Congress leader K C Venugopal and several Opposition members raised concerns over the project’s impact on the ecology of the islands.THE PARLIAMENTARY Committee on Public Accounts on Wednesday discussed the Great Nicobar Island (GNI) project, with chairperson and Congress leader K C Venugopal and several Opposition members raising concerns over the project’s impact on the ecology of the islands. Venugopal is learnt to have directed Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan to submit a reply on the issues linked to the project during the committee’s next meeting.The committee’s agenda for Wednesday’s meeting was to discuss the CAG audit paras pertaining to Andaman and Nicobar Islands Institute of Medical Sciences and the Chandigarh Welfare Board. It took suo motu cognisance of the GNI project, which has been criticised by the Congress and the Leader of Opposition, Rahul Gandhi.Venugopal raised questions on the absence of the Andaman and Nicobar chief secretary at the meet and sought an explanation from the Home Secretary.Read | As NGT clears Great Nicobar project, a look at its strategic importance and ecological falloutSpeaking to reporters after the meeting, Venugopal said the officer, who was summoned by the committee, had on Tuesday night informed that he would not be present at the meeting. “He asked for permission… I did not grant it,” he said.“The Andaman and Nicobar chief secretary was not present at the meeting and the committee took a serious note of that. The committee has asked the Union Home Secretary to give an explanation on why he was not present at today’s meeting,” said Venugopal.It is learnt the BJP members on the panel demanded that the discussion be held as per the agenda of the meeting, but Venugopal said since the GNI project was a matter of public importance, it could be discussed impromptu.Explained | Forest Rights and the Great Nicobar Mega-Project: The case before the Calcutta High CourtThe Opposition members on the panel posed a set of questions to the Union Home Secretary. When he said he was not prepared to answer questions related to the project, Venugopal told him he should brief the committee on the issue during the next meeting.Story continues below this adThe GNI project, spread over 166 sq km and featuring a transhipment container port, an international military-civilian-use airport, power infrastructure and a greenfield coastal city, involves the felling of 13,000 hectares of forests.LoP Gandhi has alleged that the project is “one of the biggest scams” against India’s natural and tribal heritage.Asad Rehman is with the national bureau of The Indian Express and covers politics and policy focusing on religious minorities in India. A journalist for over eight years, Rehman moved to this role after covering Uttar Pradesh for five years for The Indian Express. During his time in Uttar Pradesh, he covered politics, crime, health, and human rights among other issues. He did extensive ground reports and covered the protests against the new citizenship law during which many were killed in the state. During the Covid pandemic, he did extensive ground reporting on the migration of workers from the metropolitan cities to villages in Uttar Pradesh. He has also covered some landmark litigations, including the Babri Masjid-Ram temple case and the ongoing Gyanvapi-Kashi Vishwanath temple dispute. Prior to that, he worked on The Indian Express national desk for three years where he was a copy editor. Rehman studied at La Martiniere, Lucknow and then went on to do a bachelor's degree in History from Ramjas College, Delhi University. He also has a Masters degree from the AJK Mass Communication Research Centre, Jamia Millia Islamia. ... Read More