Havelock Island


Havelock Island, officially Swaraj Island, is one of the largest islands that comprise a chain of islands to the east of Great Andaman in the Andaman Islands. It belongs to the South Andaman administrative district, part of the Indian union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The island is northeast of the capital city, Port Blair.

Etymology

Havelock Island is named after a British general, Sir Henry Havelock, who served in India.
In December 2018, it was renamed as Swaraj Island as a tribute to Subhas Chandra Bose. Bose had hoisted the Indian flag at Port Blair on 30 December 1943 and proclaimed the Andaman and Nicobar Islands as territories liberated from British rule. He had subsequently named Andaman Island as Shaheed and Nicobar Island as Swaraj.

History

Havelock is one of the few places that the administration of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands union territory of India has permitted and encouraged development of tourism, with a focus on promoting eco-tourism.
Havelock Island avoided much of the devastation by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and its resulting tsunami and there were no documented casualties.
There is a lighthouse at the northern point of the island, near Govinda Nagar, established in 2005.
On 30 December 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that Havelock Island would be renamed as Swaraj Island.

Geography

The island belongs to the Ritchie's Archipelago and is located between Peel Island and Neill Island.

Administration

Politically, Havelock Island is part of Port Blair taluk.

Demographics

The island's current population of 6,351 consists of mainly Bengali settlers. Many of these settlers have East Bengali origin as these people were given settlement by the Indian government after the Partition of India in 1947.
The six villages are:
Radhanagar Beach on the western coast, also known as Number 7 Beach, is one of the most popular beaches on Havelock and was named "Best Beach in Asia" by Time in 2004. Other notable beaches include Elephant Beach on the northwest coast and Vijay Nagar Beach, Beach No. 3 and Beach No. 1 on the east coast. Kalapathar is another famous beach.

Transportation

The island can be reached from Port Blair by government-operated ferries and private cruises. There are also helicopter services.
A local bus connects the jetty and villages on an hourly circuit.

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