Bangaram
Bangaram is situated at 10o56' north latitude and 72o17'
east longitude.
The Bangaram island is one of the finest tourist spot in the country, with
its idyllic palm grove and the smooth sands caressed by the mulitcoloured sea
waves it is developing into a tourist place of international fame. This island
lies about 8kms north of Agate. To its east about 2 1/2 km
away is Tinnakara and further east is Parali connected by a sand back during the
dry season. Bangaram is enclosed by a scenic lagoon about 10kms long by six km
wide. The lagoon is very deep with here and there great patches and plateaux of
coral growing up to the surface, giving it a memorable view.
 Originally, this island was in the hands of the people of Agatti. But this
island was confiscated by the Bibi of Cannanore in 1764 as a punishment for the
murder of an Accountant stationed there. The Madras Government had in 1928
divided the island into plots and leased out to small cultivators.
People from other islands visit this island for fishing and also for getting
Cheruthalam wood. The wood is used for securing the planks of island boats.
Another plant known as Ittila gorus in Bangaram. A kind of tapioca is obtained
from the root used as diet for invalids.
The island is a favourite fishing and turtle hunting ground of the Agatti
people. There are two kinds of turtle. The green turtle and the hawkbill. The
green is caught for fat yielding valuable oil. Female turtles come up at night
to the sand and lay eggs from 100 to 200 in a neat little pile at one spot in
the sand. The young turtle hatched out soon after make for the sea.
H.M. Winterbotham Acting special Assistant to the collector of Malabar
visited the island in 1878 and declared it unfit for habitation.
In 1881, the ship Mahableshwar was lost off the Bangaram reef during the
monsoon. The crew succeeded in escaping to Bangara where they lived for about
three months until discovered by the Agatti islanders on visiting Bangaram after
the close of the monsoon.
There is a lake on this island where fresh water is available during the
rainy season from June upto the end of March. For Tourism options in Bangaram Click
here
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