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A bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud issued the notice to the poll panel.
As we frantically chase the ways of developed countries, we are somewhere forgetting to reflect back and acknowledge with humility the existence of our indigenous tribes and their cultures. This reality check repeatedly came up in discussions during the recent launch of Islands in Flux by Pankaj Sekhsaria.
The vice chancellor of Presidency University Anuradha Lohia inaugurated the book and American journalist and author Madhushree Mukherjee initiated an insightful talk with the author on some of the burning issues on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The book is a compilation of the author's articles on key issues that becomes relevant to consider regarding the beautiful but fragile and strikingly vulnerable Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Sekhsaria gave an instigating presentation on how rich the biodiversity of the islands is and it is alarming, how they are being threatened. The author's exemplary and impactful wildlife photography paired with the stories that he related, made the presentation even more interesting. One of them was a picture of the nest of the 'edible-nest swiftlet' bird. The nest of this bird which looks like a silvery substance is made from its saliva and, as the name suggests, is edible.
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It is so precious and coveted in the international market that nowadays they are collected even before the bird finishes making it. Sekhsaria's indignation was evident in his mocking tone regarding not only the government's utmost negligence towards uplifting the Island tribes but also an attitude of overlooking them as something that needs to be cleared away for the advancement of their proposed projects.
He raised questions regarding the suitability of the infrastructure projects in the Islands that are prone to earthquakes once in every two weeks. He also questioned the relevance of making roads in the islands when improving the waterways can serve better.
Student, Statesman Print Journalism School
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