PORT BLAIR Chart No. 4006 General: Port Blair, is entered between N point and S point, about 2¼ miles S. The port consists of an inlet, 4 miles long and is divided into an outer harbour and a sheltered inner harbour. Port Blair is the seat of the Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Chief exports are timber, coconuts and copra; Chief imports are foodstuffs, piece goods, cement and structural materials. The population of Port Blair in 2001 was 1,59,845. A submarine exercise area is located 35 miles SSE of Port Blair. A good lookout should be exercised in this vicinity. Firing practice takes place in the area. The positions are given below Firing Practice Area A is enclosed by a line connecting the following positions. SL Latitude Longitude 1 11º 39'N 92º 49'E 2 11º 39'N 93º 03'E 3 11º 24'N 93º 03'E 4 11º 24'N 92º 49'E Firing Practice Area B is enclosed by a line connecting the following positions: SL Latitude Longitude 1 11°39'N 93°03'E 2 11°39'N 93°18'E 3 11°24'N 93°18'E 4 11°24'N 93°03'E Firing Practice Area C is enclosed by a line connecting the following positions: SL Latitude Longitude 1 11°00'N 92°50'E 2 10°30'N 92°50'E 3 10°30'N 93°40'E 4 10°00'N 93°40'E Conspicuous Objects: Name Latitude Longitude Command Pt Bn 11°41'.68 N 92°43'.70 E Atlanta Bn 11°40'.62 N 92°44'.81 E Blair Reef Bn 11°41'.00 N 92°44'.15 E 10 Aids to Navigation: (a) Buoys: SL Latitude Longitude Characteristics (1) 11° 41'.24N 92° 42'.69E Fl G 4s (2) 11° 41'.39N 92° 42'.99E Fl G 4s (3) 11° 41'.61N 92° 43'.18E Fl G 4s (4) 11° 41'.34N 92° 44'.56E Fl G 4s (5) 11° 41'.29N 92° 43'.64E Fl R 4s (b) Beacons: SL Description Latitude Longitude Remarks (1) White Masonry Pillar (with ladder) on top of dolphin. 11° 41'.75N 92° 43'.11E Light under construction (2) Concrete Dolphin Beacon 11° 41'.80N 92° 43'.91E Light under construction Approaches to Port Blair: Ross Island (11º 40' .5N, 92º 46' E), divides the entrance to the point into N and S channels. The N entrance with depths of 55m, is wider and deeper. Near the N end of Ross Island there is an indented parapet and enclosed roof inside a wall, dark in colour. A reef fringes the island on all, except a small part of its W side. Ross Island Light: Ross light (11º 40'.8N, 92º 46'.1E) is exhibited from a 10m high white concrete tower with black bands standing on the reef 1 cable NNE of the N point of Ross Island Landmarks: The following objects on the S side of the outer part of the harbour are conspicuous; A tower, with an elevation of 31m and forming part of a prominent building, formerly a jail, close within Atlanta Point, a mast, 59m high 1 cable WSW of the tower, a memorial pillar 3½ cables S of the tower, a school building 5 cables S of the tower, a temple 6.5 cables S of Atlanta Point, a radio mast 1.4 miles WSW Atlanta Point from which a red obstruction light is exhibited, a house with an elevation of 98m, ½ cable W of the radio mast. Ross Island Jetty: A Jetty, suitable only for boats, extends a short distance NW from the W end of Ross Island with a wooden pier about ½ cable S of it. A wharf, used for berthing ferry launches, lies close S of the pier. Atlanta Point: Mount Haughton, 154m high stands about 1.6 miles S of Atlanta Point. A round building painted orange and white in strips and surmounted by a gray, tower stands on the summit, an Aero Light (red fixed) marks the top of the tower. Outer Part of Port Blair: North Bay, entered between North point (11º 41'.97N, 92º 45'.41E) and Perseverance Point (11º 41'.37N, 92º 44'.73E), about 9 cables SW, extends about 1 mile inland and is bordered on its W side by foul ground. A Beacon stands 7 cables NNW of North Point. There is a Jetty, 2½ cables NW of North Point. Perseverance Point Light: Perseverance Point Light is exhibited from a white tower with orange bands on Perseverance Point. Mount Harriat, about 1¾ miles NW of North Point, rises to a height of 365m. North Entrance Channel lies between Ross Island and North Point. North Point Light (11º 42'.22N, 92º 45'.4E) is exhibited from a round metal tower with red and white spiral