- विज्ञापन -
New Delhi: Congress MP Jairam Ramesh has expressed strong support for the Association of Indian Primatologists, commending their public opposition to the Great Nicobar mega infrastructure project. On X, he praised the group’s bravery in raising awareness about the ecological risks, particularly the threats posed to local wildlife.
Ramesh highlighted the association’s concerns, including the lack of transparency regarding the Wildlife Conservation Plan (WCP) for the project. The Association pointed out that the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation Limited (ANIIDCO) claimed to have adopted the WCP from the Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History (SACON), but the plan was not made publicly available. Additionally, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) denied access to the document under the RTI Act, citing Section 8.1 (a).
The primatologists also raised alarms over the project’s significant deforestation, warning that the loss of forest cover could disrupt the local climate conditions, such as temperature and humidity, which are crucial for the survival of the Nicobar long-tailed macaques. The destruction of their habitat could also lead to reduced precipitation, further impacting food sources for these macaques and other species in the ecosystem.
In their statement, the primatologists warned that such drastic land-use changes could push the macaque population toward extinction and emphasized that the species is understudied, making it unlikely that SACON could have gathered enough data to create an effective WCP. Ramesh supported their concerns, calling the Great Nicobar project a “recipe for ecological disaster,” and urged a reassessment of its environmental impact.
