Maarg Manthan · Topic 14.8

Lakshadweep Islands and New Moore Island

Geography › India: Plains, Plateau, Coasts and Islands · Topic 14.8

Lakshadweep is a Union Territory of small coral islands and atolls in the Arabian Sea, about 200 to 440 km off the Kerala coast, built on the Chagos-Laccadive Ridge. It has about 36 islands, of which 10 are inhabited, a total land area of only about 32 sq km, and a height of no more than about 5 m. New Moore Island was a small sandbar in the Bay of Bengal that emerged in 1970 and has since disappeared.

6 min read · UPSC Prelims · Geography · India: Plains, Plateau, Coasts and Islands

At a Glance

Type Coral atolls on a submerged ridge
Distance About 200 to 440 km off Kerala
Land area About 32 sq km
Capital Kavaratti
Channels Nine Degree and Eight Degree channels
Exam link UPSC Prelims, Geography: India: Plains, Plateau, Coasts and Islands

Where Does It Fit?

This is the last topic of the macro on India’s plains, plateau, coasts and islands. The previous topic described the island arc in the Bay of Bengal, and this one covers the coral islands in the Arabian Sea and a vanished sandbar. The next macro begins the study of the drainage systems of India. Previous topic: Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Next topic: Classification of Drainage Systems of India.

What Is Lakshadweep and How Did It Form?

In short: Lakshadweep is a string of low coral islands built on the peaks of an undersea ridge.

Lakshadweep, meaning a hundred thousand islands, is the smallest Union Territory of India, in the Arabian Sea off the coast of Kerala. The islands lie on the Chagos-Laccadive Ridge, a submerged volcanic ridge formed as the Indian plate moved north over the Reunion hotspot, and corals built up on its sunken peaks to form atolls and reefs, as in Minor Ocean Relief Features. The territory has about 36 islands, which include 12 atolls, three reefs and five submerged banks, of which only 10 are inhabited, and a land area of about 32 sq km. It has a lagoon of around 4,200 sq km and an exclusive economic zone of around 400,000 sq km, as in UNCLOS, Territorial Waters and Exclusive Economic Zone. Most islands are flat and rise no more than about 5 m, and have no hills, streams or valleys.

What Are the Groups and Channels of Lakshadweep?

Group or feature	Details
Amindivi Islands	The northern group, including Bitra, Chetlat, Kiltan, Kadmat and Amini
Laccadive (Cannanore) Islands	The central group, with Kavaratti, the capital, Agatti, which has an airport, Androth, Kalpeni and Kadmat; Androth is the largest island, about 4.9 sq km
Minicoy	The southernmost, second largest island, about 4.5 sq km, with its own culture and language, Mahl, which is related to Divehi of the Maldives
Nine Degree Channel	Separates Minicoy from the main Laccadive group
Eight Degree Channel	Separates Minicoy from the Maldives
Coral features	Fringing reefs around the islands and lagoons on the western or leeward side; Pitti is a small uninhabited bird sanctuary

The economy relies on coconut, tuna fishing and tourism; fresh water is scarce, being obtained from shallow groundwater lenses and desalination, as in Energy and Biotic Resources of the Oceans. Lakshadweep became a Union Territory in 1956 and took its present name in 1973. The Indian Navy commissioned a base at Minicoy named INS Jatayu in 2024, which adds to the strategic value of the islands near the busy east-west shipping route.

Why Are the Lakshadweep Islands Vulnerable?

Sea-level rise: with an elevation of only about 1 to 5 m, the islands are among the most exposed to sea-level rise, storm surges and erosion. Beach erosion has been recorded on many islands.
Coral bleaching: the reefs are the base of the islands and the fisheries. Warm-water events, such as those during El Niño years and the global bleaching event from 2023, damage them, as in Coral Bleaching and Zooxanthellae.
Cyclones: Arabian Sea cyclones such as Tauktae in 2021 and Ockhi in 2017 have passed near the islands, as in Path, Intensity Scale and Breeding Grounds of Tropical Cyclones.
Freshwater stress: the freshwater lens is thin and can be spoiled by seawater intrusion.

What Was New Moore Island?

