Vedanta moves Supreme Court to reopen Sterlite Copper plant in Tamil Nadu

Vedanta Ltd on Wednesday filed a petition in Supreme Court for reopening its Sterlite Copper plant at Thoothukudi in Tamil Nadu.

The plea challenged the validity of the Madras High Court's order of August 18 rejecting its plea to restart the plant.

Also read — Sterlite Copper plant in Thoothukudi to remain shut; Madras HC dismisses Vedanta’s plea to reopen the plant

The special leave petition assailed the High Court's judgement which upheld the Tamil Nadu government's decision of May 28, 2018, to shut down the plant due to environmental concerns.

In its 815-page judgement, the High Court rejected writ petitions by Vedanta Ltd, saying prohibitory orders were rightly passed by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board against the plant for violating laws related to pollution control.

Also read — From 1994 to 2020: Sterlite Copper's journey in Thoothukudi

The order for closure of the plant was made subsequent to massive protests, resulting into killings of 13 people.