India, Feb. 5 -- The Lakshadweep archipelago is India's eastern frontier. Only about 32 sq km of the Union territory (UT) is land, while 4,200 sq km is lagoon. This makes it important from a strategic and an ecological perspective, which is why the islanders' protest against the UT administration's move to acquire 101,020 sq m of private land for tourism and other projects at Agatti Island calls for attention.

Residents have alleged that the administration has ignored the gram sabhas and owners while trying to acquire the land, about 3% of Agatti's land mass. This is unacceptable; the law mandates getting the local community's consent even when the acquisition is for a public purpose or utility. In this case, the intent is to promote tou...