The 'Bali' island of India: Where animal and man co-exist!
Smita Roy
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| The Royal Bengal Tiger |
'Only 1411 tigers left in India,' had shouted an advertisement. And then
they were clueless what to do about it, so they wanted you to write blogs,
send emails, gather funds, and be aware of this fact. Ok, what next?
While we ponder about in which direction to take this cause to, some
poacher in a jungle far away from our safe, concrete structures, might
be mercilessly hunting the golden cat, for a few bundles of currency.
A trip down to the Sundarbans —the largest mangrove forest in the
world, also home to the majestic yet endangered Royal Bengal Tiger,
opens up many facets of the poaching game. The scenic beauty of the
place is mesmerising, especially when you see the spotted deer hop
effortlessly through the mangroves. And if one is watchful and patient,
various kinds of birds (even a few migratory ones), can be spotted. And
if luck favours, you might just be able to spot the Irrawaddy Dolphins.
The forest lies in the vast delta on the Bay of Bengal formed by the
confluence of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers across southern
Bangladesh and West Bengal. Identified by the UNESCO as a natural world
heritage site, the forest still remains a mystery for a lot of people.
Once upon a time, this place was infamous for the attacks of the
man-eaters. Today, it's an achievement if you can even spot one!
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| Idol of BonBibi found in the Sundarbans, Bengal |
The villagers of Sundarbans have always worshiped the tiger and know
the Tiger-God as Dokhin Roy. There is a very famous folklore about
Bonbibi (Goddess of the Jungle) and Dokhin Roy that these people follow
and they worship both with equal unanimity, before going into the
jungles. Due to the rise and swell of the tides and the unpredictable
storms that come up time and again, their farms get destroyed. Even the
best of fish, are found in the deeper backwaters of the jungle, some of
it falling under the restricted core zone of the Sundarbans Wildlife
Sanctuary. So honey collection is the only other option these people
would be left with. But then, when you are entering the tiger's den, you
are bound to meet its occupant. Sometimes, the tiger would get the
villagers and sometimes the villagers would kill it to save themselves.
Ever wondered, why these beings even turned into man-eaters in the
first place? As much as we are in an awe of the mighty feline, we are
scared. And it's probably a sign of bravery to have felled even one of
them. Tiger-hunting was a sport since the Maharajahs' rule, then the
British took it up and is sadly followed till date. So, as much as we
are in fear of the mighty beast, fact is that this fellow is equally
scared of humans. Hence, for all you know, his attack is his defense.
Secondly, there's also deer and wild boar hunting that takes place in
this region which again leads to reducing the food content for the
tiger. It's anyway a bit difficult for him to run amidst the thorny
breathing roots of the mangroves to chase the much swift deer. So he's
left with the option of eating fish. While the tigers are wonderful
swimmers and can cut through huge river currents, the water holds
another fear for them —sharks and crocodiles. What's an easier option is
to hunt down the humans that venture into his territory, be it
poachers, or just poor fishermen who also work as part-time honey
collectors. It's a matter of luck for each of them as to who gets the
other. And for both, man and animal, it's a matter of survival.
According to the official records, there are supposed to be about 275
tigers in the 110 islands that fall on the Indian side of the
Sundarbans. Now out of this about 55 islands are occupied by human
civilization. Wonder if the tigers are sharing the remaining 55 amongst
themselves! Or if the locals are to be believed (who know much more
about this region than any census taken), the number mentioned is way
more than an exaggeration. The forest department complains that it is
difficult to keep track of these tigers as the electronic bands that
they put on them, get pulled off or tear off as the animal runs through
the woods. And the micro-chip is an alien word for these people.
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| Wild Duck, Sunderbans, Bengal |
Talking to the villagers, it is revealed, how their difficult lives
were used as the bait by some money loaded people, some from India, some
foreigners, and they were lured into the poaching game. A villager
under condition of anonymity said, "Initially, they wanted just deer.
