There are many misconceptions about the type of Human race (s) residing in this Islands. Thanks to the TV Channels and other national media who had repeatedly iin past broadcast nice documentaries on the Aboriginal tribes of Andaman & Nicobar Islands. Those commentaries collectively contributed to the confusion among fellow human beings residing elsewhere in the world. Few people even still think that since Andaman is part of India it should be possible to travel to this place by Train!
Most of the convicts who were sent from Mainland India to these Islands during the British occupation, never returned back to their home. Probably because no home actually was left for them back in the Indian mainland. The Govt. ( British) from 1926 onwards started providing land to 'The Convicts' and this policy helped in the colonisation of this Islands. A small population of Govt. servants & small traders also arrived to the Islands during British era to support the life at Andaman & Nicobar Islands. The major inflow of population was during 1954 with the resettlement of Refugees from East Bengal (Bangaladesh) and Srilanka.
Later during 1953 AD (and few during 1949-52) refugees living at various refugee camps in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh were encouraged to come to these Islands, where the Indian Government readily provided free of cost land for dwelling and farming. The settlement costed the GOI (Govt. of India) around INR 2000 for each family those days. More detailed information is available in our Population Settlement Information section. Government job is still much coveted in these Islands and there are about 38,000 of them in these Islands.
The tribal population was living elsewhere in the Islands away from the normal dwellings ever since British occupied Andaman Islands.
The Indian government recognizing this place as a strategic defence position kept strengthening the
Military, Navy, Air force and Coast Guard establishments. A sizeable ex-servicemen families were also allotted land in this Islands in Campbell Bay i.e. the southernmost tip of India.
Live Weather at Port Blair
Update : 22-Jan-2021 12:15 PM | |
![]() | Scattered clouds |
Clouds | 40 % |
Temp | 27.57 °C |
Humidity | % |
Visibility | 0 Km |
Pressure | 1011 hpa |
Wind Speed | 4.53 m/s |
Wind Direction | 58 |
Sunrise | 05:43 AM |
Sunset | 05:17 PM |
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There are not much avenues to spend money for the localities - the habit of eating out and partying is still not common, There is hardly any night life in Andamans [No pubs, No discos :-)] and after 9.30 pm the streets are deserted. Family gatherings and picnics are high on weekend agenda.
Overall these practices have helped the community to come closer. Unlike the cities elsewhere, people in Andaman and Nicobar tend to know almost everybody they come across in everyday life. The people do not visit Mainland India usually unless they are compelled to do so - very few actually visit for sightseeing tours! The visit to Mainland India for the localities is limited either to their native states (if they still have relatives there) or for treatment in speciality hospitals in Chennai.The literacy rate of Andaman and Nicobar Islands is around 90.27%. As per 2015 records, more than 90000 students were enrolled in various schools and colleges in the Islands. There is no state board in these Islands and all schools are affiliated to CBSE ( Central Board of Secondary Education ).
The following institutes supplement the need of higher education :
Andaman and Nicobar Institute of Medical Sciences (ANIIMS : Medical college run by Government of India )
Jawaharlal Nehru Rajkeeya Mahavidyalaya (JNRM : Government College)
Mahatma Gandhi Govt. College ( MGGC : Government College)
Andaman College ( ANCOL : Government College)
Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar Institute of Technology ( DBRAIT : Government Polytechnic)
Industrial Training Institute (ITI)
District institute of Education & Training (DIET)
Govt. B.Ed. College
Nursing School
2015 saw a major change when the Islands received their own Medical College (Andaman and Nicobar Islands Institute of Medical Sciences) with an intake of 100 MBBS Students. Starting 2016 the islands also received their first Law School. The students from the Islands also seek higher education at Indian mainland (at various states) for which Indian Government has made appropriate reservations at various professional and academic colleges around the country (around 200 seats of common faculties). The students get admission in the colleges as GOI
(Government of India nominees - similar to the nomination scheme at North-eastern states and Jammu
and Kashmir). | More on higher education
The extent of industrialization is evidenced from the fact that this islands only have 5 Large/Medium Scale Industry !.
The number of fair price shops in the Island is 460 (all Government, Co-operative and private sectors).
Municipal Council 1, Municipal Ward 18 and 67 Panchayats