New Delhi: His journey from being a school dropout to the world’s third richest man, his rapport with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and allegations levelled against him by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi — these are among the topics Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani touched upon for the first time in an interview to a national TV news channel last week.
Asserting that his business empire rests on a firm foundation of profits and sound assets, Adani dismissed claims that his fortune was bankrolled by public sector banks. He also spoke at length about working with governments in non-BJP-ruled states, the Modi government’s now-withdrawn farm laws, the drug hauls at Adani-run Mundra port and his relationship with Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani.
ThePrint brings you 10 key takeaways from Gautam Adani’s interview to India TV.
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Chose ‘hard work & experience’
Asked why he left his studies midway, Adani said he was good at math and chose “engineering as a technical subject”, but the “situations were such” that he had to keep his studies on the backburner and dive into business.
Emphasising the importance of education, he said, “I wasn’t able to choose that path, and that’s my misfortune. I chose another path — hard work and experience. That hard work and experience increased my wisdom.”
Referring to himself as a “grounded man”, he said that just because he travels by a private jet does not mean he is not rooted. “Even today, I know the mindset of a person travelling by scooter, a rickshaw, a bus or be it a jet, that’s because I have been through that journey.”
Revealing more about his formative years, Adani said he started working at the age of 15, soon after he cleared 10th grade. “The (family) situation was such that I came to Mumbai to work without completing my studies or graduation.”
The industrialist said he returned to Ahmedabad four years later and that Mumbai is where he learned “how to work hard”.
“I got into the business as a 15-19-year-old who had that zeal to do something beyond the family business. My family supported me quite a bit, and on that basis, I went ahead. The money was limited, and I had to grow my business accordingly. There were lots of troubles, there were many established players. But I’ve noticed that at various points in my life, different people supported me, and whatever I am today, is because of them.”
‘As long as India is progressing’
Asked whether all banks will go bust if the “Adani bubble bursts”, the industrialist said Adani Group’s assets are “3-4 times more” than its loans. “This balloon will keep soaring as long as India is progressing,” he said.
Adani also responded to an allegation that his conglomerate owes public banks “Rs 2 lakh crore” by saying that a developer is required to put “30-40 per cent” of their own money in an infrastructure project while relying on banks for the remaining “60-70 per cent”.
He said that the rating on the basis of which a loan is granted is important. “Today, every company of Adani Group is rated at par with India’s overall rating, which is a sovereign rating. Adani Group has such a discipline and rating, that in my 25 years, we have never delayed payment or defaulted on interest, and more so, whenever we need funds for any development activity, everyone is ready to lend to us,” he said.
Responding to a question about allegations levelled by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi that his rapport with PM Modi helped him secure loans from public sector banks, he said “Indian banks” accounted for “80 per cent” of Adani Group’s borrowings before 2013 — a number now at “35 per cent”.
“After that, we penetrated the international market with a global rating. On the global front, no one lends based on what someone says, they lend only after seeing your rating and governance. Based on our company’s ratings and disclosures, one of our companies has got an award for worldwide 3rd ESG (environmental, social, and governance) level.”
Terming Gandhi’s remarks as “absolutely baseless”, Gautam Adani said, “I understand he needs to say certain things politically, but there’s no friction between the lenders and us borrowers.”
Refuting the Congress leader’s claim that 40 per cent of the Adani Group’s loans from public sector banks were sanctioned between 2020 and 2022, he said that the conglomerate’s “loan rate has increased by 11 per cent in the last 10 years” and its income by “24 per cent”.
“Our rating has improved because of our profitability and our rating is growing also because of our borrowing,” he said.
Asked whether there was any truth in the charge Gandhi made in February 2021 that the Union government was handing over all of India’s ports, airports, gas transmission and power grids, mines and natural gas to the Adani Group, the industrialist said a bidding process is the entry barrier.
“When you make an accusation, also tell me, is there anything that is done without bidding? Is there one business which we have entered without bidding or without merit? Even we know that doing such a thing in India would create controversy.”
Comparing scrutiny of the bidding process to questioning the person who came first in an exam, he said, “But that accusation, even Rahul ji hasn’t made against us, that there was foul play in any bidding process.”
Drug hauls at Mundra Port
During the interview, he also responded to Rahul Gandhi’s allegations that someone was “saving Adani” after drugs worth Rs 20,000 crore were seized at the all-weather Mundra port in Gujarat in September 2021, followed by a haul of drugs worth Rs 500 crore in May 2022, and another of drugs worth Rs 376 crore in July 2022.
The port is managed by Adani Ports & SEZ.
Adani said one needs to look at this from the perspective that “any drugs that pass through the port are caught” and it does not mean that a previous haul is not followed by an inquiry. “Whenever there’s an investigation, it’s a 360° investigation and there’s questioning in that. It has never been that one has been able to bypass the government investigation. So, I disagree that the Adani Group has been receiving some special treatment.”
A port operator, he explained, has no policing powers and is only in charge of loading and unloading the cargo. “I would like to congratulate every agency, be it customs, police, or DRI (Directorate of Revenue Intelligence), that they worked diligently and caught this smuggling of drugs.”
The industrialist also addressed reports that he acquired land from the Gujarat government for the Mundra Port — his first big investment — at Re 1 per square foot.
Adani asserted that the land in question was “not land at all”.
“When there was a high tide, the land used to go under the sea water and we did a reclamation of almost 10 feet, 3-4 metres above it and the cost of the reclamation is far bigger than the cost of the land,” he said.
