... The administration in Odisha’s Rayagada district on Monday held a public hearing for Vedanta Limited’s proposed Sijimali bauxite mining project, amid protests by those opposed to it.

While more than 150 armed police personnel were guarding the venue at a school at Sunger under Kashipur block, hundreds of men and women assembled to participate in the hearing.

Though several people alleged that they were denied entry into the venue, the Rayagada district administration claimed that the views of both sides were taken and their grievances redressed during the meeting...

The public hearing was attended by the officials of the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB), Bhubaneswar, district administration officials and project proponents...

Anti-displacement activist and advocate Biswapriya Kanungo termed the public hearing as an “arbitrary procedure” claiming that people attended it in an atmosphere of fear and anxiety.