"Interview: Now ‘everyone is afraid’ of speaking about the Great Nicobar project, says ornithologist", 11 June 2025

.. One proposal, from the Indian Navy, would involve the temporary use of Tillanchang Sanctuary in Little Nicobar to test a dummy missile, another, from the Border Roads Organisation, suggested a survey before the construction of a road through Galathea Bay in Great Nicobar, and the third, from the Indian Coast Guard, would entail the installation of a coastal surveillance radar and power supply source in Narcondam island, in the Andaman group. Rahmani, who had been on the board since 2007, saw all three projects as detrimental to the unique bird and wildlife population of the islands. He told the other members present in the meeting that the “test firing was likely to have an impact on the life cycle of the megapode”, the location of the proposed road “was the nesting site of the leatherback turtle”, and given that Narcondam was the only home for the critically endangered Narcondam hornbill, “any activity that had an impact on this species should be viewed with utmost caution”. After deliberations, the standing committee decided on a common next step for all three cases – a team that included Rahmani would conduct site inspections for the three projects, and submit a report to the environment ministry, which would take a final decision. In the next few months, Rahmani visited the islands of Little Nicobar, Great Nicobar and Narcondam for the first time – each just for a few hours. He spotted 21 endemic hornbills in Narcondam..

..Rahmani emphasises that the only way to ensure the protection of the megapode and other birds on the islands was to demarcate strictly protected areas and enforce restrictions within them. He noted that a community reserve model that envisioned the participation of tribal populations could help restore the habitat.