Sarthak Kanjilal
Port Blair, Nov 11: For effective disposal of garbage generated from the city, the Port Blair Municipal Council is currently getting ready an alternate location in South Andaman.

The Administration, years ago, allotted a parcel of land at Brookshabad for disposal of garbage. However, as the location falls under the (CRZ) Coastal Regulatory Zone, the dump yard could not be further utilized for the purpose.

To overcome the situation, the Civic Body has reportedly identified a location at Burma Nallah in South Andaman for disposal of garbage.

Speaking to Andaman Sheekha, the Secretary of Municipal Council, Mr P Jawahar said that the new site will be ready for operation in the next six months.

“We have identified a site at Burma Nallah, Which suffice out landfill requirements. We are also planning a comprehensive landfill project on the site,” Mr. Jawahar added.

In the absence of any other site, the Municipal Council is presently forced to dump garbage at Brookshabad, which is very close to Andaman’s one of the famous tourist beach, Corbyn’s Cove.

Sanjith Das & Sarthak Kanjilal

Port Blair, Nov 11:
In yet another case of suicide, a 15 years old girl, studying in class IX, committed suicide this morning at Tushnabad village of South Andaman.
After getting reports a police team of Ograbraj reached Tushnabad and registered a case of Unnatural Death. The reason behind this extreme step is still not known.
Yet another incident of suicide, this time by a school girl, has once again raised questions over the efforts made by the Administration to reduce the number of suicides in Andaman.

Port Blair, Nov 07 : The Port Blair Municipal Council has formed a special committee to look into the basic civic needs of all the six newly added wards.

Just a few months before 2015’s Municipal Elections of Port Blair city the Andaman and Nicobar Administration added six new wards in PBMC, making total number of wards 24 from existing 18.

But people of newly added wards are now complaining that the new wards were added without even providing basic civic amenities to the newly added wards.

“Our newly added ward does not have proper street lights, pipe connections, garbage bins. What is the use of adding new wards when the PBMC can’t maintain these wards? This is clear cut cheating,” the councilor of newly added ward (Ward No. 23) Mr. Sanjay Meshak told media today.

When questioned the Secretary of PBMC, Mr. P Jawahar said that he has formed a committee consisting of senior engineers and other staffs, which will submit report to PBMC by 15 November 2015 about the civic needs of these newly added wards and based on the report the Council will take decision.

The Chairperson of PBMC, Mrs. Sheela Singh told media that the fund requirement for the newly added wards has been sent to the Administration for necessary approval.

Sheekha Bureau
Port Blair, Nov 08: On 23 October 2015 vessel MV Bambooka came to Neil Island and after embarkation of passengers having tickets, a few extra passengers also boarded due to improper checking system by DSS, PMB and Harbor departments.
Boarding extra passengers is common in A&N Islands during the peak seasons and it is not a new thing. The Director Shipping Services projected the incident as a big issue claiming that MV Bambooka was left in dangerous position due to over passengers by concealing the real fact.
To ascertain the real fact, we had sent some of our correspondents to Neil Island, who had approached the localites of Neil Island including PRI members and the whole fact of the incident came out was surprising.
The real story was that DSS boat MV Bambooka, as scheduled, berthed at Neil Island on 23rd October 2015 evening. As in practice, the Tally Clerk allowed all the passengers go to the gangway and first he allowed the passengers having valid tickets (i.e. 146) to board on the vessel. All the passengers were tourists mostly came from West Bengal. After the embarkation of valid passengers, the Tally Clerk, who was posted at Neil Island and keep on making up and down from Port Blair, went into the vessel and disappeared. Police personnel on duty at jetty stopped the extra passengers and asked boat staff to remove the gangway, but they did not do so.
In the meantime one lady and a child started crying that the Master of the vessel who was standing outside the wheelhouse ,that her husband, mother and other relatives had already boarded and hence she requested to allow her to get into the vessel.
Out of sympathy, the Master was agreed and he allowed them to come inside.
The other extra passengers, who were in the queue thought that the extra passengers would be accepted and a few- ladies and children came in front of gangway and started getting into the vessel forcefully. The Tally Clerk was cancelling himself in the vessel and there was none except police to stop extra passengers but they could not succeed.
However, with much persuasion, local police removed all the extra passengers and asked the Master to proceed, but the Master denied sailing on the ground that there was no night navigation equipment onboard and he cannot sail, though reportedly this vessel has such equipment on board.

