Lakshadweep islands in which ocean

The wave cut platform extends from the reef margin to a distance of m towards the sea and the depth falls steeply within a short distance. A number of well defined submerged terraces exist on the sea ward side of the reef at m, 15m, m prominent and m depths. Generally the topography of the lagoon towards the island margin is generally even but contains areas of ruggedness due to outcropping corals at the reef margin.

P and indicates clustering between to B. The sets of storm beaches are almost at the same level and are progressively younger towards the shore and beach on these parts of the island. They have grown by about 10 m to m in years. The list of the atolls, submerged reefs and banks in Lakshadweep are given in Table 1. The enchanting coral islands in the Arabian Sea the smallest UT in India were called as Laccadive, Minicoy and Amindevi Islands until recently, although they were popularly known as Laccadives or Lakshadweep.

The earliest reference to the name Laccadives is in the Dutch Company records. The colloquial term Laccadives is derived from Lakshadweep. It is the least populous Union Territory of India. The first settlement on these islands was during the ruling period of Cheraman Perumal, the last King of Kerala.

The Cheraman Perumal converted to Islam and left his capital for Mecca. His disappearance triggered off search parties in sailing boats. One of the sailing boats of the Raja of Cannanore was caught in a storm and shipwrecked on Bangaram. This group reached Agatti where on improvement of weather they returned to the mainland.

Another search party of sailors and soldiers discovered the island of Amini and small settlements gradually started in Kavaratti, Androth,Kadamat, Kiltan, Chetlat and Agatti. These islands form the smallest of the Union Territories of India, and are the country's only coral islands. The main islands are Kavaratti, Minicoy, and Amini. Kavaratti is the headquarters of these islands, while Bitra is the smallest of all, with a nominal population.

About 93 percent of the people in Lakshadweep are the Shafi school Muslims of the Sunni sect. The population of the island is 60, The literacy rate is Malayalam is the spoken language in all the islands and a specialized dialect known, as Jessri exists here. In Minicoy, the people speak Mahl, which is written in the Maldivian Dwehi script. The earliest references to the islands is made in Puranuruas part of the ancient Tamil Dravida country,Tamilakam.

Little else is known about the early history of the Lakshadweep islands. There are references to the control of the islands by the Cherasin the Sangam literature Pathitruppaththu. A Pallavain scription of 7th century AD refers to the islands as Dveepa Laksham and lists them as part of the Pallava domain. The oldest inhabited islands in the group are Amini, Androth, Kavaratti and Agatti.

It was earlier believed that the Lakshadweep islanders were originally Hindus who later converted to Islam in the 14th century. However, recent archaeological evidence has established that Buddhist settlements had existed in the islands as early as the 6th or 7th century. His grave is located in the island of Androth.

Muslim grave stones dated to AH AD have also been discovered here. During the 11th century, the islands came under the rule of the Late Cholas. The Portuguese took control to exploit coir production until the islanders expelled the Portuguese.

The islands are also mentioned in great detail in the stories of the Arab traveler Ibn Batuta. The rest of the islands came under the sovereignity of the Arakkal family of Cannanore in return for a payment of annual tribute.

After a while, the British took over the administration of those islands for non-payment of arrears. These islands were attached to the Malabar district of the Madras Presidency. In , despite the fact that most of the Islanders were Malayalis, the States Reorganization Act separated Minicoy from the mainland administrative units, forming a new union territory by combining all the islands. Lakshadweep comprises twelve atolls, three reefs and five submerged banks, with a total of about thirty-six islands and islets.

The reefs are in fact atolls, although mostly submerged, with only small unvegetated sand cays above the high water mark. The submerged banks are sunken atolls. Almost all the atolls have a northeast-southwest orientation with the islands lying on the eastern rim, and a mostly submerged reef on the western rim, enclosing a lagoon. The main islands are Kavaratti which is the capital , Agatti,Minicoy, and Amini. Agatti has an airport where there are direct flights from Kochi, Kerala or Ernakulam Cochin.

Tourists need a permit to visit the islands; foreign nationals are not permitted to visit certain islands. Consumption of alcohol is not permitted in the islands except on Bangaram Island. Lakshadweep forms a single Indian district and is governed by an administrator appointed by the central government of India. The union territory comes under the jurisdiction of the Kerala High Court at Ernakulam.

