Saint Martin's Island () is a small

coral island A coral island is a type of island formed from coral detritus and associated organic material. It occurs in tropical and sub-tropical areas, typically as part of a coral reef which has grown to cover a far larger area under the sea. The term low ...

in the north-eastern part of the

Bay of Bengal The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. Geographically it is positioned between the Indian subcontinent and the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese peninsula, located below the Bengal region. Many South Asian and Southe ...

, about 9 km south of the tip of the

Cox's Bazar Cox's Bazar (; ; ) is a city, fishing port, tourism centre, and Cox's Bazar District, district headquarters in south-eastern Bangladesh. Cox's Bazar Beach, one of the most popular tourist attractions in Bangladesh, is the longest uninterrupte ...

Teknaf Teknaf () is a municipality of Teknaf Upazila of Cox's Bazar District in south-eastern Bangladesh. It forms the southernmost point in mainland Bangladesh ( St. Martin's Island is the southernmost point). The name of the region comes from the Naf ...

peninsula, and forms the southernmost part of

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

. It has an area of only 3 km². A small adjoining island that is separated at high tide, called Chhera Dwip, is about west of the northwest coast of

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

, at the mouth of the

Naf River The Naf River ( ''Naf Nodi'' ; ; ) is an international river marking part of the Bangladesh–Myanmar border, border of southeastern Bangladesh and northwestern Myanmar. Geography The Naf's average depth is , and maximum depth is . Its width ...

. St. Martin's Island is Bangladesh's only

. A nine-month tourist restriction on St. Martin's Island has been imposed which is to start from February 1, 2025. Currently, only the Cox’s Bazar-St. Martin route remains open amid Myanmar border tensions.

History and description

Millennia ago, the island used to be an extension of the Teknaf peninsula, but as a portion of the peninsula was flooded by the Bay of Bengal and submerged, the southernmost part of the peninsula became an island. The island was first settled in the 18th century by Arabian merchants, who named it "Jazira". During British occupation, the island was named after the then Deputy Commissioner of Chittagong, Mr. Martin, as St. Martin's Island. Local names of the island are "Narikel Jinjira ," which means "

Coconut Island Coconut Island may refer to: * Coconut Island (Florida) * Coconut Island (Hawaii Island), in Hilo Bay * Coconut Island (Oahu Island), in Kaneohe Bay * Coconut Island (Queensland) * another name for St. Martin's Island, Bangladesh See also ...

," and "Daruchini Dip," which means "Cinnamon Island".

Administration

The island makes up the Saint Martin's

Union Parishad Union council (), also known as union parishad, rural council, rural union and simply union, is the smallest rural administrative and local government unit in Bangladesh, with zila parishads (district councils) being the largest rural authori ...

. It has 9 villages/areas: * Paschim Para (Western Neighbourhood) * Deil Para * Uttar Para (Northern Neighbourhood) * Majher Para (Middle Neighbourhood) * Purba Para (Eastern Neighbourhood) * Konar Para (Edge Neighbourhood) * Nazrul Para (Neighbourhood of Nazrul) * Golachipa (literally "narrow neck") * Dakkhin Para (Southern Neighbourhood)

Inhabitants

The island's economy is primarily based on fishing, which supports the majority of its roughly 3,700 inhabitants. The other staple crops are rice and coconut. Being very common on the island,

algae Algae ( , ; : alga ) is an informal term for any organisms of a large and diverse group of photosynthesis, photosynthetic organisms that are not plants, and includes species from multiple distinct clades. Such organisms range from unicellular ...

are collected, dried, and exported to Myanmar. Between October and April, the fishermen from neighbouring areas bring their caught fish to the island's temporary wholesale market. However, imports of chicken, meat and other foods come in from mainland Bangladesh and Myanmar. As the centre and the south are mainly farmland and makeshift huts, most of the permanent structures are around the far north of the island. During the rainy season, because of the dangerous conditions on the Bay of Bengal, the inhabitants are unable to travel to mainland (

), leaving the island isolated. There is a hospital on the island, but in the past there has often been no doctor.

Biological diversity and bioprospecting potential

Research by the Bangladesh Department of Environment (DoE), with the assistance of the

UNDP The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human development. The UNDP emphasizes on developing local capacity towar ...

