North Sentinel Island: Some fascinating facts about the most isolated place on earth

The isolated island where the inhabitants are still living in the stone age!

Though the North Sentinel Island looks like an idyllic island on the map but in reality, it is considered as the most challenging place to visit and not to forget the most isolated. The island is inhabited by Sentinelese tribe which still lives in pre-historic times and fiercely reject contact with the rest of the world. Even the natives of neighbouring Andaman which is home to tribes like Jarawa are unable to have access to the island. Here are some of the fascinating facts about North Sentinel Island.

1. The island is almost the same in the size of Manhattan. But in the Tsunami of 2004, the island was geographically changed. Because of the earthquake, the tectonic plates under the island were lifted by one or two metres. It led to the exposure of corals of surrounding areas which became dry land.
2. The inhabitants of North Sentinel Island are untouched by the advancement of the modern world. They are believed to be still living in the stone age. Since they are so isolated from the rest of the world and may have no resistance to modern illness, the Indian government has decided to leave them alone. Indian navy patrols three miles of the area around the island so that Sentinelese tribe are not troubled by intruders.
3. Nobody still has an idea about the language of the inhabitants. It is presumably called “Sentinelese” and is unknown to most of the world due to lack of interaction.
4. Even though nobody has access to the island but experts estimate that the island has 50 to 200 people living on the island.
5. When the deadly Tsunami hit the island of Andaman and Nicobar in the year 2004, surprisingly Sentinelese tribe protected themselves quite well. Anthropologists believe that Sentinelese people might have sensed the Tsunami and escaped to higher lands.
6. Indian government and Anthropologists have tried to establish contact with the Sentinelese tribe since 1961. But after many attempts first “friendly” contact with the inhabitants was made by famous Anthropologist T.N. Pandit and his team in the year 1991.

Indian government strictly protect the privacy of the inhabitants and has recognized the island as a sovereign unit. So, rekindle your sense of adventure by listening to the legends of the North Sentinelese Island.