The territory elects one member to the Lok Sabha lower house of the Parliament of India. There is no local government at the moment but the administration plans to introduce a two-tiered system based on the Panchayati raj. There will be ten island councils for the inhabited islands with a total of 79 members. The people of all the northern islands speak dialect of Malayalam. According to local folk beliefs, they descended from traders who were washed up on the islands during a particularly heavy storm.

However, the people of Minicoy, the southernmost atoll, speak Mahl, a variant of Divehi language spoken in the Maldives. The islanders are ethnically similar to coastal Kerala's Malayali people, and were influenced by Arab traders. Inhabitants of Minicoy, the southernmost and second largest island, are ethnically Dhivehi native to the Maldives. This group of Dhivehis form a subgroup of Dhivehis, sometimes referred by the name Mahls.

Most of the indigenous population is Muslim. The locals of all the islands except Minicoy call themselves the Divior the Aminidivi "from the mother island". Lakshadweep's ethnic groups can be classified as The only airport in Lakshadweep, Aerodrome is situated on Agatti Island.

Indian Airlines, the state-owned carrier, serves Agatti and flies to Kochi on the mainland. Also, from April , a private carrier, Kingfisher Airlines, has commenced flights to and from Agatti.

Kingfisher connects Kochi and Bangalore to Agatti. The other islands are linked by helicopter or boat service. Ships are the major means of transportation for the islanders. There are around 5 passenger ships, but generally only two at a time operate and advance bookings are required.

There are cruises to all the other islands from Kochi as well as Agatti. There is a helicopter service as well to Bangaram from Agatti. Lakshadweep is one place that still remains exactly the same way man found it. And the tourism department wishes to keep it unchanged.

That is why out of the 36 islets, only 6 has been thrown open for tourism and only three to non-Indians. The number of tourists allowed on an island at a time is restricted. One can experience water sports in many parts of India, but it is the presence of coral reefs that sets Lakshadweep apart from the rest. Under the crystal blue water, lies a kingdom with the most enchanting color combinations possible.

Scuba diving and snorkeling are the two most indulged in activities in Lakshadweep. Swimming alongside shoals of fishes and amidst the living corals is an experience beyond words. Tourists also like to indulge in angling and surfing. Not many places in the world come close to the aura and charm possessed by the islands in Lakshadweep.

No wonder they are considered among the best holiday destinations in the world. The empty white sand beaches and the silence of the nights embedded with the sound of dancing waves prove to be a perfect setting for a quite vacation.

And the possibility of enjoying water sports for as long as one wishes to makes Lakshadweep an irresistible destination for family and adventure vacations. The main occupation of the islanders is fishing and agriculture.

The main fishery is Tuna followed by Shark. Oceanic species of tuna such as Skipjack Katsuwonus pelamis and Yellowfin Tuna Thunnus albacares constitute the major tuna resource exploited by the islanders by pole and line fishery with live baits. The per capita income out of fishing is Rs.

About 2, hectares are under coconut cultivation and the productivity per hectare is 22, Coconuts cultivated in the Lakshadweep are also rich in coconut oil. The islands are open to storms and cyclones. One of the earlier natural calamities recorded was in April During this cyclone the first island to hit was at Kalpeni and finally moved to Androth and Kiltan.

Many deaths were reported. In a violent storm burst upon Kavaratti causing great damages to the coconut plantation. Damages in Agatti and Amini were also reported. Kalepeni Island was once again hit by a severe cyclone in December The waves washed completely over the northern end but there was no loss of life.

Another major storm was stuck in In and another major storm struck causing considerable damages to Anroth, Kalpeni, Agatti and Kiltan. The last cyclone occurred in and hit was in Kapeni and Androth with no loss of life. The recent cyclone that hit the islands was in May gently affecting Amini. Kiltan and Kavaratti were also affected by this storm but there was no loss of life. However, property damages were extensive. Details of the storms, loss of life and affected islands are shown in the Table 2.

The conditions of coral growth requires clear and warm water at shallow depth.. Coral is a limestone formation formed in the sea by millions of tiny animals. Coral formations may look like branching trees, large domes, small irregular crusts, or tiny organ pipes. The Great Barrier Reef of Australia is the largest coral reef in the world about km long.

