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Tourism Services |
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Scuba Diving/Adventure Sports |
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There is no adventure than Diving. Diving offers something new for everyone.
Andaman & Nicobar Island is one of the best place for diving. |
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Know Andaman |
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Land & People |
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The Andaman and Nicobar Islands were shrouded in mystery for
centuries because of their inaccessibility. These are the paragon of beauty and
present a landscape full with scenic and picturesque extravaganza. These islands
shimmer like emeralds in the Bay of Bengal. The dense forest which cover these
islands and the innumerable exotic flowers and birds |
create a highly poetic and romantic atmosphere. "Here the white beaches
on the edge of a meandering coastline have palm trees that sway to the rhythm of
the Sea. The beat of tribal drums haunt the stillness and technicolour fish
steer their way through crystal clear water." This addition of strangeness to
beauty which is responsible for creating the infinite romantic impact may be
described in the following famous lines of Keats.
"Charmed magic casement
opening on the foam
Of perilous
seas in fair
lands forlorn."
The scenic beauty of Andaman & Nicobar Islands, would create a sense of
dissatisfaction and the human mind would rebel against "the whole mass of the
motley facts of life". He would be guided by an irresistible desire to this
paradise on earth, with invincible faith on the philosophy of Wordsworth:
"Our cheerful faith,
that all which we behold
is full of blessing".
The unparalleled beauty of these islands, create in men a love of nature with a
caressing tenderness, a wistful fondness for all its delicate nuances. The
enveloping atmosphere with its subtle harmonies of light and shade, fragrance
and exhales the paradise, visionary splendours, and the music of the birds that
defies definition would develop creative and constructive feelings in the hearts
of those people who come here to enjoy the beauty of nature. He would like to
rebel against the stereotyped moulds and forms into which life is so called
'modernman' is cast. He would be under the impact of the complex mood of
infinite longing and tragic helplessness, "the yearning that craves for
expression, yet defies expression, the inconclusive struggle between emotional
apprehension of life and the articulation that must transcend personal emotion".
The
Andaman and Nicobar Islands have great maritime importance. During the British
period political leaders considered dangerous to the interests of the Raj and
other dreaded criminals were deported from mainland to the Cellular Jail- the
Indian Bastille, situated on the sea coast of Atlanta Point in the North-Eastern
part of Port Blair. Thus these islands were infamously known as the 'Black
Water Prison' or 'Kala Pani'.
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The Andaman & Nicobar are a group of picturesque Islands, big and small, inhabited
and uninhabited, a total of 572 islands, islets and rocks lying in the South
Eastern Part of the Bay of Bengal.They lie along an arc in long and narrow
broken chain, approximately North-South over a distance nearly 800 kms. . It is
logical to presume a former land connection form Cape Negris at South part of
Burma to Achin Head (Cape Pedro) in Andalas (Sumatra). The flora and fauna of
these islands, however, indicate that this land connection if it existed, should
have been prior to the development of their present life form. |
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State Bird / Animal / Tree |
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Andaman Wood Pigeon - State Bird |
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Andaman Wood Pigeon is an endemic
bird, which is found only in Andaman and Nicobar group of islands. This bird is
of the size of a domestic pigeon with longer tail. This bird has whitish head
with checkerboard pattern on neck. The upper parts are dark slate grey in colour
and underparts are pale blue grey
Metallic green sheen on upper side and reddish bill with yellowish tip and
purplish red orbital skin are
identification characters. The bird lives in dense broadleaved evergreen forest.
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Dugong - State Animal |
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Dugong, an endangered marine mammal, also known as
Sea Cow, is only strictly marine mammal, which is herbivorous. It mainly feeds
on sea-grass and other aquatic vegetation. Dugong is distributed in shallow
tropical waters in Indo-Pacific Region. The animal is about three-metre length
and weighs about 400 kg. In India Dugong is reported from Gulf of Kutch, Gulf of
Mannar, Palk Bay and Andaman & Nicobar Islands.
Within A&N Islands Dugong has been reported from Ritchie”s Archipelago,
North Reef, Little Andaman and parts of Nicobars.
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Andaman Padauk - State Tree |
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Andaman Padauk is a tall deciduous tree found only
in Andaman. It grows upto height of 120 feet. The timber is highly prized for
making furniture. Burr and Buttress formation add charm to the tree and used in
making unique furniture.
