The Sundarbans is called the 'Tree Wonder'. According to popular belief, this forest is named after a beautiful tree. But the beautiful trees of the Sundarbans are dying. According to the international research report, the number of trees in the Sundarbans and the density of the forest will further decrease in the future due to the collection of various resources including fuelwood collection, free movement of motorboats, and collection of golpata. It is said that in 1979 there were beautiful trees in one lakh 6 thousand 845 hectares of forest. In 2014, it decreased to one lakh 12 thousand 995 hectares. Due to the death of trees, 25 percent of the forest has been cleared in the last 25 years. This is upsetting the balance of the biodiversity of the Sundarbans. As a result, the situation has become more miserable.
This Sundarbans is surrounded by diverse natural beauty, exotic plants, wild animals and birds. This forest is located at the mouth of the Ganges and Brahmaputra and extends over West Bengal in Bangladesh and India. The Sundarbans, which covers an area of 10,000 sq km, has 6,017 sq km in Bangladesh. The Sundarbans was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1997.
Along the way, the Sundarbans is treating us like mothers. The Sundarbans slowed down last year before it was hit by a hurricane. There are no statistics on how many times the Sundarbans has protected us from natural disasters, including cyclones. The Sundarbans was re-booked to protect itself from a very powerful cyclone 'Amphan'. The Sundarbans has always guarded all the coasts of the country like the Kalapahar of history. Has given a strong enclosure of various trees including Sundari and Gewa. And countless rivers have been protecting animals and resources here for years. The Sundarbans itself has saved the coastal people from being wounded. Due to this forest, the speed of the last five-six terrible storms has decreased. After a terrible storm hit the forest, it became weak. This forest is therefore acting as a shield to protect the coast. In particular, the forest saved the coastal people from Hurricane Sidr on November 15, 2006 and Hurricane Ayla on May 25, 2009, in the will of the Most Merciful God. Besides, the Sundarbans has also been protected from cyclone Bulbul and Fani. However, some damage is being done to the plants. However, there was no significant impact on wildlife. During several storms, high intensity winds cause tidal surges in coastal areas. Vegetation in the interior of the Sundarbans is submerged in tidal salt water. The freshwater ponds inside the forest were filled with salt water. The damage has been more.
Md. Enamul Kabir, former head of discipline at Forestry and Wood Technology at Khulna University, said, ‘The Sundarbans is our bulwark. The Sundarbans was born to protect us. This forest will give us timber, for which it was not born. These are our additional debts. The main role of the tree is to provide oxygen, to protect from storms; To extract wealth. During the partition of India in 1947, Bangladesh covered 6,017 sq km of the Sundarbans, which is 4.2 per cent of Bangladesh's area and about 44 per cent of the country's total forest cover.
The dark green Sundarbans is bounded on the north by light green farmland, copper colored cities and blue rivers. The Sundarbans in the Ganges basin is one of the three largest mangrove forests in the world. Its ecosystem is very complex. The greater part of the Sundarbans (82%) across two neighboring Bangladesh and India is located in the southwest of Bangladesh. . In fact, the area of the Sundarbans was supposed to be about 16,600 square kilometers (200 years ago). At least it has taken its present form. That is about one-third of the previous one. At present the total land area is 4,143 sq km and the area of rivers, creeks and canals is 1,084 sq km. It is about one third of the previous one. So this area is the place where the fresh water from the Ganges becomes the salt water of the Bay of Bengal. The main varieties of the Sundarbans include the Sundari, Gewa, Garan and Keora trees. According to Preen's calculations published in 1903, there are a total of 24 classes and 334 species of plants in the Sundarbans.
Extensive biodiversity exists in the Sundarbans. However, livestock in Bangladesh has declined recently. Even after that, Allah has preserved the Sundarbans of many species of animals. Among these, tigers and pigs are being planned with the aim of conserving biodiversity and developing tourism. These two conditions, which are at risk and in complete contrast, and conservation management are strong indicators of overall biodiversity and conservation management. According to 2004 estimates, the Sundarbans is home to 500 tigers. No research has been done on fish in the Sundarbans yet. As a result, reliable information on the current status of fish, extinct fish and endangered fish is not available. It is estimated that there are 300 species of vertebrate fish in the Sundarbans. According to Siden Sticker and Haier (Perspective 198), there are 120 species of commercial fish; However, according to Barnaces, there are 64 species of commercial fish, 12 species of crab-shrimp and 9 species of snails. The fishery resources of the Sundarbans have been divided into two parts. All in all there are white fish, there are more bagdas, galda, crabs.
The Sundarbans is an ideal 'spot' for tourism. The income from this sector is about 414 crore rupees every year. The average annual income of Bangladesh from this forest fuel, huge fisheries of rivers, honey and beeswax and wildlife is about Tk. 1,161 crore. According to research, this forest protects from natural disasters every year to the tune of three thousand crore rupees. More surprising is the fact that the Sundarbans is capable of holding an average of about 160 million tons of carbon a year, valued at five to six million dollars in the international market. Not much history is found about the origin of the beautiful forest. However, it is thought that the erosive silt of the Himalayas has created chars on the coast by the Padma and Brahmaputra, which have been flowing for thousands of years. On the other hand, as it is on the sea shore, the char has been soaked in saline water and silt has accumulated. Over time, a variety of plants have sprung up and mangroves have sprung up, and mangrove forests have sprung up. This company makes maps of the Sundarbans. During the partition of India in 1947, 6,017 km of this forest fell in Bangladesh, which is 44% of the total forest area of Bangladesh. In 1997, the 1,39,800 hectares of wildlife sanctuary in the Sundarbans was declared a 98th World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Compared to other mangrove forest plants of the world, the plants of the Sundarbans are very different. Because the Sundarbans is not just salt water. In some cases, fresh water flows. Sundari, Gewa, Pashur, Keora, Amur, Golpata are more common in the eastern sanctuary of this forest. Gewa, Garan and Hental are more common in western sanctuaries. Due to high salinity in this region, other common trees do not grow much. It is difficult to say how many species of trees there are in the Sundarbans. The latest survey in 1903 says 334 species. Of the 50 species of plants in the mangrove forest, 35 are found in this forest
In December last year, a radio collar was placed around the neck of the Royal Bengal Tiger in the Sundarbans of West Bengal, India. The forest department will be able to know the movement of the tiger through the technology connected to the radio caller. Forest department officials said the radio technology, made with American technology, is said to be effective for two to three years, but it lasts for a year and a half due to the salt water in the Sundarbans. Earlier, from 2006 to 2008 and 2016, several tigers were given this radio collar. But it did not last long because of the salt water. The tiger's throat radio caller will send a signal directly to the forest department via satellite. This will allow them to be aware of the tiger's movements and behavior. Tiger counting has started in the Sundarbans. 10 teams of 12 each have been appointed for counting tigers.
This animal is the pride of the whole of Bangladesh including the Sundarbans. At one time, tigers roamed the Sundarbans innumerable times. But the number of tigers in the Sundarbans is declining day by day due to various reasons including illegal hunting, lack of food, natural calamities. In the latest survey of 2015, 160 tigers have been mentioned in the entire Sundarbans. Of these, 108 are in Bangladesh. Apart from tigers, there are about 31 species of mammals including Chitra deer, Maya deer, rhesus monkey, wild cat, leopard and wild boar. In addition, there are 400 species of fish, 300 species of birds, 35 species of reptiles, eight species of amphibians. . Notable among these are conch shells, Russell's vipers, pythons and banded crates.
What a majestic animal !