A report on Sundarban Ecologi

7/27/2019 A report on Sundarban Ecologi

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Objective of the Study

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the ecological en m on en of Sundarban .

The other purposes of the report are as follows:

- To apply theoretical knowledge with practical situation.

- To familiar with the history of Sundarban .

- To gain some clear ideas about the animals and trees of Sundarban .

- To know about the Climate condition & en m on en of selec ed a ea.

- To know the threat for ecology in Sundarban.

Selecting Area

The selec ed a ea fo y esea ch ms Sundarban.

Map: Sundarban


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Chapter 2

Literature Review


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The Sundarbans in Central Asia is a region covering some 10,000 sq. km of mangrove forest and

water, of which some 40% is in India and the rest in Bangladesh. Part of the worlds largest

delta, the area has been formed over centuries from sediments deposited by the Ganges,

Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers, which converge on the Bengal Basin. The whole Sundarbans

area is intersected by an intricate network of interconnecting waterways, of which the larger

channels are often a mile or more in width. The unique hydrology of the Sundarbans, in addition

to its great biodiversity, makes it an area of great importance to the millions of people who rely

on the watershed daily for water, food and as a source of income.

Despite a declaration by the Bangladeshi Governments Department of Environment in 1999

making the Sundarban an Ecologically Critical Area (ECA) under the Environment Conservation

Act 1995, this sensitive area continues to suffer over-exploitation. Illegal urban developmentcontinues, including the use of bulldozers to extract sand at the confluence of Kalagachi and

Chuna River at Burigoalini Range, within the Sundarban ECA.

Mowdudur, together with a small committed team from the Centre for Coastal Environmental

Conservation, has established a project which aims to raise public awareness of the ECA and its

status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. By putting forward ideas for sustainability in the

Sundarban, and by raising awareness of the protection needs of its ecosystems and biodiversity

among stakeholders and government agencies, Mowdudur is confident that people can be brought together to end the harmful activities which are threatening future livelihoods.

Mowdudurs work focuses on increasing sustainability within an outstanding coastal area of the

Sundarban and stemming the decrease seen in Olive Ridley Turtle populations. Working closely

with local people and supported by a strong publicity campaign, the team is introducing Turtle

Excluder Devices (TEDs) to fishermen and discouraging the use of basic drift nets in an effort to

reduce the number of turtles killed unnecessarily through bycatch each year. An education

programme targeting crab collectors has also been initiated to raise awareness of the negative

impact egg collection is having on future populations of turtle. Beyond the fishermen, 1,500

members of the wider community of Dubla Rash Mela have also been made aware of the

existence of the ECA and the harmful activities that are prohibited under the Bangladesh

Wildlife Preservation Act.


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Etymology

The name Sundarban can be literally translated as "beautiful forest" in the Bengali language

(Shundor, "beautiful" and bon, "forest"). The name may have been derived from the Sundari

trees (the mangrove species Heritiera fomes) that are found in Sundarbans in large numbers.

Alternatively, it has been proposed that the name is a corruption of Samudraban, Shomudrobn

("Sea Forest"), or Chandra-bandhe (name of a primitive tribe). However, the generally accepted

view is the one associated with Sundari trees.

Geography

Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers across southern Bangladesh. The seasonally flooded Sunda The

Sundarban forest lies in the vast delta on the Bay of Bengal formed by the super confluence of

the Padmarbans freshwater swamp forests lie inland from the mangrove forests on the coastal

fringe. The forest covers 10,000 km 2. of which about 6,000 are in Bangladesh. It became

inscribed as a UNESCO world heritage site in 1997. The Sundarbans is estimated to be about

4,110 km, of which about 1,700 km is occupied by waterbodies in the forms of river, canals

and creeks of width varying from a few meters to several kilometres.

