAreportsaysthathadtheCoalControllersOrganisation(CCO)not
beenunderstaffed,theallegedcoalscamcouldhavebeenprevented.
DNAhasfoundthattheseverelyshortstaffedCCOissimplyunableto
monitorcoalblocksefficiently.Withjustabout150employees,theCCO
monitorsmorethan600coalblocksacrossthecountry.Theseblocks
includethosebelongingtostaterunCoalIndiaLtd(CIL)andits
subsidiaries.Worse,morethan80%oftheCCOsexistingemployeesare
nonexecutivestaff,includingpeonsanddrivers.Whatsmore,manyofthe
CCOsemployeesareondeputationfromCIL,andeveryyear,afewreturn
totheirparentcompany,thereportsays.
Asaresult,theCCOremainedunabletoevenreportthatofthe194
privatecaptiveblockallottees,productionhasbegunonlyin28.Moreover,
theaccuracyofdatafurnishedbytheallotteescouldnotbeproperly
assessedbythemonitoringcommitteeforcaptivecoalblocks.TheCCO
couldnotconductanyphysicalinspectionsofallottedcoalblocksto
ascertaintheactualprogressvisvistheprogressreportedbythe
allottees,theCAGreporthadnoted.InJuly2010,theministryhad
directedthatnineblocksthathadreachedpeakratedcapacitywouldnot
bereviewedfurther,andthattheirprogresswouldbemonitoredbythe
CCO.ButtheCCOfailedtocomplywiththesedirectives,thankstolackof
manpower,thereportfurthernotes.
27September2012
Thegovernmentislikelytotakeacallontheauctioningofcoalblocksthat
weredeallocatedlastweekon5October,TheHindunewspaperreported.
ThePrimeMinistersOffice(PMO)hasconvenedameetingofthecoal
andpowersecretarieson5Octobertodiscusstheissuesrelatedtothetwo
sectorsincludingintroductionofcompetitivebiddingforcoalblocks,review
bytheinterministerialgroup(IMG),thenewspaperreportsaid.
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ThePMOisalsolikelytoreviewtheprogressofthecompetitivebidding
processtobeintroducedforauctioningcoalblocksinfuture.Thecoal
ministryhadalreadylistedaround54coalblocksforauctioningunderthis
newmedium,andhadengagedtheservicesofaconsultant.Thecoal
secretaryisexpectedtogiveafeedbackontheproceedingsoftheIMGset
uptoreviewtheallocationof58coalblocks,andtheactiontakenbythe
coalministryontherecommendationofIMG,thereportfurthersaid.
Inaninterestinganalyticalpiece,theBusinessStandardnewspaperhas
soughttodetailhowaglobalspurtincoalpricesandloopholesinthe
methodologyfollowedduringallocationoftheblocksmighthaveledtothe
allegedcoalscam.Thereportsaysthatthequantumofreservesallocated
tocompanieshasmovedintandemwiththeincreaseinglobalpricesof
coal,yearafteryear.
Themadrushforgrabbingcoalreservesbycorporateswithlinksto
politicalheavyweights,asexposedbytheComptrollerandAuditorGeneral
ofIndia(CAG)andtheCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)inthecoal
scam,shouldnotcomeasasurprise.Superimposingtheconsistentrisein
globalcoalpricesovertheyearlydataforcoalblocksallocatedoverthe
pastdecaderevealstherealreasonbehindtheRs
1.86lakhcrorescam,the
.
piecesays.Thequantumofreservesallocatedtocompanieshasmoved
inasurprisingtandemwiththeglobalpricesyearafteryear.Interestingly,
notonlydidtheallocationsjumpedwiththeriseinpricesbetween2002
and2007,theyalsodroppedatexactlythesametimeasthepricesfell.No
doubt,theIndianeconomyisfullyintegratedwiththeglobal
developments.
Theglobalcoalpricesremainedlargelystablebelow$25pertonneduring
late1990sandearly2000s.CoalblockallocationbeganinIndiain1993.
Thegovernmentallotted41blocksoverthenextdecadeto2003.Prices
startedshootingupin2003asdemandfromdevelopingeconomies,
particularlyChina,rose.Theupwardtrendcontinuedandpricestoucheda
highof$190pertonnein2008whentheglobalmeltdownledtoacrashin
coalprices.Considerthebenchmarkpriceforthermalcoalexportsfrom
NewscastleinAustralia,theworldsbiggestcoalexportharbor.The
Newcastlepricesincreasedfrom$25pertonnein2003toahighof$185
pertonneinearly2008.ThenumberofblocksallottedannuallyinIndia
alsojumpedfrom5in2004to52in2007.Post2007andearly2008,the
pricescametumblingdownfrom$185pertonneto$80pertonne
currently.Thenumberofblocksallottedalsocamedownfrom52in2007
to24in2008,16in2009andfinally2blocksallottedin2011.Overall,the
governmenthadallottedatotalof195coalblockswithreservesofa
whopping43billiontonne(BT)to289companiesbetween1993and2011.
Acloserlookatthegrowthofmarginsavailabletocompaniesbetween
2003and2008incoalmining,alongwiththerelativeeaseofbagging
reserves,furtherrevealswhythecoalscamwaswaitingtohappen.Against
amarketpriceof$2530pertonnein2003,thecostofproductionworked
outtoaround$20pertonneinIndia,leavingatinymarginof$5onevery
tonneofcoalmined.Thismarginwentuptoashighas$130pertonnein
2008whenpricesjumpedto$180pertonneevenascostofproduction
roseto$50pertonne,thereportnotes.
TheSupremeCourtonThursdaysaidaspartofitsorderonthecentres
presidentialreferenceontheauctionofnaturalresources,thatnatural
resourcescannotbedistributedascharity,Firstpost.comnotesinan
interestingpiece.
Doescoalgatequalifyasascandalof2Gproportions?Yes,ifthe
governmenthasgivenawaycoalminesasamatteroflargess,charity,
donationorendowmentforprivateexploitation.Yes,ifthegovernmenthas
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allowedonesetofcitizensprosperatthecostofanothersetofcitizens.
Andyes,ifthecoalminesarenotallocatedtobestservethecommon
good,thepiecenotes.
JusticeJagdishSinghKhehar,oneofthefiveSupremeCourtjudgeswho
deliveredtheirunanimousopiniononthePresidentialreferenceon
Thursday,madeitamplyclearinanaddendumastowhatmakesascam
inagivensituation.Andforthis,justiceKhehartookcoalsectorasa
hypotheticalillustrationtoexplainwhereitmightleadthegovernmentto
arbitrarinessandbeunfairindisbursementofnaturalresources,itadds.
Oneiscompelledtotakejudicialnoticeofthefactthatallotmentofnatural
resourcesisanissueofextensivedebateinthecountry,somuchso,that
theissueofallocationofsuchresourceshadrecentlyresultedinawashout
oftwosessionsofParliament.Thecurrentdebateonallotmentofmaterial
resourceshasbeenpromptedbyareportsubmittedbytheComptroller
andAuditorGeneral,assertingextensivelossinrevenuebasedon
inappropriateallocations.Thereportitisalleged,pointsoutthatprivate
andpublicsectorcompanieshadmadewindfallgainsbecausetheprocess
ofcompetitivebiddinghadnotbeenadopted.Thecountrywitnesseda
similarpoliticalspatalittlewhileearlier,basedontheallocationofthe2G
spectrum,thepiececitesjusticeKheharfromtheapexcourtsorder.
Bypickingupcoalsectorasahypotheticalsituation,justiceKhehar
explicitlydemonstrateshowaforthrightlegitimatelegislativepolicymay
taketheshapeofanillegitimatestratagem,thepiecenotes.
Letsassumethatthegovernmentdecidestoallocatecoallotswithoutany
reciprocalfavourormonetarygainoranyotherconsiderationfroma
privateplayerengagedinpowergeneration.Thelawofthelandallowsit
onlywhentheprivateplayerisawardedthepowerprojectonthebasisof
competitivebidsfortariffs.Elaboratingthesamesituationfurther,Justice
Kheharsays:Ifthebiddingprocesstodeterminethelowesttariff(of
power)hasbeenheld,andthesaidbiddingprocesshastakenplace
withouttheknowledgethatacoalminingleasewouldbeallottedtothe
successfulbidder,yetthesuccessfulbidderisawardedacoalmining
lease.Wouldsuchagrantbevalid?Grantofaminingleaseforcoalin
thissituationwouldthereforebeawindfall,withoutanynexustotheobject
soughttobeachieved,itadds.
ThePressTrustofIndia(PTI),alsocitingjusticeKhehar,saidthatthe
SupremeCourtonThursdaysaidinitsorderthattheComptrollerand
AuditorGeneralscomputationofmassivelossesin2Gspectrumandcoal
blocksallocationsandsubsequentdebatecouldbethereasonsforthe
CentrefilingthePresidentialreferencetoseekopiniononmethodstopart
withthenaturalresources.
Butitdoesseem,thatthepresidentialreferenceisaimedatinvokingthis
courtsadvisoryjurisdictiontoironoutthecreases,sothatlegaland
constitutionalparametersarecorrectlyunderstood,thereportcitedthe
judgeassaying.
Meanwhile,Mintreportedthatthegovernmentislikelytouseitsdiscretion
toallotatleast16coalfieldsbyDecembertostateownedcompanies,citing
coalsecretaryS.K.Srivastava.Thisisapartoftheministrysplantogive
away54coalfieldsviatheroutesofallocation,biddingandauction,the
reportsaid.
TheSupremeCourtsresponseonThursdaytoapresidentialreference
thatauctionisnottheonlywaytoallocatenaturalresourcesmayhelp
improvethesentimentaroundallocations,whichhavebeencriticizedafter
areportoftheComptrollerandAuditorGeneralofIndia(CAG)alleged
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lossesfromallocating195coalfieldssince1993,thereportsaid.
Inaninterestingturnofevents,Congresspartyhasnowsoughttolink
GujaratchiefministerNarendraModitothecoalblockallocation
controversy,TheTimesofIndiahasreported.
LinkingGujaratchiefministerNarendraModiwithacoalblockallocation
controversy,oppositionCongressonThursdaysoughtaprobebythe
CentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)intotheMineDeveloperCum
Operator(MDO)dealsofChhattisgarhMineralDevelopmentCorporation
(CMDC,thereportsaid.
CMDCsdealsaresuspiciousasitsmodusoperandiistoenterintojoint
venturewithcompaniesandhaveagreementswhichareheavilyloadedin
favourofotherparties.CMDCactedjustlikeamiddleman,thereportcited
AICCgeneralsecretaryB.K.Hariprasadassaying.
Hariprasadsaidthisblock,havingcoalreservesof1588.99mt,were
allocatedtoCMDCforthejointventurecompanyUCMCoalCompany
LimitedithadformedwithUttarPradeshRajyaVidyutUtpadanNigam
Limited(UPRVUNL)andMaharashtraPowerGenerationCorporation
(MAHAGENCO),thereportfurthersaid.StatingthattheCMDChad
soughtcoalblockallocationonthebasisofjointventureagreement(JVA)
withBhushanSteelandforsupplying500MTrawcoaltothiscompany,the
AICCgeneralsecretarysaidthiscoalblockwasallocatedtoCMDCwithout
therecommendationofOrissagovernment.EversincetheCoalgatescam
surfaced,thejointventureagreementsreachedbetweenChhattisgarh
MineralDevelopmentCorporation(CMDC)withprivateplayersand
selectionofMinedevelopercumoperator(MOD)areundercloudwiththe
oppositionpointingoutthatthesedealswereaimedatfavouringthese
companies.
AreportintheBusinessStandardnewspaperhassaidthatthecontroversy
overcoalblockallocationscouldpossiblydelayIndiasfirstcoaltoliquid
project.
WiththeOdishagovernmentgettingentangledinawebofcontroversy
overitsrecommendationforcoalblockinfavourofJindalSteel&Power
Ltd(JSPL)foritsRs60,000crorecoaltoliquid(CTL)project,theMoU
(memorandumofunderstanding)tobesignedwiththecompanyislikelyto
bedelayed,thereportsaid.
AfterfacingthesalvooftheOppositionoverchiefministerNaveen
PatnaiksallegedpreferentialtreatmenttowardsJSPL,thestate
governmentisunderstoodtobetreadingwithextracautionamidcoalblock
allocationrow,thereportfurtheradded.
TheCTLprojectproposedatDurgapurinAnguldistrictenvisageda
productioncapacityof80,000barrelsperday.Theprojectneeds4000
acresoflandandthestategovernmenthasdecidedtoprovideatleast
50%landtoJindalSynfuelswithoutwaitingforbenchmarkingandother
detailedanalysis.TheCTLplantwillproducepetrol,diesel,keroseneand
aviationfuel.Directandindirectemploymentisexpectedtobegenerated
for30,000peoplethroughthisproject,thereportfurthersaid.
TheIndianExpressnewspaperhassaidthatasmanyasfourcompanies
promotedbyCongressmemberofparliamentNaveenJindalmayhave
usedthesameaddress,which,thenewspaperreportsays,wasfake.
28,NajafgarhRoad,NewDelhi.Thiswastheaddressusedbyfour
companiesofCongressMPandindustrialistNaveenJindalthatappliedfor
coalblocksbetween2006and2009.TwoofthemNalwaSteeland
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GaganSpongegottheblocksusingwhathasnowturnedouttobea
nonexistentaddress.Theothertwocompanieswhichappliedforblocks
givingthesameNajafgarhaddressandcontactdetailsontheirformswere
OpelinaFinanceandInvestmentLtd,andMineralManagementServices,
thenewsreportsaid.
TheJindalownedJindalSteelandPowerLtd(JSPL)andJindalPowerLtd
(JPL)alsoappliedforcoalblocks.JSPLtoowasallocatedblocksbythe
screeningcommittee,thereportfurthersaid.
Meanwhile,TheHindunewspaperreportedonhowaPuducherry
governmentownedcompanymayhavebeenspurredbyacompanyto
acquireacoalblock.
Itappearstobeastrangecaseofaprivatefirmspurringagovernment
bodytoseekacaptivecoalmine,thereportsays.InDecember2006,the
governmentbodythe38yearoldPondicherryIndustrialPromotion
DevelopmentandInvestmentCorporation(PIPDIC)hadapparentlyno
ideatoseekacoalblockuntilitreceivedanunsolicitedofferfromthe
privatefirmJRPowerGenerationPrivateLimited(JRP),whichhadno
priorexperienceincoalminingorpowergenerationforacoalmine
developmentproject.
Inamatterofweeks,PIPDICtookaformaldecisiontoapproachtheCoal
Ministryforallocationofablock.Aweeklater,itsubmittedaformal
applicationtotheMinistry,seekingallotmentofcoalblockequivalentto530
milliontonnes(MT).Onthesameday(January17,2007),theCorporation
signedamemorandumofunderstanding(MOU)withJRP,acompany
ownedbythefamilyofS.Jagathrakshakan,nowUnionMinisterofStatefor
InformationandBroadcasting,withoutcarryingoutatechnoeconomic
feasibilitystudyoftheprojectandascertainingtechnicalcapabilitiesofthe
privatefirm,thereportgoesontoadd.
26September2012
Inaninterestinganalyticalpieceonthecoalblockallocationissue,The
HinduBusinessLinenewspaperhassaidthatcompaniescontrolledby
stategovernmentssecuredlucrativeblocksandusedthesametofavour
privateminersorendusersofcoal.
Theoretically,itcanbeassumedthatpublicsectorcompanieswillpasson
fullbenefitsofassetallocationtothenation,eitherintermsofcheap
electricity,providingcoaltosmallerconsumersatafairprice,orpaying
handsomedividendstothegovernment,thereportsays.
Startingfrom1993,publicsectorundertakings(PSUs)wereofferednearly
halfofthe195blocksallottedsofar,atfreeofcost.Incomparisonwiththe
privatesector,theStatesectorwasofferedbiggerassets70odd
companies,outofatotalof289allottees,grabbedapproximately60%of
thegeologicalreservesand,onaprioritybasis.Barringacoupleof
Centralgovernmentundertakings,nearly90%ofsuchassetswenttoState
Governmentownedcompanies.Thebiggestbeneficiariesarethesixcoal
bearingstatesofWestBengal(11),Orissa(4),Chhattisgarh(8),Jharkhand
(10),MadhyaPradesh(10)andMaharashtra(5),togethercorneringnearly
halfoftheallocationsthroughthisroute.Amongthenoncoalbearing
states,Karnatakaislargestgainerwithsixcaptiveassets.
Theassetdistributioncoincidedwiththeriseofasectionofprivateminers
mostofthemunlistedandenjoyingthestrongbackingoflocal
politicians.Theyenteredintominedevelopmentandoperation(MDO)
contractswithPSUs.Usually,PSUsenterintoaminorityjointventure
(26:74)withtheprivateminer.Thejointventureinturnholdsthemining
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lease,makingitdifficultforthePSUtochangetheminerintheeventofany
dispute.Whatsmore,detailsofsourcingarrangementsbetweenthePSUs
andtheprivateminerrunventuresarerarelymadepublic,thereportgoes
ontosay.
Stateownedcompaniesallowedprivateminerstotappartofthebenefit
accruingfromaccesstoacaptiveassetfreeofcost.AcaseinpointisWest
Bengal.Beginningmid1990s,theStategenerationutilityentered
agreementswithaprivateminerEMTAgroup.Underthisarrangement,
thecostofsourcingcaptivecoalis19.5%cheaperthanthepriceof
identicalvarietiesofcoalproducedbyEasternCoalfields(ECL),thereport
says.Thesacrificeismadebytheendconsumerofelectricity,whopays
anundulyhighpriceforfuelsourcedfromacaptiveasset.Thestateutility
sofarsourcednearly45milliontonnesofcoalayear,fromitsfourcaptive
assets,throughthisroute.Theanomaliescametolightrecently,whenthe
newStategovernmentappointedaconsultanttoswitchovertocostlinked
pricingformulafordevelopingnewassets.
Thepossibilityofunearthingamajorscammayincreasemanifold,ifone
takesacloserlookattheassetutilisationpatternoftheStategovernment
ownedcommercialminers.Apreliminaryestimatesuggeststhat
commercialminerswereallottedapproximately43assets,nearlyhalfofthe
totalallotmentstoPSUs.Ofthese,nearly34blockswenttosixcoal
bearingstates.ThetopawardeesinthissegmentareMadhyaPradesh
StateMiningCorporation(10)andJharkhandStateMineralDevelopment
Corporation(8).MinersfromBengalandChhattisgarhwereawarded5
assetseach.EvensmallerStateslikeAssamorArunachalPradeshwere
notdeprived.Availableinformationsuggeststhatinamajorityofthecases,
theStatelevelminerreallottedminesinfavourofselectprivatesector
playerswhoaremeanttobeendusersofcoal.Itimpliessuchmineswere
practicallyconvertedintocaptiveassetsofachosenfew,thereportfurther
adds.
Thecoalministryhascontestedbeforeaparliamentarypanelthe
calculationsmadebytheComptrollerandAuditorGeneral(CAG)while
estimatingthelosstotheexchequerfromtheallocationofcaptivecoal
blockstoprivatecompanies,thePressTrustofIndia(PTI)saidinareport.
ThecoalministrysaidthattheCAGsestimateofalossofRs
1.86trillionis
.
flawedonbasicfundamentalsrelatedtothegeologicalsector.
Italsosaidthatthebasicintentofthegovernmentbehindsuch
allocationofcoalblockswastoinducerapiddevelopmentofinfrastructure
byinvolvingtheprivatesectortoinvestinidentifiedprioritysectors.
TakingintoaccounttheaveragesalepriceofallgradesofcoalofCoal
IndiaLtd(CIL)inopencastminesaswellasaveragecostpriceofall
gradesofcoalinthePSUandaddingadditionalfinancialcosts,theCAG
hascalculatedafinancialgainofRs
1,85,591.34croretoprivateparties.The
.
auditorisoftheviewthatapartofthisfinancialgaincouldhavebeen
tappedbythegovernmentbytakingtimelydecisiononcompetitivebidding
forallocationofcoalblocks,thereportsaid.
InitsresponsetotheCAGreport,theoalministryhastoldParliaments
PublicAccountsCommitteethattransparentprocedureswereobserved
whilerecommendingallocationsbyfollowingabroadpolicyframework.It
istobestatedthatthecalculationofthesaidfinancialgainswereflawedon
certainbasicfundamentalsrelatedtothegeologicalsector,theministry
hastoldthePACinawrittensubmission.Thefinancialgainstoprivate
partieshavebeencomputedonthebasisofthedifferencebetweenthe
averagesalepriceandtheproductioncostoftheCIL,aswellasestimated
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extractablereservesoftheallocatedcoalblocks,theministrysaid.This
computationofextractablereservesbasedonaverageswouldnotbe
correctinthegeologicalsector.Moreover,asthecoalblockswere
allocatedtoprivatecompaniesonlyforcaptivepurposesforspecificend
uses,itwouldnotbeappropriatetolinktheallocatedblockstothemarket
priceofcoal,thereportcitedtheministryassaying.
Meanwhile,inareportDNAnewspapersaidthattheministriesofpower
andcoalareatloggerheadsontheissueofimportofcoalbyCoalIndiaLtd
forprivatesectorcompanies.
Whiletheministryofcoalhasaccusedtheministryofpowerofmooting
policiesthatwillharmtheinterestsofthePSUCoalIndia,theministryof
powerisdefendingitspoliciesinthegarboflargerinterestofthecountry
andpowersecretary,UmaShankarhasaskedtheCILboardandits
directorstodosomesoulsearchingontheirresponsibilityand
commitment.Inaletter,S.K.Srivastava,secretarycoalhaslambastedthe
ministryofpowerformootingtheproposalinwhichCoalIndiaisrequiredto
import20mtofcoalfortheIndependentProwerProducers.Theproposal
willcosttheCoalIndiaawhoppingRs
3,000crorein201212itself.Overa
.
periodof20years,theselosseswouldamounttoRs
60,000croreatthe
.
currentlevel,thereportsaid.
