Says they should be allowed to choose facilities such as roads, schools, hospitals and electricity

The Supreme Court has sought the Centre’s view on inclusion of tribal people in the mainstream, saying they should be allowed to choose facilities such as roads, schools, hospitals and electricity in the wider debate over preservation of their habitat. The remarks were made by a three-judge bench on Wednesday in response to Solicitor General Mohan Parasaran’s opposition to the Odisha government’s plan to mine the Niyamgiri hills for bauxite, the raw material that Anil Aggarwal-led Vedanta Group wants for its plant at Lanjigarh.

Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti (NSS), an outfit of tribals agitating against the alumina refinery of Vedanta Aluminium (VAL) at Lanjigarh in Kalahandi district, on Tuesday sought Congress vice-president

The Union mines ministry also advised the state govt to withdraw its resolution dated October 3 and 12 which goes against the interest of local miners.

Villagers from Mali Parbat are willing to compensate state for its loss in royalty from bauxite mines

Villagers protesting against Hindalco’s plan to mine bauxite at Mali Parbat in the Koraput district in Odisha have come up with a unique proposal that offers to compensate the state for its loss in revenue from royalty. Forty one villages from the district, two thirds of whose largely tribal population live below poverty line, have proposed to soon pass panchayat resolutions promising to pay . 35 crore, or what they estimate will be the royalty Hindalco is likely to pay the state over 15 years of the project’s life. Hindalco estimates that its industrial activity in the backward region will earn the state three to four times as much.

It is violative of fundamental rights of Dongria Kondh tribals, Forest Rights Act

Justifying the cancellation of the environmental clearance granted to Vedanta for the Lanjigarh Bauxite mining project in Odisha, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) on Friday said that forest land cannot be diverted under the provisions of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006.

The move may have impact on mining ops across the country

The Centre is set to cancel bauxite mining leases given to the a Middle Eastbased company in Andhra Pradesh’s tribal-dominated Vishakhapatnam district for violating Forest Rights Act and provisions of Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act. The move may have impact on mining operations across the country.

RSB Metaltech Ltd, part of the Odisha based RSB Group, has sought long-term bauxite supply for its 0.70 million tonne per annum alumina refinery proposed at Rayagada.

“Considering the mega investment and the corresponding socio-economic development for the state arrangement of sourcing of bauxite for shorter horizons will not be prudent,” the company said. RSB’s alumina refinery and its smelter at Dhenkanal envisages an investment of Rs 6,800 crore. As a buyer of bauxite, RSB Metaltech wants to be associated right from the exploration of the mine and also during formulation of the mine plan, so that the assured quality of bauxite is delivered over the life of the alumina plant.

With the availability of bauxite out of sight, even two months after it shut down its Lanjigarh alumina refinery, Vedanta Aluminium Ltd (VAL) has urged the Odisha government to expedite processing of the applications of state-controlled Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC) for bauxite mining leases.

“We have requested the state government to expedite processing of OMC’s pending applications, especially for those bauxite leases that fall in non-forest areas. These applications are either at the PL (prospecting licence) or ML (mining lease) stage.

Experts and mining bodies in Odisha have criticised suspension of mining in the state, saying the irregularities in the system could have been rectified while mining was still on.

They said they fear the suspension will lead to a complete ban on mining in the state on the lines of Karnataka and Goa, where the Apex Court imposed a ban in 2011 and 2012. “Closing down of mines is suicidal for the development of mineral-based industries,” said P K Jena, former directorgeneral of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and chairman of Institute of Advance Technology and Environmental Studies.

While rejecting sections of a proposed road that it fears will disturb India's largest breeding site for flamingos in the Great Rann of Kutch, the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) has recommended