Climate emergency- Escaping the hungry tide

Reshma: “This is our 7th house, the past 6 houses were destroyed by the floods. We adjust and enjoy under any circumstances. Whenever there is a thunderstorm here, we play ludo inside. My grandpa was a fisherman in Ghoramara. I really enjoy the beach there. I like playing in the river water, that’s why I used to go there. But, we cannot live there. It is very dangerous.”

Vaishali: That was Reshma Khatun. She lives with her family in Manasadwip village in . This agrarian family had shifted and settled there from Ghoramara Island 30 years ago. Every time a cyclone comes or rain pummels ferociously, Reshma and her family move away. Like many families, they don't have proper land documents.

Sagar Island has a high population density of over 2 Lakh people. It is surrounded by the , and Muriganga river. This delta is highly sensitive to erosion, flooding and salinisation. Cyclone, embankment failures, submergence and storms are very common in these islands, especially as climate change aggravates the situation. Whenever the Island’s edges erode or when people want to find better land and work, they shift further inside the Island. The local authorities say that the famous Kapil Muni temple has been rebuilt 4 times.

I’m Vaishali, a reporter for Suno . Last month I visited Sagar Island as part of Internews’ media workshop on climate change, climate justice and resilience. Some parts of this episode will be in Bengali, and you can find the episode transcript on our website.

People live in small houses which are built on clayey soils along the edge of Sagar island. The seawater constantly keeps coming into the land, and it often takes away homes and land along with it. Many people living here are so poor that they don't have the luxury to relocate. While agriculture is their primary occupation, they also rely on fishing and prawn baby collection. The residents say that the mangroves which had protected the land from the sea’s force have been destroyed. This leaves them vulnerable. Also, when the other locally grown wild plants are taken down for agricultural purposes, it makes the land vulnerable to erosion. In other words, the land simply cannot hold itself together anymore here, and it often faces the wrath of frequent cyclones.

Tuhin: Sagar Island is basically sandy. Clay is very less there. If there is the clay, the mangrove should have some capacity to protect the riverbanks or the beach. There are some other varieties of plants. But mostly, the parts of Sagar island coast near the sea areas are barren. There is no thick land cover. That doesn't provide protection. The plants there also don't protect the island margin. The margin is exposed to all kinds of wave actions or cyclonic conditions and storm surges.

Vaishali: Professor Tuhin Ghosh, from the School of oceanographic studies, has been researching about the since 1993-94. He joins us to share his observations on Sagar Island.

The lanes in the Sumati Nagar were slippery and clayey and were barely walkable. It is because of the seawater that had come in. They have made sand dunes as land dividers, and the land in between is filled with water. Many live in abject poverty with the sea playing the role of friend and foe at the same time in their lives. Cyclone Aila had impacted Sagar Island immensely in 2009. Many people living here claim that the government hasn't compensated them because the govt hasn't classified the area under zones affected by Cyclone Aila. For Benubala Shaw, who lives in a house that is on the edge of Sumati Nagar, their homes being flooded is no longer one that evokes strong emotions.

Benubala Shaw: “When Aila came, we all moved to Neel bazar. Our entire house was filled with water. We have a local doctor here. When the salty water comes in, we all go there to get some medicine. We are used to it now.”

Vaishali: A doctor in the local hospital who didn’t want to be named said that people living in the salty and wet conditions are more prone to fever, blood pressure, skin diseases and respiratory diseases.

Doctor: “We are getting many patients with fever. They have a high-grade temperature which isn’t responding to regular treatment. The change in fever trend is observed in the last 2-3 years, and this year, it is even bigger. A lot of them are getting skin diseases. There have been an increase in COPD (Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease- respiratory disorder) patients. A lot of children are getting respiratory diseases these days. Mostly they use pond water and stay in wet clothes. That may be the reason why the treatment isn’t working, with prolonged treatment, maybe the fungus is getting resistant to the usual treatment.”

Vaishali: Low frequency and high-intensity rainfall, and saline water does not only affect their health but also affects the agriculture, fishing, prawn collection and trade.

Most of the land there is agricultural. Paddy is the primary crop, and they have salt-resistant variants to grow. Alternative options are needed for them to sustain. Their local MLA Bankim Chandra Hazra said that the panchayats have a budget for digging ponds with fruit trees around the pond so that people have two sources of income, that is fish farming and fruits.

Because of agricultural issues like yield levels, land available and water quality, people have opted for fishing and prawn baby collection. This change affects the quantity of both prawns and fish. One fisherwoman who lives in Beghukali said that overfishing is common there.

Fisherwoman: “I have 4 kids. My husband works in the field. Our main source of income is agriculture. I do fishing in the river at times. There is not much fish left in the river, and that’s the problem. We can’t catch sweet fish like pona here anymore. There are so many families here. About 5-6 years ago, fish were in abundance. Overfishing is the biggest issue here.“

Tuhin: There is a very small batch of mangroves in Sagar Island. Some patches from the previous years' plantations became very rich. But people are not dependent on mangroves because those mangrove patches are not sufficient for them. They are mostly dependent on agriculture, and there is no inland mangrove.

