New Delhi, 13 May (H.S.): Congress General Secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh has written to Union Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram, alleging violation of the Forest Rights Act, 2006, in the Great Nicobar mega infrastructure project. He stated that the rights of tribal communities and legal procedures have been disregarded to advance the project.

The letter claims that on May 1 this year, the central government asserted in the 'Great Nicobar Project: FAQ' that all statutory processes and policy provisions for protecting tribal communities have been followed in the project. Dismissing this as entirely false, he urged the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to intervene immediately.

He emphasized that consent of the Gram Sabha is mandatory under the Forest Rights Act, 2006. The Gram Sabha must consider proposals related to forest land diversion, certify that the rights of concerned communities have been settled, and only then grant consent. The Supreme Court had also mandated this process in the Niyamgiri case.

Ramesh stated that for the diversion of over 13,000 hectares of forest land for this project, Gram Sabhas were held only in non-tribal communities settled in Campbell Bay, Laxmi Nagar, and Govind Nagar, and these proposals were presented as consent from tribal communities. This process contravenes the provisions of the Forest Rights Act.

He noted that only the Nicobari and Shompen communities hold traditional and community rights, yet their actual consent was not obtained. The letter also alleges that a No Objection Certificate issued by the President of the Little and Great Nicobar Tribal Council on August 13, 2022, was portrayed as consent from the entire Nicobari community, even though the President himself later withdrew it.

He asserted that consent given on behalf of the Shompen community by an official of the Andaman Primitive Tribes Development Committee is not legally valid. He also accused a conflict of interest between the Andaman Primitive Tribes Development Committee and the project proponent, Andaman and Nicobar Islands Development Corporation.

He pointed out that a certificate issued by the Deputy Commissioner of Nicobar district on August 18, 2022, claimed that all rights under the Forest Rights Act had been settled, whereas in reality, the committees under the Act were formed for the first time in July 2022, and the process of settling rights had not even begun.

He remarked that the FAQ mentions the Jarawa policy, even though the Jarawa community does not reside on Great Nicobar Island. Nicobari community members living in tsunami relief colonies have been consistently demanding to return to their traditional lands, but the administration has taken no steps in this direction.

Jairam Ramesh appealed to the Union Tribal Affairs Minister to direct the Andaman and Nicobar administration to withdraw the August 18, 2022, certificate, the proceedings of the sub-divisional level committee on August 13, 2022, and the so-called Gram Sabha proposals of August 12, 2022. He stressed that the Forest Rights Act, 2006, must be implemented transparently and accountably in accordance with its provisions and procedures.

---------------

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar