Tuesday and Wednesday February 5 & 6, 2019 – Port Blair, Andaman Islands
We departed Yangon On February 4th afternoon and sailed over the 5th to arrive at the Andaman Islands on the 6th February 2019. 1 hour time difference (back).
The Andaman and Nicobar Archipelago/ broken necklace shaped group of islands consist of 572 islands running in a long thin strip N/S, of which 36 are occupied and only a few permit non natives to set foot on the island. There are 24 of these 36 inhabited islands in the Andaman Group covering an area of 6408 Sq Km and 12 in the Nicobar Group covering 1841 Sq Km. The so called Ten Degree channel separates the Andaman Group from the Nicobar Group. The natives are protected by the Indian Government as they maintain their primitive hunter / gatherer lifestyle without outside intervention and are not tolerant of diseases brought by outsiders. On one such island a US missionary, knowing full well the risks, recently landed and was killed immediately. India takes great care controlling who enters what place and where. Only flights from Chennai (Madras), not Mumbai and the odd cruise ship arrive at Port Blair.
Since I had never heard of these islands before coming on this trip and in chatting with friends and family who likewise were ignorant of their existence, I would like to take a few minutes of the readers time to give you an overview of the history and the people that inhabit the islands.
Early history
The Chinese knew of these Islands around 1000AD and called them “Yeng-t’ omag”. Ptolemy the Roman Geographer in the 2nd Century called them “Angdaman Islands” (Islands of Good Fortune), I’ T Sing, a Buddhist monk called them Lo-Jen-Kuo (land of the naked), Marco Polo called them Angmanain and Nicolo Contri, the Italian Traveller called them “Island of God”. The name Andaman is derived from Handuman or Hanuman, the monkey God of the epic Ramayana who is said to have used the islands as stepping stones on his journey to Sri Lanka across the sea. The name Nicobar seems to be a corruption of a Southern Indian term “Nakkavaram” (land of the naked) in the Tanjore inscription of 1050AD.
The early inhabitants/ aborigines arrived by boat from South East Asia since there is a strong likeness to the Semangs of Malaysia and the Aetas of the Philippines. However DNA analysis of the natives show a direct link to the Pygmies of Southern Africa. The Nicobarese migrated before the Christian Era and tend to be horticulturists as opposed to Andamanese who tend to be hunter gatherers. The Sentinalese continue their hostility to outsiders whereas the once very hostile Jarawas are gradually becoming friendly to outsiders and the Onges, Great Andamenese and Nicobarese accept he presence of outsiders and are becoming integrated but the Shompens avoid contact with outsiders and are non-hostile.
The Aboriginals or Native Tribes
There are various groups, as previously alluded to, that are native to the islands or at least moved here 1000 to 2000+ years ago. The Great Andamenese, Jarawas and Sentinels / Onge live on the Andaman Group and are of Negrito or African origin whereas the Nicobarese and Shompens live on The Nicobar Group and are of Mongolian origin.
1.The Great Adamsnese (0.14% of Native Population) are the remnants of 10 clans and live on Strait Island 46 Km (29 miles) from Port Blair with an area of 60 hectares (150 acres) and due to external contact (bringing diseases such as Influenza, Small Pox, Measles etc, their numbers have diminished by 99% since the British occupied the islands with only some 45 people left.
2.The Onges (0.32% of Population) now number about 100 and are dependent on Government handouts. In 2004 a major Tsunami hit the islands with much destruction. The 75 Onge people living in Dugong Creek on Little Andaman, fled to higher ground and survived otherwise they would have been wiped out. Little Andaman is 130 Km (80 miles) South of Port Blair (25 Sq Km or 10 Sq Miles) and the generally monogamous Onge are based in two small settlements – Dugan Creek and South Bay.
3.The Jarawas (0.31% of Population) number some 270 and live in the 639 Sq. Km. (267 Sq. Miles) reserve forest belt on the West Coast of South and Middle Andaman. They have only had peaceful contact with outsiders for 6 years. They are completely independent hunter gatherers, live in communal huts and their future existence is under question given the highway being built through their lands. They wear shell necklaces but little else.
4.The Sentinelese (0.13% of the population) are the most isolated of the tribes with no outside peaceful contact, firing arrows at anyone who approaches them. Their home on North Sentinel Island which is 60 Sq Km in area, 34 Km due West of South Andaman / Port Blair. It appears to be relatively unaffected by the Tsunami based on arial photography and they are probably number between 50 and 250 in a cluster of about 20 huts. They are completely self sufficient hunter gatherers.
5.The Shompen (1.3% of Population) are an isolated, shy tribe on Great Nicobar Island (119 Sq Km) and number about 400. Based on arial views, the island seems little damaged by the Tsunami. They have virtually no contact with outsiders and are hunter gatherers. They live in groups of 2-10 hut villages near fresh water rivers. The huts are constructed on pillars 1.5 to 3 meters high using palm leaves to thatch their houses. The people live on the raised platform while the domestic animals use the space below. The oldest male of their tribe is the head and they are both monogamous as well as polygamous.
6.The Nicobarese (97.2% of the native Population) have a population of some 30,000 and are basically horticulturists. Most are Christian, and are more assimilated (as of the 1990’s) than the other tribes but maintain their historical customs. A ‘Captain’ heads each village and the overall leader is known as the ‘Chief Captain’. Sometimes these are Ladies and called ‘Rani’ They were greatly affected by the Tsunami.
