The Supreme Court on Wednesday spared four blocks while cancelling the remaining 214 reserves which it had earlier termed as “illegal”. These four blocks which escaped de-allocation include one each belonging to Central public sector undertakings (CPSUs) namely Steel Authority of India ltd (SAIl) and National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC), while the remaining two are with Reliance Power.
The apex court exempted the two blocks allotted to SAIl and NTPC (Tasra and Pakri Barwadih respectively) mainly on the ground that these reserves belonged to state-owned PSUs and were not being run in a joint venture arrangement with any private entity.
The two other blocks named Moher and Moher Amlori Extension belong to Reliance Power meant for its Sasan ultra mega power project (UMPP). The reserves were let off as these were allotted through bidding which was based on tariff determination, while another reason was that the UMPP is already under operation.
Though Tasra, Moher as well as Moher Amlori Extension blocks are under operation, the NTPC block is yet to commence operations. The Supreme Court however spared it on the ground that first it belonged to a PSU and second, it was not being used under a joint venture with any private entity.