Without a CTO, Vedanta cannot legally restart operations at the Thoothukudi site under the ‘Green Copper’ proposal, keeping the asset idle and delaying any production or hiring timelines tied to the project. The High Court has pulled the decision path into a judicial process and set a near-term checkpoint by directing the State to state its position by Feb. 26 on forming an expert committee, which could become the gating step for any future permission. The rejection also signals that environmental clearance for a reconfigured copper operation at this location remains a live regulatory constraint rather than a procedural formality.