India News

Behind the deadly Tuticorin affair: Centre tweaked rules to help Vedanta avoid public hearing

Published

8 years ago

May 25, 2018

Behind the deadly Tuticorin affair: Centre tweaked rules to help Vedanta avoid public hearing

When local opposition to Vedanta owned Sterlite copper plant in Thoothukudi (earlier ‘Tuticorin’) exploded in an aggressive protest leading to violence and police firing which took 13 lives, Madras High Court stayed the expansion of the plant and ordered it to go for a public hearing. The company claimed it was not a legal requirement.

Some reports after this revealed that this was because the rules had been tweaked by the Centre to favour Vedanta.

While the Tamil Nadu government has been facing the ire for police action and is accused of favouring Vedanta, it is the UPA and then the Modi government which changed laws and tweaked rules for the company. The Modi government went to new lengths – we shall come back to it later here.

To begin with, said a report in The Economic Times (ET), Sterlite Industries was allowed by both the UPA and NDA governments to construct the copper smelter in Tuticorin without carrying out the mandated public hearing process.

The plant was first given the green signal by the environment ministry’s expert appraisal committee in 2008, when the United Progressive Alliance was in power, the ET report said.

In 2008, Vedanta’s Sterlite Industries Limited had sought exemption from public consultation. The 2006 Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Rules state: “All Category ‘A’ and Category B1 projects or activities shall undertake public consultation, except… all projects or activities located within industrial estates or parks.”

Copper smelter plants fall under category A. However, Sterlite Industries sought for an exemption to this rule in 2008, stating that the smelter was located within an industrial park.

According to the report, the industrial park in question was not granted environmental clearance as the State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamil Nadu (SIPCOT) industrial park was developed before the notification of the Environmental Impact Assessment rules. As the 2006 Environment Impact Assessment rules do not cover industrial parks which did not receive environmental clearance, officials quoted in the report say that this was the grey area where Sterlite brought forward its plea.

The project got the clearance in 2008, but was held up for five years as the environmental clearance process was challenged in court.

The government changed and Modi government took charge. It ‘resolved’ the issue in December 2014 when the environment ministry stated in a memorandum that an exemption of projects from public consultation “is available to the projects or activities or units located in industrial estates or parks, which were notified prior to September 14, 2006, i.e EIA notification coming into force”.

The memorandum was struck down by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in 2016, but not before Sterlite secured a five-year extension on its environmental clearance for its expansion project.

This helped plants such as the one at Thoothukudi to be constructed without taking the people of the affected area into confidence.

This move enabling the existing rules to be passed was done through mere orders from ministry which called it a ‘clarification’. In effect, laid down notified regulations under the law were re-interpreted by a mere executive order in the name of providing a ‘clarification’ to the industry.

This allowed Vedanta and other industries who made pleas, to go ahead with their projects without holding discussions with the public, said a report in The Business Standard (BS).

This interpretation by the NDA government came an a bonanza for companies because the environment ministry under UPA government had insisted in May 2014 that projects such as Vedanta’s in Thoothukudi were required by law to first go through public consultations, the BS report said.

The NDA government reversed this position in December 2014 and in March 2015 the environment ministry extended Vedanta’s environmental clearance till December 2018. This it did even while the question of the need for public hearing by projects in different kinds of industrial parks was being contested in the courts. This allowed the company to carry out construction.

In 2016, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) ruled as illegal the December orders of the NDA government, which favoured Vedanta. Ministry officials maintained that annulling the government’s December 2014 orders would severely affect several projects, but the NGT eventually quashed the orders and on its directions, the ministry passed fresh orders expressly stating that projects in industrial parks without environmental clearances needed to hold public hearings.

But by then, Vedanta had already got an extension of the green clearance to its expansion project in Thoothukudi without having a public hearing and construction was on way, the report says. Soon, protests started. Before the May 22 violence, protests had been on for 100 days.

It is on the basis of the 2016 ruling of the NGT that the court has ordered Vedanta to halt the project and go back to the public to hold consultations.

This brings us the the point mentioned earlier. The background to the Centre-Vedanta involves another aspect: that of political funding by corporate houses, especially foreign funding.

In March 2014, the Delhi High Court had held both the Congress and the BJP guilty of illegally receiving contributions from British mining and energy conglomerate Vedanta.

The Congress and the BJP separately challenged the ruling. After the BJP came to power, it amended a law with retrospective effect, making the alleged illegal foreign funds that the two parties received legal and nullifying the high court order.

The Representation of People’s Act, which lays down the rules for elections, bars political parties from accepting foreign funds. Modi government changed it by bringing in alterations through Finance Bill which cannot be stopped by Rajya Sabha. First, in the Finance Bill 2016, the Modi government amended the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) to make it easier for parties to accept foreign funds. In 2018, it amended it further to do away with the scope for scrutiny of political parties’ funding since 1976.

This enables the BJP to get funds from foreign companies such as Vedanta without being subjected to scrutiny or having to reveal the source or the amount.

India News

Air India sacks Phuket-Delhi flight pilot after failing drug test

Air India has terminated the Phuket-Delhi flight pilot after a confirmatory test found a psychoactive substance following the August 4 incident.

Published

11 hours ago

September 4, 2026

APNLive Desk

Air India has terminated the employment of the pilot-in-command of a Phuket-Delhi flight after he tested positive for a psychoactive substance.

The pilot was in command of flight AI2379, which was travelling from Phuket to Delhi on August 4 when the aircraft suddenly lost altitude over Odisha. The incident left 24 passengers injured.

Air India said the termination was in line with its zero-tolerance policy regarding safety violations and regulatory requirements.

Air India terminates pilot with immediate effect

In a statement, the Tata-owned airline said the pilot-in-command had tested positive for a psychoactive substance.