The salinity is increasing. From our survey, we found that offshore fishing is very popular in Sagar Island. People are getting new varieties of fish (especially high saline species). In the last 10-15 years, they lost some middle saline species. People are not fully dependent on ecosystem services other than fishing and agriculture. They don't have to go inside the forest because of the reduced forest cover, and availability of honey and crabs. People used to get them on the eastern side. If they fail in agriculture or fishing, they migrate seasonally to other states or towards Calcutta. They are not adapting to the situation.

Vaishali: As Mr Tuhin said, many youngsters, especially young men, have migrated to the other parts of the country to find alternative livelihood options.

Durga Shaw: “We can’t even do agriculture here. My son moved to Gujarat for work. He is 22 now. He has been earning for the house from there for the last 2 years. He gets around Rs.6000.”

Vaishali: That was Durga Shaw from Sumati Nagar. Some, cannot afford to move out and have one of their family members sending them money. This is interesting because Sagar Island once saw a wave of in-migration from other islands like Ghoramara. Following that, Mr Hazra said that the land left to give to more people kept falling. 1120 families moved to Sagar Island in the 1960s and 70s, and they were given 2 acres of land each. As time went on, they couldn’t provide that much. The people live on lands classified as forest land.

Tuhin: In-migration happened in the initial phase. The people of Sagar Island are mostly from Medinipur and Orissa. That happened in the 70s. When Lohachara and Ghoramara eroded, people migrated to Sagar Island. Presently, people are moving out to places like Kerala and Tamil Nadu because the labour force in those states are in the Middle East. So, there is a void in the labour force. That's why they are getting a regular job, work time and good wages. That's why people are going. These individuals migrate out for 3-9 months. The people who have their own land prefer construction job because they can come back during the monsoon.

Vaishali: While the men move out to other states for work, the women stay back and find ways to safeguard their lands as well as earn a living. But this is not an easy task as they face the wrath of the river and the sea.

Fisherwoman: “Women are the ones who mainly do fishing. When we sell 1000 bagda prawns, we get only Rs.100. We need to work even harder now. Due to the river, we can’t make a proper house here, that is why we live in this shack. Every day, the river breaks away chunks of land. A lot of people have lost their belongings to the river through this.”

Vaishali: This fisherwoman who was hesitant to say her name lives on the coast of Beghukali. Her neighbour Angur Das, who is 75 years old said that the river water also comes into the land. Just the previous night, there was a loud, flashy and heavy downpour.

Angur das: “The river took my house and all my belongings. A lot of people have lost their loved ones to the river. That is why they are now moving into this village. Our village is called Beguakhali. People are scared of the river and are leaving this island. Every time the river water goes up, we stay up in horror. Hoping the river doesn’t engulf our house. Last night when the storm came, my entire family was up, ready for the worst.”

Vaishali: Tuhin tells us more about this.

Tuhin: Sagar Island is just on the confluence. This estuary system is mostly controlled by the river Ganges on its lower coast, Medinipur on the western coast and river Hooghly. There are a lot of islands in- between the two banks. This estuary complex is controlled by the upland water availability and the sediment transported towards the estuary. The river bed tilts towards the east due to tectonic control. These three factors influence this region. Due to erosion, Ghoramara island almost became half, and Lohachara and Bedford islands submerged underwater. Just above Ghoramara island, the Nayachar island has increased by 4-5 times. Nayachar Island is going to join with the new island that is coming up towards the north, and it is gradually going to attach with the mainland towards Medinipur. People are saying that the sea level rise has impacted Ghoramara, Lohachara and Bedford. I have a different observation regarding this. Except for Hooghly and Matla, other rivers of Sunderban don't have fresh water supply from the upland throughout the year, they are acting like tidal creeks. The tidewater enters through the rivers during high tide and comes out during the low tide. If the river has no freshwater flow from the upland during high tide, the tidal water will enter the channel and the river salinisation will affect the soil salinisation. The high, middle or low saline mangroves zones will also change when salt water is poured into the channel. The low saline mangroves will die and will be replaced by high or middle saline mangroves. The mangrove ecosystem services which control the species availability of fish and crab will also change. That will indirectly impact the livelihood of the people.

Vaishali: When we asked MLA Hazra how they are tackling the major issues of erosion and migration, he says that they’re building protection walls to tackle the sea level rise and are giving coconut trees for the people to plant. He also says that they’re now only seeing such impacts and only now the state has even approached the centre to ask for their guidance and aid.

