Bhagalpur Power Project: Amidst the political controversy over the proposed power project in Bhagalpur district of Bihar, Adani Group has rejected the opposition’s allegations calling them ‘misleading and malicious’ (Mala Fide). The group says that the state government has allotted this project through a completely transparent tender process.
Congress made allegations of bias
Senior Congress leader Pawan Kheda had recently alleged that the NDA government of Bihar gave 1,050 acres of land and lakhs of trees to the Adani Group on a nominal lease rent of just Re 1 per year for 33 years. He claimed that the agreement was approved in a hurry before the assembly elections and termed it as a ‘gift to a politically connected business house’.
Congress leaders said that this case is not just an industrial project but an example of ‘crony capitalism’, in which public assets are being handed over to private companies in the name of development.
The government called the allegations ‘misleading’
Bihar government completely rejected these allegations and said that the tender process was fair and transparent. State Industries Minister Nitish Mishra said that four companies had competed for this project. All formal processes were completed and the project was awarded to Adani Power Limited, the bidder with the lowest quotation.
On the other hand, BJP spokesperson Neeraj Kumar accused Congress of trying to create controversy just before the elections. He said that the government is not selling this land but is giving it on lease, which is part of the industrial policy of Bihar. This project will increase the power generation capacity of the state and create new employment opportunities.
Adani Group’s clarification
Adani Power also issued a detailed statement saying that the land in dispute is with Bihar State Power Generation Company (BSPGCL) for the last decade. The group said it won the project by quoting the lowest electricity rate (tariff) through a transparent bidding process.
The company said that leaders of some political parties are continuously spreading wrong information about the proposed power project in Bhagalpur district. Probably they are not aware of the transparent process adopted by the Bihar government. Adani Group clarified that the Bihar government had decided to give the land on nominal lease rent to the successful bidder under the Bihar Industrial Investment Promotion Policy, 2025.
Adani Group further said that this is not a special benefit given to any one company, but it applies equally to all investors under the policy. Therefore the allegations being made are completely malicious and misleading.
Tender process and electricity rates
The company said that Adani Power bid at the rate of Rs 6.075 per unit (kWh), which includes fixed charge of Rs 4.165 and fuel charge of Rs 1.91. This rate is lower than a similar 3,200 MW project recently completed in Madhya Pradesh, which will provide cheaper electricity to consumers in Bihar.
Adani Group said that the objective of this project is to increase the energy supply and industrial capacity of Bihar. The company also told that the Bihar government had earlier tried to start this project several times through PSU companies (NTPC, NLC, SJVN), but they could not succeed.
