View of dense coastal forest lining the Laxman beach in Great Nicobar Island.
Opposition MPs in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday (March 12, 2025) tried unsuccessfully to corner the Union government into answering questions about the environmental and forest clearances granted to the ₹72,000 crore Great Nicobar Island mega-infrastructure project. They also pressed for answers on a tribal council’s withdrawal of consent for the project, and the objections of tribespeople submitted to a government committee by an expert anthropologist.
Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale kicked off Question Hour by asking the Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs about the clearances granted for the project and its impact on the local tribal communities living on the island.
In response to the starred question, Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram cited cases about the project currently pending in the Calcutta High Court to say that the matter is sub-judice. “As such, no comments are offered,” he said.
‘Declined to answer’
Mr. Gokhale termed it unfortunate that the Ministry had “declined” to answer the question.
Congress MP and former Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh also took issue with the government “declining” an answer to the question on the grounds that it was sub-judice. He pointed to a ruling by the Rajya Sabha Chairman on July 21, 2023, where it was established that the House is entitled to discuss anything other than the conduct of High Court and Supreme Court judges. Mr. Ramesh also called the project a “mega-environmental and humanitarian disaster”.
Tribal objections
After Mr. Oram laid a written statement on the table of the House in response to the question, Mr. Gokhale used the first supplementary question to ask the Minister about a letter written by the Tribal Council of Little and Great Nicobar Islands in November 2022, withdrawing the no-objection certificate it had previously granted.
In response, Mr. Oram said that the Ministry had not received any specific inputs from members of the public about objections to the project. He insisted that only 7.114 sq. km. of tribal land was going to be used for the project, adding that “not a single” tribal person was being displaced for it. Based on the orders of the National Green Tribunal, a high-powered committee has been formed to look into all issues regarding the project, Mr. Oram added.
Mr. Gokhale then asked about submissions made to this high-powered committee by anthropologist Vishvajit Pandya, who was part of the team that had initially formed the Union government’s 2015 Shompen Policy. Mr. Pandya had submitted a video report to the government panel, recording the objections of the local Shompen and Nicobarese people, the Trinamool MP said.
Mr. Oram responded, saying that the Ministry had not received any such report from Mr. Pandya, adding that if Mr. Gokhale sent this information to the Ministry, it would be examined in full.
Published – March 12, 2025 10:00 pm IST