bihar sponge Auditors report


To the Members of Bihar Sponge Iron Limited Report on the Financial Statements

Qualified Opinion

We have audited the accompanying financial statements of M/s. BIHAR SPONGE IRON LIMITED (the Company), which comprise the Balance Sheet as at 31 March, 2023, and the Statement of Profit and Loss (including Other Comprehensive Income), the Statement of Changes in Equity and the Statement of Cash flows for the year ended, including a summary of the significant accounting policies and other explanatory information (hereinafter referred to as "the Ind AS Financial Statements").

In our opinion and to the best of our information and according to the explanations given to us, except for the possible effects of the matter described in the Basis for Qualified Opinion section of our report, the aforesaid financial statements give the information required by the Companies Act, 2013 ("the Act") in the manner so required and give a true and fair view in conformity with the Indian Accounting Standards prescribed under section 133 of the Act read with the Companies (Indian Accounting Standards) Rules, 2015, as amended ("Ind AS") and other accounting principles generally accepted in India, of the state of affairs of the Company as at 31 March, 2023, the loss and total comprehensive income(loss), changes in equity and its cash flows for the year ended on that date.

Basis for Qualified Opinion

As explained in the Notes to the financial statement, the company has not provided under noted liabilities:

I. Non recognition of liability on account of currency fluctuations on foreign currency loan and interest thereon (as required under Indian Accounting Standard - 21) amounting to Rs. 4065.68 lakhs as provided in the BIFR Scheme dt. 29.07.2004 and also confirmed by AAIFR/Single Bench of Jharkhand High Court, Ranchi. The company has filed Letters Patent Appellate Jurisdiction (LPA) before the Divisional Bench of High Court of Jharkhand, Ranchi. It is pertinent to note that IFC (Washington) had filed application for withdrawal in C.A. No. 4075 of 2016 on 27.07.2018. In view of the same interest has not been provided in the books of accounts. (refer other note no. 3(III) appearing in Annexure 1).

II. Non recognition of penalty of Rs. 215.28 lakhs recovered by South Eastern Coal Fields Ltd. on account of short lifting of coal in terms of Fuel Supply Agreement since the matter has been disputed by the Company under writ petition filed before the Honble High Court of Chhattisgarh ,Bilaspur .The amount has been included in long terms loans and advances.(refer other note no 5 of Annexure I (iii)).

III. The Company has approached its promoters for one time settlement of their loans. The settlement will be subsequent to and on the line as per settlement arrived at with Government of Jharkhand for soft loans. Interest on Soft Loan from Government of Jharkhand under Jharkhand Industrial Rehabilitation Scheme 2003 amounting to Rs.6576.83 lakhs not been provided and is subject to representations for waiver. The Honble High Court of Jharkand, Ranchi vide its order dated 09.06.2022 has directed the Company to pay Rs. 1.25 crores per month to be adjusted in the principal amounts.The Company has started payment from July,2022.Taking into consideration non provision of likely liabilities mentioned paragraph i, ii & iii above a. The net result for the year would have been a loss of Rs. 9644.24 lakhs as compared to the disclosed profit of Rs. 1213.55 lakhs. b. Accumulated losses would have been Rs.32694.04 lakhs as compared to disclosed losses of Rs. 21836.25 lakhs. c. The above losses is however subject to ascertainment of liabilities as mentioned in Para iii.

We conducted our audit of the financial statements in accordance with the Standards on Auditing (SAs) specified under section 143(10) of the Act. Our responsibilities under those Standards are further described in the Auditors Responsibilities for the Audit of the Financial Statements section of our report. We are independent of the Company in accordance with the Code of Ethics issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) together with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the Financial Statements under the provisions of the Act and the Rules made thereunder, and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements and the Code of Ethics. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our audit opinion on the financial statements.

Key Audit Matters

Key audit matters are those matters that, in our professional judgment, were of most significance in our audit of the financial statements of the current period. We have determined that there are no key audit matters to communicate in our report.

Information Other than the Financial Statements and Auditors Report thereon

The Companys Board of Directors is responsible for the preparation of the other information. The other information comprises the information included in the Management Discussion and Analysis, Boards Report including Annexures to Boards Report, Corporate Governance and Shareholders Information, but does not include the financial statements and our auditors report thereon.

Our opinion on the standalone financial statements does not cover the other information and we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon.

In connection with our audit of the financial statements, our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the standalone financial statements or our knowledge obtained during the course of our audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact. We have nothing to report in this regard.

