‘The project will facilitate physical and cultural decimation of indigenous people’
Environmentalists have decried the Great Nicobar project as ecocidal and genocidal for the island and its inhabitants ever since the government of India envisioned it in 2021. The project includes a transshipment port, airport and power plant, proposed to be built on the southern tip of Great Nicobar island. But Great Nicobar is home to tribes like the Nicobarese and the Shompen, the latter being a particularly vulnerable tribal group, which have special needs and rights. The arrival of people from outside could expose these tribes to cultures and diseases against which they have no defence, Pankaj Sekhsaria, curator of The Great Nicobar Betrayal, a collection of articles on the Great Nicobar Project published by media outlets, tells Down To Earth. Excerpts:
The Great Nicobar Project has all the hallmarks of a disaster—seismic, ecological, human. Why did it get the go-ahead?
I find this difficult to understand, particularly since the concerns are quite clear, well known and well documented for these islands. I think, there is a lack of awareness in the policy ecosystem as well as a complete buy in into “one” kind of idea of economic development—big infrastructure. Coupled with an ignorance of the situation on the ground, the challenges and the vulnerabilities, this makes for a deadly combination.
Essays in the book show how the National Green Tribunal (NGT) and the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) did not put a check on the project.
It is not about just putting a check on the project. Institutions like WII, NGT and others have actually facilitated the clearances the project needed. The Directorate of Tribal Welfare of the Andaman and Nicobar Administration, the main body tasked with ensuring tribal welfare, is on record promising the project proponent all help in clearing regulatory processes, including for de-reservation of tribal reserve land, for the project. This is really unfortunate. And this is also not an isolated instance. We are seeing this again and again. The autonomy and scientific rigour of institutions like WII and NGT are clearly compromised. The position of NGT, as the lawyer and environmental activist Norma Alvares explains so clearly in her essay “The flawed judgment”, is contrary to the purpose of what NGT was created for.
Can the Nicobarese and Shompen survive the project?
The project is a huge attack on their rights that are enshrined in law and in the Constitution. It will, without doubt, facilitate physical and cultural decimation of these people. For instance, the Shompen are a particularly vulnerable tribal group (PVTG) with special needs and special rights. The project document says that this island will have about 0.3 million people by 2050. Now just look at one statistic—the ratio of one Shompen individual to that of the outsider: it is 1,000 outsiders to one Shompen. Their needs, their demands for land, for water, for resources, waste management... and the cultural impact the project will have. The indigenous communities stand no chance whatsoever. The Nicobarese have, on record, said they are opposed to the project and they should be allowed to go back to their traditional lands. They were moved to settlements after the tsunami and have been wanting to go back ever since. They are not being allowed to.
What can be done to save the indigenous peoples and the endemic biodiversity?
This project should not be pursued if we want to ensure that these communities have a future. This is in addition to the huge ecological cost that will have to be paid. And it is shocking that the geological volatility of the landscape is being ignored. The islands sit on the Ring of Fire, the most tectonically active zone of the planet. Earthquakes happen here on a weekly basis. The site of the project in Great Nicobar saw a permanent subsidence of 15 feet (more than 4.5 m) in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake of December 26, 2004. We will be putting that entire investment of Rs 72,000 crore in harm’s way. We will put the settler populations of 0.3 million people in harm’s way. And this after we have destroyed the rare rich ecological wealth, as also the indigenous communities who have been here for thousands of years.
What would you say to those who cite strategic importance and national security as the rationale behind this project?
I would request them to look at the project documents. This is an entirely commercial project. The heart of the proposal is a Rs 40,000 crore transshipment terminal which is a commercial project. Over 100 sq km, most of it pristine forest, is to be made available for a township and tourism project. Where is the strategic dimension?
Do you think the government will rethink the project?
There is compelling evidence that we have put together in the book to show the folly the project is. The new Union Minister for Tribal Affairs has agreed to look into the project, which suggests that the concerns are being acknowledged. Hopefully, there will be a complete rethink
This was first published in the 16-30 September, 2024 print edition of Down To Earth