This new report by Amnesty International documents how an alumina refinery operated by a subsidiary of Britain-based Vedanta Resources in Orissa is causing air and water pollution, that threatens the health of local people and their access to water.
Plans to mine bauxite and expand a refinery in Orissa, eastern India, have thrown the lives of local communities into turmoil. In April 2009, the Indian authorities approved a joint venture to mine bauxite in the Niyamgiri Hills for the next 25 years. This report demonstrates how local communities have been systematically denied information about the proposed mining and refinery expansion projects and have not been adequately consulted. Their rights to water, health and their way of life have been seriously compromised as a result.