TOPIC NUMBER 1

HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS OF TRIBAL PEOPLE IN RURAL

OR URBAN AREAS.

NAME: KKHUSHI DAYASHANKAR SHETTY

CLASS: SYBCOM

DIV: F

ROLL NO: 793

NIYAMGIRI PROCLAIMS: “YOUR TEMPLES ARE MADE OF BRICKS AND CEMENT;
OURS ARE THESE HILLS, FORESTS, LEAVES AND STREAMS.”

Niyamgiri is a hill range situated in Orissa habituated by mainly two tribal groups, Kuthia
Kondh and the Dongri Kondh. It is situated in Orissa, popular for its huge Bauxite
reserves.700 million tonnes of bauxite is said to be available in the state out of which a
massive 88 million are estimated to be found in Niyamgiri. The hills are home to one of the
most pristine forests in India and a variety of wildlife; a proposal has been made to establish a
wildlife sanctuary there.The economy of the Dongria Kondhs, one of the oldest indigenous
tribal populations of India, is based on hunting, gathering, and subsistence agriculture, for
which the fertile lands and ecology of the Niyamgiri are vital.

Given the huge geographical advantage the place has, multinational company, Vedanta group
along with the state government owned Orissa Mining Corporation wanted to mine Bauxite-
the primary raw material for aluminum in the region for Vedanta Aluminium’s 1 million-
tonne-per-annum (mtpa) alumina refinery in neighbouring Lanjigarh, which had been
operational since 2007. However, what seemed like an easy pass for the corporate, led to
India’s First Ever Environment Referendum. Niyamgiri is peopled by particularly
vulnerable tribal groups, who with limited resources, fought incessantly against the corporate
and in the end it led to a historic judgement by the Supreme Court in the favor of the tribals.

Source: www.sacredland.org

1)PURPOSE OF THE
PROJECT AND BENEFITS
PROPOSED TO THE TRIBES:

Vedanta Limited, a British MNC, has invested Rs 5,000 crore to set up an alumina refinery
with a capacity of one million tonnes a year at Lanjigarh in Kalahandi district of Odisha. The
refinery planned to source its minerals from the Niyamgiri hills in Rayagada and Kalahandi
districts.

Since the early 2000s, the company has been trying to obtain environmental clearances for
mining in the area. The company entered into an agreement with the state of Orissa and
Orissa Mining Corp. (a fully state-owned corporation) to create a Special Purpose Vehicle for
the mining project. Because mining at Niyamgiri requires the diversion of forest lands for
non-forest purposes, the company approached the Supreme Court of India seeking permission
to divert forest lands.

In 2005, the Central Empowered Committee (CEC), a body constituted by the Supreme Court
to assist it with applications for diversion of forest lands, recommended that forest lands not
be diverted for the company’s project. In its report, the CEC highlighted a number of
illegalities committed by the company, including submission of incorrect information on the
extent of the forest lands required but eventually, they received a clearance for a short while.

Benefits:

The plan proposed nothing other than just minimal development in the area for tribals and as
some protests ensued, they promised using lands in a considerable manner so as to protect the
rights of the tribals. Subject to the condition that the company set apart 5% of its profits (or
about US $16 million) to fund a development plan for the region. Once again, the Supreme
Court failed to take note of the provisions of the FRA and its impact on the clearance process.
Following this ruling, the MoEF granted an “in principle” approval for the project. However,
the tribals didn’t fall for those promises and continued protesting against the movement. The
development was hugely against the beliefs of the Niyamgiri tribe who worship their lands
and understood the fact that many of their rights were being violated if the group was allowed
clearance to mine in the region.

Source: www.thehindu.com

2)THE VICTORIOUS STRUGGLE OF THE KONDHS TO PROTECT THEIR RIGHTS

After continuous protests by the Kondhs, the court in April 2013, issued a judgement
directing the officers to take consent of the tribals, before making any decisions.

An Interdepartmental Joint Verification Committee was established to hasten the

administrative process for recording of the communities’ religious and cultural rights. The
verification committee proposed granting a small space of land within each of the villages of
the Kondhs for the Niyam Raja deity, instead of on top of the hill, where they believe he
resides. Further, while the mining operations would have affected more than 112 villages, the
Orissa state government decided to hold consultations with only 12 of them. Despite these
vile measures by the state government, every village of the 12 consulted rejected the proposal
for mining. All villages unanimously resolved that the Niyamgiri, the abode of their god, was
to be protected and that no permission for mining could be issued. Following this, the MoEF
issued an order “finally rejecting” the company’s application for environmental clearance.

3)THE RIGHTS VIOLATED

PESA: The consent of the gram sabhas (village councils) as mandated by the Panchayats
(Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA), a law that created decentralized mechanisms
for governance in the tribal areas.

FRA violation: The Forest Right Act, which provides that the habitat of the Kondhs is to be
“preserved from any form of destructive practices affecting their cultural and natural
heritage.”

Land Acquisition Act: LARR or the right to fair compensation, it increases 2-4 times the
avg, of registered sales deeds and requires consent of 80% landowners in private partnership
and 70% landowners in public-private partnership.

Wildlife Protection Act,1972: The Niyamgiri hills also house a lot of animals who the tribes
consider sacred, and also follow Animism as a result of this.

: Article from The

Economic Times

4)COMMENTS
AND
CONCLUSION:

On April 18,2013
after all the 12 villages opposed the developmental project, the question still arises is
everything fine in Niyamgiri?
“The Government has not forgotten its defeat by a tribal group. It wants to dominate the
discourse of development in the region and muzzle local voices. “said the convenor of the
Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti. Dongria Kondhs also feel persecuted by security forces. They are
suspected of being ‘sympathetic’ to Maoists in the area. 

The story of the tribe is nothing less than inspiring, teaching values of perseverance, but they
are still being pressurised to give in to the Government. The Dongrias have stayed relatively
secluded from the rest of the world however, cases like these and their handwoven shawls,
Kadraka, have captured attention of environment and art lovers from all over the world.

The changing laws also are threat to their land, with Vedanta still making efforts to capitalize
on the bauxite reserves in the area.  According to reports, arbitrary arrests on ‘false charges’
began less than two years after Niyamgiri tribals rejected proposed mining in their hills.

According to me, such stories of determination and will to fight must be spread everywhere
and it has something for everyone of us to learn. Being a vulnerable group drenched into
poverty, the resilience shown by the Kondhs is something we all lack today as a society.

A graph showcasing land vulnerability among Adivasis in India.

Source: www.sciencedirect.com

BIBLIOGRAPHY/WEBLIOGRAPHY

 Academia.edu/29705399/Tribal_claims_against_the_Vedanta_Bauxite_Mine
 Revisiting the legend of Niyamgiri by Ashish Kothari on www.researchgate.net
 https://economictimes.indiatimes.com
 https://www.thehindu.com/society/dongria-kondhs-continue-to-fight-bauxite-mining-
in-odisha
 https://www.downtoearth.org.in/
 https://thewire.in/
 UPSC preparation articles on the case(from dhristiias.com, vaayuias.com)
 https://www.youthkiawaaz.com/
 http://www.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/ (Report on Vedanta’s perspective
uncovered)
 www.caravanmagazine.in
 www.oecdwatch.org

Here, protestors are dressed as actors

from the movie, AVATAR, which had
a similar premise as that of the
Niyamgiri case, where humans were
exploiting a land in the universe for
their own benefit.