The name 'Andaman' was presumed to be derived from
Hanuman, the monkey deity, who was known to the Malays as Handuman. The district of Andaman is the northern part of
Andaman and Nicobar Islands and comprises of 550 islands, islets and rocks, out of which only 26 are inhabited. Some of the islands are large such as the Middle Andaman, North Andaman, South Andaman, Baratang and Little Andaman islands. Andaman, covering an area of 6,408 sq km, has a population of over 320,000. The highest point of the territory is situated at
Diglipur. There are four primitive tribes. The topography is hilly and is rich in evergreen forests. The sandy beaches on the edge of meandering coastline are fringed with coconut-palms. The tropical rain forests and water of
Bay of Bengal are the home of a vast collection of plant, animal and marine life. The adventure attractions are trekking, island camping, snorkeling and scuba diving. The major tourist spots are the Cinque Island,
Corbyn's Cove Beach, Radhanagar Beach, Cellular Jail, Gandhi Park, Mini Zoo,
Ross Island, Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park, Mount Harriet and
Madhuban. One can enjoy the under-water marine life and view the rarest varieties of corals by snorkeling near the
Andaman Water Sports Complex, Corbyn's Cove Tourism Complex, Havelock and other islands. Andaman is well connected to
Chennai and
Kolkata by air. Regular passenger ship services are also available from Chennai, Kolkata and
Visakhapatnam.
