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Making a pitch for tribal votes in Chhattisgarh, senior Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra alleged that attempts were being made to muzzle the anti-mining movement in the Hasdeo Aranya region, even as she promised reforms for tribals if her party returned to power at the Centre
Mining and related deforestation has been a contentious issue in the biodiversity-rich areas in tribal-dominant Chhattisgarh.
Resumption of mining in recent months have resulted in protests, and triggered a political blame game between the ruling BJP and the Congress
Hasdeo Aranya forest
Hasdeo Arand is a forest in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh in central India.
The forest is 170,000 hectares in area and is home to a diverse ecology
The Hasdeo Arand forest is estimated to be home to 10,000 people from the Gond, Oraon and other tribes
It is on top of the Hasdeo Arand coalfield in the north of Chhattisgarh.
The Government of India has proposed to mine the coal, which would destroy the forest.
Hasdeo Aranya forest
The Hasdeo river runs through the forest.
The forest comes under the Korba, Surajpur, Surguja districts of the state
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