India’s new strategic maritime hub takes shape at Great Nicobar

New Delhi

The Great Nicobar Project, work on which is underway, aims to transform the Great Nicobar into a strategic maritime and economic hub by leveraging its proximity to the global East–West shipping route and reducing dependence on foreign transshipment ports keeping in view India's defence and national security, an official statement said on Friday. The project, which will strengthen India's strategic presence in the Andaman Sea and Southeast Asia, seeks to balance port-led economic growth with calibrated environmental safeguards and protection of indigenous communities.