The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has been asked to institute a forensic audit into the operations of IFCI in connection with non-performing loans, Parliament was informed today.

"As part of its ordinary course of business, IFCI Ltd extends loans to corporate borrowers, some of which become Non-Performing Assets (NPA) due to various reasons," Minister of State for Finance Shiv Pratap Shukla said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.

IFCI has reported that 15 accounts became NPAs between November 2013 and October 2016, with Rs 1,250 crore principal outstanding as on date of account becoming NPA, he said.

IFCI has determined prima facie staff accountability in one case, he added.

"Ministry of Corporate Affairs has been requested to cause an enquiry into the affairs of IFCI through a forensic audit under the provisions of Companies Act, 2013. This enquiry is not specific to any one loan account," he said.

For the second quarter ended September 2017, IFCI reported a 20 per cent decline in net profit to Rs 11.90 crore on account of rise in bad loans.

State-owned IFCI's net profit stood at Rs 14.86 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal.

For the September 2017 quarter, IFCI's asset quality deteriorated further as gross NPAs surged to 34.8 per cent while net NPA also rose to 27.3 per cent.

The company attributed the increase in NPA to downgrading of certain standard accounts and reduction in loan portfolio. #casansaar (DP ABM, Times of India)