Why Do We Need To Save Lakshadweep?

Protests are taking place massively in Lakshadweep, but do you know the main cause behind it?

Before going through that, let's share some basic information with you! Lakshadweep is a union territory with 36 islands where you need to have special permission to visit. Being a union territory, Lakshadweep is administered by an Administrator who the President himself appoints. 

When it comes to Administrator, Praful Khoda Patel is currently in position, and before him, Dineshwar Sharma, the former Intelligence Bureau Chief, held that seat. So, after Dineshwar died of lung complications, the current Indian Government appointed Praful Patel as the Administrator. 

So, since the COVID-19 pandemic hit India, Lakshadweep had not reported a single case last year. However, things went chaotic as the first case was reported in January 2021. To date, the tropical archipelago registered around 4,986 cases and 14 deaths.

The main cause for that is, Patel altered the Standard Operating Procedure in place to prevent the spread of COVID on the islands. Previously, the SOP stated that visitors from Kochi must adhere to a mandatory quarantine. On the other hand, the administration amended the SOP to allow anyone who had received a negative RT-PCR test 48 hours before flying to enter the islands.

For the past two months, 10 inhabited islands in Lakshadweep have been under lockdown, forcing the islanders to write to the administrator demanding a proposed regulation. 

The current regulation states that “provision for the orderly and progressive development of land in both urban and rural areas and to preserve and improve the amenities thereof; for the grant of permission to develop land and for other powers of control over the use of land; to confer additional powers in respect of the acquisition and development of land for planning; and for purposes connected with the matters aforesaid.”

The draft clearly states that “carrying out of the building, engineering, mining, quarrying or other operations in, on, over or under land, the cutting of a hill or any portion thereof or the making of any material change in any building or land or the use of any building or land...” These authorities are responsible for creating land use maps, zoning for different land-use types, and identifying areas for development in case of ‘proposed national highways, arterial roads, ring roads, major streets.... railways, tramways, airports... theatres, museums....playgrounds, stadia….’

This regulation permits the government to establish Planning and Development Authorities under it to plan any area deemed to have "poor layout or outmoded development." The government also states that an authority will be created, and a chairman will be leading all the operations with three government appointees and a town planning officer.

Not just that, The Animal Preservation Regulation 2021, which aims to prohibit the slaughter, transportation, sale, or purchase of beef products, was made public on February 25, 2021, to much controversy. To much astonishment, 96 per cent of the population in Lakshadweep are Muslims.

Opponents of the idea point out that the ecologically vulnerable islands are small and densely populated. Androth is the largest of the inhabited islands, with a landmass of 4.9 square kilometres and a population density of 2,312 people per sq km. The only area exempted from these establishments is the cantonment areas.

Praful Patel even went so far as to put the Gunda Act into effect. On a remote island. Why do we need the Gunda Act if the police stations in Lakshadweep deal with very little crime and the jails are empty? The administration's response to individuals who disagree with their decisions is the Gunda Act.

As if that wasn't bad enough, the administration then fired several employees from various government agencies, including healthcare, agriculture, and education, even those who cook food and teach sports at their schools, all without cause or explanation.

From actors such as Prithviraj to politician VT Balram, several prominent personalities have stepped forward to support the Lakshadweep islanders. They have even started a campaign called ‘Save Lakshadweep’ to oppose the new law reforms introduced by Praful Patel. 

Don't turn blind eye to what's happening in Lakshadweep. Share your thoughts in the comments below.