Context: Recently, conclusions of a high-powered committee (HPC) formed by NGT in 2023 to revisit the  Great Nicobar project’s  green clearance were submitted to NGT’s Kolkata bench .

Key Facts

• Great Nicobar Island is the southernmost tip of India, part of the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago.

• Area: 910 sq km and it receives around 3,500 mm of annual rainfall.

• Terrain: Hilly with lush rainforests, mangroves, and Pandan forests along the coast.

• Flora and Fauna: Hosts endangered and endemic species such as the giant leatherback turtle, Nicobar megapode, Great Nicobar crake, Nicobar crab-eating macaque, and Nicobar tree shrew.

Tribal Communities

1. Shompen: About 250 individuals, live in interior forests, predominantly hunter-gatherers, classified as a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group.

2. Nicobarese: Engage in farming and fishing.

Great Nicobar infrastructure project : Overview

• In March 2021, NITI Aayog unveiled a Rs 72,000 crore plan called ‘Holistic Development of Great Nicobar Island at Andaman and Nicobar Islands’. 

• It will be implemented by the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation (ANIIDCO), a government undertaking.

• It has a budget of Rs 72,000 crore 

Components of the Plan

• International Transshipment Terminal: To boost cargo transshipment and regional/global maritime participation.

• International Airport: To support maritime services, attract international and national visitors, and promote sustainable tourism.

• Power Plant: To support the island’s energy needs.

• Township: To accommodate the growing population and infrastructure needs.

Legal Challenges

• Environmental activists and the Conservation Action Trust (CAT) challenged the project’s environmental and Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) clearances, citing irreversible damage to biodiversity, inadequate environmental impact studies, and issues with the clearance process.

• They also raised concerns about the impact on Shompens and Nicobarese tribal communities and alleged conflicts of interest in the clearance process.

• The project will cover 166 sq km, including the felling of 130.75 sq km of forests.

• Pending NGT Petitions: Two new petitions were  filed ,one for excluding parts of the project from ecologically sensitive coastal areas, citing violations of the 2019 ICRZ notification.

• Another for contempt of NGT’s April 2023 order, alleging that the Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change (MoEFCC) did not comply with the HPC formation or provide necessary details.

NGT’s Actions

• The National Green Tribunal (NGT) revisited the project’s green clearance in response to the appeals.

• A high-powered committee (HPC) was formed to re-evaluate the project, concluding that the transshipment port does not fall within the prohibited Island Coastal Regulation Zone-IA (ICRZ-IA).

• The ICRZ-IA areas comprise ecologically sensitive areas such as mangroves, corals and coral reefs, sand dunes, mudflats, marine parks, wildlife habitats, salt marshes, turtle nesting grounds and bird nesting grounds among others.

• The NGT’s special bench did not find grounds to interfere with the forest clearance but acknowledged deficiencies in coral conservation and port location.

Calcutta High Court Case

• CAT filed a writ petition before the Kolkata High Court over the April 2023 order of the NGT special bench. The writ prayed to quash the statutory clearances.

• CAT said the NGT special bench did not have jurisdiction in the case dealing with challenges against forest clearance. 

• It has argued that the case should have been dealt with by the eastern zone, rather than a special bench.

Conclusion 

• Apart from economic factors, the project has been linked to India’s strategic interests in the Indian Ocean.

• In recent years, as the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy has expanded its footprint across the region, India has had concerns about the build-up of its maritime forces at the Indo-Pacific choke points such as the Malacca Strait.

• Therefore ,it can be concluded that the project is important for the island but there needs to be a thorough impartial review of the proposed project.