Andaman and Nicobar - Economy
Andaman & Nicobar Islands has a agro-based economy. There is a major concern regarding the worsening employment scenario in rural areas. Longterm shift in the structure of employment in rural areas shows that self-employment has eroded, share of regular employment has stagnated, and casualization of labor has increased.
One of the major limiting factors in the development and diversification of agriculture in the Islands is the lack of irrigation facilities, which is further compounded by the lack of groundwater availability, expect for the Calicut belt in South Andaman. This lack of water is the major reason for poor productivity of coconut and areca nut. There is huge potential for spice cultivation as an intercrop of these plantation crops, but due to lack of water during the dry season, farmers do not take up these crops. Further, it also restricts the cultivation of vegetables and flowers during the dry season when there is huge demand due to tourist inflow. At present, only 70% of the vegetable and 16% of flower requirement is met from local sources.
A total of area of 8070 hectare under agriculture and plantation in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands was damaged by Tsunami/Earthquake. Out of that paddy and other field crops is 2177 ha. and 5891 ha. under plantation crops. Area under permanent submergence is 4206.64 hect. with paddy and other field crops. Paddy, the main food crop, is mostly cultivated in Andaman group of Islands, whereas Coconut and Areca nut are the cash crops of Nicobar group of Islands. Field crops, namely, pulses, oilseeds and vegetable are grown followed by paddy during Rabi season. Different kinds of fruits such as mango, sapota, orange, banana, papaya, pineapple and root crops are grown on hilly land owned by the farmers. Spices, viz. pepper, clove, nutmeg and cinnamon are grown under multitier cropping system. Rubber, red oil, palm and cashew are grown on a limited scale in these Islands.
Forests are a major source of income of these islands. Early economic development of the Islands was built on the extraction of primary resources such as timber and non-timber forest produce. It dates back to more than a century and, by the late 1990s, more than 75,000 m3 of timber was being logged annually, approximately 70% of which was exported as plywood. Logging was one of the earliest and most important economic activities and continued to be a major source of revenue and employment, livelihood, and government revenue until 2002.
The primary livestock is pig, followed by poultry and goat. A large proportion of the livestock is in the Andaman district except the pig, which is more abundant in Nicobar. Nicobarese consider pigs as a family asset and coconut plantations as a village asset. These islands have the inherent advantage of being free from most diseases but lack quarantine facilities. Further, availability of local feed is uncertain, seasonal and location dependant.
Recorded forest is 7,171 sq km of the total geographical area of the islands. Many types of forests are found in the islands, such as tropical wet evergreen, tropical semi-evergreen, moist deciduous, littoral, mangrove and swamp forests. A large variety of timbers are found in the Andaman group of islands. The most valuable timbers are padauk and gurjan. These species are not found in Nicobar.
All types of forests are found in the islands, such as giant evergreen, hill-top evergreen, moist, deciduous, littoral, mangrove and swamp forest. A large variety of timber is found in the Andaman group of islands. The most valuable timbers are padauk and gurjan. These species are not found in Nicobar.
The coastline is large and there is plenty of fish in the coastal waters and in the territorial zone of India. The rare varieties of fish (like shell fish), crabs and sharks are also available in abundance in these islands. The present level of marine fish production is 33,735 tonnes, which is about 12% of the estimated potential. There are about 100 fishermen villages in the ANI with a population of 15,000. Around 5,600 full-time fishermen and 700 part-time fishermen are engaged in marine fishing activities. They operate about 2,800 fishing crafts of which 1,500 are non-motorized/traditional craft, 1,300 motorized craft, and 10 mechanized boats.
Agriculture consists mainly of rice, coconuts, areca nut, and bananas. Some rubber and oil palm plantations have also been developed. Approximately 50,000 ha are currently under cultivation, of which more than half is planted with coconut and areca nut. A&N Islands encompass 0.60 million km2 of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), which constitutes about 30% of the EEZ of India. A large coastline and rich natural resources have contributed to a relatively higher per capita Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) of Rs. 15,703. The Service sector contributes 47.5% of the GSDP, primary sector contributes 30%, and the manufacturing sector just 20%. There is hardly any manufacturing barring a little wood processing activity in the UT.
