Basanti

Infobox Indian Jurisdiction
native_name = Basanti | type = city | latd = 21.8 | longd = 88.45
locator_position = right | state_name = West Bengal
district = South 24 Parganas
leader_title =
leader_name =
altitude =
population_as_of = 2001
population_total = 278,543 | population_density =
area_magnitude= sq. km
area_total =
area_telephone =
postal_code =
vehicle_code_range =
sex_ratio = 955
unlocode =
website =
footnotes = CD Block

Basanti ( _bn. বাসন্তী) is a town with a police station, a community development block, and an assembly constituency in Canning subdivision of South 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal. The backward Basanti area is implementing various development programmes. The environment has been vitiated by occasional political clashes amongst the ruling Left Front partners.

Geography

Basanti is one of the main deltaic islands in the Sundarbans region, bounded by the Matala and Vidyadhari rivers/creeks. Sonakhali, opposite Basanti, is a popular starting point for Sundarbans steamer/launch trips. Sonakhali is 100 km from Kolkata. Basanti Road is linked to Eastern Metropolitan Bypass near Science City in Kolkata. Sundarbans bypass project, costing Rs 2.29 crore has been under implementation since 2002. It will reduce the distance between Kolkata and Basanti by 25 km. The 12-km bypass will connect Dhuri and Jibantala. Sundarbans, being full of creeks and rivers, needs more bridges, especially on the Matla. [cite web | url = http://www.thestatesman.net/page.arcview.php?clid=6&id=23956&usrsess=1
title = CM impetus to roads for Sunderbans | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = "The Statesman", 3 January 2002]

Demographics

In the 2001 census, Basanti community development block had a population of 278,543 out of which 142,487 were males and 136,056 were females. The entire population is classified as rural. [cite web | url = http://www.wbcensus.gov.in/DataTables/02/Table4_18.htm
title = Census of India 2001 | accessdate = 2007-08-24 | last = | first = | work = Provisional population totals, West Bengal, Table 4 | publisher = Census Commission of India ]

Politics

Subhas Naskar of RSP won the Basanti (SC) assembly seat from 1982 to 2006, defeating Amal Kanti Ray of BJP in 2006, Jayanta Sarkar of AITC/INC in 2001 and 1996, Bipin Behari Sardar of INC in 1991 and 1982, and Jnanendranath Majumdar of INC in 1987. [cite web | url =http://www.eci.gov.in/electionanalysis/AE/S25/partycomp101.htm
title =101 - Basanti (SC) Assembly Constituency | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = | first = | work = Partywise comparison since 1977 | publisher = Election Commission of India]

Basanti is part of Joynagar (Lok Sabha constituency). [cite web | url = http://archive.eci.gov.in/se2001/background/S25/WB_ACPC.pdf | title = General election to the Legislative Assembly, 2001 – List of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies | accessdate = 2007-09-19 | last = | first = | work = West Bengal | publisher = Election Commission of India.]

Basanti has been a RSP base for a long time. RSP is a part of the ruling Left Front. However, the area has been witness to violent clashes between RSP and CPI(M). During the panchayat (local self government) elections in 2003, CPI(M) and RSP put candidates against each other. Relations between the two ruling alliance partners reached such a stage that a minister was heckled. Subsequently, a panchayat members house was set on fire. [cite web | url = http://www.thestatesman.net/page.arcview.php?clid=23&id=8671&usrsess=1 | title = One killed in clash at Basanti | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = "The Statesman", 2 January 2003] [cite web | url = http://www.thestatesman.net/page.arcview.php?clid=1&id=38702&usrsess=1 | title = RSP threatens to look for alternatives | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = "The Statesman", 13 May 2003] [cite web | url = http://www.thestatesman.net/page.arcview.php?clid=2&id=38712&usrsess=1 | title = Death of democracy, Amar tells Buddha | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = "The Statesman", 13 May 2003] [cite web | url =http://www.thestatesman.net/page.arcview.php?clid=23&id=169064&usrsess=1 | title = Panchayat member’s house set ablaze | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = "The Statesman", 28 December 2006]

Administration

Basanti is an intermediate panchayat (local self-government) under South 24 Parganas district. Village panchayats under it are –. Amjhara, Basanti, Bharatgarh, Charabidya, Chunakhali, Foolmalancha, Jharakhali, Jyotishpur, Kanthalberia, Maszidbati, Nafarganj, Ramchandrakhali, and Uttar Mokamberia. [cite web | url = http://panchayat.gov.in/adminreps/viewpansumr.asp?selstate=32&pno=5&ptype=V | title = Details of West Bengal till Village Panchayat Tier | accessdate = 2007-08-24 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = Ministry of Panchayati Raj, Government of India]

