Peopling of the Sagar Island in the Indian Sundarbans: A Case of Maladaptation to Climate Change

The inhabited regions of the Indian Sundarbans of the Bengal Delta are threatened by dual processes of sea level rise and persistent coastal erosion caused by regular tidal surges. A few islands of this region have already been completely eroded stimulating population movements. This case study seeks to bring out how a myopic understanding of the adaptation priorities have resolved the concerns only in the short run but in the long run has exacerbated the vulnerabilities turning them maladaptive. This chapter is based upon a fieldwork in the Sagar Island comprising of 240 households in 2021 to understand the implications of the two major adaptation measures undertaken in the region to combat coastal flooding and coastal erosion: embankment and resettlement of the environmental refugee population. It is evident from the study that embankments have been able to contain coastal flooding and coastal erosion only with limited success. Instead, they have interfered with the coastal processes by altering the sediment load dynamics, reduction in channel capacity, increasing the tidal amplitude, and have exacerbated the environmental crisis. The resettlement strategy has accommodated the displaced communities, but in the long run the economic as well as the environmental outcomes have clear indications of maladaptive practices. It has deteriorated the livelihoods of the relocated communities. Further, the location of the resettlement colonies being in the fresh accretion zones have interfered with the coastal processes aggravating erosion.