Govt Eases Rules For Adani to Set Up Energy Plant Within a Km of Indo-Pak Border; Is the US Really an Indispensable Nation? Why are Gujaratis From ‘Model State’ Rushing to the US as Illegal Migrants?

A newsletter from The Wire | Founded by Tanweer Alam, Sidharth Bhatia, Pratik Kanjilal, Seema Chishti, Sushant Singh, MK Venu, and Siddharth Varadarajan | Contributing writer: Kalrav Joshi, with additional inputs by Anirudh SK

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Over to Sidharth Bhatia for today’s Cable

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Snapshot of the day

February 12, 2025

Sidharth Bhatia

The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government in the Centre had relaxed critical and long-standing national security defence protocols allowing Gautam Adani to go ahead with the world’s largest renewable energy park in Gujarat’s Khavda with solar panels and wind turbines within a kilometre of the India-Pakistan border along the Rann of Kutch. The tweak in the protocols has also paved the way for similar construction on the borders with other neighbouring countries like China, Bangladesh, Nepal and Myanmar, reports The Guardian. According to the British newspaper, the documents show the BJP had “lobbied at the highest levels for the protocols to be relaxed to make land in the Rann of Kutch available for both solar and wind construction”.

The report states that the BJP government in Gujarat lobbied at “the highest levels” to relax border protocols. While military officials raised concerns about tank mobilisation and security surveillance along the international border, developers assured them that “solar platforms would be adequate in mitigating any threats from enemy tank movements.” The developers also rejected military requests for adjustments to solar panel size, citing financial viability concerns. The defence ministry agreed in April 2023 to amend long-standing protocols that previously restricted major construction within 10 kilometres of the border. The 445-square kilometre project, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2020, is expected to generate 30 gigawatts of renewable energy at peak capacity – enough to power small European countries. After the rules were relaxed, making the land significantly more valuable, it was transferred from state-run Solar Energy Corporation of India to the Adani Group.

In the wake of this media report, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge alleged Prime Minister Narendra Modi of jeopardising national security at India’s borders to benefit private billionaires. Taking a jibe at Modi, he wrote on X,