VZCZCXRO3679
PP RUEHBI RUEHCHI RUEHCI RUEHCN
DE RUEHCI #0086/01 0721237
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 131237Z MAR 07
FM AMCONSUL KOLKATA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 1453
INFO RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 1362
RUEHCG/AMCONSUL CHENNAI PRIORITY 0594
RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI PRIORITY 0588
RUEHKA/AMEMBASSY DHAKA PRIORITY 0370
RUEHJA/AMEMBASSY JAKARTA 0018
RUEHKL/AMEMBASSY KUALA LUMPUR 0016
RUEHGO/AMEMBASSY RANGOON 0236
RUEHBK/AMEMBASSY BANGKOK 0150
RUEHCHI/AMCONSUL CHIANG MAI 0016
RUEHCN/AMCONSUL CHENGDU 0066
RUEHKT/AMEMBASSY KATHMANDU 0373
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 0297
RHHJJPI/PACOM IDHS HONOLULU HI
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEHC/USAID WASHDC
RUEHCI/AMCONSUL KOLKATA 1794

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 KOLKATA 000086 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
PACOM FOR POL/AD 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV EAID SENV PHUM ECON MARR IN BM TH ID
SUBJECT: ANDAMAN AND NICOBAR ISLANDS RETAIN THE SCARS OF THE 2004 
TSUNAMI 
 
SIPDIS 
 
REF: A)  05 CALCUTTA  186    B)  06 CALCUTTA 00103 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY.  March 2-7, ConGen visited the Union Territory 
of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to assess recovery from the 
December 2004 tsunami and related issues such as the 
environment, economic conditions and strategic concerns.  Two 
years after the tsunami devastated parts of the island chain, 
causing 3,513 deaths (436 dead, 3077 still missing), inundating 
20,000 acres and making 46,000 people homeless, progress has 
been made in housing and providing financial assistance and 
social support.   However, the resultant culture of dependency 
could make the transition from government largesse to 
self-sustaining employment difficult.  Unemployed tsunami 
victims appear reluctant to seek work while receiving free 
rations, housing and even television and radios.  As a result, 
companies managing the many recovery projects and those in the 
resurgent private sector are bringing in workers from the 
mainland.  The influx of outside labor is straining an already 
fragile island eco-system, with water available to the people 
only one hour every three days.  The Joint Andaman and Nicobar 
Islands military command was also seriously affected by the 
tsunami, suffering the almost complete destruction of its air 
 
SIPDIS 
force base at Car Nicobar.  However, according to its senior 
commanders, the air field was soon operational after the tsunami 
and the command is looking to expand its role in the region and 
to conduct more joint exercises as evidenced by the presence of 
an Indonesian frigate that was paying a port call at the time. 
The military was focused on protecting the islands from a 
regular flow of Thai, Burmese and other illegal fisherman and 
marine poachers.  With only 38 islands inhabited of a total of 
in 572 in the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago, much of the 
region's environment is well preserved but population pressures, 
growing commercial development and infiltration by illegal 
poachers threaten this bio-diversity hotspot. END SUMMARY. 
 
---------- 
Background 
---------- 
 
¶2.  (U) Geography.  The Union Territory of the Andaman and 
Nicobar Islands is an archipelago of 572 islands, about 38 of 
which are inhabited, with its capital in Port Blair.  These 
islands are divided into two groups -- the Andamans to the north 
and the Nicobars to the south.  The entire chain, 800 km in 
length, lies closer to Burma and Indonesia than to mainland 
India.  Their contiguous waters comprise 30 percent of India's 
maritime exclusive economic zone.  The southern islands are of 
particular strategic importance given their location overlooking 
the Six Degree Channel near the entrance to the Straits of 
Malacca.  Some 50,000 vessels transit these Straits each year, 
carrying between one-fifth and one quarter of the world's sea 
trade.  Half of all oil shipments carried by sea come through 
the Straits, an estimated 11 million barrels a day. 
 
