Gautam Adani warns: 'If we don't control our own narrative, our growth will be criminalised'

Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani on Tuesday urged the youth to control the narrative or else the country's growth will be criminalised and aspirations de-legitimised. "We live in an era of Narrative Colonisation, where the very nations that plundered resources, enslaved continents, and burned fossil fuels for two centuries, now stand on moral platforms in foreign capitals," Adani said during an address at the IIT (Indian School of Mines) Dhanbad.
 
"Many of them now want to dictate the pace and style of Bharat's development. It is quite a paradox that those who heated the planet now want to set the rules for how we must cool the planet," he said, adding that this was the modern narrative. "And so, if we do not control our own narrative, our growth will be criminalised, our aspirations de-legitimised, and our right to improve our standard of living showcased as a global offence."

This weaponised narrative surfaced at the 2025 COP-30, the billionaire recalled, "where a report downgraded Bharat's sustainability ranking, arguing that our nation lacks a coal-exit timeline and continues to auction coal blocks."

Citing some data points, Adani said that India is the world's third-largest electricity consumer. But on a per-person basis, it consumes less than 1,400 kWh a year. That is less than half the global average, one-tenth of America, and a fifth of Europe. He pointed out even though India ranks third in total CO2 emitted, on a per capita basis, its 1.4 billion people emit under 2 tons, compared to 14 tons in the US, 9 tons in China and 6 tons in Europe.

And if we speak of history, the numbers reveal even more, he continued. In 200 years of industrial activity, Adani said, India has contributed just 4% of cumulative global emissions, against 13% from Europe, 19% from the US and 20% from China. "I share these statistics with you because this is what the battle for the narrative is. Many current ESG models are designed to penalise the developing world."

Then he threw a challenge at young IITians. "My challenge to you IIT-ians is - Build the models that mathematically account for the energy dignity of our countrymen. Build the algorithms that value the life of a villager getting electricity for the first time as highly as a carbon credit traded in Europe."

"Bharat did not heat this planet," he said. "Yet, much of the developed world now expects Bharat to cool the earth. And, very remarkably, we are indeed doing that."

Adani also highlighted India's achievements in adopting green energy. He said over 50% of India's installed electricity generation capacity came from non-fossil sources, "hitting an important globally agreed number a full five years before its target."

"Under the Paris Agreement adopted in 2015 that 195 countries had signed, no other major nation has been able to change its energy mix in such a dramatic fashion," he said. "And so, recognising that energy poverty is a deep injustice, Bharat will need to expand base-load fossil power to secure its energy dignity."

At the same time, as I described, Bharat, with one of the lowest CO2 emits per-capita, is also driving the fastest energy transition in human history. And yet, the battle of narrative is relentless."