New Delhi, May 10 — The Congress on Sunday renewed its opposition to the Great Nicobar Island development project, calling the government’s compensatory afforestation argument “bogus” and demanding public access to the High-Powered Committee (HPC) report appointed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT). In a letter to Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav, former union minister and Congress MP Jairam Ramesh said the project-which involves felling more than seven lakh (700,000+) trees-should be paused and revisited in its current design and detail.
Ramesh challenged the Frequently Asked Questions published by the Union government and rejected the claim that ecological impacts are adequately addressed by a detailed Environmental Management Plan. He noted the HPC was constituted by the NGT in 2023 after the tribunal found “unanswered deficiencies” in the original environmental clearance and directed a reassessment.
Opposing the ministry’s assertion that the HPC report is confidential, Ramesh wrote he was “at a complete loss to understand the logic and legality” of that stance, saying it contradicts basic principles of transparency and accountability. He questioned whether a court-mandated reconsideration could legitimately be treated as secret when the original appraisal and related documents were in the public domain.
Ramesh added that Environmental Impact Assessment reports, detailed project reports, the township master plan and the airport’s Detailed Project Report are publicly available, and therefore the HPC report should be too, to enable informed public debate. He warned that Great Nicobar’s biodiversity is “globally unique” and that the project would destroy an ecosystem from which new scientific discoveries continue to emerge. He reiterated that compensatory afforestation does not justify the damage and cited security experts who, he said, argue national security needs can be met without such ecological devastation.
The Environment Ministry has dismissed these environmental concerns, saying the Great Nicobar project balances port-led growth with calibrated environmental safeguards and protections for indigenous communities. The ministry said the plan aims to transform Great Nicobar into a strategic maritime and economic hub by leveraging its proximity-about 40 nautical miles-to the East–West shipping route and reducing dependence on foreign transshipment ports for defence and national security purposes.
According to the ministry’s statement, key project components include an international container transhipment terminal with a capacity of 14.2 million TEU, a greenfield international airport designed for 4,000 peak hour passengers, a 450 MVA gas- and solar-based power plant, and a new township spanning 16,610 hectares.
Original Source: https://www.morungexpress.com/afforestation-argument-bogus-congress-seeks-access-to-green-panel-report-on-great-nicobar-project
Category: India
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Publish Date: 2026-05-10 17:28:00
