CHENNAI: The nesting season for olive ridley turtles has begun on a sad note, with conservationists sighting at least 13 dead turtles along the Marina-Neelankarai stretch on Monday night.
This, many activists say, is mainly because the fisheries department has not effectively monitored the movement of trawlers within a five nautical mile radius of the shore after a Madras high court-ordered ban came into force on January 1.
Students Sea Turtle Conservation Network (SSTCN) volunteer AkilaBalu said most fishermen did not use turtle excluding devices as mandated by the court. "This turtle season has begun with fewer nests and more dead turtles washing ashore," she said.
Part of the problem, another conservationist said, was that there was no clarity on who would monitor the movement of trawlers. Conservationists had wanted the entire stretch to be declared out of bounds for trawlers as turtles moved along it, but the order only said a portion of the east coast in each state be declared a 'no fishing' zone..
When contacted, fisheries director Beula Rajesh said: "We are taking all measures to ensure their (turtle's) safety from fishing vessels and gear that posed a threat to their life."
The department has notified turtle nesting and breeding areas along the shore and joint patrolling with the forest department and coastal security group is being taken up to ensure no vessel is allowed to fish in the restricted area, she said.
Chennai Wildlife Warden K Geethanjali said the forest department's role was to ensure turtles coming to the shore to lay eggs did so without any disturbance. "Our guards and watchers undertake night patrols from Marina to Neelankarai. This season not many nests have been sighted by our staff," she said.
A couple of weeks ago, a stakeholder meeting was convened by the forest department with the Chennai collector, fishermen and officials from the fisheries department. The departmernt is also taking up beach cleaning work once a week to ensure the sands are clear of non-bio degradable material, which pose a serious threat to turtles, she said.
The department will also register cases against those creating trouble for nesting turtles as well as those who remove the eggs from the nests, she added.
