Andaman And Nicobar Islands - Blog Posts
Diving Into the Andaman and Nicobar Islands
AN OVERVIEW OF ANDAMANS
Andaman Island is one among the most wonderful goals in India Did you at any point realize that this island is as yet a Union region and not a state? All things considered there are just a bunch of Union regions in India The island is arranged at a separation of around 1400 - 1500 kilometers from Chennai and Kolkata Additionally the Andaman Islands archipelago comprises of an aggregate of 572 islands of which just 72 are possessed by individuals rest all goes under Indian Navy or the Andaman Forest Department
WHY SCUBA DIVING IN ANDAMANS
The island magnificence is fascinating and is as it should be With such a large number of one of a kind things in the Andaman islands it now and then gets hard to clarify every one of the territories Today we will stay with just Scuba Diving The marine life in the Andamans energizes voyagers from the whole way across the globe Individuals from United States UK Europe and Israel visit this goal all the time This action in Andaman is exceptional experience and ought to be done rare in any event
Presently where to go for Scuba Diving in Andamans? My proposal will be to either attempt it in North Bay Island a little pleasant island exceptionally near the capital city Port Blair Did you realize that North Bay island is a similar island that is found in the back of a 20 Rupee note or in Havelock Island a paradise for every one of the explorers who visit Andaman and Nicobar Islands In spite of the fact that the fundamental courses convey same fervor both in North Bay and Havelock Island anyway for development PADI/SSI courses Havelock Island is better
THINGS TO KNOW WHILE DOING DIVING IN ANDAMAN ISLANDS
In spite of the fact that there is presently a pattern hitting the islands where anybody offers scuba jumping anyway my suggestion will be to complete a confirmation check of the plunge organization before going submerged with some random office Related Article
* Check for how solid the plunge establishment is Ensure that the Dive focus is perceived by rumored associations such PADI/SSI These affiliations consistently check about the nature of the foundation
* Also check whether the foundation is perceived by the Government of Andaman and Nicobar Islands
* Ask for what number of Dive Instructors the unit has
* Check whether legitimate gear is given to you before the Scuba Diving starts
* Check whether the appropriate measure of Oxygen is available in your tank
* Make beyond any doubt the preparation given is great and you are happy with the essential preparing that is given before the plunging starts on the off chance that you are not happy with the preparation program then you can quit proceeding with your course Bryce Canyon National Park
In spite of the fact that these focuses may sound overwhelming in any case it is valuable for somebody going for scuba plunging without precedent for Andaman IslandThe cost of Scuba making a plunge Andaman different some from Rupees 4000 to Rupees 40000 Everything relies on the sort obviously you select
The Andaman archipelago is an extraordinary goal to investigate the submerged reef and I without a doubt believe that the experience here will turn into a dependable memory
Previous Article
Genocide experts warn that India is about to genocide the Shompen people
Who are the Shompen?
The Shompen are an indigenous culture that lives in the Great Nicobar Island, which is nowadays owned by India. The Shompen and their ancestors are believed to have been living in this island for around 10,000 years. Like other tribes in the nearby islands, the Shompen are isolated from the rest of the world, as they chose to be left alone, with the exception of a few members who occasionally take part in exchanges with foreigners and go on quarantine before returning to their tribe. There are between 100 and 400 Shompen people, who are hunter-gatherers and nomadic agricultors and rely on their island's rainforest for survival.
Why is there risk of genocide?
India has announced a huge construction mega-project that will completely change the Great Nicobar Island to turn it into "the Hong Kong of India".
Nowadays, the island has 8,500 inhabitants, and over 95% of its surface is made up of national parks, protected forests and tribal reserve areas. Much of the island is covered by the Great Nicobar Biosphere Reserve, described by UNESCO as covering “unique and threatened tropical evergreen forest ecosystems. It is home to very rich ecosystems, including 650 species of angiosperms, ferns, gymnosperms, and bryophytes, among others. In terms of fauna, there are over 1800 species, some of which are endemic to this area. It has one of the best-preserved tropical rain forests in the world.”
The Indian project aims to destroy this natural environment to create an international shipping terminal with the capacity to handle 14.2 million TEUs (unit of cargo capacity), an international airport that will handle a peak hour traffic of 4,000 passengers and that will be used as a joint civilian-military airport under the control of the Indian Navy, a gas and solar power plant, a military base, an industrial park, and townships aimed at bringing in tourism, including commercial, industrial and residential zones as well as other tourism-related activities.
This project means the destruction of the island's pristine rainforests, as it involves cutting down over 852,000 trees and endangers the local fauna such as leatherback turtles, saltwater crocodiles, Nicobar crab-eating macaque and migratory birds. The erosion resulting from deforestation will be huge in this highly-seismic area. Experts also warn about the effects that this project will have on local flora and fauna as a result of pollution from the terminal project, coastal surface runoff, ballasts from ships, physical collisions with ships, coastal construction, oil spills, etc.
The indigenous people are not only affected because their environment and food source will be destroyed. On top of this, the demographic change will be a catastrophe for them. After the creation of this project, the Great Nicobar Island -which now has 8,500 inhabitants- will receive a population of 650,000 settlers. Remember that the Shompen and Nicobarese people who live on this island are isolated, which means they do not have an immune system that can resist outsider illnesses. Academics believe they could die of disease if they come in contact with outsiders (think of the arrival of Europeans to the Americas after Christopher Columbus and the way that common European illnesses were lethal for indigenous Americans with no immunization against them).
And on top of all of this, the project might destroy the environment and the indigenous people just to turn out to be useless and sooner or later be abandoned. The naturalist Uday Mondal explains that “after all the destruction, the financial viability of the project remains questionable as all the construction material will have to be shipped to this remote island and it will have to compete with already well-established ports.” However, this project is important to India because they want to use the island as a military and commercial post to stop China's expansion in the region, since the Nicobar islands are located on one of the world's busiest sea routes.
Last year, 70 former government officials and ambassadors wrote to the Indian president saying the project would “virtually destroy the unique ecology of this island and the habitat of vulnerable tribal groups”. India's response has been to say that the indigenous tribes will be relocated "if needed", but that doesn't solve the problem. As a spokesperson for human rights group Survival International said: “The Shompen are nomadic and have clearly defined territories. Four of their semi-permanent settlements are set to be directly devastated by the project, along with their southern hunting and foraging territories. The Shompen will undoubtedly try to move away from the area destroyed, but there will be little space for them to go. To avoid a genocide, this deadly mega-project must be scrapped.”
On 7 February 2024, 39 scholars from 13 countries published an open letter to the Indian president warning that “If the project goes ahead, even in a limited form, we believe it will be a death sentence for the Shompen, tantamount to the international crime of genocide.”
How to help
The NGO Survival International has launched this campaign:
From this site, you just need to add your name and email and you will send an email to India's Tribal Affairs Minister and to the companies currently vying to build the first stage of the project.
Share it with your friends and acquittances and on social media.
Sources:
India’s plan for untouched Nicobar isles will be ‘death sentence’ for isolated tribe, 7 Feb 2024. The Guardian.
‘It will destroy them’: Indian mega-development could cause ‘genocide’ and ‘ecocide’, says charity, 8 Feb 2024. Geographical.
Genocide experts call on India's government to scrap the Great Nicobar mega-project, Feb 2024. Survival International.
The container terminal that could sink the Great Nicobar Island, 20 July 2022. Mongabay.
[Maps] Environmental path cleared for Great Nicobar mega project, 10 Oct 2022. Mongabay.