Economy

Agriculture

The state government has initiated two plans for agricultural improvement. The “"amar bon"” (my forest) project aims at planting more trees in the area as a preventive measure towards global warming. Over 14,000,000 saplings will be planted in various places through women, children and NGOs. As the area is surrounded by saline waters in the creeks, the “Rainwater harvesting through Land Shaping” project aims at construction of ponds on 1/5th of the agricultural land and rest of the land is spared for agriculture. The target is to construct 50,000 such ponds. [cite web | url = http://www.thestatesman.net/page.arcview.php?clid=6&id=190594&usrsess=1
title = Agri-boost for Sunderbans | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = "The Statesman", 19 July 2007]

Honey collection

Around 20,000 kg of honey is collected every year from forests of Sundarbans. Mostly people from the Kultali, Joynagar, Basanti, Gosaba and Canning are honey collectors. The number of honey collectors have dwindled from around 1,500 a few years back to around 700 in 2007. From 1985 through 2004, about 75 honey collectors were killed by tigers in the forests. Now all honey collectors are insured for Rs. 50,000. The forest department has also intensified vigilance during the honey collection period. The range officers and guards are on full alert. No deaths have been reported since 2004. [cite web | url = http://www.thestatesman.net/page.arcview.php?clid=23&id=181947&usrsess=1| title = Honey come lately | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = "The Statesman", 24 April 2007]

Power

West Bengal Renewable Energy Development Agency (WBREDA) has installed a solar-power village electrification programme at Nafarganj village in the Basanti block. A Rs 250 crore rural electrification project is being implemented on the islands to provide the people of the area with power through non-conventional energy sources, as conventional grid supply is not feasible. [cite web | url = http://www.thestatesman.net/page.arcview.php?clid=6&id=102276&usrsess=1 | title = WBREDA asked to evolve power model for Sunderbans | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = "The Statesman", 14 April 2005]

90 per cent of the islands remain in darkness after sunset, although efforts are on to provide power to the islands. The state government had appointed the WBREDA as the nodal agency for its solar power project for the Sundarbans. Part of the project cost under the low cost non-conventional energy project was shared by the central government. There are two schemes under the project. Under the first, a small unit priced at Rs. 14,000 each was provided to domestic consumers who had to pay Rs. 3,000 for it while the rest was equally shared between the centre and the state. For the other, consumers have to pay Rs. 8,500 for a big unit while the central government provides a subsidy of Rs. 10,000 and the state shells out Rs. 5,500. [cite web | url = http://www.thestatesman.net/page.arcview.php?clid=23&id=9314&usrsess=1 | title = Sunderbans gropes in the dark | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = Ghosh | first = Kaushik | work = | publisher = "The Statesman", 7 March 2003]

Health

Dominique Lapierre's floating hospitals

Four launches with doctors carrying medicines, sophisticated portable X-ray and echo-cardiograph machines, provided by the French author Dominique Lapierre move along the waterways of the Sundarbans to its furthest corners. Residents of such places as Sandeshkhali, Basanti, Gosaba and Kultali have expressed their gratitude to him for his support when he came in 2004. [cite web | url = http://www.telegraphindia.com/1041130/asp/bengal/story_4066942.asp | title = Sundarbans gratitude to Lapierre | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = "The Telegraph", 30 November 2004] Since 1981, Lapierre has dedicated half of his royalty earnings from his books to sustain a humanitarian crusade in the slums of Kolkata and the deprived areas of rural Bengal. For his work, Lapierre was made a citizen of honour of Kolkata. [cite web | url = http://www.thestatesman.net/page.arcview.php?clid=22&id=72042&usrsess=1 | title = Lapierre comes with Kolkata in pocket | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = "The Statesman", 21 May 2004] [cite web | url = http://www.telegraphindia.com/1070325/asp/7days/story_7561727.asp
title = Writer’s Block | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = "The Telegraph", 25 March 2007]

Arsenic contamination

A study of the School of Environmental Studies, most of whose surveyors are Jadavpur University scholars, shows the extent of arsenic contamination in the ground water of South 24-Parganas is shocking. High levels of arsenic in ground water was found in 12 blocks of the district. Water samples collected from tubewells in the affected places contained arsenic above the normal level (10 microgram a litre as specified by the World Health Organisation). The affected blocks include Basanti. [cite web | url = http://www.thestatesman.net/page.arcview.php?clid=23&id=183781&usrsess=1 | title = High arsenic levels in South | accessdate = 2007-09-22 | last = | first = | work = | publisher = "The Statesman", 15 May 2007]

References

ee also