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Business Standard
27-05-2025
- Politics
- Business Standard
Great Nicobar project: Ministry reviewing tribal concerns, says Jual Oram
Union Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram on Monday said his ministry is examining objections raised by tribal communities regarding a mega infrastructure project proposed on Great Nicobar Island. The project, titled 'Holistic Development of Great Nicobar', involves building a transshipment port, an international airport, a township and a power plant over more than 160 sq km of land. This includes about 130 sq km of pristine forest, home to the indigenous Nicobarese and Shompen communities, classified as 'Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups' (PVTGs). When asked if the ministry was investigating complaints from tribal communities regarding the project, the minister told reporters, "Yes, it is under examination. I had also answered a question (in this regard) in Parliament. We are currently examining the documents they have submitted. After that, we will decide the course of action." On further questioning about what the ministry seeks to ascertain, Oram said, "First, we need to determine whether the 'gram sabha' (tribal council in this case) was held, what the 'gram sabha' recommended and whether there have been any violations." Interestingly, during a discussion in the Rajya Sabha on March 12, Oram said he was not aware of any objections raised by the tribal communities of Great Nicobar to the project. According to media reports, the Tribal Council of Little and Great Nicobar had withdrawn the no-objection certificate (NOC) it had issued in August 2022 for the denotification of 84.1 sq km of tribal reserve and diversion of 130 sq km of forests, alleging that important information was not revealed while seeking NOC. A tribal council is a local elected body and its approval is important for land diversion and forest clearances, just like the gram sabha's approval. Around 853 sq km of the island's total 910 sq km is designated as a tribal reserve under the Andaman and Nicobar (Protection of Aboriginal Tribes) Regulation, 1956. In tribal reserves, the tribal communities own the land and have full rights to use it for their daily needs. However, transferring, acquiring, or selling land in these areas is strictly prohibited. For the safety and protection of the Shompen tribe, the Andaman and Nicobar Administration introduced the Policy on Shompen Tribe of Great Nicobar Island on May 22, 2015. Union Minister of State for Tribal Affairs Durgadas Uikey informed the Lok Sabha on December 12 last year that, regarding the Great Nicobar Island project, the Shompen Policy allows development proposals subject to due consultation with the concerned authorities, which has been done". "A&N Administration has informed that the project will not disturb or displace any Shompen PVTG," he added.
Hindustan Times
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Great Nicobar project: Jual Oram says his ministry examining objections by tribal communities
New Delhi, Union Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram on Monday said his ministry is examining objections raised by tribal communities regarding a mega infrastructure project proposed on Great Nicobar Island. The project, titled 'Holistic Development of Great Nicobar', involves building a transshipment port, an international airport, a township and a power plant over more than 160 sq km of land. This includes about 130 sq km of pristine forest, home to the indigenous Nicobarese and Shompen communities, classified as 'Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups' . When asked if the ministry was investigating complaints from tribal communities regarding the project, the minister told reporters, "Yes, it is under examination. I had also answered a question in Parliament. We are currently examining the documents they have submitted. After that, we will decide the course of action." On further questioning about what the ministry seeks to ascertain, Oram said, "First, we need to determine whether the 'gram sabha' was held, what the 'gram sabha' recommended and whether there have been any violations." Interestingly, during a discussion in the Rajya Sabha on March 12, Oram said he was not aware of any objections raised by the tribal communities of Great Nicobar to the project. According to media reports, the Tribal Council of Little and Great Nicobar had withdrawn the no-objection certificate it had issued in August 2022 for the denotification of 84.1 sq km of tribal reserve and diversion of 130 sq km of forests, alleging that important information was not revealed while seeking NOC. A tribal council is a local elected body and its approval is important for land diversion and forest clearances, just like the gram sabha's approval. Around 853 sq km of the island's total 910 sq km is designated as a tribal reserve under the Andaman and Nicobar Regulation, 1956. In tribal reserves, the tribal communities own the land and have full rights to use it for their daily needs. However, transferring, acquiring, or selling land in these areas is strictly prohibited. For the safety and protection of the Shompen tribe, the Andaman and Nicobar Administration introduced the Policy on Shompen Tribe of Great Nicobar Island on May 22, 2015. Union Minister of State for Tribal Affairs Durgadas Uikey informed the Lok Sabha on December 12 last year that, regarding the Great Nicobar Island project, the Shompen Policy 'allows development proposals subject to due consultation with the concerned authorities, which has been done". "A&N Administration has informed that the project will not disturb or displace any Shompen PVTG," he added.