DNAnewspaperreportsthatcoalministerShriprakashJaiswalwillhaveto
explainwhyhisministrysleptoverrequestsfromtheCBIsince2010to
inquireacorruptioncaseagainstCMDofWesternCoalfieldLtd(WCL).
Jaiswalalsosatoverthevigilancereportinthecaseforoverayear,the
reportsaid.
ThecasepertainstothesubmissionofafakebankguaranteeworthRs
2.24
.
crorebyMsShriSaiConstructionCompanyforthecontractofdiversionof
theMottaGhatcanalatthePadmapuropencastmineofChandrapurarea,
WCLworthRs
14crore.Thetenderwaspassedin2007.Documents
.
accessedbyDNAshowthatinMarch,2010,theCBIapprisedtheministry
aboutthemisconductofWCLofficials.Italsowrotetotheministry,seeking
permissionofthecentralgovernmenttoconductaninquiryontheroleof
DCGarg,CMDofWCL,andajointssecretarylevelofficial.Threemonths
later,theCBIsentaremindertotheministryaboutcarryingoutaninquiry.
Failingtogetaresponsefromtheministry,theCBIwrotetotheCentral
VigilanceCommissioner(CVC)inOctober2010.TheCBIsaideventhe
agencysdirectorhadwrittentothecoalministryandsoughtapprovalfor
theinquiry.Theletter,accessedbyDNA,said:Thedirector,CBI,hasalso
writtenalettertothesecretary,coalministryforseekingapprovalunder
section6AoftheDelhiSpecialPoliceEstablishmentActtoregisteracase
ofcriminalmisconductagainstDCGarg,butsofarnoactionhasbeen
taken.MrGargcontinuestoenjoyhispostinginthemidstofallthe
allegations.Followingthis,theCVCaskedtheministryeithertogrant
permissionorexplainreasonsfornotdoingso.Theministryfinallyreferred
themattertotheChiefVigilanceOfficer(CVO)oftheWCLinDecember
2010,thereportfurtheradded.
25September2012
Inafreshturnofeventsinthecoalblockallocationsaga,officialsofthe
steelministryatthecentreandthosebelongingtotheMaharashtra
government,couldcomeunderthescanneroftheCentralBureauof
Investigation(CBI),whichisnowprobingallallotmentssince1993.
CBIisprobingtheroleofofficialsofMaharashtragovernmentandUnion
steelministryinconnectionwithpositiverecommendationsgiventoGrace
Industriesforallocationofcoalblockdespiteallegedmisrepresentationsin
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thenetworthandotherdetails.CBIsourcessaidthecompany,whichhad
appliedforcaptivecoalblockforitsspongeironplantinMaharashtra,had
allegedlyreceivedpositiverecommendationsfromstategovernmentas
wellasofficialsofsteelministry.Theysaidthecompanyhasallegedly
inflateditsnetworthnearly10foldtoclaimeligibilityforLoharaEastcoal
blocks,thePTIreported.
Thesourcessaidsuchamajorincreaseinthenetworthcouldhaveeasily
beennoticedbytheofficialsinvolvedinthescreeningprocessbutthey
allegedlychosetoignoreitandgavepositiverecommendationswhich
helpedthecompanyinbaggingtheoffer.Thesourcessaidthecompany
hadallegedlyinflateditsspongeironplantcapacityandprojectednearly
doublecapacityof12,0000tonnesperannumwhereasactuallyitwasonly
60,000tonnesperannum,thereportfurthersaid.
Meanwhile,Rediff.comhasreportedthattheCBIisunlikelytoquestion
centralvigilancecommissioner(CVC)PradeepKumarinconnectionwith
thecoalblockallotments.Kumar,asspecialsecretaryinthecoalministry,
wasamemberofthecoalblockallocationscreeningcommitteein2006.A
CBIsourcetoldRediff.comthattheagencyisnotseekinganyresponse
fromKumar,thereportsaid.
Technicallyspeaking,theCVCisthebossoftheCBIaftertheVineet
Narayanjudgement,whichlaidtheframeworkfortheCBIsindependent
functioning.TheCBIishandlingthecasesrelatedtothecoalscam,which
havebeenforwardedtoitbytheCVC.However,sofar,investigationsinto
thecoalscamarehighlysuperficialandlimitedtosmallfishes,thesource
wellversedwiththeinvestigationsays,addingthatitisunlikelytogo
deeperintothepoliticalconnections,thereportadded.
ThedetailthathasemergedisthattheaccusedJayaswalbrothersmet
thenMinisterofStateforCoalSantoshBagrodiawhentheywereunableto
getfreecoalblocks.ItwasonlyaftertheirmeetingwithBagrodiathattheir
applicationwasapproved.Inthecoalscamitissaidthatthescreening
committee,whichwassupposedtoweightheapplicationsbeforeallotting
coalblocks,wasrunonwhimsandfancyoftheministers.CVCKumarhad
attendedthescreeningcommitteemeetings,includingtheonethat
approvedthefirmGraceIndustriesapplication.Thefirmhasnowbeen
bookedbytheCBI,thereportfurthersaid.
Earlierintheday,theDNAnewspaper,inareporthasquestionedhowat
least1800acresofcoalblockwaswasliterallyhandedonaplattertothe
TataIron&SteelCompanyLtdin2005.
FollowingTiscosrequeststogetachunkofthe3,070acreHurdagcoal
blockinJharkhand,theministryofcoal(MoC)madetheallocationwithout
somuchasconsultingCCL.ThelandfortheblockwasacquiredbyCCL,a
subsidiaryofCoalIndiaLtd,in1981undertheCoalBearingAreas
(AcquisitionandDevelopment)Act,1957,whichforbidstransferringsuch
landtoothers.Despitecompletingthelandacquisitionandrehabilitationof
theprojectaffectedpeople,thePSUwascompelledtohandover1,879
acresoftheblocktoTataSteelforitsJamshedpurunitscoalrequirement
of5milliontonnesperannum,theDNAreportsaidwhiledetailingthe
entireprocessofhowthecompanygottheblock.
Meanwhile,theCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)saidonMondaythatit
willinvestigateallcoalblockallocationssince1993,Mintreported.
TheCBIsaidatleast50additionalcompaniescouldbeprobedaspartof
thewidenedinvestigation.ThedecisionfollowstheCentralVigilance
Commission(CVC)onMondayforwardingaletterwrittenbyseven
parliamentariansdemandinganinvestigationofallcoalblockallocations
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since1993totheCBI,thereportsaid.
24September2012
AreportinTheIndianExpressnewspaperhassaidthatcoalminister
ShriprakashJaiswalsatonafilethatsoughthisdirectiononkeeping
captivecoalblockallocationsonholduntilthenewcompetitivebidding
systemwaslaunched.
Thethencoalsecretary,C.Balakrishnan,sentthefileon20July2009
seekingtheministersdecisiononwhetherallocationofcoalblocksshould
continueaspertheextantpolicyinpracticeorthisshouldawaitenactment
ofMMDRAmendmentBill2008whichseekstointroducecompetitive
biddingsystem.Thequerywasspecifictoallottingcoalblocksalready
awardedbythescreeningcommitteeastheproposalalsoaskedJaiswalto
decideifthescreeningcommitteeroutecouldbecontinuedforthe
remainingblocks.Decisionisrequiredwhethertheremainingblocks
shouldbefurthersubdivided/earmarkedforallocationunderthe
governmentcompanydispensationandscreeningcommitteeroutes
separately,itsaid.Thereasonforseekingtheministersopiniononputting
theprocessonholdwasthestandingcommitteesdirectionthatall
allotmentsbestoppeduntilareviewwasconductedintotheprogressof
workincoalblocksalreadyallotted.Thecommitteehassuggestedthat
firstly,theministryshouldreviewthestatusofthedevelopmentofcoal
blocksalreadyallocatedandintheeventofcoalblocksnotbeing
developedaspertheprescribedtimeframe,theseshouldbedeallocated
andonlysuchblocksshouldbedisposedofthroughauction.Onlyon
completionofthisexercise,newblocksmaybeallottedthroughcompetitive
bidding,saidtheministrysproposal,thenewspaperreportfurther
detailed.
InanotherreportDNAnewspaperhasdetailedhowthreeinfluentialand
politicallyconnectedfamiliesJindals,JayaswalsandJajodiasmultiplied
theirwealthaftertheywereallocatedcoalblocks.
Isitpossibletoquantifythebenefitstotheallegedbeneficiariesofthe
governmentscoalblocklargesse?
Yes.Justusethemarketcapitalizationyardstick.Bythatmeasure,the
worthofthreeinfluentialandpoliticallyconnectedfamiliesJindals,
JayaswalsandJajodiashaverocketedbyawhopping2,500%to23,000%
in10yearsstartingMarch2002.Itcannotbeacoincidencethatfirms
ownedbythesethreefamiliesbagged10%ofallcoalreservesallotted
afterthecaptiveminingsectorwasopenedtoprivateplayersin1993.
Sincethatyear,195coalleaseswerehandedto289firms(several
operatinginconsortium)withtotalreservesaddingupto43.35billion
tonnes,thereportnotes.
Intheallocations,CongressMPNaveenJindalscompany,JindalSteel
andPowerLtd(JSPL),emergedasthebiggestbeneficiary.Itwasallocated
ninecoalblockswithgeologicalreservesof2.58billiontonnes,or6%ofthe
totalreservesallotted.JindalsbrotherinlawSandeepJajodia,the
promoterofMonnetIspatandEnergyLtd,wasallocatedfivewithgeological
reservesof337milliontonnes,or0.78%ofthetotalreservesallotted.
NagpurbasedJayaswalfamilythatoperatestwogroupcompanies
JayaswalNecoandAbhijeetGroup(thathascloselinkstoCongressMP
VijayDarda)wasallocated10withgeologicalreservesof923million
tonnes,or2.13%ofthetotalreservesallotted,itfurthernotes.
IndiaTodaysaidthatpublicsectorcompanies,includingGujaratMineral
DevelopmentCorporation(GMDC),couldnowbestrippedoffthecoal
blockstheywereallotted.
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SourcesinthecoalministrytoldMailTodaythattheNainiblockin
Chhattisgarh,whichwasallocatedjointlytoGMDCandthePondicherry
IndustrialPromotionDevelopmentandInvestmentCorp.Ltd(PIPDIC),
couldbedeallocatedduetothedelayinproduction,thereportsaid.
Meanwhile,atleasttwocompanieswhosecoalblocksweretakenaway,
havemovedcourtagainstthemove,TheEconomicTimessaid.
SKSIspatandPower,linkedtotourismministerSubodhKantSahai,and
BhushanSteelhavechallengedthedeallocationoftheircoalblocksinthe
Delhihighcourt,evenbeforetheyreceivedanyformalcommunication
aboutcancellation,thereportsaid.
Aseniorcoalministryofficialsaidthegovernmentexpectsmore
companiestofollowsuitoncedeallocationlettersareissuedtothem.The
governmentislikelytocanceltheallocationsof13coalblocksaffecting28
privatecompanies,basedontheIMGsrecommendations,thereport
furtheradded.
Inaninterestingpiece,TheTimesofIndiahasaskedwhethercoalblocks
wereallocatedtominecoalormoney?
Thenewspaperarticlehassoughttoquestiontheallocationofcoalblocks
inMaharashtra.
Notonlyhaveblocksgiventostateminingcorporations(SMCs)helped
erasetheirlosses,theyhavealsobeenmoneyspinnersforSMCs
businesspartners.ThestategovernmentownedMaharashtraStateMining
Corp.Ltd(MSMC)permitteditsJVpartnerSunilHitechEngineersLtd
(SHEL)totransferitsstakeinAdkoliblockforaheftyconsiderationeven
beforeasingletonneofcoalcouldbemined,thepiecenotes.Actuallyall
threeblocksallottedtoMSMCarefarfromproductionstageevenfivesix
yearsafterapprovalandwellafterprescribedtime.Theminingcompany,
however,hasleftnochancetomakemoneybysellingtheblockstoprivate
partiesandisnowallowingthemtodothesame.
TheMoCallottedAdkoliblockinYavatmaldistrictofVidarbhatothe
MSMCon2August2006forproducingcoalandsupplyingittosmallscale
industriesetcwithin36monthsfromdateofapproval.TheMSMCearned
anupfrontprofitRs
75crorebyauctioningtheblockin2008toSHELwhich
.
hasnoexperienceincoalmining.MSMCformedaJVwithSHELbythe
nameofMSMCAdkoliNaturalResourcesLtdon21November2009.
MSMCholds51%andSHEL49%ofthisJV.Asfarascurrentstatusofthe
blockisconcerned,thelandacquisition,mineplan,processetcareyetto
complete.AccordingtothedirectorsreportofSunilHitechEnergyPvt.Ltd
(SHEPL),subsidiaryofSHEL,foryearending31March2012,49%equity
wastransferredtoJaypeeGroup,abigcementmanufacturingcompany.
Thereportmentions,intermsofJVagreementdated21November2009
enteredintobetweenSHELandMSMC,MSMCAdkoliNaturalResources
Ltdhasbeenformed...WithapprovalofMSMC,49%equitysharesof
SHEPL,ownedbySHEL,havebeentransferredtoJaypeeGroupentity.
ThesamereportstatesthatthetotalsharesofSHEPLwere1,87,20,000
withafacevalueofRs
10each.Ason31March2012,SHELhad24,42,960
.
(13.05%)shares,SHELInvestmentsConsultancyPvt.Ltd71,04,240
(37.95%)andJaypeeDevelopmentCorp.Ltd91,72,800(49%).Going
onlybyfacevalueofshares,SHEPLraisedRs
9.17crorefromthedeal
.
executedin201112.Ason31March2011,SHELwashaving1,16,15,760
(62.05%)andSHELInvestmentsConsultancyPvt.Ltd7,104,240
(37.95%)inSHEPL.ThereportmentionsSHEPLpaidRs
18.41croresweat
.
moneytotheMSMCason31March2011,andRs
37.06croreason31
.
March2012.SHEPLhasshorttermborrowings(noninterestbearing)of
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Rs
5.89crorefromJaypeeDevelopmentason31March2012,thepiece
.
furthergoesontosay.
23September,2012
TheCentralBureauofInvestigationhasfoundthatcoalfirmshad
fabricateddataforpreferentialallotmentofcoalblocks,IndiaToday
reports.
ShockingfabricationoffactshascometotheforeinCBIraidsonprivate
firmslinkedtotheallegedcoalscamatsevenlocationsacrossthecountry
onSaturday.Theagencyhasregisteredcasesagainsttwomoreprivate
firmsGraceIndustriesinNagpur,MaharashtraandVikashMetaland
PowerLimitedinKolkatainthecoalblockallocationscam,reportsthe
magazine.
AccordingtotheCBI,GraceIndustrieswasallocatedtheLohara(East)
blockinMaharashtraafteritshowedaninflatednetworthofRs120crore.
Thecompanysactualnetworth,asrevealedbytheCBIinvestigation,is
notmorethatRs2.5crore.VikashMetal,ontheotherhand,gotacoal
blockin2008afteritclaimedtohavebeenallocateda300acreplotin
Begusarai,Bihar,forsettingupasteelplant.TheCBIsleuths,however,
foundthatthelandallocationhadbeencancelledbytheBihararea
developmentauthorityayearbeforetheclaimwasmade.FIRshavebeen
lodgedagainstboththecompaniesundersections120(B)(criminal
conspiracy)and420(cheating)oftheIndianPenalCode.OwnersofGrace
Industriesandunnamedgovernmentofficialshavealsobeenbooked
underPreventionofCorruptionAct(forallegedbribery).CBIsleuthsraided
theofficesandhouseoftheownerofGraceIndustries,MukeshGupta,in
NagpursDhantoliarea.ThecompanyiscoownedbyGuptaswife,
Seema.GraceIndustriesisalsoaccusedofmisquotingtheproduction
capacityofitsspongeironplant,thereportgoesontosay.
TheEconomicTimesnewspaperhassaidthatJSWSteelsplanstosetup
a3milliontonnessteelplantinWestBengalislikelytogetfurtherdelayed
followingthegovernmentdecisiontodeallocateGourangdihABCcoal
mine,allottedjointlytotheSajjanJindalledfirmandHimachalEMTAPower
Ltd.
Citingaseniorcompanyofficial,thereportsaidthatcoalfromthe
deallocatedGourangdihblockwassupposedtofeeda300MWcaptive
powerplantfortheproposedsteelprojectinWestBengalandconstruction
activitiesatSalbonitheplantsitewassupposedtobegininnextoneor
twomonths.However,postdeallocation,thecompanywillbeleftwithno
coalfortheproposedpowerplantandwouldhavetoreworkitsproject
developmentplan.
Meanwhile,DNAnewspapersaysthatdespitestiffoppositionandpleas
fromthestaterunCoalIndiaLtd,theUniongovernmentin2006allocated
twocoalblockstotheSasanUltraMegaPowerProject(UMPP)inMadhya
Pradesh.
OfficialshadopposedthedeallocationoftheblocksfromtheMaharatna
publicsectorundertaking.Theirsuggestionforalternativecoalblocksfor
the4,000MWSasanproject,subsequentlyawardedtoReliancePower,was
alsoignored,deliveringatellingblowtoCILscoalproductionprogramme,
thereportnotes.
22September,2012
TheCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)onSaturdayregisteredtwofresh
casesinitsinvestigationintotheallotmentofcoalblocks,TheEconomic
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Timesnewspaperreported.
TheagencyhasbookedGraceIndustriesandVikashMetalsandPowers
Ltdforfudgingfinancialstatementstogetcoalblocks,thereportsaid
citingCBIsources.
Thesourcessaidraidsarebeingcarriedoutatsevenlocationsincluding
Kolkata,Nagpur,Asansol,PuruliaandChadarpur.Sourcessaidcases
havebeenregisteredagainstpromotersandmanagementthese
companiesandunknowngovernmentofficialsthereportadded.
InaseparatereportNDTVnewschannelsaidtheownerofGrace
IndustriesMukeshGuptasDhantolihouseandofficepremisesinGupta
housewereamongthosebeingraided.MrGuptahadallegedlysoldmine
blocksallocatedtohiminLoharanearTadobatoSunvijayRollingmills,but
theblockwasdeallocatedfollowingobjectionfromtheUnionForestand
Environmentministry.
InNagpur,raidswereconductedattheGuptaMetallicsownedbyMahesh
Gupta.ItsbankguaranteeforcaptiveblockatMalegaonwasrecently
recommendedforseizurebytheinterministerialpanel.Theownersof
thesecompanieshavebeenchargedwithcheating,criminalconspiracy
andundersectionsofPreventionofCorruptionAct,thereportadded.
InaninterestingOpEdpiece,TheHindunewspaperhassoughttoanalyse
thecorrectnessofthemethodstheComptrollerandAuditorGeneral(CAG)
usedtoreducethelossitestimatedinitsdraftreportoncoalblock
allocations.
Toughquestionscouldemergefromthewidegapbetweentheinitial
Rs.10.67lakhcrorerevenuelossestimatepresentedinadraftreportin
March2012andthewhittleddownRs.1.86lakhcrorefigurepresentedin
thefinalreport,thenewspapersays.TheCAGcanarguethatthe
handlingofthecoalauditbordersonconservativeconsideringreportsthat
theMadhyaPradeshStateMiningCorporationauctionedsixcoalblocksin
November2008ataminimumbidpricesetat200percentofroyalty,
whichcurrentlyrangesfromRs.127toRs.180pertonne.Thoughthe
winningbidsrangedfromroyaltiesofRs.700Rs.1,200pertonne,the
CAG,initsreporthasfactoredonlyanetgainofRs.295.41pertonneof
coal.
ThearticlepointsoutthatacloserlookattheCAGscalculation
methodologyiscritical,asitcouldhaveabearingonthevaluesofcoal
blockswhentheyarefinallyauctionedandonthecoalreservesextracted
fromaparticularcoalblock.
TheCAGreportestimateswindfallgainswithrespecttoprivateparties
alone,excludingcoalblocksallocatedtogovernmentcompaniesandtheir
jointventureswithprivateparties.ThiseffectivelyshavesoffgainsofRs.
5.88lakhcrore,reducingitsRs.10.67lakhcroredraftreportlossfigureto
Rs.4.79lakhcrore.Eveninthecaseofa100percentgovernment
company,theminedeveloperandoperators(MDOs)wouldmostlybe
privatepartieswithwhomthewindfallgainswouldhavetobeshared.The
CAGhadobjectedtothelowerpriceatwhichtheBhatgaonIIExtension
blockwasauctionedtoaprivatecompanyinChhattisgarh.Similar
controversyisbrewingoverthePakriBarwadihcoalblockallocatedto
NTPCwherethewinningMDOedgedpastapublicsectorcompanyunder
theadministrativecontroloftheCoalMinistry.Thefamilyofthethen
MinisterofStateforcoalreportedlyhada10percentstakeintheMDO
thateventuallywonthecontract,thereportsays.
CoalsecretarySKSrivastavahastoldaparliamentarypanelconsidering
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thereportoftheComptrollerandAuditorGeneral(CAG)onthecoalblock
allotmentissue,thattheministrydoesnothaveinitspossessionthe
minutesofallthescreeningcommitteemeetings,TheTimesofIndia
reported.
Thecoalministrydoesnothaveafullrecordofminutesofthescreening
committee,whichallottedcoalblocksexplainingwhyhundredsof
applicationswererejectedwhilesomewerepreferred,ParliamentsPublic
AccountsCommittee(PAC)wastoldonFriday.Respondingtoquestions
posedbyPACmembers,coalsecretarySanjaySrivastavatoldthepanel
examiningtheCAGreportonCoalgatethatminutescouldbewith
ministriesconcerned.These,insomecases,mightbewiththepower
ministry.Butapowerministryofficialpresentatthecommitteedeliberations
wasunabletoclearlystateifthedepartmenthadarecordoftherelevant
minuteseither,andsuggesteditmightbewiththeenergycoordination
panel,thereportsaid.
