But for Lakshadweep to become a 'must visit' place, connectivity and local infra have to improve — without harming its fragile ecology.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Lakshadweep. (X)
An offensive remark against Prime Minister Narendra Modi by a Maldivian minister — now suspended from the Cabinet — has triggered a massive controversy in India, with several celebrities and social media influencers urging Indians to boycott Maldives, and instead choose the domestic island tourist destinations like Lakshadweep.
Suspended minister Mariyam Shiuna made the derogatory comment on X — which she later deleted — after photographs of Prime Minister Modi’s Lakshadweep visit had gone viral on social media.
The Maldivian government was quick to denounce and distance itself from Shiuna’s statement and suspended her along with two other ministers, Malsha Shareef and Mahzoom Majid, for the offensive remark, the Atoll Times reported.
A bird’s eye view of Lakshadweep. (Lakshadweep Tourism/Facebook)
However, enough harm has been done by then, with celebrities, including actors Akshay Kumar, Salman Khan, and John Abraham, appealing to the people to explore Indian islands like Lakshadweep, which currently has bare minimum connectivity, modest accommodations, and minimal recreational facilities.
Additionally, diplomatic ties between the two countries, too, appear to be heading to choppy waters. In a tit-for-tat move, Maldives summoned the Indian envoy, Munu Mahawar, on Monday, 8 January.
The unprecedented kind of promotion of Lakshadweep came amidst reports of the Union government planning to open the cluster of islands to large-scale beach tourism and infrastructure development, involving top corporate companies and tourism promoters.
Observers felt that the Maldives’s outcry against Modi’s promotion of Lakshwadeep stemmed from the fear that the proposed infrastructural and tourism development plans in the archipelago would help India outsmart that country’s tourism business.
The Union Territory of Lakshadweep comprises reefs, turquoise lagoons, pristine beaches, and dunes. If promoted globally, it can easily attract more tourists than the Maldives, which lacks Lakshadweep’s diversity.
For the past three years, the Union Home Ministry and NITI Aayog have been mulling an ambitious tourism project in Lakshadweep that involves the construction of beach and water villas offering 370 rooms, to change the tourism face of the archipelago.
The private-investment-led project, has already evoked concerns, with 114 scientists from more than 30 universities and research institutes urging the Lakshadweep administration to reconsider the plan.
They expressed fear over the project’s ecological impact on the islands’ sensitive lagoons and beaches. They feared that the inshore reefs and underwater grasslands would be in peril if the ambitious tourism project became a reality.
However, the Union government has been pushing for the project, ignoring warnings that it would require large-scale human intervention, which would aggravate climate change-related disasters in the coming days, apart from considerably eclipsing the livelihood possibilities of the islanders.
With the amazing Indian hospitality, the idea of “Atithi Devo Bhava” and a vast marine life to explore. Lakshwadeep is the place to go.#exploreindianislands pic.twitter.com/CA1d9r0QZ5
— John Abraham (@TheJohnAbraham) January 7, 2024
Several islanders South First contacted said they are confused about the proposed tourism development, since at one level, it would invite more visitors, and at another level, it would turn disastrous to the region’s extremely fragile coastal ecology.
Lakshadweep is a popular honeymoon destination. (Lakshadweep Tourism/Facebook)
Lok Sabha member Muhammad Faizal told South First that he is happy over Modi’s visit to the islands and the worldwide attention it has now created in favour of Lakshadweep.
“The controversies, too, are helping us achieve due recognition we have been demanding for a long time. Everyone now acknowledges that Lakshadweep is a little-known location that fellow Indians are yet to explore,” he said.
He also wondered why the Maldives should feel insecure when the Indian prime minister boasts of the tourism advantages of a specific part in his country.
Faizal wanted the government to evolve an exclusive tourism masterplan for Lakshadweep, which must also consider livelihood and marine environmental protection.
Meanwhile, “Google searches for Lakshadweep are at their highest in the last 20 years, that too by a huge margin,” the Deccan Chronicle reported.
