Andaman and Nicobar Islands

India’s only active volcano sits in this Union Territory. Its capital was renamed in 2024, moving away from a colonial-era name.

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General Knowledge · GK0067

Andaman & Nicobar Islands

836 islands, one active volcano, one renamed capital

1 Nov 1956

Union Territory formed

836 islands

Only ~31 inhabited

13 Sep 2024

Port Blair renamed Sri Vijaya Puram

8,249 km²

Total land area

CapitalSri Vijaya Puram

Lieutenant GovernorAdmiral D. K. Joshi (Retd.)

Known ForBarren Island, Cellular Jail

A name that carries history

The 2024 renaming to Sri Vijaya Puram replaced a colonial name with one honouring the islands’ role in India’s freedom struggle, including the INA’s brief 1943 flag-hoisting.

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Must Know

• The Andaman and Nicobar Islands’ capital is Sri Vijaya Puram. It was renamed from Port Blair on 13 September 2024, moving away from the city’s colonial-era name.
• The Union Territory was formed on 1 November 1956.
• As of 2026, the Lieutenant Governor is Admiral Devendra Kumar Joshi (Retd.), in office since 8 October 2017.
• Being a Union Territory without its own legislature, it has no Chief Minister. The Lieutenant Governor administers it directly, on behalf of the President.

Good to Know

• The territory covers about 8,249 square kilometres, spread across 836 islands. Only 31 of these islands are inhabited.
• It sits in the Bay of Bengal, closer to Southeast Asia than to mainland India.
• Indira Point, on the southern tip of Great Nicobar, is India’s southernmost point. See IndGeo0060 — India’s Extreme Points for the country’s other extremes.
• Barren Island holds India’s only active volcano. See IndGeo0058 — Barren Island for more on it.
• The British-built Cellular Jail (Kala Pani) in Sri Vijaya Puram imprisoned Indian revolutionaries, and remains a major historical site today.

Test Yourself

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1. What is the capital of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and when was it given this name?

Port Blair; since 1858

Sri Vijaya Puram; since 13 September 2024

Sri Vijaya Puram; since 1956

Port Blair; since 2024

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Great to Know

• The islands hold particular significance in India’s freedom struggle. Subhas Chandra Bose’s Indian National Army briefly held the islands in 1943, and hoisted the Indian tricolour there. See ModHist0101 — The Indian National Army and Netaji for that episode.
• The 2024 renaming to Sri Vijaya Puram was explicitly framed around this history, replacing a colonial name with one symbolising the freedom struggle.
• The islands are also home to several indigenous tribes, including the Sentinelese, Jarawa, and Onge. Some remain largely isolated from outside contact even today. See IndSoc0043 — The Jarawa Tribe of the Andaman Islands for one tribe’s own story.

Current Affairs

• 8 August 2026: Vice-President C. P. Radhakrishnan visited the Cellular Jail in Sri Vijaya Puram and paid homage to freedom fighters who suffered there for India’s independence.
  • He laid a wreath at the Martyrs’ Column, paid tribute at Veer Savarkar’s cell, and visited the Swatantra Jyoti, Central Tower, Gallows, and the Museum and Exhibition Gallery.
  • He also watched the Light and Sound Show depicting the freedom struggle’s history at the site.
  • Describing Savarkar as a fearless revolutionary, he said: “The purpose of sending freedom fighters to jail was to demoralise them; Savarkar ji never got demoralised. Finally, the British Raj got demoralised.” He also cited Savarkar’s fight against untouchability and social discrimination.
  • The Vice-President linked this to a wider point on national strength: India’s growing power is not meant to dictate to others, but to ensure it is never dictated to, calling that “what real freedom is.”
  • Earlier that day, on his arrival at INS Utkrosh, Sri Vijaya Puram, he was received by Lieutenant Governor Admiral Devendra Kumar Joshi (Retd.) with a ceremonial Guard of Honour.
  (Source: PIB)