Bhubaneswar: The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) Thursday raked up the issue of the proposed plan of the Centre to launch sea plane facility for the Chilika Lake with the assurance of creating more avenues and employment for the locals.
The BJD legislators who spoke on the issue in the House attacked Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan for his optimism over the project and asked the House to consider batting for withdrawal of such a plan.
While speaking on the issue, party MLA Sanjay Das Burma said, “Chilika is a rare place in the world in terms of its virtue of ecological diversity. It is home to many migratory birds, more than 350 species of fish and other aquatic animals while more than two lakh fishermen families are dependent on it for its livelihood,”
He also added that the proposed plan can pose a threat to the ecology of the areas and such a plan should be withdrawal at the earliest citing the reason of the site as being a part of National Sanctuary.
Rajendra Sahu, Khurda MLA while raising his voice against the proposed project said that more than 250 types of migratory birds travel to the Manglajodi in the state and such a step proposed by the Centre to add the feature of sea plane in the Chilika lake can potentially harm the lake.
On the other side, Mahesh Sahu, Pallahara MLA from the party said that the assembly should not be wasting time to discuss the views of a Union minister on the issue. Later in the evening the Chilika Development Authority (CDA), also expressed their views anticipating adverse impact on the environment due to the proposed plan.
The Chief Executive of the CDA, Susanta Nanda said, “…In the opinion of the CDA, the operation of the sea plane and water aerodrome is likely to cause irrevocable damage to the ecosystem and livelihood of the population dependent on it. The cost involved from operation of sea plane seems to be outweigh the benefits likely to accrue. Legally it is also not feasible.”
