Niyamgiri bauxite case
Topic: Mineral Resources of India: Distribution and Conservation · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Niyamgiri case was a dispute over a plan by the company Vedanta to mine bauxite, the ore of aluminium, in the Niyamgiri hills of Odisha. The Dongria Kondh, a tribal community, hold these hills sacred. In 2013 the Supreme Court said the local gram sabhas (village assemblies) must decide, under the Forest Rights Act. All twelve gram sabhas said no. The case is the leading example of community consent in mining.
Example
The Niyamgiri hills are in southern Odisha, on the bauxite-rich laterite plateaus of the state. After the gram sabhas refused, the mining plan did not go ahead.
Don't confuse with
- Panchpatmali: this is also a bauxite deposit in Odisha (Koraput district), but NALCO actively mines it. Niyamgiri was not mined because the community refused.