After actor Akshay Kumar’s social media post promoting Lakshadweep tourism found many takers, foreign affairs expert Robinder Sachdev opined that more influencers and leading names in the country should start visiting Lakshadweep to promote the country’s “own destinations and tourism economy”.
Since the last 9 years we have worked to enhance Lakshadweep's progress and our resolve only got stronger! pic.twitter.com/hn0otKPuxC
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 4, 2024
However, the inadequate connectivity issues are dogging Lakshadweep tourism. Connected only to Kochi by air, the high fare discourages many domestic tourists. Ships between the islands are few and far between, mostly catering to the educational and medical needs of the local community, totally dependent on the mainland.
The magic world. (Lakshadweep Tourism/Facebook)
About two months ago, an inter-island high-speed vessel, Cheriyapani, was taken away from Lakshadweep to commence a ferry between Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka. Now, Kochi is the gateway to Lakshadweep.
Only Agatti Island has an airstrip. From Agatti, boats ferry passengers to Kavaratti and Kadmat during the fair season (October to May). Helicopter transfers are available from Agatti to Bangaram Island Resort during the monsoon and Kavaratti throughout the year.
Only half a dozen passenger ships — MV Kavaratti, MV Arabian Sea, MV Lakshadweep Sea, MV Amindivi, and MV Minicoy — operate between Kochi and Lakshadweep. The voyage takes 14 to 18 hours, depending on the destination island.
All ships have different classes of accommodations. The accommodations and recreational facilities on the islands are minimal, though the seafood varieties of Lakshadweep are widely known for their taste.
However, poor focus on conservation has also started impacting local tourism negatively. The alarming loss of coral reefs has already turned fatal for all the atolls in the island cluster. These corals have formed the backdrop for all the folklore and imagination of the Lakshadweep natives. They have provided the local community with livelihoods and a perfect ecosystem.
Came across comments from prominent public figures from Maldives passing hateful and racist comments on Indians. Surprised that they are doing this to a country that sends them the maximum number of tourists.
We are good to our neighbors but
why should we tolerate such… pic.twitter.com/DXRqkQFguN— Akshay Kumar (@akshaykumar) January 7, 2024
Environmentalists said the island cluster faces rapid erosion, a turbulent sea, and frequently rising ocean temperatures, other than coral bleaching. The islands are already victims of climate change, and Cyclone Okhi was just a precursor.
The dream land. (Lakshadweep Tourism/Facebook)
“Going by the local history, our forefathers landed here in the seventh century CE, and hitherto, the local community caused very little damage to the fragile ecosystem of the archipelago, as its sustenance is vital to all of us. Recurring climate change events and interference by outsiders like mindless deep-sea fishing are causing irreparable damage to our islands’ highly fragile marine ecosystem,” Muhammed Hambdulla Syed, a resident of Androth Island, told South First.
Lakshadweep is India’s smallest Union Territory, hardly two metres above sea level. Fishing, coconut farming, and regulated tourism are the two income-generating areas for the over 64,000 population of the islands, located about 200 km off the west coast of Kerala in the Arabian Sea.
Rearing cows is another livelihood option for a minuscule island population. Though the Union Territory comprises 16 atolls and 32 islands, human presence is limited to only 11.
Climate change has also caused a dip in the yield from coconut groves. According to Abdul Khader, president of the Kavaratti Island Council, the demand for coconuts has decreased in the Kerala markets in recent years.
Now, fishing is the only source of subsistence for the islanders. Most people depend on catching the relatively healthy presence of skipjacks and yellowfin tuna in the surrounding sea.
Usually, the fish caught by the people here gets dried and transported to the mainland as a dry variety named maaschoora. Only a minor part of the fresh catch is used locally.
The islanders, who focus mainly on tuna fishing, occasionally catch lagoon and reef fish for local consumption and to use as bait.
Islanders said there are attempts to open up highly sensitive Kadmat, Minicoy, and Suheli islands to large-scale, privately funded tourism. It would be a private-public partnership with the Union government, earmarking ₹266 crore and seeking investments worth ₹788 crore from the private sector.
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