Government panel says no to Vedanta's Orissa project

The panel has asked the Union Environment Ministry not to trust the documents submitted by the company and the Orissa government on its face value because of the collusion between the company and state officials. The ministry has been asked to carry out its independent verification of the claims before taking any decision on the proposed mine in the Niyamgiri Hills, said the panel headed by National Advisory Committee member N C Saxena.

The committee, set up in June to probe the allegations of forest rights violation, said mining in the proposed area can deprive two primitive tribal groups—Dongaria Kondh and Kutia Kondh—of their legal rights over the proposed mining site in order to benefit a private company. This in turn may have serious consequences for the security and well being of the entire country, it said.