Lok Sabha Question No. 440 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-02-05
Subject: Sentinelese Tribe
Ministry: HOME AFFAIRS
Asked by: MEENAKASHI LEKHI

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 440

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 05 TH  FEBRUARY, 2019/, MAGHA 16, 1940 (SAKA)

SENTINELESE TRIBE

440.  SHRIMATI MEENAKASHI LEKHI:

Will the Minister of HOME AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

(a) the steps being taken by the Government to ensure that incident like the death of the American tourist at the hands of the Sentinelese Tribe does not occur again;

(b) whether any patrolling is set up near the reserved area to ensure that there is no encroachment and if so, the details thereof;

(c) the current population of the Sentinelese and the Jarawas tribe as of 2018; and

(d) the number of such confrontational incidents which have occurred during the last ten years with the Sentinelese and the Jarawas tribe?

ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS (SHRI HANSRAJ GANGARAM AHIR)

(a):    The Government  has promulgated various laws/regulations from time to time to ensure that the rights and well being of the Sentinelese are safeguarded. These are  being  strictly  implemented  and  enforced  by  the  UT  Administration.  These Laws/Regulation  include  i)  A  &N  Islands  (PAT)  Regulation  1956,  ii)  Scheduled Castes  and  the  Scheduled  Tribes  (Prevention  of Atrocities) Act, 1989, iii) Restrictions  under  Foreigner  (Restricted  Area)  Orders,  1963,  iv)  Visa  Manual Conditions/Passport  Act  1920,  and  v)  Indian  Forest  Act,  1927  and  Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. Besides, some major steps taken to ensure the protection of Sentinelese are:

 The entire North Sentinel Island along with 5 km coastal sea from high water mark is notified as tribal reserve.

 The  Sentinelese  are  still  in  isolation  practicing  primordial  hunting  and gathering way of life. The Government respects their way of life style, therefore, has  adopted  an  'eyes-on  and  hands-off'  practice  to  protect  and  safeguard  the Sentinelese tribe.

 A protocol of circumnavigation of the North Sentinel Island has been notified. The ships and aircrafts of Coast Guard and boats of Marine Police make sorties around North Sentinel to keep surveillance.

(b): Yes Madam. Apart from the land territory the coastal sea up to fixed extent of 1 Km to 5 Km abutting the tribal territory has also been notified as tribal reserve so  that  marine  resources  like  fish,  turtle  etc  are  available  exclusively  for  the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs).  The vehicular traffic on Andaman Trunk Road passing through Jarawa reserve is regulated by convoy system. Buffer Zone notified in 2013, around the Jarawa Tribal Reserve (5km landward side and 1km seaward side), prohibits all commercial / tourism activity in the Buffer Zone. Joint patrolling by Police, Forest & Andaman Adim Janjati Vikas Samiti (AAJVS) is carried out around Jarawa area to prevent contact of poachers and unscrupulous non-tribal elements with Jarawa tribe. A Special Police Team (01 SI and 10 PCs) for  patrolling  at  Tirrur,  adjacent  to  the  Jarawa  Tribal  Reserve,  has  also  been deployed. The ships and aircrafts of Coast Guard and boats of Marine Police make sorties around North Sentinel to keep surveillance.

## LS.US.Q.NO.440 FOR 05.02.2019

## (c):    The details of population of the Sentinelese and Jarawa Tribes are as under:

|   S.No | Name of the tribe   | Population                      |
|--------|---------------------|---------------------------------|
|      1 | Jarawa              | 514 (till date)                 |
|      2 | Sentinelese         | 50 estimated as per 2011 census |

(d):    The number of confrontational incidents occurred during the last  ten years with the Sentinelese and the Jarawas tribe are given as under:

- (i) Sentinelese -- 01(one)

- (ii) Jarawas -- 19(Nineteen)