Katchal Island

Katchal (Hindi: कत्चल, nico barbaric: तिहन्यु or Tihnyu, formerly Katsjul ) belongs to the Indian archipelago of the Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal to the east lies the Andaman Sea. Politically, the island is part of the Indian union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

It is sparsely populated with a population of 5386 on 174.4 square kilometers. It concentrates on the island reaches a height of 227 meters. The main towns are Mildera, Kapanga and Jhoola.

To the east, beyond the Revello street, are the two neighboring islands Camorta and Nancowry. Approximately 70 km to the south is small Nikobar.

On Katchal live Nicobarese tribes and Tamils ​​who migrated to work on rubber tree plantations since 1964. The island is not accessible for tourists; an access permit may be at the local government in Port Blair, the capital of the Nicobar Islands, requested.

1778 the island from the East India Trading Company Trieste was declared an Austrian crown colony. 1784, this claim has been abandoned.

Katchal has been hit hard by the tsunami as a result of the tsunami of 26 December 2004. 1,549 inhabitants were killed, including many tribal leaders, many are concerned about the persistence of traditional structures. Large areas were devastated, many coconut and betel-nut trees were destroyed.