Great Nicobar Island project violates several laws, rights of Shompen: Petition in Calcutta HC

There has been a fresh legal challenge to the controversial Great Nicobar Island project. The Rs 72,000-crore infrastructure project could spell devastation for the ecologically fragile region inhabited by the Shompen, a vulnerable indigenous group whose numbers are less than 230.

A petition filed in the Calcutta High Court in December has highlighted glaring violations of the Forest Rights Act in the clearances granted to the mega project. The petition was filed by Meena Gupta, a former secretary of tribal affairs and also environment and forests.

Crucially, the petition alleges that the recognition of forest rights certificate is void. It is the primary document under the Forest Rights Act allowing the project to go ahead. This means that the large forest area of the tribal communities on Great Nicobar cannot be diverted for use by the project.

The petition

On December 18, a bench of Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Chatterjee admitted the petition and, in their order, noted the concerns listed by the petitioner. In the second hearing on January 16, the respondents were given five more weeks to file their responses with the next hearing scheduled for February 20.

The respondents include the Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, the…

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