why in News?

• The Supreme Court said it is quarter of a century too late to order a judicial inquiry into the
• “serious infirmities” detected in the Enron-promoted Dabhol power project in Maharashtra.

Background:

• US-based Enron and its associate Dabhol Power Corporation had set up the USD 3 billion 2,550-megawatt power project in Maharashtra in 1996 after signing the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Maharashtra state electricity board (MSEB) in 1993.
• In 1997, the apex court had admitted the petition of the Centre for Indian Trade Union (CITU) that had challenged a Bombay high court order upholding the PPA and issued a notice to the MSEB on the government’s role and its officials in signing of the PPA.
• Enron had pulled out of the Dabhol power plant and went bankrupt. The plant was shut down in 2001.

Dabhol power plant:

• The Dabhol Power Station is located near Anjanwel village in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra. The power station was a built by the Dabhol Power Company (DPC), which was a joint venture of Enron, General Electric, Bechtel and Maharashtra Power Development Corporation.