A new diamond mining project in the forests of Buxwaha have come under the radar of activists and environmentalists. The state government, in December 2019, awarded a mining lease for the Bunder Diamond Block to Essel Mining & Industries Limited, an Aditya Birla Group company. The Bunder block is spread over 364 hectares of forest area in Sogoriya village in Buxwaha tehsil. The block is estimated to have 34 million carats of rough diamonds (diamonds occuring naturally inside the earth). The district administration has diverted 382 hectares of forestland for the project.
Two petitions filed in the National Green Tribunal (NGT) by P.G. Najpande and Ujjwal Sharma claimed that the project will cause deforestation by cutting four lakh trees and will exacerbate the water crisis in the Bundelkhand region. The petition also noted that the government cleared the project in violation of several environmental laws. Accepting the arguments put forward by the petitioner, the NGT bench imposed an interim stay on the project in July 2021. The bench also noted several legal anomalies, including violation of the Forest Conservation Act of 1980, failure to get permission for groundwater extraction, lack of a comprehensive environmental impact assessment and the absence of a working plan for the conservation of wildlife.
Talking to LCW, Rambabu Tiwari, a local student activist working on water issues in Bundelkhand and part of the Save Buxwaha campaign, said, “The company has succeeded in brainwashing the village people. They are supporting the project because the company has promised them employment, flats, roads and airports at the costs of unsustainable development and indiscriminate exploitation of natural resources like forests and water.” Expressing concern about the fate of forests in Buxwaha, Tiwari added that the campaign was losing momentum as the company was more powerful and had more resources at its disposal. “They have the support of the government, but this project is harmful for the region,” he said.
Save Buxwaha is an online/community mobilisation campaign aimed at spreading awareness about the problem of bauxite mining in the region and garnering support for the cause.
Buxwaha had witnessed similar protests earlier in 2016 when a mining lease was granted to Australian mining giant Rio Tinto. The company made an unexpected exit in 2017, handing over the project to the state. Stiff resistance and environmental concerns are speculated as reasons behind the company’s exit.
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Opposition against environmental degradation
Demand to retain/protect access to common land/resources
Complaint against procedural violations
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Region Classification
Rural
Type of Land
Common
Forest
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)
Status of Project
Original Project Deadline
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
Source/Reference
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
2500
Type of investment:
Cost of Project
Year of Estimation
2019
Has the Conflict Ended?
No
When did it end?
Why did the conflict end?
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Legislations/Policies Involved
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute
What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?
What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?
Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:
Violation of environmental laws
Legal Status:
In Court
Status of Case In Court
Pending
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
No
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
National Green Tribunal (Central Zone)
Case Number
O.A. 34/2021 and 35/2021 (CZ)
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
No
Reported Details of the Violation:
Date of Violation
Location of Violation
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
Forest department, Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
No
Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached
LCW reached out to Krishan Sinha, general manager, Essel Mining & Industries Limited, via phone and email but did not get any response.
Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:
Essel Mining & Industries Limited
Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?
Yes
Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:
National Alliance of People's Movement, Save Buxwaha Movement
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?
Rishabh is a lawyer and writer working on issues of climate change, public health and social justice. He has more than six years of experience in communications, public engagement, media advocacy and editorial roles. Rishabh has delivered projects with the United Nations Development Programme (India), Council of Scientific and Industrial Research - Indian Institute of Petroleum (GoI), Government of Uttarakhand and Government of Chhattisgarh. Storytelling and content creation are his core interests.
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