Lakshadweep is the smallest union territory of India. The group is located 200 to 300 km off of the coast of Kerala in the Arabian Sea. The total land area of the territory is 32 km². Eleven of the islands are inhabited. Lakshadweep is the northern part of the erstwhile Lakshadweepa.

Economy
Lakshadweep's gross state domestic product for 2004 is estimated at $60 million at current prices. Due to its isolation and scenic appeal, Lakshadweep is emerging as a major tourist attraction for Indians. This brings in significant revenue, which is likely to increase. Since such a small region cannot support industries, the government is actively promoting tourism as a means of income.

Distribution and size:
The distribution of atolls around the globe is instructive: most of the world's atolls are in the Pacific Ocean (with concentrations in the Tuamotu Islands, Caroline Islands, Marshall Islands, Coral Sea Islands, and the island groups of Kiribati and Tuvalu) and Indian Ocean (the Atolls of the Maldives, the Laccadive Islands, the Chagos Archipelago and the Outer Islands of the Seychelles). The Atlantic Ocean has no large groups of atolls, other than eight atolls east of Nicaragua that belong to the Colombian department of San Andres and Providencia.

The largest atolls by total area (lagoon plus reef and dry land) are (information mostly from
Saya de Malha Bank, Western Indian Ocean (35000 km²) (without separate North Bank), submerged, least depth 7 m,
Great Chagos Bank (12642 km², land area only 4.5 km²)
Reed Bank, Spratly Islands (8866 km²), submerged, least depth 9 m
Macclesfield Bank, South China Sea (6448 km²), submerged, least depth 9.2 m
North Bank (Ritchie Bank, north of Saya de Malha Bank) (5800 km²), submerged, least depth <10 m
Landsdowne Bank, west of New Caledonia (5000 km²?), submerged, least depth 3.7 m
Rosalind Bank, Caribbean Sea (4500 km²), submerged, least depth 7.3 m
Cay Sal Bank, Bahamas (<4000 km², small land area)
Thiladhunmathi-Miladhunmadulu Atoll, Maldives, (two names, but a single atoll structure) (3850 km², land area 51 km²)
Huvadhu Atoll, Maldives (3152 km², land area 38.5 km²)
Kepulauan Sabalana, Indonesia (2694 km²)
Lihou Reef, Coral Sea (2529 km², land area 1 km²)
Truk Lagoon, Chuuk (2500 km²?)
Bassas de Pedro (2474,33 km²), submerged, least depth 16.4 m
Ardasier Bank, Spratly Islands (2347 km²), cay on the south side?
Kwajalein, Marshall Islands (2304 km², land area 16.4 km²)
Diamond Islets Bank, Coral Sea (2282 km², land area <1 km²)
Namonuito Atoll, Chuuk (2267 km², land area 4.4 km²)
Ari Atoll, Maldives (2252 km², land area 69 km²)
Rangiroa, Tuamotu Islands (1762 km², land area 79 km²)
Kolhumadulhu Atoll, Maldives (1617 km², land area 79 km²)
North Malé Atoll, Maldives (1565 km², land area 69 km²)
Ontong Java, Solomon Islands (1500 km², land area 12 km²)