The Bihar Congress organised a protest march last week from its Patna office at Sadakat Ashram to Dr. Rajendra Prasad’s memorial at Bans Ghat, led by state chief Rajesh Ram. The protest was against the Bihar government’s decision to lease 1,050 acres of land in Bhagalpur to the Adani Group at a token rate of Rs 1 per year, for setting up a thermal power plant at Pirpainti.Congress has alleged that this land deal, along with the cutting of 10 lakh trees, amounts to “mortgaging Bihar’s future to Adani” and constitutes a “major loot” of the state’s resources. The party claims fertile agricultural land has been declared barren through a “Modi-Adani conspiracy”.Bihar Industries Minister Nitish Mishra, however, has rejected these allegations as “misleading”, stating that the project follows a transparent tender process and is crucial for Bihar’s development, energy security, and job creation.What exactly are the charges, how did Adani get this project, and is this land deal an exception? We explain.The Pirpainti Thermal Power Plant is a 2400-MW coal-fired power project being developed by Adani Power Limited in Bhagalpur district’s Pirpainti area. This represents the state’s largest private sector investment, with Adani investing approximately $3 billion.The project involves setting up three 800-MW units. During construction, the project is expected to generate 10,000-12,000 jobs, with around 3,000 permanent positions during operations.What are Congress’s specific allegations?Congress leaders have made several charges against the land deal:Story continues below this adLand transfer at token rate: The primary allegation is that 1,050 acres of land has been leased to Adani Power for 33 years at just Rs 1 per year, which Congress calls a “gift” to the Adani Group.Environmental concerns: The party claims that around 10 lakh trees will be cut for the project, calling it environmental destruction.Farmland conversion: Congress alleges that fertile agricultural land is being reclassified as barren to facilitate the transfer.Expensive power: The party has raised concerns about Bihar residents having to buy electricity at Rs 6.075 per unit, compared with lower rates in other states like Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.How did Adani win the project?Story continues below this adThe Pirpainti Power Plant deal is not entirely new but rather a continuation of efforts going back over a decade, which have come undone thanks to corruption scandals and farmers’ protests over compensation irregularities.According to the state government, finally, Adani Power won the project through a transparent competitive bidding process conducted under Section 63 of the Electricity Act through Tariff Based Competitive Bidding (TBCB).Industries minister Nitish Mishra also clarified that the land was transferred on lease at Re 1 per year to Bihar State Power Generation Company (BSPGCL) in 2022, before the most recent bidding process that Adani won. The land rate, he said, was part of the selection process to reduce power generation costs, and land ownership remains entirely with the Energy Department of the Bihar government.Is the Re 1 land transfer unique to Adani?No, this is not a special arrangement exclusively for Adani. In August this year, the Bihar cabinet approved the “Bihar Industrial Investment Promotion Package 2025”, offering land at a token rate of Re 1 to qualifying investors.Story continues below this adUnder this policy, investors making Rs 100 crore investment and creating 1,000 jobs get 10 acres free land, those investing Rs 1,000 crore get up to 25 acres free land, while fortune 500 companies get 10 acres free land. Other investors are also eligible to get 50% discount on BIADA land rates, under the policy. This package is available to all qualifying investors until March 31, 2026.What about the environmental concerns?Regarding tree cutting, Mishra clarified that although 10,055 trees were counted during land acquisition (mostly planted after 2010-11), only trees within the power plant area (300 acres) and coal handling area will be cut. In compensation, he claimed, a green belt will be developed under compulsory afforestation on 100 acres.Why is thermal power more expensive than renewable energy?Mishra said that while renewable energy costs Rs 3-3.50 per unit, its availability varies significantly based on weather and time of day. Renewable energy has a Capacity Utilisation Factor (CUF) of only 22% for solar and 32% for wind.In contrast, thermal power is always available, which is why thermal power rates are higher than renewable energy. This is a natural outcome of regulatory processes, according to the minister.Have there been similar controversies with Adani projects elsewhere?Story continues below this adYes, Adani’s land acquisition for power projects has faced opposition in other states too. In Jharkhand’s Godda, farmers have alleged forced land acquisition, intimidation, and police brutality for Adani’s 1600 MW thermal power project. The Jharkhand government formed a high-level panel in August 2025 to probe the land acquisition for this project.What is the political context?This controversy has emerged ahead of Bihar Assembly elections. Congress alleges that whenever BJP faces electoral defeat, “gifts” are given to Gautam Adani, citing similar patterns in Maharashtra, Jharkhand, and Chhattisgarh.Meanwhile, BJP has countered that Congress is trying to “obstruct Bihar’s development”, pointing that the “Bihar government is leasing, not selling, the land”.What do the land acquisition documents reveal?According to Bhagalpur District Land Acquisition Office responses to RTI queries, the Pirpainti project involved acquiring 988.335 acres of rayati (private) land across five revenue villages, affecting 919 landowners.Story continues below this adThe compensation varied because different plots had different numbers of trees and structures. Tree valuation was done by the District Forest Division Officer, Bhagalpur, while structure valuation was conducted by the Executive Engineer, Building Division, Bhagalpur.Interestingly, some landowners received higher 20% final payments than their initial 80% payments due to different land acquisition laws being applied — the initial 80% was calculated under the 1894 Land Acquisition Act (as amended in 1984), while the final 20% was calculated under the more generous 2013 Land Acquisition Act.The land acquisition followed the “one project, one rate” principle as per a Revenue Department directive dated May 18, 2010, but different land types (agricultural vs barren) had different rates within the same project.