Great Nicobar Project-The Hindu-09-11-2022

Great Nicobar Project-The Hindu-09-11-2022

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INCLUSIVE GROWTH:

CONTEXT :

NITI Aayog-piloted Rs. 72,000-crore integrated project in Great Nicobar includes the construction of a mega port, an airport complex, a township spread over 130 sq. km of pristine forest and a solar and gas-based power plant.

IN DETAIL :

Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation Ltd. (ANIIDCO) is the project proponent.

Ecologists and researchers have been raising concerns about this project for over a year.

Great Nicobar

About:

Great Nicobar is the southernmost island of the Nicobar Islands Archipelago.

It covers 1,03,870 hectares of unique and threatened tropical evergreen forest ecosystems.

It is home to a very rich ecosystem, including 650 species of angiosperms, ferns, gymnosperms, and bryophytes, among others.

In terms of fauna, there are over 1800 species, some of which are endemic to this area.

Tribe:

The Mongoloid Shompen Tribe, about 200 in number, live in the forests of the biosphere reserve, particularly along the rivers and streams.

Another Mongoloid Tribe, Nicobarese, about 300 in number, used to live in settlements along the west coast.

After the tsunami in 2004, which devastated their settlement on the western coast, they were relocated to Afra Bay on the North Coast and Campbell Bay.

Issues Raised by Environmentalists:

This project is likely to impact turtle and megapode nesting sites and coral reefs at the islands

Close to 81.74% of the island is covered with national parks, reserves and forests.

The project will have a direct impact on the biodiversity and cascading effects on the indigenous Onge tribe.

The Onge are one of the tribes of India's Andaman Islands.