, demonstrates that the island has a number of ecosystems, including coral-rich areas, mangroves, lagoons and stony areas. The island is a safe haven to various species of fauna. The presence of 153 species of sea weeds, 66 species of

coral Corals are colonial marine invertebrates within the subphylum Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact Colony (biology), colonies of many identical individual polyp (zoology), polyps. Coral species include the important Coral ...

, 187 species of

oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but no ...

s, 240 species of

fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

, 120 species of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

s, 29 species of

reptile Reptiles, as commonly defined, are a group of tetrapods with an ectothermic metabolism and Amniotic egg, amniotic development. Living traditional reptiles comprise four Order (biology), orders: Testudines, Crocodilia, Squamata, and Rhynchocepha ...

s and 29 species of

mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three ...

s were recorded at the St Martin's Island in 2010. The area in vicinity has been declared as a

Marine Protected Area A marine protected area (MPA) is a protected area of the world's seas, oceans, estuaries or in the US, the Great Lakes. These marine areas can come in many forms ranging from wildlife refuges to research facilities. MPAs restrict human activity ...

in 2022. Marine sponges and their associated microbes produce an enormous array of antitumor, antiviral,

anti-inflammatory Anti-inflammatory is the property of a substance or treatment that reduces inflammation, fever or swelling. Anti-inflammatory drugs, also called anti-inflammatories, make up about half of analgesics. These drugs reduce pain by inhibiting mechan ...

, immunosuppressive,

antibiotic An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting pathogenic bacteria, bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the therapy ...

and other bioactive molecules. A total of 15 bacterial genera comprising 31 different bacterial species from the 9 collected marine sponges of the island. Among them ''

Bacillus subtilis ''Bacillus subtilis'' (), known also as the hay bacillus or grass bacillus, is a gram-positive, catalase-positive bacterium, found in soil and the gastrointestinal tract of ruminants, humans and marine sponges. As a member of the genus ''Bacill ...

'' strains WS1A and YBS29 have great probiotic potential. It can produce antimicrobial compounds and prevent motile ''Aeromonas'' septicemia disease (a major fish disease in Bangladesh) of Rohu (''

Labeo rohita The rohu, rui, ruhi or roho labeo (''Labeo rohita'') is a species of fish of the carp family, found in rivers in South Asia. It is a large omnivore and extensively used in aquaculture. Description The rohu is a large, silver-colored fish o ...

''). ''Bacillus subtilis'' strains WS1A and YBS29 produce different types of antimicrobial peptides. Fish (''Labeo rohita'') fed with extracellular products of ''Bacillus subtilis'' strains WS1A and YBS29 develop complete disease resistance. The metabolites and bioactive compounds derived from marine sponges and sponge microbes also afford abundant potential for pharmaceutical and biotechnological applications.

Transportation

The only way to reach Saint Martin Island is by water transportation: boats and ships (mostly for tourists) from Cox Bazar and

. It is the southernmost union of Bangladesh situated 120 km away from Cox's Bazar city. The internal transport for the island is battery-driven auto rickshaw, bike or bi-cycle. The roads are made of concrete, and their condition is decent. Most hotels run generators until 11 PM which is not allowed afterward, so they rely on solar power, which is popular throughout the island. There had been no electricity supply from the national grid since a hurricane in 1991 but now the electricity supply is decent and many shops and resorts also use diesel generator or solar panels to meet the demand.

Tourism

Saint Martin Island has become a tourist spot, and eight shipping liners run daily trips to the island. Nowadays, tourist has become friendly to Eco tourism. Tourists can book their trip either from

Chittagong Chittagong ( ), officially Chattogram, (, ) (, or ) is the second-largest city in Bangladesh. Home to the Port of Chittagong, it is the busiest port in Bangladesh and the Bay of Bengal. The city is also the business capital of Bangladesh. It ...

or from

. The surrounding coral reef has an extension named Chera Dwip. A small bush is there, which is the only green part. People do not live on this part, so it is advisable for the tourists to go there early and come back by afternoon. A number of efforts have been proposed to preserve the several endangered species of

turtle Turtles are reptiles of the order (biology), order Testudines, characterized by a special turtle shell, shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Crypt ...

