Ganjam: It seems the sea is eating into land surface from Gokharkuda of Ganjam block to Prayagi and Arjipalli on the south. More precisely, the Rushikulya river bank is eroding day by day and the entire area from the river bank up to Bateswar Shaiva Peeth (temple) has started losing its existence.
According to environmentalists, the relentless cutting down of casuarinas (Jhaun) trees from the nearby areas along the Rushikulya river bank is causing loss of forest cover and in turn erosion of the river bank. Reportedly, the wood mafias are involved in such activities and they are using the chopped trees for commercial purposes.
If this trend continued in the future, the sea might gobble up nearby areas. According to local villagers, the nearby seashore areas have been eroding since 2007. Worthy to note, some 142 families of fishermen from Podampeta area were shifted to other places when the seashore eroded in 2007.
Shockingly, the protected Olive Ridley turtles coming to Ganjam seashore every year for laying eggs en masse have now started shunning the area because they could not climb up the huge ridges of sand dunes created by high tides.
To prevent the forest cover from further diminishing, the Forest department has started planting thousands of casuarina saplings along the seashore, the department’s sources said.
However, the local villagers and nature lovers of Ganjam district have strongly resented the relentless cutting down of casuarinas and demanded stringent action against the culprits.
PNN
