Sundarbans Pirates Fear Still Haunts People Living Near the Forest.

Staff Correspondent, Khulna. The Sundarbans, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.On one side is biodiversity, on the other is the sole source of livelihood. Yet people living along the coast of this forest spend their nights in fear Because the fear of river pirates has not completely ended. Although the government declared the Sundarbans pirate-free in 2018, locals say,The pirates are gone, but the fear remains. Around 3 million people in Satkhira, Khulna, and Bagerhat districts including Shyamnagar, Koyra, Dacope, Mongla, and Rampal,depend directly or indirectly on the forest. Honey collectors, woodcutters, fishermen, and loggers have to stay in the forest for 15-20 days a month for their livelihood. Before 2018, large gangs were involved in extortion, kidnapping, and murder. They surrendered following government operations. But locals say small groups of 5-7 people are now robbing boats in rivers and canals. At night they intercept boats and loot fish, honey, and nets. Attacks Evading RAB-Coast Guard Patrols are thinner during deep nights, fog, or storms. Criminals take advantage of this. Fishermen say,We are safe during the day. But our hearts tremble at night. Extortion has also changed. Instead of large sums, they now collect 2,000-5,000 BDT as ghat cost per boat. If not paid, they cut nets and take away engines. So even after going to the forest, there’s no profit. Even with legal passes, there are checkpoints everywhere. And once inside the forest, there’s the fear of pirates. Caught in the middle, ordinary people are becoming destitute. Voices of the Victims Abdul Gaffar, a fisherman from Shyamnagar, said Last month, 8 people surrounded us in Kotka canal.They took fish worth 30,000 BDT and our engine. Filing a GD at the police station was useless. They come back the same night. Rabea, wife of a honey collector from Koyra, said,I can’t sleep for 10 days when my husband is in the forest. I hear on TV that pirates are being arrested. But people still come to our village to demand extortion. A Coast Guard official said,There are no organized pirate gangs anymore. Now there are some unruly groups. We conduct regular patrols. We launch operations as soon as we get complaints. The Forest Department said: CCTV cameras and surveillance inside the forest have been increased. Increase joint Coast Guard and River Police patrols in rivers and canals at night Set up a free hotline and rapid response team in every union for emergencies Properly monitor the rehabilitation of surrendered pirates so they don’t return to crim. If the Sundarbans survive, people will survive. If people survive, the forest will survive. But if the very people who risk their lives for the forest live in insecurity, forest conservation itself will be at risk. Although the government has declared the Sundarbans pirate-free on paper, the fear of pirates has still not been erased from the minds of people living near the Sundarbans.