¶3.  (U) Population.  The islands population numbers are vague, 
ranging from an official figures of 375,000 to 550,000; of which 
the indigenous population comprises a small, but highly 
protected minority of about 30,000 people.  These include some 
of the last true Neolithic cultures.  In the Andamans, these are 
the Onge, Great Andamanese, Jarawa, and Sentinelese, all tribes 
of apparently African origin.  The Nicobars are home to two 
groups, the Nicobarese and the Shompen, both of apparently East 
Asian origin.  While all the groups remain secluded to some 
extent, only the Sentinelese are fully isolated, and extremely 
hostile to outsiders.  The vast majority of the islands' 
inhabitants are migrants from mainland India.  Early migrants 
were primarily Bengalis; whereas later migrants are mostly 
Tamil, and some friction has developed between the two 
linguistic groups. 
 
¶4.  (U) Economy.  The government is the largest employer. 
Tourism continues to show enormous growth potential, despite a 
sharp decline since the tsunami.  Until a 1996 Supreme Court 
decision protected the Andamans' forest resources, timber was a 
 
KOLKATA 00000086  002 OF 005 
 
 
major source of revenue.  Plantation agriculture - coconut and 
rubber -- is significant, although many coconut groves in 
Nicobar were devastated by the tsunami.  The islanders fish 
actively near to shore, but the rich offshore pelagic resource 
is largely untouched except occasionally by poaching vessels of 
other nations. 
 
¶5.  (U) Politics.  Because it is a Trust Territory, the Indian 
Home Ministry appoints a Lieutenant Governor, currently 
Lieutenant General (retd.) Bhopinder Singh, to govern the 
islands.  Although it has one elected Member in the Lok Sahba, 
Manoranjan Bhakta of the Congress Party, it has no elected 
island legislature.  As a result, the government is run entirely 
by bureaucrats appointed to serve temporary duty in the islands. 
 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Security.  Port Blair is the headquarters of an 
integrated command, the Joint Andaman and Nicobar Command. 
Indian forces have significant peacetime operational roles such 
as combating poaching, piracy, drugs and gun-running, being near 
the Malacca Straits and the Six Degree Channel, and the Indian 
Navy is involved in intense patrolling of the sea-lanes.  The 
Indian military presence has also been increased at Diglipur in 
North Andamans in response to the presence of a Chinese 
listening post on Burmese territory in the nearby Coco Islands. 
The Coast Guard is active in monitoring illegal movements, 
especially fishing and smuggling, in Indian territorial waters. 
A large air and military base on Car Nicobar was practically 
wiped out by the tsunami with heavy loss of life, but was 
rapidly rebuilt.  Due to security concerns,all foreign visitors 
are required to have a Restricted Area Permit (RAP) in order to 
visit the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.  While tourism is 
important in the Andamans, few foreigners are ever granted 
permission to visit the Nicobars (REF A). 
 
---------------- 
Tsunami's Impact 
 
SIPDIS 
---------------- 
 
¶7.  (U) In the morning of December 26, 2004, the Andaman and 
Nicobar archipelago was rocked by one of the more severe 
earthquakes experienced in the region in recent times and were 
then battered by the resulting tsunami waves.  The Nicobar group 
of islands, only 163 kilometers from Banda Aceh, Indonesia, was 
hardest hit.  The shifting grounds and the resulting waves 
changed the geography of Nicobar.  The tremors were measured at 
a magnitude of 9.3. There were 22 tremors of 5+ magnitude on 
that day itself.  Since 2004, there have been at least 5,000 
tremors with 5+ magnitude.  Administration officials, quoting 
geologists, said that this was in a way better for the 
archipelago to stabilize as stored energy is being released 
fast.  As a result of the earthquake, 10,000 acres of island 
were submerged, along with 350 acres that has risen up from the 
sea.  Geologists have found that the earthquake also caused a 
northeast-southwest tilt of the island landmass.  New shorelines 
have been formed in the North Andamans, whereas Indira Point, at 
the southern-most part of the island has decreased in elevation 
by 1.8 m.  To the north, the more populated and developed 
Andamans experienced greater damage to infrastructure. 
According to official numbers, 3,513 people were killed or 
missing, 10,000 families were displaced, 10,837 hectares of 
agricultural land were lost, and 85 schools, 34 health centers 
and 24 jetties damaged.  In response, over the past two years 
the GOI provided a USD 190 million relief package, shifted 
15,000 metric ton of construction material from the mainland and 
built 9,565 intermediate shelters spread over eight islands. 
(REF B) 
 
