St. Martin Island is a small coral island (only 8 square kilometers) located in the northeastern part of the Bay of Bengal, the southernmost part of Bangladesh. It is located about 9 km south of Teknaf in Cox's Bazar district and 8 km west of the coast of Myanmar at the mouth of Naf River. Locally it is also called Coconut Jinjira because of the abundance of coconuts available.It is a name widely known to the sea lovers of Bangladesh. Famous writer, fiction writer Humayun Ahmed's full-length movie titled Daruchini Dwip increased the popularity of this island.
On January 04, 2022, 1,743 sq. km of Bay of Bengal adjacent to St. Martin's Island was protected under the Wildlife (Conservation and Security) Act, 2012. The Ministry of Environment declared the area as a marine protected area.
History
It is not known when this island was first discovered by man. Some early Arab traders named the island Jinjira. It is to be noted that they used this island for rest while traveling from Chittagong to Southeast Asia. Over time the people of Chittagong and adjacent areas knew this island as Jinjira.Around 1890 AD, some Bengali and Rakhine people came to settle on the island. They were mainly fishermen. As far as is known, 13 families were the first settlers. They chose the northern part of the island. Over time, this island became a Bengali-dominated area. The island already had kea and scrub. Perhaps the Bengali fishermen planted a large number of coconut trees on the island as a means of relief from water stress and fatigue. Over time the entire island became a 'Coconut Tree Main' island. Based on this, the locals started calling the northern part of the island as Coconut Jinjira.
Around 1900 AD, the British Survey team accepted this island as part of British-India. In the survey they gave the name Saint Martin after a Christian Saint Martin instead of a local name. Thereafter, to people outside the region, the island became known as Saint Martin.According to Sheikh Bakhtiar Uddin, Professor of Botany, University of Chittagong, when the island was annexed to British India in 1900 AD, the island was named after the Deputy Commissioner of Chittagong, Martin. The naming of the island after a saint does not seem to be accurate history as the island has no Christian settlement and no church.
Geographical extent
St. Martins Island has an area of about 8 square kilometers and is long from north to south. The three sides of the island are bedrock that sinks at high tide and rises at low tide. If they are taken, its area will be about 10-15 square kilometers. This island is about 5.63 km long in north and south. The width of the island is sometimes 700 meters and sometimes 200 meters. On the east, south and west sides of the island there are innumerable rock piles far out into the sea. The average height of St. Martins Island above sea level is 3.6 meters. About 10-15 km of coral reef covers the west-northwest side of St. Martins. Geographically it is divided into three parts. The northern part is called Narikael Jinjira or North Para. The southern part is called the Dakshin Para and is connected to it by a narrow tail-like area extending towards the southeast. And the narrowest part is known as Galachipa. To the south of the island there is a small island of 100 to 500 square meters in area locally known as Chheradia or Siradia/Chhera Dwip. It is a deserted island. The island is walkable at low tide. But a boat is required during high tide.
Topography
The topography of the island of St. Martins is mainly flat. But some sandbars are seen. The main structural material of this island is limestone. Both the northern and southern parts of the island have swamps almost in the middle. They are rich in fresh water and are conducive to crop production. The island produces some agricultural products. But it is very insignificant compared to the requirement.
About 66 species of corals, 187 species of snails and mussels, 153 species of seaweed, 157 species of cryptic plants, 240 species of marine fish, 4 species of amphibians and 120 species of birds are found in St. Martins Island. Sea weeds or Algae, locally known as pejala, are abundant in St. Martins.They are of different species but Red Algae is the most popular worldwide. There are also 19 species of mammals. Invertebrates include sponges, shell crabs, hermit crabs, lobsters, etc. Fish include angel fish, butterfly fish, bole coral, Ranga kai, needle fish, red fish, flying fish etc. The place is known as a nesting ground for sea turtles, green sea turtles and green sea turtles.
Resident
Around 100 to 125 years ago, people settled here. Currently, more than seven thousand people live here.[citation needed] The population of the island is growing rapidly. The main occupation of the residents here is fishing. Tourists and hoteliers mainly buy fish from them. Small fish are spread on mats, brown fish are spread on sand and large fish are blown along the belly to dry in lofts. In addition, many islanders trade in fish, coconuts, pejala and oysters[citation needed]. Also some people make a living through shops. Small children sell seaweed collected from the island to tourists. A lot of coconuts and dabs are sold all over the island of St. Martins. Bengali-speaking Rohingyas from Arakan, Myanmar are often seen in the island region.
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