Responsibilities of Management and Those Charged with Governance for the Financial Statements

The Companys Board of Directors is responsible for the matters stated in Section 134(5) of the Companies Act, 2013 ("the Act") with respect to the preparation of these financial statements that give a true and fair view of the financial position, financial performance, total comprehensive income, changes in equity and cash flows of the Company in accordance with the Indian Accounting Standards (Ind AS) and other accounting principles generally accepted in India, including the Accounting Standards specified under section 133 of the Act. This responsibility also includes maintenance of adequate accounting records in accordance with the provisions of the Act for safeguarding the assets of the Company and for preventing and detecting frauds and other irregularities; selection and application of appropriate accounting policies; making judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent; and the design, implementation and maintenance of adequate internal financial controls, that were operating effectively for ensuring the accuracy and completeness of the accounting records, relevant to the preparation and presentation of the financial statements that give a true and fair view and are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial statements, management is responsible for assessing the Companys ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless management either intends to liquidate the Company or to cease operations, or has no realistic alternative but to do so.

The Board of Directors are also responsible for overseeing the Companys financial reporting process.

Auditors Responsibilities for the Audit of the Financial Statements

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditors report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with SAs will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.

As a part of an audit in accordance with SAs, we exercise professional judgement and maintain professional skepticism throughout the audit. We also:

• Identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to fraud or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is higher than for one resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internal control.

• Obtain an understanding of internal financial controls relevant to the audit in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances. Under Section 143(3)(i) of the Act, we are also responsible for expressing our opinion on whether the Company and its subsidiary companies which are companies incorporated in India, has adequate internal financial controls system in place and the operating effectiveness of such controls.

• Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates and related disclosures made by management.

• Conclude on the appropriateness of managements use of the going concern basis of accounting and, based on the audit evidence obtained, whether a material uncertainty exists related to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the Companys ability to continue as a going concern. If we conclude that a material uncertainty exists, we are required to draw attention in our auditors report to the related disclosures in the financial statements or, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify our opinion. Our conclusions are based on the audit evidence obtained up to the date of our auditors report. However, future events or conditions may cause the Company to cease to continue as a going concern.

• Evaluate the overall presentation, structure and content of the financial statements, including the disclosures, and whether the financial statements represent the underlying transactions and events in a manner that achieves fair presentation.

We communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that we identify during our audit.

We also provide those charged with governance with a statement that we have complied with relevant ethical requirements regarding independence, and to communicate with them all relationships and other matters that may reasonably be thought to bear on our independence, and where applicable, related safeguards.

From the matters communicated with those charged with governance, we determine those matters that were of most significance in the audit of the financial statements of the current period and are therefore the key audit matters. We describe these matters in our auditors report unless law or regulation precludes public disclosure about the matter or when, in extremely rare circumstances, we determine that a matter should not be communicated in our report because the adverse consequences of doing so would reasonably be expected to outweigh the public interest benefits of such communication.

Report on Other Legal and Regulatory Requirements

1. As required by Section 143(3) of the Act, based on our audit, we report, that:

(a) We have sought and obtained all the information and explanations which to the best of our knowledge and belief were necessary for the purpose of our audit.

(b) In our opinion, proper books of account as required by law have been kept by the Company so far as it appears from our examination of those books.

(c) The Balance Sheet, the Statement of Profit and Loss including Other Comprehensive Income, Statement of Changes in Equity and the Statement of Cash Flows dealt with by this Report are in agreement with the books of account.

(d) In our opinion, the aforesaid financial statements comply with the Indian Accounting Standards specified under Section 133 of the Act, read with the Companies (Indian Accounting Standards) Rules, 2015..

(e) On the basis of the written representations received from the Directors as on 31 March, 2023 taken on record by the Board of directors, none of the Directors is disqualified as on 31 March, 2023 from being appointed as a Director in terms of Section 164(2) of the Act.

(f) With respect to the adequacy of the internal financial controls over financial reporting of the Company and the operating effectiveness of such controls, refer to our separate report in "Annexure A". Our report expresses an unmodified opinion on the adequacy and operating effectiveness of the internal financial control over financial reporting of those companies, for reasons stated therein.

(g) With respect to the other matters to be included in the Auditors Report in accordance with the requirements of Section 197(16) of the Act, as amended:

In our opinion and to the best of our information and according to the explanations given to us, the remuneration paid by the Company to its directors during the year is in accordance with the provisions of Section 197 of the Act.