Inacrimoniousexchanges,CongressMPsalsoblamedtheCAGreporton
Coalgatefortherupeesdevaluation.ThiswascounteredbyBJPsPrakash
Javadekarwhosaidthedevaluationtookplacemuchbeforethereportwas
presentedtoParliament.Coalministryofficialswerequeriedinthecontext
oftheComptrollerandAuditorGenerals(CAG)assertionthatnorecord
couldbefoundthatsetsoutreasonswhycertainprivatefirmswereallotted
coalblocksaheadofscoresofotherapplicantsforaparticularmine.Inone
case,twoapplicantswereshortlistedfrom108.PACchairMurliManohar
JoshiaskedtheministrytoprovidethePACwiththeminutestowhich
officialscouldnotclearlystateiftherecordisavailable,thereportfurther
added.
Meanwhile,TheIndianExpressreportedthattheCAGhadsoftenedhis
positionontheprocessofallocationofcoalblocks,sayingheneverpitched
forintroducingthecompetitivebiddingmechanismforallocatingmines.He
hasalsoclaimedthatcoalministerSriprakashJaiswalhascontradictedhis
ownministrysreplytoParliamentonauctionofcoal.
Wehaveatnopointoftimesuggestedthatapolicyofcompetitivebidding
shouldhavebeenintroduced,theCAG,VinodRaihastoldthePublic
AccountsCommitteeofParliamentexaminingtheauditreportonallocation
ofcoalblocks.Insteadthenationalauditorhasmerelymadeobservations
basedonthepoliciesasprevailingatanypointoftime.TheCAGsanswer
issignificantastheUPAgovernmenthasaccusedhimofexceedinghis
mandatebysuggestingtherewasamistakeinallocatingcoalthrougha
screeningcommittee,insteadofthroughanauction,thereportfurther
said.
Inhisdeposition,theCAGhasalsoquotedareplytoanunstarred
questioninLokSabhamadeinNovember2007,wherethethencoal
ministerhadarguedforauctionofcoal.Rationalbiddingisunlikelyto
increasethecostofcoalwhencomparedtonotifiedpriceofCoalIndia,
theministerhadnoted.Jaiswalhasrecentlyclaimedthatauction,while
necessary,will,however,makecoalpricesshootupandthereforeraise
pricesofcommoditieslikeelectricityandcement,thereportadded.
21September,2012
TheCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)couldsoonbeginexaminingcoal
blockallotmentssince1993.APressTrustofIndia(PTI)reportsaysthat
coalministerShriprakashJaiswalhassoughtaCBIprobeintomines
allocationsince1993.
SeekingtheCBIprobe,hehasalsoforwardedaletterwrittenbyseven
parliamentarianstotheCVCthatblocksallottedbetween1993and2004
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(NDArule)shouldbeinvestigatedbytheCBI,asfavoursweredoneto
partiesunderpoliticalpressure.ThemissivebyJaiswalwassenton
WednesdayalongwiththeletterbytheMPswrittenonSeptember5,the
reportsaid.
TheCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)isinvestigatingthepower
ministryinconnectionwiththeallotmentofcoalblocksduringthetime
whenSushilkumarShindewasthepowerminister,BusinessStandard
newspapersaid.
Ithassentquestionnairestotheministry,toknowthebasisonwhichit
hadrecommendednamesofcompaniestothescreeningcommitteefor
allocation.SeniorCBIofficialsindicateoncethequestionnairesare
answered,itislikelytheagencywillcallsomeofficialsforquestioning,the
newspaperreportsaid.
Earlier,CBIsentquestionnairestothecoalministryaswell,ondetailsof
thedecisionsandrecommendationsmadebythelatter.Interestingly,CBI
hasaskedfordetailspertainingtotheperiodwhenShindewasministerhe
nowheadstheministryofhomeaffairs,thereportadded.
ThecaseofViniIronandSteelUdyog,allocatedtheRajhara(Northand
Eastern)coalblock,wasneitherrecommendedbytheJharkhand
governmentorthesteelministryinitially.Yet,atthe36thscreening
committeemeeting,thechiefsecretaryofJharkhandhadrecommended
allocatingtheblocktoViniinplaceofZoomVallabhSteel,whichhadbeen
recommendedbythesteelministry,thereportfurthernoted.
AtleastsevenCongressmembersofparliamenthavecalledforaCBI
probeintheallotmentofcoalblockssince1993,TheIndianExpress
reported.
TocountertheBJPsattackovertheallegedmalpracticesintheallocation
ofcoalblocksbetween200409,sevenLokSabhaMPsoftheCongress
haveurgedtheCentralVigilanceCommission(CVC)toasktheCBIto
probeallotmentsofallcoalblockssince1993.CVCisunderstoodtobe
preparingtoconveytheinvestigatingagencytowidentheambitofits
probe.BythistheprobewillalsocovertheperiodduringwhichtheBJPled
NDAgovernmentwasinpower,thereportsaid.
InalettertoCVCPradipKumar,writtenonSeptember5,sevenCongress
MPscitedtheCAGreport,whichquotedthecoalministrysstatementthat
till2004therewasnoclearcriteriaforallocationofcoalmines,mostof
whichwereallocatedtoapplicantswhoproducedlettersof
recommendationsfromthecoalrichstates.Itthereforeappearsthatall
coalblocksallottedsince1993shouldbeinvestigatedbytheCBIspecially
probingthesystemthroughwhichstatesselectedprivatecompanies,the
MPssaidintheirletter.TheysaidthattheCBIshouldascertainthesystem
usedbythestatesinselectingfirmsforcoalblockallocationsbetween
19932004,thereportfurthernoted.
20September,2012
Theinterministerialgroup(IMG)lookingintocoalblockallocationson
Thursdayrecommendedthatblocksallocatedtoseveralcompanies
includingGrasimandGujaratAmbujabetakenaway,Mintreported.
ThepanelrecommendedthecancellationoftheDahegaon/Makardhokra
IVcoalfieldallocationinMaharashtra,theofficialsaid,decliningtobe
identified.Theministryslistofallotteesshowsthecoalfieldisheldby
GujaratAmbujaCementwithLafargeIndiaPvt.Ltd.andISTSteeland
PowerLtd.Thecoalwasmeanttobeusedincementmaking.Thesecond
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coalfieldallocationrecommendedforcancellationisBhaskarparain
Chhattisgarh,which,accordingtotheministryslist,belongstoGrasim
IndustriesandElectrotherm(India)Ltd,thereportsaid.
ThegroupofgovernmentofficialswillmeetinOctobertodecideonthe
coalfieldsownedbygovernmentcompaniesthatformapartofalistof58
blocksthatwereservedshowcausenoticesandwasreviewedbythe
panel,itadded.
Meanwhile,theCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)grilledAbhijeetgroup
chairmanManojJayaswalonThursday,PressTrustofIndia(PTI)
reported.
Unlikeyesterday,whenfourmembersofJayaswalfamilywerequestioned
together,theagencytodaygrilledManojalonefornearlyeighthoursabout
hisassociationwithLokmatGroupledbyCongressMPVijayDarda,ILFS
andothersuchcompanies,thereportsaid.
Thecoalministrynowwantspenaltiestobeimposedonminesthathave
beennamedinthefirstinformationreportsfiledwiththeCentralBureauof
Investigation(CBI),areportinTheTimesofIndiasaid,citingcoalsecretary
S.K.Srivastava.
Firmsthatwereallocatedcoalblocks,whicharenowundertheCBIs
scanner,mayfindtheirallotmentscancelleddespitethelegalproceedings
againstthembeingataninitialstage.Thecoalministryplanstoseek
advicefromthelawministryonwhetherfirmsagainstwhomFIRshave
beenfiledcanbesubjectedtopenaltiesthatcanincludeforfeitureofbank
guaranteesanddeallocationofcoalblocks,thereportsaid.
CBIhasfiledanFIRagainstfivecompaniesAMRIronandSteel,JAS
InfraCapital,JLDYavatmalEnergy,NavbharatPowerandViniIronand
Steel,thereportfurthernoted.
19September,2012
Inanimportantdevelopment,thecoalministryhasnowsaidthatpower
producedfromcheapcoalmustnotbesoldatmarketrates,TheHindu
BusinessLinenewspaperhasreported.Thereportsaysthecoalministry
wantsthepowerministrytoputinplaceacomprehensiveregulatoryand
monitoringmechanismtoensurethatelectricityfromcheaperdomestic
coalissoldatregulatedratestostateelectricitydistributioncompanies
(discoms).
Thecoalministry,whichispreparingthegroundsforauctioningcoal
mines,willaddthisclauseintheallocationletters.Asofnow,theletter
merelystatesthatbiddersshouldparticipateinthebidsforsaleofpowerto
endusecustomers,accordingtoPowerMinistryguidelines,thereport
says.
Afterdiscussionswiththelawministry,thecoalsecretary,S.K.Srivastava,
wrotealettertohiscounterpartinthepowerministry,P.UmaShankar,on
4September.Accordingtothecoalministry,itneedstobeclarified
whethermereparticipationinthebiddingprocesswouldensurethatthe
benefitofcheapercoalwillbepassedontoconsumers,asobservedbythe
ComptrollerandAuditorGeneralofIndiainitsauditreport,thenews
reportfurthersays.Thiswouldbeabigdampenerforcompaniessuchas
JindalSteelandPowerLtd(JSPL),whicharesellingelectricityatmarket
ratesevenaftersourcingcoalfromcaptivemines.JSPL,promotedby
CongressmemberofParliament,NaveenJindal,operatesa1,000MW
coalfiredplantinRaigarh,Chhattisgarhonamerchantbasis.
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Meanwhile,theinterministerialgroup(IMG)lookingintotheissueofcoal
blockallocation,hasrecommendedthatthreemoreblocksbedeallocated
andthebankguaranteesoffourmorebeforfeited,Mintreported.The
reportalsosoughttoexaminewhyJSWSteelLtdlostitscoalblockwhile
someotherbigcorporatesmanagedtokeeptheirs.
JSWSteelLtdlostitsGourangdihABCfieldinWestBengalforhaving
spenttoolittleonit,butReliancePowerLtds(RPower)4,000megawatts
(MW)SasanpowerprojectcouldkeepitsMoharandMoharAmlori
ExtensioncoalfieldsinMadhyaPradeshbecausetheyshowedtheyhad
startedmining,thereportsaid,citingacoalministryofficial.TataSteel
LtdsPachmocoalfieldinJharkhandwassavedasitsfateisintertwined
withthatoftheKotreBasantpurfield,alsointhesamestate,asthe
companysubmittedajointminingplanforthetwoblocks,theofficialsaid.
Oneofthetwofieldsfallsintheenvironmentministryssocallednogo
zoneforestareaswherenoindustrialactivityispermitted.
Inwhatcoulddraganotherpoliticalheavyweightintothecoalblock
controversy,TheEconomicTimesreportedthatOrissachiefminister
NaveenPatnaiklobbiedwiththePrimeMinistertogetcoalblocksallotted
tocorporates.
Contrarytohistallclaims,OdishachiefministerNaveenPatnaikhasnt
favouredcompetitivebiddingincoalblocksallocation.Worse,healso
lobbiedforcorporatesandwrittenletterstononeotherthanPrimeMinister
ManmohanSinghrequestingfavoursfortwolargeIndianconglomerates,
aheadofthe2009generalelection.Hisletterstotheprimeminister,which
hasbeenreviewedbyET,havesoughtnecessarysupporttocompanies
suchasNaveenJindalledJindalSteelandPowerLtdandtheTataGroup
forsettingupcoaltoliquidprojectsinthestateinsuchcleanenergy
projects,coalisreducedtosyngas,whichisthencondensedtoproduce
fuelthatissaidtobefarcleanerthanconventionalfuels.Ironically,the
easternstatesawmajorprotestsagainstsuchprojectswhichmanyeco
activistsandscientistsallegearehighlypolluting,thenewspaperreport
said.
JSPLandaTataSasolJV,calledStrategicEnergyTechnologySystems,
wereallotted1.5billiontonesofcoaleachtosetupthecountrysfirsttwo
CTLprojectsinAngulandDhenkanaldistricts,respectively.JSPLwonthe
RamchandipromotionalblockandtheTataSasolJVArkhapaland
Srirampurcoalblocks.Thetwowerechosenover28otherapplicants,the
reportfurthernoted.
19September,2012
TheHindustanTimesnewspapersaidonTuesdaythatthePrimeMinisters
Office(PMO)isworriedthatthecoalblockcontroversymayhitthepower
sector.
ThePrimeMinistersOfficehasshotoffmissivestotheministriesofcoal
andpowertoensureadequatefuelsuppliestopowerprojectslinedupfor
commissioninginthenextfourfiveyears.Thisassumesimportanceamid
theragingcontroversyovercoalminesallocatedtoprivatefirmsandfresh
detailsthatshowthegovernmentsowndepartmentsandministriesare
delayingcriticalprojectswithassuredsuppliesfromstateownedCoalIndia
Limited(CIL)anditssubsidiaries.InvestmentsworthRs
1,24,745croreare
.
stuckduetovariousregulatory,proceduralandenvironmentalhurdles,
bankstoldthefinanceministrylastweek.Accordingtothepowerministry,
nearly66,230MWoutofthe84,756MWofproposedpowercapacity
additionplannedinthenextfewyearsiscoalbased,butfuelsupply
agreementshavebeensignedonlyfor16,000MW,thereportsaid
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TourismministerSubodhKantSahaihassaidthatanyonemakingcharges
againsthimonthecoalblockissueiscommittingcontemptofcourt,The
Weekmagazinehassaid.
TourismMinisterSubodhKantSahaisaysheisbeingvilifiedwithcharges
thathavealreadybeenexaminedbyaHighCourtandthrownoutwith
costs.AndthatArunJaitley,leaderoftheBJPwhichisnowmakingthe
chargesagainsthim,wasthelawyerwhohadrepresentedtheopposing
partyinonecase.Now,ifanyonemakesthechargethatSahailobbiedfor
SKSIspat,well,theyarecommittingcontempt.Thechargebeingraised
againstSahaiisthathewrotetothePrimeMinisterlobbyingforSKSIspat
andPowerLtd,whichhadappliedfortwocoalblocksforitssteelplantsin
ChhattisgarhandJharkhandandthathisbrotherSudhirKumar,directorof
SKS,waspresentinthe36thscreeningcommitteethatallocatedtwo
blocksofcoalfieldstoSKS.ItwasalsohintedthatSKSstoodforSubodh
KantSahai,themagazinereportsaid.
AccordingtoSahai,thecontroversystartednotoutoftheCAGreport,but
outofabusinessrivalrywhichendedinacourtcaseinwhichhehad
alreadyclearedhisnamemorethantwoyearsago.Therivalrywas
betweenPrakashIndustriesLtd,promotedbyVedPrakashAggarwal,
brotherofBJPsupporterJaiPrakashAggarwal,andSKS,whichwas
promotedbyAnilandDeepakGupta.Sahaiadmitstohavewrittenaletter
tothePrimeMinister,buttherewasnothingmalafideintheletter.Itwas
justlikeanyMPwritingtoaministerregardinghisconstituency.Iwrotefor
thestateofJharkhandtowhichIbelong,andwherenodevelopmenthas
takenplace.Inspiteofmyletter,theblocksallocatedwerein
Chhattisgarh,saidSahai.Accordingtohim,theDelhiHighCourt,which
hadheardthepetitionbyPrakashIndustries,hadfoundthattheletterhas
nothingtodowiththeallocationofcoalblocksforapowerproject....The
decisiontomaketheallocation...wasmadeatthe35thmeetingofthe
screeningcommitteeon13thSeptember2007longbeforetheaboveletter
dated5thFebruary2008.Sahaialsosaysthatmuchisbeingmadeabout
hisbrotherspresenceatthemeetingofthe36thscreeningcommitteeheld
onFebruary7,2008.Youreadthejudgment,saysSahai.Itclearlysays
inpara57thatthatmeetingwasnotaboutmakingallocationstothepower
sectoratall,thereportfurthersaid.
Inanimportantdevelopment,aimedatbringingtransparencyintheauction
ofcoalblocks,thecoalministryhascirculatedtothecoalproducingstate
governmentsandunionterritoriesinvitingtheircommentsontherulesfor
auctionofcoalassetsundercompetitivebiddingwhichclearlystatesthat
allocationofcoalblockstocompaniesforspecifiedendusersotherthan
powershallbedonethroughcompetitivebiddingprocessinwhicheven
governmentcompanieswillbeallowedtoparticipate,TheHindu
newspaperreported,citinganinternalgovernmentnote.
Seekingtoframeexhaustiveandbroadguidelinesforensuring
transparencyinallocationofnaturalresources,thecoalministryhasalso
engagedtheservicesofaprofessionalconsultantforthispurposeandthe
competitivebiddingislikelytotakeoffonlyearlynextyear.The
governmenthasalreadyidentified54coalblocksforofferingunderthe
competitivebiddingprocess,thereportfurthersaid.
Thisdevelopmentcomesevenastheinterministerialgroup(IMG)looking
intotheissueofcoalblockdeallocationhasrecommendedtothecoal
ministrythecancellationofonecoalfieldandtheforfeitureofatleasttwo
bankguarantees,includingthatofJindalSteelandPowerLtd(JSPL),
SPLsJitpurcoalfieldisinJharkhandwithreservesof81.09milliontonnes
(mt)andthecompanyhassaiditneedstheblocktofeedapowerplant.It
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didnotcommenttillthetimeofgoingtopress.
ThegroupalsorecommendedthecancellationofBiharSpongeIronLtds
MacherkundafieldinJharkhandwhichhasreservesof23.86mtofcoal.No
officialswereavailableintheofficeofBiharSpongeIrontocomment.The
secondblockonwhichIMGrecommendedforfeitureofbankguaranteeis
ChitarpurinJharkhandbelongingtoCorporateIspatLtd,Mintsaidina
report.
Meanwhile,theCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)onTuesday
questionedArvindandManojJayaswalofAMRIronandSteel,aPress
TrustofIndiareportsaid.Inarelateddevelopmentwiththeprobe,the
agencyhasrecommendedextensionoftenureofDIGRaviKant,anOrissa
cadre1998batchIPSofficer1998,whoissupervisingtheCoalgateprobe,
thereportadded.
Meanwhile,inaninterestingreportonTuesday,Minthaddetailedhow
firmsfollowunfairpracticestosourcecoalfromCoalIndia.
Suchsupplytermedacoallinkagepertainstoonlythoseprojectsthat
donothaveacaptivecoalblockandinsteadneedtosourcecoal
commerciallyfromstateownedCoalIndiaLtd(CIL)theonlycompany
allowedtoundertakecommercialminingofthecommodityinthecountry.
TotakeadvantageofthediscountedpriceofferedbyCILforsuchassured
supply,thedevelopersofpowerplantsallegedlymadefalseclaims
regardingtheorderofequipment,financialstatus,landacquisitionand
watersupply,thereportsaid.
CILhasassuredsupplyto172powerprojectsthroughsocalledLoAsor
lettersofassurance.Thegeneratingcapacityinvolvedis108,878
megawatts(MW).Thenumberdoesntincludeassurancesforprojects
commissionedbeforeMarch2009.Tobesure,CILhasbeenunableto
meetitscommitments.Severalfirmsassuredofcoalsupplyclaimedto
haveplacedordersforpowergenerationequipmentwithmanufacturersto
strengthentheircandidatureonly,thesewerenotreallyorders,the
reportfurthersaid.
CILhassaidthatitwouldbewillingtotakeupthecoalblocksthathave
beendeallocatedanddevelopthem.
Weareanticipatedtogettheseblocks.IfCILgetstheseblocks,wewill
comeupwithanactionplanfirstonhowtogoaboutit.CILiswellprepared
toproducefromtheseblocks,S.NarsingRao,chairmanandmanaging
director,CIL,toldBusinessStandardnewspaper.Therehasbeenno
assurancesfromtheCentreonthis.Thisisourunderstandingwewillget
mostoftheblocks.
17September,2012
Inaninterestingreport,BusinessStandarddetailedhowtheresidentsof
BandervillageinChandrapurdistrictinMaharashtrawerenotsatisfiedwith
theCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)probeagainstAMRIronand
Steel,armoftheNagpurbased,AbhijeetGroup.
Theprobeisforallegedmisrepresentationoffactswhileseekingallocation
oftheBandercoalblock,about125kmfromMaharashtrassecondcapital,
Nagpur.However,thelocalsarehappyatgettinganotheropportunityto
raisetheirconcernsagainsttheproject,whichtheysaywouldirreparably
damagetheirlivelihoodandenvironment,thereportsays.AMR
succeededingettingtheblock,allegedlybyusingpoliticalinfluence,but
hashasnotbeenabletoexpediteprojectdevelopmentlargelyduetoits
inabilitytogetthenecessaryapprovalsfromvillagepanchayatsinthearea,
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suchasBander,Shedgaon,Amarpuri,Shivapuri,MajaraBegadeand
Pitchua.
Villagersexpectcancellationoftheblockallotmentand,thereby,scrapping
oftheminingprojectaftertheCBIprobeisover.However,theyadd,
theyrenotsimplyrelyingontheprobebutarepreparingforanagitation
againsttheproject,itfurthernotes.
TheIndianExpressnewspapersaidinareportthatCongressmemberof
parliamentVijayDarda,whoisunderthescannerforhisallegedrolein
coalblockallocationscam,wantedtoshiftthepowerplantfrom
Maharashtraafterhisfirmgotthecoalblock.