The Sundarbans is intersected by a complex network of tidal waterways, mudflats and small

islands of salt-tolerant mangrove forests. The interconnected network of waterways makes

almost every corner of the forest accessible by boat. The area is known for the eponymous Royal

Bengal Tiger (Panthera tigris tigris), as well as numerous fauna including species of birds,

spotted deer, crocodiles and snakes. The fertile soils of the delta have been subject to intensive

human use for centuries, and the ecoregion has been mostly converted to intensive agriculture,

with few enclaves of forest remaining. The remaining forests, taken together with the

Sundarbans mangroves, are important habitat for the endangered tiger. Additionally, the

Sundarbans serves a crucial function as a protective barrier for the millions of inhabitants in andaround Khulna and Mongla against the floods that result from the cyclones. The Sundarbans has

also been enlisted among the finalists in the New7Wonders of Nature.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bengali_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brahmaputrahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meghnahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangladeshhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundarbans_freshwater_swamp_forestshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundarbans_freshwater_swamp_forestshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bay_of_Bengalhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundarbans_freshwater_swamp_forestshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundarbans_freshwater_swamp_forestshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UNESCOhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_heritagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tidehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mudflathttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eponymhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bengal_Tigerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bengal_Tigerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chitalhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crocodilehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khulnahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monglahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New7Wonders_of_Naturehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New7Wonders_of_Naturehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monglahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khulnahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crocodilehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chitalhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bengal_Tigerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bengal_Tigerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eponymhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mudflathttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tidehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_heritagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UNESCOhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundarbans_freshwater_swamp_forestshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundarbans_freshwater_swamp_forestshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bay_of_Bengalhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundarbans_freshwater_swamp_forestshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundarbans_freshwater_swamp_forestshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangladeshhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meghnahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brahmaputrahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bengali_language


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Chapter 3

Details about Sundarban


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In the vast mangrove delta that stretches across eastern India and southern Bangladesh lies an

anomaly. For it is here, in these tiger- and crocodile-infested swamps, that the goddess reigns.

Yet, it is also here that women are nearly invisible.

The story of the Sundarbans is older than that of Bonobibi, the forest goddess who rules this land

of mud and water. Yet, with this powerful goddess at the heart of the jungle, stories of human

women are nearly non-existent.

Demographic accounts of women in the Sundarbans have them numbering about 932 for every

1,000 men. And, although they are central to their communities and families, they go nearly

unperceived in both historical and present-day accounts. The women of the Sundarbans are

nearly as enigmatic as the Sundarbans, itself.

What It Is

The Sundarbans is a land of mystery. Cloaked in tangled mangrove roots and constant moisture,

even the words meaning is uncertain. However, many speculate that it comes from the Bengali

words "sundor," meaning "beautiful," and "bans," meaning "forests," as a reference to the local

"sundari" or "sundri" tree, or from "samudraban," meaning "forests of ocean."

Covering 10,000 km2 of the southern Ganges River Delta, this marshy region stretches across

both India and Bangladesh down to the Bay of Bengal. This is the world's largest mangrove

forest. On the Indian side, alone, it equals sixty percent of the countrys total mangrove

population.

The Sundarbans is best described as a combination of wetlands and jungle, including fifty-four

islands characterized by their high salinity and changing forms. This area undergoes suchintense, water-induced transformation that it needs to be re-mapped every three years.

Erosion is not a problem here although floods and cyclones are common. The tidal activity

brings alluvial soils to build upon the already existing lands, and new islands are formed


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frequently. Nevertheless, due to the salinity, instability of the islands, cyclones, and human-

eating tigers, many consider this region uninhabitable.

Employment

One of the characteristic statements used to describe the people of the Sundarban is that 85% of

the people depend on agriculture. The proportion of the population without work in 1991 was

70% with only 3% in part-time or marginal employment and 27% in main employment

categories. Of the main employment, only 10% are employed in agriculture as cultivators and

another 10% as laborers.

To obtain employment, local people migrate to access employment opportunities within theSundarban or in Kolkata. Gender difference in workforce participation are high. Employment

data indicates a structural under-employment issue. Given the existing structural nature of under-

employment, this remains one of the critical developmental issues and a potential serious threat

to future ecosystem integrity.

Sociological

The Sundarbans, like a kaleidoscope, cannot be viewed using just one lens. Where stories areyielded, the Sundarbans becomes an anthropological and sociological dreamscape. Prior to the

establishment of Sundarbans National Park in 1984, temporary fishing camps were established

every season in order to ensure a fresh supply of fish to the Calcutta and other local markets.

