Cellular Jail

Cellular Jail
Entrance of the Cellular Jail
Alternative namesKālā Pāni
General information
TypePrison for political prisoners (Indian independence activists)
Architectural styleCellular, pronged
Town or cityPort Blair, Andaman
Country India
Coordinates11°40′30″N 92°44′53″E / 11.675°N 92.748°E / 11.675; 92.748
Construction started1896
Completed1906
Cost517,352[1]
Client India
OwnerGovernment of India
Cellular Jail
Notable prisoners
  • Batukeshwar Dutt
  • Bhai Parmanand
  • Diwan Singh
  • Hare Krishna Konar
  • Hemchandra Kanungo
  • Mahavir Singh
  • Mohan Kishore Namadas
  • Mohit Moitra
  • Sachindra Nath Sanyal
  • Shiv Verma
  • Sohan Singh Bhakna
  • Sudhangshu Dasgupta
  • Vinayak Damodar Savarkar
  • Yogendra Shukla

The Cellular Jail, also known as 'Kālā Pānī' (transl. 'Black Water'), was a British colonial prison in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The prison was used by the colonial government of India for the purpose of exiling freedom fighters and political prisoners. Many notable independence activists were imprisoned there during the struggle for India's independence.[2] Today, the complex serves as a national memorial monument.[3]

Originally built with seven wings, the building suffered extensive damage during the earthquake of 1941.[4] Later, two wings were dismantled during the Second World War by the Japanese, who repurposed the bricks for constructing bunkers and other structures. After India gained independence, two more wings were demolished in the 1950s to make way for the nearby Govind Ballabh Pant Hospital. Today, only the watchtower and three wings (1, 6, and 7) remain.[5]

  1. ^ "A memorial to the freedom fighters". The Hindu. India. 15 August 2004. Archived from the original on 23 October 2007. Retrieved 2 September 2006.
  2. ^ "Cellular Jail: Timing, Updated Photos, History and reviews 2020". www.tropicalandamans.com. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
  3. ^ "Cellular jail District South Andaman, Government of Andaman and Nicobar | India". Retrieved 16 December 2021.
  4. ^ https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5888/#
  5. ^ https://amritmahotsav.nic.in/blogdetail.htm?103