Adani hailed Mundra Port as a unique example of a project for which “not even one acre” of farmland was taken away. Infrastructure projects can never take off if one does not have the dedication or hard work, he said.
The Adani Group, he added, equipped the port with roads, a 100-km private railway line and an airport. “Government gave us nothing other than land and development rights. Whenever we needed any permission, whichever government was in power in Gujarat, extended all possible help.”
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Rahul fighting ‘ideological battle’
On Rahul Gandhi invoking his name in public meetings and press conferences to accuse the central government of “crony capitalism”, Gautam Adani said the Congress leader is “leading an ideological battle” and making “only political statements”.
“He’s (Gandhi) a respected leader, and I see that he too wants the nation to progress. I understand, he says certain things because of his political leanings, but I don’t take it any more than a political gimmick.”
Adani went further to add, “I’m a regular industrialist. I will do my work and he (Gandhi) will do the politics that suit him.”
Formula for success
Adani, who is also the richest man in Asia, said there is no substitute for hard work when asked about his “formula for success”.
“Any man’s success depends on honesty and hard work, the rest is left to God; that’s the only formula,” he said.
On a question that his wealth grew by Rs 9 lakh crore between December 2021 and December 2022, Adani said that he does not “get trapped in this web of numbers”.
“More important for me is what change I can bring about in the nation. If you go and see why the numbers have increased, I see that the country is on the path to progress. And I say it with full confidence that India’s position today, and in the coming 20-30 years, is going to be unstoppable.
‘Never had any problems with any govt’
Lauding successive governments in Gujarat for being “industrialist-friendly”, Adani said the state witnessed industrialisation despite reeling under droughts every few years.
On sharing a stage with Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot in October last year, Adani said the Congress government in the state provided the Adani Group land for a power project and MDO projects for mining — “through bidding”.
“Whatever help they (Gehlot-led government) have given is within the policy. Their policies were very clear and when you are a serious player and you are asking something within the policy, then I believe that not only Ashok Gehlot’s Congress government, we are working even with the Left government in Kerala, with Mamata (Banerjee) didi, even with Naveen Patnaik ji, Jagan (YS Jagan Mohan Reddy), even KCR (K Chandrashekar Rao). So, we are working in each state and all have different governments, some are a regional party (government), Congress, Left also.”
Reiterating that the Adani Group is working in 22 states, not all of which are BJP-ruled, Adani said, “Today I want to say confidently that we never had any problems with any government.”
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‘Unfortunate that farm laws were repealed’
During the interview, Gautam Adani also defended the Modi government’s now-withdrawn farm laws, saying that he believes the “laws were good and it is unfortunate that they had to be repealed when a political tone was given to them”.
“I believe that the laws were good and I’m not saying it because it would benefit the Adani Group. Genuinely as a citizen, because I’m first a citizen of India, then comes the Adani Group.”
Claiming that “40-50 per cent” of the country is dependent on agriculture, either directly or indirectly, he said India has the capability to be the world’s food supplier but for that to happen, the issue of limited infrastructure (cold storage and warehousing) will have to be addressed.
“So, the customers are not getting good things and the farmers are not getting good income. If such laws would come, we would have done further investments in infrastructure which would benefit the farmers,” he said.
‘Cannot ask Modi ji for help’
In response to a question about whether the rapport he shares with PM Modi has benefitted his businesses, Adani said one “cannot take personal help from Modi ji”.
“You can talk about policies, (about) how you can take our country ahead and talk about what is happening on the ground level. So, you make policies for everybody and the benefits of policies which are available for everybody are available for the Adani Group also.”
Adani also recalled that the Rajiv Gandhi-led Congress government in the 1980s gave him his first “break”, followed by the Narasimha Rao administration which gave a thrust to the public-private-partnership (PPP) model, and the Keshubhai Patel-led BJP government in Gujarat.
“I proudly say that we had a very good experience with the Modi government,” he said, referring to the prime minister’s tenure as chief minister of Gujarat.
‘Play Rummy with wife’
Asked how the world’s third-richest man deals with stress, Adani said he plays sports, spends time with his grandchildren and plays cards with his wife at night.
Revealing his daily schedule, the industrialist said he wakes up at 6.30 every morning and exercises for an hour before spending two to two-and-a-half hours reading the newspaper or talking to his wife, children and granddaughter over the dining table.
“I would like to tell you that three days a week, I’m out of Ahmedabad, and when I’m there for four days, I go to the office late about 10.30 to 11 because I return late at night at about 11 or 12.”
Adani also revealed that he has a rule, to spend time with whichever family member is in the office during lunch.
“When I return home at night, I play rummy paplu game with Priti (wife Priti Adani). I play 8-10 games, and most of the time she wins,” he said.
Mukesh Ambani ‘friend, not competitor’
Adani also revealed that he saw Reliance Industries founder late Dhirubhai Ambani as his role model.
“It is because in his tenure at Reliance Industries, at that time the economy was not open, then afterwards it opened, and the way he showed the direction to the country about how to think big. I am very impressed by it because afterwards, Mukesh (Ambani) bhai took it a lot further.
Hailing Dhirubhai’s legacy as an inspiration for first-generation entrepreneurs, Adani said he does not see Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani as his competitor.
“Mukesh bhai is a very good friend, and I respect him a lot. The new direction he gave to Reliance Industries in Jio, technology, retail, and of course his conventional business of petrochemicals and refinery, the way he has worked, he has contributed a lot for the development of the country.”
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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