To be a Dongria Kondh is to live in the Niyamgiri Hills in Orissa state, India - they do not live anywhere else. Yet Vedanta Resources was determined to mine their sacred mountain's rich seam of bauxite (aluminium ore).
The Dongria farm the hill slopes, grow crops in among the forest and gather wild fruit and leaves for sale.
There are over 8000 members of the tribe, living in villages scattered throughout the Niyamgiri Hills.
They call themselves Jharnia, meaning 'protector of streams', because they protect their sacred mountains and the life-giving rivers that rise within its thick forests.
To the Dongria, Niyam Dongar hill is the seat of their god, Niyam Raja. To Vedanta it is a $2billion deposit of bauxite. Vedanta's open pit mine would have destroyed the forests, disrupted the rivers and spelled the end of the Dongria Kondh as a distinct people.
The Dongria, and neighbouring Kondh tribals who also revere Niyam Raja, are determined to protect their sacred mountain.
They have held road blocks, a human chain and countless demonstrations against the company.
The Indian government has refused to grant final clearance for Vedanta's mine, choosing to place the Dongria Kondh's rights above the company's balance sheet.
In 2010 the Church of England withdrew its investments from Vedanta stating that the company had failed to show, 'The level of respect for human rights and local communities that we expect.'
The Norwegian Government and investment firm Martin Currie have also sold their shares in Vedanta Resources over concerns for human rights.
At the centre of the struggle is the Dongria's sacred mountain, the 'mountain of law'. The Dongrias worship the top of the mountain as the seat of their god and protect the forests there.
Vedanta Resources wanted to mine the bauxite from the top of the same mountain.
The Dongria Kondh would lose their livelihood, their identity and the sanctity of their most religious site.
In common with other displaced tribal peoples worldwide, they would also lose their present good health, their self-sufficiency and their expert knowledge of the hills, forests and farming systems that they have nurtured.
Suffering
Other Kondh groups are already suffering due to a bauxite refinery, built and operated by Vedanta, at the base of the Niyamgiri Hills.
The Dongria's victory over the mine has not stopped the refinery from operating.
Villagers who have been removed from their homes for the refinery have suffered threats and intimidation. They have lost both their land and their means of supporting themselves.
They are also suffering from health problems due to pollution from the refinery, which they blame for skin problems, livestock diseases and crop damage.
The Orissa government's pollution control board has ruled that chemical emissions from the refinery are 'alarming' and 'continuous'.
The Dongria remain united in their determination to stop Vedanta or anyone else from turning their sacred mountain into an industrial wasteland.
Before they managed to stop the mine, India's Supreme Court had approved the project 'in principle'. One of the Court's conditions was that some of the mine's profits are put towards 'tribal development'.
But no 'development' or 'compensation' package could cure the problems that mining Niyamgiri would cause: the destruction of a unique environment and culture.
The Dongria have accused Vedanta of 'trying to flood us out with money' and have made it clear that:
'Mining only makes profit for the rich. We will become beggars if the company destroys our mountain and our forest so that they can make money. We don't want the mine or any help at all from the company.'
Vedanta was founded by Indian billionaire Anil Agarwal, who owns more than half the shares.
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बिन्नो की आँखों में बहुत से सपने हैं... बड़े बड़े सपने...
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