The 'Andaman & Nicobar Islands' is a
union territory of
India. Informally, the territory's name is often abbreviated to 'A & N Islands', or 'ANI'. It is located in the
Indian Ocean, in the southern reaches of the
Bay of Bengal. It comprises two island groups - the
Andaman Islands and the
Nicobar Islands - which separate the
Andaman Sea to the east from the Indian Ocean. These two groups are separated by the 10° N parallel, the Andamans lying to the north of this
latitude, and the Nicobars to the south. The capital of this territory is the Andamanese town of
Port Blair.
The territory's population as per the most recent (
2001)
Census of India was 356,152. Added together, the total land area of the territory is approximately 8,249
km².
History
Name origins
The name ''Andaman'' presumably comes from ''Handuman'', which is
Malay for the Hindu god ''
Hanuman''.
The name ''Nicobar'' is Malay for ''land of the naked (people)''.
First inhabitants
The Andaman and Nicobar islands have been inhabited for several thousand years, at the very least. The earliest
archaeological evidence yet documented goes back some
2,200 years; however, the indications from
genetic,
cultural and
linguistic isolation studies point to habitation going back 30,000 to 60,000 years, well into the
Middle Paleolithic.
In the Andaman Islands, the various
Andamanese peoples maintained their separated existence through the vast majority of this time, diversifying into distinct linguistic, cultural and territorial groups. By the
1850s when they first came into sustained contact by outside groups, the
indigenous peoples of the Andamans were:
★ the
Great Andamanese, who collectively represented at least 10 distinct sub-groups and languages;
★ the
Jarawa;
★ the
Jangil (or ''Rutland Jarawa'');
★ the
Onge; and
★ the
Sentinelese (most isolated of all the groups).
In total, these peoples numbered somewhere around 7,000 at the time of these first encounters. As the numbers of settlers from the mainland increased (at first mostly prisoners and involuntary
indentured labourers, later purposely recruited farmers), these indigenous peoples lost territory and numbers in the face of land encroachment and the effects of various
epidemic diseases. The Jangil and most of the Great Andamanese groups soon became extinct; presently there remain only approximately 400-450 indigenous Andamanese, the Jarawa and Sentinelese in particular maintaining a steadfast independence and refusing most attempts at contact.
The indigenous peoples of the Nicobars (unrelated to the Andamanese) have a similarly isolated and lengthy association with the islands. There are two main groups:
★ the
Nicobarese, or ''Nicobari'', living throughout many of the islands; and
★ the
Shompen, restricted to the interior of
Great Nicobar.
Pre-colonial era
The islands provided a temporary maritime base for ships of the
Marathas in the 17th century. The legendary
privateer,
admiral Kanhoji Angre harassed colonial shipping routes with a base in the islands.
British colonial period
After an initial attempt to set up a colony in the islands by the British was abandoned after only a few years (
1789-
1796), a second attempt from
1858 proved to be more permanent. The primary purpose was to set up a
penal colony for dissenters and independence fighters from the
Indian subcontinent.
The British used the islands as an isolated prison for members of the
Indian independence movement. The mode of imprisonment was called ''
Kalapani''. The
Cellular Jail in Port Blair was regarded as the "
Siberia" of
British India.
The islands were administered as a Chief Commissioner's Province.
The
British continued their occupancy until the Japanese
Invasion and Occupation of the Andaman Islands during World War II .
Indian control
The islands were nominally put under the authority of the
Arzi Hukumate Azad Hind of Netaji
Subhash Chandra Bose. Netaji visited the islands during the war, and renamed them as "Shaheed" (Martyr) & "Swaraj" (Self-rule). General Loganathan, of the
Indian National Army was made the Governor of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. On 22 February,1944 he along with four INA officers-Major Mansoor Ali Alvi, Sub. Lt. Md. Iqbal, Lt. Suba Singh and stenographer Srinivasan arrived at Lambaline airport of Port Blair. On 21 March,1944 the Headquarters of the Civil Administration was established near the Gurudwara at Aberdeen Bazaar. On 2 October,1944, Col. Loganathan handed over the charge to Maj. Alvi and left Port Blair, never to return. (Ref. "Black Days in Andaman and Nicobar Islands" by Rabin Roychowdhury, Pub. Manas Pubs. New Delhi).
At Independence of both India (1947) and
Burma (1948), the departing British announced their intention to resettle all
Anglo-Indians and
Anglo-Burmese on the islands to form their own nation, although this never materialized. It became an Indian union territory (UT) in 1950.
