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Lakshadweep () is a union territory of India. It is an archipelago of 36 islands divided into three island subgroups: the Laccadive Islands in the middle with the Amindivi Islands in the north separated roughly by the 11th parallel north and the atoll of Minicoy to the south separated by the Nine Degree Channel along the 9th parallel north. The islands are sandwiched between the Arabian Sea to the west and the Laccadive Sea to the east with the islands located about off the Malabar Coast of mainland India.

The islands occupy a total land area of approximately with a population of 64,473 as per the 2011 census in the 10 inhabited islands. The islands have a long coastline with a lagoon area of , territorial waters of and an exclusive economic zone of . The islands are the northernmost of the Lakshadweep–Maldives–Chagos group of islands, which are the tops of a vast undersea mountain range, the Chagos-Lakshadweep Ridge. The entire union territory is administered as a single district with Kavaratti as the capital.

Archaeological evidence from Kalpeni indicate the existence of human settlement in the region from at least 1500 BCE with the earliest reference to the islands are from the Buddhist Jataka tales presumably from the third century BCE. There are references to the control of the islands by the Cheras, one of the three kingdoms of ancient Tamilakam in the Tamil Sangam literature '' Patiṟṟuppattu''. The region was captured by the Pallavas in the 7th century CE before Islam is presumed to have been brought to the region with the arrival of Muslims. In the 11th century CE, the region was part of the Chola kingdom, forming a part of the trade route which connected the Middle East with South Asia. It was briefly under the control of the Kingdom of Kannur before it came under the control of Portuguese in the late 15th century. After the expulsion of Portuguese in 1545, the region was ruled by the Arakkal kingdom, who were vassals to the Kolathiri Rajas of Kannur. The region came under the influence of Mysore kingdom in the late 18th century, which was annexed to the British empire, following the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War in 1799. The region became part of the Dominion of India following the Indian Independence in 1947 and became a union territory in 1956.

The name ''Lakshadweep'' means "one lakh islands" (; one hundred thousand islands) in Malayalam and Sanskrit, though the islands are part of an archipelago of few islands. English is designated as the official language while Jeseri, a dialect of Malayalam, is the widely spoken native language in the territory with Dhivehi being the most spoken in Minicoy Island. The region comes under the judicial jurisdiction of the Kerala High Court. Fishing and agriculture are the major occupations in the islands.

Etymology

The name ''Lakshadweep'' is derived from ''Lakṣadvīpa'' meaning "one hundred thousand islands" presumably from Sanskrit or Malayalam. Laccadive is an Anglicization of the given name during the British Raj. The native name of Minicoy is ''Maliku'' and the given name is the Anglicized version derived from ''Minikaa-raajje'' meaning "land of the cannibals" in Nicobarese as the island was known then in the Andaman and Nicobar. Amindivi derives its name from the Amindivi people, who were earliest inhabitants of Amini Island.

History

Early history

While it was presumed that Lakshadweep could have been part of the early human migration from Africa, genetic evidence points to the contrary with majority of human ancestry in the islands derived from South Asia. Archaeological evidence from Kalpeni indicate the existence of human settlement in the region from at least 1500 BCE. Jataka tales of Buddhism, dated to 300 BCE, mention the islands. Archeological evidence also support the spread of Buddhism to the islands during the time with Sanghmitra, daughter of Ashoka presumed to have visited the island in the third century BCE. There are references to the rule over the region by the Cheras in the Sangam period (300 BCE to 300CE), one of the three kingdoms of ancient Tamilakam in the Tamil Sangam literature '' Patiṟṟuppattu''.

The islands have long been known to sailors, first indicated by an anonymous reference in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea from the 1st century CE to the islands off the coast of Damirica as a source of a turtle shell. Ptolemy in 150 CE mentions 1378 islands located opposite to Taprobane with names of some of the islands given by Kanathara ( Kavaratti), Argidion ( Agatti), Ammine ( Amini) and Monache (Minicoy). The islands were part of a trade route with the Roman empire, with archeological evidence from as early as 2nd century CE obtained from Kadamath and Androth. Travelers and historians such as Ammianus Marcellinus (4th century CE), Faxian (5th century CE) and Cosmas (6th century CE) mention the islands.

Middle ages

Local traditions attribute the first settlement on the islands to Cheraman Perumal, the last Chera king of Kerala, though no historical evidence exist apart from the ancient Hindu social stratification. According to popular tradition, Islam was brought to the islands by Ubaidullah in 661 CE, whose purported grave is located in Andrott. Inscriptions from Vayalur indicate naval battles during the reign of Narasimhavarman II (680-720 CE), which resulted in the capture of the territory by the Pallavas of Kanchi in the late 7th century CE. Inscriptions indicate the capture of the region of ''Kavadi Dvepa'', presumably Kavaratti, by the Kadambas in the 10th century CE. In the 11th century, the islands came under the rule of the Cholas. Chola inscriptions from Thanjavur, indicate that the region was captured by Rajendra Chola I in 1018-19 CE. In the late 11th century CE, it became part of a small Hindu kingdom before being passed on to the Kingdom of Kannur in early 12th century CE. The islands are mentioned by travelers Marco Polo and Ibn Battuta in the 13th-14th century CE.

European colonization

In the late 15th century CE, the islands came under the control of the Portuguese, who utilized the same for coir production, until the islanders revolted and expelled them in 1545. In the mid 16th century CE, all the inhabited islands were conferred as ''jagir'' on the ruling family of the Kannur by the Chirakkal or Kolattiri Raja in order to grant protection from the Portuguese. The Aminidivi islands came under the rule of Tipu Sultan of Mysore Kingdom in 1787 which were later annexed to the British Raj in 1799 after the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War. The rest of the islands remained under the suzerainty of the Arakkal family in return for a payment of annual tribute. The British took over the administration of those islands in 1908 for nonpayment of arrears and attached it to the Madras Presidency.

Post Independence

After the India Independence in 1947, the islands became part of the Dominion of India and became part of the Madras State under the Constitution of India in 1950. In 1956, the islands which were had been divided between the South Canara and Malabar districts of Madras state, was organized into a separate union territory administered by the Government of India, following the States Reorganisation Act. The territory which was known as Laccadive, Minicoy, and Amindivi Islands became Lakshadweep islands on 1 November 1973. The headquarters of the new union territory remained at Kozhikode until 1964, when the seat of administrator of the islands was shifted to Kavaratti. The islands have been developed into a key naval establishment due to its strategic location to protect the vital shipping lanes to the Middle East.

Geography

Lakshadweep is an archipelago of 36 islands and islets that includes 12 atolls, three reefs and five submerged banks. The islands are sandwiched between the Arabian Sea to the west and the Laccadive Sea to the east with the islands located about off the Malabar Coast of mainland India. The territory is divided into three island subgroups: the Laccadive Islands in the middle with the Amindivi Islands in the north separated roughly by the 11th parallel north and the atoll of Minicoy to the south separated by the Nine Degree Channel along the 9th parallel north. The islands occupy a total land area of approximately in 10 inhabited islands, 17 uninhabited islands attached islets, four newly formed islets and five submerged reefs. The islands have a long coastline with a lagoon area of , territorial waters of and an exclusive economic zone of .

The islands are the northernmost of the Lakshadweep–Maldives–Chagos group of islands, which are the tops of a vast undersea mountain range, the Chagos-Lakshadweep Ridge. While there are no conclusive theories about the formation of the atolls, Charles Darwin proposed in 1842 that the subsidence of a volcanic island which resulted in the formation of a fringing reef with the continual subsidence allowing it to grow upwards. The islands are small with none more than 1 mile in breadth with most inhabited islands situated on the eastern side of the islands away from the low-lying lagoons on the western side. The soils are generally sandy, derived from the coral. According to a 2017 report, the Parali I island of Bangaram atoll has eroded and inundated completely with the other four islands in the atoll also showing various degrees of erosion: Parali II (80%), Thinnakara (14.4%), Parali III (11.4%) and Bangaram (9.9%).

Climate

The islands have a tropical monsoon climate, bordering on a tropical savanna climate. The weather is warm throughout the year with temperatures ranging from 20 to 32 degree Celsius. While tropical cyclones arising in the Arabian Sea rarely strike the islands due to its smaller size, winds and waves associated with them can alter the features of the islands considerably.

Flora and fauna

The Lakshadweep archipelago is part of the Maldives-Lakshadweep-Chagos Archipelago tropical moist forests ecoregion. There are no forests in the islands. Nearly 400 species of flowering plants have been documented, including three species of sea grasses ''Cymodocea isoetifolia'', ''Syringodium isoetifolium'' and ''Thalassia hemprichii'', other angiosperms such as ''Pandanus'', ''Heliotropium foertherianum'', '' Tournefortia argentea'' and '' Pemphis acidula'', fungi, algae and lichen groves and coastal shrubs such as '' Pemphis acidula'', '' Cordia subcordata'', '' Scaevola taccada'', '' Thespesia populnea'', ''Suriana maritima'', '' Dodonaea viscosa'', '' Guettarda speciosa'' and seaweeds such as sea lettuces, '' Codium'' and '' Hypena''.