Further he announced that the vessel will sail in the early morning at 3 AM and asked the passengers having tickets to get down the vessel.
All these passengers were safely taken outside the jetty by police and with the help of some tour agents and local leaders, all the stranded passengers were accommodated in various hotel/resorts and passenger hall and in the next day morning they were sent to Port Blair by MV Bambooka and another extra boat came from Port Blair in the early morning.
Our correspondents went further deeper in the issue and it has been surfaced that no stall’ from PMB and ALHW (except a watchman) was posted at Neil Island to handle the harbor area, passenger hall etc. In the Daily Telegram dated 22/10/2015, the DSS publicized about extra boat (MV Kamorta) from Port Blair to Neil Island and back in the evening. On 23rd Oct. the sailing of aforesaid vessel was cancelled without informing any concerned. Though the Tally Clerk knew this news in the afternoon, but he did not convey this news to anyone.
The situation could have been avoided, if the sailing of extra boat was not cancelled or another boat was sent by DSS, as there was about 75 extra passengers. This fact was reportedly communicated to DSS by Tally Clerk, but no extra vessel was sent in the place of cancelled boat.
It was said by DSS that due to technical snag the boat could not be sent whereas there was boat available at Port Blair. This seems to be deliberate omission on the part of DSS to harass the tourists and throwing responsibility on other stakeholders.
It was reported that Dy. Director Shipping visited Neil Island and held meetings with PRI and tour agents. When people asked him as to why the extra sailing was cancelled on 23rd Oct. 2015, he said there was no programme on that day and he further told the people that DSS does not have sufficient boat to cater the needs of the tourists. As per villagers, without giving proper answers and assurances he left the island.
The fact is that the DSS have 17 speed boats like MV Bambooka and out of these 17 boats, only 08 boats are reportedly plying and remaining 09 vessels are always in the dry-dock or dead bed on the pretext of maintenance etc.
On all these vessels, officers and crew are reportedly deployed and they are drawing lakhs of rupees as salary and other allowances without any works.
The Annual Passenger Survey is done at Port Blair which should not have been taken much time, if the DSS takes interest to put these vessels in operation.
The reason for putting these 09 vessels idle in the name of maintenance is not digestible and understandable even for laymen. The DSS has always been coming up with the pretext that their 50 percent of vessels are on maintenance.
Sources also told Andaman Sheekha that, maximum plating work of MV Rangat and MV Baratang like boat deck, half deck, main deck, focle deck work are over and the ship is waiting for the final survey, but for reasons unknown the Directorate is not completing the final survey.
Actually there are no efficient Engineers/Officers in DSS to handle the ships or boats.
Down below, only one Dy. Director (Ops) looking after the whole affairs including technical side, but he is also not efficient to handle the affairs.
Whatever the Director (SS) explained the Administrator or Secretaries, they believed and accepted everything in Toto because Director is from Defence forces so he cannot tell lie, but the Administration never ever gave a patient hearing to the general public and their grievances.
As it seems it is totally impossible that by next two or three years more such new vessel will join Andaman’s DSS fleet, it is presumed that in the coming days there would be a great problem in water transportation and the situation would be worse than the present.
This is the high time the Administrator should personally look into all these issues and come up with some remedial steps before the system is collapsed.
Our correspondents travelled by the speed boats from Port Blair to Neil island and Havelock and noticed that these vessels are not at all maintained well, urinate basin and toilets are found blocked emanating unbearable foul smell causing irritation to the passengers. Besides, hundreds of cockroaches were roaming living in the cabin and other passenger areas. Some of the passengers told our correspondents that they have seen rats moving on board of DSS boats. The authority should visit the ships/boats and see the condition. A handsome salary is being given to the Master/Engineers and crew members of the speed boats, but the staff were never seen maintaining the vessel neither during the voyage nor at halting point though for maintenance materials like soap, shampoo, brush, various types of floor cleaning chemicals, sprays including paints etc are issued.

The same condition is in the ships operating in southern group of Islands. MV Kalighat is new ship and during her first voyage, the complete AC systems have blown up and still the ship is plying without AC and people termed this ship as floating cattle pond carrying passengers as cattle. The question is who is responsible for all these deficiency, for which general public is being suffered.
Fortunately there are few private boats catering the needs of the tourist and they are transporting thousands of tourists to Neil and Havelock Islands and back everyday, and if these services are stopped, the DSS boats could hardly transport 300/400 people including local passengers, and in such situation the inflow of tourists to Andaman would come down to zero leaving thousands of people associated with tourism, thousands of vehicles and hotels/resorts without any job.
This is the progress what DSS made during the last 10 years. Procuring boats in time and maintenance etc. are the responsibility of the DSS and they should do it.
This is the time to make some good planning by the Administration to improve the condition to avoid any serious issues in the field of tourism and shipping services rather than blindly believing the false information being submitted by the concerned HoDs.
The tourism in Havelock and Neil Island is booming like anything and thousands of tourists are visiting these islands for its natural beauties, beaches, and vegetation.
Our correspondents also observed that there is no responsible officer from Tourism, PMB, DSS to extend any help to visiting tourists at Havelock and Neil Island. A good thing what they observed was that the local police always remain present right from the gangway at jetty to outside the gate, parking area, en-route and beaches and they are found extending all kind of help to the tourists.
Police Jawans are also seen greeting tourists at Neil and Havelock and guiding them in all possible way, which should be acknowledged.
Like other stakeholders, other concerned departments like Tourism, DSS, PMB and Forest should also discharge their duties sincerely and if all these departments work together definitely we can make all the tourist spots in Andaman Islands as Souvenir and could win the confidence of the visiting tourists.
Another fact is that about 80% tourists going back from these islands are not happy with the existing infrastructure facilities available for the tourists and the remarks of most of the tourist is “No second visit”.

Sarthak Kanjilal
Port Blair, Nov 06: The UT Administration is making steady efforts for devolution of more powers to Panchayati Raj Institutions in these islands. Speaking to, the Secretary, Rural Development, Mr NK Sharma said that a recent meeting held under the chairmanship of the Lt. Governor and the Chief Secretary decided that under the process of decentralization of rights more powers, functions and funds will be transferred to the Panchayat Raj Institutions.
As part of the proposal, three Check Dams in South Andaman has been handed over to the Zilla Parishad from the Andaman Public Works Department. Before the local body elections, it was also decided to devolve several administrative powers relating to community development to the Panchayati Raj Institutions, informed Mr Sharma.
The proposal of the Lt. Governor and the Chief Secretary is aimed at empowering the Panchayati Raj Institutions and powers vested with Departments like Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Fisheries, Forests etc in relation to projects for village development is being considered for devolution to the Panchayati Raj Institutions.
The Adhyaksha, South Andaman Zilla Parishad, Smt Minati Biswas, said that recently some divisions of different Departments have been handed over to the Zilla Parishad, but the initiative has not been implemented in totality. A meeting in this connection was held recently and the Zilla Parishad, South Andaman has submitted a representation to the Administration demanding early implementation of the proposal.