The Odisha government announced on Saturday that it has imposed a seven-month ban on sea fishing within a 20 km radius of the coastline at the mouths of river, namely, Dhamra, Devi, and Rusikulya. This measure is part of the state's annual conservation drive to protect the Olive Ridley sea turtles, officials confirmed. The ban is effective frriversom November 1 to May 31, in order to ensure safety of these endangered marine species during their crucial breeding and mating season.
It has been implemented in accordance with provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, and Sections 2, 7, and 4 of the Orissa Marine Fishing Regulation Act (OMFRA), 1982.
However, the fishing prohibition remains enforced year-round along the Gahirmatha coast, which has been accorded the status of a marine sanctuary due to its being the largest habitation corridor and congregation point for the turtles. An official explained that the strict, annual ban is necessary because these endangered creatures perish in large numbers, either by becoming entangled in fishing nets or by being struck by fishing trawler propellers.
To ensure strict compliance, a multi-layered patrolling exercise will be conducted, involving personnel from the forest, fisheries, and marine police departments, as well as the coast guard. Sudrashan Gopinath Yadav, Divisional Forest Officer of the Rajnagar Mangrove (Wildlife) Forest Division, stated that 61 on-shore and five off-shore camps have been established across the state’s four wildlife divisions—Bhadrak, Rajnagar, Puri, and Berhampur. Furthermore, armed police will support the patrolling teams, and five high-speed boats, 13 trawlers, and support boats have been deployed to intercept illegal marine fishing in the prohibited zones.
The ban is set to affect approximately 11,000 fishermen families, and to compensate for their lost income, the state government has decided to provide a one-off livelihood assistance of Rs 15,000 to each affected family. Despite this, the Odisha Traditional Fish Workers Union (OTFWU) is demanding that the compensation be increased to Rs 30,000 and that the scheme be expanded to include all families dependent on fishing-related work, such as small-time fish traders. K Yellayya, general secretary of the union, also called for a reduction of the ban period from seven months to five, and a reduction of the prohibited area from 20 km to just 5 km from the coast. The female turtles typically "invade" the nesting beaches late at night for laying eggs—a phenomenon known as 'Arribada'—and leave shortly after, with the hatchlings emerging 45–60 days later to grow without their mothers, a rare natural event.
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