New Moore Island, called South Talpatti by Bangladesh, was a small uninhabited sandbar in the Bay of Bengal at the mouth of the Hariabhanga river, in the Ganga-Brahmaputra delta region, at the border of India and Bangladesh. It emerged in the aftermath of the Bhola cyclone of 1970, which deposited sediments in the delta area. Both India and Bangladesh claimed it because of speculation about oil and gas in the area and because of its effect on the maritime boundary. The island kept on emerging and disappearing with sediment and sea level, and satellite images and surveys later confirmed that it had been submerged by about 2010. The maritime boundary between the two countries was finally decided by an arbitral tribunal in 2014, as in UNCLOS, Territorial Waters and Exclusive Economic Zone.

As an analytical point, the story of New Moore Island and the story of the atolls point in the same direction: low coasts and sediment islands in a delta or an ocean are temporary, and, in an era of rising seas, the law of the sea, which assumes stable land, will face many more questions about vanishing islands and baselines.

Why Is This Topic Important?

Map-based Groups and channels asked
Climate Sea-level rise and coral loss
Law Disappearing islands

What Came Next?

The next macro begins the study of the drainage systems of India. Next topic: Classification of Drainage Systems of India.

Key People and Terms

Atoll Ring-shaped coral island
Lagoon Shallow water inside an atoll
Amindivi Northern Lakshadweep group
Kavaratti Capital of Lakshadweep
Mahl Language of Minicoy
South Talpatti Bangladesh name for New Moore Island

Exam Corner

Points to Remember

Lakshadweep is a group of coral atolls.
Kavaratti is the capital.
Eight Degree Channel separates Minicoy and the Maldives.
Island heights are about 5 m or less.
New Moore Island appeared after the 1970 Bhola cyclone.

Do Not Confuse With

Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar Coral atolls versus tectonic arc
Eight and Nine Degree channels Minicoy-Maldives versus Minicoy-Laccadive
New Moore Island and an atoll Sandbar of silt versus coral on a ridge

Memory Hook

Coral caps on a drowned ridge: Amindivi north, Laccadive centre, Minicoy south, and low in the sea.

Mains Angle

Questions ask about island vulnerability. These points add depth.

Origin Coral on a ridge
Threat Sea-level rise and bleaching
Policy Adaptation and strategy

A Question You May Face

An original practice question, not a past paper question.

“Why are the Lakshadweep Islands highly vulnerable to climate change? Suggest measures for their sustainable development.”

How to Answer

Origin Atolls on a ridge.
Features Low and small.
Threats Sea level, bleaching, cyclones.
Measures Reef protection, water, resilient planning.

GS Relevance

Prelims: groups, channels, capital, coral origin, sea-level threat, New Moore Island. GS Paper 1: physical geography; GS Paper 3: coastal ecology and security.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Lakshadweep?

Lakshadweep is a Union Territory of India made up of small coral islands in the Arabian Sea, about 200 to 440 kilometres off the Kerala coast. It has about 36 islands, 10 of them inhabited, with a total land area of about 32 square kilometres, and Kavaratti is its capital.

How were the Lakshadweep islands formed?

The Lakshadweep islands are coral atolls built over the peaks of the submerged Chagos-Laccadive Ridge, a volcanic ridge linked to the Reunion hotspot. Corals grew on the volcanic peaks as they sank, forming rings of reef that enclose lagoons, as in Darwin's theory.

Which channels separate Minicoy from other islands?

The Nine Degree Channel separates Minicoy from the main Laccadive group of Lakshadweep, while the Eight Degree Channel separates Minicoy from the Maldives to the south. Both are important routes for international shipping across the Arabian Sea.

Why are the Lakshadweep islands threatened by climate change?

The islands are very low, at only 1 to 5 metres above sea level, so they are exposed to sea-level rise, storm surges and beach erosion. The coral reefs that protect them are damaged by bleaching, and the thin freshwater lens can be spoiled by intrusion of salt water.

What was New Moore Island?

New Moore Island, called South Talpatti by Bangladesh, was a small sandbar that emerged in the Bay of Bengal after the Bhola cyclone of 1970, and was claimed by both India and Bangladesh. It kept emerging and disappearing, and was confirmed by satellite images to have been submerged by about 2010.

PYQ Practice — Statement Analysis

1 The Lakshadweep islands are of volcanic origin and rise above 500 m.

False

They are coral islands of about 5 m or less.

2 The Eight Degree Channel separates Minicoy and the Maldives.

True

The Nine Degree Channel separates Minicoy from the Laccadives.

3 Kavaratti is the capital of Lakshadweep.