Water Resources Department Secretary Pradeep Jena on Wednesday said natural processes would be followed to check the erosion of the Puri beach caused by surging sea waves.
“No artificial structures will be constructed on the beach to reduce the erosion as it will affect the scenic beauty of the coast,” said Jena.
Meanwhile, an expert team of the IIT Madras has visited the beach erosion side near the Swrgadwar.
“The expert team from IIT, Madras will give us suggestions after studying various aspects of the erosion. We are mainly focusing on natural processes to rebuild the beach,” said Jena.
“We have started dredging the Mangala river mouth once again which was halted due to rains. It will take another seven to eight days to complete the process. We expect this will help rebuild the beach at the Swargadwar,” Jena added.
“If the process helps in the beach rebuilding process then we will not follow any artificial methods to check the erosion,” Jena informed.
Notably, a large portion of the beach in Puri has been swallowed by violent tidal waves creating fear among tourists and local people. Many spots have been red flagged off by the administration restricting entry of tourists into the sea. Vendors on the beach have been asked to shift out of the place.