The Hindu Business Line : We will abide by court order: Vedanta Resources

Mumbai, Nov. 23 Vedanta Resources, which was barred by the Supreme Court on Friday from mining bauxite in Orissa, said it would take steps to abide by the Court’s decisions.

“We are awaiting a judgement copy and as soon as we receive the same, we shall be taking all steps immediately to abide by the directions and conditions set out by the Honourable Supreme Court,” said a statement from the UK-headquartered company.

The Supreme Court order also said that Vedanta’s India-based group company, Sterlite, could come up with a fresh proposal to protect the rights of the local people in the mining area through a new company established by the group, news agencies reported.

“Adherence to sustainable development is a constitutional requirement,” a three-judge bench said in its order.

“We are committed to the cause of bringing social upliftment through responsible industrialisation and creating employment opportunities in the State of Orissa,” said Vedanta.

Vedanta’s open-cast mining activities were meant to feed its alumina refinery in Orissa.

New conditions

Last month, the court had set new conditions for Vedanta and Sterlite before allowing them to mine in the region, a Reuters report said.

The conditions included paying 5 per cent of its annual profits from mining throughout India to the State Government to be ploughed into developing the region. It was also asked to deposit Rs 50 crore with the State Government, and specify how many local people would be employed in the project, the report said.

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