DardaswereallocatedFatehpurEastatChhattisgarhinJanuary2008for
theirpowerplantwhichwastobecompletedbyOctober2013.CBIsources
saidthatduringoneofthereviewmeetingsofcoalblocksundertakenby
thescreeningcommittee,JLDinformedthatitwantedtochangethesiteof
thepowerplant.Thechairmanofthecommitteeraisedobjectionasthe
coalblockswereallocatedtoJLDfordevelopmentofapowerplantina
jointventure.TheCBI,whichissoongoingtoquestionDarda,suspectthat
JLDwasunderpressurefromAbhijeetGroupsManojJayaswaltoshiftthe
site.Asperthedetailsofthescreeningcommitteemeetingheldunderthe
chairmanshipofspecialsecretary(coal),thepanelremarked:Theblock
wasissuedonthebasisofapplicationmadebytheallottee.State
governmentalsorecommendedthatlocation.Nowitisnotunderstoodwhy
theallottee(JLD)isproposingtochangethesitefromonestateto
another...TheMaharashtragovernmentalsoexpressedreservationon
thedecisionofJLDtoshiftthelocationofthepowerplant,thereportsaid,
citingofficials.
Theinterministerialgroup(IMG)lookingintotheissueofdeallocatingcoal
blocksdecidedonMondaytorecommendencashingofthebank
guaranteesoftheTubedcoalblockbelongingtoTataPowerCo.Ltdand
HindalcoIndustriesLtd,twoofficialswhoattendedthepanelsmeetingsaid
onMonday,Mintreported.
Tubed,ablockinJharkhand,wasallocatedtothetwocompaniesjointlyin
August2007.IMGappearedtonothavemadeanyrecommendationson
cancellationsofcoalblocks.ThemeetingwillresumeonTuesdaywhena
newsetofcompanieswillcomeunderreview,thereportsaid.
TheCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI),meanwhile,questionedArvind
Jayaswalinconnectionwiththeallegedmisrepresentationandconcealing
offactsbyhiscompanyAMRIronandSteelPvt.LtdforgettingBandercoal
blockinMaharashtra,PTIsaidonMonday.
JayaswalhasbeennamedbytheagencyinitsFIRinwhichitallegedthat
thecompanyconcealedandmisrepresentedfactsthatitsgroupfirmswere
alreadyallocatedcoalblocksandthatitwasfinanciallyeligibletogetthe
block.Theagencyislikelytocallforquestioningotherdirectorsofthe
companyincludinghisbrotherManojandsonofCongressMPVijayDarda,
Devendrawhoarealsoaccusedinthecaseagainstthecompany,the
report,citingCBIofficials,said.
TheHindunewspapersaystheCBIaskedJayaswalabouthisalleged
meetingwiththethenministerofstateforcoalinSeptember2008toclaim
thathiscompanywasnotpartoftheJayaswalGroup,butitsequitywas
heldbytheLokmatGroup,AbhijeetInfrastructureLtdandIL&FS.The
companyhadalsoallegedlyadmittedbeforetheministertohavinggotfive
blocksearlier,thoughthisinformationwasnotdisclosedwhilefilingthe
applicationforthesaidblock.
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ThesourcessaidMrJayaswalwasconfrontedwithpapersshowinghow
hisfirmconcealedandmisrepresentedequityparticipationofIL&FSand
theLokmatGrouptogetthecoalblockallotted.Duringtheeighthour
questioning,CBIsleuthsaskedhimabouttheroleofgovernmentofficials
whoallegedlyhelpedthefirmgetthecoalblock,thereportfurthersaid.
Meanwhile,BusinessStandardreportedthatthefearofdeallocationofcoal
blockshasgrippedthe2,250MWNavbharatPowerPvtLtd.projectin
Orissastate.
TheCentralBureauofInvestigationhasfiledanFIRagainstNavabharat
PowerPvt.LtdforsellingthecompanytoEssarPowerLtdinanirregular
manneraftergettingcoalallocationinRampiaandDipsideofRampia
blocksinwesternOdisha.LondonlistedEssarEnergyPlc,theholding
companyforEssarPowerLtd,saidasofnowithasnottakenadecisionto
shelvetheproject,butsaid,itwasgoingslowonNavabharatprojectwith
IndependentPowerProducer(IPP)status,thereportnoted.
EssarPowerhadproposedtosetupa1,000MWpowerplantatParanga
nearAngulin2006,butdidnotmakeanyefforttorenewitsMoU
(memorandumofunderstanding)withthestategovernmentwhichexpired
in2009andevendidnotacquireanylandfortheproposedplant.Itlater
bought100%stakeinNavabharatintwotranchesinJuly2010andApril
2011forRs
230crore.Meanwhile,thestategovernmentsaidtheyhavenot
.
receivedanyupdatefromEssarPoweraboutthestatusofpowerplant
projectprogress,thereportsaid.
Theproposed2,250MWcoalfiredplantatMeramundaliinDhenkanal
districtrequires1,200acrelandand5,057milliontonnescoaleveryyear.
TheIPPventurehasbeengrantedwaterallocationandotherpollution
boardandenvironmentclearancesalongwithcoallinkagefor1,050MW
powergenerationapartfromallotmentofcoalblockatRampia,whichhas
beenjointlyallocatedtosixcompanies.IntheoriginalMoU,Navabharat
hadcommittedtostartthefirstunitoftheprojectcomprising525MWoutput
byJanuray2014.TheprojectmaynotseethelightofthedayiftheIMG
recommendsscrappingofitsRampiacoalblock,itadded.
AreportontheIndiaTodaywebsitesaysthathomeministerandformer
powerministerSushilKumarShindehadwrittentoPrimeMinister
ManmohanSinghin2007requestinghimtoallocateacoalblockto
BhushanEnergyLtdanOrissabasedprivatecompany,afterthecompany
requestedhimtodoso.
TheIndianExpresshassaidinanewsreportthatCongressmemberof
ParliamentNaveenJindalcouldfacemoreheatoverthecoalblock
allocationcontroversyastwomorecompaniesallegedlyassociatedwith
himcouldcomeunderthescanneroftheCentralBureauifInvestigation
(CBI).
NalwaSpongeIronLtdandGaganSpongeIronLtdgotonecoalblock
eachatGarePalmaIV,Chhattisgarh,in2006,andatAmarkonda
Murgadangal,Jharkhand,in2008,respectively.Thetwocoalblockswere
beingminedinjointventurewithJindalSteelandPowerLtd(JSPL).Sleuths
stumbleduponthesefirmswhileanalysingprivatecompanieswhichwere
allocatedcoalblocksbetween2006and2009.JSPLhasfivecoalblocks
allocatedtoitatGarePalmaIV(Chhattisgarh),Jitpur(Jharkhand),
AmarkondaMurgadangal(Jharkhand),Ramchandi(Orissa),UrtanNorth
(MadhyaPradesh).Theagencysprobeagainsttheprivatecompanies
revealedthatanothercompany,SandeepJajodiasMonetIspatandEnergy
Ltd(MIEL),isalsolinkedtoJSPL,thereportsaid.
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SourcessaidthatMIELmanagedtogetthreecoalblocksoutofwhichone
wasallottedtothemwithJSPL.Jajodia,whoisbrotherinlawofJindal,was
allegedlyhelpedbythemincorneringthesecoalfields,saidofficials.The
captivecoalblocksweretakenbyMonetandJindalfordevelopmentofa
powerplant,thereportfurtheradded.InvestigatorsfoundthatJSPL
appliedfor16coalblocksinitsname,seveninthenameofJindalPower,
seveninthenameofNalwa,threeinthenameofMonet,andthreeinthe
nameofGagan.
Meanwhile,DNAnewspapersaidinareportthatJharkhandchiefminister
ArjunMundahelpedAbhikeetGroupgrab151acresofland.
Hehasgrantedmassivefavourstothecoalandloanscamtainted
AbhijeetGroup,helpingitsetupa2.5milliontonneperannum(MTPA)
integratedsteelplantintheKharsawaSaraikeladistrictofJharkhand,
whichishisconstituency.AninvestigationbyDNAshowsthatMundanot
onlywrotearecommendationlettertothecoalministerforallocatingacoal
blocktoCorporateIspatAlloysLtd(CIAL),asubsidiaryoftheAbhijeet
Group,butalsofacilitatedamassivelandgrab.CIALsigneda
memorandumofunderstandingwithJharkhandonMarch26,2004,for
settingupa0.75MTPAsteelplantinLatehardistrictwithaproposed
investmentofRs
1,335crore.MundathenwrotealettertoDasariNarayan
.
Rao,thenministerofstateforcoal,onAugust20,2004,recommending
thattheChittarpurcoalblockinNorthKaranpurabeallottedtoCIAL.This
blockhasawhopping212milliontonnereservesofcoal,thereportsays.
Threeyearsaftergettingthecoalblock,CIALsignedanewmemorandum
ofunderstandingonAugust14,2008,withJharkhandunderwhichit
proposedtochangethesiteoftheprojectandtripleitssizeto2.5MTPA
from0.75MTPA,itfurthernotes.
InaninterestingstoryTheEconomicTimeshastracedthehistoryofcoal
mininginIndia,frommedievaltimesandhowDwarkanathTagore,the
grandfatherofNobellaureateRabindranathTagoreplayedakeyrolein
theestablishmentofthecoalminingindustryinIndia.
ItwasanAmericanwhofirsttriedtodevelopsystematiccoalminingin
India.SuetoniusGrantHeatlywasborninNewport,RhodeIsland,but
duringtheAmericanRevolutionhisfamilywasloyaltotheBritish,andfled
toBritain.HeatlyjoinedtheEastIndiaCompanyin1766,possiblybecause
LordCornwallis,theGovernorGeneralofIndia,hadearlierheadedthe
losingBritishforcesinAmerica,andwasexpectedtofavourtheBritish
loyalistsofthatconflict.HeatlybecameCollectorofChotanagpurand
Palamu(nowpartofJharkhand).Anditwaswhiletravellingherethathe
noticedlocaltribalpeopleburningcoalfires,(D.P.)Jha(oftheIndian
SchoolofMinesinDhanbad)notesthattheseamsarefoundexposedon
thesurfaceintheseareas.ThiswasnotfarfromtheDamodarriverand
Grant,alongwithanotherEastIndianman,JohnSumner,realisedthatcoal
couldbeminedandfloateddowntherivertoCalcutta,thereportsays.
In1778,theCompanysstorekeeperinCalcuttadidatestbetween
importedEnglishcoalandIndiancoal,andfoundthatwithonemaundof
theBritish,thesameworkmaybeperformedthatcanbedonewithtwo
maundsofthecountry,effectivelydoomingGrantandSumnersventure.
For40yearsnothingfurtherhappened.Butby1814,demandinCalcutta
hadincreasedtothepointwheretheeconomicsofminingIndiancoal
madesenseagain.TheCompanysponsoredWilliamJonestotryminingin
Burdwan,forwhichhetookaleaseof99bighasoflandfromtheRaniof
Burdwan.TheplacewascalledRaniganjafterher,andJonesranit,butat
aconsistentloss,till1821whentheCalcuttafirmofAlexander&Co,which
hadsecuredhisloans,tookpossessionandstartedrunningthemines
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themselves.Theydidbetter,raisingproductionfrom4,000maundsto
2,07,000by1827andmakingtheminestheirbestassets,withanannual
profitof70,000.Butthecompanyfailedin1832andthisiswhenthemines
cameintothehandsofCarr,Tagore,thecompanystartedbyDwarkanath
Tagore,whohadbeenbornthesonofapoliceofficial,butbecameoneof
thefirstgreatIndianentrepreneurs.ThepurchaseofRaniganjwasthe
mostimportantsingletransactionofDwarkanathsbusinesscareer,writes
BlairBKinginhisbiographyPartnerinEmpire:DwarkanathTagoreand
theAgeofEnterpriseinEasternIndia.Kingwritesthatthefirmhad
managerialandtechnicalexpertise,plentyofcapitalandthevitalabilityto
handlebothCalcuttaofficialsandlocalpowers,thereportfurthernotes.
Evenastheinterministerialgroup(IMG)lookingintotheallocationsofcoal
blocks,getssettomeetagainonMonday,theBusinessStandard
newspaperhassaidthatthepanelhasdecidedagainstcancellingthree
blocks,giventoNagpurbasedShreeVeeranganaSteels.
Thisisdespitethecompanyfacingthegovernmentsireforhaving
allegedlysolditsblocksbysellingownershipofthefirm,inviolationofthe
norms.Theinterministerialgroup(IMG)hadinitsreviewmeetingon
Wednesdayrecommendeddeductingthecompanysbankguaranteebut
saidtheblockshouldnotbecancelled,duetotheprogressmadeby
Veeranganaindevelopingthereserves,thereportsaid.
Decidingthattheissueofownershipchangewasbeyonditsremit,the
IMGsaiditsrecommendationofbankguaranteedeductionwaswithout
prejudicetoanyotheractionthatmightbewarrantedonaccountofchange
ofnameandshareholdingofVeerangana,thereportfurthersaid,citing
officialsources.
Inanotherreport,BusinessStandardhassaidthatHindalcoIndustrieshas
rubbishedthechargethatitprofiteeredfromtheallotmentofcaptivecoal
blocks.
Accordingtothe(Orissa)stateminingdepartment,thecompanyhasso
farexcavatedabout16milliontonnesfromthisone,atTalabirainthis
district.IfthecalculationofoperatingmarginatRs295.41pertonneofcoal
indicatedinthereportofthecountrysComptrollerandAuditorGeneral
(CAG)istakenasreference,HindalcomadeafinancialgainofRs466
crore,thereportnotes.
WehadstartedminingatTalabirain2003andtheresidualdepositswill
catertoourneedforthenextthreetofouryearsonly,itcitesSubir
Mukhopadhyay,head,humanresources,andspokespersonofHindalcos
Hirakudaluminiumsmelterunit,assaying.
16September,2012
DaysafterTheWashingtonPostcommented,withspecificreferencesto
thecoalallocationfiasco,onhowPrimeMinisterManmohanSinghhad
becomeatragicfigure,TheNewYorkTimesasksifIndiawilleverbe
abletotacklecorruption.
ThearchitectofIndiaseconomicreforms,Singhwasamajorforcebehind
hiscountrysrapprochementwiththeUnitedStatesandisarespected
figureontheworldstage.PresidentObamasaidesusedtoboastofhis
tremendousrapportandfriendshipwithSingh.Buttheimageofthe
scrupulouslyhonorable,humbleandintellectualtechnocrathasslowly
givenwaytoacompletelydifferentone:adithering,ineffectualbureaucrat
presidingoveradeeplycorruptgovernment.Everydayforthepasttwo
weeks,IndiasParliamenthasbeenadjournedastheoppositionbaysfor
Singhsresignationoverallegationsofwasteandcorruptioninthe
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allocationofcoalminingconcessions,TheWashingtonPosthadnotedin
a5Septemberpiece.TheironyisthatSinghsgreatestsellingpoints
hisincorruptibilityandeconomicexperiencearethemirrorimageofhis
governmentsgreatestfailings.
Evenasthescandalhasrenewedpublicangeraboutrisingofficialgraft
andthestateoftheeconomy,Coalgatehasprovidedfreshammunitionfor
thosewhosayIndiaspoliticianshavebecomesovenalandfecklessthat
theyarenolongerableorwillingtoaddressthecountrysentrenched
problems,TheNewYorkTimesnotesinits15Septemberpiece.Thissort
ofpoliticaldysfunctionishardlynewinIndiaand,inrecentyears,the
economywasboomingevenasthepoliticiansdithered.Butnowthatthe
economyisslowingsharply,particularlyintheailingenergysector,analysts
sayIndiacannolongeraffordagovernmentthatsoflagrantlyfailsto
deliverwhatitpromises.
ArecentstudyofcontributionstoIndiaspoliticalpartiesofferedatelling
insightintothenexusbetweenpoliticsandmoney.Companiesin
technologyandotherservicebusinessesindustriesthatrequirefew
governmentlicensesorpermissionscontributedalmostnothing.The
biggestdonorswereinvolvedinmining,powerandothersectors
dependentonthegovernmenttoobtainrightstonaturalresources,the
piecefurthernotes.
Afterrecommendingthecancellationofsevencoalblocks,theinter
ministerialgrouplookingintotheissue,coulddecidethefateofatleastsix
more,aPressTrustofIndia(PTI)report,publishedbyDNAnewspaper
said,citinganofficial.Thereporthoweverdidnotmentionthespecific
blocksthatwouldcomeupforreview.
AnotherPTIreport,publishedbyTheEconomicTimesnewspapersaidthat
theCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)islikelytobeginquestioningthe
directorsofcompaniesallegedtohaveprofitedfromthecoalblock
allocations,inthecomingweek.
Inthefirstbatch,theagencyislikelytocalltheaccusedpersonsnamedin
itsFIRagainstJLDYavatmalEnergyLimited,JASInfrastructureandAMR
IronandSteel,thereportsaid.
Meanwhile,oppositionpartieshaveslammedhomeministerSushilKumar
Shindeforhisremarksthatthecoalissuewillsoonfadeawayfrompublic
memorylikeBofors.
In1984postIndiraGandhisdeath,whenelectionshappened,Congress
hadwonmorethan400seats.AfterfiveyearspostBoforsscandal,
Congresswasoutofpoweranditsseatsgothalved.Itsadifferentmatter
whetherpeoplehaveforgottenBoforsornotbutCongresshasforgotten
whatBoforshaddonetoit.Sincethen,Congresshasnotgotmajorityonits
own,aPTIreport,publishedinDNA,citedBJPleaderBalbirPunjas
saying.
HehascometoDelhiveryrecently.HisimportanceisduetoCongress
party.BetterheconfineshimselftospeakingaboutHomeMinistry.He
shouldspeaklessonpoliticalissues,thereportcitedJD(U)Yadavas
saying.
15September,2012
Ameetingoftheinterministerialgroup(IMG)onSaturdayreviewedthe
allocationoffourcoalblocks,recommendingthedeallocationoftwoblocks
andencashingbankguaranteesintwocases,accordingtoanofficial.
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TheofficialsaidthegrouphasrecommendedthattheNewPatrapada
blockinOrissaofBhushanSteelandStripsLtdandoneblockgiventoSKS
IspatandPowerLtdbedeallocated.
TheIMGalsorecommendedtheforfeitureofthebankguaranteeofthe
BihajanandRadhikapurEastblocks,allocatedtoBhushanPowerandSteel
LtdandTataSpongeIronLtd,respectively,accordingtoofficialsfamiliar
withthematter.
Meanwhile,powerministerM.VeerappaMoilysaidthedeallocatedcoal
blocksshouldbegiventopowerprojectstomeetthecapacityaddition
targetof85,000MWinthe12thFiveYearPlan,accordingtoaPTIreport
publishedbytheBusinessStandardnewspaper.
Wearealwaysplacingourprioritybecauseyouknowcoal(which)is
provided...Thatwillcontributemoretothepowersector.Thatkindof
capacitybuilding(85,000MWin12thPlan)isintheoffing,thereportcited
himassaying.
Wecandefinitelyproduce25,000MWbytheendofthisfinancialyear
providedthatotherthingsaretiedupbecausethecapacityhasbeen
created.Therearealsocapacitieswhichhavenotbeenutilized...Itis
availablearoundyouonlythingisthatadecisionhastobetaken,the
reportfurthercitedMoilyassaying.
Interestingly,areportintheDNAnewspaperhassaidthatprivate
companiesmighthavewalkedawaywiththebestcoalblocksthatwere
profitable,ascomparedtothoseallottedtoCoalIndiaLtd(CIL),thatwere
lossmaking.
NotonlywerethecoalblocksallocatedtoCILlossmaking,theywere
alsounexplored,whichmeansthattheminesdidnotevenhaveproven
reserves.So,whilethecoalministry,workingunderthePrimeMinisters
Office(PMO)forseveralyears,gaveawaycoalminesestimatedbythe
CAGtobearoundRs
1.86trilliontoprivateplayers,theonesthatweregiven
.
toCILcouldbevirtuallyworthless,thereportsaid.
In2008,CILhadaskedfor138minesfromthegovernmenttofulfilthe
nationalcoalrequirement.However,theirrequestwaskeptpendingwhile
privateplayersweregettingtheirlucrativeshareonanadhocbasis.
Suddenly,inMaythisyear,theCoalMinistry,probablyworriedaboutthe
CAGsongoingaudit,cleared116coalblocksforCIL.Acursoryglanceat
theallocationsrevealsthat81ofthe116coalblocks,thatisnearly70%,
areundergroundblocks,whichareprohibitivelyexpensivetomine.Toadd
toCILswoes,98ofthemareunexplored.Thatmeans,nooneknows
howmuchcoalthereisintheseblocksandsomeofthemcouldbe
useless,thereportgoesontosay.
Comparethiswithwhattheprivatesectorcompanies,currentlyfacinga
CBIprobe,gotfromtheUPAgovernment.Documentsshowthat144outof
the165coalblocksgiventotheprivatesectorsince2004areallexplored
mines,withprovencoalreserves.So,whilethebestandthemostlucrative
onesweregivenawaybytheUPAgovernmentunderManmohanSingh,
thedudsweregiventoCIL,thereportfurthersays.
14September,2012
Thegovernmentpanellookingintotheissueofcoalblockallocationscould
recommendthecancellationofonemoreblockGourangdihABCMint
reportedlateFridayevening,citinganofficial.
Theinterministerialgroup(IMG)onFridayreviewedtheperformanceof
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sevencoalblocksandrecommendedcancellationofatleastoneallotment,
saidofficialsfamiliarwiththedevelopment.
Sevenblockswerereviewedandamongthemwehaverecommended
GourangdihABCfordeallocation,anofficialsaid.Theofficialsaidthe
blockbelongstoJSWSteelLtdandHimachalEMTAPowerLtd.Theycould
notimmediatelybereachedforcomment.
ThegroupwillnowmeetonSaturdaywhenitwillreviewanotherthreefour
blocks.
Meanwhile,unionministerPawanKumarBansalhasruledoutscrappingof
allthe58blocksfacingdeallocation.
Ifthereareallotmentsdoneinviolationofthenorms,orsomeonehas
misrepresentedthefactsaboutprofileofthecompanies,sternactionwill
betaken,anIndianExpressreportcitedhimassaying.
