Sensex heads towards third consecutive weekly fall

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Indian shares fell over 1 percent on Thursday, heading towards a third consecutive weekly fall led by declines in blue chips ahead of the expiry of April derivative contracts later in the day.

Nifty future rollovers till Wednesday were at 55.2 percent versus an average of 64 percent for the last three series, Reuters calculations based on NSE data showed.

Continued sales by foreign portfolio investors amid fresh worries on retrospective taxes, and a delay in earnings recovery and the land acquisition bill hurt sentiment.

Overseas investors have sold shares worth over $1.2 billion in the last eleven sessions, excluding Daiichi Sankyo's share sale in Sun Pharmaceutical Industries .

"Derivative rollovers are marginally lower, but I think next week can mark some clarity as some tax cases are coming up for hearing," said Aneesh Srivastava, chief investment officer at IDBI Federal Life Insurance.

Global crude oil prices and domestic monsoon are key risks ahead, he added.

The Sensex fell as much as 1.1 percent, while the Nifty lost as much as 1.12 percent.

Both indexes are so far down 1.9 percent for the week, heading towards their third consecutive weekly fall.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has delayed a bill that will make it easier for industry to buy farmland, following anger over rising rural distress and the suicide of a farmer in India's capital.

Blue-chip shares led the declines. Housing Development Finance Corp is down 2.6 percent, while ITC fell 1.4 percent.

Bharti Airtel shed 3.7 percent while Larsen and Toubro lost 1.3 percent.

($1 = 63.2100 rupees)

(Reporting by Abhishek Vishnoi; Editing by Sunil Nair)