India certified full compliance with the Forest Rights Act for the Great Nicobar mega-project — a project where not a single forest rights claim had been settled before the compliance certificate was issued.
On January 7, 2026, tribal leaders from Great Nicobar Island allege they were called to a government meeting and presented with 'land surrender certificates' for an Rs 81,000-crore infrastructure project — a transshipment port, international airport, township, and power plant — without being clearly informed of what they were signing over. The Ministry of Tribal Affairs nonetheless issued a no-objection certificate declaring complete compliance with the Forest Rights Act. The minor procedural footnote: not a single forest rights claim was settled before the compliance was certified. Written objections from the Tribal Council remained unanswered. The Shompen and Nicobari communities — Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups — are slated for relocation as part of the project. The administration's position appears to be that consent is best understood as a formality completed once the documents exist, the meeting was scheduled, and everyone has already left the room.