Times of India 30 Jun 09;
BHUBANESWAR: The state government has done nothing much to protect the endangered Olive Ridley turtles on the Orissa coast, according to the Greenpeace. In the assessment of this international environmental watchdog body, there lies a big gap between government rhetorics and actual work done in the field.
The reaction came in its evaluation report on the government's performance in the 2008-09 season (November-May). Turtle mortality figures are set to touch nearly 15,000, it said.
"While some steps have been taken, there remains a yawning gap between the measures on paper and action on the ground," the Greenpeace said in a release issued here on Tuesday. It said in 2008-09 about 7,162 turtle carcasses had been found on the Chilika-Paradip stretch alone."
This is above the average turtle mortality of 6,280 recorded in the past six seasons, but a marginal decline of eight percent when compared to mortality figures from 2007-2008 in the Devi region.
"Taken together with mortality figures, south of Chilika, in Gahirmatha and north of the Dhamra river mouth, including the Udabali Islands, the mortality in the state is once again likely to be 14,000-15,000," the release said.
Greenpeace asked the government to involve local and independent organizations in its exercise to monitor turtle mortality with "transparency and greater accuracy". It also mentioned 473 incidents of trawler violations during the "critical phase of the turtle season (November to February), resulting in largescale turtle deaths and severe hardship for traditional fishermen communities.
