Port Blair, Nov 20 2020
The Sri Lankan Tamil Settlers Settled in Katchal Island by the Govt. of India are on an indefinite protest against the Administration from 18th of November 2020, demanding their resettlement from Katchal Island to South Andaman.
The story of these settlers is quite interesting and painful. These settlers were settled in the Katchal Island in the year 1970 to work in the Rubber Plantation which was originally raised by the Rubber Board for Govt. of India and was later managed by the Andaman and Nicobar Island Forest Plantation Development Corporation Ltd. These Sri Lankan Tamil Settlers were brought to India under the Sirima-Shastri Pact or Srimavo-Shastri Pact of 1964 wherein about 2,80,000 people of Indian Origin were brought back to India from Sri Lanka because of the protests of the locals against increasing Indian Tamil Population there.
48 families of these Sri Lankan Tamil Settlers were settled in Katchal Island to work in the Rubber Plantation in the year 1970. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands (Protection of Aboriginal Tribes) Regulation, 1956 came into force on 1st of July 1956, years before these settlers were settled in Katchal Island. Each family was provided with 0.5 Hectares of Land for Kitchen Garden without any license. The area where these Sri Lankan Tamil Settlers were settled was also not de-notified from the areas covered under the ANPAT Regulation 1956.
Soon the population of these settlers started growing and they were looking for better opportunities to earn their livelihood, but the ANPAT Regulation 1956 always came in their way and they were always restricted by the laws of the land to start a business and earn their livelihood.
In the year 1995 the first agitation by these Sri Lankan Tamil Settlers for resettlement in some other Island was witnessed. The issue reached the Indian Parliament and then finally the Andaman and Nicobar Administration agreed on their resettlement. The first suggested place for resettlement was proposed in Campbell Bay in 1999 and later it was changed to Hut Bay and the resettlement plan kept getting delayed because of some or the other reason.
In 2003, the then Prime Minister of India Shri. Atal Bihari Vajpayee visited Andaman and Nicobar Islands and the problems of the Sri Lankan Tamil Settlers were raised before him in the IDA meeting and he directed the Andaman and Nicobar Administration to facilitate their resettlement with 1.5 Hectares of land .
It was decided to resettle these settlers at Shaitan Khari in South Andaman with 1.5 Hectares of land to each family, but the locals of the region were against the decision of the Administration to settle them there.
In the year 2004, Andaman and Nicobar Islands were hit by the Tsunami and the issues of these Sri Lankan Tamil Settlers and their resettlement plans once again came to a halt.
In 2010 these Sri Lankan Tamil Settlers approached the High Court for their resettlement and in 2012 the High Court directed the Administration to resettle them from Katchal Island.
Andaman and Nicobar Administration reportedly did not implement the orders of the High Court. The Sri Lankan Tamil Settlers then initiated Contempt of Court Proceedings against the Administration in 2013 and the High Court then directed the Andaman and Nicobar Administration to resettle them within six months.
After the Court Order, Andaman and Nicobar Administration then gave a proposal for resettlement of these Sri Lankan Settlers with 200 Sq.Mtrs of Land which was refuted by the settlers. The Administration then agreed to then resettle each family with 1 Hectares of Land in Kadakachang in South Andaman.
The plan was never put into action. The settlers waited because of the 2019 General Elections and then the COVID-19 pandemic prevented them for taking any further action.
Today there are about a 1000 individuals in the Sri Lankan Tamil Settler Community in Katchal Island, from 48 families back in 1970, there are now 242 families in their community.
Nicobar Times spoke to Mr. Lawrence, Joint Secretary of Katchal Settlers Welfare Association he informed us that they are currently protesting for their resettlement because they are facing a lot of problems in Katchal. He further added that the Tribal Council of Katchal doesn’t want them living in Katchal and there are frequent disputes arising in between the Settlers and the Tribal Population. He further added that the Chief Captain of the Tribal Council has also been sending regular signals to the Andaman and Nicobar Administration for our removal from the Island citing Cultural Differences and violation of the ANPAT Regulation by members of our community. Mr. Lawrence also informed us that, they are harassed in each and every step by the Tribal Community there in Katchal. He also informed that they are not even able to send a signal when the other modes of communication are down in the Island, sighting that the facility is only available for the Tribals.
Further he informed that the Assistant Commissioner, Nancowrie and no other Senior Officer from the District Administration has visited them after they started protesting from 18th of November 2020 and they will keep on protesting indefinitely until and unless their resettlement from Katchal Island is finalised.
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