bands, standing 2½ cables N of North Point. South Entrance Channel & Sesostris Bay: South entrance channel lies between South Point, about 8 cables SE of the tower near Atlanta Point and Ross Island. A stranded wreck lies 1 cable E of South Point. Sesostris Shoal consists of two coral patches, with least depths of 2.4m and about 9 cables SSE of South Point. A 8.2m patch lies about 1 cable E of the E end of Sesostris Shoal and two patches of depths 8.2m and 7.2m lie close S of the W end of the shoal. Sesostris bay is entered between South Point, and Atlanta Point, about 7¼ cables NW. The bay, for most part, is fouled by reefs and shoals. A 3.7m patch, rock, lies about 3 cables SSE of Atlanta Point Beacon. Another shoal patch, with a least depth of 5.2m lies about 4 cables SE of Atlanta Point Beacon. Aberdeen Jetty: Aberdeen Jetty is the N of two jetties in the NW part of Sesostris bay. It is stone built, with landing steps and accessible at all states of tide. Command Point and Semiramis Bay: Lime Kilns Pier, in ruins, lies ½ miles WNW of Perseverance Point with a white roofed house, which makes a good mark. Semiramis Bay, small and deep, is entered between the ruined Lime Kilns Pier and Command Point. A pier extends S from the head of the bay. A stranded wreck lies at the NE corner of the bay. Command Bay lies on the W side of Command Point. A light is exhibited at Command Point from a white concrete tower, 6m in height. Command Bay and Hope Town Jetty & Shore point & Bamboo Flat Bay: Hope Town Settlement lies near the NE shore of the bay. There is a jetty 100m long. With 4.9 m depths alongside Shore Point, 9 cables W of Command Point, is the W entrance point of Bamboo Flat Bay at the head of which is some buildings. A conspicuous beacon stands near the root of a ruined jetty extending SE from the point. There is a small jetty in the NW part of Bamboo Flat Bay. A stranded wreck lies close N of the jetty. Phoenix Point & Phoenix Bay: Phoenix Point, 8½ cables W of Atlanta Point, is the E entrance point of Phoenix Bay. There are numerous stranded wrecks in the S part of the bay. Cholanga Jetty, lies close S of Phoenix Point. The W face of the jetty is 65m long and has depths of 3.5m to 6.1m along side. Fishery Jetty, extends N for 290m from the S shore of Phoenix Bay. Depths alongside vary from 1m at the inner end to 8m at head. There is a dry dock in Phoenix bay for inner island ships having dimensions of 90m X 20m and a marine dockyard jetty 20m in length. The Marine jetty complex is 350m in length. Blair Reef: Blair Reef extends 3½ cables ENE from the W entrance point of Phoenix Bay which lies 4 cables WNW of Phoenix Point. Some rocks 1m high stand on the reef. A Light Buoy (Red cane), is moored 2 cables ESE of a group of Islets close E of the drying extremity of Blair Reef. Leading Beacons (White Wooden frame, cross topmark) stand ½ mile SSW of Phoenix Point; the beacons in the line bear 202º. Blair House stands 2 cables S of the W entrance point of Phoenix Bay. Chatham Island: Chatham Island, about 8.5 cables NW of Phoenix Point, is connected to Mainland by a causeway over the reef and a bridge over the water. Some buildings and a conspicuous chimney, 29m high, stands on the Island. Chatham Jetty 220m long, the W half being of concrete construction and the E half wooden, lies along the N side of the Island. This jetty is mainly used by ships from the mainland. A wooden jetty, 46m long with depths from 1.2m to 6m alongside, is situated at the SW side of the Island. Inner part of Port Blair: From Blair Point the coast extends SW to Hood Point and then S Navy Point forming the E side of the inner harbour. Chatham Island & Inner Harbour: Haddo Wharf, The wharf is extended to 720 m length with half of it shared between the Navy and the Merchant marine with least depth of 9.8 to 8.6m in the NE side to 8.7m in the SW side alongside, the wharf lies SW of Chatham Island. There is a passenger complex on the commercial side of the jetty for passenger liners operating inter Island and from the main land of Chennai, Kolkata