Hindustan Times
11-05-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Nicobar tribes watch as key road project gathers pace in the region
The Andaman and Nicobar Administration has invited financial bids to conduct a social impact assessment for land proposed to be acquired for an arterial road at Great Nicobar Islands (GNI) under the Great Nicobar Holistic Development Project , according to documents seen by HT. The so-called trunk road infrastructure will involve acquisition of approximately 90.935 hectares of private land for which a social impact assessment is mandatory. A total of 666.44 hectares is likely to be impacted by the trunk infrastructure, a notification issued by the directorate of social welfare, A&N administration on April 11 stated. The notification is available on the website of directorate of social welfare, A&N. Also read | Not aware of objections to Great Nicobar project: Govt The affected revenue villages in the trunk infrastructure project are Campbell Bay, Gandhi Nagar, Jogindher Nager, Govind Nagar , Laxmi Nagar, and Vijay Nagar. The road also traverses through a large stretch of forest area as per the map provided by the administration in the tender document. 'ANIIDCO Ltd Sri Vijaya Puram will be undertaking the work of constructing Trunk infrastructure at Great Nicobar Islands. The proposed land is admeasuring an area of 666.44 ha and the affected area to be covered under SIA study is 90.943 ha,' the notification says adding that the SIA report and social impact management plan should be completed within 6 months of issuance of the notification. Also read | 7 offshore mining blocks in Nicobar approved, Parl told ANIIDCO (Andaman & Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation Ltd) has been appointed as project proponent. ANIIDCO has submitted an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report to Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) for obtaining consolidated environmental and Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) clearance for the project, the tender document stated. Anthropologists have cautioned that such a road project needs the consent of tribal communities and forest dwellers such as the Shompen and the Nicobarese who are likely to impacted by it. 'It's important to understand how such a multi-infrastructure project impacts the Nicobarese and the Shompen. We know that the Andaman trunk route had a huge impact on the Jarawas exposing them to several negative sides of tourism and access. Such a trunk route could erode the Shompen culture. If at all, a road can connect the Nicobarese and Shompen villages because they have a symbiotic relationship. It's also very important to have the actual consent of these tribal communities,' said Anstice Justin, a Nicobarese anthropologist based on Port Blair. Also read | 'The Shompen way of life is set to be eroded,' says Nicobarese anthropologist Anstice Justin 'It's also very important to consider that the Shompen have very vulnerable immune systems compared to us,' he added. But such communities are not part of the social impact assessment, another expert added. 'The document doesn't mention the tribal villages affected nor even shows cause as to why they are not being included when it is precisely their ancestral and lived lands,' said a senior researcher who specialises on the Southern Nicobarese, who asked not to be named. The SIA is to be conducted in compliance with the Right to Fair Compensation; Right to Fair Transparency in Land Acquisition, Compensation and Transparency in Rehabilitation and Resettlement Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation Act,2013; and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency In Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation And Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Rules,2018. ANIIDCO did not respond to HT's queries on whether the assessment will cover particularly vulnerable tribal groups such as the Shompen and how impact on forest land will be impacted. The Great Nicobar Holistic Development Project has four major components : an International Container Transshipment Terminal (ICCT); an international airport; a power plant; and a township. The total cost is estimated at ₹81,800 crore. The Nicobar Islands fall in the Sundaland Biodiversity Hotspot and cover the western half of the Indonesian archipelago. HT reported on May 12, 2021 that the expert appraisal committee of environment ministry recommended the Great Nicobar township proposal for grant of terms of reference. Bhupender Yadav, union environment minister said in August last year that 'exemplary mitigation measures' have been incorporated to minimise the environmental impact of the project, 'keeping the strategic, national and defence interests' in mind. The Tribal Affairs Ministry is not aware of any objections raised by the Tribal Council of Little and Great Nicobar to the Great Nicobar mega infrastructure project, Union Tribal Affairs minister, Jual Oram said in Rajya Sabha in March.
