Now that a lot of people are interested to know about the Andamans, because of the stupid & selfish foreigner who got killed while trying to proselytize the Sentinelese, I would like to talk a little about the Andamans and the tribes living there, a subject close to my heart. +
2/ While most Indians know about the archipelago because of Veer Savarkar and Cellular Jail, the Andaman Islands are home to India's only active volcano, Barren Island & the lowermost point of India, Indira Point in the Nicobar group of islands.
3/ The islands are closer to Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia & Indonesia than to India. There are stories of traders during Chola dynasty landing on these islands. Marco Polo is said to have visited the islands. Traders were afraid to land as the natives were thought to be cannibals.
4/ The first colonisation of the islands was done by Archibald Blair at Ross Island near Port Blair (named after him). The Japanese took over the archipelago for nearly 3 years during WW2 but then the British took over again before India got Independence.
5/ The islands were not considered to be a part of India and Australia was a serious bidder for obtaining the territory. But, for some reason, it was decided to join the island with the Indian territory. (Not entirely sure of this information.)
6/ The first Indian settlers were the prisoners of the Cellular Jail. Many having lost too many years locked up in the jail decided not to return to mainland India. The prisoners were from all parts of India and from different religions and social strata. There were many
7/ inter-caste, inter-religious and inter-regional marriages that took place during that time & hence the islands became very cosmopolitan. Later, the govt. settled people from TN, WB, Kerala and present-day Jharkhand to make a sizeable population.
8/ Today, the main population of the archipelago is mainly Bengalis, Tamils and Ranchis. Out of more than 500 islands in the Andaman group of islands, only 28 are inhabited with even less so in the Nicobar group.
9/ Coming back to the tribes of the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, there are 4 (Great Andamanese, Jarawa, Onge & Sentinelese) in the Andaman group whereas 2 (Shompens & Nicobarese) in the Nicobar group.
10/ The Andaman tribes are negrito in appearance & avoid clothing, hence the islands are also called 'The Land of the Naked People'. They are mostly hunter-gatherers, feeding on wild boar, fish, birds and natural products such as honey & tubers.
GA, before colonisation, formed the largest tribe on the islands. They were first to be colonised and suffered most severely for that. Today, their population is in 2-figured number & it is the most assimilated tribe in the Andamans. They were settled on Strait Island.
12/ Onge, considered to most ferocious by the British, are today a diminished population living on the Little Andaman Island. They are known for their fondness for honey.
13/ Jarawas live in the Middle Andamans, on the main island, and are the most visible due to the Andaman Trunk Road going through the heart of the forest that is their home.
14/ Sentinelese live on the North Sentinel Island. They are considered to be the most island people in the world. It is said that when the government sent helicopters to see if they are ok after the tsunami, they shot arrows at the helicopters. But they have a nicer side.
15/ They are known to provide food to people who have suffered boat wrecks. But they do not interact and the visitors have to leave their island once someone comes to rescue.
16/ The most interesting thing about these tribes is, in case of GA & Jarawas, there have been records of individuals who had been forcefully taken into civilisation, some even sent to England, to live a civilised life for a few years.
17/ But when given a choice, they chose to return to their so-called uncivilised or, how the current civilised Indian population in the Andamans calls it, jungli life. Never to be seen again by the people who knew them in the civilised world.
18/ The GA and Onge are greatly assimilated to the modern way of life, but live a sorry existence being considered the lowest in the hierarchy of the local population. Jarawas have succeeded in maintaining their way of life upto a great extent but their existence comes under
19/ threat every now and then as the local population grows in size and the need for forest land and economic opportunities increase. It is a constant struggle with no immediate solution in sight.
20/ Very little is known about the Sentinelese but, if they do come in contact with outsiders, their existence would be in danger as they have lived such an isolated life for probably more than 6000 years & hence have developed no resistence against the germs we carry.
21/ The tribes of Nicobar islands (Shompens and Nicobarese) are Mongoloid in appearance and live mostly on Great Nicobar island. They are mostly proselytized to Chritianity. They are greatly assimilate dto the modern world and many come to the main island for government jobs.
22/ There is another population (tribe would be a wrong word here) that lives in Middle Andamans - Karens. They are basically from Myanmar, brought to India by the British as labour. They are well-known for their boat-making and sea-faring skills.
23/ Karens are properly assimilated with the local population and are the backbones of the diving industry as many are employed as boat masters.
24/ The archipelago is important in more ways than 1. It houses 3 great ecosystems - tropical rainforest, littoral and coral. It is a testament to the human history and, now, a place of tactical importance to India.
25/ One of the biggest threats to the tribes, biota and the population is plastic. I have personally seen islands where no one lives, covered in plastic. &, not just plastic used by the people living there but, plastic from Thiland and Malaysia which reaches there with currents.
26/ The least one could do as tourists is further reduce th use of plastic - e.g. carry reusable cutlery everywhere, try drinking beverages without straw wherever possible.
27/ Many tourists are keen to break law to see the tribals. What difference does it make? They are humans like us. We do not like intruders, so do they. Very little of their homes is left, might as well let them be. Contact is illegal anyway. Govt. has got that completely right.
28/ Also, the sand is vital to the existence of the ecosystem as it is. Do not collect shells. The empty sheels form the sand on the beaches. It is just going to lie in your house without any use anyway. Imagine very person taking 10 shells. Lakhs of tourists visit the islands.
29/ It might seem only 10, but it becomes a very large number when calculated with every person visiting. It is simply not sustainable. Another issue is sunscreen lotion. Most are harmful to the corals. And honestly, Indian skin is blessed. Sunscreen does not make significant
30/ difference. What is a few days of tan compared to the damage caused by sunscreen to an entire ecosystem?! The archipelago is beautiful in so many ways and it really depends on how we take care of it.
31/ I can go on & on about it but I have made my main point here. If someone wants to know more about the place, history, biota, ecosystem etc., you are very welcome. For more on tribes of the archipelago, 'The Land of Naked People' by Madhusree Mukerjee is excellent. Thank you
