Sundarbans
Low-lying areas in Sundarbans inundated due to tidal surge
The low-lying areas of the Sundarbans in Bagerhat district have been inundated due to the tidal surge caused by the depression in the Bay of Bengal.
Most of the areas including Karamjal Wildlife Breeding centre have been experiencing a waist-deep-water on Sunday, causing immense sufferings to the visitors.
The residents of the coastal areas in Bagerhat district have been experiencing intermittent showers from Saturday afternoon.
The water level of many rivers in the Sundarbans also increased.
Amresh Chandra Dhali, officer-in-charge of Mongla Weather Observatory Centre, said the well-marked low over the Bay intensified into a depression, prompting the authorities concerned to ask the maritime ports across the country to keep hoisted local cautionary signal No 3.
Sundarbans reopens to tourists, fishermen after 3 months
The authorities have reopened the Sundarbans for tourists, fishermen and wood collectors after a three-month closure.
The closure was enforced to ensure safe breeding of many wild animals.
On the first day of reopening, 75 tourists were allowed to enter the world’s largest mangrove forest by ship ‘The Web’ around 12 am to experience tranquility and beauty of the forest, Majharul Haque, joint general secretary of Sundarbans Tour Operators.
Read:Expectations abound as tourists set to return to Sundarbans from Sept 1
Another ship with 40 artistes entered the Sundarbans Thursday morning.
Six more ships with 250 visitors are set to enter the forest on Friday, said an official of the Forest Department.
Earlier, the Forest Department imposed the three-month ban on tourists from June 1 to August 31 in the Sundarbans, to coincide with what is the peak breeding season for most animals in the forest.
The entrance of visitors from home and abroad, fishermen, wood and honey collectors remained restricted during this ban period. Moreover, no boats and ships were allowed to move in the rivers.
Some wood collectors (Bawal) and honey collectors (Mowal) entered the Sundarbans on Thursday after taking pass from the Forest Department.
Read: Padma Bridge to bring good luck for the Sundarbans tourism
Tour operator, launch and boat owners have taken adequate measures to attract more tourists, said Mazharul Haque.
HM Dulal, a tour operator of the Sundarbans, expected that a large number of tourists will visit Sundarbans due to better communication system as people can easily travel to the forest by crossing the Padma Bridge.
Expectations abound as tourists set to return to Sundarbans from Sept 1
On the verge of completing a somewhat opportunistic three-month ban on tourism in the Sundarbans, there is a growing buzz within the travel and tourism community over the opportunity to return to, or experience anew its unique wonder and tranquillity.
The Bangladesh portion of the world’s largest mangrove forest, also the country’s first World Heritage Site as designated by Unesco, is set to reopen for tourists from home and abroad on September 1 (Thursday).
Read: Jute growers paying for drought that resulted in discoloured fibre
Earlier, the Forest Department had imposed a three-month ban on tourists from June 1 to August 31 in the Sundarbans, to coincide with what is the peak breeding season for most animals in the forest.
It came on top of the various limits and restrictions that piled up over a period of two years during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Forest Dept. was probably able to announce the tourism ban during the breeding season this year due to the already depressed state of the industry.
38 hatchlings from one crocodile at Sundarbans breeding centre
Pilpil, a crocodile at the Karamjal Wildlife Breeding Centre in the Sundarbans, got 38 hatchlings on Monday, said forest officials.
This is the first time that the authorities concerned of Karamjal Wildlife Breeding Centre get 100 per cent success in a hatchling procession.
Azad Kabir, officer-in-charge of Karamjal Wildlife Breeding Centre of Sundarbans East zone, said a crocodile named ‘Pilpil’ laid 38 eggs and the eggs were kept in the digital incubator for hatching - and all 38 hatched baby crocs.
It takes 82 days for hatching the croc babies and the authorities concerned of the wildlife center will look after these for 6-7 years and then release them to the rivers and canals of the Sundarbans.
Read: Over 182 Barguna fishermen go missing in stormy Bay: Coast Guard
So far, they have been able to release 206 crocodiles in rivers and canals of the Sundarbans.
Sources said two crocodiles named ‘Juliet’ and ‘Pilpil’ laid 168 eggs from 2017 to 2019 but all failed to hatch.
In 2020, four hatchlings were found in September.
