Port Blair

Port Blair
City
Centre of Port Blair in December 2004.
Port Blair
Location in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Port Blair
Port Blair (India)
Coordinates: 11°40′06″N 92°44′16″E / 11.66833°N 92.73778°E / 11.66833; 92.73778Coordinates: 11°40′06″N 92°44′16″E / 11.66833°N 92.73778°E / 11.66833; 92.73778
Country  India
Union Territory Andaman and Nicobar Islands
District South Andaman
Government
 • Type Mayor–Council
 • Body Port Blair Municipal Council (PBMC)
Elevation 16 m (52 ft)
Population (2011)[1]
 • Total 100,186[1]
Time zone UTC+5.30 (IST)
Climate Am

Port Blair ( pronunciation ) is the capital of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a union territory of India situated in the Bay of Bengal. It is also the local administrative sub-division (tehsil) of the islands, the headquarters for the district of South Andaman, and is the territory's only notified town. It houses the headquarters of the Andaman and Nicobar Police , Andaman and Nicobar Command, the first integrated tri-command of the armed forces of India and Indian Coast Guard.

It also serves as the entry point for visiting the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Port Blair is connected with mainland India by both air and sea. It is a 2-hour flight from mainland India to Port Blair, but it takes 3–4 days by sea to reach Chennai, Kolkata or Vishakhapatnam. Air connectivity to Port Blair is available from Chennai, Kolkata, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Bhubaneshwar and Vishakhapatnam. All flights bound to Andaman and Nicobar Islands land at the Veer Savarkar International Airport. Sea connectivity is available from Chennai, Kolkata and Vishakhapatnam are embarked in Haddo Wharf. It is home to several museums and a major naval base INS Jarawa of the Indian Navy, along with sea and air bases of the Indian Coast Guard and the Indian Air Force.[2] Port Blair is also famous for the historic Cellular Jail and other small islands like Corbyn's Cove, Wandoor, Ross Island, Viper Island etc.[3] which were once home to British colonists.

As of October 2017, it is still not possible to fly to Port Blair from outside India. While international connections have been discussed for many years, particularly to nearby BKK Bangkok and HKT Phuket, direct international flights are not available.

All major departments of the Local and Central Government function from there.

Port Blair has been selected as one of the cities to be developed as a smart city under the Smart Cities Mission.[4]

Andaman Club, Port Blair

History

The Ross Island Prison Headquarters, 1872

In 1789 the Government of Bengal established a penal colony on Chatham Island in the southeast bay of Great Andaman, named Port Blair in the honor of Archibald Blair of the East India Company. After two years, the colony moved to the northeast part of Great Andaman and was named Port Cornwallis after Admiral William Cornwallis. However, there was much disease and death in the penal colony, and the government ceased operating it in May 1796.

In 1824 Port Cornwallis was the rendezvous of the fleet carrying the army to the First Anglo-Burmese War. In the 1830s and 1840s, shipwrecked crews who landed on the Andamans were often attacked and killed by the natives, alarming the British government. In 1855, the government proposed another settlement on the islands, including a convict establishment, but the Indian Rebellion forced a delay in its construction.

However, since the rebellion provided the British with a lot of new prisoners, it made the new Andaman settlement and prison an urgent necessity. Construction began in November 1857 at the renovated Port Blair, avoiding the vicinity of a salt swamp which seemed to have been the source of many of the old colony's problems. The penal colony was originally on Viper Island. The convicts, mostly political prisoners, suffered life imprisonment at hard labor under cruel and degrading conditions. Many were hanged, while others died of disease and starvation. Between 1864 and 1867 a penal establishment was also built with convict labor on the northern side of Ross Island.[5] These structures now lie in ruins.[6]

As the Indian freedom movement continued to grow in the late 19th Century, an enormous Cellular Jail was constructed between 1896 and 1906 to house Indian convicts, mostly political prisoners, in solitary confinement. The Cellular Jail is also known as Kala Pani (translated as "Black Waters"), a name given to it due to the torture and general ill-treatment towards its Indian convicts.

The airport at Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar's capital, has been named Veer Savarkar International Airport. The commemorative blue plaque on India House fixed by the Historic Building and Monuments Commission for England reads "Vinayak Damodar Savarkar 1883–1966 Indian patriot and philosopher lived here."

In World War II the islands were occupied by the Japanese on 23 March 1942 without opposition from the garrison. British forces returned to the islands in October 1945.[7][8]

From 1943–44 during World War II, Port Blair served as the headquarters of the Azad Hind government under Subhas Chandra Bose.

Although affected by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, Port Blair survived sufficiently to act as a base for relief efforts in the islands.

Geography and climate

Port Blair has a tropical monsoon climate (Köppen climate classification Am), with little variation in average temperature and large amounts of precipitation throughout the year. All months except January, February and March receive substantial rainfall.

