Prime Minister Narendra Modi has reiterated the importance of the Great Nicobar Island Project, describing it as a development initiative that will transform the region into a key maritime and air connectivity hub in the Indian Ocean. The Prime Minister on Friday shared an article penned by Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav, underscoring the project’s strategic, defence, and national significance.
Taking to X, the Prime Minister’s Office said the Union Minister explained how the Great Nicobar Island Project would become a prime example of “economy and ecology complementing each other.” The project, estimated to cost over ₹72,000 crore, has drawn sharp criticism from opposition parties, particularly the Congress, which has flagged ecological and social concerns.
In his column, Yadav argued that the decision to pursue the project was made after “due consideration of its ecological, social, and strategic aspects.” He added that the integrated development plan includes an international container transshipment terminal (ICTT) with a 14.2 million TEU capacity, a greenfield international airport, a 450 MVA gas and solar-based power plant, and a new township spread across 16,610 hectares.
“The project is designed to transform Great Nicobar into a major hub of maritime and air connectivity in the Indian Ocean Region and poses no threat to the island’s tribal groups, does not come in the way of any species, and does not jeopardise the eco-sensitivity of the region,” Yadav wrote.
The government has maintained that the project’s infrastructure package will not harm the ecological balance of the island or the indigenous communities residing there. It also emphasises that development and environmental protection can be pursued simultaneously.
However, critics have raised red flags. Days before the Prime Minister’s endorsement, Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi wrote a column warning that the plan threatened “one of the world’s most unique flora and fauna ecosystems,” which she said is already highly vulnerable to natural disasters. Gandhi argued that the project’s massive expenditure would “pose an existential danger” to the island’s tribal communities.
The debate reflects the growing divide between the government and opposition on balancing large-scale infrastructure projects with environmental and indigenous rights. While the Centre highlights long-term economic and strategic gains, sceptics continue to question whether such a transformation can be achieved without endangering the fragile ecological and cultural fabric of Great Nicobar.