According to the Forest Department, the government built the Karamjal Wildlife Breeding Centre in 2000 with five crocodiles from the Sundarbans.
Low pressure in Bay: Tidal surge inundates parts of the Sundarbans
Swollen rivers have inundated several low-lying areas of the Sundarbans thanks to the wind-driven surge height of three feet above normal astronomical tide since Friday morning under the influence of full moon and steep pressure gradient.
Azad Kabir, officer-in-charge of the Karamjal Wildlife Breeding Center of Sundarbans, said the Sundarbans was heavily inundated with tidal surge due to the full moon on Friday compared to the situation in the last three days.
Various areas of the forest, including the Karamjal Wildlife Breeding Centre, are flooded by tidal surge.
During the low tide, waters in some parts of the forest recede, but waterlogged in the low-lying areas.
Read:Tidal surge inundates 18 Jhalakati villages
However, no loss of wildlife has been reported so far, said the official.
The low-lying areas of the coastal districts and their offshore island and chars are likely to be inundated by the wind driven surge height of 2-4 feet above normal astronomical tide due to the full moon and steep pressure gradient, the weather department said Friday.
Also, squally weather may affect the maritime ports, the North Bay of Bengal and adjoining coastal areas of Bangladesh, according to the Bangladesh Meteorological Department.
Maritime ports of Chattogram, Cox's Bazar, Mongla and Payra were advised to keep hoisted local cautionary signal No. 3.
All fishing boats and trawlers over the North Bay were advised to remain close to the coast and proceed with caution till further notice.
Ban on entering Sundarbans: 2 lakh families pushed into financial hardship
As many as two lakh families who depend on the Sundarbans for their livelihoods have been facing acute financial hardship due to the three-month restriction on collection of resources from the mangrove forest.
The government restricted entry into the forest for fishing, travel or resources collection for three months from June 1 to August 31 to ensure an undisturbed environment for wildlife during the breeding season.
Woodcutters, honey collectors, fishermen and others in seven districts- Khulna, Satkhira, Bagerhat, Pirojpur, Barguna, Jhalakathi and Patuakhali -along the Sundarbans have been passing idle time without work due to the ban.
READ: Bangladesh bans fishing in Sundarbans for 3 months
During a recent visit to the Sundarbans, the UNB correspondent learnt that many people living on fishing, cutting wood, and collecting honey from the Sundarbans have are facing acute food crisis and living on either starving or half-fed .
Bawals (wood collectors), fishermen and Mowals,(honey collectors) said they need assistance from the government or they would die from starvation.
MA Hasan, assistant director of Sundarbans West zone (Satkhira range), said the forest department is enforcing a 93-day ‘Surbandbans Rest zone’ till August 31 and during the period, no one will be allowed to enter the forest.
Already, a list of the worst affected people was sent to the authorities concerned of the Forest Department seeking assistance but yet to get any response, he said.
Sudhanshu Sekhor Gain, a fisherman of Burigoalini in Satkhira’s Shyamnagar upazila, said “I have been running my family by catching crabs from the Sundarbans but now I have no income.”
“We are passing a hard time, maintaining family with our low income has become difficult amid soaring prices of daily essentials and then the restriction came. No one can feel my pain,” said Hanif Gazi, another fisherman of the area.
Siddique Gazi, a fisherman of Datinkhali village in the upazila said, “We are not habituated to work outside the Sundarbans as we earn by catching crabs and fish from the forest . We are struggling hard at that moment due to the ban.”
Tushar Kumar Majumdar, Shyamnagar upazila senior fisheries officer, said there is a list of 795 fishermen in the upazila.
They will get 86 kgs of rice per person. Besides, a list of 8,324 fishermen was prepared and sent to the forest department for food assistance.
Bangladeshi woman's quest for love lands her in Indian jail
Love knows no boundaries, and 22-year-old Bangladeshi woman Krishna Mandal's story is the perfect example -- one that has all the ingredients of a Bollywood blockbuster.
Suffused with courage and filled with hope, Krishna swam across the border to marry her boyfriend in India. However, her quest for love eventually landed her in jail in the eastern Indian state of Bengal.
Also read: Bangladeshi women choosing trained midwives for safe childbirth: Studies
In fact, the duo recently met on Facebook, fell in love and decided to tie the knot -- a tale that will make Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg a happy man.
