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@article{199801,
        author = {Dinesh A and Dr. Sundara Raj T},
        title = {Paradise in Peril: Development, Displacement, and Community Resilience in Lakshadweep-A Sociological Analysis},
        journal = {International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology},
        year = {2026},
        volume = {12},
        number = {11},
        pages = {13326-13339},
        issn = {2349-6002},
        url = {https://ijirt.org/article?manuscript=199801},
        abstract = {Lakshadweep, India's smallest Union Territory, represents a unique sociological case where exceptional human development indicators coexist with distinctive traditional social structures amid rapid tourism-centric development interventions. Drawing on secondary data, Census records (1981–2011), Health Management Information System data (2021–2022), policy documents, investigative journalism, and ethnographic scholarship, this study employs qualitative documentary analysis within an interpretive sociological framework. The analysis reveals structural paradox: 97.3% literacy, robust health outcomes, sex ratio of 946 females per 1,000 males, and Human Development Index of 0.75 alongside matrilineal kinship (Marumakkathayam), persistent caste hierarchies, and syncretic Islamic identity. However, tourism-centric development generates development-induced displacement affecting up to 50,000 islanders, coastal regulation violations, freshwater scarcity, and coral reef degradation driven by climate change. Communities demonstrate agency through coordinated protests, legal mobilization, demands for participatory planning, adaptation strategies, and cultural preservation. The study advances development sociology by conceptualizing development as contested social action; contributes to kinship sociology through documenting institutional hybridization of matrilineal systems; and extends environmental sociology through climate justice frameworks. The transformation of Lakshadweep offers lessons for small island communities globally facing intersecting pressures of climate change, development, and cultural preservation.},
        keywords = {Lakshadweep, development sociology, matrilineal kinship, indigenous communities, development-induced displacement, climate justice, community resilience},
        month = {April},
        }