The Vedanta Affair

Dotted with dense but gaunt sal trees, mango trees, numerous medicinal plants and colourful orchids, atrek up the verdant Niyamgiri hills is like being in virtual communion with Gods. The narrow dirt trackthat leads up the mountain covered by a green canopy is as much littered with mangoes, jackfruits, dates and several forest fruits as cool springs that crisscross their way through the rocky pathway. As you walk through, don't be surprised if you occasionally hear the roar of tigers and leopards and see a few sambars sprinting around. Home to a numberof vulnerable wildlife species including sloth bear, pangolin, palm civet, giant squirrel, golden gecko, the last population of Travancore wolf snake, bamboo pit viper and langur it is also on the path of migration corridor of elephants.

But the communion with Gods run the risk of being short-lived if the Supreme Court allows Anil Agarwal-owned Vedanta Alumina to continue with its 1 million tonne greenfield alumina refinery in the adjacent Lanjigarh in Kalahandi district being built at a cost of about (Rs 3,657 crore. The refinery’s construction has already begun, but the scrapdealer-turned-metal billionaire confronts the prospect of Supreme Court nixing the project. Read my take on the Vedanta project in Telegraph's Insight page...