Recent history
On
26 December 2004 the coasts of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands were devastated by a 10
metre high
tsunami following the
2004 Indian Ocean earthquake. At least 7,000 people (possibly a conservative estimate) were believed to have been killed on the Nicobar and Andaman Islands during the disaster.
While newer settlers of the islands suffered the greatest casualties from the tsunami, most of the aboriginal people survived because oral traditions passed down from generations ago warned them to evacuate from large waves that follow large earthquakes.
[1]
Geography
Aerial view of the Andaman Islands
There are over 570
islands in the territory, of which only some 38 are permanently inhabited. Most of the islands (about 550) are in the Andamans group, 26 of which are inhabited. The smaller Nicobars comprise some 22 main islands (12 inhabited). The Andamans and Nicobars are separated by a channel (the
Ten Degree Channel) some 150
km wide.
The total area of the Andaman Islands is some 6,408 km²; that of the Nicobar Islands approximately 1,841 km².
Flora
Gagan Andaman & Nicobar Islands are blessed with a unique luxuriant evergreen tropical rainforest canopy, sheltering a mixed germ plasm bank, comprising of Indian, Myanmarese, Malaysian and endemic floral strain. So far, about 2200 varieties of plants have been recorded, out of which 200 are endemic and 1300 do not occur in mainland India.
The South Andaman forests have a profuse growth of
epiphytic vegetation, mostly ferns and orchids. The Middle Andamans harbours mostly moist deciduous forests. North Andamans is characterised by the wet evergreen type, with plenty of woody climbers. The north Nicobar Islands (including Car Nicobar and Battimalv) are marked by the complete absence of evergreen forests, while such forests form the dominant vegetation in the central and southern islands of the Nicobar group. Grasslands occur only in the Nicobars, and while deciduous forests are common in the Andamans, they are almost absent in the Nicobars. The present forest coverage is claimed to be 86.2% of the total land area.
This atypical forest coverage is made-up of twelve types namely:
# Giant evergreen forest
# Andamans tropical evergreen forest
# Southern hilltop tropical evergreen forest
# Cane brakes
# Wet bamboo brakes
# Andamans semi-evergreen forest
# Andamans moist deciduous forest
# Andamans secondary moist deciduous forest
#
Littoral forest
# Mangrove forest
# Brackish water mixed forest
# Submontane hill valley swamp forest
Timber
Andaman Forest is abound in plethora of timber species numbering 200 or more, out of which about 30 varieties are considered to be commercial. Major commercial timber species are Gurjan
(
Dipterocarpus spp.) and Padauk (
Pterocarpus dalbergioides). The following ornamental wood are noted for their pronounced grain formation:
# Marble Wood (
Diospyros marmorata)
# Padauk (Pterocarpus dalbergioides),
# Silver Grey (a special formation of wood in white chuglam)
# Chooi (Sageraea elliptical)
# Kokko (
Albizzia lebbeck)
Padauk being steadier than teak is widely used for furniture making.
Burr and the Buttress formation in Andaman Padauk are World famous for their exceptionally unique charm and figuring. Largest piece of Buttress known from Andaman was a dining table of 13'x 7'. The largest piece of Burr was again a dining table to seat eight persons at a time.
The holy Rudraksha (Elaeocarps sphaericus) and aromatic Dhoop/Resin trees also occur here.
Fauna
This tropical rain forest despite its isolation from adjacent land masses is surprisingly rich with a diversity of animal life.
Mammals
About 50 varieties of forest mammals are found to occur in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Some are endemic, including the Andaman Wild Boar. Rodents are the largest group with 26 species, followed by 14 species of bat. Among the larger mammals there are two endemic varieties of wild boar, ''Sus scrofa andamanensis'' from Andaman and ''S. s. nicobaricus'' from Nicobar, which are protected by the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 (Sch I). The Spotted Deer ''Axis axis'', Barking Deer and Sambar were all introduced to the Andaman District, though the Sambar did not survive. Around 1962 there was an attempt to introduce the Leopard, which was unsuccessful because of unsuitable habitat. These were ill-considered moves as exotic introductions can cause havoc to island flora and fauna. Interview island (the largest wildlife sanctuary in the ANI) in Middle Andaman holds a population of feral elephants. These elephants were brought in for forest work by a timber company, which subsequently released them when it went bankrupt. This population has been subject to research studies.
Birds
ANI has also 270 species of birds (including endemics); the Nicobar island group has a higher endemicity than the Andamans and there are a total of 14 species endemic to ANI. The State Bird of the Andamans is the Andaman Wood pigeon. Some endemics are:
★ Andaman Hawk Owl
★ Andaman Scops Owl
★ Andaman Crake (a data deficient species [IUCN 2000] - endemic species
★ Brown Coucal (formerly Andaman Coucal) - endemic species
Butterflies and Moths
With about 225 species, the A&N Islands house some of the larger and most spectacular butterflies of the world. Ten species are endemic to these Islands. Mount Harriet National Park is one of the richest areas of butterfly and moth diversity on these Islands.