(h) With respect to the other matters to be included in the Auditors Report in accordance with Rule 11 of the Companies (Audit and Auditors) Rules, 2014, as amended in our opinion and to the best of our information and according to the explanations given to us:

i. The company does not have any pending litigations which would impact its financial statements.

ii. The Company did not have any long-term contracts including derivative contracts for which there were any material foreseeable losses.

iii. There were no amounts which were required to be transferred to the Investor Education and Protection Fund by the company.

iv. (a) The Management has represented that, to the best of its knowledge and belief, no funds have been advanced or loaned or invested (either from borrowed funds or share premium or any other sources or kind of funds) by the Company to or in any other person(s) or entity(ies), including foreign entities ("Intermediaries"), with the understanding, whether recorded in writing or otherwise, that the Intermediary shall, directly or indirectly lend or invest in other persons or entities identified in any manner whatsoever by or on behalf of the Company ("Ultimate Beneficiaries") or provide any guarantee, security or the like on behalf of the Ultimate Beneficiaries.

(b) The Management has represented, that, to the best of its knowledge and belief, no funds have been received by the Company from any person(s) or entity(ies), including foreign entity (ies).

Based on the audit procedures performed that have been considered reasonable and appropriate in the circumstances, nothing has come to our notice that has caused us to believe that the representations under sub-clause (i) and (ii) of Rule 11(e), as provided under (a) and (b) above, contain any material misstatement.

2. As required by the Companies (Auditors Report) Order, 2020 ("the Order") issued by the Central Government in terms of sub section (11) of Section 143 of the Act, we give in "Annexure B" a statement on the matters specified in paragraphs 3 and 4 of the Order.

Annexure A to the Independent Auditors Report

(Referred to in paragraph 1 under Report on Other Legal and Regulatory Requirements section of our report of even date)

In terms of the information and explanations sought by us and given by the Company and the books of account and records examined by us in the normal course of audit and to the best of our knowledge and belief, we state that:

(i) (a) A. The Company has maintained proper records showing full particulars, including quantitative details and situation of property, plant and equipment

B. The Company has maintained proper records showing full particulars of intangible assets.

(b) The Company has a programme of physical verification to ensure that all the assets are verified at reasonable intervals which, in our opinion, is reasonable having regard to the size of the company and the nature of its assets. Management has physically verified major fixed assets during the year and no major discrepancy has been noticed on such verification as compared to book records.

(c) With respect to immovable properties disclosed in the financial statements included in property, plant and equipment, according to the information and explanations given to us , we report that, the title deeds of such immovable properties are held in the name of the Company as at the balance sheet date.

(d) The Company has not revalued any of its property, plant and equipment and intangible assets during the year.

(e) As per the details and information shared with us, no proceedings have been initiated during the year or are pending against the Company as at March 31, 2023 for holding any benami property under the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988 (as amended in 2016) and rules made thereunder.

(ii) (a) Inventories have been physically verified by the management at reasonable intervals during the year. In our opinion, the frequency ofvsuch verification is reasonable and procedures and coverage as followed by management were appropriate. No discrepancies were noticed on verification between the physical stocks and the book records that were more than 10% in the aggregate of each class of inventory

(b) According to the information and explanations given to us, at any point of time of the year, the Company has not been sanctioned any working capital facility from banks or financial institutions and hence reporting under clause (ii)(b) of the Order is not applicable.

(iii) The Company has not granted unsecured loans to its subsidiaries and employees and has not made any investments in, provided any guarantee or security or advances in the nature of loans, secured or unsecured, to companies, firms, Limited Liability Partnerships or any other parties during the year.

(iv) According to information and explanation given to us, the Company has not granted any loans, made investments or provided guarantees or securities that are covered under the provisions of sections 185 or 186 of the Companies Act, 2013, and hence reporting under clause (iv) of the Order is not applicable.

(v) The Company has not accepted any deposit or amounts which are deemed to be deposits. Hence, reporting under clause (v) of the Order is not applicable.

(vi) We have broadly reviewed the cost records maintained by the Company pursuant to the Rules made by the Central Government for the maintenance of cost records under sub-section (1) of Section 148 of the Act in respect of Companys products and are of the opinion that, prima facie, the prescribed accounts and records have been made and maintained. However, we have not made a detailed examination of the cost records with a view to determine whether they are accurate or complete.

