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The present paper proposes Sundarban as a Culture Area with its distinct tradition of culture traits, which evolved uniquely in response to a particular ecological niche. Based on the dominance of one or the other trait the Culture Area of Sundarban may further be divided into subcultural zones. The present paper pointed out some of the most prominent culture traits or the area in favour of the proposition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Solar PhotoVoltaic (SPV) based systems have been widely accepted technology for rural electrification in developing countries. The standalone SPV home lighting system has increasingly been popular among rural households, while SPV mini-grid supply system is being promoted for rural electrification schemes. This study uses data from household survey to explore the impact of household characteristics on the preference for electrical energy from SPV systems. Econometric evidence shows heterogeneity in behavioural pattern for these two SPV systems. The flexibility in use and cost of systems might explain this difference. Household characteristics such as monthly household income, household size, occupational status of household head, number of room and type of house significantly influence household’s decision for SPV standalone home lighting systems. For SPV mini-grid supply household’s income and monthly expenditure on kerosene are significant predictors. The result reported in this paper might be a valuable input for policy makers to frame right policy mix with regard to provide subsidy on rural electrification programmes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The paper deals with the dynamical behavior of plankton population ecosystem, mainly found in Sunderban mangrove area. The ecosystem is represented by a set of two dimensional non-linear differential equations involving zooplankton-phytoplankton population. Plankton populations undergo dramatic changes in marine ecology. We propose a description of plankton communities as excitable systems which resemble the behavior of excitable media. The delay parameter dependency of the various ‘excitable’ phenomena, trigger mechanism, threshold, and slow recovery, is clear, and permits ready investigation of the influence of properties of the physical environment, including variations in nutrient fluxes, temperature or population levels. We have analyzed the stability and bifurcation of the model system with and without delay. We have shown the existence and uniqueness of limit cycles in the rapid growth of the plankton population. We also studied the model system into a stochastic one, by incorporating random fluctuations of the environment. And we study the stochastic stability of the dynamical system in mean square sense around the interior equilibrium. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The aim of this paper was to obtain the first screening ecotoxicological risk evaluation in the Sunderban wetlands, the largest prograding delta in the estuarine phase of the River Ganges. The characterization of exposure was conducted by means of an extensive survey of several persistent organic pollutants (PAHs, PCBs, DDTs, PBDEs, HCHs, HCB) measured in seven core sediments from the Sunderban wetlands, obtaining a dataset with more than 2200 analyses. The pollutant effects were assessed by the use of three different sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) previously developed in the literature to evaluate toxicity induced in sediment-dwelling organisms. The three different approaches chosen for risk assessment of the Sunderban were the consensus SQGs obtained by TEC (threshold effect concentration), PEC (probable effect concentration) and EEC (extreme effect concentration), the threshold/probable effect level (TEL/PEL) approach and, finally, the ERL-ERM guidelines, including the m-ERM-Q (mean ERM quotient). The evaluation of the toxicity induced by a mixture of the target pollutants indicated the importance of γ-HCH contamination in the Sunderban sediments despite the very low concentrations measured in core sediments. A different sensitivity for toxicity assessment due to quality guidelines was obtained, as the consensus SQGs based on TEC were less conservative and protective than the TEL and ERL approaches, while the use of m-ERM-Q seems to be the most powerful tool to predict the toxicity related to a contaminant mixture. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The Sundarbans is a globally significant and unique mangrove eco-region. It stretches across the territories of India and Bangladesh facing the Bay of Bengal. The eco-region, apart from supporting the largest tiger population in the world is also home to over 4.5 million people, on the Indian side. The majority of the population is poor and their dependence on eco-resources is high. A large section is engaged in shrimp seed collection, which has emerged as a viable economic activity over the past two decades. However, the activity is ecologically demanding. The present paper examines the issues of sustainability and precariousness of the practice of shrimp seed collection, the collectors, as well as of the ecosystem. In light of the activity, sustaining the human population and the process of human development in the Sundarbans islands over a long term appear doubtful. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In an unusual cooperative step, India and Bangladesh have embarked on a joint census of the Royal Bengal tigers that inhabit the world's largest mangrove forest, Sundarban. The main census tool will be the collecting of pugmarks, plaster casts and paper tracings of tiger footprints in the mud that are supposed to reveal the age, weight and sex of animals. Many wildlife biologists claim that pugmarks are unreliable and should be replaced by other sampling methods, such as camera traps. Some 460 foresters and wildlife experts are participating in the weeklong census, funded by $120,000 from United Nations Development Programme.