Kadmat Island

Coordinates: 11°13′23″N 72°46′34″E / 11.223°N 72.776°E / 11.223; 72.776
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Kadmat Island, situated to the bottom right of the Aminidivi Islands label

Kadmat Island, also known as Cardamom Island, is a coral island belonging to the

Ministry of Environment and Forests (India) has notified the island as a marine protected area
for ensuring conservation of the island's animal, plant, or other type of organism, and other resources.

The only inhabited village on the island is Kadmat, which had a population of 5,389 according to 2011 census. Fisheries is the main economic activity on the island with agriculture limited to 5% of the land area. Tourism is allowed even for non-Indians and the attractions are kayaking, snorkeling and leisure trips by a glass-bottomed boat for scuba diving.

Geography and climate

The beach side resort at Kadmat Island

Kadmat Island, which belongs to the

Tehsil.[1] is the central most island of the Lakshadweep archipelago. It is in the shape of a tear drop, with 3.5 square kilometres (1.4 sq mi) area and is located on a coral reef. With a length of 9.3 kilometres (5.8 mi)[a] from north to south and a maximum width of 0.57 kilometres (0.35 mi)[4] and it is the longest island in the Amindivi group.[5]
Its southern end is the narrowest with a width of about 10 metres (33 ft). The island's topography is about 2.0 to 3 metres (6 ft 7 in to 9 ft 10 in) on the eastern side and 2.0 to 4 metres (6 ft 7 in to 13 ft 1 in) on the western part above the mean sea level. Its surface formation consists of coral conglomerate overlying broken pieces of coral and coral sand.[6]

The lagoon on the western side of the island [7] extends over a maximum width of 2 kilometres (1.2 mi)[8] covering an area of 37 square kilometres (14 sq mi)[6] and the water depth is shallow about 2 to 3 metres (6 ft 7 in to 9 ft 10 in).[9][10] It has a shore line and has a sandy beach. The reef width is about 50 metres (160 ft). The tidal range lies between 0.6 to 1.6 metres (2 ft 0 in to 5 ft 3 in).[9][10][11][6] The beach on the eastern side of the island has a width of 100 metres (330 ft). At the breaking zone of this beach there is a 100 metres (330 ft) wide coral algae ridge.[7]

Kadmat Island is bounded by

Pitti Bank formation, is 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) to the southwest.[6] Kannur is 292 kilometres (181 mi) away, Kozhikode is 327 kilometres (203 mi) away and Kochi is 407 kilometres (253 mi) away.[12]

There is an airport on nearby

Cochin. From Agatti, it is a two and half hours boat ride to Kadmat. Ferry services also operate from Cochin on the coast of Kerala but involves a journey of 16 hours.[13]

Climate and the environment

Boats on the beach of Kadmat

The island experiences an average annual temperature in the range of 24.2–34.4 °C (75.6–93.9 °F). Rainfall occurs during the monsoon season from May to September with an average annual rainfall incidence of 1,237 millimetres (48.7 in) as per records of the nearby island of Amini.[14] The maximum rainfall recorded in a day is 241.8 millimetres (9.52 in). Humidity averages at 72.5%.[12]

Ecologically, the island is composed of coral reef with

El Niños, which occurred during 1998 due to seawater warming, is reported to have reduced the number of coral species from 45 to 9.[16]

Demographics

Religion in Kadmat Island (2011)[17]

  Islam (97.65%)
  Hinduism (1.92%)
  Christianity (0.24%)
  Others (0.15%)
  Not Stated (0.04%)

The island is inhabited mainly by individuals of the Melacceri caste.[18] Kadmat village is the only inhabited village on the island.

