The overall death toll due to the devastation caused by the tsunami waves in the country has gone up to 8,955, according to figures officially released in New Delhi on Saturday.
The number of dead, which was 7,763 on Friday, rose primarily due to the recovery of about 1,100 bodies in the last 24 hours in Nagapattinam, Secretary (Disaster Management) A K Rastogi told reporters in New Delhi.
He said the number of those missing was over 3,850 - 3,754 in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, 109 in Andhra Pradesh and two in Kerala.
"The aboriginal Jarawa tribals based in middle and south Andamans are safe in their habitat," he said. Their population, which was 240 in the 2001 census, has now risen to 266, he added.
However, there is no news about the fate of Shompen tribes, who were reportedly spotted during aerial survey on Friday. They had a recorded population of 398 in 2001.
Of the 38 inhabited islands in Andaman and Nicobar, 30 were extensively damaged, according to the figures. On the main land, about 34.1 lakh people were affected.
The problem being faced in establishing communication with the island territory will be solved, as teams with INMARSAT have left for faraway destinations of Katchal, Kamrota, Terassa, Champin and Hutbay islands, Rastogi said.
In order to strengthen the administration and police network in the island territory, eight Indian Administrative Service officers of the rank of directors and deputy secretaries and seven Delhi Andaman and Nicobar Services officers have been despatched to the region. Most of them have served there before and have deep knowledge of the area and the population, Rastogi said. "Some of them even volunteered to go back," he added.
Rastogi said there were no authentic reports about the possibility of volcanic eruptions in the Andaman seas or quake in Assam as a fallout of the tsunami.
In all, 876 villages, including 36 in Tamil Nadu and 301 in Andhra Pradesh, 1,10,829 dwelling units and 9,116 heads of cattle were affected by the disaster, he added.
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