Kolkata: West Bengal minister Firhad Hakim on Friday said that the Adani Group crisis is unlikely to affect the proposed deep sea Tajpur port construction, a major infrastructural project of the state. The state cabinet had last year approved a proposal for issuing a letter of intent to Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone for the development of a greenfield port at Tajpur, paving the way for an estimated investment of Rs 25,000 crore.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had handed over the letter of intent of the project to Adani Ports in October last year. "The project has been handed over through a tender, and there is a clause stating the deadline for its completion. So there is no reason to worry... The project will not be impacted," senior TMC leader and state minister Firhad Hakim said.
Echoing him, TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said the projects belong to the state government, and Adani group was its contract-holder. "The project will be completed, be it through plan A or plan B," Ghosh said, without divulging further details. Adani Group stocks have taken a beating on the bourses after US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research made a litany of allegations in a report, including fraudulent transactions and share price manipulation at the Gautam Adani-led group.
Hindenburg released the report on January 24 -- the day on which Adani Enterprises' Rs 20,000-crore follow-on share sale opened for anchor investors, while the conglomerate has rejected the allegations. Tajpur port is a major project that will have a multiplier impact on the state's economy, and the Adani group will move ahead with it, experts have said. The greenfield port is expected create direct employment opportunities for 25,000 people and around one lakh indirect jobs. (PTI)