Although fishing once was not regarded as being as worthy an occupation as rice cultivation, it

has always provided an important source of food in the Bengali diet. Fishing also has ensured the

survival of those for whom it was the only possible livelihood. These temporary camps were set

up on islands such as Indias Jambudwip, or Bulberry Island, bringing fishermen from villages as

far away as Bangladesh.

These transient camps, which lasted about four months of every year, were inhabited almost

strictly by men. Most either were unmarried or their wives and children were left at home.


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Temporary fishing camps were favored over permanent settlements because the living conditions

in the Sundarbans has discouraged many settlers.

The regions demographics illustrate this, as hundreds of thousands of people have been killed by

storms, eaten by tigers and crocodiles, or died of disease. Those who remain there work - with or

without permits from the Forest Department - to collect honey, cut firewood, or fish. If killed

within the bounds of the Sundarbans National Park, the families of the departed try to find and

fetch the dead bodies to avoid trouble with the Forest Department staff. Often, these deaths go

unreported for that very reason.

Biological

From a biological perspective, the region is known for its great species diversity. Aside from the

mangroves, which protect coastal areas from storms and provide important habitat and foodsource to the local marine life, about four hundred plant species populate this region. These

plants dwell within each of the Sundarbans three ecosystems: the beach/sea face, the "formative"

islands, and the swamp forests.

Many animal species reside within the Sundarbans as well. Creatures living here include chital

deer, wild pigs, rhesus monkeys, olive ridley sea and other turtles, dolphins, 6 species of shark,

king cobras, pythons, water monitors, enormous and rare estuarine crocodiles, and about four

hundred species of fish. This area is home to many endangered species and has already seen the

disappearance of the leopard, wild water buffalo, Javan rhinoceros, hog deer, and swamp deer.

The animal that has brought fame to the Sundarbans, however, is the Royal Bengal tiger. The

recognition of its rapid demise in the late 1960s spurred a sudden interest in the protection of

India's wildlife.

Illegal fishing boats often ply its thousands of channels to steal from the treasures embedded in

this place. Hungry for money, pirates steal from the meagre holdings of those that live there or

will kidnap and kill, ransom, or sell their newfound victims.


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Fish, tiger, estuarine crocodile all play some role in the faraway world of markets and

consumerism, a world disconnected from this place that abides by its own laws.

Hydrological

The Sundarbans is a geomorphological and hydrological fascination. Few areas in the world

undergo the transformation visited upon this place by the gods who are endemic to it. Water

plays mud into different shapes, sculpting it into new islands and reforming the old. These

drowned lands and everything that live in them have adjusted to tides that rise twice daily to a

height of 6-9 feet.

Cyclone activity is more intense here than anywhere else in the world. Tidal waves 250-feet-high

rise up the Bay of Bengal, funneling their way up the channels to disintegrate entire villages builton mud and made of mud - villages that are surrounded and protected from rising waters by mere

20-foot embankments. Both sides of the Sundarbans experience 4-8 cyclonic depressions every

year.

Between 1960-1969, eleven major cyclones killed over 54,000 people in Bangladesh. Many of

those were living in and around the Sundarbans. In November 1970, one cyclone, alone,

accompanied by severe tides, killed 200,000 people. The cyclone of 1988 killed even more. And

as the waters subsided, bodies could be found not only floating in the rivers but up high in trees.

Somehow, though, the larger wildlife fares better. Few deer or tigers seem to be killed in these

storms, but they sometimes are found, after the waters have subsided, clinging to the branches of

the same trees. Terrestrial animals here have found ways to live in this water-bound place. Even

pigs, monkeys, tigers, monitor lizards, and deer are swimmers in this saltwater environment.

Tiger

The approximately 300 tigers that live here are part of the Sundarbans mystery, for it is here, in

this thick mass of tree roots, writhing mud, and hungry water, that tigers stalk humans as prey.

The Sundarbans is famous for its tiger attacks and is one of the only areas in the world where

"maneaters" are commonly found. Although the Indian government has estimated that only about


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4% of the Sundarbans tigers are "maneaters," attacking locals entering the Reserve for honey,

firewood, and other products, one maneater can kill dozens, if not hundreds, of people. The

earliest attacks were recorded by a visitor to the Bangladesh Sundarbans in 1665.