and Visakhapatnam. A conspicuous radio mast from which a red obstruction light is exhibited and a conspicuous house, 98m high stands about 7 and 6 cables respectively E of Navy Point. Navy Bay lies between Navy Point and Lewis Point about 9 cables SSW. A jetty extends 1½ cables W from the head of Navy Bay. Between Hood Point and Minnie Bay, W of Lewis Point, there are several ruined jetties. A dangerous reck lies 4 cables E of Dundas point. Leading Beacons, triangular in shape and line bearing 157º 15' stand on the S side of Navy Bay; the rear beacon stands 1 mile and the front beacon about ¾ mile SSE of Navy Point. The beacons in line lead from about 1½ cables E of Dundas Point (11º 40'.29N, 92º 42'.52E), into Navy Bay passing 1.75 cables SW of navy Point. Mangrove Bay is entered between Shore Point and the coast about 7 cables WSW. This bay dries in most of the W part. Bridge Creek, rambling between mangroves, is entered at the head of Mangrove Bay by a channel passing close to its E shore. Ranger Flat, having depths of less than 7m extends about 4 cables S from Shore Point. A 4.3m rocky patch lies 5½ cables SSW of Shore Point. Black conical uoys are moored 5 cables SSE and 5 cables SSW of Shore Point and mark respectively the E, SSE and SSW side of the flat. Leading Line, The extremity of Chatham Island in line with Perseverance Point bearing 087º leads S of Ranger Flat and N of the 4.3m rocky patch, described previously. A disc beacon stands on the coast about 7¼ cables SW of Shore Point;Dundas Point lies about 1½ mile SSW of Shore Point. Dundas Point, Matla Bay and Floating Dock A Dangerous Wreck, with depth of 1.2m, lies 3 cables WNW of Dundas Point, another dangerous wreck, with a depth of 2.1m lies 4 cables WNW of the point. A jetty in ruins projects ESE from the W shore of Matla Bay. There is a jetty marked by a beacon at the S shore of Matla Bay. This beacon with another beacon ½ cable South ward, in line bearing 007º leads between the above two dangerous wrecks. Another jetty, which is also marked by a beacon, lies ½ cable S of Dundas Point. A conspicuous green house stands 4½ cables WSW of Dundas Point. Floating Dock (11º 40'.37 N, 92º 42'.92 E) A floating dock belonging to Indian Navy lies moored mid stream, 3.3 cables NE of Dundas Point. Coast Guard Jetty a ‘T’ shaped jetty of 190 m length is built for the exclusive use of Coast Guard ships, 4.7 cables W of Dundas point. Viper island with Jetty: Tapping Point lies about 1.9 miles WSW of Dundas Point. Viper Island, 50m high, lies 6½ cables SW of Dundas Point in the bight. Several buildings stand on this island. There is a small Jetty with depths over 5 m on the SE corner of the island. Bird Island: Bird Island, 4m high, lies about 2 cables SW of Tapping Point. Bird Island is surrounded by a reef fronted by submerged rocks. Oyster Island lies 5 cables ESE of Bird Island. Anchorage: A well-sheltered anchorage can be taken in depths of 11m to 13m, the bottom being mud, about ½ cable WSW of Chatham Island with the NW extremity of the island bearing 068º. This provides shelter against NE monsoon. The anchorage is also called Haddo Anchorage. During SW monsoon vessels can anchor in Phoenix Bay in depths of upto 4.5m, the bottom is soft mud. Vessels can also anchor W of Ross Island in depths of 14.6 to 16.5m, the bottom is sand, about 1¼ cables WSW of the jetty on the W side of Ross Island. Prohibited Anchorage, Anchorage is prohibited in the vicinity of submarine cable between 2½ cables SSE of Hood Point and about ¾ cable SSE of Dundas Point. Direction for Port Blair: Vessels entering Port Blair by N channel should pass ½ mile N of Ross Island and then about ¼ mile S of Perseverance Point bearing less than 293º and open to the E end of Chatham Island which leads N of Blair Reef. A mid-channel course between Chatham Island and Command Point should then be steered. The NW end of Chatham Island should be rounded at a distance of 1 cable and course altered to 237º which leads to the anchorage ½ mile WSW of Chatham Island previously described. For proceeding to