How a Blind Man & 200 Homemakers Are Reviving Mangrove Forests of Sundarbans |
The interviews and reporting for this story were conducted in June 2024.
Come June, the women of Jharkhali, South 24 Parganas district in West Bengal, begin their day collecting mangrove seeds and depositing them in nursery bags.
Three months later, when the saplings are knee-high, the volunteers of Jharkhali Sabuj Bahini (JSB) will plant them to protect their homes and hearths from the cyclones faced by the Sundarbans.
And their timely action has aided in taming nature's fury.
“The plantation is done between October and January. Each volunteer devotes around two hours a day to plant almost 200-250 saplings,” says Kalpana Sardar (45), an eco-warrior who has planted thousands of mangrove saplings ever since she joined JSB in 2021.
Along with more than 200 JSB members spread across 23 villages, Sardar has planted lakhs of mangrove saplings so far under the guidance of Akul Biswas, a visually-challenged person.
“We have been able to tame the bonna (flood) and the destruction from the cyclones only because of this practice,” explains Sardar, a mother of two.
The mangroves act as a natural barrier against flooding and waves during the cyclones. The river embankments are protected as their roots hold the earth in place and prevent landslides.
Having noticed that places in the Sundarbans with less vegetation bore the brunt of the cyclonic winds, it was Biswas who motivated the locals to plant mangroves. A decade-and-a-half later, this movement has led to the rise of eco-warriors who are mostly the locals. Here’s their story.
The landscape of the Sundarbans region is unique and includes many water channels. The sea has a significant impact on the Sundarban island, and the tides shape the island's physical........