The Odisha Traditional Fish Workers’ Union (OTFWU) has strongly condemned the proposed Sagarmala project by the Union Shipping Ministry.
Expressing concern that the project threatens to wipe out the livelihood of lakhs of fishermen in Odisha while causing extensive damage to the marine ecosystem, the union urged the Prime Minister, the President, the Odisha Governor and Chief Minister for their intervention to scrap the project.
The OTFWU alleged that the unilateral decision by the Centre to create an exclusive shipping corridor 15 to 20 nautical miles from the coastline (the main ground where fishing operations are carried out in both traditional method and using mechanized boats) under the Sagaramala project aims to protect the interest of commercial shipping companies by sidelining interests of fishermen.
Further, the sudden upsurge of mindless commercial activities in the Odisha coastline will negatively impact the coastal eco system, particularly the endangered Olive Ridley turtles and seasonal migratory birds which are a major attraction for nature lovers in the region, it said.
The union also protested the new Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ), issued in April with the intention to facilitate easy implementation of the Sagarmala project.
“This new CRZ draft suggests decreasing the buffer zone area up to 50 metres from the high tide line (HTL) as against the 2011 CRZ rules that allowed for buffer zone 500 metres from the HTL,” it said.
The new CRZ would further lead to ecological damage of areas classified as ‘most sensitive coastal zones’ where no development activities were being permitted until now and hence it be banned, demanded the OTFWU.
