Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, demanding that offshore mining projects along the coasts of Kerala, Gujarat and Andaman and Nicobar Islands be cancelled.

Gandhi said that opening up offshore mining blocks to private players “without any rigorous assessment of its impact” was a matter of concern. The Congress leader said studies pointed to the threat to marine life by such projects and accused the government of “willfully greenlighting activities without a scientific assessment”.

Gandhi that the Offshore Areas Mineral Development and Regulation Amendment Act, 2023 was met with “strong objections”. He said that projects such as the ones that have been proposed could damage coral reefs and deplete fish stocks.

“In this backdrop, when the Ministry of Mines invited tenders for grant of license for 13 offshore blocks, protests erupted against this arbitrary move,” he said in the letter to Modi.

Gandhi expressed concerns about proposals for mining construction sand on the coast of Kollam in Kerala, which is a vital fish breeding habitat, and for polymetallic nodules off the coast of the Great Nicobar islands – a marine biodiversity hotspot.

Polymetallic nodules and crusts are mineral deposits in the ocean that are rich in metals like lithium, cobalt, nickel, manganese and rare earth elements.

On November 28, the Ministry of Mines had invited tenders for offshore mining blocks in 13 locations including three in Gujarat, three in Kerala and seven off the coast of the Great Nicobar Island.

The proposed lease is for 50 years, The Indian Express reported.

On March 18, Minister of State for Environment Kirti Vardhan Singh had said that “the offshore mining blocks have been carefully selected, ensuring that these protected areas and fishing areas remain unaffected”.

He also said that the Centre had held consultations with stakeholders, The Indian Express reported.

Scroll reported on Thursday that the proposed project in Kerala’s Kollam “poses an existential threat for fishing communities and marine ecology”.

The Great Nicobar Island Development Project involves the construction of a Rs 36,000-crore trans-shipment port in addition to an international airport, a power plant, a township and tourism infrastructure spread over more than 160 square kilometres of land.

It was granted environmental clearance by the Centre on November 4, 2022. The project will subsume 166 square kilometres of the island’s total area of 921 square kilometres. Experts and researchers have raised serious concerns about the impact of the project on the environment and the indigenous communities of the island.

Also read: