Agatti Island is a 7.6 km long island, situated on a

coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and sec ...

atoll An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon partially or completely. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical oceans and seas where corals can gr ...

called Agatti atoll in the Union Territory of

Lakshadweep Lakshadweep (), also known as Laccadives (), is a union territory of India. It is an archipelago of 36 islands in the Arabian sea, located off the Malabar Coast. The name ''Lakshadweep'' means "one lakh islands" in Sanskrit, though the Lac ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. It is west of the city of

Kochi Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...

Geography

Agatti is located about 364 km off

Kannur Kannur (), formerly known in English as Cannanore, is a city and a municipal corporation in the state of Kerala, India. It is the administrative headquarters of the Kannur district and situated north of the major port city and commercial hu ...

, 394 km off

Kozhikode Kozhikode (), also known in English as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. It has a corporation limit population of 609,224 and a metropolitan population of more than 2 million, making it the second la ...

, and 459 km (285 mi) off

in the mainland and 7 km to the southwest of

Bangaram Bangaram is an atoll in the Union Territory of Lakshadweep, India. Geography The atoll has a roughly rectangular shape and is 8.1 km in length with a maximum width of 4.2 km. and with a lagoon area of . It is located over off Kannu ...

, the nearest island. Agatti is 531 km away from

Kollam Kollam (), also known by its former name Quilon , is an ancient seaport and city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. The city i ...

(

Quilon Kollam (), also known by its former name Quilon , is an ancient seaport and city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is north of the state capital Thiruvananthapuram. The city i ...

) and 529 km away from

Kollam Port Kollam Port is one of the historic ports situated away from Downtown Kollam (formerly Quilon),14 km north of Paravur and 24 km north of Varkala Town It is the second largest port in Kerala by volume of cargo handled and facilities. ...

Kavaratti Kavaratti is the capital of the Union Territory of Lakshadweep in India. Kavaratti is a census town as well as the name of the atoll upon which the town stands. It is well known for its pristine white sand beaches and calm lagoons, which makes ...

, the closest inhabited island, lies 54 km to the SE and Suheli Par atoll 76 km to the south. Agatti Atoll's total land area is (of it, The main island and the small

Kalpatti Island Kalpatti Island is an uninhabited island of Agatti atoll in Lakshadweep, India. There were plans to extend the runway of the airport on the nearby Agatti Island to Kalpati Island to accommodate jet aircraft. The plans were rejected on environme ...

has . Kalpatti is located at the southern end on the same reef. The

lagoon A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into ''coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons'') a ...

area is .

Climate

Population

Its population in the 2011 census was 7,560, and Islam is the main religion of the islanders. Islamic religion is said to have been brought by Arab traveller

Ibn Batuta Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Battutah (, ; 24 February 13041368/1369),; fully: ; Arabic: commonly known as Ibn Battuta, was a Berber Maghrebi scholar and explorer who travelled extensively in the lands of Afro-Eurasia, largely in the Muslim wor ...

. Most people speak

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam was des ...

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

. Agatti has its own 100 kW powerhouse which uses fuel to generate electricity. There is a

desalination Desalination is a process that takes away mineral components from saline water. More generally, desalination refers to the removal of salts and minerals from a target substance, as in Soil salinity control, soil desalination, which is an issue f ...

unit which provides desalinated water to the islanders.

Transportation

;Sea Lakshwadeep is connected to Cochin by sea route. Seven passenger ships operate between the two ports and it takes 14–20 hours for the passage. ;Air Agatti Airstrip

The

Agatti Aerodrome Agatti Airport is a regional airport serving Agatti Island, in the union territory of Lakshadweep, India. It is located at the southern end of the island, and is the sole airstrip in the archipelago, which lies off the west coast of mainland I ...

is the only airport in Lakshadweep.

Tourism

Agatti is one of the Lakshadweep islands open to tourism. Visitors, however, are allowed to the Island under certain restrictions. They are required to obtain Entry Permit from the Lakshadweep Administration for entering or visiting the island. Entry Permit is issued based on the visitor having a confirmed place to stay. There are only two hotels or resorts in Agatti: Agatti Island Beach Resort (AIBER) and the other is Sea Shells Beach Resort. A road runs through the island, which can be best enjoyed by hiring a bicycle available at many places. The Army personnel scuba diving during the ongoing Bison Blue Waters Expedition in Agatti, Lakshadweep

The Army personnel scuba diving during the ongoing Bison Blue Waters Expedition in Agatti, Lakshadweep

Water sports activities such as

scuba diving Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for "Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Chris ...

wind surfing Windsurfing is a wind propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the aerospace and surf culture of California. Windsurfing ga ...

snorkelling Snorkeling ( British and Commonwealth English spelling: snorkelling) is the practice of swimming on or through a body of water while equipped with a diving mask, a shaped breathing tube called a snorkel, and usually swimfins. In cooler waters, a ...

surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suitabl ...

kayaking Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving over water. It is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle. A kayak is a low-to-the-water, canoe-like boat in which the paddler sits fac ...

canoeing Canoeing is an activity which involves paddling a canoe with a single-bladed paddle. Common meanings of the term are limited to when the canoeing is the central purpose of the activity. Broader meanings include when it is combined with other acti ...

water skiing Water skiing (also waterskiing or water-skiing) is a surface water sport in which an individual is pulled behind a boat or a cable ski installation over a body of water, skimming the surface on two skis or one ski. The sport requires suffic ...

sportfishing Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing or game fishing, is fishing for leisure, exercise or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is professional fishing for profit; or subsistence fishing, which is fishing ...

, yachting and night sea voyages are popular activities among tourists. Tourists flock to these islands throughout the year, except during the

southwest monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscill ...

months when seas are extremely rough.

Administration

The island belongs to the

township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Ca ...

of Agatti Island of

Tehsil A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administr ...

.Tehsils info
/ref>

References

External links

Agatti Island ReviewLakshadweep a Photo Essay
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Agatti Island Islands of Lakshadweep Atolls of India Cities and towns in Lakshadweep district Lakshadweep Lakshadweep articles by quality Lakshadweep articles by importance Water sports Tourism articles by importance Tourism articles by quality