Runway Status for Port Blair Airport From October,22 to February, 23
Updated: 19 Sep 2022
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RT PCR report on arrival
Updated: 14 Aug 2021
Andaman Tourism Opens
Updated: 14 Aug 2021
Andaman Tourism Opens: The Andaman & Nicobar administration has announced that all tourist spots in the South Andaman district will be opened for tourism activities with immediate effect 8 Feb 2022.
What is the advisory to travel to North & Middle Andaman District?
Updated: 14 Aug 2021
The tourists are allowed to visit Baratang/North & Middle Andaman on production of double dose covid certificate/ All other passengers viz. unvaccinated and partially vaccinated passengers (those who have taken only 1S1 dose of COVID vaccine) shall have to produce RT-PCR negative test report
All asymptomatic fully vaccinated persons coming to these islands from mainland are exempted from the requirement of carrying RT-PCR negative test report,irrespective of the type of vaccine received and country of origin. Such fullyvaccinated individuals shall produce the final vaccination certificate at the origin airport, sea port in the mainland and at Port Blair Airport / sea port.
Alt asymptomatic children below 5 years of age are exempted from carrying RT-PCR negative test report and further RT-PCR testing at Port Blair Airport.
All other passengers viz. unvaccinated and partially vaccinated passengers (those who have taken only 1S1 dose of COVID vaccine) shall have to produce RT-PCR negative test report to travel to Port Blair from the mainland, as is the practice now. Such an RT-PCR test should have been taken within 48 hours prior to commencement of journey from the origin airport connecting Port Blair. Such passengers will also have to undergo additional RT-PCR test on arrival at Port Blair. Such passengers shall remain in self-quarantine till the arrival of the test report.
If a passenger on arrival is tested positive then, the prescribed quarantine protocol is to be followed.
All Airlines shall ensure strict compliance of this order and observance of COVID Appropriate Behaviour. Any non-compliance shall invite action under Disaster Management Act and other applicable laws.
General Guidelines defined for traveling to Andaman Islands during COVID :
The Tourism Activities are permitted only in South Andaman & North & Middle Andaman District except Nicobar District.
Persons above 65 years of age, persons with home co-morbidities, pregnant women and children below the age of 10 years advised not to travel for tourism purposes.
Tourists/Visitors who are at higher risk due to some medical history are advised to take extra precautions.
Tourists/visitors shall minimize contact with other staff and visitors as far as possible and zero contact policy should be followed at all tourist destinations.
All tourists/visitors shall be briefed by the hotel concerned about do’s & don’ts to be mandatorily followed during their stay and movements.
While travelling tourists/visitors should wear a face mask and carry their own sanitizer and wet wipes for personal use.
At all tourist destinations, staff must wear face masks and wash/sanitize hands regularly while performing their duties.
Arogya Setu App shall be mandatory for all incoming tourists/visitors.
Respiratory etiquettes to be strictly followed. This involves strict practice of covering one’s mouth and nose while coughing/sneezing with a tissue handkerchief/flexed elbow and disposing off used tissues properly after use.
The tourists/visitors on arrival at Port Blair airport have to undergo mandatory Covid-19 screening with RTPCR test free of cost. Thereafter the tourists/ visitors are allowed to move to their respective hotels. However, they will have to be under quarantine at Port Blair in their hotel rooms until the result of RTPCR tests are received. In case of RTPCR positive test results, the tourists/visitors shall remain in institutional quarantine in hotels notified by the Hoteliers Association in consent with the A&%N Administration, on rate as specified or to the designated hospital/ Covid 19 care centre on case to case basis.
What are the guidelines for testing for tourists coming to Andaman after August 03 2021?
On arrival at Port Blair :
1. The tourists need to carry COVID-19 negative test report from mainland based 1CMR approved lab using Reverse Transcriptase-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RTPCR). However, the sample for RTPCR test should have been taken within 48 hours prior to starting the journey from the origin station. (For e.g. if the tourist takes a flight from Delhi at 0600 hrs. on 1st September, 2021, the sample for RTPCR test should have been taken not before 0600 hrs. on 30th August, 2021).
2. The tourists/visitors on arrival at Port Blair airport have to undergo mandatory Covid-19 screening with RTPCR test free of cost. Thereafter the tourists/visitors are allowed to move to their respective hotels. However, they will have to be under quarantine at Port Blair in their hotel rooms until the result of RTPCR tests are received. In case of RTPCR positive test results, the tourists/visitors shall remain in institutional quarantine in hotels notified by the Hoteliers Association in consent with the A&N Administration, on rates as specified or to the designated hospital/ Covid-19 care centre on case-to-case basis.
3. Tourists may also have to undergo random Rapid Antigen Test conducted from time to time on payment basis as prescribed by A8N Administration.
What if the tourists test positive after arriving at the Andaman Islands?
If the tourists tests positive during their stay in the Islands, he/she will need to undergo institutional isolation as per existing health protocols. The cost of such isolation for govt. facility will be paid by the tourists as fixed by the administration from time to time.
