The country’s largest coastal lagoon Chilika is set to get World Heritage Site status.
The Odisha Government is preparing a Detailed Project Report (DPR) to develop the Chilika lake into a World Heritage Site in collaboration with the Unesco and the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC).
Forest and Environment Secretary Suresh Chandra Mohapatra said this after a meeting with Unesco Chief Representative to India Shigeru Aoyagi and the ONGC HRD Director here on Tuesday.
“The ONGC proposed to provide the necessary funds required in this regard. Preparations to finalise the plan might take a year as we have to hold consultations with all the stakeholders associated with the ecosystem, after which strategy and implementation will be decided upon,” Mohapatra said.
The ONGC has already funded Rs 5 crore for the initial stage of the project preparation. Shigeru Aoyagi also assured that they would be very happy to declare the Chilika as a Unesco World Heritage Site.
Efforts are on to initiate process of taking short- and long-term measures to conserve the lake and nominate it for the Uneso tag. The Unesco has also proposed to set up a world-class conservation centre with a climate change observatory and state-of-the-art data and monitoring facilities.
Notably, measures including income generation and welfare activities in the lake area, improvement in the livelihood of the fishing community, protection of ecosystem and sustainable development have to be efficiently taken to earn the label of the heritage tag.
The Chilika is one of the most important natural ecosystem filled with rich biodiversity including fisheries, birds, reptiles and several other species of flora and fauna. It is not only the second largest brackish water lagoon in the world but also the largest wintering ground for migratory birds on the Indian subcontinent.
Besides, it is also the first Indian wetland of international importance to be included under the Ramsar Convention in 1981.