As part of the sustainability agenda, Vedanta’s said its Aluminium & Power Business is fostering hundreds of MSMEs in remote rural areas with its innovative ‘waste to wealth’ programmes. With a world-class alumina refinery at Lanjigarh (Odisha) and state-of-the-art aluminium smelters at Jharsuguda (Odisha) and Korba (Chhattisgarh), the company said it has been instrumental in triggering socio-economic development in some of the country’s aspirational districts.
One such innovative programme being run by Vedanta for fostering local micro-enterprises is fly-ash brick making. The company supports over a hundred brick manufacturing MSMEs situated around and beyond its areas of operations with fly ash free of cost to their doorsteps, amounting to nearly 5 lakh metric tonnes per annum. In addition, the company also provides know-how and training on manufacturing these bricks in partnership with technical institutes, thus creating employment avenues as well as promoting a circular economy.
At Lanjigarh (Kalahandi district, Odisha), the company said more than 90% of fly ash generated at its alumina refinery is used by local entrepreneurs in their brick manufacturing units.
Rahul Sharma, Dy CEO – Aluminium Business, Vedanta Ltd, said, “At Vedanta, we integrate smart innovation, best-in-class technologies and global best practices to create value for the nation. All of our business units have robust waste management systems in place and scientifically manage the ‘reduce, reuse and recycle’ trifecta of value-creation by working with local entrepreneurs and community members.”
Vedanta Aluminium & Power Business, a division of Vedanta Limited, is India’s largest producer of Aluminium, producing almost half of India’s aluminium or 1.9 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) in FY20 and is also one of the largest private power producers in the country.