There will be no guaranteed return for Enron to execute the Dabhol power project. This has been agreed upon in the negotiations between the expert committee set up by the State Government and the Enron Development Corporation (EDC). Earlier, the company was assured a 16 per cent rate of return on investment made by it in the project. The agreed unit price of power generated by the project is less than Rs. 1.90, much below the earlier Rs. 2.40 per unit. But any escalation in the fuel cost will be passed on to consumers. The corporation has also agreed to use naphtha for the first phase against the earlier proposal of using imported distillates in the first phase and LNG later.

Nidhis being reined in

The Department of Company Affairs is barring nidhi companies from transacting business with corporates, opening new branches in any place outside the district where they are registered, admitting corporate or trusts as their member and accepting benami deposits. The DCA has further decreed nidhis can grant new loans or advances only against the security of fixed or recurred deposits with them, gold, silver, jewellery or immovable property.

Package for rural phone users announced

The Centre will not share the portion of the licence fee amounting to Rs 1,00,000 crores from the private telecom service providers with the State Governments, the Minister of State for Communications, Mr. Sukh Ram, said today. According to the Minister, the States have no claim on the licence fee, though the private operators are putting up the infrastructure in each telecom circle corresponding to each State. “Such activity continues to be a monopoly of the Centre, “ he said answering a question.

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