While Bengal waits for the election results on Monday, many in pockets of the Sundarbans are hoping to return safely from the forests after fishing, catching crabs or collecting honey.

Several fishermen who cast their votes on Wednesday said elections come and go, but life in the Sundarbans remains unchanged for them.

Every time these fishermen venture into the creeks snaking through the forests, they risk tiger attacks. Yet, with few alternative sources of income, they have little choice but to return to the waters.

In the Sundarbans, stories of loss and survival reflect how families living on the fringes of the forests are pushed into danger by the lack of alternative livelihoods.

"There is no job to sustain livelihood here. There is no attempt from the government to provide income. So, the choice is either to go to the forests or other states," said Gour Mondal, 58, who had survived a tiger attack in 2024.

Gour, a resident of Chhoto Molla Khali in Gosaba block of South 24-Parganas, had gone into the forest in the Jhila area early on August 17 to catch crabs. He was accompanied by two others, Manoranjan Mondal and Jhontu Mondal.

They were dipping sticks with crab feed in the tip as bait in a dense forest. Suddenly, the tiger jumped onto the boat and hit Gour with a paw on the right side of his face, and the oar fell out of his hand.

Gour and the tiger fell into waist-deep water. The animal bit him on the neck, leaving him nearly unconscious. He first shoved the tiger with his elbow. Though the tiger released him, it lunged again at his neck.

The struggle continued for a few minutes before his two companions, initially frozen in shock, rowed the boat towards Gour. The tiger fled after they struck it with oars.

“I cannot hear in one ear, and I cannot carry weight on my head or shoulder because of the injury,” said Gour. “But I still have to go fishing in the river because I need to earn a living.”

A voter in the Gosaba constituency, Gour got his finger inked on Wednesday.

"The state government, whoever comes to power, has to ensure livelihood for fishermen of the delta," he said.

Montu Biswas, 58, a resident of Kantamari in Kultali block of South 24-Parganas, said he has been fishing for more than 30 years and has lost count of the number of people he knew who either died or suffered critical injuries in tiger attacks.

“I escaped the jaws of a Royal Bengal Tiger 15 or 16 years ago. Tigers have attacked more than 30 people I used to fish with,” he said.

One of them was Akbar Ali Shiekh from Canning.

One morning about 12 years ago, Biswas had tea with Sheikh on a boat in a creek. “Later, during high tide, we went to another creek in the Chamta Dhutrakhali forest. We had caught some crabs when we heard people shouting. We rowed for 15 to 20 minutes to the spot where fishermen said a tiger had taken Sheikh,” Biswas recalled.

"We are forced to go into the forest because there is not enough work to sustain our families. Some government schemes are there, but those are only on record," he said.

His wife gets ₹1,500 a month from the Lakshmir Bhandar scheme. That is not enough, he said. "Votes come and go, and the leaders make promises. Nothing changes."

The Association for the Protection of Democratic Rights (APDR), a human rights organisation, said more than 200,000 people in the Sundarbans were fishermen and depended on the forest for fish, crabs and honey.

"Over the years, a road network has been built, but enough employment opportunities have not been created. There are odd jobs to do, but they cannot sustain families. Many from this region work as migrant labourers in different parts of India," said Mithun Mondal, assistant secretary of the APDR in South 24-Parganas.

“Some people own small plots of land, but most are landless,” he added.

According to Mondal, the state government had announced a monthly allowance of ₹5,000 for every fisherman for May, June and July when fishing is prohibited.

“However, the payments have not been released for the past three years,” he said.

The Trinamool Congress MLA from Kulatlai, and this year's candidate, Ganesh Chandra Mondal, blamed the BJP-ruled Centre for this.

"The Centre's 100-day work programme has been stalled since 2021. We gave ₹1.2 lakh to many people as part of a housing scheme," said Mondal.