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DIVNG IN INDIA: |
 India
is a subcontinent of surprises. A cauldron of cultures, of climates,
of people. desert and tropical rain forest. Remote villages
and restless metropolis. Mysticism and masala dosa, pranic healing
and paragliding. But also of diving! There are three main centers
of diving in India. Andaman and Nicobar group of Islands in
the Bay of Bengal, Lakshadweep group of islands in the Arabian
Sea and Goa on the mainland. Every
destination is completely unique in its own way and they all
have widely different dive conditions and marine life.
While Lakshadweep has the clear blue lagoons
of coral atolls, Andaman and Nicobar are
volcanic islands surrounding by deep, undisturbed waters that
have an astounding bio-diversity. The third destination Goa,
has many exiting things to do, on land as in the water.
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DIVING LOCATION |
 Andaman
& Nicobar: The nearest decompression chamber is
at the Naval Base in Port Blair. Foreigners are only allowed
to visit certain islands in Middle, Little and South Andamans
Around Port Blair:
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 Cinque
Island: One of the best diving destinations in the
island. It has clear emeral water with a visibility of up to
80ft. This deep dive offers a terrific variety of marine life,
including black coral and sharks.
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| Rutland Island :The shallow
waters here have a good representation of most smaller fish
and coral, and a is a good place for training for open water
divers. |
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Snake Island: Awesome rock formations
and the marine life includes Trigger fish, Grunts, Goatfish
and rays.
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| Havelock Island: This island
is located approximately 4 hours from the Port Blair airport
by inter-island ferry. The dive center located on the island
offers a wide range of largely unexplored dive sites rich in
underwater marine life. |
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| Lakshadweep: There
are some things hard to find in Lakshadweep. Like fast cars,
or tranquilizers. They do have all that water though. Bright
and clear and as liquid glass. Fringed by white streches of
sand where only throngs you'll ever see are of the sandpipers
on the shore. Geographically similar to that other diver's haunt,
Lakshadweep is like Maldives without the crowds. 400 kilometers
off the coast of Kerala, this group of 36 coral islands and
atolls can be reached by a 20 hour sea journey from Cohin or
by plane. Of the ten inhabited islands, only two, Bangaram and
Kadmat, are open to foreigners and there are dive centers on
both these islands. The lagoons are home to a spectacular world
of marine life, so unexplored, you may well have a site named
after you. |
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Around Kadmat Island: Surrounded
on the eastern and western side by the lagoon, Kadmat is the
ideal haven of solitute. This little island has an astonishing
variety of marine flora and fauna.
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| The Wall: A wall of soft coral
starting at 12m and cascading down to the deep blue. Dive among
the turtles as resplendent as their surroundings. |
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| Sting Ray City: A 21-meter
dive along the sand dunes, abundant with Sting Rays. |
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| Cross Currents: Located between
the islands of Amini and Kadmat, drift dive along with schools
of Snapper, Fusillier and Sharks at 15-21 meters. |
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| East Channel: Located between
9-20m with a lot of soft coral and tuna. |
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| Around Bangaram Island: A tear-drop
shaped island surrounded by a continuous strip of creamy sand.
The exquisite black coral formations along with Angel fish,
Clown fish, Butterfly, Surgeons, Groupers, Mantas, Sting Rays
and wondrous marine life found in the Ladshadweep. Visit the
wreck of the Princess Royal at 32 m, sunk in a battle over two
hundred years ago, or if luck is on your side, have the pleasure
of being escorted by a pod of 10-29 dolphins. Visit the dive
sites of Manta Point, Shark Point and the Wall. Dive amidst
a submerged reef with shoals of Giant Parrotfish. |
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Goa: Goa is a little bit of
Rio de Janeiro meets Ibiza. But then Goa is a lot of things.
This little seaside state, with an identity that's a seamless
blend of Portugese-Latin influence and Indian tradition, was
crackling enough to have been one of the Millenium destinations
of the world. The waters are safe and temperate, the absence
of riptide currents making them ideal for new divers. And when
you are not wiggling in and our of your wetsuit, you could be
sunbathing of bungee jumping, visiting temples or haunting the
flea markets. The three hundred years of Portugese rule has
left an indelible imprint on the collective psyche of Goans.
It shows in their music, their architecture, their culture.
It's also why the Goans make the most wonderful vindaloo this
side of the Indian Ocean. The marine life in Goa is similar
to that found in the Maldives. The presence of wrecks in Spanish
and Portugese galleons and WWII ships make the the fish life
profilic.
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| Grande Island: Much of the
local diving in conducted around this island. Some sites near
the island include Suzy's Wreck, Davy Jone's Locker, Sail Rock,
Turbo Tunnel, Surge City, Uma Guma Reef and Bounty Bay. |
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| Angria Bank: A four hour, high
speed boat ride takes you this world-class dive site 120 miles
from Goa. A vast underwater landmass about half the size of
the state of Goa, it offers an amazing wealth of coral and fish.
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Pigeon Island: This rocky outcrop
has an interesting marine life as well as good visibility.
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| Malvan Shoal: Some interesting
shallow sites in the water between Vengura and Malvan, 2 hours
away from the capital city of Panaji. |
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