-------- 
Recovery 
-------- 
 
¶8.  (U) ConGen visited the Choldari intermediate relief camp to 
 
KOLKATA 00000086  003 OF 005 
 
 
see the conditions of those made homeless by the tsunami.  132 
families with 491 people were lodged in blocks of 10ft by 11 ft 
rooms in galvanized metal sheet shelters.  The camp was run by 
the territory government with the support of NGOs World Vision 
and the Christian Covenant.  The camp was clean and well 
maintained with a one room school, community center and a basic 
health care center.  Residents at the camp said that although 
they were provided shelter, free rations, televisions and 
radios, employment was difficult to obtain.  ConGen visited the 
shelter of a local carpenter who complained that there was no 
work for him as contractors doing reconstruction projects were 
bringing in labor from the Indian mainland.  ConGen subsequently 
visited the nearby permanent shelters being constructed for the 
Choldari relief camp.  None of the temporary shelter residents 
were employed in the work on the permanent shelters.  SEEDS NGO 
representative Mr. Rehman said that the tsunami victims were 
reluctant to work given the free rations and benefits they were 
receiving.  Another camp official claimed that the contract 
companies like to bring in outside workers because they are 
easier to control and manage.  All the officials and NGO workers 
noted that when free rations end in the next few months, the 
tsunami victims will face a serious shock and may not be able to 
 
SIPDIS 
quickly adapt to economic independence. 
 
¶9.  (U) The territory government plans to complete the permanent 
shelters for the Choldari camp residents before May 2007, prior 
to the monsoon season.  However, progress is slow, given 
disputes over housing designs and other delays.  March 2008 is 
the goal for completion of 9,797 permanent shelters for all the 
tsunami refugees.  The territory government is posting on-line 
 
SIPDIS 
pictures and status reports on the permanent shelter 
construction at http://www.and.nic.in/shelterP/index.htm. 
 
¶10.  (U) The Andaman Chamber of Commerce (ACC) believes that in 
addition to the many recovery projects, the local economy is 
seeing an upturn with key sectors such as tourism and fishing, 
now at pre-tsunami levels or better.  Agriculture was slower in 
returning, due to loss of land from inundation or salinity. 
Port Blair's businessmen were unanimous in saying that they were 
facing an acute shortage of labor and that they were 
consequently paying higher wages.  ACC president Mohammad Jadwet 
and his colleagues claimed that prolonged relief operations by 
the island administration had made people relief dependent. 
They argued that people in intermediate shelters - used to free 
ration and accommodation -- were unwilling to work, rather than 
unable.  An ACC businessman in shipping said that he could not 
find local labor for stevedoring and was bringing in workers 
from Tamil Nadu.  Bengalis were another pool for labor and in 
some cases illegal Bangladeshis have been able to pass 
themselves off as Indian nationals from West Bengal.   To 
further develop the local economy, territory officials have 
submitted to the GOI a proposal to construct a large 
transshipment port in the southern tip of the Great Nicobar 
Island to service the massive shipping traffic in the area. 
 
---------------------- 
The Population Debate 
---------------------- 
 
¶11.  (SBU) According to data supplied by Andaman and Nicobar 
administration, the total population of the islands is 356,000 
persons.  However, most contacts, including government officers, 
questioned the official numbers, saying the actual figure was 
much higher, ranging from 450,000 to 550,000. The tribal 
population is generally accepted at about 30,000.  The 
continuous influx of outsiders, especially for the 
reconstruction projects, has prompted a serious debate on the 
islands' carrying capacity.  Environmental groups like Society 
for Andaman and Nicobar Ecology (SANE) argue that the present 
population figure of the Andamans is well beyond the islands' 
capacity.  SANE official Samir Acharya told ConGen that the 
population figures quoted by the administration were suspect and 
that the actual population could be well around 550,000.  He 
 
KOLKATA 00000086  004 OF 005 
 
 
also pointed out that study on Andamans' carrying capacity, 
undertaken when Rajiv Gandhi was India's Prime Minister, 
suggested that the archipelago's population should not exceed 
480,000 in 2011.  Environmental groups in the islands take this 
figure as the population capacity.  Although there are 
differences over the Andaman's population size, there is broad 
agreement among ecologists, civil society organizations and 
activists that the islands have exceeded its carrying capacity. 
For example, the island is already facing a shortage of fresh 
water.  The municipality supplies piped water for one hour every 
three days. 
 