Inwhatcouldcompoundthegovernmentsproblemsinthecoalallocation
issue,theSupremeCourtonFridayaskedthecoalministrytoexplainhow
theallocationsweremade.
Thecoalministryisexpectedtogiveitsexplanationonwhethertherewere
irregularitiesintheallocationswithineightweeks,areportinMintsaid.
Meanwhile,PTIreportedmorecoalblockallotmentswillbecancelled,
followingtheonesscrappedonThursday,citingcoalministerSriprakash
Jaiswal.Theinterministerialgroup(IMG),whichisintheprocessof
reviewingtheallocations,ismeetingonFridayafternoon.Theministryhas
cancelledtheallotmentofcoalblockstofourcompaniesanddecidedto
encashthebankguaranteeofoneofthem,thereportfurthersaid.
TheDNAnewspaperreportedFridayhowawilfulneglectofCoalIndia
Ltd(CIL)hascontinuedevenastheUniongovernmentcontendsthatcoal
blockallocationtoprivateplayersisessentialtomeetthecountryspower
requirements.
Thereportsaysthatasmanyasnineimportantpostsinthegovernment
ownedcompanyareeitherheldbyofficialsonanextensionorondual
chargeorarelyingvacant.
ThegovernmenthasinthepaststatedrepeatedlythatCILisunableto
meettheserequirements.TheseninepostsinCILanditssubsidiaries
includeroleskeytoplanning,strategyandensuringthecompetitivenessof
theNavratnacompany.Whilesomeareheldbyofficersonextensionand
thereforeunwillingtotakesensitivedecisionstowardstheendoftheir
careers,someofficersfindthemselvesoverburdenedwithdualcharge,
thereportnoted.
EvenastheIMGlookingintotheissueofcoalblockallocationsmeets
againonFriday,anNDTVreportsaysthatonecompanyCastronMining,
thatwasstrippedofablockallottedtoit,appearsclosetoBJP.
Atleast10moreblocksareexpectedtobeontheIMGsreviewonFriday.
In1999whentheBJPledNDAwasinpower,CastronMiningwasgiven
onecoalblockinJharkhand.InIndia,privatefirmscannotoperatecoal
minesforcommercialusethecoalblockstheygethavetofeedpower,
steelorcementplants.Castronwasmeanttouseitscoalblockin
Jharkhandforanironandsteelproject.Becauseithasyettobeginmining,
itscoallicenceisbeingcancelled.CastronsofficeatNarimanPointin
MumbaiissharedbybusinessmanAnupAgarwallasBLAGroup,which
hasinterestsinthepowersector.Bothcompanieslistthesameaddresson
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theirwebsites.MrAgrawallasfirmwasallottedtwocoalblocksinMadhya
Pradeshin1996.MrAgarwallaislistedasthecoconveneroftheBJPs
CommerceCellonthepartyswebsite.In2009,hewastheBJPs
candidatefortheRajyaSabhaelectionfromRanchi,butlost,thereport
notes.
Atleast10moreblocksareexpectedtobeontheIMGsreviewonFriday,
anotherNDTVreportsaid.
Amidaragingcontroversyovertheallocationofcoalblocks,thepower
ministryhassaidthatitwillaskthecoalministrytodeallocatethecaptive
coalblocksfromprojectsthathavenotprogressedtothosethatwillbe
commissionedduringthe12thfiveyearplanperiod,TheHinduBusiness
LinenewspapersaidonFriday.
Thepowerministryisworkingoutthenumberofsuchprojectswherethis
blockrejigcanbedone,thereportsaid.
Explainingtheneedtotakesuchastep,(powerministerM.Veerappa)
Moilysaidthatcoalwillhavetobelinedupformeetingtheambitioustarget
of12thPlanandthedesiredGDP(grossdomesticproduct)growth,the
reportfurthersaid.
Wehaveaddedaround54,000MWinthepreviousPlan.Tokeepupthe
tempo,wehavetoseewhichprojectsneedtobesynchronizedbyendof
the12thPlan.AndIamalsosubdividingitintoprojectswhicharecoming
upby2013.Tothatextent,wemaydeallocateandalsoreallocate
dependingonpriorityofsynchronization,thereportcitedMoilyassaying.
Meanwhile,citingofficialsoftheCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI),a
reportbythePressTrustofIndia(PTI)hassaidthatthecoalministry
knewthatAMRIronandSteelLtd,accusedbyCBIinitsFIR,wasin
possessionofcoalblockswhenitappliedforthemin2008.
CBIsourcessaidtheyhadfoundthatthecompanyrepresentativesmet
thethenministerofstateforcoalinhischamberon18September2008
whereintheyclaimedthattheywerenotpartoftheJayaswalgroup,butthe
equitywasheldbyLokmatgroup,AbhijeetInfrastructureandIL&FS,the
report,publishedbyZeeNewschannelhassaid.
AnotherreportinTheEconomicTimesnewspaper,too,saidthattheCBI
hasaccusedcoalministryofficialsofconnivingwithprivateminers.
TheCBI,whichbeganinvestigatingthecaseinJunethisyearandfiledthe
firstsetoffirstinformationreportsagainstfivefirmson4September,said
unknownofficialsinthecoalministryallocatedminestocompanieseven
thoughtheyknewbeforehandthattheseentitieswereineligible.The
chargesofcheatingandabuseofofficialpositionaresimilartowhatithad
accusedofficialsofinthe2Gscamcase,thereportsaid.
Inoneinstance,theCBIsaysthatthecoalministryallocatedamineto
AMRIronandSteelevenafterthecompanyadmittedtoconcealing
information.TheFIRsaidrepresentativesofAMR,controlledbyNagpur
basedbusinessmanManojJayaswalandakeyfigureinseveralofthe
firmsnamedintheFIRs,haddisclosedtothethenministerofstatefor
coal,SantoshBagrodia,duringameetinginhischamberon18September
2008thatithadconcealedinformationaboutitsownershipandthefactit
hadbeenawardedblocksbeforeinitsapplicationforafreshblock.Butthe
coalministryneverthelesswentaheadandallocatedtheBandercoalblock
inMaharashtratothecompanyon29May2009,thereportfurtheradded.
TheprincipaloppositionBharatiyaJanataParty(BJP)saidThursdaythatit
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wouldlaunchanationwideagitationfrom17SeptemberdemandingPrime
MinisterManmohanSinghsresignationonthecoalallocationissueand
cancellationoftheblocksbesidesanimpartialprobebyaSupremeCourt
monitoredSIT,aPTIreportsaid.
FromSeptember17to24,wewillholdthecampaignacrossthecountry
demandingthePrimeMinistersresignation.ManmohanSinghisthefirst
andthemainaccusedinthecoalscam.Heshouldresign,thereportcited
BJPgeneralsecretaryAnanthKumarassaying.
Inaninterestingnewsreport,BusinessStandardsaidthatanempowered
groupofministersoverruledbureaucratswhowereuneasyabout
ReliancePowerLtdbeingallowedtodivertexcesscoalfromthemines
allottedoriginallyforfeedingtheultramegapowerproject(UMPP)at
SasaninMadhyaPradesh.Thepanelchosetogobytheattorney
generalsopinionthathadfavoredthemove,thenewspapersaid.
BothAlokPerti,thethencoalsecretary,andP.UmaShankar,power
secretary,hadreservationsonallowingthecompanythisfavour,the
reportsaid,citingaseniorgovernmentofficial.
Whileexpressinghisdisapprovalagainstanymovetoallowdiversionof
coaltoChitrangiPowerPvt.Ltd,anotherpowerprojectbeingsetupbyR
Power,neartheSasanUMPP,Pertihadarguedtheallotmentletterfor
captivecoalblockslinkedtoSasandidnotspecifyanyprovisionallowing
this,thereportadded.
BusinessStandardreviewedtheallocationletterforSasan.Clause12of
theletter,infact,statesthatnocoalshouldbesold,delivered,transferred
ordisposedof,exceptforthestatedcaptiveminingpurposes,exceptwith
thepreviousapprovalofthecentralgovernmentonacasetocasebasis.
Theallocationletteralsostates,underclause6,thatsurpluscoal,ifany,
couldbehandedovertothenearestCoalIndiasubsidiary,atatransfer
pricetobedeterminedbythegovernment.Thecompanyhadbaggedthe
3,960MWSasanUMPPthroughratebasedcompetitivebiddingin2007.It
wasallottedthreecaptiveblocksMoher,MoherAlmohriExtnand
Chhatrasaltomeettherequirementof16milliontonnesperannum
(mtpa).Takentogether,thethreeblockshaveanannualproduction
potentialofabout25mtpa,thereportfurthersaid.
13September,2012
BusinessStandardnewspapercarriedaninterestingpiecethatdetailshow
thediscretionaryallocationofcoalblocksisnottheexclusivepreserveof
theUnitedProgressiveAlliance.
Citingthe27AugustspeechbyPrimeMinisterManmohanSinghonthe
issue,thereportnotesthateverygovernmentsincethen(since14July,
1994,whenthethenCongressgovernmentsetupascreeningcommittee
underthecoalsecretary),includingtheCongress,JanataDalandthe
BharatiyaJanataPartyledNationalDemocraticAlliance(NDA),has
allocatedcoalblockstoprivatecompaniesandthenumberrises
progressivelyaseconomicgrowthpicksup.
Infact,astheCAGreportpointsout,theNDAtriedtogoastepfurther.
OnApril24,2000,itintroducedtheCoalMines(Nationalisation)
AmendmentBill,2000,intheRajyaSabhaseekingcoalblockallocationto
Indiancompaniesforcommercialmining.Tradeunionsatthetimestrongly
opposedtheBill.Theywereconcernedatthepossibilityofunscientific
miningandlabourexploitation(thereasoncoalminingwasnationalisedin
thefirstplace).Interestingly,theBillispendingintheupperHouse.So,
discretionaryallocationtoprivatecompanies,basedonthe
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recommendationsofaninterministerialscreeningcommittee,hadbeen
standardoperatingprocedureforallgovernmentssinceatleast1993.The
pointtonote,however,isthatpreviousCAGauditsdidnotraisethe
questionofnotionallossesasaresultofsuchallocations.AseniorCAG
officialadmitsthatthisisthefirstreportofitskindoncoal,thoughthe
practiceofprojectingnotionallossesorgainshasbeenfollowedforyears
inothersector,thereportsays.
AnotherreportinTheEconomicTimesnewspapersoughttodetailhow
somecompanieslikeJasInfrastructure,ViniSteel&Power,Navbharat
CoalfieldsandJLDYavatmalgotcoalminessimplybecausetherules
weresubjectiveandbecausethegatekeeperscouldbeinfluenced.
Therulesbasicallysaidcompaniesneededtoshowdownstreamusesof
coalnewpower,steelorcementcapacityandfinancialcapabilitiesto
executetheproject.Ascreeningcommittee,chairedbythecoalsecretary,
andwithrepresentativesfromtheministriesconcernedandthestate
governmentinwhichtheblockwaslocated,woulddecide.Severalsmall
companieswithzeroorminordownstreaminterestsbaggedablock
exploitingtheloopholesatkeystagesofthisprocess,andmadeawindfall
forthemselves,thereportnoted.
Theinterministerialgrouplookingintotheissueofcoalblockallocationsis
likelytoreviewblocksallotedtoTataSteelandReliancePower,
Firstpost.comsaidonThursday.
TheIMGmayfinaliserecommendationson10blocksofcoalonFriday,
thereportsaid.
AdiscussionoftheNeradMalegaon&newPatraparacoalblocksisalso
likelytobeheldalongwithadiscussiononKotreBasantpur&Panchmo
block,thereportadded.
UnioncoalministerShriprakashJaiswalhasadmittedthathewas
approachedbytheNagpurbasedJayaswalbrotherswhosenamesfigure
inthefirstinformationreportsfiledbytheCentralBureauofInvestigation,
asthefinalarbitratorin2008inadisputebetweenthemselves.
SpeakingtoTimesNowchannel,Jaiswalhoweversaidthateventhoughhe
wasapproached,hedidnotarbitratethedispute.
DefendingPrimeMinisterManmohanSingh,hesaidthatthelatterhad
formulatedapolicythatwashundredpercentcorrectastherewasno
otherwayofsolvingtheproblemofcoalavailabilityinthecountry.
CNNIBNhasreportedthattheinterministerialgroup(IMG)has
recommendeddeallocationofblocksforCastronMiningLtd,FieldMining
andIspatLtdandDomcoSmokelessFuelsPvt.Ltd.
WhileCastronMiningLtdandDomcoSmokelessFuelsPvtLtdhaveone
blockeach,FieldMiningandIspatLtdownstwoblocks,thereportsaid.
TheIMGhasalsorecommendedthatthebankguaranteeofthreeothers
privatecompaniesbeencashedastheyhadfailedtodevelopthemines
eventhoughseveralyearshadpassedsincetheyhadbeenallotted.A
reporthasbeensenttotheCoalMinistryforactiononeightcoalblocks,
whichincludethefourwheredeallocationhasbeenrecommended.One
companyhasbeendirectedtosubmitthebankguarantee,whiletheIMG
hasalsorecommendedthatthebankguaranteeofthreeothersbe
encashed,thereportsaid.
Theinterministerialgrouplookingintotheissueofcoalblockallocations
hasrecommendedactionagainsteightcompaniesthatwereallocatedcoal
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blocks,NDTVnewschannelsaidonThursday.
Thecommitteehasaskedthatfourcompanieslosetheircoalpermits,
whileitwantsanotherthreefirmsshouldtocedeaportionofthebank
guaranteestheyfurnishedwhengettingcoalblocks.Oneotherfirmhas
beenshortlistedforfailingtoprovideabankguaranteeatall,theNDTV
reportsaid.
Thereport,however,didnotnamespecificcompaniesorblocks.
AnotherreportinDNAnewspaper,too,saidthatthepanelhas
recommendeddeallocationoffourminesallottedtoprivatefirmsand
encashmentofbankguaranteeofthreeothersonthegroundofnon
developmentofmineswithinaprescribedtime.
TheIMG,whichreviewedeightcasesyesterdayhasrecommendedde
allocationoffourcoalblocksincludingtwoallottedtoprivatefirmField
MiningandIspat,thereportcitedcoalministryofficialassaying.
FieldMiningandIspatwasslappedashowcausealongwith58othersfor
delayindevelopmentofChinoraandWaroraSouthernPartcoalblocksin
Maharashtra.ThisisthefirstrecommendationbytheIMGeversince
controversybrokeoutovertheallocationofcoalblocksaftertherecent
CAGreportthatcriticisedthegovernmentforallottingtheminanon
transparency,thereportnoted.
V.Narayanasamy,juniorministerinthePrimeMinistersOfficeagain
soughttodefendPrimeMinisterManmohanSinghonthecoalblock
allocationissueonThursday.AtapressconferenceinBhubaneshwar,he
saidthattheCAG(ComptrollerandAuditorGeneral)reportcompares
miningpriceofCoalIndiaLitd(CIL)andprivatecompaniesthatis
supposedtobepresumptiveloss.
NDTVnewschannelcitedhimassayingthatthePrimeMinisterhassaid
thatCAGscalculationsarenotinaccordancewithexistingnorms
becauseCoalIndiahasblocksinprimelocation(s),whileprivateplayers
haveblocksinthejungle,infrastructurehastobedevelopedbythem.
CAGneversaidtheallocationwasascam,thenewschannelcitedhimas
saying.
DNAnewspaperreportedonThursdaythattheSupremeCourtsdismissal
ofapublicinterestlitigation(PIL)onthecoalblockallotmentissuehad
comeasadesperaterelieffortherulingdispensation.
AsitdismissedaPILcitingtheCAGreportsforvariousirregularities,atwo
judgebenchoftheSupremeCourtcomprisingJusticesRMLodhaandAR
Davesaid:CAGreportwillbeexaminedbythepublicaccountscommittee
andthendebatedinParliament.Onecannotreachfinalconclusiononthe
basisoftheCAGreport,thenewsreportsaid.
Thatthismandatoryprovisorepeatedadnauseambythepartywithlittle
effectonthepublicdiscoursehasbeenechoedbytheapexcourtcameas
bigrelieftothebeleagueredCongressthathasbeenfightingalosingbattle
ofperception,thereportfurthersaid.
Thecoalministryisallsettocountertheallegationsmadebythe
ComptrollerandAuditorGeneral(CAG)ontheissueofallocationofcoal
blocks.
NDTVnewschannelsaidinareportonThursdaythattheministryislikely
tosubmititswrittenresponsetoaparliamentarypanelonFriday.
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Forexample,theministrywillcountertheauditorofoverlookingthefact
thatthecostsofextractingcoalvaryfromminetomine,andthatwhen
privatefirmswhoweregivencheapcoalfieldsmadeprofits,the
governmentgainedthroughtaxes,theNDTVreportsaid.
InafrontpagestoryonThursday,TheIndianExpressnewspapersaidthat
althoughtheUnioncoalministryhasmaintainedthatithadawardedcoal
blocksonlyontherecommendationsofstategovernments,in2009,the
screeningcommitteehadactuallyoverruledtheWestBengalgovernments
oppositiontoallotacoalblocktotwofirms.
ThecommitteeallottedtheblocktoSajjanJindalsJSWSteelandtheUjjal
UpadhyayabackedHimachalEMTAPowerLtdinanallegeddeviationfrom
itsearlierdecisiontomakestaterecommendationandsigningof
memorandumofunderstanding(MoU)betweenprivatecompaniesandthe
stategovernmentmandatoryforallocationofblocks.Aspertheminutesof
the35thmeetingofthecommitteeinNewDelhi,Therepresentativefrom
thegovernmentofWestBengalstatedthattheonlyblocklocatedintheir
state,namelyGourangdihABC,shouldbeallottedtoWestBengalMineral
DevelopmentandTradingCorporation(WBMDTC).SinceWestBengalhas
notforwardedthenameofWBMDTCtothescreeningcommitteefor
allocation,thestategovernmentaskedtheministryofcoalnottoallocate
thecoalblocktoanyoneand(it)bereservedforallocationtoWBMDTC
undergovernmentcompanydispensation,thereportsaid.
SourcesalsosaidthatJSWSteelhadgotonemorecoalblockduring
200609.Underajointventure,EMTA,formerlyknownasEasternMineral
TradingAgency,andJSWSteelaredevelopinga250MWpowerprojectin
Burdwan,WestBengal,thereportfurthernoted.
Meanwhile,citinganofficial,TheEconomicTimessaidThursdaythatthe
CentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)isscrutinizinganallotmentofalarge
coalblocktoaprivatelyheldcompanyownedbyCongressMPNaveen
Jindalaheadofstateownedcompanies,eventhoughtheJindalcompanys
claimswererejectedintheearlystagesoftheallotmentprocess.
Thecompany,GaganSpongeIron,wasownedbyJindalandhiswife
whentheblockwasallocatedinSeptember2007.InFebruary2007,the
WestBengalgovernmentsentalistof20coalblockswhichtheWest
BengalMiningDevelopmentCorporationintendedtouse.Thesecoal
fields,whichincludedtheAmarkondaMurgadangalblock,whichisin
Jharkhand,weremeanttoprovidecoaltopowergenerationcompanies
ownedbytheeasternstate.TheCentralElectricityAuthority(CEA),which
prequalifiescompanies,initiallydidnotdeemGaganSpongeIroneligible
forallotmentofacaptivecoalmine.But,thecompanywaslaterallottedthe
blockbythescreeningcommitteeinitsmeetingonSeptember13,2007.
Subsequently,inOctober2007,theWestBengalgovernmentwrotetothe
thenpowerministerSushilKumarShindeseekinghisinterventioninthe
matteronthegroundsthatitwasbankingonthesameblocktomeetits
capacityadditionprogramme.Intheevent,theblockstayedwiththeJindal
ownedcompany,thereportsaid.
Citingaletter,TheTimesofIndiareportedthattheNagpurbased
Jayaswalbrotherswhosenamesfigureinthefirstinformationreportsfiled
bytheCBIhadnominatedunioncoalministerShriprakashJaiswalfinal
arbitratorin2008inadisputebetweenthemselves.Thedocumentalso
saysLokmatgroup,whosepromotersfigureintheCBIcases,got26%free
stakeinaJayaswalcompanyforitseffortstogetcoalblocksforthem,
thereportsaid.
The2008letterwrittenbyAbhijeetgroupMDManojJayaswaltohisfather
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BasantLallShawdetailsfinancialdisputesbetweenhimandtherestofthe
family.Intheeventpermissionfortherelocationisnotgranted,BLSshall
retainJLDandMXJgroupshallalsopaytoBLSgroupsuchadequate
compensation...asmaybedecidedbyShriShriprakashjiJaiswalofKanpur,
whosedecisionshallbebindingandfinalandthepartiesshallnotappeal
againstthesame,thenewspaperreportfurthernoted.
TheletteralsogivesimportantdetailsofhowtheJayaswalsmanagedto
pocketcoalblocks.AccordingtoManojJayaswal,itwasdecidedbythe
familytogiveatleast26%freesharestoanyonewhowasinstrumentalin
gettingcoalblocksallottedtothefamilycompanies.Asperthefamily
settlement,26%sharesofAMR(whichfigureintheCBIFIR)aretobe
allottedfreeofcosttoLokmatgroup.Therightsonbalance14%also
needstobedecidedbyShriSriprakashji,ManojJayaswalsaysinthe
letter,whichappearstoreflecthisfaithintheUnionminister,thereport
said.
NewschannelCNNIBNreportedWednesdayeveningthatafterJindal
SteelandPowerLtd(JSPL)anothercompany,linkedtoCongressmember
ofParliamentNaveenJindal,thatwasawardedacoalblock,hascome
underthescanner.
Inthelatestcase,threeJindalgroupcompanies,JSWSteel,Jindal
ThermalPowerandJindalStainlessSteelformedaconsortiumwith
governmentownedMahanadiCoalfieldsLtdin2005foracoalblockin
TalchercoalfieldsinOrissa.AllthreeJindalgroupcompanieswereshow
causedin2010fornotcarryingoutanyminingactivityfromthecoalblock
awarded,thenewsreportsaid.
