How can India leverage Nicobar Islands for its Maritime Security and Economy?

– Arundhati Mathur

India finds itself in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and has quite an important place in the naval domain of Asia. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands rank high among India’s strategic assets for the protection of its maritime security and economic interests. Since these islands lie in proximity to the Strait of Malacca, a choke point through which more than 40% of the global trade flows, they provide India with an unmatched opportunity to project its power in the Indo-Pacific Domain. The present paper examines the mechanism by which the Nicobar Islands will effectively serve India in its strategic maritime posture and economic development; particular emphasis is laid on an integrated policy approach for growth and sustainability.

The Nicobar Islands, situated roughly 150 kilometres away from Aceh province in Indonesia, present a critical link in the surveillance of the Strait of Malacca. Such proximity offers India an opportunity to keep a presence in one of the most vibrant maritime thoroughfares (Holmes & Yoshihara, 2008). This potential finds expression in the Indian naval base at INS Baaz on Great Nicobar Island. With the capacity to operate long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft, it enhances India’s maritime domain awareness and serves as a deterrent to Chinese naval activities in that area (Pant & Joshi, 2020).

The Nicobar Islands enhance India’s potential for expanding maritime surveillance and deterrence. These outposts integrated into India’s Information Fusion Centre-IOR serve as primary conduits for tracking oceanic lanes and possible maritime security threats such as piracy and smuggling, as well as unauthorised military manoeuvres. This consideration becomes vitally important against the backdrop of China’s increasing submarine deployments in the Indian Ocean, which pose strategic challenges to India’s attempts at regional dominance (Rajagopalan, 2021). The islands thus increase India’s response options with strategic depth and become forward-operating bases for responding to maritime threats.

These islands form part of the Act East Policy of India, as well as the Indo-Pacific strategy. Treaties made with nations such as the USA, France and Australia paved the way for joint naval exercises and interoperability between countries, thereby making the Nicobar Islands the hub for multinational maritime cooperation (Mohan, 2021). In fact, inducting Great Nicobar Island as a hub for transhipment along with logistics and airport infrastructure is an indication of India’s intent to emerge as a prime maritime country in the Indo-Pacific (Mehta, 2022). Besides, they are part of India’s Indo-Pacific strategy as well. Treaties with the likes of the USA, France, and Australia will open up joint naval exercises and interoperability, thus making the Nicobar Islands a multinational maritime cooperation hub (Mohan, 2021). The ramping up of Great Nicobar Island to a transshipment hub with support from logistics and airport infrastructure shows India’s attention toward becoming a prime maritime power in the Indo-Pacific (Mehta, 2022).

The Nicobar Islands have decent untapped potential from an economic perspective. The vast Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and adjacency to the shipping route give credence to their claims to be seriously considered for the blue economy. Sustainable fisheries, aquaculture, marine biotechnology, and eco-tourism are some of the initiatives. Under the Umbrella of the Sagarmala Programme, which emphasises port-led development, the government should also consider the islands for development throughout the region (Ministry of Shipping, 2020).

One of the transformative developments is the Great Nicobar Island (GNI) development programme. Approximately $9 billion is the estimated investment to build the international container transshipment terminal, a greenfield airport, an energy grid either gas- or renewable-powered, and a township housing 250,000 people by 2050. With this infrastructure in place, India will not only lessen the dependence on foreign transshipment hubs like Colombo and Singapore but also position itself as a regional logistics hub (Sinha, 2021).

On the flip side, there is a potential for sustainable tourism as a concomitant with economic development. Biodiversity and natural beauty of the islands make them suitable for ecotourism projects that, if developed responsibly, could generate income for the local people while ensuring the protection of the fragile ecosystem. Policy frameworks should ensure that development respects the rights and traditions of indigenous communities like the Shompens and Nicobarese, which are already protected under the Andaman and Nicobar Protection of Aboriginal Tribes Regulation (NITI Aayog, 2022).

Environmental and strategic prudence must exert a counterbalance to the benefits mentioned. Infrastructure development may entail the destruction of coral reefs, the loss of mangroves, and disruption of marine biodiversity. Militarisation, therefore, may pose increased geopolitical tensions, largely with China. Hence, any strategic development must be consistent with environmental expectations and India’s obligations under the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Sustainable Development Goals (Ramesh, 2023). Ultimately, the Nicobar Islands offer India a very unique opportunity to further its maritime security architecture and economic pursuit in the Indo-Pacific. Their strategic location has to be substantiated through sustainable infrastructure and robust policy planning to have a place in the heart of India’s maritime doctrine. An integrated approach balancing defence, economic and environmental goals will ensure that the Nicobar Islands meaningfully contribute to India’s emergence as a responsible maritime power of influence.

References

Holmes, J. R., & Yoshihara, T. (2008). China’s naval ambitions in the Indian Ocean. Journal of Strategic Studies, 31(3), 367–394.
Mohan, C. R. (2021). India and the Indo-Pacific: Maritime Strategies. Carnegie India.
Mehta, T. (2022, December). India’s push for strategic presence on Great Nicobar Island. Hindustan Times.
Ministry of Shipping. (2020). Sagarmala: Building India’s Future. Government of India.
NITI Aayog. (2022). Eco-tourism model for the Nicobar Islands. Policy Paper.
Pant, H. V., & Joshi, Y. (2020). India’s Emerging Maritime Strategy in the Indo-Pacific. Observer Research Foundation.
Rajagopalan, R. P. (2021, January). India’s Information Fusion Centre in the IOR. The Diplomat.
Ramesh, J. (2023). Island dilemma: Development and conservation in the Andamans. Penguin India.
Sinha, A. (2021, August). How a transshipment hub on Great Nicobar will help India. Business Standard.