Transnational Institute | Putting profit before society - 1 views
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Arabica Robusta on 10 Oct 10According to the steel ministry, some concessions or exemptions should be given to state-owned companies like Steel Authority of India and National Mineral Development Corporation. They deserve special consideration because of the "historical role" they played in accepting "social obligations" in different, especially extremely backward, parts of India. According to people's movements and non-governmental organisations who speak for the communities and vulnerable groups affected or liable to be affected by mining, the answer is sharply different. They emphasise the high human and social costs of displacement caused by "development" projects, which have uprooted 45 million people since Independence without resettling, leave alone rehabilitating, a large majority of them. Mining, like dams, industries and highways, is responsible for a large chunk of this damage.