River banks

By Kieran

 Where have all the mangroves gone?

 

Loose watercolor of a riverbank and original poem by Kieran Gonsalves (c) 2025, saddened by the marauding of Goa’s mangroves in the name of development


Something’s amiss! Gone are the mangroves, gone too are the fish!
 
So too the stork-billed Kingfisher dive bombing... Oh, how I wish 
 
 
It all started with the big lie about mosquitoes in the mangroves
 
Get rid of the mangroves, and voila! Tourists will come in droves
 
 
Our ancestors knew the mangroves were essential for biodiversity 
 
To view them as a nuisance is an abomination, sheer perversity 
 
 
These waters used to be crystal clear, now it's muddy red with erosion
 
With no fish to be found, the wildlife soon experienced an implosion 
 
 
Gone are Shevtto mullet - they no longer come to shelter and breed
 
There are no shrimps, crabs or catfish - all gone due to man’s greed
 
 
The poor ramponkar fisherman can barely catch enough for his own needs
 
Developers in cahoots with politicians have profiteered from these misdeeds

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