The formation of an island in the ocean is a first step towards the formation of coral island. The formation of oceanic island is shown in the sketches given below. When once island are sufficiently cooled and conditions are favorable the coral reefs will grow on top of the island. Figure 3. Sand Dunes: Sand dunes are the ridges of sand that often lie behind the active part of the beach. In the Lakshadweep islands there are shore parallel natural dunes and man made sand dunes in the interior part of the island.

The anthropogenic-altered dunes are seen at Kavaratti. In general these sand dunes ranges from 3 to 6 m above the MSL. Beach: Beaches are the important ecosystem of the islands. A beach may be defined as the unvegetated part of the shoreline formed of loose material usually a coralline, dead coral boulders, shingles, gravel that extends from the upper berm to the low water line.

Beaches are the focal point for coastal recreation and tourism in the islands. They are also the first line of defence against storms and erosion. Lagoon: Lagoons are shallow water bodies parallel to the island coastline. They are often highly productive and habitat for variety of plants and aquatic animals, serve as nurseries for fishes and also sites for harbour, aquaculture, industry and recreation.

In the Lakshadweep most of the inhabited islands have lagoons of varying sizes on the western part of the island except Androth. The lagoon varies from 1 to km 2 in size. The bottom topography and geomorphology of the lagoons also varies considerably. The smaller lagoon Chetlet, Kiltan, Amini and Kadamat is virtually filled with sediments.

The water depths in these lagoons vary from 1 to 2. The larger lagoons Bitra, Bangaram, Suheli and Minicoy are comparatively deep with depth of about 10 to 16 m.

The central part of the lagoons is usually deep. In the Kavaratti island the lagoon is about 4. View of the Lagoon with sands in the beach is shown in Figure 6. Resources of the islands Agriculture: Agriculture is one of the major economic resource of the islands.

On an average a palm tree gives 81 nuts per tree. More value added products are being developed for the sustainable income generation to the people. Ground water Resources: Ground water is the most critical natural resource of the islands. The only source of potable water in the islands is rain, which seeps down the porous coral sandy soil and floats as lens above the saline water base.

This water is drawn through wells. With consumption, the lens keeps on shrinking till it recharged with next rains. The sustainable yield of ground water in the islands is not sufficient to meet the demand. The per capita water requirement is 40 liters per day per person in the islands. Based on the requirement, Kavaratti, Minicoy, Agatti and Amini islands are classified as deficit. Chetlet and Kalpeni may become deficit in future. To meet the potable water in the island the Administration has started a trial plant of producing water from the sea using the thermal gradient in the sea.

Non-living Resources: The seabed of the continental margins of India contains variety of biogenous mineral deposits like relict oolitic and biogenic sands on shelf, coral and shelly sands in shallow areas of the lagoons of Lakshadweep islands. The estimated reserves of these sands in the lagoons down to 1-m depth are million tons. These sands contain cent percent calcium carbonate useful for cement, lime, glass, paper and chemical industries.

The estimated economic returns of million tons reserve will be around 20 billion rupees. At present the land reserves is sufficient to meet the demand. Living Resources: Lakshadweep has immense potential for marine fisheries. The fishery resources are mainly characterized by a rich and diversified fish fauna. Estimation of the sustainable fishery resources of Lakshadweep islands is rather sketchy. Based on the results of experimental long line fishing carried out on fishable stock of tuna and allied species, is quantified as 50, tones, while the share of surface swimming skipjack is estimated as another 50, tones.

The potential of pelagic sharks were estimated as 10, tones. Ornamental Fisheries: Recent survey on Lakshadweep shows the existence of exploitable quantities of ornamental fishes.

More than species of ornamental fishes belonging to 28 families could be exploited and marketed on a limited scale.

Collection methods without tampering the reefs, packaging and transportation facilities need to be developed so as to tap these resources for export trade. Mariculture: There is a good scope of Mariculture farming in the lagoon water of Lakshadweep. Bangaram offers an excellent site for pearl culture Table 3. Uses of Satellite in Coral reef mapping Stage.

