Island on Edge

A Rs 82,000 crore infrastructure mega project has been planned and given clearance to take place on the Great Nicobar Island. The plan to build a transshipment terminal, airport, powerplant and an entirely new township comes at great cost to an already fragile biodiversity, the culture of indigenous communities and even their languages. While authorities associated with it have tried their best to kick the project off the ground, they have failed to cover up the many legal and ethical blind spots that now threaten to put the project in murky water.