CNNIBNsaidthatithadfoundthatNaveenJindalisadirectoronthe
boardofJindalStainlessSteel.
ThecoalfieldwasawardedtotheJindalgroupandMahanadiCoalfields
Ltdatatimewhentheblockwasdeallocatedfromtheoriginalallottee,
KalingaPower.AtthetimeoftheallocationoftheblocktotheJindalgroup,
KalingaPowerhadgonetocourtagainstitsowndeallocation,thereport
furthersaid.
NaveenJindalhoweverdeniedanyinvolvementwiththecompany,the
reportadded.Ihavenothingtodowiththecompaniesthatwereserved
thenotice.Theyaremyfamilycompanies,itcitedJindalassaying,
Meanwhile,thecoalministrywilltakemoretimefordecidingonthe
cancellationofallocatedblocks,BusinessStandardsaidinareport.The
governmentshighlevelinterministerialGroup(IMG)onreviewofcaptive
coalblockdevelopmentmetonWednesday,amidunconfirmedreportsthat
thefinanceministryhadraiseddoubtsoverthepanelsauthorityto
recommendcancellationofallocations.Thecoalministrysaidmoresittings
wouldberequiredforafinaldecisiononthecontroversialmatter.Industry
sourcesindicatedtheIMGonWednesdaydecidedtorecommend
cancellationofallocationforatleastfiveblocks,withoutnamingtheblocks
orthecompaniesconcerned.AmemberoftheIMGrefusedtoconfirmthe
information,sayingdiscussionsonthematterarestillon,thereportnoted.
12September,2012
AreportpublishedlateWednesdaynightbytheHindustanTimes
newspapersaidthatthemeetingoftheinterministerialgroup(IMG)on
coalallocationsremainedinconclusiveamidstrongviewsthatthepanel
lackedthemandateaswellastheabilitytocarryoutsuchanexercise.
TheIMGnotedthatthereisnomechanismtoverifythedatafurnishedby
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theallottees,thereportsaid,citingminutesoftheearliermeetingsofthe
IMG.
Theminutes,reviewedbyHT,categoricallystatedthateventheministries
ofsteelandthedepartmentofindustrialpolicyandpromotiondonothave
agenciestomonitortheprogressofenduseplants,thereportsaid.
Thefinanceministryhaspickedseveralholesinaproposedplaninvolving
deallocationofcoalblocksfollowingaragingcontroversyontheirawards
topowerandsteelcompanies,thereportfurthersaid.
Thefinanceministryhastoldthecoalministrythatitcannotfirmupits
viewsinsucharushedmanner,thenewspaperquotedanofficialas
saying.
CNNIBNnewschannelsaidlateWednesdayeveningthatthegovernment
hadrejectedanewsreportthatthereweredifferencesbetweenthefinance
andcoalministriesontheprocess,involvingtheIMGthatwasbeing
followed.CNNIBNreportedthatafinanceministrystatementsaidthata
letterwrittenbyajointsecretaryinthefinanceministry,wasonlyaroutine
administrativematter.
TheletterhadaskedtheChairmanoftheIMGthatallthedocumentsand
factsrelatingtoeachcasebeprovidedtoallthemembersofIMGwithout
whichIMGwillnotbeinapositiontotakeanyviewormakeany
recommendation,theCNNIBNreportsaid.
ThePressTrustofIndiareportedonWednesdaythattheIncomeTax(IT)
departmentandtheEnforcementDirectorate(ED)havebegun
investigatingcompaniesthathavebeenaccusedofhavingprofitedfrom
coalblockallocations.
ThePTIreport,publishedbyBusinessStandardnewspaper,saidthatboth
theagencies,underthefinanceministry,havebegunadiscreetinquiryinto
thefirms,especiallythosewhohavebeenrecentlybookedbytheCBI
(CentralBureauofInvestigation)initslatestFIR(firstinformationreport).
Sourcesmonitoringtheprobessaidwhiletheagenciesareyettobe
officiallyhandedovertheCBIcomplaint,theyhavebegunapreliminary
exercisetoobtaindataaboutthefinancialactivitiesofthesefirms,the
reportfurthersaid.
WhiletheCBIhashasnamedfivecompaniesJLDYavatmalEnergy
Limited,JASInfrastructureCapitalPrivateLimited,AMRIronandSteel,
NavbharatPowerPrivateLimitedandViniIronandSteelUdyogLimited
withtheir20directorsandunknowngovernmentofficials,itmayregister
morecasesagainstfewotherfirmswhowereallocatedblocks.BothIT
andtheED,accordingtosources,haveinformationaboutthefinancesof
fewcompanieswhowereallocatedcoalblocksastheagencieshadprobed
separatecasesinthisregardlastyear,thereportadded.
TheHindunewspapersaidWednesdayeveningthatupto18companies
couldfaceactioninthecoalallocationissue.
Apartfromfacingdeallocationofcoalminesinviewofpoorprogressof
workinthecoalblocksallocatedtothem,defaultingcompanieswillalsobe
facedwithalossoftheirbankguarantees(BG)furnishedbythematthe
timeofallocation.TheIMGhasshortlistedaround18coalmining
companiesforactionundertheguidelinesforbankguaranteededuction,
thereportsaid.
TheInterMinisterialGroup(IMG)headedbyZohraChatterjeehavegiven
afinalshapetotheBankGuaranteesguidelineswhichwillnowresultin
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performancelinkedencashmentofBGsfurnishedbythesecompanies.
Thedeductionofthebankguaranteewillbeonthebasisofmilestones
achievedongroundandtheratinggivenbytheIMGforvariousworks.The
IMGhasworkedouta100markindexunderwhichcompanieswouldbe
givenmarksforvariousmilestonesachievedlikesubmissionofminingplan
andapprovalofminingplanwhichwillcarrythehighest10markseach,
applicationforforestclearanceandlandacquisitionwillcarry8markseach
andsimilarlyothercriterialikegrantofforestclearance,obtainingofmining
leaseandsoon,thereportfurtheradded.
Thedelayindevelopingofparticularblockcouldresultinadeductionof
bankguaranteetothetuneof50percentandifnoworkhasbeendone
thenitcouldbebothcancellationoftheblockanddeductionofbank
guarantee,thereportsaid.
InareportonWednesday,TheHindunewspaperhassaidthattheCentral
BureauofInvestigation(CBI)isunlikelytoinitiateanyprobeagainstAjay
Sancheti,acloseaideofBharatiyaJanataPartychiefNitinGadkari,
whosecompanyallegedlygotcoalblocksinChhattisgarhbyenteringintoa
jointventurewithaStateownedfirm.
ThenewspaperreportsaidthattheCBIcouldnotmoveagainstSanchetis
companySMSInfrastructureLtd.asitwasnotdirectlyallottedtheblocks
bytheunioncoalministry.Mr.Sanchetisfirmlaterenteredintoajoint
venturewiththeChhattisgarhMineralDevelopmentCorporationfor
exploringtheseblocks.UnlesstheChhattisgarhgovernmentorthestate
highcourtordersaninvestigation,wecannotinitiateaprobe,thereport
citedtheseniorCBIofficialassaying.
Sofar,theinvestigationwasrevolvingaroundfivefirms.Wearenow
planningtoprobeatleast10morefirms.Weareevaluatingallthese
documentsandevidences.Fromnextweekonwards,wewillstartcalling
thosenamedintheFIRs,andalsogovernmentofficialsunderwhose
tenuretheseblockswereallotted,thereportfurthercitedtheofficialas
saying.
LawyerandactivistPrashantBhushansaidWednesdaythathecouldmove
theSupremeCourtbynextweek,demandingcancellationofcoalblocks.
APressTrustofIndia(PTI)reportsaidthatBhushaniscollecting
documentsregardingthecoalblockallocation,whichtheComptrollerand
AuditorGeneral(CAG)hasfoundfaultwith,andpreparingadetailed
complaint.
Sometimenextweek,IwillbefilingitintheSupremeCourt.Likeinthe2G
case,Iwillbedemandingcancellationoftheallocationandanindependent
probebyaSpecialInvestigationTeam,hetoldPTI.
Meanwhile,seniorleadersoftheprincipaloppositionBharatiyaJanata
Party(BJP)metPresidentPranabMukherjeeonWednesdayandand
soughthisinterventiontostopattacksonconstitutionalbodies,thenews
channelCNNIBNsaidinanewsreport.
SeniorBJPleadersLKAdvani,SushmaSwaraj,ArunJaitleyandMurli
ManoharJoshimetthePresidentinthehopeofputtingmorepressureon
theUPAgovernmentoverthecoalblockallocationcontroversy,thereport
said.
BJPmemberofParliament,HansrajAhir,whohadfirstwrittentothePrime
Ministeraboutfraudulentcoalblockallocations,hassaidthatmonetary
gainsmadebyNagpurbasedbusinessmen,fromcoalhavebeenroutedto
Mauritius.TheyincludesomefromNagpurwithoneofthemhaving
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openedanaccountinthenameofhisdaughter,aPTIreportcitedAhiras
sayingonTuesday.
AlthoughnamesofthreebusinessmenwithlinkstoNagpurManoj
JayaswalandbrothersVijayandRajendraDardahaveprominently
figuredinthecoalblockallocationcontroversy,areportintheDNA
newspaperhassaidthatseverallesserknownbusinessmenfromthecity
couldbeinvolvedintheallegedscam.
ADNAinvestigationhasthrownupaclutchofnamesofprominentlocal
industrialistssuchasMohanAgarwal,GovindDaga,AshokDaga,
NandkishoreSardaandMukeshGuptasomeofwhomhavetradedin
coalblocksthatwereallottedfreeandmadehundredsofcroresand
splurgedonluxuries,thenewspaperreportsaid.
Planpowerandsteelprojects,getcoalblocksallocatedforfree,sellthe
coalblocksathugeprofit,junktheprojectsandlivethegoodlife,the
newspapersaidwhiledetailingwhatissaidwasthemodusoperandi
adoptedbybusinessmenfromthecity.
Citinganunnamedcoalministryofficial,DNAnewspapersaidWednesday
thattheministryispreparingapolicytoensurethatanysurpluscoalfrom
theallocatedblockswillgotoCoalIndiaLtdeitheratanotifiedpriceorat
thecostofproduction.
Whilethiswillbeimplementedwithprospectiveeffect,itwillpreventpower
companiesthathadgotthesecoalblocks,frommakingprofitsbyselling
surpluscoal,thenewsreportsaid.Thecoalministry,whichwasinthe
processofmakingthepolicyhasdecidedtogoagainsttheadviceofan
empoweredgroupofministers(EGoM)aswellastheattorneygeneralthat
hadallowedReliancePowertousesurpluscoalgeneratedfromthemines
allocatedforits4,000MWSasanUMPP(ultramegapowerproject)atits
Chitrangiplant.
Thecoalministry,whichwasintheprocessofmakingthepolicyhas
decidedtogoagainsttheadviceofanempoweredgroupofministersas
wellastheattorneygeneralthathadallowedReliancePowertouse
surpluscoalgeneratedfromtheminesallocatedforits4,000MWSasan
UMPPatitsChitrangiplant,thereportsaid,citingtheministryofficial.
TheIndianExpressreportedWednesdaythatJindalPhotoLtd,acompany
promotedbytheBCJindalGroup,wasunderthescanneroftheCentral
BureauofInvestigation(CBI).ThecompanywasallocatedtheMandakini
(Talcher)coalblockinOrissainJanuary2008.
Thedevelopmentofthepowerprojectisunderstoodtobeintheinitial
stages.AsperthedocumentsavailablewithTheIndianExpress,Jindal
PhotosubmittedfiveapplicationsinJanuary2007totheministryofcoal,
whichwastakenupbythescreeningcommittee.Thefirmsoughtcoal
blocksatTalcher,IbriverinOrissa,MandRaigarhinChhattisgarh,and
RaniganjinWestBengalforsupplytotheirpowerprojects.Theywere
allottedacoalblockwithTataPowerCo.LtdandMonetIspatatTalcher,
thenewspapersaid.
TheEconomicTimessaidthatthosecompaniesthathavenotdeveloped
coalblocksallottedtothem,couldfaceapenaltyofuptooneyearroyalty
thatthegovernmentlostonaccountofthedelay.
Inanotherreport,TheEconomicTimessaidthatthegovernmentismoving
toregulatethepowertariffchargedbycompaniesowningcaptivecoal
blocks.
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Alettersentlastweekbythecoalsecretarytohiscounterpartinthepower
ministryalsohastheconsumeratthecentreofplannedchangestopolicy.
Acomprehensiveregulatoryandmonitoringmechanismisrequiredtobe
formulatedtoensurethatthebenefitofcheapercoalispassedontothe
consumer,the4SeptemberlettersentbycoalsecretaryS.K.Srivastava
notes,thereportsaid.
TheFinancialExpressnewspapersaidWednesdaythataninternalfinance
ministrynotehadwarnedthat10corporateentities,projectedtogenerate
70%ofallpowerinnextfiveyears,willbecomemorevulnerableifcoal
blocksallottedtothemarecancelledenmasse.
Whathasgotthegovernmentparticularlyworriedistheimpactapossible
deteriorationinthefinancialsofthesefirms,intheeventofthelicences
beingcancelled,wouldhaveonthecountrysbanks.Amongthebanksthat
havefairlyalargeexposuretothesebusinesshousesareStateBankof
India(SBI),ICICIBankLtdandPunjabNationalBankandtheministryis
concernedaboutthestressanydefaultswouldputonbanks,thereport
furthersaid.
On7September,Minthadreportedthatthegovernmentisworriedthat
loansgivenbybankstocompaniesbeinginvestigatedoverirregularitiesin
theallotmentofcoalminesmayturnbad,andhasaskedthemtocollate
informationonsuchdebt.
Inanotherreport,TheFinancialExpresssaidthattheCBIcouldprobethe
powerministrysroleincoalblockallocations.Thepowerministrysrolein
theallocationofcoalblocksto146firmsbetween2006and2009hascome
undertheCBIscanner.Amongtheprivatefirmstheministryrecommended
forcoalblocks,somewereineligibleforallocation,thereportsaid,citing
unnamedofficials.
TheBusinessStandardnewspaperreportedonWednesdaythattheinthe
wakeofthecoalblockallocationrow,thegovernmentismullingclausesto
mandateparticipationofcompaniesintariffbasedbiddingforpower.
Thebrouhahaovercoalblockallocationshasgoadedthegovernmentinto
correctingthepolicyimperfectionsthathavelongprevailedinIndiascoal
miningsector.Itisplanningaclausetomakeitmandatoryforcaptive
minerstotakepartintariffbasedbiddingforpower,thereportsaid.Afew
minershavebeensellingpowerproducedthroughcoalfromtheircaptive
minesintheopenmarkettomakeprofits.Thecoalministrynowplansto
addthemandatoryclauseincaptiveminersallotmentletters.
ThereportfurthersaidthatacaseinpointwasJindalPowerLtd(JPL),an
armofCongressMPNaveenJindalpromotedJindalSteelandPowerLtd
(JSPL).JPLhasbeenoperatinga1,000MWcoalfiredplantat
ChhattisgarhsRaigarhsince2008.Theplantusescoalfromtwocaptive
minesGarePalmaIV/2andGarePalmaIV/3located7kmaway.
JPLsoldpoweratthehighestpriceofRs
4.30aunitin201011andRs
.
3.85a
.
unitin201112.Theaveragerateperunithasfallenovertheyearsand
worksouttoRs
3.40aunitnow,comparedtoRs
.
3.85lastyear,saida
.
companyspokesperson.ThefirmscoalcostcomestoRs
650atonne,
.
includingRs
147royalty,againstthecostofRs
.
700atonnewhenbuyingcoal
.
fromCoalIndia.Headdedthecompanyhadnochoicebuttosellpowerin
theopenmarket,asitdidnotgetanylongtermPPA(powerpurchase
agreement),itsaid.
InanotherreportBusinessStandardsaidthattheinterministerialgroup
lookingintothecoalblockallocations,waslikelytomissits15September
deadlineforafinalcallonthedeallocationoftheblocksasitisyettoget
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thereviewreportsoneachallocatteefromtheCoalControllerOrganisation
(CCO).
Inaninterestingstory,NDTVnewschannelsaidthattheCentralBureauof
Investigationwasexaminingwhetherformerbureaucratswhojoined
companiesafterretirementhelpedthosecompaniesgetcoalblocks.
Whatisclearalreadyisthatseveralseniorbureaucratswhocouldhave
helpedinferencetheallocationprocesswereemployedbyprivate
companiesafterleavingthegovernment,thereportsaid.
ItnamedatleastthreeformerbureaucratsformerpowersecretaryR.V.
Shahi,formerJharkhandchiefsecretaryP.P.SharmaandN.C.Jha,former
chairman,CoalIndiaLtd.
R.V.ShahiwasIndiaslongestservingpowersecretaryheheldthe
positionbetween2002and2007.Duringthistime,JindalSteelandPower
Ltd,ownedbyCongressMPNavinJindal,wasallocatedtwocoalblocks.
MrShahiisnowanindependentdirectorofthesamecompany,whose
businessesincludesteel,powerandmining,thereportsaid.Likeother
companies,JindalSteelandPowerwaschosenbyascreeningcommittee
thatincludedrepresentativesofdifferentministriesandstakeholders.Mr
ShahisaysthatthecoalblocksgiventoMrJindalsfirmwereforsponge
ironplantsandnotforpower,therefore,hesays,officialsfromhisministry
wouldnothaveplayedaroleintheselectionprocess.ButduringMr
Shahistenureaspowersecretary,twootherJindalGroupcompanieswere
assignedcoalblocksforpowerplants.Thesecompaniesareheadedby
NavinJindalsbrothersandheisadirectorinoneofthem.
InJharkhand,P.P.SharmawasthechiefsecretarybetweenDecember
2004toJanuary2006,andthenagainfromAugust2007toMarch2008.
Now,heisafulltimedirectorwiththeAbhijeetGroup,whichhaspower
andminingprojectsspreadacrossJharkhand,Maharashtra,Biharand
WestBengal.DuringMrSharmastenureaschiefsecretary,thesame
AbhijeetGroupgotfivecoalblocks.Thoughtheallocationsaredonebythe
CoalMinistry,thestategovernmentsviewsarecriticalintheselection
processandseniorofficialsfromthestatewherethecoalfieldislocated
areonthescreeningcommitteethatdecidesonapplications,thereport
furthersaid.
MrN.C.JhaistheCEOoftheminingbusinessofMonnetEnergyand
IspatLtdthesecondlargestcoalbasedspongeironmanufacturerin
India.Mr.JhawasthetechnicaldirectorofgovernmentownedCoalIndia
from2007andchairmanofCoalIndiain2011.Thetechnicaldirectorof
CoalIndiaisamemberofthescreeningcommittee.Between2008and
2010,thegroupwasallocatedthreecoalblocksforpowerandspongeiron
bythecoalministry,thereportnoted.
Meanwhile,HindustanTimesnewspapersaidthatthegovernment
allegedlyskirtedrulesforsomecompanieswhileallocatingcoalblocks.
Thegovernmentallegedlyskirtedthescreeningprocesstoallottwocoal
blockstoJindalSteelandPowerandStrategicEnergyTechnologySystems
Pvt.Ltd,ajointventurebetweenaconsortiumofTatacompaniesand
SouthAfricabasedSasolSynfuelsInternational,inFebruary2009forcoal
toliquidprojects,thenewspapersaid.heallocationshavegrownintoa
majorcontroversy,asBJPMPHansrajAhirwrotetoPrimeMinister
ManmohanSinghonMonday,allegingthattheseallocationsweremade
throughaninterministerialgroup(IMG),andnotthescreeningcommittee.
PublicsectorundertakingsSteelAuthorityofIndiaLtd,GAILIndiaLtd,
IRCONandIndianOilCorp.Ltdalsoappliedbutwererefused,thereport
added.
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Moneycontrol.comreportedlateonTuesdayeveningthatthecoal
controllerreporthadrecommendedthattheinterministerialgroupde
allocatetheblockgiventoJindalSteelandPowerLtd(JSPL).
ThecoalcontrollerreportaccessedbyCNNIBNcoversasmanyas18
companiesandwillgiveitsfinalrecommendationstothecoalministerby
15September.Initsreport,theCCO(CoalControllerOffice)hasalso
recommendedextensionofdeadlineformanycompaniesasclearances
aredelayed,while18coalblockfirmsarelikelytolosetheirbank
guarantees.ThecoalcontrollerreportrecommendstheIMGtodeallocate
coalblockstoJindalSteelandBhushanSteel,thereportsaid.
SKSIspat,withlinkstoUnionministerSubodhKantSahai,investedonly
Rs
55croreagainstaprojectcostofRs
.
500crore.Accordingtothecoal
.
controllerreport,thereisnoofficeorotherinfrastructure.
Accordingtothereport,JayaswalNeco,ownedbyManojJayaswal,which
wasraidedbytheCentralBureauofInvestigationlastweek,hasinvested
onlyRs
34croreagainstaprojectcostofRs
.
130crore.
.
NaveenJindalscousinSajjanJindalscompanyJSWhasinvestedonlyRs
60
.
croreagainstatotalprojectcostofRs
396crore.Thereportalsosaysthe
.
Odishaprojecthasnotstartedproduction.Therecommendationisto
deductbankguaranteeofRs
56crore.
.
Thecoalcontrollersrecommendationswillbetakenintoaccountbythe
interministerialpanelalongwiththeresponsesbythecompanies.The
panelissettomeetonWednesdayandislikelytosubmititsreporttothe
PrimeMinistersOfficeby15September.
Interestingly,MintreportedthatJSPL,apartofthe$12billionOPJindal
Group,hadcornered6%ofcoalreservesdoledout.
