Why Is Gautam Adani Betting Big On Maharashtra?

It is a well-known fact that most businessmen like Rahul Bajaj, Keshub Mahindra, Ajit Gulabchand have a very good equation with the NCP Supremo Sharad Pawar. So the news that the Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani is in the same league comes as no surprise. In fact, in 2013 Pawar had attended Adani’s son’s wedding in Goa. Now, it is reliably learnt that the Maratha strongman with a view to attract investment in Maharashtra from the Adani Group is pulling out all the stops to ensure that Adani’s thermal power project comes up in the coal-rich Vidarbha region without any hitch. Earlier, Pawar guided Adani when he took over the Anil Ambani-controlled Reliance Infrastructure, which runs the Mumbai distribution business with 30 lakh customers. Pawar’s strategy of rolling out red carpet seems to be yielding dividends. Now, the Adani Group has lined up a slew of investments in Maharashtra. They have picked up a majority stake in Mumbai International Airport from the GVK Group, securing the contract for the Rs 16,000-cr Navi Mumbai airport. Adani Transmission has bagged the contract to construct 400 kV substation at Vikhroli, for transmission of about 1,000 MW in Mumbai. The company will also construct another line between Aarey Colony and Padgha to evacuate another 1,000 mw. Clearly, Pawar knows which horse to back.