Between 1948 and 1986, 814 people were killed by tigers in the Bangladesh Sundarbans.

Between 1975 and 1981, an average of 45.5 people were killed each year in India's Sundarbans

Tiger Reserve. The Indian government has undertaken steps to cut back on that number.

The reason for the tigers' killing of humans is unclear. One theory is that the salinity of the

environment somehow gives the tigers the taste for human blood. Another is that the ingestion of

so much salt damages a tigers liver and kidneys, making it irritable. More likely, the tiger has

become accustomed to the taste of human flesh as a result of the cyclones and floods, whichcarry dead bodies down the water channels or strewn about to decompose.

Sundarbans tigers are like no other. They attack in the mornings and evenings between the hours

when people enter and leave the forest. They swim, hunting in the water, hiding among

mangrove roots as fishing boats pass until they spot an opportunity to approach from behind.

Despite their size and weight, they stealthily sneak up on their victims from behind, typically

grabbing them at the nape of the neck. When killing a deer, they embed their canines into four

spaces in the vertebrae, a near lock-and-key fit. This method of killing is almost immediate.

Stories abound of Sundarbans tigers taking their prey with no trace. Men on small fishing boats

hear a splash only to discover that one of their crew is missing. Perhaps they will see, as they

frantically look overboard for their missing member, the wet tiger slinking up the mud bank of

the shore dragging its meal by the neck.

Tigers have been known to swim out to larger boats and leap aboard. Those on board may begin

to call out, "Ma," or mother, a word meant to hail the goddess Bonobibi.

Legend has it that the echoes of someones screams at facing a tiger are eaten by the tiger. No one

hears the scream as the tiger takes its prey.


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Altered Landscape

How does one understand the true essence of the Sundarbans? The Sundarbans region has long

been one of India's last frontiers, an uninhabitable thicket of mangrove swampland separating the

expanding Indian population from the Bay of Bengal. India's ruling powers viewed this area as

wasteland, and a great deal of hard labor was spent in making use of the land. The resulting

conversion of the mangrove swamps and northern forests into paddy land for wet rice

cultivation, the use of the area's natural resources, hunting, and poaching have all contributed to

the degradation of this region.

The conversion of forested land into rice paddies began long before the Muslim Indo-Turkish

sultans ruled Bengal from 1204 until 1575. History carries their stories, as real as the mud. Thereverence of forest-clearers continued into the Mughal period, which lasted from 1575-1765,

until the British came to power. The locals continued converting the Sundarbans jungles to wet

rice fields and were heavily influenced by their colonizers.

As a result, the Sundarbans storms have become more frequent. From 1891-1960, there were 16

severe tropical storms that pounded Bangladesh; between 1961-1977, there were 19.

Deforestation of the mangroves that once helped to protect that coast from high winds and waves

is thought to be part of the reason. In 1900, 40% of India was covered with jungle. Today, about

one-third of those trees remain. Similarly, the Sundarbans is losing its trees, particularly in the

land-girded north, as attempts at industry, tourism, and land reclamation are made.

Within the past three hundred years, the two horned rhinoceros, the Indian cheetah, the golden

eagle, and the pink headed duck, all species indigenous to the Sundarbans, have disappeared.

Cyclones are more frequent and powerful. And it is believed that the conversion of the natural

forest to agriculture means that people are abandoning their gods.

British reports referred to the Sundarbans as "a sort of drowned land, covered with jungle,

smitten by malaria, and infested by wild beasts." What made it uninhabitable wasteland was the

"gross fertility of the vegetation." The administrations sentiment was that the Sundarbans was "a


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land covered over with impenetrable forests, the hideous den of all descriptions of beasts and

reptiles, ...only...to be improved by deforestation."

From the very beginning of British administration in Bengal, the area was thought more of a

nuisance than an advantage, to be drained, embanked, and reclaimed for cultivation. However,

cultivators were not the only ones trying, largely unsuccessfully, to clear the forest. Woodcutters

also faced a challenge in cutting down trees that were enmeshed with one another in such a way

that they could only be removed one piece at a time.

