The Tarali pumped storage project in Maharashtra’s Satara district has come under scrutiny after Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar questioned an alleged 99% reduction in its stated cost and a corresponding cut in the amount earmarked for wildlife conservation. Wadettiwar raised the issue in a post on X, citing an investigation by The Indian Express and asking Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s government to explain the change.
The project, being developed by the Adani Group, has a planned capacity of 1,500 MW. According to the claims cited by Wadettiwar, its original cost was recorded as Rs 5,675 crore. In revised figures, however, the cost was shown as Rs 56.75 crore — a reduction of 99%.
Wadettiwar said the change had a direct impact on the amount required for wildlife conservation. The original project condition reportedly required Rs 227 crore to be deposited for wildlife conservation measures. Based on the revised project cost, the amount was shown as Rs 2.27 crore, he alleged.
The Congress leader questioned how the project cost could be changed after the figure of Rs 5,675 crore had been included in the central government’s environmental clearance for the project. He asked which authority permitted the revision and on what basis it was approved.
He also sought an explanation for the reduction in the wildlife conservation contribution from Rs 227 crore to Rs 2.27 crore. The questions place the focus on how project costs are recorded, revised and linked to environmental conditions attached to large infrastructure proposals.
The supplied report does not include a response from the Maharashtra government, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, the Adani Group or the relevant environmental authorities to Wadettiwar’s allegations. It also does not provide the underlying environmental clearance, revised project documents or the detailed basis for the changed figures.
Pumped storage projects use electricity to move water between reservoirs and generate power when demand is high. At Tarali, the issue now raised publicly is not only the project’s proposed generation capacity but also the documentation and administrative process behind its reported cost revision and related conservation obligation. Wadettiwar has sought a clarification from the government on both matters.
