ABSTRACT
The chapter‘Compensation and the Tsunami’provides a critique of the compensation that was provided as a response to the affected households after the Tsunami. Based on extensive fieldwork of the affected households, it presents a comparative study of the compensation received by the non-tribal households and the tribal Nicobarese tuhets during the immediate response phase and the long-term response phase. Evaluating the differences and the similarities of the compensation, it is concluded that the response was‘supply driven’rather than‘need driven’. The rebuilding process lacked active people’s participation. The affected were treated as victims and were provided relief and aid without any understanding of the local tribal ecology. The relief items provided by the government and the NGOs alike reflect their unfamiliarity with the Nicobar Islands and the situation of these islands post-Tsunami. The post-Tsunami compensation was a case of misappropriate response which has ultimately led to the breakdown of the traditional Nicobarese society.
