India launches massive infrastructure plan for Great Nicobar island

India is preparing an extensive infrastructure programme on Great Nicobar, the southernmost island of the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago. Central to the plan is a mega-port designed to handle transshipment traffic, complemented by an international airport, a newly planned city, a power plant, an industrial park and a military base. The island’s proximity to the Strait of Malacca offers strategic advantages for both commercial shipping and defence monitoring in the Indo-Pacific region.

Authorities aim to divert cargo that currently passes through ports such as Singapore, Colombo and Port Klang. The development will be carried out in three phases, with the entire scheme expected to be finished around 2047. This initiative is part of a broader push by New Delhi to expand its maritime and strategic infrastructure, alongside other large projects like the Upper Siang Multipurpose dam in Arunachal Pradesh.