The ecological feature of the island is of coral reef with seagrass, and marine turtles which nestle here.
Fisheries is the main economic activity on the island with agriculture limited to 5% of the land area.
Tourism is allowed even for non-Indians and the attractions are kayaking, snorkeling and leisure trips by a glass-bottomed boat for scuba diving.
It is in the shape of a tear drop, with 3.5 square kilometres (1.4 sq mi) area and is located on a coral reef.
[6] The lagoon on the western side of the island [7] extends over a maximum width of 2 kilometres (1.2 mi)[8] covering an area of 37 square kilometres (14 sq mi)[6] and the water depth is shallow about 2 to 3 metres (6 ft 7 in to 9 ft 10 in).
At the breaking zone of this beach there is a 100 metres (330 ft) wide coral algae ridge.
Amini Island, which marks the northwestern part of the Pitti Bank formation, is 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) to the southwest.
Ferry services also operate from Cochin on the coast of Kerala but involves a journey of 16 hours.
[12] Ecologically, the island is composed of coral reef with seagrass, and marine turtles which nestle here.
This could cause serious geo-morphological changes of the island in the form of sea erosion of the shores and the beach.
[12] The island has a network of roads, several ponds and wells, primary and higher secondary schools, electricity, telephone, health centres and so forth.
Crops grown include red grass, groundnut, maize, sweet potato, grains, cereals, millets, papaya, and banana.
There are kayaking and snorkeling facilities, and leisure trips by a glass-bottomed boat for scuba diving.
[24] The island has three types of habitats: coral reef, seagrass and nesting ground for marine turtles.
[28] There are 7 species of seagrass reported here, out of 14 found in the Lakshadweep Islands, including the Thalassia hemprichii and Cymodocea rotundata.