Sandeshkhali I

Sandeshkhali I
Community development block
Coordinates: 22°27′16″N 88°50′45″E / 22.454532°N 88.845834°E / 22.454532; 88.845834
Country India
StateWest Bengal
DistrictNorth 24 Parganas
Government
  TypeRepresentative democracy
Area
  Total
182.30 km2 (70.39 sq mi)
Elevation
7 m (23 ft)
Population
 (2011)
  Total
164,465
  Density900/km2 (2,300/sq mi)
Languages
  OfficialBengali, English
Literacy (2011)
  Total literates100,978 (71.08%)
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN
743442 (Nazat)
Telephone/STD code03217
ISO 3166 codeIN-WB
Vehicle registrationWB-23, WB-24, WB-25, WB-26
Lok Sabha constituencyBasirhat
Vidhan Sabha constituencySandeshkhali
Websitenorth24parganas.nic.in

The Hungry Tide
In the beginning…there was nothing but forests here. There were no people, no embankments, no fields. Just kada and bada, mud and mangrove. At high tide most of the land vanished under water. And everywhere you looked there were predators tigers, crocodiles, sharks, leopards…This was a time when people were so desperate for the land that they were willing to sell themselves for a bigha or two.

Sandeshkhali I is a community development block that forms an administrative division in Basirhat subdivision of North 24 Parganas district in the Indian state of West Bengal.