Ripples from Cyclone Yaas and surging tides devastate the Sunderbans

Unprecedented damage calls for policies geared to climate change

For people in the ecologically fragile Sunderbans, life revolves around battling high tides daily and cyclones regularly. But every cyclone throws up new challenges to the Sunderbans and its inhabitants — something the people had not imagined, and policy makers are not prepared for. Over just the past three years, the Sunderbans, which is home to close to five million people, has been battered by four tropical cyclones — , , and . On each occasion, the region has suffered damage because of gale winds and breached embankments, leading to ingress of sea water. In pictures |