Shells
Shells are perhaps the most colourful and fascinating objects known to man other than Gems since time immemorial. They served as money, ornaments, musical instruments, drinking cups, in magic and in the making of fine porcelains. They were also the symbols in rituals and religious observances, and the returning pilgrims wore them as a token of divine pardon.
These islands are traditionally known for their shell wealth specially Turbo, Trochus,
Murex and
Nautilus. Earliest recorded commercial exploitation began during 1929. Shells are important to these islands because some like Turbo, Trochus & Nautilus etc. are used as novelties supporting many cottage industries producing a wide range of decorative items & ornaments. Shells such as Giant clam, Green mussel and Oyster support edible shellfishery, a few like
Scallop, Clam and
Cockle are burnt in kiln to produce edible lime.
The
Univalve or one shell group belongs to the class
Gastropoda having more than 80,000 species. Sacred Chank belongs to this group. Their body, in the course of development, go through a complicated process, 'torsion' i.e. the visceral mass is twisted though 90 degree together with the shell that covers it. Under mysterious circumstances many a time this process proceeds in the reverse direction thus creating an abnormal shell which otherwise lives like a normal shell. A classic example is the most wanted left-handed chank.
The Bivalve or
Pelecypoda has about 20,000 living species. Majority of then burrows in sand or mud such as Pearl Oyster, Wing oyster, Giant clam etc.
A third group, which is comparatively smaller, is called
Cephalopoda, which includes Octopus, Squid, Nautilus etc. The soft body animal, which lives inside the shell, is covered with a thick layer of specialised
epithelium cells known as rnantle, which in turn secretes a two tier shell material making the shell. The outer layer having a different colour pattern is organic in constitution, technically called
periostracum. Calcium ions from the environment are absorbed into the blood and deposited evenly under this layer. The next inner layer is called 'nacre' or 'mother of pearl' responsible for the pearly lustre common to many shells.
★ ''Mayabunder'' subdivision:
Economy
'Agriculture'
A total of 48,675 hectares of land is used for agriculture purposes. Paddy, the main food crop, is mostly cultivated in Andaman group of islands, whereas coconut and areca nut are the cash crops of Nicobar group of islands. Field crops, namely, pulses, oilseeds and vegetables are grown, followed by paddy during Rabi season. Different kinds of fruits such as mango, sapota, orange, banana, papaya, pineapple and root crops are grown on hilly land owned by farmers. Spices, viz., pepper, clove, nutmeg, and cinnamon are grown under multi-tier cropping system. Rubber, red oil, palm and cashew are grown on a limited scale in these islands.
'Industry'
There are 1,374 registered small scale, village and handicrafts units. Two units are export oriented in the line of fish processing activity. Apart from this, there are shell and wood based handicraft units. There are also four medium sized industrial units. SSI units are engaged in the production of polythene bags, PVC conduit pipes and fittings, paints and varnished, fibre glass and mini flour mills, soft drinks and beverages, etc. Small scale and handicraft units are also engaged in shell crafts, bakery products, rice milling, furniture making , etc. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation has spread its wings in the field of tourism, fisheries, industries and industrial financing and functions as authorised agents for Alliance Air/ Jet Airways.
Macro-economic trend
This is a chart of trend of gross state domestic product of Andaman and Nicobar Islands at market prices
estimated by ''Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation'' with figures in millions of Indian Rupees.
| Year | Gross State Domestic Product |
|---|
| 1980 | 530 |
| 1985 | 1,060 |
| 1990 | 1,900 |
| 1995 | 6,750 |
| 2000 | 9,560 |
Andaman and Nicobar Islands' gross state domestic product for 2004 is estimated at $354 million in current prices.
See also
★
2004 Indian Ocean earthquake in India
★
Andamanese languages
★
Nicobarese languages
External links
★
Books on environmental issues in the Andaman Islands: Published by the Kalpavriksh Environment Action Group
★
Andaman & Nicobar Administration Web site
★
Beaches in Andaman & Nicobar Islands
★
The Andman Association
★
The People of Andaman & Nicobar Islands
★
Travel Port Blair
★
Indian Reef Region - Andaman and Nicobar Islands
★
Andaman and Nicobar Florist
★
Andaman & Nicobar Islands official tourism website
★
Andaman Beaches Travel
★
Andaman & Nicobar Pictures
★
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