Orissa government backs Vedanta in Supreme Court

The Orissa government on Tuesday turned to the Supreme Court to challenge the Centre?s order for not allowing mining in the Niyamgiri Hills for Vedanta’s Rs 5,000-crore alumina facility at Lanjigarh in the Kalahandi district of the state.

Six months ago, India?s environment ministry had withdrawn permission for mining in Orissa?s environmentally fragile Niyamgiri Hills — home to the primitive Dongaria Kondh tribals.

The Jairam Ramesh-led ministry also rejected plans for
Vedanta?s USD 8.5 billion expansion plans at its Lanjigarh alumina project site.

The London-based mining group, which was to mine bauxite, suffered the blow at a time when it was struggling with regulatory issues in India.

?There has been a very serious violation of laws. There has been violation of the Forest Rights Act, 2006, Environment Protection Act, 1966 and Forest Conservation Act, 1980. Therefore, the project cannot go ahead,? Union Environment minister Jairam Ramesh had said.

Earlier, in a stinging indictment of the British mining giant, a four-member panel by India’s environment and tribal affairs ministries said in a
report that allowing the firm to mine bauxite in Niyamgiri Hills would be betraying the tribal faith.