Andaman Lt. Governor holds meeting with MoEFCC Officials to discuss Great Nicobar project

Andaman and Nicobar Islands Lt. Governor Admiral D. Ok. Joshi (Retd) held a gathering with Chandra Prakash Goyal, chairperson of the high-level committee of the Union Ministry of Surroundings, Forest and Local weather Change (MoEFCC), to overview the sustainable improvement of Nice Nicobar Islands, an official mentioned on Saturday (July 4, 2026).

Mr. Goyal and Dr. Satya Prakash Yadav, a everlasting member of the committee, known as on the Lt. Governor on Friday (July 3, 2026) and held detailed discussions on conservation and regulatory framework below the Environmental Affect Evaluation (EIA) and Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notifications, diversion of island forest cowl, compensatory afforestation and non-displacement of tribal communities at Nice Nicobar Islands, the official mentioned.

Within the assembly, it was mentioned that in the course of the building and operational phases of mega strategic and infrastructure tasks, mitigation measures have to be carried out to eradicate environmental harm, safety of wildlife and socio-cultural ecosystems within the Nice Nicobar Islands.

In the course of the assembly, the Lt. Governor highlighted that the Nice Nicobar Island mission, which not too long ago secured last environmental clearance from the Nationwide Inexperienced Tribunal (NGT), is about to place the Andaman and Nicobar Islands as a significant maritime and logistics hub within the Indo-Pacific area.

Within the first part, the terminal is anticipated to deal with round six million TEUs (twenty-foot equal unit) at an estimated price of ₹20,000 crore, with completion focused inside three years of graduation. Within the last part, capability may scale as much as 21 million TEUs, making it one of many largest container ports not solely in India however doubtlessly throughout the Indo-Pacific, one other official current within the assembly mentioned.

Highlighting the strategic location of Nice Nicobar close to the Malacca Strait, he famous that the port may emerge as a dominant transhipment hub in international delivery routes. The mission can be executed below the public-private partnership (PPP) mannequin utilizing the owner framework, whereby the federal government will primarily put money into core infrastructure and connectivity, whereas non-public gamers will convey within the bulk of investments.

Alongside the port, a greenfield worldwide airport can be deliberate, with no less than one runway anticipated to be operational inside three years.

Moreover, the prevailing runway at INS Baaz (Indian Naval Air Station in Campbell Bay) is being prolonged to just about three kilometres to accommodate massive plane.