Port Blair

Port Blair
City
Sri Vijaya Puram
Clockwise from top:
Aerial view of Port Blair, Seaside Road, Cellular Jail, Jaljeevshala Aquarium, Port Blair Science Centre, Beach in Port Blair
Port Blair is located in Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Port Blair
Port Blair
Location in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Port Blair is located in Bay of Bengal
Port Blair
Port Blair
Port Blair (Bay of Bengal)
Coordinates: 11°40′06″N 92°44′16″E / 11.66833°N 92.73778°E / 11.66833; 92.73778
Country India
Union Territory Andaman and Nicobar Islands
DistrictSouth Andaman
Government
 • TypeMayor–Council
 • BodyPort Blair Municipal Council
Area
[2][3]
 • Total
41 km2 (16 sq mi)
Elevation
16 m (52 ft)
Population
 (2011)[2][3][1]
 • Total
140,572[1]
Time zoneUTC+5.30 (IST)
ClimateAm

Port Blair (pronunciationⓘ), officially named as Sri Vijaya Puram,[4] is the capital city of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a union territory of India in the Bay of Bengal. It is also the local administrative sub-division (tehsil) of the islands, the headquarters for the district of South Andaman, and the territory's only notified town.

Port Blair is the entry point for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. It is connected with mainland India by both air and sea. It is a two to three-hour flight from mainland India to Port Blair's Veer Savarkar International Airport and three to four days by sea to reach Kolkata, Chennai, or Visakhapatnam from Haddo Wharf in the city. It is home to several museums and the major naval base INS Jarawa of the Indian Navy, along with sea and air bases of the Indian Coast Guard, Andaman and Nicobar Police, Andaman and Nicobar Command, the first integrated tri-command between the Indian Armed Forces, Indian Air Force and the navy.[5]

The historic Cellular Jail is in the city, and nearby small islands such as Corbyn's Cove, Wandoor, Ross Island and Viper Island were once home to British colonists.[6] The city was named after Captain Archibald Blair, a British colonial navy official of the East India Company. On 13 September 2024, the Government of India renamed the city to Sri Vijaya Puram.[7]

  1. ^ a b "Census of India Search details". censusindia.gov.in. Retrieved 10 May 2015.
  2. ^ a b "Port Blair City". Archived from the original on 17 June 2021. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
  3. ^ a b "Port Blair Info" (PDF).
  4. ^ "Port Blair renamed as Sri Vijaya Puram, announces Amit Shah". Deccan Herald. PTI. 13 September 2024. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
  5. ^ "Andaman and Nicobar command". NIC. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  6. ^ "The Cool, Wild and Very Remote Andaman Islands". New York Times. 22 November 2022. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  7. ^ "Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar capital, renamed as Sri Vijaya Puram". India TV. 13 September 2024. Retrieved 13 September 2024.