As Abhik did not have a passport, Krishna reportedly decided to take a strenuous journey to meet him. She swam across the Malta river for over an hour and made her way to the Sunderbans to finally reach India.
Abhik, who was waiting for her in Kaikhali village of West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district, whisked her off to the 'City of Joy' (Kolkata) in a car, where they got married in a temple.
Also read: It is better to have loved and married, than surrendered to cancer
As the news became viral on WhatsApp, Kolkata Police soon took her into custody for illegally entering India. "She has been remanded in judicial custody by a court and we will soon apprise the Bangladesh High Commission of the arrest," a police officer told the local media.
Bangladesh bans fishing in Sundarbans for 3 months
The forest department has announced a three-month ban on tourism and fishing in the Sundarbans from June 1.
"These three months are the breeding season for most of the species of fish and hence the imposition of the ban in accordance with the Integrated Resources Management Plan (IRMP)," said Md Belayet Hossain, divisional forest officer (DFO-east) of the Sundarbans.
“The forest department has already stopped issuing entry permits to implement the ban, and vigil in the mangrove forest will also be increased,” he said.
Also read: Six held for illegally netting fish in Sundarbans
Usually the ban remains in force from July 1 to August 31. "But this year we are imposing the ban a month before in coordination with the Ministry of Fisheries,” the DFO said.
"This ban will help in the breeding and preservation of fish," he added.
ln the 6,017 sq km Bangladesh part of the Sundarbans, there are 210 species of white fish, 24 species of shrimp, 14 species of crabs, 43 species of Mollusca and one species of lobster.
Also read: 7 fishermen held for illegally catching fish in Sundarbans
Climate Change: Danish princess visits Sundarbans, interacts with affected people in Satkhira
Danish crown princess Mary Elizabeth on Wednesday visited the Sundarbans coastal area of Shyamnagar upazila in the district and witnessed the impacts of climate change there hours before wrapping up her Bangladesh tour.
She reached Munshiganj Union of Shyamnagar Upazila by an Air Force helicopter around 10:30 am, said Satkhira Superintendent of Police Mohammad Mostafizur Rahman.
Also read: Danish crown princess interacts with Rohingyas, host community
Later, the princess traveled to Kultali village by a car and visited the coastal embankment area affected by climate change.
During the visit, the Princess exchanged views with the people affected by climate change.
She explored how climate change has changed their lives, what challenges they have to deal with.
After talking to the people here, the princess visited a local multipurpose cyclone shelter and learnt about its functionality during a cyclone and its management.
At noon, the princess and her entourage arrived at the Sundarbans coastal monsoon resort and attended a luncheon.
Danish Crown Princess Mary to meet PM, visit Rohingya camps
Mary Elizabeth, the crown princess of Denmark, is scheduled to arrive here Monday on a three-day visit to hold a series of meetings in Dhaka and meet the Rohingyas in Cox's Bazar refugee camps.
The crown princess is the wife of Frederik, crown prince of Denmark. She will meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her official residence Gonobhaban in the morning soon after she arrives in Dhaka, said an official.
Mary will hold a bilateral meeting with Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen at a city hotel in the afternoon.
The crown princess, 50, will attend a lunch hosted by the Danish ambassador in Dhaka at her residence.
She is scheduled to reach Cox's Bazar at around 5pm Monday and will join a briefing by the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) Tuesday morning.
The princess will travel to Rohingya camps by car from Cox's Bazar town and observe soil erosion control and environmental restoration activities of DRC through tree plantation at Camp 5.
She will interact with 8-10 Rohingya beneficiaries in an open shed. The Danish crown princess will plant trees there.
Mary will also interact with the host community.
From Cox's Bazar, she will travel to Satkhira Wednesday morning and visit village Kultoli to meet climate-vulnerable people.
The crown princess will visit the multipurpose cyclone shelter in the nearby community, meet its management committee and learn about their functionality during a cyclone.
She will avail of a boat ride to the Sundarbans and interact with the forest officials during a 15-minute walk through the natural resource, discussing biodiversity and saltwater intrusion in the mangrove area.
The crown princess is scheduled to leave Dhaka for Istanbul Wednesday night.