Massacre of the Mangroves

For decades, the 4,265 sq. km mangrove belt, spread over the Sundarbans delta and the reserve forests of South 24 Parganas in West Bengal, has acted as a line of defence for its 2.5 million people against coastal erosion, tidal onslaughts and natural calamities. While the scars of an expanding human footprint over the years are indisputable, environment watchdogs have spotted and put a stop to fresh violations in this ecologically sensitive region-it seems just in the nick of time.

Hundreds of acres of the Sundarbans mangroves-one of the world's largest such forests-are feared to have been lost due to illegal felling carried out for government schemes aimed at providing housing and farmland to the poor. This has happened under the patronage of the local administration, allegedly to benefit Trinamool Congress (TMC) loyalists.

The zone of illegal activity is Sagar