Calcutta, Dec. 22 :    Calcutta, Dec. 22:  K.K. Birla, the patriarch of the Birla clan, has sold almost his entire stake in Pilani Investment and Industries Corporation in favour of younger brother B.K. Birla. Sources said the deal had been struck following prolonged negotiations among the family members including the Birla brothers who have cross holdings in Pilani Investment, which has a 36 per cent stake in Century Textiles. The Rs 2,100 crore Century Textiles, which is touted as Asia's largest composite cotton textile mill, recorded a net profit of Rs 34.52 crore during the year ended March 2000 compared with the previous year's loss of Rs 93 crore. In a telephonic interview with The Telegraph, K.K. Birla confirmed that he had ceased to be a stakeholder in Pilani. 'I don't think I have any stake left in the company; a small number of shares could however still be in my possession,' said Birla without disclosing any further details about the deal. When asked about the developments, B.K. Birla said nothing could be said at this moment and it would take some more time to settle the matter. He preferred not to comment on this 'very sensitive family matter'. K.K. Birla is the first of several family members to dispose of his holding in Pilani Investment which has an asset base of over Rs 1,500 crore. Sources said the deal could pave the way for similar deals with the other major shareholders - S.K. Birla, Priyamvada Devi Birla (wife of the late M.P. Birla) who are believed to be willing to dispose of their holding in the company. S.K. Birla, who holds around 10 per cent in Pilani Investment, said he was comfortable with the current situation. 'We always have to make some adjustments,' he said. 'Pilani's share carries a high premium and no single Birla family member will be able to corner the entire stake,' he said. Priyamvada Devi, who has a 25 per cent stake, could not be contacted for her comments. Chandrakant Birla, son of G.P. Birla, holds around 25 per cent in the company. Sources however said C.K. Birla will retain his ownership in Pilani Investment. 'The Birla family is extremely disciplined and always settles any matter very quietly. It is likely that the issue will be resolved very shortly,' said a family friend of the Birlas. C.K. Birla is understood to have been keen on launching a new division within Century and dissociating himself from the company's existing businesses. He however was not available for comment. Sources said the crossholding of the Birlas was one of the reasons why the Century management was unable to formalise its strategy on the sale of its cement division. They added that B.K. Birla, who virtually controls Century, finds it very hard to take a stand on either the sale of cement division or its integration with the cement division of his flagship, Kesoram Industries. Sometime ago, the UK -based cement major, Blue Circle, had evinced keen interest for a collective buyout of the Birla-owned cement units. The three strands of the Birla family - B.K. Birla , S.K Birla and G.P.-C K Birla combine - had pooled together six cement plants from their respective groups and had put them up for sale under a package deal. Although there had been an agreement over the price at the initial stage, the deal ultimately fell through. Century Textiles has hit a rough patch in the second quarter ended September 30 with gross sales falling to Rs 526.8 crore from the first qurter's level of Rs 533.3 crore. After a robust first quarter in which the company ratcheted up a profit after tax of Rs 6.7 crore, the company's tipped into the red once again in the second quarter, reporting a net loss of Rs 3.2 crore. Century Textiles has an installed capacity for cement of 4.7 million tonnes per annum. In the year ended March 2000, it produced 99.7 million metres of cloth, 121 ThTPA of paper, and 9.6 million metres of denim. The company has current assets worth Rs 888.4 crore and current liabilities of Rs 321.8 crore. On Friday, the Century Textile scrip closed on the Bombay Stock Exchange at Rs 39.15, almost Rs 2 down from yesterday's level of Rs 41.20.