Congress flags fears of mass displacement, warning tribals in Great Nicobar face survival threats under the ₹72,000-crore project.
BY PC Bureau
New Delhi, September 8 — The Congress has launched a blistering critique of the government’s ₹72,000-crore Great Nicobar mega-infrastructure project, with Sonia Gandhi calling it an “ecological disaster in the making” and Rahul Gandhi branding it a “misadventure trampling on tribal rights.”
In a signed editorial published in The Hindu on Monday, Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi argued that the project, which proposes a transshipment port, township, airport, and power plant, represents one of the gravest missteps in recent policymaking.
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“There has been no shortage of half-baked and ill-conceived policymaking in the last 11 years. The latest in this series is the Great Nicobar mega-infrastructure project,” she wrote, warning that it “threatens one of the world’s most unique flora and fauna ecosystems” and mocks “all legal and deliberative processes.”
Tribal rights uprooted
Gandhi highlighted the plight of the Nicobarese and Shompen tribes. She noted that ancestral Nicobarese villages were evacuated after the 2004 tsunami, with the promise of eventual return. The current project, she said, permanently erases that possibility, “ending its dream of returning to its ancestral villages.”
For the Shompen, a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG), the threat is even graver. A large slice of their reserved forest will be diverted, she argued, exposing them to a massive influx of tourists and settlers. “Ultimately, the Shompen will find themselves cut off from their ancestral lands and unable to sustain their cultural and economic existence,” she wrote, calling the government’s insistence on pushing ahead “shockingly insistent.”
“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… pic.twitter.com/3mM4xHKq04
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) September 8, 2025
Legal and environmental safeguards bypassed
The editorial accused the government of systematically undermining constitutional and statutory protections. Sonia Gandhi noted that provisions under Article 338A requiring consultation with the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes had been ignored, and forest rights were brushed aside despite clear obligations under the Forest Rights Act, 2006.
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She also cited lapses in environmental regulation, including a flawed Social Impact Assessment, revocation of a Letter of No Objection by the Nicobar Tribal Council, and dubious compensatory afforestation plans that would raze forests in one part of the country while planting eucalyptus in another. “This is not afforestation; this is ecological vandalism,” she said.
Biodiversity at risk
Sonia Gandhi’s article pointed to the destruction of turtle nesting sites, coral reefs, and habitats of the Nicobar long-tailed macaque, raising doubts over the validity of impact studies. “Evidence has emerged that the institutes were made to conduct assessments under highly unusual conditions, bordering on irregularities,” she said.
The project area also falls within a seismically active zone. Gandhi recalled the devastating 2004 tsunami and questioned the wisdom of building a mega-port and airport in a region prone to earthquakes and tsunamis.
Rahul Gandhi amplifies concerns
Echoing his mother’s concerns, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi tweeted on Monday:
“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.”
Political and ecological flashpoint
The Congress’ intervention adds to criticism already raised by environmentalists, scientists, and tribal rights groups. Experts have called the assessments “deeply flawed,” warning that the diversion of 8.5 lakh trees and 15% of the island’s landmass would permanently alter its ecology.
Despite these concerns, the government has pressed ahead, pitching the project as a strategic and economic necessity, given its location in the Indian Ocean. But with Sonia and Rahul Gandhi sharpening the Congress’ attack, the Great Nicobar project is set to become a flashpoint in India’s political and ecological debates.
“The very survival of the Shompen and Nicobarese tribes is at stake. Our commitment to future generations cannot come at the cost of destroying one of the most unique ecosystems on earth,” Sonia Gandhi concluded.
