Port Blair: A major breach of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands’ tribal protection laws has come to light after Swaraj Dweep Police registered an FIR against six persons for allegedly trespassing into the protected Tribal Reserve Area near Strait Island without mandatory permits and engaging in fishing and diving activities.
The case has been registered under Sections 7 and 8 of the Andaman and Nicobar (Protection of Aboriginal Tribes) Regulation, 1956 (ANPATR), which prohibits unauthorised entry into notified Tribal Reserve Areas and regulates activities within these ecologically and culturally sensitive zones.
According to the FIR, the incident occurred on July 23, 2026, after the In-charge of the Look Out Post (LOP), Strait Island, received information that an unidentified fishing dinghy had been spotted between North Passage Island and Strait Island. The occupants were reportedly fishing and diving close to the shores of Strait Island, an area notified as a protected Tribal Reserve.
Acting swiftly on the input, a police team from LOP Strait Island proceeded to the location in a wooden engine dinghy belonging to the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs). The team intercepted the suspect vessel, found six persons allegedly engaged in fishing and diving, and escorted the dinghy to the Strait Island Jetty for verification.
During questioning, all six occupants reportedly admitted that they were not carrying any valid licence or entry permit authorising them to enter the Tribal Reserve Area or undertake fishing activities there. Based on their statements, Swaraj Dweep Police registered the case under the relevant provisions of ANPATR.
Police also seized the wooden engine dinghy along with an assortment of fishing and diving equipment allegedly used in the illegal operation. The seized articles include a Kirloskar engine, a fibre ice box, snorkelling goggles, metal fishing spears, a rubber fin, fishing net bags, a wooden paddle, a rudder, an engine handle and three iron anchors. The seizure was carried out near the Strait Island Jetty in the presence of witnesses through the e-Sakshya digital evidence collection platform.
The investigation is in progress. The case once again underscores the strict legal protections governing the Tribal Reserve Areas of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, where unauthorised entry and commercial or recreational activities are prohibited to safeguard the rights, habitat and way of life of the indigenous tribal communities.
