Pankaj's Short Stories

The Rat Island 🌿

The people of the country were troubled by the damage caused by rats. The government of that country found a solution to get rid of the rats. As a solution, the government said that the rats present in the country will be released on an island. Foreigners can also release rats in large numbers on this island. They just have to pay a small amount. Slowly, rats started being released on that island. Everything was fine for a few months. But with the passage of time, the number of rats on that island increased to more than a lakh and their number kept increasing. That island was spread over just a few kilometers. It was as if the government had left them to die. There was neither rice nor wheat on that island. There were some coconut trees there and sand spread far and wide. Due to lack of food and a very large number, the rats went mad with hunger. The rats present in lakhs nibbled at other creatures living on that island and some rats were even nibbling at some parts of their own bodies. A team to release the rats reached there. They got very scared seeing the scene there. Lakhs of rats were looking angrily at the team. Lakhs of rats came forward to attack them. They tried to run away. But by then lakhs of rats attacked them and started gnawing. They started shouting loudly. After some time the shouting stopped. The government banned releasing rats on the island and the government was forced to completely ban going to that island. That island became famous as Rat Island. But a few days after this incident, a terrible storm came on that island and a large number of rats were killed. But some rats who had not gone mad and were good. Who somehow filled their stomachs by eating coconut leaves. They somehow reached the shore by floating. Due to rising water level, that island got submerged in the sea.