Former Minister appeals PM

New Delhi, June 4 (UNI) Former Union Minister Bhakta Charan Das has appealed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi to stop commissioning of the Vedanta Alumina plant at Lanjigarh in Kalahandi of Orissa, saying it would lead to environmental degradation of the region.

In two separate representations to the Prime Minister and Congress President, Mr Das said, ''With your committment to development at the grassroot level and alleviation of poverty, we urge you to stop this plant, which will throw the tribal people of the district to further drought, poverty and starvation.'' The Anil Agrawal promoted Vedanta Company under the clandestine deal with the Orissa government was setting up a alumina mining plant in the ecological sensitive area of Niyamgiri hills.

The Niyamgiri hills are the main sources of two major rivers--Vamsadhara and Nagavalli-- and 22 water harvesting structures.

The state government had leased out the hills to the Vedanta Company for mining of bauxite, the mineral for alumina, without getting clearance from and the Union Environment Ministry.

A Central Empowered Committee set up by the Supreme Court stopped work at the Niyamgiri hills while concluding that ''Vedanta Alumina has commenced work on the non-forest land in violation of para 4.4 of the guidelines issued under the Forest (Conservation) Act 1980''.

''The CEC concluded that Vedanta Alumina has continued the project work in violation of the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF) guidelines and the Scheduled Tribes Act of 1989 and above all in complete indifference to the ecological principles,'' said the representation quoting the report submitted before the Supreme Court.

Mr Das urged the Prime Minister to impress upon the state government and various Ministries to re-examine the project in the context of the ecological degradation in highly volatile region.

A huge rally, attended by about 10,000 tribals, environmentalists and activists, was organised at Lanjigarh to oppose the execution of the project, said Mr Das in the letter.

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