Neill Island

Neill Island is named after British Brigadier general James Neill, who had fought on the side of the British East Indian company in the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857.

In December 2018, it was renamed as Shaheed Dweep as a tribute to Subhas Chandra Bose. Bose had hoisted the Indian flag at Port Blair on 30 December 1943 and proclaimed the Andaman and Nicobar Islands as territories liberated form British rule. He had subsequently named Andaman Island as Shaheed and Nicobar Island as Swaraj.[7]

Neill Island was uninhabited until the arrival of settlers in the late 1960s. Like Havelock, the vast majority of settlers at Neill were refugees from erstwhile East-Pakistan, following the exodus of Hindu Bangladeshis prior to that country's war of independence in 1971.

On 30 December 2018, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that Neill Island would be renamed as Shaheed Dweep.[8]

The island belongs to the Ritchie's Archipelago and is located between Havelock Island and Rose Island. It is a comparatively flat island, and much of the landmass was deemed suitable for paddy cultivation. Unfortunately, as a result of this, very little forest cover remains at Neil, and almost all of it is concentrated in the reserve forest on Neil's north-western side. Neill island tends to remain a degree or two warmer than Havelock as a result of the lack of forest cover. The island is not without charm however, but it is a different, pastoral sort of charm that the island offers.

Politically, Neill Island is part of Neill Kendra panchayat, of Port Blair Taluk.[9]

The population of 3040 lives in five villages, listed below, with population at 2011 census in parentheses:[10]

• Sitapur (274)
• Bharatpur (629)
• Neill Kendra (1000)
• Lakshmanpur (382)
• Ram Nagar (755)

There is a jetty at Neill Kendra, which serves as the only access point of the island.[11] There are regular Government ferry from Port Blair to Neill Island. There are private cruise ships such as Makruzz and Coastal Cruise.[12]

Agriculture is the primary occupation of the villagers, and the island supplies vegetables to the rest of Andaman.

Despite its minuscule tourist infrastructure, an increasing number of tourists have chosen to stay at Neill Island instead of neighboring Havelock Island. There are a handful of restaurants and basic beach hotels that cater to international and domestic tourists.

Some notable places to visit in Neil Island are, Bharatpur Beach, Laxmanpur Beach, Sitapur Beach, and Natural Bridge. Some people also like to visit the Ramnagar Beach, also known as the Sunset Beach. Water Sports Activities are only available in Bharatpur Beach. Rest of the attractions are only for sightseeing. [13]

• 
  Entry to Neill Island from Bharatpur Jetty.
• 
  Hawrah Natural Bridge, Neill Island.
• 
  Coral Reef
• 
  Neill Island
• 
  Bharathpur Jetty
• 
  Bharatpur Beach
• 
  Landscape
• 
  Bharatpur beach
• 
  Ritchie's Archipelago within the Andaman Islands
• 
  Neill Island within Ritchie's Archipelago

Media related to Neil Island at Wikimedia Commons

• Neill Island brochure at Andaman Tourism