Overview
- On Monday, June 22, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh wrote to Union Shipping Minister Sarbanand Sonowal asking for the tender timeline and precise rules on private and public shareholding, bidder eligibility and any ministry funding for the Galathea Bay transhipment port.
- Ramesh cited PPPAC records that call for at least 55% Indian-owned shareholding in the project's special purpose vehicle and that identify two main risks: building a large greenfield port and diverting transshipment traffic from established hubs such as Colombo, Singapore and Port Klang.
- He said environmental impact assessments for the multi-component Great Nicobar plan are demonstrably inadequate and warned construction would damage coral, forests and indigenous rights, echoing wider opposition led by Rahul Gandhi and environmental groups.
- The PPPAC reportedly denied the ministry's request for Viability Gap Funding, which prompted Ramesh to ask whether the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways will instead provide capital support from its budget and when private partners will be invited and selected.
- The exchange raises a choice between the government's strategic framing and questions about commercial viability, and it could delay the project while ministers, Parliament and regulators address ownership rules, funding clarity and environmental and tribal safeguards.