The Nifty 50 slipped below 23,000 on Monday, September 28, 2026, as Brent crude moved above $106 a barrel and the rupee weakened to ₹95.95 against the dollar. Away from the index, five stories moved individual stocks: Power Grid's ₹10,000 Cr SBI loan approval and a new transmission win, Robokidz Eduventures' 90% listing gain, a ₹1,062.8 Cr block deal in Clean Max Enviro, and a coking coal pact between SAIL and BCCL. Here are all six, with what we could verify and what we could not.
The figures below are from the morning session, because final closing numbers were not yet available when we published. For the previous big fall, see our report on why the Sensex fell 1,248 points on September 24.
1. Nifty Falls Below 23,000
- Early trade: the Nifty 50 was down 215 points (0.93%) at 22,925.50 and the Sensex was down 665.36 points at 73,230.38, according to ANI.
- A later morning snapshot had the Sensex down 858.51 points at 73,037.23 and the Nifty down 258.35 points at 22,882.15.
- Business Standard's live blog headline said the Sensex slumped 900 points, with the Nifty PSU Bank index down about 2%.
Reports tie the fall to oil prices rising on a lack of diplomatic progress in the Middle East, a weaker rupee and higher global bond yields. These are intraday levels that kept changing through the session, so treat them as a snapshot and check the exchange for the final close.
2. Crude Oil and the Rupee Both Under Pressure
- Brent crude futures traded above $106 a barrel. In a PTI report carried by Business Standard, Brent was up 2.31% at $106.81.
- The rupee opened at 95.89 and fell 20 paise to 95.95 against the US dollar in early trade. It had closed at 95.75 on Friday, after gaining 24 paise that day.
- The dollar index, which tracks the dollar against six currencies, was at 101.11, up 0.15%.
India imports most of its crude oil, so a higher oil price usually widens the import bill and weakens the rupee, and both tend to weigh on Indian stocks. Forex traders also pointed to continued foreign fund outflows.
3. Power Grid: ₹10,000 Cr SBI Loan and a New Transmission Win
Two separate announcements are often mixed up, so here they are apart.
- Funding: Power Grid's board, at a meeting on September 26, approved borrowing up to ₹10,000 Cr from State Bank of India as an unsecured rupee term loan or line of credit. The report we reviewed did not state what the money is for. Separately, a committee of directors had cleared up to ₹5,000 Cr of unsecured bonds on September 18.
- Project: Power Grid received a Letter of Intent on September 25 for a transmission project in Maharashtra, which includes a new 765/400/220 kV substation at Alephata, built under the tariff-based competitive bidding route on a build, own, operate and transfer basis.
The ₹430.67 Cr figure that is often quoted for this project is the annual transmission charges Power Grid quoted in its winning bid. It is a yearly fee the company would earn, not the cost of building the project or the size of the loan. This is Power Grid's ninth such win this financial year, according to the report we reviewed.
4. Robokidz Eduventures Lists at a 90% Premium
Robokidz Eduventures listed on the BSE SME platform on September 28 at ₹201.40, against its issue price of ₹106, a 90% gain on the first print. That figure is our own arithmetic: ₹201.40 divided by ₹106 is 1.90. Angel One also reported the ₹201.40 listing and the 90% premium.
Our tracker's last grey market premium for the issue was ₹86, which implied about ₹192, or roughly 81%. The listing came in above that. A listing price is one data point, and SME stocks can move sharply after the first trade. See how grey market premiums have compared with real listings in our analysis of GMP accuracy against listing prices, and follow every issue on the IPO GMP tracker.
5. Clean Max Enviro: ₹1,062.8 Cr Block Deal
Augment India Holdings sold 85 lakh shares of Clean Max Enviro Energy Solutions, a 7.25% stake, in a block deal worth about ₹1,062.8 Cr. The floor price was ₹1,250 per share, and the seller held 9.50% as of June 30, 2026. If the whole block sold, that would leave it with about 2.25%, our own calculation.
Business Standard reported that the stock rose around 5% after roughly 8.6 million shares traded in the block, even as the broader market fell. A block deal is a large single trade between institutions. It does not by itself say whether the company's business is stronger or weaker. The buyers were not named in the reports we could access.
6. SAIL and BCCL Sign a Coking Coal Pact
Steel Authority of India (SAIL) and Bharat Coking Coal (BCCL) signed an MoU on September 25 for two adjoining coking coal blocks in West Bengal: SAIL's Indikatta Ramnagore and BCCL's East of Damagoria, also called Kalyaneshwari.
- Combined peak capacity: about 4 million tonnes a year.
- Phase I extractable reserves: roughly 79 million tonnes.
- Plan: coordinated mining and overburden management between the two blocks. Mining starts at Kalyaneshwari in Phase I and overburden goes to Ramnagore, then the roles reverse in Phase II.
The stated aim is more domestic coking coal for the steel industry and less reliance on imports. An MoU is an agreement to cooperate, not production, and the report gave no start date for mining.
What This Means for IPO Watchers
Robokidz shows that a hot SME IPO can still list strongly on a day the index falls. Weak markets do, however, often hit sentiment for the next batch of listings. Nothing here says whether any specific IPO is worth applying to.
What to Watch Next
- Brent crude and whether it holds above $106.
- The rupee against the ₹96 mark.
- How Power Grid discloses the use of the SBI loan.
- Whether Clean Max holds the gain after the block deal.
Figures were checked against HDFC Sky's market open report, ANI's market report, Business Standard's rupee report, Angel One's Robokidz listing report and DSIJ's report on the SAIL and BCCL pact.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did the Nifty fall below 23,000 on September 28, 2026?
Reports point to Brent crude rising above $106 a barrel on lack of diplomatic progress in the Middle East, a weaker rupee at ₹95.95 to the dollar, and higher global bond yields. The Nifty was down about 215 to 258 points in morning trade.
What is the ₹430.67 Cr Power Grid figure?
It is the annual transmission charges Power Grid quoted for a Maharashtra transmission project it won under tariff-based competitive bidding, including a new 765/400/220 kV substation at Alephata. It is a yearly charge, not the project cost and not the SBI loan.
At what price did Robokidz Eduventures list?
Robokidz Eduventures listed on the BSE SME platform on September 28, 2026 at ₹201.40, a 90% premium to its ₹106 issue price.
What is a block deal?
A block deal is a single large trade of shares, usually between institutions, executed in a special trading window. In Clean Max Enviro's case, 85 lakh shares (7.25%) worth about ₹1,062.8 Cr were sold by Augment India Holdings at a floor price of ₹1,250.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice. IPOLyst is not a SEBI-registered investment advisor. Market data, corporate announcements and price levels can change quickly. Please verify figures with official sources and consult a registered advisor before making investment decisions.