Scroll.in
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Scroll.in
Great Nicobar Project: The tribal affairs minister's obfuscations in the Rajya Sabha
During a discussion in the Rajya Sabha on March 12, Union Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram made a number of assertions about the mega-infrastructure project proposed for the Great Nicobar island. Replying to questions by Saket Gokhale of the Trinamool Congress, Oram said that he was not aware of any objections to the project raised by the tribal communities of Great Nicobar. The island is home to two communities, the Nicobarese and the Shompen, which is classified as a 'particularly vulnerable tribal group'. Oram asserted that the project will not have any negative impact on the environment or the tribal communities there, that no one will be displaced and that only a little more than 7 sq km of tribal reserve land will be used for the project. He also professed ignorance of a video report with the opinions of these two communities put together by anthropologist Vishvajit Pandya as part of an empowered committee constituted in September 2020 by the island administration for assessing the impact of the mega-project. Oram's statements are in line with the government's public position on the project but a closer scrutiny of the facts, including his own statements in the recent past, reveals a conflicting picture. In fact, in one of his first interviews after taking charge of the ministry, he had told The Hindu in June 2024 that he would look into matters related to the clearances granted to the Great Nicobar project. The Shompen & Nicobarese tribes, a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group, have opposed the Great Nicobar Project. A video report documenting their resistance was submitted to the Empowered Committee (EC). Our RS MP Shri @SaketGokhale demanded answers: 👉🏻 Were the EC's… — All India Trinamool Congress (@AITCofficial) March 12, 2025 The violation of the rights of the Shompen and the Nicobarese communities and non-consultation with the National Council for Scheduled Tribes was also brought to the notice of the President of India in January 2023 by former bureaucrat EAS Sarma. A group of 70 former civil servants, under the banner Constitution Conduct Group, had written to the National Council for Scheduled Tribes in April 2023 raising concerns that 'the project will be extremely detrimental to both these groups'. It is rather unlikely given all this correspondence and reporting in the media that the matter would not have come to the notice of the ministry. Similar is the case with the November 12, 2022, letter sent to several authorities by the Great and Little Nicobar tribal council withdrawing its no-objection certificate, given in August 2022, for the diversion of the forest and denotification of the tribal reserve there for the project. Gokhale had made a particular reference to this letter and Oram's claim that he is not aware of this is surprising, to say the least. Not only was this letter widely reported in the media, the withdrawal of the no-objection certificate was explicitly highlighted in a series of letters written by Congress MP Jairam Ramesh in August 2024 to Bhupendra Yadav, Oram's counterpart in the environment ministry. Yadav had responded that due process had been followed and the tribal communities had not raised any objections during the official public hearing. Today, an important question raised in the Rajya Sabha on the Great Nicobar mega infra project was NOT answered on the grounds that the matter is sub judice. This was my response to this fallacious argument. — Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) March 12, 2025 The letter is also part of a recent petition in the Calcutta High Court filed by former environment and tribal secretary, Meena Gupta, which argues there are several violations of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, in the grant of permissions to the project. Oram's ministry, which is one of eight respondents, has also filed a response, denying the allegations and also asking to 'be removed from the list of respondents'. This position notwithstanding, Oram's claim that he is not aware of any objections clearly flies in the face of available facts. He in fact refused to answer arguing the matter was sub-judice, suggesting again that he is aware of the petition and the concerns it has raised. It is also important to note that more than 84.10 sq km of tribal reserve land is sought to be denotified for the project. The government and the minister are claiming the reduction in the area to be only about 7 sq km because another 77 sq kms of forest is to be re-notified as a tribal reserve. However, this 77 sq km area was actually a tribal reserve until a denotification was effected in 1972. What is happening now is only a renotification of land that was already meant for the tribal communities and has always been used by them. On the ground, the actual loss of access to land and forest is therefore higher. The Union Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change has been claiming that 8.5 lakh trees will get felled while executing the Great Nicobar Integrated Development Project. This has been known to be a gigantic under-estimate. Now we have independent estimates that… — Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) October 10, 2024 There is another rather interesting claim Oram made when he said he, as a tribal leader, met the Shompen, Jarawa, and Great Andamanese tribes and spent time with them. Barely anyone speaks the language of the Shompen, so it is not clear what he may have understood if he had a conversation. All of this is in addition, of course, to a more fundamental question that should be asked about the role and the purpose of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. Great Nicobar is home to some of the most remote and vulnerable communities in the country. One would have hoped that the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and the minister in charge would be right up there looking out for these people, their rights and their forests. What we have instead is not just an absence of that initiative, but a river flowing pretty much in the opposite direction.