(vii) (a) According to the information and explanations given to us and the records of the Company examined by us, in our opinion, the Companyvis regular in depositing undisputed statutory dues in respect of income tax, Goods and Service tax, and other material statutory dues as applicable with the appropriate authorities. Further, there were no undisputed amounts outstanding at the yearend for a period of more than six months from the date they became payable as at 31st March, 2023.

(b) According to the information and explanations given to us and on the basis of our examination of the records of the Company, statutory dues relating to Goods and Service Tax, Provident Fund, Employees State Insurance, Income-Tax, Duty of Customs or Cess or other statutory dues which have not been deposited on account of any dispute are as follows:

Name of the statute Forum where Dispute pending Nature of dues Period of dispute Amount (Rs. Lakhs)
1. JVAT Act, 2005 Commissioner of Commercial Jharkhand, Ranchi. Taxes Tax on JVAT. 2010-11 37.91
2. JVAT Act, 2005 Commissioner of Commercial Jharkhand, Ranchi. Taxes Tax on JVAT. 2010-11 81.40
3. JVAT Act, 2005 Commissioner of Commercial Jharkhand Ranchi. Taxes, Central Sales Tax 2010-11 30.96
4. JVAT Act, 2005 Commissioner of Commercial Jharkhand, Ranchi. Taxes Tax on CST 2013-14 34.91
5. I ncome Tax Act, 1961 ITAT, Patna Short deduction of tax at source and collection of Tax at Source with interest and penalty raised by DCIT, JSR and confirmed by the commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals), JSR on 28-032016. A.Y.2004-05 A.Y.2005-06 27.15 28.80
6. Excise Duty Commissioner of Central (Appeals)Kolkata Ranchi. Excise Availing irregular claim on cenveat in ER6 in December,2014 2013-14 47.06
7. Excise Duty Commissioner of Central (Appeals) Jharkhand, Ranchi. Excise Excise Duty on dutiable sales of scrap and waste 2006-07,2007- 08and 2008-09 64.99

(viii) There were no transactions relating to previously unrecorded income that were surrendered or disclosed as income in the tax assessments under the Income Tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961) during the year.

(ix) (a) In our opinion, the Company has not defaulted in the repayment of loans or other borrowings or in the payment of interest thereon to any lender during the year.

(b) The Company has not been declared willful defaulter by any bank or financial institution or government or any government authority.

(c) The Company has not taken any term loan during the year and there are no unutilised term loans at the beginning of the year and hence, reporting under clause 3(ix)(c) of the Order is not applicable.

(d) The company has not raised any funds on short term basis and hence, reporting under clause 3(ix)(d) of the Order is not applicable.

(e) The Company has not taken any term loan during the year and hence, reporting under clause 3(ix)(e) of the Order is not applicable.

(f) The Company has not raised any loans during the year and hence reporting on clause 3(ix)(f) of the Order is not applicable.

(x) (a) The Company has not raised moneys by way of initial public offer or further public offer (including debt instruments) during the year and hence reporting under clause 3(x)(a) of the Order is not applicable.

(b) During the year the Company has not made any preferential allotment or private placement of shares or convertible debentures (fully or partly or optionally) and hence reporting under clause 3(x)(b) of the Order is not applicable to the Company.

(xi) (a) To the best of our knowledge, no fraud by the Company and on the Company has been noticed or reported during the year.

(b) To the best of our knowledge, no report under sub-section (12) of section 143 of the Companies Act has been filed in Form ADT-4 as prescribed under rule 13 of Companies (Audit and Auditors) Rules, 2014 with the Central Government, during the year and up to the date of this report.

(c) As represented to us by the Management, there were no whistle blower complaints received by the Company during the year and upto the date of this report.

(xii) The Company is not a Nidhi Company and hence reporting under clause 3(xii) of the Order is not applicable.

(xiii) In our opinion, the Company is in compliance with Section 177 and 188 of the Companies Act, where applicable, for all transactions with the related parties and the details of related party transactions have been disclosed in the financial statements etc. as required by the applicable accounting standards.

(xiv) (a) In our opinion the Company has an adequate internal audit system commensurate with the size and the nature of its business.

(b) We have considered the internal audit reports issued to the Company during the year.

(xv) In our opinion during the year the Company has not entered into any non-cash transactions with any of its directors or persons connected with such directors and hence provisions of section 192 of the Companies Act, 2013 are not applicable to the Company.

(xvi) (a) The Company is not required to be registered under section 45-IA of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. Hence, reporting under clause

3(xvi)(a), (b) and (c) of the Order are not applicable.

