The Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) chairperson K.C. Venugopal has sought a report from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs on the Great Nicobar Project, even as the Congress has accused the government of imperilling the fragile Nicobar islands ecosystem on the Nicobar islands for commercial purposes.

The PAC was meeting to deliberate the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report on the “establishment and functioning of Andaman and Nicobar Islands Institute of Medical Sciences”.

During his concluding remarks, Mr. Venugopal flagged the Great Nicobar Project, pointing to the rising panic among the residents there as 1.5 crore trees are slated to be felled to make way for the project. He further pointed out, sources said, that the naval base INS Baaz was not given additional land for its expansion; and the government was exploiting this fragile ecology for commercial activities. Congress MP from Punjab Amar Singh also backed Mr. Venugopal, detailing the implications of the project, which the government, he said, was not accounting for.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Anurag Singh Thakur interceded to point out, sources said, that this issue was beyond the agenda of the meeting. Mr. Venugopal agreed, though he directed Home Secretary Mr. Govind Mohan to submit a comprehensive report detailing all aspects of the project.

On the listed subject of the day, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Institute of Medical Sciences, the panel pointed out there was a massive funding deficit and indefinite delay in completing the civil construction. The CAG report has also flagged deficiencies in equipment and patient care, with over 40% shortfall in prescribed types of medical equipment, non-availability of essential diagnostic tools, and only five functioning operation theatres, leading to months of delay. The MHA, which is the monitoring agency, shifted the blame for these deficiencies to the Union Ministry of Health, which is the executing body for the hospital.