Jasari/Jazary is the dominant language of the people of the island and the literacy rate is as high as 90.4%.[12]

The island has a network of roads, several ponds and wells, primary and higher secondary schools, electricity, telephone, health centres and so forth.[20]

In 1960, a hoard of coins were unearthed and examined, revealing that the island has been inhabited since at least 200 AD. Kadmat island is known to have traded with the Romans, as in 1948 a girl found a Roman coin in a quarry on the island.[21]

Economy

Drying octopus on Kadmat

Fishing is the principal activity of the people of the island. Fishing is done both off shore in the sea and during the monsoon season in the lagoon and reef area. Trawl nets and pole line are used for oceanic

sharks, skipjack tuna, and tuna.[22]
Agriculture is practised, with about 5% of the land area brought under cultivation. Coconut plantations are common along with associated coir twinning. Crops grown include red grass, groundnut, maize, sweet potato, grains, cereals, millets, papaya, and banana.[23]

Tourism has taken off on the island, though it only has one beach resort for 50 guests. There are kayaking and snorkeling facilities, and leisure trips by a glass-bottomed boat for scuba diving.[13] In 1998 the first Water Sports Institute was established on Kadmat, along with the Laccadives Diving Centre.[24]

Wildlife

The island has three types of habitats: coral reef, seagrass and nesting ground for marine turtles.

gastropods have been recorded.[26]

The seagrass beds, which forms an area of around 13.8 square kilometres (5.3 sq mi) across the island,

Phaeophyceae (brown algae).[29] 20 species of Phytoplankton and 19 groups of Zooplankton have been recorded in the reef slope and lagoon area;[30] 33 species of benthic organisms have also been noted in the same vicinity.[26]

Kadmat Beach

Kadmat Beach is one of the prominent features of Kadmat Island. The beach is known for its clear waters and rich marine life, making it a popular destination for water sports like Snorkeling and Scuba diving. Kadmat Beach has also been awarded the prestigious Blue Flag beach certification for its commitment to environmental sustainability and safety standards.[31]

Notes

  1. ^ Various sources differ in their reporting of the length. A number of sources claim 8 km,[2] while the Geological Survey of Indian states 9.25 kilometres (5.75 mi).[3]

References

  1. ^ "Tehsils info" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 July 2011. Retrieved 18 January 2009.
  2. ^ Athawale 1991, p. 69.
  3. ^ Records of the Geological Survey of India. The Survey. 1998. p. 218.
  4. ^ "Kadmat Island, Lakshadweep". Government of Lakshadweep. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  5. ^ Prakash, Nair & Hameed 2014, p. 48.
  6. ^ a b c d "Kadmat". Ocean Dots: The Island Encyclopaedia. Archived from the original on 28 September 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  7. ^ a b Green & Short 2003, p. 106.
  8. ^ "Kadmat Iland: Ar a glance". Government of Lakshadweep. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  9. ^ a b Sri 2001, p. 10.
  10. ^ a b "Critical Habitat Information System of Kadmat Island" (PDF). Government of India, Department of Ocean Development. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 July 2011. Retrieved 18 January 2009.
  11. ^ Sri 2001, p. 9.
  12. ^ a b c "Kadmat - At a Glance". National Informatics Center.
  13. ^ a b c "Lakshadweep: All quiet on India's secret islands". The Independent. 9 August 2015.
  14. ^ a b Sri 2001, p. 4.
  15. ^ a b Sri 2001, pp. 4–5.
  16. ^ Sri 2001, pp. 23–25.
  17. ^ "Kadmat Island population". Census India 2011. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  18. ^ The Eastern Anthropologist. Ethnographic and Folk Culture Society. 1989. p. 287.
  19. ^ a b "Islandwise Area and Population - 2011 Census" (PDF). Government of Lakshadweep. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 July 2016.
  20. ^ a b "Kadmat Island" (PDF). Government of LakshadweEp. p. 247. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  21. ^ Mukerji 1992, p. 40.
  22. ^ Sri 2001, pp. 20–21.
  23. ^ Sri 2001, pp. 10, 23.
  24. ^ Carlsen & Butler 2011, p. 61.
  25. ^ Sri 2001, p. 12.
  26. ^ a b Sri 2001, p. 17.
  27. ^ Sri 2001, p. 13.
  28. ^ a b Sri 2001, pp. 5–6.
  29. ^ Sri 2001, p. 18.
  30. ^ Sri 2001, p. 13–14.
  31. ^ "Explained: What is Blue Flag all about? Lakshadweep's Minicoy, Thundi and Kadmat beaches that won the coveted award". Zee Business. Retrieved 2 September 2023.

Bibliography

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kadmat.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Lakshadweep.

11°13′23″N 72°46′34″E / 11.223°N 72.776°E / 11.223; 72.776

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