The airline said that, considering its zero-tolerance approach to violations related to safety, fitness and regulatory requirements, the pilot’s employment had been terminated with immediate effect.

Air India also said it continues to cooperate fully with the investigation into the incident and has provided access to relevant operational, maintenance and technical records.

What happened on the Phuket-Delhi flight?

According to the preliminary findings of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), the Airbus A320 was carrying 145 people when it experienced the near-simultaneous loss of all three hydraulic systems while cruising at around 36,000 feet.

The technical failure resulted in the autopilot disconnecting and triggered a brief stall warning. The aircraft subsequently lost altitude, resulting in injuries to 24 passengers.

The preliminary report also noted that the pilot tested non-negative for a psychoactive substance in a confirmatory test.

However, the report did not establish that the pilot’s drug-test result caused or contributed to the hydraulic system failure or the subsequent loss of altitude.

AAIB recommends action over psychoactive substance finding

The AAIB described the confirmation of psychoactive substance use as a serious concern and recommended that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) take appropriate action against the pilot on priority.

The investigation into the technical and other aspects of the incident is still underway.

The preliminary report also noted that the co-pilot was flying the aircraft when the incident occurred and attempted to bring the situation under control.

Air India said safety remains its highest priority and that its pilots undergo training, proficiency checks, medical examinations and other regulatory assessments in accordance with applicable requirements.

India News

India offers forensic DNA support to identify Nepal flood victims

India will make forensic laboratory facilities available for DNA profiling of first-degree relatives of people missing after Nepal’s August 26 flash floods.

Published

16 hours ago

September 4, 2026

APNLive Desk

India has offered forensic laboratory support to help identify people who remain missing after the devastating flash floods in Nepal.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said central and state forensic laboratories in India will make their DNA profiling facilities available for first-degree biological relatives of people missing after the August 26 flash floods in Nepal.

DNA samples can be provided by relatives in India

According to the MEA, first-degree biological relatives living in India can have their biological samples collected and DNA profiles prepared.

The relatives can include a person’s father, mother, son, daughter or sibling. DNA profiling can be carried out at Central Forensic Science Laboratories (CFSLs), State Forensic Science Laboratories (SFSLs), laboratories of the National Forensic Sciences University (NFSU), and NABL-accredited laboratories with DNA profiling capabilities.

The initiative is intended to support Nepal’s ongoing process of identifying mortal remains recovered after the flash floods.

DNA profiles to be compared with unidentified remains

The MEA said the DNA profiling may use Autosomal STR DNA profiling, as advised by Nepal Police, subject to the technical requirements communicated by the Nepali authorities.

Once prepared, DNA profiles and the preliminary information required by Nepalese authorities can be sent to Nepal Police by email for comparison with DNA profiles obtained from unidentified mortal remains.

The Indian Embassy in Kathmandu will also facilitate coordination, with copies of the DNA profiles to be shared with the embassy for this purpose.

Nepal flood death toll rises

The death toll from the flash floods has risen to at least 1,259, according to Nepalese authorities, after rescue workers recovered additional bodies from affected areas.

More than 12,000 people have been rescued, while around 5,000 people remain missing as search and rescue operations continue.

The flash floods, which followed an ice-rock avalanche near the Nepal-Tibet border, caused extensive destruction across towns and villages in northern and central Nepal.

India News

PM Modi hails ISRO after successful GSLV-F17 launch, calls it proud moment

PM Modi congratulated ISRO after GSLV-F17 successfully launched EOS-05, calling the achievement a proud moment for India.

Published

21 hours ago

September 4, 2026

APNLive Desk

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday congratulated the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) after the successful launch of the GSLV-F17 rocket carrying the EOS-05 Earth observation satellite, describing the achievement as a proud moment for the nation.

The GSLV-F17 lifted off at 2:55 a.m. IST from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh. The EOS-05 satellite was subsequently placed into its designated sub-geosynchronous transfer orbit.

PM Modi praises ISRO’s growing capabilities

In a post on X, PM Modi said the successful mission reflected the excellence, innovation and expanding capabilities of India’s space sector.

Yet another outstanding achievement by ISRO and a proud moment for our nation.

The successful launch of GSLV-F17 carrying EOS-05, India’s first-ever imaging satellite from Geosynchronous orbit is a reflection of the excellence, innovation and growing capabilities that define… https://t.co/fXzwnSmwAF
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 4, 2026

He also highlighted the growing partnership between ISRO and Indian industry, saying it was strengthening India’s space programme and expanding capabilities across the wider space ecosystem.

The prime minister described the successful launch of GSLV-F17 carrying EOS-05 as another outstanding achievement by ISRO and a matter of national pride.

EOS-05 strengthens earth observation capabilities

According to the report, EOS-05 is India’s first-ever imaging satellite from geosynchronous orbit. The satellite is designed to provide continuous observation of the country from an altitude of nearly 36,000 km above Earth.

The mission is expected to strengthen India’s earth observation capabilities and support advanced imaging and observation applications.

ISRO Chairman Dr V Narayanan expressed satisfaction with the mission, saying the satellite was precisely injected into its intended orbit.

Mission Director Thomas Kurian described the launch as a significant milestone for the GSLV programme. He said it was the 19th flight of the GSLV and noted that EOS-05 is the heaviest satellite the launch vehicle has placed into a geosynchronous transfer orbit or sub-GTO orbit.

GSLV-F17 launch vehicle details

The GSLV-F17 stands 51.7 metres tall and has an approximate liftoff mass of 420.5 tonnes.

Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh also congratulated the ISRO team following the successful mission. He described EOS-05 as a state-of-the-art Earth observation satellite capable of advanced imaging across visible, infrared, multispectral and hyperspectral bands.