The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) plans to invite bids for the first phase of the proposed international container transhipment terminal at Great Nicobar in the Bay of Bengal by July if the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) returns to power, senior ministry officials said.
“Inviting tenders and finalising a winner for the first phase of the international container transhipment terminal at Nicobar is the utmost priority as part of our 100-day plan,” a senior MoPSW official said.
The terminal is part of the Rs 75,000 crore Great Nicobar Island project, a Rs 75,000 crore mega project proposed to be implemented at the southern end of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, which is currently under the scrutiny of National Green Tribunal (NGT).
While tenders for the Rs 18,000 crore first phase of the transhipment terminal at Nicobar were expected to be invited in February 2024, criticism by local non-governmental organisations and media over the projects and its impact on the Shompen tribes delayed the process of inviting tenders, the official said.
Another ministry official added that the government has received expressions of interest (EoIs) from 11 players for the Rs 41,000-crore international transhipment port project, and environmental clearances for the project from the NGT are expected in the next couple of months.
“Environmental clearances for the Great Nicobar Island project were expected by February but were delayed. We expect the NGT to clear the project by the time the new government is formed,” the second official said.
Emails sent to the MoPSW and the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) remained unanswered till the time of publishing.
Larsen and Toubro Ltd, Afcons Infrastructure Ltd, and JSW Infrastructure Ltd are among the companies that have submitted EoIs for the international transhipment port project.
The Great Nicobar Island Project
The Rs 75,000 crore Great Nicobar Island project includes an international container transhipment terminal, an international airport, a township development, and a 450 MVA (Megavolt-Ampere) gas and solar-based power plant over 16,610 hectare on the island.
The Union Environment Ministry in November 2022 gave an in-principle (Stage 1) clearance for the diversion of 130.75 square km of forest in Great Nicobar Island for the project, but the National Green Tribunal overturned the clearance in April 2023.
The NGT had constituted a high-powered committee headed by the Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), to revisit the environmental clearance provided for the project and submit its proceedings within two months.
The expressions of interest are likely to be evaluated and finalised only after the project gets clearance from this committee.
Environmental and human rights concerns
In April 2023 the NGT ordered a stay on the Great Nicobar Island project and constituted a committee to revisit the environmental clearance granted by the environment ministry.
Earlier in February, 39 scholars from 13 nations penned an open letter to President Droupadi Murmu, cautioning that the proposed endeavour poses an existential threat to the indigenous Shompen tribes inhabiting the island.
“If the project goes ahead, even in a limited form, we believe it will be a death sentence for the Shompen, tantamount to the international crime of genocide,” the letter read.
The Shompen rely on the rainforest for existence and have little contact with the outside world. The academics believe that the Shompen could die from diseases if they come into contact with outsiders.
In January 2023 the Constitutional Conduct Group, which includes nearly 100 former civil servants, wrote to President Murmu protesting the government’s push for a mega-infrastructure project in the Great Nicobar Island.
Another contention of the appeals was that the project would hurt the rich biodiversity of the area and damage the habitats of endangered species.
The Galathea Bay in the island is a nesting ground for birds and the project area is part of Coastal Regulation Zones-IA and IB.
According to the appeals, only one season of data has been taken as against the requirement of taking data for three seasons for comprehensive impact assessment, environmental impact assessment reports were not conducted as per Terms of Reference, turtle nesting sites will be disturbed, dolphins and other species will be harmed by dredging.
The project area covers nearly 15 percent of the thickly forested Great Nicobar island, which is spread over 900 sq km. This is one of the largest, single forest diversions in recent times, and nearly a quarter of all the forest land diverted in the past three years across the country.
Between 100 and 400 Shompen live on Great Nicobar, a thickly forested 900 sq km (350 sq mile) island, about 800 miles east of Chennai and only 93 miles north-west of Aceh, on the Indonesian island of Sumatra.
The project implementation agency is Andaman & Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corp.
Political Backlash
Environmental experts also claimed that the government delayed inviting tenders for the Great Nicobar Island project to avoid any political backlash. Congress candidate Kuldeep Rai Sharma and the Bharatiya Janata Party nominee Bishnu Pada Ray were the main candidates contesting the lone Lok Sabha seat in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Union territory.
“The mega project has been the main debate among the candidates for the ongoing elections in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands,” Bhupesh Tewari, who works with indigenous groups in India, told Moneycontrol.
He added that had the current government invited tenders for the project, the political backlash could have been nationwide, not just local.
Last week seven members of the Shompen tribe exercised their voting rights for the lone Lok Sabha seat in the Union territory for the first time in Lok Sabha elections.
The total number of voters in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands is 3.15 lakh, which includes 1.64 lakh males, 1.51 lakh females and four voters in the third gender category.
The voters include 39 Great Andamanese tribes of Strait Islands, 68 Onge tribes at Hut Bay and 98 Shompen tribes of Great Nicobar Island.
Twelve candidates, including two women and five independents, will contest the lone Lok Sabha seat in 412 polling stations.
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