Modi To Chair Meeting On Island Development Soon

Narendra Modi Andaman Trip

The NITI Aayog has called a high-level meeting to discuss various proposals to tap the economic and Develop Andaman Tourism potential of islands that surround India’s coastline. Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi is expected to chair the meeting, slated soon. Of the 1,300-odd islands that surround India, the Aayog has identified 10 in Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshwadeep for holistic development.

The Aayog in a presentation made to the Prime Minister said it formed five inter-ministerial groups to identify islands. Of the list of 20 islands, the Aayog picked 10 that can be taken up in the first phase to be developed. Among the islands the Aayog has identified are the Smith Island, Ross Island, Avis Island and Long Island from Andaman & Nicobar. From Lakshadweep, the islands that have been identified include Bangaram, Thinnakara, Suheli, Cheriyam and Minicoy. Officials said the PM would review the progress made in pushing the idea of developing the islands as potential tourist destinations. On Monday, during a meeting to review the progress of infrastructure projects, Modi also directed officials to expedite the solar city project and development of unused airstrip as envisaged in the National Aviation Policy.

For the oil & gas sectors, officials said the PM was keen the potential of offshore and onshore exploration was fully tapped. He also sought the report of ethanol blending programme. In August 2015, the government had decided to boost ethanol production by making 10 per cent blending with petrol mandatory. The decision is likely to benefit cash-starved sugar mills, which owe Rs 14,000 crore dues to cane growers. The Prime Minister was informed that 150 million households were covered under direct benefit transfer for LPG in FY16. In the new and renewable energy sector, the cumulative installed capacity has crossed 44,000 Mw.

The Prime Minister was briefed on plans and strategies to further boost solar energy production, including through rooftop generation, an official statement said. The Indian Railways has achieved a target of daily passenger movement of 22.5 million. As many as 240 unmanned crossings have been eliminated between April and June this year in the ports sector. There has been considerable progress in average vessel turnaround time.

Top officials from various infrastructure sector ministries, NITI Aayog, and the Prime Minister’s Office attended the meeting. (Source: Internet)

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Andaman and Nicobar Islands

The Andaman Islands are an Indian archipelago in the Bay of Bengal. These roughly 300 islands are known for their palm-lined, white-sand beaches, mangroves and tropical rainforests. Coral reefs supporting marine life such as sharks and rays make for popular diving and snorkeling sites. Indigenous Andaman Islanders inhabit the more remote islands, many of which are off limits to visitors.
Area: 8,249 km² 
Population: 380,500 (2012)

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Offbeat Destinations to Explore in India

All of us know the beautiful famous places like Shimla, Manali, Coorg, and Alleppy but how many of us know about the untouched places like Malana, Sandakphu and Kanatal! These places might not be on the lists to travel to on the internet and that’s the thing that makes them unique as well as picturesque. We all know how humans destroy everything that comes in contact and these locations are still pristine as there is almost no tourism activity at these places. If you love to explore the unexplored there are some of the places you can travel to by booking air ticket to the nearest airports.

 Malana

  1. Malana: Detached and uninhabited, Malana is a curious yet staggering town in Himachal Pradesh. Secured by the superb tops of Chandrakhani and Deo Tibba, Malana is determined to a level by the banks of a stream of the same name. With an amazing elevation, the town has a character and personality of its own. Home to pretty much 100 comfortable houses, this town is known for its Charas or ‘Malana Cream’. An intriguing account identifying with Malana is that its tenants see themselves as to be relatives of Alexander the Great and are accordingly, prevalent.

  1. Sandakphu: Get audacious with a trek to the most astounding top in West Bengal, a standout amongst the most odd destinations in India. Meant signify ‘Tallness of the Poison Plant’, Sandakphu is at an astonishing height of around 3636m and supports the absolute most harmful aconite plants at its top. Be that as it may, when you have made it to its extremely beat, you will be compensated with shocking perspectives of 4 of the most noteworthy tops on the planet.

  1. Kanatal: A romantic and pretty village, Kanatal is roosted high up at 8500 ft and is the meaning of untampered excellence and tranquility. Furnished with phenomenal climate and supreme cordiality, Kanatal offers dynamite perspectives of snow-secured crests and impervious timberlands. This town is renowned for its patio stays – an idea that has caught the creative ability of travelers in a major manner.

  1. Gurez Valley: Cut through the Himalayas and set along the banks of the staggering Kishenganga River, Gurez Valley is a standout amongst the most excellent valleys in India. Found directly underneath the high elevation Line of Control, Gurez Valley is a wildly secured land in the Indian region. Dreamlike and peaceful, Gurez Valley has the most charming sights of shepherds and fields.