-------------- 
Forest Ecology 
-------------- 
 
¶12. (SBU) Mr. S.S. Choudhury, Andaman's Principal Chief 
Conservator of Forest, reported that settlement of people was a 
problem in the islands because 87 percent of the land is 
notified forest area.  About 80 percent of the forest is 
protected.  Different tribes, except for Nicobaris, live in the 
forests and in most cases have a limited impact on the 
environment.  However, activists say that a regulation issued by 
Andaman Administration in December 2006, declaring large tracts 
of forests in Andamans as reserve forest, has in effect taken 
forest resources away from the tribals.  In addition, as with 
Andaman's population, there is no agreement over the actual 
percentage of area under forest cover.  Again, Samir Acharya 
notes that while the official statistic of forest cover is very 
high, actual percentage is much lower as forestry officials do 
not take into account the degradation of the forest cover. 
According to Acharya, encroachment and grazing animals have done 
significant damage to the forest cover and undergrowth. 
 
----------------- 
Military Concerns 
----------------- 
 
¶13.  (SBU) Given the islands' strategic location, straddling 
major shipping lanes, the Indian military has an important role 
in the region.  During his interaction with the ConGen, Air 
Marshal P.P. Rajkumar, Commander in Chief, Andaman and Nicobar 
(CINCAN) observed that CINCAN was an experiment by Indian 
defense planners in an integrated command involving the Indian 
Army, Navy, Air Force and the Coast Guard.  There was a 
possibility that the Integrated Command model would be 
replicated in other commands, although there were unresolved 
difficulties of coordinating the command structure and hardware. 
 Such a view was, however, questioned by junior officers, who 
believed that the Indian military was incapable of supporting 
integrated military commands, combining all the services under 
one chain of command.  CINCAN and his staff agreed on the need 
for joint patrolling with other countries of the busy sea lane 
that passes within 20 nautical miles of the southernmost part of 
the archipelago.  CINCAN is already involved in joint patrolling 
of the Malacca strait sea lane and was interested in joint 
exercises with U.S. forces.  During ConGen's visit to Port 
Blair, Indonesian frigate Kri Iman Banjol called on Port Blair 
as part of the ninth cycle of coordinated patrols with the 
Indian Navy.  The purpose of the coordinated patrol was to 
prevent smuggling, piracy, drug trafficking and illegal fishing. 
 
¶14.  (SBU) These transnational crimes, especially illegal 
fishing, are difficult to combat in such an expansive area with 
over 500 uninhabited islands.  According to Air Marshal Rajkumar 
on average a ship a month, of mostly Thai and Burmese fishermen, 
is detained.  The detainees often remain imprisoned or in legal 
limbo for several years.  The presence of the fishermen has also 
become a serious public health issue for the islands.  The GOI 
HIV/AIDS office Director Dr. Mishri Lal noted that there were 
approximately 300 HIV positive persons in the islands, half of 
whom were Burmese and Thai fishermen who were in prison for 
poaching.  An NGO official added that these 150 or so prisoners 
 
KOLKATA 00000086  005 OF 005 
 
 
were allowed work outside confinement during the day, but 
returned to the prisons at night.  Dr. Lal said that since 1992, 
there have been 38 known cases of AIDS and 37 have died.  One 
woman with AIDS recently left for Andhra Pradesh and her status 
is unknown. 
 
¶15.  (SBU) COMMENT.  The Andaman and Nicobar Islands, recovering 
from the ravages of the 2004 tsunami, remain a beautiful and 
unique corner of India, being closer to Southeast Asia than 
South Asia.  The territory offers good opportunities for future 
U.S. cooperation in helping the region preserve its great 
biodiversity in the face of growing population pressures.  In 
addition, the islands' joint military command recognizes the 
importance of closer cooperation with the U.S. military and 
other militaries in the region and is receptive to more joint 
exercises.  The military officers readily conceded the 
difficulty of patrolling such a large archipelago with their 
present resources.  Given the Islands' strategic position, 
greater Indo-U.S. military cooperation would help to protect a 
key shipping lane.  As the Indo-U.S. relationship grows, even 
remote areas such as the Andaman and Nicobar Islands warrant 
consideration for closer Indo-U.S. cooperation. 
JARDINE