India Infrastructure Fund, or IIF, has invested $50 million (around Rs250 crore) in two companies floated by Nashik’s Ashoka Buildcon Ltd to build two stretches of road connecting two cities of Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh, according to M.K. Sinha, president and chief executive officer of IDFC Project Equity Co. Ltd, which manages the fund. The fund has taken a 49% stake in these two entities, both structured as so-called special purpose vehicles, or SPV, which will build two stretches of toll roads totalling 162km between Nagpur in Maharashtra and Raipur in Chhattisgarh. SPVs are limited to the financing of specific assets. This is the third investment from IIF, sponsored by IDFC, Citigroup Inc. and India Infrastructure Finance Co. Ltd (IIFCL). The first investment was for $70 million across four road projects, which acted as seed assets for the fund, and the second was a $70 million investment in Essar Power Ltd in March. […]