Bonobibi

To the people who live there, the Sundarbans is an area to be both feared and revered. While it is

true that the tiger resides there, the tiger goddess lives there, as well, and offers her protection tothose who enter the forest with care and respect. Those who earn their living by collecting honey,

fishing, or cutting firewood take precautions before undertaking their duties.

The goddess Bonobibi was born of Gulalbibi, whose husband Ibrahim had been forced to

abandon her, pregnant, in the forest. Because his first wife had been unable to bear him a child,

she had allowed him to take a second wife. However, jealous of Gulalbibis conception, Ibrahims

first wife had demanded that he abandon the pregnant woman as she slept. When she awakened,

Gulalbibi realized that she had been left and called out to Allah to sav e her. He sent fairies to

help her give birth to her twin children Bonobibi and her brother Sha Jungli. Beneath the weight

of single motherhood and twins, Gulalbibi left the forest, and her daughter, behind.

The forests small spotted chital deer found the baby and nursed her. Allah protected her and,

filled with magic, Bonobibi became a goddess. One day, her brother came to find her. Both

Bonobibi and Sha Jungli knew that they could not go live with their parents. Instead, they chose

to go to the Sundarbans and help to alleviate the suffering of the people there.

Manasa

A four-armed goddess of snakes also inhabits the Sundarbans. She name is Manasa, and she

represents the serpent, which is the symbol of water, something vitally important to this area


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impacted so strongly by the monsoons. Although thousands are killed each year by snakes in

India, people continue to honor snakes, which are believed to bring the monsoon. Manasa is a

protector of snakes and of people from their deadly poison.

Prayers

Clearly, the harsh realities of this region have been incorporated into the cultures of the local

human inhabitants. The many rituals and taboos that have been created are good indications of

the insecure lives that these people lead. In addition to offering the comfort of protection, it

weaves the sacred to their everyday tasks.

The Forest Department requires all wood-cutting parties to be accompanied by a shaman

whenever they enter the forest. Some faqirs, or shamans, are so powerful that they are thought todrive away crocodiles, tigers, and snakes and keep the people with them safe. Sometimes, this

protection can last for months after a shaman has offered his prayers.

The men who work in the forest, who live in the Sundarbans, sometimes dream of encounters the

goddess Bonobibi. They call on her as their mother, or Ma, and ask for protection as they make

their ways through the forest. Here is another shamans prayer:

O Mother

Thou who lives in the forest,

Thou, the very incarnation of the forest,

I am the meanest son of yours.

I am totally ignorant.

Mother, do not leave.

Mother, you kept me safe inside your womb

For ten months and ten days.

Mother, replace me there again,

O Mother, pay heed to my words. (Sy Montgomery, Spell of the Tiger, p. 187)


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Although these prayers are thought to bring protection to those in the forest, some of the

shamans in the Sundarbans agree that miracles, such as goddess visitations, do not happen as

frequently as they used to. Now, people are impure, and goodness is leaving the world.

Women

The Sundarbans is a demanding home to those who live there. It requires much of those who live

there in order to survive, regardless of their gender. It requires prayers to Bonobibi, humility and

gratitude, ingenuity, and tolerance.

Living and working in the Sundarbans is dangerous. And just as the men do it, so do the women.

It requires both men and women to work hard and face many of the same dangers. Yet, although

the mens lives have been documented by anthropologists, the story of the Sundarbans womenremains nearly untold. Instead, like Bonobibi, their lives, like their stories, are shrouded, not

quite palpable. Yet, they do not have the power of the goddess.

The women of the Sundarbans are practically unknown outside their direct social relationships. It

has been the exploits of men, the colonization by men, and the work of men that has captured the

interest of historians. In reviewing past and current accounts, the male woodcutters, fishermen,

and honey collectors are those that are discussed, regardless of the fact that the women contribute

not only to domestic chores but their families incomes.

Women of the Sundarbans work not only taking care of household duties but often to help the

family survive financially. Some of them cultivate on family plots while others fish. Fishing for

prawn is a particularly dangerous job and one taken on by women and their children who may

move through the waters, waist or neck deep, dragging nets behind them to catch their prey.

Each year, women and girls are lost to crocodiles and tigers in this way.

Sundarbans women are translucent like the watery place, itself. Scarcely has there been attention

when tigers and crocodiles maim or kill women, and these attacks often remain unheard by those

outside the local community.