Between1996and2009,JSPLanditsunitJindalPowerLtdwereallotted
ninecoalfieldsinthemineralrichstatesofOrissa,Chhattisgarh,Madhya
PradeshandJharkhand,translatingintoreservesof2.59billiontonnes,or
5.97%ofthe43.35billiontonnesdoledoutbytheCentre.Since1993,195
coalleaseswerehandedto289companies(severalinconsortium),the
reportsaid.
ThecoalblocksallocatedtoJSPLonitsownandaspartofapartnership
wereGarePalmaIV/1(1996),GarePalmaIV/2(1998),GarePalmaIV/3
(1998),GarePalmaIV/6(2006)inChhattisgarh,UtkalBI(2003),
RamchandiPromotional(2009),UrtanNorth(2009)inOrissa,andJitpur
(2007)andAmarkondaMurgadangal(2008)inJharkhand,itadded.
JSPLsnonproducingblocksJitpurandAmarkondaMurgadangalin
Jharkhand,GarePalmaIV/6inChhattisgarhandthecoaltoliquidblock
RamchandiPromotionalinOrissahavebeennamedbytheCAG,the
reportfurthersaid.
Meanwhile,S.NarsinghRao,chairmanofCoalIndiaLtd(CIL),hassaid
thatcoalbenefitsshouldbeforthepeople.Inaninterviewpublishedin
Mint,hesaidthatthegovernmentthought,keepinginmindCILs
limitations,thatitshouldnotdependonCILaloneforminingcoalandthatit
shouldallowsupplementaryeffortstoshoreupcoalproduction.
Thatswhycoalblockswereallottedforcaptivepurposesbothtopublic
andprivatesectorcompanies.SomeoftheblocksweretakenfromCILas
wellthosefromwhichCILdidntproposetoproduceanycoaluntiltheend
ofthe11thFiveYearPlan(200712),headded.
TheSamajwadiPartyhassaidthatthecoalblockallocationfiascoisa
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biggerscamthanthe2Gtelecomscam.
Whentheentiretruthcomesout,peoplewillbesurprisedthatitisamuch
biggerscamthan2Gscam...ThePrimeMinistershouldtakeinitiativein
orderingaprobeandcancelallcoalblockallocations,thePTInews
agencyquotedpartygeneralsecretaryRamGopalYadavassaying,
accordingtoarpeortpublishedbyTheTimesofIndia.
TheSPsstandoncoalissueontheeveofitstwodaynationalexecutive
inKolkataassumessignificanceasthepartyleadershipislikelytospellout
itsstrategyforthe2014LokSabhaelectionanditsrelationshipwith
Congress,thePTIreportsaid.
11September,2012
CoalministerShriprakashJaiswalonTuesdaydeniedallegationsbythe
SamajwadiPartyandtheBharatiyaJanataPartythatsomeblockshad
beenallocatedduringhistenureascoalminister.Speakingatapress
conferenceinLucknow,Jaiswalsaidthatnocoalblockswereallocated
duringtheUPA2regime.Hesaidthatsince1993,195blockshadbeen
allocatedandthattheentireinformationwasavailableinpublicdomain.
WhenaskedwhetherhewasrelatedtoManojJayaswaloftheAbhijeet
Group,heaskedthatwhenhehadnotallocatedanycoalblockascoal
minister,thenhowdoesitmatter?
IfsomeonehasanyproofthatIinfluencedallocationsasministerofstate
ofhome,thenhemustpresenttheproof,hesaid.
PMwantedtospeeduptheindustrializationprocessofthecountryand
hencetheallocationsofcoalblocks,Zeenewschannelquotedhimas
saying.
Earlierintheday,ZeeNewssaidthatSamajwadiPartyleaderRamGopal
YadavonTuesdayhadaccusedJaiswalofseriousirregularitiesinthe
allocationofcoalblocksafterhetookchargeofthecoalministry.
SpeakingtoZeeNews,Yadavsaid,ShriprakashJaiswalclearedallocation
ofthreecoalblockswithonehourandsevenminutesoftakingchargeas
Unioncoalminister.Jaiswaltookchargeoftheministryon19January
2011.
Atatimewhenthecontroversysurroundingallocationofcoalblocksis
makingheadlines,CoalministerShriprakashJaiswalhasadmittedthat
thereisnopossibilityofcoalproductiongoingupinthenearfuture.Inan
interviewpublishedinBusinessTodaymagazine,theministerfurthersaid
thathedidnotacceptthepremiseoftheComptrollerandAuditorGeneral
(CAG)forcalculatingthelossfigure.
CoalIndiawillincreaseproductionby7percentthisfiscal.Thereisno
possibilityofproductiongoingupsubstantiallyinthenearfutureasthe
publicsectorcompanyisfacingmanyproblems,hesaid
IdonotacceptthepremiseoftheCAG.Thecomparisonofmines
belongingtoCILwiththatoftheallocated(captive)coalminesisnot
appropriate.Thegeominingconditionsoftheallocatedminesvary.Coal
maybeavailableat100feetinoneminewhileinanotheritmaybe500
feet.Besides,someminesareintheinteriorsortense(Naxal)areas.On
theotherhand,theminesthatCILoperatesareineasyareas,Jaiswaltold
themagazine.
Meanwhile,TheTimesofIndiahasmadeacomparativeanalysisofhow
miningcorporationsownedbystategovernmentshaveactuallyfaredbetter
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thanCoalIndiaLtdinsigninglucrativedealswithprivatecompaniesto
developcoalblocksallocatedtothem.
Itsstrangebuttrue.Thestateminingcorporations(SMCs)of
Maharashtra,MadhyaPradesh,Chhattisgarh,andtheTamilNadu
ElectricityBoard(TNEB)easilylandedlucrativedealswithprivatepartners
toproducecoalinminesallottedbytheministry,thereportsaid.
TheSMCsofMaharashtra(4blocks),MP(6),Chhattisgarh(3)andTNEB
(1)auctionedtheirblockseventhoughtheministryofcoalhasbeen
shoutingthroughtherooftopsthatrulesdonotpermitit.Inwhatcannotbe
amerecoincidence,themodelofagreementforallwasthesame,the
reportfurthernoted.
Severalprivatecompanies,someofwhichhadblocksdirectlyallottedby
theministrytoo,madeabeelinetojoinhandswiththestateowned
companies.TheSMCsandTNEBformedjointventures(JV)withthe
highestbiddingpartiesandkept51%staketothemselves,itsaid.
Inaseparatereport,TheTimesofIndiasaidthecontinuationoftourism
ministerSubodhKantSahaiandcoalministerSriprakashJaiswallooks
uncertain,withtheCongressleadershipconsideringstrongmeasuresto
containthefalloutfromthe(coalallocation)scam.
ThenewspapersaidthatalthoughtheCongressleadershipcontinuesto
resisttheallegationofascamthepartythinksthatthecontinuationof
SahaiandJaiswalinofficewouldbepoliticallyuntenable.
TheCongressleadershipseemstorealizethattheinvolvementofparty
membersinthecontroversialallocationofcoalblockshasthickenedthe
perceptionofcollusionbetweenthegovernmentandtheallotteesofblocks,
handingoppositionasticktobeatitwith,thereportsaid.
Inanotherreport,TheTimesofIndiasaidthattheunioncoalministry
actuallysentanoticetoaNagpurbasedcompanyafewmonthsbackasit
thoughtthecompanywasprofiteeringeventhoughtheministrynow
maintainsthatnooneprofitedfromthewayitallocatedcoalblocks.
Despitesomeotherfirmstoohavingpassedontheirblocktoathirdparty
forapremium,theministrysentanoticetoonlyonecompanyTopworth
UrjaandMetalsLtd.Ironically,itisthebuyerwhogotthenoticeandnotthe
originalpromotersofShreeVeeranganaSteelsLtd,fromwhichthecoal
blockwastransferredtothelatter.ShreeVeeranganaispromotedby
formerpresidentofVidarbhaIndustriesAssociation(VIA)MohanAgrawal,
thereportsaid.
However,eventhoughitobjectedtoprofiteeringbythiscompany,ittook
nootheractionbeyondsendingthenotice.Eventhiscamesixyearsafter
thecompanyhadtransferredtheblocktoanotherforwindfallgains,the
newspapernoted.
Sourcessaidthiswasnotthelonecaseofprofiteeringbysellingstake.B
SIspatLtdandGondwanaIspatLtd,boththecompanieswhichhad
AgrawalandGovindDaga,anotherprominentcitybusinessman,as
partnershavetransferredthecoalblockstoathirdparty.However,this
timetheyusedasmartmove.Insteadoftransferringtheassetstoa
differentcompany,thepromoterssimplysoldtheirentirestaketoOrissa
basedOCLIronandSteelCompany,thereportfurthersaid.
Inwhatcouldqueerthepitchforcompaniesthatwereallottedcaptivecoal
minesbytheAtalBihariVajpayeeledgovernment,thePublicAccounts
Committee(PAC)lookingintotheallocationscouldcallgovernmentofficials
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whowereinvolvedinallottingblocksatthattime.
SeniorPACmembersbelieve,besidesformercoalsecretariesduring
UPAI(UnitedProgressiveAllianceI),thoseduringtheNationalDemocratic
Alliance(NDA)ruleshouldalsobecalledtofindoutaboutthepolicy
decisionsduringtheAtalBihariVajpayeegovernment,theBusiness
StandardnewspapersaidinafrontpagereportonTuesday.
PACmayalsocallmembersofthescreeningcommitteewhowerepartof
theallocationprocess,toknowhowmanytimestheyhadmetbefore
decidingontheallocationofcoalblockstoprivatecompanies.TheBJPhad
allegedthecommitteehadnotmetaftermid2008,buttheUnion
governmentcontinuedtoallocatecoalblockstobenefitsome,the
newspaperreportadded.
Inanotherreport,TheTimesofIndiasaidthatbetween2006and2010,
governmentownedNTPCLtdawardedacoalminecontractworthover
Rs
23,000croretoajointventurecompanyinwhich10%sharesareheldby
.
thefamilyofformercoalministerSantoshBagrodia.
SignificantpartsofthetenderforawardingPakriBarwadih(PB)coalblock
tookplacewhenBagrodiawasministerofstateforcoalintheUPA
government.Thecompanywhichlostoutintheraceforthecontractwas
anotherPSU,SingareniCollieriesCo.Ltd,thatreporteddirectlyto
Bagrodia,thenewspaperreportadded.
Bagrodiahoweverdeniedanyinvolvement,accordingtothepaper.
Meanwhile,TheEconomicTimesnewspapersaidMondaythat10ofthe29
coalblocksthatareontheradaroftheinterministerialgroup,couldbe
takenback,astheirownershavenotbeenabletodomuchtodevelop
themforyears,andhavenotputupastrongcasetoconvincethepanelof
officialsscrutinizingtheallocations.
Thegovernmenthadissuedshowcausenoticestocompanies,including
statefirms,notdoingenoughtodeveloptheblocks.Thenoticesshowthat
in15blocks,theownershadmetalmostnomilestonefordevelopmentfor
twotofiveyears.Manywerestuckbecausetheywerewaitingfor
governmentclearances.About11companieshavedelayedtheir
applicationforforestandenvironmentclearanceaswellasapplicationfor
mineopeningpermissionbyanythingbetweentwoyearsand12years,
thereportsaid.
TheCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)hasshortlistedcompaniesand
officialsitwouldquestioninthecoalblockallocationissue,thePressTrust
ofIndia(PTI)reportedMonday.
Agencysourcessaidinthefirstbatch,theaccusednamedintheFIRs
againstJLDYavatmalEnergyLtd,JASInfrastructureCapitalPvt.Ltdand
AMRIronandSteelPvt.Ltdarelikelytobecalledatitsheadquartersin
Delhiforexamination,thePTIreportthatwaspublishedbytheDNA
newspapersaid.
CBIsourcessaidtheofficialsofscreeningcommitteeinwhichthecoal
blockswereclearedandofficialswhoscreenedtheapplicationswouldalso
beaskedtorecordtheirstatementsinconnectionwiththeprobe.Theysaid
theteamswhichhadgoneforraidhavecollecteddocuments,laptops,hard
drivesfromvariouslocationsandwerescrutinizingthedetailsfromthem.
Meanwhile,TheTimesofIndiasaidinareportthatseveralopposition
leadersattackedCongressmemberofparliamentNaveenJindal,who
promotesJindalSteelandPowerLtd,whichhasbeenunderthescanner
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onthecoalblockallocationissue.
Weareagainstcaptivecoalallocation.Jindalisthebiggestallottee.The
policywasuncalledfor.Thecompaniesgotcheapcoalblocksandsold
powerdearly.Wedemandcancellationofallcoalblocks,thenewsreport
citedCPMgeneralsecretaryPrakashKaratassaying.
PartiesbelongingtotheBharatiyaJanataParty(BJP)ledNational
DemocraticAlliance(NDA)alsocamedownheavilyonthecompany,
markingarareLeftRighttandemonanissue,thereportadded.
Jindalhoweverdeniedtheallegationsthathiscompanywasunduly
favoured.Inareport,CNNIBNnewschannelcitedJindalassayingthat
thegovernmenthadinvited28companies,ofwhichonlytwohadthe
experiencetoconvertcoaltoliquidfuelandthat,hiscompanyhadthe
bestcredentials.
Wewerenotsquattingonthecoalblocks.Miningisatoughbusinessto
start,thechannelquotedJindalassaying.
OnMonday,thecoalministrysaidthatithadsoughtdetailsofcoalfields
fromallottees.Theinterministerialgroup(IMG)thatslookingintothe
controversialallocationsandwhethertheyshouldbecancelledhasasked
thecompaniestofurnishdocumentscertifiedbyauthorizedofficials
indicatingthecurrentstatusoftheirprojects,Mintsaidinareport.
Thecoalministryhasalsoaskedthecompaniestosubmitdetailsofactual
investmentsmadevisviswhatwasoriginallyplannedwhenthe
companieshadsetouttodevelopthecoalblocks.Thegovernmentalso
wantstoknowhowmucheachcompanywantstoinvestinthefinalpower,
steelorcementplantthatisitdeveloping,thereportadded.
TheWallStreetJournal(WSJ)saidonMondaythatthecoalcontroversy
hadcreatedanewobstacletothebeleagueredgovernmentsagenda.
TheparalysisingovernmenthashurtCongressspopularity,accordingto
arecentpoll.ArecentNDTVIpsospollsurveying103seatsofthe
countrys543seatsintheLowerHouseofParliamentshowedthe
governingcoalitionstallywouldplummetto20seatsifanelectionwere
heldtoday,fewerthanhalfthe52itcurrentlyholdsinthosedistricts,the
WSJreportsaid.
TheBJPsstallingofParliamenthasntdonemuchforthatparty,which
alongwithitsalliescouldseeitstallyriseto33from26,thepollfound.An
arrayofsmaller,regionalpartieslikethoseCongressallieswhohave
hobbledeconomicoverhaulscouldbethewinners,leadingtofurther
politicalfragmentationandalessdecisivegovernment,thereportcited
analystsassaying.
10September,2012
InareleaseissuedMondayafternoon,theUnioncoalministrysaidthatthe
interministerialgrouplookingintothecoalblockallocationswillmeetat3
pmon12Septembertodeliberateandfinaliseitsrecommendations
regardingallotees/companiesthatmadepresentationsbeforeit.
Thepresentationsweremadebythealloteesof29coalblocksaftershow
causenoticeswereissuedtothem,thereleasesaid.
Meanwhile,UnionlawministerSalmanKhurshidonMondaysoughtto
againdefendthegovernmentontheissueofcoalblockallocations.
AtapressconferenceonMonday,Khurshidsaidthatallallocationswere
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aspertheprocedureadoptedbythescreeningcommitteeandthatthe
PrimeMinisterhadnothingtodowiththeprocedurethatthescreening
committeeadoptedforallocatingcoalblocks.
Hesaidthattherewasnodelayintheprocedurebeingadoptedtoauction
theblocks.Thequestionisifduringthetimetakenfordecidingonauction,
ifweshouldhavestoppedallocatingcoal.Howeverwefeltsupplyshould
beuninterrupted,becauseofrisingdemand.Wecontinuedunderthe
screeningcommittee,FirstpostquotedKhurshidassaying.
HesaidthatOrissachiefministerNaveenPatnaikpersonallyretested
allocationofcoalblocktoJindalandthatnoneofthethechiefministers
disagreedwiththegovtprocess.
Ofthe57blocksreferredtointheCAGreport,20ofthoseblocksarefor
thepowersector.Asfarastheseareconcerned,theycannotbeauctioned
becausethereisatariffthroughcompetitivebidding,NDTVquotedhimas
saying.
Inaninterestingstory,DNAnewspaperreportedMondaythattheManoj
JayaswalcontrolledAbhijeetGroup,whichisintheeyeofthestormover
coalblockallocations,gotloansworthRs22,000croretodeveloppower
projects.
Hisgroupleveragedthefreebootybyproposingpowerprojectsandgot
Rs22,000croreofloanssanctionedfromvariousbanks.Ofthis,Rs11,000
crorehasbeendisbursedwithnoprojectnearcommissioning,andthat
couldbethebeginningofbiggerproblemsforlenders,thereportsaid.
Monthlyinterestpaymentsalongwithsalaryandadministrativeexpenses
runintohugesums,betweenRs100croreandRs110crore,forthe
Abhijeetgroup.
Accordingtoaformeremployee,in2008,AbhijeetGrouphadonlythree
activeprojectsCorporateIspatAlloys(CIAL),whichrana36MVAferro
alloyplantinDurgapurandhadatoplineofRs298croreandbottomlineof
Rs13crorein200809JasTollRoadCompany,whichoperateda32km
sectionofNH4betweenNeelamanglaandTumkurnearBangalorein
whichAbhijeetGroupdivested33%toIDFCforRs65croreandabridge
tollprojectoperatedinBhandara,calledAshokaInfrastructure,whichhada
dailycollectionofRs2.53lakhandwhereAbhijeetGroupownedjust50%
stake,thereportfurthernoted.
Evenastheinterministerialgrouplookingintocoalblockallocationslooks
settosubmititsreport,amissivebythedepartmentofeconomicaffairs
(DEA)inthefinanceministrycouldmakerevokingallocationstougher.
TheEconomicTimesnewspapersaidMondaythatlastweektheDEAhad
toldthepanelthatanyrecommendationtodeallocateblocksshouldtake
intoaccountviewsoftheenduserministryaswellasfinancial
implications.
TheconcernexpressedbytheDEAcouldpotentiallyincreasethe
complexityoftheIMGstaskasthecoalministryisdeterminedtoabideby
a15SeptemberdeadlinesetbythePrimeMinistersOfficetoactagainst
companiesthathavenotdonemuchtodevelopmines,thereportsaid.
TheBusinessStandardnewspapersaidminutesofseveralgovernment
meetingsatthetimeofallocations,reviewedbyit,showedthat
disagreementsbetweenvariousministrieshadledtohastyvettingofcoal
applicantscredentials.
Thedeliberationsshowthebuckwaspassedwhenitcametocheckingthe
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authenticityofthedetailsprovidedbycompaniesandfinallyaquick
verificationwasdonebythestategovernments,thereportsaid,citing
governmentdocuments.
Meanwhile,MintreportedonMondaythatthegovernmentallottedblocks
forcoaltoliquid(CTL)projectsproposedbyJindalSynfuelsLtd(JSFL)
andStrategicEnergyTechnologySystemsPvt.Ltd(SETSPL)basedonthe
recommendationsofaninterministerialgroup(IMG)ledbyKiritS.Parikh,
whowasthenmember,energy,atthePlanningCommission.
9September,2012
TheCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)couldsoonnameofficialsofthe
Unioncoalandpowerministriesandofficialsofstategovernments,whoit
believesweredirectlycomplicitinthefraudulentallotmentofcoalblocks.
TheHindunewspaper,citinghighlyplacedunnamedgovernmentofficials,
saidthatCBIcouldnameofficialsinvolvedintheallotmentsinthenext
roundoffirstinformationreports,thattheagencywillfilesoon.
HighlyplacedgovernmentsourcessaidthenextroundofFIRstobe
lodgedbytheCBIcouldactuallynametheofficialswhowerepartand
parcelofthisconspiracyandhadjoinedhandstosuppressfactspertaining
tothesecompanies,theirstanding,holdingsandfinancialtransactions.
CertainofficialsoftheScreeningCommittee,theCoalMinistry,theMinistry
ofPowerandotheradministrativemachinerydeliberatelyoverlookedthe
misrepresentationoffactsbythetaintedcompanies,theyadded,the
reportsaidcitingofficials.
EnquiryalsorevealedthatofficialsoftheMinistryofCoal,inpursuance
ofthecriminalconspiracy,failedtocarryoutscrutinyoftheaforesaid
documentsregardingthefalseclaims/concealmentoffactsbyJLD
YavatmalEnergyLtdforwhichthecompanygotundueadvantagein
allocationoftheFatehpurEastcoalblocks,theFIRfiledbyCBIon
September3states,thereportfurthersaid.
OnSunday,TheEconomicTimesranastoryanalysinghowcorruptionin
thecoalsectorextendsbeyondthepresentcontroversysurroundingthe
allocationofcoalblocks.
ThereportdetailshowinefficienciesthegovernmentownedCoalIndiaLtd
(CIL),theworldslargestcoalminerhavekeptthecoalsectorback.
Firstly,ithadproblemsinrampingupproductionfromnewblocksbecause
ofalackofraillinkages.Theraillinksneededtoshipcoalfromthesenew
blockstoconsumptioncentreshavenotbeenbuiltdespiteseveralback
andforthdiscussionsbytherailwaysandcoalofficials.Asaresult,several
thousandtonsofcoaldugoutofthegroundsimplylanguishatthepitsfor
wantofadequatetransport,thereportsaid.
Theotherproblemindevelopingnewblockswasthego/nogo
controversy.CILhadaskedtheenvironmentministrytodistinguish
betweenheavilyforestedareaswherecoalminingwasunlikelytobeever
allowedandlessforestedareaswhereminingapprovalscouldbe
acceleratedCILallegesthatthelatterapprovalsnevercamethrough,it
added.
