Great Nicobar Project

Sabang’s future lies in differentiation. It can become Indonesia’s western maritime-services hub as Great Nicobar anchors container movement, creating economic spillover across the Andaman Sea without forcing Jakarta into a security-heavy frame or rivalry narrative.

Rahul Gandhi and Congress party have actively aligned themselves with the propaganda to obstruct the Great Nicobar Project.

"This is not development. This is destruction dressed in development's language," Rahul Gandhi accused.

Land-locked or maritime-hesitant nations inevitably find themselves at the mercy of those who command the oceans. For India, blessed with one of the longest coastlines and a commanding position astride the Indian Ocean, the imperative is stark: it must fully realise its maritime potential or risk remaining a continental giant overshadowed by true blue-water powers.

The government's choice to develop Great Nicobar is not a concession to development lobbyists. It is the result of a collaborative process that included WII, ZSI, BSI, SACON, the EAC, the NGT, a public hearing in Campbell Bay, and the courts.

If anyone requires a practical demonstration of what it means to sit beside a critical strait and have the power to threaten, facilitate and weaponise global trade, Iran has been providing it since February 2026.