Port Blair The union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands consists of 572 islands, islets and rocks, of which only 38 islands are inhabited. These island form a 700 km stretch from north to south resembling a broken arc. Situated in the Bay of Bengal, the island are 1200 km away from the mainland. The Andaman group of islands consists of the North, Middle, South, Little Andamans and Ritchies Archipelago, besides many smaller islands. The Nicobar group of Islands comprise Great Nicobar, Little Nicobar, Car nicobar, nancowry, Katchal & Chowra. Port blair is the headquaters of this Union Territory, situated in the South Andamans-base to begin one of the most enchanting holidays. Topographically, the island at are hilly and abound in evergreen forests with more than 86% forest cover. The white sandy beaches have a backdrop of luxuriant greenery. The clear blue water, enclosec by coral reefs, contain an underworld full of fishes of all possible varieties and myriad other marine animals. Given their pristine and unpolluted beauty, a visitor is bound to fall in love with the Andaman & Nicobar islands. Lately, the administration has undertaken extensive publicity campaigns of familiarise the masses with the hitherto unexplored islands. Ships sail from Madras and Calcutta every 10 days and from Visakhapatnam once in 3 months. Efforts to improve facilities for tourists are not only being made by the administration, but the Ministry of tourism. Government of India, is also taking considerable interest in the same. Presently, accommodation worth only 2,000 beds are available, combining both the government and the private sectors-mainly in Port Blair.