ThereportfurtherdetailedhowthereisnoclarityonIndiastotalcoal
reserves,astheestimatealsoincludescoalthathasbeenextractedand
burntduringthepast200years(estimatedatabout10billiontonnes).
Interestingly,on28August,Minthadreportedonhowanationalsecurity
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panel,ledbyformercabinetsecretaryNareshChandrahadrecommended
thatCILbesplituptofostercompetitioninthesector.
CoalIndiaLtd,beingavirtualmonopolyundergovernmentcontrol,has
notallowedopencompetitiontoprevailinthecoalsector.Thishas
inhibitedimprovementofefficienciesandmodernizationinthisimportant
sector,sovitaltoourenergysecurity,thepanelsreportsaid.Maintaining
governmentmonopolyinthisareamightnotbethebestmodelforthe
longtermdevelopmentofthissector.
Afterseveralotherpoliticalheavyweightsfacingaprobeinthecoalblock
allotmentscam,formerJharkhandchiefministerMadhuKoda,too,could
comeunderthescanner.TheEconomicTimesreportedSundaythatKoda
hadrecommended13coalblocksforallocationtoprivatecompanies.
CitingunnamedsourcesintheCentralBureauofInvestigation,thereport
saidthatKodahadrecommendeddummycompaniesformedjustbefore
allocation.
TheagencyhasalreadyregisteredfiveFIRsintheCoalgatescam.Koda
andotherstaterepresentativeswhoattendedthemeetingsinconnection
withtwoprivatecompaniesViniIronandSteelUdyogLtdwhichgotthe
Rajhara(North)coalblockandhavebeenbookedbytheCBI,arealready
undertheagencysscannerandwillbequestionedsoon,thereportsaid.
Interestingly,TheIndianExpresstooranastoryonSunday,thattraced
Kodaslinkstothecoalblockallocationissue.Koda,anMPnow,is
currentlyinjailinamoneylaunderingcaseandsometimesattends
Parliamentwhileincustody.Justafewdaysago,theCBIraidedthe
residenceofoneVijayJoshi,ownerofViniIronandSteelUdyogLtd,in
connectionwiththecoalblockallocations.Joshiiswidelybelievedtobea
shadowforKoda,thereportsaid.
Meanwhile,TheIndianExpressnewspaper,onSunday,profiledthe
NagpurbasedDardabrothersVijayandRajendraandtheirfamily,and
tracedtheirrisefromrelativeobscurity.Besidesinterestsinthemedia
businesstheypromotetheLokmatgroupthebrothersalsopromoteJas
InfrastructureCapitalPvt.LtdalongwithManojJayaswal,whomMint
profiledonSaturday.
Likehisfather,Vijay,who
ischairmanandeditorin
chiefoftheLokmatgroup,
too,haslivedintheshadow
ofcontroversies.In
Nagpursuglymediawarin
the80s,NagpurTimes,
thenaninfluentiallocal
Englishdaily,rana
sustainedcampaignagainst
theDardas,carryingreportsofillegalitiesintheconstructionofthe13
storeyLokmatBhavaninNagpur,thereportnoted.
Intheearly2000s,anothercontroversyhittheDardas.AftertheKargil
war,theLokmatGrouplaunchedafundforKargilmartyrskin,collecting
donationsthatranintocrores.Ahostelwasbuiltforthewardsofthe
victims,raisingquestionsabouthowmanywouldactuallybeabletouseit
sincethemartyrswerefromalloverthecountryandtheirchildren,then
veryyoung,wereunlikelytocometoNagpur,thereportfurthersaid.Vijay
Darda,meanwhile,gotclosetoManojJayaswal,whoheadstheAbhijeet
GroupthatsalsoheadquarteredinNagpurandwhotoonowstands
accusedinthecoalblockcase.Infact,whenManojJayaswalpartedways
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withhisfamilyacoupleofyearsago,itwasattributedtohisfriendshipwith
VijayDarda.
Theinterministerialgroup(IMG)lookingintocoalblockallocationshas
finishedquizzingcompaniesthatwereallottedtheblocksandislikelyto
submititsreporttothecoalministryonMonday.Thereportislikelytobe
submittedtothePrimeMinistersOfficebefore15September.
Allthecoalblocksonagendaforthreedays(September68)havebeen
reviewed,thePressTrustofIndia(PTI)citedZohraChatterji,additional
secretaryinthecoalministrywhoheadedthepanel,assayingon
Saturday.
DuringthethreedayIMGmeeting,allthe29allotteesgaveprogress
reportsoftheirblocksandseveralofthemsaiddelaysinstartingthe
productionresultedduetolackofvariousclearancesfromdifferentstate
governments.Coalblockallottees,includingTataSteelLtd,ReliancePower
Ltd,JSWEnergyLtd,GrasimIndustriesLtd,KesoramIndustriesLtd,IST
SteelandPower,SKSIspatandPowerLtd,BiharSpongeIronLtd,
appearedbeforethepanelduringIMGsthreedayreviewexercise,the
PTIreportpublishedbyTheHindunewspapersaid.
8September,2012
OnSaturday,citingdocumentaryevidence,TheTimesofIndiareported
thatthegovernmentownedPuducherryIndustrialPromotionDevelopment
Corporation(PIPDIC)signedapactwithJRPowerGenPvt.Ltd,owned
byUnionministerS.Jagathrakshakansfamily,tosellcoalatathrowaway
priceofRs
25pertonneevenbeforeitwasallottedacoalblock.
.
JRPower(JRP),whichdidnothaveanypriorexperienceinthecoal
sector,approachedthegovernmenton14December2006,withanoffer
forjointexploitationofcoalblocks,thereportsaid.JRPpromiseda
royaltyofRs25pertonneofcoaltothePuducherrygovernmentbesides
10%ofthepowergeneratedintheproposedpowerprojects.On17
January2007,PIPDICenteredintoamemorandumofunderstandingwith
JRPtosellcoalatRs
25pertonneforaperiodof30yearsoruntilthecoal
.
resourcesintheblockexhausted,whicheverwasearlier.Jagathrakshakan
quitasdirectorofthecompanyin2009tocontestLokSabhapolls,buthis
familymemberscontinuetobeontheboardofthecompany.
AcoalblockatNainiinOdishawithabout500milliontonesofreservewas
allocatedtoPIPDICandGujaratMineralDevelopmentCorporation(GMDC)
on25July2007.Monthslater,JRPsold51%ofitsstaketoHyderabad
basedKSKEnergyVenturesLtd,anestablishedplayerwithinterestsinthe
energysector,thereportfurthersaid.
CounteringtheallegationsmadebytheBharatiyaJanataParty(BJP)on
theissueofcoalblockallocations,anditsdemandforthePrimeMinisters
resignation,UnionministerKapilSibaldemandedonSaturdaythattheBJP
shouldaskitsstatechiefministerstoresignsinceminingleaseallocations
aredecideduponbystategovernments.
Thebasicquestionisthatwhoexecutesthelease,PTIcitedSibalas
sayingatapressconference.BJPmen,whoarelevelingallegations,
shouldbeaskedtogetresignationoftheirCMsthatwhytheyexecutedthe
lease,hetoldanewsconference,thenewsreportsaid.Becausethe
responsibilitywastheirs(since)theyexecutedtheleaseanddecidedthatin
whosefavouritwouldbedone,heclaimed,thePTIreportcarriedon
Firstpost.comadded.
TheCBIislikelytoquestionCongressmemberofParliamentVijayDarda,
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hisbrotherRajendraandManojJayaswaloftheAbhijeetGroup,CNNIBN
newschannelsaidSaturday,citingunnamedsources.Jayaswalislikelyto
bequizzedinNagpur,thereportsaid.Itaddedthatgovernmentofficials
whoconnivedwiththeJayaswalgroupandoverlookeddetails,werebeing
probedaswell.
TheDNAnewspaperreportedonSaturdaythatfarmersinaChhattisgarh
villagehadresolvedtoformacoalminingfirmoftheirownandtakeonthe
rapaciouscompaniesexploitingtheirlands.
Theresolutiontoformtheirownfirmisthefalloutofafiveyearbattlewith
CongressMPNaveenJindalsminingfirm,JindalSteelandPowerLtd
(JSPL),thatwastryingtostartoperationsinthearea,theDNAreportsaid.
ThematterhadreachedtheGreenTribunal,whichcancelledthe
environmentalclearancegiventoJSPLandpulleduptheministryfor
environmentandforestsfornotfollowingtheproperprocedure,itadded.
Inaninterestingturnofevents,seniorDelhigovernmentofficialsmay
appearonSaturdaybeforetheinterministerialgrouplookingintothecoal
blockallocations.TheIndianExpressnewspaperreportsthatthepanel
headedbyadditionalcoalsecretaryZohraChatterjiwillonSaturdayask
theDelhigovernmentwhyablockallocatedtoitinMadhyaPradesh
remainedunexploredforsixyears.
TheDelhigovernmentwasallottedtheMahanIIblockin2006,alongwith
theHaryanaPowerGenerationCorp.Ltd,thenewpapersaidinitsreport.
ThisisthefirsttimeaCongresspartyledgovernmentisbeingcalledto
testifyoncoalblocks,thereportadded.Thepanelislikelytotakeacallon
takingbacktheblockson15September.
Meanwhile,theBusinessStandardnewspapersaidthecoalministryis
likelytoreadyitsresponsetotheComptrollerandAuditorGenerals(CAG)
reportoncoalblockallocationsby14September.Thereportsaidthecoal
ministryislikelytocountertheCAGsargumentsonatleastfivecounts
calculatingthequantumofextractablereservesinblocksbasedon
averages,costofcoalproductionandhowitvariesgeographically,
geologicalconstraintsinmining,taxationoffsettingapartoffinancialgains
extendedtocompanies,andvaluationofcaptivecoalblocksvisvisthe
priceofcoalsetbyCoalIndiaLtd.
Meanwhile,MintonSaturdayprofiled57yearoldManojJayaswal,who
headstheAbhijeetGroup,whichhasbeennamedbytheCentralBureauof
Investigation(CBI)thisweekinitsongoingprobeintoirregularitiesinthe
allotmentofcoalblocks.ThereportdetailshowtheAbhijeetGroupgrewin
recordtime.
CNNIBNnewschannelranastoryonHansrajAhir,aBharatiyaJanata
PartymemberofParliamentfromChandrapur,Maharashtra,who,the
channelsaid,wasthefirsttoraiseconcernsaboutthecoalblockallotments
in2005whenhewroteaseriesofletterstoPrimeMinisterManmohan
SinghandthencoalministerShibuSorenbetween2005and2007,butgot
noresponse.TheCongress,however,refutesAhirsrole,thechannelsaid.
Wecantsayheexposedit,itcitedCongressleaderHarishRawatas
saying.
7September,2012
ThepoliticalbattleoverthecoalallocationissuecontinuedFridaywith
PrimeMinisterManmohanSinghblamingtheBharatiyaJanataPartyled
oppositionforawastedsessionofParliament.
Ifeelverystronglythatthisismakingamockeryofparliamentary
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democracy,thePrimeMinistersaidinamessagereleasedafterthelast
dayofthecurrentsessionofParliamentwasalsostalled.Wedo
incalculabledamagetothereputationofIndiasParliamentifweresortto
disruptionofParliamenttomakeapoliticalpoint.
ThosewhopreventParliamentfromfunctioning,disablethevoiceofthe
people.Theytakeawaytheirrighttoheartheirrepresentativesdebate
issuesinareasonedmannerwhenthecaseforandagainstapointofview
canbeheard.Theyforcethemtolisteninsteadonlytovoicesinthestreet,
whichisnottheplaceforreasoneddiscourse.Thisistheroadtoa
dysfunctionalpoliticswhichwillonlyproduceagitationalpoliticsanda
deeplydividedanddisenchantedcountry,hesaid.
BharatiyaJanataPartyleadersSushmaSwarajandArunJaitleyreiterated
thatthepartywilltakethefightonthecoalallocationissuetothestreets.
ThiscameafterthemonsoonsessionofParliamentwaswashedbecause
oftheoppositionsprotests.
TheUPA(UnitedProgressiveAlliance)isaregimewhichiscommittedto
kleptocracy,JaitleysaidatapressconferenceinNewDelhi.Letthe
CentrehaveacommissionofinquirywherethePrimeMinisterhastocome
anddeposehowheconductedtheaffairsofthecoalministry,Jaitley
added,demandinganindependentprobeintotheallocations.
Swarajtermedtheinterministerialgrouplookingintotheallocations,an
eyewash.
ThemonthlongmonsoonsessionofParliamentwaswashedoutdueto
theprotestsoverthecoalblockallocationissue.Thesessionendedtoday.
Earlierintheday,theBJPledNationalDemocraticAlliancehadprotested
insidetheParliamentcomplex.
ThePMistheheadofthiscorruptcoalitiongovernment.AndifthePMis
letoffthennooneelsewouldfearthelaw.BJPwontletthePMgoscot
free,CNNIBNcitedBJPleaderMukhtarAbbasNaqviassaying.
Atleasttwomorepoliticalheavyweightsformercorporateaffairsminister
PremChandGuptaoftheRashtriyaJanataDal,andjuniorministerfor
informationandbroadcastingS.JagathrakshakanoftheDravidaMunnetra
Kazhagam(DMK)couldcomeunderthescanneraftermediareportssaid
thattheyortheirkinbenefitedfromthecoalblockallocations.
InafrontpagestoryonFriday,TheEconomicTimesnewspapersaidthat
ISTSteelandPower,apartoftheISTGrouppromotedbyGuptassons
MayurandGaurav,wasallottedacoalblockinMaharashtra.Gupta,
however,deniedhavingbenefitedfromtheallocations,thereportsaid.
Inanotherreport,HindustanTimesnewspapersaidthatJagathrakshakan
maycomeunderscrutinyashiscompanyJRPowerGenLtdhadformeda
jointventurewiththePuducherryIndustrialPromotionDevelopmentand
InvestmentCorporation,whichhadbeenallocatedacoalblockinTalcher
inOrissa,in2007.
AsofFebruary6,2008,Jagathrakshakan,wifeJ.Anusuya,sonJ.
SundeepAnandanddaughterJ.SrinishaareshareholdersofJRPower
Gen,holdingatotalof10,000sharesand49%.KSKEnergyVenturesLtd
holds10,410shares(51%).JRPowerGenisanunlistedcompanyandhas
notcompletedanypublicorrightsissuesincethedateofitsincorporation.
ThesedetailsdidnotfindmentioninJagathrakshakansdetailsinthelistof
assetsandliabilitiesbyLokSabhamembersasofAugust31,2012,the
reportsaid.
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Theserevelationscome,afterthenamesofthreeleadersbelongingtothe
CongresspartySubodhKantSahay,VijayDardaandhisbrotherRajendra
DardaandonetotheprincipaloppositionBharatiyaJanataParty,Ajay
Sancheti,havealreadysurfaced.
Interestingly,anotherreportinTheEconomicTimesonFridaysaidthatthe
CentralBureauofinvestigation,theComptrollerandAuditorGeneraland
theCentralVigilanceCommissioncouldcoordinatetheiractionsoverthe
investigationsintotheallocationsofcoalblocks.This,evenasseveral
companieshavealreadybeendeposingbeforetheinterministerialgroup,
whichislookingintocancellingtheallotmentsandlikelytosubmititsreport
by15September.
Meanwhile,inaneartotalwashoutofthemonthlongmonsoonsessionof
theLokSabha,thehousewasadjournedsinedie,aftertheopposition,led
bytheBJP,continuedtodemandtheresignationofthePrimeMinisterover
thecoalblockallocationissue.
Earlierinthemorning,theBJPledNationalDemocraticAlliancebegan
protestinginsidetheParliamentpremises.
ThePMistheheadofthiscorruptcoalitiongovernment.AndifthePMis
letoff,thennooneelsewouldfearthelaw.TheBJPwontletthePMgo
scotfree,CNNIBNquotedBJPleaderMukhtarAbbasNaqviassaying.
6September,2012
Forthe12thstraightday,ParliamentonThursdaywasdisruptedoverthe
issueofcoalblockallocations.
AlthoughthecurrentParliamentsessionendsFriday,thepolitical
maelstromcreatedbytheallegedscamintheallotmentofcoalblocksis
unlikelytoabate,withtheprincipaloppositionBharatiyaJanataParty(BJP)
threateningtotaketheissuetothestreets.TheBJPisdemandingthatthe
governmentcancelallallocationsandsubjecttheentireprocesstoa
judicialreview.
OnThursday,inacounteroffensive,alargenumberCongressworkersin
Orissaclashedwiththestatepolicedemandingtheresignationofstate
chiefministerNaveenPatnaik,allegingthathisgovernmentmade
recommendationsregardingtheallocationofcoalblocks.
OnTuesday,theCentralBureauofInvestigation(CBI)beganraidsonat
leastfivecompaniesVaniIronandSteelUdyogLtd,JasInfrastructure
CapitalPvt.Ltd,AMRIronandSteelsPvt.Ltd,JLDYavatmalEnergyLtdand
NavabharatPowerPvt.Ltdthatwereallocatedcoalblocks.TheCBIalso
filedafirstinformationreport(FIR)againstaCongressmemberof
ParliamentVijayDardaandhisbrotherRajendraDarda,aCongress
ministerintheMaharashtragovernment.They,alongwithManojJayaswal,
arethepromotersofJasInfrastructure.
OnThursday,citingdocuments,NewDelhiTelevision(NDTV)saidthatthe
DardabrothersandJayaswalappeartohavemadewindfallgainsfrom
coalblocksallocatedinChhattisgarh,JharkhandandBihar.
Atleast152coalblockshadbeenallocatedbetween2004and2009,as
peraresponsegivenbythecoalministrytoaParliamentquestion.
Between1993and2011,atotalof195blockswereallocatedtoprivateand
governmentcompanies.
PrimeMinisterManmohanSinghwasinchargeofthecoalministryfora
partofthisperiod,fromNovember2006toMarch2009.
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Infact,asearlyas18March2008,Minthadfirstreportedaboutsignificant
irregularitiesintheawardofcoalblockstosome31companies,nineof
whichhadbeenrejectedinearlierstagesofthebiddingprocessfornot
meetingrulesprescribedbythegovernment.
On27August,PrimeMinisterManmohanSinghsaidthatwhilehetookfull
responsibilityforthedecisionsofthecoalministry,theobservationsmade
bytheComptrollerandAuditorGeneral(CAG)regardingthecoalblock
allocationswereclearlydisputable.
Thepolicyofallocationofcoalblockstoprivateparties,whichtheCAG
hascriticized,wasnotanewpolicyintroducedbytheUPA(United
ProgressiveAlliance).Thepolicyhasexistedsince1993andprevious
governmentsalsoallocatedcoalblocksinpreciselythemannerthatthe
CAGhasnowcriticised,thePrimeMinistersaidinhisgovernments
defence.
TheUPAmadeimprovementsintheprocedurein2005byinviting
applicationsthroughopenadvertisementsafterprovidingdetailsofthecoal
blocksonofferalongwiththeguidelinesandtheconditionsofallotment,
headded.
On2September,inablogpost,formerdeputyPrimeMinisterandBJPLok
Sabhamember,L.K.AdvanirejectedthePrimeMinisterspoordefenceof
Coalgate.
Itisnowuniversallyacknowledgedthatallowingdiscretionaryallocationof
preciousresourceslikespectrum,oil,gasandmineralsgivesamplescope
topeopleharbouringcorruptandcollateralintentions,Advaniwroteinhis
blog.
TheCAGreportoncoalblockallocationsthatwastabledintheParliament
on17August,saidatleast57privatecompaniesmadeagainofRs1.86
trillion.
Theauditorhasbeencriticaloftheallocations,primarilyonthreecounts.
First,ithadobservedthatthescreeningcommitteethatwassetupto
overseetheallocationsdidnotfollowatransparentandobjectiveprocess.
Itfurtherstatedthatcompetitivebiddingcouldhavebeenintroducedin
2006itself.Itsaidthatadministrativeprocedurescouldhavebeenquickly
amendedbythegovernment,ratherthangoinginforalengthylegal
process.
Third,CAGsaidthedelayintheintroductionofcompetitivebiddingmeant
thatthebiddingprocesswasbeneficialtoprivatecompanies.
Interestingly,CAGhad,initsdraftreportfirstreportedbyTheTimesof
Indiaon22March,saidthattheunduebenefitsduetowindfallgains
amountedtoasmuchasRs10.7trillion,nearlysixtimestheRs1.76trillion
figureithadestimatedasthepresumptivelossintheallocationof2G
spectrum.Thedraftreporthadlisted76privatecompaniesas
beneficiaries.
On5September,Mintreportedthatittriedtotrackdown93small,mid
sizedandobscurecompaniesthathavebeenallocatedcoalblocksbythe
government.
There,however,appeartobedifferenceswithinthegovernmentonthe
questionofscrappingtheallocationofcoalblocks.
Althoughaninterministerialgrouplookingintothisislikelytogiveits
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recommendationby15September,TheIndianExpressreportedon3
SeptemberthatcoalsecretaryS.K.Shrivastavahadobjectedtothepanels
viewrecommendingthatblocksallocatedtotheNaveenJindalowned
JindalSteelandPowerLtd,onwhichnomininghadoccurred,shouldbe
takenback.ThepanelisheadedbyadditionalcoalsecretaryZohra
Chatterji,who,asperthereport,disagreedwithSrivastavaontheissue.
AnNDTVreportsaidtheBJPsstandontheissuecouldbedilutedbecause
theChhattisgarhCAGhadindictedSMSInfrastructure,acompany
promotedbyBJPRajyaSabhaMPAjaySancheti,who,thenewschannel
said,wasknownforhisproximitytoBJPpresidentNitinGadkari.The
ChhattisgarhCAGhadsaidinAprilthattheallocationofcoalblockstoSMS
InfrastructurehadcosttheexchequerRs1,000crore,NDTVsaid.
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