Neil Island

Neill Island is an island of the Andaman Islands, located in Ritchie's Archipelago. It belongs to the South Andaman administrative district, part of the Indian union territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. the island is lying 36km northeast from Port Blair.[[Etymology]]Neill is named after British Brigadier general James Neill, who had sternly dealt with the rebels during the suppression of the 1857 Mutiny.HistoryNeill Island was uninhabited until the arrival of settlers in the late 1960s. Like Havelock, the vast majority of settlers at Neill were refugees from erstwhile Bangladesh, following the exodus of Hindu Bangladeshi's prior to that country's war of independence in 1971.GeographyThe island belongs to the Ritchie's Archipelago and is located between Havelock Island and Rose Island. It is a comparatively flat island, and much of the landmass was deemed suitable for paddy cultivation. Unfortunately, as a result of this, very little forest cover remains at Neil, and almost all of it is concentrated in the reserve forest on Neil's north-western side. Neill island tends to remain a degree or two warmer than Havelock as a result of the lack of forest cover. The island is not without charm however, but it is a different, pastoral sort of charm that the island offers.