Sundarbans: On the edge of the tide

In the wake of Hurricane Aila, everyone has heard of the devastation in the evergreen mangrove glades of Sundarbans. But it is amazing how few More Pictures
people actually make the five hour journey via road and waterway to the islands on the Gangetic estruary.

Nothing is more relaxing than when the launch gently moves from the Canning Port leaving the hustle-bustle of Kolkata behind and heading for a place where time almost stands still, even as the Bay of Bengal nibbles hungrily at its edges.

Sundarban literally the beautiful forest in Bengali is the worlds largest delta formed by the mighty trio of rivers, the Ganges, Meghna and Brahmaputra, and forms the southern maritime border of West Bengal. Actually, the name Sundarban is derived from the Sundari tree found in abundance in the forest, rather than being a description of its undoubted comeliness!

Its famed mangrove forests (again, one of the worlds largest) spills over from India to Bangladesh and is the home of not only the Royal Bengal tigers, but also crocodiles, snakes, wild boar, deer, monkeys and a large variety of birds from the Kingfisher, Lapwing, Stork, Egret and Cormorant to the Eagle, Whistler.

And besides the eponymous Sundari tree, the forest is home to the Hetal, Garan, Gewa, Keora and Dhundul trees to mention hut a few.

Given the landscape, travel by water is both wise and convenient in Sundarban so we did precisely that. The whole area is crisscrossed by a myriad of distributary rivulets, with lilting local names like Saptamukhi, Raimangal, Harinbhanga, Matla, Gosaba, Muriganga, Thakuran and Vidya.

They weave enchantingly through the Sundarban Biosphere Reserve comprising of the villages like Sajnekhali, Sudhanyakhali, Netidhopani, Sagar and, of course, many more on the Bangladesh side. And we, well, go with the flow, enjoying the moving panorama of green and water, with an almost hypnotic ease...

Back on terra firma in the evening, what else is there to do but get a feel of the local culture We set off to attend a cultural programme by the local people and were utterly enchanted by their folk songs, dancing, the sound of the madal and the tinkling of anklets. We could imagine these very sounds reverberating through the green expanses of Sundarban for centuries if not millennia.

The whiff of food announced dinner time and we were famished. Among the dishes on offer, the local variation with crab was exceptional due partly, of course, to the absolute freshness of the produce! The whole atmosphere was made even more magical by the fact that we happened to be there on a full moon night.

Under clear skies, the entire surroundings were bathed in silvery moonbeams. It was as mesmerizing, well, as a tigers intense gaze... All of us boarded the launch for a night ride under the moonlit canopy for a mystical tour of the area.

The chirping of the birds served as the wake up call the next morning and we unaccustomed cityslickers watched openmouthed as the water turned from jade green to orange to a golden yellow as the sun peeped out over the eastern horizon. Then it was off to a walk around the environs with a guide to update us on the plight of the eco-system of the Sundarban, which was designated a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1997.

Thanks to Amitav Ghosh, we all know about the ravaging power of The Hungry Tide the rise of the sea level due to global warming but theres more. Believe it or not, there is a shortage of water. Sweet water, that is, as the estruary is brackish and cannot be of use for crops or drinking. And the deposition of sediments by the mighty rivers is another problem.

Then there is the poaching of animals... Did you read me mentioning the tiger anywhere Well, thats because we didnt see any and despite all the reports about putting tags on them, I seriously wonder if there are too many left lurking among the everglades.

Another major concern is deforestation, not by the timber mafia as you might imagine, but due to the poor villagers being dependent on wood for their cooking due to lack of alternatives. We spent hours getting acquainted with the villagers and got an insight into one of their primary occupations for generations: collecting honey from the forest, risking their lives! keeping the life at stake.

They say there are aound 1400 honey collectors in Sundarban, who collect some 125 tonnes of the sweet stuff a year! They work in groups, with an experienced leader and 4 to 5 associates. The expedition takes months and they live on boats. They stock up on food, pray to the local deity the Bonbibi to protect them from tigers, and start off.

They check for pugmarks before entering the mangrove forests and stay close to each other for safetys sake. When they find a honeycomb, they act fast before the bees sense their presence. With lit branches serving as torches, they smoke out the bees and cut the white part of the comb which is full of honey and collect it in a cane basket.

The bees of course divebomb the intruders but the collectors float along, changing locations, targeting three honeycombs a day. If they cant find one, they mix honey and water and sprinkle it on the trees to lure bees. A lookout then acertains which direction the bees came from to locate the honeycomb!

Their seemingly idyllic existance, is typical of the Sundarban: life seems to move very slowly there. But time passes and we had to move on... Our return journey on the launch took us down winding waterways as the soothing breeze evoked the call of the wilderness, the vast mangrove, the smell of the soil and the sound of silence...