Tribal groups in Andaman and Nicobar face growing external threats, expert warns

Tribal reserves across the Andaman and Nicobar Islands face increasing pressures from poachers, commercial trawlers, and state-backed proposals that threaten their land and self-sufficiency, according to tribal expert Manish Chandi. North Sentinel Island, home to the voluntarily isolated Sentinelese community, is surrounded by a protected buffer zone featuring intact coral reefs and mangrove patches where residents forage for fish, turtles, and mollusks during low tide.

Tribes and Threats

The archipelago is home to six recognised tribes living in separate reserves, including the isolated Shompen people on Great Nicobar Island and the Ang, also known as the Jarawa, in their respective reserve. While some communities maintain limited contact or are fully integrated into mainstream Indian society, isolated groups face outside interference as outsiders and outsiders from mainland India misunderstand their needs. Fishers and commercial trawlers routinely enter buffer waters around North Sentinel Island to take sharks, crabs, and marine life that the Sentinelese rely upon. Meanwhile, a large-scale development project on Great Nicobar Island overlaps directly with traditional hunting and foraging lands used by the Shompen.

Policy Concerns

Chandi notes that some officials view external food supplies as a sign of progress, which creates a cycle of dependency on government relief and rehabilitation schemes. This reliance can lead authorities to push for the denotification of tribal reserve lands to create business or tourism enclaves. These areas have largely remained biodiverse because the reserves cover the historical lands of each tribe and have escaped timber extraction and formal settlement. However, poor enforcement of laws such as the Wildlife Protection Act and the Forest Conservation Act has allowed poachers to access these sensitive zones.

Context

The Andaman and Nicobar archipelago sits in the southeast of mainland India and is known for its high ecological diversity and unique indigenous populations. Reserves set aside for these groups act as vital safeguards for both rare species and ancient ways of life that rely entirely on local natural resources.