In February 2023, Vedanta was declared the preferred bidder for the Sijimali bauxite block in Rayagada and Kalahandi districts of Odisha. The Sijimali hills, where the bauxite block is being planned, is considered scared by indigenous communities residing in and around the hills. The land required for mining includes a significant portion of forest land, on which the communities depend on for their livelihoods. The communities have opposed the mining project in the area.
"We take our cows for grazing on the hill. The forests provide us our daily food, wood, other minor produce that we sell and even medicine for use. That apart, these hills are revered by us, they are our God. How can we just let any company come and uproot us and destroy our everything?" asked Hiramal Majhi, a native of Shagabari village.
Over the past year, Mhythri Infrastructure, which has been awarded the contract for mining at the Sijimali bauxite block in Odisha, has faced significant protests. The opposition has led to altercations, whereby local leaders were detained, leading to further discontentment amongst the community.
The villagers have alleged that the public hearings held so far were forcibly done with police coercion and that no villager has agreed to give away any piece of land from the hill.
"There has not been prior consultation with the villagers before the hills were leased out. There is a dense population of Indigenous community here and as per law, under the Panchayat Extension to the Scheduled Areas Act, 1996 (PESA) and the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers Recognition of Forest Rights Act, 2006 (FRA), private mining in Schedule V areas cannot be allowed without prior discussion and consent by the Gram Sabhas. All of these statutory requirements were ignored," said Lingraj Azad, leader, Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti.
The villagers have also alleged that the Environment Impact Assessment report, which was made public in September 2023, undercounts the number of water sources which will be impacted due to the mining project, apart from overlooking the cultural significance of the hill as the sacred abode of their deity Tijimali.
Four villages in the Niyamgiri foothills boycotted the Lok Sabha elections 2024 over police actions and mining projects.
The mining project is yet to take off as company awaits environment clearance.
LCW reached out to Vedanta for a comment but received no response.
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Demand to cancel the project
Opposition against environmental degradation
Refusal to give up land for the project
Demand for legal recognition of land rights
Demand to retain/protect access to common land/resources
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Region Classification
Rural
Type of Land
Common and Private
Forest and Non-Forest
What was the action taken by the police?
Detention
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
24
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Out on bail
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
No
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
Yes, they were produced within 24 hours
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
IPC
147, 148, 341, 323, 324, 307, 364, 294, 506, 353, 332, 427, 149
Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 1932 & Arms Act , 1959
Sections 7 and 25
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
Yes they were informed, Yes they had access
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Yes
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
Project underway despite protests
Original Project Deadline
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Other environmental services, Water bodies
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
No
Source/Reference
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
792
Type of investment:
Cost of Project
Year of Estimation
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:
Non-implementation/violation of PESA
Non-implementation/violation of FRA
Violation of free prior informed consent
Legal Status:
Out of Court
Status of Case In Court
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
Case Number
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Arrest/detention/imprisonment
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
Yes
Reported Details of the Violation:
To hold Gram Sabhas in the affected villages, Vedanta had engaged Mythri company to reach out to the public. For the last couple of months, the company had been making efforts to organise public contact camps in villages near Sijimali to gain the trust of locals. On 8 August, 2023, as officials of the company along with the police force reached Lakris village under Talajhiri panchayat, they were prohibited from entering the village by the villagers. A skirmish broke out between the two groups. Four days after the incident, officials of Mythri gave a written complaint at Kasipur police station in Rayagada district alleging that they were stopped and attacked while on-site visit at Sijimali Hill top on 12 August, 2023.
Date of Violation
August 7, 2023
Location of Violation
Sijimali Hill top
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
District Administration, District Police
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached
Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:
Vedanta, Mythri Infrastructure and Mining India Pvt Ltd.
Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?
Yes
Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:
Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti which includes villagers from all the villages
What was the action taken by the police?
Detention
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
24
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Out on bail
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
No
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
Yes, they were produced within 24 hours
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
IPC
147, 148, 341, 323, 324, 307, 364, 294, 506, 353, 332, 427, 149
Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 1932 & Arms Act , 1959
Sections 7 and 25
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
Yes they were informed, Yes they had access
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Yes
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?
Aishwarya is a journalist and researcher based out of Bhubaneswar, Odisha. She reports on gender, social justice and environment.
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