Marxist Critique of The Great Nicobar Betrayal: Neoliberalism, Hegemony, and Ecological Dispossession

This paper critiques the Great Nicobar Betrayal, highlighting the link between neoliberal development, state narratives, and ecological dispossession. Drawing on David Harvey's critique of neoliberalism and Antonio Gramsci's concept of cultural hegemony, the analysis examines how the large-scale infrastructure project on the ecologically sensitive Great Nicobar Island exemplifies a capitalist logic prioritizing profit over people and nature. The study reveals how developmental rhetoric conceals the violent displacement of indigenous Nicobarese communities, the commodification of ecological landscapes, and the silence of dissent through state-led ideological apparatuses. The project, presented as a symbol of national progress and strategic security, is situated within broader patterns of ecological imperialism, where nature is reduced to a resource frontier and tribal communities are reframed as obstacles to growth. The paper reveals how consent is manufactured and resistance delegitimized through state policies, environmental impact assessments, and counter-narratives. The critique emphasizes the need for an ecologically informed class-conscious politics to confront the intertwined crises of dispossession, environmental degradation, and cultural erasure in the Anthropocene.