Tribal minister opposes proposal
Over two lakh tribals are expected to be adversely affected due to the two aluminium plants coming up in the tribal areas of Vishakhapatnam district in Andhra Pradesh.
Union minister for tribal affairs and panchayat-raj Kishore Chandra Deo warns against widespread unrest in this areas as these tribals, spread across 270 villages, “are feeling extremely insecure and unsafe.”
Speaking out forcefully in their favour, Mr Deo pointed out that mining sanctions have been granted in Schedule 5 areas which are constitutionally protected and where non-tribals are not allow to buy or take land.
“I belong to a tribe from Andhra Pradesh but I am not allowed to lease or buy land in the tribal areas of Orissa, Jharkhand or Chhattisgarh. This law has been scrupulously followed in the last five decades but the granting of permission to the Andhra Pradesh Minerals Development Corporation (APMDC) to do mining is violative of this constitutional guarantee,” Mr Deo added.
The APMDC has been granted permission to do mining in these tribal homelands and then supply this bauxite to two companies, including Jindal South West. While the ministry of ministry of environment and forests has granted first stage clearance for Chintapalli, while MoEF clearance for mining in Araku and Sapparla is still awaited.
Mr Deo has a different take on this subject. “Mining has not yet started in this area so there is time to correct this aberration,” he said. The APMDC has offered to compensate the tribals by providing them with jobs but the minister’s contention is that the Forest Rights Act was introduced by the UPA government to correct the historical injustice done to the tribals.
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