Port Blair is located on Lower or South Andaman. Rangat and numerous beaches are on Middle Andaman and Digtipir plus other beaches are on North Andaman. South of South Andaman is Little Andaman and even further south is the Nicobar Island Group. There are a great deal of flora and fauna on the islands some of which are endemic to the area. For example there are 225 species of butterflies (10 endemic), 2200 flowering plants, 242 species of birds, 83 reptiles, 10 amphibians, 750 Fish 326 coelenterates (sponge, coral, anemones, jellyfish etc), 407 crustaceans (crab, lobster, shrimp etc), 941 mollusks (Oysters, clams, snails, squid etc), 1500 insects and 6: species of Spiders and Scorpions.
Established by the British as a penal colony in 1789, today Port Blair is the largest town on the Andaman Islands. Surrounded by lush forest and rugged coastline, Port Blair has a vibrant mix of inhabitants including Bengalis, Tamils and Burmese. We did not come across any of the native aboriginal population, but the general atmosphere has a typical “India feel” – Rubbish everywhere, traffic confusion, open sewers, cows and other animals roaming the streets, General clutter and very hot. However, the majority of the people seemed to have clean clothes and ladies with elegant Sari’s.
We boarded a bus which had windows in lieu of air conditioning, rope tied across the open window so as not to fall out and shock absorbers that had seen better days some decades ago!!! We bumped along the road, shaking us around in the 100 degree F heat being spoken to on the whisper box as there was no microphone or speakers in the bus, by Nirish, the guide who repeated twenty times a minute “bus number 2” but virtually no instructions as to what we, the passengers on bus number 2 were supposed to do. Meeting time and place was somewhat arbitrary and who did what when was at best haphazard!! However, all enjoyed the visit, even though mutiny was about to break out at the last stop – the open Aberdeen market as the majority were hot, fed up and wanted to return to the ship. A few of us in the minority, wanted to visit the market as it was a scheduled part of the tour and seemed vibrant and a way to interact with the local residents. Those who stayed on the bus (the term “coach” would be far to grand for the vehicle) sat in the seats of those of us wandering the market and refused to give them up on our return. Since the Jail we visited on our first stop was not far away, the total mutiny was fortunately averted!!!
As just stated, our first stop was at the “Cellular Jail” so named as it had 698 individual cells for solitary confinement of prisoners, each measuring 13 ft 6 inches (412 cms) by 7 Ft 6 inches (229 cms). From the British standpoint it was to banish revolutionaries, political prisoners and reactionaries to British Rule in Mainland India so as to keep the peace. From the Indian point of view they were Freedom Fighters fighting for Independence from the British. Their names are engraved today on Marble plaques in the central tower of the Jail. A sign at the entrance states “ The Cellular Jail … stands as a mute witness to the untold sufferings, valiant defiance and undaunted spirit of the firebrand revolutionaries against the brutalities of British Barbarism”!!!! As most of the passengers on the ship are British, we all took due note!
The Jail was built between October 1896 and 1905. It was opened as a museum by Prime Minister Shri Moraji Desai as a memorial to those who lost their lives there on the 11th February 1979. The British officers resided just across the bay in lavish surroundings on Ross Island. The buildings now are in disrepair and overgrown but reflect the comfort of living in that era.
The Jail consists of seven, long, three story buildings around a central tower core resembling the spikes of a bicycle wheel. The Jailers in the tower could control all the wings as iron bars and doors kept each wing separate with only a single central staircase. Each cell had iron bar doors and the front of one wing faced the back of the next wing so as to further isolate the prisoners. There was a small slit in the thick brick walls for food to be given to the prisoners, which daily consisted of 6 oz of rice, 5 oz flour for roti, 2 oz Dal, 1 dram salt, 3/4 dram oil, 8oz Vegetables served on rusty and dirty iron plates. Prisoners were kept busy making rope from coconut fibers and pounding coconuts to extract oil amongst other such tasks. Quotas of 30 lbs of oil a day were beyond human capability and punishment ensued if quota was not met. The prison was constructed such that no one inmate could not see any other inmate. Toilets were permitted to be used three time a day, prisoners were locked in their cells at 6pm to 6 am. It was a harsh and miserable existence for all those sent to the prison.
The place was referred to as Kala Pani (Kal in Sanskrit is Death and Pani Water) so – ‘Water of Death’ or ‘Place of Death’ as none escaped and punishment like lashing the back, putting into chain irons, restrictive food rationing etc was handed frequently. Prisoners who fought against the guards or otherwise grossly misbehaved were sentenced to cells by the gallows and death. The prison had the ability to put 3 people to death by hanging simultaneously in a specially constructed building we visited.
All the political prisoners still alive in January 1938 were repatriated to their respective area in Mainland India when the prison closed.
After the very sobering experience of visiting The Jail which has now been “beautified” and has a light and sound show in the evening, we went to the Naval Marine Museum – Samudrika. In the courtyard there were some small military weaponry and the skeleton of a whale, but otherwise it was a building with a handful of rooms dedicated to the history of the islands, the shells, the corals, an aquarium with live fish from the area and other such exhibits.
The next stop was the Archaeology museum where photographs were not permitted and consisted mainly of pictures and some implements of daily life of the aboriginal population.
The final stop was the Aberdeen market, which I referred to earlier. Here, it was fun to see the shops and stalls by the open and pungent sewage canal. Cloth, tailors and housewares in one section gave way to fruits and vegetables in another. Dogs, goats, rats and other such animals were visible and roamed the market with it’s colorful produce. As we did not have any Rupees and there was no exchange house, no purchases were possible as the locals did not accept US Dollars. Still it was fun.
We returned to the ship for a late lunch, water and a rest before a ship wide party by the pool during the sail-away.
A fascinating day on the Andaman Island, now we are 3 days at sea before arriving in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
Roger & Anne Travels 