Day 19 : Modern man’s greed

White migratory birds flock the coastline. The sand deposit which was hardly present in the past, has now become a breeding ground for these birds. This Bankot creek used to be much deeper than it is today. The houses which are built at the edges of the creek, were far away from the creek. People used to farm in the land that the creek has now engulfed within its boundaries. The extreme forest felling in the jungles deep within the creek where the creek is simply a river named Savitri, has resulted in this excess erosion. These sand islands are the result of decades of erosion within the mountains, because there aren’t any trees to hold the ground.

The Bankot creek was supposed to have its bridge built by 2015 but the change of government in 2014 shifted all its equations. Ever since then this bridge stands as a testimony to politicians greed. A body less corpse tries to be a barrier between the river and the endless sea. All the equipments used during its construction are now in ruins. A few Adivasi families have converted the old security rooms into their makeshift houses. That’s the least that they could get as natives of this land— a house within an abandoned infrastructure project.

Many unique species adorn this land. The way ahead from Bankot, all the way to Velas, is a nature lover’s treasure hunt. The mountain meets the sea abruptly, hence not allowing anyone to build a settlement there. Such quiet spaces are hardly found these days.

It is evening, the sun is exiting this end of the world to brighten the other one. With the sun melting in the sea, the migratory birds, not one, not hundred, but thousands of them fly together towards the sea. The place where the creek meets the sea- where the sweet water meets the salty water- they hover for a long while. Then one by one each bird starts diving into the water. In moments, the patterns above the waves disappear. They all dive deep within those waters to eat fish who must be breeding in these waters. Only a few kilometers ahead, sea turtles (olive ridley) come each year during February to May to hatch their eggs on this very coastline.

This road will not only end these unique breeding grounds, but it will also end the village as it is known today.

“We sent a letter to the upper officers, asking them to take the proposed road away from the village. We don’t want to destroy the hatching spots of these olive ridley’s, but what other option do we have?” a middle aged man spoke to me.

I could sense the pain in his voice. The average konkani villager is a thousand times more environmentally aware than the ones who call themselves an “environmentalist”. If that wasn’t the case, you would have not seen these unique species running freely around this region. They were totally aware of the breeding grounds and hence built their settlements away from them. In the name of “devraai” they preserved the ancient forests which would have otherwise be mowed down.

“The road, as it is being discussed today, cuts our village in two,” he said, “we will be separated and this will affect all our community gatherings. We have always lived as one village, going to each other during the festivals. Our local deities dance through these tiny alleyways, they are not accustomed to 6 lane highways. How will they keep an eye on us if we destroy their dwelling? Won’t they turn on us?”

The konkani villager has a deep rooted belief in these nature deities and he always will, because he has always lived alongside these deities. These forces of nature, then be it in the forest, or on the land or deep in the sea, have guided him to safety. He pays homage to these deities before starting any work. That’s how intertwined man and nature is.  Once this is gone, it’s gone forever.

We are pushing this average villager to the edge. We are testing his patience. And in turn he is testing us city people. He is testing this ambitious modern man, which has crossed the seven seas and who has the world within his fist. He wants to see how far this ambition can go. He has seen endless storms and rebuilt these villages from its ashes, because of his trust in these nature deities. They balance things out, he says. But does the modern man, who wants to own this land now, who doesn’t mind crushing the local God’s who protected these villagers, be ready for this incoming wrath of nature? Will he rebuild these places by trusting the natural forces? History tells that he has always abandoned such places. He has destroyed the land until its infertile and then left in search for a new one to destroy. He doesn’t understand why the konkani people are patient- they have endlessly moulded their bodies to suit the surrounding nature.

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