(b) The Group does not have any Core investment Company (CIC) as part of the group and accordingly reporting under clause 3(xvi)(d) of the Order is not applicable.

(xvii) The Company has not incurred cash losses during the financial year covered by our audit and the immediately preceding financial year.

(xviii) There has been no resignation of the statutory auditors of the Company during the year.

(xix) On the basis of the financial ratios, ageing and expected dates of realization of financial assets and payment of financial liabilities, other information accompanying the Standalone Financial Statements and our knowledge of the Board of Directors and Management plans and based on our examination of the evidence supporting the assumptions, nothing has come to our attention, which causes us to believe hat any material uncertainty exists as on the date of the audit report indicating that Company is not capable of meeting its liabilities existing at the date of balance sheet as and when they fall due within a period of one year from the balance sheet date. We, however, state that this is not an assurance as to the future viability of the Company. We further state that our reporting is based on the facts up to the date of the audit report and we neither give any guarantee nor any assurance that all liabilities falling due within a period of one year from the balance sheet date, will get discharged by the Company as and when they fall due.

(xx) In our opinion and according to the information and explanations given to us, there is no unspent amount under sub-section (5) of section 135 of the Act pursuant to any project. Accordingly, clauses 3(xx)(a) and 3(xx)(b) of the Order are not applicable.

Annexure B to the Independent Auditors Report

Report on the Internal Financial Controls under Clause (i) of Sub-section 3 of Section 143 of the Companies Act, 2013 ("the Act") as referred to in paragraph 2 of Report on Other Legal and Regulatory Requirements section

We have audited the internal financial control with reference to financial statement of BIHAR SPONGE IRON LIMITED ("the Company") as of March, 31, 2023 in conjunction with our audit of the financial statements of the Company for the year ended on that date.

Managements Responsibility for Internal Financial Controls

The Companys management is responsible for establishing and maintaining internal financial controls based on the internal control with reference to financial statements, criteria established by the Company considering the essential components of internal control stated in the Guidance Note on Audit of Internal Financial Controls over Financial Reporting issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI). These responsibilities include the design, implementation and maintenance of adequate internal financial controls that were operating effectively for ensuring the orderly and efficient conduct of its business, including adherence to companys policies, the safeguarding of its assets, the prevention and detection of frauds and errors, the accuracy and completeness of the accounting records and the timely preparation of reliable financial information, as required under the Act.

Auditors Responsibility

Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Companys internal financial controls over financial reporting based on our audit. We conducted our audit in accordance with the Guidance Note on Audit of Internal Financial Controls Over Financial Reporting (the "Guidance Note") and the Standards on Auditing prescribed under Section 143(10) of the Act, to the extent applicable to an audit of internal financial controls, both applicable to an audit of internal financial controls and both issued by the ICAI. Those Standards and the Guidance Note require that we comply with ethical requirements and plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether adequate internal financial controls over financial reporting was established and maintained and if such controls operated effectively in all material respects.

Our audit involves performing procedures to obtain audit evidence about the adequacy of the internal financial controls system over financial reporting and their operating effectiveness. Our audit of internal financial controls over financial reporting included obtaining an understanding of internal financial controls over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, and testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk. The procedures selected depend on the auditors judgment, including the assessment of the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to fraud or error.

We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our audit opinion on the Companys internal financial controls system over financial reporting.

Meaning of Internal Financial Controls Over Financial Reporting

A companys internal financial control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. A companys internal financial control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that

(1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company;

(2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and

(3) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the companys assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

Inherent Limitations of Internal Financial Controls Over Financial Reporting

Because of the inherent limitations of internal financial controls over financial reporting, including the possibility of collusion or improper management override of controls, material misstatements due to error or fraud may occur and not be detected. Also, projections of any evaluation

of the internal financial controls over financial reporting to future periods are subject to the risk that the internal financial control over financial reporting may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

Opinion

In our opinion, the Company has, in all material respects, an adequate internal financial controls system over financial reporting and such internal financial controls over financial reporting were operating effectively as at March 31, 2023, based on the internal control over financial reporting criteria, established by the Company considering the essential components of internal control stated in the Guidance Note of Audit of Internal Financial controls over financial reporting issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.

For K. K. JAIN & CO.
Chartered Accountants
FRN. 002465N
Sd/-
Simmi Jain
Partner
Place: New Delhi M.No.086496
Date : 26/05/2023 UDIN: 23086496BGWOPE7079