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Sundarbans women tend to marry early, becoming a bride sometimes by the age of 12. When

women lose their husbands from tiger attacks, particularly if their husbands were not permitted

to enter the forest to take fish, honey, or wood, they often are forced out of their homes with their

children and made to live in widow villages. Here, they must be the sole providers for their

families and take on the roles traditionally taken by the men wood cutting, honey collecting, and

fishing.

One anthropologist studying shamanism in three Sundarbans villages found that women were

usually the ones treated for spirit possession were women. It was assumed by several local holy

men that the reason for this was simple women are weaker than men, and because menstruation

makes them ritually impure for several days each month, they are open and vulnerable to spirit

possession. According to the study, the women who were treated for possession generally werein lonely or abusive marriages. In some cases, their husbands were away for extended periods of

time; in others, their husbands or mother-in-laws mistreated them.

Perhaps, in an area inhabited by those things that cannot be seen by tigers that creep up from

behind, by pythons wrapped in trees, by crocodiles and microbes that inhabit the waters this form

of expression is appropriate. How else could a disempowered woman express her power

appropriately? For, in a culture that defines a womans power as being limited to certain things,

she cannot boldly move and speak in any way she wishes she must do so through a set of

culturally constructed means. I dont mean to imply that spirit possession is impossible I only

mean to state that possession may be one way to power.

Little is known of the personal stories and collective experiences of the Sundarbans women.

Here, men are opaque and visible in their relationship with the place. The men have been known

as the architects of this lands development and the conservers of its natural heritage. It is their

stories that are shared, common in the history of a patriarchy.

However, immersed in water or hidden like the mist of a goddess that sometimes emerges in the

dreams of men, the womens stories lie dormant to those outside their own worlds.


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Chapter 4

Threat to ecology of Sundarbans
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THE World Heritage Convention has the responsibility of protecting outstanding natural and

cultural areas that form a part of the heritage of all mankind. Bangladesh became a party to the

Convention in 1983. The Convention ruled favorably on the nomination of a part of the

Sundarbans as a World Heritage Site.

Environmentalists and nature lovers felt deeply disturbed when they learnt about setting up of a

1,320 MW coal fired power plant at Rampal just 14 km away from the Sundarbans.

Coal-based power plants create serious environmental pollution. No country would allow them

to be set up even within 20 to 25 km distance from either forest or agricultural or residential area.

How could the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) group approve it even after

acknowledging the dangers it held? The area is linked with the Sundarbans by a network of

rivers and canals and environmental degradation of this area caused by the power plant will

definitely spread to the Sundarbans region.

The Sundarbans region is an ecologically critical area. EIA, in its impact assessment report ,

admits that the 142 tons of sulphur dioxide and 85 tons of nitrogen dioxide that will be emitted

daily from the plant will increase the concentration of Sulphur Dioxide (SO2) and Nitrogen

Dioxide (NO2) in the air near the Sundarbans. Even after admitting that so much emission will

be destructive for the whole environment of the Sundabans region, they take the defence that on

a 24 hour basis 53.4 microgram of SO2 per cubic metre does not exceed the 80 microgram per

cubic metre, which is an allowable limit set by the MoEF for residential and rural areas.

The argument is confusing because the mangrove forest is not a residential area by any

reasoning, criteria and consideration. In the same vein, it claims that although the concentration

of nitrogen dioxide would increase three-fold from 16 microgram per cubic meter to 51

microgram per cubic metre, it is still safer and much below the Environmental Conservation

Rule 1997 (ECR). Actually, the emission standards set for ecologically sensitive area is 30

microgram per cubic metre both for SO2 and NO2, which is much below the resultant

concentrations that are likely to be released from the plant. It defies logic to treat the Sundarbans,

the largest mangrove forest, a Ramsar site and Unesco World Heritage Site, as a residential area

instead of an ecologically critical and sensitive area.


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Chapter 5

Findings


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The Sundarbans in Central Asia is a region covering some 10,000 sq. km of mangrove

forest and water, of which some 40% is in India and the rest in Bangladesh.

Declaration by the Bangladeshi Governments Department of Environment in 1999

making the Sundarban an Ecologically Critical Area (ECA) under the Environment

Conservation Act 1995.

