Jairam Ramesh alleges govt using China narrative to silence Great Nicobar critics

Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi led Central government of attempting to discredit critics of the Great Nicobar Island Project by portraying them as “soft on China”, while claiming that the Centre itself had pursued a policy of “Continuing, Calibrated Capitulation to China”.
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‎In a strongly worded post on X, Ramesh alleged that genuine environmental concerns over the mega infrastructure project were being brushed aside through a politically driven campaign.
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‎“The Modi Govt has now launched a propaganda campaign through its ecosystem to portray all those concerned about the ecological havoc that will be caused by the Great Nicobar Island Project as being ‘soft on China’,” Ramesh wrote. “This is the height of hypocrisy, coming as it does from a Govt that practices the 4C policy—Continuing, Calibrated Capitulation to China.”
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‎The Congress leader linked the controversy surrounding the project to the government’s broader approach towards China after the 2020 Galwan Valley clashes. Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks following the Ladakh confrontation, Ramesh alleged that the Prime Minister had effectively absolved China despite the deaths of 20 Indian soldiers.
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‎“It was the PM who gave an inexplicable clean chit to China on June 19, 2020, in a brazen insult to the 20 jawans who had been martyred earlier in Ladakh,” he said.
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‎Ramesh also accused the government of conceding traditional patrolling and grazing rights in parts of Ladakh during talks with Beijing. He further criticised India’s growing trade imbalance with China, claiming that the country registered a trade deficit of nearly $115 billion with Beijing in 2025-26, which he said had adversely affected Indian industries, particularly MSMEs.
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‎He additionally cited alleged disclosures by senior Army officers regarding China’s role in planning and supporting Pakistan’s response during “Operation Sindoor” in May 2025, alleging that the government had remained silent on the matter.
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‎The Great Nicobar Island Project, which includes a transshipment port, airport, township and power infrastructure in the ecologically sensitive Andaman and Nicobar archipelago, remained central to Ramesh’s criticism.
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According to him, the project was “overwhelmingly a commercial enterprise” and the proposed transshipment port lacked any meaningful military dimension. He claimed that proposals to strengthen strategic infrastructure at INS Baaz and other Andaman and Nicobar Command facilities had long been ignored.
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‎“The Great Nicobar Island Project that the PM is bulldozing through is, in all likelihood, going to be part of the sprawling Modani business empire,” Ramesh alleged, invoking a term often used by Opposition leaders to suggest close ties between the Modi government and the Adani Group.
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‎He warned that the project could lead to severe ecological and humanitarian consequences, echoing concerns raised by environmental groups and tribal rights activists about deforestation, biodiversity loss and the impact on indigenous communities.
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‎The Centre has consistently defended the Great Nicobar project, maintaining that it is strategically and economically significant for India’s maritime interests in the Indo-Pacific region. Government officials have said the project is aimed at strengthening trade connectivity and logistics infrastructure while ensuring environmental safeguards are in place.