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Flora & Fauna |
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These 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. |
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"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". This atypical
forest coverage is made-up of twelve types namely |
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(1) Giant
evergreen forest (2) Andamans tropical evergreen forest (3) Southern hilltop
tropical evergreen forest (4) Cane brakes (5) Wet bamboo brakes (6) Andamans
semi-evergreen forest (7) Andamans moist deciduous forest (8) Andamans secondary
moist deciduous forest (9) Littoral forest (10) Mangrove forest (11) Brackish
water mixed forest (12) Submontane hill valley swamp forest. The present
forest coverage is claimed to be 86.2% of the total land area. |
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Timber |
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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). Ornamental wood such as (1) Marble Wood (Diospyros
marmorata) (2) Padauk (Pterocarpus dalbergioides), (3) Silver Grey (a special
formation of wood in white chuglam) (4) Chooi (Sageraea elliptical and (5) Kokko
(Albizzia lebbeck) are noted for their pronounced grain formation. Padauk
being steadier than teak is widely used for furniture making.
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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. |
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Fauna |
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This
tropical rain forest despite its isolation from adjacent land masses is
surprisingly enriched with many animals. |
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Mammals |
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About 50 varieties of
forest mammals are found to occur in A&N Islands, most of them are understood to
be brought in from outside and are now considered endemic due to their prolonged
insular adaptation. Rat is the largest group having 26 species followed by
14 species of bat. Among the larger mammals there are two endemic
varieties of wild pig namely Sus Scrofa andamanensis from Andaman and
S.S.nicobaricus from Nicobar. The spotted deer Axis axis, Barking deer and
Sambar are found in Andaman District. Interview island in Middle Andaman
holds a fairly good stock of feral elephants. These elephants were brought
in for forest work by a private contractor who subsequently left them loose. |
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Butterflies & Moths |
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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. |
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Shells |
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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. |
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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 being 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. |
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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.
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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
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Corals |
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Corals belong to a large
group of animals known as Coelenterata
(stinging animals) or Cnidaria
(thread animals). Corals grow slow, they have type wise site specific
growth rates. The massive forms may grow upto 2 cm. in diameter and upto 1
cm in height a year, whereas, delicate branching forms grow between 5 to 10 cm.
per annum. A true reef building stony coral may be unisexual or bisexual. They
breed together once in a year at a pre-determined time after dusk. This
process, at places is so intense that the water stays pinkish till next morning. A large
number of baby corals are released in the open ocean this way. After
sometime these baby corals settle over a suitable substratum and start forming
new colonies through asexual reproduction. Their
morphological features change with the environment in which they settle. Due to this peculiar character they are
often called 'Plastic animals'. |
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Stony corals could be
broadly divided into reef builders and non-reef builders, the reef builders are
called hermatypic whereas others are
known as ahermatypic corals.
The reef builders possess hard calcareous skeleton and need sunlight like plants
to survive. On the other hand, the non-reef builders are devoid of a true
stony framework and can live well without sunlight. A few among them are
capable of making protein based solidified skeleton. |
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Fishes |
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Each life form in the
sea is confined to its own particular zone, where pressure, light, temperature
and salinity are more or less constant. In this
stable environment some creatures have remained unchanged throughout their
entire history.
The now famous Coelacanth, one
of the groups of fishes thought to have been extinct for 60 million years, has
remained essentially like its relatives as they appear in fossils. Fishes
are the masters of water world. For more
than 360 million years they have inhabited it. Today we
have about 40,000 varieties of fishes known to science. They
range in size from 10 mm (Philippine Gobie) to 21m. (whale shark). Some are
flattened, others inflated, many spindle shaped, a few snakelike, still others
are compressed depending on the environment in which they live or particular way
of life. |
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Marine Aquarium |
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Marine fish and animal
keeping still has a certain mystique attached to it. This is one of the
most complicated aspects of live stock management. The animal husbandry
involved in it is mainly nurtured through water chemistry and microbiology.
The tropical coral reef inhabitants are generally maintained in glass boxes
known to us as marine aquariums. These animals turn 'fragile' under
captive atmosphere because the natural system to which they belong is so
heterogeneous, complex and dynamic with every tide bringing in a different
condition that is so difficult to create artificially. However, since May
l853 when the first tropical marine aquarium was made public in London, much has
been understood and we are now able to practice a system where these animals are
acclimatized and taught to be happy in their new environs. |
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History
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A clear history of the Andaman & Nicobar Islands can be had only from a British Survey of these islands conducted in 1777.
