The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has cleared the sale of Lavasa, India’s first private hill station to Darwin Platform Infrastructure for Rs 1,814 crore. The NCLT order also approved Darwin’s resolution plan, after the lenders supported the plan comprising a payout of Rs 1,814 crore over eight years. This includes payment of Rs 929 crore to the lenders and Rs 438 crore for providing fully built homes to 837 home buyers. Claims of 837 homebuyers have been admitted.
Darwin’s resolution plan is to deliver fully constructed properties to homebuyers within a period of five years of obtaining environmental clearance on an actual cost basis.
Homebuyers will pay actual future construction costs to Darwin for obtaining constructed properties in the project. The order said: “In order to provide a transparent mechanism for the construction costs, the resolution applicant proposes that that it shall constitute a ‘construction cost determination committee’ of 4 members consisting of equal representation of FCCA/homebuyers’ s’ representatives and the resolution applicant’s management team."
Apart from proposing the actual delivery of constructed apartments, the Resolution Plan also has provided the homebuyers with the following two exit alternatives:
Exit Clause: For the homebuyers who do not wish to continue and wait for delivery for the fully-constructed property as proposed, the Resolution Plan envisages a full and final settlement by payment of 40% of their entire admitted claims within 24 months of the receipt of the EC for Phase 1.
Self-Construction: Within the contours and permissibility of such activity as per applicable laws, the Resolution Plan also envisages providing an option to the homebuyers to undertake self-construction of their properties, entirely at their own responsibility/accountability, costs and expenses.
Further, for homebuyers who have terminated contracts under RERA (cumulating to Rs. 9.33 Cr), the Resolution Plan proposes a resolution of the amounts ordered by the MAHA RERA under individual cases by way of payment of INR 4.037 crores within 24 months from the Effective Date.
Union Bank of India, L&T Finance, Arcil, Bank of India, and Axis Bank are some of Lavasa's biggest financial creditors. Lavasa, created by Hindustan Construction Company is located in the picturesque Mulshi Valley in the Western Ghats close to Pune.
The Mumbai-based Darwin group had earlier shown interest in the bidding process for Jet Airways and Reliance Capital.
Ajay Harinath Singh is the Chairman of the Darwin Group.