There are over 600 recorded species of marine fishes, 78 species of corals, 82 species of seaweed, 52 species of crabs, 2 species of lobsters, 48 species of gastropods and 12 species of bivalves. It is one of the four coral reef regions in India.

Cetacean diversity off the Lakshadweep Islands and in adjacent areas include various whales (e.g. pygmy blue, Bryde's, sperm, orca, pilot whale) and dolphins. The commonly seen are introduced cattle and poultry. Other notable marine fauna include sharks, bonitos, tunas, snappers, flying fish, Manta rays, octopuses, crabs, and turtles. There are 101 species of birds, common amongst them include the brown noddy and sooty tern and water birds such as herons, teals, and gulls. Pitti island is a declared bird sanctuary and an important breeding place for sea turtles and a number of pelagic birds including the brown noddy, lesser crested tern and greater crested tern.

Administration and politics

The islands form a part of the union territory of Lakshadweep and is administered by a Administrator on behalf of the Government of India. The union territory was established in 1956 and constitutes a single Indian district. The headquarters of the union territory remained at Kozhikode until 1964, when the seat of administrator of the islands was shifted to Kavaratti. Since then, the administration secretariat is based in Kavaratti.

For administration, the territory is divided into ten sub-divisions headed by sub-divisional officers except in Minicoy and Agatti, which are headed by deputy collectors. The ten inhabited islands have village panchayats with total of 88 members across islands which form a district panchayat which has 26 directly elected members including the chairpersons of the ten village panchayats and the Member of Parliament for Lakshadweep Lok Sabha Constituency. The territory is also divided into five community development blocks: Kavaratti, Amini, Andrott, Minicoy and Kiltan, each administered by Collector-cum-Development Commissioner, who is in charge of revenue, land settlement, law and order. The commissioner also serves as a District magistrate and is assisted by an additional district magistrate and ten executive magistrates for enforcement of law and order. The administrator acts as Inspector General of Police and has command and control of the Lakshadweep Police, which has a sanctioned strength of 349 personnel across nine police stations.

The territory elects one member to the lower house of the Indian parliament, the Lok Sabha. The Lakshadweep is a reserved constituency for Scheduled Tribes. The union territory falls under the judicial jurisdiction of the Kerala High Court at Kochi, and corresponds to a system of lower courts under it. There is a district and sessions court in Kavaratti since 1997 and two munsiff courts in Andrott and Amini.

Demographics

According to the 2011 census, Lakshadweep has a population of 64,473 of which 33,123 (51.3%) were males and 31,350 (48.7%) were females. The territory had a sex ratio with 946 females per 1,000 males in 2011. It also recorded the highest sex ratio at birth as per the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) in 2021. There were a total of 11,574 households and about 50,332 (78%) of the population lived in urban. The literacy rate was 92.28%, the second highest amongst Indian territories, as per the NSO survey in 2017. As per the NFHS, the fertility rate was 1.4, significantly below the national average of 2.0.

Religion and ethnicity

Islam (96.6%) is the major religion of people of the islands with Sunni Islam being the predominant denomination, followed by Hinduism (2.8%) and Christianity (0.5%). Most of the people of the islands are descendants of migrants from the Malabar coast of southwest India and are ethnically similar to the Mappilas of Kerala. According to popular tradition, Islam was brought to the islands by Ubaidullah in 661 CE. Although Islam is the predominant religion currently, the earliest settlers were probably Hindus with the religious orientation, social stratification and matrilineal kinship system evidences of the same. The southernmost island of Minicoy have an ethnically Mahls population also native to the Maldives.

Languages

English is the official language with Malayalam classified as an additional official language. Jeseri (also known as ''Dweep Basha''), a dialect of Malayalam is the widely spoken language in Amindivi and Laccadive islands with the Mahl, a dialect of Dhivehi spoken in Minicoy. There are minor variations of the same dialect across islands.

Malayalam written in the Malayalam script was introduced as the primary language of Lakshadweep during the British Raj, while previously a type of Arabic script, which is also known as Ponnani script or Arabi Malayalam script, was used for writing the language. The policy is continued with Malayalam serving as a link language on the islands including Minicoy.

Economy

The economy is dependent on agriculture and allied industry and fishery with tourism, a developing industry. , there were 72 registered micro and small industries majorly involved in public sector, food products and furniture. Major exports are coconut products including Coconut fibre (coir) and fishes. While the actual arable land is minimal at 2.58 hectares, major agriculture produce is coconuts. There are five coir factories, five production demonstration centers and seven curling units run by the government which produce coir fiber, yarn and mattings.

