A group of Shompen men. (image-survivalinternational.org)
The government of India’s mega Rs 72,000 project at the Great Nicobar Island includes four main elements: a Rs 36,000 crore international container trans-shipment terminal at Galathea Bay, a military-civil dual-use airport, a gas, diesel and solar-based power plant, and a township. All of this is planned on an island that spreads over more than 160 square kilometres of land.
The “holistic development” project will lead to the chopping of over 852,000 trees and severely impact the marine and terrestrial biodiversity, including species such as the leatherback turtles, megapodes, corals, migratory birds and Nicobar crab-eating macaques. And let’s not forget the particularly vulnerable tribal groups, such as the Shompen and the Nicobarese community (a scheduled tribe), living on the island.
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The Great Nicobar Island: A Fragile Ecosystem, Indigenous Home in a Seismic Hotspot
The Nicobar pigeon, believed to be the closest living relative of the extinct bird Dodo. (instagram/incredibleindia)
Located in the southernmost part of the Indian territory, the island is one of the most strategically important areas in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands region. Compared to India, the island is closer to Myanmar and Sumatra. The region is located in a seismically volatile zone (seismic zone V category), which has experienced over 444 earthquakes in the past decade alone.
The island’s Shompen residents make up a little over 200, while the Nicobarese account for nearly 1,000. Together, they comprise about 15 per cent of Great Nicobar’s population of over 8,000. They were the only residents of Great Nicobar till the 1960s, when settlers were brought in from mainland India.
It is well understood that indigenous communities, who often lead traditional lives, are dependent on the land in a way that is starkly different from how the urban populations are dependent on land. Destroying their land and forests is akin to displacing them from their homes, resulting in a permanent destruction of their unique culture.
Home to exceptionally rich biodiversity and a variety of wildlife, the island was included in UNESCO’s biosphere programme in 2013. The government even called it “one of the best-preserved tropical rain forests in the world”.
Clearances Granted While Coastal Zone Nod Still Pending
The Radhanagar Beach at the islands. (image/peakvisor.com)
Stage 1 forest clearance to divert the forest land was granted by the environment ministry on October 27, 2022. On November 4 that year, the Centre gave the project an environmental clearance.
The committee, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change’s expert appraisal committee, didn’t recommend environment and coastal regulation zone (CRZ) clearance for the project, citing the need for additional information required to take a “well-informed decision”.
The project requires at least 166.1 square kms (16,610 hectares) of land, including a forest area of 130.75 square kms for which forest clearance has been sought separately.
Seven Deep-Sea Mining Blocks Approved
The rich aquatic life at the Andaman Nicobar islands. (image/travel.india.com)
The Union environment ministry and the department of fisheries have approved seven deep-sea mining blocks off the coast of Great Nicobar Island. Under the Offshore Areas Minerals Development and Regulation Act (2002), the Offshore Areas Mineral Trust will use its funds for research to prevent adverse ecological impacts.
The blocks near the island are rich in polymetallic nodules and crusts, which are mineral deposits rich in metals like lithium, cobalt, nickel, manganese and rare earth elements.
Deep-sea mining, a practice where metals and minerals are extracted from the seabed at depths of more than 200 metres, can cause irreversible loss of species and damage seabed ecosystems for thousands of years.
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Multiple FRA Violations Flagged in Calcutta High Court Over Project Clearances
In December 2024, a petition highlighting the glaring violations of the Forest Rights Act (FRA) in the clearances granted to the mega project was filed in the Calcutta High Court. Filed by Meena Gupta, a former secretary of tribal affairs and also environment and forests, the petition alleged that the recognition of the forest rights certificate, issued by the Nicobar deputy commissioner on August 18, 2022, is void, and thus the large forest area of the tribal communities on Great Nicobar can’t be diverted for use by the project.
One of the key violations, according to Section 5(c) of the FRA rules, is that the subdivisional level committee should have at least two members of a Scheduled Tribe, but in this case, there was only one member of the Nicobarese community.
Another key violation is that although there is no provision under the FRA for someone to represent a particularly vulnerable tribal group, let alone give consent on their behalf, a fourth member, in the form of the Tribal Welfare officer of the Andaman Adim Janjati Vikas Samiti, was nominated and authorised to give consent on behalf of the Shompen.
No Representation, No Response: Tribes Oppose, Centre Denies
A tribal man in Andaman and Nicobar island. (image-X/@TribalArmy)
Dr Vishvajit Pandya, an anthropology professor at the Dhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information Communication Technology and founder of the Andaman Nicobar Tribal Research Institute, submitted a video report documenting opposition from the indigenous Shompen and Nicobarese communities to the project.
“If you want to cut the forest, cut it on the coast. Do not climb our hills,” said one Shompen man in Pandya’s film.
When TMC MP Saket Gokhale asked the Centre about it in the Parliament, the Union Government said it had no record of receiving the report. The vulnerable tribal group does not have any representation in the House.
“We never heard from the administration after that. The video was never released. No one wants to yield to [the recommendations], and it is of no consequence to the administration,” Pandya told Scroll. The Shompen tribe’s numbers are less than 230.
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Concerns Ignored Despite Warnings from Experts and Officials
Tribals in the Andaman and Nicobar islands. (image-X/@TribalArmy)
The Niti Aayog-led project faced severe criticism for its potential impact on the island’s biodiversity, rainforests and endemic species.
According to The Indian Express, residents of Gandhi Nagar and Shastri Nagar in the Campbell Bay taluk expressed concern over the loss of livelihoods that the displacement will cause in view of the construction of the airport since nearly 400 hectares of land from these two villages will be acquired for the project.
Experts say that the environmental impact assessment report, based on which final environmental clearance was granted, is replete with inaccuracies and inadequacies, in addition to reflecting a flawed understanding of the tribal communities.
A group of former civil servants, part of the Constitutional Conduct Group, said that they had also written to President Droupadi Murmu in January 2023 to express their concerns that the project would “virtually destroy the unique ecology of this island and the habitat of vulnerable tribal groups”. However, their letter appeared to have had no effect in making the Centre rethink its proposal, they remarked.
