Minicoy Island

Minicoy Island Latest News

A 12-year-old tigress, which had been sick and roaming near the forest boundary in the Singara forest range of the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR), died recently.

About Minicoy Island

• Minicoy, locally known as Maliku, is the second largest and southernmost island in Lakshadweep.
• Minicoy is famous for coral reefs and white sand beaches amidst the vast expanse of the Arabian sea.
• It is  crescent-shaped and has an area of 4.80 sq.km.
• This island lies near the 9-degree channel, which is one of the busiest shipping routes and is about 130 km from the northernmost island of the Maldives. 
• It has a very large lagoon on the western side, measuring about 6 km across the two entrances, one on the west and the other on the northernmost point. The lagoon area is 30.60 sq.km.
• The island is about 2 m above the mean sea level on the western side and about 3 to 4 m on the eastern side, and is 11 km long.
• The lighthouse of the island is one of the oldest and was constructed in 1885. 
• Minicoy is set apart from the Northern group of islands by its culture.
• The main attraction of the island is its carefully arranged villages, known as ‘Avah’. 
  • Each Avah has its own internal organization headed by a Moopan, around which the life of the community rests.
  • Every village has its own village house. In total there are 10 villages on the island.
• The languages spoken are Hindi, English, Malayalam, and Mahal. Minicoy being the only people in India speaking Mahal as a linguistic minority.
• The folk dances of Minicoy are ‘Lava’, Thaara’, ‘Dandi’, ‘Fuli’ and ‘Bandiya’.

Source: TOI

‹ ›