BHUBANESWAR: Vedanta chairman Anil Agarwal on Saturday renewed his push for opening of the Niyamgiri bauxite project, which was shelved around 13 years back following fierce opposition from the primitive tribal communities residing in the region.
After his meeting with Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi at Lok Seva Bhawan here, Agarwal said their discussions included reviving the Niyamgiri project and creating employment opportunities for the tribals. The state government has assured necessary support in this regard, he said.
"When we were pledged the Niyamgiri bauxite mines, there was a commitment to open it. Now, the government has told us that steps will be taken for grant of necessary permissions to facilitate its operation and create employment for thousands," Agarwal said.
The Vedanta chairman said Odisha possesses the world's largest bauxite reserves that could generate immense employment, providing jobs to hundreds of thousands of people.
The bauxite-rich Niyamgiri hills is estimated to hold around 80 million tonnes of reserves. However, Vedanta's efforts to take up the mining project at the site was scrapped in 2013 after all 12 local Dongria Kondh village councils (gram sabhas) of the region unanimously voted against the mining proposal.
The Supreme Court had also banned mining in the Niyamgiri hills in its order, stating that only gram sabhas could decide if the mining could take place.
Agarwal also announced Vedanta's plans to invest around Rs 1 lakh crore in the state in the near future in projects spanning mining, aluminium, refining and downstream manufacturing.
The proposed projects include a cutting-edge 3 million tonnes per annum aluminium smelter in Dhenkanal district and a 6 million tonnes per annum alumina refinery in Rayagada district. The Dhenkanal plant will also supply high-quality hot metal to Vedanta's downstream aluminium parks in Odisha.
On completion, the investment will enhance Vedanta's cumulative aluminium production capacity to 6 million lakh tonnes per annum, enabling it to cater to India's rapidly growing demand for the metal of the future.
The Vedanta head also called for developing a larger aluminium-based industrial ecosystem in the state and assured that their company would supply power and aluminium to industries setting up units in the state.
"Aluminium is used in everything from airplanes and trains to buses and cars. Industries ranging from Rs 5 crore to Rs 500 crore can be established in the sector," he said.
During his discussion with Majhi, Agarwal also proposed a brownfield expansion of 1 MTPA aluminium smelter at Jharsuguda and a 1000-bed super specialty hospital in western Odisha.
The Chief Minister said that the state government is keen on creating massive job opportunities for the youth. “Therefore, the state is striving for investments from across the nation and around the world. Considering the huge potential of these projects in job creation and local development, the state government will provide all possible support to these investments in aluminium,” he said.