  1. Tawang: Famous as the origination of the Dalai Lama, Tawang is a pleasant slope town situated in the condition of Arunachal Pradesh. Ignoring a valley that is commanded by rich green views and dazzling all encompassing scenes, Tawang is additionally home to a few adored cloisters. With religious connections and a quieting domain, this destination is an absolute necessity visit for all travel lovers.

  1. Velas: Profound inside the Ratnagiri District of Maharashtra, Velas is a town of the most venturesome populace. The natives of Velas have taken upon themselves the undertaking of supporting and ensuring the turtles. The town even has a yearly turtle celebration, a one-of-its-kind occasion that is essentially hypnotizing to witness. Inspire set to watch the life a turtle spread out just right in front of you, from the minute they venture out of their egg shells!

  1. Drass: Starting at the base of the Zoji La Pass and at an elevation of 10,990ft from the ocean level, Drass is an unexplored destination of amazing climate and intriguing scene. The valley houses extraordinary vegetation that develops in full magnificence along quiet riverbanks. You can watch the mirror picture of towering tops and moving mists in these unblemished waters. Drass is famously known for its extreme and horrendous winters – a season best evaded.

So, what are you waiting for? Book your air ticket now and get ready to explore these beautiful places that are still highly untouched from the human impact.

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DISCOVER YOUR TRAVEL TO ANDAMAN Nicobar Islands

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The fantasies of Andaman tourism can not be described in a few words. Exotic beaches, Foliage Beauty of Forest, incredible sight of sunrise and sunset, stunning glimpse of Underwater Living are among the petals of Andaman Nicobar Tours. Trip to Andaman Nicobar Island is a great trip to an island beyond our imagination. We can not stop our dreams to reach out exceptional places like Andaman Tours to explore the true meaning of exciting trips. Andaman Bluebay Holidays is here with you, with various Andaman Tour packages to fulfill your dream trip travel to Andaman !!

Andaman Honeymoon Package
For tourists and honeymooners plan tours to Andaman Nicobar, we have excellent facilities for exploring the exciting activities in Andaman above and below water. Our Andaman Holidays offers you many choices of activities in the Andaman like snorkeling, diving, trekking, a boat tour of the Creeks and many more that you travel to Andaman Island is a great success. Alternatively the popular islands of Port Blair, Havelock and Neil, Elephanta, Baratang, Radhanagar and many other islands that are known to explore the Andaman tours Andaman our economic tour packages. Now, Andaman Tour Booking is easy with the team from Andaman Bluebay Holidays .

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Trip to Andaman and Nicobar Islands

My trip to Andaman and Nicobar Islands with my school to November was a fruitful and an eye opening experience.

Andaman and Nicobar Islands are a group of islands found at the junction between the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea. They form a Union territory of India and their southern fur is only 150 km above Indonesia. I visited the islands for my IB Group 4 or “science” trip inorder to learn about the local community and conduct experiments related to biodiversity.

Andaman Bluebay Holidays

I leaned to the islands are home to over 1,380 species of fish and surrounded by pristine coral. The islands are also a breeding ground for the critically endangered mammals in Dugong the islands mascot. Andaman Islands are also a paradise for birds. Over 206 species of birds are found on the islands, of which a staggering 106 are endemic. . The Naracondum Hornbill is one of those birds found on the extinct volcano island Naracondum. The islands also have Saltwater Crocodiles living in Andaman vast area of mangroves. The islands are blessed with a unique tropical rainforest canopy consisting of Indian, Myanmarese, Malaysian flower stems. Of the 2,200 varieties of plants Fund in Andaman and Nicobar 200 are endemic and 1300 did not happen on the Indian mainland. But it was not that, due to coral bleaching we were able to spot numerous species of crabs and marsupials like hermit crabs and scorpions. We also observed snakes, sea slugs, tadpoles and starfish. The snorkeling trip also provided us with a first hand experience of observing fish in their natural habitat; Unfortunately coral was bleached also.

