ABSTRACT
This chapter, based on in-depth studies at three proposed bauxite mining locations4 is an attempt to look for comparative, empirical evidence in search of the nature of bauxite mining and social change in Eastern India. Given the common use of a certain set of technologies and arrangements for the extraction of bauxite ore in a relatively confined region, the related changes to land, water, and forests, and attendant livelihood changes to supposedly homogenous Adivasi populations, should open up for some degree of understanding. After a review of the theory around constructions of nature with reference to mining in the next section, this chapter continues with an overview of what bauxite ore is, where it exists and how it is mined. After this the following sections discuss how mining will change land, forests, and water in the three examined study locations and how these relate to livelihoods. Finally, some overall conclusions are drawn.
