Plea before NGT seeks full disclosure of panel report on Great Nicobar Project
New Delhi/ Sri Vijaypuram (Port Blair): A new interlocutory application filed before the National Green Tribunal by activist Ashish Kothari has sought complete disclosure of the high-powered committee (HPC) report that reviewed alleged gaps in the clearances granted to the Rs 81,000-crore Great Nicobar Island mega-infrastructure project. The application also challenges the Centre’s decision to keep the report confidential.
In a report published by The Indian Express, Kothari has argued that the government’s claim of “strategic and privileged information” is being used to avoid judicial scrutiny, calling it contrary to facts. The plea states that the Environment Ministry’s refusal to share the report is “illegal and violative of principles of natural justice”, especially since the document directly concerns the clearances he has already challenged.
The application has been filed in ongoing proceedings before a six-member NGT bench headed by Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava. The Bench is hearing two petitions by Kothari, one alleging violations of the Island Coastal Regulation Zone 2019 notification and another seeking a reconsideration of the environmental clearance granted to the project.
The HPC was constituted in April 2023 on the Tribunal’s directions to address “unanswered deficiencies” related to the project’s environmental impact. The committee was headed by former Environment Ministry Secretary Leena Nandan. The Ministry has earlier told the NGT that no part of the proposed trans-shipment port falls in a no-go development zone under the island’s coastal regulation framework, a point Kothari’s counsel has disputed.
The Great Nicobar project includes a trans-shipment port, an airfield for both civil and military use, a township, and a 450 MVA power plant based on gas and solar energy. The plan spans 166 sq km and requires diversion of 130 sq km of forest land.
According to an affidavit filed by the Environment Ministry on July 5, the HPC report was submitted to the Tribunal in a sealed envelope. A sealed copy was again circulated to the Bench on October 30 during the previous hearing.
In the new application, Kothari has urged the Tribunal not to rely on the findings of the sealed report, arguing that any decision based on undisclosed material would compromise natural justice and the right to a fair hearing. The plea notes that over 40 documents related to the project’s clearance process, including the environmental impact assessment and masterplan, are already public, and questions why the HPC’s review alone has been classified as confidential.
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TN Assembly elections: Eight-month pregnant homemaker wins Thiru Vi Ka Nagar seat for TVK
Chennai (PTI): Before giving birth, she had already delivered a mandate—a symbol of hope for Thiru Vi Ka Nagar.
Echoing Delhi’s 2013 “common citizen” political churn associated with the rise of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), an eight-month-pregnant homemaker, M R Pallavi, has been elected as an MLA from Chennai’s Thiru Vi Ka Nagar constituency, emerging as one of the notable first-time faces of the Vijay-led TVK in the recently held Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.
In the narrow lanes of Thiru Vi Ka Nagar, a steady stream of media personnel has been making their way to Pallavi’s residence—a scene reminiscent of the result day in Delhi when journalists thronged the modest home of Rakhi Birla, who had won from Mangolpuri on an AAP ticket.
Pallavi, 36, a homemaker educated up to class XII, defeated the DMK candidate K S Ravichandran by a margin of 22,333 votes in the reserved Thiru Vi Ka Nagar Assembly constituency.
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam emerged as the single largest party by winning 108 seats, while DMK and AIADMK got 59 and 47, respectively.
Pallavi’s victory has drawn attention due to her personal circumstances. She campaigned extensively while eight months pregnant, going door-to-door to reach voters.
According to local accounts, she even fainted once during the campaign but continued her outreach.
She has not spoken to the media following her victory, as doctors have advised her to rest. Her husband, Rajesh, briefly recounted her campaign efforts.
A self-professed admirer of actor-turned-politician Vijay, Pallavi joined TVK soon after its formation and is now among its first-time legislators.
Doctors have advised her to be hospitalised around May 20, as she is expecting her second child. Ahead of that, voters in Thiru Vi Ka Nagar have entrusted her with representing them in the state Assembly.
Political observers say the rise of candidates like Pallavi signals a possible shift in Tamil Nadu’s political landscape, with voters backing a new party and candidates from non-traditional backgrounds.
