Green approvals pave way for initial work on Great Nicobar project; experts raise concern

REcent approvals issued for the outstanding Nicobar substructure throw point that prelim work on the township and the International Container Transshipment Terminal (ICTT) will start soon.To be sure, the quantum of forest land diversion — 1 square metre (sq m) in one case and 195 sq m in another — is almost insignificant, but the reasons for it, setting up an automatic weather station, and digging bores to test the soil suggest that this is an important step in the construction of he proposed port at Galathea Bay, and a township at Great Nicobar, both under the Holistic Development of Great Nicobar Island Project.Details of the diversions, approved October 15 and May 7, were uploaded on the environment ministry’s Parivesh website. The Automatic Weather Station (AWS) will collect meteorological data necessary for scientific analysis and the engineering design of coastal and port infrastructure planning. And the geotechnical investigation encompasses soil testing and related studies for the proposed reservoirs construction and arterial road network.In Great Nicobar, the government has planned four projects — International Container Transshipment Terminal (ICTT), Greenfield International Airport, Gas and Solar based Power Plant and Township; Area Development Projects — for which an area of 166.10 sq km is required. Of this, forest area is about 130.75 sq km. The total cost of the project is estimated at ₹81,800 crore. The Nicobar Islands fall in the Sundaland Biodiversity Hotspot. This region covers the western half of the Indonesian archipelago, a group of some 17,000 islands stretching 5,000 kilometers, and is dominated by the islands of Borneo and Sumatra. Independent experts and scientists have raised several environmental concerns with the project. These include loss of biodiversity and impacts on the indigenous people like the Shompen and Great Nicobarese in the ecologically sensitive islands. Great Nicobar is home to a very rich ecosystem, including 650 species of angiosperms, ferns, gymnosperms, bryophytes, among others and 1800 species of fauna, some of which are endemic to this area.Union environment minister Bhupender Yadav in August last year said that “exemplary mitigation measures” have been incorporated to minimise the environmental impact of the project, “keeping the strategic, national and defence interests” in mind.There is a petition pending in the National Green Tribunal challenging various aspects of the Great Nicobar project including forest and environment clearance granted to it.A larger bench of NGT, Eastern Zone consisting of six judicial members heard Ashish Kothari Vs the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) on Thursday. During the proceedings, the bench recommended that the Centre may wish to include heads of significant government departments involved in the project like the Secretary, Ministry of Tribal Affairs and the head of National Biodiversity Authority in the monitoring of mitigation plans. Aishwarya Bhati, additional solicitor general of India took the bench through the Centre’s stand and reiterated the contents of the affidavits submitted by the Centre in the past. Bhati acknowledged that the projects are huge and will have an impact on biodiversity of the region.“These are four big projects that are coming up here. At least three of these are huge projects. Solar plant is a smaller project, which is to cater to them. But still we are only using 1.8% of the area of Great Nicobar. With three new sanctuaries, with the rest of the area being completely forested, with biodiversity being protected, with our commitment to protect it, we are trying as best as we can to mitigate the impacts of the activity being done,” she said.The matter has been posted for hearing on November 7.