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Congress person Jairam Ramesh wrote to Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav connected Sunday (May 10, 2026), claiming that the Great Nicobar Island improvement project would "destroy" the unsocial ecosystem there, and urging him to pause, reflect, and revisit the task successful its contiguous plan and detail.
In his missive to Mr. Yadav, Mr. Ramesh said the studies based connected which biology clearance has been granted to the task are “grossly inadequate” and determination has been a “mockery of the Environmental Impact Assessment process”.
Mr. Ramesh highlighted that information experts person written that the country's indispensable information needs tin beryllium met without inflicting specified "ecological devastation".
"I privation to reiterate that the Great Nicobar Island's biodiversity is globally unique, and caller discoveries are being made from clip to time. It is this unsocial ecosystem that volition beryllium destroyed by the Great Nicobar Island improvement project," the erstwhile Environment Minister said successful his missive to Mr. Yadav.
Mr. Ramesh argued that the compensatory afforestation statement is wholly bogus and the Minister knows it.
"Security experts person themselves written that the country's indispensable information needs tin beryllium met without inflicting specified ecological devastation. I erstwhile again impulse you to pause, reflect, and revisit the task successful its contiguous plan and detail," the Congress wide caput in-charge communications asserted.
Mr. Ramesh said it is evident that the studies based connected which biology clearance has been granted to the task are not adjacent accelerated Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) and are based connected baseline information postulation implicit a fewer days and weeks astatine champion and are grossly inadequate.
"These reports are an insult to subject and marque a mockery of the EIA process. All my efforts to find the 'comprehensive studies, elaborate assessments and robust Environmental Impact Assessment and Environmental Management Plan' relied connected successful the FAQs person failed," helium said.
"The 'Great Nicobar Project: FAQs' published by the authorities connected May 1, 2026 stated that 'The imaginable ecological impacts of the task person been comprehensively identified, assessed, and are being efficaciously managed done a robust Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process and a elaborate Environmental Management Plan [EMP].
“I person already responded to these FAQs successful sizeable item connected May 3, 2026. I present privation to marque a fewer further points pursuing the exchanges we ourselves had successful penning successful September 2024 connected this substance of large [and grave] nationalist importance," Mr. Ramesh said successful his letter.
The instrumentality mandates that larboard projects, particularly those successful the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are subjected to broad EIA studies, helium pointed out.
Considering the unsocial biodiversity and ecology of the Great Nicobar Island, a robust and implicit baseline survey needs to screen astatine slightest 3 seasons, truthful that seasonal variations are adequately studied and assessed, helium said.
The assemblage circumstantial EIA Manual for ports and harbours issued by Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) besides requires the postulation of astatine slightest 2 seasons physical, chemic and biologic baseline information isolated from oceanographic data, Mr. Ramesh pointed out.
In summation to the supra requirement, clause 8(i) (c) of the ICRZ Notification,2019 besides mandates a broad EIA for projects located successful debased oregon mean eroding stretches of the coast, Mr. Ramesh said.
The value of a Comprehensive EIA for larboard projects was reiterated by 1 of Mr. Yadav's distinguished predecessors, Prakash Javadekar, connected May 5, 2015, successful the Lok Sabha, portion rejecting a petition from Gujarat authorities to see clearance for ports based connected Rapid EIA studies, the Congress person said.
"I person besides work the judgement of the NGT dated April 3, 2023 holding that determination are 'unanswered deficiencies' successful the clearance and directing the constitution of a High-Powered Committee (HPC) to re-visit the biology clearance.
The MoEF&CC has filed affidavits earlier the NGT claiming that the deliberations and study of the HPC constituted pursuant to orders of the NGT are confidential," Mr. Ramesh said successful his letter.
The consequent judgement dated February 16, 2026, has relied lone connected the conclusions of the study of the High-Powered Committee, without the Report forming portion of the grounds earlier the Court, helium said.
"I americium astatine a implicit nonaccomplishment to recognize the logic and legality down the assertion of the MoEF&CC that the HPC's study is confidential. This goes against each basal principles of transparency and accountability to which you assertion commitment," Mr. Ramesh asserted.
When the archetypal biology clearance appraisal process was successful nationalist domain, is it ineligible to contend that the merchandise of a tribunal mandated reconsideration workout is confidential, helium asked.
"I would beryllium gladsome to stock the afloat extracts from your ain Ministry's documents from which I person quoted successful this missive that intelligibly contradict the FAQs," Mr. Ramesh said.
The Congress past week had flagged successful item concerns related to ecology, tribal rights, transparency and security, implicit the Great Nicobar project, and asserted that these considerations indispensable beryllium debated successful a parliamentary forum.
The Opposition enactment had claimed that the Modi authorities is "rattled" and successful harm power mode aft Leader of Opposition successful the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi's caller sojourn to Great Nicobar.
In a statement, Mr. Ramesh had said, "The Modi Government, intelligibly successful harm power mode aft the hugely impactful sojourn of the Leader of the Opposition successful the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, to Great Nicobar connected April 28 2026, issued a property enactment connected the Great Nicobar Island Development Project 3 days later."
During his sojourn to Great Nicobar successful the past week of April, Mr. Gandhi had alleged that the Great Nicobar task astatine Campbell Bay successful Andaman and Nicobar Islands was "one of the biggest scams and gravest crimes against the earthy and tribal practice of the country".
The authorities connected May 1 released a elaborate connection with answers to FAQs (frequently asked questions).
"The Great Nicobar Project is simply a strategical inaugural to fortify India's beingness successful the Andaman Sea. It seeks to equilibrium port-led maturation with calibrated biology safeguards. Protection of indigenous communities remains cardinal to its planning," the authorities connection had said.
"The task combines strategic, economic, and ecological priorities. This ensures that improvement is sustainable, inclusive, and aligned with nationalist interests," it had said.
