A matter of origin

30/10/2004
Down To Earth

Most of the fisherfolk that fish in the sea around Jambudwip came over from Bangladesh between 1950 and 1970. Shishu Ranjan Das came to Kakdwip, West Bengal, when he was 23. He has been going to the sea since he was 7 with his father, when they used to stay in Chittagong. Interestingly, most of the transient fisherfolk in Bangladesh hail from Chittagong and come all the way east, in coastal Khulna, to operate: the right kind of island to dry their catch exists in Rangabali, in Bangladesh-controlled Sunderbans.

Out of the net

Towards a win-win situation

What is the way out of the Jambudwip impasse, keeping both ecological protection and people's livelihood in mind?

Clearly, the issue is to find ways to demarcate a portion for fish drying, such that the mangrove forest is not affected.

If 100 hectares of forest in the island is diverted for drying fish, as proposed by the state government, MoEF should

• create an example by asking for 200 hectares of afforestation in Bhangonkhali

• plant only mangrove, for which help can be sought from researchers at the National Institute of Oceanography

• undertake satellite imaging right away to ascertain the current situation, and make it public

• undertake strict monitoring

• restrict the number of fishworkers. Let the forest department issue permits for transient use

• fees from this should be used only to plant mangrove in the island

• put a cap on the size of the boat that can enter the creek in the island.

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