Lakshadweep: The islands caught in a political storm

Praful Khoda Patel took over as the administrator of Lakshadweep in December 2020. In a matter of months, the man is in the eye of the storm for rocking the boat in India’s smallest Union Territory, where over 60% of the population earn their daily bread from the sea.

Unrest is brewing in the archipelago over a series of ‘anti-people’ and ‘unscientific’ policies imposed by the former Gujarat home minister and BJP leader.

The resentment went unnoticed by the mainland for months, mainly due to the negligible presence of mainstream media in the islands, until a #SaveLakshadweep campaign went viral on social media with ample support from politicians and celebrities in neighbouring Kerala. The UT is highly dependent on the state for education, healthcare and trade needs.

Patel’s “reforms” came under fire from previous administrators too, most of whom are from the civil service background. “If someone can do this in a matter of months, either he is a genius or has a pre-set agenda,” wrote retired IAS officer Omesh Saigal, in his letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

Read more: Entry restrictions enforced in Lakshadweep amid Covid-19 surge

Drawing attention to a number of “negative steps” that have “disturbed the normally placid waters of the territory”, Saigal said Patel has closed anganwadis, sacked dozens of employees, banned meat from schools, demolished dozens of sheds of fishermen built as per the scientific plan prepared by a Supreme Court-appointed committee, brought in Goonda Act in a territory “which has had no crime for at least one century”, closed dairy farms, and amended panchayati rules “as per his whims”.

The relaxation of Covid-19 protocols and land policies in the name of tourism are some other measures that have sparked outcry in the islands nestled in the Arabian Sea, 220 to 440 kilometres off the Kochi coast of Kerala.

During the initial days of the pandemic, Lakshadweep had earned praise for keeping the virus at bay through strict enforcement measures, including quarantine at mainland before proceeding to the islands. But the Patel administration relaxed norms citing the need to revive economy, after which the UT reported 4,000 Covid-19 cases and over 20 deaths.

Rubbing salt into the wound, the administration imposed fresh curbs on airlifting critical patients to the nearby mainland, mainly Kochi.

Also read: Explained | Why are people in Lakshadweep protesting?

The rough weather earlier this month damaged hundreds of fishing boats and equipment in the UT. The islanders blame it on the administration’s decision to demolish storage huts of fishermen along the coast, accusing of encroachment.

“Earlier, we used to keep boats and fishing equipment in storage huts. But after their demolition, the boats are anchored in the sea itself, which led to extensive damage. Almost 30 out of the 35 odd fishing boats on Kadmat island were damaged,” says Zaheer C N, a resident of Kalpeni island.

Sustainable management

While the administration justifies its policies — like bringing “world-class” urban infrastructure to capital Kavaratti and three more inhabited islands, widening of roads, steps that empower it to take over any piece of land citing non-development and tourism potential — they go against the spirit of the meticulously drafted Integrated Island Management Plan (IIMP) of Lakshadweep.

The IIMP was readied in 2014 by a team of experts after considering the recommendations of the Supreme Court-appointed committee headed by Justice R V Raveendran.

Dr T N Prakash, senior consultant of the National Centre for Earth Science Studies, who was involved in the IIMP exercise, said the major thrusts of the plan were to provide livelihood security to local communities, promote conservation of islands and their ecosystems and protect the coast against vulnerability to natural hazards. All development activities should be in accordance with the IIMP, he said.

Read more: Lakshadweep administration defends controversial orders

The other recommendations were to promote tourism on uninhabited islands or sparsely-occupied portions of inhabited islands and reduce the number of polluting vehicles.

Tourism

But Patel administration, in association with the Niti Aayog, is setting up water villas at Minicoy, Kadmat and Suheli. The first two are among the 10 inhabited islands in the archipelago of 36 islands, with an area of 32 square kilometres and a population of around 70,000. The widening of roads and urbanisation will increase pollution.

The administration is also in the process of privatising key sectors like dairy farming terming them as non-productive. Subsidised feed to private dairy farmers is also being curtailed.

Citing excess staff, it has also terminated the services of many contractual employees and teachers, and ended many government contracts.

On the other hand, it allowed Gujarat-based dairy major Amul to open outlets. Many dairy farmers fear Amul’s entry would impact them.

Advocate Attabi T K, a Lakshadweep native settled in Kochi, said islanders want inclusive development. Basic infrastructure like higher education facilities and better medical care should be developed with priority, she said.

Attabi said that while previous administrators, like Intelligence Bureau former director Dineshwar Sharma, used to give due importance to the concerns and sentiments of people, the present administration was ignoring even the lone MP of Lakshadweep, Mohammed Faizal, who is from the NCP. A section of BJP cadres of the islands is also against the ‘anti-people’ measures, she said.

Cheriya Koya, a Kavaratti resident and assistant secretary of the local cooperative society, said the administration should support its people instead of looking for ways to make profit.

Though the Raveendran commission recommended scaling down non-productive employment, it also suggested promotion of non-polluting industries for alternative employment generation, which is not happening.

There are allegations that Patel, who is also the administrator of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, has initiated similar policies there and facilitated contract work to lobbies close to him by ignoring the local community. The residents fear he is executing a similar strategy in Lakshadweep.

Land policies

The land-related policies being initiated by the administration empower authorities to take over any piece of land and widen roads. This has raised concerns, as the 10 inhabited islands are already thickly populated with a density of 2,000 people per square km.

Policies like beef ban and knocking off meat from students’ meals have not gone down well with a region dominated by the Muslim community. They view these as efforts to impose the Hindutva agenda. Similarly, the plan to bar parents of more than two children from contesting panchayat elections is being dubbed communal.

While the Raveendran commission recommended that all developments envisaged in the IIMP be implemented in consultation with elected local self-government bodies, Patel is allegedly weakening panchayat’s powers in key sectors.

In an effort to justify its decision to impose the Prevention of Anti-Social Activities Act (Goonda Act) on the islands — with a crime rate of just 182 cases in 2019 — the administration stated that residents, mainly youngsters, are involved in the smuggling of drugs and terrorism.

All this and more have led to a massive outcry, which culminated in the ‘Save Lakshadweep’ campaign, which is seeking justice for a peaceful population upset by ‘maladministration’.