Sunderbans shield protects Kolkata from Bulbul fury

hits the West Bengal coast, has to pass through this mangrove forest before it can hit Kolkata. The mangrove, with its almost impenetrable and thick mesh of trees and roots, acts as a wind barrier, absorbing much of the storm’s steam and leaving it ineffective, in turn, saving Kolkata,” said Pranabesh Sanyal, former chief wildlife warden and ex-chief environment officer of West Bengal.

He also said that the location and curvature of the Sunderban delta is such that in most cases the cyclones are diverted towards Bangladesh after they hit the mangroves. This time too, cyclone Bulbul headed towards Bangladesh after it hit the delta.

“The Sunderbans has proved its worth again. Many areas such as Sagar, Mousuni, Frazergunj and Bakkhali where human settlements have come up after clearing the mangroves have suffered extensive damage. The damage is relatively less in the eastern part of the delta where there is thick mangrove,” said Abhijit Mitra, a marine scientist and a former professor of Calcutta University.

The Sunderbans itself has been ravaged by humans, though. Out of the 102 islands, 54 have human settlements; the rest have forests with national parks, reserve forests and sanctuaries which are home to the only mangrove tigers in the world. It is in these human habitats that the mangroves have suffered the maximum loss over the years.

“Illegal felling of trees outside the forest area for timber, infra