The ecological and environmental conditions are not very conducive for setting up large-scale industrial units in ANI. The industry sector is dominated by small-scale village and handicraft industries. Recently there are some export oriented units in the line of fish processing established. Some engineering units are engaged in the production of polythene bags, PVC conduit pipes and fittings, paints and varnishes, fibre glass and mini flour mills, soft drinks and beverages, steel furniture as MS barrels, aluminium doors and windows, etc. Small scale and handicraft units are also engaged in shell crafts, bakery products, rice milling, furniture making, oil seeds crushing, etc. For industrial development in these islands the Andaman and Nicobar Integrated Development Corporation established in 1988.
There are 1833 registered MSMEs and Handicrafts Units. Two units are 100 per cent export oriented units in the line of Fish/Prawn processing activity. Apart from this, there are shells and wood based handicraft units. SSI units are engaged in the production of paints and varnishes, mini flour mills, soft drinks and beverages, steel furniture and fixtures, readymade garments, steel gate grills and structures. MSMEs handicraft units are also engaged in shell crafts, bakery products, rice-milling, furniture-making, etc. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation in the Public sector has spread its wings in the field of Tourism, Fisheries, Industries and Industrial financing and functions as authorized agents for Alliance Air/Jet Airways/Air Deccan.
The Motor Transport Department of A & N Administration operates from 13 stations in Northern and Southern group of islands. The department has a total number of 205 buses in operation mainly in rural area of A & N islands. Computerized ticketing for ATR express service has been implemented w.e.f. 15th August, 2007 where advance tickets can be obtained.
Except some iron ore deposits there is not much mineral wealth in the islands. Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) has done considerable exploration in this islands and the hopes are high because of oil resource in neighbouring Burma, Mynamar (they are in the same geological belt).
A major concern is the low and declining productivity of industrial workers. In the organized segment, the public sector continues to play a very dominant role, and accounts for more than 86% of employment in the UT. It is already reaching its limits and hence the Islands need a new approach to increase its employment potential – moving consciously to source jobs from nonorganized sectors, particularly from rural-based farm and non-farm sectors. Fisheries, food processing, horticulture and floriculture, medicinal plants, bamboo, and cane have great potential for generating employment. Tourism, handicrafts, and ship repair and servicing have also been identified as sectors with increasing potential for generating employment. At the same time, these sectors are highly vulnerable to the impact of climate change. It is important to adopt appropriate strategies to make these sectors climate resilient as well as diversify livelihood opportunities to rural-based farm and non-farm sectors.
Andaman and Nicobar Islands have been recognised as an eco-friendly tourist’s destination. As a tourist paradise, these islands have something very special to offer like Cellular Jail, Ross Island and Havelock Island. The Andaman tropical evergreen rain forests, beautiful silver sandy beaches, serpentine mangrove-lines creeks, marine life abounding in rare species of plants, animals, corals, etc., provide a memorable experience to the tourists. There is tremendous scope for enjoying nature in the beach resorts, water sports and adventure water sports, adventure tourism like trekking, Island camping, Nature trail, Scuba Diving, etc.
Tourism Department runs guest houses in various parts of the Islands for comfortable accommodation to tourists visiting these Islands. The important places of tourist interest are Anthropological Museum. Marine Museum, Water Sports Complex, Gandhi Park, North Bay, Viper Island, Ross Island, Chidiyatapu, (Bird watching), Red Skin Island, Corbyn’s cove Beach, Islands like Neil Island, Havelock Island, Cinque, Little Andaman, Diglipur (Ross and Smith), etc.
As regards the connectivity, the islands are well connected to the mainland by air and sea. Indian Airlines, Air Deccan, Jetlite operates to Port Blair from Kolkata and Chennai. There are regular passenger ship service from Chennai, Kolkata and Vishakhapatnam.
Submarine optical fibre cable will deliver faster and more reliable mobile and landline telecom services at par with other parts of the country.
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