Great Nicobar project won’t affect tribals’ interests: Minister

Union environment minister Bhupender Yadav has responded to concerns raised by senior Congress leader and parliamentarian Jairam Ramesh regarding the Great Nicobar mega infrastructure project. In a letter dated August 21, Yadav emphasised that “exemplary mitigation measures” have been incorporated to minimise the environmental impact of the project, “keeping the strategic, national and defence interests” in mind.

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The Great Nicobar Island (GNI) project has been a subject of controversy due to its potential impact on rare and endemic species, rainforests, and the tribal population residing on the island. The project includes plans for a transhipment port, airport, township, and power plant in what is considered a global biodiversity hotspot.

Addressing Ramesh’s concerns about forest diversion, Yadav stated: “Despite diversion of forest land for the project, 82% of area in the Great Nicobar continues to be under protected forests, eco-sensitive zones and biosphere reserves... this is much more than laid down norms of maintaining two-thirds of the area under forest cover.”

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The minister responded on the specific concerns Ramesh, who was the environment minister between 2009 and 2011, in the six-page letter.

The incumbent defended the projects, and said approvals were consistent with the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam 1980, the recommendations of Prof Shekhar Singh and Supreme Court order of May 7, 2002.

Regarding compensatory afforestation, which Ramesh said was no substitute for the natural ecosystem being lost, and was being done thousands of kilometres away in a vastly different ecology, Yadav said this was because areas for plantation are not available in Great Nicobar Island. “…the plantation of native species in the non-notified forest land in arid landscape and in the vicinity of urban areas would provide greater ecological value,” the minister said. He added that an area of 24,353.72 hectares has already been notified as protected forest by the Haryana government for the project.

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Ramesh also raised concerns about the functioning of the High-Powered Committee (HPC), set up by the National Green Tribunal and headed by the environment ministry secretary, to assess the Great Nicobar project. The former minister said the panel’s conclusions regarding the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) classification of the port area contradicted information submitted by the Andaman and Nicobar Coastal Management Authority and criticised the lack of transparency in the HPC’s operations, noting that details of its “ground-truthing activities” and its report had not been made public.

In response, minister Yadav defended the HPC’s findings, stating that the National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM) had conducted extensive ground-truthing and concluded that no portion of the proposed project falls within CRZ 1A (where building a port is forbidden). Addressing the lack of public disclosure, Yadav cited the project’s national importance and strategic defence dimensions as reasons for not sharing the HPC’s deliberations publicly.

The minister also addressed concerns about the project’s impact on the Shompen, an indigenous community classified as a particularly vulnerable tribal group (PVTG). “Due consultation with tribal experts including Anthropological Society of India has also been done to ensure safety, projection and wellbeing of primitive tribal groups in the wake of holistic development of Great Nicobar Project,” Yadav asserted, and added that the HPC noted the project would not affect the “interests of tribal communities especially the Shompen” and that displacement of tribals will not be allowed.

On a crucial matter of the tribal council’s objections to the project, minister Yadav reiterated the government’s stand that “no objections were raised during the statutory period” laid down in the relevant law. “The Administration is following the Shompen policy to ensure their integrity...A&N Administration has prepared a budget of ?201.98 crores for tribal welfare plans including setting up of a special medical unit,” the minister said in his response to the Congress leader.

Ramesh raised the consent matter in his letter. HT reported on April 14, 2023 that the Tribal Council of Little and Great Nicobar had in November 2022 withdrawn the no objection certificate (NOC) given for diversion of land in August that year— roughly half of which is tribal reserve land/

On the issue of earthquake vulnerability, Yadav acknowledged the region’s seismic activity but downplayed the risk of a major disaster. “Seismologists suggest return period of 420 to 750 years for mega earthquakes similar to which occurred in 2004,” he stated. He added that while earthquakes of varying magnitudes are possible in the coming decades, “the probability of a mega earthquake of 9.2 that happened in 2004 is low.”

Yadav emphasised that a disaster management plan has been prepared, taking into account both anthropogenic and natural disasters. He assured that Indian Standard Codes and National Building Code Guidelines for earthquake-resistant design would be followed in the project’s construction.