If the patient wants to stay at hotels, he/she can stay in the hotels if all the conditions below are met:
a) Patients are not symptomatic and not more than 60 years old. b) Request/ undertaking is made by patient in writing. c)lf allowed by doctors.
Hotels will make necessary arrangements to designate a part of their rooms for institutional isolation for this purpose.
Travellers should carefully follow social distancing norms and wear masks as well. Also, before making any booking, they should refer to the latest travel news on the government website of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Be it the pure stretch of white sand beaches touching the horizon to having centuries-old history, Andaman’s is nothing less than a tropical paradise. Andaman is one of the top tourist attractions of India; it has a galore of islands, beaches, marine life, interesting titbits to offer the inquisitive traveller.
Read on to know to some quick facts about Andaman.
Topography of Andaman
With over 572 islands, the union territory of India, Andaman and Nicobar islands established back in 1956, has only 37 islands which are inhabited.
Nicobar Island falls to the south, and is separated by 150km stretch- 10 degree channel from the Andaman Island.
Among the 37 islands, some are habited by the indigenous groups, namely Sentinelese, Andamanese, Onges and Jarawa tribe of Andaman. Any attempt to contact these tribes of Andaman is a punishable offence, so do adhere to tourist guidelines.
Flora and Fauna of Andaman
With over 8250km of land divided among the 572 islands, these tropical destinations are home to endemic flora and fauna species.
Did you know the abundantly blessed tropical forests of Andaman and thriving underwater ecosystem are home to over 3000 species of flora and 6451 species of fauna?
Bird watching in Andaman is a popular activity among tourists. There are over 240 species of birds, found on this island.
Andaman has about 96 wildlife sanctuaries, 1 biosphere reserve and 9 national parks divided among its 572 islands.
First sunrise of the Millennium (2000) was received at Katchal Island
One of the best sunrise points of Andaman is Katchal, a small island near the Nicobar Islands. This Island was supposedly the first inhabited place of earth which caught the first rays of the sun in the millennium year.
This event was captured by the Indian Post with the release of a commemorative stamp.
Also commonly known by its nickname- Tihanyu, the Katchal Island is home to many indigenous and non-indigenous tribes. However, this island is not accessible to tourists, until presented with a special tribal pass.
The island is situated about 1600km away from the mainland and was one of the worst affected Islands during the tsunami of 2004.
From state animal to state flower and tree, the union territory of India, has its very own symbols.
State mammal- Dugong
State bird- Andaman wood pigeon
State flower- Pyinma also known as pride of India
State tree- Andaman Padauk or also known as East Indian Mahagony
Demographics of Andaman
Divided into three parts during the 2011 census of India, Nicobar Islands with 1,765 km square area has a population of about 37 thousand.
Followed by North and middle Andaman which has an area of 3,536 sq. km with a population of 1 lakh.
Lastly, South Andaman (Port Blair) covers an area of 2,460 sq. km with a population of 2 lakh.
A special mention in the mythology Ramayana
Scriptures of Ramayana states Andaman as a place of rest for Lord Hanuman before he left for Srilanka – the land of Ravana.
The name Andaman is said to be derived from Hanuman or better known as ‘Handuman’ to the Malays.
North Sentinel Island – home to the first human population
Rich in culture and heritage, Andaman is home to the Sentinelese, an indigenous tribe of around 300 people living at theNorth Sentinel Island,who are thought to have directly descended from first human populations.
The island lies 50 km from west of Port Blair, and is under the Andaman and Nicobar Islands protection of Aboriginal tribes act of 1956.
It is said, that the Sentinelese tribes have been situated in Andaman for more than 60,000 years and have voluntary chosen isolation.
History of Andaman – Kings to colonial era
From being captured by Rajendra Chola (Chola empire period) in 1014 AD for naval activities to being organised for European colonisation by Danish East India Company, the history of the Andaman Islands goes back several years.
The Danish empire first tried to colonise Andaman and Nicobar Islands, after which came the British.
Did you know the 2 islands of Andaman, namely Havelock and Neil were actually named after the British officers of the East Indian Company?
In the year 2018, the three Andaman islands got renamed as follows:
Ross Island to Netaji Subash Chandra Bose Island
Neil Island to Shaheed Dweep
Havelock Island to Swaraj Island
Linguistics of Andaman
Archaeological evidences, dated 2200 years back, state that the first language used by indigenous inhabitants was Mon Khmer and Shompen.
One must think, the islands would have their own set of languages such as Andamanese, or Nicobarese, but unlike that, the widely spoken language in these beautiful islands is Bengali, followed by Hindi, Tamilian, Telugu, and many more.
Special mentions
The first and only region in India to have a Tri Service Command of Armed forces is the Andaman and Nicobar Island.
In order to preserve the rich bio diversity of the Island, commercial fishing is banned in Andaman.
From being occupied by British, to European and Dutch community, Andaman and Nicobar Islands before surrendering to British officers were captured by Japan and was one of the active war zones during the World War 2.
Jal Hans, India’s first commercial seaplane was launched in the pristine clear waters of Andaman on 24th January 2011. The sea plane can travel up to 250 km per hour.
