The Hungry Tide
What would you do if you see all that you had in life, sinking right in front of you?
This single question torments five thousand residents of the Ghoramara Island.
The day I landed in Ghoramara, an island located 150 km south of Calcutta, India in the Sunderban delta complex of the Bay of Bengal, almost one third of the remaining island got inundated. The embankments gave away to the wrath of the rising water after almost one and half year. It was full moon and the tide was in full swing, the river swelled and washed away acres of plantation and animals.
The island used to be 20 sq. km, but in the last twenty years or less it has been reduced to a mere 5 sq. km.
Global warming has caused the river to swell, as the river pours down from the mighty Himalayas and empties into the Bay of Bengal. Lohachara, another island on the southern part of Ghoramara, was once an inhabited island. Lohachara lies deep down the river bed, with ships passing by, where it once used to be. Climate refugees from both the villages fled to nearby Sagar Island, and have been put up in camps built by the government.
With no electricity on the island and a constant threat of inundation, several people have fled the island. However, those without any means to migrate are left in this island, while recent reports claim the island to be completely washed away by 2020.
This is from the body of work, “The Hungry Tide-work in progress” which documents the last inhabitants of the sinking island.
What would you do if you see all that you had in life, sinking right in front of you?
This single question torments five thousand residents of the Ghoramara Island.
The day I landed in Ghoramara, an island located 150 km south of Calcutta, India in the Sunderban delta complex of the Bay of Bengal, almost one third of the remaining island got inundated. The embankments gave away to the wrath of the rising water after almost one and half year. It was full moon and the tide was in full swing, the river swelled and washed away acres of plantation and animals.
The island used to be 20 sq. km, but in the last twenty years or less it has been reduced to a mere 5 sq. km.
Global warming has caused the river to swell, as the river pours down from the mighty Himalayas and empties into the Bay of Bengal. Lohachara, another island on the southern part of Ghoramara, was once an inhabited island. Lohachara lies deep down the river bed, with ships passing by, where it once used to be. Climate refugees from both the villages fled to nearby Sagar Island, and have been put up in camps built by the government.
With no electricity on the island and a constant threat of inundation, several people have fled the island. However, those without any means to migrate are left in this island, while recent reports claim the island to be completely washed away by 2020.
This is from the body of work, “The Hungry Tide-work in progress” which documents the last inhabitants of the sinking island.
This single question torments five thousand residents of the Ghoramara Island.
The day I landed in Ghoramara, an island located 150 km south of Calcutta, India in the Sunderban delta complex of the Bay of Bengal, almost one third of the remaining island got inundated. The embankments gave away to the wrath of the rising water after almost one and half year. It was full moon and the tide was in full swing, the river swelled and washed away acres of plantation and animals.
The island used to be 20 sq. km, but in the last twenty years or less it has been reduced to a mere 5 sq. km.
Global warming has caused the river to swell, as the river pours down from the mighty Himalayas and empties into the Bay of Bengal. Lohachara, another island on the southern part of Ghoramara, was once an inhabited island. Lohachara lies deep down the river bed, with ships passing by, where it once used to be. Climate refugees from both the villages fled to nearby Sagar Island, and have been put up in camps built by the government.
With no electricity on the island and a constant threat of inundation, several people have fled the island. However, those without any means to migrate are left in this island, while recent reports claim the island to be completely washed away by 2020.
This is from the body of work, “The Hungry Tide-work in progress” which documents the last inhabitants of the sinking island.
The Hungry Tide, July 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. Ghoramara Island (Bengali: ঘোড়ামারা দ্বীপ) is an island located 150 km south of Kolkata, India in the Sundarban Delta complex of the Bay of Bengal.
The Hungry Tide, July 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. The coastline is under severe threat of erosion, leading to loss of an alarming 50% of its area in the last four decades.
The Hungry Tide, July 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. Bhogoboti Dolui, 12 stands on an almost uprooted tree near the Hathkhola village. Constant flooding and tidal waves deplete the soil and leads to the uprooting of trees.
The Hungry Tide, July 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. This sparsely populated island is suffering from severe coastal erosion and areal reduction for the last three decades, which results in an ever shrinking coastline.
The Hungry Tide, July 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. The mud houses are vulnerable to cyclonic storms and floods. Families along the coastline has been forced to shift several times, as the coastline keeps receding.
The Hungry Tide, April 2015, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. Felling of trees for wood and clearing land for cultivation has also added to the misery. Without any root to hold back the soil, erosion is rampant.
The Hungry Tide, August 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. With the onset of monsoon, rising water levels pose severe threat of inundation. Several households along the fragile coastline, are often washed away.
The Hungry Tide, August 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. Only a handful of families dare to stay along the coastline, haunted by past experiences of nature’s wrath. The sinking of Ghoramara Island can be attributed to a confluence of disasters, both natural and human, not least the rising sea.
The Hungry Tide, July 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. The vulnerability and stability of the island is of major concern to the islanders. Lohachara, another Island to the southern part of the island has already submerged.
The Hungry Tide, July 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. Suraj Jamal Mallick, 12, a student of grade VI sits in front of his broken house. Every year, with every new inch shrinking, several people in the Island are becoming homeless. These people have been termed “environmental refugees”
The Hungry Tide, July 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. Saraswati Patra, 14, a student of the ‘Ghoramara Milan Vidyapeeth’ stands on the edge of a broken coastline. Adverse living conditions have affected the overall literacy rate in the island.
The Hungry Tide, July 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. The major occupation of the people is agriculture and fishing. Located near the Bay of Bengal, this is a fishing hotspot.
The Hungry Tide, August 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. Chaya Mondal, 76, waits near the coastline, where the fishing trawlers would return at the end of day’s catch. She has spent all her life in this Island. disappearing due to erosion and sea level rise.
The Hungry Tide, July 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. Smt Urmila Kar, 53 cooks a meal for her family. There is acute shortage of food supply and most of the supply comes from the harbour across the river
The Hungry Tide, July 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. Sonali Khatun, 13, a grade VII student of the ‘Ghoramara Milan Vidyapeeth’ stands on the fragile coastline of the island. Frequent flooding makes it extremely difficult for students to reach the school.
The Hungry Tide, July 2014, Ghoramara Island, Digital Photograph. Rising sea levels and ravaging tidal waves have flooded acres of the Island, resulting in an acute shortage of fresh water. In the region, local sea level rise have been estimated as 2.6 mm per year.