Tuhin: It can be 10-15 years of planning. Growing a coconut tree takes at least 5-6 years. If the place eroding and the people are suffering, it is an alarming condition of displacement. At that time if you provide them coconut tree to plant, will it save them? There is no meaning. But if we have some kind of specific planning where we are planting coconut trees behind a 50m buffer from the island margin, they'll protect us after 4-5 years even if the 50m margin goes underwater. That kind of planning is not there. This kind is just a physical show-off. In one small effort, we found that 3 out of 4 multi- purpose cyclone shelters are not in the appropriate location. As those areas aren’t affected by the cyclone, the multi-purpose cyclone shelters won't be functioning. Even then, they’ve installed them, using public money. So, I’m not very confident about the efficiency of this kind of developmental process planning. You’ll see both government action and inaction in the same place. It depends on how one individual is thinking and how he/she can influence the local government. That shouldn’t be the kind of governance. Earlier also, we have seen this kind of action and inaction. Action is whether we are trying to discriminate against some people and do something for our close people. There is a lot of inaction because those people are not liked by us. People are being discriminated from the government scheme, policy, regulation, wage, rehabilitation, relocation.

Vaishali: Another thing I want to ask you is, in your email, you had said that there aren’t adequate data when it comes to climate change in Indian Sundarbans. How else are we arriving at these observations?

Tuhin: Indian Sundarban lacks pure scientific research related to climate change. It has been done with mangroves, human factors and groundwater. People are talking about the temperature rise. There is no weather station within the India part of Sundarban, except in few western parts. Now, we are totally dependent on the Alipore- city weather station data. From there, we can identify the rising temperature and total rainfall. According to city data, the temperature in the city is rising. But, is the temperature rising at the same rate in the western, eastern and northern parts of Sunderban? I don't know because there is no weather station in Sunderban.

People are always talking about river salination or the soil salination in the islands being higher. But where is the baseline data? In the absence of baseline data, how can we infer whether the soil salinity or the river salinity is increasing? It is our assumed perception. The people, the agriculturists and the fishermen in Sunderban are talking about the salinity increasing. That is a limitation of the climate change issue in the Indians Sunderban.

Coming to sea-level rise, data varies from 2mm per year- 12mm per year. Somewhere, I have even seen 16mm per year. The same scientist produces so many different data sets. Which one should we rely on? Also, is the sea-level rise relative/ location-specific/overall/mean for the Indian Sunderban delta? That is not clear.

Vaishali: During our visit to the villages, we were told that the residents have been made aware of the sea level rise and the effects of salinization through various NGOs and research organisations. The erosion doesn’t just affect the livelihoods of people through their lands. Mr Hazra said that 560 acres of agricultural land in just 14 villages of Sagar block have been lost due to erosion. Sagar block doesn't just include Sagar island. It also includes Ghoramara and Mousuini. Ghoramara has lost almost half of its land to the sea. When the islands that form the tiger reserve erode, it also leads to the movement of tigers into these human inhabited places. That causes further loss to their lives and property.

Mr Tuhin had also said that Islands there don’t only erode, they increase in size as well. What are the factors that impact this? Is it a natural process?

Tuhin: There are some interventions from the Kolkata Port Trust. They installed two guide walls instead of seven. The design suggested seven guide walls. Wherever the remaining guide walls are not installed, there is erosion. The guide walls were suggested to enhance the navigability in the Haldia port. The big ships could not enter into the Haldia port at that time. Now, medium level ships can also play into Haldia port. They usually wait near the estuary and the smaller ships carry the containers to the port. So, the place is totally choked up. When these uninstalled guide wall locations are under erosion, people are talking about the sea-level rise.

Installation of Farakka Barrage is another reason. The velocity and volume of water going towards the estuaries have reduced. The sediment carrying capacity of the river is dropping, and the sediments settle within the river beds. Open sea islands like Jambudweep are not affected by the sea level rise much, but the islands within 30 kilometres inside the estuary are affected. The adjoining islands are also growing. How can we call this as sea-level rise? The sea-level rise is not the prime reason for this degradation. If the river bed becomes shallow when the monsoon water comes, the retention capacity of the river reduces. The water pressure is then, towards the banks. So, the rivers are widening due to shallowing river beds, and the river banks are being eroded. Where are the eroded sediments going? A lot of islands have emerged in the eastern side near Jharkhali and Pathar Prathima. In our recent study, we found that they have increased by 4-8 sq.km. in the last 30 years. These islands are stabilising and are covered with vegetation, especially mangroves. In our recent study about the fringe mangroves, we found a 47% increase in the fringe mangrove coverage. Out of that 47%, 39% increase was due to the emergence of new islands, which are covered with mangroves. This has happened because of the supply of sediments from the upland rivers. If the sediment supply is less, the delta progradation rate will be less. The progradation is stopped due to human interventions, sediment starvation and other causes. There is no natural system anymore within the Hooghly estuary and in other parts of Sunderban. Places like river Ichamati and the vidya canal are being cut down. They don't have freshwater flow.

Vaishali: Sagar Island is a picturesque Island. But the distress of those living there is far from it. At a time when the alarm rings across the world due to the climate emergency we face today, it is imperative that the government wakes up to the daily reality of those living on Sagar Island. Many thanks to Internews for the workshop and supporting the travel and stay and also for helping me understand the local impacts of Climate Change.

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