NCLT approves revised resolution plan by Darwin Platforms to takeover Lavasa Corporation

NCLT approves revised resolution plan by Darwin Platforms to takeover Lavasa Corporation

The project has been entangled in issues including environmental clearance and land acquisition

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Mumbai has approved a revised resolution plan submitted by Darwin Platform Infrastructure to revive Lavasa Corporation. The latter was incorporated to build India’s first modern hill town after Independence.

In the Shailesh Verma vs Darwin Platform Infrastructure Ltd case, a Coram of Kuldip Kumar Kareer (judicial member) and Shyam Babu Gautam (technical member) proposed a payment of Rs.1,814 crores to creditors and stakeholders, as against the earlier approved Rs.1,601 crores plan.

The order stated, “The Resolution Plan meets the necessary statutory requirements under the Code as well as the Regulations. The Resolution Professional is directed to hand over all records, premises/documents to the resolution applicant to finalize the further line of action required for starting the operation as contemplated under the Resolution Plan.”

The revised plan was submitted after the NCLT directed lenders of Lavasa to consider an equitable distribution of proceeds from the township developer's sale to Darwin, the winning bidder.

Earlier, the tribunal had observed that secured creditors could not obtain their dues at the cost of statutory dues. Therefore, a revised plan was submitted before the Committee of Creditors, which approved it.

In February, the Resolution Professional had proposed to allocate a sum of Rs.1,96,54,421 towards statutory dues claimed by the government authorities. This was 20.50 percent of the amount claimed by the government and statutory authorities and about the same proportion of recovery made by financial creditors.

Lavasa was established to set up the country’s first privately developed hill city near the Pune district of Maharashtra. However, the project has been entangled in various issues, including environmental clearance and land acquisition problems, resulting in delayed payments to the lenders.

Senior advocates Ravi Kadam and Ashish Kamat and advocates Salonee Kulkarni, Kriti Kalyani, briefed by Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co appeared for the Resolution Professional.