London-based Vedanta Aluminium Ltd (VAL) on Wednesday denied any mining activity at Niyamgiri Hill. The company is setting up a one-million-tonne refinery at Lanjigarh in Orissa’s Kalahandi district and has been alleged of illegal mining activity.
“We have not started mining on the hilltop of Niyamgiri. The recent report in a section of media about bauxite mining in Niyamgiri Hill is just misinterpretation of facts and far from the truth,” Dr Mukesh Kumar, chief operating officer (COO) of VAL, told this correspondent.
He said the mining will not be started without obta-ining necessary approvals from the Central and Orissa governments.
“We are waiting for the clearance and I have ensured many time even in the past that no mining activity has commenced on the Niyamgiri hills,” the COO added.