Serendipity : Musings of an Islander

Breaking the Tyranny of Distance: How twelve years of connectivity, infrastructure and institutional expansion brought India’s farthest islands closer to the national mainstream By Debkumar Bhadra For decades, many regions, located far from India's political and administrative centres, including India’s North Eastern States and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands quietly lived under what Hon'ble Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Minority Affairs Shri Kiren Rijiju described as the "tyranny of distance," speaking at the Andaman Ideas Summit 2026, organised by The Wave Andaman, at Sri Vijaya Puram (earlier Port Blair) on the evening of June 20. I watched him say it live on YouTube, from thousands of kilometres away in Nagpur. That I could watch it in real time, is itself a telling marker of how far the islands have come. A live broadcast out of Sri Vijaya Puram, watched anywhere in the country as it happened, would have been a near impossibility before the Chen...

Emergency Helpline 100 and 112 Temporarily Down: Alternative Police Helpline Numbers Released   By Debkumar Bhadra   Most of us, have grown up with one number to call in crisis. Whether it was 100 or recently, 112, the reflex was the same — dial that number, help will come. It did not matter whether you were in a crowded Mumbai street or in a quiet lane in Sri Vijaya Puram, the emergency helpline number was the same. That assumption was quietly shaken here in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands on June 14, 2026, when the A&N Police through a social media post in X (formerly twitter) issued a public advisory informing residents that both emergency helpline numbers 100 and 112 are presently not functioning due to what they described as "unforeseen technical snags."  Many of you have probably already seen it. Many may have seen it, scrolled past it. By evening, other forwards push it down. By next week, it is gone. And when one actually need that number, you are scrolling ...

From ATI to Great Nicobar : Development Must Not Leave People Behind By Debkumar Bhadra The NITI Aayog’s proposed Great Nicobar Island Project has once again brought the Andaman and Nicobar Islands into the national spotlight. As more voices join the debate, strong opinions are emerging from different quarters. Many, including the island’s settler population view the mega project as once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands as well as for India’s strategic future. At the same time, there are opposing voices that fear irreversible ecological damage is in the offing in one of the most fragile island ecosystems. This article attempts to capture the predicament faced by islanders whose voices seem to be overshadowed by organised and well-connected narratives dominating the discourse. For a region that has historically struggled with isolation, limited connectivity and fewer avenues of development, the project comprising an international trans-shipment termina...

A Decade of Rising Ferry Fares, Declining Services : Andaman & Nicobar’s Not-So-Funny April 1 Ritual By Debkumar Bhadra Every year on the  1st of April , the world observes April Fool’s Day—a day associated with harmless pranks and laughter. But for commuters in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the date over the past decade has evoked anxiety rather than amusement. This is because ferry fares unfailingly rise on this day, affecting local economy and the cost of living. This article examines the pattern of fare revision during the past 10 years, including administrative policy framework and the systemic inefficiencies, unravelling the gap between approved norms and actual implementation. The irony is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore. When fare revision takes effect unfailingly on a date globally associated with playful deception, it raises an uncomfortable question. Is the timing chosen a mere coincidence or a carefully chosen date? A closer look reveals not just the ...