Can the world’s most unique, diverse and endangered regions be saved from turning into a jungle of concrete? Is our current model of development bereft of a policy to preserve the natural habitat, lifestyle, and dialects of the aboriginals? Andaman and Nicobar, a group of 572 islands located in the south-eastern part of the Bay of Bengal in the Indian Ocean, away from the mainland, is passing through such a dilemma these days.
These islands are located near Indonesia and Thailand. In 2013, they were included in UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Programme. The place is home to rich biodiversity and an extraordinary variety of wildlife. According to the government, it is one of the best-preserved tropical rain forests in the world.
The so-called ‘holistic development’ of Great Nicobar is under question also because the project was initiated towards the end of 2020 when the world had come to a standstill due to the pandemic. On the one hand, there was an orgy of death and instability—the country was in a grave economic crisis—and on the other hand, machinations were on for expediting approvals to such a huge project. In terms of investment and size, this project is much bigger than any scheme proposed earlier.