India orders construction halt at Vedanta refinery

India's environment ministry orders Vedanta Resources to immediately halt all construction work aimed at expanding its aluminum refinery in the state of Orissa.

The ministry said Thursday in a letter to Vedanta that the company illegally started construction work at the site even though it had not been given the required environmental clearances.

The ministry also asked the Orissa government to take legal action against the company.

The move comes two months after the ministry denied the London-based mining giant permission to mine bauxite for its refineries in eastern India, citing violations of environmental and human rights laws.