Ecological Concerns Over Great Nicobar Project: Jairam Ramesh Writes to Defence Minister

In a fresh communication to the Defence Ministry, Jairam Ramesh described the proposed Great Nicobar development as an 'ecological catastrophe.' He emphasized that while the government uses national security as a shield for the project, it is primarily a commercial venture. Ramesh noted that several naval facilities like INS Baaz have been waiting for simple runway extensions for years due to environmental hurdles, yet this massive project was fast-tracked. He called for the government to respect the rights of tribal populations and urged the minister to review alternative sites that were previously recommended by senior naval experts to minimize biodiversity loss.