The Congress on Wednesday asked the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Union government to explain why it had relaxed defence restrictions to make way for a renewable energy project allocated to the Adani Group in 2023 in Gujarat’s Kutch region.

Earlier in the day, The Guardian, Scroll and The News Minute reported that in a meeting held in Delhi in April 2023, the Ministry of Defence agreed to to be built a km from the Pakistan border despite “apprehension” about its implications for tank mobilisation.

The was also published by Scroll.

No major construction beyond existing villages and roads up to 10 km from the border was allowed earlier. The BJP government in Gujarat had written to the Union government before April 2023, asking for the rules to be relaxed for the Khavda plant, The Guardian reported.

The report pointed out that in May 2023, the Union government informed all states and Union territories of the new guidelines allowing wind turbines to be erected from 1 km to 2 km from the border. The Centre also allowed the installation of hybrid renewable energy plants between 2 km and 8 km of the border.

The guidelines also apply to India’s borders with Bangladesh, China, Myanmar and Nepal.

The Adani Group is constructing solar panels and wind turbines 1...