s that nest on the island, as well as the

s, some of which are found only on Narikel Jinjira. Pieces of the coral reef are being removed to be sold to tourists. Nesting turtles are sometimes taken for food, and their hatchlings are often distracted by the twinkling lights along the beach. Fish, a few recently discovered, are being overfished. Every year the fishermen must venture further out to sea to get their catch. Most of them use motor-less boats. It is possible to walk around the island in a day because it measures only 8 km² (3 sq. mile), shrinking to about 5 km² (2 sq. mi) during high tide. The island is based on sedimentary rock. Its north-eastern side and southern-most part including Chhera Dwip is surrounded by sparse coral colonies. The sedimentary rocky reef surrounding the island is often misunderstood as ‘coral reef’ Saint Martin lost 70% of its coral reef between 1980 and 2018 due to anthropogenic factors. This is an estimation based on Geospatial Techniques. Field level research data in this regard is nearly non-existent.

Sovereignty dispute and shootings of St. Martin's fishermen

Fishing is one of largest professional activities of St. Martin's Island's 5,500 residents; however, territorial disputes between

and

have resulted in a state of tension between the countries that can erupt into violence, often targeting unarmed Bangladeshi fishermen. Below is a brief summary of shooting incidents against St. Martin's fishermen: * On October 7, 1998, between three and five Bangladeshi fishermen were killed by Burmese Navy forces just off the coast of St. Martin's Island. * On September 8, 1999, one Bangladeshi fisherman was shot and killed by Burmese Navy forces near Saint Martin Island. Nine crewmen from the victim's fishing boat abandoned it, swam for their lives, and were rescued by Bangladeshi forces. The Bangladeshi government lodged a formal protest note to

. * On August 20, 2000, the Bangladeshi police reported that Burmese border guards had shot and killed four Bangladeshi fishermen off the coast of St. Martin's Island. * In 2011

pirate Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and valuable goods, or taking hostages. Those who conduct acts of piracy are call ...

s attacked fishermen 5 km off the coast of Saint Martin Island and killed four of them. * On 6 October 2018, the Government of

updated its 2015-2018 map of Myanmar Information Management Unit showing St. Martin as a part of their sovereign territory and spread the maps in two global websites. Following the event, the Myanmar Ambassador in Dhaka was summoned by the Government of Bangladesh on 6 October 2018. Rear Admiral (retd) M Khurshed Alam, maritime affairs secretary at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Bangladesh handed over a strongly worded protest note to him. The Myanmar envoy said it was a "mistake" to show the Saint Martin Island as part of his country's territory. * On June 11 2024, an unidentified armed group from Myanmar fired upon an island-bound speed boat along the Naf River. Moreover, warships belonging to Myanmar are now visible from Saint Martin’s.

Climate and weather

The best weather is usually between November and February; this is the major tourist season. Between March and July, cyclones can strike. The island was devastated by a cyclone in 1991 but has fully recovered, and was untouched by the 2004 tsunami. March to July is off-season for tourists.

Gallery

File:Keya Tree of Saint Martin Island.JPG, Keya Tree (''

Pandanus odorifer ''Pandanus odorifer'' is an aromatic monocot species of plant in the family Pandanaceae, native to Polynesia, Australia, South Asia (Andaman Islands), and the Philippines, and is also found wild in southern India and Burma. It is commonly known a ...

'') of Saint Martin's Island File:Saint Martin's Island.JPG, East view of Saint Martins Island File:Coconut garden Saint Martins Island.jpg, Coconut garden Saint Martins Island File:Light house at St. Martin's Island.jpg, Light house of St. Martin's Island Saint Martin (6).jpg, Boats at St. Martin's Island

References

Sources

* Islam, M. Z. 2001. First Reef Check Survey in Bangladesh. Reef Check Newsletter, Volume-6, Issue 2, August 2006. * Islam, M. Z. 2005. St. Martin Pilot Project, National Conservation Strategy (NCS) Implementation Project-1, Final Report, Ministry of Environment & Forest, Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh, 2001, 119 pp. * Marinelife Alliance, 2016. Final Report: Conservation of Sea Turtle along Bangladesh Coastal & Marine Territory, under Strengthening Regional Protection for Wildlife Protection Project (SRCWPP), Bangladesh Forest Department, Project ID-W2-06, 2013. 2016 Dec, 112 Pg.

External links

* * * * * {{Beaches in Bangladesh Islands of Bangladesh Islands of the Bay of Bengal Teknaf Upazila Coral islands Populated places in Bangladesh Car-free islands of Asia