As many as 122 fishermen were arrested in Kendrapada district for unlawful fishing at the Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary, forest officials said on Sunday.
Personnel of the Coast Guard, as part of its annual mission "Operation Olivia", intercepted the trawlers near Satabhaya and arrested the fishermen. As many as 14 trawlers and fish finder machines, fishing nets and other accessories were seized from the motorised boats.
The arrested persons were handed over to forest officials. They would be sent to jail under provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and the Orissa Marine Fishing Regulation Act, 1982, sources said.
It may be mentioned that a prohibition on sea fishing is in force within the marine sanctuary. Sea patrolling is stepped up in the sanctuary from November to May every year in view of the annual mass nesting season of the
endangered Olive Ridley sea turtles.
Earlier this month, decomposed carcasses of Olive Ridley turtles had been spotted along the 15-km beach stretch from the Nehru Bungalow to river Jatadhari in Jagatsinghpur district. The dead turtles were found floating off the Paradip coast which is close to the Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary, the protected area for nesting of the turtles.
Forest officials had attributed the turtle deaths to the illegal fishing and trespassing of mechanised boats in the restricted zone.