CPI(M) on 22-10-14 attacked the Narendra Modi government for issuing an ordinance to allow e-auction of coal blocks for private parties, saying it "completely nullifies" the Coal Nationalisation Act of 1973 and no such decision can be taken without Parliament approval.

Following Supreme Court order quashing the allocation of 214 coal blocks, "it has now been found that most of these coal blocks were not under production but were used as collaterals for raising capital and speculative pr...

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Power supply is yet to be restored in more than 20 per cent cyclone-hit areas of Odisha's eight southern districts and 128 rural water supply projects are yet to be restarted, five days after Hudhud hit the state on October 12.

CM Naveen Patnaik who reviewed post-cyclone restoration measures in the affected areas directed the officials to restore electricity connectivity by October 20. He directed that the rural water supply projects should also be ready by the same time.

Meanwhile, ...

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Industries with captive power plants want the government to give preference to operational units when re-auctioning of cancelled blocks starts next year. Last week the Supreme Court scrapped 214 coal blocks saying the allocations by the government over the last two decades were illegal. It ordered that the blocks be returned to Coal India.

For the past five to eight years, an aggregate 50,000 Mw of power plants installed by firms in sectors such as steel, aluminium, paper, cement, chemi...

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