National Green Tribunal Clears Great Nicobar Island Project

The India===National Green Tribunal (NGT) has cleared the Rs 80,000-crore India===Great Nicobar Island mega infrastructure project, upholding its environmental clearance from November 2022. A special six-member bench, led by Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava, dismissed petitions challenging the project, emphasizing its strategic importance for India. The project includes a transshipment port, an integrated township, an airport, and a power plant, spanning 166.10 sq km. The NGT found no major coral reefs in the direct project area and deemed one-season environmental data sufficient for port projects. It also confirmed no part of the project falls in ecologically sensitive ICRZ-IA areas. Environmental activist Ashish Kothari's concerns were rejected, with the tribunal noting that previous issues were addressed by a High-Powered Committee. The NGT directed the India===Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change to implement a coral protection and regeneration plan involving scientific agencies like the India===Zoological Survey of India and the India===National Institute of Oceanography. The tribunal stressed the need for a balanced approach, ensuring strict compliance with environmental safeguards while recognizing the project's national strategic imperatives.