On the fourth day of our trip we were privileged enough to learn about the tribal society of Andaman and Nicobar islands. A session was held at the residence Nicobarese tribe only physician. The flat where he lived was part of a resettlement plan made by the government after his native island; Car Nicobar was washed away in the tsunami in 2004. We were received warmly; this experience broke my longstanding prejudices against tribals, for I had always seen them as rash and impulsive. Before our interaction began, a tribal song performed for us. The song was about homeland and culture Nicobarese. After the song, the doctor talked about the geography of the island. He said the composition of the religions of the islands, the illiterate, etc. We learned that society is dominated by Christians (98%), while Muslims are also present in a small proportion. The current rate of literacy told us was about 90%, far above the Indian nation average of 71%. After a brief question and answer session where our knowledge of the community were improved, the men and women who performed the dance. The dances were symbolic of how society was closely knit. The discussion that continued was one of the most eye-opening discussions that I’ve ever had. We learned tribe had reached a stage where they could be compared with any developed country’s inhabitants. People were fully aware of tubectomy and actual procedure was performed often. They had a high standard of living and was an open society. The tribe had progressive outlook in almost all areas from marriage to their governance. Overall this talk was a very humbling and enlightening experience that had an impact far beyond my expectations. I learned to appreciate my roots and think of all the right light, most importantly, I learned not to be harmed. The discussion ended when the doctor told us about his sad and unfortunate experience in Delhi and hostility he stood with his family.

On the fifth day of our trip we had the opportunity to visit the local market in Neil Island for an interactive Q & A survey with local merchants. We were put in groups and could roam around the market are visiting stores to ask questions. We visited electrical shops, grocery stores, small restaurants etc.

The first store my group visited was a general electronics store. The shop was rented from a government establishment; hence the rent paid to the government. The electronics ranging from televisions and washing machines for smaller radio players. We were told that the products had to be imported from Bengal and thus obviously a tariff would be imposed. I asked the shopkeeper how goods were transported on the island, to which he replied by saying that he had to hire ferries to bring goods from the mainland to Neil Island.

Another stimulating part of the day was the visit to the daily needs shop. The merchant had a small store that was stuffed the items. He looked after the store with his wife. The shop belonged to his uncle who had given it to him to run the business and even stayed in Port Blair. The first question we asked him was the price he sold products like Coca Cola. He said Rs. 25, which was very surprising in the sense that the same bottle of Coke would be available on most of the other shops on the island of Rs. 40 it would be available at Rs. 30 on the mainland. It was commonly available for Rs. 40 because of the levies, however, Rs. 25 came as a shock when it was lower than the overall Rs. 30 as well.

Through these discussions I learned that maximize profit is not so important for the merchants. I realized how different life in Andaman and Nicobar Islands from the rest of India mainland, where material wealth has become the ultimate pursuit of life. These islands home to the world’s oldest surviving tribes is an example not only for India but also for the rest of the world. They have urbanized without releasing their roots and culture, which is a great achievement in a world where urbanization means Westernization, something not true.

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My freedom to live

My freedom to live: ‘A free life is one lived with dignity’ Editor of The Andaman Chronicle; activist and spokesman for the Jarawa tribe in the Andaman islands, Port Blair-based Denis Giles, 40, is currently campaigning against the public use of portions of the Andaman Trunk Road that cut through the Jarawa Tribal Reserve, attempting to put an end to human safaris. The Great Andamanese are one among the four aboriginal peoples of the Great Andaman archipelago. Today, they are just 50 in number. In Port Blair, you often spot them at taxi stands or at traffic signals, begging for survival. “Why do you go to see Jarawas, I’m a Jarawa,” they tell curious tourists. Give them a ten-rupee note and they’ll get themselves a drink with the money.
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Most of them are clueless about mainland India, never mind the world. The government provides them everything-education, jobs, healthcare, rations but this still barely helps them survive. The problem is they have lost their identity and, most importantly, self-esteem. Once that happens, there’s no point living in this world. To live a free life, you have to be able to live with dignity. Boa Senior, who passed away in 2010, was the last surviving member of the community who spoke their traditional language, Bo. In spite of the example of this great loss for the Great Andamanese, little is being done to help the other tribes. I’m not an expert, but I have been campaigning for the Jarawas since 2002, when I first joined the Society for Andaman and Nicobar Ecology. Over the years I’ve realised that if one supports their cause, one must respect and consider them to be fellow human beings. To begin with, why not call them by their true name, ‘Ang’? Jarawa is a term the British adopted from the Great Andamanese; it means outsiders in their language. After decades of Independence, we haven’t even given them back their name. There are about 420 remaining from the tribe who live in the Jarawa Tribal Reserve. For over 60,000 years they have lived off the land, never taking more than they needed. In contrast, the so-called ‘civilised’ lot has taken just 60 years to ruin the parts of the island they occupy. The Jarawas have their own medicinal system, rituals and seasons. They believe in spirits and respect their elders. There’s no rape among the tribes, even though they move around ‘naked’. So who’s the civilised lot here? In 2004, the first official Jarawa policy was put in place, which forbade interaction and put an end to ideas of bringing Jarawas into the mainstream. But again, who are we to have this isolation versus mainstream debate?
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