New Delhi ): Congress leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, on Monday shared Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi's article on social media to highlight the injustices inflicted on the Nicobar's people and its delicate ecosystem by the Great Nicobar Island project.
The Great Nicobar Island Project is a major Indian government initiative on Great Nicobar Island aimed at holistic development and strategic positioning, featuring a transhipment port, an international airport, an energy plant, and a township.
In a post shared on X, Rahul Gandhi said, "The Great Nicobar Island Project is a misadventure, trampling on tribal rights and making a mockery of legal and deliberative processes." Through this article, Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Smt. Sonia Gandhi highlights the injustices inflicted on Nicobar's people and its delicate ecosystem by this project. Must read."
In an Editorial in The Hindu, Sonia Gandhi raised concerns that the project threatens "one of the world's most unique flora and fauna ecosystems and is highly susceptible to natural disasters." Sonia Gandhi said, "The totally misplaced Rs 72000 crore expenditure poses an existential danger to the Island's indigenous tribal communities."
She argued that the ancestral villages of Nicobarese tribals fall within the project's proposed land area, and these were forced to evacuate their villages during the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami; now, this project will permanently displace this community.
Sonia Gandhi also argued that the Shompen face an even greater threat as the Island's Shompen policy, notified by the Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs, specially required the authorities to prioritise the tribe's welfare and "integrity" when considering large-scale development proposals.
"Instead, the project denotifies a significant part of the Shompen tribal reserve, destroys the forest ecosystems where the Shompen live and will cause a large-scale influx of people and tourists on the island," she added. The Congress leader also stated that the constitutional and statutory bodies established to preserve tribal rights have been sidestepped throughout this process.