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Gautam Adani

From Real-Life Villains
File:Adanis 932846g.jpg

Gautam Adani (June 24th, 1962 - ) is an Indian entrepreneur and founder of the development business known as Adani Group . While not as outwardly villainous as some of the other people listed on this wiki, Adani has made some polarizing decisions over the course of his career. The most prominent one being his decision to build a coal mine in Australia, which would come at the expanse of the Great Barrier Reef.

The Carmichael Mine[edit]

In 2013, the Adani Group collaborated with the Australian government to strengthen their trading relationship by allowing the Adani Group to mine for coal in the Galilee Basin, located in Queensland, Australia. This zone would be called the Carmichael Mine. Due to the Australian government's unethical approach to environmental policies, the Adani Group was given permission to clear the area, in the process dumping waste and debris across the Great Barrier Reef, killing the aquatic flora and endangering the fish that live there. The coal mined from the basin would supposedly help provide for India's dwindling energy supplies, except that the amount of coal in the Galilee Basin could only provide enough energy for 1% of the population[1]

The environmental group GetUp uploaded a video in protest of Adani's decision to harm the Reef, but it was pulled down after a legal scuffle with an organisation linked to the Adani Group. This organisation claimed that the video was their property and was being used without permission, but Greenpeace recently managed to upload the same video, undoing the damage for a time. It's unknown if Gautam Adani was directly involved with any of this.

Rumors afloat that some of the land acquired by Adani was bought at a price that was much lower than what was publicly offered[2] , hinting that Adani may be dealing under the table. Nothing has been proven as of yet. In 2015, Adani lost a number of investors which set back plans by at least a year. In a meeting with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Adani demanded that a law be passed that prevents environmentalists from reviewing any mining projects [3]. In 2016, after several investors backed away from the mining project, Malcolm Turnbull loaned Adani a $1 billion subsidy funded entirely by Australian taxpayers. 

Redeeming Traits[edit]

Despite his ruthless business tactics, Gautam Adani does show support for the people of India, aligning himself with the Bharatiya Janata Party to promote the rise of the Indian middle-class, as well as preserve Indian culture, which is still reeling from the damage done by the British Empire. Even this however, has been met with skepticism, as business leaders who get involved in politics are often seen as a corrupting influence and India's population is so vast that only a minority would receive any lasting benefits.