The Andaman & Nicobar Islands remained the abode of the Negritos and the Mongoloids respectively, who occupied the Islands for centuries.
These islands remained secluded from the mainland till the end of the 18th Century when people from the outside world first arrived.
The history of these islands could be divided into four broad periods the period of seclusion and piratical disturbances
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a) The British Regime - a period of foreign intrusion and settlement
b) The Japanese Regime
c) and The Post Independence Regime
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In the Second Century, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands were located in the maps prepared by the great Greek astronomer, mathematician and geographer,
Claudius Ptolemaeus, which possibly is the earliest reference to these islands. The early history of Nicobar is not well known although these islands
were familiar to traders in ancient times, the islands being situated close to the trade route to the Far East. Though little is known about Portuguese
activities in these islands, it is evident that the Portuguese missionaries started preaching Christianity among the islanders. The Nicobarese language
also reflects a few Portuguese words.
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The British Regime
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The history of the British in the Andaman and Nicobar islands began in 1788 when Lord Cornwallis, the then Governor General of India, thought of colonizing
the islands and instructed Lt. Archibald Blair and Lt. R.H.Colebrook of the Royal Navy to Survey the islands and submit a report on their suitability for a
British Colony. According to the recommendation of these two officers the first British settlement was founded in 1789 on Chatham Island, near Port
Cornwallis (Now Port Blair). After the Great Revolt in 1857, the British Government thought of establishing a penal settlement here. In March 1858,
the first penal settlement was established, with 200 prisoners, mostly rebels from the Indian Army. Initially the convicts were kept in a jail at Viper
island, which is about 15 minutes boat ride from Port Blair. The island had a jail, gallows, Kutcheri, Doctor's residence, etc. Subsequently, this Jail
was abandoned and the Cellular Jail at Port Blair was constructed. During the time of successive Superintendents, E.H.Man, General Steward, and Col.
Cadell, the number of convicts increased and they were subjected to inhuman tortures at the hands of the British jailors. The foundation of the famous
Cellular Jail was laid in 1896. The building was completed in 1906. Many changes, both in policy and practice, took place during Colonel Ferrar's time,
which, inter alia, included concession to the convicts, mainland visit, etc.
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The Japanese Regime
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World War II brought another series of changes in the life of the Andamans. During the War, the Japanese occupied Andamans on March 21, 1942 and
kept the region under their effective control till October 8,1945. Initially the Japanese behaved cordially towards the locals, but became harsh
and suspicious after instances came to their notice of some locals maintaining contacts with the British. As a result a large number of innocent
people were killed. One such place where the massacre occured is Humfreygunj. But one good result of the Japanese occupation was making the
Andamans self-sufficient, at least in food production. The naval blockade created an acute food crisis and the Japanese compelled the local
people to bring more land under cultivation. They also constructed roads. Netaji Subash Chandra Bose arrived in Port Blair on December 29, 1943 and
was given a ceremonial welcome. He hoisted the National Flag at Port Blair on 30th Dec. 1943 for the first time during the British regime in India.
On October 8, 1945, the Japanese surrendered to the South East Asia Command at Port Blair. The Government quickly restored normalcy in the area and
started rehabilitation work.
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The Post Independence Regime
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The Andaman and Nicobar Islands together with the rest of India, became Independent on August 15th, 1947. The Bengalis are the major population group which
came to the Andamans after Independence. They came as 'settlers' under the Government rehabilitaion scheme, whcih started as early as 1949 and continued
till the 1970s. All these groups migrated to the Andamans from different districts of East Pakistan ( now Bangladesh). The Bengalis are primarily
distributed in the different villages of North, Middle and South Andamans. The rehabilitated settlers of Great Nicobar are the Ex-servicemen.
Ex-servicemen were rehabilated according to the rules of the District Soldier, Sailor, Airmen Board, formerly known as the Ex-servemen Association and
the Indian Ex-servicemen League. The first batch of Ex-servicemen came to the island in 1969. Others, from different parts of the mainland followed
in 1970,1974,1977,1979 and 1980. These settlers include among others, Punjabis, Marathis, Malyalis and Tamilians. New rules and legislation were enacted
and a Chief Commissioner directly nominated by the President of India headed the islands. On November 12, 1982, the post of Chief Commissioner was elevated
to the rank of Lt. Governor. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands now send one elected representative to the Lok Sabha.
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