Great Nicobar Island Project:
Great Nicobar Island (GNI) Project has drawn attention as one of India’s most ambitious infrastructure plans in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
- Despite environmental concerns, the project is crucial for turning Great Nicobar into a global maritime hub while considering ecology and tribal welfare.
- Great Nicobar Island (GNI) Project conceived by NITI Aayog and launched in 2021, aims to build an International Container Transshipment Terminal (ICTT), a greenfield international airport, a township, and a gas–solar power plant.
- It is implemented by Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation (ANIIDCO).
- It aligns with India’s Maritime Vision 2030 and is one of the key projects under the Amrit Kaal Vision 2047.
- The ICTT reduces India’s reliance on foreign ports like Singapore and Colombo, integrating India into global supply chains.
- Enhances civilian connectivity, tourism, and dual-use defence capability.
- Nicobar’s location near the Malacca, Sunda, and Lombok Straits allows India to monitor vital sea lanes for global trade and energy supply.
- Great Nicobar’s location gives India proximity to Sabang (Indonesia), Coco Island (Myanmar), and the proposed Kra Canal (Thailand), underscoring its central role in Indo-Pacific sea routes.
- Great Nicobar lies almost equidistant from Colombo, Port Klang, and Singapore, placing India at the centre of regional sea trade.
- The Andaman & Nicobar Islands serve as India’s first line of maritime defence and share sea boundaries with Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia, and Bangladesh, giving India a vast exclusive economic zone and continental shelf under United Nations Conference on the Laws of the Sea, 1982 (UNCLOS).
- GNI strengthens India’s naval reach in the Indo-Pacific, countering piracy, trafficking, terrorism, and great-power rivalries.
- Positions India as a proactive maritime power amidst rising presence of China and other navies in the IOR.
- Supports Act East Policy (2014) and the QUAD’s Indo-Pacific strategy, strengthening India’s role in regional security.
