The Great Nicobar Project has come to exemplify a fractious ongoing national debate between strategic and economic imperative on one side, and long-term climate and environmental sustainability on the other. The ₹75,000 crore project, which includes a shipping terminal, power project and township, builds on previously untested economic potential in a geostrategic spot close to major shipping lines, but risks wiping out tropical evergreen forests, mountain ranges and coastal plains that foster rich diversity, and several rare and endemic species.
Last week, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) ruled that it would not interfere with the forest and environment clearances (ECs) accorded to the project but constituted a high-powered committee (HPC) to revisit the ECs. This came in response to a petition that argued against the clearances, saying the impact of the diversion of rainforests on biodiversity, wildlife habitats and tribals was not considered, and that mandatory processes under the forest rights rules were not followed.
It remains unclear whether the order will help. As conservationists argue, the HPC is loaded with government officials and will be headed by the secretary of the same ministry that granted the clearances. Moreover, they say key concerns about the project were not even heard before passing the order and that the tribunal has failed to understand, let alone acknowledge, the scale of the ecological damage this project will cause.
The strategic importance of the project has to be balanced against its potentially dire environmental costs, especially when the climate crisis routinely pummels the country. Instead of focussing on a unidimensional view of the country’s development and strategic requirements, it is advisable to take a holistic view. This is only possible when there is rigorous deliberation of all aspects of the project, and robust oversight to ensure a strict adherence to the rules. Such a strategy will ensure that we don’t pay a heavy climate price (which could erode infrastructure gains too) in the future.
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