Search the Internet          Tips  Sites: Finance, Investment

CCEA approves award of 23 exploration blocks

Tara Shankar Sahay in New Delhi

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on Thursday approved the awarding of 23 blocks for oil exploration under the second round of its New Exploration Licensing Policy -- NELP II.

"Global open competitive bids under NELP II were called for 25 exploration blocks, covering 9 on land, 8 shallow water offshore and 8 on deep water blocks," Cabinet spokesman Pramod Mahajan told reporters.

Bengal Purnia and Vindhyan did not get any bids, he said.

He made the statement after a meeting of the cabinet committee on economic affairs. He said bids were received for 23 of the 25 blocks. Twelve had multiple bids, while 11 had single bids, he said.

Cabinet offers VSS to Elgin Mills staff

The government on Thursday approved a Rs 715.2-million voluntary separation scheme package for employees of Elgin Mills and Cawnpore Textiles Ltd, subsidiaries of British India Corporation, for one year and agreed to examine the feasibility of restarting at least one of these mills.

Briefing reporters after the Cabinet meeting, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pramod Mahajan said it had also been decided that wages and salaries for the period August, 2000, to June, 2001, would be paid to workers who opted for VSS and at a cost of Rs 173.8 million.

Meanwhile, the feasibility of reviving one mill was being examined and a communication was being sent to the Allahabad high court requesting it to keep the order of taking over the company by the liquidators in abeyance till June 30 this year.

Earlier an order of winding up these two mills had been issued by the Board of Industrial and Financial Reconstruction and confirmed by the bench.

Accordingly, liquidation proceedings were started by the High Court which appointed official liquidators in September, 1999.

This prompted the employees and workers of these mills to demand examination of restarting at least one mill which had now been approved by the Cabinet, he added.

Media Lab Asia project cleared

The government also cleared the Rs 50-billion Media Lab Asia project, a joint effort of IT Ministry and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, US, for development of latest technologies to benefit the rural masses.

The first year financial commitment is pegged at Rs 650 million, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pramod Mahajan told reporters after the Cabinet meeting.

The proposed Media Labs project would be located at the Bombay-Pune belt and is estimated to have a total outlay of Rs 51.275 billion spread over a period of ten years.

While 80 per cent of the funds (Rs 42.575 billion) would come from the industry and other sponsors, balance 20 per cent (Rs 8.70 billion) would come as government assistance in the nature of grant-in-aid.

In the first phase, the proposed Lab, a joint effort of Media Lab in MIT Cambridge, Massachusetts, US and Indian governments would begin the activities with a budgetary support of Rs 650 million for a period of one year, which would also mark the exploratory stage of the ambitious project.

Subsequent to this the project would be taken up over a period of 10 years at the estimated cost of Rs 51.275 billion.

Media Lab Asia would be developed as a self sustainable model to develop technologies which has relevance in everyday life using latest and future technological tools.

Yamuna action plan-extended phase approved

The government on Thursday approved the Rs 2.226 billion proposal of externally aided 'Yamuna action plan-extended phase' under National River Conservation Plan for cleaning up the river.

The centrally-sponsored scheme, totally funded under NCRP, will minimise the pollution of Yamuna, particularly in the national capital, at a cost of Rs 1.666 billion, Mahajan said.

The scheme, funded by soft loan of 17.77 billion yen from Japanese Bank for International Cooperation, would also include Uttar Pradesh and Haryana, envisaging an expenditure of Rs 296.5 million and Rs 222.8 million, respectively.

Yamuna Action Plan to be completed in one year would also provide for additional pumps, diesel generator sets and additional sludge drying beds.

The government is anticipating a saving of 8 billion yen due to appreciation of the Japanese currency which will be used for carrying out work envisaged under the project.

In another decision, CCEA approved waiver of the condition of tying up of external financial assistance for funding the National Lake Conservation Plan.

Under the plan a sum of Rs 149 million has been sanctioned for cleaning up Powai lake in Bombay and the Ooty and Kodaikanal lakes in Tamil Nadu.

Additional inputs: Reuters and PTI

Money

Business News

Tell us what you think of this report