But then, while hunting the deer, we would come across the tiger and had
no option but to kill it or get killed. So they started paying more
money for the tigers. And many of the villagers, in their greed started
hunting both, thus reducing the amount of tigers as well as deer and
risking their own lives in the process." But then the villagers came
together and formed a community where they decided that much development
had to be done here. They realised that hunting the tiger, whom they
worship, is not just morally incorrect, but humanely wrong and it is
somewhere disturbing the ecological balance. With aid from many
organisations which have been working towards spreading the knowledge of
the ill-effects of poaching, the villagers understood it all. But then,
the question that was left unanswered, was that how would they survive
themselves, with no means of occupation and this one option also to be
told off.
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| Boatman at the Mangroves, Sunderbans |
While other tiger sanctuaries like Ranthambore, Kaziranga and Jim
Corbett have well picked up on the tourism side, the Sundarbans are
slowly developing in this sector. Staying at the last human occupied
island, Bali, a lot was revealed about poaching as well as the new
developments which have taken place in the region. When the poachers
were in the process of being reformed by the forest officials as well as
some NGOs, Raj Basu, who runs Help tourism, that is mostly into
reforming of such remote villages with their concept of eco-tourism, was
contacted. Basu says, "In 2000, the DFO in charge then, Pradeep Shukla,
was posted in Sunderbans and he was involved in the rehabilitation of a
group of young poachers at Bali island, along with WWF-India West
Bengal State office Director, Lt Col (Retd) Shakti Banerjee. They called
us to establish community based tourism with the people they were
trying to reform. They were confident after the success of our previous
Gorumara National Park model, which had helped to put an end to poaching
and illicit tree felling to a large extent, and wanted to introduce a
similar model here in Sundarbans. We helped them build the
infrastructure and cottages for the tourists, which were modeled on the
local houses there, to give a village feel yet live in an extension of
the actual village. The camp does not have any walls and is guarded by
old fishing nets, mainly to keep away free entry of tigers to the camp."
This venture has really helped the villagers who were otherwise totally
cut-off from the world, surviving like most other jungle tribes. Basu
recalls an incident during the building process, saying, "Attached
toilet was being made with every family room, and as there was not a
single sanitary toilet in the whole village, hundreds of villagers came
to visit the camp and would explore in the bath cum toilets and wonder
if the showers were meant to produce music while using the toilet. Even
the camp's deep-bore hand pump was the first drinking water source for
the villagers. Today, almost all houses in the village have a basic
toilet and every cluster of 10 to 20 households have a deep-bore hand
pump drinking water facility. Some of the youth who had been working in
the camp have opened their own small lodge or home stay. The local
entrepreneurship also extended to owning of small launches by the young
fellows, who use them to ferry visitors to the camp and take them for
sightseeing."
There are also several book banks, garment banks, medicine bank and
regular medical camps which have been organised. The medical camps are
till date being supported by a Mumbai based philanthropic organization
called Vasant J Seth Foundation. Several activities like village walks,
rickshaw rides, guided country boat fishing expeditions, local mythology
based 'Bonobibi Jatra' and several tours by the launch to watch towers
were introduced. Also a school called 'Matla' for the children of Bali
was started.
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| Bali Village, Sunderbans, Bengal |
The WPSI has complimented the initiative by establishing a permanent
conservation centre over here for the whole of Sunderbans Tiger Reserve.
Not just the healthy ferocious ones, but even the injured, old and
feeble tigers who are no longer capable of hunting are tracked and
brought to what the villagers call 'Home for the Aged Tigers.' With the
help of WWF, self-help groups producing handicrafts were also started.
The villagers also produce organic rice and vegetables for the camp and
also for visitors to take back home. Today, the Bali Initiative and
Sunderbans jungle camp became a global model for eco-tourism being
referred to by several experts worldwide. Filmmaker Aparna Sen, shot
The Japanese Wife,
in this island. Other filmmakers like Gautam Ghosh and Anjan Dutt have
also shot several films at these locations. This responsible support
from the film industry has also helped the community initiatives to take
roots and become sustainable.
It is these small things that sometimes make a huge difference. Often we don't realise what are the opportunities we might be having right
under our feet, while begging for some from others. The villagers here
have learnt to be self sufficient, and today they can proudly conserve
their flora and fauna, which at one point of time they'd ruthlessly
destroyed. Today, the Sundarbans can be confidently called to be a
place, where animal and man co-exist peacefully.
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| Evening at Sunderbans, Bengal |
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