ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on a landmark social movement of the Kondhs who are struggling to preserve Niyamgiri, their sacred mountain. Known for its natural habitat, Niyamgiri is the sole source of the Kondhs’ traditional livelihood. The Kondhs who live in the shadow of Niyamgiri hills in the Indian State of Odisha have come together to protect their sacred mountain which is attracting many takers for its rich deposit of bauxite. This region is rich in bauxite, discovered in the 1990s and exploited by the state and Vedanta, a multi-national private company, in the name of extraction as development. These developments are indicative of the state and central government’s covert and overt resolve to become a facilitator for the big corporations at the cost of local communities and natural resources. The indigenous people’s resistance movement is primarily in opposition to such projects, which have harmed their social and natural environment. The Kondhs’ resistance movement in Niyamgiri provides an alternative model of development to that of the state. Odisha has entered into a partnership with the UK based Vedanta multinational corporations to extract bauxite resources of Niyamgiri—most of its land inhabited by Kondhs. The Kondhs have organized themselves in opposition to this neo-liberal economic development, industrialization and modernization promoted by the state. Since the 1990s, Niyamgiri has become a site of resistance of the Kondhs who are fighting for their sacred land against the corporations and the state adamant to mine bauxite as it is used in making of items for capitalist consumption.
