Only a slight spike in passenger traffic to Lakshadweep after boycott Maldives call

In the first week of January, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Lakshadweep and shared a couple of pictures, showing the "stunning beauty of its islands". From "early morning walks" to snorkelling, the prime minister said his visit to the islands was "an enriching journey of learning and growing". This immediately sparked a debate about Lakshadweep as an alternate destination to the Maldives - with which there has been a diplomatic row in the recent months following the new government taking power in the island nation.

Google search saw a spike in search for Lakshadweep and Israel declared the start of a desalination programme in Lakshadweep to help tourism. Airport expansion plans have been announced and industrial and business conglomerates are announcing expansion to Lakshadweep to cash in on the sudden euphoria around Lakshadweep.

Numbers yet to catch up

Numbers released by the DGCA for January show that 2,312 passengers travelled from Kochi to Agatti. This was marginally higher than the 2,253 passengers who flew in December 2023 and similar to those who travelled in January 2023 when 2,315 passengers travelled between Kochi and Agatti. The footfall at Agatti (arriving and departing passengers) was 4,491, according to the data released by the Airports Authority of India. A look at the numbers from 2023 shows that the flight has been operating at near capacity for almost all months.

One of the reasons why numbers have not increased is the lack of capacity with just one flight which is filled to capacity most of the time and a search on Alliance Air’s website does not yield any results for available flights next month indicating the flights being full.

Thus, the number of passengers wanting to travel by air may be high but the lack of capacity means that it won’t go up until more capacity is added.

Barrage of flights on the way

IndiGo has expressed interest in operating flights to Agatti. This will likely double the flights to Agatti from Kochi at the end of March or early April. Fly91 - the latest regional operator in the country, which recently unveiled its aircraft and uniforms has also won rights to fly to Agatti - from places beyond Kochi, which could see the airline connect Agatti to its home base Goa. SpiceJet has also said that it has exclusive rights for some routes and would launch flights to Agatti soon but the route or details remain unclear.

When launched, this will more than triple the seats available from and to Agatti - the only airport in Lakshadweep and could see more destinations being connected beyond Kochi. The flights under RCS-UDAN would also mean 50% of the seats being sold at a subsidised rate. While this could be good news for the islanders, will a cheap entry point to Lakshadweep bode well for tourism? What the archipelago could be looking for is possibly high-end tourism and not mass tourism, given its size and fragile ecosystem.

Tail note

Flights alone cannot get tourism to Lakshadweep. The island requires a permit for visits and is currently short of hotels to cater to the sudden rise in tourist queries. Tata Group's hospitality subsidiary, Indian Hotels Company (IHCL), has announced plans to build two Taj-branded resorts, scheduled to open in 2026, on Suheli and Kadmat islands in Lakshadweep—an Indian archipelago that gained attention after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent visit to the Union Territory.

There has been a steady rise in cruise tours in India and Lakshadweep has become a popular gateway for cruise ships on the western coast. A cruise helps tide over the shortage of hotel rooms as a typical itinerary sees the vacationers return to the cruise for the night, having spent a day on the various islands of Lakshadweep.

More flights will open up opportunities for locals to host people as BnB in the absence of hotel rooms. This bodes well for tourism and the growth of locals. Efforts should be made to make the destination a niche one instead of mass tourism. Goa is falling prey to mass tourism while Andaman has remained out of bounds for mass tourism due to the cost and restrictive approach in local rules. What path will Lakshadweep follow?