The Hindu
04-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
‘Development' at the cost of Nicobar Islands
The famous tree crusader and tree lover Shri 'Vanajeevi' Ramaiah who passed away last month was a firm believer that trees are vital for our lives. This Padma Shri awardee planted over 1 crore saplings across Telangana, thus making us live in unison with nature. But the current dispute between the Telangana State government and the University of Hyderabad about the area of Kancha Gachibowli would have disappointed Ramaiah. While the University wants the land as a green forested area, as a reservoir for 700 varieties of plant species, 200 varieties of birds, and 10-20 different mammals to be preserved as nature's gift, the State government wants this area for technology parks and related purposes. The 'fight' has reached the Supreme Court, and we await its decision. Unfortunately, several other States across India face the same predicament, with land being used for hi-tech cities, pharmaceutical zones, highways, fast trains, and airports. While all these are needed for the public good, the question is: should these be at the cost of losing greenery, flowery plants, and tribal people who subsist on these? Will this not be a betrayal of what Vanajeevi Ramaiah stood for? We use the term 'betrayal' drawing from the perspective of Professor Pankaj Sekhsaria, who has over three decades of experience on the Nicobar Islands, examining environmental and wildlife conservation alongside the intricate connections between society, environment, science, and technology. He has curated a book called 'The Great Nicobar Betrayal', chronicling how the Central government has proposed to use the Nicobar Islands for several purposes: a trans-shipment facility at the Galathea Bay for access across the sea, building an international airport, and a power plant for electricity. In addition, a greenfield township is planned for increasing the population from the current 8,000 natives to about 3.5 lakh, by inviting people from mainland India to come and stay as citizens for these projects and to visit for holidays. The book has raised several important issues concerning the ecological splendour, with over 2,000 species of fauna and 811 species of flora in the islands, plus the future of the native people. All of these will be affected by the 'development' planned by the Central government. Furthermore, as the land is taken over for deforestation, the fate of the native Nicobarese tribe, particularly the vulnerable tribal group Shompen (see picture), which needs forests for livelihood, will be affected. Also, the giant leatherback turtles, found every season in the seacoast, will be in danger when the seacoast is taken over for development. The Ministry of Tribal Affairs is yet to answer this query. But, in January 2023, a group of former civil servants had written to the President of India, pointing out how the Indian government is out to destroy the pristine habitat, which is home to various rare and endemic species. They further pointed out how the government will 'compensate' this loss by planting forests in Haryana, 2,600 km away from Nicobar! India has, among the 200 countries across the globe, signed the Convention for Biological Diversity, which will 'reduce to near zero the loss of areas of high biodiversity importance, including ecosystems of high ecological integrity'. And, as the ex-civil servants have requested, the President and the Government of India should immediately stop the commencement of destructive projects in Great Nicobar. For interested readers, the book 'The Great Nicobar Betrayal' is available from Amazon and The Hindu Bookstore:
