Nature's paradise is Saint Martin Island
The only atoll island in Bangladesh is one of the top attractions in the country, St. Martin's Island. Saint Martin is a small island in the ocean at the mouth of the Naf River, about 120 km from the district town of Cox's Bazar, Chittagong Division, about 8 km south of Teknaf in Cox's Bazar, about 9 km west of the Myanmar coast. The island is 7.3 kilometers long and has an area of about 8 square kilometers. This island is also called 'Coconut Jinjira'. Apart from the main island, there is another small island known as 'Cheradweep'. This isolated island can be reached at any time of the day by trawler or speedboat from St. Martin's jetty. Besides, bicycles or motorcycles are available for rent from St. Martin's Market. As there is no food and accommodation in Chheradeep, dry food has to be taken along with water.
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| Saint Martin Island |
It is not known when this island was first identified by man. Some early Arab traders named the island Jinjira. It is noted that they used to rest on this island 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 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-sickness 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. Then gradually to people outside the region, the island came to be known as Saint Martin. The topography of the island of St. Martins is mainly flat. But some sandbars are seen. The main constituent 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. Living arrangements for St. Martin permanent residents are very simple and conservative. At present, St. Martin's Union, consisting of nine wards, has a population of about 7,000. When the winter comes, you can see the rush of tourists to St. Martin. Saint Martin is open to tourists for the next four months from November every year. During this time, an average of 3-4 thousand tourists come to visit Saint Martin. Then the locals make a living by serving the tourists. The rest of the year the sea catches fish and the months are dry. There is some agricultural production on the island but it is negligible compared to the needs.
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| Saint Martin Island |
The beach or island is always loved by everyone. The roaring of the sea and the cool breeze make everyone's heart flutter. A different kind of thrill is created within oneself. The wonderful combination of sea and blue sky can be seen there. Only blue and blue as far as the eye can see. The blue of the sky and the sea are united there. The gangchil flying in sync with the ships sailing from Teknaf to St Martin by sea will impress anyone. Gangchil Saint Martin will seem to welcome you. Here the shallow long beach, sea corals, rhythm of ocean waves fascinates everyone. Rows of beautiful coconut trees sway in lush leaves. Fishing trawlers moored on the beach, crabs on the beach, oysters - these are the characteristics of the island of St. Martin, which makes this small island indescribably beautiful. Jelly fish in clear water, various types of marine fish, turtles and corals are one of the attractions of the island. 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 Saint Martins Island.
Food is a bit more expensive in Saint Martin. Tourists who come here love to eat the delicious Dab here. There are a variety of Bangladeshi restaurants across St. Martin. Tourists have more demand for fish than meat. Sea crabs, lobsters and fishes are very popular among tourists. As the price of fish is not very high, tourists buy fresh fish and eat it fried or barbecued.
The popular tourist center is visited by 5 launches daily from mainland Bangladesh during the tourist season. St. Martins Island currently has several good residential hotels, government post bungalows and police outposts. The law and order situation in St. Martins Island is good. The Bangladesh government has declared 1743 square kilometers of Bay of Bengal adjacent to St. Martin's Island, a paradise of nature, as "St. Martin's Marine Protected Area". Various non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are working as partners of the government.
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