Congress Criticizes Environment Minister for Evading Nicobar Project Questions

In a sharp rebuke to Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has accused the government of evading critical questions about the Great Nicobar infrastructure project, labeling it a potential ecological and humanitarian catastrophe. The Rs 72,000 crore initiative, touted as vital for national security and maritime connectivity, has sparked fierce debate over its impact on the island’s pristine rainforests and indigenous tribes.

Ramesh, posting on X, dismissed Yadav’s claim that Congress is engaging in “negative politics” by opposing the project. “Drawing the nation’s attention to an imminent ecological and humanitarian disaster is NOT ‘negative politics’. It is an expression of grave concern,” he stated, pressing the minister on unresolved issues surrounding the project’s approval and execution.

The Congress leader raised pointed questions about the project’s compliance with environmental and tribal protections. He questioned whether diverting lakhs of trees violates the National Forest Policy, 1988, which mandates safeguarding tropical forests in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Ramesh criticized the planned compensatory afforestation in Haryana, arguing that its entirely different ecosystem cannot offset the loss of Great Nicobar’s unique rainforests, especially since 25% of the designated land is already allocated for mining.

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Ramesh also highlighted the project’s disregard for the Shompen and Nicobarese tribes. He questioned why the National Commission on Scheduled Tribes was not consulted and why the Tribal Council of Great Nicobar’s concerns are being ignored, despite the Shompen Policy prioritizing community integrity. Further, he noted that the project’s Social Impact Assessment, required under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, omits mention of these tribes, and the Forest Rights Act (2006), which empowers the Shompen to manage their tribal reserve, is being sidelined.

The project, which includes a transshipment port, greenfield airport, power plant, and township spanning 16 sq km, threatens endangered species like leatherback turtles, megapodes, and saltwater crocodiles, Ramesh warned, questioning its sustainability given Great Nicobar’s history of seismic activity and the 2004 tsunami’s devastating subsidence. He also demanded transparency, asking why critical documents, such as the ground-truthing report for reclassifying the port’s location from CRZ1-A, remain unpublished.

Yadav, defending the project in a recent column, claimed only 1.78% of Great Nicobar’s forest area would be affected and emphasized its strategic importance for India’s role in the Indian Ocean Region. However, Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, in a scathing op-ed in The Hindu, called the project a “planned misadventure” that endangers tribal communities and fragile ecosystems while flouting legal processes. She highlighted the permanent displacement of Nicobarese villages and the threat to the Shompen from increased population influx.

Ramesh took a dig at Yadav’s past as co-author of Supreme Court on Forest Conservation, questioning when the “old Bhupender Yadav” would resurface to prioritize environmental integrity. As the controversy intensifies, the project’s fate hangs in the balance, with critics warning of irreversible damage to one of the world’s most unique ecosystems and its indigenous guardians.

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