Sundarban, the land of mangroves

The east of India is truly incredible! Sundarbans, the land of mangroves and tigers finds a beautiful mention in Amitav Ghosh’s novel ‘The Hungry Tide’. Sundarbans, literally meaning beautiful forest is the largest single block of tidal mangrove forest in the world. The forest reserve gets its name from the Sundari trees that are found here in large numbers. Lying in the vast delta on the Bay of Bengal, which is formed by the confluence of Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers, Sundarbans received the status of being a World Heritage Site in 1997. Sundarbans is considered a haven for photographers, who come here to capture the seasonally flooded freshwater swamp mangroves that lie on the coastal fringe.

Covering an area of 10,000 square kilometer (our of which 6,000 sq km are in Bangladesh), Sundarbans boast of a complex network of tidal waterways, small islands of salt tolerant mangrove forests, mudflats, and abundance of fauna. In Sundarbans, wherever the sight goes, you can see meandering rivers, springs, creeks and beautiful estuaries. The beautiful land is also is known for its wide range of fauna. The place is home to over 260 species of birds, the Bengal tiger and other endangered species like the Gangetic Dolphin, estuarine crocodile and the Indian python. For nature lovers, Sundarbans is a pure blessing. Pollution free environment, ecological process in its full bloom, animals in their natural habitat, humming of birds are some of the offerings that rule in this land of natural beauty. Sundarbans is also the land of the mighty Royal Bengal Tiger. It is the natural habitat of many other famous wild life animals like jungle fowl, giant lizards, spotted deer, wild boar, crocodiles and many more and the nature lovers would get a very good chance to have a close look. Migratory group of Siberian ducks is an attraction in some seasons, a beautiful scene of these ducks flying over sail boats fully loaded with many items like timber, fuel wood, honey, fish and shell adding to the serene natural attractiveness of the Sundarban. A visit to Sundarbans will refresh you mind and feast your eyes with the rich beauty of nature.