Great Nicobar and the politics of environmental destruction

By Fr Cedric Prakash SJ

The editorial of the latest issue of the Economic and Political Weekly (Vol. 61, No. 22, 30 May 2026) carries a compelling and incisive title: “The Great Nicobar Project: A Holistic Folly.” Its central argument is unequivocal: the project's claims of strategic significance are questionable, while the environmental damage it will inflict is certain.

The editorial opens with a powerful observation:

“The Project for Holistic Development of Great Nicobar Island, an ₹81,000 crore mega infrastructure project, is more folly than national gain. With growing opposition to the project, including legal challenges, the government has cloaked the project in the language of national security. This is despite the fact that the original project documents, including the 2021 request for proposal issued by the NITI Aayog, hardly refer to defence or security, making it clear that, in its actual intent, the project is a purely commercial endeavour built on large-scale destruction of the ecologically pristine islands and the alienation of their indigenous people.”

A national campaign opposing the project has described it as “a disaster in the making” and has demanded an end to what it calls the Modi-Adani nexus being imposed on the nation. Critics argue that this alliance, along with other crony-capitalist interests, has inflicted immense damage on India's fragile ecosystems. The evidence surrounding the Great Nicobar Project is deeply troubling: nearly 160 square kilometres of rainforest are expected to be destroyed; millions of trees may be felled; and the project threatens both natural and tribal heritage. The indigenous Shompen and Nicobarese communities—distinct Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) with unique cultures, languages, and traditional ways of life centred largely on Great Nicobar Island—face the prospect of displacement and irreversible disruption. Above all, the project poses a grave threat to one of India's most fragile ecosystems.

The EPW editorial further notes:

“The project envisions an international container trans-shipment terminal at Galathea Bay, a greenfield international airport, a township and tourism project, and a power plant. The primary trunk infrastructure of the programme alone is slated to destroy 130 square kilometres of primarily tropical rainforests, which, by the government's underestimation, will involve felling 8.65 lakh trees, a fraction of the likely millions. This will, in a hare-brained plan, be compensated by planting a few lakh trees in distant Haryana and Madhya Pradesh.”

The editorial goes on to point out that the Nicobar Islands are India's only region within the globally significant Sundaland biodiversity hotspot, home to rare and endemic species found nowhere else on earth. The idea that the destruction of such an ecological treasure can be compensated for through plantations in distant semi-arid regions is ecological nonsense. Galathea Bay, where the trans-shipment terminal is proposed, is among the world's most important nesting sites for the endangered leatherback turtle. Yet, in January 2021, the bay was denotified as a protected sanctuary to make way for the project, contradicting the government's own National Marine Turtle Action Plan.

These are damning facts. They reveal a regime that appears to care little for environmental protection when commercial interests are at stake.

June 5 was once again observed as World Environment Day. Predictably, there was a flurry of activities. Several newspapers appeared with green-themed front pages and carried full-page advertisements extolling environmental protection, many sponsored by government agencies that are themselves responsible for environmental degradation. Across the country, there was the customary rush to plant saplings, endless speeches about environmental awareness, and no shortage of photo opportunities. As in previous years, symbolism and tokenism overshadowed meaningful action. Within days, much of this temporary concern for the environment will fade into oblivion.

Meanwhile, India remains in the grip of a deepening environmental crisis. A recent article in the online journal Countercurrents titled “The Scorching Heat and Silent Death: India's Heat Crisis Is Killing the Poor in Silence” paints a chilling picture. It states that a single day of extreme heat may cause approximately 3,400 excess deaths across India, while a five-day heatwave could result in nearly 30,000 deaths. Uttar Pradesh alone accounts for more than 8,000 of those fatalities. The five states bearing nearly two-thirds of India's heatwave-related deaths are Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Gujarat.

These figures represent a catastrophe unfolding largely unnoticed. Several parts of India are currently experiencing unprecedented heatwaves, with the poor and marginalized suffering the most. In May, devastating unseasonal storms swept through Uttar Pradesh, killing at least 120 people and injuring many more. Elsewhere, the Aravalli hills continue to be ravaged despite Supreme Court directives prohibiting mining activity in the region.

India's dependence on fossil fuels remains another major concern. Nearly 75 per cent of the country's energy supply still comes from fossil fuels, despite global commitments to transition towards cleaner alternatives. Fossil fuels are the principal drivers of climate change, undermining human health, livelihoods, and ecosystems while threatening planetary well-being. They are also major sources of particulate matter and ozone pollution. According to global estimates, air pollution contributed to approximately 6.7 million deaths in 2019 alone.

Yet mortality figures tell only part of the story. Cleaner air would significantly reduce the burden of disease, improve quality of life, lessen hospital admissions, and ease pressure on healthcare systems. The benefits of environmental protection extend far beyond conservation; they are central to public health and human dignity.

This year's World Environment Day theme, “Inspired by Nature. For Climate. For Our Future,” echoes the priorities emphasized at the United Nations Climate Summit, COP30, held in Belém, Brazil, in November 2025. Forest conservation, the transition away from fossil fuels, and the implementation of the Paris Agreement goals featured prominently in those discussions. Sadly, developments in India suggest that those priorities remain far removed from the concerns of those in power.

Public awareness of environmental issues is essential. However, awareness campaigns ring hollow when those championing environmental protection are simultaneously aligned with land mafias that destroy wetlands for luxury real-estate projects or with mining interests that plunder natural resources. It is therefore unsurprising that India ranked a dismal 176th out of 180 countries in the latest Environmental Performance Index (EPI). Few indicators more starkly reflect the state of environmental governance in the country.

Just ten days ago, on 26 May, India lost one of its most courageous environmental defenders with the untimely passing of Fr Bolmax Pereira of Goa. Fr Bolmax consistently challenged powerful vested interests responsible for damaging Goa's fragile ecosystem. He spearheaded the successful #SaveMollemForest campaign against the Adani-led double-tracking railway project through the Mollem Reserve Forest. He repeatedly warned about the coal dust pollution affecting ordinary Goans and exposed the nexus between politicians and mining interests.

His words remain profoundly relevant:

“The wilful damage being inflicted on our environment and ecology is so very colossal. There is a dire need to stay united to save our state from any further destruction. We all need to be very concerned about the air, water and sound pollution that is battering our little Goa.”

The question before us today is simple: Are we prepared to honour Fr Bolmax's legacy, or will we simply look away?

Will we remain silent while Great Nicobar is transformed in the name of development? Will we continue to tolerate environmental destruction disguised as national progress? Or will we finally challenge policies and systems that place profit above people, ecology, and future generations?

The environment does not belong to governments, corporations, or political elites. It belongs to all of us—and to generations yet unborn.

That is why we must ask, now more than ever: Whose environment is it, anyway?

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Fr Cedric Prakash SJ is a human rights, reconciliation and peace activist

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