The Congress party has criticized the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Union government for its handling of the Great Nicobar Island mega-infrastructure project, which has a budget of ₹92,000 crore (approximately $11 billion USD). Congress leader Jairam Ramesh stated that the government's claims of not displacing local tribes are false, as a draft relocation plan for Nicobarese families has been prepared by the district administration. This plan has raised confusion and anxiety among locals, who are concerned about their rights and ancestral lands. The project, which received Stage-I clearance in 2022, aims to develop a transhipment port, an airport, a power plant, and a township. However, its clearances are currently being challenged in the Calcutta High Court due to alleged violations of consent procedures and local tribes' forest rights. Ramesh highlighted the contradiction in the government's stance, questioning why a relocation plan exists if the project does not intend to displace tribes.