CASE STUDY VEDANTA Rohit singh

191206

Task 1.

Explain the Sustainability Model of Integrating Economic, Environment and Society as

important elements for ensuring sustainability

The concept of Sustainable Development is a process of economic development

which not only concentrates on the needs of present generation but also works to
safeguard the interest and ability to meet the needs for future generation.
Sustainable Development is broader in scope and has greater significance in
comparison to Economic Development as it talks about environment in general and
exploitation, allocation and utilization of environmental resources in particular.

Vedanta is a globally diversified natural resources company with low-cost

operation. With the business model of growth, constant value creation and
improved operations, the company’s vision is focused towards building the wealth
of the shareholders and sustainably engaging the community they operate in.

The organization seeks to add and share value through everything that they do. As
a business, they make a considerable economic impact; through employment,
payment of taxes, royalties and other contributions to local, state and national
governments. They also build local infrastructure that benefits local communities
in the form of roads, schools and healthcare centers. They play a significant role in
growing local skills and in the development of local infrastructure, including roads,
sanitation, education and medical facilities.

Vedanta is a globally diversified natural resources company with low-cost

operation. With the business model of growth, constant value creation and
improved operations, the company’s vision is focused towards building the wealth
of the shareholders and sustainably engaging the community they operate in.

Sustainability Model
 CASE STUDY VEDANTA Rohit singh
191206

• Responsible Stewardship
Responsible Stewardship means having effective and appropriate business
processes, including robust compliance and risk management, protecting the health
and safety of the employees and responsibly managing the environmental and
social impacts.

• Building Strong Relationships

Building strong relationships captures the engagement with the people and
organizations that are interested in the business. Doing this effectively can lead to
the identification of new areas where they can find and unlock additional
value as well as equipping them to foresee and appropriately main challenges

• Adding And Sharing Value

Adding and Sharing Value encapsulates the direct and indirect positive economic
impact they make, by investing in people through employment, building
infrastructure, developing technology and the payment of taxes, royalties and
Other payments to local, state and national governments. Additionally, it captures
the value they offer by turning the knowledge and ideas sourced through
engagement with their stakeholders into specific projects, including collaborating
with governments and NGOs to bring value to the communities that host their
operations.

• Strategic Communications
The Strategic Communication pillar interlocks with the other three pillars of the
model and is the guiding principle which enables the organization to engage with
their stakeholders in a transparent dialogue. This pillar is the vital element of
sustainable development, in implementing and strengthening their ‘license to
operate’ efforts. This pillar further reflects their commitment to becoming a more
transparent and responsible corporate citizen.
 CASE STUDY VEDANTA Rohit singh
191206

Task 2.

Narrate the hurdles and difficulties faced by Vedanta in Adhering to Sustainable strategy
in their Mining Sector operations

Today Vedanta needs a very refined approach to sustainable mining. The company
should mandate 'cultural heritage assessments,' of mining sites. It even should seek
'disturbance approval' from communities, with a non-compromising objective that
indigenous peoples ought to be the 'drivers of their own destinies' and that they
have 'a share in the wealth generated by mining activities.'

Albanese the new CEO of Vedanta says it was unfortunate that Vedanta allowed
the Niyamgiri issue to fester and turn 'iconic. Albanese is therefore endeavoring to
align the company to emerging global trends in responsibility — be it human
rights, bio-diversity protection or the growing traction on Free Prior and Informed
Consent — while dealing with land and communities. He is also taking Vedanta
into the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), which is focused on
the sustainability performance of extractive companies. The ICMM as a standards
setting out fit has catalyzed improvements in the extractive sector.

Safety is a huge challenge for the group. The chimney collapse, which saw the
death of 45 people at the Balco plant in Korba in 2009 still rankles. Vedanta
recorded 19 fatal accidents in 2013-14. They wants to move to a zero-fatalities
scenario.

Niyamgiri palli sabhas say 'no' to bauxite mining, the unambiguous proclamation
and stand on 'consent' is an attempt to 'create a cleaner picture around brand
Vedanta. The company will not mine in areas 'without the express invitation and
free prior agreement of the local communities to do so. As expected safety, waste,
water, emissions, community management, approach to new projects were high
priority. The surprise element in the matrix was the need to address biodiversity
issues.

The surprise element in the matrix was the need to address biodiversity issues. Rio
Tinto pursues a policy of Net Positive Impact -NPI, which refers to a point where
biodiversity gains exceed biodiversity loss due to mining or other project activities.
Albanese concedes that NPI is extremely difficult and can only be asp rational for
many as he recalls the complex modeling and biodiversity offset principles he had
 CASE STUDY VEDANTA Rohit singh
191206

to wade through in his previous job. For Vedanta, he prescribes a policy of ‘No Net
Loss’ in the mitigation hierarchy.

With Global Sustainability regulations getting very stringent how Vedanta would
be able to take a leadership role in its Sustainability management efforts is yet to
be seen, The Political will and the regulatory controls as resisted by the clouded
understanding of simultaneous management of sustainability and Growth are the
real challenges for Mining Industries in India. While issues such as a forestation
and dislocation of aadivasis from their naturalized habitats are being partly real
and partly created and fully exploited by the middlemen it looks a real uphill task
for India to raise to the call of Global Community towards ensuring sustainability
on the Planet Earth.

Task 3.

Explain the consideration of Triple Bottom Line (People, Planet and Profits) as adopted by
Vedanta Group in its operations Business Model.

Triple bottom line (TBL), in economics, believes that companies should commit to
focusing as much on social and environmental concerns as they do on profits. TBL
theory posits that instead of one bottom line, there should be three: profit, people,
and the planet.

In order to maximize the outcomes and impacts that the business can have, they
focus on the following areas through their community investment activities.

• Health, Nutrition and Sanitation

These activities include the delivery of medical infrastructure such as the hospitals
that run across the group. These hospitals are supported by medical outreach
services, which include mobile health vans and medical outposts to enable isolated
ruler communities’ access to medical services

• Education
 CASE STUDY VEDANTA Rohit singh
191206

The work for children’s education is targeted at the pre-school level, particularly
through VBCA project-Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS), which is
the centrally sponsored scheme of the government of India aimed at providing
services to pre-school children in rural, tribal and slum areas in an integrated
manner so as to ensure their proper growth and development.

• Women Empowerment
The company is able to assist in creating sustainable development through
supporting initiatives that have women‘s empowerment at their heart. In addition
to bringing women together in collaborative forums, the group dynamics and
collective spirit create informal structures of support helping to create sustainable
small businesses as well as enhancing the bargaining power of members. The
programs cover over 22,000 women including a federation ‘Subalakshmi’ for 2700
women.

• Bio-investment
Restoring and improving natural systems is key to the Bio-Investment Programme.
Under bio-investment initiatives, the leftover food waste is converted into organic
manure through the organic waste converter plant at mid-day meal kitchens. Other
initiatives include: watershed management, social forestry, cattle breed
improvement and cash crop framing.