85% of the people depend on agriculture.

The name Sundarban can be literally translated as "beautiful forest" in the Bengali

language (Shundor, "beautiful" and bon, "forest").

Between1960-1969, eleven major cyclones killed over 54,000 people in Bangladesh.

Many of those were living in and around the Sundarbans.

Between 1948 and 1986, 814 people were killed by tigers in the Bangladesh Sundarbans.

Between 1975 and 1981, an average of 45.5 people were killed each year in India's

Sundarbans

The peoples of Sundaeban believe on Bonobibi and Manasa.

The women of the Sundarbans are practically unknown outside their direct socialrelationships
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bengali_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bengali_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bengali_languagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bengali_language


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Chapter 6

Recommendation


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Located in the Southern extremity of the Ganges River Delta, Sundarban with an area around

half a million hectares is the world's largest mangrove forests with a rich aquatic and terrestrial

biodiversity. It plays a significant role not only in the local livelihoods of South-Western region

but also in the national economy of Bangladesh. About a dozen of donor-funded projects have

been implemented since 1960s in and around Sundarban in natural resources sectors including

forestry, water, agriculture, fishery, oil and gas. Out of them, Costal Embankment Project (1960-

67), Khulna Jessore Drainage Rehabilitation Project (1995-2002), Gorai River Restoration

Project (1995-2002) and Sundarban Biodiversity Conservation Project (SBCP) (2002-06) are the

major projects operated in Sundarban area. The article argues that the overall impacts of theformer three projects on environment, local employment and agricultural productivity were

found rather negative. Therefore, a local alliance has been made among NGOs, CBOs, civil

societies, journalists and local people to save Sundarban from negative project impacts and

enhance sustainable environmental, social and economic benefits. The alliance also works as a

'watch group' of SBCP. The article criticizes the strategies and practices of SBCP and

recommends to recognize the rights of the local people on common natural resources for

sustainable management of Sundarban.


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Chapter 7

Conclusion


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Trees are the most essential bounties in nature contributing to the sustenance of life on earth. The

largest mangrove forest Sundarbans is therefore contributing to the sustenance as well as safety

of living beings in major part of Bangladesh. Unscrupulous human interventions are the major

threat to nature. Similarly climate change: the fallout of exaggerated interventions in the name of

development is horrifying the nature, including the Sundarbans. Flowing water in the rivers,

canals etc through and around the Sundarbans flush out saline water intrusion from the sea.

Increase in salinity intrusion due to anticipated sea level rise is one of the major threats to the

Sundari trees, which are already under threat due to increased salinity levels. Majority of the

negative impacts in the Sundarbans aggravate during dry periods when the flow of the Gorai

River, the main feeder of thee water bodies of the Sundarbans, falls drastically. The flow

characteristics of the Gorai River depend on the Ganges River from which it is originated.

However, the environmental flow of the Ganges River in the Bangladesh part has shrunk to agreat extent due to construction of the Farakka Barrage on the river by India. So it has become

almost inevitable to construct a barrage across the Ganges River in the Bangladesh part at

downstream of Ganges-Gorai junction to store water for feeding into the Gorai River. This will

increase the environmental flow of the Gorai River, particularly during dry periods and minimize

the anticipated negative impacts of climate change. It cannot be ignored that the proposed

barrage will pose some negative impacts, which shall have to be well addressed; alternative

mitigating measures are to be taken into active considerations.


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Reference

http://www.nepjol.info/index.php/NJF/article/view/973

www.ulab.edu.bd/books/Social-Water-Managment/ www.agdevjournal.com/ http://www.sadepartmentwb.org/Socio_Econimic.htm onsearchoflight.blogspot.com/
http://www.nepjol.info/index.php/NJF/article/view/973http://www.ulab.edu.bd/books/Social-Water-Managment/http://www.agdevjournal.com/http://www.sadepartmentwb.org/Socio_Econimic.htmhttp://www.sadepartmentwb.org/Socio_Econimic.htmhttp://www.agdevjournal.com/http://www.ulab.edu.bd/books/Social-Water-Managment/http://www.nepjol.info/index.php/NJF/article/view/973

Documents

A report on Sundarban Ecologi