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Socialization in the Sunderbans by Implicating Reclamation and Cultivation during the British Period

Author Affiliations

  • 119, Raj Krishna Pal Lane, Kolkata – 700075, India

Int. Res. J. Social Sci., Volume 15, Issue (2), Pages 1-8, April,14 (2026)

Abstract

Jessore Collector Tilman Henkel was the first to show enthusiasm for clearing forests in the Sundarbans to create agricultural land in 1787. The process of clearing forests for cultivation in the Sundarbans during the British era was primarily aimed at increasing revenue, meeting the demand for commercial timber, and protecting settlements from invasive animals like Royal Bengal tigers, crocodiles, venomous snakes, and other wildlife. Then the mangrove forests of Sunderbans were seen as resources, land was systematically cleared and planted with rice and other crops, but in this process the traditional rights of the locals were eroded. And it was regulated and protected by the Forest Act of 1878, which established the forest as government property.

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