Incredible : India Tours of Culture and States

The territory is located in the Indian Ocean, and geographically is considered part of Southeast Asia. It comprises two island groups, the Andaman Islands and the Nicobar Islands, separated by the 10° N parallel, with the Andamans to the north of this latitude, and the Nicobars to the south. The Andaman Sea lies to the east and the Bay of Bengal to the west. The territory's capital is the Andamanese town of Port Blair. The territory's population as per the most recent (2001) Census of India was 356,152. Added together, the total land area of the territory is approximately 6,496 km˛ or 2,508 sq mi

British Colonial Period:
After an initial attempt to set up a colony in the islands by the British was abandoned after only a few years (1789–1796), a second attempt from 1858 proved to be more permanent. The primary purpose was to set up a penal colony for dissenters and independence fighters from the Indian subcontinent. The British used the islands as an isolated prison for members of the Indian independence movement. The mode of imprisonment was called Kala pani. The Cellular Jail in Port Blair was regarded as the "Siberia" of British India. The islands were administered as a Chief Commissioner's Province. The British continued their occupancy until the Japanese invasion and occupation of the Andaman Islands during World War II.

Recent History:
On 26 December 2004 the coasts of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands were devastated by a 10 metre high tsunami following the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake. At least 5,930 people (possibly an accurate estimate) were believed to have been killed on the Nicobar and Andaman Islands during the disaster. One of the worst affected island was Katchal and Indira Point, the southernmost point of India, which got submerged under the ocean. While newer settlers of the islands suffered the greatest casualties from the tsunami, most of the aboriginal people survived because oral traditions passed down from generations ago warned them to evacuate from large waves that follow large earthquakes.

Geography:There are 572 islands in the territory, of which only approximately 38 are permanently inhabited. Most of the islands (about 550) are in the Andamans group, 26 of which are inhabited. The smaller Nicobars comprise some 22 main islands (10 inhabited). The Andamans and Nicobars are separated by a channel (the Ten Degree Channel) some 150 km wide. The total area of the Andaman Islands is some 6,408 km2 (2,474 sq mi); that of the Nicobar Islands approximately 1,841 km2 (711 sq mi).