Jairam Ramesh urges Centre to reconsider Great Nicobar airport, backs INS Baaz expansion
Congress MP Jairam Ramesh has urged the Indian government to reconsider a new airport project in Great Nicobar, citing severe ecological and social risks to the Shompen tribal community and protected forests. He suggests expanding the existing INS Baaz facility instead, questioning the government's sudden environmental concerns.
Why it matters
The debate highlights the tension between national strategic defense interests and environmental/indigenous rights in sensitive ecological zones.
Congress Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh , on Friday (June 12, 2026), wrote to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh urging him to reconsider the rejection of a full runway expansion at INS Baaz on Campbell Bay. He argued that the alternative now being pursued — a greenfield airport at Galathea Bay in Great Nicobar — carries far heavier ecological and social costs than the government has acknowledged.
The article focuses heavily on the opposition's critique of the government's environmental and social impact assessments.
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