Within a span of eight days, two minor volcanic eruptions were noticed in the Barren Island in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, news agency PTI reported, citing officials.
The volcanic eruptions happened on September 13 and the latest one on September 20, according to the officials. However, both eruptions were minor.
The second eruption happened two days after a magnitude 4.2 earthquake hit the Andaman Sea on September 18.
Barren Island in the Andaman Islands is not just India's, but the entire South Asia's only active volcano. It is located some 140 km away from Port Blair by sea and is an uninhabited island. It lies at the juncture of the Indian and Burmese tectonic plates.
A video of one of the recent eruptions was shared on X (formerly Twitter) by Sansad TV and shows lava erupting out of the volcano with a cloud of smoke emerging from it.
The video was captured by one of the Indian Navy's warships.
{{/usCountry}}The video was captured by one of the Indian Navy's warships.
{{/usCountry}}The first eruption at Barren Island happened back in 1787, according to the data available with the administration of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the report said.
That eruption was followed by some mild eruptions in 1991, 2005, 2017 and 2022, before these recent minor eruptions.
About Barren Island
Barren Island attracts a lot of visitors from around the world since it the only active volcanic island in South Asia. It is an uninhabited island and the only living creatures found there are feral goats, rodents, bats, and a few bird species, according to the website of Andaman Islands.
While most beaches in the Andamans are white, the beach at Barren Island is covered in ash due to the volcano and the island does not have any facility to stay there. Also, people are not allowed to set foot on the island due to safety concerns, however, the island can be visited closely.
The water close to the island is clear and full of rich marine life.