Satellite Remote Sensing is used for coral reef mapping. The satellite images of coral reef depict extent of reefs and reef types. Baseline data for coral reefs of the entire Indian coast has been generated on , and , scales using Indian Remote Sensing Satellite data, Landsat, TM and SPOT data, wherein, extent, type of reefs and few broad geomorphologic zones were identified.

The spectral signatures are being used to classify the corals into live corals, dead reef, algal ridge, rocks and seagrass. Different type of Corals in the Islands The dominant live corals in the Lakshadweep islands are Porites, Favia, Acropora and Favites Seagrass andAlgae in Lakshadweep —Cymodocea and Thalassia Seagrass beds are highly productive and valuable resources that occur in the shallow water lagoon of the islands.

They enrich the sea and provide shelter and food for many aquatic animals. Two major plants constituting the sea grass are Thalassia hemprichii and cymodocea. Thalassia is found to be major food for the turtles and hence it is also called turtle grass. No commercial harvest of seaweeds is in practice in Lakshadweep. Algae occur in the lagoons and adjacent areas of the islands.

They are economically important as a source of food and medicinal value. History of the lakshadweep Inference from breaks in profiles and terraces. The recent history of the atolls and the formation of the islands are reflected in the breaks in the profiles of the reef front and terraces. The breaks on profiles and terraces on these atolls represent the stages in the growth of the reefs on the atolls. These could be either due to strands in the rise of the sea level or even neotectontic events.

The breaks in profiles and terraces seen on the reef front almost coincide with the minimum depths on the Bassas de Pedro 38 to 35m northern part and southern part 22 to 16m , Sesostris 20 and 22m and Cora Divh 27m banks. The maximum depths observed in the lagoon i. The two depth ranges i. With rising sea level, the coral growth kept pace with the rise and thus the stage was set for the formation of the islands. Sources, agency for generation and transport of sediments, erosion, accretion and depletion of sediments.

The formation of islands on an atoll would require a source for sediments, an agency for generating and transporting the sediments to different physiographic regions on the atoll. The sources of sediments on an atoll are the luxuriant coral reefs and the associated communities on the reef front and reef flats of the atolls. The sediments are generated and transported on the atoll by waves, currents and cyclones.

The island chain consists of 27 islands along with coral atolls and sand banks. The islands and atolls might appear scattered, but they all lie along a prominent north-south submarine ridge. Geologists have noticed that the alignment of the Lakshadweep ridge looks like a continuation of the Aravalli Range, a mountain chain running through the Indian state of Rajasthan. Some geologists have speculated that the islands might be a submerged extension of that chain.

The Lakshadweep ridge rises from a depth of more than 2, meters 6, feet below sea level, and submarine surveys indicate that the ridge is probably steeper on its eastern flank than on its western flank. At the surface, the coral atolls show consistent differences between their eastern and western sides.

Most of the saucer-shaped lagoons in Lakshadweep are confined to the western sides of the islands. Reefs exist on the eastern shores, but the shallow, rocky terrain has likely stunted them. Since the borders with Pakistan and China are on land, if this restructuring goes ahead, army generals will inevitably head the northern and western commands, while an admiral will be responsible for the southern command.

More theatre commands may also be created as the scale and scope of military activities expand. Despite their strategic advantages, the Lakshadweep Islands lack the necessary logistical infrastructure, which is reflected in their current operational limitations. The islands lack the radar installations and long-range airborne assets needed to continuously monitor the seas around them. That means that the only military aircraft that can operate from the island is the short-haul Dornier A P-8I a military version of the Boeing airliner , based in Agatti, could fly surveillance missions across the whole of the Indian Ocean, even as far as South Africa.

A joint brigade-sized force, with amphibious capability and Special Forces, needs to be permanently stationed at INS Dweeprakshak in the Lakshadweep Islands. A similar approach is expected with Mauritius. Such agreements would allow India to increase its forward maritime presence in the Indian Ocean. That would draw the western and southern reaches of the Indian Ocean into an Indian security grid, at the same time that India is also expanding its Western Fleet and building the base in Karwar.

The Indian Army, Navy and Air Force are working closely together to fine-tune their new joint amphibious warfare doctrine, using various war games. The islands are well connected by regular flights from Kochi. Helicopter transfer is available from Agatti to Kavaratti throughout the year. As the climate is equitable during monsoons, ship-based tourism is closed. October to March is the ideal time to be on the islands.