the anchorage W of Ross Island, keep the beacons W of Atlanta Point in line bearing 214º until South Point bears 166º, then steer for the point on that bearing and when the jetty on the NW extremity of Ross Island bears 090º alter course ESE to the anchorage. Vessels from S using the S entrance channel should keep Atlanta Pont bearing 313º 15' and in line with Command Point, which leads close SW of the 5.2m patch in the fairway, about 4 cables SE of Atlanta Point. When South Point bears 163º, course can be altered to N to keep the point astern on that bearing. When the N extremity of Ross Island bears 090º, course can altered NW to pass midway between Blair Reef and Perseverance Point and thereafter to the anchorage WSW of Chatham Island as directed above. Vessels bound for the anchorage W of Ross Island should approach the S entrance channel as directed above until South Point bears 185º ; the course then should be altered N and the point kept on that bearing astern, which leads to the anchorage. Wind and Weather: Port Blair has a mean temperature of 28°C. Storm signals are displayed at the light station on Ross Island. The Indian General System is in use. Tides and Currents: The currents in Port Blair are weak and are affected by the prevailing winds. The rates rarely exceed 1 knot. During the NE monsoon, the current sets S and during the SW monsoon it sets between N and E. Heavy seas and swells occur in the outer harbor during the NE monsoon. The inner harbor is well sheltered and experiences no sea or swell. The mean range of the tide is 1.4m and the spring range is 2m. Depth Limitations: Considerable depths exist in the N entrance channel between North Point and Ross Island. A 5.2m shoal lies in this channel about 0.4 mile ESE of Atlanta Point. Depths of over 18.3m exist in the outer harbor and depths of 5.5 to 27.4m exist in the inner harbor. Pilotage: Pilotage is compulsory for vessels over 200 grt, Pilots can be made available on request to the Harbour Master, Port Blair. Pilot boards 0.8 mile N of Ross Island. No night pilotage is available. Regulations: Vessels should send an ETA message 24 hours in advance, stating: Vessel name. Port of departure. Destination. ETA. Length, beam, maximum draft, and grt. Speed: Number of people on board suffering from dangerous or contagious diseases, if any. Type and quantity of cargo. Agent's name and requirements, if any. Facility: The following facilities are available for ships in Port Blair harbour. Drinking water: Only source of drinking water is rain water catchments in the area. Airport/Air services; Two commercial flights are available at Port Blair Airport daily from and to Chennai and Kolkata. There is a government hospital at Aberdeen with modern facilities. Tugs: Two tugs of 1500 HP each, and Twin Screw are available. Cargo Handling. No container or lighterage facilities exist. All cargo handling activities take place at the wharves. Repairs: Minor repairs can be under taken in the new dry dock for vessels of 85m length and draught 3.7m. There is a slip way for small vessels. There is one hard of concrete slip way extending between high and low water near Cholanga Jetty, length 19m, width 20m. Divers: In emergency, services of naval divers can be made available. Supplies: Fuel can be obtained from Oil Corporation with sufficient notice. Fresh water can be obtained by giving prior indent to Port Conservator. Provisions: Limited quantities of butter, fish and vegetable are available. Medical Services: Government Medical Services are available. Director of Health Services, Andaman and Nicobar Islands carries out de-ratting on temporary basis. Communications: Sea communications are maintained with Chennai, Visakhapatnam and Kolkata. Air services to Chennai and Kolkata are operated daily. Radio: There is a Coast radio Station at Port Blair which maintains watch on 500 kHz round the clock. Port control tower also maintains watch on 156.8 MHz round the clock. Port Authority is exercised by the Harbour Master. Buoyage: Uniform System of Buoyage (lateral) is in force.