Climate data for Port Blair
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 32.7
(90.9)		 34.6
(94.3)		 35.4
(95.7)		 36.1
(97)		 36.4
(97.5)		 35.6
(96.1)		 32.8
(91)		 32.5
(90.5)		 35.4
(95.7)		 35.6
(96.1)		 34.0
(93.2)		 35.4
(95.7)		 36.4
(97.5)
Average high °C (°F) 29.2
(84.6)		 30.1
(86.2)		 31.1
(88)		 32.2
(90)		 31.0
(87.8)		 29.5
(85.1)		 29.2
(84.6)		 29.1
(84.4)		 29.2
(84.6)		 29.6
(85.3)		 29.4
(84.9)		 29.1
(84.4)		 29.9
(85.8)
Daily mean °C (°F) 25.2
(77.4)		 25.6
(78.1)		 26.5
(79.7)		 27.9
(82.2)		 27.2
(81)		 26.3
(79.3)		 26.1
(79)		 26.0
(78.8)		 25.8
(78.4)		 25.9
(78.6)		 25.9
(78.6)		 25.7
(78.3)		 26.2
(79.2)
Average low °C (°F) 21.3
(70.3)		 21.0
(69.8)		 21.8
(71.2)		 23.4
(74.1)		 23.3
(73.9)		 23.1
(73.6)		 23.0
(73.4)		 22.9
(73.2)		 22.4
(72.3)		 22.2
(72)		 22.3
(72.1)		 22.3
(72.1)		 22.4
(72.3)
Record low °C (°F) 14.8
(58.6)		 15.9
(60.6)		 16.2
(61.2)		 17.3
(63.1)		 17.1
(62.8)		 14.6
(58.3)		 18.0
(64.4)		 17.4
(63.3)		 16.8
(62.2)		 17.8
(64)		 17.3
(63.1)		 16.2
(61.2)		 14.6
(58.3)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 36
(1.42)		 21
(0.83)		 9
(0.35)		 70
(2.76)		 346
(13.62)		 456
(17.95)		 400
(15.75)		 425
(16.73)		 403
(15.87)		 295
(11.61)		 254
(10)		 157
(6.18)		 2,872
(113.07)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 2.8 1.5 1.4 4.1 18.5 23.0 22.2 23.4 20.2 17.8 15.3 6.1 156.6
Average relative humidity (%) 74 72 71 72 80 84 84 85 85 83 80 75 79
Mean monthly sunshine hours 267.3 263.9 263.6 242.1 154.0 87.0 110.6 101.6 124.6 167.0 174.9 239.2 2,195.8
Source #1: NOAA (1971–1990) [9]
Source #2: India Meteorological Department (records)[10]

Demographics

Population

As of 2011 India census,[11] Port Blair had a population of 100,186. Males constitute 52.92% (53,247) of the population and females 47.07% (47,361).9.3% of the population is under the age of 6 years.

Literacy

Literacy in Port Blair
Literacy Percent
Male
 
 92.79%
Female
 
 86.73%
All
 
 89.76%

Port Blair has an average literacy rate of 89.76%, higher than the national average that is 74.04%. In Port Blair, male literacy is 92.79%, and female literacy is 86.34%. [12]

Religion

Religion in Port Blair[13]
Religion Percent
Hinduism
 
 74.3%
Islam
 
 12.4%
Christianity
 
 12.4%
Others
 
 0.9%

The most common religion is Hinduism, followed by Christianity and Islam.

Language

Bengali is the most spoken language of the city, followed by Hindi, Telugu and Tamil.

Tourism

Veer Savarkar International Airport runway from Jogger's park, Port Blair.
View from South Point, Port Blair, India

Tourism plays a big role in the economy of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Census of India Search details". censusindia.gov.in. Retrieved 10 May 2015.
  2. ↑ "Andaman and Nicobar command". NIC. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  3. ↑ "Places to visit in Port Blair". Andamansguide. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
  4. ↑ Khanna, Pretika (2016-05-24). "13 cities included in Phase 1 of Smart Cities Mission". LiveMint. Retrieved 2017-01-04.
  5. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2008-12-27. Retrieved 2008-12-27. T. Ramakrishnan, "Notorious Once, It Stands Shrouded in Silence"
  6. ↑ http://www.galenfrysinger.com/ross_island.htm Ross Island
  7. ↑ R. V. R. Murthy (2011). Andaman and Nicobar Islands: A Saga of Freedom Struggle. Gyan Publishing House. pp. 12–13, 151–157, 168. ISBN 978-81-7835-903-8.
  8. ↑ Jayant Dasgupta (2002). Japanese in Andaman & Nicobar Islands: red sun over black water. Manas Publications. ISBN 978-81-7049-138-5.
  9. ↑ "Port Blair Climate Normals 1971–1990". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved January 18, 2014.
  10. ↑ "Ever recorded Maximum and minimum temperatures upto 2010" (PDF). India Meteorological Department. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 21, 2013. Retrieved January 18, 2014.
  11. ↑ "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 2004-06-16. Retrieved 2008-11-01.
  12. ↑ https://www.census2011.co.in/census/city/497-port-blair.html
  13. ↑ http://www.census2011.co.in/data/town/804041-port-blair-andaman-and-nicobar-islands.html
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