With a vast lagoon area and an exclusive economic zone of , fishery is a major industry. The estimated annual production is 21,016 tonnes of which 60% is tuna and related fishes with 60% of the total converted to dried products with 40% allocated for local consumption. Commercial fishing is concentrated around 11 islands with skipjack tuna and yellowfin tuna being the only commercial varieties fished. Fishing is done using mechanized fishing boats, traditional country crafts and country crafts fitted with motors. The government runs a tuna canning factory.

The tourist industry in Lakshadweep traces to 1974, when the Bangaram atoll was opened for international tourism. According to India tourism statistics, 10,435 domestic tourists and 1,313 foreign tourists visited the islands in 2018. The government is promoting tourism as a means to increase the income of local population with the islands of Bangaram and Kadmat, promoted as tourist destinations. With marine fauna and coral reefs, various water sports activities such as scuba diving, wind surfing, snorkelling, surfing, kayaking, canoeing, water skiing, sportfishing, yachting and night sea voyages have been established to promote tourism. Tourists need a permission to visit the islands and foreign nationals are not permitted to visit certain islands. According to the current alcohol laws of India, alcoholic beverage consumption is not permitted in the islands except on Bangaram island. The government has proposed programmes to improve infrastructure and promote tourism. The potential negative effects of tourism on the environment and ecosystem of the islands is a subject of debate.

Infrastructure

There is no single power grid connecting the islands and independent power houses caters to the power requirements of individual islands. Minicoy was the first island to be electrified in 1962 followed by Kavaratti in 1964 and others later, with Bitra being the last island to be electrified in 1982. Two diesel generators were established in 1962, generating 51.6 Kilo Watt. , the installed capacity is 18.5 Mega Watt from 41 diesel generators and 12 solar photovoltaic systems. In January 2024, a solar power plant was commissioned to augment power generation.

The world's first ever experimental low-temperature thermal desalination plant opened on Kavaratti in 2005, which uses the temperature difference between warm surface seawater and much colder seawater at depth to generate potable water as well as energy, was put in place to produce 100,000 litres/day of potable water from seawater. The technology was developed by the National Institute of Ocean Technology and government announced plans to build three further plants.

Mobile communication service is provided by state-owned BSNL across all inhabited islands and Airtel in two islands of Kavratti and Agatti. In 2020, the government announced a project to install under-sea fiber optic cable for high-speed mobile and internet connectivity between Kochi and 11 islands of Lakshadweep, which was inaugurated in January 2024. Post offices that provide mail service. There are four hospitals with 200 beds, four primary health centers, and 14 sub-health centers operated by the government.

Transportation

The islands are served by Agatti Airport on Agatti island, the only airport in the territory. As the current long runway is capable of handling only smaller turboprop aircraft, the government has announced a plan in early 2024 to extend the runway to enable it to handle larger narrow body aircraft and expand the infrastructure to convert the airport into dual-use for civilian and military purposes. A new greenfield airport is also proposed to be constructed at Minicoy Island. Two helicopters are operated by Pawan Hans which serve for passenger transport and emergency medical evacuation across islands.

, there are of paved roads and no railway in the territory. , additional roads have been planned including a peripheral road at Kavaratti and beach front roads at Kadamath and Agatti islands. , seven ships operate passenger services between Kochi and the islands with seasonal boat/ferry service between islands. In 2024, the government unveiled a plan to develop three ports at Androth, Kalpeni and Kadamath islands as a part of the Sagar Mala project. There are fifteen lighthouses in the islands. The Minicoy Island Lighthouse was the first modern light house, established in 1885.

Indian Navy operates INS Dweeprakshak, a naval based under the Southern Naval Command, commissioned in 2012. There are ten minor ports, one each on all inhabited islands.

Education

The first public school was opened in Amini in 1904 with elementary schools opened in Kiltan in 1911 and Kadmat in 1925. The first high schools were established in the 1960s in Amini and Kalpeni. , there are 50 schools catering to 8,350 students. There are four government collegs affiliated to Pondicherry University and two colleges and three university centers affiliated to Calicut University in the territory.

See also

* Coral reefs in India
* Andaman and Nicobar

Notes

References

Further reading

* R. C. Majumdar (1979) ''The History of Ancient Lakshadweep'', Calcutta.
* S. Anandan
Lakshadweep – Between the sea and a hard place
The Hindu, 30 May 2021.

External links

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{{Authority control

Lakshadweep
South India
Union territories of India
*
Atolls of India
Archipelagoes of the Indian Ocean
5th-century establishments
Populated places established in the 5th century
States and territories established in 1956
1956 establishments in India
States and union territories of India
Districts of Lakshadweep