Taking note of security considerations, the Defence Ministry has cancelled a No Objection Certificate (NOC) issued by the Tri-Services Command in Andaman and Nicobar Islands to a foreign firm to build an amusement park on an island.
The NOC was given in 2009 to an Indian-Malaysian firm to construct a three-star hotel and yacht bay at Viper Island and the Defence Ministry cancelled it in May this year after conducting a probe following concerns raised by Andaman and Nicobar Islands MP Bishnu Pazda Ray.
In a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Defence Minister A K Antony in September last year and recently, Ray said the proposed amusement park was located close to Navy and Coast Guard harbour and other defence establishments thereby posing a security risk.
The Andaman administration was planning to build a 50-berth Yacht Marina, which was supposed to be developed by the company for promoting tourism in the region. Ray had also demanded an inquiry into alleged transfer of land to private companies at the rate of Rs 1 per annum.
Rattled by land scams like Sukna in West Bengal in 2008 and Adarsh Housing Society, Mumbai in 2010, the Defence Ministry two years back passed an order that local commanders will not be authorized to issue NOC for land transfers and the Defence Ministry will give the NOC. Moreover, any sale of defence land will have to be approved by the Union Cabinet, officials said on Tuesday.